Enhanced UDP-galactose:glycoprotein galactosyl transferase activity in cultivated skin fibroblasts from patients with cystic fibrosis and its possible relationship to the pathogenesis of the disease. Homogenates of cultivated skin fibroblasts derived from patients with cystic fibrosis had a higher level of UDP-galactose:ovalbumin galactosyl transferase activity compared to fibroblasts derived from control subjects. The activity in control subjects was 1.82 +/- 0.43 nmol galactose transferred/hr/mg protein, whereas the activity in fibroblasts of patients was 2.95 +/- 0.77. The difference was significant at P less than 0.01. Activity in the fibroblasts of obligate heterozygotes was 2.15 +/- 0.60. The difference between the activities in fibroblasts of heterozygotes and patients was significant at P less than 0.05. The activity in control fibroblasts could be enhanced by basic polypeptides like polylysine, polyarginine, histone, and protamine but not by neutral or acidic polypeptides. Fibroblasts from patients released significantly higher amounts of a soluble form of the enzyme activity into the culture medium than control fibroblasts.


Improved method for detection of cystic fibrosis protein in serum using the LKB multiphor electrofocusing apparatus. We have developed an improved method for the detection of cystic fibrosis protein (CFP). The method employs the LKB Multiphor to electrofocus whole serum, instead of the apparatus used in previous studies. Two basic modifications were necessary: (1) a pH 2.5--10.0 gradient instead of a pH 5--10 gradient, and (2) constant power for focusing the serum proteins instead of constant voltage. The first modification ensured adequate dissolution of the CFP-IgG complexes (or other precursor complexes which may liberate CFP). The second modification ensured a linear gradient (between pH 3.8 and pH 9.2), excellent resolution in the pH 8--9 region, and the separation of CFP within 2 hr without overheating of the gel. Electrofocusing with the LKB Multiphor permits the detection of CFP in as many as 24 serum samples per gel. Results obtained from the analysis of 31 cystic fibrosis, 28 obligate heterozygote carrier, and 28 normal control sera indicate that CFP can be reproducibly and accurately detected in sera using the LKB Multiphor.


One pediatric burn unit's experience with sleepwear-related injuries. Review of the records of 678 children with acute injuries referred during an eight-year period to this burn unit indicated that flame burns from a single ignition source (50%) outranked scalds (27%) or house fires (12%) as causes of injury. There was no temporal trend in the rank pattern. The majority of these single-source flame injuries were severe and involved ignition of the child's clothing. From 1969 through 1973, sleepwear was the clothing involved in 32% of the instances. Since that time and coincident with promulgation of strict federal and state standards for flammability of children's night clothing, a dramatic decline in the number of children, referred with injuries of this type has taken place. It is probable that the single factor most important to the decline, in our experience with these injuries, is lower fabric flammability but, because our data may not be representative, corroboration is needed before one can exclude factors such as altered garment design, fire safety-related practices at home, or changing patterns of hospital referral.


Velocities of growth in vegetarian preschool children. The growth velocities (weight and length) of vegetarian preschool children were compared to norms established from the Harvard growth study. At first measurement vegetarian subjects weighed less and were shorter than expected from Harvard standards. Growth velocities of children under 2 years of age were depressed, while among those over the age of 2 growth velocities were generally comparable to Harvard norms. Vegetarian boys over age 2 exhibited a higher mean weight velocity. Macrobiotics' mean weight and length velocities were not significantly different from those of nonmacrobiotics before age 2. However, the mean weight velocity of macrobiotics over age 2 was significantly greater than the mean weight velocity of nonmacrobiotics over 2 years. Low growth velocities of vegetarian children are more apparent in infants under the age of 2. When breast-feeding, possibly inadequate supplemental feeding may be present past 6 months of age. Since it is then that the velocities are more likely to be depressed, this may be the most appropriate time for surveillance and possible intervention.


Polygraphic studies of normal infants during the first six months of life: III. Incidence of apnea and periodic breathing. The incidence of apnea and periodic breathing was studied in full-term infants between birth and 6 months of age. Apnea was defined as a pause equal to or exceeding six seconds, periodic breathing as two cessations of breathing within a 20-second period, each equal to or longer than three seconds but less than six seconds. Sleep and cardiopulmonary variables were monitored. Apnea was common in the normal full-term infant. The incidence of apnea was highest in the newborn period and apneas exceeding 15 seconds were limited to this age. A reduction in apnea incidence occurred between birth and 3 months of age; thereafter, the incidence remained unchanged. The majority of apneas occurred during active sleep (AS). Few minutes were classified as indeterminate; the number of apneas during these minutes was comparable to those during AS. The incidence of apneas during quiet sleep was low. Periodic breathing remained stable across the ages, occurring primarily in AS. Apnea exceeding 15 seconds in rare in infancy. The tabulation of shorter apnea may be of limited value in identifying infants at risk for abnormal apnea due to extreme variability among infants. The sleep-waking state of the infants must be considered in order to evaluate apnea counts.


Lipids in schoolchildren 6 to 17 years of age: upper normal limits. As part of a multiclinic U.S. National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute study of lipid levels of Americans, the University of Cincinnati studied a total school district's population. Out of a total of 8,906 eligible students from all grades, 6 to 17 years of age, 7,337 participated (82%). After fasting for 12 hours or more, plasma cholesterol and triglyceride levels were ascertained in 6,775 children. For white and black boys and girls, normal lipid values are given by age in both fasting and casual (nonfasting) states. This study group closely resembled a normal pediatric practice population, so that the values established may be used as baseline data for the practicing pediatrician. Since sex, race, and age are dominant sources for variations, care must be taken in the interpretation of minor changes that occur over time in a child.


Respiratory distress syndrome: echocardiographic assessment of cardiovascular function and pulmonary vascular resistance. Echocardiograms were performed for 82 preterm infants comprising 22 normal infants, 29 with mild respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), and 31 with severe RDS. Left ventricular systolic time intervals were measured from aortic valve echograms and right ventricular systolic time intervals from pulmonic valve echograms. Left ventricular performance seemed to be altered early in postnatal adaptation of preterm infants, but played no demonstrable role in the outcome of RDS. The right ventricular preejection period/right ventricular ejection time (RPEP/RVET) ratio was prolonged in 17 out of 31 patients with severe RDS, consistent with increased pulmonary vascular resistance or right ventricular dysfunction. Prolonged RPEP/RVET identified a subgroup with increased mortality and morbidity.


Measurement of intragastric oxygen concentration for the diagnosis of H-type tracheoesophageal fistula. The demonstration of an H-type tracheoesophageal fistula before surgical correction is frequently difficult. Currently utilized procedures are so irregularly successful that surgical exploration is sometimes necessary without prior demonstration of the fistula. A case is reported in which the diagnosis was made by measurement of intragastric oxygen concentration, which increased and declined in response to the endotracheal insuffation of 100% oxygen and room air, respectively. The fistula was subsequently demonstrated by barium esophagram and was successfully treated surgically. In the presence of the classic clinical triad (choking during feedings, abdominal distention, and pneumonitis), a positive intragastric oxygen test may be sufficient indication for surgical exploration.


Accumulation of carbon dioxide in oxygen hoods, infant cots, and incubators. The concentration of carbon dioxide in the air of oxygen hoods, infant cots, and incubators was found to be as high as 1% v/v (30 times the "fresh air" level of about 320 microliter/liter). The physiological and clinical implications of the consequent long-term exposure of infants to atmospheres of such composition are discussed.


Times of first void and first stool in 500 newborns. The times of the first stool and the first void were recorded for 500 infants. The population studied was defined in terms of gestational age, maternal premedication, and mode of delivery. The results are presented in tabular form by time segments with term, preterm, and postterm infants treated separately.


Prolonged retention of foreign bodies in the stomach. Two patients had prolonged retention of small round foreign bodies in the stomach. Both patients had a history of a pyloromyotomy. Radiographic examination revealed a prepyloric web in one patient and a deformed pylorus in the other. These findings were confirmed by surgery.


Intravenous administration of kanamycin and gentamicin in newborn infants. The pharmacokinetics of kanamycin and gentamicin were studied after intramuscular (IM) and intravenous (IV) (constant infusion over 20 minutes) administration in newborn infants. The serum concentrations, half-lives, area-under-the-curve values, and volumes of distribution were similar for each drug after both routes of administration. Based on these pharmacological similarities, it is likely that these aminoglycosides can be given safely and effectively as constant IV infusions to neonates in whom IM injections are not feasible.


Nonoperative management of splenic trauma in children: a report of six consecutive cases. Postsplenectomy sepsis, although infrequent, is real and hazardous. We have taken a nonoperative approach to the child with a ruptured spleen who is in stable condition. Six consecutive patients with a diagnosis confirmed by angiography or scan were treated without surgery. The results suggest the usefulness of this approach in the child who is not bleeding massively.


Giardiasis in day-care centers: evidence of person-to-person transmission. In August and September 1975, an outbreak of diarrhea occurred in children 1 to 3 1/2 years old attending a day-care center. An investigation revealed overlapping epidemics of shigellosis and giardiasis, with 54% of the children infected with Giardia lamblia. At two other centers 29% and 38% of the children had G. lamblia infection, but none had Shigella. The prevalence of G. lamblia in the day-care children was significantly higher than the 2% prevalence in age-matched children not in day-care centers. Epidemiologic data suggested fecal-oral transmission of the parasite from child to child in the centers and from infected children to other family members.


Nasopharyngitis and the sudden infant death syndrome. Infants who died of SIDS in Onondaga County (New York) were classified into a Nasopharyngitis Group (N = 59) or a No Nasopharyngitis Group (N = 57) on the basis of symptoms, within one week prior to death, referable to the upper respiratory tract. Examination of the postnatal age of death revealed that infants in the Nasopharyngitis Group tended to be older than those in the No Nasopharyngitis Group. These results are consistent with a prediction derived from the hypothesis that prolonged sleep apnea is part of a pathophysiologic process resulting in SIDS.


Mathematical model for assimilation and contrast in perception of extent. A mathematical model for assimilation and contrast in the perception of extent is presented, and predictions generated from the model are empirically tested. Implications of the model for the Müller-Lyer illusion are dealt with explicitly, and implications of the model for the Delboeuf, Ebbinghaus, and other illusions of extent are discussed in general terms.


Stroop effect: interference and facilitation with verbal and manual responses. Two groups of 12 volunteers manually (button pushing) or verbally identified the ink color of 5, randomly ordered and tachistoscopically presented, kinds of stimulus conditons, specified by the nature of the noncolor information and the relationship between color and noncolor information: Congruent Color Words, Noncolor Words, Scrambled Color Words, Nonword Geometric Shapes, and Noncongruent Color Words. With verbal response, facilitation of reaction time occurred for Congruent Color Words compared to Scrambled Color Words and Noncolor Words but not when compared to the Nonword Control, while with manual response facilitation appeared for all comparisons. Interference appeared for both groups, with Noncongruent Color Words having the slowest reaction time. The present design corrected for inadequacies in previous studies and more firmly established the conclusion of parallel perceptual processing of color and noncolor information, with facilitation/interference effects being localized in postperceptual decision operations of signal summation and response competition.


Relationship between birth weight and perceptual motor performance in children. A perceptual-motor performance test (jumping, skipping, balancing, walking) was administered to 150 5- and 6-yr.-old children categorized according to birth weight. Differences were found among the three birth-weight groups, with the children of low birth weight scoring significantly lower than the groups of medium and high birth weight. A substantial positive correlation of .75 was obtained between birth weight and the perceptual-motor performance (total number of items passed).


Interaction between auditory and oral sensory feedback in speech regulation. To investigate the interaction between the auditory and oral sensory feedback modalities during speech production lingual vibrotactile thresholds were obtained from subjects in the following conditions: (1) before and after speech production with normal auditory feedback, (2) before and after speech production under exposure to auditory masking, and (3) before and after exposure to auditory masking without performing speech tasks. In addition duration measurements were obtained for selected speech sounds to investigate temporal changes in the articulatory patterns of subjects in the various conditions. Lingual sensory decreases and temporal reorganization were observed only in subjects speaking under auditory masking. These data suggest a balanced interaction between auditory and oral sensory feedback modalities which, when disturbed, results in non-phonemic change in speech production.


Evaluation of a media campaign's effect on reporting patterns of child abuse. In an effort to determine what effect a media campaign had on child-abuse reporting patterns, pre-campaign measures were contrasted with post-campaign measures. The mean number of reports/day increased significantly. Reports from one of the three major reporting groups, i.e., professionals, increased significantly. Five basic types of abuse were also examined, and the number of reports in two of the categories, i.e., soft tissue and abuse with neglect, also increased significantly.


Young children's Rod-and-Frame Test performance. Research on children's performance on the Witkin Rod-and-frame Test has suggested that children rely heavily on contextual cues in perceiving verticality but that this reliance decreases with age. In the present study this developmental trend in children younger than those previously tested was studied. The effect on performance of the conventional practice of tilting subjects in a chair which rotates about a seat axis, thus displacing the head away from the stimulus, was also studied. After a short training session 14 boys and 11 girls, 4.70 to 10.95 yr. old, were given 12 trials of the standard test while tilted about a seat axis and, on another day, 12 trials while tilted about a head axis. Although the axis of tilt and the order of presentation were nonsignificant, data tended to confirm the existence of a developmental trend in young children. An alternate scoring procedure to investigate errors in the direction opposite frame-tilt indicated that the initial tilt of the rod relative to the frame significantly affects the accuracy of judgments of the vertical.


Subjective frequency in flicker perception. The discrepancy between the actual flicker frequency and the perceived rate was investigated. We tried to quantify the subjective rate of successive visual flicker by matching it with a second stimulus, the audio flutter. The wave form of each stimulus employed in the present study was sinusoidal. The auditory stimulus employed as a reference was a pure tone which was frequency-modulated by a sine wave. The perceived rate of flicker increases approximately in direct proportion to the frequency presented when target size is small and tends to be lower than the actual rate when target size is large. Perceived rate never exceeds approximately 10 Hz regardless of the presented flicker frequency or the luminance of the target. These tendencies are observed commonly in the fovea and in the periphery of the retina.


An explanation for the Müller-Lyer illusion. An investigation into the composite or colinear form of the Müller-Lyer illusion, with one shaft adjustable by subjects, was carried out using black-on-white and CRT displays. Three fin-angle and two fin-length conditions were examined for both configurations of this figure, i.e., arrow-headed and feather-headed standards. Adaptations of the Müller-Lyer figure were also studied. Framing effects influenced the extent of this illusion. A highly consistent illusion error for balanced-field conditions, based on the formula k L cos A can be predicted which relates closely to previous experimenters' observed illusory errors and gives a remarkably simple explanation for this illusion.


Relationship of hyperactivity and depression in children. From questionnaires completed by parents and teachers and clinical assessment by a physician 223 school age children were evaluated for childhood depression. Data showed hyperactivity and depression occurred independently but were frequently associated, especially when hyperactivity was episodic.


Effect of selected movement skills on positive self-concept. 36 boys and 36 girls in 4 fourth grades were exposed to basketball movement conditions which included the skills of dribble, chest pass, lay-up, pivot, guarding, and two-hand set shot. Eight 1/2-hr. treatment periods were spread evenly over 4 wk. and took place within the regularly assigned school physical education period. Two class groups, which included 9 boys and 9 girls each, were randomly assigned by class to an experimental group which received treatment while two class groups were assigned by class to the control group. No differences between changes in self-concept as estimated by the Piers-Harris scale for treatment and control conditions were significant.


Experience and latency to achieve stereopsis: a replication. This study replicated and extended the findings of MacCracken and Hayes (1976). 10 students were presented the same complex stereogram for 5 trials daily over 2 nonconsecutive days, and latencies to achieve depth perception were recorded. Latencies decreased across 5 trials in the first session but were somewhat longer at the beginning of the second session than at the end of the first session.


Locus of interference on the Stroop test. On the Stroop test subjects are presented with a random sequence of color names printed in random colors of ink. They are asked to go through the list twice, once reading the words aloud and once naming the ink colors. In this experiment 36 college students were also asked to go through the lists using their fingers to make push button responses. With verbal responses naming the ink colors took nearly twice as long as reading the words, thus replicating the usual Stroop test results. With either the left hand or the right there was no difference between the time required by the subjects to respond to the words and to the ink colors. The disappearance of the Stroop effect with finger responses suggests strongly that the interference normally shown on the Stroop test occurs primarily in the processing of the verbal response.


Body locus and form perception.

Body locus and form perception. Forms were drawn on the palms, forearms, or biceps of 42 subjects, with vision excluded. Subjects were then required to make a visual match to the drawn forms. It was expected that the accuracy of form recognition would be a direct function of the sensitivity of the receptor surface. Thus the palm was expected to yield more accurate form recognition than the forearm or bicep. Form recognition was significantly worse on the forearm than on other skin locations. The adequacy of a skin surface as an information transducer does not appear to be a simple function of cutaneous sensitivity since there was no significant difference in the accuracy of form recognition between the palm and bicep.


Infants' discrimination of moving and stationary objects. An operant technique was used to train 10-wk.-old infants on a simultaneous discrimination task with a checkerboard cube and a bull's-eye sphere presented in a stationary form. Discrimination testing with the objects in motion and with the objects stationary indicated that infants are able to discriminate between simultaneously presented objects whether stationary or in motion. The results are contrasted to T. G. R. Bower's assessment of infants' utilization of features in perceiving moving objects.


Balance performance as related to task stress under varied conditions of sensory cues. 27 junior high school girls performed three trials on a dynabilometer on each of 7 days. Subjects learned the balance task with all sensory cues available but were tested under three conditions of partial feedback occlusion, i.e., with blindfold, earphone, and combination of blindfold and earphone. On six days heart rate was monitored. Although the tasks were "stressful" based on heart rate, the various conditions did not invoke significantly different response. However, significant differences in balance performance were related to the conditions. Best performance resulted when both auditory and visual cues were withheld, while the worst performance occurred when subjects wore either the blindfold or the earphones.


Cognitive style of Eastern European Jewish males. A distinctive cognitive style showing high verbal--low spatial analysis ability emerged on intelligence test performances of Jewish male subjects of Eastern European extraction. This style is somewhat different from that of the normative population. It is hypothesized that genetic factors making for differential development of the cerebral hemispheres in these subjects interact with subcultural emphasis on verbal skills to produce the evidenced differences.


Influences of alcohol upon performance and performance awareness. The effects of alcohol and performance feedback on reaction time, judgments of response speed, and awareness of performance were examined with 15 male subjects. It was suggested that the dose of alcohol which impaired performance would also reduce the awareness of the impairment. In response to extrafoveal visual signals, a series of RTs and response-speed judgments were recorded over three experimental sessions which differed in target blood alcohol concentration, i.e., placebo, .05, .10. The spurious performance feedback presented to five subjects in each of three groups represented either fast, average, or slow RTs. Data support the hypothesis that alcohol impairs both performance and performance awareness. In all groups alcohol significantly increased RTs and significantly impaired the accuracy of response speed judgments. The measures of awareness, i.e., correlations between RTs and response speed judgments, showed that alcohol and spurious feedback significantly impaired performance awareness.


Effects of certainty and uncertainty of stimulus-response correspondence on auditory reaction times. Complex reaction time (RT) was measured for a task in which a discriminative auditory cue designated whether the right or left hand was to be used in responding. Facilitation of monaural RT compared to binaural RT occurred on trials in which both (1) the ear stimulated corresponded to the hand specified for response and (2) each of 20 male college students had received a prior signal signifying that stimulus-response correspondence would occur on the trial. RT was slower for monaural than binaural input when the monaural stimulus was applied to the ear contralateral to the hand designated by the tonal cue regardless of a prior signal signifying that stimulus-response noncorrespondence would occur on the trial. These slower RTs were attributed to an inability of subjects to inhibit their initial tendency to react toward the source of stimulation.


Perception of parental sex guilt and sexual behavior and arousal of college students. The present study examined the relationship between perceptions of parental sex guilt and the sexual arousability and sexual activity of 63 single male and 89 single female undergraduates. The results indicate that the same sex parent is perceived as more influential in determining the sex guilt of the child whereas the perceived sex guilt of the mother may have more influence on the sexual arousability of the son and the sexual activity of the daughter.


Personality traits of females who participate in intercollegiate competition and nonparticipants. The Edwards Personal Preference Schedule was administered to 30 females who participated in intercollegiate competition in individual sports, 30 females who participated in team sports, and 30 female nonparticipants. There were no significant differences in scores for the group of participants in individual sports and those in team sports on the 15 scales. Significant differences were found on 4 of the 15 scales between the groups of nonparticipants and participants. The subjects in team sports had a higher need for deference than nonparticipants while nonparticipants had a higher need for intraception, change, and heterosexuality. Nonparticipants had a higher need for change and intraception than those in individual sports.


Ultrasonic facilitation of escape responding and disruption of anal body temperature in the golden hamster. The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of ultrasonic pure tone on Mesocricetus auratus, a Murine rodent that does not organize rigidly into colonies as do some cricetid rodents. Subjects were 4 male and 4 female adult golden hamsters. All animals were trained to bar-press in a modified operant chamber to escape 24-v D.C. footshock. An experimental group was exposed to a 30-kHz tone at 60 dB during testing in the operant chamber with footshock absent. Similar testing trials were also given to assess the effect of ultrasonic sound on anal body temperature. It was noted that the experimental group demonstrated both behavioral arousal by bar-pressing significantly more often than controls (F = 6.95, df = 1/6, p greater than .05) and physiological arousal by increased body temperature (F = 6.88, df = 1/6, p greater than .05).


Influence of temporal frequency on perceived speed. The visual perception of velocity was studied in three experiments. The stimulus used in the first experiment was an endless striped belt moving behind a stable fixation line. In the second experiment a vertical moving line was presented in front of a stable striped background. In the third experiment the same moving line was pursued by the eye but the background was stable or moving either with the moving stimulus or in the opposite direction. The variables studied were the speed of the moving stimulus, the speed of the background, and the density (spatial frequency) of the stripes. Two theoretical explanations of the perceptual effects obtained are compared. The first explains variations of perceptual velocity in terms of density. The second asserts effects of perceptual velocity are contingent upon temporal frequency of encounters between the moving stimulus and the stable or moving contextual elements. The results favor the latter interpretation in the three experiments, but part of the results of Exp. 3 could be explained by the influence of ocular pursuit.


Neuroticism and proxemic behavior.

Neuroticism and proxemic behavior. The relationship between proxemic behavior and neuroticism was examined. 50 male and 43 female subjects individually self-selected seats in a classroom where they were administered the Eysenck Personality Inventory by one of four experimenters (two male, two female). A significant relationship was found between proxemic distance and both neuroticism and experimenter's sex.


The participant-observer: a source of invalidity in measuring motor skills? Test validity can be defined as the accuracy of a test score. Artifacts, sources of error that affect validity, have been studied in both research design and written test frameworks but have received little attention in the context of tests of motor behavior in an educational setting. One potential source of invalidity in motor skill testing is the presence of participant-observers. The participant-observer effect is defined as the influence of the presence of other subjects who are waiting to be tested or who have already been tested on subjects who are being tested. This study was designed to measure the test performances of 175 college women with participant-observers present and with participant-observers absent. The test was an overarm throw for speed measured by an incident light velocimeter. The data were analyzed using 2 X 4 fixed-effects analysis of variance. The presence of other participant-observers did not elicit performance scores that were different from those of subjects tested alone. Thus testing subjects in groups where one member of the group is tested while the others observe did not adversely affect performance on the overarm throw compared with that of subjects tested alone.


Correlation of activity and weight in comet goldfish (Carassius auratus) at differing water temperatures. Correlations of activity and weight at three water temperatures, 20 degrees, 26 degrees, and 30 degrees C, were examined in the comet goldfish (Carassius auratus). For the 12 subjects general activity scores increased as water temperature increased. Heavier subjects were more active at low temperatures while lighter subjects were more active at higher temperatures.


Physiognomic perception and empathy.

Physiognomic perception and empathy. 96 college students who were rated as high and low in terms of physiognomic perception were administered an empathy measure. Results supported the hypothesis that those individuals with higher physiognomic perception would show more empathy than those with a lower degree of physiognomic perception. Results were interpreted as adding evidence to the existence of physiognomic perception as a cognitive control principle.


Backward recognition masking in relative pitch judgments. Backward recognition masking refers to interference of a second masking tone with recognition of a target tone presented earlier in time. The degree of interference has been found to decrease as the length of the silent interval separating the two tones increases. These results have been interpreted as representing interference of the masking tone upon the preperceptual storage and perceptual resolution of the target. It is logically possible, however, that the masking tone does not interfere with perceptual resolution but interferes with comparison of the target to a long-term memory representation. The current research was designed to provide a critical test of this alternative hypothesis by modifying the backward recognition masking task. Subjects determined whether the masking tone was higher or lower in pitch than the target tone. The frequencies of the target and masking tones varied randomly across trials. This ensured that the task could not be performed by comparing the target to a representation in long-term memory. Nevertheless, masking was obtained in this task, arguing against the comparison argument and in favor of the perceptual resolution interpretation. Given that masking was obtained under both ipsilateral and contralateral presentation of the tones, the results argue for a central preperceptual auditory storage that holds information after the inputs from the two ears are combined in the auditory system.


Physiognomic perception and flexibility of concept formation. 40 junior high school boys were rated as high or low physiognomic and administered a flexibility of concept-formation task. Results supported the hypothesis that those individuals who demonstrated higher physiognomic perception would show greater flexibility in concept formation. The demonstrated relationship is evidence for the role of physiognomic perception as a cognitive control principle.


[An hypothesis concerning the pathogenetic background of 3 diseases of civilization]. This article presents a theory concerning the pathogenetic background for three diseases of civilization: essential hypertension, stable diabetes and atherosclerosis. Man and many other animals have mobilizing mechanisms for preparation for physical activity, expressed inter alia by an increase in blood pressure, hyperglycaemia and hyperlipidaemia. During physical activity, blood pressure falls almost to the resting level and hyperglycaemia and hyperlipidaemia are reduced parallel with the metabolism of glucose and fats in working muscles. In wealthy countries, this preparation for physical activity, which is dominated by the sympathetic-adrenergic system, comes into action just as frequently as in less wealthy countries -- or possibly even more frequently -- but this is rarely followed by muscular activity. How long is this sympathetic dominance maintained? How high are the blood pressure, hyperglycaemia and hyperlipidaemia? How slowly do these return to normal levels? It appears probable that this may be of fundamental pathogenetic significance in the three abovementioned diseases, the causes of which we have difficulty in finding or agreeing upon. Various prophylactic possibilities are mentioned briefly.


Effect of vaccination of sows with Bordetella bronchiseptica on the incidence of atrophic rhinitis in swine. Vaccination of pregnant sows with Bordetella bronchiseptica was performed in an SPF herd with clinical atrophic rhinitis. Agglutinins against the organism were induced in serum and colostrum by the vaccination. The antibody titres were generally higher in colostrum than in corresponding serum samples. The frequency at slaughter of turbinate atrophy (+, ++, +++) was lower among pigs from vaccinated sows (11%) than in pigs borne by unvaccinated sows (20%). In the control group a lower daily weight gain was observed in pigs with turbinate atrophy than in pigs with normal noses. The mean daily weight gain in pigs with turbinate atrophy borne by vaccinated sows was slightly lower than in pigs without atrophy of conchae, but the difference was not significant. A specific immunological prophylaxis might be an alternative to antibacterial treatment in herds where atrophic rhinitis is aetiologically related to B. bronchiseptica infection.


Prostaglandin-induced parturition in swine -- a field study on its accuracy after treatment with different amounts of PGF. This trial was performed within one large piglet producing herd in Sweden during June-August 1976. One hundred and sixty sows were randomly assigned to one of the following treatments: (1) 15 mg PGF2alpha i.m., (2) 20 mg PGF2alpha i.m., (3) two injections of 10 mg PGF2alpha i.m. at c. 8 h interval, (4) untreated countrol sows. PGF2alpha was administered in the morning of days 111, 112 or 113 of pregnancy. Of the PGF2alpha-treated sows, 83--85% farrowed within 48 h after treatment. No effect of day of treatment was found. Nor was any difference between groups observed. Neither of the treatments had a significantly negative influence of the viability of the piglets born. A numerically lower incidence of agalactia post partum was demonstrated in sows treated once with 15 mg or 20 mg PGF2alpha. A possible effect of PGF2alpha for prevention of agalactia post partum is discussed.


On porcine toxoplasmosis in Sweden.

On porcine toxoplasmosis in Sweden. An outbreak of fatal toxoplasmosis in piglets, probably of congenital origin is described. Although this is the first known manifest case of porcine toxoplasmosis in Sweden it is concluded that it is based on a well established latent infection of the pig population in the area concerned. Of a random sample of clinically healthy slaughtered pigs from the area 40.3 per cent were positive in Sabin-Feldman dye-test.


Chlorine residues in farm milk following the use of two disinfectants of different solubilities. The incidence of chlorine residues in milk derived from two kinds of chlorine-based disinfectants of differing solubilities was investigated by Wode's test in a total of 420 samples from 30 dairy farms using milk tanks in December 1976 and January 1977. The less soluble of the two disinfectants caused a positive reaction for free chlorine in 4.29 per cent and a weakly positive reaction in 20 per cent of the 210 samples tested. The readily soluble disinfectant caused a weakly positive reaction only, in 3.33 per cent of the samples tested. The difference was statistically significant. In cases where Wode's test gave a positive or a weakly positive reaction, the identification test for antibiotics and chemotherapeutics was made by agar diffusion tests. The results showed that chlorine residues in milk cause small inhibition zones.


[Plasma progesterone and ovarian findings related to plasma glucose and acetoacetat in the postpartum period in the cow (author's transl)]. Ovarian function and carbohydrate status were examined in 286 dairy cows. The cows, which were at various stages of the postpartum period, had their ovaries examined by one rectal palpation. Simultaneously with the clinical examination, one blood sample was taken for determination of progesterone, glucose and acetoacetate. In the period before 24 days post partum cows not having a corpus luteum had somewhat lower plasma glucose than cows having a corpus luteum (P less than 0.05). Cows not having a corpus luteum after 40 days showed a tendency to lower plasma glucose and higher plasma acetoacetate than cows having corpus luteum (P less than 0.05). Ovarian activity, expressed through frequency of high progesterone values (greater than or equal to 2 ng/ml), increased markedly after 40 days post partum, while the lowest glucose means and highest frequencies of acetoacetate greater than or equal to 2.5 mg/100 ml occurred before 30 days post partum. It is concluded that longitudinal studies post partum will be required to clarify the possible effect of hypoglycemia on the ovarian function.


Mycotic granulomatous pneumonia in a lamb [case report]. A case of mycotic granulomatous pneumonia due to Aspergillus sp. is described. The route of infection is discussed.


[Postoperative staphylococcal infection as a late complication following treatment of pseudarthrosis (author's transl)]. The study describes a case of postoperative infection following surgery of a humeral pseudarthrosis in a dog. The infection was manifested by fistulas which healed after treatment with different antibacterial drugs, but recurred on six different occasions during a period of twenty months after the operation. Staphylococcus aureus or epidermidis was isolated after aerobic incubation while no microbes were detected after anaerobic incubation. The infection appeared to be localized to a suture of polypropylene. The infection regressed and no more fistulas appeared after this suture had been removed.


The occurrence of aflatoxin in nuts and nut products imported to Finland for human consumption during the years 1974-1976. An examination was made of 1050 lots of nuts and nut products, totalling 4.7 million kg, imported to Finland in the years 1974-1976. Of these, 44 lots (4.2%) were found to contain aflatoxin. The highest percentage of aflatoxin-containing lots, was observed in the case of sliced and crushed peanuts (29.4%). Of the positive samples, 20.5% contained 101-500 microgram aflatoxin per kg, 52.3% contained 6-100 microgram/kg and 20.5% contained less than or equal to 5 microgram/kg. Rest of the samples (6.7%) contained aflatoxin 501 microgram/kg or more. The most commonly detected toxin types were B1 and B2. The proportion of aflatoxin-containing lots showed a slight decrease during the 3-year research period. On the basis of the research results and the sampling plan used, and bearing in mind the acceptable quality level (AQL: 5 microgram/kg) employed in Finland, the reliability of approval and rejection decisions was discussed from the point of view of both the producer's and the consumer's risk.


Ochratoxin A residues in tissues of slaughter pigs with nephropathy. Kidneys showing nephropathy changes were collected from slaughtered pigs at seven slaughterhouses in various districts of Denmark. Levels of ochratoxin A residues greater than 2 microgram/kg were detected in 21 out of 60 kidneys (35%). Ochratoxin A residues in liver, muscular and adipose tissues were calculated on the basis of the kidney concentration. Although the 21 kidneys containing ochratoxin A were condemned, the carcasses passed the meat inspection. Routinely only a small fraction of pigs exhibits nephropathy changes at slaughter, but the results of this study provide indirect evidence for a limited occurrence of ochratoxin A residues in commercial meat.


[Treatment of bacterial endocarditis with oral amoxicillin and intra-muscular gentamicin]. Fourteen patients suffering from bacterial endocarditis due to a streptococcus or staphylococcus were treated using a combination of amoxicillin per os in a dose of 1 gram every 2 or 3 hours and gentamicin in a dose of 60 mg intramuscularly every 6 or 8 hours. Two patients failed to tolerate amoxicillin, which had to be replaced by penicillin G. Two others, after a period of improvement, relapsed and were cured by the substitution of penicillin G given intravenously, in place of amoxicillin. The ten remaining patients were cured after a normal period of time had elapsed. Two of them were even treated at home. Bactericidal powers of serum obtained by the combination were satisfactory at between 1/16 to 1/4096 one hour after the administration of the antibiotics. This therapeutic protocol is thus effective, and has the advantage of improving the patient's comfort. It should nevertheless be reserved for use against sensitive organisms in patients without digestive problems, the bactericidal power of the serum being verified.


[Dissecting hematomas of the infra-renal abdominal aorta]. A dissecting haematoma of the infra-renal abdominal aorta is the rarest form of dissection involving this arterial segment. On the basis of seventeen cases published in the literature, together with three personal cases, the authors review the clinical signs (fusiform ectasia, arteriosclerotic form with aortic obliteration, painful form with fissuring) and the radiological characteristics. A successful result was obtained in six patients out of seven undergoing operation with prosthetic replacement, which would thus appear to be the appropriate surgical technique.


[Determination of plasma digoxin in newborn infants. Practical applications]. Measurement of plasma digoxin concentrations in infants after three increasing dosage levels shows that the optimal dose of this glycoside in 20 microgram/kg/day, i.e. a loading dose of 20 microgram/kg followed every 8 hours by a maintenance dose of 7 microgram/kg. The plateau concentration achieved is 3.0 +/- 0,5 ng/ml 8 hours after the last administration. When digoxin levels exceed 5 ng/ml (overdosage, renal failure or low body weight), toxic manifestations occur.


Interaction of hydralazine with barbiturates. Barbiturates given together with hydralazine significantly change the hypotensive effect of the latter. The final effect depends on the kind of barbiturate, time of its administration, and initial functional state of the circulatory system. Hydralazine given together with barbiturates significantly prolongs their hypnotic action and shortens the latency of that action. In the case of a short-acting barbiturate, hexobarbital, this effect appears in normotensive rats only if the barbiturate is given 60 min prior to hydralazine administration.


Excretion of D-glucaric acid and metabolism of salicylamide in man: the effect of phenobarbital-produced enzymatic induction. In 16 young healthy subjects the composition of salicylamide metabolites and the rate of their excretion depended on the loading dose. After 5 days of treatment with phenobarbital, the excretion of glucaric acid (GLA) and the rate of excretion and degree of glucuronization of salicylamide metabolites increased over 2-fold. The rate of excretion and degree of glucuronization were correlated with the amount of excreted GLA. The value of assay of GLA for the assessment of induction of hepatocytic microsomal enzymes is discussed.


Effect of methionine on the brain biogenic monoamines and on the cortical bioelectrical activity of rabbits. Methionine (150 and 300 mg/kg ip for 3 days) did not change the concentrations of striatal DA. It was also without effect on the levels of NA and 5-HT in the diencephalon and in the brain stem, while the 5-HIAA content was significantly increased in both structures after the dose 300 mg/kg. The single injection of methionine in doses of 10--300 mg/kg iv provoked dose-dependent changes in cortical bioelectrical activity. It was observed a considerable increase in the number of spindles, an increase in the amplitude and number of waves composing the spindles as well as a rise in their frequency characteristic.


Sesquiterpene lactones. Part XV. New cytostatic active sesquiterpene lactone from herb of Anthemis nobilis L. From fresh and dried herb (without inflorescences) of Anthemis nobilis L. a new sesquiterpene lactone C20H26O6 was isolated. This compound showed a cytotoxic activity at a level of ED50 HeLa -- 0-56 microgram/ml (1-5 x 10(-6) M), and ED50 KB -- 1.23 microgram/ml (3-5 x 10(-6) M), what qualifies it for further in vivo studies.


Biochemical and ultrastructural changes in biological membranes induced by p,p'-DDT (chlorophenotanum) and its metabolites. Alterations in membranes structure of rat liver mitochondria and chick embryo heart cells treated in vitro with p,p'-DDT and its main metabolites were investigated. Electron-microscopic study presented in this paper showed that DDT, DDE and DDA damaged the ultrastructure of mitochondrial membranes. Experiments with isolated chicken embryo heart cells showed that DDT and DDE damaged cell membranes which became permeable to polycation -- protamine. A target -- site for DDT in biomembranes is discussed. It is concluded that DDT and some of its metabolites are responsible for the dearrangement of biological membranes.


Effect of serotonin uptake blocking agents on the flexor reflex of hind limb of the spinal rat. Imipramine, clomipramine, FG 4963 and quipazine potentiated the flexor reflex of hind limb of the spinal rat, imipramine and clomipramine being relatively weak, and quipazine the most potent in this respect. The potentiation is prevented by serotonin receptor blocking agents, cyproheptadine and danitracen. Imipramine and clomipramine prevented the potentiation of flexor reflex by fenfluramine; this indicates a presynaptic mechanism of action of the latter compound. The stimulatory action of LSD is only partially inhibited by imipramine. The action of quipazine seems to be mainly postsynaptic, as it is not prevented by severe depletion of serotonin stores by reserpine and an inhibitor of serotonin synthesis, H 22/54.


[Isolation of lipase of microbial origin]. By gel chromatography and polyacrylamide gel disc-electrophoresis the component composition of the culture liquid separated from the mycelium was investigated. After elution from Sephadex G-75 column lipase activity was concentrated in one peak. Out of 13 electrophoretic mobile protein components only one split trioleate. The paper describes a method to isolate lipase from the native solution of the produced which involves enzyme precipitation at 40% saturation of the native solution with ammonium sulphate, dialysis of the resultant concentrate and selective sorption of pigment and protein admixtures on the cellulose anion exchanger. The method maker it possible to obtain a highly purified lipolytic enzyme with a specific activity of up to 15 000 lu/mg protein and to provide its 35--40% yield.


[Cellular immunological reactions to insulin and pancreatic tissue in diabetes mellitus patients not treated with insulin]. The authors carried out a clinico-immunological study in 110 patients with diabetes mellitus untreated with insulin, in 39 patients with the glucose tolerance test unclear in respect to diabetes mellitus, and in 46 healthy persons. Insulin sensitization was noted in 13.6% of diabetic patients, and in 5.1 and 2.2% of other persons studied, respectively. A relationship was noted between the lymphocyte insulin sensitization and a combination of diabetes with moderate adiposity. Positive reactions in respect to the pancreatic tissue were found in 10% of diabetic patients.


[Dynamics of the urinary excretion of estrogens, pregnanediol, 17-ketosteroid fractions, cortisol and its metabolites in healthy women in the course of the menstrual cycle]. The 24-hour urinary estrogen excretion was studied in 12 women of reproductive age at periods corresponding to the middle and the end of the follicular phase, the middle and the end of the lutein phase of the menstrual cycle; pregnandiol excretion was determined at the same periods in 20 women, the urinary sum total and individual 17-KS content--in 26 women, free cortizol and its metabolites--in 19 women. The 24-hour estrogen excretion reached the maximum on the days corresponding to the ovulation peak (the 14th-15th days), and remained at a sufficiently high level in the middle of the lutein phase. Pregnandiol excretion increased by the end of the folliculin phase and reached the maximum during the lutein phase. During the mentioned most active periods of the menstrual cycle there was also noted a significant elevation of androstendione, androsterone, ethiocholanolone and free hydrocortizone excretion. The absolute amount and relative content of dehydroepiandrosterone in the sum total fractions of the urinary 17-ketosteroids proved to diminish. Cortizol metabolite excretion decreased as well. A regular direction of the changes occurring in the 24-hour excretion of individual  17-KS fractions, cortizol and its metabolites in the course of the menstrual cycle was apparently associated with the synthesis and transformation of sex hormones.


[Urinary excretion of testosterone and androstenedione in hypogonadism in men]. The authors present the results of determination of the testosterone and androstendion excretion in the patients with various forms of hypogonadism and in healthy men. Testosterone excretion was decreased in the patients with hypogonadism, against the background of normal or increased androstendion excretion whereas the degree of deviations of the testosterone/androstendion ratio depended on the clinical variant of hypogonadism. Thus, retarded or decreased accumulation of the enzymes in the testes responsible for the change from the "child" to the "mature" type of steroid biosynthesis could serve as a mechanism of hypogonadism occurrence, which should be taken into consideration in the elaboration of the methods of syndrome therapy of this type of pathology.


[Importance of glycosuria in pregnant women as a risk factor in relation to diabetes mellitus]. The diabetic type of glucose tolerance tests was revealed in 16% of the women with glycosuria during pregnancy and in 8% of the women of control group without any other risk factors in respect to diabetes mellitus. The results of remote follow up over the women of the both groups are presented. Glycosuria during pregnancy should not be considered prognostically unfavourable in case of normal glucose tolerance test results; pathogenesis of such glycosuria during pregnancy was not associated with insulin insufficiency. Glycosuria during pregnancy served as an indication of the glucose tolerance test for the purpose of timely detection of latent diabetes.


[Study of glucose tolerance disorder in women with a complicated obstetrical anamnesis]. The authors examined selectively 849 women with complicated obstetrical anamnesis in the past and at random 636 women with the aid of the glucose tolerance test (GTT). The incidence of pathological GTT among women with various types of pathology of pregnancy (24%) was greater than in the control group (16.9%). Diabetes mellitus was revealed in 7.8 and 5.1% of cases, respectively. Some types of pathology of pregnancy were of particular significance in the development of the prediabetic state. A high incidence of GTT of diabetic type was noted in women with perinatal death of the fetus (13.1%) and the neonate (11.8%), in women with a large fetus in combination with other types of pathology of pregnancy (12.6%), and also among women who had delivered three and more large fetuses in the past (19.5%). The incidence of diabetic GTT increased in older and obese women; in marked excess of body weight the percentage of GTT of diabetic type was about the same in all the women under study. Among the women with pathology of pregnancy adiposity developed more frequently and in younger persons, and the excess of body weight was much greater in comparison with the control group. The authors consider that GTT should be conducted in all the women with the mentioned pathology of pregnancy in the anamnesis for the purpose of early detection of diabetes mellitus and also for perinatal fetal protection.


[Participation of the tanycytes in the mechanisms of sex differentiation of the brain]. Enzymo-histochemical methods were applied to the study of the activity of a number of dehydrogenases of the specialized ependyma of the inferior-lateral walls and floor of the 3rd ventricle in rats of both sexes during the "critical" period of sexual differentiation of the hypothalamic region of the brain (the first week after birth). At the level of the arcuate nucleus (alpha2-tanycytes) and the medial portion of the medial eminence (beta2-tanycytes) the ependyma was characterized by similar metabolic activity indices in ratlings of both sexes at the decisive periods of the "critical" period (the 3rd, 5th, 7th days after birth). The metabolic activity was reduced on the 5th day in the cells of animals of both sexes. At the critical period the ependyma of the lateral portions of the median eminence (beta1-tanycytes) displayed marked sexual differences in the activity of the enzymes under study. On the 5th day beta1-tanycytes of male rats showed a reduction and of female rats - an elevation of the metabolic activity. The results obtained permit to suppose that beta1-tanycytes participated in the mechanisms of sexual differentiation of the brain.


[Radioimmunological and biochemical study of the reaction of the adenohypophysis, testes and adrenals in rats and guinea pigs to the administration of the antiandrogen, 4-nitro-3-trifluoromethylisobutyranilide]. A study was made of the influence of antiandrogen 4'-nitro-3'-trifluorome-thylisobutyranilide (niftolide) on the content of the luteinizing hormone, testosterone and corticosterone in the rat blood plasma, the content of testosterone in the blood plasma and on the 17-OCS and 17-KS urinary excretion in guinea pigs. The data obtained pointed to a marked intensification of lutropin and testosterone secretion. The observed changes are explained by the capacity of niftolide to block the inhibitory influence of the androgens of the feed-back mechanism of the gonadotropin secretion control. It is suggested that niftolide can be used for the investigation of the functional condition of the hypothalamo-hypophysio-testicular system. Niftolide had no effect on the indices of the glucocorticoid activity of the adrenal glands in rats and guinea pigs.


[Effect of hypothalamic differentation on the functional state of the hypohyseal-adrenal system]. It was shown in experiments on rats that the hypothalamus, isolated from the afferent influences of the overlying structures of the brain, could maintain the ACTH-glucocorticoid secretion at the normal level, but under these conditions there was an increase of its sensitivity to noradrenaline and serotonin, and also to single immobilization; there was also a reduction of the adrenocorticotropic activity of the adenohypophysis and a reduction of the rate of corticosteroid secretion by the adrenal glands into the blood.


[Effect of inorganic fluorine compounds on the functional state of the pituitary-testis system]. The radioimmunological method was applied to the study of blood testosterone, LH, and FSH content in 41 men suffering from fluorosis, aged from 33 to 45 years. Nineteen men who had no contact with fluorine compounds served as control. In comparison with healthy individuals testosterone content proved to be decreased and FSH content elevated in patients with fluorosis. Blood LH content was increased only in those patients with fluorosis who had long contact with fluorine compounds (over 15 years). The changes in the blood hormone concentration were connected with disturbances of the hormonal, and, possibly, of the germenative function of the testes. The hypophysis proved to suffer less, and the changes of its function were apparently secondary in character.


[Effect of bile acids and other surface-active substances on antidiuretic hormone regulation of epithelial membrane permeability]. Surfactants in low concentrations (1.10(-5) and 1.10(-4) g/ml) altered the action of the antidiuretic hormone on the permeability of the wall of frog urinary bladder. Anionogenic sodium cholate, nonionogenic twin-80 and cationoactive ethonium depressed the action of the antidiuretic hormone. Polyampholite eBM-4 enhanced the effect of the antidiuretic hormone. The effect of saponin depended on the concentration of the preparation. Of interest is a possibility of using the surfactants for influencing the mechanisms regulating water balance in the organism.


[Effect of thyroxine on the energy processes of liver and heart tissue in embryogenesis]. The influence of various amounts (0.008; 0.0025; 0.25 microgram per 1 g of body weight of the embryo) of thyroxin on the energy processes of the embryonic tissue was studied. On the 10th, 13th, and 16th days of the embryonic development low and medium doses of thyroxin failed to alter the rate of respiration and of phosphorylation in the liver homogenates. An increase of the oxygen consumption intensity without the change of the respiratory control (RC), P/O in the succinate oxidation occurred in the heart tissue. On the 19th day thyroxin uncoupled the oxidative phosphorylation in the glutamate oxidation. High hormone doses decreased the rate of respiration, RC in the liver at all the embryogenesis stages, and failed to influence the heart.


[State of tissue-vascular permeability in diabetic patients with parodontosis]. The state of the parodontium was studied clinically and morphologically in 70 patients suffering from diabetes mellitus. Blood histamine and serotonin level was determined fluorometrically. Gingivitis was revealed in diabetic patients; the severity of inflammatory changes in the gingiva proved to depend on the duration and the severity of diabetes mellitus. Changes pointing to increase of the vaso-tissue permeability were revealed histologically. At the same time there was an increase in the blood histamine level and a tendency to reduction of serotonin level. This can serve as one of the factors causing an increase of the vascular permeability and a disturbance of microcirculation in the gingiva.


[Role of alterations of carbohydrate metabolism in the mechanism of decreasing the contractile function of the myocardium in patients with diabetes mellitus]. Changes in the myocardial contractile function were studied in 44 patients with diabetes mellitus by phasic analysis of the systole of the left ventricle, depending on the level and marked variations in glycemia in the course of 24 hours. The most pronounced phasic shifts by the 1 type of hypodynamia, pointing to reduction of the myocardial contractile function, were revealed in prolonged hyperglycemia, hypoglycemia, and a sharp fall of the blood sugar level at the period of marked 24-hour variations in glycemia. The results of investigations substantiated the fact that stable compensation of diabetes served as the active prophylactic measure of cardiovascular affections in this disease.


[Comparison of the blood levels of insulin and growth hormone in healthy adolescents, adolescents with excessive weight and with hereditary loading with regard to diabetes mellitus]. Changes in insulin and growth hormone secretion were studied in 112 children and adolescents (50 healthy ones, 40 with excessive weight, and 22 with heredity aggravated by diabetes mellitus). Three types of these changes were distinguished in healthy adolescents: normoreactive, hyperreactive, and inert. The same type of growth hormone secretion changes corresponded to each type of insulin secretion changes. There was revealed a negative correlation between the insulin and growth hormone levels in the group of healthy adolescents. Dynamic relation was noted between the indices of the mentioned hormones in the course of the test: it was stronger during the ascending than during the descending phase of the test. Glucose load proved to change the correlation between the hormones level. In the group of healthy adolescents correlation between the insulin and the growth hormone levels was greater before carbohydrate load than after it. In case of excessive weight or heredity aggravated by diabetes mellitus glucose load disturbed the correlation between the hormones: when a negative correlation existed between the insulin and growth hormone levels before the load no correlation was revealed after in. This fact confirmed the role played by excessive carbohydrate consumption in the pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus.


[Informative value of tissue oxygen tension in thyrotoxicosis]. Oxygen tension (pO2) and the rate of its utilization (U) in the skin of patients with various functional conditions of the thyroid gland, and also after a single dose of thyroidin was determined. pO2 proved to rise in patients with moderately severe thyrotoxicosis and under conditions of experimental hyperthyroidization; further thyrotoxicosis development was attended by a tendency to pO2 reduction, but U rose considerably. A paralleled decrease of pO2 and U indices was seen in hypothyroidism. A different genesis of tissue hypoxia arising at the late stages of thyrotoxicosis and in case of the thyroid gland hypofunction was supposed: in the first case it was caused by disproportion between oxygen supply and utilization, and in the second--by U reduction, and, as a result, by diminished oxygen supply to the cell (because of decreased transport possibilities of the circulatory system) and to the tissues. Due to this the oxygen gradient providing oxygen diffusion into the cell proved to fall significantly. A conclusion was drawn on the necessity of comparing the pO2 and U indices for the assessment of tissue oxygen utilization under clinical conditions.


[Blood levels of testosterone and its urinary excretion in women of reproductive age both neurosis-free during the climacteric period and with climacteric neuroses]. Blood testosterone content was studied by the radioimmunological method in 12 healthy women (5 of reproductive age, and 7 with climacteric age changes) and in 4 patients at the postmenopause suffering from climateric neurosis. Urinary excretion of testosterone glucuronide was studied by means of fluorometry in 11 healthy women (4 of reproductive age, and 7 at the climacteric) and in 6 patients at the postmenopause with climacteric neurosis. Healthy women of reproductive age displayed marked individual variations in the blood testosterone content both during the folliculin and the lutein cycle phases. The indices of urinary testosterone excretion varied in this group lees. As to healthy women with age climacteric changes and a regular cycle and those during the postmenopause--they showed marked variations both in blood testosterone content and in urinary testosterone excretion. There were no significant differences in the indices studied in healthy women of reproductive age and in healthy women with age climacteric changes. But in 8 of 11 women with climacteric neurosis blood testosterone content and urinary testosterone excretion were much greater than the upper borders of its variations in healthy women.


[Dynamics of EKG changes in patients with Itsenko-Cushing disease before surgery, and following the 1st and 2d stages of adrenalectomy]. The results of examination of ECG in 44 patients suffering from Itsenko-Cushing's disease at different stages of surgical treatment are presented. The data obtained were compared with the blood potassium and sodium levels, 17-KS, and 17-OCS levels in  the urine, arterial pressure and cholesterol content. Various ECG changes before the operation were revealed in 39 patients. Signs of enlargement of the left ventricle and deformity of the end part of the ventricular complex (negative T wave and or reduction of S-T segment in I, II, avL V5-6 leads) were found in 8 patients, and deformity of the end part of the ventricular complex without any signs of enlargement of the left ventricle--in 18 patients. There proved to be a significant dependence of the changes in the end port of the ventricular complex on increased urinary excretion of 17-OCS, hypokaliemia and hypernatriemia. Negative ECG changes after bilateral total adrenalectomy was significantly connected with postoperative hypocorticism.


[Cortisol determination in human plasma by a modified method of competitive protein binding]. The authors described a simple and economic modification of the competitive protein binding method of cortisol determination in human blood plasma satisfying the current requirements presented to the saturation analysis. Blood plasma of women given combined contraceptive the preparation was used as a binding system. Analysis of experimental results using a programmed computer was carried out on the basis of standard curve linearization. Preeision sensitivity and specificity of this modified method are assessed. This modification was approved in measuring the cortisol level in the blood plasma of various groups of patients. Comparison with routine competitive binding methods and their analysis is presented.


[Clinical picture and pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus in chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis of the liver]. Peculiarities of clinical picture of diabetes mellitus in its combination with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis of the liver were studied in 60 patients. Diabetes mellitus developed mostly against the background of chronic affection of the liver, preceding it. Glucose tolerance disturbances according to the type of latent and manifest diabetes were revealed in 28% of 132 patients with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis of the liver. Histological study of the pancreas in 63 patients who died of cirrhosis of the liver demonstrated marked fibrosis of hepatic parenchyma without any noticeable changes in the pancreatic islets. The blood insulin and growth hormone levels were significantly greater in 132 patients examined than in healthy persons. The mentioned changes in the glycemia level, of the insulin and growth hormone level after glucose administration were more pronounced in cirrhosis of the liver than in chronic hepatitis, and in late stages of portal cirrhosis than at its early stages. The leading role played by insulin sensitivity reduction of the peripheral tissues in the pathogenesis of carbohydrate metabolism in cases with chronic diseases of the liver is supposed.


[L-DOPA uptake and catecholamine synthesis in the brains of rats with altered adrenocortical hormone levels]. L-DOPA uptake by the brain and synthesis of dophamine and noradrenaline from it was studied in experiments on rats. L-DOPA (catecholamine precursor) was injected in a dose of 5 mg per 100 g of weight intraperitoneally simultaneously with hydrocortisone or 3 hours after its three-fold administration. Hydrocortisone at first intensified the uptake of L-DOPA by the brain, and, correspondingly, the dophamine synthesis. But three-fold administration of the hormone was followed by a fall of the L-DOPA and catecholamine content in the brain due to decreased L-DOPA diffusion from the blood. Oxidative catecholamine deamination was enhanced under the effect of hydrocortisone; it was prevented by prescription of nuredal, a MAO inhibitor.


[Patterns in changes in the concentrations of P, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ca, Cu, Zn, Ti, and K in the mitochondria of adrenal tissue under conditions of non-specific stimulation of the guinea pig hypothalamo-hypophyseal system]. Spectral analysis demonstrated that a different distribution in relation to the same internal standard existed between the mineral composition of mitochondria and whole tissue of the guinea pig adrenal glands. Being involved in the stress reaction adrenal mitochondria reacted by the changes of their element composition. Two regularities are established: an interrelation between individual elements, and the same direction of the changes in definite groups of elements (P, Fe, Ca, Cu, Mg). There was noted a fluctuating increase in the P, Fe, Ca, Cu and Mg content in the mitochondrial structures. Comparative analysis of the changes in the chemical element composition of mitochondria of the adrenal glands and the liver under conditions of nonspecific hypophysis-adrenal system stimulation pointed to a definite organic specificity.


Lack of association between breast cancer and HLA (A and B) specificities: importance of age-matched controls. HLA (A and B) antigen frequencies in 100 women with breast cancer were compared with those in 2 groups of cancer-free control women: the first control group (263 subjects) were age-unmatched, and the second (75 subjects) age-matched. The mean age and standard deviation were 56 +/- 13 years for the patient group, 25 +/- 3 years for the first control group, and 53 +/- 10 years for the second. It was first noted that HLA-B13 was significantly less prevalent among the patients with breast cancer when compared to the first control group (1% versus 7.2%, p = 0.025). However, when the patient group was compared to the second control group, no difference was found in the frequency of HLA-B13 (1% versus 1.3%, p = 0.80) or any other antigens. Age can be an important variable in a study of correlation between HLA and disease.


HLA antigens in malignant melanoma.

HLA antigens in malignant melanoma. HLA-A, -B, -C, and -D typing was performed on 54 Norwegian patients with microscopically verified malignant melanoma. A slight, but nonsignificant, increase in the frequency of HLA-B27 and LD 108 was demonstrated among the patients, compared with healthy Norwegian controls.


Histocompatibility typing in spontaneous regression of retinoblastoma. Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) Typing of Caucasian patients with retinoblastoma fails to show any difference in antigen frequency compared to a control population. In family studies where several members are affected with retinoblastoma the tumor does not segregate with the HLA type. There is also no significant difference in antigen frequency between spontaneous regression of retinoblastoma, unregressed retinoblastoma, and normal controls. In several families with one member showing spontaneous regression of retinoblastoma, other generations inheriting the same haplotypes have tumors which have failed to regress.


HLA antigens and Ia antibody in the gastric cancer patient. The possible association of 18 HLA specificities in HLA-A locus and 23 specificities in HLA-B locus with susceptibility to gastric cancer was investigated in a total of 87 patients and 355 controls in Japan. Significantly decreased antigen, HLA-B5 (17.2%) was found in gastric cancer patients compared with 40.0% in controls. X2 for this antigen difference is 15.8 (corrected P less than 0.005). The most frequent HLA haplotype was A9-B5 in controls and A2-Blank B locus antigen in gastric cancer patients. No reaction was found of HLA antiserum, Bou-Pri with cells of gastric cancer patients, compared with 29.4% in control subjects. No linkage was observed between HLA-A and -B locus antigens and gastric cancer in family study with double the frequency of HLA haplotype A2-BW40. Ia-like B cell specific antibody was found 10% in 2 out of 20 gastric cancer patients in a preliminary study. There was no clear association between B cell specific antibody and clinical implications.


Role of catechol estrogens in activation of lordosis in female rats and guinea pigs. In a variety of experiments, we tested the effectiveness of the 2-hydroxylated estrogen in facilitating sexual receptivity. A single injection of 2-hydroxy-estradiol-17beta (2-OHE2) to ovariectomized rats or 2-hydroxy-estrone (2-OHE1) to ovariectomized guinea pigs was ineffective in priming animals for facilitation of sexual receptivity even when a subsequent injection of progesterone was administered. The only facilitatory effect of catechol estrogens on lordosis that was demonstrated in this study occurred when 2-OHE2 was injected in combination with E2 and a subsequent injection of progesterone was given to rats. These results suggest a cooperatively between catechol estrogen and E2, but they also indicate that catechol estrogens, by themselves, do not play a crucial role in mediating sexual receptivity in rodents.


Changes in rat brain gangliosides following active avoidance conditioning. Brain gangliosides of rats trained in a conditioned avoidance Sidman task and undisturbed rats in their cages were studied. The (14C) acetate was injected intracerebrally seven days before the starting of 30 days training. Thirty-seven days after injection all rats were killed and ganglioside fractions were isolated from neocortex, hippocampus, brain stem, cerebellum and residual cerebral tissue of each one brain. Trained rats had higher levels of (14C)-labeled polysialogangliosides (G1, G2, G3) in hippocampus and neocortex than the controls. Regarding the rest of the brain areas, a significant increase of G2 in the residual cerebral tissue of the trained as compared with the controls was found. The results suggest that the sialic acid rich gangliosides of only certain parts of the brain are affected by the Sidman avoidance conditioning of the animals.


Protein synthesis inhibition and memory for pole jump active avoidance and extinction. This study utilizes a pole jump active avoidance task to investigate the effects of protein synthesis on memory formation. An extinction training procedure for this task is also described. Amnesia for extinction is produced by inhibition of protein synthesis and is also demonstrated by active responding, so it is clear that there is no general impairment sufficient to disrupt motor skill, motivation, or retrieval of stored memories. It was found that while inhibition of protein synthesis in brain for 2 hr did not produce amnesia, inhibition for 6 to 8 hr did. These results demonstrate that for both shock-motivated learning and non-shock motivated extinction learning, the duration of inhibition of protein synthesis is important in determining whether amnesia occurs. We conclude that inhibition of cerebral protein synthesis can best account for amnesia induced by anisomycin, cycloheximide, and acetoxycycloheximide.


[Thrombophlebitis migrans].

[Thrombophlebitis migrans]. Semantically, the term is correct, because inflammatory involvement of the vein wall predominates over thrombosis, and the indication for anti-inflammatory drugs is absolute while that for anticoagulants is secondary. The nosological characteristics are its relapsing, migratory and primary nature. But, in fact, this is a "signal-symptom", whether involving normal or varicose veins, with nodular or stranded appearance, with patches of hypodermal inflammation or erysipeloid. The major problem is that of aetiology: infections, systemic disease, blood diseases, deep-seated neoplasia... not to mention the gouty diathesis, hiatus hernia, polycythaemia, Buerger's disease and Behçet's syndrome... The author emphasizes the value of capillaroscopy, biopsy of vein and digital pulp and the search for antivein antibodies. Therapy is discussed.


[Exchanges of proteins, especially fibrinogen, between blood and lymph]. Microvessels of rat mesentery were used for the study. Proteins marked with fluorescent dyes are first visible in the vascular terminations. After 10 minutes they pass into the perivascular tissues where very fine reticular structures appear. The passage begins at the level of the venules, and continues in the interstitial tissue in the form of fibrils; the extravasation does not have a diffuse character (this has also been verified by other techniques). The ultraviolet microscope permits localization of the proteins because of their specific absorption. These experiments were conducted with labelled fibrinogen. Fibrinogen showed a high degree of selective affinity for the vessel wall, especially for that of the venules, and much less or none at all for that of the arterioles or the capillary loops. Fibrinogen is also found in the interstitial spaces and in the lymphatic vessels. The deposits in the vessel walls occur with a normal speed of blood flow. These intravenous deposit may be prevented by means of a preliminary injection of heparin. On the other hand they are very marked after inhibition of fibrinolysis by epsilon-aminocaproic acid and also by the addition of small doses of thrombin.


[Radioisotope lymphography. Methods].

[Radioisotope lymphography. Methods]. Radio-isotopic lymphography is based on lymphatic transport and reticulo-endothelial colloidopexy. Colloid is injected subcutaneously in a dose of 125 microcuries, at the level of the first interdigital space of both feet. The gamma emission sent out by this tracer is detected by seintillation probes, amplified, collected by a system of discrimination and fed to an integrator or a scaler. A functional specification is thus obtained of the accumulation of particles in the inguinal glands, expressed as a percentage of the initial activity in the foot, and set out graphically as a function of time, while at the same time a morphological examination of the groups of glands visualised by scintigraphy can be carried out.


[An error too widely spread among the public, even among medical personnel: the risk of hypercoagulation caused by sclerosing solutions]. In Raynaud's syndrome surgery may have a place at the costo-clavicular level, in the thoracic sympathetic chain, in the carpal tunnel, and in necrotic lesions of the fingers. In the majority of cases sympathetic denervation of the forearm is required. Some typical cases are briefly presented. In 16 operations the author achieved a favourable result in 13 cases, with failures.


[Study of the sclerosing of varicose veins: comparison between natural fibrinolysis in the blood of the cubital vein and the labeled fibrinogen test in the sclerosed leg]. After intravaricose injection of 3% ethoxysclerol a slight hyperfibrinolysis appears in the blood of a cubital vein. This is too weak to judge of the reality of the sclerosis. On the other hand, a very marked fibrinolysis is not seen after injection of ethoxysclerol. Fibrinogen labelled with iodine 131 however permits an exact control of what is happening at the site of the sclerosant injection. The reaction develops slowly, reaching its maximum not until 5 days after the injection of sclerosant. There is therefore no need to fear a sudden thrombosis which might be difficult to control.


[Venous hemodynamics before and after sclerosing therapy]. In 42 patients with essential venous insufficiency, uncomplicated but with or without insufficiency of the perforating veins, a study was carried out of the venous pressure before and after sclerosant therapy. All the patients treated showed a definite increase in deltaP (difference between the pressure standing and during muscular work), evidence that venous drainage returns towards normal.


[Sclerosing of varicose veins: radiographic control]. The events during a sclerosant injection were controlled radiographically. Vistarine forte containing 21.5% of total iodine makes the distribution of fluid clearly visible, both opacifying and sclerosing. 1 ml of air precedes the injection of 0.5 ml of sclerosant. This has shown that the "air-block", as found in the syringe, is not exactly a cushion of air separating the vessel wall from contact with the circulating blood. The air is distributed like a collar of pearls along the vein walls. These bubbles of air remain visible for a long time in the varicose convultions and this tend to hinder contact between the sclerosant and the intima of the varicose vein. As the slides show, it is a well demarcated segment of the varicose vein which comes into effective contact with the sclerosant. It is precisely this segment which subsequently becomes sclerosed. The sclerosant seeks a centripetal pathway in all positions, lying standing and sitting. The therapeutic effect is the same, and is independent of the position of the patient at the time of the injection of sclerosant.


[Raynaud's phenomena, syndrome and disease. Definition]. The terminology of the acro-ischaemic states of the upper limb is muddled. It would be desirable for a strict definition of Raynaud's "phenomenon", "syndrome" and "disease" to be established and accepted by all angiologists. In the author's view, Raynaud's phenomenon is an intermittent circulatory crisis, leaving after it a normal finger. When set off by a detectable organic lesion, the phenomenon then belongs to the category of Raynaud's syndrome. When there is no organic lesion to explain it, it becomes a symptom of Raynaud's disease.


[Contribution of methods of exploration of the distal vascular bed to the diagnosis and general comprehension of Raynaud's phenomenon]. Current vascular investigations permit a better understanding and placing of Raynaud's Phenomenon from the nosological point of view. This work contains a study of the contributions made by digital rheography, arteriography and pulp biopsy. These methods allow us on the one hand to define the concept of Raynaud's diathesis, an essential element necessary to the appearance of vasomotor crises, and on the other hand to identify the possible triggering causes on which depend certain cases of Raynaud's phenomenon of idiopathic appearance, sometimes clinically latent. The general conception of Raynaud's Phenomenon, defined from the semeiological point of view and corresponding to a pathology and a diathesis common to the various conditions in which it may appear, is confirmed by the data provided by these investigations. The diagnostic approach in Raynaud's phenomenon has thus a double perspective: --to identify and define the Raynaud's diathesis, --to seek the possible causes which may be clinically latent.


[Do the clinical symptoms described by Raynaud correspond to a nosological entity or a syndrome with multiple etiologies?]. In considering this problem, our opinion concerning Raynaud's phenomenon is as follows: The symptomatology described by Raynaud includes among other things a local asphyxia and gangrene. All the patients in whom these two signs are not found should not therefore be included under the label of Raynaud's disease. It is preferable in such cases to use Reil's term of "dead fingers". But our experience shows that if there is local asphyxia or even gangrene, in addition to the syncopal episodes, there is always a causal disease. However it is not justifiable here to speak of Raynaud's disease, but rather of Raynaud's syndrome or Raynaud's phenomenon complicating some causal disorder, such as progressive scleroderma or obstructive arterial disease with digital localisation. The phenomenon of "dead fingers" is very common and most marked at the time of puberty. The symptoms regress in the years following. It is rare to see Raynaud's phenomenon at the time of puberty, this being commoner in later decades, with a course which is more or less pronounced and progressive according to the underlying disease. The prognosis is also a function of the underlying disease and is likely to be unfavourable, even threatening life, in cases of progressive scleroderma.


HLA antigens and manic-depressive disorders: further evidence of an association. One hundred and seven unrelated Danish patients considered to be manic-depressive according to strict diagnostic, symptomatic and course criteria were typed for antigens of the HLA system, the major histocompatibility system in man. Preliminary results from the first 47 patients had previously been reported to suggest a positive association between manic-depressive disorders and HLA-A3, HLA-B7, and HLA-Bw16 and a negative association between such disorders and HLA-B8. Results from the extended series provide confirmatory evidence that there is a positive association between manic-depressive disorders and HLA-Bw16 and also strongly suggest a positive association between HLA-B7 and such disorders. HLA typing may prove to be a useful way of identifying sub-groups of manic-depressive patients for other biological studies. The associations described provide a potential lead for formulating hypotheses about the nature of the biological mechanisms which predispose to manic-depressive disorders.


The pineal and psychiatry: a review.

The pineal and psychiatry: a review. The pineal body in man is an active endocrine gland throughout life. Historically the gland has been associated with speculation on the nature of mind and its disorders. Modern research is now demonstrating it to be an endocrine gland capable of affecting the brain and behaviour. The implications for future research into this aspect of pineal function are discussed in the context of a critical review of the current literature.


The psychological effect of a screening programme and clinical trial for hypertension upon the participants. Two hundred and thirty-five entrants into the MRC trial for mild to moderate hypertension were matched with control subjects in order to assess the psychological effects of a screening programme and recruitment into a clinical trial. The prevalence and incidence of psychiatric morbidity among the trial participants were compared with those of the controls by means of responses to a self-administered questionnaire and diagnostic psychiatric interviews. No differences among the groups were shown between screening and entry into the trial, but after entry the prevalence of psychiatric morbidity among the trial participants fell. This was due to a greater improvement of those with psychiatric symptoms at entry in this group, the incidence of new morbidity being similar among the groups.


Allusive thinking, the Word Halo and verbosity. The concept of allusive thinking is briefly reviewed and a Pavlovian model of thinking advanced. It is hypothesized that allusive, as compared with non-allusive thinkers, have a broader but less intense attention process associated with weaker inhibition. From this model it was predicted that on word tests which require judgements of similarity of meaning, allusive thinkers would tend to choose more remote or unusual words as similar in meaning. The Word Halo Test and the Word Sorting Test were administered to 63 university students using the Object Sorting Test as a measure of allusive thinking. The prediction that allusive thinkers would choose more unusual words as similar in meaning was supported. A tendency for allusive thinkers to be more verbose than non-allusive thinkers was also noted.


Ethnicity and illness behaviour.

Ethnicity and illness behaviour. The 52-item Illness Behaviour Questionnaire (IBQ) was administered to 134 general practice patients of Greek, Anglo-Greek, and Anglo-Saxon origin. Responses were scored on 7 dimensions of illness behaviour labelled general hypochondriasis, disease conviction, psychological versus somatic perception of illness, affective inhibition, affective disturbance, denial and irritability. Results of a three-way analysis of variance (ethnicity, age and sex) indicated that Greek patients were significantly more likely to differ from Their Anglo-Saxon counterparts on the initial 3 IBQ scales. Compared with the Anglo-Saxon group, the Greek sample showed greater hypochrondriacal concern, were more likely to manifest conviction as to the presence of serious physical disease, and took a more somatic view of illness. Anglo-Greek patients varied from one scale to another in the degree to which their responses resembled the pattern of illness behaviour reported by Greek patients. They were most similar to the latter in their hypochondriacal attitude, and least similar in their psychological perception of illness. Although the IBQ responses to the Greek sample were consistent with patterns described in other studies of Mediterranean cultural groups, it was found that relationships observed between ethnicity and illness behaviour were to some extent dependent upon age and sex.


Some psychological concomitants of chronic bronchitis. Thirty chronic bronchitic patients with severe airways obstruction were individually matched with non-bronchitic controls from the general population. The 2 groups were compared using the Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) and the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) to assess non-psychotic psychiatric disturbance, the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI) to assess personality traits, and the Marlowe-Crowne (M-C) scale plus the L (Lie) scale of the EPI to assess social-desirability response set. Chronic bronchitic patients were both more psychiatrically disturbed and more neurotic in personality than were their matched controls; but there were no differences between the 2 groups on the personality trait of extraversion or on measure of social desirability response set. The results are discussed in the context of both chronic bronchitis specifically and chronic illness in general, and future investigations are proposed.


Psychiatric illness, maladjustment and juvenile delinquency: an ecological study in a London borough. Patterns of adult psychiatric referral, of child guidance referral and of juvenile delinquency in a metropolitan borough were examined. The 3 sets of rates showed parallel trends among the 20 electoral wards of the borough, all 3 being similarly related to socio-demographic indices. A cluster analysis technique was used to combine the 450 enumeration districts of the borough into 22 clusters defined by social characteristics rather than by geographical boundaries. Ecological correlates of treated psychiatric disorder and of delinquency, based on these clusters, were found to be similar to those derived from the electoral ward data. The findings suggest that it may be possible to demarcate relatively small urban areas with high concentrations of psychiatric disorder, maladjustment and delinquency.


The prevalence of minor psychiatric morbidity in the community. The method is described of a point-prevalence survey of minor psychiatric morbidity among a sample of healthy community residents. The General Health Questionnaire was used as the sole means of case identification. The demographic characteristics of the sample were compared in detail with those of the total population. The factors mainly responsible for sample bias were difficulty with the English language, the varying degree of personal contact made with residents, and the difficulty in contacting the employed population during working hours. The overall response rate of the survey was 66-2%. The demographic groups found to be at significantly higher risk for minor psychiatric morbidity included women, the young, non-British migrant women, and lower social class men.


A census study of mental illness in Samsø. Census data from the Danish island of Samsø have provided information on all but 20% of the population. Fifty per cent of the population with past or present mental illness had been referred to the psychiatric service during the 18-year-period 1957--74; the proportion varied from 85% for patients with psychoses (100% for schizophrenic patients, and 90% for manic-depressive patients) to 43% with non-psychotic disorders. The frequency of past and present mental illness was 24%, higher for women with manic-depressive disorders, psychogenic (reactive) psychoses, and neuroses. The possible reasons for these and other findings are discussed.


Reliability of the PSE (ninth edition) used in a population study. A random sample of 237 women in a south-east London area were seen by non-medical interviewers, trained to use a standard technique (the Present State Examination) to elicit and record psychiatric symptoms. Ninety-five were interviewed a second time by psychiatrists, who also rated audiotape recordings. The reproducibility of the techniques is adequate though not as high, in some respects, as that obtained from out-patient or in-patient samples. This is true at the level of symptom, syndrome, total score, and index of definition of psychiatric disorder. It is concluded that non-medical interviewers can obtain as high reproducibility as psychiatrists on most of the non-psychotic sections of the PSE if they have appropriate training. Repeatability is lower than reproducibility, partly due to fluctuations in clinical condition, partly to environmental changes between interviews, and partly to differential responses to medical and non-medical interviews. Over a short period of time, such as a week, repeatability is satisfactory.


Further studies on interviewer training and inter-rater reliability of the Present State Examination (PSE). The Present State Examination (PSE) is discussed with regard to its use in surveys of subjects who are not psychiatric patients. Although the PSE was originally developed for use by psychiatrists with patients with obvious mental illness, the interview also contains sections dealing in considerable detail with the commoner and less severe complaints and symptoms that are found in a significant proportion of 'normal subjects'. A shortened version of the PSE (8th edition) is described, limited to these sections, which has been used in population surveys, by interviewers who are not psychiatrists, The training of such interviewers is described, and information on a reliability and repeatability study is presented. This shows that with proper training, non-psychiatric interviewers can achieve standards of inter-rater reliability that are comparable to those previously reported between psychiatrists.


Psychiatric disorder in an adult training centre and a hospital for the mentally handicapped. Seventy-five mentally handicapped adult individuals attending a training centre were compared with 75 adult patients in a mental subnormality hospital using a standardized psychiatric interview. Ten of the individuals at the training centre were rated in the pathological range for overall psychiatric disturbance compared with 23 patients in hospital. Details are presented for the various psychiatric symptoms.


Two-year follow-up of the patients included in the WHO International Pilot Study of Schizophrenia. Over 90% of the 1202 patients investigated in the 9 centres collaborating in the International Pilot Study of Schizophrenia were traced 2 years after the initial examination and on the average over 75% of them were re-examined, using standardized instruments and methods. Results indicate that patients diagnosed as schizophrenic on the basis of standardized assessments and clearly specified diagnostic criteria demonstrated very marked variations of course and outcome over a 2-year period. Schizophrenic patients in the centres in developing countries had considerably better course and outcome than schizophrenic patients in the centres in developed countries.


Origins of the nucleate organisms.

Origins of the nucleate organisms. A theory regarding the early evolution of the eukaryotes is presented. It is proposed that the eukaryotes evolved through the successive stages: amoeba, flagellate, sexual flagellate. It postulated that sexuality emerged only once. A scheme relating evolution of the whiplash and tinsel forms of the flagellum to the evolution of sexuality is presented. It is suggested that sexuality first appeared in organisms capable of producing both forms of the flagellum. The phylogeny supports the hypotheses that the flagellum developed from the spindle system, and that the nucleate algae evolved from protozao through symbiosis with photosynthetic organisms related to the blue-green bacteria. It is consistent with the hypothesis that the mitochondrion was acquired by symbiosis. The phylogeny provides clearer definitions for kingdoms, and indicates the separation into seven kingdoms, as follows: Monera, Protozoa, Algae, Fungi, Porifera, Plantae, Animalia.