Exoerythrocytic stage parasites of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium ovale were cultured in vitro by inoculating primary cultures of hepatocytes from Saimiri sciureus boliviensis monkeys with sporozoites. Morphology and size of the liver stages were similar to previous in vivo descriptions in humans and chimpanzees. Saimiri monkeys did not develop parasitemia after repeated inoculations with P. ovale sporozoites. However, liver-stage parasites were observed in liver biopsies performed 7 days after sporozoite inoculation. Together with observations on other parasite development, these results demonstrate that host specificity for many malaria parasites occurs at the blood-stage level. Lack of host specificity of primary malaria parasite species for the liver forms the basis for the close relationship existing between human and nonhuman primate malaria species.

Animals↗

PubMed1994

The relationship between treatment goals and recidivism among child molesters.

Preliminary findings from a longitudinal outcome study of sex offender treatment are presented. Ss included 76 child molesters who were treated in a comprehensive relapse prevention program, and 79 molesters who were randomly assigned to a control (no treatment) condition. Three sets of findings are reported: survival analyses of time to reoffense; in-treatment change data relevant to the program's treatment goals; and the relationships between treatment measures and risk of reoffense. Over an average followup period of 38 months, there was a trend for treatment Ss to be at lower risk for both sex and violent crimes than were controls. Treatment Ss showed significant progress towards treatment goals of increased acceptance of personal responsibility for their crimes and decreased levels of deviant sexual arousal. Measures of personal responsibility, however, were not related to risk of rearrest for new sex crimes. Treatment Ss with high levels of both deviant and nondeviant sexual arousal were more likely to commit new sex offenses, but not other violent offenses. The strongest predictor in the study was a measure of the Ss' skills in applying the relapse prevention model, with highly skilled Ss being less likely to commit new sex crimes.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1994

Purification of E. coli-synthesized Pan proteins and development of a Pan-specific monoclonal antibody.

The helix-loop-helix (HLH) transcription factors, Pan-1 (E47) and Pan-2 (E12), are produced by the mechanism of alternative transcript splicing. Pan-1 and Pan-2 were expressed in Escherichia coli, and a purification scheme was developed. Purified Pan-2 was used to immunize Smith-Webster mice and a hybridoma was generated that produced a monoclonal antibody (Yae) that specifically recognized both native and denatured Pan-1 and Pan-2. Deletion mapping and sequence transfer studies have localized the determinant recognized by the Yae antibody to the region 195-208 of Pan-2. This region is conserved in Pan-1 and Pan-2. The Yae antibody recognized in vitro-synthesized ITF-1, a third E2A (Pan) gene product also produced by the mechanism of alternative RNA splicing, but did not recognize the related HLH proteins, ITF-2, REB alpha, or REB beta. By Western blot assay of pancreatic acinar cells, the Yae antibody detected a single protein species of 72 kD that comigrated with in vitro-synthesized Pan-1 and Pan-2.

Animals↗

PubMed1994

Obstetric postanesthesia nursing: a staff education program.

The same standards of nursing care must be provided to all postanesthesia patients, whether these are general surgical patients or those who have received regional or general anesthesia associated with vaginal or cesarean birth. Because obstetric nursing personnel have not had the benefit of didactic and skills training in the area of postanesthesia nursing, additional training is mandated. The article describes a staff education program designed as an educational framework to enhance the knowledge base and assessment skills of obstetric nurses providing postanesthesia care.

Education, Nursing, Continuing↗

PubMed1994

Pan/E2A expression precedes immunoglobulin heavy-chain expression during B lymphopoiesis in nontransformed cells, and Pan/E2A proteins are not detected in myeloid cells.

A newly developed rat long-term bone marrow culture system was used to study the role of Pan/E2A basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors during B-cell development. In this system, B-lymphocyte progenitors actively differentiate into mature B cells. Monoclonal (Yae) and polyclonal (anti-Pan) antibodies were employed to characterize the expression of Pan proteins by Western blot assay during hematopoiesis and to examine the components of immunoglobulin heavy-chain gene enhancer element-binding species by electrophoretic mobility shift assay. During B-cell development, the appearance of Pan/E2A proteins preceded the expression of immunoglobulin heavy-chain protein. A Pan-containing immunoglobulin heavy-chain enhancer element (mu E5)-binding species (BCF1), composed of immunoreactive Pan-1/E47 but not Pan-2/E12, was observed concomitantly with the detection of Pan/E2A proteins. In addition to BCF1, other mu E5-binding species were detected which were not recognized by the Yae antibody. Two of these species were present in primary B-lymphocyte and myeloid cultures and were recognized by an anti-upstream stimulatory factor antiserum. Although Pan/E2A proteins have been proposed to be ubiquitous, Pan/E2A proteins were not detected in primary myeloid cultures composed mainly of granulocytes and macrophages or in the macrophage cell line J774. The absence of Pan/E2A proteins in differentiated myeloid cells correlated with low steady-state levels of Pan/E2A RNA. However, Pan/E2A proteins were present in a promyeloid cell line, 32DCL3, suggesting that extinction of Pan/E2A expression may play a role in myelopoiesis.

Adenovirus E2 Proteins↗

PubMed1994

Effect of dobutamine on oxygen consumption and gastric mucosal pH in septic patients.

Decreases in gastric mucosal pH (pHi) are associated with splanchnic hypoxia in animals and with increased mortality in patients. In the present study we measured changes in gastric pHi with a tonometer in septic patients after a short-term infusion of dobutamine. These changes were compared with concurrent alterations in systemic O2 consumption (VO2) and arterial lactate. Twenty-one patients admitted sequentially to a medical intensive care unit with sepsis and gastric pHi < 7.32 were prospectively separated into a normal lactate group (< or = 2.2 mM; n = 10) and an elevated lactate group (> 2.2 mM; n = 11). Dobutamine HCl was infused intravenously at 5 micrograms/kg/min for approximately 3 h and then increased to 10 micrograms/kg/min. Measurements were obtained after each increase in the dose of dobutamine. Dobutamine infused at 10 micrograms/kg/min produced increases in O2 transport in both groups (p < 0.05) whereas systemic O2 consumption remained unchanged. These changes were accompanied by decreases in the arterial lactate concentration of the elevated lactate group (p < 0.01). Arterial lactate remained constant in the normal lactate group. Gastric pHi increased in both groups when dobutamine was infused at 5 micrograms/kg/min (p < 0.01), and then again at 10 micrograms/kg/min (p < 0.05). These results imply that regional tissue hypoxia, as characterized by a low gastric pHi, may be present in septic patients with normal arterial lactate concentration. Moreover, a rise in gastric pHi in response to increases in systemic O2 transport may be a better indicator of regional hypoxia in septic patients than related increases in systemic VO2.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Doing homework: perspectives of elementary and junior high school students.

A survey of homework experiences was administered to 1,527 elementary and junior high students in regular (n = 1,242), resource (n = 234), and self-contained special education (n = 51) classrooms. The results found significant main effects for Group, Grade, and Group by Grade interactions for items related to amount of, type of, and time spent doing homework; opportunity to do homework at school; parents' assistance; students' beliefs about homework assignments and grading; and students' feelings about homework and school. The higher incidence of negative feelings and opinions from students in resource room programs suggests that students' understanding of assignments, the nature of the assignments, and the feedback given to students are important issues requiring closer evaluation. The results also suggest that changes in homework assignments and grading may make the transition from elementary to junior high school particularly difficult for students with special needs.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1994

Acute disruption of cytochrome oxidase activity in brain in a perinatal rat stroke model.

Cytochrome oxidase histochemistry in frozen brain sections provides an estimate of mitochondrial respiratory function and neuronal metabolic activity. We hypothesized that in a perinatal rodent stroke model acute selective disruption of cytochrome oxidase activity could identify neuronal populations susceptible to irreversible ischemic injury. In 7-d-old rats, focal ischemic injury was induced by right carotid ligation followed by 8% O2 exposure (2.75 h); this procedure elicits ipsilateral forebrain injury with prominent hippocampal lesions, often including dentate gyrus. Cytochrome oxidase activity was quantitated by densitometry in brain sections prepared from animals killed 1 h (n = 8), 24 h (n = 11), or 5 d (n = 3) posthypoxia. At 1 h posthypoxia, in six of eight there was diffuse ipsilateral suppression of cytochrome oxidase activity (p = 0.0001, two-way analysis of variance, compared with values in contralateral hemisphere), which was most marked in periventricular regions including dentate gyrus (-29%), medial habenula (-38%), and posterolateral thalamic nucleus (-42%). Nissl staining of adjacent sections was completely intact in four of eight, and four of eight had subtle focal reductions in staining. At 24 h and 5 d posthypoxia, heterogeneous suppression of cytochrome oxidase activity persisted in the lesioned hemisphere, with close anatomic correspondence between loss of cytochrome oxidase activity and loss of Nissl staining. Additional studies indicated that the threshold duration of 8% O2 exposure (after carotid ligation) for suppression of cytochrome oxidase activity was 1-2 h. Disruption of cytochrome oxidase activity represents one of the earliest detectable indicators of neuronal injury in this perinatal stroke model.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1994

Patterns of Pan expression and role of Pan proteins in endocrine cell type-specific complex formation.

The Pan gene encodes at least two distinct transcripts, Pan-1 and Pan-2 (also known as E47 and E12, respectively), by the mechanism of alternative RNA splicing. Northern blot analyses performed on rat and mouse tissues have detected ubiquitously expressed Pan transcripts, but the abundance, distribution, and form of Pan proteins have not been clearly defined. Studies of cell lines representing endocrine, fibroblast, and lymphoid lineages using polyclonal antisera to detect E2A proteins have suggested that significant E2A protein expression is restricted to B-lymphocytes. We have developed a monoclonal antibody, Yae, which is specific for Pan/E2A proteins, and have used the Yae antibody to examine a variety of endocrine and nonendocrine cell lineages for differences in Pan/E2A protein expression, subcellular localization, and heteromeric complex formation. In contrast to previous results obtained using polyclonal antiseras to detect Pan/E2A proteins, we report comparable levels of Pan proteins in GH/PRL- and insulin-producing, B- and T-lymphocyte cells. IEF-1, a pancreatic beta-cell type-specific complex believed to regulate insulin expression, is demonstrated to consist of at least two distinct species, one of which does not contain Pan molecules. Although it has been postulated that pituitary endocrine cells and pancreatic endocrine beta-cells share identical Pan/E2A complexes, native-Western analyses of pituitary and endocrine beta-cells detect Pan proteins in distinct cell type-specific complexes.

Animals↗