1994 America on display… American LCDs playing catch-up

With each sensational new development, the real life race for American dominance over Japan in next-generation flat panel displays is looking progressively more like a rough draft of a techno-thriller (with the likelihood of getting even rougher). The real life drama that is unfolding is not only exciting, it often seems less believable than fiction. In this episode of “America On Display,” we'll try to sort through what some of the leading characters have been up to lately, who they're working with (or against), and what the U.S. government and various “cooperative” catalysts are contributing to the chain of chaotic events.     

The diffusional transport of water and small solutes in isolated endothelial cells and erythrocytes

The diffusional permeability coefficients, PD, for tritiated water (3HHO) 14C-antipyrine (AP) and 14C-iodoantipyrine (IAP) in isolated calf pulmonary artery endothelial cells and dog erythrocytes are measured with the linear diffusion technique at 11.5, 15, 20 and 37 degrees C. The PD values for both cell populations follow the sequence 3HHO > IAP > AP at each of the temperatures. PD for water is higher in the erythrocyte compared to the endothelial cells. The differences in PD for AP and IAP in the erythrocytes and endothelial cells are not dramatic and are similar to the differences seen in comparing permeation of the same solute through bilayers of different composition. A comparison of the values of PD calculated for the endothelial cells with those for isolated capillaries and the structured endothelium in whole lungs validates the use of the isolated cells as models for the endothelial cells in situ. Incubation of the endothelial cells with cis-vaccenic acid or cholesterol produces a reduction in PD for water and antipyrine. These data are analyzed in terms of Stokesian and non-Stokesian diffusion. The interpretation which best accommodates the data is that the phospholipid area of the membrane, rather than the hydrocarbon core, provides the greatest resistance to permeation for these solutes.     

Small airway obliteration in a new swine heterotopic lung and bronchial allograft model

The subcellular localization of the phosphatidylglycerol/phosphatidylinositol transfer protein (PG/PI-TP) of Aspergillus oryzae was investigated using Western blot analysis of the cell protein extracts, a cellular membrane fractionation technique, and transmission electron microscopy. The PG/PI-TP, as detected by Western blot analysis with a specific immune serum, was found to be mainly cytoplasmic and partly associated with intracellular membranes. A fractionation experiment was conducted after homogenization of the filamentous fungus mycelium. The endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi-like vesicles, and the plasma membrane were separated by isopycnic ultracentrifugation on a sucrose gradient, and our data revealed that the immunodetected PG/PI-TP was only associated with the Golgi-like apparatus. All these results were documented by electron microscopy and indicate here for the first time that there exists a specific phospholipid transfer protein in a filamentous fungus that is localized in the cytoplasm and associated with Golgi-like vesicles.     

Round-robin test on thermal conductivity measurement of ZnO nanofluids and comparison of experimental results with theoretical bounds

Ethylene glycol (EG)-based zinc oxide (ZnO) nanofluids containing no surfactant have been manufactured by one-step pulsed wire evaporation (PWE) method. Round-robin tests on thermal conductivity measurements of three samples of EG-based ZnO nanofluids have been conducted by five participating labs, four using accurate measurement apparatuses developed in house and one using a commercial device. The results have been compared with several theoretical bounds on the effective thermal conductivity of heterogeneous systems. This study convincingly demonstrates that the large enhancements in the thermal conductivities of EG-based ZnO nanofluids tested are beyond the lower and upper bounds calculated using the models of the Maxwell and Nan et al. with and without the interfacial thermal resistance.     

The nuclear cap-binding complex is a novel target of growth factor receptor-coupled signal transduction

In an attempt to further understand how nuclear events (such as gene expression, nuclear import/export, and cell cycle checkpoint control) might be subject to regulation by extracellular stimuli, we sought to identify nuclear activities under growth factor control. Using a sensitive photoaffinity labeling assay that measured [alpha-32P]GTP incorporation into nuclear proteins, we identified the 20-kDa subunit of the nuclear cap-binding complex (CBC) as a protein whose binding activity is greatly enhanced by the extracellular stimulation of serum-arrested cells. The CBC represents a 20- and 80-kDa heterodimer (the subunits independently referred to as CBP20 and CBP80, respectively) that binds the 7-methylguanosine cap on RNAs transcribed by RNA polymerase II. This binding facilitates precursor messenger RNA splicing and export. We have demonstrated that the [alpha-32P]GTP incorporation into CBP20 was correlated with an increased ability of the CBC to bind capped RNA and have used the [alpha-32P]GTP photoaffinity assay to characterize the activation of the CBC in response to growth factors. We show that the CBC is activated by heregulin in HeLa cells and by nerve growth factor in PC12 cells as well as during the G1/S phase of the cell cycle and when cells are stressed with UV irradiation. Additionally, we show that cap-dependent splicing of precursor mRNA, a functional outcome of CBC activation, can be catalyzed by growth factor addition to serum-arrested cells. Taken together, these data identify the CBC as a nuclear target for growth factor-coupled signal transduction and suggest novel mechanisms by which growth factors can influence gene expression and cell growth.     

Comparison of the various electrocardiographic scoring codes for estimating anatomically documented sizes of single and multiple infarcts of the left ventricle

It is clinically important to estimate the size of a myocardial infarction (MI) to predict patient prognosis, to determine the ability of a therapy to limit its size, and to evaluate its effect on left ventricular function. Various electrocardiographic methods have been used for these purposes but their accuracies have not been compared with each other using an identical reference population of anatomically measured infarcts. The capability of 4 electrocardiographic scoring methods (the Selvester score, the Minnesota code, the Novacode, and the Cardiac Infarction Injury Score) to estimate MI size was compared using anatomic MI size in a group of 100 deceased patients. All patients had a standard 12-lead electrocardiogram of sufficient quality to perform manual waveform measurements and without confounding factors such as ventricular hypertrophy, fascicular block, or bundle branch block. The location and size of the left ventricular infarction was measured postmortem using the anatomic method of Ideker et al. All methods' size estimates correlated best with anatomic MI size in the anterior location (r = 0.65 to 0.89). The Selvester score was superior in estimating the sizes of inferior (r = 0.70) and posterolateral (r = 0.74) infarcts. For multiple infarcts all methods performed poorly (r = 0.18 to 0.44).     

Modulation of adrenal gap junction expression

To increase our knowledge of the role of peptide hormone stimulation in gap junction protein expression and adrenal cortical cell function, primary rat adrenal cortical cells were treated with adrenocorticotropin, and gap junction proteins were measured. Immunocytochemistry and western blot analysis were used to detect and characterize gap junction type and distribution. The gap junction protein, connexin 43 (alpha 1), was detected. Analysis of six connexin protein types did not reveal gap junction species other than alpha 1. Cells of the inner adrenal cortical zones, zonae fasciculata and reticularis, were demonstrated to have the highest number of gap junctions per cell in the adrenal gland. Adrenal cell cultures enriched for the two inner cortical adrenal zones were established and demonstrated also to express alpha 1 gap junction protein. Adrenocorticotropin (40 mUnits/ml) and dibutyryl cyclic adenosine monophosphate (1 mM) treatments increased alpha 1 gap junction protein levels and decreased cell proliferation rates in the cell cultures. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that gap junction expression can be regulated by adrenocorticotropin acting through the second messenger cyclic adenosine monophosphate. It can be suggested that gap junction expression in the adrenal gland may be under hormonal influence, and that gap junctions serve as passage for movement of molecules involved in control of cell proliferation.