A simulation of the process of sedimentation of suspended solids in the Yoshii River estuary

A vertical plane 2D model has been applied to the Yoshii River estuary, Japan, as a means of simulating the process of sedimentation. The current velocity and isohaline distributions were well reproduced in the estuary and the model simulated the concentration distribution of suspended solids for 8 particle size classes by using a transport equation based only on physical processes. The changes of the particle size distribution in surface water were well reproduced by the model. The vertical velocity component plays an important role in the behaviour of suspended solids.     

Successful treatment for perinephric abscess with recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor following nephrectomy in a patient of myelodysplastic syndrome: A case report

The 35-year-old man with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and granulocytopenia with dry cough and high fever was eventually found to have a left perinephric abscess ofStaphylococcus aureus. He underwent left nephrectomy and drainage of perinephric space in conjunction with appropriate antibiotics. However, because of persistent granulocytopenia,Staph. aureus never cleared up with formation of only poor granulation. Recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) was added to the above treatment leading to prompt improvement in granulocytopenia and emergence of the good granulation tissue. G-CSF will probably become one of the important agents in treating MDS with granulocytopenia.     

Distribution of six species of bitterlings in a creek in Fukuoka Prefecture,Japan

Comparative study on the distribution of six species of bitterling in a creek in Fukuoka Prefecture was carried out. The upper part of the creek was fluvial, and the lower part stagnant.Acheilognathus lanceolatus, A. tabira subsp. (b) of Nakamura (1969),A. rhombeus andRhodeus atremius showed wide distribution in the creek throughout their life.A. limbatus seemed to be a fluvial species, andR. ocellatus smithii a lentic species. In the spawning season, however, all the species of bitterling, exceptingR. o. smithii, probably possess a common spawning ground in which mussels occur at a relatively high density. Adult females ofA. lanceolatus, A. tabira subsp. (b) andR. atremius without ripe eggs aggregated in the lower, stagnant parts of the creek. Most juveniles of these species and ofA. rhombeus seemed to grow in the lower part of the creek, and then migrate upward untill their spawning season. No species among the same phylogenetic group has the same set of the life modes (spawning season, spawning sites, aggregation of females without ripe eggs in the lower part of the creek and probability of upstream migration of 0-year-old fish toward spawning sites).     

Systematic sequencing of the Escherichia coli genome: analysis of the 0-2.4 min region.

A contiguous 111,402-nucleotide sequence corresponding to the 0 to 2.4 min region of the E. coli chromosome was determined as a first step to complete structural analysis of the genome. The resulting sequence was used to predict open reading frames and to search for sequence similarity against the PIR protein database. A number of novel genes were found whose predicted protein sequences showed significant homology with known proteins from various organisms, including several clusters of genes similar to those involved in fatty acid metabolism in bacteria (e.g., betT, baiF) and higher organisms, iron transport (sfuA, B, C) in Serratia marcescens, and symbiotic nitrogen fixation or electron transport (fixA, B, C, X) in Azorhizobium caulinodans. In addition, several genes and IS elements that had been mapped but not sequenced (e.g., leuA, B, C, D) were identified. We estimate that about 90 genes are represented in this region of the chromosome with little spacer.     

Protoplast culture and plant regeneration of several species in the genus Dianthus

Summary Seventeen cultivars belonging to the genus Dianthus were examined for protoplast isolation, culture and shoot regeneration under the same conditions. These included D. caryophyllus, D. chinensis, D. barbatus, D. plumarius, D. superbus and D. japonicus as well as interspecific hybrid cultivars (D. caryophyllus x D. chinensis and D. chinensis x D. barbatus). In all cultivars, viable protoplasts were isolated at high yields from leaves of axenic shoot cultures and some of these protoplasts divided and formed colonies. However, shoot regeneration frequencies were markedly different among the species. High frequency shoot regeneration was obtained from D. chinensis and interspecific hybrid cultivars, while only low frequency or no shoot regeneration was obtained from other species.Abbreviations MS Murashige and Skoog (1962) - FW fresh weight - MES 2-N-morpholinoethane sulfonic acid - FDA fluoroscein diacetate - NAA 1-naphthaleneacetic acid     

Effect of environmental stress on release of norepinephrine in posterior nucleus of the hypothalamus in awake rats: role of sinoaortic nerves

Norepinephrine(NE) release in posterior nucleus(PH) of the hypothalamus was examined before and during acute shaker (oscillation) stress in sinoaortic denervated(SAD) and sham-operated(SO) rats. NE in PH extracellular fluid of freely moving rats was collected by microdialysis and measured by sensitive radioenzymatic assay. Three days after SAD or SO operation, mean arterial pressure(MAP) and heart rate(HR) were significantly higher in SAD rats than SO rats. Baseline levels of NE in PH dialysate were also significantly elevated in SAD rats. Although five minutes of shaker stress elicited pressor and tachycardic responses coupled with increased NE release in PH of both groups, the increases in MAP and dialysate NE were larger in SAD than SO rats. These findings indicate that noradrenergic neurons in the PH respond to stress-induced stimuli and receive tonic input from baroreflex pathways.     

Fractionation of Nitrogen Isotopes during the Uptake and Assimilation of Ammonia by Plants

Two varieties (Nihonbare and Koshihikari) of rice plants (Oryzasativa L.) were grown hydro-ponically with two levels (20 and100 mg N liter ^–1) of ammonia. Variations in levels ofnatural abundance of ¹⁵N (¹⁵N) were analyzed in the ammoniaand organic nitrogen of shoots and roots, as well as in theammonia in the culture solution. There was substantial fractionationof nitrogen isotopes during the uptake of ammonia. When plantsabsorbed a large proportion of ammonia from a solution witha low concentration, less negative ¹⁵N values in plants andhigh positive ¹⁵N values in the ammonia remaining in solutionwere observed. The reverse was found when a smaller fractionof ammonia was absorbed from a solution with a higher concentrationof ammonia. The ^l5N values of ammonia in shoots and roots werehigher than in the respective constituent organic nitrogen,suggesting the fractionation of nitrogen isotopes during theassimilation of ammonia. Wild-type and mutant cells of the cyanobacterium(blue-green alga) Synechococcus PCC 7942 were grown in nitrate-or ammonia-containing medium as the source of nitrogen. Fractionationof nitrogen isotopes during the uptake of nitrate was limited,whereas that during the uptake of ammonia was considerable. ¹ In this report, the term ammonia refers indiscriminately toboth NH₃ or NH₄⁺. (Received June 13, 1991; Accepted September 12, 1991)     

Formation of nodules on non-nodulating soybean T201 after treatment with 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetate

The formation of effective root nodules on a non-nodulating line (T201) of soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.,) was induced by a treatment with 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetate (2,4-D). The induced nodules, inoculated with mixed Bradyrhizobium japonicum strains A1017 and IRj2101, had a normal internal structure, red in colour and the cells being filled with bacteroids. Externally, the induced nodules were of unusual shape, being paired or gourd-like in form and were attached to thickened roots. The nodules were capable of acetylene reduction (3.1–3.5 moles g^-1 fresh weight nodules h^-1), allowing the growth of plants with dark green leaves.     

A novel MHC class I-related molecule expressed on mouse thymic stroma cells and mature lymphocytes

A monoclonal antibody (mAb) TP-3 has been established by immunizing rats with the BALB/c mouse thymic epithelial cell line TEL-2. The TP-3 antigen is expressed on stroma cells of thymus, spleen, and lymph node in syngeneic BALB/c mice (H-2 ^d ). This antigen is also expressed at a low level on the cell surface of immature thymocytes, and at a high level on mature T and B cells. In allogeneic mice such as C57BL/6 (H-2 ^b ) or C3H (H-2 ^k ), no cells expressed the TP-3 antigen. Using H-2 congenic mice, reactivity with mAb TP-3 was found to map to a region of H-2D ^d L ^d or between D ^d and Qa, suggesting that TP-3 is a major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I antigen. However, immunoprecipitation analysis indicated that this antigen is not identical to the classical mouse class I molecules in terms of molecular size, antigenicity, and tissue distribution.