Serial order short-term memory capacities and specific language impairment: No evidence for a causal association

This study re-explored the nature of verbal short-term memory (STM) deficits in children with specific language impairment (SLI), by distinguishing item and serial order STM processes. Recent studies have shown serial order STM capacity to be a critical determinant of language development, relative to item STM. In Experiment 1, 12 children with SLI, 12 age-matched children and 12 language-matched children were administered serial order recognition and reconstruction tasks. Experiment 2 assessed implicit serial learning abilities via a Hebb learning task. The SLI group showed impaired performance for the serial order reconstruction and recognition tasks, relative to language-matched and/or age-matched control groups. However, normal serial position effects were observed in all SLI children in the serial order reconstruction task, suggesting normal coding of serial position information. Similarly, performance on the Hebb serial learning task was at chronological age appropriate levels. Experiment 3 showed that the group differences observed for the serial order STM tasks in Experiment 1 disappeared when the SLI group was compared to a mental age-matched control group. Experiment 4 showed similar performance levels in the SLI group and the mental age-matched control group for a nonword recognition task assessing item STM capacities. This study shows that children with SLI have no specific impairments for serial order and item STM components but that poorer general cognitive efficiency is related to functional limitations in verbal STM tasks. The data are in line with limited information processing accounts of SLI.     

Use of PABA test to check completeness of 24-h urine collections in elderly subjects.

The p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) test has been successfully used as an indicator of completeness of 24-h urine collection in field studies of the general population. Our study was designed to investigate its validity for elderly people. Urinary excretion of fractionated oral doses of PABA was measured in 21 young control subjects (19-39 yr old) and 356 elderly (60-89 yr old) men and women. PABA excretion over 24 h was lower in elderly than in control subjects. Subjects aged greater than or equal to 70 yr had a lower recovery of the PABA dose than subjects aged 60-69 yr over the first 24 h, followed by a higher recovery over the next 24-48 h. The cumulative 48-h recovery was similar in all age classes of elderly subjects. However, 48% of the elderly subjects had a cumulative PABA recovery below the conventional cutoff for completeness (85%). These subjects also had consistently lower creatinine output and urinary volume. The lower 24-h urinary PABA recovery over 70 yr of age is interpreted to reflect the delayed renal clearance of the marker substance and indicates that the PABA test is unsuitable for this age group. The low 48-h cumulative recoveries found in all age classes of the elderly are thought to be caused by small unreported losses, which are recurrent in free-living populations.     

Effect of an homo-aza-steroidal ester on estrogen receptor

A new modified steroid esterified with the cytotoxic moiety, p-[N,N-bis(2-chloroethyl)amino]phenyl-acetic acid, has been synthesized and tested for interaction with estrogen receptor and cytotoxic activity on the MCF-7 cell line.     

The surgical section of the bundle of Kent as an operative treatment of the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome: apropos a series of 82 operated cases

Eighty two patients diagnosed of the Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome (WPW) underwent operation for the surgical section of the Kent-His bundle. In these cases, posteroseptal localization (PS) occurred in 32, left lateral (LL) in 25, right lateral (RL) in six, anteroseptal (AS) in one, posteroseptal and left lateral in 14, right and left posteroseptal in two, anteroseptal and left lateral in one, and left lateral and right and left posteroseptal in one. All of the patients presented an invalidating clinical of palpitations and/or loss of consciousness, and episodes of atrial fibrillation and/or reciprocal rhythm were registered in all cases. The mean anterograde refractory period in the accessory pathways was 244 +/- 60 msec, and the shortest RR in atrial fibrillation was 190 +/- 36 msec. A mitral commissurotomy was carried out in 3 patients during surgery, mitral prostheses were implanted in two, a double aorto-coronary bypass was made in three and an interventricular communication was closed in one. After a follow-up of 36 +/- 18 months, the surgical section of the Kent bundle was found to be effective in 77 out 82 patients (94%). (In 70 out of 77 cases, both anterograde and retrograde conduction were totally abolished and in seven out of 77 obtunded. All patients were asymptomatic during the follow-up period). In 5 out of 82 patients, surgical treatment was ineffective all five showed a PS Kent-His and two presented a second Kent-His fascicle (LL).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Vitamin K1 binding protein in milk

Cow's milk has been shown to contain a protein complex which is able to bind vitamin K1 in a reversible manner. This binding property has been investigated by the celite method which consists in creating a dynamic equilibrium between the adsorbent, the celite and the protein complex for the ligand (vitamin K1). Based on competition experiment, the binding is specific and the vitamin K1 binding protein complex has a molecular weight equal to or higher than 7.5 X 10(2) KD.     

TP53 mutations in prostatic cancer. Analysis of pre- and post-treatment archival formalin-fixed tumour tissue

The TP53 gene mutation pattern in prostatic cancer was examined in relation to progression and survival, using archival formalin-fixed pre-and post-treatment tumour specimens from 84 prostatic cancer patients. Thirty-four had hormone-sensitive tumours and 50 were hormone-resistant. Six of the 34 (18 per cent) therapy-responding tumours and 19 of the 50 (38 per cent) hormone-resistant tumours showed p53 protein accumulation in the post-treatment specimen. Both pre- and post-treatment specimens from these 25 patients were analysed for mutation of the conserved regions of the TP53 gene (exons 5–8), using constant denaturant gel electrophoresis (CDGE) followed by DNA sequencing. In the post-treatment samples, mutations were detected in three of the six patients with hormone-responsive tumours and in 11 of the 19 patients with hormone-resistant tumours. The three (100 per cent) patients with therapy-responsive tumours with mutations and nine of the 11 (82 per cent) patients with therapy-resistant tumours with mutations died of the disease. Thirteen of the 14 mutations in the post-treatment specimens were transitions, 11 occurring at CpG dinucleotides in which codon 273 was involved in ten. A significantly higher proportion of tumours with mutations were poorly differentiated compared with tumours without mutation (P<0·04). Our findings indicate that TP53 mutation is a late event in tumour development of the prostate gland and that codon 273 might be a ‘hotspot’ for mutation in the progression of the disease.     

No germline TP53 mutations detected in familial and bilateral testicular cancer

Mutations in the TP53 gene are considered to be among the most common genetic alterations in human cancers. Both somatic and germline mutations have been found. Using potymerase chain reaction (PCR), constant denaturant gel electrophoresis (CDGE), and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE), we have examined 32 patients with bilateral and familial germ cell tumors (GCT) and two patients with sporadic GCT for germline mutations within the conserved regions of the gene. In addition, 15 tumors were screened for somatic mutations and analyzed for loss of heterozygocity (LOH) at the TP53 locus. Twelve tumors were analyzed for expression of TP53 via immunohistochemistry. Neither germline nor somatic TP53 mutations were deteeted. LOH was observed in one of five informative cases. No tumors showed increased expression of TP53 protein. These results indicate that alterations in the TP53 gene are not important for the predisposition to and development of GCT. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Marfan syndrome: exclusion of genetic linkage to the COL1A2 gene

Marfan Syndrome is a genetic disorder of the connective tissue. Individuals from one large family with this disorder were genotyped for COL1A2 gene associated RFLPs. Our results demonstrated that the COL1A2 gene, encoding the proa2(I) collagen chain, segregated independently of the phenotype and it is therefore excluded as the mutant locus in this family.