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The usefulness of the Alb-Ghorab technique is discussed. Of the different balano-cavernous shunt techniques, attention is focussed to the Alb-Ghorab, highlighting the result achieved in the case described herein.
The infestation by the larva of Echinococcus multilocularis, also known as alveolar echinococcosis, is the most dangerous parasitic disease of man in Middle Europe. This is due to the location in the liver but still more so because of the proliferative and infiltrating growth of the larval tissue. The basic infective cycle of the parasite is a zoonosis between foxes as final hosts and small rodents such as common voles as intermediate hosts. Man can be a false intermediate host and thus a carrier of the larval stage. The infection arises from oral ingestion of the tapeworm eggs either on wild berries or in dust. Dogs and cats are a further important source of infection. They can be facultative carriers of adult E. multilocularis and are thus able to excrete eggs or proglottids of the tapeworm. In west Germany, in particular the "Schwäbische Alb" must be regarded as an endemic region for E. multilocularis. According to the examinations of Zeyhle, the infection rate of foxes here is more than 15% on an average, in some local areas as for example in the district of Reutlingen it is over 25%. In order to estimate the danger of infection for man in hyperendemic areas the population of two villages of this district and also specially endangered occupational groups (hunters, foresters) of the whole "Schwäbische Alb" have been examined for echinococcosis by serological means. A stepless ELISA was used as screening test. Thus circa 2200 persons liable to E. multilocularis could be examined. Among the population of the district of Reutlingen nine highly suspective sera could be detected. Computer tomography of these nine persons showed only one case of Echinococcus which could be identified as E. multilocularis after operation. Presumably serological positive cases come up as a consequence of a real contact with E. multilocularis. But in most cases the larval cestode tissue might soon degenerate because man is a relatively poor intermediate host. It cannot be excluded, however, that the Echinococcus-larva could not yet be identified clinically because of its early stage. According to most cautious estimation the prevalence of E. multilocularis in this endemic area might be one per thousand, the contact frequency, however, up to one per cent.
Compounds with in vitro anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) activity are often advanced directly into clinical trials with limited or no in vivo efficacy data. This limits prediction of clinical efficacy of compounds in the HCV drug pipeline, and may expose human subjects to unnecessary treatment effects. The scid-Alb-uPA mouse supports proliferation of transplanted human hepatocytes and subsequent HCV infection. Cohorts of genotype 1a HCV-infected mice were treated with interferon alpha-2b(IFN-alpha), BILN-2061 (anti-NS3 protease), or HCV371 (anti-NS5B polymerase). Mice treated with 1350 IU/g/day IFN-alpha intramuscularly for 10 to 28 days demonstrated reduced viral titers compared with controls in all five experiments (P < .05, t test); viral titers rebounded after treatment withdrawal. A more pronounced antiviral effect with IFN-alpha was seen in genotype 3a-infected mice. Pilot studies with BILN2061 confirmed exposure to 10X replicon EC50 at trough and reduced viral titer over 2 log at 4 days. In a second 7-day study, mean HCV RNA titers dropped 1.1 log in BILN2061-treated animals, 0.6 log in IFN-treated mice, and rose 0.2 log in controls (P = .013, ANOVA). Pre-existing mutants with partial resistance to BILN2061 were identified by sequencing both the human inoculum and sera from treated mice. The polymerase inhibitor HCV371 yielded a decline in HCV titers of 0.3 log relative to vehicle-treated controls (P = NS). Performance of all three antiviral regimens in the chimeric mouse model paralleled responses in humans. In conclusion, this system may help selection of lead compounds for advancement into human trials with an increased likelihood of clinical success while broadening the tools available for study of the biology of HCV infection.
A transgenic rat line carrying the alb-SV40A transgene has been described by this laboratory. Several cell lines have been established from the livers of two of these rats. One of these cell lines, L37, exhibits a large nuclear/cytoplasmic ratio and a well-differentiated cytoplasm containing numerous organelles. When L37 cells are placed into culture medium lacking necessary growth factors, cellular proliferation continues for 48 hours after medium change. Subsequent to the initial 48 hours, cells begin to shrink and lose contact with adjacent cells, eventually sloughing off the culture plate surface, with most cell deaths occurring between 48 and 96 hours after medium change. Microscopic examination of sloughing cells indicates they possess highly convoluted and blebbed plasma membranes, a morphological characteristic of apoptosis. Ultrastructural studies demonstrate the ubiquitous presence of apoptotic bodies. When DNA isolated from growth factor-depleted cells is resolved on agarose gels, DNA fragmentation ladders are observed at times of maximum apoptotic change. Quantitative analysis of L37 cells between 48 and 96 hours after the removal of the culture medium shows that 59% +/- 2% of the cells undergo apoptosis. When cycloheximide, puromycin, or actinomycin D is added to the L37 cultures, only cycloheximide is able to repress apoptosis, indicating that the mechanism of apoptosis in the L37 liver-derived cell line requires a cycloheximide-sensitive translational event. The extremely high rate of apoptosis, together with the maintenance of hepatocellular characteristics, indicates the usefulness of this cell line as a model in which to study the mechanisms of hepatocellular apoptosis.
Only a few complete sequences and very limited functional data are available for the catalytic RNA component of cyanobacterial RNase P. The RNase P RNA from the chl alb containing cyanobacterium Prochlorothrix hollandica belongs to a rarely found structural subtype with an extended P15/16 domain. We have established conditions for optimal in vitro ribozyme activity, and determined the kinetic parameters for cleavage of pre-tRNA(Tyr). Analysis of pre-tRNA mutants revealed that the T-stem sequence only plays a modulating role, whereas the CCA end is essential for efficient product formation.
Chemical and isotope analyses on groundwater sulfate and 3H measurements on groundwaterwere used to determine the sulfate sources and sulfur transformation processes in a heterogeneous karst aquifer of the Franconian Alb, southern Germany. Sulfate was found to be derived from atmospheric deposition. Young groundwater was characterized by high sulfate concentrations and delta34S values similar to those of recent atmospheric sulfate deposition. However, the delta18O values of groundwater SO4(2-) were depleted by several per mil with respect to those of atmospheric deposition. This isotopic shift is indicative of mineralization of carbon-bonded S in the vadose zone of the karst system. In groundwater with mean residence times of more than 60 years, a trend of increasing delta34S values and delta18O values with decreasing sulfate concentrations was observed. This trend could not be solely explained by preindustrial atmospheric sulfate deposition with higher delta34S values, and hence, we conclude that bacterial (dissimilatory) sulfate reduction in the porous matrix of the karst aquifer must have occurred. This process has the potential to contribute to long-term biodegradation of contaminants in the porous rock matrix representing the dominantwater reservoir of the fissured porous karst aquifer.
Concentrations and stable isotope compositions of nitrate from 11 karst springs in the Franconian Alb (southern Germany) were determined during low flow and high flow conditions to assess sources and processes affecting groundwater nitrate. During low flow, nitrate concentrations in groundwater were around 0.10 mM in springs draining forested catchments, whereas in agricultural areas nitrate concentrations were typically higher reaching up to 0.93 mM. The isotopic composition of groundwater nitrate during low flow (delta15N values of -3.1 to 6.7% per hundred, delta180 values of +2.1 to 4.0% per hundred) in concert with concentration data suggests that nitrate is formed by nitrification in forest and agricultural soils. In addition, synthetic fertilizer N that has undergone immobilization and subsequent remineralization likely constitutes an additional nitrate source in agriculturally used catchments. During recharge conditions, concentrations and delta15N values of groundwater nitrate changed little, but delta18O values were significantly elevated (up to 24.5%o per hundred suggesting that around 25% of the nitrate was directly derived from atmospheric deposition. Groundwater dating revealed that low nitrate concentrations in groundwater (_> or =0 years) are consistent with a mixture of old low nitrate-containing and young water, the latter being affected by anthropogenic N inputs predominantly in the agriculturally used catchment areas during the last few decades. Thermodynamic and hydrogeological evidence also suggests that denitrification may have occurred in the porous rock matrix of the karst aquifer. This study demonstrates that a combination of hydrodynamic, chemical, and isotopic approaches provides unique insights into the sources and the biogeochemical history of nitrate in karst aquifers, and therefore constitutes a valuable tool for assessing the vulnerability of karst aquifers to nitrate pollution in dependence on land use and assessing their self-purification capacity.
Blood type analysis of 29 foals in a paternal half-sib family verified linkage of five LGII loci (Es, E, To, Gc, Al). Population and parentage data from other tobiano-spotted horses suggested conservation of a tightly linked (To:GcS:AlB) marker complex.
A ternary silicide Sr(Ga(0.37),Si(0.63))(2) was synthesized by a floating zone method. Electron diffraction and powder x-ray diffraction measurements indicate that the silicide has the AlB(2)-type structure with the lattice constants of a = 4.1427(6) A and c = 4.7998(9) A, where Si and Ga atoms are arranged in a chemically disordered honeycomb lattice and Sr atoms are inercalated between them. The silicide is isostructural with the high-temperature superconductor MgB(2) reported recently. Electrical resistivity and dc magnetization measurements revealed that it is a type-II superconductor with onset temperature of 3.5 K.
Seven bovine erythrocyte antigen loci and three serum protein loci were tentatively assigned to chromosomes or synteny groups by linkage analysis to previously assigned microsatellite DNA markers. The erythrocyte antigen locus EAB was mapped to synteny group U27; EAC to chromosome 18, synteny group U9; EAL to chromosome 3, synteny group U6; EAS to chromosome 21, synteny group U4; EAZ to chromosome 10, synteny group U5; EAR' to chromosome 16, synteny group U1; and EAT' to chromosome 19, synteny group U21. The vitamin D binding protein (GC) and albumin (ALB) loci were assigned to chromosome 6, synteny group U15 and post-transferrin 2 (PTF 2) to chromosome 19, synteny group U21.
Eight different Bacillus subtilis strains and Bacillus atrophaeus were found to produce the bacteriocin subtilosin A. On the basis of the subtilosin gene (sbo) sequences two distinct classes of B. subtilis strains were distinguished, and they fell into the two B. subtilis subspecies (B. subtilis subsp. subtilis and B. subtilis subsp. spizizenii). The entire sequence of the subtilosin gene cluster of a B. subtilis subsp. spizizenii strain, B. subtilis ATCC 6633, was determined. This sequence exhibited a high level of homology to the sequence of the sbo-alb gene locus of B. subtilis 168. By using primer extension analysis the transcriptional start sites of sbo in B. subtilis strains ATCC 6633 and 168 were found to be 47 and 45 bp upstream of the sbo start codon, respectively. Our results provide insight into the incipient evolutionary divergence of the two B. subtilis subspecies.
The sites of Neresheim and Kösingen are located in the easternmost part of the Swabian Alb in close proximity, but belong to separate natural units characterized by clearly different ecological properties. By investigating early mediaeval skeletal samples of the populations, two questions were addressed: (1) to what extent can modes of subsistence be explained by the ecological context, and (2) does this affect patterns of nutritional and social differentiation within the populations? Reconstruction of dietary bases by trace element analyses revealed a mixed diet consisting of both crops and animal-derived products at Neresheim, while the nutrition at Kösingen suggests the consumption of food components enriched in dietary calcium with a stronger emphasis on animal products. These results are in accordance with what may be expected based on the options available in the respective habitat. People in Neresheim mostly relied on crop farming in the fertile areas of their environment and may have used less favourable sections for livestock farming. In Kösingen, subsistence was based primarily on pastoral agriculture supplemented by horticulture and reflects a close adjustment to the ecological potential. Cluster-analytical treatment of trace element data led to the formation of groups differing in diet, and we investigated whether this difference corresponded with social affiliation. In Neresheim, a non-random congruence of higher social status and access to high-quality food was revealed, while such patterns were not observable in Kösingen. These interpopulational differences can be explained by bio-cultural interrelations between ecological properties of the natural units and reconstructed living conditions.
The endoparasite fauna of 59 slaughtered sheep (30 lambs, 29 ewes) from the Swabian Alb, Germany, was examined. One species of trematodes, 3 species of cestodes, 29 species of nematodes (23 species of gastro-intestinal and 6 species of lung nematodes), 1 species of arthropodes and 1 species of protozoa were recorded. All animals were infected with Dicrocoelium dentriticum as well as gastro-intestinal and lung nematodes, 45.8% with Moniezia spp., 15.3% with Cysticercus tenuicollis, 55.9% with Oestrus ovis and 11.9% with Sarcocystis gigantea. The most important gastro-intestinal nematodes were Ostertagia circumcincta and Cooperia curticei, which were recorded in all sheep, Ostertagia trifurcata and Chabertia ovine (98.3% each), Oesophagostumum venulosum (96.6%), Nematodirus filicollis (81.4% each), Ostertagia pinnata (78.0%), Trichuris ovis and Trichostrongylus colubriformis (76.3% each). The ewes harboured more abomasal and small intestinal nematodes (1819 and 3702) than the lambs (695 and 1730), which haboured more large intestinal nematodes (177) than those (56). The most often recorded lungworms were Cystocaulus ocreatus (74.6%) and Muellerius capillaris (72.9%), followed by Neostrongylus linearis (57.6%), Dictyocaulus filaria (50.8%), Protostrongylus brevispiculum (37.3%) and Protostrongylus rufescens (28.8%). The ewes carried higher lungworm burdens than the lambs.
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The presence of the L1 sequences, L1Md4 next to the pseudogene beta h3 and I12 found in the twelfth intron of the albumin gene, in certain strains of laboratory mice but not of others has led to the suggestion that these sequences were recent insertions into the Mus mus domesticus genome. To be sure that they are really recent insertions and not relics of an ancestral chromosome, we investigated the presence or absence of these sequences in populations of wild mice belonging to the semispecies M. m. domesticus and M. m. musculus as well as in other species of the genus Mus and in related murids. The sequence I12 in the albumin gene was found in 34% of the chromosomes of the wild mice belonging to M. m. domesticus and to a lesser extent (6%) in M. m. musculus. Of 114 M. m. domesticus chromosomes, L1Md4 was found in only nine, seven of which came from the same locality. Its presence was associated with the haplotype Hbbp, which is relatively rare in European populations of M. musculus. Since there was no evidence for the presence of these two L1 sequences in more distantly related species, we conclude that they are recent insertions in the M. musculus genome.