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Objective: Connexin26 (Cx26) and Cx30 are the major protein subunits forming gap junction (GJ) intercellular channels in the cochlea. Mutations in these 2 Cxs are the major cause of nonsyndromic early childhood deafness in humans. The underlying mechanism for cochlear abnormality is unclear. Here, we used targeted Cx30 gene deletion (Cx30-/-) mice to investigate molecular mechanisms responsible for Cx mutation-linked deafness. Our hypothesis is that specific loss of GJ-mediated biochemical coupling in the cochlea is sufficient to cause deafness., Study Design: We compared: (1) expression of major cochlear GJ protein subunits, Cx26 and Cx30; and (2) biochemical coupling among cochlear supporting cells in the cochleae of wild type and Cx30-/- mice., Methods: Immunolabeling was used to examine the expression of the remaining Cx protein expression in the cochlea of Cx30-/- mice. We also used a fluorescent dye diffusion assay performed on a novel flattened cochlear preparation to examine GJ-mediated metabolite transfer among cochlear supporting cells., Results: Estimation of the residual ionic conductance indicated that considerable intercellular ionic coupling remained in the cochlea of Cx30-/- mice. Direct measurement of GJ-mediated biochemical coupling showed that the transfer of metabolites among cochlear supporting cells in Cx30-/- mice was severely reduced., Conclusion: Our data support that deficiency in GJ-mediated biochemical coupling is sufficient to cause Cx mutation-linked deafness.

Pulsed field gradient NMR flow propagators for water flow in Bentheimer sandstone are measured at low fields (1H resonance 2 MHz), using both unipolar and bipolar variants of the pulsed gradient method. We compare with propagators measured at high fields (1H resonance 85 MHz). We show that (i) measured flow propagators appear to be equivalent, in this rock, and (ii) the lower signal to noise ratio at low fields is not a serious limitation. By comparing different pulse sequences, we study the effects of the internal gradients on the propagator measurement at 2 MHz, which for certain rocks may persist even at low fields.

We review diffusion-weighted relaxation protocols for two-dimensional diffusion/relaxation time (D, T(2)) distributions and their application to fluid-saturated sedimentary rocks at low fields typical of oil-well logging tools (< or = 2 MHz for 1H). Fixed field gradient (FFG) protocols may be implemented in logging tools and in the laboratory; there, pulsed field gradient (PFG) protocols are also available. In either category, direct or stimulated echoes may be used for the diffusion evolution periods. We compare the results of several variant FFG and PFG protocols obtained on liquids and two contrasting sedimentary rocks. For liquids and rocks of negligible internal gradients (g(int)), results are comparable, as expected, for all the studied protocols. For rocks of strong g(int), protocol-dependent artifacts are seen in the joint (D, T2) distributions, consistent with the effects of the internal fields. For laboratory petrophysics, the PFG methods offer several advantages: (a) significantly improved signal-to-noise ratio and acquisition times for repetitions over many samples; (b) freedom from heteronuclear contamination when fluorinated liquids are used in core holders; and (c) a palette of variants--one comparable with the FFG--for the study of rocks of significant g(int). Given suitable hardware, both PFG and FFG methods can be implemented in the same bench-top apparatus, providing a versatile test bed for application in a petrophysical laboratory.

NMR methods are widely used to probe the structure and fluid dynamics of porous materials, as they are uniquely suited to these studies since NMR records the correlation of changing local magnetic fields over a time scale of ns to seconds. The local magnetic fields are established by local variations in the bulk magnetic susceptibility of the sample (and so are directly tied to the sample's local structure). The fluctuation in field that a spin sees is due to molecular transport (including molecular diffusion) through these local fields, and so reports on the length scales of structures and impediments to transport. We have developed a new set of methods DIFFUSIVE-MASS to provide a means of systematically varying the effective time scale of the measurement and thus the effective length scale. This new handle permits a detailed, microscopic picture of the structure and dynamics. Diffusive MASS NMR methods will permit a systematic set of methods and analysis for characterizing the chemistry, structure and fluid dynamics of the mobile phase in porous materials. The approach will be applicable to any diamagnetic material. In particular, the industry of oil discovery depends on understanding heterogeneous porous media.

We report a case of laser in situ keratomileusis in which a patient with recurrent diffuse lamellar keratitis (DLK) recalcitrant to standard therapy was successfully treated with phototherapeutic keratectomy (PTK). The PTK was used to ablate both surfaces of the flap interface with the goal of removing DLK-inciting agents. The resultant sustained decrease in DLK suggests PTK is an effective therapy option.

Photoacoustic calorimetry (PAC) and actinometry studies were used to determine the enthalpies and volumes of reaction for the production of a transient intermediate, Mo(CO)(5)-alkane, and for its subsequent reaction with tetrahydrofuran (THF). Both the enthalpy and the volume of reaction contribute to the photoacoustic signal and have been resolved by changing the solvent thermal expansion properties with a series of linear alkanes. The enthalpies for substitution of CO on Mo(CO)(6) by an alkane and of coordinated alkane on Mo(CO)(5)(alkane) by THF are 30 and -14 kcal/mol, respectively. Likewise, the volumes of reaction are 18 and -1 mL/mol. From available data for the Mo--CO bond energy, these results allow the calculation of the Mo-alkane and Mo-THF bond energies (11 and 25 kcal/mol, respectively). The Mo-alkane result is 7 kcal/mol less than that from our previous PAC study, which ignored the volume of reaction, and is in better agreement with the results of kinetic studies. The large absolute difference in the reaction volumes for each step is partially attributed to a void volume created during the formation of the Mo--THF bond. In general, the volume of reaction cannot be neglected in the calculation of enthalpies of ligand substitution from PAC studies. The quantum yields for photosubstitution of Mo(CO)(6), in contrast to Cr(CO)(6), were found to be insensitive to the chain length of the alkane solvent.