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Purpose. Few studies have considered the impact of masculine role variables on outcome and adjustment to SCI among men. The present study examined the relations among SCI, views of masculinity, psychological adjustment, and rehabilitation outcomes among men with SCI. Method. The sample included 20 men with SCI receiving inpatient rehabilitation, with a mean age of 45 years. Data included demographic variables as well as Conformity to Masculine Norms Inventory (CMNI), Gender Role Conflict Scale (GRCS), Functional Independence Measure (FIM), and Satisfaction with Life Scale ratings, and change in marital status. Results. The findings revealed that satisfaction with life was positively related to scores on the CMNI Violence scale, FIM change from admission to discharge was positively related to the CMNI Emotional Control scale and negatively related to the CMNI Dominance scale. Change in marital status was inversely related to the CMNI Emotional Control and Primacy of Work scales and the GRCS Restricted Emotionality and Power, Success, and Competition scales. Conclusions. The findings show that certain aspects of the traditional masculine role (i.e., ability to modulate strong emotions) may be adaptive in the rehabilitation process, whereas other aspects (i.e., a dominant interpersonal style) may present a barrier to effective rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Endoscopic band ligation for bleeding small-bowel vascular lesions has been reported as safe and efficacious based on small case series. There have been several other published case reports of band ligators used for bleeding lesions, usually Dieulafoy's lesions, in the stomach, the proximal small bowel, and the colon. In addition, this method has been used for postpolypectomy bleeding stalks. There has never been a critical look at the anatomic consequences of banding in the thinner sections of bowel. METHOD: The purpose of this study is to define the anatomic and histologic consequences of applying band ligator devices to the small and the large bowel. Fresh surgical specimens, both large and small bowel, that were excised because of neoplastic lesions were transported to our endoscopy unit where one end of the intact bowel was sutured shut. A standard upper endoscope was passed via the open end, and the bowel was closed tightly with rubber band ties. The bowel then was insufflated, and band ligators were applied to unaffected mucosa by using a standard technique. Photodocumentation from inside and outside the bowel was obtained. Some of the band polyps were cut above the band, and some were cut below the band in the fresh state. Some were fixed in formalin and examined microscopically. Histologic sectioning occurred at the level of the bands. RESULTS: The results were striking in that there were large holes (1 cm) in the fresh ileum specimen. There was gross serosal entrapment manifested by visible puckers on the outer surfaces of the specimens, especially in the small bowel and the right colon. The left colon, anatomically thicker, was less affected. The histologic evaluation revealed inclusion by the band ligator of the muscularis propria and serosa on the small bowel, the muscularis propria in the right colon, and the submucosa in the left colon. CONCLUSIONS: Based on these findings, we conclude that band ligator devices are not safe in the small bowel and the right colon but probably are safe in the thicker left colon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Winam Gulf (Kenya) is frequently impaired by cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs) due to inadequate wastewater treatment and excess agricultural nutrient input. While phytoplankton in Lake Victoria have been characterized using morphological criteria, our aim is to identify potential toxin-producing cyanobacteria using molecular approaches. The Gulf was sampled over two successive summer seasons, and 16S and 18S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing was performed. Additionally, key genes involved in production of cyanotoxins were examined by quantitative PCR. Bacterial communities were spatially variable, forming distinct clusters in line with regions of the Gulf. Taxa associated with diazotrophy were dominant near Homa Bay. On the eastern side, samples exhibited elevated cyrA abundances, indicating genetic capability of cylindrospermopsin synthesis. Indeed, near the Nyando River mouth in 2022, cyrA exceeded 10 million copies L -1 where there were more than 6000 Cylindrospermopsis spp. cells mL -1 . In contrast, the southwestern region had elevated mcyE gene (microcystin synthesis) detections near Homa Bay where Microcystis and Dolichospermum spp. were observed. These findings show that within a relatively small embayment, composition and toxin synthesis potential of cHABs can vary dramatically. This underscores the need for multifaceted management approaches and frequent cyanotoxin monitoring to reduce human health impacts., (© 2024 The Author(s). Environmental Microbiology Reports published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Sandusky Bay is the drowned mouth of the Sandusky River in the southwestern portion of Lake Erie. The bay is a popular recreation location and a regional source for drinking water. Like the western basin of Lake Erie, Sandusky Bay is known for being host to summer cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (cHABs) year after year, fueled by runoff from the predominantly agricultural watershed and internal loading of legacy nutrients (primarily phosphorus). Since at least 2003, Sandusky Bay has harbored a microcystin-producing bloom of Planktothrix agardhii, a species of filamentous cyanobacteria that thrives in low light conditions. Long-term sampling (2003-2018) of Sandusky Bay revealed regular Planktothrix-dominated blooms during the summer months, but in recent years (2019-2022), 16S rRNA gene community profiling revealed that Planktothrix has largely disappeared. From 2017-2022, microcystin decreased well below the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. Spring TN:TP ratios increased in years following dam removal, yet there were no statistically significant shifts in other physicochemical variables, such as water temperature and water clarity. With the exception of the high bloom of Planktothrix in 2018, there was no statistical difference in chlorophyll during all other years. Concurrent with the disappearance of Planktothrix, Cyanobium spp. have become the dominant cyanobacterial group. The appearance of other potential toxigenic genera (i.e., Aphanizomenon, Dolichospermum, Cylindrospermopsis) may motivate monitoring of new toxins of concern in Sandusky Bay. Here, we document the regime shift in the cyanobacterial community and propose evidence supporting the hypothesis that the decline in the Planktothrix bloom was linked to the removal of an upstream dam on the Sandusky River., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Microcystin-producing cyanobacterial blooms are a global issue threatening drinking water supplies and recreation on lakes and beaches. Direct measurement of microcystins is the only way to ensure waters have concentrations below guideline concentrations; however, analyzing water for microcystins takes several hours to days to obtain data. We tested LightDeck Diagnostics' bead beater cell lysis and two versions of the quantification system designed to give microcystin concentrations within 20 min and compared it to the standard freeze-thaw cycle lysis method and ELISA quantification. The bead beater lyser was only 30 % effective at extracting microcystins compared to freeze-thaw. When considering freeze-thaw samples analyzed in 2021, there was good agreement between ELISA and LightDeck version 2 (n = 152; R 2  = 0.868), but the LightDeck slightly underestimated microcystins (slope of 0.862). However, we found poor relationships between LightDeck version 2 and ELISA in 2022 (n = 49, slopes 0.60 to 1.6; R 2  < 0.6) and LightDeck version 1 (slope = 1.77 but also a high number of less than quantifiable concentrations). After the quantification issues are resolved, combining the LightDeck system with an already-proven rapid lysis method (such as microwaving) will allow beach managers and water treatment operators to make quicker, well-informed decisions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following competing financial interest: LightDeck Diagnostics is a commercial organization and Lewis, Macdonald, and Lochhead are currently employed by LightDeck, while Bickman, Petrou, and Roser are former LightDeck employees., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interest.

The Earth BioGenome Project (EBP) is an audacious endeavor to obtain whole-genome sequences of representatives from all eukaryotic species on Earth. In addition to the project's technical and organizational challenges, it also faces complicated ethical, legal, and social issues. This paper, from members of the EBP's Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues (ELSI) Committee, catalogs these ELSI concerns arising from EBP. These include legal issues, such as sample collection and permitting; the applicability of international treaties, such as the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Nagoya Protocol; intellectual property; sample accessioning; and biosecurity and ethical issues, such as sampling from the territories of Indigenous peoples and local communities, the protection of endangered species, and cross-border collections, among several others. We also comment on the intersection of digital sequence information and data rights. More broadly, this list of ethical, legal, and social issues for large-scale genomic sequencing projects may be useful in the consideration of ethical frameworks for future projects. While we do not-and cannot-provide simple, overarching solutions for all the issues raised here, we conclude our perspective by beginning to chart a path forward for EBP's work., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interest., (Copyright © 2022 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.)

Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole-induced aseptic meningitis (TSIAM) is a rare adverse reaction to a commonly prescribed antibiotic. We describe a case of severe TSIAM which resembled septic shock. A 30-year-old male with relapsed Hodgkin's lymphoma 25 days status post autologous stem cell transplant presented to our clinic for evaluation of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) hypersensitivity. After review of patient's history and records, we had a low suspicion for a TMP-SMX adverse reaction and conducted an oral challenge to one 160 mg/800 mg tab of TMP-SMX. Four hours later, the patient developed vomiting, lightheadedness, and disorientation with progression to rigors, fever, tachycardia, and hypotension. He was admitted for fluid resuscitation and broad-spectrum antibiotic coverage for neutropenic fever and possible septic shock. A lumbar puncture performed due to complaints of headache, photophobia, and neck pain showed 375 white blood cells/µL with 73% neutrophil predominance, normal glucose (75 mg/dL), and elevated protein (101 mg/dL); additional cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) studies were negative for infectious etiologies. Fever and headache resolved by hospital day 4, at which time patient was discharged home. We believe this case represents TSIAM given the characteristic timing of symptom onset, CSF findings, and timing of symptom resolution without other clear etiology found on extensive infectious evaluation. It is important for allergists to recognize TSIAM, including its potential presentation as shock, in order to appropriately diagnose and counsel patients who seek evaluation for TMP-SMX adverse reactions., (© The Association of Military Surgeons of the United States 2021. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Genome sequencing initiatives like the Arthropod i5k project and other biodiversity genomics research rely on access to high quality DNA and/or tissue. Global collection initiatives such as the Smithsonian Global Genome Initiative (GGI) and its partner network, the Global Genome Biodiversity Network (GGBN) aim to provide access to these resources at high-quality standards. Here, we review progress toward providing genomic resources (tissues, DNA, genomes) for terrestrial arthropods, a megadiverse animal group, and compare progress in genome sequencing to all other animals., (Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The U.S. Culture Collection Network held a meeting to share information about how culture collections are responding to the requirements of the recently enacted Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The meeting included representatives of many culture collections and other biological collections, the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Secretariat of the CBD, interested scientific societies, and collection groups, including Scientific Collections International and the Global Genome Biodiversity Network. The participants learned about the policies of the United States and other countries regarding access to genetic resources, the definition of genetic resources, and the status of historical materials and genetic sequence information. Key topics included what constitutes access and how the CBD Access and Benefit-Sharing Clearing-House can help guide researchers through the process of obtaining Prior Informed Consent on Mutually Agreed Terms. U.S. scientists and their international collaborators are required to follow the regulations of other countries when working with microbes originally isolated outside the United States, and the local regulations required by the Nagoya Protocol vary by the country of origin of the genetic resource. Managers of diverse living collections in the United States described their holdings and their efforts to provide access to genetic resources. This meeting laid the foundation for cooperation in establishing a set of standard operating procedures for U.S. and international culture collections in response to the Nagoya Protocol.

Advances in biodiversity genomic sequencing will increasingly depend on the availability of DNA samples-and their quantifiable metadata-preserved in large institutional biorepositories that are discoverable to the scientific community. Improvements in sequencing technology constantly provide longer reads, such that longer fragment length, higher molecular weight, and overall "genome-quality" DNA (gDNA) will be desirable. Ideally, biorepositories should publish numerical scale measurements of DNA quality useful to the user community. However, the most widely used technique to evaluate DNA quality, the classic agarose gel, has yet to be quantified. Here we propose a simple and economical method using open source image analysis software to make gDNA gel images quantifiable, and propose percentage of gDNA "greater than X kb" as a standard of comparison, where X is a band from any widely used DNA ladder with desirably large band sizes. We employ two metadata standards ("DNA Threshold" and "Percent above Threshold") introduced as part of the Global Genome Biodiversity Network (GGBN) Darwin Core extension. We illustrate the method using the traditionally used Hin dIII ladder and the 9,416 base-pair (bp) band as a standard. We also present data, for two taxa, a vertebrate (fish) and an invertebrate (crab), on how gDNA quality varies with seven tissue preservation methods, time since death, preservation method (i.e. buffers vs. cold temperatures), and storage temperature of various buffers over time. Our results suggest that putting tissue into a buffer prior to freezing may be better than directly into ultra-cold conditions., Competing Interests: Sean G. Brady is an Academic Editor for PeerJ.

Aims: The pharmacokinetic (PK) similarity between PF-05280014, a proposed trastuzumab biosimilar, trastuzumab sourced from European Union (trastuzumab-EU) or from United States (trastuzumab-US) was evaluated. Safety and immunogenicity were also assessed., Methods: In this phase 1, double-blind trial (NCT01603264), 105 healthy male volunteers were randomized 1:1:1 to receive a single 6 mg kg(-1) intravenous dose of PF-05280014, trastuzumab-EU, or trastuzumab-US, and evaluated for 70 days. Drug concentration-time data were analyzed by non-compartmental methods. PK similarity for the comparisons of PF-05280014 to each of trastuzumab-EU and trastuzumab-US, and trastuzumab-EU to trastuzumab-US were determined using the standard 80.00% to 125.00% bioequivalence criteria., Results: Baseline demographics for the 101 subjects evaluable for PK were similar across all arms. The three products exhibited similar PK profiles with target-mediated disposition. The 90% CIs for the ratios of Cmax , AUC (0 , t last) and AUC(0,∞) were within 80.00% to 125.00% for all three pairwise comparisons. Adverse events (AEs) were similar across all arms with treatment-related AEs reported by 71.4%, 68.6% and 65.7% subjects in the PF-05280014, trastuzumab-EU, and trastuzumab-US arms, respectively. The most common AEs were infusion-related reactions, headache, chills, pyrexia and nausea. The AE term 'pyrexia' was numerically greater in the PF-05280014 arm. All post-dose samples, except 1, tested negative for anti-drug antibodies (ADA)., Conclusions: This study demonstrates PK similarity among PF-05280014, trastuzumab-EU and trastuzumab-US. The safety and immunogenicity profiles observed for the three products in this study are consistent with previous reports for trastuzumab., (© 2014 The British Pharmacological Society.)

Historical inquiry enriches occupational therapy practice by identifying enduring values and inspiring future excellence. This study presents for the first time the pioneering life and work of Philip King Brown, a San Francisco physician who used occupation to treat the physical, mental, and social effects of tuberculosis (TB) at Arequipa Sanatorium, the institution he founded in 1911. Through textual analysis of the Arequipa Sanatorium Records, this article evaluates and defends Brown's assertion that his institution was medically and socially experimental. The Arequipa Sanatorium promoted occupational therapy by demonstrating its viability in the treatment of TB, the era's most critical health threat. It also put into practice the ideals of holism, humanism, and occupational justice that resonate within the profession today. Finally, Arequipa provided an example of how an occupation program can change the public perception of disability., (Copyright © 2013 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.)

Primary Objective: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a significant health problem disproportionately affecting men and is often associated with changes in masculine role functioning in life domains such as vocational functioning, sexual and inter-personal functioning and personal independence. These changes could have serious implications for men's adjustment following injury. The aim of this study was to examine the relations among traditional masculine role adherence, psychosocial adjustment and rehabilitation outcomes in men with TBI., Research Design: A correlational design was chosen to examine the relations among variables. Spearman correlations and Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests were used to examine relationships between masculine role variables and outcome variables., Methods and Procedures: The study included 33 men with TBI who had been discharged from inpatient rehabilitation within 5 years. Participants completed surveys on traditional masculine gender role adherence and gender role conflict and additional data, including measures of functional outcome, life satisfaction, psychosocial outcomes and earnings, were obtained through the TBI Model System longitudinal data collection system., Main Outcomes and Results: The results revealed significant associations between masculine role adherence and satisfaction with life, follow-up earnings and FIM change from admission to discharge., Conclusions: In the current study, particular masculine role variables corresponded to different functional and psychological outcomes. Understanding these differences provides new directions for treatment and offers important information about aspects of traditional masculine roles that may enhance or hinder adjustment to injury.

Objective: Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is an increasingly prevalent problem. Treatment options are still under investigation. The primary aim of the study was to determine whether weight loss, achieved through Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGBP), improved histopathology in obese patients with biopsy proven NASH., Methods: One hundred and forty-nine patients were identified from a surgical database as having RYGBP for obesity and concomitant intra-operative liver biopsies from October 2001 to September 2003. Thirty-five patients were found to have evidence of NASH at the time of surgery. Nineteen patients were contacted and underwent repeat percutaneous liver biopsies. Biopsies were evaluated and compared in blinded fashion by an experienced hepatopathologist. Fasting lipid panel, insulin and glucose, hemoglobin A1c (HgbA1c), and liver enzymes were obtained., Results: Significant differences were noted in the following variables pre- and post-bypass surgery: body mass index 46.8-28.8 kg/m2 (p < 0.001); body weight in kilograms 132.1-79.7 (p < 0.001); glucose 102.9-94.1 mg/dL (p = 0.015); Hgb A1c 5.79-5.15% (p = 0.026); high density lipoprotein 45.7-64.4 mg/dL (p < 0.001); low density lipoprotein 112-88.6 mg/dL (p = 0.003); triglycerides 132.1-97 mg/dL (p = 0.013). Significant improvements in steatosis, lobular inflammation, portal, and lobular fibrosis were noted. Histopathologic criteria for NASH were no longer found in 17/19 patients (89%)., Conclusions: Weight loss after gastric bypass surgery in obese patients with NASH results in significant improvement in glucose, HgbA1c. and lipid profiles. Furthermore, RYGBP results in significant improvement in the histological features of NASH with resolution of disease in a majority of these patients.

SUMMARY Humor use in education has been studied in fields such as psychology and nursing. Research has demonstrated that effective educational humor needs to be integrated into the topic and used in moderation. Used appropriately, humor can gain attention, facilitate creative thinking and memory, motivate students to attend class, and promote learning outcomes. No studies were located in the occupational therapy literature that specifically related to humor as an aspect of teaching. The purpose of this article is to explore the merits of humor as an educational tool and to give examples of ways that occupational therapy faculty and clinical instructors can employ humor.

Two groups of mares were exposed to an abrupt, artificial increase or a natural increase in daylength. In both groups, mean LH pulse frequency increased with time of year and was accompanied by a reciprocal decrease in LH pulse amplitude. A non-pulsatile pattern of LH secretion was observed in some mares sampled close to the day of ovulation. Maximum mean LH pulse frequency and the onset of the breeding season occurred earlier in those mares exposed to an abrupt artificial increase in daylength. In blood samples collected frequently, mean serum LH concentrations increased in relation to time of year. However, during 60 days before ovulation, when LH pulse frequency increased, mean daily serum LH values only increased on Day -3 before ovulation. The magnitude of the periovulatory LH rise was greater before the second than the first ovulation of the breeding season. These results support the hypothesis that, in the mare, a photoperiod-induced seasonal alteration in LH pulse frequency and/or amplitude may play a role in the onset of the breeding season.

Responses to prepartum injection of sows with Se and vitamin E (E) were evaluated by determining immunoglobulin (IgA, IgM, IgG) levels in the colostrum and serum of the sows and the serum of their offspring. Fifty-four sows (40 multiparous, 14 primiparous) receiving diets adequate in E and Se according to current NRC (1988) standards were randomly allotted to four treatment groups in which a single i.m. injection of saline (controls), 5 mg of Se, 1,000 IU of E, or both Se and E were given on d 100 of gestation. Sows were bled prior to and 7 d after injection, at farrowing and on d 14 and 28 of lactation. Colostral samples were collected at the initiation of farrowing. Pigs were bled 20 h postpartum and at 14 and 28 d of age. Major immunoglobulin changes in the serum of the sows due to treatment were not seen prior to parturition. Injections of Se and(or) E resulted in higher colostral IgM levels (8.4, 10.7, 9.8 and 9.6 mg/ml, respectively), but only the response from Se was significant (P less than .05). Concentrations of colostral IgA or IgG were not affected by treatment (P greater than .30). Compared with controls, all three treatments increased (P less than .10) IgM concentrations in serum from pigs at birth (28.3, 33.3, 36.0 and 33.5 mg/ml, respectively), whereas IgA and IgG concentrations were not affected (P greater than .30).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Four adult wethers (45 kg) with permanent ruminal and abomasal cannulae were used in a repeated measures Latin-square arrangement of treatments to quantitate the effects of diet concentrate level and sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) on site and extent of forage fiber digestion in the gastrointestinal tract. Experimental diets consisted of Kentucky-31 tall fescue hay, soybean meal and a semi-purified concentrate mixture in ratios of 95:5:0, 76:4:20, 57:3:40 and 38:2:60; NaHCO3 represented 0 or 7.5% of the concentrate mixture. Ruminal digestion (% of intake) of neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and hemicellulose decreased linearly (P less than .05), whereas acid detergent fiber (ADF) digestion responded in a cubic (P less than .05) fashion to increasing concentrate level; NaHCO3 improved ruminal digestion of NDF (P less than .10) and ADF (P less than .05), but not hemicellulose. Post-ruminal digestion (% of rumen non-degraded) of NDF and ADF tended to increase, whereas hemicellulose digestion responded in a cubic (P less than .05) fashion to increasing concentrate level; NaHCO3 decreased (P less than .05) post-ruminal digestion of all fiber fractions. Total tract digestion of NDF and ADF showed a cubic (P less than .05) response, whereas hemicellulose digestion responded in a quadratic (P less than .05) fashion to increasing concentrate level; NaHCO3 had no effect on total tract digestion of any fiber fraction. Correlations of ruminal hemicellulose digestion with mean pH (r = .33; P = .07) and minimum pH (r = .30; P = .09) were attained in a 24-h feeding cycle.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

We evaluated the efficacy of an oral dosage form of the investigational smooth muscle relaxant, zindotrine, a novel pyridazine derivative, in counteracting histamine-induced bronchospasm in a group of 12 non-medicated asymptomatic asthmatics. Histamine inhalation challenges were performed before (control) and 45, 150, and 300 minutes after zindotrine (200 and 300 mg), or the corresponding dose of placebo was administered orally in a randomized, double-blind crossover fashion. When compared to the control state, the 300-mg zindotrine dose markedly lowered histamine airway responsiveness as indicated by a significant (P less than .01) increase in the inhaled histamine dose necessary to provoke a 20% decrease in the forced expired volume in one second (PD20FEV1) 45 minutes after drug administration. The PD20FEV1 then decreased linearly over time but remained higher than the control PD20FEV1 value (P less than .05) during the entire observation period. The 200-mg zindotrine dose failed to affect the PD20FEV1. Our data indicate that orally administered zindotrine lowers airways responsiveness to inhaled histamine in asymptomatic asthmatics in a dose-dependent and time-dependent fashion.

Six ruminally fistulated Holstein cows were utilized in a randomized block design to examine effects of yeast culture supplement on ruminal metabolism and apparent digestibility. Cows were fed a diet of 40% corn silage and 60% concentrate (DM basis). Treatments were control (supplement without yeast cells) and yeast culture supplement. Treatment periods were 6 wk. Ruminal pH, ammonia, molar proportions of acetate and isovalerate, and acetate: propionate ratio were lower and molar proportions of propionate and valerate higher in cows receiving yeast. The concentration of anaerobic bacteria tended to be higher and cellulolytic bacteria concentrations were greater in cows fed yeast than in cows receiving control diet. Supplemental yeast did not affect molar proportions of isobutyrate or butyrate, total VFA, or viable yeast concentrations in ruminal fluid. Ruminal liquid dilution rate and total tract apparent digestibilities were not different between treatments. Rate of disappearance of cellulose in vitro was lower in cows receiving yeast. Less variation in ammonia concentrations and microbial numbers suggest that ruminal fermentation was more stable in cows receiving yeast culture supplement.

The effects of alteration of gastric pH and food on the pharmacokinetics of 200 mg doses of cefpodoxime proxetil tablets were studied in two separate randomized, open label, crossover studies in healthy subjects. In the pH study (n = 17 subjects), there was a lead-in period done under fasting conditions, followed by randomization to a four-way crossover of pentagastrin (6 micrograms/kg, subcutaneously), ranitidine (150 mg orally, 10 and 2 hours before dosing with the antibiotic), sodium bicarbonate (12.6 gm), or aluminum hydroxide (120 cc). Gastric pH was determined by nasogastric aspirates before and 10 minutes after the intervention, just before the antibiotic was given. Peak plasma concentrations (Cmax) and area under plasma concentration-time curve (AUC) were highest in fasting and pentagastrin periods and were 35% to 50% lower for all of the other periods (p less than 0.0001). Gastric pH and Cmax and AUC were inversely related (r = 0.66 and r = 0.62; p less than 0.0001 for both). In the food study (n = 16 subjects), there were two lead-in periods, one done while subjects were fasting and one while they were normal diet, followed by randomization to a four-way crossover of either high or low protein diets, or high or low fat diets. There were six meals in each diet. Dosing with the antibiotic was done at the midpoint of the fourth meal. Cmax and AUC were 22% to 34% higher for all diets than for the fasting period (p less than 0.0001), whereas the time to Cmax was unchanged. These studies demonstrated that absorption of cefpodoxime proxetil is best at low gastric pH or in the presence of food, which suggests that the role of gastrointestinal function on the pharmacokinetic profile is complex.