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Recently, several cases of skin injuries have been detected in patients undergoing cardiac radiofrequency catheter ablation. These procedures were performed on a biplane X-ray system used in a large Spanish hospital for interventional cardiology procedures. Interventional procedures performed and radiation lesions produced on patients are described. The radiation lesions were mainly erythematous lesions and chronic radiodermatitis. Results of the dosimetric evaluations and an analysis of the operational aspects of radiological protection are discussed. Poor image quality could have influenced the length of the procedures. Dose rate at the image intensifier entrance was within usual reported values in literature. However, the focus-to-skin distance for the horizontal X-ray beam was too short, resulting in a high skin dose rate. Additionally, X-ray beams are of fixed orientation, and accumulated skin dose in the patient's right side has been estimated as 11-15 Gy per procedure. In conclusion, practical radiation protection considerations to avoid further incidents of this sort are proposed, concerning the use of X-ray systems specially designed for interventional radiology, the improvement of cardiologists' training in radiation protection and routine patient dose measurements for complex interventional procedures.

Nous avons determine les constantes stoechiometriques d'equilibre acide-base pour la L-valine dans des melanges equimolaires de KCl-KBr et KCl-KNO 3 et pour la triethanolamine dans des solutions de KCl-KBr. Ces determinations ont ete effectuees a des forces ioniques de 0.1 a 1.5. Les donnees ont ete analysees au moyen des equations de Pitzer et Guggenheim pour les coefficients d'activite des especes presentes

A multicenter randomized 4-week interindividual double-blind study was carried out in 58 hospitalized patients with major depressive disorder (DSM III 296.23, 296.22, 296.33, 296.32, 296.53 and 296.52) to test the dose-effect relationship of three different doses of the new cAMP-phosphodiesterase inhibitor rolipram: 3 x 0.25 mg, 3 x 0.50 mg and 3 x 1.00 mg rolipram/day. With respect to the desired effect, the 3 x 0.50 mg dosage stood out from the others in almost all relevant parameters. With respect to the response rate, the efficacy of the 3 x 0.25 mg dosage was about the same as that reported in the literature for placebo. The inferior performance of the 3 x 1.00 mg dosage compared to the 3 x 0.50 mg dosage might indicate a reverse U-shaped dose-effect relationship. There was good tolerance to all three dosages. There were no findings that might cast doubt on the safety of the dosages tested.

Two different experimental methods for the calibration of glass electrodes for H+ concentration are analysed: strong acid—strong base titration and addition of the strong base or acid to the solvent. Possible systematic errors in acid or base concentrations used for calibration affect in a different way the linear relationship between the cell potential and the logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration in each case. We have examined how such errors influence the slope of the calibration curve by using a programme that simulates the calibration procedure and we have compared this analysis with some experimental results previously obtained.

To define the therapeutic profile of the new putative antidepressant rolipram, a double-blind (double-dummy) study with 0.5 mg rolipram versus 25 mg nortriptyline three times daily was conducted in hospitalized gerontopsychiatric inpatients with major depression. During both therapies, improvement was achieved compared with base line. However, the rate of recovery in patients treated with 3×25 mg nortriptyline was significantly greater than in those treated with 3×0.5 mg rolipram. Overall, rolipram was better tolerated than nortriptyline and produced fewer adverse effects that could be attributed to cholinergic blocking. We conclude that 3×0.5 mg rolipram presumably is too low a dosage for the treatment of major depression in gerontopsychiatric inpatients.

In this work a set of near co-located acoustic intensity observations and environmental measurements is presented which allowed quantification of the source of the acoustic scattering and confirmation of backscattering contributions from salinity microstructure. Observations were made by the T-REMUS Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) in a fresh water plume off a coastal river estuary characterized by strong salinity stratification and intense turbulence. Velocity and density microstructure measurements were used to calculate the expected acoustic backscattering cross-section from salinity fluctuations, which was then compared to near coincident acoustic intensity measurements. Surrogate measures of discrete particle scattering sources (i.e., biologic and mineral) for comparison with measured backscattering were also obtained. A series of regression analyses (single and multi-variable) were performed in an attempt to account for the observed acoustic variability. It was found that most of the variability in the acoustic return signal was explained by a linear combination of the independent variables selected. The results suggest that most of these regressions were dominated by biological and microstructure sources, with a fair amount of cases that were either completely biologically or microstructure dominated. The results led to the conclusion that measurements of salinity backscattering agree with theoretical predictions within experimental error of +/−2dB (on average) for a wide range of turbulence levels, with an observed underestimate of the salinity backscattering of at least 1.5dB under high turbulence conditions. These results strongly support the idea of performing an inversion of the acoustic signal to obtain the salinity variance dissipation rate.

INTRODUÇÃO: A inclusão de intervenções focadas na família, através da terapia unifamiliar, ou da terapia multifamiliar (TGMF) vem crescendo como uma forma de enfrentar um problema tão grave e complexo como é a dependência química. OBJETIVOS: Investigar e avaliar fatores associados à adesão ao tratamento multifamiliar no tratamento de dependentes químicos hospitalizados. MÉTODO: A pesquisa é um estudo transversal retrospectivo, com uma amostra de 672 famílias participantes da TGMF durante o período de seis anos (de março 1997 a julho de 2003). Foi realizado um estudo dos fatores sociodemográficos como idade, sexo, tempo de uso da substância e quanto ao tipo de droga mais prevalente e investigada a associação entre o grau de parentesco do familiar participante do programa e a adesão ao tratamento multifamiliar. Foram pesquisados 672 prontuários de sujeitos que estiveram internados e ingressaram no programa de tratamento multifamiliar e os relatos das sessões descritos pelo terapeuta coordenador do grupo. RESULTADOS: Há associação entre a participação da família e adesão ao tratamento. A participação de dois ou mais familiares repercute na adesão. DISCUSSÃO: Os resultados sugerem que inclusão de um número maior de familiares poderá repercutir em uma maior adesão ao tratamento. INTRODUCTION: the systematic inclusion of interventions focused on the family through unifamily and/or through multi-family group therapy (MFGT) has been growing as a way to face such a serious and complex problem as drug addiction. OBJECTIVE: To investigate and evaluate factors associated with the joining of drug addicted patients to a multi-family treatment. METHOD: the research is a cross-sectional retrospective study, with a sample of 672 families taking part in MFGT for six years (from March, 1997 to July, 2003). A study about sociodemographic factors such as age, gender, time and predominant type of substance used was made, which also looked into the relation between which family members took part in the program and the number of patients joining the multi-family treatment. 672 inpatient files were researched. The reports of the meetings described by the coordinating therapist of the group were also researched. RESULTS: a relation between family participation and patients joining the treatment was found. DISCUSSION: the results suggest that the inclusion of a higher number of family members can promote greater treatment commitment in drug addicted patients.

We describe here two efficient parsing algorithms for natural language texts based on an extension of recursive transition networks (RTN) called recursive transition networks with string output (RTNSO). RTNSO-based grammars can be semiautomatically built from samples of a manually built syntactic lexicon. Efficient parsing algorithms are needed to minimize the temporal cost associated to the size of the resulting networks. We focus our algorithms on the RTNSO formalism due to its simplicity which facilitates the manual construction and maintenance of RTNSO-based linguistic data as well as their exploitation.

Radial growth rate, intracellular laccases and proteases activities, and protein content were evaluated in five strains of Pleurotus ostreatus, grown on starch-based and glucose-based agar media containing different concentrations of the glucose analogue 2-deoxyglucose (2-DG). Productivity of the strains in pilot scale cultivation was also determined. The mycelium of four strains had approximately between 0.6- to 3-fold higher protein content when grown on glucose medium containing 0.01 g/L of 2-DG than when grown on glucose medium. The radial growth rate and intracellular laccases activity of some strains showed a positive and a negative correlation with the productivity, respectively. These results suggest that the strains with high radial growth rate and low intracellular laccases activity on glucose without 2-DG, on starch without 2-DG or on glucose containing 0.01 g/L of 2-DG are highly productive in pilot production farm. Avaliou-se o crescimento radial, as atividades de proteases e lacases e o conteúdo protéico de cinco cepas de Pleurotus ostreatus cultivado em agar à base de amido e à base de glicose contendo diferentes concentrações de 2-deoxiglicose (2-DG), um análogo da glicose. A produtividade das cepas em cultivo em escala piloto foi também determinada. Em quatro cepas o conteúdo protéico do micélio foi aproximadamente 0,6 a 3 vezes maior quando foram cultivadas em meio à base de glicose contendo 0,01g/L de 2-DG. O crescimento radial e a atividade de lacases apresentaram correlação positiva e negativa, respectivamente, com a produtividade. Esses resultados sugerem que as cepas com elevada taxa de crescimento radial e baixa atividade de lacases em glicose sem 2-DG, ou em amido sem 2-DG, ou em glicose com 0,01 g/L de 2-DG, são altamente produtivas em cultivo em escala piloto.

IMRT treatments using multi-leaf collimators may involve a large number of segments in order to spare the organs at risk. When a large proportion of these segments are small, leaf positioning errors may become relevant and have therapeutic consequences. The performance of four head and neck IMRT treatments under eight different cases of leaf positioning errors has been studied. Systematic leaf pair offset errors in the range of +/-2.0 mm were introduced, thus modifying the segment sizes of the original IMRT plans. Thirty-six films were irradiated with the original and modified segments. The dose difference and the gamma index (with 2%/2 mm criteria) were used for evaluating the discrepancies between the irradiated films. The median dose differences were linearly related to the simulated leaf pair errors. In the worst case, a 2.0 mm error generated a median dose difference of 1.5%. Following the gamma analysis, two out of the 32 modified plans were not acceptable. In conclusion, small systematic leaf bank positioning errors have a measurable impact on the delivered dose and may have consequences for the therapeutic outcome of IMRT.

To assess the follow-up and response to treatment in patients with RAP.A retrospective follow-up study of patients with RAP diagnosed between March 2002 and August 2005. Baseline and subsequent angiograms and optical coherence tomography results were reviewed and RAP classified according to the 3 stages described by Yannuzzi. The changes observed and the best visual acuity were assessed separately for each of the 4 different treatments used: Transpupillary thermotherapy (TTT), Photodynamic therapy (PDT), combined treatment with PDT and Intravitreal triamcinolone (IVT), and combined treatment with PDT, IVT and direct laser photocoagulation of the vascular intraretinal lesion (DLPh.).Fifteen eyes of 14 patients with RAP were studied (mean age, 77.5 years). The mean follow-up was 15.9 months and the mean number of treatments was 2.5. The final visual acuity was worse in 7 (46.7%), stable in 7 (46.7%) and better in 1 (6.6%). Visual acuity improvement, in regard to the treatment used, was: TTT group: 2 out of 14 (14.2%): PDT group: 1 out of 5 (20%); PDT + IVT group: 2 out of 5 (40%) and DLPh. + PDT + IVT group: 3 out of 5 (60%).The final prognosis for RAP, in terms of visual acuity, was generally poor. However the best treatment was the combined treatment with DLPh + PDT + IVT, while the worst was TTT.

The molecular mechanisms contributing to the normal age-related decline of cognitive functions or to pathological learning and memory impairment are largely unknown. We demonstrate here that young mice (6–7 weeks) with a genetic deletion of the cannabinoid CB1 receptor performed as well as WT mice, or often better, in a number of learning and memory paradigms, including animal models of skill-learning, partner recognition, and operant conditioning. In contrast, the performance of mature mice (3–5 months) lacking CB1 receptors was much worse than that of age-matched WT animals. In most tests, these mice performed at the same level as old animals (14–17 months), suggesting that the decline in cognitive functions is accelerated in the absence of CB1 receptors. This rapid decline in CB1-deficient animals is accompanied by a loss of neurons in the CA1 and CA3 regions of the hippocampus.

A persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is the most common thoracic venous anomaly. It is a persistent remnant of the left anterior cardinal vein that usually disappears in early embryological development as a result of compression between the left atrium and the hilum of the left lung. If it is not associated with other congenital cardiac anomalies it is usually asymptomatic but has important clinical implications in some situations. In this article, we describe a patient with bilateral SVC identified on a chest radiograph by a haemodialysis central venous catheter passing through it.

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most abundant neurodegenerative disorder worldwide. Senile plaques, composed of Amyloid β-peptide (Aβ) appear to be a major pathological alteration in the brain of AD patients (Selkoe 1999). Almost all familial AD (FAD) associated mutations affect the generation of Aβ by increasing the production of the highly amyloidogenic 42 amino acid variant (Selkoe 1999). Aβ is produced from the β-Amyloid precursor protein (βAPP) by endoproteolysis. At least two proteolytic activities are required for Aβ generation. β-Secretase (BACE) mediates the N-terminal cleavage producing a membrane associated C-terminal fragment (CTFβ) of βAPP (Vassar and Citron 2000). The resulting CTFβ is the immediate precursor for the intramembraneous γ-secretase cut. This cleavage is facilitated by the presenilins, PS1 and PS2, and there is evidence that presenilins themselves could be unusual aspartyl proteases, which mediate the γ-secretase cut [(Wolfe et al. 1999); for review see (Steiner and Haass 2000; Wolfe and Haass, 2001)]. γ-Secretase cleavage results in the production of Aβ and the generation of the small hydrophobic p7 (Haass and Selkoe 1993) also called CTFy. Recent observations indicate that a CTFy like fragment is indeed generated during βAPP processing (McLendon et al. 2000; Pinnix et al. 2001). However, it is still unknown if the γ-secretase cut exclusively occurs after position 40 or 42 of Aβ. A cleavage further C-terminal would be consistent with the site 3 (S3) cleavage of Notch (Schroeter et al. 1998), which like the βAPP cleavage occurs by a presenilin dependent proteolytic activity (De Strooper et al. 1999). The identification of the initial cleavage site is of great importance, since γ-secretase inhibition is thought to be a major approach for therapeutic intervention.

A case of intravascular lymphomatosis with predominant symptoms in the lung (cough and interstitial pulmonary infiltrates) is presented. Fever and confusion were lateness symptoms. Examination postmortem established the diagnosis. In the lung alveolar walls, small arterioles and the capillaries were occupied by atypical cells positives for CD45 and CD20, leukocyte and pan-B markers, and negatives for CD45-Ro and CD34, pan-T and endothelial markers. The main characteristics and the lung participation of this entity were reviewed.

Recovery of zinc(II) from HCl spent pickling solutions by solvent extraction using CYANEX921, CYANEX923, CYANEX302, tributyl phosphate, and ALAMINE336 extractants was studied. Tributyl phosphate was selected as suitable extractant. It permitted both effective zinc(II) extraction and the stripping from loaded organic phase with water. The presence of iron(II) did not affect zinc extraction, and only negligible oxidation of iron(II) was observed during extraction experiments. CYANEX reagents and ALAMINE336 extracted zinc(II) strongly, but the stripping with water was ineffective. Moreover, a significant oxidation of iron(II) to iron(III) occurred during extraction. Each of three reagents (CYANEX923, ALAMINE336 and TBP) extracted iron(III) very well. Thus, if iron(III) was present in the spent pickling solution, prior to the extraction it had to be reduced to iron(II). The oxidation was low for tributyl phosphate and high for CYANEX923 and ALAMINE336. CYANEX302 was inactive both for zinc(II) and iron(III) and could not be used for extraction of zinc(II) from spent pickling hydrochloric acid solutions.

Pre-infarction angina may reduce the extent of myocardial cell necrosis and improves the prognosis after myocardial infarction. The aim of this study was to analyze the total mortality six-month after acute myocardial infarction according to the presence or absence of pre-infarction angina.One hundred seventy-five consecutive patients with acute myocardial infarction were prospectively included, 72 (41.4%) with pre-infarction angina. They were followed for 6 months. There were 16 deaths (15.5%) in the group of patients without pre-infarction angina and 7 (9.7%) in the group with pre-infarction angina (log-rank = 1.03; p = 0.311). The hazard-risk function curves showed a higher risk of death during the entire follow-up in the group without pre-infarction angina. In the multivariate logistic regression model, the presence of pre-infarction angina does not significantly reduce the risk of death (OR = 0.43; CI 95% = 0.09-2. 22; p = 0.303). We detected a significant interaction between treatment with sulfonylureas before the infarction and the presence of pre-infarction angina (p = 0.017).In this study no significant differences were observed in total mortality six months after acute myocardial infarction according to the presence of pre-infarction angina. However, the risk of death seemed to be higher in the group of patients without pre-infarction angina during the entire follow-up. A significant interaction was found between the treatment with sulfonylurea drugs before infarction and the presence of pre-infarction angina.

We assessed the Doppler tissue imaging technique in the left mitral annulus of patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction since the technique has been used to evaluate diastolic function of the left ventricle and the values obtained have been considered to be relatively independent of the preload.Patients (n = 46) with an ejection fraction40% in sinus rhythm without mitral regurgitation underwent pulsed wave Doppler analyses of mitral inflow (E and A waves), pulmonary venous flow (S, D and Ar waves) and Doppler tissue imaging of the mitral annulus (Ea and Aa waves).Overall, the linear correlations between the different Doppler measurements were poor. When sub-grouped with respect to E/A1 and E/A= 1 (Groups 1 and 2, respectively), the Ea value did not significantly differ between the two groups: 5.0 cm/s (4.2/6.0) vs 6.2 cm/s (5.5/8. 2) respectively; p = 0.129 and neither did the E/Ea quotient: 10.2 (8.2/14.5) vs 12.9 (9.1/17.4) respectively; p = 0.160. Atrial size was significantly greater in Group 2: 20.0 cm2 (18.0/22.0) vs 25.0 cm2 (20.0/29.0) respectively; p = 0.000. The Ea/Aa quotient was pseudo-normalized in Group 2: 0.65 (0.48/0.83) vs 1.15 (0.75/1.71) respectively; p = 0.001.In patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction the Ea/Aa value tends towards pseudo-normalization when the preload is increased. This does not apply to the values of Ea, E/Ea or to size of the left atrium. Therefore, Doppler tissue imaging of the left mitral annulus is valuable in the assessment of left ventricular dysfunction and the problem of pseudo-normalization due to preloading.

Recent studies suggest that preinfarction angina (PA) might induce less myocardial necrosis. The objective of this study is to evaluate whether patients with PA have smaller myocardial infarctions.Patients with acute myocardial infarction of less than 12 hours since the onset symptoms were included. PA was defined as unstable angina at rest during the 7 days before the infarction. Infarct size was assessed with the area under the curve of CK-MB levels in the 24 hours following the onset of the infarct.One hundred-seventy nine patients were included, 75 (41.9%) with PA. There were more men in the group with PA (89.3% vs 70.2%, p = 0.004) and a higher prevalence of ex-smokers (38.7% vs 19.2%, p = 0.006). We did not find significant differences in myocardial infarction size between both groups, but a statistically significant interaction between PA and pre-treatment with sulfonylurea drugs was noted (p = 0.050).Preinfarction angina does not seem to induce less myocardial necrosis in this study. There is a significant interaction between preinfarction angina and pre-treatment with sulfonylurea drugs.

We describe a Spanish adaptation and standardization of the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS) carried out as part of a prospective, coordinated study performed simultaneously in two Spanish health centers. Three diagnostic groups were defined: 21 healthy volunteers (normal group); 22 patients with cognitive deterioration but no dementia (CDND group); and 20 patients with Alzheimer type dementia (ATD group). The subjects were examined at the start of the study and after 3 and 6 months. The mean cognitive ADAS scores were significantly different in the 3 groups (F = 67.2, p = 0.0001), as follows: normal group, 7.6 +/- 2.1; CDND group, 12.4 +/- 4.5; and ATD group, 21.0 +/- 4.7. Likewise, the ADAS proved sensitive to the course of deterioration in the ATD group, while the other groups' scores improved. We conclude that the ADAS, and in particular the cognitive subscale, is useful for evaluating ATD patients, especially in the early phases of deterioration. It discriminates between ATD and CDND patients well.

In the present work we obtained the experimental pKs of the amino acid alpha-alanine in NaCl at 25 degrees and different ionic strengths. The equilibrium constants have been potentiometrically determined with a commercial glass electrode and the results analysed through three models: two directly based on the Pitzer and Scatchard approaches to the ion specific interaction theory and the other based on a simpler modification of the Debye-Hückel equation. The three models fit the data reasonably well and the extrapolated pK values obtained show a good agreement. The goodness of the ridge regression method cannot be probed in this case.

In the postmortem human brain (15 specimens of frontal cortex), the immunodetection and quantification of imidazoline receptor (IR) proteins (29/30 and 47 kDa) and the specific binding of [3H]idazoxan to I2-IR were determined in parallel to study the effect of aging (range 3-89 years) on these proteins and its possible association. The immunoreactivity of the 29/30 kDa IR protein, similar to the I2-IR, showed a significant positive correlation with the age of the subjects at death (r = 0.54; P = 0.04). Moreover, the levels of this IR protein also correlated significantly with the density of I2-IR in the brain of the same subjects (r = 0.67; P = 0.01). It is suggested that the I2-IR labeled by [3H]idazoxan in the human brain is related to the 29/30 kDa IR protein identified by immunoblot analysis.

In the postmortem human brain, the specific binding of the agonists [3H]clonidine and [3H]bromoxidine ([3H]UK14034) and of the antagonist [3H]2-methoxyidazoxan (RX821002) and inhibition by l-epinephrine of [3H]RX821002 binding were determined in parallel to quantify the fractions of high (RH)- and low-affinity (RL) agonist sites of alpha-2A adrenoceptors and to investigate the association of these inhibitory receptors with various regulatory Gi proteins and the effect of aging. In the frontal cortex, the density of RH with [3H]clonidine was not different from that with [3H]UK14304 and the ratio of Bmax values in the same subjects was 0.88 +/- 0.05 (n = 39). The inhibition of [3H] RX821002 binding by l-epinephrine allowed the resolution and quantitation of the RH and RL with similar values to those obtained in saturation experiments. The simultaneous analysis and computer modeling of competition and saturation experiments performed in the same subjects indicated that a high proportion of alpha-2A adrenoceptors exist in the RH conformation (70-80%). The density of alpha-2A adrenoceptors (Bmax for [3H]agonist and [3H]antagonist binding) and age (range, 4-89 years) were negatively correlated (r = -.60, n = 39, P.001). However, only the density of RH declined with aging (r = -.68, n = 38, P.001); that of RL did not appear to be age related (r = -.26, n = 37, P.05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The alpha-2 adrenoceptor antagonist idazoxan has been shown to also recognize with high affinity nonadrenoceptor sites (I2-imidazoline sites). In contrast, the 2-methoxy derivative of idazoxan, 2-methoxy idazoxan (RX821002), binds almost exclusively to alpha-2 adrenoceptors. The purpose of this study was to assess and extend the pharmacological characterization of I2-imidazoline sites and alpha-2 adrenoceptors in the human and rat brains. Competition studies with several imidazoli(di)ne/guanidine drugs and other nonrelated structures were performed in cortical membranes against [3H]idazoxan (4 nM in the presence of 10(-6) M I-epinephrine to prevent binding to alpha-2 adrenoceptors) or [3H]RX821002 (1 nM). Drugs such as cirazoline, guanoxan, naphazoline, tolazoline, clonidine, bromoxidine (UK 14,304) and phenylbiguanide displaced [3H]idazoxan from two distinct binding sites, which suggested the existence of two affinity states for I2-imidazoline sites that were not modulated by MgCl2 or the nucleotide analog guanylyl-5'-imido-diphosphate. Binding affinities at the low-affinity site (KiL) were consistently more than 2 orders of magnitude lower than binding affinities at the high-affinity site (KiH), and there was a good correlation between KiH and KiL values for a given drug in the human (r = 0.89) and rat (r = 0.92) brains. For 18 to 22 drugs, the Ki values in the human brain correlated well with the corresponding Ki values in the rat brain both for I2-imidazoline sites (r = 0.94) and alpha-2 adrenoceptors (r = 0.97). However, the Ki values for I2-imidazoline sites did not correlate with the Ki values for alpha-2 adrenoceptors in human and rat brains. The order of drug potency for the I2-imidazoline sites was: guanoxan (1.3 nM) approximately cirazolineidazoxan approximately naphazolineclonidinephentolamineRX821002(8aR, 12aS, 13aS)-3-methoxy-12-methanesulfonyl-5,6,8a,9,10,11,12,12a,13,13a- decahydro-8H-isoquino[2,1-g]-naphthyridine (RS 15385-197) (10 microM). In contrast, the potencies at the alpha-2 adrenoceptor were: RS 1538-197 (0.3 nM)RX821002clonidinephentolamineidazoxan approximately naphazolineguanoxan approximately cirazoline (307 nM). The results demonstrate that I2-imidazoline sites (labeled by [3H]idazoxan) and alpha-2 adrenoceptors are different pharmacological entities with similar characteristics in the human and rat brains. In both species, I2-imidazoline sites are markedly heterogeneous in nature.

The liquid wastes arising from reprocessing plants are treated by evaporation, the distillate is discharged into environment and the concentrate containing all the active and inactive salts must be stored in geological formation, after embedding, due to the activity of long life radionuclides (actinides, Cs, Sr).

A straightforward dilution experiment that can be used as the starting point for establishing a link between chemistry and concepts of probability theory.

Unlike conventional antidepressants, rolipram (a new approach in the treatment of depression) stimulates both the presynaptic and the postsynaptic component of monoaminergic transmission. Several double blind trials are under way to assess the clinical efficacy and safety of this compound. The present study was a randomized, 4-week interindividual double blind double-dummy comparison with desipramine in inpatients with major (DSM-III) and/or endogenous (ICD-9) depressions. After a minimum washout period of three days the patients received either 0.50 mg rolipram or 25 mg desipramine orally t.i.d. for the first three days, then 0.75 mg rolipram or 50 mg desipramine t.i.d. until day 28. Rating tests were based principally on the AMDP-system and the HAMD scale. The study showed no differences between the two drugs as regards the efficacy, but a definite trend in favour of rolipram as regards the side effects and, in particular, anticholinergic effects.

Rolipram improves signal transmission in central noradrenergic neurones at a pre- and postsynaptic level, and is thus a novel approach in antidepressant therapy. In order to prove efficacy, tolerance, and safety, several controlled studies are underway. Results of a randomized double-blind comparative trial versus imipramine involving 64 in-patients with Major Depressive Disorder (DSM III) in six independent centers will be presented and discussed. The chosen biometric model provided evidence that towards the end of the study imipramine was superior to Rolipram. The particular clinical relevance of this difference is discussed. As regards tolerance, nausea emerged as the typical side-effect of Rolipram, whereas imipramine precipitated mainly anticholinergic side-effects.

The sublingual form of the benzodiazepine hypnotic lormetazepam was developed with the aim of attaining greater flexibility in the treatment of sleep disorders. The object is to achieve rapid onset of hypnotic effect and provide patients with a form of medication which they can take after having gone to bed and only if they have difficulty in falling asleep. In a placebo-controlled crossover double-blind study the hypnotic effect, side-effects and acceptance of lormetazepam sublingual (1 mg) were investigated in 60 patients with sleep disorders receiving treatment from physicians in independent practices. The study was conducted over a total of 2 weeks, the patients receiving lormetazepam and placebo for 7 days respectively, changing over in the second week. The results show that in the sublingual form lormetazepam (1) is distinctly better than placebo as regards hypnotic efficacy, particularly with respect to the reduction of sleep latency; (2) does not lead to a significantly higher rate of concomitant symptoms than placebo; and (3) is well accepted by the patientsin the wafer form.

The dc and dp polarographic behaviour of aldrithiol-2 in aqueous solution has been studied over the range pH 1–11. Depending on the concentration of aldrithiol-2 and the drop time, a single wave or two waves are obtained. In the latter case, one is a “main wave” and the other a Brdicka adsorption post-wave. The mechanism of the electrode process has been deduced from the dependence of the wave characteristics upon pH and from the results of scan-direct and scan-reverse normal pulse polarography, Kalousek (K3) polarography and ac1 polarography.