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Computed tomography (CT) was used to study 79 patients with suspected gallbladder disease. First and second generation scanners were used to determine the efficacy of CT in detecting cholecystitis or cholelithiasis. Manifestations of gallbladder disease such as hydrops, opaque and nonopaque gallstones, chronic cholecystitis with thickened inflammatory walls, and secondary liver abscesses can be easily detected. It is a useful technique for individuals in whom the gallbladder has failed to opacity on oral cholecystography. The scanning method is described, and estimates of reliability are given including its accuracy, limitations, and place in the management of gallbladder disease, especially cholelithiasis. When conventional radiographic examinations or ultrasound fail to give definitive diagnostic information, CT can be a useful alternative with an overall diagnostic accuracy greater than 80%.

Plasminogen activators are highly selective proteases that activate the proenzyme plasminogen to the general protease, plasmin. We studied a porcine kidney cell line, originally isolated as a high producer of plasminogen activator, in which activities of cellular adenylate cyclase and cAMP-dependent protein kinase are increased in response to calcitonin. We found that salmon calcitonin, in the concentration range 0.03-300 nM, increased plasminogen activator production up to approximately 1,000-fold and concurrently inhibited cell multiplication; both of these effects were reversible. Human calcitonin was approximately 0.01 times as potent as salmon calcitonin, corresponding to potency differences observed in other biological systems. Plasminogen activator production was also stimulated by other agents that raise cellular cAMP levels such as cholera toxin, phosphodiesterase inhibitors, and vasopressin, but not to the same extent as by calcitonins. The rapidity and sensitivity of the plasminogen activator determination and other cellular responses may make it possible in the future to use this cell stain in a convenient bioassay for calcitonins and their analogues.

A culture of the human epidermoid carcinoma HEp 3 produces a plasminogen activator of Mr = 53,000 which we have purified to apparent homogeneity from serum-free conditioned medium by the combination of immunoaffinity chromatography and preparative sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The highly purified protein has the following properties: 1) It is indistinguishable from urinary urokinase in electrophoretic mobility, in immunodiffusion, and in autoradiographically visualized tryptic peptide maps obtained from the 125I-labeled proteins. 2) The HEp 3 protein differs from urinary urokinase in the following respects: (a) although the apparent molecular weights of the two are identical (Mr = 53,000), the urinary enzyme consists of two polypeptide chains, whereas the HEp 3 protein is a single chain form. (b) Urinary urokinase can be labeled easily by incubation with radioactive diisopropylfluorophosphate but the HEp 3 protein cannot. (c) When assayed by the hydrolysis of a synthetic chromogenic peptide substrate, the HEp 3 enzyme has less than 1% of the catalytic activity of urinary urokinase. 3) On controlled exposure to plasmin, the HEp 3 protein is converted to an active enzyme that is identical with urinary urokinase in molecular weight, polypeptide chain composition, diisopropylfluorophosphate labeling, and specific catalytic activity. We conclude that the HEp 3 protein is a proenzyme that can be converted to active two-chain urokinase by plasmin, probably by a single proteolytic nick in the polypeptide chain.

We studied plasminogen activator (PA) of the rat pituitary gland in organ and cell monolayer culture. Both anterior and intermediate lobes contain, synthesize and secrete a mixture consisting of the two known types of PA: urokinase and so-called tissue PA. Both enzymes were formed essentially by all PA secreting cells, and PA was identified specifically in mammotrophs, corticotrophs, and luteinizing hormone containing gonadotrophs. Pituitary PA production was modulated on exposure to a variety of biological effectors: anterior lobe PA secretion was stimulated by agents that raised intracellular cAMP concentration; his process depended on de novo enzyme synthesis. Enzyme production was repressed by androgens and glucocorticoids. When anterior lobe cultures were maintained in plasminogen-free media, the extracellular, secreted forms of ACTH consisted almost exclusively of the high molecular weight forms (31,000 and 23,000); the smaller forms (13,000 and 4,500) were also found in the extracellular medium of cultures supplemented with plasminogen. In contrast, the size distribution of intracellular ACTH species was unaffected by the presence of plasminogen. These results resemble those previously obtained with pancreatic islets and are consistent with the possibility that plasmin, generated by PA secretion, participates in prohormone processing. PA synthesis in intermediate lobe explants was stimulated by exposure to dibutyryl cAMP, and repressed by hydrocortisone. In accordance with the dopaminergic control of intermediate lobe function in some vertebrates, apomorphine strongly repressed PA synthesis in intermediate, but not anterior lobe cultures.

As part of a program to define potential roles for plasminogen activation during development, we have studied the metabolism of plasminogen in the chick embryo. Here we report that: 1) plasminogen is present in significant quantities in the yolk of fertile, unincubated eggs; 2) the zymogen can be translocated intact, from the yolk to the developing embryonic circulation; and 3) de novo synthesis of plasminogen occurs during the early phases of embryonic life. The combination of a reservoir of the zymogen in the yolk and protein biosynthesis thus ensures the availability of a substrate for enzymes which may participate in morphogenetic events occurring throughout embryonic life.

Zonular fibers could be shown between the basement membrane of the pigmented epithelium of pars plana and the elastic tissue of Bruch's membrane. A connection of zonular fibrils between the unpigmented epithelium and the basement membrane of pigmented epithelium of the pars plana could not be observed. It is possible to discuss two independent courses of zonular fibers.

Seven different parameters of both length and width were measured on repeated liver scans of the same patients. According to the scannograms 3 groups were composed and tested: (1) repeated scans were of normal appearance; (2) repeated scans were of pathological appearance, and (3) a pathological scan followed a previously normal one. Differences of measurements between two scans for each parameter showed a significant result in only a few of the parameters. It was concluded that the difference of two measurements performed on one patient’s scannogram are of importance only if dynamic changes have occurred in the liver, as shown in that group where the scan changed from a normal to a pathological scan. However, absolute measurements are necessary when normal scans are compared with pathological ones.

Interleukin 2 (IL-2) is a T cell-derived lymphokine that serves as a cofactor for the in vitro response of T lymphocytes to antigen and plays an important role in regulating the growth and/or differentiation of these cells (1, 2). It has been postulated (2, 3) that IL-2 is produced by a discrete regulatory T cell subset, with its effects being exerted on a second, functionally distinct subpopulation of T cells. Cytotoxic T cells have been included in the IL-2-responsive subset (3). Several models of immune regulation have further assumed that the T lymphocyte pool is divided into a complex array of genetically preprogrammed T cell subtypes, each performing a specific regulatory or effector function (4, 5). However, recent results from several laboratories (6-8) have failed to support such a strict functional subdivision of the T cell pool. The availability of highly purified mouse IL-2 (1) prompted us to reevaluate the distinction, if any, between IL-2-producing and IL-2- responsive T cells. For this purpose, we resorted to a cell-cloning procedure using activated T lymphocytes that were maintained only for short periods in culture. T cell clones were tested for cytotoxic activity, responsiveness to IL-2, and for the capacity to produce IL-2 after appropriate stimulation. We found no evidence for the existence of a major functional subdivision involving these parameters among alloantigen-activated T cells: the majority of clones analyzed could perform all three functions.

This paper describes a method for obtaining cultures of rat ventral prostate epithelial cells. The prostate is first perfused with a collagenase solution before removal from the animal; subsequent mincing and incubation in vitro produces a suspension of alveolar cell clumps. Upon incubation, these clumps attach to the surface of the culture dish and spread into discrete epithelial cell colonies, which both retain differentiated morphology, and secrete a species of plasminogen activator that is characteristic of prostatic tissue. These properties were not observed in cultures prepared from single cell suspensions of the same organ. Maintenance of epithelial colony integrity and secretory activity specifically required the continued presence of stromal cells, glucocorticoids and insulin. Androgenic steroids were much less effective than glucocorticoids in stimulating plasminogen activator secretion and in maintaining colony integrity, in spite of the well-established androgen dependence of prostatic tissue morphology in vivo and in organ culture. Furthermore, no effects of prolactin were observed, either when this hormone was tested alone or in conjunction with steroid hormones. Of 3 retinoids tested, retinal was highly cytotoxic at concentrations in the range of 1 microM, whereas retinol and retinoic acid were without detectable effect.

Serine proteases or esterases released from cell cultures into the growth medium were converted to radioactive derivatives by active site labeling with tritiated DFP, both in the presence and absence of other competing active site reagents. The individual labeled enzymes were then identified by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and scintillation autoradiography. Conditioned medium from embryonal mouse fibroblasts transformed by mouse sarcoma virus contained five serine enzymes that were not present in medium from normal cells; two serine enzymes were released by both cell types, and one serine enzyme was found only in medium from normal cells. Two of the enzymes released by transformed cells were identified as plasminogen activators; these accounted for most of the serine enzyme labeling in transformed culture media and for most of the serine enzyme difference between normal and transformed cultures. The culture fluids from two cell strains of human neoplastic origin were examined by the same method. A rhabdomyosarcoma strain released eight serine enzymes (mol wt ranging from 22,500 to 102,000), four of which were plasminogen activators; seven serine enzymes (mol wt 26,000-102,000), including two plasminogen activators, were detected in medium from human melanoma cultures. In terms of electrophoretic mobility two of the plasminogen activators from rhabdomyosarcoma were identical with those from melanoma cultures, while the remaining two rhabdomyosarcoma activators coincided with activators found in commerical urokinase.

A short form of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory was administered to 146 clinical patients who were assigned to one of four groups: Group I, tinnitus only; Group II, hearing loss and tinnitus, tinnitus primary; Group III, hearing loss and tinnitus, hearing loss primary; and Group IV, hearing loss only. The purpose of the study was to determine whether there were measurable characteristics unique to the tinnitus patient. Elevations were noted for all four groups on Scales 8, 6, 3, and 2, showing significant differences between the groups who suffered from tinnitus as opposed to those whose primary complaint was hearing loss. The tinnitus patients, especially those with only tinnitus, had social adjustment problems that were not evidenced for patients with impaired hear-ing. Indications are that the patient with an inveterate hearing loss is better able to cope with tinnitus than the patient who is suddenly and unaccountably afflicted with tinnitus.

The nucleotide sequence of the human tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) gene has been established. A total of 36,594 base pairs (bp) was sequenced; this included 32,720 bp from the site of initiation of transcription to the polyadenylation site, in addition to 3,530 and 344 bp of 5' and 3' flanking DNA, respectively. Thirteen intervening sequences divide the gene into 14 coding regions; the size range for exons is 43-914 bp, while that for introns is 111-14,257 bp. The gene and 5' flanking region contain 28 copies of Alu repetitive DNA and a single KpnI repeat. The transcription initiation site was identified by S1 nuclease, exonuclease VII, and primer extension analysis as an A residue; "TATA" and "CAAT" boxes are located in the expected positions upstream of this proposed site. Results of the analysis of the gene sequence and its comparison with data banks are described. The protein and gene structures of tissue and urokinase plasminogen activator are compared; based on these features the evolutionary relationship of the two human plasminogen activators appears to be close.

Some proteases, i.e. trypsin, alpha-chymotrypsin, thermolysin, proteinase K, alpha-amylase, collagenase, and papain were investigated on their effect on isolated zonular fibers. All these enzymes but collagenase were zonulolytic active. An attack on the ground substance of the fibers by substances solving glycosaminoglycans and proteoglycans (hyaluronidase, EDTA, guanidinium chloride, H2O2) showed an increased effect of the enzymes used. These results suggest that the interfibrillar matrix has a protective function on the zonular fibers.

Ultraviolet irradiation mapping techniques have previously been used to study the organization of eucaryotic gene classes and transcription units. We used the same method to probe some regulatory phenomena observed in the induction of plasminogen activator (PA) biosynthesis: PA synthesis in chicken embryo fibroblasts is induced by tumor-promoting phorbol esters and by retinoic acid; furthermore, PA induction by phorbol esters is synergistic with transformation, being 10- to 20-fold greater in virus-transformed cells than in normal cells. We found that the ultraviolet irradiation inactivation cross sections for PA induction by phorbol esters and by retinoate differed significantly, suggesting that these agents induce PA biosynthesis by different mechanisms. On the other hand, the ultraviolet irradiation sensitivity of phorbol ester induction in normal chicken embryo fibroblasts was the same as in transformed cells, indicating that the synergism of transformation and phorbol esters is probably not due to different pathways of PA induction.

Intraperitoneal injection of asbestos fibres into mice induces the formation of exudates containing macrophages that produce plasminogen activator. Like-wise, in vitro addition of asbestos to macrophage cultures stimulates plasminogen activator secretion; the synthesis and secretion of lysozyme and lysosomal enzymes are not changed under these conditions. The enhanced secretion of plasminogen activator by macrophages exposed to asbestos is suppressed by low concentrations of anti-inflammatory steroids.

Forty-four patients with confirmed biliary diseases were studied to determine the value of computed tomography (CT) in the diagnosis of biliary pathology. The results indicate that CT is useful and highly accurate in differentiating between obstructive (surgical) and nonobstructive (medical) disease entities. Of the cases with proved obstruction, 88% were correctly identified. All of the nonobstructive cases had positive CT correlation. In addition, the underlying cause of the occlusion was determined in the majority of cases.

Quality was controlled of seven different 99Mo/99mTc generators sold in the Federal Republic of Germany, which were all loaded with fission molybdenum. Aim of the work was to test the 99mTc eluates for their radionuclidic and radiochemical purity. Furthermore, the 99Mo content of the aluminium oxide column was measured. Determination of the elution efficiency, measurement of the pH-value of the eluate as well as a test to detect soluble aluminium in the eluate were also performed. In addition to the chemical and physical examinations, application, quality of accessories and their practicability were tested at all generators. The methods of analysis chosen were, among others, gamma spectrometry and thin-layer chromatography; the measuring methods were a site-sensitive proportional counter (measurement of the distribution of radioactivity of the chromatograms) and atomic absorption spectrometry (AI content of the eluates). The quality control of the 99mTc eluates had satisfying results. The eluates showed – with one exception – high and sufficient radionuclidic purity and very good radiochemical purity. A considerable overload of the columns with 99Mo at the time of reference was not found. The elution yields with values between 85 and 122% were in good agreement with the requirements. All eluates had pH-values between 5.0 and 6.5, and an aluminium content below 1 μg/ml. The generators had good performance and proved generally to be a reliable source of 99mTc-pertechnetate. The application was safe and, with some exceptions, fulfilled the requirements. Die Qualitatskontrolle wurde an sieben verschiedenen in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland kommerziell vertriebenen 99Mo/99mTc Generatoren, die alle mit Spaltmolybdan beladen waren, durchgefuhrt. Ziel dieser Arbeit war es, die gewonnenen 99mTc Eluate hinsichtlich ihrer radionuklearen und radiochemischen Reinheit zu uberprufen. Weiterhin wurde die Beladung der Aluminiumoxidsaule mit 99Mo gemessen. Bestimmung der Elutionsausbeute, Messung des pH-Wertes im Eluat sowie die Prufung auf losliches Aluminium im Eluat wurden ebenfalls vorgenommen. Neben den radiochemischen und radionuklearen Untersuchungen wurde auserdem an allen Generatoren deren Handhabung, Qualitat des Zubehors sowie dessen Praktikabilitat getestet. Als Analysenmethoden wurden unter anderen die Gammaspektrometrie und die Dunnschichtchromatographie, als Mesverfahren ein ortsempfindlicher Proportionalzahler (Messung der Radioaktivitatsverteilung auf den Chromatogrammen) sowie die Atomabsorptionsspektrometrie (Al-Gehalt der Eluate) gewahlt. Es zeigte sich, das die Qualitat der 99mTc Eluate zufriedenstellend war. Die Eluate zeigten mit einer Ausnahme hohe und ausreichende radionukleare Reinheit und sehr gute radiochemische Reinheit. Eine nennenswerte Uberladung der Saule mit 99Mo zum Referenzzeitpunkt konnte nicht festgestellt werden. Die Elutionsausbeuten lagen mit Werten zwischen 85 und 122% im Rahmen der gestellten Forderungen. Alle Eluate hatten pH-Werte zwischen 5,0 und 6,5 und einen Aluminiumgehalt unter 1 μg/ml. Die Generatoren erbrachten eine gute Leistung und erwiesen sich weitgehend als zuverlassige Quelle fur die Erzeugung von 99mTc-Pertechnetat. Die Handhabung war sicher und erfullte mit wenigen Ausnahmen die gestellten Anspruche.

Mit Hilfe der Disk-Elektrophorese wird die Anwesenheit von Kollagen sowohl in Glaskorperfibrillen als auch in Zonulafasern festgestellt. Die Banden in den Polyacrylamidgelen zeigen, das jedes der untersuchten Gewebe einen anderen Kollagentyp enthalt. Das Fehlen der α 2-Kette weist darauf hin, das die Glaskorperfibrillen und die Zonulafasern kein Kollagen vom Typ I enthalten. Hingegen kommen Kollagentypen vor, die aus drei identischen α-Ketten bestehen.

In culture, vascular smooth muscle cells grow and form a confluent monolayer of cells. Under appropriate conditions, regions of the monolayer can be induced to draw away from the substrate and form multicellular nodules. The ultrastructure of the cells in the nodules appears to be similar to that of differentiated smooth muscle cells. The process of nodulation is associated with the synthesis of a unique protein whose molecular weight is estimated from gradient gel electrophoresis to be 38,000 (38-kDa Protein). The protein is secreted into the culture medium and can be detected either by metabolic labeling or by staining with Coomassie Blue. Partial purification of 38-kDa Protein was achieved using affinity chromatography. The protein is adsorbed to heparin-agarose, but not to gelatin-agarose. The concentration of 38-kDa Protein in nodular conditioned medium is estimated at 1.9 micrograms/ml and less than 0.01 microgram/ml in conditioned medium made from monolayer cells. The presence of 5% fetal bovine serum in the labeling medium does not affect 38-kDa Protein synthesis. Cross-reactivity with fibronectin was evaluated using polyvalent antibodies to 38-kDa Protein. The 38-kDa Protein is not antigenically related to fibronectin. Furthermore, we establish that the protein is not qualitatively influenced by the presence of ascorbate (50 micrograms/ml), beta-aminoproprionitrile fumarate (50 micrograms/ml) heparin (10 ng/ml), or fibronectin (20 micrograms/ml) in the culture medium. We find that the added components neither suppress 38-kDa Protein synthesis in nodular cultures nor enhance 38-kDa Protein synthesis in monolayer cultures. The 38-kDa Protein is not detected in either monolayer or nodular cell layers and appears to be a secreted protein. Its appearance in nodular conditioned medium during nodulation suggests a relationship with that process.

Controlled extracellular proteolysis is catalyzed in part by the secretion of plasminogen activators. As a step in the study of the expression of these enzymes in mouse tissues, we have isolated five cDNAs encoding the mouse urokinase-type plasminogen activator from a cDNA library prepared with size-selected mRNA from MSV-transformed 3T3 cells. The longest cDNA insert contains the entire coding region of mouse urokinase, 58 base pairs of the 5' non-coding region, and the entire 3' non-coding region, which is 942 base pairs long. The deduced protein sequence, which starts with a signal peptide of 20 amino acids, shows extensive homology to that of human and porcine urokinase. However, in contrast to these enzymes, mouse urokinase contains no N-glycosylation site. Bacteria harbouring one of the recombinant plasmids synthesize and secrete into their periplasm a protease indistinguishable from mouse urokinase.

Tumor promoting phorbol esters and mezerein strongly induced plasminogen activator (urokinase, uPA) synthesis in porcine kidney cell cultures (LLC-PK1). Induction was due to increased uPA-mRNA levels which rose from 10 to 300 molecules/cell within 2 h of exposure to 16 nM phorbol myristate acetate. We have compared the action of tumor promoters with that of 8-bromo-cAMP, another potent inducer of uPA; the similarities between the two kinds of induction were: both involved transcriptional activation of the uPA gene; both were rapid in onset, changes in transcription rate being detectable within 10-20 min; the initial rates of transcription and uPA-mRNA accumulation were substantial and in the same order of magnitude; neither class of inducer required protein synthesis to stimulate uPA transcription. The main contrast between the two types of agents was that the uPA response to tumor promoters was transient whereas that to cAMP compounds was sustained: cultures rapidly lost their response to tumor promoters within 2 h after initial exposure while retaining responsiveness to cAMP-related agents. The cells developed a specific drug-induced desensitization which was slowly reversed after tumor promoters were removed from the culture medium. Since protein kinase C is now well established as the receptor for phorbol-derived and several other tumor promoters it will be of interest to determine whether desensitization occurs at the level of receptor.

Computed tomography (CT) is effective in detecting intraabdominal abscesses. Loculations of fluid and extraluminal gas are clearly localized in relation to other organs. Of 22 abscess in this series, CT successfully detected 20; comparative information with gallium, techneticum, and ultrasound scans is presented. In addition to localizing these collections, CT can be used to guide needle aspiration and drainage procedures. Three sizes of needles were used to aspirate specimens and/or provide drainage. This was accomplished successfully in 12 of 14 CT-guided procedures.

By our investigations we found identity of collagen and zonula fibers protein. In Disk-electrophoresis both the zonula fibers ans the fibers of the vitreous show the alpha-component only. Therefore it is likely that these proteins are closely related.

An uncommon case of a patient with a pseudocyst of the pancreas clinically mimicking a renal mass is demonstrated by CT including the extent of dissection. Once the cyst in the pancreas was known, other radiographic methods helped to confirm the diagnosis. A review of the literature concerning pseudocyst extension to the kidney is also presented.

From pepsin-solubilized vitreous body collagen three different precipitates were collected by differential salt precipitation. These three different protein fractions contain hydroxyproline and show different patterns in poly-acrylamide gel electrophoresis suggesting different collagen types.

Antibodies to highly purified mouse interleukin 2 (IL-2) were raised in rabbits; a 1:500 dilution of antiserum completely blocked the in vitro mitogenic effect of 10(-9) M IL-2. The antisera functioned effectively to immunoprecipitate biosynthetically labeled IL-2 and the purified immunoglobulins were useful in the construction of affinity columns for the adsorption and one-step immunopurification of IL-2. The antibodies were apparently specific for IL-2 among the lymphokines, they did not block the biological effects of IL-1, IL-3, gamma-IFN, B cell stimulating factor(s), and cytotoxic T cell differentiation factor(s). When anti-IL-2 was added to the in vitro reactions, it blocked mixed leukocyte reactions (MLR) and associated lymphocyte proliferation, the in vitro generation of cytotoxic T cells, and antibody formation as assessed by erythrocyte-specific plaque-forming cells (PFC). When injected into mice, anti-IL-2 antibodies also reduced the formation of cytotoxic lymphocytes in response to allogeneic cells, suggesting that endogenous IL-2 participates in such reactions in vivo. Taken together, the results indicate that these IL-2 antibodies will be useful adjuncts in the analysis of immune response both in vivo and in vitro.

We have purified the arrow poison extracted from Diamphidia nigro-ornata pupae by the !Kung Bushmen of Southern Africa, and named it diamphotoxin. The toxin is a single chain polypeptide of Mr = 60,000 with an isoelectric point of pH 9.5. It blocks neuromuscular function and is cardiotoxic and hemolytic, and the minimum lethal dose for mice is 25 pg (less than 0.5 fmol). The toxin binds tightly to cells, permitting the resolution of two distinct phases. Erythrocytes exposed to toxin in the absence of divalent cations show no apparent lesion (phase I). After washing and addition of 1 mM Ca2+, there occurs a rapid efflux of K+ followed by the loss of hemoglobin (phase II). The pH optimum for phase I is pH 6.7 and for phase II pH 8.6. The action of the toxin is noncatalytic, requiring a solution concentration of approximately 65 toxin molecules/cell for hemolysis of sheep erythrocytes under standard conditions. Ca2+ ions induce a conformational change in the free, purified toxin molecule. We propose that this change also occurs in membrane-bound toxin. Hemolysis would result from the formation of channels permitting the diffusion of small cations.

1223 patients underwent aspiration biopsy with a diagnostic yield of 86.4%; 24.2% of the patients had a small pneumothorax, but only 4.4% required treatment; one patient developed a moderate hemothorax. The method, problems, and complications including morbidity and mortality are discussed. The relative success of aspiration biopsy with different lesions of the lung and mediastinum is identified.

Characteristically stained polyacrylamide gels can be obtained by disk-electrophoresis in acid medium of several tissues of the bovine eye. The technique permits to prove different types of collagen in the eye, and allows the differentiation and identification of the tissues. By these results the different tissues of the eye can be divided into three groups. 1. Tissues showing two alpha collagen components in polyacrylamide gel (cornea, sclera, iris, ciliary body, anterior lens capsule, and the pigmented epithelium of the retina). 2. Tissues possessing one alpha component only (zonula fiber and vitreous body). 3. Tissues which show neither the alpha nor the beta and gamma component of collagen (lens nucleous and retina without pigmented epithelium).

Polymorphonuclear leukocytes purified from human peripheral blood synthesized RNA and proteins when placed in cell culture. Autoradiography of the cultured cells revealed that a majority of mature PMNs were engaged in macromolecule synthesis, and an analysis of newly synthesized proteins by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis showed that many different polypeptide chains were synthesized by these cells. The rate of [3H]uridine incorporation and the pattern of newly synthesized proteins were modulated by Con A and glucocorticoids. These results suggest that in spite of their short lifetime and a large performed enzymatic apparatus, mature PMNs retain a substantial capacity for RNA and protein synthesis; and, further, that modulation of macromolecule synthesis forms part of the mechanism by which PMNs respond to inflammatory and anti-flammatory stimuli.

Since the original description of desquamative interstitial pneumonitis in 1967, several investigators have questioned the specificity of the disease. The concept of desquamative interstitial pneumonitis and usual fibrosing interstitial pneumonitis as two manifestations of a nonspecific disease spectrum has been proposed. Twenty-six patients with desquamative interstitial pneumonitis were evaluated with respect to clinicopathologic correlates. Biopsies were reviewed without knowledge of the patients' clinical course. The absolute histopathologic criteria for the diagnosis were (1) intra-alveolar accumulations of free alveolar cells with PAS-positive diastaseresistant cytoplasmic granules; (2) mononuclear cell interstitial inflammation; and (3) absence of necrosis, hyaline membranes, intra-alveolar fibrosis, asbestos bodies, and birefringent crystalline dust material. Transmission electron microscopic studies revealed the dominant alveolar lining cell to be the granular pneumocyte, with a prominent population of free alveolar macrophages. Patients were segregated into group 1 (cellular phase) and 2 (cicatrized phase). Although favorable short-term responses to corticosteroid therapy were observed in both groups, long-term responses were variable. Apparent complete remissions were noted in both groups.

The purpose of the present study was to determine by means of a fluorescence test the ratio between vital and dead bacteria in dental plaque before and after 0.1 % chlorhexidine rinses. Plaque was stained by fluoresceindiacetate (FDA), which gave a green color to the living micro-organisms, and by ethidiumbromide (EB), which introduced a red color into the nucleic acids of the dead bacteria. 1-, 2- and 3-day-old undisturbed plaque harbored 80 to 85% living micro-organisms. 1 h after chlorhexidine use, this % was reduced to a plateau of 19 to 34% of vital bacteria present in the sampled plaque. Between 6 and 8 h later, this % rose towards its original value. This study has shown that FDA/EB staining provides a method for direct measurement of bacteria vitality in dental plaque and, as such, can be of great value for testing the efficacy of various antiplaque agents.

Mouse T cell growth factor was purified from the serum-free conditioned medium of lectin-stimulated spleen cells. A 3,000-fold purification was achieved with a final yield of 12%. The purified protein, with an apparent Mr of 23,000 by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, was active at concentrations of 4 x 10(-11) M, both in the T cell growth factor and T cell replacing factor assays. In addition, purified T cell growth factor alone was mitogenic for spleen cells from both nude and normal mice.

The presence of activators of the fibrinolytic system in blood plasma has been assumed for a long time but never convincingly documented by the isolation of characterized and physiologically plausible enzymes. The low catalytic efficiency of previously identified plasma plasminogen activators, which has made their physiological significance uncertain, prompted us to search for other plasma enzymes, resembling especially the potent urinary activator, urokinase. We report here the detection of a urokinase-like activity in human plasma, and the isolation of the enzyme from whole plasma protein fractions. The purified enzyme is indistinguishable from the 53,000-dalton components of human urinary urokinase in the following respects: apparent Mr on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, double immunodiffusion, amino acid analysis, two-dimensional tryptic peptide maps, catalytic efficiency with synthetic peptide substrates, and inhibitor spectrum. The results suggest (a) that the enzyme is present in plasma in a latent form whose nature remains to be defined, and (b) that the circulating concentration is at least 5 to 10 microgram/liter, and sufficient to generate substantial levels of plasmin, particularly if activation were somehow confined by localization at specific sites.

The diagnosis of retroperitoneal disease including mass lesions has been a difficult one to make in the past and many conventional radiologic modes, including arteriography, ultrasonography, excretory urography and lymphangiography, have been used. A reliable sign of retroperitoneal pathology is anterior displacement of the abdominal aorta which was previously described utilizing lateral roentgenology (1), arteriography, (2) and ultrasonography (3).

Purified human PMNs secrete plasminogen activator. This secretion is stimulated by Con A and low concentrations of PMA, and is inhibited by low concentrations of glucocorticoids, and by cAMP, actinomycin D, and cycloheximide. In contrast, the release of granule-bound enzymes, such as elastase, is achieved only at higher concentrations of PMA, and is not affected by any of the inhibitors that block plasminogen activator production. These results show that the production of plasminogen activatory by PMNs is controlled by agents that affect inflammations, and that this control is not shared by other lytic enzymes known to be associated with these cells. This suggests a particular role for plasminogen activator in the response pattern of PMNs and also supports the concept, previously developed for macrophages, that the secretion of this enzyme is correlated with cell migration in vivo.