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The quasi-periodic optical superlattice is a promising material for use in optical frequency conversion. We propose a method for designing a quasi-periodic structure for efficient third-harmonic generation (THG) at any given wavelength. With this method we have made a LiTaO(3) sample in which 27% THG at 0.48microm was achieved, together with a series of highly efficient multiwavelength second-harmonic generation outputs. The result is in good agreement with the theoretical prediction.

Here, we describe a fast, simple method for constructing full-length cDNA libraries using SMART technology. This novel procedure uses the template-switching activity of Moloney murine leukemia virus (MMLV) reverse transcriptase to synthesize and anchor first-strand cDNA in one step. Following reverse transcription, three cycles of PCR are performed using a modified oligo(dT) primer and an anchor primer to enrich the cDNA population for full-length sequences. Starting with 1 microgram human skeletal muscle poly(A)+ RNA, a cDNA library was constructed that contained 3 x 10(6) independent clones with an average insert size of 2 kb. Sequence analysis of 172 randomly selected clones showed that 77% of cDNA clones corresponding to known genes contained intact open reading frames. The average length of complete open reading frames was 2.4 kb. Furthermore, 86% of the full-length clones retained longer 5' UTR sequences than the longest 5' end deposited in the GenBank database. cDNA libraries generated using this method will be useful for accelerating the collection of mRNA 5' end sequence information, which is currently very limited in GenBank.

We determined the incidence of delayed 24-h reversibility post thallium-201 reinjection and imaging at 4 h, as well as the prognostic and significance of such delayed reversibility. We studied 46 consecutive patients with persistent thallium-201 perfusion or incompletely reversible single-photon emission tomography (SPET) perfusion defects acquired within 10 min after reinjection performed 4 h after stress. In 38 of 46 patients (82%) 24-h images showed no further reversibility beyond the post-reinjection 4-h study (group A). Eight of 46 patients (17%) demonstrated reversibility on 24-h imaging (group B). Of these eight, three patients showed no improvement compared with the post-stress images, with a mean perfusion score of the abnormal segments of 1. 25+/-0.50 on the 4-h images, and of 3.00 on the 24-h images, where normal is 4. Four patients presented with nine mixed regions. Four of these regions showed an improvement in the mean perfusion score of 2.50+/-0.58 on 4- and 24-h images. Two of them, with moderate/severe defects, demonstrated complete reversibility at 4-h post-reinjection imaging. In addition, five other regions presented no improvement at 4-h imaging, but showed an improvement in the mean perfusion score from 0.80+/-0.84 at 4-h to 3.30+/-0.89 at 24-h imaging. Two of these regions in one patient showed a severe perfusion score of 0 at 4 h, and complete reversibility at 24 hours, with a mean score improvement of 4. Another patient had three severe perfusion defects; two of them redistributed partially at 4 h and completely at 24 h. The remaining segment with a perfusion score of 0 at 4 h, presented complete reversibility with a score of 4 at 24 h. Two (4%) patients revealed significant reversibility at 24 h in a region that was severely underperfused after post-reinjection imaging at 4 h. Among group B patients, 75% (6/8) had recent acute ischemic syndrome, compared with only 13% (5/38) in group A (P = 0. 001). Among 11 patients with unstable angina, six (55%) had evidence of delayed 24-h reversibility, compared with 2 of 35 (6%) patients without clinically acute ischemia (P = 0.001). On follow-up, there were seven (17%) cardiac deaths among the 38 group A patients but three (38%) among the eight group B patients (P = 0.3). These findings suggest that although the presence of delayed 24-h 201Tl, post-reinjection reversibility is infrequent, it has potential clinical importance. Thus, delayed 24-h imaging should be considered in the context of unstable angina or other acute coronary syndromes.

An epitaxial Ba(2)NaNb(5)O(15) thin film with excellent crystalline properties has been achieved on a (001) KTiOPO(4) substrate by use of the technique of pulsed laser deposition. X-ray-diffraction analysis has revealed that (110)-oriented Ba(2)NaNb(5)O(15) film was produced. The film has good optical transmitting characteristics and a propagation loss as low as 1.08 dB/cm. The noncritical phase-matching feature in the second-harmonic generation process in the film waveguide has also been studied.

Among selected study populations, myocardial perfusion scintigraphy (MPS) in patients with left bundle branch block (LBBB) has been reported to show a low specificity for the diagnosis of coronary disease. However, the stress electrocardiogram (ECG) is nondiagnostic in this setting. To place this method in its appropriate clinical context, we evaluated MPS in all 69 consecutive patients with LBBB studied with scintigraphy for clinical reasons during a 4-year period. Among 32 patients who underwent coronary angiography for clinical indications, per patient sensitivity, 96%; per vessel sensitivity, 84%, 50%, and 100% for left anterior descending (LAD), left circumflex (LCX), and right coronary artery (RCA) involvement, respectively; and per vessel specificity, 95% and 68% for LCX and RCA disease, respectively, were not significantly different from those previously published for the method in patients without LBBB. Although per patient specificity, 38%, and specificity, 39%, for LAD disease were low, the predictive value of a positive test remained relatively high (83%) owing to the small number of patients selected for angiography, in part based on scintigraphic findings, with normal coronary anatomy. In addition to a possible specific pathophysiologic cause related to LBBB, apparent perfusion abnormalities in the LAD distribution may relate to generic conditions that can make scintigraphic interpretation ambiguous, often in the anterior distribution, regardless of the clinical setting. Additionally, the apparent lack of scintigraphic specificity in the LAD distribution could relate in part to a selection bias toward catheterization of patients with induced scintigraphic abnormalities, especially in the LAD distribution.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Patient motion during image acquisition is a frequent cause of SPECT perfusion image artifacts. We sought to determine the relationship between patient motion and the resultant image artifact. The effect of patient motion on 201Tl SPECT scintigrams was assessed with computer simulation to create 66 new image sets with artifactual vertical, horizontal and combined patient motion introduced over a broad range in six normal studies. Visual analysis of regional radioactivity in these simulated images, as well as quantitative analysis of the resultant polar coordinate display was performed. The presence and extent of "motion" artifacts varied with the number and location of the projection images affected, as well as the extent of their displacement. Although the extent of the defect varied with the frames affected, they were not necessarily more extensive when related to vertical displacement in the center of the orbit. The location of induced defects varied with direction of displacement and the location of frames affected. Vertical and horizontal motion created additive defects. Defect size grew with incremental vertical displacement but subsequently decreased with yet increasing displacement. Both the irregular, "lumpy" distribution of radioactivity, often with opposing "defects", as well as curvilinear extraventricular radioactivity, were visual clues suggesting SPECT defects related to motion artifact. A clinical case review revealed that approximately 25% of studies demonstrate such motion during acquisition but only 5% contribute to visible image deterioration. While detection is important, postacquisition attempts to correct such artifacts are incomplete and optimally, they must be prevented.

Six neo-clerodane diterpenoids were isolated from the acetone extract of Teucrium quadrifarium Buch-Ham (I, II, IV, V, VI and VII). Five of them (I, II, IV, V and VII) were identified as known compounds, teucvidin, 12-epi-teucvidin, teuflin, 19-acetyl-teuspinin and teucvidin, respectively. Compound VI was found to be a new neo-clerodane diterpene, named teuquadrin B. Its structure has been determined from the physical and spectral data.

A sandwich-type enzyme immunoassay for human 28 kDa vitamin D-dependent calcium binding protein (calbindin-D) was established with a sensitivity of 1 pg/tube. Antisera were generated in rabbits injected with highly purified human kidney calbindin-D, and specific antibodies to calbindin-D were purified by the use of a column of calbindin-D-coupled Sepharose. The purified antibodies showed a single band at the position corresponding to calbindin-D on an immunoblotting test with a crude extract of human kidney. The assay system consisted of polystyrene balls with immobilized F(ab')2 antibodies and the same antibodies labeled with beta-D-galactosidase from Escherichia coli. The assay was specific to 28 kDa calbindin-D, showing no cross-reactivity with other calcium binding proteins such as S-100a0 (alpha alpha), S-100b (beta beta), parvalbumin and calmodulin. The assay was also reproducible (coefficients of variation between assays were less than 10%). With the present method, immunoreactive calbindin-D could be detected in various human tissues, with major concentrations in kidney and brain. The values for immunoreactive calbindin-D in various body fluids of healthy subjects varied from undetectable in serum and semen to 3.8 +/- 2.0 (SD) micrograms/g creatinine in urine and 2.9 +/- 0.8 (SD) micrograms/l in cerebrospinal fluid. Immunohistochemically, the calbindin-D in human kidney was localized in epithelial cells of distal tubules.

To assess changes in aldolase isozyme patterns (A, B, and C) in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) tissues and to evaluate whether serum aldolase A might be a useful marker for RCC, quantitative analysis by enzyme immunoassay and immunohistochemical localization were performed. Concentrations of aldolase A in RCC (7300 +/- 6300 ng./mg. protein n = 26) were significantly higher than those of normal cortex (720 +/- 410 ng./mg. protein, n = 14, p less than 0.01); concentrations of aldolase C in RCC (48.0 +/- 8.0 ng./mg. protein) were also significantly higher than those of normal cortex (8.7 +/- 4.7 ng./mg. protein, p less than 0.01). On the other hand, concentrations of aldolase B in normal cortex were 18,100 +/- 10,100 ng./mg. protein (n = 14), whereas the values in RCC were only 130 +/- 270 ng./mg. protein, a significant lowering (p less than 0.01). Immunohistochemically, aldolases A and C were found localized in all RCC tissues (n = 10); aldolase B was faintly stained in only a few tumor cells of two cases (20%). Levels of serum aldolase A were elevated (greater than 300 ng./ml.) in 30 (75%) of 40 patients with RCC as compared to three (6.3%) of 48 individuals with urogenital benign diseases and in seven (21%) of 34 cases with non-RCC urogenital malignancies. Since it is generally accepted that RCC are derived from renal proximal tubules, these findings indicate that aldolase B, the predominant isozyme in the normal case, changes into aldolases A and C during carcinogenesis and that serum aldolase A could be a new useful biomarker for RCC.

In order to demonstrate that the extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (ESWL) for urolithiasis causes a renal damage, we immunoassayed S100a0 protein and creatine kinase isozymes (CK-B & CK-M) in the serum and urine from patients with renal stone (N = 21) and those with ureteral stone (N = 18) before and after ESWL. S100a0 protein and CK-B, which are localized in the proximal renal tubules at relatively high concentrations, were enhanced more or less both in the urine and serum samples after the treatment in both groups of patients. Since CK-M, which is mainly localized in muscle tissue, also increased in both groups of patients, S100a0 protein and CK-B may be derived not only from kidney, but also from muscle tissues.

We evaluated the safety, accuracy, and potential clinical utility of intravenous dipyridamole perfusion scintigraphy with thallium-201 in 170 patients, 78 with suspected and 92 with known unstable angina. All had coronary angiography. Noncardiac side effects (26%), induced chest discomfort (44%), and ST segment changes (12%) were similar in the two groups. No significant arrhythmias occurred. Two patients had prolonged chest pain, both with extensive reversible image abnormalities and associated creatinine kinase-MB release. Both had elective bypass surgery. Twenty-eight patients had normal coronary arteries, and 35 had single-vessel disease. Scintigraphic per patient sensitivity and specificity were 91% and 79% with a per vessel sensitivity of 74% and a per vessel specificity of 78% without between-group differences. During a brief follow-up period, 62 patients with image abnormalities had coronary revascularization, and there were seven deaths without intergroup differences. In a similar patient group that did not have angiography, scintigraphic defects were less frequent and less extensive, revascularization was not performed, and subsequent deaths occurred less often. Dipyridamole perfusion scintigraphy is an accurate alternative to exercise testing in the evaluation of patients with unstable angina pectoris. Although not without risk, the method appears relatively safe and should be considered as a guide to diagnosis, and probably to prognosis and management.

Rabbits (n = 11) were fitted with large PMMA lenses to completely occlude the cornea and the anterior chamber lactate measured. The corneal epithelium was examined by light microscopy. The time period was 12 h. The results were compared with other authors' finding. There was a similarity of findings. The levels of lactate were found to have increased and the epithelium though edematous not stripped off. An individual response appeared to be the reason for the large variation in the individual findings.

A 27-year-old female recipient of a renal allograft, treated with systemic steroids and azathioprine, developed progressive cutaneous lesions (an ulcer, a nodule, and an abscess). Histopathologic and tissue-culture examination of the skin lesions led to the diagnosis of cutaneous cryptococcosis. A description of the light and electron microscopic features of the cutaneous lesions is reported. A thorough visceral investigation failed to detect systemic involvement. The patient was treated with oral ketoconazole (400 mg daily) for 6 months. A gradual healing of the lesions was obtained, and cultures performed 3 months after the onset of treatment failed to show Cryptococcus neoformans. No relapse or dissemination has so far been observed.

In order to determine their significance during dipyridamole perfusion scintigraphy, symptomatic, ECG, and scintigraphic findings were related to each other, to the hemodynamic response, and to angiographic findings in 73 consecutive patients having coronary angiography within 3 months of scintigraphy. The group having induced "cardiac" pain differed from the group without induced pain only in their higher incidence of induced ischemic ST changes, the "marked" hemodynamic response, and their lower incidence of an "absent" hemodynamic response (all p less than 0.01). Induced ST depression was found only in patients with coronary disease. In this population, dipyridamole-induced pain was a moderately specific marker and induced ST abnormalities a more highly specific marker for coronary disease. However, both were insensitive for coronary disease diagnosis. If induced pain or ST abnormalities in the presence of significant coronary disease were accepted as indicators of ischemia, then scintigraphic abnormalities appeared to be produced by dipyridamole in roughly equal incidence by ischemic and nonischemic mechanisms. Induced ischemia related frequently to an exaggerated hypotensive response with no change in double product, suggesting its cause to be an induced increase in myocardial oxygen demand. Dipyridamole-induced image defects were noted even in the absence of a peripheral hemodynamic response. This indicates that the peripheral response does not always correlate with its central coronary effect and an absent peripheral hemodynamic response does not necessarily invalidate scintigraphic results.

We sought to assess the role of gallium-67 lung scintigrams in the evaluation of amiodarone pulmonary toxicity. Images and laboratory studies were evaluated in 54 patients who had chest radiographs and scintigraphic studies during amiodarone treatment of more than one month's duration among 561 patients receiving the medication for refractory arrhythmias. There were 22 patients with pulmonary symptoms and clinical evidence of amiodarone pulmonary toxicity (group 1); 19 patients had other causes for pulmonary symptoms (group 2); and 21 patients were without symptoms or other clinical evidence of pulmonary toxicity (group 3). There was no difference among groups in treatment duration or total amiodarone dose. Symptomatic presentation could not differentiate between group 1 and group 2 patients. However, radiographic findings of isolated pulmonary congestion or a normal radiograph in the presence of symptoms made amiodarone toxicity unlikely, while the appearance of new, dense radiographic infiltrates--often in a nodular distribution--were more frequent among group 1 patients (p less than 0.01). During symptomatic periods, 18 of 22 group 1 patients had abnormal gallium lung uptake, while four revealed more subtle serial changes but there was only one abnormal scintigram among symptomatic group 2 patients. Nonspecific radiographic abnormalities in patients with pulmonary symptoms on amiodarone therapy were rarely attributed to toxicity in the presence of a normal scintigram. One group 3 patient developed scintigraphic abnormalities early during amiodarone treatment, suggesting toxicity in the presence of a normal chest x-ray examination. Comparison of radiographic and scintigraphic studies performed during symptoms with those performed prior to symptom development best indicated the diagnosis, while comparison with later images assessed the efficacy of treatment. Diffusion capacity testing and transbronchial biopsy were sensitive but not specific for the diagnosis of amiodarone toxicity. Gallium image abnormalities parallel the development of amiodarone pulmonary toxicity and aid this diagnosis, especially when the chest radiograph is abnormal and ambiguous. Serial increments in scintigraphic abnormality appear especially helpful for diagnosis in the population at risk.