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Healthy patients with asymmetric sensorineural hearing loss who had received examination of auditory brainstem responses (ABR) were gathered for retrospective analysis. The effects of sex, age and hearing asymmetry on the interaural differences of ipsilateral ABR were determined by multivariant linear regression. Our results showed that the interaural differences of ABR wave III and wave V latencies were significantly affected by hearing asymmetry but not by sex or age. However, in female subjects younger than 50 years, differences of III-V intervals could be negatively correlated with hearing asymmetry. We suggest that plasticity in the auditory brainstem in younger females might account for asymmetrical peripheral hearing in this group. Copyright © 2008 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cisplatin (CDDP) is a widely used cancer chemotherapeutic agent. CDDP forms well characterized intrastrand cross-links between adjacent purines in genomic DNA. In mammalian cells, these lesions are repaired by the nucleotide excision repair system. An early event in the recognition and processing of cis-Pt-DNA adducts may well involve the binding of specific proteins to the sites of damage. Several proteins have been identified, including high mobility group (HMG) proteins 1 and 2 and upstream binding factor (UBF), which recognize CDDP-DNA. However, the physiological significance of this binding has not been established. In this study, we have utilized antibodies to these proteins to examine the effect of CDDP on their intracellular distribution. Marked changes in the immunofluorescent staining pattern of HMG1/HMG2 were noted in cells treated with CDDP. At higher drug concentrations, the distribution of UBF also changed, from a clustered appearance associated with the nucleoli to more diffuse nuclear staining. These results demonstrate that HMG1/HMG2 and UBF respond to drug treatment, presumably by recognizing cis-Pt-DNA adduct formation in intact cells. Hence, these proteins may play an important role in directing the response of tumor cells following exposure to CDDP.

Proliferation and differentiation of rat (IEC-6) and human (FHs) small intestinal cells in the presence of epidermal growth factor (EGF), insulin, insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I, -II, and des[1-3]tripeptide-IGF-I(des-IGF-I) were examined. Thymidine incorporation into IEC-6 cells was significantly increased by insulin, IGF-I, des-IGF-I, IGF-II, and IGF-I+EGF, but not by EGF alone. In contrast, thymidine incorporation into FHs cells was increased only by insulin, IGF-I, and the combination of IGF-I and EGF. Mitogenic activities of IGF-I at 5 nM and insulin at 700 nM (IEC-6) or 1400 nM (FHs) were equivalent, suggesting that both acted through the type I IGF receptor in both cells. IEC-6 cells secreted consistently one predominant IGF binding protein (IGFBP) with M(r) of 28.5 kDa, while FHs cells secreted several IGFBPs with M(r) from 43 to 24 kDa. Mitogenic activity of IGF-I at 5 nM was equal to des-IGF-I at 0.005 nM, indicating that endogenously produced IGFBPs likely inhibit IGF-I action. In IEC-6 cells, IGFBP-2 secretion, but not mRNA expression, was decreased by EGF and IGF-I+EGF treatments, suggesting post-transcriptional regulation. IGF-II and EGF were more potent than IGF-I at increasing maltase and sucrase activities, suggesting that these growth factors may stimulate differentiation to a greater degree than mitogenesis.

This study determined if reported decreases in the delta subunit of ATP synthase and nuclear-encoded cytochrome c oxidase subunits in hearts of copper-deficient rats were secondary to the heart disease pathology or due to lack of the trace element. Male weanling Long-Evans rats were randomly divided into six groups: rats fed a copper-adequate or copper-deficient diet (with free access) with or without 5% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) in the drinking water and rats pair-fed the copper-adequate or copper-deficient diet without DMSO treatment. After 4 wk, rats in the groups fed the copper-deficient diet had lower liver superoxide dismutase and heart cytochrome c oxidase activities compared with groups fed the copper-adequate diet. Administration of DMSO, an antioxidant, and energy restriction (pair-feeding) partially blocked cardiac hypertrophy in rats fed the copper-deficient diet. Greater mitochondrial volume density and mitochondrial:myofibrillar ratio and disrupted myofibrils and basal laminae were observed in the hearts from rats fed the copper-deficient diet and not treated with DMSO compared with hearts from groups fed the copper-adequate diet. The DMSO-treated rats fed the copper-deficient diet had hearts with intact structure but enlarged mitochondria compared with other groups fed the copper-deficient diet. The delta subunit of ATP synthase and the nuclear-encoded cytochrome c oxidase subunits IV and V were depressed in rats fed a copper-deficient diet regardless of antioxidant treatment and pair-feeding. These data suggest that the effects of copper deficiency upon ATP synthase and cytochrome c oxidase proteins are not due to the cardiac pathology.

The mercury concentration of oeal gas was determinded.Comparison were made on 2 groups consisting of silver amalgam covered cases(n=15) and uncovered cases (n=29) immediately by vaseline after filling silver amalgam,and the concentration of Hg before polishing old silver amalgam and after polishing (n=10),The result showed there are very significant difference (P<0.01).The surface area of filling mercury amalgam did not relate to Hg concentration.The larger volume of polishing old mercury amalgam was,the higher concentration of Hg was.In addition,mercury concentrations of air in four consulting rooms before ventilation were higher than 3.1-6.6 times national hyienic standard,however,it was reduced to 1.2-2.1 times after ventilation.

1. Male weanling Long-Evans rats were randomly assigned to either copper-adequate (6.0 mg Cu/kg feed) or copper-deficient (< 1.0 mg Cu/kg feed) diets for a 5 week period. 2. Cardiac ATP levels and energy charges did not differ between the two groups. Levels of NAD and phosphocreatine as well as the sum of pyridine nucleotides were greater in copper-deficient rats compared with copper-adequate rats using HPLC analysis. 3. Mitochondrial respiratory control ratios and oxygen consumption rates from copper-deficient rat hearts were depressed, although ADP:O ratios were similar to copper-adequate rat hearts.

World Fertility Survey data for ten developing countries are used to examine the respective roles of development and family planning in influencing the regulation of fertility. The findings show that high proportions of women at all socioeconomic levels in the countries studied wanted no more children, including large proportions among rural, poor, and uneducated women with few children. The data also show that despite the limitations of underdevelopment, in countries with strong family planning programs knowledge and use of contraception was high. These findings confirm that there is a large unmet demand for family planning and point to the importance of continued allocation of funds to support service programs.