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PCR coupled with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (PCR/ESI-MS) was compared with culture for pathogen detection in peritoneal dialysis (PD)-related peritonitis. Of 21 samples of PD effluent, PCR/ESI-MS identified microorganisms in 18 (86%) samples, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis in 1 culture-negative sample. Of 15 double-positive samples, PCR/ESI-MS and culture reached levels of agreement of 100% (15/15) and 87.5% (7/8) at the genus and species levels, respectively. PCR/ESI-MS can be used for rapid pathogen detection in PD-related peritonitis.

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIM: Although narrow-band imaging (NBI) in endoscopy can improve detection of early-stage esophageal malignancies in patients with head and neck cancers, false-positive results may be obtained in areas with nonspecific inflammatory changes. This study evaluated the feasibility of primary screening with NBI and magnification for the presence of esophageal malignancies in these cancer patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Sixty-nine patients with documented head and neck cancers were enrolled from April 2008 to January 2009. All patients underwent a meticulous endoscopic examination of the esophagus using a conventional white-light system followed by re-examination using the NBI system and final confirmation with NBI plus magnification. RESULTS: Twenty-one patients (30.4 %) were confirmed to have esophageal neoplasia. Among these 21, 16 (76.2 %) had synchronous lesions, 9 (42.9 %) were asymptomatic, and 10 (47.6 %) had early-stage neoplasia. The incidence of multiple esophageal neoplasia was 57.1 %. NBI was more effective than conventional endoscopy in detecting neoplastic lesions (35 lesions in 21 patients vs. 22 lesions in 18 patients) and was particularly effective in patients with dysplasia (13 lesions in 9 patients vs. 3 lesions in 3 patients). The sensitivity and accuracy of detection were 62.9 % and 64.4 % for conventional endoscopy, 100 % and 86.7 % for NBI alone, and 100 % and 95.6 % for NBI with high magnification, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Compared with current approaches, NBI followed by high magnification significantly increases the accuracy of detection of esophageal neoplasia in patients with head and neck cancers. The result warrants conducting prospective randomized controlled study to confirm its efficacy.

This paper presents a newly developed rapid prototyping (RP) machine. The design of this machine is based on the Eclipse parallel mechanism invented by the authors. One of the advantages of the Eclipse mechanism as compared to Gough-Stewart-based parallel mechanisms and applied to machining processes is that the spindle can tilt to 90 degrees and enables five-face machining without any set-up change of the workpieces. This advantage has been fully utilized in designing the new RP machine. The RP process consists of four stages: (1) post-machining feature extraction, (2) the slicing of the deposition feature, (3) repeated deposition and machining of each sliced layer, and (4) post-machining. Whole stages are executed in one machine structure without any set-up change. Using the Eclipse-RP and standard test parts, remarkable gains in productivity are obtained, namely 2.5 times reduction in time and 8 times reduction in cost.

This paper is to investigate the potential of air conditioning load management by solving the temperature sensitivity of load demand for various customer classes. The load survey system has been applied to record the power consumption of sampling customers in Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) for four years. The effect of the temperature change to the customer power consumption is determined by executing the statistic polynomial regression on the load survey results. The increase of system power demand for each 1 ? temperature rise is then derived by integrating the load change of all customer classes. To verify the accuracy of the simulation, the actual system power demand collected by the Taipower EMS system is applied to find the system load response to the temperature change. It is found that the proposed methodology does provide an effective tool for the utility company to identify the customer classes with good potential for air conditioner load management. Based on this study, the load management programs of cooling energy storage system and direct cycling control of air conditioners (A/C) are promoted by Taipower for the commercial and residential customers, respectively.

This paper proposes a proper rate making strategy for a public owned utility by taking into account the customer load characteristics. The load survey system has been well designed by sampling theory to find the customers for power consumption information collection. By this manner, the typical load patterns derived can effectively represent the load behavior of each customer class. The load patterns of each test customer during different seasons are solved by statistical analysis according to the load information collected. The seasonal typical load pattern of each customer class is then determined by integrating the load patterns of the same type customers. The power consumption of the customer class is then estimated by the typical class load pattern and the energy consumption of all customers in the same class, which can be retrieved from the customer information database. The typical load pattern of whole power system is then determined by aggregating the power consumption of all customer classes. The estimated system load consumption is then compared to the actual system load profile, it is found that a rather accurate system load profile can be predicted by the load survey system.

Aminophylline is known to have respiratory stimulant properties, and it has been suggested that it may also be effective in sleep apnoea. However, its role in this disorder remains uncertain. Theoretically, increasing upper airway motoneural activity in order to maintain airway patency might alleviate obstructive sleep apnoea. On the other hand, increasing the respiratory drive may also prove beneficial in treating central sleep apnoea. In these studies, we attempted to determine the effect of aminophylline on neural activities of the upper airway and diaphragm. We administered intravenously either a low dose (4 mg.kg-1) or a high dose (16 mg.kg-1) of aminophylline to decerebrated, vagotomized and paralysed cats, and continuously recorded the phrenic hypoglossal and recurrent laryngeal nerve activities for 3 h. Results showed that a high dose of aminophylline induced a marked increase in phrenic nerve activity, but not hypoglossal or recurrent laryngeal nerve activity. In a group treated with a low dosage of aminophylline, a significant increase of activity was found in all three nerves. Furthermore, phrenic nerve activity increased more with a high dose than with a low dose. We confirmed that aminophylline has dose-dependent and selective effects on respiratory neural activity. A low dose acts on the upper airway and diaphragm, but a high dose induces a marked increase in central respiratory drive. According to our results, low dose aminophylline might be beneficial in obstructive sleep apnoea, whereas, a high or low dose might improve some cases of central sleep apnoea.

Pure tone sensitivity of inferior colliculus (IC) neurons in adult rats was studied electrophysiologically following exposure to a frequency-modulated (FM) tone during the first 5 postnatal weeks. The distribution of best frequencies (BF) and minimum thresholds (MT) of 274 single units, when compared to the control, showed an abnormal clustering centered around the region of teh audiogram occupied by the FM tone to which the rats had been exposed. This effect was interpreted as the result of activity-dependent changes of IC during development.

This study applied frequency analysis to compare changes in the power spectrum density functions of surface electromyograms obtained from the paired masseter and anterior temporal muscles during therapy with three types of functional appliances, namely the Bionator, modified Fränkel type I, and Fränkel type III. Eighteen children were divided into three groups receiving either Bionator, Fränkel type I, or Fränkel type III therapy; a fourth group consisting of six children who received no therapy served as control. Before and after 3, 6, and 12 months of therapy, each child performed maximum voluntary isometric clenches in the position of maximum intercuspation. The mean frequency of the power spectrum was the variable studied. Children treated with the Bionator and Fränkel type I appliances showed greater changes in mean frequency than those treated with the Fränkel type III appliance. Although the muscles of untreated children also showed shifts of mean frequency to lower frequency values as a function of time, there was a greater downward shift of mean frequency in those treated with functional appliances. The downward shifts might have been associated with changes in muscle fiber lengths and/or recruitment patterns as a result of both treatment and normal growth.

DNA tests in normal subjects and patients with ataxia and Parkinson's disease (PD) were carried out to assess the frequency of spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) and to document the distribution of SCA mutations underlying ethnic Chinese in Taiwan. MJD/SCA3 (46%) was the most common autosomal dominant SCA in the Taiwanese cohort, followed by SCA6 (18%) and SCA1 (3%). No expansions of SCA types 2, 10, 12, or dentatorubropallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) were detected. The clinical phenotypes of these affected SCA patients were very heterogeneous. All of them showed clinical symptoms of cerebellar ataxia, with or without other associated features. The frequencies of large normal alleles are closely associated with the prevalence of SCA1, SCA2, MJD/SCA3, SCA6, and DRPLA among Taiwanese, Japanese, and Caucasians. Interestingly, abnormal expansions of SCA8 and SCA17 genes were detected in patients with PD. The clinical presentation for these patients is typical of idiopathic PD with the following characteristics: late onset of disease, resting tremor in the limbs, rigidity, bradykinesia, and a good response to levodopa. This study appears to be the first report describing the PD phenotype in association with an expanded allele in the TATA-binding protein gene and suggests that SCA8 may also be a cause of typical PD.

In this paper, the effects of back-end process on device characteristic shift are explored. It had been found that the transistors with different inter-metal-dielectric (IMD) films have different performance. Moreover, more of the IMD layers will result in more of the electrical characteristic shifts. The shift is dominated by the interface state reduction. The mode of plasma-enhanced hydrogen out- diffusion during IMD film deposition is proposed to explain the BEOL-relate device shift. In order to relive this effect of electrical characteristic shift, another alloy step by pure hydrogen anneal is implemented after metal-1 etch and before the Via-1 deposition. It is found the electrical characteristics taken at metal-1 stage are very close to those taken at melal-6 with passivation step. In addition, there is no apparent hot carrier lifetime degradation with or without the pure hydrogen treatment.

The effects of hypercapnia and hypocapnia on the activities of the cardiac and pulmonary vagal single fibers were examined in the decerebrated, unanesthetized, paralyzed, and vagotomized cats. The animals breathed 100% O2. Fractional end tidal CO2 concentration was raised to 9% by adding CO2 into the O2 inlet. Average discharge rate of efferent cardiac vagal units (n=10) increased from 1.0+/-0.3 to 2.2+/-0.3 Hz. Hypocapnia apnea was produced by hyperventilation. Activities of cardiac vagal units tested (n = 4) showed dramatic decrease (0.1+/-0.0 Hz). Mean arterial blood pressure did not change significantly under these conditions. In contrast, only instantaneous firing rate during inspiration was significantly increased for efferent pulmonary vagal units (n = 11) during hypercapnia. The activities of the 3 pulmonary vagal units tested with hypocapnia decreased significantly. We concluded that cardiac and pulmonary vagal neurons were excited by chemoreceptor input.

This paper describes the design, construction, and experimental results of the Eclipse, a novel 6 d.o.f. parallel mechanism designed for rapid machining. The Eclipse is designed to be capable of performing 5-face machining while retaining the advantages of high stiffness, high accuracy, and compact size characteristic of parallel mechanisms. We describe the kinematic structure of the Eclipse, including computational procedures for the forward and inverse kinematics, as well as results of workspace, stiffness, and singularity analysis. The Eclipse has 8 actuators. The overactuation is necessary in order to eliminate kinematic singularities present in the internal workspace of the mechanism. Experimental results obtained with a prototype capable of machining plastic stock are described. We conclude with a summary of what we believe are some of the critical issues in designing parallel mechanism-based machine tools.

The cholinergic receptors on the heart of the marine bivalve Meretrix lusoria were used as a model to investigate their pharmacological properties in bivalves. By recording method, we measured the contractile force (CF) and the heart rate (HR) of the heart to examine the characteristics of cholinergic receptors of a marine bivalve. The known ACh receptor agonists or antagonists in vertebrate nervous system were then introduced into the heart by perfusion, to monitor their effects upon heart activities. Of the six tested agonists, two mAChR agonists (OXA-22, bethanechol) and two nAChR agonists (methylcarbachol, nicotine) mimicked the response induced by ACh. Among the seven tested antagonists, three mAChR antagonists (trihexyphenidy1, atropine and scopolamine) and three nAChR antagonists (TEA, curare and hexamethonium bromide) showed the antagonistic effects on the inhibition induced by ACh. However, there was one mAChR agonist, metoclopramide, that behaved like an ACh antagonist. Both APE (mAChR agonist) and PTMA (nAChR antagonist) showed no significant effects. This differences suggest that the pharmacological characteristics of ACh receptors on the heart of bivalve are different from those in vertebrates. It may be a novel type of ACh receptors.

The effects of electrical and chemical activation of the rostral ventrolateral medulla (rVLM) on respiratory-related facial nerve activity were investigated in decerebrated, paralyzed, vagotomized and ventilated cats. The animal was maintained at normocapnia and hypercapnia in hyperoxia. Phrenic and facial nerve activities were simultaneously recorded. Excitation of the rVLM either by electrical current (12.5 to 50 microA, 80 Hz and 0.5 ms pulse duration) or glutamate microinjection (50 mM, 20 to 200 nl) inhibited both phrenic and facial nerve discharges. Although inhibition of the rVLM upon both nerves was attenuated by hypercapnia, this inhibition remained significant during hypercapnia. These results suggest that the rVLM may be involved in the modulation of upper airway patency by controlling respiratory-related facial nerve activity.

A luteolytic dose (500 micrograms) of cloprostenol was given four days before expected estrus to five mature cyclic cows of native Taiwan Yellow cattle. Blood samples were collected at hourly intervals for 60 hours and then twice daily (0800 h and 1600 h) until onset of the following estrus or Day 29 after prostaglandin (PG) injection. Plasma progesterone levels were quite low in the follicular phase and elevated over an 11-13 day period during the luteal phase for every animal. Two cows showed peak luteinizing hormone (LH) levels of 19.97 and 23.77 ng/ml of plasma at 120 and 127 h after PG injection. One cow did not show peak LH level during the 60-h sampling period, but had its highest concentration of 18.02 ng/ml at 0800 h on Day 8. Two cows showed no detectable peak LH during the 60-h sampling period or on subsequent days. But these two cows had increased concentrations of progesterone beginning on Day 6 and Day 12. All animals came back into estrus 23-28 days after PG treatment.

The purpose of the present study was to examine respiratory-modulated facial nerve activity (FNA) in response to activation of the ventrolateral subarea of the nucleus of the tractus solitarius (vlNTS). The cat was anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital and then vagotomized bilaterally, paralyzed and ventilated artificially. End-tidal fractional concentration of CO2 was maintained at hyperoxic normocapnia. Partial occipital craniotomy was performed to expose the obex. Activities of the phrenic and the facial nerves were simultaneously recorded. The vlNTS was excited by electrical current (80 Hz frequency, 0.5 ms pulse duration and a variety of current from 12.5 to 50 microA) and glutamate (30-100 nl, 0.5 M). Three responsive patterns for both nerves were observed in response to vlNTS activation. First, inspiratory facial nerve activity (iFNA) and phrenic nerve activity (PNA) were decreased (p0.01), while expiratory facial nerve activity (eFNA) was not changed. Second, iFNA and PNA were diminished (p0.01) but eFNA was enhanced. Third, iFNA was decreased whereas PNA was enhanced. These results suggest that there might be a neural pathway projecting from the vlNTS to the facial nuclei to modulate respiratory-modulated facial nerve activities.

There have been many studies written about the methods used to determine the health of batteries in offline application. This study intends to apply the voltage tracing method to produce a simple method in determining the early faults of online battery. The results showed that by using the voltage tracing method, it is possible to find the early faults of batteries, which in turn can prevent power supply interruption and help the telecommunication industry in providing reliable communication services.

Cardiorespiratory responses, including changes of systemic arterial pressure (SAP), renal or splanchnic sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) and phrenic nerve activity (PNA), were elicited by microinjection of monosodium glutamate solution (0.5 M, 100 nl) into the dorsal (DM) and rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) in 15 vagotomized cats anesthetized by urethane-chloralose and paralyzed by gallamine triethiodide. Artificial ventilation was adjusted to keep the end-tidal CO2 concentration at 4.0-0.5%. Sixty two pressor and 17 non-pressor sites were stimulated. Most of the stimulations inhibited the PNA. The responses of SNA was variable, showing increases, decreases or no change. Inhibition of SNA during SAP increase was not secondary to baroreceptor activation as the inhibition persisted in carotid sinus/aortic denervated animals. Although various combinations of changes of SNA and PNA were observed, their temporal courses were similar in many instances. Attenuation of SNA and PNA was synchronized, suggesting that these changes are coupled in the stimulating sites. The findings suggest that some neurons in DM and RVLM act as a functional unit to modulate cardiorespiratory functions whereas others simply coexist in the same area independent from each other.

The high power operation of the heterojunction bipolar transistor (HBT) has been analyzed by experimentally determining the junction temperature and separating temperature effects from other high power effects. In addition, an HBT large signal model has been developed that is valid for the linear, saturation , and cutoff regions, with temperature effects included. This model has been implemented in a commercial harmonic balance simulator LIBRA from EEsof, making it particularly suitable for the design and simulation of HBT microwave power integrated circuits.

The response of 835 click-sensitive neurons in the inferior colliculus (IC) to ramp frequency modulated (FM) tones was studied in the anaesthetized rat. More than 70% of the cells were sensitive to the FM sound, and over 25% were "FM specialized". Systematic variations of the stimulus parameters showed that sweep velocity, sweep range, and intensity of the FM signal were the 3 basic determinants for the unit response. For an "FM specialized" cell, the response pattern to each of the parameters was either monotonic or bell-shaped. The population statistics of response patterns to the FM parameters, including the tuning factors, were generated. A stimulus domain was proposed to represent the "receptive space" of the FM cells.

There is only limited information of the neurotransmitters in central respiratory control. L-glutamic acid has been proposed as the primary neurotransmitter in the nucleus of the tractus solitarius (NTS) in cats. To test whether there is a respiratory effect of glutamic acid in the respiratory center or not, we microinjected L-glutamic acid (1 M, 0.1 microliter) via 1 microliter Hamilton microsyringe into the ventrolateral nucleus of NTS, namely dorsal respiratory group (DRG) over two-second intervals with continuous monitoring of phrenic nerve activity (PNA), frequency (f), end tidal CO2, blood pressure and heart rate. Glutamate induced various respiratory changes including: increase in PNA and f decrease in PNA and f [corrected] increase in PNA but decrease in f and decrease in PNA but increase in f. In addition to regular changes of PNA or f elicited by glutamate microinjection were found. Other patterns of irregular rhythmic changes such as absence of PNA, continuous phrenic nerve discharge and irregular phrenic nerve discharge with reflex apnea, apneusis and irregular respiration respectively were also observed. Glutamic acid appears to significantly modulate respiratory drive in DRG. We suggested that L-glutamic acid may be a neurotransmitter in the respiratory center and be involved in central respiratory control.

A systematic procedure is proposed to study the effect of temperature change to the power system load demand by using the typical load patterns of customer classes. The billing data of all service customers are retrieved to derive the daily load profile of the selected Taipower district. To verify the accuracy of the estimated load composition, the simulation results are compared to the actual load profile collected by the SCADA system. The sensitivity analysis of load demand with respect to the temperature change for each customer class is performed by statistic regression according to the actual customer power consumption and temperature data. The load contribution by each customer class is updated by the corresponding temperature sensitivity and integrated together to form the new load profile of a service district with temperature change. To investigate the temperature effect to the distribution system operation, one of the Taipower distribution feeders is selected for computer simulation. The power demand at each load bus of the distribution feeder is calculated by applying the temperature sensitivity and the three-phase load flow analysis is then executed to find the new feeder loading and power loss with the temperature change.

This purpose of this paper is to investigate the optimal switching problem of distribution systems by considering the customer load characteristics and the effect of temperature change on customer loading. The load survey is applied to derive the typical load patterns of residential, commercial, and industrial customer classes. The power consumption of sample test customers and weather information are used to solve the hourly temperature sensitivity of power consumption for each customer class. All the customers served by each distribution transformer are identified and their monthly energy consumption is retrieved from the customer information system in Taipower. The hourly loading of each service zone and its change due to temperature rise are obtained based on the customer load consumption and its temperature sensitivity. By performing the connectivity trace to find the feeder configuration and executing the three-phase load flow analysis, the hourly current loading of line switches, distribution feeders, and main transformers in substations is solved. The binary integer programming is then applied to determine the temperature adaptive optimal switching operation for noninterruptible load transfer among distribution feeders and main transformers.

The paper presents a simple analytical model for the design and implementation of a three-phase active power filter controller. Voltage decouplers and pole-zero cancellation are used in current regulators to simplify the current control plant to a first-order delay type. This simplification is made by considering the delay times caused by the lowpass filter of reference current calculation circuits, line inductors of an active power filter and the feedback circuit of a DC-link voltage. From the derived analytical model, the cutoff frequency of the lowpass filter and controller parameters can be appropriately determined to increase the harmonic current compensating capability of an active power filter and accelerate the dynamic response of the DC-link voltage. Analytical and experimental results indicate that the proposed active power filter can largely improve the total harmonic distortion of current and correct the power factor to unity with balanced and unbalanced loads.

In this paper, a model is constructed to predict the thermal conductivity of textile composite materials under steady state heat transfer conditions. First, the composite under consideration is geometrically characterized to identify relative volume fraction and spatial orientation of each yarn along its path. This is followed by applying finite element analysis (FEA) and virtual work to a “unit cell” of the textile composite. Hybrid hexahedra brick elements with fibers and matrix around each integration point are employed in the finite element formulation by means of micro-level homogenization. Thermal conductivity predictions using this approach are found to agree with experimental results for polymer and ceramic composites. The same approach can be used to solve other field problems including electrical conductivity, electrostatics, and moisture diffusion.

An attempt was made to explore the possibility of using the masticatory muscle reflexes as pain indices in human subjects. It was found that the digastric reflex, so readily evoked by electrodental stimulation in experimental animals, could not be consistently elicited in man. The reflex silent period of the masseteric muscles, on the other hand, may be used as a pain index for evaluating dental analgesia, provided that analgesic interference is anticipated at points along the reflex arc.

The power spectrum of electromyograms (EMG) has been demonstrated to vary with muscles having different muscle fiber type compositions. This study investigated the variations in EMG power spectrum patterns of the masticatory muscles with age and gender by comparison of the mean power frequency (MPF) of the anterior temporal and masseter muscles in children and adults. Surface EMG signals were sampled bilaterally from the muscles when the subjects were performing maximum voluntary isometric clenches at maximal intercuspal position. The results indicated that MPF values were age-dependent (p

Microelectrode recordings of neuronal activities in the cat were made in the vestibular main nuclei and the y group cells in response to stimulation of the saccule and IIIrd (oculomotor) nuclei. A relatively new anaesthetic (Ketalar, Parke Davis Co.) that apparently did not suppress transmissions through the sacculo-oculomotor pathways was used. A special accessory arm to replace one side of the standard stereotaxic frame was designed to permit surgical access to the inner ear. Orthodromic focal potentials indicating monosynaptic activation were recorded in the region of the lateral and inferior vestibular nuclei in response to ipsilateral stimulation of saccule. Antidromic field potentials in response to IIIrd nuclear stimulation were also recorded. Similar results were obtained from the y group cells. Unit recordings demonstrated that neurones in the rostral part of the lateral vestibular nucleus received monosynaptic excitation from the saccule before projecting to the IIIrd nuclei. However, studies on the y group cells indicated the existence of a separate and distinct pathway in the sacculo-oculomotor reflex. This pathway involves at least three synapses before reaching the motoneurones.

Distinctive oscillations in the diffraction line intensity were observed when a laser beam was directed at selected spots on single skeletal muscle fibres of frog and normally to the fibres. These intensity oscillations were interpreted as the diffraction from cylindrical myofibrils because they followed the first-order Bessel function. This interpretation allowed a direct determination of the myofibrillar diameter from the first intensity minimum of the zerothorder diffraction line. The hypothesis that the intensity oscillations were related to the myofibrillar diameter was substantiated by further experiments. At fixed sarcomere length the measured myofibrillar diameter increased when the fibre was immersed in hypotonic solution and decreased in hypertonic solution. In another experiment the diameter decreased and the sarcomere volume remained constant when the fibre was stretched passively. Furthermore, there was excellent agreement between the myofibrillar diameters measured by light diffractometry and electron microscopy.

The responses to slow constant velocity rotations in the clockwise (CW) and counterclockwise (CCW) directions about an axis tilted 10 degrees from the earth's vertical were studied in static tilt-sensitive neurons in the vestibular nuclei of decerebrate cats. Each unit responded to any 360 degrees unidirectional rotation with a position-dependent discharge maximum. The location of the maximum, obtained by rotation in one direction, differed from that obtained by an oppositely directed rotation (phase difference). In about 80% of the units such phase difference (up to 160 degrees in second-order neurons) in response to oppositely directed rotations was unaffected by different amplitudes of head displacement (5-25 degrees). Units were thus classified into two groups depending on the location of the CW discharge maximum relative to the CCW counterpart. The direction of rotation had no influence on the response gains of these units.

A method of decomposing finite periodic binary sequences into modulo-2-sum of several finite periodic binary sequences is presented. The method is extended to the linear feedback shift register realization of the given sequences which produces the minimum polynomials of the given sequences and the fractional polynomial representation of the sequences. The sequence decomposition problem is then handled algebraically. A necessary and sufficient condition for the decomposability of a sequence of finite period is obtained. A modulo-2-sum sequence decomposition procedure is given.

The addition of a simple X--Y sampling circuit to a closed circuit television system (CCTV) permits measurements of a narrow profile of the laser diffraction patterns from single frog muscle fibres at rest. Results confirm that maximum intensity occurs at 2.95-3.00 micron, but a positive linear relationship between the dispersions of sarcomeres and sarcomere lengths from 2.7--3.8 micron is obtained in four isolated single fibres.

1. 1. Membrane potentials were measured from rat epididymal epithelial cells in vitro at 35°C using micro-electrodes. The values obtained from the caput epididymis and the cauda epididymis were respectively −21.10 ± 0.26 mV (mean ± S.E. N = 470) and −30.53 ± 0.74 mV (mean ± S.E. N = 315). 2. 2. An increase in external potassium concentration depolarized the cells in both regions, a ten-fold increase in concentration causing a depolarization of 12mV in the caput and 22 mV in the cauda. 3. 3. Removal of sodium from the bathing solution caused a significant hyperpolarization in both regions as did treatment of the cells with amiloride (10 −4 M). 4. 4. Ouabain (10 −3 M) and 2,4-dinitrophenol (2.5 × 10 −4 M) depolarized the cells in both regions. 5. 5. Castration caused a decrease in the membrane potentials which could be reversed by replacing rats with testosterone propionate (2 mg/kg per day), indicating that membrane potentials in the cauda epididymis were dependent on the supply of circulating androgens.

A search in ancient Chinese medicinal literature and modern phytochemical reference indicates that the therapeutic value of Leonurus artemisia (I-mu ts'ao, the Chinese motherwort) might reside in a uterotonic principle present in leaves. Leonurine (4-guanidino-n-butyl syringate) was isolated from fresh and dry leaves of Leonurus artemisia. The uterotonic effect of leonurine was demonstrated in rat uterus in vitro. Results from this study suggest that functional phytochemistry based on ethnobotanical experience could lead to development of new and effective drugs from Chinese medicine.

The responses of neurons sensitive to static tilt in the vestibular nuclei were examined in decerebrate cats during slow and constant velocity rotations about an axis tilted at various angles from the vertical. During any 360 degrees rotation, each unit showed a modulation of their firing rate, with a position-dependent maximum and minimum. Changes in amplitude of head displacement from 5 degrees to 25 degrees decreased the response gain of the units without affecting the locations of the discharge maxima and minima.

Extracellular recordings were made from tilt-sensitive units in the vestibular nuclei and the cerebellar fastigial nucleus of cats during slow constant-velocity rotations in the CW and CCW directions about different off-vertical axes (5-25°). Each unit showed modulation of discharge rate, with position-dependent discharge maximum and minimum during any 360° unidirectional rotation. The location of the CW discharge maximum differed from that obtained during CCW rotation while the response gain was not affected by the direction of rotation. Characterized directional axes of neurons could be found along the roll and pitch axes. Units were classified into either phase-lead or phase-lag groups based on the location of CW discharge maximum relative to the CCW counterpart along the rotatory locus. About two-third of the units showed phase-lead responses, while the remaining units showed phase-lag responses. In such off-vertical axis rotations, increase in the amplitude of head tilt resulted in an increase in the discharge modulation but did not result in significant fluctuation in the positions of the CW or CCW discharge maxima. It is suggested that these directional signals on head position in space would provide a framework for spatial coding in otolithic motor commands.