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Gay journalists have experienced much of the same discrimination that other minorities have in their work experiences but some changes are becoming apparent. The formation of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association in 1990 has been a force in moving this social issue forward. The gay communities' concern over many issues including discrimination and AIDS has acted as a stimulus to many journalists to come out. There is still resistance to gays in mainstream reporting, but toleration is growing., Closet doors are swinging open in newsrooms everywhere. Gay and lesbian journalists say they've kept quiet long enough. To reporter Lily Eng, being Asian American and a woman were obstacles [...]

The efforts of Reverend Patrick Goodwin to induce the Alameda Times-Star to eliminate an unsigned opinion column from its editorial page backfired. A call from the pulpit by Goodwin to boycott the paper for Lent caused the cancellation of 35 subscriptions, but resulted in 100 new subscriptions. A reader poll indicates that the column is popular. The editor, Tom Tuttle, vows to continue the column.

Journalists are often denied credit by banks and other money-lending institutions. Because journalists' work is sometimes unsteady and generally not lucrative, they are considered poor credit risks. This is especially true of freelance journalists whose income is especially undependable. The case of San Francisco Examiner columnist Rob Morse, to whom Bank of America declined to give a credit card, is an example.

During development of iron chelators for the treatment of iron overload in Cooley's anemia, the opportunity arose to obtain some acute and subacute toxicity data on hydroxybenzyl-ethylenediamine (HBED) derivatives, hydroxyphenyl-ethylenediamine (HPED) congeners, and ethylenediamine-phenylacetic acid (EDHPA) compounds. Such data permitted correlations among structure, toxicity, and efficacy parameters useful for further syntheses. Young, adult male mice were used to perform acute intraperitoneal (IP) or oral (PO) LD50 studies, and hypertransfused groups were treated IP or PO with vehicle, Desferal, or test chelators once daily for 7 days. Changes in behavior, weights of spleen, liver, and feces, and urine volume and gross pathology were monitored. In the HBED series, esterification of acetic acid groups with or without acetylation of phenolic hydroxyl groups increased LD50 values, and the major behavioral change was decreased exploratory activity. Dimethylenephosphonate derivatives of HBED were more toxic. Single treatment with compounds in the EDHPA and HPED series yielded IP LD50 values between 175 and 325 mg/kg. After subacute treatment, active compounds were found in each series, and efficacy was related to toxicity. Chelation effectiveness was usually greater by the IP route than orally. The major toxic signs were reduction in organ weights and excreta output. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

It was of interest, in the absence of such data, to investigate the effects of x-irradiation on individual serum proteins, including immunoglobulin G. Doses of 600 and 800 rads to the abdominal areas of immature beagles were sufficient to evoke emesis and hemorrhages of lymph nodes and perilobular areas of the liver. Seven days after irradiation of 8–12 male dogs/dose, serum specimens were analyzed by cellulose acetate electrophoresis and radial immunodiffusion. Radiation reduced serum protein and albumin by 12%, β2 by 27%, γ-globulin by 19%, and IgG by 35%, while increasing α2 by 50%. These results are in conformity with the radiation damage to lymph nodes (IgG decrease) and liver (plasma protein fall) and initiation of the inflammatory process (α2 rise). [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The immunological enhancing activity of staphage lysate on the primary immune response of mice as reflected by specific heteroantibody production to a single antigenic stimulus and on immunoglobulin synthesis was determined. Staphage lysate was administered at different periods in relation to time of sheep erythrocyte injection so that both the inductive and the productive phase of the immune response could be evaluated. Treatment with staphage lysate induced pronounced enhancement of the hemagglutinin response by day 14 regardless of the dose or the time of its administration. Significantly higher antibody levels in the test groups were observed when compared with the control animals, peak antibody titers being 21 days following antigenic challenge. Furthermore, staphage lysate administered without an accompanying antigen evoked a heightened serum immunoglobulin level in mice for a period of more than 14 days after injection. IgG1, IgG2a and IgG2b were significantly elevated as a direct result of this treatment. This increased output of immunoglobulin synthesis and heightened hemagglutinin titers demonstrate that staphage lysate is not only an immunomodulator of cell-mediated immunity, as previously reported, but also an effective immunoadjuvant of the humoral antibody response capability in the host.