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This study was designed to determine whether or not a number of diverse rhythmic variables in the rat could be synchronized to meal timing. This was tested by restricting the availability of food; once during each 24-hour period an unrestricted quantity of food was made available for a 4-hour period to four different groups at different phases of the light-dark cycle, and the rhythms of the variables studied in the different groups were compared. Liver glycogen and serum glucose did synchronize to or were strongly influenced by feeding schedules; corticosterone and the several enzymes measured seemed to reflect an interaction of both the restricted feeding schedule and the light-dark cycle. The mitotic index in the corneal epithelium in all groups remained remarkably synchronized to the light-dark cycle and was altered only minimally by restricted meal timing. All groups on restricted feeding schedules gained less weight than the group fed ad libitum and maintained on a light-dark cycle. These studies caution against assuming that all body functions react in the same manner to different synchronizers; and they emphasize that one must not generalize about the synchronizing effect of meal-timing or even the light-dark cycle.

This study investigates, on a circadian basis, the variation in blood serotonin for a group of 64 healthy persons (volunteers of a Bundeswehr-Ausbildungskompanie); a pronounced circadian rhythm of 5-HT has been found. The variation in daily absolute levels is influenced by novelty stress; by this we refer to the stress resulting from initial contact between the person sampling blood and the patient. Obviously this diminishes as blood is repeatedly withdrawn from the same individual. Exposure to this situation results in an overall decrease in serotonin levels and a modification of the circadian pattern.

The alteration of extinctions of both FITC isomers by coupling to bovine serum albumin, human, and rabbit-gamma-globulin were studied. The extinction coefficients of these FTC conjugates were established. The emission characteristics of the FITC isomers and their conjugates were investigated under conditions normaly used in fluorescence microscopy. FITC I was found as the most suitable marker for human- and rabbit-gamma-globulin. In contrast the fluorescence of FTC II-BSA conjugates is stronger than that of the corresponding FTC I-BSA conjugate.

The efficiency of the membrane methods of Meijer (1972) and Lojda (1973) in histochemical lysosome tracing was studied and compared with the results of a preparation technique developed by us, employing fresh-frozen celloidin-coated sections; in addition, these methods were compared with results obtained with conventional formalin-sucrose-fixed livers. The lysosomes were traced by reactions for ACPase, beta-glucuronidase, arylesterase and acid-beta-galactosidase activity in rat livers systematically harvested at different time points of occurence of their maximal and minimal activities during the 24-h period, thus indicating a heterogeneity of lysosomes. 3. Optimal results with respect to the morphological appearance of lysosomes were obtained in fresh-frozen celloidin coated sections. This preparation method also caused no enzyme inhibition or loss, thus delivering comparatively the strongest reactions in livers and in enzyme models. 4. Day-time-dependent extralysosomal enzyme activities regularly occur in hepatocytes. Extralysosomal localizations however, are not a consequence of technically induced enzyme diffusion; they are best visualized in celloidin-coated sections; the membrane method produces less satisfactory results, and formalin-sucrose-fixed livers were least satisfactory.

To 4 male and 2 female subjects hexobarbital was applied orally at different times of the day: 2, 10, 18 h. Serum concentrations of hexobarbital were determined by HPLC procedure and the resulting pharmacokinetic parameters in a rotating iterative program. Application at 18 h resulted in a shorter invasion time, a higher maximum concentration and a delayed elimination; in addition, the AUC was elevated in relation to application at 2 or 10 h. In the 2 female subjects a different pattern was observed. The results lead to the assumption that application of hexobarbital is more effective in the evening than in the morning.

1. The circadian patterns of clinically relevant parameters were studied in 109 young, healthy soldiers. 2. Erythrocytes, hematocrit, creatinine and cortisol exhibited very stable rhythmic patterns which were found by continuous examinations of the same persons as well as in examinations of different persons at different times. 3. The rhythmic patterns of leukocytes, blood glucose and body temperature were strongly influenced by stress caused by the first confrontation with an unknown hospital-like situation or by pain caused by blood sampling.

The influence of the mode of polymerization of GMA on the enzyme activities of differently fixed rat livers was studied. It was found that with increasing time of UV-polymerization several enzyme activities were inhibited whereas chemical polymerization was comparatively less harmful. The histochemical reactivity of substrates such as glycogen was not impaired by the mode of polymerization, which is in contrast to the increased basophilia of DNA and RNA after UV-polymerization.