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Notes: Protein modification by ADP-ribose polymers is a common regulatory mechanism in eukaryotic cells and is involved in several aspects of brain physiology and physiopathology, including neurotransmission, memory formation, neurotoxicity, ageing and age-associated diseases. Here we show age-related misregulation of poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis in rat cerebellum as revealed by: (i) reduced poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) activation in response to enzymatic DNA cleavage, (ii) altered protein poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation profiles in isolated nuclei, and (iii) cell type-specific loss of poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation capacity in granule cell layer and Purkinje cells in vivo. In particular, although PARP-1 could be detected in virtually all granule cells, only a fraction of them appeared to be actively engaged in poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis and this fraction was reduced in old rat cerebellum. NAD+, quantified in tissue homogenates, was essentially the same in the cerebellum of young and old rats suggesting that in vivo factors other than PARP-1 content and/or NAD+ levels may be responsible for the age-associated lowering of poly(ADP-ribose) synthesis. Moreover, PARP-1 expression was substantially down-regulated in Purkinje cells of senescent rats.

Notes: Possible mechanism(s) of resistance to auxinic herbicides in wild mustard (Sinapis arvensis L.) were investigated by characterizing responses of susceptible and resistant biotypes to 2,4-D, di-camba or picloram. No differences between bio-types were observed in absorption, translocation, or metabolism of foliar-applied radiolabelled herbicides. In contrast, the levels of ethylene production varied between biotypes. The susceptible biotype produced twofold and sixfold more ethylene than the resistant biotype within 4 h and 44 h of herbicide application, respectively. These results suggest that the mechanism of resistance in wild mustard is not due to differences in absorption, translocation, or metabolism. Ethylene production studies imply that resistance to auxinic herbicides may be attributed to altered target site(s) of action. Bases physiologiques de la résistance aux herbicides auxiniques d'un biotype de moutarde des champs (Sinapis arvensis L.)Les mécanismes possibles de la résistance aux herbicides auxiniques chez la moutarde des champs (Sinapis arvensis L.) ont été recherchés en caractérisant les réponses de biotypes résis-tants et sensibles au 2,4-D, au dicamba et au pi-clorame. Aprés application des herbicides radioactifs sur le feuillage, aucune différence d'absorption, de migration ou de métabolisme n'a été observée. Par contre, la production d'éthylene différait entre les biotypes. Le biotype sensible produisait 2 et 6 fois plus d'éthylène que le biotype sensible, respectivement 4 et 44 heures après l'application d'herbicide. Ces résultats sug-gèrent que la résistance aux herbicides auxiniques chez la moutarde des champs n'est pas due à des différences d'absorption, de migration ou de métabolisme mais pourrait provenir d'une altération du site d'action.Physiologische Untersuchung der Resistenz eines Acker-Senf-(Sinapis arvensis-) Biotyps gegenüber WuchsstoffherbizidenDer mögliche Mechanismus der Resistenz gegenüber Wuchsstoffherbiziden beim Acker-Senf (Sinapis arvensis L.) wurde unhand der Reaktion von empfindlichen und resistenten Biotypen gegenüber 2,4-D, Dicamba oder Picloram untersucht. Hinsichtlich Absorption, Translokation oder Metabolismus der auf die Blätter applizierten, radioaktiv markierten Her-bizide wurden keine Unterschiede beobachtet. Die Ethylenbildung variierte jedoch zwischen den Biotypen. Der empfindliche produzierte in-nerhalb 4 oder 44 Stunden nach der Herbizid-applikation 2-bzw. 6mal mehr Ethylen als der resistente. Aus den Ergebnissen läßt sich schließen, daß beim Acker-Senf der Resisten-zmechanismus nicht in der Absorption, der Translokation oder dem Metabolismus liegt, sondern die Ethylenbildung daran beteiligt ist, wo die Wirkorte fur die Wuchsstoffherbizide liegen.

Notes: Abstract: The loss of 8Li recoil nuclei in 7Li(d,p)8Li has been measured using different backings and 7LiF target thicknesses as well as different deuteron energies. The results confirm essentially recent TRIM calculations. The losses are large (about 13%) for the combination of thin targets and heavy backings at E d=0.80 MeV and increase with decreasing deuteron energy. The implications on the cross sections for 7Li(d,p)8Li and 7Be(p,γ)8B are discussed.

Notes: Abstract. For improved measurements of the key astrophysical reaction 12C(α,γ)16O in inverted kinematics, a recoil separator ERNA is being developed at the 4 MV Dynamitron tandem accelerator in Bochum to detect directly the 16O recoils with about 50% efficiency. Calculations of the ion beam optics including all filtering and focusing elements of ERNA are presented. Since the 12C projectiles and the 16O recoils have essentially the same momentum, and since the 12C ion beam emerging from the accelerator passes through a momentum filter (analysing magnet), the 12C ion beam must be as free as possible from 16O contamination for ERNA to succeed. In the present work, the 16O contamination was reduced from a level of 1 × 10−11 to a level below 2 × 10−29 by the installation of Wien filters both before and after the analysing magnet. The measurement of these and other beam specifications involved other parts of the final ERNA layout – sequentially a Wien filter, a 60˚ dipole magnet, another Wien filter, and a ΔE-E telescope. The setup led to a measured suppression factor of 5 × 10−18 for the 12C ion beam. The experiments also indicate that an almost free choice of the charge state for the 16O recoils is possible in the separator.

Notes: Abstract It is shown that the Partially Overlapping Molecular Level Model (POMLM) accounts for the experimental results of the dissipative28Si +48Ti collision around 210 MeV incident energy. The general trend of the properties of the fluctuations as well as the average angular distributions are reproduced by the same set of main parameters. A general consistency is also found between the present data and the data obtained in previous work on the same colliding system performed at lower incident energy (around 123 MeV).

Notes: Abstract γ-rays are measured in coincidence with the dissipative complex fragments from the35Cl +64Ni reaction at 7.7 A MeV. Theoretical γ-ray coincidence spectra are determined through a fitting procedure using the contribution of the excited fragment statistical γ-decay calculated by means of the CASCADE code. Whereas the expected statistical spectra fit very well the data in the energy regionE ν=2 to 8 MeV, above this energy another emission mechanism in addition to the statistical decay has to be considered in order to reproduce the experimental spectra. Simulations based on the Vlasov equation suggest that this emission could come from the decay of dipole strength excited in the intermediate dinuclear system.

Notes: Summary It is well-known that periodic solutions of semilinear wave equations can be obtained as critical points of related functionals. In the situation that we studied, there is usually an obvious solution obtained as a solution of linear problem. We formulate a dual variational problem in such a way that the obvious solution is a local minimum. We then find additional non-obvious solutions via a numerical mountain pass algorithm, based on the theorems of Ambrosetti, Rabinowitz and Ekeland. Numerical results are presented.

Notes: Abstract The pulmonary inflammatory response to NO2 exposure was measured by evaluating a series of biochemical and cellular parameters in rat bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Animals were exposed to 9 mg/m3 (5 ppm) or 18 mg/m3 (10 ppm) of the gas for 24 h or 7 days. After bronchoalveolar lavage collection, a differential count of polymorphonuclear leukocytes, macrophages, and lymphocytes was done. A significant increase in polymorphonuclear leukocytes was found after 24 h of exposure, and after 7 days the number of macrophages increased significantly. After 7 days of exposure to 9 mg/m3 of NO2 (a dose that under our conditions did not induce migration of cells in the bronchoalveolar spaces) the ex vivo phorbol myristate acetate-induced superoxide anion production by resident cells was inhibited. After 24 h and 7 days of exposure to 18 mg/m3 of NO2, phorbol myristate acetate-induced superoxide anion production was lower than in the control group. The migration of polymorphonuclear leukocytes in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was not associated with any real increase in elastase. However, there was a dose- and time-dependent increase in α1-proteinase inhibitor in response to both 9 and 18 mg/m3 of NO2. Total glutathione was significantly increased in blood by 24 h treatment with 9 or 18 mg/m3 of NO2, whereas blood oxidized glutathione was not affected. In lung tissue we observed only a significant increase of oxidized glutathione after 24 h of exposure to 9 and 18 mg/m3 of NO2. These data suggest that many biochemical and cellular parameters are altered after acute or subacute exposure to relatively high doses of NO2, especially in the first 24 h. The increase of α1-proteinase inhibitor and blood glutathione can be considered a prompt protective response to the toxic injury.

Notes: Abstract. For nearly 50 years, the fingernail clam (Musculium transversum) was believed to be virtually eliminated from the Illinois River. In 1991, workers began finding substantial populations of M. transversum in the Illinois River including several beds in and around the highly polluted Chicago Sanitary District. In order to determine if populations of M. transversum from polluted sites exhibited any genetic response to the high levels of toxins and to examine the genetic structure of several populations of M. transversum for any changes due to the population crash, starch-gel electrophoresis was performed on M. transversum from three Illinois River localities and four Mississippi River basin locations. The sampled populations produced an inbreeding coefficient (FIS) of 0.929, indicating that the populations were highly inbred. The results of a suspected founder effect due to a bottleneck was suggested by an FST= 0.442. The isozyme Glucose-6-phosphate isomerase-2 (Gpi-2) produced allelic frequency patterns that were consistent with expected patterns of a pollution-tolerant allele. Polluted sites exhibited elevated frequencies of Gpi-2 100 whereas nonpolluted sites exhibited elevated frequencies of Gpi-2 74 . This frequency pattern suggested that natural selection was occurring in populations under severe toxic pressures, leading to an increase in the frequency of the allele Gpi-2 100 . Therefore, Gpi-2 100 is a possible pollution-tolerant mutation in M. transversum.

Notes: Summary This study was designed to evaluate serum HCV-RNA, liver histology, and RIBA-II pattern in asymptomatic anti-HCV positive subjects with persistently normal or slightly (i.e. ≤1.5 times the upper limit of the normal range) elevated serum ALT levels. To this purpose, 22 asymptomatic anti-HCV positive subjects (11 men and 11 women, median age 40, range 21–70 years) underwent liver biopsy and determination of serum HCV-RNA. Positivity for anti-HCV was determined by ELISA-2 and by RIBA-II. Serum HCV-RNA was determined by PCR. Our data show that: 1) 9/22 symptom-free, anti-HCV positive subjects had histological features of chronic liver disease associated with ongoing HCV infection; 2) four subjects had no histological signs of chronic hepatitis and normal serum ALT levels despite positivity for serum HCV-RNA; 3) serum ALT levels did not discriminate HCV-RNA positive subjects with from those without chronic hepatitis; 4) in anti-HCV positive subjects with normal serum ALT levels, a positive RIBA-II pattern was not always predictive of HCV viraemia or chronic hepatitis while an indeterminate RIBA-II pattern was frequently associated with nonspecific liver changes or normal histology. In conclusion, based on these findings, “true” healthy carriers of HCV (i.e. subjects with normal serum ALT levels and no histological features of chronic hepatitis despite HCV viraemia) may exist.