Florida-California Cancer Health Equity Center (CaRE2) Community Scientist Research Advocacy Program.

The Community Scientist Program (CSP), a model connecting researchers with community members, is effective to inform and involve the general population in health-related clinical research. Given the existing cancer disparities among Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino/a populations, more models describing how cancer-related CSPs are designed, implemented, and evaluated are needed. The Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Equity Center is a tri-institutional, bicoastal center created to eliminate cancer health disparities among Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino/a populations living in California and in Florida. The CaRE2 Center created a Community Scientist Research Advocacy (CSRA) training program for community members to become cancer research advocates. The CSRA program is currently a 13-week program conducted 100% virtually with all materials provided in English and Spanish for participants to learn more about prostate, lung, and pancreas cancers, ongoing research at CaRE2, and ways to share cancer research throughout their communities. Participants attend didactic lectures on cancer research during weeks 1-5. In week 4, participants join CSRA self-selected groups based on cancer-related topics of interest. Each group presents their cancer-related advocacy project developed during weeks 5-12 at the final session. In this paper, we describe the CaRE2 Health Equity Center's CSRA program, share results, and discuss opportunities for improvement in future program evaluation as well as replication of this model in other communities.

SEN1, a positive effector of tRNA-splicing endonuclease in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The SEN1 gene, which is essential for growth in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, is required for endonucleolytic cleavage of introns from all 10 families of precursor tRNAs. A mutation in SEN1 conferring temperature-sensitive lethality also causes in vivo accumulation of pre-tRNAs and a deficiency of in vitro endonuclease activity. Biochemical evidence suggests that the gene product may be one of several components of a nuclear-localized splicing complex. We have cloned the SEN1 gene and characterized the SEN1 mRNA, the SEN1 gene product, the temperature-sensitive sen1-1 mutation, and three SEN1 null alleles. The SEN1 gene corresponds to a 6,336-bp open reading frame coding for a 2,112-amino-acid protein (molecular mass, 239 kDa). Using antisera directed against the C-terminal end of SEN1, we detect a protein corresponding to the predicted molecular weight of SEN1. The SEN1 protein contains a leucine zipper motif, consensus elements for nucleoside triphosphate binding, and a potential nuclear localization signal sequence. The carboxy-terminal 1,214 amino acids of the SEN1 protein are essential for growth, whereas the amino-terminal 898 amino acids are dispensable. A sequence of approximately 500 amino acids located in the essential region of SEN1 has significant similarity to the yeast UPF1 gene product, which is involved in mRNA turnover, and the mouse Mov-10 gene product, whose function is unknown. The mutation that creates the temperature-sensitive sen1-1 allele is located within this 500-amino-acid region, and it causes a substitution for an amino acid that is conserved in all three proteins.

Effect of dibutyryl cyclic AMP and oestradiol on incorporation of [3H]leucine into the proteins of luminal fluid of the rat uterus.

An injection of 12-5 nmol dibutyryl cyclic AMP (dbcAMP) into each uterine horn of ovariectomized rats maintained on progesterone alone, enhanced incorporation of [3H]leucine into uterine luminal proteins. A value of 11-73 X 10(3) c.p.m. [3H]leucine incorporated/rat was found after injection of dbcAMP compared with 3-69 X 10(3) c.p.m./rat after injection of saline. An injection of 1-0 microgram oestradiol, in contrast, gave 58-05 X 10(3) c.p.m./rat. Electrophoretic analysis showed that the radioactively labelled proteins found after an injection of dbcAMP or oestradiol were qualitatively similar to those detected on day 5 of pregnancy, the day of blastocyst implantation. The nucleotide thus apparently elicits a uterine response similar to that observed after an injection of oestradiol.

Toe to hand transfer in children. Part 2: Functional and psychological aspects.

Forty children with congenital (85%) or acquired hand disorders underwent transfer of one or two toes to one hand. The children were reviewed with their parents and assessed for functional and psychosocial performance. There was some evidence that the older the child at the time of transfer, the better the range of motion. The passive range of motion was on average 60 degrees more than the active range of motion despite subsequent procedures such as tenolysis. All transfers recovered protective sensibility and the majority recovered good levels of two point discrimination and light touch perception. Almost all transfers were naturally incorporated into the use pattern of the limb for some or most of the time. Most parents and patients reported a very positive effect of this surgery on the child's psychosocial functioning.

Developmental and behavioural outcome in obstetric brachial plexus palsy.

Forty-four children with obstetric brachial plexus palsy were assessed for both developmental attainment and behavioural problems. Analysis of the resulting data revealed developmental and behavioural problems previously not identified, particularly in those with more severe injuries. These effects were independent of the general condition of the child at birth, as indicated by their Apgar scores. Further studies are required to provide clarification of these children's difficulties, the mechanisms by which they occur and effective strategies to address them.

Gender and marital satisfaction: data from the National Survey of Families and Households.

In 1972, Bernard argued that marriage was good for men and bad for women. Subsequent research noted that wives, on average, reported lower marital satisfaction than husbands. Furthermore, when differences within couples existed on marital satisfaction, the wife was usually the less satisfied spouse; however, most previous studies of the gender/marital satisfaction relationship had not been based on nationally representative samples. A nationally representative sample from the 1988 Survey of Families and Households was used to assess the relationship of gender with marital satisfaction. Within-couple analyses indicated that wives were less satisfied with their marriages than husbands and that, when substantial within-couple differences occurred with respect to marital satisfaction, the wife was usually the less satisfied spouse. Results provide at least small support for feminist assertions about the relatively adverse nature of marriage for women in the United States.

Understanding mail survey response rates among male reserve component Gulf War era veterans.

In this study of current and former male Reserve and National Guard members from the State of Ohio, it was expected that veterans who were older, had more years of military service, who had participated in the Persian Gulf War, who were Euro-Americans, who were higher in rank, who had higher residential stability in Ohio, who belonged to the Air Force, who had higher formal education, and who belonged to the National Guard would have a greater investment in U.S. society as defined by 11 demographic variables. It was assumed that those with greater investment in society would more often have valid addresses and would be more likely to respond to a survey on military issues, thereby biasing sample outcomes in those directions. Results for male veterans were consistent with the hypothesis that investment in the society system would predict validity of addresses and response rates. In other words, results supported the idea that those veterans who might be expected to have a greater investment in U.S. society were more likely to be located and to respond (once located) to a survey concerning Desert Storm-era military service and its aftermath. Implications for future Desert Storm research are discussed.

Pyridostigmine bromide and the long-term subjective health status of a sample of female reserve component Gulf War veterans: a brief report.

The role of pyridostigmine bromide (PB) pills in explaining the long-term subjective health status of a sample of over 100 female Reserve Component Gulf War veterans was examined through regression analysis. Results fell just short of significance (p < .06) for the prediction of subjective health approximately six years after the war and were clearly not significant for the prediction of subjective health at previous times. Results parallel Golomb's 1999 RAND report, which found suggestive but not conclusive evidence for the possible adverse effects of Gulf War veterans' consumption of pyridostigmine bromide pills. Our data suggest that use of more than 10 pills may have been especially risky with respect to long-term subjective health.

Demographic engineering: the case of Romania.

PIP: This is an account of the immediate and long-term effects of an abortion law enacted in 1966 in Romania to reverse decreasing fertility. The author discusses the previously existing situation, in which 80 percent of pregnancies were terminated, and the consequences of the abrupt change to tight restrictions on both abortion and divorce. The decree's consequences in terms of illegal abortion, quality of medical care, maternal and infant mortality, and unwanted children are considered. It is noted that women have found ways to reduce fertility in spite of the state's actions to stimulate it.^ieng

Safe, reliable. Research.

PIP: China has a tradition of scientific inquiry and record of success in developing contraceptives. The Chinese government toward the end of the 1970s invested in biomedical research to support its family planning program with the help of the World Health Organization and the United Nations Population Fund. Several family planning research institutes were created. The research agenda is to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of methods already used in China, while developing entirely new methods for men and women to be potentially introduced on a broad scale in the family planning program. Since 1980, China has developed an outstanding infrastructure for research. Both large-scale epidemiological studies and smaller-scale clinical trials to compare Chinese methods with foreign equivalents have been conducted. Studying IUD safety and effectiveness is of particular importance since it is the most common method of family planning in the country. Research on this method prompted the government to stop producing stainless steel rings and instead scale up production of copper devices. Research on developing new methods is also discussed.^ieng

Implantation in ovariectomized mice treated with dibutyryl adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (dibutyryl cyclic AMP).

Experiments are described that demonstrate that uterine intraluminal injection of a 1-25 mM-solution of dibutyryl cyclic AMP (dcAMP) in phosphate buffered saline (PBS) induced implantation in ovariectomized pregnant mice. Pretreatment with progesterone was essential for this effect. When PBS was injected alone, it did not induce implantation in mice treated with progesterone. Bilateral adrenalectomy had no effect on the ability of dcAMP to substitute for oestradiol, showing that the effect was not due to dcAMP-induced oestrogen synthesis in the adrenal cortex. It is suggested that the dcAMP may act at the level of the uterus, the embryo, or both.

Cyclic AMP and the preparation of the mouse uterus for implantation.

Experiments are described that demonstrate the ability of dibutyryl cyclic AMP (dcAMP) to induced oestrogen-like changes in the uteri of ovariectomized mice treated with progesterone. A single intraluminal injection of 6-14 micrograms dcAMP in 0-02 ml phosphate-buffered saline promoted cell division in the uterine stroma and sensitized the endometrium so that a decidual reaction could be induced by a subsequent injection of arachis oil into the uterine lumen. Since dcAMP has already been shown to induce implantation of diapausing mouse blastocysts in the absence of oestrogen, it is suggested that cyclic AMP is involved in egg implantation in rodents.

The cultivation of animal cells at controlled dissolved oxygen partial pressure. Reprinted from Biotechnology and Bioengineering Vol. X, Issue 6, Pages 801-814 (1968).

A 3-liter culture vessel has been developed for the growth of animal cells in suspension at controlled pH and dissolved oxygen partial pressure (pO(2)). The culture technique allows metabolically produced CO(2) to be measured; provision can be made to control the dissolved CO(2) partial pressure. In cultures containing a low serum concentration, gas sparging to control pO(2) was found to cause cell damage. This could be prevented by increasing the serum concentration to 10%, or by adding 0.02% of the surface-active polymer Pluronic F68. The growth of mouse LS cells in batch culture without pO(2) control was found to be limited by the availability of oxygen. Maximum viable cell populations were obtained when dissolved pO(2) was controlled at values within the range 40-100 mm Hg.

The yeast SEN1 gene is required for the processing of diverse RNA classes.

A single base change in the helicase superfamily 1 domain of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae SEN1 gene results in a heat-sensitive mutation that alters the cellular abundance of many RNA species. We compared the relative amounts of RNAs between cells that are wild-type and mutant after temperature-shift. In the mutant several RNAs were found to either decrease or increase in abundance. The affected RNAs include tRNAs, rRNAs and small nuclear and nucleolar RNAs. Many of the affected RNAs have been positively identified and include end-matured precursor tRNAs and the small nuclear and nucleolar RNAs U5 and snR40 and snR45. Several small nucleolar RNAs co-immunoprecipitate with Sen1 but differentially associate with the wild-type and mutant protein. Its inactivation also impairs precursor rRNA maturation, resulting in increased accumulation of 35S and 6S precursor rRNAs and reduced levels of 20S, 23S and 27S rRNA processing intermediates. Thus, Sen1 is required for the biosynthesis of various functionally distinct classes of nuclear RNAs. We propose that Sen1 is an RNA helicase acting on a wide range of RNA classes. Its effects on the targeted RNAs in turn enable ribonuclease activity.

Antisuppressor mutation in Escherichia coli defective in biosynthesis of 5-methylaminomethyl-2-thiouridine.

Mutations in three Escherichia coli K-12 genes were isolated that reduce the efficiency of the lysine-inserting nonsense suppressor supL. These antisuppressor mutations asuD, asuE, and asuF map at 61.9, 25.3, and 76.3 min, respectively, on the E. coli chromosome. Biochemical and genetic analysis of the mutant strains revealed the reason for the antisuppressor phenotype for two of these genes. The activity of lysyl-tRNA synthetase was reduced in strains with asuD mutations. The modification of 5-methylaminomethyl-2-thiouridine, the wobble base of tRNALys, was impaired in asuE mutant strains, presumably at the 2-thiolation step.

The reduction of the number of animals used in the biological assay of insulin.

The biological control of insulin is vital as it is administered daily to a large proportion of the population during the major part of their lives. The development of the biological assay of insulin will be described with the progressive evolution of methods eventually to dispense with the need for animals. From the quantal Mouse Convulsion Method using around 600 mice per sample to the quantitative Mouse Blood Glucose method using an average of 120 mice per sample in which the fall in the blood glucose levels is used to estimate the potency of insulin by its hypoglycaemic effect. This was followed by the development of the in vitro Radioreceptor Method which is a procedure based on competition between the binding of insulin and [125I]-insulin to cells of the cultured human IM-9 cell line. The production of highly purified insulin by the Pharmaceutical Industry has made possible the recent introduction of new High Performance Liquid Chromatography technology.