Anabolic steroid: effects on strength development.

Twelve matched pairs of subjects, fed a high protein diet, were trained with weights for 6 weeks. In the final 3 weeks twelve subjects received 5 milligrams of methandrostenolone (Dianabol) twice daily. Maximum weight lifting, thickness of skin folds, oxygen uptake, blood chemistry profile, and concentration of blood lipids were determined. Also used were cable tensiometry and anthropometric measurements. The strength of treated subjects increased significantly; their mean weight gain was 2.48 kilograms with no significant change in skin fold thickness. Several anthropometric measurements increased significantly, as did oxygen uptake ability and nitrogen retention by the blood.

Measuring problems in estimating the exposure to passive smoking using the excretion of cotinine.

Quality control studies on cotinine measurements following low level environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure are rare. The exposure to ETS was controlled and systematically changed in a series of experiments in a climatic chamber. Healthy nonsmoking volunteers were exposed to ETS simultaneously. The duration and level of exposure varied using high (8, 17 and 25 ppm CO), and low (2 and 5 ppm CO) exposure levels. The variation between radioimmunoassay (RIA) and gas chromatography (GC) was high as was the variation between the results of RIA laboratories. There was also a high within-laboratory-variation. A 1:10 dilution seems to be preferable over a 1:3 dilution. Freezing the urine samples immediately after collection led to the detection of higher cotinine values than freezing the samples 24 h after collection. Highly reliable data for cotinine were obtained when the urine samples were kept frozen immediately after collection and fractionated sampling over 48-72 h was used. Our data show that estimating low-level ETS exposure by measuring urinary cotinine is highly susceptible to uncontrolled variation and errors. Sufficiently reliable estimates of low-level ETS exposure can be made only when fractionated sampling over 48-72 h is used and when the urine samples are kept frozen just after collection.

The effects of cosmic particle radiation on pocket mice aboard Apollo XVII: appendix II. Evaluation of oral, dental, and skeletal tissues.

A sparse neutrophilic leukocytic infiltrate was found in the gingival sulcus, both in the flight and the control animals, while no changes were observed in the palate. Mitoses in gingival and palatal tissues were in approximately equal numbers in all animal groups. The tongues of flight mice and controls contained areas characterized by vascular dilatation, separation of muscle bundles, and regressive and degenerative changes in muscle fibers. Mucous glands in the posterior part of the tongue of flight and control animals exhibited acinar distension. Also examined were the vertebral column; femur, knee joint, tibia and fibula of the right hindlimb; and the tracheal cartilages. No evidence of cosmic ray particle effects was found in any of these tissues.

Passive smoking under controlled conditions.

Ten healthy subjects were exposed to passive smoking at a high level corresponding to 25-30 ppm CO in the ambient air for 3 h. All subjects were exposed at the same time in a climatic chamber especially designed for exposure experiments. Despite an identical exposure rate considerable interindividual variability of subsequent nicotine and cotinine levels in saliva, plasma and 24-h urine were observed. This variability was more prominent in nicotine than in cotinine levels. The kinetic pattern as reflected by saliva levels for up to 24 h was consistent with previous data found in active smokers. Nicotine levels found in saliva were markedly influenced by repeated sampling. This was not the case for cotinine levels. With regard to laboratory techniques RIA seems to be more sensitive than gas chromatography (GC). The results of this study suggest that measuring cotinine levels in 24-h urine with RIA is presently the most sensitive and reliable criterion for estimating exposure to passive smoking and for validating questionnaires or interviews about short-term exposure to passive smoking.

Effect of anabolic steroid treatment on endurance.

The effect of anabolic steriod treatment on maximum oxygen intake, mile run time, skin fold thickness, body weight, and elbow flexion and knee extension strength was studied. Twenty-one male college students, ages 19-33, engaged in an interval running program six days a week over a three week period. Each subject supplemented their diets with one half gram/kilogram of body weight of 90% protein powder. A double blind design was used for the administration of the steriod treatment with each of the subjects in the treatment group receiving six mg of stanozolol per day. Pre and post treatment tests were administered for each of the dependent variables. There was improvement at the .05 level in the oxygen uptake of both treatment and control groups. For the other dependent variables, the differences between pre-treatment and post-treatment values were not statistically significant. Differences between the steroid and the control groups were not statistically significant for any of the dependent variables. When young male adults are engaged in an endurance training program, steroid treatment does not appear to have any effect on the development of endurance or strength, or on the percent of body fat,