A Cu tolerant population of the earthworm Dendrodrilus rubidus (Savigny, 1862) at Coniston Copper Mines, Cumbria, UK.

Dendrodrilus rubidus were sampled from a mine spoil soil at Coniston Copper Mine, an abandoned Cu mine in Cumbria, UK and a Cu-free control site. Earthworms were maintained for 14d in both Kettering loam and a Moorland soil amended with Cu nitrate. Mortality, condition index, weight change and tissue concentration were determined. In both soils D. rubidus native to the mine site were able to tolerate significantly higher soil Cu concentrations (MWRT, p

Effect of time and mode of depuration on tissue copper concentrations of the earthworms Eisenia andrei, Lumbricus rubellus and Lumbricus terrestris.

Eisenia andrei, Lumbricus rubellus and Lumbricus terrestris were exposed to 250, 250 and 350mgkg(-1) Cu respectively in Cu(NO(3))(2(aq)) amended soil for 28 d. Earthworms were then depurated for 24 to 72h, digested and analysed for Cu and Ti or, subsequent to depuration were dissected to remove any remaining soil particles from the alimentary canal and then digested and analysed. This latter treatment proved impossible for E. andrei due to its small size. Regardless of depuration time, soil particles were retained in the alimentary canal of L. rubellus and L. terrestris. Tissue concentration determinations indicate that E. andrei should be depurated for 24h, L. rubellus for 48h and L. terrestris should be dissected. Ti was bioaccumulated and therefore could not be used as an inert tracer to determine mass of retained soil. Calculations indicate that after 28 d earthworms were still absorbing Cu from soil.

Trends in surgical treatment of breast cancer at an urban teaching hospital: a six-year review.

The treatment of breast cancer at an urban teaching hospital from 1990 to 1995 was analyzed according to age, stage, race, and funding status. Two hundred thirty-eight patients (mean age, 55 years) with newly diagnosed breast cancers were retrospectively identified and reviewed. A larger proportion of all funded patients (F; n = 131) presented with early-stage cancers (ductal carcinoma in situ, stage I) compared to nonfunded (NF, n = 107) (41 vs 25%; P = 0.03). Additionally, there was an increasing rate of early cancers occurring in F over the study interval (40% in 1990 to 69% in 1995), but there was no such increase in NF. There was an increasing trend in the overall use of breast conservation therapy (BCT) over this interval (11.6% of all cancers in 1990, 50.8% in 1994 and 1995). Although F were overall more likely to undergo BCT than NF (40% vs 29%, P = 0.04), there was no statistical difference in the use of BCT for nonadvanced (ductal carcinoma in situ, stage I and II) cancers (44% of F, 46% of NF). Age did not affect the overall use of BCT (36% of patients 55 or older, 35% younger than 55). Mean age was significantly greater in F than in NF (60 vs 49, P < 0.000001), but racial composition did not differ between these two groups. In conclusion, funded status of our patients corresponded with earlier diagnosis, perhaps due to better access to screening. Additionally, neither funding status nor age affected the use of BCT in our patients with nonadvanced cancers. Our rate of BCT far exceeds that seen nationally, perhaps reflecting a trend at academic institutions.

A descriptive experience of total thyroidectomy as the initial operation for differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid.

Sixty-five patients with differentiated carcinoma of the thyroid gland were registered with the tumor registry of Camp Lejeune Naval Hospital. There were no death attributed to thyroid carcinoma. A vigorous follow-up program was followed, and 11 recurrences were diagnosed and treated. Recurrences were considered treatment failures. The recurrence rate for total thyroidectomy patients was much lower than for any other operation. Many investigators, including those of two current surgery textbooks, have acknowledged that total thyroidectomy is superior for control of the disease but have been reluctant to recommend it because the complications are presumed to be too numerous. The results of this analysis rebut that presumption. The operating surgeons are not thyroid experts, yet their results were excellent. It is reasonable to assume that a trained general surgeon is capable of performing a total thyroidectomy without an unacceptable high incidence of postoperative complications.

Ethylene oxide--back to basics.

Work in the field of Ethylene Oxide (E.O.) sterilisation at the Castle Company began in the 1950s. During that time, Castle has been actively involved in the changing technology associated with the use of E.O. as a sterilising agent in industry and health care facilities. Ethylene oxide is a valuable and indispensable part of modern medicine and today we will discuss common sense methods and procedures for its safe use.

Transcription of a yeast ribosomal RNA minigene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

A transcription system using intact yeast has been developed for investigating which sequences are implicated in the initiation of transcription of yeast rRNA genes. The system employs an rRNA minigene that consists of the initiation and termination sites for rRNA biosynthesis separated by approx. 700 base pairs of vector DNA in the Escherichia coli-yeast shuttle vector, pJDB207. Two recombinants containing this minigene were constructed; one retained all of the nontranscribed spacer DNA upstream from the initiation site, the other retained 208 base pairs of this DNA. Transcripts of this structurally unique minigene in RNA from yeast transformed with these recombinants were readily detected by nuclease S1 mapping. These transcripts were initiated at the site used by the host rRNA genes, were approx. 3-fold more abundant in the recombinant retaining all of the nontranscribed spacer and were less abundant when the yeast was not growing.

Controversies and hazards in the treatment of pit viper bites.

This paper discusses the pathology produced by pit viper venom and the pharmacologically active substances released by the action of venom on human tissue. The risks of many of the popular methods of treatment such as tourniquets, cryotherapy, incisions, excisions, and cortisone are also discussed. A prospective treatment plan was devised which was limited to measures of proven benefit, and 28 patients were treated with no mortality or tissue necrosis.

Brown recluse spider bites: five cases with a review of the literature.

Brown recluse spider bites can cause ulcerations of the skin, intravascular hemolysis and death. Five clinical cases are presented with a summary of known pathological processes, clinical findings, and recommended methods of treatment. The possibility of systemic manifestation make the physician's knowledge of loxoscelism, early diagnosis and adequate treatment necessary.

Spontaneous rupture of the spleen with EMATOMA.

A case of spontaneous rupture of the spleen with hematoma is presented. The spleen presumably with ruptured while the patient was in the hospital, during a severe coughing episode secondary to viral pneumonia. The time interval between splenic rupture and operation was 31 days. Along with pertinent diagnostic acids, difficulty in making the diagnosis is stressed. Knowledge that this condition exists is a major factor in making the diagnosis.