Emergency first responder management of combat injuries to the torso in the military, remote and austere settings.

Traumatic injuries to the torso account for almost a quarter of all injuries seen in combat and are typically secondary to blast or gunshot wounds. Injuries due to road traffic collisions or violence are also relatively common during humanitarian and disaster relief efforts. There may also be multiple injured patients in these settings, and surgical care may be limited by a lack of facilities and resources in such a non-permissive environment. The first responder in these scenarios should be prepared to manage patients with severe injuries to the torso. We aim to describe the management of these injuries in the military and austere environment, within the scope of practice of a level 5 registered prehospital practitioner.

Temporal variation of microfibril angle in Eucalyptus nitens grown in different irrigation regimes.

In 1990, a 2-ha plantation of Eucalyptus nitens (Deane and Maiden) Maiden was established in southeastern Tasmania and subjected to different irrigation regimes. Point dendrometers were installed in March 1995 to monitor radial stem movement every 15 min over several growing seasons. In this study, data from two growing seasons (1996-1998) were considered. From these measurements, daily increments of stem radius were determined. At the end of the second growing season, we extracted 12-mm cores and measured microfibril angles (MFA) of the wood at high resolution. Microfibril angles were rescaled on a time axis and mapped to daily and distance-based elements. Among treatments, irrigated trees in particular formed higher MFA early in the growing season (September-November) and lower MFA later in the growing season. Trees subjected to cyclic droughts showed clear relationships between MFA and soil water deficits, with MFA increasing in response to water stress release. Increases in MFA were preceded by accelerations in daily increment of stem radius. Among treatments, trees subjected to severe drought had the smallest MFA and generally low fluctuations in MFA. Irrigated trees were susceptible to changes in climate, whereas growth of the trees in the other treatments was limited by water availability. Use of path-analysis showed that temperature had an effect on stem radius increment but not on MFA; wind speed was the only factor that influenced MFA directly. Microfibril angle was correlated with stem shrinking and expansion phases; growth period length and growth rates were positively related to MFA.

Chromosomal mapping of five mouse G protein gamma subunits.

Heterotrimeric G proteins, composed of alpha, beta, and gamma subunits, transduce signals from transmembrane receptors to a wide range of intracellular effectors. The G protein gamma subunits, which play an indispensible role in this communication, constitute a large and diverse multigene family. Using an interspecific backcross panel, we have determined the mouse chromosomal locations of five gamma subunit genes: gamma2, gamma8, gamma10, gamma12, and gammaCone. Combined with previous mapping studies, these data indicate that, with the possible exception of gamma1 and gamma11, the G protein gamma subunit genes are well dispersed within the mouse and human genomes.

Structure and mapping of the G protein gamma3 subunit gene and a divergently transcribed novel gene, gng3lg.

The mammalian nervous system is rich in signaling mediated by heterotrimeric (alphabetagamma) G proteins. As an initial step to define the roles that particular gamma subunit types play in signaling, we have begun to clone and characterize those genes that encode gamma subunits enriched within neural tissue. In the present study, we have isolated and characterized the mouse gamma3 subunit gene (Gng3). The gamma3 subunit is expressed abundantly in the brain and at low levels in testes. Gng3 is composed of three exons spanning approximately 1.4 kb. A comparison of Gng3 with the gene structure for five other gamma subtypes indicates that although these proteins are diverse at the amino acid level, their exon-intron boundaries are conserved. Sequence analysis of the 5' flanking region of Gng3 revealed the presence of a novel gene, the gamma3 linked gene (Gng3lg). Gng3 and Gng3lg are organized in a head-to-head fashion with major transcription initiation sites separated by approximately 133 bp. Sequence analysis of a Gng3lg cDNA clone revealed an open reading frame encoding a 410-amino-acid protein of unknown function. Gng3lg transcripts are expressed in a variety of tissues including both brain and testes. Using an interspecific backcross panel, we localized both Gng3 and Gng3lg to the same locus on chromosome 19. The orientation, close proximity, and expression pattern of these two genes raise the distinct possibility that shared regulatory elements are used to control their expression.

The G-protein betagamma complex.

The vast majority of signalling pathways in mammalian cells are mediated by heterotrimeric (alpha betagamma) G proteins. Reviewed here is regulation of signal transduction by the betagamma complex at different protein interfaces: subunit-subunit, receptor-G protein and G protein-effector. The role of diverse beta and gamma subunit types in achieving specificity in signalling and potentially unidentified functions for these subunits also are discussed.

A study of ageing of spruce [Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr.] ectomycorrhizas. I. Morphological and cellular changes in mycorrhizas formed by Tylospora fibrillosa (Burt.) Donk and Paxillus involutus (Batsch. ex Fr.) Fr.

An age sequence of mycorrhizas formed by Paxillus involutus (Batsch. ex Fr.) Fr. and Tylospora fibrillosa (Burt.) Donk was sampled from 6-9-month-old seedlings of Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr. grown on peat in root observation chambers. Information about the ageing process was obtained from co-ordinated studies of mycorrhizal morphology, anatomy, ultrastructure and cell vitality (indicated by FDA-staining). Newly produced mycorrhizas were pale and turgid over most of their length with obvious extramatrical mycelium. Most mycorrhizas over 50 d old had a light turgid apical portion and a darkened wrinkled proximal portion: extramatrical mycelium was less obvious. Many remained in this state until the sampling stopped at day 142, but some were completely darkened before day 50. The morphological appearance of a mycorrhiza was not a good indicator of its chronological age. Most mycorrhizas displayed periodic busts of growth which added portions of young turgid cortex to an ageing axis. The percentage of cortical cells showing nuclei in 1 µm sections of the apical 1 mm declined from 40-50 % in mycorrhizas < 25 d old to 5-15 % in mycorrhizas 110-140 d old. Cortical cells became more vacuolate as they aged and the number of organelles appeared to decline. Senescence proceeded from the outer to the inner cortex and from proximal to distal regions. Degenerate cortical cells were present in the Hartig net zone of mycorrhizas over 25 days old. Cortical cell degeneration preceded, but was closely followed by, degeneration of adjacent Hartig net. The FDA study supported the general pattern and timing of cell death interpreted from the morphological and ultrastructural study. Cortical/Hartig net fluorescence declined markedly in mycorrhizas over 70-85 d old. The stele was the last tissue in the mycorrhiza to degenerate. It is suggested that a mycorrhiza ceases to function in nutrient and water uptake when no living cortical/Hartig net interface remains. In this study a few mycorrhizas became non-functional by day 31. For most mycorrhizas the major decline in function took place after 85 days. This estimate is in broad agreement with the estimates of mycorrhizal life span obtained from biomass studies in the field.

Informal sector shops and AIDS prevention. An exploratory social marketing investigation.

Shopkeepers at 88 informal sector shops in the black township of Khayelitsha were interviewed to explore whether such shops should be considered as venues for the dissemination of AIDS prevention information and condoms through social marketing programmes. The existence of a variety of media and interpersonal information sources on the premises, the presence of opinion leadership and the willingness of several owners to distribute posters and pamphlets and sell condoms suggests that such shops should be further investigated as avenues for AIDS prevention efforts. A relationship was found between the degree to which a shop exhibited aspects of social influence and the degree to which it was established in terms of infrastructure, income and experience of personnel. It was concluded that shopkeepers might be an important group to target early in a programme, because they might then influence others' reaction to it. Finally, it would be important for shop personnel and other township residents to be part of the design, planning and implementation of AIDS prevention programmes.

The emphasis here is on home.

Adhering to the principal that the most important influence upon health and happiness in the later years of life is the home environment, architects create a home-like atmosphere for Veterans' Home.

Utilization of fatty acids in perfused hypothermic dog kidney.

Utilization of oleic acid in whole dog kidneys perfused in vitro for 24 hr at 10 degrees C was studied, and the data were correlated with results on the utilization of oleic acid in kidney slices incubated in the same perfusate at 10 degrees C. Kidneys perfused without added oleate lost 35% of their total lipid content and 27% of their phospholipids. Addition of serum albumin-bound oleate to the perfusate prevented the loss of neutral lipid and reduced the loss of phospholipid to 8%. The kidney slices incorporated 29% of the added oleate into lipid and oxidized 3.2% to CO(2). Oleate apparently largely replaces endogenous fatty acids which are oxidized to meet the energy requirements of the kidney. The loss of phospholipid from the perfused organ is taken as an indication of cell damage, which may be reduced but is not prevented by the addition of oleate to the perfusate.