The Interaction of Ethanol with Drugs.

Ethanol is perhaps the most widely used drug in society today. Its reactions in the human body are varied and complex but mainly it depresses the central nervous system, which in turn causes a deleterious effect on psychomotor functions. When any of several classes of drugs is introduced into the body along with ethanol, each drug can affect the other's absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion. The toxic effects of the drug combination may be potentiated, depending upon several factors such as whether the ingested level of ethanol was acute or chronic, and the pharmacodynamics of the second drug.

Deaths as a result of a combination of codeine and glutethimide.

Toxicological findings are described in 16 medical examiner cases directly related to the combination of codeine and glutethimide. The cases described represent a six-month period, July through December 1982, showing the epidemic rate of abuse of this drug combination, most prominent in the Newark, NJ area since the late 1970s. Concentrations of codeine and glutethimide, measured by gas liquid chromatography (GLC), in the blood averaged 0.62 and 4.07 mg/L, respectively. Similarly determined urine concentrations averaged 38.06 and 12.68 mg/L, respectively. Specific concentrations of each drug in most cases were in the high therapeutic range, suggesting a possible toxic synergistic effect.

Specific oligoribonucleotide synthesis using primer-independent polynucleotide phosphorylase.

Oligoribonucleotides of a predetermined base sequence beginning with adenylyl-3', 5'-adenosine at the 5' end have been synthesized in yields varying between 13% and 42%. The synthesis was carried out using primer-independent polynucleotide phosphorylase from E. coli in the presence of high concentrations of primer and of sodium chloride.