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We propose a revision of the spider genus Corythalia C.L. Koch, 1850 (Salticidae: Euophryini) with a revised genus diagnosis based on examination of all species available to us. In this paper we redescribe all previously described species from South America with revised species diagnoses and describe 20 new species from South America (and the nearby islands). For C. latipes, the type species of the genus Corythalia, a neotype is designated. In total, 52 nominal species of the genus are herein treated, 46 species are recognized as valid. The females of C. waleckii Taczanowski, 1871, C. luctuosa Caporiacco, 1954 and C. latipes (C.L. Koch, 1846) are described for the first time. Corythalia sellata Simon, 1901, erroneously considered as nomen nudum in the present version of the World Spider Catalog, is here recognised as a valid species. Corythalia fulgipedia Crane, 1948 is also considered a valid species and is removed from the synonymy of C. tropica (Mello-Leitão, 1939). One name is considered a nomen dubium (Corythalia variegata Caporiacco, 1954), two are nomina nuda (C. major Simon, 1901; C. dimidiata Simon, 1901). Two species are transferred to other genera: C. argyrochrysos (Mello-Leitão, 1946) to Pachomius Peckham Peckham, 1896 as Pachomius argyrochrysos (Mello-Leitão, 1946), comb. nov. and C. heliophanina (Taczanowski, 1871) to Neonella Gertsch, 1936, as Neonella heliophanina (Taczanowski, 1871), comb. nov. under incertae sedis. One species is synonymised: C. barbipes (Mello-Leitão, 1939) is a junior synonym of C. cincta (Badcock, 1932), syn. nov. The new Corythalia species are: C. conferta sp. nov. (♂♀, Brazil), C. concinna sp. nov. (♀, Brazil), C. drepane sp. nov. (♂♀, Brazil), C. drepanopsis sp. nov. (♀, Brazil), C. antepagmenti sp. nov. (♂♀, Brazil), C. ricti Bayer, sp. nov. (♂, Guyana), C. protensa sp. nov. (♂, Brazil), C. gasnieri sp. nov. (♂, Brazil), C. verhaaghi sp. nov. (♀, Brazil), C. scutellaris Bayer, sp. nov. (♂♀, Ecuador), C. dakryodes Bayer, sp. nov. (♀, Colombia), C. foelixi Bayer, sp. nov. (♂♀, French Guiana), C. longiducta sp. nov. (♀, Brazil), C. latior sp. nov. (♂, Bolivia), C. trochophora Bayer, sp. nov. (♂, Ecuador), C. lineata Bayer, sp. nov. (♂, Guyana), C. hamulifera Bayer, sp. nov. (♂, Ecuador), C. tribulosa sp. nov. (♂, Colombia), C. flagrans sp. nov. (♂, Brazil) and C. fragilis sp. nov. (♂♀, Brazil). Illustrations are provided for all of the new species and for all (primary) type specimens of the species re-described. Hypotheses of possible relationships among the different species of Corythalia are discussed.

Essentials AFSTYLA exhibits ≈50% underestimation in activity when the one-stage (OS) assay is utilized. A field study compared the performance of AFSTYLA with Advate in factor VIII activity assays. AFSTYLA activity can be monitored with both the chromogenic substrate and the OS assay. The consistent OS underestimation allows for a conversion factor to be applied to OS results., Summary: Introduction AFSTYLA (antihemophilic factor [recombinant] single chain) is a novel B-domain truncated recombinant factor VIII (rFVIII). For AFSTYLA, an approximate 50% discrepancy was observed between results of the one-stage (OS) and chromogenic substrate (ChS) FVIII activity assays. An investigation was undertaken to test whether there is a linear relationship between ChS and OS assay results that would allow reliable clinical interpretation of results independent of the assay method used. Aims To provide confidence in future clinical monitoring, this field study investigated the performance of AFSTYLA and a full-length rFVIII (Advate ® ) in FVIII activity assays routinely performed in clinical laboratories. Methods The comparison of AFSTYLA and Advate was performed in an international, multicenter and blinded field study of simulated post-infusion samples. The study documented the extent of variability between methods and laboratories and characterized the relationship between the ChS and OS assays. Results Results from 23 laboratories demonstrate that intra and interlaboratory variability in OS assays were similar for both products. When comparing within the OS assay format, there was a similar and reagent-correlated variability in response to different activators for both AFSTYLA and Advate. The OS underestimation was highly predictable and consistent across the complete range of FVIII plasma concentrations. Conclusion Post-infusion plasma AFSTYLA levels can be monitored in patients by the OS and ChS assays. The consistent and predictable difference between the two assay formats provides clinicians with adequate guidance on how to interpret the results of the OS assay using a single conversion factor., (© 2017 The Authors. Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis.)

Aging causes major alterations of all components of the neurovascular unit and compromises brain blood supply. Here, we tested how aging affects vascular reactivity in basilar arteries from young (<10 weeks; y-BA), old (>22 months; o-BA) and old (>22 months) heterozygous MYPT1-T-696A/+ knock-in mice. In isometrically mounted o-BA, media thickness was increased by ∼10% while the passive length tension relations were not altered. Endothelial denudation or pan-NOS inhibition (100 µmol/L L-NAME) increased the basal tone by 11% in y-BA and 23% in o-BA, while inhibition of nNOS (1 µmol/L L-NPA) induced ∼10% increase in both ages. eNOS expression was ∼2-fold higher in o-BA. In o-BA, U46619-induced force was augmented (pEC 50 ∼6.9 vs. pEC 50 ∼6.5) while responsiveness to DEA-NONOate, electrical field stimulation or nicotine was decreased. Basal phosphorylation of MLC 20 -S19 and MYPT1-T-853 was higher in o-BA and was reversed by apocynin. Furthermore, permeabilized o-BA showed enhanced Ca 2+ -sensitivity. Old T-696A/+ BA displayed a reduced phosphorylation of MYPT1-T696 and MLC 20 , a lower basal tone in response to L-NAME and a reduced eNOS expression. The results indicate that the vascular hypercontractility found in o-BA is mediated by inhibition of MLCP and is partially compensated by an upregulation of endothelial NO release.

The prophylactic treatment of haemophilia B and the management of haemophilia A or B with inhibitors demand frequent administrations of coagulation factors due to the suboptimal half-lives of the products commercially available and currently in use, e.g. recombinant factor IX (rFIX) and recombinant factor VIIa (rFVIIa), respectively. The extension of the half-lives of rFIX and rFVIIa could allow for longer intervals between infusions and could thereby improve adherence and clinical outcomes and may improve quality of life. Albumin fusion is one of a number of different techniques currently being examined to prolong the half-life of rFIX and rFVIIa. Results from a phase I clinical trial demonstrated that the recombinant fusion protein linking FIX to albumin (rIX-FP) has a five-times longer half-life than rFIX, and preclinical studies with the recombinant fusion protein linking FVIIa to albumin (rVIIa-FP) suggest that rVIIa-FP possesses a significantly extended half-life versus rFVIIa. In this review, we describe albumin fusion technology and examine the recent progress in the development of rIX-FP and rVIIa-FP.

We observe variable-range hopping conduction in thermal admittance spectroscopy and develop a method to evaluate the signal under this condition. As a relevant example of demonstration we employ Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S)2 thin-film solar cells and show that the fundamental N1 signal, which has been discussed for more than a decade in terms of minority carrier traps, does not display trap parameters, but is generated by the freezing-out of carrier mobility with decreasing temperature when hopping conduction prevails. This effect offers a new approach to carrier hopping and to semiconductors suffering from small mobility.

Background: Thrombelastography has received renewed interest in the perioperative setting. The main determinants of thrombelastographic results are coagulation factor concentrations (various zymogens and fibrinogen) and platelet count; thus, platelet inhibition renders these assays mainly coagulation factor dependent. Assays with and without platelet inhibition are thus increasingly used to trigger and monitor replacement therapy with blood products. In this study, we evaluated the effect of factor XIII inhibition and additional glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa blockade on (platelet-inhibited) whole blood thrombelastography and whether a modified routine assay (using factor XIII antibody) can be used to detect factor XIII deficiency., Methods: Normal whole blood was incubated with increasing amounts of a nonspecific antibody, an anti-GPIIb/IIIa antibody, or a neutralizing anti-factor XIII antibody; samples were analyzed with a tissue factor-activated and platelet-inhibited whole blood thrombelastographic assay. Clotting time, clot formation time, maximum clot firmness, and clot lysis at 60 min were evaluated in triplicate. Also, 25 whole blood routine samples were evaluated for factor XIII deficiency using a new thrombelastographic assay incorporating a factor XIII antibody and using a standard factor XIII assay for comparison., Results: Although GPIIb/IIIa inhibition did not alter the results of the platelet-inhibited whole blood thrombelastography, factor XIII inhibition significantly reduced maximum clot firmness (P = 0.020) and increased clot formation time (P = 0.025) and clot lysis (P = 0.007), leaving clotting time unchanged; a ceiling effect seemed to be present with increasing antibody concentrations in whole blood (but not plasma). The thrombelastographic assay for factor XIII deficiency (<70% activity) had a 90% sensitivity and negative predictive value (area under receiver operating characteristic curve 0.803, P = 0.0015); for a deficiency <60%, sensitivity and negative predictive value were 100% (area under receiver operating characteristic curve 0.84, P = 0.0037)., Conclusion: Factor XIII has significant impact on platelet-inhibited activated whole blood thrombelastography. This phenomenon should be considered when interpreting thrombelastographic results in the bleeding patient, especially when the results trigger procoagulant therapy. Antibody-mediated factor XIII inhibition can be used to establish thrombelastography-based assays to detect factor XIII deficiency.

Open channel block is a process in which ions bound to the inside of a channel pore block the flow of ions through that channel. Repulsion of the blocking ions by depolarization is a known mechanism of open channel block removal. For the NMDA channel, this mechanism is necessary for channel activation and is involved in neuronal plasticity. Several types of transient receptor potential (TRP) channels, including the Drosophila TRP and TRP-like (TRPL) channels, also exhibit open channel block. Therefore, removal of open channel block is necessary for the production of the physiological response to light. Because there is no membrane depolarization before the light response develops, it is not clear how the open channel block is removed, an essential step for the production of a robust light response under physiological conditions. Here we present a novel mechanism to alleviate open channel block in the absence of depolarization by membrane lipid modulations. The results of this study show open channel block removal by membrane lipid modulations in both TRPL and NMDA channels of the photoreceptor cells and CA1 hippocampal neurons, respectively. Removal of open channel block is characterized by an increase in the passage-rate of the blocking cations through the channel pore. We propose that the profound effect of membrane lipid modulations on open channel block alleviation, allows the productions of a robust current in response to light in the absence of depolarization.

Factor XIII has a well-established role in natural coagulation and clot stabilization. It is often added back to fibrin sealants that are used in a wide range of surgical settings to achieve successful hemostasis, tissue adhesion and wound healing. Factor XIII is the final enzyme to be activated in the blood coagulation cascade. It plays an important role in maintaining the balance between coagulation and fibrinolysis. Factor XIII facilitates the formation of covalent cross-links within the fibrin network, forming a loose mesh after activation by thrombin. It adds significant resilience to fibrin clots, augmenting strength by as much as 5-fold. Both fibrin cross-linking and the factor XIII-catalyzed ligation of the fibrinolysis inhibitor alpha(2)-antiplasmin to the fibrin clot contribute to the increased proteolytic resistance of factor XIII-stabilized clots. Preclinical studies indicate that the inclusion of factor XIII in fibrin sealants used for vascular grafting significantly reduces suture-hole blood loss. This has important implications for the successful control of bleeding in comparable clinical situations. The advantages of factor XIII stabilized clots (increased strength, resistance to proteolysis, promotion of wound healing) suggest that the presence of factor XIII in fibrin sealants may optimize their performance in the clinical setting. The aim of this paper is to review preclinical data that provide evidence for a potentially positive role for factor XIII in fibrin sealants.

Introduction: Fibrin sealants (FS) have been used for many years to facilitate hemostasis and to provide suture support and sealing/adhesion of tissues after surgery. While their composition is similar, different formulations, application devices, and varying concentrations of key components mean that the properties of clots formed by individual FS can be diverse., Materials and Methods: We performed several studies, including animal models, to compare the properties of 12 different commercially available FS/application device combinations using partial liver and kidney resection models to assess hemostatic efficacy and a novel pig skin model to measure adhesive clot strength. The quality of mixing was determined using colored spray images., Results: Although the FS tested shared the principle of combining fibrinogen and thrombin, major differences were found between the individual preparations with regard to hemostatic efficacy. Two pre-requisites for successful early hemostasis were identified--adequate clottable protein content and the ability of the application device to effectively mix the fibrinogen and thrombin components of the FS. Factor XIII activity was a key determinant in prevention of re-bleeding and premature clot lysis. Furthermore, FS lacking measurable factor XIII activity formed the weakest, softest clots., Conclusions: Clearly, all FS are not the same, and their different characteristics may potentially translate into different clinical outcomes. In our studies, while all FS tested performed well on individual parameters, Beriplast P (Aventis Behring) was the foremost FS in consistently providing early hemostasis, minimizing the risk of re-bleeding, and providing strong adhesive clots capable of resisting mechanical forces.

Background: Recent progress in the cardiotypic differentiation of embryonic and somatic stem cells opens novel prospects for the treatment of cardiovascular disorders. The aim of the present study was to develop a novel surgical approach that allows standardized cellular cardiomyoplasty in mouse with low-perioperative mortality., Methods: Reproducible transmural lesions were generated by cryoinjury followed by intramural injection of embryonic cardiomyocytes using a newly designed holding device and vital dye staining. This approach was validated with a transgenic mouse model, in which the live reporter gene-enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) is under control of a cardiac-specific promoter., Results: The perioperative mortality was 10%. The engrafted EGFP-positive cardiomyocytes could be identified in a high percentage (72.2%, n=36) of operated animals., Conclusions: This novel approach enables reliable cellular replacement therapy in mouse and greatly facilitates the analysis of its molecular, cellular, and functional efficacy.

Background: Suture hole bleeding is a frequent complication in vascular surgery. The use of fibrin sealants (FSs) during surgery is reported to reduce blood loss by enhancing hemostasis., Objectives: Using a pig vascular graft model we investigated: (1) the use of FSs in vascular surgery and measured blood loss with and without the use of FSs; (2) the effect of factor XIII in FSs on hemostasis and blood loss; and (3) the effect of increasing FS incubation time on hemostasis and blood loss., Materials and Methods: During surgery, a 3-cm incision was made in the carotid artery wall. Incisions were covered with a Gore-Tex (PTFE) patch sutured with Ethicon monofil 5/0 or 3/0. The resulting suture holes were treated according to study protocol. Study 1: Nine pigs received either FS treatment (n = 5) or no treatment (n = 4). Study 2: Twenty pigs underwent bilateral surgery; right (n = 20) and left (n = 20) patches received either FS with factor XIII (FS + FXIII) or FS depleted of factor XIII (FS - FXIII). Study 3: Bilateral surgery was carried out on 24 pigs; PFTE patches secured with Ethicon 3/0 were treated with FS and allowed to polymerize for 120 s (n = 12), 180 s (n = 12), or 240 s (n = 12) or with solid support/thrombin (n = 12)., Results: Study 1: Mean blood loss was significantly lower in the FS-treated group compared with untreated controls (9.2 +/- 10.6 mL vs 178.8 +/- 125.5 mL, mean +/- SD, P = 0.016). Study 2: Significantly less blood was lost in the FS + FXIII group than in the FS - FXIII group (Delta = 9.6 mL, P = 0. 02). Study 3: Blood loss was significantly higher from patches treated with solid support/thrombin compared with those treated with FS (P < 0.01)., Conclusions: FSs containing factor XIII, such as Beriplast P, are effective in reducing suture hole bleeding and improving hemostasis during vascular graft procedures. The presence of factor XIII contributes to the efficacy of FSs and reduces the time to hemostasis. During vascular surgery, blood loss can be reduced significantly by the use of fibrin sealant compared with absorbable gelatin sponges coated with thrombin., (Copyright 2000 Academic Press.)

The effect of factor XIII on endothelial barrier function was studied in a model of cultured monolayers of porcine aortic endothelial cells and saline-perfused rat hearts. The thrombin-activated plasma factor XIII (1 U/ml) reduced albumin permeability of endothelial monolayers within 20 min by 30 +/- 7% (basal value of 5.9 +/- 0.4 x 10(-6) cm/s), whereas the nonactivated plasma factor XIII had no effect. Reduction of permeability to the same extent, i.e., by 34 +/- 9% could be obtained with the thrombin-activated A subunit of factor XIII (1 U/ml), whereas the iodoacetamide-inactivated A subunit as well as the B subunit had no effect on permeability. Endothelial monolayers exposed to the activated factor XIII A exhibited immunoreactive deposition of itself at interfaces of adjacent cells; however, these were not found on exposure to nonactivated factor XIII A or factor XIII B. Hyperpermeability induced by metabolic inhibition (1 mM potassium cyanide plus 1 mM 2-deoxy-D-glucose) was prevented in the presence of the activated factor XIII A. Likewise, the increase in myocardial water content in ischemic-reperfused rat hearts was prevented in its presence. This study shows that activated factor XIII reduces endothelial permeability. It can prevent the loss of endothelial barrier function under conditions of energy depletion. Its effect seems related to a modification of the paracellular passageways in endothelial monolayers.

The structure of recombinant human cellular factor XIII zymogen was solved in its monoclinic crystal form and refined to an R-factor of 18.3% (Rfree = 23.6%) for all data between 40.0 and 2.1 A resolution. Two non-proline cis peptide bonds were detected. One is between Arg310 and Tyr311 close to the active site cysteine residue (Cys314) and the other is between Gln425 and Phe426 at the dimerization interface. The structure and the role of these cis peptides are discussed in the light of their possible importance for factor XIII function.

In order to provide patients with von Willebrand disease a factor VIII (FVIII)/von Willebrand factor (vWF) concentrate of reproducible quality, an SDS-agarose gel electrophoresis method has been established to determine the content of the high molecular weight multimers (band 11 and higher) of vWF. This method has been used to characterize the content of high molecular weight vWF multimers in Humate P/Haemate P, a commercial FVIII/vWF concentrate. The average content of high molecular weight vWF multimers of 47 batches of Humate P/Haemate P has been determined to be 84.1% of the corresponding bands in normal human plasma. Use of this multimer analysis method for the characterization of five further commercial products revealed clear differences with respect to the high molecular weight vWF multimer content. Furthermore, there is a linear correlation (r2 = 0.73) between the content of high molecular weight vWF multimers and the specific activity of vWF (determined as vWF:RCoF/vWF:Ag). The method described here for analysis of the content of high molecular weight vWF multimers is a reliable and reproducible method to characterize this class of factor concentrates with respect to vWF multimer composition.

The production of recombinant glycoprotein therapeutics requires characterization of glycosylation with respect to the lot-to-lot consistency. Here we introduce the ¿hypothetical N-glycan charge Z' as a parameter that allows to characterize the protein glycosylation in a simple, however, efficient manner. The hypothetical N-glycan charge of a given glycoprotein is deduced from the N-glycan mapping profile obtained via HPAE-PAD. In HPAEC, N-glycans are clearly separated according to their charge, i.e., their number of sialic acid residues, providing distinct regions for neutral structures as well as for the mono- di-, tri, and tetrasialylated N-glycans (Hermentin et al., 1992a). Z is defined as the sum of the products of the respective areas (A) in the asialo, monosialo, disialo, trisialo, tetrasialo, and pentasialo region, each multiplied by the corresponding charge: [formula: see text] Thus, a glycoprotein with mostly C4-4* structures will provide Z approximately equal to 400 (e.g., rhu EPO (CHO), Z = 361), a glycoprotein carrying largely C3-3* structures will amount to Z approximately equal to 300 (e.g., bovine fetuin, Z = 290), a glycoprotein with mostly C2-2* structures will have Z approximately equal to 200 (e.g., human serum transferrin, Z = 207, or human plasma AT III, Z = 180), and a glycoprotein carrying only high-mannose type or trunkated structures will provide Z approximately equal to 0 (e.g., bovine pancreas ribonuclease B, Z = 15, and hen ovomucoid, Z = 15, respectively). The determination of Z was validated in multiple repetitive experiments and proved to be highly accurate and reliable. Z may therefore be regarded as a new and characteristic parameter for protein N-glycosylation.

With the increasing availability of human plasma this source was used to substitute for the production of factor XIII concentrate from placenta. Prior to changing the source material, the virus safety in accordance with the Committee for Proprietary Medicinal Products (CPMP) guidelines and the half-life were investigated. Concerning the virus safety, the following cumulative log 10 clearance factors were obtained: human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) > or = 18.9, herpes simplex virus (HSV-1) > or = 21.5, polio > or = 19.1, bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) > or = 13.3. Half-life studies of factor XIII from plasma in comparison with factor XIII from placenta were done in rabbits by determination of the antigen and in patients with congenital factor XIII deficiency by determination of the activity and antigen. In rabbits, the terminal half-life of the antigen was 78.2 hours for factor XIII from placenta and 87.0 hours for factor XIII from plasma. In patients the half-lives were similar: 9.2 days for activity and antigen of factor XIII from plasma and 8.5 days (activity) versus 9.4 days (antigen) for the placenta-derived factor XIII. Some further clinical studies with factor XIII concentrates are also reviewed. Newer developments concerning recombinant factor XIII, its expression, characterization, and properties are summarized. Concerning the physicochemical data, the behavior in plasma was characterized by the formation of high-molecular-weight complexes, and first in vivo results, the recombinant factor XIII product was comparable to the naturally occurring material.

We conducted this study to determine whether 3 days of dietary records from randomly selected days or from consecutive days more closely estimated the energy and nutrient intake values obtained from 16 days over a 1-year period. Participants consisted of 228 men and women, black and white. No one of three random-day samples or one of five consecutive-day samples better estimated energy and nutrient intake. The group means for intake of energy and seven nutrients were similar for random and consecutive days. However, for energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, and calcium, the means of the absolute differences between the values for 16 days and those for the random days were significantly smaller than the corresponding means between the values for 16 days and those for consecutive days. Random-day samples may be preferable for describing dietary intake of individuals and small groups when the gain in reliability is worth the cost.

Both recombinant blood coagulation factor XIII alpha-chain and factor XIII isolated from human placenta have been crystallized using a novel robotic system for the automatic screening of crystallization conditions. The monoclinic and orthorhombic crystals obtained are suitable for X-ray analysis.

Food frequency reports in 1967-1969 were compared to frequency reports of the same foods asked retrospectively in 1982-1983 and 1967-1969 for 1184 respondents aged 45-64 years in the Tecumseh Community Health Study. The kappa statistic for concordance of the retrospective and baseline reports was used as a summary measure of the individual's ability to reproduce his or her earlier diet report. Reproducibility was estimated for total diet, represented by 83 foods, and for 9 subsets of foods of epidemiologic interest. In bivariate and multivariate analyses, reproducibility was strongly related to stability of diet; those whose diets changed least over the 15-year period had greatest diet reproducibility. Greater total diet reproducibility was also found among men with higher education, among women of less than 110% desirable weight reporting no special diet and among women reporting no medications. Consistent with current models of memory, the retrospective report of diet was strongly related to the current report of diet. Agreement between the retrospective and baseline diet reports was greater than agreement between the current and baseline diet reports. This indicates that, as a proxy for past diet, the retrospective report of diet is superior to the current report. Similar relationships were found for the 9 subset of foods.

The prospective association of social relationships and activities reported during a round of interviews and medical examinations in 1967-1969 with mortality over the succeeding nine to 12 years was examined for a cohort of 2754 adult (aged 35-69 years as of 1967-1969) men and women in the Tecumseh Community Health Study. After adjustments for age and a variety of risk factors for mortality, men reporting a higher levels of social relationships and activities in 1967-1969 were significantly less likely to die during the follow-up period. Trends for women were similar, but generally nonsignificant once age and other risk factors were controlled. These results were invariant across age, occupational, and health status groups. No association was observed between mortality and satisfaction with social relationships or activities. How and why social relationships and activities predict mortality are discussed and identified as important foci for future research.

Axenic suspensions of the fresh water green alga Ankistrodesmus braunii were illuminated under aerobic conditions. The released gas mixture was introduced into the ion source of an isotope mass spectrometer, which recorded the 18O/16O ratio. The 18O content of the photosynthetic oxygen (approximately 0.199%) exceeded that of the cell water (approximately 0.197%) significantly.

The relationship between frequency of eating and adiposity was studied in a cross-sectional population of about 1000 men and 1000 women ages 35 to 69. A detailed 24-hr diet recall interview was administered by trained interviewers. Frequency of eating--eight categories--was determined by computer program using reported actual eating times and food consumed. The adiposity variable was an index using two skinfold measurements, height and weight. An analysis of covariance removing the effect of caloric intake showed that frequency of eating was related inversely to the adiposity index for men and women separately with statistical significance at the 1% level.

In 50 patients with acute infarction who were admitted within 6 hours after the beginning of the complaints randomizedly an intravenous streptokinase short-term lysis or a conventional heparin phenprocoumon treatment was performed and 4 weeks later the results were objectified by coronarography and ventriculography. The patients were subdivided into 3 groups: 1. control group (without fibrinolysis), 2. early lysis (within 4 hours) and 3. late lysis (4-6 hours). Four weeks after the infarction the proportions of the open infarction vessels are approximately of the same size in all three groups, the functional results are best (end-diastolic pressure and kinetics of the cardiac wall) in the group of patients who underwent an early lysis. Successfully lysed patients with remaining residual stenosis must be regarded as particularly threatened by infarction and remain under special control (residual angina, ergometrically objectified exercise tolerance, perhaps coronarography) in the phase of rehabilitation.

Seven health practices previously found to be associated with a self-report index of good health and with lower mortality in the Alameda County studies were related to several measures of health in a cohort of 880 men and 973 women, ages 35-69, who were participants in the Tecumseh Community Health Study. The health measures were prevalence of three diagnoses--coronary heart disease (CHD), hypertension, and chronic bronchitis--and levels of five risk factors--systolic and diastolic blood pressures, serum total cholesterol, blood glucose, and FEV1. Four of the practices--desirable relative weight, physical activity, never having smoked, and moderate or no alcohol drinking--were associated significantly with one or more of the health measures. Eating breakfast, limited between-meal eating, and sleeping 7 or 8 hr were not related to the health measures. Combining all seven health practices into an index produced a measure that was more strongly associated negatively with CHD prevalence than was any one of the component practices. However, the index was no more strongly associated with any of the other health measures than were the relevant separate practices. Desirable weight was more highly associated (negatively) with hypertension and blood pressure than the index was, as was never having smoked with chronic bronchitis (negatively) and FEV1 (positively).

As part of an effort to assess the most reliable method of obtaining information about long-term dietary intake, a study was conducted of the correspondence between perception of change in diet and measured change in reported diet from 1967 to 1982. Respondents were 1,201 men and women participants in the Tecumseh Food Frequency Study of 1967-1969 who were 45-64 years of age in 1982-1983, the time of the Diet Methodology Study. Perceptions of change were obtained by asking respondents directly if they thought they currently ate each of 12 food groups more often, less often, or as often as they did during the year of their earlier interview. Measured change was obtained by subtracting each respondent's baseline frequency for each of the 12 food groups from his or her current frequency. For 10 of the 12 food groups, correspondence was found between perception of change and measured change; fats and oils added at the table and meat were the exceptions. Significant linear relationships were found between perceptions and measured change for all food groups except fats and oils. However, greatly varying coefficients were associated with terms such as more often or as often as before, thereby limiting the potential utility of combining perceptions of change with current frequencies to obtain a reliable measure of baseline frequencies.

The data being reported are part of an epidemiologic study of health and disease in an entire community, Tecumseh, Michigan. Approximately 1,300 males age 16-65 were classified into three groups on the basis of their habitual leisure and occupational physical activity. A blood sample was drawn one hour after a glucose challenge and analyzed for glucose concentration. A measure of body fatness (sun of four skinfolds) was also available on the men. Glucose concentration of the three physical activity groups was compared by analyses of variance within narrow age group. There was no significant relationship between glucose tolerance and habitual physical activity. There was a slight, but in some age groups significant, relationship between glucose tolerance and body fatness. The population was then divided within each age group into subgroups (thirds) by sum of skinfolds. The analysis was repeated in each age-fatness group. Glucose tolerance was better in the active men but only among the leanest subgroup of subjects.

In 50 patients with acute myocardial infarction the systemic highly dosed short-term lysis with streptokinase took place within the 6-hour limit. 27 patients showed a normalisation of the ST-distance still during the treatment, 16 of whom did not develop any signs of necrosis in the ECG also in the further course. Pre-existing disturbances of rhythm receded under the infusion of streptokinase in 8 of 9 patients. In 11 patients arrhythmias appeared under the lysis, which could be brought under control in intensive-medical conditions. 4 patients died, 1 patient suffered a re-infarction. The results of the treatment were better, when the fibrinolysis began within 3 hours after the acute onset. Severe side effects did not appear.

Agreement between surrogate and subject reports of current food frequencies and other eating habits, smoking behavior and weight was assessed in 1982-1983 for 180 husbands and wives, aged 45 through 64 years. Agreement was measured by per cent exact agreement and weighted kappa for frequencies of 30 itemized foods or food groups, and for surrogate- and subject-based quintiles of frequencies of eight broad food groups and of vitamin A and C consumption indexes. Surrogate and subject mean frequencies were generally similar, but at the individual level of analysis, agreement varied widely. Agreement was greatest, among the food items and groups, for alcoholic beverages, and among the other items, for smoking status. Extreme misclassification by quintile was very small, but only 40% of persons self-classified in either extreme quintile were similarly classified by their spouses. This level of misclassification may result in the dilution of real relationships between diet and health.

Differences in energy estimates between a food frequency questionnaire and a multi-day dietary record can be partitioned into distinct components due to differences in reported frequency of consumption and in reported serving size, and to differences in nutrient composition between the questionnaire standards and the foods reported on the records. The effect of each component on the relative validity of the questionnaire can be assessed by examining its contribution to the differences between the two methods in estimated group intake and in the relative ranking of individual respondents. This methodology was used for the 1984-1985 University of Michigan Food Frequency Study, in which the estimated energy intake from a quantitative food frequency questionnaire was compared with that from 16 days of food records collected over the course of a year from 228 white and black men and women aged 24-51 years. For all race-sex subgroups, mean energy intake estimated from the questionnaire was significantly greater than mean intake estimated from the record. Within race-sex subgroups, the correlations between estimates from the two methods were low, and agreement in classification by tertiles was poor. The differences in group mean energy intake between the methods were due to the effects of discrepancies in both serving size and frequency of consumption. However, the low correlations and poor agreement in classification for individual respondents were due principally to the effect of discrepancies in frequency. These results suggest that improving the accuracy of frequency estimation is a key element in increasing the relative validity of food frequency questionnaires used for epidemiologic research.