No reliable data are available on cases of lethal child abuse (by active force) in the area of Federal Republic of Germany prior to reunification (the former West Germany). In a multicenter study we ...therefore examined the police and court records for such cases occurring in the period 1 January 1985 to 2 October 1990 in nearly the entire area of Federal Republic of Germany.
The study center received information on 58 cases of lethal child abuse. Extrapolated to all institutes of legal medicine, this corresponds to 62 cases in all of West Germany in the period studied. An approximately equal number of unreported cases should be added to this figure. Including unreported cases, at least 20 cases of lethal child abuse occurred per year; thus only one in every two cases ever came to light. Almost two thirds of the victims were younger than one year old. At autopsy 59% exhibited signs of repeated abuse at autopsy. By far the most common cause of death was direct impact from a blunt object, usually to the head. Mostly, the male person to whom the victim relates most closely (father, stepfather, partner of the mother) has killed the child. Twenty-one of the 74 persons charged saw the charges against them dropped or were acquitted due to lack of evidence; 51 received sentences ranging from one year probation to life. In the remaining two cases the outcome of the trial was unknown. Signs of abuse were readily apparent at autopsy in almost all cases. The high number of unreported cases underscores the need to educate medical students and practicing physicians to be on the look-out for signs of abuse and argues for an increase in the rate of autopsy.
The binding of folate to
Lactobacillus casei dihydrofolate reductase in the presence and absence of NADP
+ has been studied by
15N NMR, using 5-
15Nfolate. In the presence of NADP
+, three separate ...signals were observed for the single
15N atom, in agreement with our earlier evidence from
1H and
13C NMR for multiple conformations of this complex (1982) Biochemistry 21, 5831–5838. The
15N spectra of the binary enzymefolate complex provide evidence for the first time that this complex also exists in at least two conformational states. This is confirmed by the observation of two separate resonances for the 7-proton of bound folate, located by two-dimensional exchange spectroscopy.
A unique sutural cataract was observed in a 4-generation German family to be transmitted as an isolated autosomal, dominant trait. Since mutations in the gamma-crystallin encoding CRYG genes have ...previously been demonstrated to be the most frequent reason for isolated congenital cataracts, all 4 active CRYG genes have been sequenced. A single base-pair change in the CRYGA gene has been shown, leading to a premature stop codon. This was not observed in 170 control individuals. However, it did not segregate with the disease phenotype. This is the first truncating mutation in an active CRYG gene without a dominant phenotype. As the CRYGA mutation did not explain the cataract, several other candidate loci (CCV, GJA8, CRYBB2, BFSP2, MIP, GJA8, central pouch-like, CRYBA1) were investigated by micro-satellite markers and linkage analysis, but they were excluded based on the combination of haplotype analysis and two-point linkage analysis. The phenotype in this family is due to a mutation in another sutural cataract gene yet to be identified.
Diurnal variations during the depressive phase and healthy periods were investigated in 84 hospitalised depressive patients of different nosological diagnosis. The occurrence of different ...rhythm-types in this population led to the conclusion that depression induces rhythmicity: those belonging to the arhythmic group when healthy showed significant increase in rhythmicity when depressed, predominantly the classical form of diurnal variation (morning with improvement toward evening). Age and sex were found to be important factors determining diurnal variation. In the course of hospitalisation, the type of diurnal rhythm remained individually constant.
The synthesis of 10-alkyl analogues of the potent antitumor agent 8,10-dideazaminopterin is described. Alkylation of appropriate alpha-alkyl homoterephthalate esters with ...2,4-diamino-6-(bromomethyl)-8-deazapteridine afforded 10-alkyl-10-carboxy-4-amino-4-deoxy-8,10-dideazapteroic acid diesters. Ester cleavage and decarboxylation at C-10 were accomplished by heating with sodium cyanide in Me2SO at 170-180 degrees C to afford the 2,4-diamino-10-alkyl-8,10-dideazapteroic acids. The acids were coupled with diethyl glutamate, followed by saponification, to give the 10-alkyl-8,10-dideazaminopterins. The compounds were potent inhibitors of growth in folate-dependent bacteria, Streptococcus faecium and Lactobacillus casei. The 10-methyl and 10-ethyl analogues gave the highest percent increases in life span for mice infected with L1210 leukemia with ILS values of +203 and +235%, respectively.
Clinico-experimental study of daily variations in depressed patients Kitanishi, K; Graw, P; Hole, G
Schweizer Archiv fur Neurologie, Neurochirurgie und Psychiatrie = Archives suisses de neurologie, neurochirurgie et de psychiatrie,
1982, Letnik:
130, Številka:
2
Journal Article
Forty hospitalized depressive patients of both sexes with primary depressive syndrome and concomitant diurnal variations were investigated at defined times with the following method: special ...questionnaire on subjective evaluation of depressive diurnal variation (TSF), mood scale (Bf-S of v. Zerssen), Necker cube, tests of autonomic function (amount of saliva and circulatory variables), global assessment of the depth of depression.--The quantitative differentiation into diurnal variations of different extents undertaken by means of the TSF were validated by the daily difference of the Bf-S. Between the extent of the depressive diurnal variation and the nosological group as well as the depth of depression no relationship could be found. Also the rate of turning over the Necker cube did not show any alteration in the diurnal rhythmicity. On the other hand, the inverse diurnal rhythmicity of the amount of saliva, also according to the corresponding results in the literature, can be interpreted as influence of the depressive diurnal variation. The resting values of pulse rate and blood pressure followed the diurnal physiological rhythm, but in addition they revealed a quantitative influence of the depressive diurnal variation (amplification). No systematic influences could be demonstrated for the orthostatic values.--The results show that in this methodological procedure only a few variables could be demonstrated to be associated with the depressive diurnal variation. On the other hand, it could be proved that not only mental but also certain autonomic components of the depressive syndrome undergo an alteration with the depressive diurnal variation.
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