Transfer of interferon-producing macrophages: new approach to viral chemotherapy

Mice were protected from infection with Semliki Forest virus and encephalomyocarditis virus by the transfer of peritoneal macrophages that were stimulated to produce interferon in vitro by exposure to a nonreplicating virus. This method of therapy was also utilized in animals infected with encephalomy-ocarditis virus after onset of clinical signs. Of these animals 40 percent recovered, but only 9 percent of the control group recovered.     

Thyroid hormone action: in vitro demonstration of putative receptors in isolated nuclei and soluble nuclear extracts

Saturable binding activities for triiodothyronine were demonstrated in vitro with isolated nuclei and soluble nuclear extracts of rat liver, kidney, and cultured GH(1) cells. The binding activity can be extracted from nuclei in soluble form with no significant change in hormone affinity and has properties of a nonhistone protein.     

Immunoassay of androgen binding protein in blood: a new approach for study of the seminiferous tubule

Androgen binding protein, a secretory product of seminiferous tubules, was isolated by means of affinity chromatography. A radioimmunoassay was developed and used to identify androgen binding protein in rat plasma. The ability to measure a testicular protein in blood provides a new method for investigation of seminiferous tubular physiology.     

Radioreceptor assay of adrenocorticotropic hormone: new approach to assay of polypeptide hormones in plasma

Biologically active iodine-125-labeled adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) binds specifically to ACTH receptors extracted from adrenals. Unlabeled ACTH at 1 picogram per milliliter significantly displaces labeled ACTH from these receptors. This system, which appears to be applicable to all polypeptide hormones, provides a rapid and sensitive method for measurements of biologically active ACTH in dilute whole plasma.     

Seeing below the surface: making soil processes visible to Ugandan smallholder farmers through a constructivist and experiential extension approach

Ugandan smallholder farmers need to feed a growing population, but their efforts are hampered by declining soil fertility rates. Agricultural extension can facilitate farmers’ access to new practices and technologies, yet farmers are understandably often hesitant to adopt new behaviors. New knowledge assimilation is an important component of behavior change that is often overlooked or poorly addressed by current extension efforts. We implemented a Fertility Management Education Program (FMEP) in central Uganda to investigate smallholder farmers’ existing soil knowledge and their assimilation of new scientific concepts into their knowledge framework. Qualitative data were collected through participant observation, farmer interviews, and focus groups, and coded for using a priori and emergent themes. Our exploration revealed some notable similarities between farmers’ soil knowledge and scientific concepts, particularly in regards to soil health concepts, a discovery that could facilitate communication between extension agents and farmers. However, certain scientific concepts are either unknown to farmers or discordant with existing soil knowledge; these concepts are unlikely to be assimilated by farmers without convincing and concerted extension efforts. Importantly, we found that the combination of new scientific knowledge and hands-on experimentation with novel practices gave farmers far greater confidence in implementing improved soil management practices. Our study provides evidence that extension programs should engage directly with farmers’ existing soil knowledge to develop their understanding of key biological concepts and confidence in implementing improved practices.     

A new approach to the oral administration of insulin and other peptide drugs

The oral administration of peptide drugs is well known to be precluded by their digestion in the stomach and small intestine. As a new approach to oral delivery, peptide drugs were coated with polymers cross-linked with azoaromatic groups to form an impervious film to protect orally administered drugs from digestion in the stomach and small intestine. When the azopolymer-coated drug reached the large intestine, the indigenous microflora reduced the azo bonds, broke the cross-links, and degraded the polymer film, thereby releasing the drug into the lumen of the colon for local action or for absorption. The ability of the azopolymer coating to protect and deliver orally administered peptide drugs was demonstrated in rats with the peptide hormones vasopressin and insulin.     

The Fundamental Nuclear Interaction: Important developments of the past decade on mesons and the theory of nuclear forces are described

GOPEB based upon known mesons have been found which realistically describe a massive accumulation of the experimental nuclear data up to 400 Mev. The N-N potential according to these models consists primarily of weak residual central terms surviving the cancellation of large repulsive and attractive vector and scalar static components; relativistic interactions arising from the exchange of pseudoscalar, vector, and scalar mesons and dipole type terms arising from the rho meson. The major dynamic terms are direct analogs of magnetic interactions illustrated in Fig. 1. Allowance must be made for the effective dependence of the coupling constants upon spin and isospin states. The nucleons are distributed sources which give rise to nonsingular generalized Yukawa functions in N-N potentials.     

生物质炭化还田作为土壤改良与循环农业的技术途径分析

循环农业与绿色低碳是生态文明建设的重要途径。生物质炭化还田在土壤改良与循环农业等方面具有良好的发展潜力。土壤中施入生物质炭是通过改善土壤理化性质、提高土壤肥力、修复土壤污染等方式对农业土壤生态系统功能产生影响。围绕生物质炭理化特性及炭化还田改良土壤这一基本途径,系统分析了生物质炭用于改良土壤的研究现状,明确了生物质炭改良植烟土壤所具有的突出优势,提出了生物质炭化还田技术利用模式,探讨了生物质炭在植烟土壤保育和营养管理等方面的潜力。     

农民的公民意识培养:新农村建设的根本路径

培养具有公民意识的新农民是建设社会主义新农村内在的必选路径。传统文化的积淀以及二元社会结构体制的影响严重制约了其公民意识的发展。我们应在改革开放以来创造的经济、政治、文化、法制等基础之上借鉴西方公民教育的经验设计出适合我国国情的公民意识教育模式———“权利零距离”,推动新农村建设。     

构筑公共财政支持农业和农村教育新框架的探讨

构筑公共财政框架是我国转变财政管理体制的必然选择。作者在分析我国农业发展和农村经济新形势的基础上 ,通过公共财政基本框架的构筑 ,提出了我国公共财政支持农业和农村教育的政策选择。