In situ measurements of nitrate leaching implicate poor nitrogen and irrigation management on sandy soils.

Minimizing the risk of nitrate contamination along the waterways of the U.S. Great Plains is essential to continued irrigated corn production and quality water supplies. The objectives of this study were to quantify nitrate (NO(3)) leaching for irrigated sandy soils (Pratt loamy fine sand [sandy, mixed, mesic Lamellic Haplustalfs]) and to evaluate the effects of N fertilizer and irrigation management strategies on NO(3) leaching in irrigated corn. Two irrigation schedules (1.0x and 1.25x optimum) were combined with six N fertilizer treatments broadcast as NH(4)NO(3) (kg N ha(-1)): 300 and 250 applied pre-plant; 250 applied pre-plant and sidedress; 185 applied pre-plant and sidedress; 125 applied pre-plant and sidedress; and 0. Porous-cup tensiometers and solution samplers were installed in each of the four highest N treatments. Soil solution samples were collected during the 2001 and 2002 growing seasons. Maximum corn grain yield was achieved with 125 or 185 kg N ha(-1), regardless of the irrigation schedule (IS). The 1.25x IS exacerbated the amount of NO(3) leached below the 152-cm depth in the preplant N treatments, with a mean of 146 kg N ha(-1) for the 250 and 300 kg N preplant applications compared with 12 kg N ha(-1) for the same N treatments and 1.0x IS. With 185 kg N ha(-1), the 1.25x IS treatment resulted in 74 kg N ha(-1) leached compared with 10 kg N ha(-1) for the 1.0x IS. Appropriate irrigation scheduling and N fertilizer rates are essential to improving N management practices on these sandy soils.

Bone contusions of the posterior lip of the medial tibial plateau (contrecoup injury) and associated internal derangements of the knee at MR imaging.

PURPOSE: To determine if there are any predictable patterns of internal derangement associated with a bone contusion of the posterior lip of the medial tibial plateau at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and to offer a biomechanical explanation for the findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective review of 215 consecutive MR examinations for knee trauma was conducted to identify contusions of the posterior lip of the medial tibial plateau. Any additional contusions and internal derangements were documented in the cases with these contusions. Medical charts and arthroscopic results, when available, were reviewed for mechanisms of injury. RESULTS: The specific medial tibial contusion was demonstrated in 25 of 215 (12%) knee MR examinations. Associated anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears were found in 25 of the 25 (100%) examinations. Injury to the meniscocapsular junction (14 of 25) or a peripheral tear of the posterior horn of the medial meniscus (10 of 25) occurred in a combined 96% of the cases. Lateral compartment contusions were noted in 24 (96%) cases. Pivot, twisting, or valgus forces were reported mechanisms of injury. CONCLUSION: Contusions involving the posterior lip of the medial tibial plateau may result from a contrecoup impaction injury directly following an ACL tear, as the knee reduces. These contusions are almost always associated with a far peripheral meniscal tear or with a meniscocapsular junction injury affecting the posterior horn of the medial meniscus.

[Efficacy of oral hyposensitization treatment in house dust mite allergy (author's transl)]. / Wirksamkeit oraler Hyposensibilisierung bei Hausstaubmilbenallergie.

32 children with perennial asthma and/or rhinitis due to house dust mite (HDM) allergy have been hyposensitized orally for a period of 42 weeks. The sensitization against HDM was confirmed by skin testing, RAST determinations and nasal provocation tests before and after treatment. The trial was double-blind, with 17 patients receiving the HDM extract and 15 receiving placebo. Patients returned for assessment at 6, 18, 30, and 42 weeks, nasal airways resistance testing, lung function tests (FVC), FEV1, PEF) and clinical evaluations were performed. The results of the subjective and objective assessments failed to demonstrate any superiority of oral hyposensitization with house dust mite extract compared to placebo.

MOPC 104E IgM/anti-idiotype solid-phase inhibition assay as a model for screening myeloma proteins for ligand binding specificity.

The inhibition of binding of 125I-labeled MOPC 104E IgM anti-idiotype to the controlled pore glass-bound IgM by various oligo- and polysaccharides was investigated as a model for the screening of myeloma proteins with unknown hapten binding specificity. The inhibitory efficiencies of the different haptens in this system were found to correlate well with their known abilities to bind to MOPC 104E IgM. Thus B1355S dextran, nigerosyl-alpha (1-3)-nigerose, and nigerosyl-alpha (1-3)-glucose, all known for specific binding to MOPC 104E IgM, were efficient inhibitors in the assay, in contrast to a series of more or less unrelated carbohydrate compounds, which showed only weak inhibitory capacity. According to these results there seems to be no obstacle to applying the anti-idiotype assay system to screening myeloma proteins whose binding specificity has not yet been determined.