Effect of valvular heart diseases, migraine headaches, and perianal diseases on the risk of involvement in motor vehicle crashes.

Impaired health can interfere with driving performance. We have launched this investigation to identify in professional military drivers health parameters that might be associated with involvement in motor vehicle crashes (MVCs). All Israel Defense Forces professional male drivers (N = 5,605) conscripted into compulsory military service between April 1, 1988 and April 1, 1990 were divided into two groups according to whether (N = 1,300) or not (N = 4,305) the driver was involved in MVCs during the same time frame. Using the multivariate Cox model, a significant association was shown between involvement in MVCs and the following health parameters: mild-to-moderate valvular heart disease (p = 0.0002, chi 2 = 13.89), migraine headaches (p = 0.009, chi 2 = 6.91), and perianal diseases (p = 0.006, chi 2 = 7.44). We hypothesize that interference with the driver's performance level may be a result of the discomfort associated with those clinical conditions. It is possible that interference with the personal performance level decreased the ability of the driver to cope with the specific driving task demands and resulted in the involvement of the driver in MVCs. We suggest that because of the high social and economic costs associated with road accidents, it is important to investigate further the association of involvement in MVCs and health problems. If our findings are confirmed in the future studies, intervention programs to reduce MVC rates would be suggested and conducted among professional drivers.

Novel psi-S-CH2 peptide-bond replacement and its utilization in the synthesis of nonpeptidic surrogates of the Leu-Asp-Val sequence that exhibit specific inhibitory activities on CD4+ T cell binding to fibronectin.

The Leu-Asp-Val-(LDV)-containing amino acid sequence, derived from the alternatively spliced first connecting segment region of fibronectin (FN), was shown to be recognized primarily by the alpha 4 beta 1-integrin receptor expressed on the surface of various cell types. This adhesion epitope may therefore inhibit integrin-mediated cell interactions with the extracellular matrix glycoprotein, including adhesion, migration, activation and differentiation. To probe the structural requirements for LDV recognition by integrins and examine the feasibility of inhibition of LDV-dependent cell-FN interactions, we have designed and constructed a novel psi-S-CH2 peptide bond surrogate that was employed in the formation of LDV surrogates. The synthesis of the psi-S-CH2 surrogates reported herein is based on Michael addition of 4-methylpentane thiol to an itaconic acid diester to form an S-CH2 bond. We have found that the LDV surrogates comprises of 4-methylpentanoate-Asp-i-butyl amide and 8-methyl-3-(2-methylpropylaminocarbonyl)-5-thianonanoic acid interfered with CD4+ human T-cell adhesion to FN in vitro, with an ED50 of 280 micrograms/mL. A control structural mimetic of the Leu-Glu-Val (LEV) peptide did not interfere with the T-cell-FN interaction. The specificity of the reaction was substantiated by the finding that the LDV mimetics did not interfere with T-cell adhesion to laminin, another major cell-adhesive glycoprotein of the extracellular matrix.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Herbicide response polymorphisms in wild emmer wheat: ecological and isozyme correlations.

We demonstrate that the scores and frequencies of chlortoluron (CT) and metoxuron (MX) resistance and susceptible phenotypes of wild emmer wheat, Triticum dicoccoides, are correlated with ecological factors and allozyme markers. Some isozyme markers located on chromosome 6B (e.g. Adh,Est-4 and Got), which also harbours the CT and MX resistance gene, provide good genetic markers for herbicide resistance breeding. Significant correlations between herbicide and photosynthetic characters suggest that the evolution of herbicide resistance polymorphisms may be related to the process of photosynthesis in nature and predated domestication of cultivated wheat.

Mercury selection of allozymes in marine gastropods: Prediction and verification in nature revisited.

Previous laboratory studies with mercury pollution revealed that the sensitive alleles are (S) for the phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI) locus in both Littorina punctata and L. neritoides and the allele (M+) for the amino peptidase (AP) locus in L. neritoides (Lavie and Nevo, 1986b). The present study tested the frequencies of these alleles at 8 sites along the Israeli Mediterranean shore. We found the frequencies of the sensitive alleles at the mercury polluted site at Akko to be lower than at all other seven sites. Therefore, we concluded that allozyme frequency distributions found in nature are consistent with survivorship patterns found in the laboratory. These results reinforce the suggestion (Nevo et al., 1980) that a monitoring system based on changes in population genetic structure is not only theoretically commendable but practically feasible in principle.

Genetic selection of homozygote allozyme genotypes in marine gastropods exposed to cadmium pollution.

Five species of marine gastropods (Monodonta turbinata, M. turbiformis, Cerithium scabridum, Littorina punctata and L. neritoides) were exposed to cadmium in the laboratory. The enzyme phosphoglucose isomerase (PGI) tested electrophoretically showed for all five species a statistically significant higher proportion of heterozygotes among the dead animals than among the survivors in the range of concentration tested. This pattern seems to have been established by natural selection. Further, it could be used in developing biological monitors of present and past cadmium pollution based on the genetic response of natural populations to this specific pollutant.

Natural selection for resistance to mercury pollution.

The survival under conditions of mercury pollution of two natural populations of the marine gastropod Cerithium rupestre, derived from mercury-polluted and mercury-free sites, was tested in the laboratory. The results indicate a significantly higher survival rate for animals derived from the mercury-polluted site, in each of six repetitive experiments. We conclude that mercury resistance in marine organisms is reinforced in mercury polluted sites, presumably by natural selection for increased resistance. The evolution of metal tolerance in marine organisms may be as fast as that of metal tolerance in plants and the evolution of industrial melanisms in moths.

Differential viability of phosphoglucose isomerase allozyme genotypes of marine snails in nonionic detergent and crude oil-surfactant mixtures.

The effects of a nonionic detergent and of crude oil-detergent mixtures in aqueous solutions on the allozyme frequencies of phosphoglucose isomerase (Pgi) genotypes were tested in the Mediterranean marine gastropods Monodonta turbinata and M. turbiformis. Our results indicate differential survivorship of electrophoretical Pgi allozyme genotypes for both detergent alone and for crude oil-detergent mixtures. These results reflect the adaptive nature of some Pgi genotypes in these marine gastropods and seem inconsistent with the neutral theory of allozyme polymorphisms. Furthermore, these findings suggest that allozyme variants demonstrate a differential tolerance to these organic pollutants and can, therefore, be used as detectors of organic pollutants in the sea.

Mercury selection of allozymes in marine organisms: Prediction and verification in nature.

The geographic distributions of mercury-tolerant allozyme genotypes of the enzyme phosphoglucomutase in the shrimp Palaemon elegans and the enzyme phosphoglucose isomerase in the marine gastropod Monodonta turbinata were compared in a mercury-polluted site versus several unpolluted sites on the Israeli coast of the Mediterranean sea. We conclude that in both phosphoglucomutase and phosphoglucose isomerase, the level of the mercury-tolerant allozyme genotypes was higher in the polluted as compared with the unpolluted sites. These results suggest that mercury selection is operating in nature on allozyme genotypes of these marine organisms along patterns comparable with those found previously in laboratory experiments. We suggest that the enzymes studied here display an adaptive pattern in polluted environments. Therefore, they may be used as potential indicators and monitors of marine pollution.

Longevity in lines of Tribolium castaneum selected for high and for low dispersal.

A comparison between Tribolium castaneum lines selected for high and low dispersal revealed that longevity is higher for the low dispersal line. The high dispersal line is superior to the low dispersal line when early adult fitness is considered. Previous experiments reported a shorter development time for the higher dispersal time. The present study shows for this line higher survival until 60 days from enclosure.

The genetic basis of egg lay response to conditioned medium in the flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum : I. Two-way selection.

The rate of egg laying in Tribolium castaneum is affected by the quality of the environment and can thus serve not only as a component of fitness of the individual, but also as an adaptation to the long-term survival of the population. In an attempt to determine whether it is an independent genetic character, selection for high and low rates of response was carried jut in beetles from three wild populations. When tests were done on virgin females, and responsiveness, corrected for scale effects, was used as the criterion for selection, separation between the lines was achieved in one generation. It is suggested that in natural populations of Tribolium, the responsiveness of the rate of egg laying to the quality of the environment is controlled by a small number of genes.