A formative investigation assessing menstrual health literacy in professional women's football.

The aim of this study was to assess and compare menstrual health literacy in professional women's football. A three-section questionnaire was completed by professional players (n = 25), development players (n = 22) and staff (n = 19). The mean total knowledge score (out of 19) was lower for development players (5.4 ± 2.9) than professional players (7.8 ± 3.2) and staff (9.1 ± 4.8) (p < 0.001). No group achieved >50% correct answers. For each group, knowledge of the menstrual cycle (MC) was greater than knowledge of hormonal contraceptives (HC) (p < 0.001). Previous MC and HC education did not correspond to higher knowledge scores in professional players (p = 0.823) or development players (p = 0.274). In professional and development players, comfort of communication was influenced by the sex of whom they were communicating with (p < 0.001), with a preference for females. In conclusion, results from the present study suggest refined education strategies and new approaches are required for both players and staff to improve menstrual health literacy in professional women's football.

Resolved fluorescence of the two tryptophan residues in horse apomyoglobin.

The composite fluorescence emission from the two tryptophans (W7 and W14) of horse heart apomyoglobin was explored by fluorescence quenching experiments. The fluorescence of the W7 residue is the only one involved in the quenching by iodide or trichloroethanol (TCE) titration. The fluorescence contribution of W7 is 49% of the total apomyoglobin emission, and its spectrum is red-shifted compared to the W14 emission. The fluorescence decay of Trp residues gives an average fluorescence lifetime of 2.06 ns for W14 and 2.84 ns for W7. The static fluorescence quenching by TCE was used to monitor the individual motions of the two tryptophans in apomyoglobin. The short correlation time of W7 (rho = 3 ns) explains why this residue can experience various environments without having to assume the existence of several protein conformations occurring during its lifetime emission.

The mouse Cd83 gene: structure, domain organization, and chromosome localization.

Human CD83 (hCD83) is a 45 000 Mr cell-surface protein expressed predominantly by dendritic lineage cells. In this report, the genomic locus encoding mouse CD83 (Cd83) was isolated and the gene structure determined. The Cd83 gene spans approximately 19 kilobases (kb) and is composed of five exons, with two exons encoding a single extracellular immunoglobulin (Ig)-like domain. Mouse CD83 (mCD83) cDNAs were isolated by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction of mouse RNA. Sequence determination revealed substantial conservation, with mCD83 and hCD83 sharing 63% amino acid identity. The transmembrane and cytoplasmic regions of CD83 were most highly conserved. Mouse CD83 mRNA of 2.4 kb was abundantly expressed in spleen and brain, but could also be detected in most tissues analyzed. These results suggest that in the mouse, as in humans, widely distributed dendritic cells may express mCD83. Chromosome localization revealed that the Cd83 gene is present on mouse chromosome 13 band A5, while the locus for the human gene (CD83) is located within a homologous region of human chromosome 6p23. Thus, the CD83 protein and gene appear to be well conserved during recent mammalian evolution. The isolation and characterization of the mCD83 cDNA and gene provides important information and tools that will facilitate the study of CD83 and dendritic cell function in a mouse model system.

Hurler syndrome: II. Outcome of HLA-genotypically identical sibling and HLA-haploidentical related donor bone marrow transplantation in fifty-four children. The Storage Disease Collaborative Study Group.

Untreated patients with Hurler syndrome (MPSIH) experience progressive neurologic deterioration and early death. Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) ameliorates or halts this course. The Storage Disease Collaborative Study Group was formed to evaluate the effectiveness and toxicity of BMT. Effectiveness was defined as engrafted survival with continuing cognitive development. Fifty-four patients deficient in leukocyte alpha-L-iduronidase enzyme activity (median age, 1.8 years; range, 0.4 to 7.9) received high-dose chemotherapy with or without irradiation and BMT from HLA-genotypically identical sibling (GIS) or HLA-haploidentical related (HIR) donors between September 16, 1983 and July 14, 1995; all children were included in this report. Thirty-nine of 54 patients (72%) engrafted following the first BMT. The probability of grade II to IV acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) at 100 days was 32% for GIS and 55% for HIR patients. The probability of extensive chronic GVHD was 0% for GIS and 24% for HIR patients. The actuarial probability of survival at 5 years was 64% for all patients, 75% for GIS patients, 53% for HIR patients, and 53% for patients with donor marrow engraftment. The baseline Mental Developmental Index (MDI) was examined both for children less than and greater than 24 months of age at BMT. Children transplanted before 24 months had a mean baseline MDI of 78, while those transplanted after 24 months had a mean baseline MDI of 63 (P = . 0002). Both baseline and post-BMT neuropsychologic data were available for 26 of 30 engrafted survivors. Of 14 patients transplanted before 24 months of age, nine demonstrated developmental trajectories that were normal or somewhat slower than normal. In contrast, of 12 patients transplanted after 24 months of age, only three showed developmental trajectories that were normal or somewhat slower than normal (P = .01). For children with a baseline MDI greater than 70, there was a significant correlation between the MDI at follow-up study and leukocyte alpha-L-iduronidase enzyme activity (P = .02). Children were more likely to maintain normal cognitive development if they were fully engrafted following BMT from a donor with homozygous normal leukocyte alpha-L-iduronidase enzyme activity. Children who developed acute GVHD of grade II or worse had significantly poorer cognitive outcomes (P < .009). No difference in the post-BMT MDI was observed between patients whose preparative therapies did (n = 10; radiation dose, 300 to 1,400 cGy) or did not (n = 16) include radiation. We conclude that MPSIH patients, particularly those less than 24 months of age with a baseline MDI greater than 70, can achieve a favorable long-term outcome with continuing cognitive development and prolonged survival after successful BMT from a related donor with homozygous normal enzyme activity.

Dynamic and structural properties of glucose oxidase enzyme.

The catalytic oxidation of beta-D-glucose by the enzyme glucose oxidase involves a redox change of the flavin coenzyme. The structure and the dynamics of the two extreme glucose oxidase forms were studied by using infrared absorption spectroscopy of the amide I'band, tryptophan fluorescence quenching and hydrogen isotopic exchange. The conversion of FAD to FADH2 does not change the amount of alpha-helix present in the protein outer shell, but reorganizes a fraction of random coil to beta-sheet structure. The dynamics of the protein interior vary with the redox states of the flavin without affecting the motions of the structural elements near the protein surface. From the structure of glucose oxidase given by X-ray crystallography, these results suggest that the dynamics of the interface between the two monomers are involved in the catalytic mechanism.

Isolation of mouse T-cell lymphoma lines from different long-term interleukin 2-dependent cultures.

A number of different biological properties have been ascribed to the hormone-like protein interleukin 2 (IL-2). However, the most salient feature of this lymphokine is its ability to sustain the long-term proliferation of T-cells from humans and mice. Reported herein are the results of studies demonstrating the isolation of growth factor-independent cell lines from the long-term IL-2-dependent murine T-cell line CTLL-2 that is used frequently as the source of target cells in IL-2 bioassays. Sustained log-phase growth of these T-cells in vitro has been achieved using Petri dishes of polymethylpentene; growth could not be sustained in similar dishes of glass, untreated polystyrene, polystyrene that had been treated for cell culture, or polycarbonate. The IL-2-independent line grew as a T-cell lymphoma when injected i.p. into pristane-treated, but not untreated, syngeneic C57BL/6 mice. In contrast, cells from the IL-2 parental line CTLL-2 did not grow in vivo. Characterization of the IL-2-independent lines propagated in vitro (denoted as line CEC) or in vivo (denoted as line CEP) demonstrated that they retained their dependency for 2-mercaptoethanol and expressed phenotypic profiles of their parental line CTLL-2 (Thy 1.2+, Lyt-1-; Lyt-2-). Isolation of an IL-2-independent T-cell lymphoma from a CTLL-2 line obtained from another investigator using a protocol that has proven reproducible under carefully controlled laboratory conditions and defined phenotypic traits of the syngeneic T-cell isolates provided evidence that the tumors were not a cross-culture contaminant arising as a result of a laboratory accident. Moreover, karyotypic analysis using a quinacrine:Hoechst banding technique revealed similar marker chromosomes in the IL-2-dependent and -independent lines. IL-2-independent lines have also been established from the IL-2-dependent murine T-cell line CT-6. Accordingly, the results of these studies suggest that, during prolonged cultivation that has included exposure to crude IL-2 preparations known to contain phorbol ester, possibly viruses, and other contaminants, the IL-2-dependent lines have developed subpopulations that are thought to have undergone malignant transformation of unknown etiology to generate IL-2-independent murine T-cell lymphomas that can be passaged repetitively either in vitro or in vivo.

Studies of cultured human T lymphocytes. II. Initiation of paired T- and B-cell lines from healthy donors.

We report the sustained cultivation of both B- and T-lymphoblastoid cell lines from randomly selected healthy donors, and the results of studies defining the frequency with which these cell lines can be established. B-cell lines were initiated using the Epstein-Barr virus. Of 52 attempts, 40 B-cell lines (77% success) were obtained from 24 different donors. T-cell lines were started and propagated in long-term (greater than 100 days) cultures using the T-cell growth factor interleukin-2 (IL-2). Of 55 attempts, 54 (98%) were successful in initiating IL-2-dependent T-cell lines, and these were derived from 28 healthy adults. Likewise, of 45 attempts, 32 (71%) were successful in producing paired lines in which both the B-cell line and T-cell line were cultivated from a single blood collection (N = 22 donors). Phenotypic profiles of these lines were defined using multiple marker assays, including rosette formation, surface immunoglobulins, cytochemistry, karyotype, as well as xenoantisera and monoclonal antibodies defining different membrane antigens. This work demonstrates the feasibility of propagating paired human B and T lymphoblastoid lines suitable for many comparative immunobiological studies.