For the purpose of obtaining an information as to the value and limitations of C-reactive protein as an index for the evaluation of postoperative condition of a patient, serum levels of this protein were examined in parallel with other indices of inflammation in about 80 patients who mainly underwent abdominal surgery. In a group of gastrectomized patients, which was classified as standard case, a postoperative pattern of CRP response was illustrated and a comparison was· made with other indices from the point of postoperative evaluation of the patient. Influence of many factors such as age, sex, body weight, and so on upon the postoperative CRP response was discussed using the standard cases. The significance of CRP levels on each postoperative day was discussed in relation to postoperative complications both in gastrectomy and cholecystectomy. Discussion was also made concerning the origin of this protein.

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Agricultural chemicals will be mixed in underground and surface water by penetration farms sprinkling in the air or on the ground, sewer, waste water and the like. It is said that organic agricultural chemicals will be gradually resolved chemically or biologically in the water, or adhered to suspension, but they surely remain for a comparatively long period. If those organic agricultural chemicals would remain for a long period and would deteriorate the water quality, some special treatment for water quality is inevitably necessary. However, there has been few studies on this matter. The present investigation was undertaken to remove agricultural chemicals. Satisfactory results were realized by use of powder active carbon only between two glass fibre plates in the filter and of MF filter medium. Especially the MF filter medium containing 77.2% aragonite calcium carbonate completely eliminated parathion and PCP under 1.22 ppm concentration.

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Several cases of fibrocystic disease of the pancreas or meconium ileus in Japanese children were reported recently. However, the majority of the cases in Japan were diagnosed by similar clinical symptoms of the disease and by typical histological findings, but not by satisfactory data. In order to know the incidence of the fibrocystic changes of the pancreas, the pancreas of 422 autopsy cases of infants were examined histologically. Results were as follows: 1. Inspissated material in acini was found in 14.7% of 422 autopsy cases. 2. Inspissated material in pancreatic ducts was found in 24.2%. 3. Cystic dilatation of pancreatic ducts or acini was found in 6.4%. 4. Fibrosis of the pancreas was seen in 14.7%. Cystic and fibrotic changes of the pancreas in autopsy cases among Japanese children, were seen in extremely high incidence, not only in cases of the group who expired under conditions similar to fatal complications of fibrocystic disease of the pancreas, but also of cases who expired from other causes.

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Many investigations have demonstrated that prolactin from the anterior pituitary was indispensable for induction and maintenance of the lactation. Luteotrophic action of prolactin was also well established especially in the rat. Those lactogenic and luteotrophic activities are physiologically necessary only for the female. The present experiment was attempted to study actions of prolactin on the male sexual organs. Effect of pituitary hormone on the prostate was suggested by the reports that more profound prostatic atrophy was resulted from hypophysectomy in the dog1) and rat2) than that observed after castration. It is well known that luteinizing hormone stimulates the testis to produce androgen; so if not be castrated the prostate and the seminal vesicle are affected by luteinizing hormone. It could be found the references stated that prolactin sensitized the hypophysectomized rats prostate3) and seminal vesicle4,5) to the action of androgen. But no demonstrable effect was reported when prolactin was given alone. In the present investigation prolactin (PL), growth hormone (STH), Hypophorin (Hy) and Synaphorin (Sy) were administered respectively lo the male immature and adult rats; including intact, hypophysectomized and hypophysectomized and hypophysectomized-spayed. Effects of hormones were observed by body weights, tibia test, weights of male sexual organs, histological appearances of male sexual organs and acid phosphatase determination in the prostate. In adult hypophysectomized rat effectiveness on the male sexual organs, including seminal vesicle, prostate and testis, was remarkable in the order of Sy, Hy, PL and STH. If castration was added to hypophysectomy, effectiveness on the seminal vesicle was remarkable in the order of Sy, TP (testosterone propionate) and PL; Hy and STH had no effects. In those hypophysectomized-spayed rats the most remarkable effect on the prostate was resulted from PL treatment. LH and. FSH did not act to the prostate without testis. Results of the present investigation indicated that prolactin from the anterior pituitary might play a role in maintenance of the physiological conditions of the prostate. Lactogenic and luteotrophic activities of prolactin are well established especially in the rat. But a role of prolactin in the male seems to be not yet defined. According to references more profound prostatic atrophy was resulted from hypophysectomy in the dog1) and rat2) than that observed after castration. This observation suggests that pituitary hormone may affect the male sex organs. It has been reported that prolactin sensitized the hypophysectomized rat’s prostate3) and seminal vesicle4,5) to the action of androgen, but no demonstrable effect when given alone2-8). On the contrary, Bengmark and HesseIsjö9,10) demonstrated a stimulating effect of prolactin upon the seminal vesicle tissue growth by using tissue culture technique. In clinics, Ichikawa11) has reported that prolactin in the urine of the patient with prostatic cancer was increased in accordance with its histological malignancy, but not in the patient with prostatic hypertrophy. To be described in the present paper is a direct effect of prolactin on the prostate and the seminal vesicle of the rat.

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The testicular tissue of forty men of various ages and conditions was examined both histochemically and histologically. 3β-Hydroxy steroid dehydrogenase (3βOHSD) was demonstrated in nothing but interstitial cells of Leydig (ISCs) in the human testicular tissue. Every ISC of fetal testes equally exhibited the enzymatic activity, which rapidly disappeared during the first neonatal week and could not be found histochemically till the onset of puberty. At the time of puberty, almost all the ISCs acquired the evident activity again. In the postpubertal testes, however, the regressive ISCs, which increased in number as age increased, had no activity. 3βOHSD was also active in the proliferative ISCs of postpubertal testicular atrophy, gonadotropin treated cryptorchism and testicular feminization, while there was no activity in the testes of eunuchoidism, diabetes insipidus and estrogen-treated prostatic carcinoma. The appearance of esterase and acid phosphatase in the ISCs roughly paralleled 3βOHSD-activity. In seminiferous epithelium, both the enzyme were usually weak and independent of sexual maturation. The activities of both diaphorases, lactate dehydrogenase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase were usually very intense in the ISCs in every case examined. Especially, the fibroblast-like cells in the interstitium of the infantile testes were identified as immature ISCs, because of their strong activities of these enzymes. On the contrary, the seminiferous epithelium showed very weak activities of these enzymes in fetal testes, and moderate in postnatal ones. The appearance of alkaline phosphatase in the ISCs was limited to the aged, gonadotropin-treated cryptorchism, estrogen-treated prostatic cancer and testicular feminization. On the other hand, this enzyme was very intense in the undifferentiated germ cells of fetal testes, while it was hardly found in the seminiferous epithelium of postnatal testes.

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The actions of Trimeresurus flavoviridis in a dark, isolated place were wandering and resting. In this state, the momentary speed was measured from the time required for a part of the snake s body to pass through a distance of 30 cm. The average speed was 114.8 cm/ minute at 20°C indifferent to the intensities of illumination from 2 to 2300 luxes. The prowling speed was measured from the time required for a snake to pass erratically through a distance of 136 cm. Average speeds were 60.4, 68.0 and 169.5 cm/ minute under 2, 100 and 2,000 luxes. The duration of the striking pose seemed to be prolonged when the snake was active and wild. The daily activity of the snakes was quantitatively observed in a snake pit in Ap1il, August and September. From sunset to sunrise they wandered about actively on the ground, climbed trees and swam in the water, and the peak of the activity was between 1 and 4 AM. Correlation of the activity of the snakes with meteorological factors was tested and shown to exist between values of logarithmic intensity of illumination, solar radiation, temperature and humidity with the coefficients, -0.741, -0.532, -0.492 and +0.486. The activity of the snakes was suppressed by artificial lighting at night during a few hours, and rainfall evoked the transient emergence of the snakes in the darkness but the effect of rainfall was inferior to that of light. The blindfolded snakes responded sensitively to the radiation. The first reaction was tongue flicking, and the head followed the movement of a radiant body. The threshold of the sensible radiation was measured. In blindfolded snakes, the end point of the sensible radiation from a small electric heater was 0.34-3.37×10-4 cal/cm2/sec with an average of 1.22×10-4 cal/ cm2/sec among 9 snakes. Snakes with dosed pits were insensitive to the energy of 11.9-21.7×10-4 cal/ cm2/sec. After the plugs were removed, the sensitivity returned to the initial state. The threshold was approximately one tenth smaller when a hand and a rat were used as the heat sources. The sensitivity was not changed when one of the facial pits was plugged. The orientation with a single pit was still accurate to direct a strike.

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The fractionation and the amino acid composition of the organic matrix of embryonic bovine enamel was studied. EDTA- and water-soluble fraction dissolved in phosphate buffer showed a temperature-dependent properties; at low temperatures it formed a clear solution, but at room temperature heavy precipitations occurred. This phenomenon was reversible. EDTA- and water-soluble fraction prepared in mild conditions was first chromatographed on Sephadex G-25 column. Four fractions were obtained. The main fraction comprised nearly half of the material and its molecular weight was found by gel filtration to be greater than 3,500. The temperature-dependent phenomenon above stated was observed only in the main fraction. The result of the fractionation with Sephadex G-100 revealed that a portion of the main fraction had molecular weight greater than 100,000. The results of the amino acid analysis showed that the EDTA- and water-soluble fraction was a high proline component. On the other hand, the EDTA insoluble fraction was a high proline-glutamic acid-histidine component. The EDTA-insoluble fraction was extracted with organic solvents and water. About 73% was solubilized, and the amino acid composition of the extracted residue relatively changed from the mother fraction; the residual protein contained only small amount of histidine. These results were discussed with reference to enamel maturation.

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In an attempt to clarify the relationship between the pattern of afferent impulses and efferent effects, the reflex salivary secretion in the submandibular gland of the dog was measured, applying a fixed number (10-90) of square pulses (each pulse of 0.5 msec duration) in the range of repetition rate (r.r.) of 2-200/ sec to the lingual nerve. The quantity of salivary secretion was, within the range of r.r. 2-200/sec, increased with the number of stimulating pulses. A nearly linear relationship between the logarithm of the quantity of saliva secreted (log Q) and that of the number of stimulating pulses (log M) was observed. Regardless of the number of stimulating pulses, the quantity of secretion was greater at the range of r.r. 2-20/ sec than at higher rates. As a comparison, the efferent nerve (the submandibular branch of the chorda tympani nerve) to the submandibular gland was stimulated. Similar results were obtained, however, the r.r. of 2-10/ sec was the optimal frequency only when the number of stimulating pulses was 50 or more. The relationship between r.r. and the number of stimulating pulses necessary to elicit the secretion was investigated. The change caused by the elimination of the other fibres than the taste one in the lingual nerve (by cutting the mandibular nerve of the trigeminal nerve) was studied. Based on these experimental results, the central processing mechanisms of the afferent impulses from the tongue were discussed.

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The vascular system in the developing molar teeth of the rat was examined in young specimens, which had been injected with black ink and then cleared in wintergreen oil. Arteries leading to the upper molars come from the posterior superior alveolar, infraorbital, and ophthalmic arteries, and those supplying the lower ones arise from the buccal, posterior superior alveolar, anterior facial, and submental arteries. Small branches from these trunk arteries pierce the outer enamel epithelium of the enamel organ to reach the stratum intermedium, there forming a capillary network. Along the margin of the enamel organ, the capillaries join the small veins, which in turn flow in large intra-osseous efferent veins in a tortuous course. In the upper jaw, these veins connect with the posterior superior alveolar vein, and with the buccal, circummental and submental veins and pterygoid plexus in the lower j aw. In addition to these descriptions, some discussions are made on the significance of the vascularization of the enamel organ.

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