The role of zinc as a stimulatory factor on bone formation was reviewed. Bone growth retardation is a common finding in various conditions associated with zinc deficiency. The mechanism of zinc action on bone metabolism, however, has not been clarified so far. The oral administration of zinc sulfate (0.5-10 mg Zn/100 g body weight) to weanling rats can produce an increase in dry weight, alkaline phosphatase activity, calcium, collagen and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) contents in the femoral diaphysis, indicating that zinc has a stimulatory effect on bone formation and calcification. In tissue culture by using the calvaria from weanling rats, it has been demonstrated that zinc (10^-6-10^-4M) can stimulate bone protein synthesis, and that the zinc effect is based on activation of aminoacyl-transfer ribonucleic acid (tRNA) synthetase. The depletion of endogenous zinc in bone cells by treatment with dipicolinate, a chelator of zinc, can retard the synthesis of bone protein. Zinc is an essential factor in the systhesis of bone protein. Increasing age induces the deterioration of bone metabolism, and it decreases bone cellular zinc and protein systhesis. These decreases, however, can be restored by supplement of zinc. Thus, it has been introduced that zinc, an essential trace element, plays an important role in the stimulation of bone formation.

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World trends and problems of amphetamine and methamphetamine abuse, were described. Since the world seizures of the controlled drugs such as opiates, heroin, cocaine, cannabis and other psychotropic substances have rapidly increased in recent years, the author focused on the world-wide spread of amphetamine abuse. The world seizure of stimulant including amphetamines in 1987 has increased by 5-6 fold over in 1982. The trends of amphetamine abuse in many countries were summarized and this report pointed out the past and present problems of amphetamine abuse in U.S.A., Sweden, and Japan. In west coast regions of U.S.A., methamphetamine abuse has surprisingly spread in recent years. The increases of clandestine laboratory have become a big problem in US western states. The trends of amphetamine abuse patterns were introduced. Because of the great risk of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome with intravenous injection drug use, abuse patterns have been changing from injection to inhalation of amphetamines. About a new smokable methamphetamine, so-called "ice", its chemical and pharmacological characters were discussed and its toxicity also described. Additionally, concerning psychotropic drugs chemically and pharmacologically similar to amphetamines, their histories and hallucinogenic activities were described. In paticular, the epidemiologic topics of 3, 4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) called the rivival of LSD was described.

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Based on the experience of environmental contamination caused by PCB_S, the Law concerning Examination and Regulation of Manufacture, etc., of Chemical Substances was enacted in 1973 to regulate new chemical substances, before they are manufactured or imported for general use, to determine whether such substances have properties of persistency, high bioaccumulation potential and chronic toxicity, and to implement necessary regulations for manufacturing and importing chemical substances according to their properties. In 1986, the Law was amended to regulate not only chemicals like PCB_S but such chemicals as trichloroethylene which have persistency and chronic toxic properties. This amendment is to provide adequate measures that would ensure such chemicals not to cause environmental pollution. In implementing this law, OECD Test Guidelines and OECD principles of GLP have been adopted as the test method and to confirm the reliability of the data from the test laboratories.

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Horizontal distributions of 8 polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), i.e. pyrene (Py), fluorantene (Fl), benzo [a] anthracene (B [a] A), benzo [k] fluorantene (B [k] F), benzo [b] fluorantene (B [b] F), benzo [a] pyrene (B [a] P), benzo [ghi] perylene (B [ghi] P) and perylene (Per), in sediments from the Seki River and coastal area near the river mouth were measured. Sediment cores from off the river mouth were also analyzed to provide data on historical changes of the 8 PAHs. Concentrations of the total 8 PAHs in the river sediment, the coastal sediment and the sediment core were ranged from <2.6 to 8119, 5.0-298 and 47.9-260 ng/g dry weight, respectively. B [a] P concentration, which was correlated to the other 6 PAHs except for Per, was ranged from <0.1 to 369 ng/g dry weight in the river sediment, 0.3-12ng/g dry weight in the coastal sediment and 0.8-19ng/g dry weight in the sediment core. Except for Per, every PAH-concentration per ignition-loss (PAH/IL) in the river sediment was high at downstream and extremely at the places where indutrial wastewater flowed. PAH/IL in the coastal sediment and surface of the sediment core which located at the places where suspended materials were flowed out from the Seki River was also high, and each PAH-concentration per B [a] P-concentration in the coastal sediment resembled those in the river sediment, suggesting that the river is an important route for supplying PAH to the coastal sediment. On the other hand, it seems that most of Per in sediment originated from natural source and the naturally derived Per-concentrations/IL in the sediment core was estimated at 1.4±0.32 mg/kg.

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A gas chromatographic procedure has been developed for determination of chlordanes in environmental samples such as soil. The basis of the method is the conversion of many of these chlorinated C₁₀ hydrocarbons into a single partial dechlorinated product, which is determined by gas chromatography with an electron capture detector. Soil is extracted with hexane. The extract is cleaned up on a Florisil cartridge and dechlorinated with Zn/HCl. The dechlorinated compound is injected into a gas chromatograph and chlordanes determined as one partially dechlorinated compound. The detection limit in this method is 0.002 μg/g. The coefficient of variation was 3.2% for soil samples while the average recovery was 94.3%. Although capable of determining only 4, 7-methanoindanes, which comprise more than 80% of the chlordanes, the significance of the method is recognized as the first means of screening for chlordanes. To date application has been made only to soil samples, but it is believed that with selection of the proper solvent for extraction, the method can be more broadly applied to samples such as food and biological samples.

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Five subsidiary dyes of Lithol Rubine B (C.I. 15850) were synthesized to clear the chemical structures of mutagenic impurities in the commercial cosmetic Lithol Rubine B. Their analyses by HPLC were investigated and the mutagenic activities examined by Ames test by using Salmonella typhimurium TA 98 and TA 100. The subsidiary dyes and Lithol Rubine B were completely separated by the gradient HPLC analysis by using an Inertsil ODS column and acetonitrile-water-formic acid system as a mobile phase. The subsidiary dyes showed no mutagenic activities to S. typhimurium with or without S9mix. These results suggest that the mutagenic activities may not be due to the subsidiary dyes but to some reaction intermediates in the synthetic process of Lithol Rubine B.

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To clarify the degradation pathway of chlorhexidine by a microbe, Pseudomonas sp. strain No. A-3, the identification of microbial chlorhexidine-degradation products was attempted. A new lipophilic chlorhexidine-degradation product was isolated by extraction with ethyl acetate from the culture medium of the strain, and purified by preparative thin-layer-chromatography by use of Silica gel. The chemical structure of this product was examined by infra-red, ¹H-NMR and fast atom bombardment mass spectra studies. By the spectroscopic data, this product was identified as p-chlorophenylurea and assumed to be a new degradation product of chlorhexidine by this strain.

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A simple pretreatment method by using a Conway microdiffusion unit was developed for the determination of benzene (Bz) in household organic solvent commodities by gas chromatography (GC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The analytical procedure is as follows : each 5 ml of hexane was put into both the center and the outer portions of a Conway unit. A 0.5-1.0 g sample was added to the outer portion, and the unit was immediately covered. After standing for 4 h at 25°C, the solution in the center portion was taken and the content of Bz absorbed in the solution was determined by GC with a hydrogen flame ionizing detector and HPLC with a UV detector. This method was applied to ten commercial products, and 0.01-0.76 w/w % of Bz were determined in five products. The detection limit of Bz by GC and HPLC method was 0.01 w/w %.

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The GC-MS and TLC methods for the determination and identification of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol-11-oic acid, a major urinary metabolite of Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol which is one of main constituents of marihuana, were established. Δ⁹-Tetrahydrocannabinol-11-oic acid was detected on TLC by using Fast Blue BB salt as a color reagent. The metabolite was determined as trimethylsilyl derivative of its methyl ester by using electron impact ionization GC-MS and 5'-nor-Δ⁸-tetrahydrocannabinol-4'-oic acid as an internal standard. The assay provides excellent sensitivity, reproducibility and specificity with detection limit of 1 ng/ml human urine.

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In order to make no biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) loading influent was changed from synthetic wastewater to tap water, and the activated sludge was cultured for 18 d. The relationship between the state of activated sludge and the time course pattern of nitrite nitrogen contents in anaerobically treated activated sludge (NO₂-N pattern) was investigated. Concentration of activated sludge decreased with culture time. Effluent chemical oxygen demand (COD) increased gradually. Effluent BOD increased later than effluent COD. At the 14-18th day, sludge volume index, BOD and COD showed high levels, and the state of activated sludge was confirmed to be abnormal. The NO₂-N patterns were type A at the 0-10th day, and patterns of type A changed according to the changes of the state of activated sludge. At the 14-18th day, when the state became abnormal, the NO₂-N patterns changed to like type D. Thus, under no BOD loading, it also appears that the NO₂-N pattern could be a useful index for the evaluation of the state of activated sludge.

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The concentration of carboxyhemoglobin in the blood (HbCO%) was measured by absorptiometry on 388 persons killed with carbonmonoxide poisoning in the last 5 years. The HbCO% was determined to measure the absorbance at 538 nm and 555 nm. The HbCO% was calculated as follows. HbCO%=100 (A/B-0.775)/0.458 A : Absorbance at 538 nm B : Absorbance at 555 nm As a result, the average HbCO% from 388 persons was about 70%. The lowest carboxyhemoglobin concentration for the death with carbonmonoxide was estimated to be about 50-55%. The HbCO% for the death with carbonmonoxide poisoning was related to age and occupation.

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