Fluoride distibution and the effect of some ions along Alexandria coastal Mediterranean seawater of Egypt

The coastal seawater of Mediterranean of Alexandria receives large amount of discharged waters containing industrial wastes, sewage, and agricultural and domestic drainage. Fluoride and some parameters were(chemical and physical) determined. The data gave indication that the content and the amount of the discharged water largely affect the chemical composition of the coastal water. Stepwise regression analysis was highly significant and the model was very fruitful, where the observed and calculated values were mostly concordant. This may indicated that there was a relation between fluoride content in coastal seawater and its content in the discharged water.     

单甲脒农药的微生物降解代谢研究

研究了门多萨假单胞菌ＤＲ－８菌株对单甲脒农药的降解代谢。该菌利用率甲脒作为生长的唯一氮源，其对单甲脒的呼吸作用试验确证了该农药的生物可降解性。单甲脒对细菌生物氧化代谢关联酶活性的影响研究表明，脱氢酶对单甲脒较敏感，而ＮＡＤＨ氧化酶则耐受性较强。     

高邮市基本农田环境质量监测与评价

根据近两年高邮市试点工作经验，介绍基本农田分等定级的环境监测与评价方法，认为积极开展农田环境监测并进行科学评价是基本农田保护的重要工作内容。     

Test for the effects of three surfactants on the penetration ability of the calcium chloride and water glass solutions in dust

１ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＣａｌｃｉｕｍｃｈｌｏｒｉｄｅｉｓｏｆｔｅｎｕｓｅｄｉｎｔｈｅｆｉｅｌｄｏｆｓｏｉｌｓｔａｂｉｌｉｚａｔｉｏｎａｎｄｒａｉｓｉｎｇｄｕｓｔｃｏｎｔｒｏｌｂｅｃａｕｓｅｉｔｃａｎｒｅａｃｔｗｉｔｈｗａｔｅｒｇｌａｓ（Ｗｕ，１９...     

Progress in the research on aquatic environmental nonpoint source pollution in China

ＰｒｏｇｒｅｓｉｎｔｈｅｒｅｓｅａｒｃｈｏｎａｑｕａｔｉｃｅｎｖｉｒｏｎｍｅｎｔａｌｎｏｎｐｏｉｎｔｓｏｕｒｃｅｐｏｌｕｔｉｏｎｉｎＣｈｉｎａＢａｏＱｕａｎｓｈｅｎｇ，ＭａｏＸｉａｎｑｉａｎｇ，ＷａｎｇＨｕａｄｏｎｇＩｎｓｔｉｔｕｔｅｏｆＥｎｖｉｒｏ...     

我国东部冲积平原区水成土壤元素背景值地域分异规律

从气候条件、母质物质组成的差异以及河流上下游物质之间的联系等角度，讨论了我国东部冲积平原区土壤中１３种元素的地理分布趋势及影响因素。研究表明，大多数元素具有明显的南北向地域分布趋势，这种趋势是地带性和非地带性因素共同决定的，而以非地带因素更重要。此外，东部平原土壤与相应主要河流上游侵蚀区土壤微量元素含量具有很好的共轭关系。     

Pitfalls in the prenatal diagnosis of peroxisomal β-oxidation defects by chorionic villus sampling

Variability in the level of expression of very long chain fatty acids (VLCFAs) is documented in cultured chorionic villus (CV) cells derived from two fetuses, one at risk for an unusual peroxisomal fatty acid β-oxidation defect, and the other at risk for the X-linked form of adrenoleucodystrophy (ALD). Cells from early subcultures of chorionic cells from both cases gave normal values for VLCFA ratios. The results for the fetus at risk for the β-oxidation defect were interpreted to indicate that the fetus was not affected; however, at birth, the infant was clinically and biochemically affected. In the case of the fetus at risk for X-linked ALD, although VLCFAs were normal in subculture 1, the levels of these fatty acids increased dramatically in subculture 3, suggesting an abnormal fetus. Termination of the pregnancy and subsequent biochemical and morphological follow-up confirmed that the fetus was indeed affected by ALD.     

Second-trimester cancer antigen 125 and Down's syndrome

This study explores if assay of cancer antigen 125 (CA 125) in maternal serum might aid the detection of Down's syndrome in the second trimester of pregnancy. CA 125 levels were determined retrospectively in stored maternal serum samples from ten Down's syndrome pregnancies and 78 controls matched for gestational and maternal age. In addition, second-trimester amniotic fluid samples from nine Down's syndrome and 109 unaffected pregnancies were analysed for CA 125. Maternal serum CA 125 values for Down's syndrome pregnancies were lower, with the median being 0.72 multiples of the unaffected population median. The medians for affected and unaffected pregnancies did not differ significantly and there was a considerable overlap in the range of values of cases and controls. The distribution of amniotic fluid CA 125 levels for Down's syndrome pregnancies resembled that for controls. From our present results, we could not find an association between Down's syndrome and second-trimester maternal serum or amniotic fluid CA 125 levels.     

Extraction of DNA from amniotic fluid cells for the early prenatal diagnosis of genetic disease

Ten-ml samples of amniotic fluid were taken from pregnancies being terminated at 8–14 weeks' gestation. DNA was extracted from the amniotic cells by sequential centrifugation and analysed using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Fifteen samples were analysed for evidence of maternal contamination using Mfd5 oligo-nucleotide primers for repeat polymorphisms. Ten amniotic fluid samples were tested for the Delta-F₅₀₈ deletion characteristic of cystic fibrosis to demonstrate a diagnostic application for the technique. In each case, DNA extracted from fetal tissue from the same pregnancy was included in the controls. In 14 of the 15 cases tested with the Mfd5 primers, both the amniotic fluid DNA and the fetal DNA showed no evidence of contaminating DNA. In one case, neither the amniotic fluid cells nor the fetal cells yielded results. In nine of the ten cases tested with the Delta-F₅₀₈ primers, the amniotic fluid cell DNA provided accurate information about the genetic status of the fetus; in the tenth, the fetal DNA failed to amplify. The results indicate that adequate DNA can be extracted from amniotic fluid from 8 weeks' gestation onward and these samples are suitable for prenatal diagnosis using PCR.     

Vitamins,folic acid and neural tube defects: Comments on investigations in the United States

No clear answer concerning whether multivitamin/folate supplementation prevents neural tube defects (NTDs) is provided by three studies in the United States. All these studies are occurrence in nature, no recurrence studies having been conducted. The Atlanta Birth Defects Study is subject to pronounced memory and recall biases, the length between event and interview being as long as 16 years. In a second study (Boston University), objections can be raised to certain aspects of the experimental design, and the claim that 22 per cent of women started vitamins sufficiently early after pregnancy diagnosis to influence NTD formation is suspicious. Our NICHD case control study of 541 women in California and Illinois revealed no evidence for multivitamins or folic acid preventing NTDs. U.S. public policy-makers face difficulties in applying results of recurrence or occurrence studies in high-risk areas to low-risk areas in the U.S.