The Intracellular Localization of Hormonal Activity in Transplantable Thyrotropin-Secreting Pituitary Tumors in Mice

Mouse pituitary tumors secreting almost exclusively thyroid stimulating hormone have been characterized electron microscopically. Tumors of known thyrotropin content were separated into nuclear, mitochondrial, microsomal, and soluble fractions by differential centrifugation. The hormonal activity of these fractions was correlated with that of the total homogenates and with their nitrogen and phosphorus content. Essentially all the thyrotropin of the homogenate was recovered in a particulate fraction sedimenting between 20,000 and 40,000 g. This fraction contained the RNA granules and membranous components typical of microsomal pellets, but also showed the presence of small dense bodies surrounded by smooth membranes. These bodies were also visible within the endoplasmic reticulum of intact cells, and it is postulated that these bodies may represent the sites of intracellular elaboration and/or storage of TSH. Thyrotropin is tightly associated with microsomal particles but can be brought into solution by treatment with alkaline media, deoxycholate, and certain organic solvents

Fast-ion redistribution and loss due to edge perturbations in the ASDEX Upgrade, DIII-D and KSTAR tokamaks

The impact of edge localized modes (ELMs) and externally applied resonant and non-resonant magnetic perturbations (MPs) on fast-ion confinement/transport have been investigated in the ASDEX Upgrade (AUG), DIII-D and KSTAR tokamaks. Two phases with respect to the ELM cycle can be clearly distinguished in ELM-induced fast-ion losses. Inter-ELM losses are characterized by a coherent modulation of the plasma density around the separatrix while intra-ELM losses appear as well-defined bursts. In high collisionality plasmas with mitigated ELMs, externally applied MPs have little effect on kinetic profiles, including fast-ions, while a strong impact on kinetic profiles is observed in low-collisionality, low q 95 plasmas with resonant and non-resonant MPs. In low-collisionality H-mode plasmas, the large fast-ion filaments observed during ELMs are replaced by a loss of fast-ions with a broad-band frequency and an amplitude of up to an order of magnitude higher than the neutral beam injection prompt loss signal without MPs. A clear synergy in the overall fast-ion transport is observed between MPs and neoclassical tearing modes. Measured fast-ion losses are typically on banana orbits that explore the entire pedestal/scrape-off layer. The fast-ion response to externally applied MPs presented here may be of general interest for the community to better understand the MP field penetration and overall plasma response.Ministerio de Economía y Empresa ((RYC-2011-09152 y ENE2012-31087)Marie Curie (Grant PCIG11-GA-2012-321455)US Department of Energy (DE-FC02-04ER54698, SC-G903402, DE-FG02-04ER54761, DE-AC02-09CH11466 and DE-FG02- 08ER54984)NRF Korea contract 2009-0082012MEST under the KSTAR projec

Improvement of pain symptoms in musculoskeletal diseases after multimodal spa therapy in the Austrian Gastein Valley: a study based on longitudinal registry data

Objective: The study aim was to investigate the course of pain in rest and motion in seven different rheumatic diseases (RMD), prior and after multimodal spa therapy including low-dose radon treatment and at 3-, 6-; and 9-month follow up.Methods: Complete data from the radon indication registry including information on 561 subjects with RMD were analysed to explore the association of timepoint of measurement with pain in rest and motion. For this purpose, linear regression models adjusted for RMD-type, age, sex and body mass index (BMI) were applied.Results: The mean age of the sample was 55 years, the average body mass index was 26.8, and 275 subjects were women. Pain scores were significantly improved at all-time points compared to baseline. Pain courses were different for each RMD with the largest improvement seen in fibromyalgia.Conclusion: Timing spa facility visits according to RMD-specific pain courses may result in sustained pain reduction.Pathophysiology and treatment of rheumatic disease

Improvement of pain symptoms in musculoskeletal diseases after multimodal spa therapy in the Austrian Gastein Valley: a study based on longitudinal registry data

Objective: The study aim was to investigate the course of pain in rest and motion in seven different rheumatic diseases (RMD), prior and after multimodal spa therapy including low-dose radon treatment and at 3-, 6-; and 9-month follow up. Methods: Complete data from the radon indication registry including information on 561 subjects with RMD were analysed to explore the association of timepoint of measurement with pain in rest and motion. For this purpose, linear regression models adjusted for RMD-type, age, sex and body mass index (BMI) were applied. Results: The mean age of the sample was 55 years, the average body mass index was 26.8, and 275 subjects were women. Pain scores were significantly improved at all-time points compared to baseline. Pain courses were different for each RMD with the largest improvement seen in fibromyalgia. Conclusion: Timing spa facility visits according to RMD-specific pain courses may result in sustained pain reduction.Pathophysiology and treatment of rheumatic disease

Effects of density gradients and fluctuations at the plasma edge on ECEI measurements at ASDEX Upgrade

Electron cyclotron emission imaging (ECEI) provides measurements of electron temperature (T-e) and its fluctuations (delta T-e). However, when measuring at the plasma edge, in the steep gradient region, radiation transport effects must be taken into account. It is shown that due to these effects, the scrape-off layer region is not accessible to the ECEI measurements in steady state conditions and that the signal is dominated by the shine-through emission. Transient effects, such as filaments, can change the radiation transport locally, but cannot be distinguished from the shine-through. Local density measurements are essential for the correct interpretation of the electron cyclotron emission, since the density fluctuations influence the temperature measurements at the plasma edge. As an example, a low frequency 8 kHz mode, which causes 10-15% fluctuations in the signal level of the ECEI, is analysed. The same mode has been measured with the lithium beam emission spectroscopy density diagnostic, and is very well correlated in time with high frequency magnetic fluctuations. With radiation transport modelling of the electron cyclotron radiation in the ECEI geometry, it is shown that the density contributes significantly to the radiation temperature (Trad) and the experimental observations have shown the amplitude modulation in both density and temperature measurements. The poloidal velocity of the low frequency mode measured by the ECEI is 3 km s(-1). The calculated velocity of the high frequency mode measured with the magnetic pick-up coils is about 25 km s(-1). Velocities are compared with the E x B background flow velocity and possible explanations for the origin of the low frequency mode are discussed.</p