Der klinischen Relevanz von Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] als kardiovaskulärer Risikofaktor wird aktuell nur bedingt die notwendige Bedeutung beigemessen. Es gilt zu klären, welchen Einfluss erhöhte Lp(a)-Werte auf die Entstehung und den Schweregrad einer koronaren Herzkrankheit (KHK) hat.

The clinical relevance of lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) as a cardiovascular risk factor is currently underestimated. The aim of our study was to assess the influence of increased Lp(a) values on the development and severity of coronary artery disease (CAD).In our retrospective analysis of 31,274 patients, who were hospitalized for the first time, we compared patients with isolated increased Lp(a) (> 110 mg/dl) and normal Lp(a) (< 30 mg/dl), with increased Lp(a) concentrations (30-60 mg/dl, 61-90 mg/dl, 91-110 mg/dl), and in a third analysis with additionally increased LDL cholesterol and HbA1c values.Patients with high Lp(a) levels showed a significantly higher incidence of advanced CAD with a three-vessel disease being present in 50.2 vs. 25.1 %. Patients with high Lp(a) levels had a significantly more frequent history of myocardial infarction (34.6 vs. 16.6 %, p < 0.001), surgical myocardial revascularization (40.8 vs. 20.8 %, p < 0.001) and percutaneous coronary intervention (55.3 vs. 33.6 %, p < 0.001). In addition, there was a marked difference in gender to the disadvantage of male patients regarding development and severity of CAD. CAD risk (Odds ratio) was increased 5.5-fold in patients with Lp(a) ≥ 110 mg/dl. Additionally elevated LDL and HbA1c levels were not associated with increased manifestation and severity of CAD.High Lp(a) concentration leads to an increased manifestation and severity of coronary artery disease. Additional risk factors do not aggravate manifestation of CAD.

Endurance trained athletes are characterized by higher blood volume (BV) than sedentary subjects. Only few data, however, exist dealing with the time course of BV expansion. The aim of this study was to determine the BV and the hemoglobin mass (Hb-mass) during a yearly training cycle. Three groups of elite endurance athletes (triathletes, TA, n = 20; professional cyclists, CP, n = 15; junior cyclists, CJ, n = 11) were investigated after their training break in November, in March, and during their competition period in July. Hb-mass was determined by the CO-rebreathing method and erythrocyte volume (EV), plasma volume (PV) and BV were calculated by means of [Hb] and hematocrit. Hb-mass (g/kg) increased especially in the cycling groups (CP 14.1 ± 1.1 to 15.4 ± 0.9; CJ 13.9 ± 1.0 to 15.6 ± 0.5; TA 13.6 ± 0.9 to 14.2 ± 1.0). BV (m/kg) only slightly expanded in CP, but substantially in CJ (from 102.3 ± 7.9 to 113.4 ± 5.1) and TA (from 97.8 ± 6.7 to 107 ± 9.8). Whereas in CJ the increase in BV was due to elevated EV and PV (+5.6 ml/kg), PV was over proportional increased in TA (from 59.4 ± 5.0 to 66.7 ± 7.4 ml/kg), and not changed in CP. In all groups plasma-[EPO] was within the normal range, showing a tendency to increase during the observation period. The plasma transferrin receptor concentration (TFR) did not change in TA. In CP and CJ, however, TFR was on a very low level after the training break and increased during the training period (CP: from 13.3 ± 1.2 to 20.8 ± 1.4, CJ: from 15.7 ± 1.1 to 22.2 ± 0.6 nmol/1). The iron status was characterized by normal ferritin levels in TA and CJ (all values between 40 and 71 ng/ml). In CP, however, ferritin was elevated during the whole observation period (from 135 ± 100 to 152 ± 92 ng/ml). Conclusion Athletes with high training volume (TA) showed an increase in BV during the training year which was mostly due to PV overcompensation. In junior cyclist both increased PV and EV contributed to the BV expansion, whereas in professional cyclists solely the EV increased. The erythropoietic response was well correlated to the plasma TFR-level, but did not reflect the plasma [EPO].

Although it is well known that athletes have considerably larger blood volumes than untrained individuals, there is no data available describing the blood volume variability among differently trained athletes. The first aim of the study was to determine whether athletes from different disciplines are characterized by different blood volumes and secondly to what extent the blood volume can possibly limit endurance performance within a particular discipline. We investigated 94 male elite athletes subdivided into the following 6 groups: downhill skiing (DHS), swimming (S), running (R), triathlon (TA), cycling junior (CJ) and cycling professional (CP). Two groups of untrained subjects (UT) and leisure sportsmen (LS) served as controls. Total hemoglobin (tHb) and blood volume (BV) were measured by the CO-rebreathing method. In comparison to UT (mean +/- SD: tHb 11.0 +/- 1.1 g/kg, BV 78.3 +/- 7.9 ml/kg) tHb and BV were about 35 - 40 % higher in the endurance groups R, TA, CJ, and CP (e. g. in CP: tHb 15.3 +/- 1.3 g/kg, BV 107.1 +/- 7.0 ml/kg). Within the endurance groups we found no significant differences. The anaerobic discipline DHS was characterized by very low BV (87.6 +/- 3.1 ml/kg). S had an intermediate position (BV 97.4 +/- 6.1 ml/kg), probably because of the immersion effects during training in the water. VO(2)max was significantly related to tHb and BV not only in the whole group but also in all endurance disciplines. The reasons for the different BVs are an increased adaptation to training stimuli and probably also individual predisposing genetic factors.

UNLABELLED:The aim of this paper is a critical reflection of the practice in competitive cycling to use the hematocrit value (Hct) as an indirect control measure for doping with erythropoietin. To demonstrate the individual physiological variation of Hct values, five different studies were performed: 1) Eight subjects were observed (i) during 23 h after a 1 h lasting bout of cycle exercise at 60% of maximum performance and (ii) during 24h under control conditions. 2) Seven subjects were exposed to a 20 min period of -7 head down tilt (HDT), which was followed by 15 min in sitting position. 3) From four subjects blood samples were taken in a sitting position up to 60 min after they had ingested 1 liter isotonic saline solution. 4) Ten subjects performed a vita maxima test on a cycle ergometer, starting at 100W and increasing the workload by 17W every minute. 5) Four elite cyclists participated in a 10 days competition (1,700 km). RESULTS:1) During the 24h observation period Hct decreased during the night from 45.3+/-3.1 % to 42.9+/-1.5% and returned to the initial values in the morning. This diurnal variation was even more pronounced after submaximal exercise (-4.1 %). 2) Due to fluid shifts from the interstitial into the intravasal compartment, HDT was accompanied by a 3.1+/-0.5% lower Hct. 3) Drinking of the isotonic saline solution also reduced the hematocrit by 3.3+/-0.5% after one hour. 4) Maximum cycle exercise increased the Hct from 46.8+/-2.4 % to 51.3+/-1.9% which was due to a 15 % decrease in plasma volume. 5) Repeated bouts of cycle-exercise reduced the Hct from 46.4+/-1.5% to 41.3+/-1.6%. CONCLUSIONS:All experiments demonstrate that the Hct is not a constant value but can be considerably changed by physiological measures. Clinical studies show that brain oxygen supply decreases with increasing Hct-values, which are also associated with a higher risk of stroke accidents. We therefore recommend to use a Hct-limit solely under strongly controlled standardized conditions to protect professional cyclists from hazardous manoeuvre until more appropriate methods to detect EPO-doping are developed.

62 The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between the maximum aerobic performance and blood volume (BV), heart volume (HV) as well as total hemoglobin mass (Hb-mass) and hemoglobin concentration ([Hb]). In 156 very differently trained women (n=54; VO2max: 28.5-65.6 ml/kg*min) and men (n=102; VO2max: 42.1-78.0 ml/kg*min) we determined Hb-mass, BV and plasma volume (PV) by using the CO-Hb-method. HV was measured by doppler echocardiography and VO2max was determined on a cycle ergometer. Very high correlations were obtained between BV and VO2max (r=0.91; BV in females: 3179-5704 ml, in males 5050-10019 ml) and between BV and HV (r=0.78; HV: 633-1249 ml). A very close relationship was also found between Hb-mass and VO2max (r=0.90), whereas [Hb] was only slightly related with the relative VO2max (r=0.41). When comparing the relationship between BV and VO2max, there were no differences between groups with high [Hb] (>15 g/dl) and low [Hb] (>14 g/dl). In order to detect physiological variations of the blood volumes and the hemoglobin status, we further compared 19 elite triathletes three times during a training year starting after a 6 week training break until the seasonal optimum eight month later. Although Hb- mass tended to increase by 34 ± 67.9g (p=0.06), hematocrit decreased by 1.6 ± 0.4 g/dl. This was due to an increase in PV by 483 ± 139 ml resulting in considerably higher BV (+621 ± 187 ml, all p<0.01). Conclusion: Under physiological normoxic conditions, endurance performance seems to be directly related to high cardiac output, whereas [Hb] seems to be of less importance. Supported by the German Institute of Sports Sciences (BISP VF 0407/01/30/98)

This research aims to characterize regulation of the principal cytosolic protein kinases in maize, cultivar 'Merit' root tips, since much evidence indicates that stimuli which modulate the gravitropic response in this system act through regulation of activity of these enzymes. To this end, we have cloned a maize protein kinase belonging to a group of plant protein kinases with a catalytic domain similar in primary structure to the second messenger-regulated protein kinases known in animal and fungal systems. However, both the unique structural features conserved among plant protein kinases in this group, and lack of evidence for cyclic nucleotide signalling in plants point to operation of a novel protein kinase regulatory mechanism in plants. In order to test effects of possible regulators on protein kinase activity, we developed a sensitive method for detecting regulation of autophosphoryl labelling of protein kinases in unfractionated maize protein extracts. Regulation of protein kinase autophosphorylation in these extracts was different from that known in animals and fungi, further suggesting operation of unique protein kinase regulatory mechanisms in plants. Previous research has shown that light, or factors modulated by light, regulate plant protein kinase activity. We found that protein kinase activity was co-immunoprecipitated with the plant photoreceptor phytochrome, and was associated with phytochrome by high-affinity chemical interactions. Far-red reversibility of red-light regulation of phytochrome phosphorylation by the associated protein kinase indicates that it may modulate or transduce the light signals which lead to gravitropic sensitivity in 'Merit' maize.

Maize (Zea mays) roots respond to a variety of environmental stimuli which are perceived by a specialized group of cells, the root cap. We are studying the transduction of extracellular signals by roots, particularly the role of protein kinases. Protein phosphorylation by kinases is an important step in many eukaryotic signal transduction pathways. As a first phase of this research we have isolated a cDNA encoding a maize protein similar to fungal and animal protein kinases known to be involved in the transduction of extracellular signals. The deduced sequence of this cDNA encodes a polypeptide containing amino acids corresponding to 33 out of 34 invariant or nearly invariant sequence features characteristic of protein kinase catalytic domains. The maize cDNA gene product is more closely related to the branch of serine/threonine protein kinase catalytic domains composed of the cyclic-nucleotide- and calcium-phospholipid-dependent subfamilies than to other protein kinases. Sequence identity is 35% or more between the deduced maize polypeptide and all members of this branch. The high structural similarity strongly suggests that catalytic activity of the encoded maize protein kinase may be regulated by second messengers, like that of all members of this branch whose regulation has been characterized. Northern hybridization with the maize cDNA clone shows a single 2400 base transcript at roughly similar levels in maize coleoptiles, root meristems, and the zone of root elongation, but the transcript is less abundant in mature leaves. In situ hybridization confirms the presence of the transcript in all regions of primary maize root tissue.

AbstractTriäthyl‐, Tri‐n‐butyl‐, Äthylen‐bis‐diäthyl‐sowie ‐dicyclohexylphosphin und Methylen‐bis‐diphenylphosphin reagieren mit K3[Mo(SCN)6] unter Rhodanidionensubstitution zu Komplexen der allgemeinen Formel [R3PH][Mo(SCN)4(PR3)2]R  C2H5 und n‐C4H9‐, [R2PHCH2 · CH2PHR2][Mo(SCN)4R2PCH2 · CH2PR2]2R  C2H5 und C6H11‐ und [R2PCH2PHR2][Mo(SCN)4(R2PCH2PR2)2]R  C6H5. Mit Wofatit KPS 200 entstehen aus dessen Salzen die entsprechenden komplexen Säuren  H[Mo(SCN)4(PR3)2] und H[Mo(SCN)4R2PCH2 · CH2PR2]. Sie sind starke Säuren, die sich in Wasser allmählich zersetzen und mit Cs+, Zn++, Cd++ und Cu++ allgemein schwer lösliche Salze bilden. Während sich Triphenylphosphin gegenüber K3[Mo(SCN)6] indifferent verhält, liefert Tricyclohexylphosphin nur das Phosphoniumsalz [(C6H11)3PH]3[Mo(SCN)6].