Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurodegenerative disease characterised by progressive motor neuron destruction. There is no effective cure and patients affected usually die of respiratory failure 2–4 years after onset of disease. Results of treatment trials (eg, 1 Lacomblez L Bensimon G Leigh PN Guillet P Meininger V Dose-ranging study of riluzole in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Lancet. 1996; 347: 1425-1431 Crossref PubMed Scopus (1115) Google Scholar ) indicate that riluzole, a neuroprotective agent which presynaptically inhibits glutamate release, may improve survival as well as tracheostomy-free survival of ALS patients. We monitored changes in the deterioration rate of several functions by repeated quantitative laboratory tests in patients with ALS to detect whether riluzole affects symptom progression.

The intensity ratio of two magnetic resonance lines in a multiplet spectrum has been shown to be useful as a primary thermometer in the millikelvin temperature range. We are presently developing a similar thermometer based on the Zeeman perturbed NQR of Sb near 11 MHz, that will be sensitive at microkelvin temperatures.

The results of experiments using exfoliated graphite as a low temperature substrate for NMR studies of physisorbed molecules at ultra-high frequencies (100–300 MHz) are reported. The radio frequency shielding was observed to be anomalously high at very high frequencies for the graphite samples studied and precluded the use of this material for NMR studies requiring high sensitivity in this frequency range at liquid helium temperatures. It is shown that this behaviour can be understood in terms of the in- and out-of-plane conductivities and the capacitive coupling of the microcrystalline structure of the graphite.

Measurements of the second-order shift of the center of gravity of the nuclear quadrupole resonance lines of CSI3 in a high magnetic field are reported. The observed shift is in excellent agreement with calculations using second-order perturbation theory, and the importance of a detailed understanding of the shift for applications in low-temperature thermometry and solid-state structural studies is discussed.

We describe a simple marginal oscillator that operates at ultralow power dissipation (≥20 μW at 750 MHz) for use in ultrasensitive low noise magnetic resonance detection at very low temperatures. We have operated the circuit down to 0.6 K with the sample maintained below 20 mK and in magnetic fields up to 4.0 T. The samples are maintained at mK temperatures by physically separating the sample from the rf coil.

We report measurements of the asymmetry of the intensities of the quadrupolar fine structure of NMR lines in ferromagnetic MnSb down to 30 mK. The asymmetry ratios provide a means of measuring the temperature, and is an example of the use of population difference thermometry as a primary thermometer for ultra-low temperatures.

We report the results of a study to use the intensity ratios of the multiplet spectra of the quadrupolar-perturbed ferromagnetic resonance absorption in MnSb as a reliable first principles, self-calibrating, ultra-low temperature thermometer. The method proposed is very general and is applicable to a variety of magnetic resonances with multiplet spectra for which the intensities of the absorption depend on the thermal population of the nuclear Zeeman levels.

We report the results of a study to use the intensity ratios of the multiplet spectra of the quadrupolar-perturbed ferromagnetic resonance absorption in MnSb as a reliable first principles, self-calibrating, ultra-low temperature thermometer. The method proposed is very general and is applicable to a variety of magnetic resonances with multiplet spectra for which the intensities of the absorption depend on the thermal population of the nuclear Zeeman levels.

In order to firstly evaluate the efficacy of flumazenil in reversing benzodiazepine-induced sedation because of drug overdose and secondly to register adverse events, 13 patients admitted to the intensive care unit because of drug intoxication. were given flumazenil intravenously to a maximum of 1.0 mg. Sedation state was scored on a modified Glasgow Coma Scale and arterial blood pressure, heart rate and arterial blood gases were recorded before and after flumazenil was given, and every 30 min for 2 h. Results showed that flumazenil reversed the sedation due to benzodiazepines effectively increasing the coma score significantly (P < 0.005). We found no change in arterial blood pressure (apart from one patient), heart rate or arterial blood gasses. Two patients gave further information about drug intake after flumazenil was given. Six patients became resedated, only one needed additional flumazenil. One patient developed a hypertensive crisis after flumazenil was given as a result of the unmasking of an untreated hypertension. Another patient aspirated gastric content to the trachea during resedation and needed respiratory support.

1.1. A protein of mol weight 280,000 D was isolated and purified by means of a furosemide affinity gel.2.2. Binding of 3H-bumetanide suggests that the protein is identical to the Na-K-2Cl co-transporter.3.3. If the protein was reconstituted into a planer lipid bilayer, a Cl−-channel of 12 pS and a K+-channel of about 130pS was observed.4.4. Whether these channel activities represent a co-purification of channel proteins or whether the channel activity originates from the purified and reconstituted co-transporting protein itself was discussed.