shimoto's disease, 1,2 as well as of thyroid autoantibodies and/ The prevalence of antithyroid peroxidase antibodies or thyroid dysfunction among patients with chronic hepatitis (ATPO) and/or of thyroid dysfunction was studied in 422 C. [3][4][5] However, the suggested link between hepatitis C and patients with chronic viral hepatitis C, B, and D. Baseline thyroid disease is still uncertain. Data in the literature are results were compared with those during and 6 months after few and differ widely among studies, depending on the charinterferon alfa (IFN-a) therapy. The overall prevalence of acteristics of the populations tested and the sensitivity of the ATPO among untreated patients was 14.1%, with no signifimethods used. [6][7][8] Moreover, in most reports, no comparison cant differences between chronic hepatitis C, B, or D, as well has been made between chronic hepatitis C and the other as between males and females. However, high ATPO titers known types of chronic viral hepatitis (B and D). (¢18 IU/mL) clustered significantly among females (8.7% vs.Therapy with interferon alfa (IFN-a), widely used in 3.4%; P Å .022), especially those with chronic hepatitis C chronic viral hepatitis B or C and in various malignant dis-(11.2% vs. 3.6%; P Å .036). Before treatment, 3.7% of the eases, has also been associated with a high prevalence of patients had thyroid dysfunction, mostly hypothyroidism autoantibodies, and rarely with the development of overt (3.5%), the latter increasing to 14.3% among patients with autoimmune diseases. Thyroid disease, with clinical manifes-ATPO titers ¢18 IU/mL. IFN-a treatment significantly intations of hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism, has been recreased overall thyroid dysfunction (9.7%; P Å .001) and ported in 5% to 12% of patients who received IFN-a for hypothyroidism (7.8%; P Å .01), particularly among patients various diseases, 9-11 while antithyroid autoantibodies were with high baseline ATPO (38.5%; P Å .0002). Six months present in a high percentage. 11-14 Indeed, only a minority of after stopping IFN-a treatment, the prevalence of thyroid dyspatients with chronic viral hepatitis who are positive for function was 8.0%, still significantly higher than at baseline.antimicrosomal or antithyroid antibodies have thyroid dysBy multivariate analysis, the only predictor positively associfunction, which is usually subclinical. transcriptase polymerase chain reaction method (Amplicor, Roche

Antibody to the common "a" determinant of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) protects against infection with hepatitis B virus. A number of variant surface antigens with amino acid substitutions within the "a" determinant have been described in patients around the world. Both wild type and variant HBsAgs were expressed in the yeast Pichia pastoris and the antigens were semi-purified and quantitated. The effect on antigenicity of these changes was investigated in a quantitative fashion using four monoclonal antibodies known to bind to different epitopes within the common "a" determinant. The results suggest that amino acid substitution of T131I, K141E and G145R and insertion of 3 amino acids between residues 123 and 124 markedly affect the antigenic structure of HBsAg. These substitutions and insertions in the viral envelope may lead to evasion of the virus neutralizing antibody response and also to reduce efficiency of detection by immunoassays used for diagnosis and blood-bank screening.

An antiserum against meiotic proteins which bind to DNA cellulose was generated as a tool to assist the identification and purification of microsporogenesis-specific proteins. In immunoblotting experiments, this antiserum identified three meiotic proteins which are differentially expressed in anthers during microsporogenesis. One of these proteins was purified and characterized by biochemical and immunological techniques. This 82 kDa protein is synthesized as a preproprotein, acquires glycans as it moves through the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi body, and is secreted into the anther locule. Immunocytochemical experiments demonstrate that the protein is expressed primarily in tapetal cells, and reaches peak concentrations as the microsporocytes reach the tetrad stage. Zymogram analyses and protein sequence comparisons indicate that the protein is a member of the serine proteinase family. The possible roles of the proteinase in microsporogenesis and pollen development are discussed.

Prosomes are small cytoplasmic RNP complexes associated with repressed mRNA. In in vitro translation, they discriminate between the mRNA of adenovirus‐infected HeLa cells and those of uninfected cells grown under normal conditions. Prosomes as well as their RNA constituents interact much more strongly with poly(A)+ mRNA of infected cells and inhibit their translation in vitro preferentially. A possible role of prosomes in the differential regulation of translation is discussed.

Proteasomes (prosomes) are large multiprotein complexes. They are involved in protein degradation of ubiquitin-conjugated proteins and in the generation of MHC class I peptides. We gave further evidence that they interfere with in vitro protein synthesis. Proteasomes inhibit the translation of Tobacco mosaic virus RNA. Analysis of cell-free systems by sucrose gradient centrifugation revealed that they prevent the formation of 80S initiation complexes but not the early phase of initiation.