No abstract

The products of the degradation of chlorhexidine by two chlorhexidine‐resistant strains of Achromobacter xylosoxidans, isolated from an ultrasonic hand washer, were identified by three‐dimensional HPLC. In the degradation process a pathway forming p‐chlorophenol, probably through p‐chloroaniline, was also observed, as was a pathway forming phenol and pyrogallol. The quantitative measurement of these products at their maximum absorption spectra by two‐dimensional HPLC suggested the presence of chlorhexidine‐degrading enzymes.

To clarify relationships between the pattern of diet intake and the circadian adrenocortical rhythm, we measured plasma cortisol levels at circadian intervals in two groups of patients who had been receiving total enteral nutrition (TEN) for about 11 days: one group was given a liquid diet intraduodenally and continuously (continuous TEN), whereas the other received their nutrition discontinuously from 0700-2300 h every day (cyclic TEN). In patients with cyclic TEN there was a clear cortisol rhythm with a peak at 0700 h, which pattern is quite similar to the well-established cortisol rhythm seen in normal subjects. However, patients with continuous TEN did not show any consistent circadian cortisol rhythm, although the 24-h mean cortisol level was nearly the same as that in the case of cyclic TEN. Plasma glucose levels showed circadian fluctuations in the cyclic TEN group, but remained fairly constant in the continuous TEN group. These results indicate that the periodicity of nutrient intake is essential for the maintenance of the circadian cortisol rhythm and suggest the importance of the timing of diet intake as a synchronizer (zeitgeber) of the rhythm in man, as proposed in laboratory animals.

No abstract

The central venous catheterization sometimes cause mild to severe bacterial infections ． We investigated the relationship between the bacterial adherence and cell surface hydro − phobicity and chemical properties of the surface of catheters themselves available for clini − cal usage ．