Histopathologic evaluation combined with a period of immunosuppression has been the standard procedure for detection ofPneumocystis carinii in commercial rat colonies. Variation in induction regimens and in the sensitivity of detection methods may result in underreporting of the presence of P. cariniiin breeding colonies or delay its detection. In the present study, methylprednisolone and cyclophosphamide were evaluated for the ability to induce P. carinii infection in rats from an enzootically infected commercial barrier colony. The presence ofP. carinii was detected by histopathologic methods and by amplification of a targeted region of the P. carinii thymidylate synthase gene by PCR over the 8-week study period. Sera taken from rats prior to either induction regimen were evaluated for the presence of P. carinii-specific antibodies by the immunoblotting technique. Few significant differences in ability to induce organism burden or in histopathology were observed between the two immunosuppressive regimens. However, a dramatic loss of weight over the study period was observed in rats treated with methylprednisolone but not in rats treated with cyclophosphamide. Although histopathologic changes attributable toP. carinii did not appear before 2 weeks with either immunosuppressant, the presence of the organism in these animals was detected by immunoblotting and PCR. Cyst scores and the intensities of the histopathologic lesions increased during the study period, but the number of rats exhibiting evidence of P. cariniiinfection did not change after week 3. These results suggest that use of the PCR method on postmortem lung tissue of rats without prior induction regimens or identification of anti-P. carinii antibodies in antemortem serum samples is a sufficiently sensitive method for detection of the presence of a P. cariniicarrier state in rodent breeding colonies.

The relationship of moral judgment with both sex and parental identification was studied in 37 males and 41 female adults, all white, middle-class college graduates, aged 21-39 years. Two hypotheses were proposed: (a) that women attain a higher level of moral judgment than men and (b) that, within each sex group, individuals with a close parental identification attain a higher level of moral judgment than individuals with a more distant parental identification. Moral judgment was defined in terms of Kohlberg's developmental analysis and measured by his moral judgment test. Parental identification was measured by means of the semantic differential. Results indicate that there is no significant difference in moral judgment between the sexes. Identification with both parents is significantly related to high moral judgment in males, while identification with the father is significantly related to high moral judgment in females. Freud's statements regarding the relationship between morality, sex, and parental identification are evaluated in the light of the present data.