[en] The method is described of forming nuclear fuel pellets having a burnable absorber combined therewith comprising: combining discrete particles of a boron-containing burnable absorber and discrete particle of a boron-containing glass composition to form a coating mixture, the boron-containing glass composition comprising 20-30 percent by weight B/sub 2/O/sub 3/; applying the coating mixture to the surface of nuclear fuel pellets; heating the nuclear fuel pellets having the coating mixture on the surface to an elevated temperature sufficient to melt the boron-containing glass, and incorporate the boron-containing burnable absorber in the resultant melt while preventing reaction between the burnable absorber and the boron-containing glass; and cooling the pellets

[en] A RIA for turtle (Chrysemys picta) vitellogenin is described. After dimethylformamide precipitation of vitellogenin from the plasma of estrogen-treated female turtles, antibodies were developed in rabbits. The dimethylformamide precipitate was further purified by o-triethylaminoethyl cellulose column chromatography; the vitellogenin component eluted as a single peak. This material was used for iodination by a mild chloramine method. Antibodies to turtle vitellogenin did not cross-react with plasma from male turtles or vitellogenic females of other vertebrate groups, including lizards and snakes. Limited cross-reactivity exists among the chelonians, however. Using a 1:5000 dilution of antiserum, the limit of detection was 15 ng, and the midrange was 320 +- 45 ng. For an antiserum dilution of 1:1000, these figures were 30 and 600 +- 37 ng, respectively. Using this assay, the seasonal pattern of plasma vitellogenin in the turtle has been described, and preliminary studies on in vitro hepatic vitellogenesis have been performed

[en] Specific [3H]estradiol-17 beta ([3H]E2) binding activity (EBA) with characteristics of an estrogen receptor (ER) was demonstrated in cytosols and nuclear extracts of the female turtle, Chrysemys picta. Three different receptor assays (dextran-coated charcoal assay, hydroxylapatite batch procedure, and DNA-cellulose chromatography) were evaluated in terms of their applicability in analyzing large numbers of samples. For the measurement of cytosolic EBA, the hydroxylapatite batch procedure was found to be the most reliable assay. On the other hand, the dextran-coated charcoal assay was found to be the most appropriate method for the measurement of nuclear EBA. Turtle hepatic EBA binds [3H]E2 with high affinity (cytosolic, 17.4 +/- 2.8 X 10(9) M-1; nuclear, 17.7 +/- 1.9 X 10(9) M-1), limited capacity (cytosolic, 133.7 +/- 4.6 fmol/g tissue; nuclear, 81.1 +/- 9.0 fmol/g tissue), and strict steroid specificity. The EBA bound natural estrogens (E2, estrone, estriol) as well as the nonsteroidal estrogen, diethylstilbestrol, but exhibited little affinity for androgens, progesterone, or corticosterone. The turtle hepatic EBA resembled mammalian and avian ERs in terms of binding characteristics; however, unlike mammalian and avian ERs it was shown to be heat-labile. Incubation at 30 degrees caused rapid loss of [3H]E2 binding activity in both cytosolic and nuclear fractions. The exchange between [3H]E2 and the endogenously bound estrogen was slow at 4 and 15 degrees, but the exchange process was facilitated in the presence of the chaotropic salt, NaSCN. Establishment of quantitation methods for both cytosolic and nuclear forms of EBA will enable future investigation of the mechanism and regulation of estrogen action in the liver of this turtle species

[en] The percent theoretical density, lattice parameter, oxygen-to-uranium ratio, and thermal conductivity of UO₂-Gd₂O₃ burnable absorber fuel pellets were analyzed in terms of the structural chemistry of the cubic fluorite lattice and the chemical behavior of various uranium cations. The sinterability of gadolinia-containing fuel pellets enabled an interpretation to be made of the possible structural models adopted in the system, depending on the sintering conditions