Linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) cast films were prepared with native and modified (octenyl succinate) corn starch, and their properties were investigated. The optimum conditions for continuous compounding were 205 "C and 20 rpm. Physical properties of LLDPE containing starch octenyl succinate (SOS) were compared to the cast films that contained native corn starch (NCS). The addition of either starch to LLDPE decreased the tensile strength and elongation and increased the water absorption. In all cases, SOS/LLDPE cast films showed higher tensile strength and elongation values than did corresponding NCS/LLDPE cast films. The biodegradation rate of starch for SOS-containing films was lower than the rate observed for NCS-containing films.

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Summary: In situ hybridization of mRNA for collagen IV, collagen VI, stromelysin (MMP‐3) and TIMP1 was examined in renal biopsy specimens from patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN) or diabetic nephropathy with various degrees of tissue damage. The majority of cells in the glomeruli expressed these mRNA almost simultaneously, but a few cells demonstrated positive expression for only one of these probes. There was a parallel relationship between the degree of tissue damage and that of mRNA expressions of these probes in patients with IgAN, while patients with diabetic nephropathy showed a reverse relationship between these two parameters. It is concluded that patients with mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis expressed mRNA for collagen collagenase and its inhibitor in the glomeruli in parallel with the progress of tissue damage. In contrast, glomerular samples from patients with diabetic nephropathy showed that there was an inverse relationship between tissue damage and expression of mRNA. It is concluded that expression of collagen, collagenase and its inhibitor parallels the progression of glomerular changes in IgAN, but such parallel expression was not observed in patients with diabetic nephropathy.