Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

A Gibbs

Publications and source records attributed to A Gibbs.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Violence in pregnancy.

Statistics available in the UK and in North America indicate that violence towards women by their partner is widespread but under-reported. Research shows that violence is likely to begin or escalate during pregnancy. It is suggested that violence to pregnant women may be more common than gestational diabetes or placenta praevia, and that it may be responsible for miscarriage, preterm labour and fetal injuries. This paper examines attitudes prevalent in society towards abused women, considers the psychological consequences of their abuse and the inherent difficulties women face when they try to leave a relationship with a violent partner. It also describes how midwives may recognise women who have been abused by their partner and suggests the development of strategies to help such women.

Female↗

Epidemiological analysis of a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus outbreak using restriction fragment length polymorphisms of genomic DNA.

The genomic DNA of 58 isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) obtained during an infection outbreak at two major Canberra hospitals was analysed for restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) by digestion with the endonuclease SmaI and resolution of the fragments by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Based on the fraction of common fragments generated by the endonuclease, DNA similarities among the isolates were estimated. Distance matrix analysis showed that the MRSA isolates could be divided into two major clusters (RFLP types I and II) and one minor one (type 46). A fourth group of miscellaneous isolates was found to be heterogeneous in terms of DNA sequence similarity. The epidemiological data indicated that RFLP type I was most common in the intensive care units in the two hospitals, with particular subtypes of RFLP type I concentrated in individual units. RFLP type II and the miscellaneous group were more generally distributed. Type 46 isolates appear to be related to a group which was present in epidemics in Melbourne hospitals in the early 1980s. Using the standard phage set, the RFLP type I group was largely untypable. However, type II isolates were all phage typable, with a shared susceptibility to phages 29/85/95/90; type 46 isolates had a shared susceptibility to phages 85/90. The miscellaneous isolates were of variable phage types.

Australia↗

Cultural and political limitations within a rational approach towards educational change.

This paper considers the use of a rational curriculum planning model within nurse education. It suggests that the process of change within the model is oversimplified and mechanistic. As such it denies or ignores the experience of individuals involved in the change process by reducing their personal, cultural and political realities to a level of idealogical control. The unrestrained or unmodified application of a rational approach may, by this control, inhibit the development of change arising from subjective experiences. It may further be viewed as a political strategy which benefits powerful groupings within the school thus institutionalizing this power and maintaining the status quo in terms of power and influence.

Conflict, Psychological↗

The tymobox, a sequence shared by most tymoviruses: its use in molecular studies of tymoviruses.

The 5'-terminal sequences of the virion protein mRNAs of ononis yellow mosaic and kennedya yellow mosaic tymoviruses were determined, and also the positions in the genomes of the transcription initiation sites of those mRNAs. Comparisons of the available genomic sequences of tymoviruses revealed two conserved regions, one at the initiation site and another longer sequence of sixteen nucleotides to the 5' side of it. The longer sequence, which we call the tymobox, was tested as a target for a designed ribozyme, which cleaved appropriate genomic fragments of three tymoviruses. A synthetic oligonucleotide with sequence complementary to the tymobox was shown to be a tymovirus-specific probe for diagnosing and identifying tymoviruses, except for wild cucumber mosaic tymovirus. The tymobox sequence was also used as a primer for the second strand DNA synthesis of dsDNA representing the virion protein gene of cacao yellow mosaic tymovirus, a tymovirus with unknown sequence. Thus, the tymobox is a useful tool in molecular studies of tymoviruses.

Base Sequence↗

A quantitative assessment of somatostatin-like and neuropeptide Y-like immunostained cells in the frontal and temporal cortex of patients with Alzheimer's disease.

Immunocytochemical studies utilizing radioimmunoassay and morphological techniques have provided conflicting evidence for the involvement of somatostatin and neuropeptide Y in Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, previous investigators have not considered the effects of cortical atrophy in AD tissue on their findings. This study reports the numbers of somatostatin-like (SLI) and neuropeptide Y-like immunoreactive (NPYLI) neuronal perikarya and the length of SLI and NPYLI immunoreactive fibres, with appropriate corrections for atrophy in 6 control and 6 AD cases. There were significantly fewer SLI neurones in AD in layers II + III combined from the temporal cortex, and fewer NPYLI neurones in layers V + VI in both frontal and temporal cortices. Using a randomized method to quantify immunostained fibre length in the neuropil, an analysis of variance revealed no significant differences in the mean SLI or NPYLI fibre length per cortical strip between control and AD groups in frontal or temporal cortex. However, using a second measure of fibre length by tracing the fibres attached to consecutive immunostained perikarya, there were significant reductions in the AD brains in the mean fibre length per cell in layers V + VI for SLI in the temporal cortex, and for NPYLI in the frontal cortex. This reduction in fibre length per individual cell was presumably masked by the large variation in the fibre length found between cases using the randomized approach. It was concluded that in order to evaluate the involvement of these neuropeptides in AD from any measurements of concentration, it is essential to include some compensation for the extent of cortical atrophy that occurs with the disease.

Aged↗

Early HIV-related neuropsychological impairment: relationship to stage of viral infection.

Sixty male outpatients with no past neuropsychiatric history were examined for evidence of early HIV-related neuropsychological impairment. Significant cognitive deficit, as measured by the RAVLT and WAIS-R Digit Symbol Substitution tests, and moderate correlation with indices of immune function, were observed in a group of patients with AIDS-Related Complex [ARC]. Patients with asymptomatic HIV-infection demonstrated no significant differences in performance compared to a group of HIV-seronegative controls. No significant group differences in age, education, predicted-IQ or self-rated depression and anxiety were observed. These results support the hypothesis that HIV-related cognitive disturbance occurs within the context of immunosuppression.

AIDS Dementia Complex↗

The primary structure of the virion protein gene and encoded protein of erysimum latent tymovirus.

The nucleotide sequence of the virion protein (VP) gene of erysimum latent tymovirus (ELV) has been determined and the amino acid sequence of the VP deduced and confirmed by peptide analysis. The ELV VP is larger than the VPs of other tymoviruses because it has, unexpectedly, 11 more amino acid residues at its N terminus. The amino acid sequences of the VPs of ELV and four other tymoviruses align unequivocally and their relationships, as assessed from the percentage of identical residues, correlate well with previously reported serological tests which have shown ELV to be distant from other tymoviruses.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The nucleotide sequence of the genomic RNA of kennedya yellow mosaic tymovirus-Jervis Bay isolate: relationships with potex- and carlaviruses.

The nucleotide sequence of the genomic RNA of kennedya yellow mosaic tymovirus-Jervis Bay isolate (KYMV-JB) has been determined. The genome of KYMV-JB is 6362 nucleotide residues long and encodes three major open reading frames. The genomic organization and the encoded proteins of KYMV-JB are very similar to those of three other tymoviruses that have recently been reported. Sequence comparisons revealed that the possible replicase proteins of tymoviruses are closely related to those of potexviruses and carlaviruses, suggesting a close evolutionary relationship among these viruses, despite differences in their genome organization and particle morphology.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Aspects of communication with people who have attempted suicide.

This paper addresses some potential difficulties in communication which may occur between health-care professionals and those who are being assessed following an unsuccessful suicide attempt. Attitudes towards suicide and attempted suicide which may be held by the patient and carer are reviewed and the effects that these may have on communication, particularly at the assessment stage, are considered. Some techniques to enhance communication and assessment are proposed.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗

Do psychosocial factors predict weight loss following gastric surgery for obesity?

This study was undertaken to determine whether psychosocial factors determined during a pre-operative semi-structured psychiatric interview were associated either with the amount of weight loss following obesity surgery or with dropping out from follow-up after surgery. Multiple regression and discriminant function analysis of weight loss at six, twelve, twenty four and thirty six months showed no correlation between psychosocial variables and the amount of weight lost or with dropping out from follow-up. It is concluded that the type of psychiatric interview performed in this study does not yield information which reliably predicts weight loss after surgery for obesity.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Nucleotide sequence of the genome of an Australian isolate of turnip yellow mosaic tymovirus.

The nucleotide sequence of the Club Lake isolate of turnip yellow mosaic virus (TYMV-CL) genomic RNA has been determined. The genome is 6319 nucleotide residues in length and has three major open reading frames (ORFs), two of which overlap. The smallest ORF is proximal to the 3' terminus and encodes the virion protein gene, which has 98% sequence similarity with the virion protein gene reported for the type strain of TYMV. The largest ORF is from nucleotide residues 96 to 5630, and encodes a protein some parts of which show sequence similarities to the possible RNA replicases and nucleotide binding proteins of other viruses. The third ORF is from nucleotide residues 89 to 1975 and overlaps the 5' end of the largest ORF in a manner similar to that found in several animal viral genomes. The function of the protein encoded by this ORF is unknown. The genomes of tymoviruses have, characteristically, an unusually large cytosine content and small guanosine content. This compositional bias is mirrored in the codon and dinucleotide frequencies of the TYMV-CL genome, but is only partially reflected in the amino acid sequences encoded by the genome.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Nucleotide sequence of the genome of eggplant mosaic tymovirus.

The sequence of the RNA genome of an isolate of eggplant mosaic tymovirus from Trinidad (EMV-Trin) has been determined. The genome is 6330 nucleotide residues in length and contains three open reading frames; two overlapping genes, whose initiation codons are separated by seven nucleotide residues (nucleotide residues 102-2051 and 109-5628) near the 5' terminus, and the virion protein gene, which is near the 3' terminus (nucleotide residues 5633-6199). The genomes of EMV-Trin and turnip yellow mosaic tymovirus have the same genomic organization and similar nucleotide and encoded amino acid sequences. The nucleotide residues adjacent to the initiation codons of tymoviral overlapping genes have closely similar sequences which may form a weak stem-loop secondary structure that regulates their translation.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Nucleotide sequence of the ononis yellow mosaic tymovirus genome.

The nucleotide sequence of the genome of ononis yellow mosaic tymovirus (OYMV) has been determined. The genome is single-stranded RNA, 6211 nucleotides long, and has three main open reading frames (ORFs), two of them overlapping. The largest ORF (nucleotides 179-5509) encodes a polyprotein of 1776 amino acid residues that has sequence similarities with polymerases of other viruses with RNA genomes. The smaller overlapping ORF (nucleotides 172-1965) encodes a protein of 597 amino acids of unknown function. The third ORF located at the 3' end of the genome (nucleotides 5487-6065) is the virion protein gene, and it overlaps by 20 nucleotides the 3' terminus of the largest ORF. The organization of the OYMV genome, its sequence, and the sequences of the protein it encodes are clearly similar to those of two other tymoviruses, turnip yellow mosaic virus and eggplant mosaic virus. The 5' terminal noncoding region of the OYMV genome is much longer than the same region of other tymoviral genomes and includes a direct duplication of a sequence of 21-23 nucleotides.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Pressure adaptation of Na+/K+-ATPase in gills of marine teleosts.

The effects of pressure and temperature on an integral membrane protein, Na+/K+-adenosine triphosphatase (Na+/K+-ATPase), were studied in fish gill membrane preparations from shallow- and deep-living marine teleosts. The inhibition by pressure of maximal velocity of the enzyme is nonlinear, increasing at higher pressures. Na+/K+-ATPases from deep-sea fish were less inhibited by pressure than those of shallow-living species. Habitat temperature also affected the pressure response of the enzyme. As a function of physiological pressure and temperature, the order of increasing pressure-sensitivity was cold, deep-sea less than warm, deep-sea (hydrothermal vents) less than polar = shallow and mid-depth, cold less than shallow, warm. Activation volumes in all species were conserved at 30-60 ml mol-1 at physiological pressures, which may reflect a similar membrane physical state at the actual pressure the animal experiences. Arrhenius plots [In(Na+/K+-ATPase activity) vs 1/T] were steeper for warm-water and shallow-living species than for deep-sea species. The depth at which adaptation was first observed was about 2000 m (approximately equal to 200 atm: 1 atm = 101.3 kPa). The data are consistent with a model of increased membrane fluidity resulting in reduced pressure-sensitivity of Na+/K+-ATPase from deep-sea species.

Acclimatization↗