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Biomedical subjects

A Lowe

Publications and source records attributed to A Lowe.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

The lower pathway operon for benzoate catabolism in biphenyl-utilizing Pseudomonas sp. strain IC and the nucleotide sequence of the bphE gene for catechol 2,3-dioxygenase.

Pseudomonas sp. strain IC is able to grow on biphenyl, 3-methylbiphenyl and 4-methylbiphenyl. These are converted to benzoate and the corresponding methylbenzoates. The lower pathway genes for the catabolism of the benzoates were cloned on a 22 kb HindIII fragment. Hybridization with gene-specific probes from the meta pathways of other catabolic plasmids showed that the gene order was identical to that of the operons carrying the same function from TOL plasmids. The nucleotide sequence of a 1241 bp region carrying the whole of the bphE gene (for a catechol 2,3-dioxygenase) and the 5' end of the downstream bphG gene (for 2-hydroxy semialdehyde dehydrogenase) was determined. Both genes showed a high degree of homology with genes encoding isofunctional proteins from other Pseudomonas strains. The upper pathway genes for the conversion of biphenyl to benzoate have also been cloned but no linkage with the lower pathway operon has been detected. Pseudomonas strain IC contains a large plasmid pWW110 (> 200 kb) and there are indications that this plasmid carries the bph genes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

A histidine decarboxylase-like mRNA is involved in tomato fruit ripening.

DNA sequencing of a tomato ripening-related cDNA, TOM 92, revealed an open reading frame with homology to several pyridoxal 5'-phosphate histidine decarboxylases, containing the conserved amino acid residues known to bind pyridoxal phosphate and alpha-fluoromethylhistidine, an inhibitor of enzyme activity. TOM 92 mRNA accumulated during early fruit ripening and then declined. Fruit of the ripening-impaired tomato mutant, ripening inhibitor (rin), did not accumulate TOM 92 mRNA, and its accumulation was not restored by treatment of fruit with ethylene. The TOM 92 mRNA was not detected in tomato leaves and unripe fruit.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

cDNA cloning and characterisation of novel ripening-related mRNAs with altered patterns of accumulation in the ripening inhibitor (rin) tomato ripening mutant.

A cDNA library produced from mRNA isolated from the pericarp of wild-type tomato fruit (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. cv Ailsa Craig) at the first visible sign of fruit ripening was differentially screened to identify clones whose homologous mRNAs were present at reduced levels in fruit of the tomato ripening mutant, ripening inhibitor,rin. Five clones were isolated (pERT 1, 10, 13, 14, 15). Accumulation of mRNA homologous to each of these clones increased during the ripening of wild-type fruit and showed reduced accumulation in ripening rin fruit. The levels of three of them (homologous to ERT 1, 13 and 14) were increased by ethylene treatment of the mutant fruit. A further clone, ERT 16 was identified for a mRNA present at a high level in both normal and mutant fruit at early stages of ripening. Database searches revealed no significant homology to the DNA sequence of ERT 14 and 15; however, DNA and derived amino acid sequence of ERT 1 both contain regions of homology with several reported UDP-glucosyl and glucuronosyl transferases (UDPGT) and with a conserved UDPGT motif. A derived amino acid sequence from the ERT 10 cDNA contains a perfect match to a consensus sequence present in a number of dehydrogenases. The ERT 13 DNA sequence has homology with an mRNA present during potato tuberisation. The presence of these mRNAs in tomato fruit is unreported and their role in ripening is unknown. The ERT 16 DNA sequence has homology with a ripening/stress-related cDNA isolated from tomato fruit pericarp.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Laser lithotripsy. Patient care, staff education.

The high cost of laser equipment and the required specialization of staff members make extension of laser lithotripsy to every hospital impractical. At present, in Ontario, laser lithotripsy is available only in Toronto and Kingston, and ESWL is available only in Toronto and London. Laser lithotripsy is a viable alternative to invasive surgical treatment of urinary calculi that are resistant to ESWL. For the suitable candidate, laser lithotripsy is a welcome alternative to an extensive surgical procedure and recovery period. Hospitalization is reduced significantly, and patients can return to work after the calculus and residue have been passed. Patients can be managed safely and effectively, resulting in reduced morbidity and mortality and reduced cost in time and expense to the patient and hospital.

Equipment Safety↗
PubMed1993

Single amino acid codon changes detected in louping ill virus antibody-resistant mutants with reduced neurovirulence.

Seven mutant viruses were derived from a Scottish strain of louping ill virus using a virus envelope-specific neutralizing monoclonal antibody. None of the mutants was neutralized and immunofluorescence microscopy confirmed that they did not bind to this antibody. Four mutants showed reduced mouse neurovirulence compared with parent virus and two mutants failed to induce protective immune responses in mice challenged with virulent tick-borne encephalitis virus. The mutants with the lowest virulence showed poor or undetectable haemagglutinating activity. The nucleotide sequence of the envelope glycoprotein gene of each of the seven mutants was determined and the deduced amino acid sequence was compared with parent virus. For each mutant, only a single amino acid codon change was detected and all the amino acid substitutions occurred within amino acid positions 308 to 311. A change from the amino acid aspartate to asparagine at amino acid position 308, which represented a potential glycosylation site, was the most effective substitution in reducing mouse neurovirulence. The results demonstrate the importance of critical sites within the envelope glycoprotein as determinants of virus virulence.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

HIV/AIDS education and prevention among African-Americans: a focus on culture.

African-Americans have emerged as the "second wave" of the AIDS epidemic. Epidemiologic evidence indicates that African-Americans adults as well as adolescents have a disproportionately higher risk of AIDS and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. While programs designed to increase self-protective behaviors are urgently needed to avert a further increase in HIV infection among this population, there is little understanding of African-American sociocultural factors that may influence the acceptance of HIV information and the adoption of HIV-preventive behaviors. This paper describes African-American cultural values and mores which may be related to risk-taking behavior. Barriers to the effective dissemination of HIV prevention education are identified and strategies that may be effective in surmounting these barriers and implementing culturally-appropriate HIV behavioral modification programs are described.

Black or African American↗
PubMed1982

Hyperaemia and swelling of a limb upon release of a tourniquet.

Using monkeys, a quantitative study was carried out to measure the effect of a tourniquet on the lower limb on peak flow, the amount of acute swelling and the time for it to recover. The disappearance of acute swelling is related to the duration of the period of ischaemia. No significant change in peak flow was demonstrated as the duration of the tourniquet was increased.

Animals↗
PubMed1979

Variability in rates of urine prostaglandin E excretion.

Urine prostaglandin E excretion rates were determined by hepatic receptor assay in three groups of conscious animals. Although 24-hour urine collections gave reproducibly similar levels of prostaglandin E excretion rates, levels obtained with consecutive 20-minute urine collections were extremely variable despite no obvious changes in renal function. Since short urine collection periods are used frequently in physiologic studies, the significance of variations in prostaglandin excretion rates in these studies may have to be re-evaluated.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Computerised anaesthesia monitoring using fuzzy trend templates.

The task of administering anaesthesia requires the clinician to be vigilant for long periods of time to detect the onset of adverse conditions. Large amounts of data must be analysed in real-time and, if a problem is detected, it must be diagnosed as a matter of urgency, this being done while other management protocols are being carried out. For these reasons it would be of benefit if automated decision support could be provided for anaesthesia monitoring, to lighten the cognitive load on the anaesthetist. The Sentinel anaesthesia monitor has been developed with this objective in mind. It uses a fuzzy time-domain pattern matching technique, termed fuzzy trend templates, to detect vaguely specified patterns in multiple physiological data streams. These patterns are representative of symptoms associated with undesirable patient states. The system is capable of detecting trends and states such as 'significant rise' and 'high', and associating vague duration and temporal intervals with individual trends. Fuzzy trend templates have proven to be quite intuitive to specify, given linguistic (anaesthetists') knowledge about the problem domain. Sentinel's implementation of fuzzy trend templates also uses an extension to fuzzy logic based on the theory of evidence, to handle situations where desired information is not available, for example, when sensors are not being used. In off-line testing, Sentinel has achieved sensitivity and specificity of above 90% in the diagnosis of seven common or serious conditions that can arise during anaesthesia.

Anesthesia, General↗