Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to B Warner.
An inexpensive and simple to prepare stable whole blood control material for blood count analysers has been evaluated. The material has been used for an external quality assessment scheme for 3 years, and during part of this period as a calibrant for two aperture impedance devices.
We devised a versatile method for detecting nucleic acids in crude lysates of biological samples. A controlled network of nucleic acid hybrids composed of the target fragment, several oligonucleotide probes, branched DNA amplifiers, and labeled oligonucleotides is produced on a solid phase to ultimately incorporate 60 to 300 molecules of alkaline phosphatase, which are detected with a chemiluminescent substrate. The visible light output can be recorded on a luminometer or on instant black-and-white film. Assays have been developed for the detection of Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and for genes conferring penicillin and tetracycline resistance. Conducted much like ELISAS, the assays are performed in about 4 h (for 96 samples) in microliter dishes. The molecular detection limit of approximately 50,000 molecules of double-stranded DNA has permitted us to detect 1 to 10 x 10(3) of C. trachomatis and N. gonorrhoeae with specific probe sequences. Both plasmid and genomic target sequences can be detected by the same procedure. All of the assay components, except for a set of unmodified oligonucleotide probes, are universally applicable for all targets.
Leuprolide (Lupron, TAP Pharmaceuticals), a potent agonist analogue of GnRH, has been shown to suppress testicular androgen production in animals. In order to determine the potential of leuprolide as an alternative to surgical castration in human males with prostatic cancer, this agent was administered to castrate and noncastrate males with carcinoma of the prostate. Baseline and treatment levels of LH, FSH, testosterone and dihydrotestosterone were determined serially. Leuprolide suppressed pituitary production of LH and FSH and, consequently, testicular production of testosterone and dihydrotestosterone. This agent simulates the results achieved with surgical castration.
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Potent synthetic analogs of gonadotropin-releasing hormone produce parodoxical antireproductive effects when administered chronically. These compounds are minimally toxic and may exhibit no plateau of the dose-response curve even at very high doses. These considerations served as the basis for our systematic evaluation of [D-leucine6-desarginine-glycine-NH2(10)]gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH-A) proethylamide in the very high dose range (i.e., 10-fold larger amounts than previously used). In rats given the analog for 12 wk, prostate, testis, and seminal vesicle weights were suppressed to a greater extent with 200 micrograms q.d. than with 40 micrograms q.d. (P less than 0.01 prostate, less than 0.01 testis, less than 0.01 seminal vesicles), indicating dose-response effects in the very high dose range. 200 micrograms of [D-Leu6-des-Gly-NH2(10]-GnRH-A consistently suppressed leutinizing hormone (LH) values at 6 and 12 wk (basal 71 +/- 9.5; 6 wk 34 +/- 3.8; 12 wk 28 +/- 5 ng/ml) whereas 40 micrograms suppressed LH variably (basal 33 +/- 3.8; 6 wk 17 +/- 3.9; 12 wk 32 +/- 5.2). Testosterone fell to 15 +/- 2.4 and 19 +/- 2.0 ng/100 ml in response to 200 micrograms q.d. and to 27 +/- 6.4 and 22 +/- 7.4 ng/100 ml with the 40-micrograms dose. These findings in the rodent prompted treatment of stage D prostate cancer patients with similarly high doses of [D-Leu6-des-Gly-NH2(10)]-GnRH-A. After treatment for 11 wk with 1,000 or 10,000 micrograms/d of the analog, testosterone and dihydrotestosterone levels transiently rose and then fell into the surgically castrate range (testosterone 19 +/- 4.4 ng/100 ml [D-Leu6-des-Gly-NH2(10)]-GnRH-A vs. surgically castrate 11 +/- 0.9 ng/100 ml, P = NS; dihydrotestosterone 15 +/- 1.7 ng/100 ml GnRH-A vs. surgically castrate 15 +/- 4.1 ng/100 ml. P = NS). However, unlike the chronic stimulatory effect on the pituitary at lower doses, very high dose therapy resulted in profound suppression of plasma and urine LH. Plasma levels fell to the limit of assay detectability, whereas the more sensitive urinary assay detected prepubertal levels of excretion (i.e., 64 +/- 8.4 mlU/h). The highly sensitive rat interstitial cell testosterone bioassay for LH also demonstrated a marked decline in LH to undetectable levels in 17/19 subjects. Clinical results with [D-Leu6-des-Gly-NH2(10)]-GnRH-A simulate those achieved by surgical castration in men with prostatic cancer as suggested by available preliminary data.
The study examines both the attitudes towards the role of women in society and the psychological masculinity/femininity manifested by a small group of Cuban-American college women. In Miami, 31 such women completed the Attitudes Towards Women Scale and the Personal Attributes Questionnaire. Overall, the means for this group corresponded with the established American norms. The authors thought that age, number of years in the U.S., mother's educational level, position in family and relative fluency of English would affect both AWS and PAQ scores. Only the last variable appeared to have an impact, with those women who reported fluency in both English and Spanish obtaining more liberal AWS scores than those who reported being less fluent in English.
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This study evaluated the clinical accuracy of capillary blood glucose monitoring (CBGM) performed by nursing personnel on hospitalized patients with diabetes. We compared the results of 80 serum glucose samples obtained in a blinded fashion within 5 minutes of routine capillary glucose measurements performed during the course of clinical care. The CBGM results obtained by a diabetes nurse specialist during endocrine testing procedures were correlated with the serum results. Correlation of CBGM to serum glucose ranged from .74 to .99 depending on the method used. Visual and manual interpretation yielded the lowest correlation and variable accuracy results, per error grid analysis, with 1 in 4 patients having errors of sufficient magnitude that could lead to inappropriate therapy. Monitoring with the AccuChek II blood glucose meter produced the highest correlation and most accurate clinical readings. Bedside blood glucose monitoring of inpatients has a wide range of reliability depending on the method used.