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Biomedical subjects

C King

Publications and source records attributed to C King.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Long-term findings from Woodridge in reducing illegal cigarette sales to older minors.

The purpose of the present study is to assess the effectiveness of an enforcement program in reducing cigarette sales to older minors in a community that had been successful in reducing illegal sales of cigarettes to younger minors. Cigarette sales rates were monitored over a 3-year period with quarterly compliance testing in Woodridge, Illinois. Sales rates for older minors were found to be only slightly higher than those of younger minors with one exception. These findings suggest that the enforcement of cigarette control laws is an effective means by which access to cigarettes can be reduced for both younger and older minors.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Predictors of attitudes toward three target groups of elderly persons: the well, the physically ill, and patients with Alzheimer's disease.

This research compared attitudes of 143 nursing home employees toward three hypothetical target groups of older adults: well elderly persons, physically ill elderly persons, and elderly persons with Alzheimer's disease. Staff provided successively less positive evaluations of physically ill elderly persons and elderly persons with Alzheimer's disease compared to well elderly persons. Age, education, and contact with grandparents differentially predicted positive evaluations toward well and physically ill older adults. Self-efficacy was a significant predictor of positive evaluations across all target groups. Findings suggest that interventions designed to increase staff members' feelings of self-efficacy may lead to more positive evaluations of elderly clients and, ultimately, improved quality of care.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Reducing the illegal sales of cigarettes to minors: analysis of alternative enforcement schedules.

The majority of adolescent smokers are able to purchase cigarettes even though laws prohibit the sale of cigarettes to minors (Radecki & Zdunich, 1993). The present study focused on merchant licensing, civil penalties, and monitoring of merchant behavior. Several different schedules of enforcement in the city of Chicago were evaluated to determine the optimal schedules to reduce the sale of cigarettes to minors in a major metropolitan area. Schedules of 2,4, and 6 months were effective in reducing illegal sales, from 86% to 19%, 87% to 34%, and 87% to 42%, respectively. In a control condition, illegal sales remained high (approximately 84%). Cigarette control laws that regularly enforce civil penalties for tobacco sales violations can successfully reduce minors' access to cigarettes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

VCAM-1 and E-selectin expression during cytomegalovirus infection in post-transplant myocardial biopsies.

Adhesion molecule expression may become useful in monitoring cardiac graft rejection, but first the question of whether expression is upregulated by cytomegalovirus (CMV), a common post-transplant infection, must be answered. To study this, all cardiac biopsies (n = 201) on 12 cardiac transplant recipients were examined for rejection grade and VCAM-1, ICAM-1, and E-selectin expression over the first 6-15 months post-transplant. Adhesion molecule expression in biopsies taken during documented CMV infections were compared to those taken in the absence of infection, both overall and sorted as to rejection grade. There were 17 CMV infections in this patient group. VCAM-1 was expressed in 82% of biopsies coincident with CMV infections, compared to 43% of biopsies unrelated to CMV infection, a significant difference (p < 0.01). E-selectin was expressed in 65% of biopsies with CMV infection, compared to 30% of biopsies unrelated to CMV infection, also statistically significant (p = 0.01). Both VCAM-1 and E-selectin were expressed in 80% of biopsies without rejection taken during CMV infections, significantly greater than the 24% incidence of VCAM-1 and 14% incidence of E-selectin expression in biopsies without rejection that were not concomitant with CMV infection. In the absence of CMV infection, both VCAM-1 and E-selectin expression correlated significantly with rejection grade, but this relationship became invalid in the presence of CMV infection. ICAM-1 expression bore no relation to CMV infection. VCAM-1 and E-selectin expression in cardiac biopsies can be upregulated with CMV infection in the absence of graft rejection.

Antibodies, Viral↗
PubMed1995

Breast and ovarian cancer incidence after infertility and in vitro fertilisation.

Concern has been expressed that exposure to fertility drugs might be associated with a risk of ovarian cancer. We have examined the incidence of breast and ovarian cancer in a cohort of 10,358 women referred for in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment in Victoria, Australia, between 1978 and 1992. The "exposed" group (n = 5564) had had ovarian stimulation to induce multiple folliculogenesis and the "unexposed" group (n = 4794) had been referred for IVF but were untreated or had had "natural cycle" treatment without ovarian stimulation. Duration of follow-up ranged from 1 to 15 years. Cases of cancer were determined by record linkage with data from population-based cancer registries. 34 cases of invasive breast cancer and 6 of invasive ovarian cancer were observed. A comparison with the expected numbers, derived by applying age-standardised general population rates to the cohort gave standardised incidence ratios (SIR) for breast cancer of 0.89 (95% CI 0.55-1.46) in the exposed group and 0.98 (0.62-1.56) in the unexposed group, and for ovarian cancer SIRs were 1.70 (0.55-5.27) and 1.62 (0.52-5.02), respectively. Rates of all cancers were not significantly different from general population rates. The relative risk (RR) of cancer, adjusted for age and infertility type, was, in the treated group compared with the untreated group, 1.11 (95% CI 0.56-2.20) for breast cancer and 1.45 (0.28-7.55) for ovarian cancer. The risk of body of uterus cancer was increased in the exposed and unexposed groups combined (SIR 2.84 [1.18-6.81]). Women with unexplained infertility, independent of IVF exposure, had significantly increased risks of ovarian cancer (RR = 19.19 [2.23-165.0]) and body of uterus cancer (RR = 6.34 [1.06-38.0]) compared with women with known causes of infertility. This relatively short-term follow-up suggests that ovarian stimulation with IVF is not associated with an increased risk of breast cancer. Although there was no significantly increased risk of ovarian cancer after ovarian stimulation with IVF the small number of cases limits the conclusions that can be drawn. Longer-term follow-up of large cohorts of women who have been in IVF programmes will be necessary.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Polymerization of 70-kDa heat shock protein by yeast DnaJ in ATP.

DnaK, the Escherichia coli hsp70 protein, interacts with DnaJ, a protein cofactor that appears to be involved in presenting protein substrates to DnaK. The yeast DnaJ homolog, YDJ1, has also been shown to interact with yeast hsp70, although the function of this interaction is unknown. In the present study, we investigated the interaction of YDJ1 with both yeast and bovine brain hsp70. We found that, in the presence of ATP, where hsp70 is normally monomeric, YDJ1 induced almost all of the yeast and bovine brain hsp70 to form large polymers, which are readily sedimentable. These polymers were much larger than the dimers and trimers of hsp70, which normally form in the presence of ADP. YDJ1 appeared to be acting catalytically since very little YDJ1 copolymerized with the hsp70, and maximum polymerization occurred at low ratios of YDJ1 to hsp70. The polymerization required ATP and was completely reversed when ATP was replaced by ADP. These data suggest that, in the presence of ATP, YDJ1 may present one hsp70 to another just as under other conditions DnaJ is able to present protein substrates to DnaK.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1995

Benzodiazepine receptors mediate regional blood flow changes in the living human brain.

We studied the effects of a high-affinity gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-benzodiazepine-receptor agonist (lorazepam) and an antagonist (flumazenil) in humans, using H2(15)O positron-emission tomography. Administration of lorazepam to healthy volunteers caused time- and dose-dependent reductions in regional cerebral blood flow and self-reported alterations in behavioral/mood parameters. Flumazenil administration reversed these changes. These observations indicated that benzodiazepine-induced effects on regional cerebral blood flow and mood/behavior are mediated at some level through GABA-benzodiazepine receptors, although the specific mechanism remains unclear. The approach described here provides a method for quantifying GABA-benzodiazepine-receptor-mediated neurotransmission in the living human brain and may be useful for studying the role of these receptors in a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Induction of human T cells that coexpress CD4 and CD8 by an immunomodulatory protein produced by Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans.

Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans, a gram-negative, capnophilic bacterium, is associated with several human diseases and is the suspected etiologic agent in certain forms of periodontal disease. We have previously shown that this organism produces an immunosuppressive factor (ISF) which is capable of inhibiting both T- and B-cell activation. Furthermore, these effects appear to be associated with the activation of a population of suppressor cells. We now report that the ISF induces a unique population of CD4+CD8+ dual-positive T-cells. By utilizing multiparameter flow cytometric analysis, we were able to detect the presence of dual-positive cells in cultures of human T-cells treated with PHA and ISF. The cells appeared within 48 hr and their induction was dependent upon the presence of both CD4 and CD8 cells in the culture. Dual expression of CD4 and CD8 was stable in that the cells continued to express both surface proteins after being sorted and cultured for an additional 24 hr. Phenotypic analysis indicates that these cells are also CD3+, CD2+, CD5+, TCR alpha beta+, CD45RA+ (and RO+), and CD29+. The dual-positive cells express surface markers associated with T-cell activation: CD25+, CD69+, CD71+, and HLA-DR+. In contrast, the cells were negative for CD34, CD57, CD56, and CD16. Cell cycle analysis indicates that > 80% of the dual-positive cells were in the S phase. Finally, functional analysis of these cells indicates that they are capable of suppressing the proliferative response of autologous T-cells to PHA.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗
PubMed1995

Genotoxicity in the rodent urinary bladder.

Elucidation of the mechanisms by which a chemical may induce urinary bladder tumours in rodents can be expected to provide insight into the relative risk from that agent. The methodologies for exploring whether tumour induction may be a response to direct genotoxic effect of the compound have been successfully applied to the bladders of both mice and rats. Thus, with experimental approaches that utilize adduct detection through the use of immunochemical and postlabelling techniques, unscheduled DNA synthesis and mutagenicity as studied with transgenic animals it is possible to obtain fundamental information on the genotoxic potential of carcinogens in the target bladder. Application of these experimental approaches to carcinogens for which the mechanisms of action are not known should permit assessment of the likelihood that genotoxic or non-genotoxic mechanisms are involved in the tumour induction process. Moreover, such studies may provide knowledge of the molecular pathways that are involved in the action of genotoxic agents, thus enabling judgements to be made as to whether humans are subject to tumour induction by the chemical.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Acoustic features and acoustic changes are represented by different central pathways.

The central processing of acoustic stimulus changes can be observed neurophysiologically in the mismatch negativity auditory evoked potential (MMN). Stimuli differing in interaural phase were used to investigate the contributions of the primary and non-primary auditory pathways to the encoding of binaural stimuli and to investigate passively elicited measures of binaural processing in experimental animals. In guinea pigs, the MMN was obtained in response to 1000 Hz tones embedded in white noise (S:N = 2 dB). Using a modified oddball paradigm (that is, two stimuli presented in a series, each with a different probability of occurrence), stimuli were presented binaurally with both the tone and noise in-phase to the two ears (S0N0) as the standard stimulus ans the tone 180 degrees out-of-phase (S(PI)N0) as the deviant stimulus. The MMN, by definition, should occur only in response to a change, or 'mismatch,' between the standard and deviant stimuli. The response to the deviant stimulus in the oddball paradigm was compared to the response to the same stimulus when presented in a series alone. The responses to S0N0 and S(PI)N0 collected in a series alone, termed the intrinsic responses, were also compared. Responses were recorded from two surface epidural electrodes - one at the posterior midline and one over the left temporal lobe. AEPs from these locations have been shown to reflect the activity of primary and non-primary thalamo-cortical pathways respectively. A significant MMN was observed at the midline electrode, but no MMN was observed over the temporal lobe.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1995

Loss of heterozygosity occurs centromeric to RB without associated abnormalities in the retinoblastoma gene in tumors from patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma.

Tumor suppressor genes have been found to have loss of function in a number of malignancies. This loss of function is believed to contribute to malignant transformation or metastatic spread. In the present study, expression of the retinoblastoma (RB) tumor suppressor gene was examined in cell lines and tumor tissue obtained from primary renal and metastatic sites in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma. Three of fifteen (20%) of informative renal carcinoma cell lines had loss of heterozygosity (LOH) in the RB gene (intron 20) detected by polymerase chain reaction analysis. Using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis, 7 of 22 (32%) informative cell lines had LOH centromeric to the RB gene at the D13S1 locus. No LOH (0 of 7) was seen telomeric to the RB gene at the D13S2 locus. None of the 28 cell lines examined had decreased RB mRNA expression compared with short-term cultures of proximal renal tubular cells. Western blotting demonstrated phosphorylated and unphosphorylated forms of RB protein of expected molecular weight in all 41 cell lines (33 primary and 8 metastatic) examined. Twenty-nine primary cell lines and 6 metastatic cell lines all demonstrated normal immunohistochemical staining. Loss of RB immunohistochemical staining in paraffin-embedded tissue was detected in none of the primary tumors (0 of 30) or metastatic tumors (0 of 12). The absence of abnormalities of RB expression detected in these renal cell carcinomas suggests that abnormalities of the RB gene are not central to malignant transformation or progression in this tumor type; however, another tumor suppressor gene centromeric to the RB locus may be important in renal cell carcinogenesis.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1995

Laser surgery for retinopathy of prematurity.

Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) is a common eye disorder occurring in preterm infants. Formally known as retrolental fibroplasia, ROP is defined as a vasoproliferative disorder that occurs in the developing retina of premature infants' eyes. Until recently, cryotherapy was the recommended treatment for infants diagnosed with advancing ROP. Now laser surgery is being used as an alternative treatment. This article reviews the pathophysiology, etiology, and classification of ROP, considers the pros and cons of laser surgery versus cryotherapy, and outlines the experience with laser surgery in our NICU.

Humans↗
PubMed1994

Proposed core content for pediatric emergency medicine fellowship training of emergency medicine graduates.

The establishment of pediatric emergency medicine as a subspecialty of emergency medicine has engendered the need for closer examination and development of guidelines for fellowship training. Core content and curriculum documents pertaining to fellowship training in pediatric emergency medicine for pediatric graduates have been published previously. However, the educational needs of emergency medicine graduates for such training are significantly different from those of pediatric graduates in several important respects. We believe that emergency physicians should take an active role in the creation and refinement of educational guidelines for fellowship training in pediatric emergency medicine for emergency medicine graduates. For this reason, we present a proposed core content outline in the hope that it will serve to foster this process.

Curriculum↗
PubMed1994

Mute postseizure patient: an unusual manifestation of Todd's phenomenon.

Patients who manifest neurologic deficits after a seizure can present an interesting challenge to emergency physicians, particularly when the deficits are not those normally associated with Todd's phenomenon. Although Todd's phenomenon is known to result in a wide variety of transient focal deficits, we find no case report in the medical literature of this entity resulting in mutism. We present a case of a 51-year-old woman with transient mutism and hemiparesis caused by Todd's phenomenon. We also review some of the neuroanatomic and neurophysiologic issues relating to the etiology of Todd's phenomenon, as well as alternative management strategies.

Electroencephalography↗