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Biomedical subjects

D A Wagner

Publications and source records attributed to D A Wagner.

43 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Mammalian nitrate biosynthesis: incorporation of 15NH3 into nitrate is enhanced by endotoxin treatment.

Incorporation of an oral dose of [15N]ammonium acetate into urinary [15N]nitrate has been demonstrated in the rat. Investigation of the regulation of nitrate synthesis has shown that Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide potently stimulates urinary nitrate excretion (9-fold increase). It was further shown that the enhanced rate of nitrate excretion by lipopolysaccharide was due not to a reduction in nitrate metabolic loss but rather to an increased rate of synthesis. This conclusion was based on finding a proportionally increased incorporation of [15N]ammonium into nitrate nitrogen with lipopolysaccharide treatment. Nitrate biosynthesis was also increased by intraperitoneal injection of carrageenan and subcutaneous injection of turpentine. It is proposed that the pathway of nitrate biosynthesis may be the result of oxidation of reduced nitrogen compounds by oxygen radicals generated by an activated reticuloendothelial system.

Acetates↗

Metabolic fate of an oral dose of 15N-labeled nitrate in humans: effect of diet supplementation with ascorbic acid.

The metabolic fate of a p.o. dose of 3.5 mmol 15N-labeled nitrate has been investigated in 12 healthy young adults. Samples of urine, saliva, plasma, and feces were collected over a period of 48 hr following administration of the dose. Subjects received either 60 mg of ascorbic acid, 2 g of ascorbic acid, or 2 g of sodium ascorbate per day. An average of 60% of the 15NO3- dose appeared in the urine as nitrate within 48 hr. Less than 0.1% appeared in the feces. The 15N label of nitrate was also found in the urine (3%) and feces (0.2%) in the form of ammonia or urea. The fate of the remaining 35% of the 15NO3- dose administered is unknown. No effect of ascorbic acid or sodium ascorbate on the nitrate and nitrite levels of plasma, saliva, urine, or feces was observed. A one-compartment pharmacokinetic model was used to describe the relationships between intake, plasma concentration, and urinary excretion of nitrate. The half-life of nitrate in the body was found to be approximately 5 hr, and its volume of distribution was about 30% of body weight. Daily endogenous biosynthesis of nitrate was estimated to be about 1 mmol/day.

Administration, Oral↗

Interaction of dietary fat and the thymus in the induction of mammary tumors by 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene.

The interaction of dietary fat and the thymus in the induction of mammary tumors by dimethylbenz(a)anthracene has been examined in female Sprague-Dawley rats. In these experiments, rats fed diets of 0.5% (low fat), 5% (normal fat), or 20% (high fat) corn oil from weaning (21 days of age) were thymectomized or sham thymectomized at 35 days of age and were given 5 mg of dimethylbenz(a)anthracene at 55 days of age. Thymectomy exerted a protective effect in rats fed low and normal fat diets, and this was not reversed by Thymosin Fraction V. In high fat-fed rats, tumorigenesis was increased compared to the low fat groups, and in addition, the protective effect of thymectomy was absent. This differential effect of thymectomy could not be explained on the basis of changes in prolactin concentration, since prolactin levels were decreased in all dietary groups. Neither diet nor thymectomy affected corticosterone levels or the estrus cycle of mature rats. Peripheral blood lymphocytes were, however, decreased by both thymectomy and increasing the fat content of the diet. It is hypothesized that the promoting effect of dietary fat on dimethylbenz(a)anthracene-induced mammary tumorigenesis is mediated via the immune system, although a role for the endocrine system still cannot be ruled out.

9,10-Dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene↗

Nitrate biosynthesis in man.

Nitrate metabolism was investigated in long-term metabolic studies in healthy young men. Under conditions of constant low ingestion of nitrate (less than 180 mumol/day per subject), the amount of nitrate excreted in urine was an average of 4-fold greater than the amount ingested. Balance studies with 15NO3- showed that the source of the excess nitrate in urine was the endogenous biosynthesis of nitrate, rather than the emptying of a body pool. Nitrate biosynthesis occurred when nitrate ingestion was high as well as low, and the amounts synthesized appeared to be independent of intake and comparable to the amounts ingested from normal diets. Analysis of the 15NO3- data also revealed that half of ingested nitrate was recovered as urinary nitrate. Because nitrate in urine is the net result of (i) intake, (ii) endogenous synthesis, and (iii) metabolic losses, the magnitude of the losses is such that, despite ongoing synthesis, the amount of nitrate in the urine of people consuming most diets will be less than the amount ingested.

Adult↗

Cognitive model of problem-solving in chess.

By performing a series of five experiments with two subjects, several aspects of one of the subject's behavior in solving chess problems were found to be predictable, and a model was developed to explain this predictability. The heuristics used in this model may be applicable in developing future computer programs for chess play.

Cognition↗