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Biomedical subjects

G W Smith

Publications and source records attributed to G W Smith.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1982

Blastomycosis.

Blastomycosis is a fungal disease with an endemic area identical to that of histoplasmosis in the United States. Disease states range from a subclinical pulmonary illness to a rapidly progressive and fatal disease. Cutaneous lesions are common although the lung is the portal of entry for blastomyces. The organisms are easily demonstrated with potassium hydroxide preparations of fresh sputum, pus from skin lesions, or other biologic material. Skin and serologic tests are unreliable, largely because of cross-reactivity with antigens of histoplasmosis. Because of the ever present potential for milder forms of illness to progress to severe disease, it is recommended that all patients with symptomatic or culture proven disease be treated with amphotericin B.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Lower GI bleeding in the elderly. Diverticulosis and angiodysplasia as dominant causes.

Angiography has greatly improved the precision of diagnosis of massive lower gastrointestinal bleeding in elderly patients. This, in turn, has permitted a more conservative approach, even when operative management becomes necessary. It bears emphasis, however, that hematochezia in elderly patients is usually relatively benign and tends to cease spontaneously. An overly enthusiastic diagnostic or therapeutic course is not warranted, and conservative control of the acute episode, followed by sufficient evaluation to rule out malignancy, is probably all that is necessary. When massive bleeding becomes persistent or recurrent, however, it is clearly life threatening, and a vigorous diagnostic and therapeutic program should be initiated promptly.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1981

Identification of the P proteins and other disulfide-linked and phosphorylated proteins of Newcastle disease virus.

A unique abundant protein, designated P by analogy to the putative polymerase proteins of other paramyxoviruses, was identified in purified Newcastle disease virus. Under nonreducing conditions the P proteins could be separated from other viral proteins on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels. The P proteins were isolated from detergent-solubilized virions as 53,000- to 55,000-dalton monomers and disulfide-linked trimers. Distinct forms of P having four different isoelectric points and two different electrophoretic mobilities were resolved by two-dimensional electrophoresis. Two forms of P were phosphorylated, as were the nucleocapsid protein and non-glycosylated membrane protein. In addition to disulfide-linked forms of P, dimers of the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase glycoprotein and two disulfide-linked versions of the fusion glycoprotein were identified. Several electrophoretic variants of the nucleocapsid protein that were probably created by intrachain disulfide bonding were also isolated from virions under nonreducing conditions. The locations of the newly identified proteins were determined by detergent-salt fractionation of virions and by surface-selective radioiodination of the viral envelope. The P proteins were associated with nucleocapsids and were not detected at the surface of virions. Both forms of the fusion glycoproteins were on the exterior of the viral envelope. Herein the properties of the P proteins are compared with similar proteins of rhabdoviruses and other paramyxoviruses, and a role for multiple forms of proteins in the genetic economy of newcastle disease virus is discussed.

Disulfides↗
PubMed1980

Oral cholecystography in assessment of acute abdominal pain.

During one year, 77 patients had oral cholecystography within five days of the onset of acute upper abdominal symptoms. These patients were not severely ill, as evidenced by the fact that only 18 were hospitalized. The patients were unselected and the results were reviewed in retrospect. Accordingly, the data cannot be critically analyzed. Nonetheless, diagnostically useful information was obtained in 57 of these cases. In 44 patients, a normal gallbladder was visualized, and in 13 patients gallstones were seen. Three conclusions are derived from this study. First, oral cholecystography can be performed within five days of the onset of acute upper abdominal symptoms with a reasonable expectation of obtaining diagnostically useful information. Second, the usually recommended delay of four to six weeks is unnecessary. Finally, this diagnostic study should be performed in the acute situation when it is not precluded by nausea, vomiting, or a severely ill patient.

Abdomen, Acute↗
PubMed1980

Maturation of the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase and fusion glycoproteins of two biologically distinct strains of Newcastle disease virus.

We have compared the glycoproteins of two biologically distinct virulent strains of Newcastle disease virus. Cells infected by either strain AV or HP produce infections virions and the cellular surfaces have hemadsorbing activity; however, only cells infected by strain AV undergo fusion from within. We fractionated chicken embryo cells and monitored the incorporation of radioactive proteins into virions to study the sites of synthesis, cellular locations, and kinetics of virion assembly for the hemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) and the fusion glycoproteins of each strain. We found that the HN glycoprotein of both strains was synthesized on rough endoplasmic reticulum (ER), accumulated in low-density membranes derived from smooth ER and the plasma membrane, and appeared in virions after a 30-min delay. The fusion glycoprotein of both strains was synthesized as a precursor in rough ER and subsequently processed to the active form. However, the sites of accumulation of the fusion glycoproteins were strain-dependent. The larger subunit F1 of the fusion glycoprotein of strain AV was detected in subcellular fractions enriched for plasma membranes, while that of strain HP accumulated in denser fractions which contained internal membranes. This result suggests that differential compartmentation of viral glycoproteins may influence the expression of biologic activities such as fusion on cellular surfaces. Despite their different sites of accumulation, the F1 glycoproteins or F-related polypeptides of similar size were assembled into virions of both strains. The kinetics of incorporation of this protein into virions appear to be too rapid for migration through internal membrane systems. Furthermore, tunicamycin did not block the incorporation of F-related polypeptides into virions. A hypothesis is presented to explain the unusual behavior of the F-related proteins.

Animals↗
PubMed1979

Pancreatic ascites: a rare complication of distal splenorenal shunt.

Ascites has become recognized as a common postoperative complication of the distal splenorenal shunt. On rare occasions the ascites has been chylous in nature. The present report is the first documented case of pancreatic ascites occurring after this operation. This complication developed in the combined setting of chronic pancreatitis and surgical trauma to the pancreas. Since the management of pancreatic ascites differs from that of cirrhotic or chylous ascites, it is recommended that this diagnosis be considered whenever a patient develops severe ascites after a distal spenorenal shunt.

Amylases↗
PubMed1979

Mesocaval shunts for the control of bleeding esophageal varices.

Results in 44 patients with esophageal bleeding who underwent a mesocaval shunt utilizing a prosthetic graft are presented. Portal hypertension was secondary to alcoholic cirrhosis in 30 patients, to chronic active hepatitis in eight, to primary biliary cirrhosis in four, to cirrhosis secondary to inflammatory bowel disease in one, and to portal vein thrombosis following splenectomy in one. Thirty-six shunts were performed during the emergent or semiemergent time period, and only eight were performed electively. Sixteen of the patients were Child's class A, 16 were class B, and 12 were class C. There were no hospital deaths in the emergency shunt group (of eight patients); there was a 12% mortality rate for patients undergoing semiemergency shunts (two of 17 patients) and a 42% mortality rate for patients who had emergency shunts (eight of 19 patients). Death was related more closely to hepatic reserve, however, than to timing of the shunt. Among the 32 class A and B patients, there were only three deaths in hospital (9%), as compared with seven deaths among the 12 class C patients (58%). Portal-systemic encephalopathy was high in the period immediately after operation (13 of 34 patients, 38%), but it was a chronic problem following discharge from the hospital in only three of 34 patients (9%). The mesocaval shunt is a safe, effective procedure for the control of variceal bleeding in class A and class B patients in any time period, but it carries a high operative mortality risk in the class C patient when it is performed as an emergency operation.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Renal prostaglandins in renal hypertensive dogs.

1. Hypertension produced in two-kidney Goldblatt dogs was accompanied by a transient fluid retention, reaching a maximum 4 days after clamping. 2. Prostaglandin E and F concentrations in venous blood from the intact kidney also rose transiently, showing a maximum by the fifth day. 3. The rise in prostaglandin release from the intact kidney may be related to the fluid retention.

Animals↗