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Biomedical subjects

H Weiss

Publications and source records attributed to H Weiss.

At least 199 records · Page 11Linked to original sources

[Psychological changes in intensive care patients with acute Guillain-Barré syndrome--psychoanalytic aspects of loss of communication and adjustment].

Ten patients who had been hospitalized with acute Guillain-Barré-syndrome (GBS) were monitored during their course of treatment and were asked in short intervals through semi-structured interviews how they experienced their illness. States of anxiety were especially evident at the initial phase of the disease, during the dissemination and maximum intensity of paralysis. In contrast, depressive symptoms were primarily noticeable during the phase of remission. As a rule, the degree of anxiety correlated in intensity and duration with the degree of severity of the neurological deficit. Five patients experienced a temporary derealization, among those, three patients showed productive-psychotic symptoms (optical and acoustical hallucinations, delusional reactions). Frequently, dreams were reported, which were associated with elementary experiences of anxiety and in part took on an overwhelming realistic character. Finally, the psychic changes are interpreted in context with the extreme condition of the disease which does not only signify a situation of forced dependence and regression for the patient but also results in--through loss of mobility and communication (cranial nerve dysfunction, artificial respiration)--a fundamental change in the perception of reality.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

Extending health care to AFDC recipients who obtain jobs: results of a demonstration.

This study investigated the outcomes of a demonstration project that provided free medical coverage to former Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) recipients who were holding jobs with limited or no health benefits. Data were collected on the Medicaid expenditures of 54 eligible participants and their dependents for up to two years before they exited welfare; the expenditures averaged 56 percent less for adults and 45 percent less for children than the respective AFDC averages for the county. Because only 22 percent of the eligible participants took advantage of the program, telephone interviews also were conducted with 24 people who did not participate in or dropped out of the health plan. The main reasons cited for not enrolling were a misunderstanding of the program, a claim that no notification of the program was received, and a lack of interest. These results and their policy implications are presented in the context of the Family Support Act's mandate that states extend medical assistance coverage to AFDC recipients whose cases are closed because of employment.

Aid to Families with Dependent Children↗

Clinical selection criteria for secondary examinations of the health-status of broiler flocks.

Results of post-mortem and laboratory examinations of broilers sampled randomly or selected by clinical symptoms were compared. The male:female-ratio was in all cases nearly equal for randomly sampled and selected birds. Regarding post-mortem findings, differences dependent on selection criteria were observed: in randomly-sampled birds the frequency of breast-blisters and plantar inflammations was higher than in selected broilers, whereas in the latter osteodystrophy and bursal atrophy were seen more frequently. Alterations of joints and tendon-sheaths caused by a reovirus-arthritis in one flock were seen in same frequency in randomly sampled and selected birds, respectively. Parasitological examinations revealed the highest coccidial lesion scores in selected birds with lameness or slightly retarded growth but when dwarfism birds were included into calculations, there was no significant difference among both groups. Results of bacteriological and serological examinations showed no differences between the groups.

Animals↗

[Not Available].

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Dreams↗

["INTENSIV"--organization and structure of a knowledge-based PC system for the intensive care unit].

A computer program for use on an intensive care unit (ICU) has been developed. The program INTENSIV is a knowledge-based system with integrated conventional basic functions. Besides managing all patient-related data, the program processes all laboratory data, clinical observations and measured data. Deviations from the norm and disturbances in patient balances are recognized by the system; under consideration of contraindications such as antagonistic or synergistic drug interactions, the system makes recommendations for basic therapy regimens as well as necessary corrections according to changes in the regular course of an illness. Aside from disturbance analysis and therapy planning, the computer can portray and document the entire course of therapy and the patient's progress as seen in ICU charts, including fluid and electrolyte balances and graphic parameter curves.

Database Management Systems↗

Assembly of NADH: ubiquinone reductase (complex I) in Neurospora mitochondria. Independent pathways of nuclear-encoded and mitochondrially encoded subunits.

NADH:ubiquinone reductase, the respiratory chain complex I of mitochondria, consists of some 25 nuclear-encoded and seven mitochondrially encoded subunits, and contains as redox groups one FMN, probably one internal ubiquinone and at least four iron-sulphur clusters. We are studying the assembly of the enzyme in Neurospora crassa. The flux of radioactivity in cells that were pulse-labelled with [35S]methionine was followed through immunoprecipitable assembly intermediates into the holoenzyme. Labelled polypeptides were observed to accumulate transiently in a Mr 350,000 intermediate complex. This complex contains all mitochondrially encoded subunits of the enzyme as well as subunits encoded in the nucleus that have no homologous counterparts in a small, merely nuclear-encoded form of the NADH:ubiquinone reductase made by Neurospora crassa cells poisoned with chloramphenicol. With regard to their subunit compositions, the assembly intermediate and small NADH:ubiquinone reductase complement each other almost perfectly to give the subunit composition of the large complex I. These results suggest that two pathways exist in the assembly of complex I that independently lead to the preassembly of two major parts, which subsequently join to form the complex. One preassembled part is related to the small form of NADH:ubiquinone reductase and contributes most of the nuclear-encoded subunits, FMN, three iron-sulphur clusters and the site for the internal ubiquinone. The other part is the assembly intermediate and contributes all mitochondrially encoded subunits, one iron-sulphur cluster and the catalytic site for the substrate ubiquinone. We discuss the results with regard to the evolution of the electron pathway through complex I.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The same domain motif for ubiquinone reduction in mitochondrial or chloroplast NADH dehydrogenase and bacterial glucose dehydrogenase.

The respiratory chain NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase (NADH dehydrogenase or Complex I) of mitochondria comprises some 30 different subunits, and one FMN and 4 or 5 iron-sulfur clusters as internal redox groups. The bacterial glucose dehydrogenase, which oxidizes glucose to gluconolactone in the periplasmatic space and transfers the electrons to ubiquinone, is a single polypeptide chain with pyrolloquinoline quinone as the only redox group. We report here that the two different enzymes have the same ubiquinone binding domain motif and we discuss the predicted membrane folding of this domain with regard to its role in the proton translocating function of the two enzymes.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

[Prognostic factors in multiple myeloma].

There have been major advances in the treatment of multiple myeloma in the past 20 years, but for the individual patient the prognosis still remains uncertain. As the length of survival varies from several months to over 10 years, definition of prognostic parameters at the time of diagnosis, and early detection of disease activity are most important. In our study, median survival was 42 months with very good quality of life. Factors not helpful in prognosis were sex, WBC and platelet counts, BUN, serum M protein type, extent of osteolytic lesions, percentage of plasma cells in bone marrow and plasma cell asynchrony. However, age, hemoglobin, calcium, uric acid, Bence-Jones proteinuria and polyclonal Ig concentrations had a certain degree of prognostic importance. Due to more sensitive and more specific laboratory methods, peripheral blood findings are lately gaining in importance. With new "salvage" protocols, the detection of additional prognostic parameters and sensitive indicators of disease activity may be most important for further improvement in the survival of patients with multiple myeloma.

Bence Jones Protein↗

Medical evaluation of abused and neglected children.

Children who have been abused and neglected may have a variety of medical problems not apparent to a social worker or other nonmedical professional investigating the allegations. A joint project between a state child protective agency and an urban teaching hospital was undertaken to provide for the systematic medical screening of all children brought to the agency before their placement in foster care. These children received a complete medical evaluation with emphasis on documenting the abuse and neglect and also were screened for other medical problems. A total of 5181 children were evaluated. Forty-four percent of these children had some medical problem, including anemia, otitis media, sexually transmitted infections, and lead poisoning. Additional instances of abuse and neglect were identified and documented. This systematic evaluation allows for the optimal identification, documentation, and treatment of abuse, neglect, and other medical problems that may affect a child's outcome and adaptation.

Adolescent↗

The 49 K subunit of NADH: ubiquinone reductase (complex I) from Neurospora crassa mitochondria: primary structure of the gene and the protein.

The primary structure of the 49 K subunit of the respiratory chain NADH:ubiquinone reductase (complex I) from Neurospora crassa was determined by sequencing cDNA, genomic DNA and the N-terminus of the mature protein. The sequence lengths correlate to a molecular mass of 54,002 daltons for the preprotein and 49,239 daltons for the mature protein. The presequence consists of 42 amino acids of typical composition for sequences which target nuclear-encoded proteins into mitochondria. The mature protein consists of 436 amino acids and shows 64% similarity to a 49 K subunit of bovine heart NADH:ubiquinone reductase and 33% to a predicted translation product of an open reading frame in the chloroplast DNAs of Marchantia polymorpha and Nicotiana tabacum. Evidence for an iron-sulfur cluster in the subunit is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The impact of cognitive interference on performance during prolonged sleep loss.

A study was conducted on the effects of off-task cognitions on performance during sleep deprivation. Subjects answered the Thought Occurrence Questionnaire, assessing their proneness to engage in off-task cognitions, and were deprived of sleep for 72 hours, during which they performed a variety of tasks including visual discrimination and three versions of a logical reasoning task in which cognitive load was varied systematically. In addition, every day subjects answered the Cognitive Interference Questionnaire, which taps off-task cognitions during the experiment. Results indicated that subjects who habitually engage in off-task cognitions performed worse during 72 hours of sleep loss than subjects who do not engage in such distracting activities. In addition, it was found that the engagement in off-task cognitions increased during the 72 hours of sleep loss and such an engagement was related to deficits in performance accuracy. The mechanisms of off-task cognitions and sleep loss underlying these effects are discussed.

Adult↗

Mitotic rate, DNA distribution, and chromatin in situ sensitivity to heparin in breast cancer.

The purpose of this study was to characterize breast carcinomas by cell kinetic parameters. Mitotic rate (MR) and flow cytometrically (FCM) measured cell cycle distribution as well as chromatin testing in situ employing heparin for determination of activated chromatin, provided the following results: MR counted in 73 unselected carcinomas showed an increase up to a tumor size of 4.2 cm (p less than 0.05); beyond this diameter, the MR was found to decrease. In T1-T2 carcinomas, cell cycle stage analysis yielded higher percentages of cells in S and G2M phase for ductal (13% and 12%, N = 22) than for lobular (8% and 7%, N = 8) node-negative carcinomas (p less than 0.002). In ductal carcinomas, lymph node involvement was reflected by higher % G2M values (15%, N = 26) compared with negative cases (12%, N = 22) (p less than 0.05). Ductal node-positive T3-T4 carcinomas (N = 10) revealed a higher % S value (16%) than their T1-T2 counterparts. A correlation between MR and % G2M was established only up to a tumor size of 4.2 cm (r = 0.39, p less than 0.05). A highly sensitive ('H') and a poorly sensitive ('P') subgroup of carcinomas with respect to heparin-induced changes in fluorescence intensity of the G1/0 peak of the DNA aneuploid cell line were identified, as previously shown. These subgroups were here updated with a larger number of carcinomas and were limited to T1-T2 cancers (N = 57). Group 'H' included more younger patients (p less than 0.005), less cases with nodal involvement in ductal carcinomas (p less than 0.05), and lower % G2M values in lobular node-negative cases (p less than 0.05), than group 'P'. DNA diploid cells always existing in DNA aneuploid carcinomas are more sensitive than their aneuploid counterparts (p less than 0.01); however, they strengthen the stratification to 'H' and 'P'. We suggest 'H' carcinomas to be less aggressive than 'P' carcinomas. Small breast carcinomas are recommended to cell kinetic investigations for individualizing adjuvant therapy.

Adult↗

Puzzling subunits of mitochondrial cytochrome reductase.

The ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase complex, like the other proton-pumping respiratory complexes of mitochondria, is an assembly of many different subunits. However, only a few of these subunits participate directly in the electron transfer and proton translocation. The roles of the other subunits are largely unknown. We discuss here some intriguing features of two of these subunits.

Electron Transport Complex III↗

Electron microscopic characterization of helical filaments formed by subunits I and II (core proteins) of ubiquinol: cytochrome c reductase from Neurospora mitochondria.

The isolated and water-soluble complex of subunits I and II (core proteins) of ubiquinone:cytochrome c reductase from Neurospora mitochondria forms filaments below pH 6.0. Three independent helical reconstructions of single filaments were compared with the 3-D reconstruction of the native enzyme. A model for the helix is proposed in which the core complex dimers are arranged radially with the face which is proximal to the membrane in the native enzyme on the outside of the helix. The dimension of the core complex dimer perpendicular to the helix axis (70 A) provides an independent estimate of the height of the core complex to that obtained previously from cytochrome reductase crystals. The results of STEM mass measurement and the helical model give a mass per repeating unit of 90 kDa, which would indicate that the monomeric core complex consists of one 45-kDa and one 50-kDa subunit.

Electron Transport Complex III↗

[Echogenic splenic lesions--incidence and differential diagnosis].

In order to estimate the incidence and clinical relevance of echogenic focal lesions in the spleen, 121,372 ultrasound investigations from seven laboratories were evaluated. Ninety-two cases with echogenic lesions in the spleen were reviewed (incidence: 3.2 to 14.2 of 10,000 patients). Differential diagnosis included neoplastic tumors (17.4%; five metastases, three lymphomas, seven hemangiomas, one lymphangiomatosis), vascular disorders (17.4%: bleeding, infarct) and inflammatory focal lesions (8.7%; abscess, calcifications). Follow-up studies showed no change in size and pattern in a further 17.4% of the lesions, indicating benign disorders. Thirty patients suffered from a malignant condition with splenic metastasis or lymphomas in eight cases. In a further five patients, it was possible to confirm echogenic hemangiomas. There are no specific echographic patterns which differentiate hemangiomas from malignant tumors.

Diagnosis, Differential↗