Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

J E Edwards

Publications and source records attributed to J E Edwards.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

Ambient temperature below which pigs should not be continuously showered in lairage.

Showering pigs with cold water during preslaughter lairage is thought to be useful in reducing the body temperature of hot, easily stressed animals. However, showering when the ambient temperature is too low could chill them too severely. To assess the effects of showering and to determine a temperature below which pigs should not be showered, pigs from one source, passing through a commercial slaughterhouse lairage, were split into two groups of approximately 50 each, showered and unshowered, on 10 days with a range of ambient temperatures. The pigs' behaviour and any damage to their skin were recorded, various measures of body temperature were taken before and after showering, and blood taken at slaughter was analysed for plasma creatine kinase, cortisol and lactate. Showering prevented the usual reduction in activity observed in pigs in lairage at high ambient temperatures. On the basis of the reduction in their flank temperature during showering, it is recommended that pigs should not be showered continuously if the temperature inside or outside the lairage falls below 5 degrees C, and showering should cease if they are seen to be shivering.

Abattoirs↗
PubMed1998

Effects of stocking density on lambs being transported by road.

Lambs were transported for 24 hours during summer and winter at a range of stocking densities. Shorn lambs of mean liveweight 39.5 kg were transported at densities of 0.448, 0.513, 0.602 and 0.769 m2/100 kg in July and fully-fleeced lambs of 37.3 kg mean liveweight were transported at densities of 0.613, 0.680, 0.775 and 0.909 m2/100 kg in February. Fewer lambs lay down and rested at high stocking densities and there was a marked increase in the plasma levels of creatine kinase at the highest stocking density in winter. All other measured effects of stocking density were small when compared with the overall effects of transport. There was a decrease in body temperature during transport, especially in the lambs that were recently shorn, even though they were transported during warm summer conditions. At the highest stocking density there was a smaller decrease in body temperature.

Animal Welfare↗
PubMed1998

Single-dose dextropropoxyphene in post-operative pain: a quantitative systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the analgesic efficacy and adverse effects of single-dose oral dextropropoxyphene alone and in combination with paracetamol for moderate to severe post-operative pain. METHODS: Published reports were identified from a variety of electronic databases including MEDLINE, Biological Abstracts, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library and the Oxford Pain Relief Database. Additional studies were identified from the reference lists of retrieved reports. Summed pain intensity and pain relief data were extracted and converted into dichotomous information to yield the number of patients with at least 50% pain relief. This was used to calculate the relative benefit and number-needed-to-treat for one patient to achieve at least 50% pain relief. Six reports (440 patients) compared dextropropoxyphene with placebo and five (963 patients) compared dextropropoxyphene plus paracetamol 650 mg with placebo. RESULTS: For a single dose of dextropropoxyphene 65 mg in post-operative pain the number-needed-to-treat for at least 50% pain relief was 7.7 (95% confidence interval 4.6 to 22) when compared with placebo over 4-6 h. For the equivalent dose of dextropropoxyphene in combination with paracetamol 650 mg the number-needed-to-treat was 4.4 (3.5 to 5.6) when compared with placebo. Pooled data showed increased incidence of central nervous system adverse effects for dextropropoxyphene plus paracetamol when compared with placebo. A rank order of single-dose analgesic effectiveness in post-operative pain of moderate to severe intensity obtained from similar systematic reviews is presented. CONCLUSION: Dextropropoxyphene 65 mg plus paracetamol 650 mg has a similar analgesic efficacy to that of tramadol 100 mg but with a lower incidence of adverse effects. Ibuprofen 400 mg has a lower (better) number-needed-to-treat than both dextropropoxyphene 65 mg plus paracetamol 650 mg and tramadol 100 mg.

Acetaminophen↗
PubMed1998

National epidemiology of mycoses survey: a multicenter study of strain variation and antifungal susceptibility among isolates of Candida species.

The National Epidemiology of Mycoses Survey (NEMIS) involves six academic centers studying fungal infections in surgical and neonatal intensive care unit (ICU) patients. We studied variation in species and strain distribution and anti-fungal susceptibility of 408 isolates of Candida spp. Candida spp. were isolated from blood, other normally sterile site cultures, abscesses, wounds, catheters, and tissue biopsies of 141 patients hospitalized in the surgical (107 patients) and neonatal (34 patients) ICUs of medical centers located in Oregon, Iowa, California, Texas, Georgia, and New York. Isolates were also obtained from selected colonized patients (16 patients) and the hands of health care workers (27 individuals). DNA typing was performed using pulsed field gel electrophoresis, and antifungal susceptibility to amphotericin B, 5-fluorocytosine, fluconazole, and itraconazole was determined using National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) methods. Important variation in susceptibility to itraconazole and fluconazole was noted: MICs of itraconazole ranged from 0.25 microgram/mL (MIC90) in Texas to 2.0 micrograms/mL (MIC90) in New York. Similarly, the MIC90 for fluconazole was higher for isolates from New York (64 micrograms/mL) compared to the other sites (8-16 micrograms/mL). In general, DNA typing revealed patient-unique strains; however, there were 13 instances of possible cross-infection noted in 5 of the medical centers. Notably, 9 of the 13 clusters involved species of Candida other than C. albicans. Potential transmission from patient-to-patient (C. albicans, C. glabrata, C. tropicalis, C. parapsilosis) and health care worker-to-patient (C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, C. krusei) was noted in both surgical ICU and neonatal ICU settings. These data provide further insight into the epidemiology of nosocomial candidiasis in the ICU setting.

Amphotericin B↗
PubMed1998

Endothelial cell injury caused by Candida albicans is dependent on iron.

Although it is known that Candida albicans causes endothelial cell injury, in vitro and in vivo, the mechanism by which this process occurs remains unknown. Iron is critical for the induction of injury in many types of host cells. Therefore, we investigated the role of iron in Candida-induced endothelial cell injury. We found that pretreatment of endothelial cells with the iron chelators phenanthroline and deferoxamine protected them from candidal injury, even though the organisms germinated and grew normally. Loading endothelial cells with iron reversed the cytoprotective effects of iron chelation. Moreover, chelation of endothelial cell iron significantly reduced phagocytosis of C. albicans by these cells, while candidal adherence to chelator-treated endothelial cells was slightly enhanced. Since endothelial cell phagocytosis of C. albicans is required for endothelial cell injury to occur, inhibition of phagocytosis is likely the principal mechanism of the cytoprotective effects of iron chelation. The production of toxic reactive oxygen intermediates by host cells is known to be inhibited by iron chelation. Therefore, we investigated whether treating endothelial cells with antioxidants could mimic the cytoprotective effects of iron chelation. Neither extracellular nor membrane-permeative antioxidants reduced candidal injury of endothelial cells. Furthermore, depleting endothelial cells of the endogenous antioxidant glutathione did not render them more susceptible to damage by C. albicans. These results suggest that candidal injury of endothelial cells is independent of the production of reactive oxygen intermediates and that the cytoprotective effects of iron chelation are not due to inhibition of the synthesis of these toxic intermediates.

Antidotes↗
PubMed1998

Expression of the Candida albicans gene ALS1 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae induces adherence to endothelial and epithelial cells.

To identify genes encoding adhesins that mediate the binding of Candida albicans to endothelial cells, a genomic library from this organism was constructed and used to transform Saccharomyces cerevisiae. These transformed organisms were screened for adherence to endothelial cells, and a highly adherent clone was identified. The adherence of this clone to endothelial cells was over 100-fold greater than that of control S. cerevisiae transformed with the empty plasmid. This clone also exhibited enhanced adherence to epithelial cells. The C. albicans gene contained within this clone was found to be ALS1. These results indicate that ALS1 may encode a candidal adhesin.

Adhesiveness↗
PubMed1998

Cloning and characterization of CAD1/AAF1, a gene from Candida albicans that induces adherence to endothelial cells after expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Adherence to the endothelial cell lining of the vasculature is probably a critical step in the egress of Candida albicans from the intravascular compartment. To identify potential adhesins that mediate the attachment of this organism to endothelial cells, a genomic library from C. albicans was used to transform a nonadherent strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The population of transformed yeasts was enriched for highly adherent clones by repeated passages over endothelial cells. One clone which exhibited a fivefold increase in endothelial cell adherence, compared with S. cerevisiae transformed with vector alone, was identified. This organism also flocculated. The candidal DNA fragment within this adherent/flocculent organism was found to contain a single 1.8-kb open reading frame, which was designated CAD1. It was found to be identical to AAF1. The predicted protein encoded by CAD1/AAF1 contained features suggestive of a regulatory factor. Consistent with this finding, immunoelectron microscopy revealed that CAD1/AAF1 localized to the cytoplasm and nucleus but not the cell wall or plasma membrane of the transformed yeasts. Because yeasts transformed with CAD1/AAF1 both flocculated and exhibited increased endothelial cell adherence, the relationship between adherence and flocculation was examined. S. cerevisiae expressing either of two flocculation phenotypes, Flo1 or NewFlo, adhered to endothelial cells as avidly as did yeasts expressing CAD1/AAF1. Inhibition studies revealed that the flocculation phenotype induced by CAD1/AAF1 was similar to Flo1. Thus, CAD1/AAF1 probably encodes a regulatory protein that stimulates endothelial cell adherence in S. cerevisiae by inducing a flocculation phenotype. Whether CAD1/AAF1 contributes to the adherence of C. albicans to endothelial cells remains to be determined.

Adhesiveness↗
PubMed1998

Secreted aspartyl proteinases and interactions of Candida albicans with human endothelial cells.

The endothelial cell interactions of homozygous null mutants of Candida albicans that were deficient in secreted aspartyl proteinase 1 (Sap1), Sap2, or Sap3 were investigated. Only Sap2 was found to contribute to the ability of C. albicans to damage endothelial cells and stimulate them to express E-selectin. None of the Saps studied appears to play a role in C. albicans adherence to endothelial cells.

Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases↗
PubMed1998

Comparison of the effects of selected dressings on the healing of standardized abrasions.

OBJECTIVE: To find out which type of dressing (semipermeable film, hydrocolloid, conventional method, or no dressing) allowed abrasions to heal in the least amount of time and had the greatest decrease in wound area. DESIGN AND SETTING: A 4 x 9 factorial was used for this study. There were two independent variables with four levels and two dependent variables. Research was performed at the Athletic Training Research Laboratory at Indiana State University. SUBJECTS: Fourteen subjects (eight males, six females), ages 23 to 34 years, participated in this study. MEASUREMENTS: From daily photographs, the day the wounds were healed was determined. The photographs were also used to measure wound area on the first and last days of the study. Subjects received four treatments (dressings and control), and placement of the dressings was determined by random assignment. RESULTS: Data were analyzed using a repeated-measures multivariate analysis of variance to determine if differences existed among treatment groups for healing time and change in area. Student-Newman-Keuls post hoc testing was performed to determine specifically where the differences occurred. Our results indicate that healing time is affected by covering the wound, and area is decreased by using DuoDerm or Bioclusive. CONCLUSIONS: Bioclusive should be used in the athletic training setting. Bioclusive and DuoDerm are equally effective, but Bioclusive is less expensive. Bioclusive is more expensive than Coverlet, but it is also more effective in reducing the area of the wound.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1997

Effects on calves less than one month old of feeding or not feeding them during road transport of up to 24 hours.

Two trials, each involving 56 calves less than one month old, demonstrated that the responses of calves to food and water deprivation during 24 hours of transport were similar to those observed in older cattle and lambs. There was increasing utilisation of body reserves and a measurable increase in dehydration, coupled with an increased loss of liveweight. Feeding 1 litre of glucose/electrolyte solution at eight-hour intervals did reduce the effects of food and water deprivation, but it is suggested that the minor benefits of mid-transport feeding during a 24-hour journey would not justify the disruption that would be caused by unloading and feeding. It would be better to complete the journey in as short a time as possible, providing the calves were carried under suitable conditions. Liveweight and the levels of plasma beta-hydroxybutyrate, non-esterified fatty acids, total protein and albumin had all returned to approximately pre-transport values after 24 hours of recovery. However, the calves had not started to gain in liveweight until some time after 24 but before 72 hours of recovery. The calves did not show the same marked responses in heart rate, plasma cortisol and plasma glucose that are observed in older cattle and in other species. They also appeared to be unable to regulate their body temperature closely, when they were transported during the winter. It is suggested that their lack of response to transport was not because they were unaffected but because they were physiologically unadapted to coping with transport.

Adaptation, Biological↗
PubMed1997

Kidney bean and soybean lectins cause enzyme secretion by pancreatic acini in vitro.

The responses of pancreas acini from Hooded-Lister rats to kidney bean E2L2 lectin or soybean agglutinin have been studied in vitro. Both lectins induced secretion of alpha-amylase from acini in a dose dependent manner. However, the concentrations of lectin required to cause enzyme secretion were approximately 14-fold higher than that necessary with CCK-8. In addition, the responsiveness of pancreas acini to lectins in vitro was significantly altered by the age and sex of the rats from which the acini were derived.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Potential effect of vibration during transport on glycogen reserves in broiler chickens.

Subjection of broiler chickens to random, narrow band vibration (2, 5, 10 Hz) for 1 h, simulating that experienced during normal road transport, did not significantly influence liver or muscle glycogen concentrations or muscle ultimate pH (pHu). Vibration for 3 h increased body temperature (P<0.05) and decreased (P<0.01) pHu in both 'white' pectoralis superficalis (PS) and 'red' biceps femoris (BF) muscles overall, but did not affect liver or muscle glycogen concentrations. However, higher vibration frequencies resulted in reduced (P<0.05) glycogen concentrations in liver and BF muscle. The conclusion was that vibration was unlikely to be the major cause of muscle glycogen depletion seen in transported broilers, but the reduction in pHu in the PS muscle after vibration may have been related to the similar effect seen in previous studies after normal transport.

Animal Husbandry↗
PubMed1997

1997 guidelines for the use of antimicrobial agents in neutropenic patients with unexplained fever. Infectious Diseases Society of America.

This is the first in a series of practice guidelines commissioned by the Infectious Diseases Society of America through its Practice Guidelines Committee. The purpose of these guidelines is to provide assistance to clinicians when making decisions on treating the conditions specified in each guideline. The targeted providers are internists, pediatricians, and family practitioners. The targeted patients and setting for the fever and neutropenia guideline are hospitalized individuals with neutropenia secondary to cancer chemotherapy. Panel members represented experts in adult and pediatric infectious diseases and oncology. The guidelines are evidence-based. A standard ranking system was used for the strength of the recommendations and the quality of the evidence cited in the literature reviewed. The document has been subjected to external review by peer reviewers as well as by the Practice Guidelines Committee and was approved by the IDSA Council. An executive summary, algorithms, and tables highlight the major recommendations. The guideline will be listed on the IDSA home page at http://www.idsociety.org.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

International Conference for the Development of a Consensus on the Management and Prevention of Severe Candidal Infections.

Because of the rapidly increasing incidence of serious candidal infections, a consensus conference of 22 investigators from the United States, Europe, and Japan was held to discuss strategies for the prevention and treatment of deep-organ infections caused by Candida species. Commonly asked questions concerning the management of candidal infections were selected for discussion by the participating investigators. Possible answers to the questions were developed by the investigators, who then voted anonymously for their preferences. In certain instances, unanimity or a strong consensus was the result. In all cases, the full spectrum of responses was recorded and is presented in this report. The forms of candidal infection addressed included candidemia, candiduria, hepatosplenic candidiasis (chronic systemic candidiasis), candidal endophthalmitis, and candidal peritonitis. Prevention and treatment strategies were considered for patients who have undergone surgery, for neutropenic and nonneutropenic patients, and for patients who have undergone bone marrow and solid organ transplantation. The therapeutic roles of amphotericin B (standard and lipid formulations) and the azoles were considered.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Investigating family-based alternatives to institution-based mental health services for youth: lessons learned from the pilot study of a randomized field trial.

The development and validation of family-based alternatives to out-of-home placements for children is an important goal in the mental health services field. The rigorous evaluation of such alternatives, however, can be difficult to accomplish. The purpose of this article is to describe initial barriers experienced during the pilot study of a randomized trial, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, conducted in a field setting, and the strategies that were used to overcome these barriers. The randomized trial is examining home-based multisystemic therapy as an alternative to the psychiatric hospitalization of youths presenting psychiatric emergencies. The pilot study illuminated the interface of treatment and services research issues, prompting significant changes in the project's clinical procedures, organization, and supervisory processes, as well as in the project's interface with existing community resources for serving youths with serious emotional disturbances.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Effects of feeding, watering and resting intervals on lambs transported by road and ferry to France.

Three lorry loads, each of approximately 530 lambs, were monitored during August 1994 while they were transported from the Midlands to France. Each lorry underwent a similar journey, designed to study the effects of a) 22 hours on a lorry broken by two hours of feed, water and rest after 15 hours, b) 34 hours on a lorry broken by eight hours of feed, water and rest after 24 hours and c) 24 hours on a lorry and lairage for the following 48 hours. Measurements were made on 180 lambs in each load, of liveweight, plasma betahydroxybutyrate (BHB), non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA), urea, total protein, albumin, osmolality, creatine kinase (CK), cortisol and glucose, before, during and after transport. Twenty-four hours of transport resulted in changes in some of the variables measured that were little different from those observed after 24 hours of feed and water deprivation; however, the high ambient temperatures during the transport resulted in a greater degree of dehydration. For journeys longer than 15 hours a two-hour rest in lairage with access to water and a palatable food source was beneficial in allowing some slight recovery. Although all the differences were in the direction that would be expected with recovery, they were often small and, within the sensitivity of the study, were only significant for NEFA and C.K. For journeys longer than 24 hours, an eight-hour rest in lairage with access to water and a palatable food source was beneficial and allowed material realimentation and rehydration before further transport for up to 10 hours. After 24 hours of transport, however, liveweight, plasma urea, total protein and albumin had only returned to basal levels after 24 hours in lairage and plasma BHB, CK and osmolality after 48 hours of lairage.

3-Hydroxybutyric Acid↗