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Biomedical subjects

J Just

Publications and source records attributed to J Just.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1998

Biodiversity: the scene in Australia and the role of the Australian Biological Resources Study.

It is estimated that Australia is home to more than 1 million species, less than 15% of which have been described. No estimate is given for parasites, but brief speculation on the potential is presented. The Commonwealth Government has a clear role in funding biosystematic research in Australia in support of its Natural Heritage Trust programmes, the National Biodiversity Strategy and its responsibilities under the Biodiversity Convention, and in order to maintain adequate taxonomic capacity. As a Government programme of Environment Australia, the Australian Biological Resources Study has disbursed around A$12 million towards taxonomic and biogeographic research on animals and Protozoa. Approximately 10% of this amount has gone towards parasitology. With funding for the Study being in a somewhat parlous state, it is argued that priorities for research funding need to focus clearly on issues of national significance as expressed in Government policies, strategies and environment programmes. In addition to scientific merit, research questions and projected outputs in project applications for funding should be justified in terms of meeting the needs of end users in conservation management, primary industry, and the wider biological research community.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Short-term effect of winter air pollution on respiratory health of asthmatic children in Paris.

There is controversy as to whether low levels of air pollution affect the symptoms and lung function in asthma. We addressed this by examining the short-term effects of winter air pollution on childhood asthma in Paris. We performed a 6 month follow-up of 84 medically diagnosed asthmatic children classified into two groups of severity. The outcomes included incidence and prevalence of asthma attacks, symptoms and use of supplementary beta2-agonists, peak expiratory flow (PEF) value and its variability. The statistical analysis controlled the lack of independence between daily health outcomes, trends and meteorology. Air pollution was associated with an increase in reports and duration of asthma attacks and asthma-like symptoms in mild asthmatic children. The strongest association was the risk of asthma attack for an increase of 50 microg x m(-3) of sulphur dioxide (SO2) on the same day (odds ratio (OR)=2.86). Maximum reduction in morning peak expiratory flow (PEF) (5%) and maximum increase in PEF variability (2%) were observed at a lag of 3 days for an increase of 50 microg x m(-3) of SO2 in the subgroup of mild asthmatics receiving no regular inhaled medication. In moderate asthmatic children, the duration of supplementary beta2-agonist use was strongly associated with air pollution. The general pattern of our results provides evidence of the effect of the low levels of air pollution encountered in Western Europe on symptoms and lung function in childhood asthma.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMed1998

[Cystic and mucinous lesion in an antral ectopic pancreas].

We report a case of heterotopic pancreas located in the gastric antrum. The cystic formation contained mucus. Tumoral markers in the cyst fluid were within the range pancreatic cystic mucinous tumors. Pathology examination of the resected specimen did not evidence any proliferative lesions but showed papillary hyperplasia probably due to duct occlusion.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 deficiency prolongs survival and protects against the development of pulmonary inflammation during murine lupus.

One of the characteristic features of the lupus syndrome in humans and mice is the organ-specific accumulation of leukocytes within a variety of different tissues; however, the etiology of this phenomenon remains unclear. The work presented here determined the role of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1 in the development of pulmonary leukocyte accumulation by generating MRL/MpJ-Faslpr mice that are genetically deficient in this critical adhesion molecule. Interestingly, these MRL/MpJ-Faslpr ICAM-1 knockout mice exhibit prolonged survival times compared to littermates expressing ICAM-1. We have determined that lack of ICAM-1 completely abrogates the development of pulmonary inflammation but does not prevent the development of autoantibodies, lymphadenopathy, and glomerulonephritis. Furthermore, the lack of pulmonary inflammation was found to be due to decreased migration of leukocytes to the lung rather than decreased in situ proliferation of cells.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Longitudinal study of Aspergillus fumigatus strains isolated from cystic fibrosis patients.

The colonization over time of cystic fibrosis patients by Aspergillus fumigatus was investigated using a DNA fingerprinting method. Aspergillus fumigatus isolates collected sequentially for more than one year from six patients with cystic fibrosis were typed by Southern blot hybridization with a repetitive DNA sequence. Each cystic fibrosis patient harbored several strains of Aspergillus fumigatus that were isolated recurrently over time. Isolates collected from a cystic fibrosis patient with aspergilloma displayed the same genotype, suggesting that the infection was due to a single strain. Continuous isolation of the same genotype in another cystic fibrosis patient, however, was not correlated clinically with an Aspergillus infection.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

HIV-1 p17 and IFN-gamma both induce fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase.

The p17 matrix protein of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) plays a crucial role in AIDS pathogenesis. It orchestrates viral assembly and directs the preintegration complex to the nucleus of infected cells. Recently, the three-dimensional structure of p17 was shown to resemble that of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), suggesting that both proteins might share analogous functions. We demonstrate that in monocytes, p17 shares with IFN-gamma the ability to induce 1alpha-hydroxylase activity and to activate fructose 1,6-bisphosphatase gene expression in the presence of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3. However, p17 does not bind to the IFN-gamma cell membrane receptor and fails to increase expression of IFN-gamma-induced proteins, such as tryptophanyl-tRNA synthetase, Fc gammaRI, and HLA DR or B7/BB1 antigens. Altogether, our results raise the possibility that the structural resemblance between p17 and IFN-gamma causes the selective activation of a common pathway resulting in the production of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3. We also found that unlike IFN-gamma, p17 increases the intracellular ATP content. Since transport of the HIV-1 preintegration complex through the nuclear membrane is an ATP-dependent process, our observation suggests that p17 plays a double role in this active transport, not only by acting as a chaperone molecule but also by recruiting the necessary energy for this process.

25-Hydroxyvitamin D3 1-alpha-Hydroxylase↗
PubMed1994

[Asthma in infants].

Infant asthma is a newly individualised entity, underdiagnosed and undertreated. The physiological and anatomical features in infancy, the particular frequency of respiratory viral infections at this age can explain clinical aspects of asthma in infant. Some risk and prognostic factors, however, have been established. These include allergy, viral infections, neonatal respiratory illness. An early diagnosis of the disease makes possible adequate preventive means to be carried on. Treatment, based firstly on environmental control must be started soon to preserve pulmonary growth.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1993

Genetic variation among the Mapuche Indians from the Patagonian region of Argentina: mitochondrial DNA sequence variation and allele frequencies of several nuclear genes.

DNA samples from 60 Mapuche Indians, representing 39 maternal lineages, were genetically characterized for (1) nucleotide sequences of the mtDNA control region; (2) presence or absence of a nine base duplication in mtDNA region V; (3) HLA loci DRB1 and DQA1; (4) variation at three nuclear genes with short tandem repeats; and (5) variation at the polymorphic marker D2S44. The genetic profile of the Mapuche population was compared to other Amerinds and to worldwide populations. Two highly polymorphic portions of the mtDNA control region, comprising 650 nucleotides, were amplified by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and directly sequenced. The 39 maternal lineages were defined by two or three generation families identified by the Mapuches. These 39 lineages included 19 different mtDNA sequences that could be grouped into four classes. The same classes of sequences appear in other Amerinds from North, Central, and South American populations separated by thousands of miles, suggesting that the origin of the mtDNA patterns predates the migration to the Americas. The mtDNA sequence similarity between Amerind populations suggests that the migration throughout the Americas occurred rapidly relative to the mtDNA mutation rate. HLA DRB1 alleles 1602 and 1402 were frequent among the Mapuches. These alleles also occur at high frequency among other Amerinds in North and South America, but not among Spanish, Chinese or African-American populations. The high frequency of these alleles throughout the Americas, and their specificity to the Americas, supports the hypothesis that Mapuches and other Amerind groups are closely related.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Alleles↗
PubMed1992

Genetic risk factors for perinatally acquired HIV-1 infection.

This study evaluates genetic influence on susceptibility to perinatal HIV-1 infection among 106 Black infants from New York and San Francisco born to mothers infected with HIV-1. Genes tested by molecular techniques are HLA class II loci DRB1, DPB1 and DQA1; HLA class III loci complement C4A and C4B; alpha and beta interferons; and the constant region of the T-cell receptor beta chain. Of the 106 infants analysed, 54 are infected with HIV and 52 remain uninfected at age 15 months and older. Genotypes in the HLA region appear to influence risk of HIV infection. Specifically, infants with the amino acid sequence -asp-glu-ala-val- at DPB1 positions #84-87 are more likely to be infected (P = 0.001) and infants with the allele DQA1*0102 are less likely to be infected (P = 0.031). Combinations of these two risk factors show a strong dose response (P = 0.0005). HLA DPB1 and DQA1 may play a direct role in immune response associated with HIV-1 infection, or the critical region may be located between these two genes. Characterisation of other class II HLA genes in these infants will allow more precise determination of the role of HLA loci in susceptibility to HIV-1 infection.

Alleles↗
PubMed1992

Detection of Mycoplasma pneumoniae in clinical samples from pediatric patients by polymerase chain reaction.

The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was used to detect Mycoplasma pneumoniae DNA in clinical samples (nasopharyngeal aspirations or bronchoalveolar lavages) obtained from 100 children, 1 month to 16 years old. PCR allowed the detection of M. pneumoniae DNA from 20 out of the 100 patients studied. In 16 cases, PCR positivity was associated with acute respiratory symptomatology. For five PCR-positive patients, a positive culture or a serological response evidenced acute M. pneumoniae infections. A lack of antibody response was observed particularly with immunocompromised children and infants less than 12 months old. The amount of M. pneumoniae DNA in the PCR was estimated in a semiquantitative way by comparison of its hybridization signal with those obtained for 100, 10, and 1 color-changing unit (CCU) of the M. pneumoniae FH strain. Small amounts (less than or equal to 10(2) CCU/ml) of M. pneumoniae were found in samples from asymptomatic patients, while larger amounts (greater than or equal to 10(2) to greater than or equal to 10(4) CCU/ml) were found for 8 out of 10 patients with acute pneumonia.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

[Reliability and reproducibility of 3 peak flowmeters determined in a population of primary school children].

Peak-flow measurement increasingly seems to be very useful for routine monitoring of asthma in children. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the reliability and reproductibility of three different peak-flow meters: Miniwright, Vitalograph and Assess. This prospective study was conducted in 100 primary school children aged from 6 to 11 years. In each child, 9 measurements of expiratory peak-flow rate (EPF) were performed with these 3 peak flow meters in a random order. Reproductibility was assessed for each instrument by the greatest divergence observed between the 3 EPF values measured in the same session. Reliability was assessed by comparison between the values obtained with each instrument and theoretical EPF values calculated from a formula which included age, sex and size. Our study validated the reliability and reproductibility of the 3 peak flow meters studied. EPF values were more scattered and less reproductible with Assess, but the difference was not significant.

Asthma↗