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Biomedical subjects

J M Nelson

Publications and source records attributed to J M Nelson.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Identifying the obstetric patient at high risk of multiple-unit blood transfusions.

We sought to characterize the obstetric patient who required more than the 1 or 2 units of blood products typically available by autologous donation. Medical records from 1988 were reviewed retrospectively. During this period, 16,462 deliveries were performed. Twenty-seven patients (0.16%) received more than 2 units of blood products during their pregnancies. The most common diagnoses associated with a transfusion were placenta previa (10), uterine atony (8) and abruption (5). Platelets, fresh frozen plasma and cryoprecipitate were administered to 7, 12 and 4 patients, respectively. An antepartum condition associated with hemorrhage was identified in only 11 of the 27 patients (41%) who received greater than or equal to 3 units of blood products. The remainder of the cases were not diagnosed during the antepartum period, when autologous donation is an option.

Adult↗

The Scottish Rite abduction orthosis for the treatment of Legg-Perthes disease. A radiographic analysis.

We evaluated a consecutive series of thirty-four patients who had had Legg-Perthes disease to determine the results of treatment with the Scottish Rite weight-bearing abduction orthosis. All patients had been older than six years at the time of the onset of the symptoms, had been in the fragmentation phase of the disease when they were first seen, and had had Catterall group-III or IV involvement. Although comparison of this series with those reported previously is difficult due to the variability of the presentation of data in the literature, this orthosis does not appear to offer an advantage compared with other methods of management, or with no treatment, for patients such as those whom we studied.

Child↗

In vivo and in vitro evaluation of the alkylating agent carmethizole.

Carmethizole, a novel bis-carbamate alkylating agent, was evaluated in vitro for potential mechanisms of interaction with DNA and in vivo for spectrum and degree of antitumor activity. In vitro, the concentration of carmethizole required to produce a 50% reduction in clonogenic cell survival was identical in O6-alkylguanine DNA alkyltransferase-positive and -negative human cell lines. The CHO cell line UV4, hypersensitive to mono- and bifunctional alkylating agents, was 37-fold more sensitive to carmethizole than normal cells. The UV5 cell line, which is not hypersensitive to cross-linkers, was 13-fold more sensitive to carmethizole than normal cells. Alkaline elution studies in L1210 cells exposed to carmethizole showed the presence of DNA-protein and DNA-DNA cross-links but not DNA strand breaks. These data suggested that the interaction of carmethizole with DNA produces monoadducts, DNA-protein, and DNA-DNA interstrand cross-links at several sites. In vivo, carmethizole was not cross-resistant with 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea or Cytoxan as determined by testing against P388 leukemias resistant to the latter 2 agents. Carmethizole activity was similar to that of melphalan across the murine solid tumor panel, which consisted of B16 melanoma; colon adenocarcinomas 11a, 26, and 36; and the KHT sarcoma. Carmethizole, Cytoxan, and melphalan were all active and had comparable activity against the HCT-8 and MX-1 human tumor xenografts. The in vivo spectrum of activity and efficacy of carmethizole was similar to that of melphalan.

Animals↗

Negative supercoiling increases the sensitivity of plasmid DNA to single-strand break induction by X-rays.

Negatively supercoiled topoisomers of the plasmid pIBI 30 were irradiated with 250 kV X-rays and assayed for strand scission by agarose gel electrophoresis. The survival of supercoiled molecules (Form I) decreased exponentially with increasing X-ray exposure and the dose required to reduce the fraction of DNA in Form I to 37% of its value in unirradiated controls (D37) decreased with increasing negative superhelicity. This enhanced radiation sensitivity of underwound DNA is tentatively attributed to the transient denaturation of the double helix that increases the susceptibility of individual strands to free radical attack.

DNA Damage↗

Inhibition of thrombin-induced endothelium-dependent relaxation after coronary ischemia in the dog: possible role of the coagulation cascade.

Myocardial ischemia inhibits endothelium-dependent relaxation stimulated by the coagulant peptide, thrombin. To investigate whether activation of endogenous thrombin contributed to this reduction in relaxant sensitivity, the effects of pretreatment of dogs with the coumarin anticoagulant, brodifacoum, were studied. Experiments were performed in both normal coronary vasculature and coronary vasculature exposed to 90 min of myocardial ischemia, with or without 60 min of subsequent reperfusion. Ischemia was induced in the left anterior descending artery (LAD); nonischemic vessels from the left circumflex (LCX) artery of the same animals were used as control. Thrombin caused dose-dependent relaxation in isolated LCX preconstricted with prostaglandin F2 alpha (Emax of 89.1 +/- 2.33%). Relaxation was reduced by 90 min of ischemia (Emax of 27.5 +/- 8.0%; p less than 0.05), and further reduced after subsequent reperfusion (Emax of 8.7 +/- 8.7%). However, maximum relaxations to acetylcholine, calcimycin, and isoproterenol were unchanged after ischemia (Emax greater than 90% in all groups). Brodifacoum had no effect on thrombin-induced relaxation in control vessels (Emax of 83.0 +/- 3.5%), or on relaxation in response to acetylcholine, calcimycin, or isoproterenol (Emax greater than 90%). In contrast, brodifacoum markedly reduced thrombin-induced relaxation after ischemia (Emax of 3.3 +/- 3.3%; p less than 0.05) yet significantly preserved the relaxant response to thrombin after ischemia and reperfusion (Emax of 36.6 +/- 4.3%). Infusion of the thrombin inhibitor, D-phenylalanyl-L-prolyl-L-arginine chloromethyl ketone (PPACK), during ischemia and reperfusion also preserved in part the relaxant response induced by thrombin (Emax of 30.0 +/- 5.1%; p less than 0.05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

4-Hydroxycoumarins↗

Cadmium ion-induced alterations of phospholipid metabolism in endothelial cells.

Cadmium exposure is capable of causing acute and chronic lung injuries, but the specific pathogenetic mechanisms are uncertain. The effects of cadmium ion (Cd2+) on phospholipid metabolism were examined in cultured bovine pulmonary artery endothelial cells (BPAEC), as endothelial cells appear to be particularly vulnerable to the toxic effects of this metallic ion. Exposure of radiolabeled BPAEC to millimolar concentrations of Cd2+ causes liberation of substantial amounts of [3H]arachidonic acid ([3H]AA), but only small amounts of [14C]stearic acid, from each of the major phospholipid subclasses. Analyses of hydrolytic products in BPAEC radiolabeled with [3H]myo-inositol and exposed to Cd2+ indicate that degradation of complex phospholipids is mediated by phospholipase A2. The ability of BPAEC to incorporate fatty acids or lysophosphatides into complex phospholipids is similarly impaired after exposure to Cd2+, suggesting that the liberation of [3H]AA might be due to impairment of reacylation mechanisms and not to increased hydrolytic activity of phospholipase A2. Of the two enzymes involved in reacylation reactions, Cd2+ is found to inhibit the activity of arachidonyl-specific acyl coenzyme A synthetase but not the activity of acyltransferase. Cd2+ also causes a profound time- and dose-dependent depletion of adenosine triphosphate levels in BPAEC, and these changes closely correlate with the liberation of [3H]AA. We suggest that impairment of reacylation mechanisms, and the consequent accumulation of arachidonic acid, may be important in the development of the acute inflammatory reaction that is characteristic of Cd(2+)-induced lung injury.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

FseI, a new type II restriction endonuclease that recognizes the octanucleotide sequence 5' GGCCGGCC 3'.

A Type II restriction endonuclease, designated FseI, has been partially purified from a Frankia species (NRRL 18528). This enzyme cleaves Adenovirus 2 DNA at three sites, but does not cleave the DNAs from bacteriophages lambda, T7, and phi X174, the animal virus SV40, pUC18 and pBR322. FseI recognizes the octanucleotide sequence 5' GGCCGG decreases CC 3' and cleaves as indicated by the arrow. The frequency of occurrence of FseI sites within sequenced regions of the human genome is similar to that for NotI sites.

Adenoviruses, Human↗

When should antibody screening tests be done for recently transfused patients?

The American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) requires that blood samples used for pretransfusion testing of recently transfused (or pregnant) patients must be obtained within 3 days of scheduled transfusions. This requirement, which became effective in July 1988, amended Standard G2.000 of the AABB, which previously required that pretransfusion testing must be done on blood samples obtained within 2 days of scheduled transfusions. The present study was designed to estimate the risk associated with adopting the amended version of Standard G2.000. Sixty patients who developed significant unexpected alloantibodies after transfusion were studied retrospectively. Thirteen of the 60 patients were found to have newly detectable antibodies within 83 hours of a sample reported to be negative for the new antibody. Had the amended version of Standard G2.000 been in effect, the detection of some of these antibodies might have been delayed up to 24 hours. It was estimated that the implementation of the new AABB requirement at the authors' institution could potentially place about 1 in 3000 transfused patients at risk for an acute or delayed hemolytic transfusion reaction.

Blood Group Incompatibility↗

The risk of bacterial growth in units of blood that have warmed to more than 10 degrees C.

Most transfusion services discard unopened units of blood that have been returned to the blood bank more than 30 minutes after the issuance or have attained a temperature of more than 10 degrees C. The objective of this study was to learn the prevalence of bacterial growth, if any, in the units of blood that were exposed twice, for six hours each time, to room temperature during their refrigerated storage. All of the 396 units cultured were negative except one red cell unit that grew a Bacillus species, probably B. subtilis. Further studies suggested that the growth of B. subtilis was due to laboratory contamination. The authors concluded that more work is needed to study the bacterial growth and the effect on red cell enzymes in the units of blood that are exposed to room temperature for varying periods or are returned to the blood bank after 30 minutes of issuance. If no adverse effect is noted, the policy of not reissuing such units may need revision so that more units could be salvaged.

Bacteria↗

Release of endothelium-derived relaxing factors from canine cardiac valves.

In the present study, the ability of intact cardiac valvular endothelial cells to release vasodilatory prostanoids and endothelium-derived relaxing factor was investigated. Endothelium-denuded canine coronary arteries were used for bioassay and contractile force recording. Insertion of small segments of cardiac valve (20-30 mm2) with intact endothelium into endothelium-denuded coronary arterial rings did not markedly alter the sensitivity nor magnitude of the coronary artery contractile response to KCl. In contrast, the prostaglandin F2 alpha (PGF2 alpha)-induced contraction was significantly depressed (70% decrease in magnitude and 216% increase in ED50), compared with contraction in the absence of valvular endothelium (5.52 +/- 0.49 g and ED50 of 1.18 +/- 0.02 microM, respectively). These alterations in PGF2 alpha-induced contractions were reduced to 38% decrease in magnitude and +66% in ED50 in the presence of 5 microM indomethacin. Addition of acetylcholine (0.1-30 microM) into these endothelium-denuded coronary artery/valve preparations resulted in a dose-dependent relaxation, reaching a maximum of -59.9 +/- 1.6% (mean +/- SEM of seven vessels). Preincubation of valvular endothelium with 5 microM indomethacin also reduced these acetylcholine-induced valvular endothelium-dependent relaxations to 40.4 +/- 5.5% (mean +/- SEM of 13 vessels). Addition of hemoglobin (3 microM) further attenuated relaxation to -16.0 +/- 7.7% (mean +/- SEM of 14 vessels), while superoxide dismutase (20 units/ml) potentiated the relaxant response to -81.3 +/- 9.4% (mean +/- SEM of 11 vessels) in the presence of indomethacin. These findings suggest that there is a continuous basal release of vasodilatory prostanoids and endothelium-derived relaxing factor from the valvular endothelium, which can be further stimulated with acetylcholine and superoxide dismutase, and inhibited by indomethacin and hemoglobin.

Acetylcholine↗

Autoanti-Ge associated with severe autoimmune hemolytic anemia.

Severe autoimmune hemolytic anemia due to anti-Ge is described. The patient's red cells had a positive direct antiglobulin test, and they typed as Ge+ using saline reactive reagents. Anti-Ge was eluted from her RBCs, and her serum had an IgG and IgM anti-Ge2,3.

Adult↗

Operative techniques in the fetal rabbit.

The development of fetal surgical techniques has made the antenatal correction of congenital defects possible. These techniques have evolved from trials with animal models, permitting increasingly sophisticated operations with low morbidity and mortality. Experimental models range from large animals offering longer gestations but with single pregnancies and high cost, to smaller animals offering multiple pregnancies at reduced cost but with shorter gestations. This paper describes operative techniques in the fetal rabbit and its advantages as a fetal surgical model. Experience with the pregnant rabbit has shown it to be a suitable surgical model for several reasons. Pregnancies are multiple, increasing cost effectiveness and permitting operation on up to eight fetuses per litter without fetal loss. Techniques that promote fetal survival include local housing of does several days prior to operation and preoperative sedation. Spontaneous mask ventilation provides ease of anesthetic administration and titration. Overall surgery is well tolerated with a low incidence of intraoperative complications. Rabbit models have been used in the study of transamniotic fetal feeding, abdominal wall defects, and wound healing. These techniques have resulted in postoperative fetal viability approaching 90%, with negligible maternal mortality in over 4000 fetal operations, thereby making the rabbit a manageable cost-effective model of fetal surgery.

Animals↗

Multiple components of split-dose repair in plateau-phase mammalian cells: a new challenge for phenomenological modelers.

Split-dose experiments using starved plateau-phase Chinese hamster ovary cells have been used to investigate the kinetics of repair, expressed in terms of enhancement of reproductive survival. The results show two distinct components of repair, one having a characteristic time of just over 1 h for the removal of a lesion, the other, about 18 h. The rate at which each component removes damage and the fraction of the total damage that each removes appear to be independent of the initial amount of damage produced, i.e., dose. This lack of dose dependence is not consistent with some simple models of ionizing radiation damage and repair, such as those which assume that saturation of a repair process, depletion of enzyme pools, or the interaction of pairs of sublesions is responsible for the curvature in the dose-response relationship. However, the relationship between the amounts of each type of damage and dose appears to be consistent with models that assume that only a portion of the initial damage is directly accessible to the repair systems or that the initial damage consists of a mixture of potentially lethal and sublethal lesions.

Animals↗

Compatibility of ADSOL-stored red cells with intravenous solutions.

Five percent dextrose in water (D5W) and lactated Ringer's (RL) are two intravenous solutions that are incompatible with citrate phosphate dextrose (CPD) anticoagulated RBCs. Hemolysis, agglutination, and clotting can occur when RBCs are mixed with, infused together with, or transfused in the same line following administration of these fluids. Although minimal plasma remains in units of RBCs containing adenine-saline-dextrose solution (ADSOL; Fenwal Laboratories, Deerfield, IL), clots are seen immediately after contact is made with RL. Clumping and hemolysis are seen when ADSOL-stored RBCs or saline-washed RBCs are mixed with D5W. This study reinforces the unsafe practice of mixing RBCs with certain intravenous solutions.

Adenine↗

Characterization and quantitation of wound matrix in the fetal rabbit.

Fetal response to injury has been characterized by the deposition of a matrix that is not primarily collagen. This study was designed to identify this matrix, in order to better understand the fetal mechanism of tissue repair. Silastic/polyvinyl alcohol sponge (PVA) wound implants were placed paravertebrally in 24-day gestation (31 days = term) fetal (n = 65) and adult (n = 43) rabbits and then harvested from one hour to 6 days post-wounding. Histologic analysis of the fetal wound matrix deposited in the PVA implants suggested the presence of glycosaminoglycans (GAG) rather than the collagen found in adult wound implants. To further analyze the fetal wound matrix, the GAG content was quantitated using an Alcian Blue dye-binding assay. Results showed significantly increased (p less than 0.05) GAG deposition on days 2-6 in the fetal wound compared to the adult wound. Fetal GAG levels were approximately three times those of the adult during this period. Separation of individual GAG species by cellulose acetate electrophoresis demonstrated that the GAG matrix of the fetal wound was composed predominantly of hyaluronic acid. This finding was confirmed by selective enzymatic digestion of separated GAG species using highly specific polysaccharidases. These observations of hyaluronic acid deposition in the fetal wound may be ascribed an important physiologic role by providing a more fluid and malleable matrix rather than a restrictive matrix composed of collagen. This new evidence coupled with earlier findings of the lack of an acute inflammatory response in the fetus further supports the hypothesis that the fetal response to injury is significantly different from the adult response.

Alcian Blue↗

Quantitation of fetal-maternal hemorrhage by flow cytometry. A simple and accurate method.

A simple and objective assay was developed for the detection and quantitation of fetal-maternal hemorrhage with the use of flow cytometry. In vitro prepared control mixtures of 10%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, 0.25%, 0.125%, and 0.06% D+ RBCs in D- RBCs were tested (8-11) different times by flow cytometry and gave mean % D+ results of 11.10%, 1.90%, 0.92%, 0.45%, 0.24%, 0.11%, and 0.05%. The coefficient of variation of preparing and testing these mixtures ranged from 11.0 to 15.9% for the 10-0.125% mixtures. Thus, flow cytometry was accurate, reproducible, and sensitive. Flow cytometry was compared with Du tests, rosette tests, and acid elution. The Du test was highly variable because it was not sensitive enough to detect a significant bleed (approximately 0.6%) in some cases and too sensitive (necessitating quantitation of an insignificant bleed) in others. The rosette test was too sensitive. Acid elution and flow cytometry results did not always agree; acid elution results were approximately twice as high as flow cytometry. The authors believe flow cytometric detection of D+ red blood cells to be more accurate than the detection of fetal hemoglobin by acid elution techniques, which is known to have poor reproducibility. Postpartum samples from 56 D- women who delivered D+ babies were tested. Fifty-two had fetal bleeds less than 0.3% by acid elution and flow cytometry; all had negative Du test results, but there were two false positive results with the use of the rosette technique. Four had significant bleeds (greater than or equal to 0.6%); in all four cases the flow cytometry results were lower than the acid elution results. The authors were able to quantitate a bleed of fetal RBCs, which were D+ only by the Du test, in a D- mother with the use of flow cytometry, and D+ RBCs in a mother whose RBCs were of the rare DVI mosaic phenotype. This would not have been possible with the use of the standard Du or rosette techniques.

Erythrocyte Count↗

Monocyte monolayer assay: an efficient noninvasive technique for predicting the severity of hemolytic disease of the newborn.

The authors performed monocyte monolayer assays (MMAs) with the use of normal donor monocytes, and homologous reagent red blood cells, sensitized in vitro, with antibodies in maternal sera. The sera were from 16 pregnant women with Rh antibodies, drawn at the time of amniotic fluid analysis. They compared the predictive value (PV) of the MMAs and the delta OD 450 of amniotic fluid in forecasting the need for transfusing the infant. The PV of the delta OD 450 result in Liley zone mid II-III was 100%, but in zones 0 to low II it was only 60% (13 samples from ten women were in these zones but four babies required transfusion). In contrast, the PV of a positive (greater than 20% reactivity) MMA was 91% (one false positive result) and the PV of a negative MMA was 100%. Thus, the MMA was more efficient than amniotic fluid analysis at predicting hemolytic disease of the newborn severe enough to require transfusion. The noninvasive MMA could be used as a screening test, reducing the number of amniocenteses or ultrasound evaluations performed on Rh-sensitized women.

Amniotic Fluid↗