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Biomedical subjects

J S Morris

Publications and source records attributed to J S Morris.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources

Ascites.

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Ascites↗

Prediagnostic serum selenium and risk of cancer.

Selenium levels in serum samples collected in 1973 from 111 subjects in whom cancer developed during the subsequent 5 years were compared with those in serum samples from 210 cancer-free subjects matched for age, race, sex, and smoking history. The mean selenium level of cases (0.129 +/- SEM 0.002 micrograms/ml) was significantly lower than that of controls (0.136 +/- 0.002 micrograms/ml). The risk of cancer for subjects in the lowest quintile of serum selenium was twice that of subjects in the highest. Multivariate adjustment for geographical area and serum levels of lipids, vitamins A and E, and carotene, did not alter this relation. The association between low selenium level and cancer was strongest for gastrointestinal and prostatic cancers. Serum levels of vitamins A and E compounded the effect of low selenium; relative risks for the lowest tertile of selenium were 2.4 and 3.9 in the lowest tertiles of vitamins E and A, respectively.

Adult↗

Seminal selenium concentrations and spermatozoal abnormalities in beef bulls.

The relationship between seminal selenium (Se) concentration and spermatozoal abnormalities in 24 Angus and 12 Simmental bulls maintained on a Se adequate diet was studied. Two semen samples were collected by electroejaculation 50 days apart from each bull. Measurements of primary and secondary spermatozoal abnormalities, seminal Se concentration, and blood plasma Se concentration were determined at each semen collection. The mean (chi +/- SD ) Se concentration of semen (0.535 +/- 0.267) was approximately 8 fold greater than the Se concentration of blood plasma (0.069 +/- 0.066) and the values were similar for both collections. Spermatozoa concentration was correlated (r = 0.50; P<.01) with seminal Se concentration; however, seminal Se concentration was not highly correlated (P<.01) with primary spermatozoal abnormalities (r = -0.29) and secondary spermatozoal abnormalities (r = 0.16). This study indicates that the Se concentration of semen is high relative to blood plasma in bulls maintained on a Se adequate diet; however, the seminal Se concentration is not highly correlated with spermatozoal abnormalities.

Journal Article↗

Relaxation of guinea-pig stomach by bradykinin.

Intraluminal pressure changes were recorded from guinea-pig stomachs in vitro. Bradykinin (Bk) (0.4-9.6 nM) was generally found to produce a biphasic response (relaxation followed by contraction) in bathing solutions containing 1.1 mM calcium chloride. In bathing solutions containing 5.2 mM calcium chloride a relaxation without contraction was the most common observation. Relaxations to Bk were unaffected by selective concentrations of tetrodotoxin (5.6 microM), phentolamine (5.0-50.0 microM) and propranolol (5.0-50.0 microM). During virtually complete desensitization to Bk produced by 3 cumulative doses of 6.4 nM, relaxations to vagal stimulation were only reduced by 24.2% and those to adrenaline (2.0 microM) by 25.9%, indicating that Bk is unlikely to be the inhibitory transmitter released during vagal stimulation. Relaxations to ATP (10 microM) were reduced by 89.4% suggesting that Bk and ATP share a common step in the production of relaxation.

Animals↗

Relative chromium response as an indicator of chromium status.

Twenty-seven women ages 40 to 75 were divided into normal (n = 15) and hyperglycemic (n = 12) groups on the basis of 3-hr glucose tolerance tests. Each subject received 5 g of brewer's yeast extract containing 4 microgram of chromium daily for 3 months. Glucose, insulin, and chromium levels were analyzed by oxidase, radioimmunoassay, and radiochemical neutron activation analysis methods, respectively. The fasting and 1-hr serum chromium levels (ng/ml) changed from 1.67 and 1.43 to 1.46 and 1.86 in the normal group, and from 1.89 and 1.03 to 0.94 and 1.03 in the hyperglycemic group. Considerable changes occurred in the relative chromium response (RCR) at the 1-hr point. RCR is defined as (1-hr serum chromium level/fasting serum chromium level) X 100. Among the normal subjects, 73% showed an improved RCR after the supplementation: mean RCR was 107% before and 140% after. Among the hyperglycemic subjects, 75% showed an improved RCR: mean RCR was 81% before and 149% after the supplementation. The increased RCR was associated with decreased serum insulin and glucose levels. This is interpreted as reflecting an improved chromium status for the majority of individuals in both groups after the supplementation. The observations suggest that 1) in response to a glucose load, serum chromium levels drop in subjects with presumably inadequate chromium storage; 2) a low value of relative chromium response at the 1-hr point indicates a suboptimal chromium nutritional status.

Aged↗

Bile acids in liver disease associated with inflammatory bowel disease.

To investigate the possibility that bowel-related liver disease is due to accumulation of abnormal bile acids in the enterohepatic circulation, bile acids have been measured in gall-bladder bile and portal blood of patients with chronic bowel disease, none of whom had liver disease. There was no difference in the composition and concentration of bile acids in bile and portal blood compared with control patients. In a second study, serum bile acid composition and concentrations were similar in two groups of patients with liver disease, whether they had bowel disease or not. In a further study, post-prandial serum bile acid concentrations were not elevated in a group of patients with chronic bowel disease, making it unlikely that subcliical liver disease was present. No evidence has been found to support the hypothesis that bowel-related liver disease in man results from the action of abnormal bile acids.

Adult↗

Piperazine hepatitis.

The first reported case of piperazine toxicity resembling viral hepatitis is described in a 25-year-old woman. The illness, which was severe, occurred after administration of the drug on two separate occasions. The evidence favors a hypersensitivity mechanism rather than a direct toxic effect of piperazine or its metabolites on the liver. The humoral or cellular immune basis for such hypersensitivity has not been elucidated.

Acute Disease↗

Diagnositic value of serum bile acid estimations in liver disease.

Bile acid concentrations were estimated enzymatically in fasting and postprandial (two-hour) serum samples from 18 normal subjects and 30 patients with histologically proven hepatobiliary disease. The serum bile acid concentration was less than 15 mumol/1 in normal subjects and did not increase postprandially. The fasting serum bile acid concentration was raised in 27 of the patients with hepatobiliary disease, and following a meal was outside the normal range in all 30 patients. Other liver function tests were abnormal less frequently. These results suggest that the estimation of serum bile acids in the postprandial state is a sensitive screening test of hepatobiliary disease. They should be of particular value in patients in whom liver disease is suspected but not proven, and in those recovering from liver disease, especially following therapy.

Adolescent↗