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Biomedical subjects

J Williams

Publications and source records attributed to J Williams.

At least 1,009 records · Page 56Linked to original sources
PubMed1983

The effect of hypotensive anesthesia on cephalosporin concentrations in serum, soft tissue, and bone.

The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of a hypotensive anesthetic in enhancing tissue perfusion while simultaneously controlling surgical blood loss. One hundred ten patients undergoing 126 total hip arthroplasties were administered either cephalothin or cefamandole on a double-blind basis. Hypotensive anesthesia was administered to 64 patients; 46 received a normotensive anesthetic. Degree of tissue perfusion was measured by the concentration of cephalosporin found in samplings of serum, soft tissue, and bone. These samples, obtained during the course of total joint arthroplasty, indicate that the hypotensive anesthetic sodium nitroprusside did not significantly alter the concentrations of cefamandole or cephalothin from those found in the normotensive group.

Anesthesia↗
PubMed1982

The preparation and partial characterization of N-terminal and C-terminal iron-binding fragments from rabbit serum transferrin.

Two iron-binding fragments of Mr 36 000 and 33 000 corresponding to the N-terminal domain of rabbit serum transferrin were prepared. One iron-binding fragment of Mr 39 000 corresponding to the C-terminal domain was prepared. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of rabbit serum transferrin is: Val-Thr-Glu-Lys-Thr-Val-Asn-Trp-?-Ala-Val-Ser. One glycan unit is presented in rabbit serum transferrin and it is located in the C-terminal domain.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1982

Removal of iron from diferric rabbit serum transferrin by rabbit reticulocytes.

When radioiron-labelled transferrin with 55Fe located predominantly in the N-terminal iron-binding site and 59Fe predominantly in the C-terminal iron-binding site was incubated with rabbit reticulocytes, both radioisotopes of iron were removed at similar rates. Electrophoresis of transferrin samples taken during the course of an incubation, in polyacrylamide gels containing 6 M-urea, showed that iron was removed in a pairwise fashion, giving rise to iron-free transferrin.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Bromocriptine in management of large pituitary tumours.

Bromocriptine has an accepted place in the management of small pituitary tumours that secrete either prolactin or growth hormone. The treatment of large tumours with extrasellar extensions is more difficult, however: though surgery is the standard treatment, it is often unsuccessful in returning excessive hormone secretion to normal and may cause hypopituitarism. A prospective trial was undertaken to assess the frequency with which changes in pituitary function and size of large tumours occurs. Nineteen patients were studied before and during treatment with bromocriptine (7.5 to 60 ml/day) for three to 22 months, using contrast radiology and a detailed assessment of pituitary function. Eighteen patients had hyperprolactinaemia and two of these also had raised concentrations of growth hormones; one patient had an apparently non-functioning tumour. In 12 patients (63%) tumour size decreased with bromocriptine and no tumour enlarged. Nine patients had visual-field defects, which improved in seven, becoming normal in five. Pituitary function improved in nine patients (47%) becoming entirely normal in three. Bromocriptine should be the treatment of choice in patients with large pituitary tumours with extrasellar extensions, provided close supervision is maintained.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

The effect of salt concentration on the iron-binding properties of human transferrin.

The salt dependence of the iron-binding properties of transferrin was studied by urea/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. The distribution of iron between the N-terminal and C-terminal binding sites under equilibrium conditions and the rates of release of iron from the two sites were studied. It was found that salt increases the thermodynamic stability of iron binding in the N-terminal site relative to the C-terminal site. Similar behaviour is observed for the kinetics of iron release, where salt retards the rate of removal of iron from the N-terminal site but facilitates removal from the C-terminal site.

Binding Sites↗
PubMed1982

The identification of protected tyrosine residues in iron-ovotransferrin.

Tetranitromethane reacts with essentially all 21 tyrosine residues of iron-free ovotransferrin. In iron-ovotransferrin, 7 mol of tyrosine/mol of protein are unreactive. Peptides containing the unreactive tyrosine residues were isolated from digests of nitrated iron-ovotransferrin. By comparing the structures of the peptides with the amino acid sequence of ovotransferrin it is found that there are ten protected residues occupying positions 42, 82, 92, 188, 319, 415, 431, 521 and 524 in the polypeptide chain. The problem of identifying the tyrosine residues that form bonds with the metal atoms is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1982

Evolutionary significance of the renal excretion of transferrin half-molecule fragments.

It is generally thought that the duplicated structure of serum transferrin in vertebrates arose by gene duplication and fusion from a small ancestral protein. We have found that the isolated domains of transferrin are rapidly lost from the bloodstream via the kidneys. Therefore we suggest that the ancestral transferrin was not a serum protein or, alternatively, that it was not as small as the half-molecule.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Experience with selective venous sampling in diagnosis of ACTH-dependent Cushing's syndrome.

Twenty-three patients with adrenocorticotrophic hormone-(ACTH)-dependent Cushing's syndrome were subjected to selective venous catheterisation and sampling for ACTH on a total of 26 occasions. Out of 10 patients with pituitary-dependent disease, nine had raised ACTH concentrations in one or both high internal jugular vein samples. Eight patients had 11 proved sites of ectopic hormone production: of these, six were correctly identified by the sampling technique, and in four of them this was the only accurate method of localisation. The results of one catheterisation were misleading, and on 10 occasions they were inconclusive; five patients remained undiagnosed by any method. Overall, 15 of the 26 catheterisations provided diagnostically valuable information. Selective venous catheterisation and sampling for ACTH is effective in confirming a pituitary source of the hormone and may be valuable in locating the source of ectopic ACTH production in some cases.

ACTH Syndrome, Ectopic↗
PubMed1982

A variant of human transferrin with abnormal properties.

Screening of human serum samples by polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis in the presence of 6 M-urea revealed an individual who is heterozygous for a variant transferrin. The variant transferrin is able to bind two atoms of iron, but the iron in the C-terminal binding site is bound abnormally, as judged by its spectral properties, and is dissociated from the protein on electrophoresis in the presence of 6 M-urea. The iron-free C-terminal domain of the variant protein is less stable than normal to thermal and urea denaturation. Structural changes in the variant protein have not yet been characterized.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1982

Chemical hyperthyroidism: serum triiodothyronine levels in clinically euthyroid individuals treated with levothyroxine.

We have observed many patients treated with levothyroxine sodium who have elevated serum thyroxine (T4) levels but appear clinically euthyroid. Such patients generally have normal serum triiodothyronine (T3) values. A retrospective review at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, comparing the correlation of T3 and T4 values in levothyroxine-treated patients with that in patients not so treated was carried out from 1977 to 1979. Mean free thyroxine index (FTI) value in 104 levothyroxine-treated patients was 4.70 +/- 0.2 and mean T3 value was 177 +/- 9 ng/dL. In a group of 50 hyperthyroid patients, mean FTI value was 7.26. +/- 0.5, with a mean T3 value of 389 +/- 26 ng/dL. In 71 euthyroid patients, mean FTI value was 2.36 +/- 0.1, with a T3 value of 137 +/- 3 ng/dL. Computed ratios of T3 to FTI and T3 to T4 were significantly lower in the group treated with levothyroxine than in either the hyperthyroid or euthyroid nontreated groups. Levothyroxine-treated patients with high T4 levels but normal T3 levels were clinically euthyroid. Patients not treated with levothyroxine with similarly elevated T4 levels had elevated T3 levels and were clinically hyperthyroid. It is concluded that lower relative T3 levels in levothyroxine-treated patients may explain why these patients appear clinically euthyroid despite elevated T4 values. Serum T3 determination is the procedure of choice for evaluation of levothyroxine-treated individuals. Furthermore, an elevated FTI value in such an individual does not, in itself, dictate need to reduce dosage.

Drug Administration Schedule↗
PubMed1982

Adenovirus E1b-58kd tumor antigen and SV40 large tumor antigen are physically associated with the same 54 kd cellular protein in transformed cells.

The adenovirus E1b-58kd tumor antigen has been detected in a physical association with a 54 kilodalton cellular protein in adenovirus-transformed mouse cells. Antibody specific for the E1b-58kd protein coimmunoprecipitates a 54 kd protein from transformed, but not from productively infected, cells. Monoclonal antibody specific for the cellular 54 kd protein coimmunoprecipitates the adenovirus E1b-58kd protein from transformed cell extracts. The same or closely related cellular 54 kd protein, associated with the adenovirus E1b-58kd protein, was present in the SV40 large T antigen-54 kd complex previously detected in SV40-transformed mouse cells. The identity of the 54 kd protein is based on the immunological specificities of the anti-54 kd monoclonal antibodies and partial peptide maps of the 54 kd protein associated with the adenovirus and SV40 tumor antigens. The adenovirus E1b-58kd-54 kd complex, like the SV40 large T antigen-54 kd complex, is heterogeneous in size or mass. While all of the cellular 54 kd protein in the adenovirus-transformed cell extract is found in a complex with the E1b-58kd protein, some of the viral 58 kd antigen is detected in a form not associated with the 54 kd protein. The fact that the adenovirus and Sv40 tumor antigens, both required for transformation, can be found in physical association with the same cellular protein in a transformed cell is a good indication that these two diverse viral proteins share some common mechanisms or functions.

Adenoviruses, Human↗
PubMed1982

Effect of mineral oil and/or cholestyramine in the diet on biliary and intestinal elimination of 2,4,5,2',4',5'-hexabromobiphenyl in the rhesus monkey.

Addition of mineral oil to the diet (5%) of two rhesus monkeys that were dosed 29 wk earlier with 2,4,5,2',4',5'-hexabromobiphenyl (HBB) produced a 175% increase in fecal excretion of HBB. A third rhesus monkey was provided with a complete biliary bypass, which permitted the reintroduction of the monkey's own bile or the introduction of the same amount of exogenous bile, which was obtained from control donor monkeys. This experimental design made it possible to measure the portion of fecal excretion that was due to biliary elimination and the portion that was due to intestinal elimination. The effect of mineral oil and/or cholestyramine (CSA) on biliary and intestinal elimination of HBB in the rhesus monkey was then investigated. The results show that (1) fecal excretion of HBB and/or metabolites is due to both biliary and intestinal elimination; (2) during the first 2 wk after completion of dosing, mineral oil does not influence fecal excretion of HBB significantly; (3) 6-7 wk after completion of dosing, mineral oil enhances fecal excretion of HBB by 50%; (4) 8 wk after the last dose of HBB, 4% CSA in the diet increases fecal excretion of HBB and/or metabolites by about 50%; (5) mineral oil specifically stimulates intestinal elimination of HBB; and (6) combined administration of mineral oil and CSA results in an additive effect.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

Oxygen affinities of the hydrogenosome-containing protozoa Tritrichomonas foetus and Dasytricha ruminantium, and two aerobic protozoa, determined by bacterial bioluminescence.

Oxygen-dependent bioluminescence of Photobacterium (Vibrio) fischeri was used to measure oxygen affinities of four protozoa. The aerobic organisms Acanthamoeba castellanii and Tetrahymena pyriformis showed apparent Km values for O2 of 0.42 and 2.43 microM respectively. The aerotolerant anaerobe Tritrichomonas foetus, and the more strictly anaerobic rumen ciliate Dasytricha ruminantium, both of which have hydrogenosomes, respired with apparent Km values of 1.08 and 1.70 microM-O2. We conclude that mitochondrial respiration is not the only process conferring on organisms a high affinity for O2.

Amoeba↗