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Biomedical subjects

J Wood

Publications and source records attributed to J Wood.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

Medicare prospective payment: anticipated effect on hospitals, other community agencies, and families.

The switch to prospective payment for hospitals under Medicare is expected to have ramifications in a number of different areas. This paper addresses a select number of those areas: hospital organization and management, other community agencies, and families. Questions are raised as to the capacity to provide adequate care in response to the increased demand for care outside the hospital setting that will result from the new payment system.

Community Health Services↗
PubMed1984

Effects of physician counseling on the smoking behavior of asbestos-exposed workers.

Physician antismoking advice has been shown to increase smoking cessation, particularly among patients who have medical problems or perceive themselves to be at risk. The present study tested three hypotheses: (a) providing 3 to 5 min of behavioral counseling regarding a cessation strategy would be more effective than simply warning the smoker to quit smoking; (b) smokers with abnormal pulmonary function would be more likely to comply with medical advice than would smokers with normal pulmonary function; and (c) that smokers with abnormal pulmonary function who receive behavioral counseling would be the group most likely to achieve prolonged abstinence. Asbestos-exposed smoking men undergoing screening in a mandated program for naval shipyard workers were categorized as having normal or abnormal pulmonary status on the basis of chest X ray and pulmonary function tests (PFT). They were then randomly assigned within PFT categories to receive either a simple warning or 3 to 5 min of behavioral cessation counseling from the physician who gave them the results of their pulmonary tests. Subjects' smoking status was evaluated at 3- and 11-month intervals following the physician intervention. Smokers who received behavioral counseling were more likely to quit and remain abstinent over the 11-month period (8.4% abstinent) than were smokers given a minimal warning (3.6% abstinent). Prolonged abstinence rates among abnormal PFT subjects (3.7%) did not differ from those of normals (5.9%). The group with normal PFT who received behavioral counseling achieved the highest level of abstinence (9.5%). Maintaining adequate physician compliance with the counseling protocol proved difficult; implications of this for future efforts are discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Barn allergy among Scottish farmers.

Previous studies have shown that allergy to storage mites is a significant contributor to allergic disease among an isolated farming community in the Orkneys. The present study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of disease due to storage mites among farmers on the mainland of Scotland. Of the 290 subjects employed on 102 randomly selected farms studied, eighty-seven (30%) reported allergic symptoms on entering barns or byres, and prick tests to storage mites were positive in 62 (21%). Rhinitis and conjunctivitis together were the more frequently reported symptoms, with less than half the subjects recording respitatory symptoms. Specific IgE antibody to storage mites was detected in 43% of subjects reporting allergic symptoms associated with hay dust. Specific IgE to storage mites was strongly associated with atopy in those subjects who reported allergic symptoms.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Bioactivity of cholecystokinin analogues: CCK-8 is not more potent than CCK-33.

We determined the relative molar potencies of structural analogues of porcine cholecystokinin (CCK-39, CCK-33, CCK-8, and caerulein). Peptide concentrations delivered in infusates or present in bathing medium were measured by radioimmunoassay. The presence of albumin prevented loss of CCK-39 and CCK-33 from solution to a greater degree than loss of CCK-8 and caerulein from solution. As much as 10-fold differences in CCK-33 and CCK-39 concentrations were seen in albumin-containing versus nonalbumin-containing infusates. The potency estimates calculated from radioimmunoassay-corrected concentrations with CCK-8 as standard (potency 1.00) were canine pancreatic secretion in vivo: CCK-39 4.1, CCK-33 2.2, and caerulein 2.1; rat pancreatic secretion in vivo: CCK-39 2.1, CCK-33 5.4, and caerulein 5.4; rat pancreatic secretion in vitro: CCK-33 1.7, and caerulein 1.2; guinea pig gallbladder contraction in vivo: CCK-33 1.3, and caerulein 0.9; and guinea pig gallbladder contraction in vitro: CCK-33 1.8, and caerulein 5.8. Our data indicate that CCK-8 is not more potent than longer analogues and suggest that larger forms of CCK may be important mediators of the biological actions of CCK.

Albumins↗
PubMed1984

Blood pressure effects of renin inhibition by human renin antiserum in normotensive marmosets.

The effects on blood pressure of an antiserum against pure human kidney renin were studied in conscious and anesthetized (pentobarbital, 24 mg X kg-1 i.p.) small new world monkeys (common marmosets). The antiserum inhibited the enzymatic activity of renin by 50% in a dilution of 1:45,000 in marmoset and 1:50,000 in human plasma. The antiserum (0.2 ml i.v.) decreased blood pressure in conscious marmosets on normal sodium intake by 15 +/- 5 (SD) mmHg and after salt depletion by 31 +/- 13 mmHg. A converting enzyme inhibitor (teprotide, 2 mg X kg-1 i.v.) induced a comparable fall in blood pressure: -16 +/- 10 and -30 +/- 10 mmHg, respectively. Similar effects were observed on blood pressure of anesthetized marmosets. The correlation between pretreatment plasma renin concentration and the maximum fall in blood pressure was significant and identical for the experiments with antiserum and teprotide. These results demonstrate that antisera against human renin can be used for the specific blockade of the renin-angiotensin system in primates. In normotensive marmosets the renin-angiotensin system participates in the maintenance of blood pressure, to a degree depending on the state of sodium balance.

Anesthesia, General↗
PubMed1984

Fragile-X syndrome ascertained by the presence of macro-orchidism in a 5-month-old infant.

The fragile-X syndrome, an X-linked form of mental retardation, is estimated to affect one in every 1,000 to 2,000 live-born male infants. Most commonly, fragile-X syndrome has been detected only after patients clearly demonstrate developmental delay, and frequently detection occurs only if the family history is consistent with X-linked mental retardation. Macro-orchidism is a finding commonly associated with the fragile-X syndrome. It has been suggested that the sparsity of reports of macro-orchidism among prepubertal boys with the fragile-X syndrome might be due to lack of careful measurement of the tests rather than to initiation of the enlargement at puberty. A 5-month-old infant with fragile-X syndrome, ascertained through testicular enlargement noted by actual measurement of testicular size as part of his physical examination, is reported.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Further characterization of the glucocorticoid-induced antiphospholipase protein "renocortin".

The steroid-induced anti-phospholipase protein "Renocortin" has been further characterized by column chromatography and a monoclonal antibody. In medium devoid of foetal calf serum, renomedullary insterstitial cells in culture exposed to the anti-inflammatory steroid dexamethasone released 3 peptides of apparent MW: 15k, 30k, and 45k possessing similar biological properties to "renocortin", "lipomodulin" and "macrocortin". A monoclonal antibody directed against macrocortin also bound the 45k peptide released from the renomedullary cells. The 15k species was, like macrocortin, inactive in an "in vitro" enzymatic assay but recovered its full inhibitory activity after dephosphorylation by alkaline phosphatase treatment. We conclude that "macrocortin", "lipomodulin" and "renocortin" are similar if not identical proteins. We propose a scheme to account for "in vivo" secretion and regulation of these proteins.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Functional supersensitivity to adrenergic agonists in the rat after DSP-4, a selective noradrenergic neurotoxin.

Rats treated with DSP-4 [N-(2-chloroethyl)-N-ethyl-2-bromobenzylamine], a selective noradrenergic neurotoxin, showed no differences compared to control rats in the number of head dips, a measure of exploratory behavior. Since a previous neurochemical investigation had demonstrated that DSP-4 rats have supersensitive alpha 2- and beta-adrenergic receptors in certain regions of the central nervous system, the behavior of these animals was also examined after the injection of clonidine, an alpha 2 agonist, and clenbuterol, a beta agonist. These drugs reduced, in a dose-dependent manner, the head-dipping of both control and DSP-4 rats. However, this effect was of greater magnitude in DSP-4 animals. Control experiments suggested that the response to clonidine and clenbuterol was mediated centrally by alpha 2 and beta receptors, respectively. Other behavioral experiments with agonists of the dopaminergic and serotoninergic systems indicated that these neurotransmitter systems were unchanged in DSP-4 animals. The results are discussed in terms of the selective action of DSP-4 and the responsiveness of DSP-4 rats to adrenergic agonists. The DSP-4-treated rat may constitute a new model of functional supersensitivity to adrenergic agonists.

Amines↗
PubMed1983

Chromosome instability in lymphocytes, fibroblasts, and colon epithelial-like cells from patients with familial polyposis coli.

Detailed chromosome studies on early-passage skin fibroblast cultures from 17 patients with familial polyposis coli (FPC) showed an increase in all classes of chromosome aberrations compared with controls. The most striking difference was in the number of cytogenetically abnormal clones, some of which reached 80-100% in early cultures, suggesting either presence in vivo or considerable proliferative advantage. The occasional occurrence of very high levels of tetraploidy in these cultures was thought to be a manifestation of clone formation. The same type of chromosome instability was found to extend to colon fibroblasts and lymphocytes but without evidence of clone formation, apart from high tetraploidy in the former. Chromosomes in colon epithelial-like cultures were remarkably stable initially, despite the time span of several months required to establish them. However, from the outset one of these cultures was composed of three abnormal clones. After approximately 18 months in culture, stable and unstable chromosome rearrangements clearly increased in all tested cultures, although the cells were not senescent, suggesting a possible shift toward malignancy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Ultrastructural differentiation within the central nervous system between indolamines and catecholamines by energy dispersive X-ray analysis following paraformaldehyde pretreatment.

Dense bodies containing high amounts of chrome were localized in the perikarya of substantia nigra and dorsal raphe neurons following the cytochemical reaction of endogenous dopamine and serotonin (respectively) with glutaraldehyde-dichromate (GDC). Energy dispersive X-ray analysis of these bodies revealed chrome levels two to four times higher than those recorded from the cytoplasmic background. Pretreatment with paraformaldehyde blocked the GDC reaction within the dense bodies in the substantia nigra (chrome levels similar to background), while the chrome levels in the dense bodies of the raphe neurons remained elevated. This demonstrates that pretreatment with paraformaldehyde allows selective localization of central nervous system serotonin stores by the GDC technique.

Animals↗