Limiting the damage.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Adaptation, Psychological↗
Biomedical subjects
Joe Miller
Publications and source records attributed to Joe Miller.
Allografted fetal dorsal root ganglion neuronal survival in the guinea pig cochlea.
Neural grafting is a potential strategy to help restore auditory function following loss of spiral ganglion cells. As a first step towards the reconstruction of a neural pathway from the cochlea to the brainstem, we have examined the survival of fetal dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons allografted into the cochlea of adult guinea pigs. In some animals implantation of DRGs was combined with a local infusion of neurotrophic substances whereas in others auditory sensory receptors were chemically destroyed prior to DRG implantation by injection of the ototoxin neomycin into the middle ear. The results show that many transplanted DRG neurons attached close to the cochlear spiral ganglion neurons. The survival of the implant was significantly increased by treatment with neurotrophic factors, but not reduced by the absence of auditory sensory structures. This study shows that implanted sensory neurons can survive heterotopic grafting immediately adjacent to the eighth cranial nerve, thereby providing a basis for further studies of the anatomical and functional influence of neural grafts in the inner ear.
Animals↗
Minimally invasive spectroscopic system for intraocular drug detection.
A novel, minimally invasive measurement technique has been developed for the detection of drugs in the anterior chamber of the eye. Presently there is no satisfactory, real-time detection method available to the ophthalmic community. Accurate determination of drug concentrations in the eye would be of great value and assistance to researchers and manufacturers of ophthalmic drugs and ocular implants, to enable a better understanding of intraocular pharmacokinetics. At present researchers use techniques of direct sampling of the aqueous humor from laboratory animal eyes into which the drug has been introduced topically or systemically. Rabbit eyes are frequently used in this context. Sampling via paracentesis is invasive, and does not yield a continuous measurement. Our approach to addressing this measurement requirement is, in effect, to turn the eye into a cuvette and use optical absorbance spectroscopy measurements to detect drug concentrations. A novel contact lens has been designed using commercial, off-the-shelf, optical design software. The lenses have been optimized to direct light across the anterior chamber of a rabbit's eye. Practical demonstration and characterization of light propagation across the eye have been undertaken and are reported. Preliminary results of the identification of drug compounds introduced into model eyes are also reported.
Adrenergic alpha-Agonists↗