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Biomedical subjects

L Gillespie

Publications and source records attributed to L Gillespie.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

The use of PCR to detect Neospora caninum DNA in the blood of naturally infected cows.

Twelve 2-year old heifers in their fifth month of gestation when pregnancy tested were used in this study. Six heifers aborted at approximately 4 months of gestation and had blood samples drawn less than 6 weeks after the abortions were identified. Blood samples were also drawn from three sero-positive pregnant and three sero-negative pregnant heifers. DNA was isolated from the samples and a 350 bp fragment of the Nc-5 gene was PCR amplified using primer pair Np21+ and Np6+. Also, the Internal Transcribed Spacer 1 (ITS1) was PCR amplified using Tim 3 and Tim 11 primer pair. The Nc-5 gene fragment was cloned, sequenced and the sequence BLAST-tested. Similarly, the ITS1 product was sequenced and BLAST-tested. The BLAST test results revealed that Neospora caninum DNA was present in these blood samples indicating that polymerase chain reaction can be used in the detection of N. caninum DNA in the blood of sero-positive cows.

Abortion, Veterinary↗
PubMed1999

Psoralen photobiology and photochemotherapy: 50 years of science and medicine.

In 1998 it is appropriate to commemorate the 50th anniversary of el Mofty's use of purified 8-methoxypsoralen (8-MOP) in the treatment of vitiligo (el Mofty AM. A preliminary clinical report on the treatment of leukoderma with Ammi majus linn. J R Egypt Med Assn 1948,31:651 65. el Mofty AM, el Sawalhy H, el Mofty M. Clinical study of a new preparation of 8-methoxypsoralen in photochemotherapy. Int J Dermatol 1994;8:588 92). Two young American dermatologists (Aaron Lerner and Thomas Fitzpatrick) were intrigued by the potency of this material. After Lerner determined that artificial long wavelength ultraviolet (320-400 nm, UVA) radiation was the most efficient for activating 8-MOP. the development of artificial sources enabled the efficient delivery of these photons to skin containing 8-MOP. Their initial studies for vitiligo led to further development of this therapy for the treatment of psoriasis (Parrish JA, Fitzpatrick TB, Tannenbaum L, et al. Photochemotherapy of psoriasis with oral methoxsalen and long-wave ultraviolet light. New Engl J Med 1974;291:1207-11. Honigsmann H, Fitzpatrick TB, Pathak MA, et al. Oral photochemotherapy with psoralen and UVA (PUVA): principles and practice. In: Fitzpatrick TB, Eisen AZ, Wolf K, editors. Dermatology in General Medicine. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1987:1728-54). This photochemotherapy came to be called 'PUVA' (psoralen + UVA). The position PUVA holds today as one of the most common procedures performed in dermatology can be traced to their initial curiosity and their subsequent ingenuity. Further developments in more recent years capitalized on their seminal work. The therapy met with unprecedented success from the outset, leaving little perceived need to understand underlying science. However, in recent years there has been a new found interest in the basic aspects of psoralen photobiology and molecular mechanistic events contributing to therapeutic responses as well as to the development of skin cancers in PUVA patients. These will be surveyed in this review commemorating the 50 years of modern psoralen photobiology and photomedicine.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Preparations for CELSS flight experiments with wheat.

We are planning a short-term experiment with Superdwarf wheat on the U.S. Space Shuttle and a seed-to-seed experiment on the Russian Space Station Mir. The goals of both experiments are to observe effects of microgravity on developmental steps in the life cycle and to measure photosynthesis, respiration, and transpiration by monitoring gas exchange. This requires somewhat different hardware development for the two experiments. Ground-based research aims to understand plant responses to the environments in the space growth chambers that we will use (after some modification): the Plant Growth Unit (PGU) on the shuttle and units called Svet, Svetoblock 2, or Oasis on Mir. Low irradiance levels (100 to 250 micromoles m-2 s-1 at best) pose a particular problem. Water and nutrient supply are also potentially limiting factors, especially in the long-term experiment. Our ground-based studies emphasize responses to low light levels (50 to 400 micromoles m-2 s-1); results show that all developmental steps are delayed by low light compared with plants at 400 micromoles m-2 s-1. We are also testing various rooting substrates for the shuttle experiment. A 1:1:1 mixture of peat:perlite:vermiculite appears to be the best choice.

Aluminum Oxide↗
PubMed1994

Destruction of the vesicoureteric plexus for the treatment of hypersensitive bladder disorders.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether bilateral vesicoureteric ganglion excision is effective in the treatment of women with hypersensitive bladder disorders. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Utilizing neuroconductive studies, 175 women with hypersensitive bladder complaints of burning and frequency were selected by the presence of abnormal pudendal nerve sensory latency studies. Cystoscopy under anaesthesia revealed petechial haemorrhaging peritrigonally with bladder neck involvement, consistent with interstitial cystitis. RESULTS: Laser obliteration of the vesicoureteric plexus bilaterally resulted in complete relief of pelvic pain in 112 patients and partial relief in 58. Forty-five patients with complete relief were followed for 2 years with no recurrence of symptoms. Complications included one case of periureteric fibrosis secondary to cauterization. CONCLUSION: Bilateral vesicoureteric ganglion excision offers a new approach to treating hypersensitive bladder disorders such as interstitial cystitis.

Autonomic Denervation↗
PubMed1993

Metabolic appraisal of the effects of dietary modification on hypersensitive bladder symptoms.

The concentration of certain metabolites and amino acids appears to be changed in patients with the painful bladder syndrome interstitial cystitis. A study of the metabolism of the arylalkylamines (tryptophan, tyrosine, tyramine, phenylalanine) was carried out in 250 patients (237 females, 13 males), revealing an inability to synthesise normal amounts of serotonin and MHPG, a noradrenaline metabolite. Furthermore, the absence of ammonia and tryptophan in urine confirmed the presence of a membrane leak. Dietary restriction lessened the symptoms but did not alter specific abnormalities in dopamine metabolism. Dietary management offers a cost-effective therapeutic approach.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1992

Production of chimeric hamsters by aggregation of eight-cell embryos.

Chimeric animals were produced by aggregation of 8-cell-stage embryos from two strains of hamsters (LVG and Bio 1.5). Two series of experiments were performed. In the first series, embryo pairs in contact with each other were classified as aggregates even if 2 distinct embryos could still be distinguished. Of 88 aggregates transferred, 2 chimeras were obtained. Pregnancy rate was 25%, and embryo survival was 35%. In the second set of experiments, only embryo pairs that had coalesced to form a single giant blastocyst were classified as aggregates. Of 56 aggregates transferred, 6 chimeras were obtained. Pregnancy rate was 83%, and embryo survival was 30%. Of the 8 chimeras, 6 were phenotypic males, and 2 were phenotypic females. Both females were germ line chimeras. Of the 6 males, 4 reproduced normally, 1 had abnormal external genitalia but normal spermatogenesis, and 1 was sterile and had atrophic testes. Each of the fertile males transmitted only a single component, either the LVG or the Bio 1.5. Examination of the testes from the sterile chimera revealed that in excess of 80% of the seminiferous cords were devoid of germ cells. These results demonstrate that hamster chimeras can be obtained by aggregation of 8-cell-stage embryos.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Lumbar nerve root compression and interstitial cystitis--response to decompressive surgery.

An identifiable lumbar nerve root compression appears to cause urological dysfunction consistent with interstitial cystitis. Ten patients (9 females, 1 male) were evaluated for chronic pelvic pain. Cystoscopic and histological appearances were consistent with a diagnosis of interstitial cystitis. Magnetic resonance studies of the lower spine consistently demonstrated a lateral compression of the L5 dorsal nerve root. Decompression of the lateral foramina of L5 resulted in immediate relief of pain in 9 patients, who have been followed up for 6 months without a recurrence. Possible mechanisms involving sympathetic dystrophy of the pelvic plexus are reviewed.

Cystitis↗
PubMed1990

Probe-evoked potential findings following unilateral left-hemisphere lesions in children.

An evoked potentials procedure that has repeatedly provided evidence of predominant right-hemisphere engagement during language tasks in recovered adult aphasics was applied to the study of 14 children with early unilateral left-hemisphere lesions and in 14 matched normal subjects. In contrast with the adult patients, the children with left-hemisphere lesions displayed the normal pattern of predominant left-hemisphere engagement in visuospatial tasks. These data suggest that language restitution and development following early lesions involves intrahemispheric rather than interhemispheric functional reorganization.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Immunofluorescent and histochemical staining confirm the identification of the many diseases called interstitial cystitis.

Interstitial cystitis comprises a complex of diseases typified by symptoms of pelvic pain. Functional complaints do not aid the clinician in determining loss of anatomical capacity. Histochemical staining with PAS-colloidal iron/Van Geison's counterstain offers improved diagnostic ability for the pathologist and correlates well with immunofluorescent findings. Four distinct diseases can be identified through immunofluorescent staining, indicating that each is the result of different responses of the urothelium and endothelium to injury. Loss of bladder capacity associated with these diseases can be expected with age, but immunofluorescent staining for IgM within the capillaries of the interstitium is a more sensitive predictor.

Cystitis↗
PubMed1989

Painful bladder syndrome--a clinical and immunopathological study.

Painful bladder syndrome is a clinical diagnosis in patients with symptoms of varying severity which always include frequency and suprapubic pain and occasionally include dysuria, nocturia and urgency persisting for more than 3 months with no loss of bladder capacity and no overt infection. Immunofluorescence studies of biopsy specimens in 38 female patients were assessed and correlated with the duration and severity of symptoms, and also with routine histology (including mast cell infiltration and integrity of the glycosaminoglycans layer), in order to assess the role of immunological mechanisms in this distressing condition. The results indicated that submucosal angiogenesis and persistence of antigen-antibody complex in vessel walls could be responsible for this syndrome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Immunopathology of interstitial cystitis.

This study describes histologic, ultrastructural, and immunofluorescence microscopy findings of cystoscopically directed biopsies of lesional tissue and uninvolved bladder from 308 patients with chronic interstitial cystitis (IC) and no evidence of infection, collagen vascular, or other systemic disease. The majority of cases exhibited strong urothelial cell staining for immunoglobulin A (IgA), which was focal or diffusely involved all layers of the epithelium. Electron microscopy revealed widening of the interstitium between urothelial cells, which may explain leakage of IgA into the urine in cystitis patients. Staining for fibrinogen and IgA was present both in lesional biopsies and uninvolved bladder tissue, suggesting a response to injury affecting the entire bladder urothelium. A minor patient population with idiopathic IC revealed granular IgM (with or without C3) in vessel walls of the lamina propria, suggesting immune complex disease. Ultrastructural evidence of vascular damage included necrosis of endothelial cells, fibrin deposition, and reduplication of basement membranes. Staining for IgE correlated with presence of mast cells and was present in less than 2% of cases, indicating that these cells do not play a prominent role in the pathogenesis of the disease. In the majority of patients with IC mucosal staining for IgA and fibrinogen was a characteristic pattern representing increased IgA secretion and a reaction pattern to injury of unknown cause. A subgroup of patients had evidence of vascular damage and immune complex disease. This study therefore defines two main reaction patterns in interstitial cystitis, which may have implications on prognosis and therapy of the disorder.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Gravitropism in higher plant shoots. V. Changing sensitivity to auxin.

An alternative to the Cholodny-Went, auxin-transport hypothesis of gravitropic stem bending was proposed as early as 1958, suggesting that gravistimulation induces changes in sensitivity to auxin, accounting for differential growth and bending. To test the sensitivity hypothesis, we immersed marked, decapitated sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) hypocotyl sections in buffered auxin solutions over a wide concentration range (0, 10(-8) to 10(-2) molar IAA), photographed them at half-hour intervals, analyzed the negatives with a digitizer/computer, and evaluated surface-length changes in terms of Michaelis-Menten enzyme kinetics. Bending decreases with increasing auxin concentration; above about 10(-4) molar IAA the hypocotyls bend down; increasing auxin inhibits elongation growth of lower surfaces (which is high at zero or relatively low auxin levels) but promotes upper-surface growth (which is low at low auxin levels). Thus, lower surfaces have a greater Km sensitivity to applied auxin than upper surfaces. At optimum auxin levels (maximum growth), growth of bottom surfaces exceeds that of top surfaces, so bottom tissues have a greater Vmax sensitivity. Vmax sensitivity of vertical controls is slightly lower than it is for either horizontal surface; Km sensitivity is intermediate. Clearly, gravistimulation leads to significant changes in tissue sensitivity to applied auxin. Perhaps these changes are also important in normal gravitropism.

Dose-Response Relationship, Drug↗
PubMed1985

Effect of abdominal perineal resection on genitourinary tract.

One hundred ten patients at the UCLA Medical Center underwent abdominal resection from 1974 to 1980. The following effects on the urinary tract are discussed: surgical complications, anatomic changes, and functional complications. Urologic investigation and management of incontinence will be presented.

Abscess↗