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Biomedical subjects

L Roberts

Publications and source records attributed to L Roberts.

At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Bovine haptoglobin response in clinically defined field conditions.

In order to assess the usefulness of haptoglobin as a measure of the acute phase response in cattle, the concentration of serum haptoglobin was estimated in the non-infectious conditions of milk fever and ketosis, and in the infectious conditions of severe mastitis, acute severe metritis, retained placenta and chronic endometritis. Mean haptoglobin concentrations were normal in cattle with non-infectious conditions and chronic endometritis but significantly increased in cattle with infectious conditions.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1991

Rat central amygdaloid nucleus projections to the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis.

The projections from the central amygdaloid nucleus (Ce) to different subdivisions of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) were investigated using retrograde transport of fluorescent dyes. Iontophoretic injections of either Fast Blue (FB) or bisbenzimide (BB) were applied to the anterior medial, posterior medial, anterior lateral and posterior lateral parts of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. The anterior medial BNST receives projections from caudal part of medial Ce (CeM). The posterior medial BNST receives projections specifically from the intermediate subdivision of Ce, though in some cases projections from the ventral subdivision (CeV) of Ce were seen. The anterior lateral BNST receives projections primarily from the caudal lateral Ce (CeL) as well as middle and caudal part of CeM. The posterior lateral BNST receives projection from rostral CeL as well as the CeV and lateral capsular Ce. In general, the results indicate that the major subdivisions of the BNST receive projections from Ce subdivisions having similar connections with diencephalic or brainstem cell groups. Additional evidence is presented suggesting that Ce-BNST projections are part of an extensive system of intrinsic connections linking similar groups of neurons in both the Ce and BNST as well as within Ce.

Amidines↗
PubMed1991

Epidemiological analysis of a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus outbreak using restriction fragment length polymorphisms of genomic DNA.

The genomic DNA of 58 isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) obtained during an infection outbreak at two major Canberra hospitals was analysed for restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) by digestion with the endonuclease SmaI and resolution of the fragments by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Based on the fraction of common fragments generated by the endonuclease, DNA similarities among the isolates were estimated. Distance matrix analysis showed that the MRSA isolates could be divided into two major clusters (RFLP types I and II) and one minor one (type 46). A fourth group of miscellaneous isolates was found to be heterogeneous in terms of DNA sequence similarity. The epidemiological data indicated that RFLP type I was most common in the intensive care units in the two hospitals, with particular subtypes of RFLP type I concentrated in individual units. RFLP type II and the miscellaneous group were more generally distributed. Type 46 isolates appear to be related to a group which was present in epidemics in Melbourne hospitals in the early 1980s. Using the standard phage set, the RFLP type I group was largely untypable. However, type II isolates were all phage typable, with a shared susceptibility to phages 29/85/95/90; type 46 isolates had a shared susceptibility to phages 85/90. The miscellaneous isolates were of variable phage types.

Australia↗
PubMed1991

Hemitonic seizures: etiological and diagnostic considerations.

Intermittent unilateral tonic posturing of the limbs may relate to focal motor epilepsy, intermittent dystonia or hysteria, and diagnosis may be difficult. Five patients are presented who illustrate two distinct hemitonic syndromes which we believe to be epileptic, namely forced elevation of one arm and paroxysmal hemispasm. It is suggested that these attacks follow an irritative lesion involving the supplementary motor cortex and a deep lesion involving striatothalamic projections respectively. Brevity of episodes, their stereotyped nature and rapid response to anticonvulsant drugs supports an epileptic etiology. The term paroxysmal hemidystonia may not be appropriate for patients with intermittent stereotyped disorders of limb posture, where the clinical features support an epileptic basis and we suggest the designation hemitonic seizures.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Effects of improved water supply and sanitation on ascariasis, diarrhoea, dracunculiasis, hookworm infection, schistosomiasis, and trachoma.

A total of 144 studies were analysed to examine the impact of improved water supply and sanitation facilities on ascariasis, diarrhoea, dracunculiasis, hookworm infection, schistosomiasis, and trachoma. These diseases were selected because they are widespread and illustrate the variety of mechanisms through which improved water and sanitation can protect people. Disease-specific median reduction levels were calculated for all studies, and separately for the more methodologically rigorous ones. For the latter studies, the median reduction in morbidity for diarrhoea, trachoma, and ascariasis induced by water supplies and/or sanitation was 26%, 27%, and 29%, respectively; the median reduction for schistosomiasis and dracunculiasis was higher, at 77% and 78%, respectively. All studies of hookworm infection were flawed apart from one, which reported a 4% reduction in incidence. For hookworm infection, ascariasis, and schistosomiasis, the reduction in disease severity, as measured in egg counts, was greater than that in incidence or prevalence. Child mortality fell by 55%, which suggests that water and sanitation have a substantial impact on child survival. Water for personal and domestic hygiene was important in reducing the rates of ascariasis, diarrhoea, schistosomiasis, and trachoma. Sanitation facilities decreased diarrhoea morbidity and mortality and the severity of hookworm infection. Better water quality reduced the incidence of dracunculiasis, but its role in diarrhoeal disease control was less important than that of sanitation and hygiene.

Ascariasis↗