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Biomedical subjects

M Almagor

Publications and source records attributed to M Almagor.

41 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1983

Inhibition of host cell catalase by Mycoplasma pneumoniae: a possible mechanism for cell injury.

This study demonstrates that viable Mycoplasma pneumoniae cells inhibit catalase activity in several types of intact human cells as well as in solution. Human erythrocyte catalase was inhibited up to 72%, and the inhibition of catalase in human cultured skin fibroblasts, lung carcinoma epithelial cells, and ciliated epithelial cells from human nasal polyps ranged between 75 and 80%. UV light-killed mycoplasmas failed to inhibit catalase activity both in intact cells and in vitro. After M. pneumoniae infection of human cultured skin fibroblasts, the level of malonyldialdehyde, an indicator for membrane lipid peroxidation, was 3.5 times higher than in control fibroblasts. Virulent M. pneumoniae completely inhibited catalase activity in solution, whereas the nonvirulent strains had a lesser ability to inhibit catalase activity. These findings suggest that as a result of host cell catalase inhibition by M. pneumoniae, the toxicity of the hydrogen peroxide generated by the microorganism and the affected cell is enhanced, thereby inducing host cell damage.

Catalase↗
PubMed1981

Survivors of the holocaust and their children: current status and adjustment.

A group of 52 concentration camp and other survivors of World War II were compared with a control group of 29 persons of similar European and religious background. Forty-seven children of these survivors and 16 children from the comparison group were also evaluated. The psychological adjustment of both group of adults and their children was within the normal range. Cultural rather than specific survivor influences were noted in the present attitudes and behaviors of the parents. There were no significant differences between the survivor and control group children on any of the psychological variables or in thier attitudes and behaviors toward their parents. Based on these findings, we questioned notions of survivor guilt, the manifestation of emotional blunting in the survivors, and the extremely maladaptive psychological influence of their parents' experiences on the children of survivors.

Adjustment Disorders↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Changes in semen quality in Jerusalem between 1990 and 2000: a cross-sectional and longitudinal study.

The aim of the present study was to investigate whether sperm quality has changed during the years 1990-1999 among men residing in Jerusalem, Israel, who were involved in treatment by intrauterine insemination (IUI). Both cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses were performed. A total of 2638 male partners in couples that underwent treatment by IUI participated in the cross-sectional investigation. Of them, 417 men (16%) were included in the longitudinal study. Total sperm counts and percent motility were evaluated on an annual basis to assess changes over 10 years from 1990 through 1999. A significant downward trend in sperm count and motility was demonstrated in the cross-sectional study. Sperm count decreased by 5.2 x 10(6)+/-0.9 x 10(6) (p<.0001) each year and percent motility declined by 0.50+/-0.14% (p=.0003). Similar changes were found in the longitudinal evaluation, but they were not statistically significant. These data suggest that during the last decade in Jerusalem, sperm count and motility declined significantly among men involved in infertile relationships and treated by IUI.

Cross-Sectional Studies↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Antisperm antibodies in men with psychogenic anejaculation.

Antisperm autoantibodies were determined in 16 men suffering from psychogenic anejaculation who underwent assisted reproduction treatments. Blood and semen samples were collected after transrectal electroejaculation and antisperm antibodies in serum and on the surface of motile spermatozoa were measured using the direct and indirect immunobead binding test. Five men (31%) were found positive for antisperm antibodies. The majority of antibodies were directed against the sperm heads. Surface antibodies were mainly IgA isotype whereas serum antibodies were IgG isotype. These results suggest that psychogenic anejaculation might be associated with increased incidence of antisperm autoimmunity.

Adult↗