Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

M E Beard

Publications and source records attributed to M E Beard.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1977

Peroxisomes in pulmonate gastropods.

Organelles with the morphologic characteristics of peroxisomes have been found in the cells of the kidney sac of two terrestrial pulmonate gastropods. Arion ater and Ariolimax columbianus. These peroxisomes appear in profile as circles or ellipses, 0.25 micron in diameter and 0.3-0.8 micron long; They have a finely granular matrix and a single-limiting membrane; the organelles are extensively associated with smooth endoplasmic reticulum. Some Ariolimax peroxisomes contained structures reminiscent of nucleoids while those of Arion did not. The peroxisomes of Arion ater show a strongly-positive staining reaction with the 3,3'-diaminobenzidine technique, which is inhibited in the presence of aminotriazole. Peroxisomes of Ariolimax columbianus did not show a positive reaction, despite a number of variations of the 3,3'-diaminobenzidine protocol. Speculations are made concerning the biochemical reasons for this cytochemical behavior. Peroxisomes in both tissues were negatively stained while lysosomes were positively stained in acid-phosphatase incubations.

3,3'-Diaminobenzidine↗
PubMed1977

Long-term haematological complications of thorotrast.

Six cases representing the spectrum of haematological complications due to systemic administration of Thorotrast are reposted. Two patients suffered from acute leukaemia, one patient had marrow failure and three patients presented with haematological features of hyposplenism; two of these also had solid tumours. The literature is reviewed.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1976

Intensive investigation in management of Hodgkin's disease.

Ninety-eight patients with clinically localised Hodgkin's disease underwent laparotomy and splenectomy to determine the extent of microscopic spread. In 68 patients the procedure was carried out for untreated disease apparently confined above the diaphragm. Abdominal disease cannot be confidently excluded on the basis of non-invasive investigation at presentation. Clinical assessment of splenic disease was unreliable unless gross splenomegaly was present. Pedal lymphography was accurate in assessing para-aortic and iliac disease but of no value in assessing other intra-abdominal lymph node involvement, including that of the mesenteric lymph node. Trephine bone marrow biopsy findings were normal in all patients before surgery, and only one patient was found to have diseased bone marrow by Stryker-saw biopsy at operation. Liver disease was identified at operation in nine patients, some of whom were asymptomatic with clinically undetectable splenic and nodal disease. Detailed clinical staging failed to detect disease in one-third of patients who underwent laparotomy. These studies show that if radiotherapy is to remain the treatment of choice for disease truly localised to lymph nodes a detailed staging procedure, including laparotomy and splenectomy, remains essential. The value of this potentially curative treatment is considerably diminished in the patient who has been inadequately staged.

Hodgkin Disease↗
PubMed1976

Blast crisis of chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML). II. Cell surface marker analysis of "lymphoid" and myeloid cases.

Fourteen cases of philadelphia chromosome (Ph1) positive chronic myeloid leukaemia in blast transformation have been investigated using cell surface markers. Morphologically eight cases were lymphoid and the remainder myeloid in appearance. All cases were negative with surface markers for thymocytes and T and B lymphocytes. Five of the lymphoid cases reacted with an antiserum specific for acute lymphoid leukaemia )ALL) of non-T non-B type and were also weakly reactive with a lymphocyte reactive antiserum. A sixth patient, whose blast cells were anti-ALL negative (ALL-) at presentation, subsequently developed central nervous system leukaemia with anti-ALL positive (ALL+) blast cells in the CSF. In all cases the leukaemic blast cells showed greatly diminished expression of cholera toxin receptors when compared to granulocytic cells from the chronic phase of CML. This parallels weak or negligible expression of the cholera toxin receptor in ALL and AML. These results suggest that the blastic phase of CML may involve different cellular derivatives of a pluripotential stem cell in which the primary malignant/genetic changes reside. The blast crisis of CML can therefore be heterogeneous with respect to cellular expression and in a significant proportion of patients involves a cell which is by membrane markers and morphological criteria indistinguishable from that seen in the common form of ALL. In these cases the Philadelphia chromosome may be the only distinguishing cellular characteristic.

Cell Transformation, Neoplastic↗
PubMed1975

Haemoglobin Rahere (beta Lys-Thr): A new high affinity haemoglobin associated with decreased 2, 3-diphosphoglycerate binding and relative polycythaemia.

A new haemoglobin with increased oxygen affinity, beta82 (EF6) lysine leads to threonine (Hb Rahere), was found during the investigation of a patient who was found to have a raised haemoglobin concentration after a routine blood count. The substitution affects one of the 2, 3-diphosphoglycerate binding sites, resulting in an increased affinity for oxygen, but both the haem-haem interaction and the alkaline Bohr effect are normal in the haemolysate. This variant had the same mobility as haemoglobin A on electrophoresis at alkaline pH but was detected by measuring the whole blood oxygen affinity; it could be separated from haemoglobin A, however, by electrophoresis in agar at acid pH. The raised haemoglobin concentration was mainly due to a reduction in plasma volume (a relative polycythaemia) and was associated with a persistently raised white blood count. This case emphasises the need to measure the oxygen affinity of haemoglobin in all patients with absolute or relative polycythaemia when some obvious cause is not evident.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Factors influencing prognosis in adults with acute myelogenous leukaemia.

A study of the thymidine labelling index (TLI) of bone marrow blast cells in 58 untreated patients with acute myelogenous leukemia showed no correlation with remission rate but there was a strong correlation between labelling index and remission length in the 21 patients who achieved remission. The median remission length of the patients was 33 weeks. Of the 12 patients with initial labelling indices greater than 10%, only 2 had remissions longer than 33 weeks whereas 8 of the 9 patients with labelling indices less than 10% had remissions longer than 33 weeks. No correlation could be found between the degree of cytological differentiation and remission induction, remission length or survival. No correlation was found between the TLI and the degree of cytological differentiation. Age and initial platelet count were confirmed to be important factors influencing complete remission rate, but these factors did not correlate with remission length. Sixteen patients had their pretreatment sera assayed for mouse marrow colony stimulating activity and inhibitor levels but there was no correlation with subsequent response to treatment, although the number of patients examined was clearly too small for any definite conclusions to be drawn.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1975

Hypoplastic acute myelogenous leukaemia.

The clinical course, diagnosis and management of nine cases of hypoplastic acute myelogenous leukaemia are described. Such cases may follow a slowly progressive course and should not receive anti-leukaemic chemotherapy unless the disease is advancing rapidly or unless some specific complication develops. If chemotherapy has to be given, usually because of severe and recurrent infections, then prompt and prolonged remission of disease may occur.

Adult↗
PubMed1973

Management of adult acute myelogenous leukaemia.

Consecutive adult patients admitted to St. Bartholomew's Hospital with acute myelogenous leukaemia have been treated with a remission induction drug schedule consisting of daunorubicin and cytosine arabinoside. Intermittent five-day courses were used in 72 patients, and a complete remission was obtained in 39 patients (54%). An alternative drug schedule in 22 patients resulted in fewer remissions but this may have been due to age differences in the two groups. Age and initial platelet count were found to be important factors in determining the success of remission induction therapy; the older patients and those with low platelet counts responded less well.A series of 23 patients who achieved remissions was divided into two groups; one received intermittent combination chemotherapy as the only form of maintenance, and the other was given weekly immunotherapy in addition to the chemotherapy. The immunotherapy consisted of irradiated allogeneic leukaemic cells and B.C.G. Eight of the 10 patients on chemotherapy alone have already relapsed compared with five out of 13 patients in the immunotherapy group. It is hoped that these promising initial results with this form of maintenance will be confirmed as more patients enter the maintenance trials.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1973

Immunotherapy for acute myelogenous leukaemia.

One hundred and seven untreated patients with acute myelogenous leukaemia (AML) were admitted to St Bartholomew's Hospital between 10 October 1970 and 31 January 1973. Before receiving drugs to induce remission they were allocated alternatively into 2 groups to decide their remission treatment-a group to receive chemotherapy alone and a group to receive the same chemotherapy with immunotherapy. The patients were then given induction chemotherapy and 45 of them attained complete remission. All patients in remission then received chemotherapy consisting of 5 days treatment every 28 days. Patients receiving immunotherapy were also given multiple weekly intradermal injections of irradiated stored AML cells and Glaxo B.C.G. using a Heaf gun. There were 19 patients in the group which received only chemotherapy during remission; 7 of these patients remain alive (median survival after attaining remission 303 days) and only 5 are still in their first remission (median remission length 188 days). Twenty-three patients were allocated to receive immunotherapy during remission in addition to chemotherapy and 16 remain alive (median 545 days) and 8 are in their first remission (median 312 days). The difference in survival of the two groups is significant with a P value of 0·003.

Adolescent↗