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Biomedical subjects

M L Salkie

Publications and source records attributed to M L Salkie.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

A retrospective study of the relative utility of electrophoresis, immunoelectrophoresis, immunofixation, and nephelometry in the investigation of serum proteins.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the relative value of visual inspection of protein electrophoresis patterns, immunoelectrophoresis, immunofixation, and specific protein quantitation in the investigation of serum proteins. DESIGN AND METHODS: A retrospective study of protein results on 372 sera analyzed by electrophoresis and immunoelectrophoresis. A subsection of specimens (276) also had immunoglobulin quantitation by immunonephelometry and 30 were studied by immunofixation. RESULTS: Total gamma globulin levels were correctly assessed visually in 84.4% of cases. Discrete bands seen visually were mainly monoclonal in 74 of 80 (92.5%). Six monoclonal proteins were not detected visually. Twenty-five monoclonal proteins required immunofixation for typing, and 60 were typed by immunoelectrophoresis. The visual assessment of the level of normal immunoglobulins in the presence of a monoclonal gammopathy was correct in 58% of cases. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of monoclonal gammopathies could be evaluated by a combination of protein electrophoresis and immunoelectrophoresis. Except for quantitating monoclonal immunoglobins, protein electrophoresis was unreliable as a quantitative procedure and nephelometry was preferred.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗
PubMed1995

Anti-plasticizer specific IgE is present in the serum of transfused patients.

Sera from 29 patients who had reacted to a platelet (27) or packed red cell (2) transfusion and from 5 patients who had received platelets without reacting were collected over a 13-month period. The sera were assayed for total IgE, and IgE specific for ethylene oxide, phthalic anhydride, hexamethylene diisocyanate, methylene diphenyl diisocyanate, toluene diisocyanate, and mast cell tryptase. Three patients with reactions had elevated total IgE levels, and specific IgE was positive for hexamethylene diisocyanate in 2 of 28 (7.1%), methylene diphenyl diisocyanate in 1 of 29 (3.4%), and toluene diisocyanate in 14 of 27 (51.9%). No positives were found in patients without reactions and no patients had an elevated tryptase level. It is unlikely that anti-plasticizer hypersensitivity was responsible for the transfusion reactions, but the prevalence and significance of such antibodies in both the hospital population and the general population would merit further investigation.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1994

Allergens in the workplace.

Allergy is an important cause of work-related illness. Data are presented concerning the prevalence and relationship of atopy and hypersensitivity states in persons working as grain handlers, pathologists, and medical laboratory technologists. Studies were carried out in the above occupational groups in the Province of Alberta. A survey of male grain handlers failed to demonstrate significant differences between their serum total IgE levels and allergen specific IgE profiles and those of a control group of sedentary workers. Investigation of pathologists in active practice indicated that 46% of the study group had problems related to formaldehyde. There was no tendency for atopic subjects to be more sensitive to formaldehyde and no subjects had detectable circulating formaldehyde-specific IgE. Since the introduction of Universal Precautions into the clinical laboratory, there has been an increased incidence of hypersensitivity reactions to latex. A controlled investigation of medical laboratory technologists found that, although most subjects with latex glove-related problems had no in vitro evidence of IgE mediated hypersensitivity to latex, three subjects (2.5%) were RAST positive for latex and hence at risk of an anaphylactic reaction with continued exposure to the allergen. A history of atopy was more common in the group with glove-related problems and the severity of the skin reactions documented were more severe in smokers.

Allergens↗
PubMed1994

Role of clinical laboratory in allergy testing.

The clinical laboratory has a well defined role to play in the diagnosis and management of patients with allergy. Elevated serum levels of total IgE and/or allergen-specific IgE indicate that an IgE mediated event has occurred. Methods such as basophil degranulation and basophil or leukocyte histamine release can provide similar information. Sensitive and precise methods suitable for automation are available for quantitation of histamine in whole blood or plasma. Methyl histamine can be assayed in urine. Eosinophil cationic protein levels in serum can be used as an indicator of eosinophil activation in disorders such as asthma and atopic dermatitis. Similarly, serum mast cell tryptase levels can confirm or exclude an anaphylactic reaction both in life and as a cause of death. This review documents and compares commercially available methods for these assays and discusses their application to screening, diagnosis, and management of patients with allergy.

Allergens↗
PubMed1993

The prevalence of atopy and hypersensitivity to latex in medical laboratory technologists.

Members of the Alberta Society of Medical Laboratory Technologists were invited to take part in a study of sensitivity to latex gloves. A total of 230 persons volunteered; 108 (47%) had no problems with gloves, and 122 (53%) reacted to latex gloves. A history was obtained regarding atopy, smoking, years in laboratory medicine, and the nature of the problem with latex gloves. Serum was assayed for the total IgE level and the presence of IgE with specificity to common inhalant allergens and to latex. The affected group had an increased population of subjects with an atopic history and a higher incidence of a raised IgE level and a positive screen for inhalant allergens. In the affected group, there was no relationship between the total IgE level and severity of skin reaction. However, smoking was related to severity of reaction and was more common in the groups with a more severe reaction. Three subjects were positive for IgE specific for latex; there were no other data distinguishing them from latex-negative subjects.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

The Phadiatop test allows adequate screening for atopy with a marked reduction in cost.

Sera from 35 patients aged 5 years or younger and sera from 95 patients 6 years and older were assayed for both total IgE level, allergen-specific IgE by RAST and either the Phadiatop Paediatric or Phadiatop procedures, depending on age. Good agreement was found allowing exclusion of specimens anticipated to be RAST negative with an expected reduction in RAST testing of up to 80% of the present workload, without significant exclusion of RAST positive specimens.

Allergens↗
PubMed1991

The prevalence of atopy and hypersensitivity to formaldehyde in pathologists.

Sixty-three pathologists in active practice in the province of Alberta, Canada, provided a history regarding atopy and sensitivity to formaldehyde. Serum samples were assayed for total IgE level and the presence of IgE with specificity toward timothy grass, cat, house dust, and formaldehyde. Twenty-nine of the subjects (46.0%) gave a history of atopy that was confirmed in 12 by either IgE level or a positive radioallergosorbent test. Twenty-nine (46.0%) complained of formaldehyde sensitivity. In this study, no pathologist had allergen-specific IgE directed against formaldehyde, and there was no evidence of a tendency for atopic subjects to be more prone to sensitivity to formaldehyde. However, this may be related to a deliberate reduction in exposure by individuals experiencing adverse effects.

Drug Hypersensitivity↗
PubMed1987

Enprostil reduces G-cell hyperplasia and hypergastrinemia in duodenal ulcer.

A 42-year-old man with a 26-year history of duodenal ulcer volunteered for a 24-hour intragastric pH monitoring study, at which time his fasting gastrin concentration was found to be elevated. Secretin injection decreased the serum gastrin concentration. When not on treatment his total gastrin, gastrin-17 (G-17), and gastrin-34 (G-34) response to a protein-containing breakfast was marked. Immunocytochemical staining of antral biopsies showed hyperplasia of gastrin-containing cells, more pronounced for G-17 than for G-34. Cimetidine or cimetidine plus pirenzepine increased 24-hour intragastric pH, whereas pirenzepine alone rendered the gastric contents more acidic, particularly overnight. The total serum gastrin concentrations increased after meals and were unaffected by cimetidine or pirenzepine; enprostil, however, reduced the postprandial increase in total gastrin, G-34, and G-17. After six weeks of treatment with enprostil, the number of cells containing G-17 and G-34 was reduced. The findings show that G-cell hyperplasia may occur in the presence of a normal fasting serum gastrin concentration; fasting serum gastrin concentrations may fluctuate widely over time; the food-stimulated increase in G-17 was greater than that for G-34, and is associated with more pronounced antral hyperplasia for G-17 and G-34; and enprostil blunts the postprandial increase in G-17, G-34, and total gastrin. These observations suggest that enprostil may reduce G-cell hyperplasia and hypergastrinemia.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Copper and zinc content of human leiomyomas.

The copper and zinc levels of leiomyomas were determined and compared to the levels in the uninvolved myometrium and myocervix. In general the levels found in leiomyomas were similar to those of the smooth muscle of isthmus and corpus but different to those of the myocervix. There were no significant differences in the levels found in smooth muscle of uteri with or without leiomyoma.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Synergistic interaction between an H2-receptor antagonist and enprostil on 24-hour intragastric pH, serum gastrin concentration, and tissue immunoperoxidase staining for gastrin, somatostatin, and serotonin in a patient with metastatic gastrinoma.

A 56-year-old woman newly diagnosed as having Zollinger-Ellison syndrome due to a metastatic gastrinoma underwent 24-hour intragastric pH monitoring, serum gastrin (total, G-17 and G-34) measurements, and immunoperoxidase staining of duodenal, antral, and gastric body biopsies for gastrin, somatostatin, and serotonin. Determinations were made while the patient was given different doses of ranitidine, enprostil (a synthetic orally administered prostaglandin E2), or ranitidine plus enprostil. Following are the findings from this single-patient study: Intragastric pH was persistently low but varied in response to food when the patient was given ranitidine. Immunocytochemical staining of antral biopsies obtained before the patient was treated revealed a reduced number of cells containing G-17 and G-34 but an increase in the antral somatostatin-containing D-cells. Treatment with 35 micrograms of enprostil BID plus 300 mg of ranitidine BID for two and 11 weeks was associated with an increased number of duodenal G-cells, a decrease in antral D-cells, and a decrease in the number of antral serotonin-containing cells. Enprostil in a dosage of 35 or 70 micrograms BID had no effect on intragastric pH, but when enprostil was given in combination with ranitidine, postprandial and nocturnal intragastric alkalinity was accentuated along with a return of duodenal and antral G-cells and a loss of the antral D-cell hyperplasia. Optimal pH control was achieved with 300 mg of ranitidine BID; more frequent dosing with ranitidine did not further increase intragastric pH. Both the total serum gastrin concentration and G-17 levels fluctuated in response to meals. The serum concentrations of total gastrin, G-17, and G-34 were reduced with enprostil and with ranitidine.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols↗
PubMed1984

The characterization of hemoglobin Manitoba or alpha (2)102(G9)Ser----Arg beta 2 and hemoglobin Contaldo or alpha (2)103(G10)His----Arg beta 2 by high performance liquid chromatography.

Hb Contaldo with a His----Arg substitution at position 103(G10) of the alpha chain is a newly discovered unstable Hb variant observed in an Italian child. Its instability is probably due to the disruption of the hydrogen bond between alpha 103(G10)His and beta 108(G10)Asn. The structural variation in the core segment was determined through analysis of tryptic peptides from digests of the alpha X and oxidized alpha X (with performic acid) chains, which were separated by HPLC. Similar analyses were made for the alpha X chain of the rare Hb Manitoba in which alpha 102(G9) Ser is replaced by Arg. This variant was observed for the first time in an Italian patient, and was also studied in a member of a previously described Canadian family.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1983

Pulmonary function associated with the Mmalton deficient variant of alpha 1-antitrypsin.

We have studied 78 members of a large family in which the Mmalton deficiency allele of alpha 1-antitrypsin (alpha 1AT) is present. Four patients of PI type MmaltonZ (alpha 1AT concentration, 16.4% of normal) had severe emphysema and marked depression in all flow and gas exchange parameters, significantly different from other members of the same family who were normal or had intermediate concentrations of alpha 1AT. Fourteen subjects with PI type MMmalton (alpha 1AT concentration, 63.3% of normal) were compared with 46 PI MM relatives (alpha 1AT, 103.8% of normal) and 14 relatives of PI type MZ (alpha 1AT concentration, 66.5% of normal). Spirometry, flow-volume loops, plethysmography, gas exchange at rest and exercise, and xenon 133 regional lung function were similar in those partially deficient when compared with the normal subjects. There was a trend for impairment of tests of lung function between smoking partially deficient (PI MZ, PI Mmalton) and normal (PI MM) relatives.

Adult↗