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Biomedical subjects

M Lee

Publications and source records attributed to M Lee.

At least 667 records · Page 37Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

Psychosocial needs of family caregivers of terminally ill patients.

The primary caregivers (mean age = 63 yr.) of 28 terminally ill veterans (mean age = 67 yr.) who were living at home were surveyed for their concrete and psychosocial needs. The caregivers also completed the Beck Depression Inventory, the Life Satisfaction Index, the Provision of Social Relations scale, and the Burden Inventory. The rank order of concrete and psychosocial needs is reported for these caregivers. Increased scores on depression were associated with decreased life satisfaction as was low social support. Not surprisingly, higher numbers of concrete and psychosocial needs were associated with increases in depression.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Effect of leukopenia on experimental post-traumatic retinal detachment.

Macrophages are invariably present in the intraocular membranes of patients with traumatic proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR). There are two sources from which these macrophages could be recruited: adjacent tissues and the systemic circulation. In the study described herein, the role of circulating white blood cells and monocytes in experimental, traumatic PVR was studied. The circulating white blood cells of 20 rabbits were depleted by intravenous injection of strontium-89. Posterior perforating eye injury with subsequent intravitreal injection of autologous whole blood or autologous activated macrophages was then performed on these leukopenic animals. The experiments demonstrated that severe bone marrow depression reduced significantly the incidence of retinal detachments in eyes receiving whole blood, and reduced the severity of retinal detachments in eyes injected with activated macrophages. An association between the degree of leukopenia, monocytopenia, and protection from retinal detachment was demonstrated. These results support the hypothesis that macrophage infiltration is an important component of intraocular cellular proliferation, but does not exclude the role of other types of white blood cells in the pathogenesis of PVR.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Autoreactive T cell-dependent polyclonal hypergammaglobulinemia in mantle cell lymphoma.

We investigated the mechanism of polyclonal B cell differentiation in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) using peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from a patient with MCL in leukemic stage presenting polyclonal hypergammaglobulinemia. Patient T cells not only responded to autologous non-T cells but induced polyclonal production of IgG in vitro. Flow cytometric analysis of PBMC showed the increased conversion of CD4+ T cells from the naive to the memory state. We propose the possible mechanism that autoreactive T cells may be involved in polyclonal B cell differentiation in this monoclonal B cell disorder.

B-Lymphocytes↗
PubMed1994

Benefit of high-dose cytarabine-based consolidation chemotherapy for adults with acute myelogenous leukemia.

Despite consolidation and/or maintenance chemotherapy most patients with newly diagnosed acute myelogenous leukemia relapse such that only 20-30% survive free of recurrence at five years. To evaluate the long-term effects of dose-intensive consolidation, we analysed 123 consecutive patients, age 16 to 84 (median 48 years), who received high-dose cytarabine-based consolidation chemotherapy. After a median follow-up of 88 months (range 26 to 126 months), 38 patients remain alive, with 26 in continued remission from 45 to 126+ months. Median remission duration for all eligible patients is 14 months (range 1.3 to 126 months) and actuarial leukemia-free survival at five years is 24 +/- 8%. Median survival from remission is 24 months (range 1.3 to 126 months) and actuarial survival from remission is 31 +/- 9%. Eighty-two patients (67%) have relapsed with an actuarial risk of relapse of 71 +/- 9% at five years. Adverse prognostic factors were age over 45 and male gender. When compared to historical controls (P = 0.02), dose-intensive consolidation produced improved leukemia-free survival for patients age < 45, but compliance and enhanced toxicity in the older age groups may limit further dose intensification.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1994

Relation of cyst counts with numbers of total nuclei of Pneumocystis carinii in rats.

Wistar rats were induced of Pneumocystis carinii infection by injection with methyl-prednisolone to correlate the cyst counts and numbers of nuclei. Seven sections of the lungs were examined by impression smears and also whole lung homogenates were screened for nucleus counting for each rat. At the first week of the experiment, all of the impression smears except one were cyst negative but trophic forms were counted around 10(6). At the third week, the cysts appeared one per 20 immersion oil lens fields. The nuclei were on the order of 10(7) at this period, and this amount of Pc is regarded as the limit of cyst detection on impression smears. When the nuclei were over 10(9) in the lungs, the cysts were counted about 50 in 20 microscopic fields. The organisms were distributed in the lungs without any predilection focus. The present data suggest that the trophic forms, proliferate first and the cysts appear later in the lungs.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

[[Changes in marital status in Taiwan during the twentieth century]].

"This study describes...changes in marital status during [the twentieth] century, by analyzing each census result conducted during the time of Japanese occupation and after the war in Taiwan. Taking the age specific statistics, which include sex ratio, proportion...ever married, the widowed, and the divorced, as well as rates of divorce and remarriage, this study presents the marriage patterns in terms of formation, dissolution and reformation in Taiwan of this century." (SUMMARY IN ENG)

Age Factors↗
PubMed1994

Changes in marital life cycle in Taiwan: 1976 and 1989.

"To improve...understanding of recent developments and thus gain a better appreciation of the likely future course of marital events, we apply a marital status life table model...to describe the differential risks for persons moving from one marital status to another over time.... The findings...point to the trends and patterns of marital formation, marital dissolution, and mortality experience of Taiwan in 1976 and 1989. The findings indicate declines in the proportion ever marrying and increases in the average age at marriage. The average duration of a marriage and the proportion of cohort life lived in [the] married state have been [declining]. The proportion of marriages ending in divorce has been rising steadily.... The level, however, is still relatively low by international standards." (SUMMARY IN CHI)

Asia↗
PubMed1994

Posteroanterior stiffness at three locations in the lumbar spine.

OBJECTIVE: One commonly used clinical procedure involves the assessment of stiffness during the application of a posteroanterior force to the spinous process of a vertebra. The clinician commonly applies a force normal to the sagittal spinal curve and attempts to evaluate whether the stiffness of the response is also normal. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the stiffness of posteroanterior movements in normal subjects significantly differed when the force was applied to L3, L4 or L5 and when the rate of application changed from quasistatic to cyclical loading. DESIGN: Experimental investigation of characteristics of normal subjects. SETTING: University biomechanics laboratory. INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Posteroanterior stiffness at L3, L4 and L5 during quasistatic and cyclical loading. RESULTS: The posteroanterior response was found to be stiffest at L5, least at L3 and intermediate at L4. Quasistatic loading produced lower stiffness than cyclical loading at .5 Hz. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical assessment of the low lumbar spine through manual loading requires a knowledge of the likely variations of posteroanterior stiffness. This study has established that in normal subjects there are systematic effects due to the location of load and the rate of loading.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Structure-activity relationship of a series of nitrogen mustard- and pyrrole-containing minor groove-binding agents related to distamycin.

Two series of tethered nitrogen mustards based on the minor groove-binding and A/T sequence-specific natural product distamycin have been synthesized and evaluated. The conjugates, which have a modified dimethylamino C-terminus, are comprised of one, two or three pyrrole carboxamide units linked to either benzoic acid mustard (BAM) or chlorambucil (CHL). The DNA binding properties, in vitro cytotoxicities and DNA cross-linking abilities were determined for each of the conjugates. The conjugates were found to bind preferentially to poly(dA.dT) compared to poly(dG.dC) DNA by ethidium displacement and circular dichroism. The di- and tripyrrole conjugates had higher binding affinities than the monopyrrole conjugates. All the conjugates were more cytotoxic than the nitrogen mustards themselves. Cytotoxicity increased with the increase from one to three pyrrole units and the CHL conjugates were more cytotoxic than the corresponding BAM analogues. The CHL conjugates were able to cross-link plasmid DNA at a 10-fold lower dose than CHL itself. The BAM conjugates showed < 10% cross-linking at doses which gave 100% cross-linking with the CHL conjugates. In cells, the CHL conjugates showed significant cross-linking at the IC50 values, while the BAM conjugates showed no evidence of cross-link formation even at 10 times the IC50 value. These results are discussed in reference to a series of previously reported GC-recognizing imidazole analogues possessing the same nitrogen mustard groups.

Alkylating Agents↗
PubMed1994

Phase I-II study of busulfan and cyclophosphamide conditioning for transplantation in advanced multiple myeloma.

We evaluated a non-radiation containing preparative regimen for persons with myeloma receiving bone marrow (BM) or blood cell transplants. Twenty-three adults with advanced multiple myeloma (15 responsive to chemotherapy, 8 resistant) received cyclophosphamide 120 mg/kg and busulfan 14-16 mg/kg followed by the infusion of BM or blood progenitor cells. Patients were followed for response by monthly skeletal radiographs, urine and serum monoclonal paraprotein measurement, BM evaluation and beta 2-microglobulin. Three of 18 evaluable patients achieved complete response, 13 patients achieved partial response and two a minimal response. Actuarial 1 year survival post-transplant for all patients is 63% (95% confidence interval, 40-86%). Disease stage and response to chemotherapy pre-transplant correlated with survival post-transplant. Actuarial survival for patients with resistant disease was 38% (4-72%); for patients with chemotherapy-responsive disease, it was 78% (48-100%, p = 0.02). Regimen-related toxicity consisted of five early deaths, three from veno-occlusive disease, one from infection and one from multiorgan failure. Fatal and non-fatal hepatic and renal toxicities were related to busulfan dose with most complications occurring at 16 mg/kg. Our studies suggest that busulfan and cyclophosphamide are an effective conditioning regimen in multiple myeloma. Toxicity precludes increasing the total dose of busulfan beyond 14 mg/kg.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Septicemia occurring after colonoscopic polypectomy in a splenectomized patient taking corticosteroids.

Although a transient bacteremia may occur in approximately 4% of patients after colonoscopic procedures, clinically significant bacteremia or endocarditis is exceedingly rare. To our knowledge, the case we describe herein is the first reported case of septicemia due to Flavobacterium meningosepticum and Escherichia coli after colonoscopic polypectomy. Our patient was probably immunocompromised and, therefore, predisposed to bacteremia after the procedure, because she was asplenic, diabetic, and receiving long-term steroid therapy for her chronic autoimmune disorders. Several recent reports have suggested that immunocompromised patients are more likely to develop septicemia after endoscopic procedures.

Bacteremia↗
PubMed1994

A phase I-II study of high-dose thiotepa, busulfan and cyclophosphamide as a preparative regimen for allogeneic marrow transplantation.

Thirty adults with hematologic malignancies at high-risk for relapse were treated on a phase I-II study of high-dose thiotepa, busulfan (BU) and cyclophosphamide (CY) as the preparative regimen for allogeneic marrow transplantation. Cyclosporine and methylprednisolone or anti-CD5 ricin A chain immunoconjugate were used as graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis. Filgrastim was given from day 1 to enhance engraftment. Median follow-up time is 16 months (range 9-29 months). Grades III-IV regimen-related toxicity occurred in 5 (26%) of 19 patients treated with thiotepa 250 mg/m2 x 3, BU 1 mg/kg x 12 and CY 60 mg/kg x 2 and this was considered the maximal tolerated dose-schedule. Stomatitis and hepatoxicity were dose-limiting. All patients engrafted and had complete donor chimerism. The actuarial rate of acute graft-versus-host disease was 71% (95% CI 62-80%). The relapse rate at 1 year was 38% (95% CI 25-50%) and the actuarial survival at 1 year was 30% (95% CI 22-38%). The combination of thiotepa, BU and CY is tolerable as a preparative regimen for allogeneic marrow transplantation.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Molecular and cellular pharmacology of novel photoactive psoralen and coumarin conjugates of pyrrole- and imidazole-containing analogues of netropsin.

The molecular and cellular pharmacology of novel sequence-directed photoactive agents, in which either psoralen or coumarin is conjugated to minor groove-binding AT-selective pyrrole-, or more GC-selective imidazole-containing analogues of netropsin, is described. The compounds were relatively non-toxic in the dark and showed marked photoinduced cytotoxicities when irradiated at 366 nm UV. The psoralen-containing pyrrole (1) and imidazole (2) compounds gave the largest photoinduced effect, were more active than 8-methoxypsoralen (8-MP) itself by 333- and 22-fold, respectively, and were more potent than the corresponding coumarin-containing analogues 3 and 4. Following irradiation, 1 and 2 were > 300- and > 10-fold more efficient at producing interstrand cross-links in naked DNA, respectively, than 8-MP. 1 was at least 10-fold more efficient at producing cross-links in cells than 2, reflecting the difference in their IC50 values. No cross-links were observed with the coumarin analogues, but these compounds were more potent than 8-MP. AT and GC sequence recognition was confirmed by DNA footprinting, and sites of covalent modification mapped by a polymerase stop assay. All compounds produced blocks at thymine base sites following irradiation. 1 was more efficient than 8-MP and produced a different pattern of covalent modification, whereas 2 was more selective than either 1 or 8-MP. A 1H-NMR study on a 1:1 complex of 2 with the hexamer (5'-dA1T2G3C4A5T6-3')2 indicated that the imidazole carboxamide moieties of 2 reside in the minor groove of the sequence 5'-GCAT-3' of the hexamer with the C-terminus located on the 3'-TA site, and the psoralen group intercalated between the 5'-A1T2-3' base pairs.

Base Sequence↗