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Biomedical subjects

R B Williams

Publications and source records attributed to R B Williams.

At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources
PubMed1967

The effects of zinc deficiency on pancreatic carboxypeptidase activity and protein digestion and absorption in the rat.

1. Proteolytic enzyme activities were examined in the pancreas of zinc-deficient and control rats. 2. No change was detected in trypsin-plus-chymotrypsin activity. 3. Carboxypeptidase activity was appreciably lowered in zinc deficiency and returned rapidly to normal on zinc therapy. 4. In experiments in which U-(14)C-labelled Chlorella protein was fed no evidence was obtained which suggested that the reduction in carboxypeptidase activity had limited the rate of protein digestion or absorption. 5. The specific activity of pancreatic protein synthesized during these experiments was appreciably lower in zinc-deficient than in control rats. 6. A higher proportion of the total activity present, in each organ examined, was in the non-protein fraction in zinc-deficient rats.

Journal Article↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A patient-initiated system for preventive health care. A randomized trial in community-based primary care practices.

OBJECTIVE: To test the effectiveness of a patient-initiated, touch-sensitive computer system (TSCS) for improving screening rates for cancers of the breast, cervix, colon and rectum, and oral cavity. DESIGN: One-year, randomized, controlled trial with primary care practice as the unit of analysis. SETTING: Sixty primary care practices, randomly recruited from 329 nonteaching practices in a southeastern state. SUBJECTS: Random sample of the medical records of 50 male and female adult patients before intervention and 50 adult patients after intervention in each practice and a random sample of 507 TSCS users. INTERVENTIONS: Touch-sensitive computer system and a registered nurse who served as liaison to the study practices. The TSCS provided patient-specific preventive service recommendations and facilitated work flow to increase the completion of these interventions. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Average change, adjusted for health maintenance examination (HME) and use of the TSCS, in the proportion of eligible patients undergoing screening mammography, clinical breast examination, digital rectal examination, fecal occult blood test, flexible sigmoidoscopy, Papanicolaou smear, and oral cavity examination. RESULTS: We observed a significant increase in the completion of screening mammography (6.6%; P < or = 0.5) and clinical breast examination (6.1%; P < or = .01) in women 50 years of age and older, particularly for those who had an HME during the study year. CONCLUSIONS: Patients who have HMEs are more likely to receive cancer screening; however, a computer-based system for preventive services can contribute to improvement in screening. Among those patients who did not have an HME, TSCS users had higher rates of breast cancer screening than nonusers.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

A self-filling micropipette for the isolation of single coccidial oocysts.

A disposable, self-filling micropipette is described for the isolation of single oocysts of chicken coccidia from laboratory stocks. A sterile 1 microliter capillary tube is mounted, using sealing wax, into the narrower end of a broken-off Pasteur pipette. This micropipette is pushed into one end of a 60 cm length of flexible plastic tubing and a 5 cm glass tube is pushed into the other end. The apparatus is used by holding the glass tube in one's mouth, maintaining a positive pressure in the buccal cavity, while the tip of the capillary tube in the micropipette is juxtaposed with a single oocyst in a diluted stock on a cavity slide, observed under a microscope objective. A sudden release of the positive pressure causes the chosen oocyst to be instantaneously taken up into the capillary tube. Using the tube again, the oocyst is then blown out onto a piece of 'Cellophane' which is placed in a gelatine capsule. The capsule is administered to a chick in a plastic-film isolator.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Age and gender differences in the content scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory.

We examined time of measurement, gender, and age differences on the nine content scales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory using data collected by three separate studies during the 1950s, 1960s and 1980s. No evidence was found for differences in the content scales due to time of measurement that also could not have been explained by demographic differences. Differences due to gender were found on only one of the nine scales, Masculinity-Femininity, and age differences were found on the Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Agreeableness scales. Younger men and women had significantly higher scores on the Neuroticism and Extraversion scales, and these differences were consistent in both magnitude and direction across sample and gender. Our results suggest that it is likely that openness reaches its lifetime stable level by the time typical adolescents enter college, because we found no significant age differences in intellectual interests. Neuroticism, extraversion, and agreeableness on the other hand, are likely to show instability throughout, and probably after, adolescence and early adulthood, because we found significant age differences in the content dimensions associated with these factors in separate analyses of three samples.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Locus of control and vasomotor response to sensory processing.

Heart rate and forearm blood flow responses were measured during experimental tasks requiring sensory intake, sensory rejection, and a mixture of the two behaviors. Subjects were 29 college students who had been categorized using Rotter's locus of control scale. Significant increases in both cardiovascular indices were seen in all three tasks; the responses were smaller, however, during sensory intake. Internals showed a differential response of forearm blood flow. In contrast, externals showed a similar vasodiatation across all tasks. The findings indicate that some of the variability in cariovascular response to sensory processing may be explained by individual differences in personality charcteristics related to subjects' perferred level of involvement in differing sensory processing behaviors.

Attention↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Components of Type A, hostility, and anger-in: relationship to angiographic findings.

Previous research has linked the Type A coronary-prone behavior pattern to angiographically documented severity of coronary atherosclerosis (CAD). The present study sought through component scoring of the Type A Structured Interview (SI) to determine what elements of the multidimensional Type A pattern are related to coronary disease severity in a selected group of patients with minimal or severe CAD. Multivariate analyses controlling for the major risk factors showed no relationship between global Type A and extent of disease. Of all attributes measured, only Potential for Hostility and Anger-In were significantly and positively associated with the disease severity, including angina symptoms and number of myocardial infarctions. Further analysis revealed that Potential for Hostility and Anger-In were interactive in their association, such that Potential for Hostility was associated with disease endpoints only for patients who were high on the Anger-In dimension. These findings support previous research in suggesting that anger and hostility may be the critical aspects of the Type A pattern in predisposing individuals to risk of CAD.

Anger↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Psychosocial and physical predictors of anginal pain relief with medical management.

This study was undertaken to identify psychosocial and physical characteristics that independently predict anginal pain relief. The original study group comprised over 570 patients in whom the characteristics were identified at the time of coronary arteriography and who were followed up after 6 months of standard medical therapy. In the subset of 382 of these patients who were assessed as having NYHA Class III or IV angina at the time of angiography, a multivariable analysis of 101 baseline descriptors showed that higher scores on the MMPI hypochondriasis scale, unemployment, and more severe right coronary occlusion were significant independent predictors of failure to achieve two-class improvement at follow-up. These three characteristics also predicted continuing severe angina in a subsequent, independent sample of 91 new patients. These findings could help physicians select appropriate treatment by prospectively identifying patients who are unlikely to respond to standard medical treatment of angina.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗