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Biomedical subjects

R C Noble

Publications and source records attributed to R C Noble.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Vibrio vulnificus sepsis after eating raw oysters.

Vibrio vulnificus, a marine vibrio found in coastal waters of the United States, may contaminate certain seafoods, particularly raw oysters. Patients with underlying liver disease are particularly susceptible to severe illness. Unexplained febrile diseases in patients who have eaten raw oysters may be caused by Vibrio vulnificus. A fatal and a nonfatal case are reported in two such patients. These patients are the first two reported cases of Vibrio vulnificus infection in Kentucky.

Animals↗

Effect of 2-mercaptoethanol on some metabolic indices of ageing of CBA/Ca inbred mice.

It has been shown in several studies that 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) improves the life span and aspects of life performance of laboratory animals. To obtain further details on the beneficial effects of 2-ME, a long-term study has been performed on male CBA/Ca inbred mice treated with this antioxidant. Four month-old mice were each given 4 micrograms of 2-ME in physiological saline via intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection 3 x per week. Measurements were made of the following: cold tolerance (heat performance), apparent total body protein turnover (T1/2), changes in the major lipid and fatty acid compositions of the liver, superoxide dismutase activity and formation of malondialdehyde and observations on a range of pathological changes. It was found that the basal rectal temperatures of the treated mice were higher and in the oldest group, heat performance capacity was better than those of the controls. After about 1 year of age the apparent biological half-life time of total body protein (T1/2) was observed to be shorter in the treated mice. Significant increases were observed to occur in the proportions of the polyunsaturated fatty acids in the lipids of the liver in the mice injected with 2-ME. Although no differences were observed in the superoxide dismutase activities, malondialdehyde concentrations in the livers of the experimental mice were significantly increased. Autopsy data showed that Dunn-sarcomas associated with amyloidoses occurred more frequently in the untreated mice.

Aging↗

Effects of age and season on the type and occurrence of sperm abnormalities in Nubian bucks.

Effects of age and season on type and occurrence of sperm abnormalities were examined in semen samples collected from 3 groups of Nubian bucks at ages of 4 to 9 months, 10 to 21 months, and 39 to 50 months. The average total percentage of sperm abnormalities at the onset of puberty (141 +/- 4 days) was 64.6 +/- 14.8% (head, 19.5 +/- 13.6%; middle piece, 17.2 +/- 9.3%; and proximal protoplasmic droplets, 14.6 +/- 10.5%), but this improved rapidly and was reduced to 12.5 +/- 7.5% by 8 months of age (head, 1.9 +/- 4.5%; middle piece, 4.6 +/- 2.8%). Further increase in age, at least up to 4 years, did not reveal a significant effect (P less than 0.05) on the type or percentage of total abnormalities. Similar to age, a comparison of data among seasons did not reveal a significant effect on the type or occurrence of sperm abnormalities in 10- to 21-month-old or 39- to 50-month-old bucks. Seemingly, Nubian bucks started producing good quality semen at 8 months of age, and season did not influence sperm abnormalities.

Aging↗

Comparative study of the lipid composition of the liver and bile from broiler birds during growth and egg laying.

A comparative study was made of biliary and liver lipid compositions during the growth and egg laying periods of the broiler bird. The liver lipids showed high concentrations of triacylglycerols at seven weeks old which increased when egg laying proceeded. At seven weeks old the lipids of the bile also showed high levels of triacylglycerols which decreased with the onset of egg laying but increased slightly as egg laying proceeded. At seven weeks old the fatty acid composition of the bile triacylglycerols differed from that of the liver which in turn was different from that of the liver at the onset of egg laying. In particular the bile triacylglycerols had lower levels of oleic but higher levels of arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acids. By the late egg laying period, the fatty acid compositions of the bile and liver triacylglycerols were similar. The unique bile lipid composition and its changes are discussed in relationship to the major features of liver lipid metabolism in the broiler bird and the mechanism of lipid deposition during egg laying.

Animals↗

Measurement of 14CO2 evolution during tissue oxidation in vitro; an alternative to the Kontes well.

1. An alternative method to the use of the disposable Kontes well for trapping 14CO2 produced in the course of biological oxidations is described. 2. A polyethylene miniature scintillation vial was used to contain the hyamine hydroxide-impregnated filter paper wick. 3. The two methods are compared in their abilities to trap 14CO2 produced directly by acidification of sodium [14C]bicarbonate and during beta-oxidation of 1[14C] palmitic acid. 4. The miniature vial and Kontes well methods showed similar efficiencies in the trapping of 14CO2 (97% and 95%, respectively, on average) the radioactivity of which was determined in the miniature vial using 5 ml only of scintillation fluid compared with a minimum of 10 ml required by the standard scintillation vial used to accommodate the Kontes well. 5. The technical advantages of the suggested miniature vial system, during both incubation and counting stages, are discussed.

Animals↗

Effects of age and diet on the lipid content and composition of gallbladder bile, liver and serum in laying strains of hen.

1. Changes in lipid content and composition of liver and bile during pre- and post-laying periods were investigated in hens of a laying strain. 2. The large increase in liver lipid concentration, particularly triacylglycerols, at the onset of laying was accompanied by the appearance of triacylglycerols in the bile. 3. Accumulation of triacylglycerol in the liver was increased by a diet containing maize and soyabean meal. This was associated with increases in the triacylglycerol concentration in both serum and bile. 4. Liver microsomal phosphatidate phosphohydrolase activity was positively correlated with liver triacylglycerol content in birds given the maize/soyabean meal diet. 5. The time course of triacylglycerol accumulation in the liver and associated changes in the bile triacylglycerol concentration in laying strain hens were different to those previously observed in broiler hens. 6. Over the lifetime of the bird, secretion of triacylglycerols into bile may play an important role in the prevention of fatty liver syndromes.

Aging↗

Propionibacterium acnes osteomyelitis: case report and review of the literature.

Propionibacterium acnes, a part of the skin flora, caused vertebral osteomyelitis in a man who had recently undergone a microdiskectomy. The identifying characteristics and antibiotic susceptibility pattern are presented for this unusual human pathogen. The relationship of P. acnes to bone infection is summarized for the first time. A typical patient with P. acnes osteomyelitis is an adult male who has had prior surgery. Most patients respond favorably to prolonged antibiotic therapy.

Adolescent↗

Spontaneous bacterial peritonitis caused by Pasteurella ureae.

Pasteurella ureae is uncommonly isolated from patients and rarely causes disease. The case of a patient with spontaneous bacterial peritonitis caused by P. ureae is described and contrasted with other reported cases of P. ureae colonization and infection. Respiratory colonization has been described in older patients, predominantly men, with underlying lung disease consisting principally of bronchitis, bronchiectasis, and tumors. Only 11 patients (including the present patient) have been reported to have illness with P. ureae. Seven had meningitis, two had pneumonia, and one had hepatitis. Skull fracture, alcoholism, and liver disease are common antecedents of P. ureae infection.

Adolescent↗

Cutaneous cryptococcal infection presenting as vulvar lesion.

A woman aged 60, who had been immunosuppressed since receiving a renal transplant 17 years before, developed a painless ulcerated lesion on her right labia majora. Cryptococcus neoformans was demonstrated by culture and biopsy of the lesion. This is the first reported case of a genital skin lesion caused by C neoformans.

Cryptococcosis↗

Lipid metabolism in the chick embryo: some recent ideas.

The transfer of lipid that occurs from yolk to embryo during the last week of development of the chick is associated with some notable changes in tissue lipid and fatty acid compositions. Recent investigations into the concentration changes of some of the major lipid classes and their fatty acid compositions within the yolk complex and embryo have enabled metabolic interpretation to be placed on several of these observations. As well as its central role in yolk lipid assimilation, the involvement of the yolk sac membrane in some specific yolk lipid changes before uptake by the embryo has been identified. Distinctive changes in the normal pattern of yolk lipid mobilization and utilization have been observed in eggs exhibiting low hatchability and in relation to the survival of chicks from very young parent stock.

Animals↗

The hydrolysis of very low density lipoproteins and chylomicrons of intestinal origin by lipoprotein lipase in ruminants.

The hydrolysis by lipoprotein lipase of a very low density lipoprotein/chylomicron fraction, obtained from the intestinal lymph of sheep, has been studied in vitro. Rapid hydrolysis of triacylglycerols, with an accumulation of free fatty acids, was observed. After an initial lag period, phosphatidylcholine also was hydrolyzed. No specificity for particular fatty acids in the triacylglycerols (or phosphatidylcholines) was observed.

Animals↗

Changes in the lipid metabolism of the chick embryo with parental age.

A study has been made on the distribution and composition of the lipids associated with the yolk contents, yolk sac membrane, liver, and extrahepatic tissues of chick embryos at Days 15 and 19 of incubation from 25- and 41-week-old broiler-breeder stock. The higher embryo mortality displayed by the eggs from the young breeders was associated with an abnormal distribution of lipid between the tissue pools. The amount of lipid associated with the total yolk, i.e., yolk contents plus yolk sac membrane, of the embryos from the 25-week-old parents at Day 19 of incubation was greater than that of the embryos from the 41-week-old parents, and there was a much higher proportion of lipid still remaining in association with the yolk contents. In the embryos from the young parents, a smaller proportion of embryonic lipid was associated with the extra-hepatic tissues at Day 19 of incubation. Differences were observed in the relative proportions of the major lipid fractions within the yolk and embryonic tissues between the eggs from the two sets of parents. The higher mortality of the embryos from the young parents was associated with a malfunction of yolk lipid assimilation and mobilization from the yolk contents thereby denying access to the major nutrient associated with development during the last week of incubation.

Age Factors↗

Output of triglyceride from the sebaceous gland and to the skin surface of cattle.

Radiolabelled fatty acids, when injected intradermally into cattle skin, were largely incorporated into the triglyceride and phospholipid fractions of the sebaceous gland lipids. Linoleic acid was incorporated into the triglycerides to a greater extent than oleic or palmitic acids, whereas the phospholipids had a greater affinity for palmitic acid. The peak uptake of linoleic acid into the glandular triglyceride fraction was at about 61 hours compared with 52 hours and three hours for oleic and palmitic acids. Radioactively 14C labelled triglycerides appeared on the skin surface within one day of intradermal injection of 14C linoleic acid. At an ambient temperature of 20 degrees C, a single output-peak occurred at nine days while at 35 degrees C two peaks at four and eight to nine days were observed. From the data an estimate of 6.5 days for the mean storage time of sebum triglycerides in the hair follicle canal at 20 degrees C has been made.

Animals↗

The lipid composition of the spleen and intestinal and popliteal lymph nodes in the sheep.

Lipids were isolated from the spleen, intestinal lymph nodes and popliteal lymph nodes, tissues of potential importance in the metabolism of lymph or lymphocytes, of the sheep. The most abundant lipid classes were the triacylglycerols, free cholesterol and phospholipids, especially phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine and sphingomyelin. In each lipid class, the amounts of the essential fatty acids were lower than in the corresponding lipids of lymph or plasma. The triacylglycerols of each tissue resembled those of adipose tissue in structure, rather than those of lymph or plasma. Also, the structures of the phosphatidylcholines were distinctive. The results are discussed in terms of the metabolism of lipids in lymph. It does not appear probable that lymphoid tissue can supply appreciable amounts of lipid to lymph.

Animals↗

Unsaturated fatty acid compositional changes and desaturation during the embryonic development of the chicken (Gallus domesticus).

An investigation has been made to correlate the activities of the delta 9- and delta 6-long chain fatty acid desaturation systems with the increased levels of oleic and arachidonic acids in the liver relative to the yolk sac membrane of the chick embryo during the last week of development. The membrane exhibited high levels of both stearic and linoleic acid desaturation in the early stages of yolk lipid mobilization, the activities of both enzyme systems decreasing with the approach of hatching. Stearic acid desaturation in the liver also decreased with the approach of hatching, but linoleic acid desaturation increased. The observed levels of desaturation in the yolk sac membrane are capable of making a considerable contribution to the accumulations of mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids in the embryonic liver, the requirement for which does not appear to be satisfied by the yolk lipids. With the approach of hatching and the functional regression of the yolk sac membrane, the role is taken over by the embryonic tissues.

Animals↗