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Biomedical subjects

R Hill

Publications and source records attributed to R Hill.

At least 217 records · Page 12Linked to original sources
PubMed1984

Hypereosinophilic syndrome with pulmonary vascular involvement.

We have studied a patient with hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES) who initially presented with recurrent asthmatic attacks followed by progressive dyspnea. Chronic obstructive lung disease was suspected at first although involvement of cardiac and other organ systems and marked eosinophilia eventually led to the diagnosis. Thereafter a diffuse interstitial pattern gradually developed on the chest radiograph which persisted despite vigorous treatment for cardiac failure. This was due to infiltration and cuffing of the small pulmonary arteries by eosinophils. The bronchi showed changes consistent with asthma. Review of the literature indicates that this type of vascular change is common in HES but involves predominantly organs other than the lung. Similar pulmonary arterial changes have been produced experimentally in the calf by prolonged intravenous infusion of antibiotics, indicating that this may be a hypersensitivity reaction to a blood-borne material entering the pulmonary circulation.

Aged↗
PubMed1984

Demonstration of tumor-associated immunoglobulin G isolated from immune complexes in ascitic fluid of ovarian cancer.

An analysis was made of the ascitic fluid obtained from a patient with serious cyst-adenocarcinoma of the ovary. The fluid contained no reactivity to rheumatoid factor, carcinoembryonic antigen, and autoantigens. The immune complexes in the ascitic fluid, demonstrated by C1q deviation and characterized by gel chromatography, protein A binding studies, and Ouchterlony diffusion, appeared as high molecular weight material. The monomeric IgG dissociated from this material was capable of reassociation into complexes, as shown by radioactive labelling studies. The IgG isolated from the complexes was localized specifically to autologous as well as heterologous malignant ovarian tumor cells but not to normal ovarian tissue by the immunoperoxidase technique.

Antibodies, Neoplasm↗
PubMed1984

Colipase and lipase secretion in childhood-onset pancreatic insufficiency. Delineation of patients with steatorrhea secondary to relative colipase deficiency.

Pancreatic lipase and colipase secretion was assessed in 64 patients with pancreatic disease, 24 of whom had steatorrhea, and in 14 control subjects. A wide range of lipase and colipase secretion was seen in patients both with and without steatorrhea. Considerable loss of pancreatic lipase and colipase secretion had to occur before steatorrhea developed, as the highest hourly secretion of lipase and colipase in this group of patients was less than 4% and less than 2%, respectively, of the lowest values recorded in normal subjects. Colipase and lipase outputs were very strongly correlated (r = 0.96) throughout the range of pancreatic function. Lipase was always unsaturated with respect to colipase, but in only a limited number of patients with relatively low pancreatic secretion was the degree of unsaturation greater than 2 standard deviations below the mean. The importance of low saturation or low colipase secretion was evident in a group of 11 patients with a narrow range of lipase secretion in a transitional zone between secretion rates associated with steatorrhea and with normal fat excretion. In this group, 7 patients were identified in whom colipase deficiency appeared to be the sole cause of steatorrhea. The correlation of colipase secretion with the level of fecal fat excretion was highly significant (p less than 0.001) and indicated that fat digestion and subsequent fat absorption depended on colipase secretion up to at least a level of 25% fecal fat excretion. Nonpancreatic factors could well govern the extent of fat absorption above this level, as colipase secretory values in this range were uniformly low.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Acute respiratory failure in motor neuron disease.

Five patients with sudden deterioration in respiratory function were studied. In three a history of motor neuron disease was known but in two the first evidence of the disease was severe hypoventilation. No other cause for the respiratory difficulty could be detected in any, and all eventually achieved important partial or even complete independence from mechanical support. Severe hypoventilation can be the initial symptom of motor neuron disease, and not all patients with this complication of the disease have the poor prognosis usually expected.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1983

Imipramine and brief therapists-aided exposure in agoraphobics having self-exposure homework.

Forty-five chronic agoraphobics were randomly assigned to treatment by placebo or imipramine in doses up to 200 mg/day for 28 weeks. All patients also had systematic self-exposure homework with an instruction manual. In addition, half of each drug group had therapist-aided exposure and half had therapist-aided relaxation, each totalling three hours. Patients in both drug groups improved substantially and maintained their gains for one year of follow-up. Imipramine had no significant therapeutic effect despite satisfactory plasma levels and significant drug side effects. Patients' low initial Hamilton depression scores might explain the absence of any drug effect. Antidepressants may be ineffective for agoraphobics who have normal mood. Brief therapist-aided exposure improved phobias and panics to a significant but limited extent, and is a useful adjuvant to self-exposure homework, which can be a powerful therapeutic agency by itself.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Affinity chromatography separation of tumor associated antigens from ascitic fluid of ovarian cancer patients.

Tumor associated immunoglobulins previously isolated from ovarian cancer ascitic fluid have been used in an affinity chromatography step to purify putative tumor associated antigens from a perchloric acid extract of ascitic fluid. Examination of the affinity chromatography purified proteins revealed 4 bands on electrophoresis. Antisera raised to the affinity chromatography products have been examined by Ouchterlony diffusion as well as a solid-phase radioimmunoassay. Two of thirteen ovarian tumor extracts investigated reacted in Ouchterlony diffusion analysis, whereas all thirteen extracts gave positive results in the more sensitive solid-phase radioimmunoassay.

Antigens, Neoplasm↗
PubMed1983

A physical interpretation for the natural photosynthetic process.

The efficiency of the process of photosynthesis is shown to depend on the molecular conversion of power. This requires establishment of a discipline that is now implicit in current thought and that offers a definition of relationship between equilibrium state and power. The quantum aspect for the microscopic process is different from the macroscopic system idealized as the heat engine and is required for the interpretation of molecular machinery. By using three postulates the ideal maximal efficiency for the molecular energy conversion is calculated from the data, which are assembled in the form of the "Z scheme" for photosynthesis. The observed and the calculated efficiencies for a green plant are substantially in agreement.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1983

Voluntary food intake of growing pigs given diets containing rapeseed meal, from different types and varieties of rape, as the only protein supplement.

The voluntary food intake, during 30 min periods after morning and afternoon feeds and during 24 h, by growing pigs given diets containing rapeseed meal (Rsm) or soya-bean meal (Sbm) as the only protein supplement was determined. One diet was offered at a time and a daily changeover sequence of feeding was followed. Four rapeseed meals were compared, one from seeds of British-grown winter Brassica napus varieties (Brsm) and the others from seeds of the varieties Tower (Trsm), Erglu (Ersm) and Span (Srsm). The effects on feed intake of adding flavouring substances to the Brsm diet were also determined. The flavouring substances were molassine meal, sucrose and four commercially-available substances: P, pig nectar; H, hog nectar; S, sow nectar and A, apple. Intake of the Brsm diet was significantly less than those of the Sbm, Trsm and Ersm diets. Addition to the Brsm diet of molassine meal or sucrose at 50 or 100 g/kg did not improve voluntary feed intake. None of the commercial flavouring substances raised the intake of the Brsm diet to the level of the Sbm diet but they improved intake of the Brsm diet to varying extents. Flavourings H, S and A gave similar improvements which were substantial. The Sbm, Brsm and Trsm diets were each fed ad. lib. to groups of growing pigs continuously for 4 weeks. Weekly feed intakes and weight gains were determined. Feed intakes and weight gains followed closely the intake values obtained in the changeover experiments. The highest values were for the Sbm diet; those for the Trsm diet were slightly lower and those for the Brsm diet were substantially and significantly lower. The glucosinolate, sinapine and tannin contents of the rapeseed meals were determined and the results suggested that voluntary feed intake of diets containing these meals was related to their glucosinolate content, but not to their sinapine or tannin contents.

Animal Feed↗
PubMed1983

Types of immune complexes in the ascitic fluid of women with carcinoma of the ovary.

Immune complexes with C1q-fixing properties and those precipitable by polyethylene glycol (PEG) were detected in ascitic fluid from patients with advanced ovarian cancer. The ascitic fluid from 42 of 58 patients (72%) contained these complexes. A positive result with the C1q assay was obtained in 41% of patients, whilst with the PEG assay a positive result was obtained in 59% (50% in the IgM, 36% in the IgG, and 14% in the IgA fraction). The highest mean level of PEG-precipitable complexes was in the IgG fraction (11.4 mg/100 ml) and lowest in the IgA fraction (3.3 mg/100 ml). These results indicate that gram quantities of the immune complexes may be isolated from the large volumes of ascitic fluid usually present in ovarian cancer. Further studies of ascitic fluid may thus provide data on the nature of the immune responses in these patients.

Antigen-Antibody Complex↗
PubMed1983

Sleep apnea syndrome after poliomyelitis.

We present a case of severe breathing abnormality during sleep in a young man who had had poliomyelitis 20 yr before. His sleep disorder led to respiratory failure and cor pulmonale, which were greatly improved by oxygen therapy. A study of this case and those previously described supports the notion that brainstem damage during acute poliomyelitis is important in the later appearance of sleep-disordered breathing. In addition, such patients usually have mechanical abnormalities involving the thoracic cage and respiratory muscles. These ventilatory restrictions amplify the pathophysiologic effects of abnormal central nervous system control of breathing during sleep, and we suggest that their presence has a key role in the development of sleep apnea syndrome in these patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Immunoglobulins reactive to carcinoembryonic antigen and their relationship to the antigen in malignant ascitic fluid of ovarian carcinoma.

Samples of malignant ascitic fluid from 30 patients with advanced ovarian carcinoma were examined for the presence of IgM antibodies to CEA and PEG-precipitable proteins binding to 125I-CEA. The IgM antibodies to CEA were measured by a solid-phase radioimmunoassay using ovarian CEA. There was no correlation between the level of IgM antibodies to CEA and that of total IgM in the fluid. In 11 of 30 (37%) samples tested, significant amounts of IgM antibodies to CEA were found. The CEA-binding proteins were measured by the ability of ascitic fluid to incorporate 125I-colonic-CEA into PEG-precipitable complexes. In 9 of 39 (30%) samples, the precipitation was significant. There was no association between antibodies to the ABO and Lewis blood group factors and these antibodies to CEA. An inverse relationship was observed between the level of CEA and that of CEA-binding proteins shown by the two assays. When 125I-CEA was incubated with these "positive" samples, a high molecular weight fraction was demonstrated by chromatography. By contrast, in the "negative" samples, there was no incorporation of 125I-CEA. These findings would indicate the presence of CEA-reactive proteins possibly existing as immune-complex-like material in ascitic fluid of some patients.

ABO Blood-Group System↗
PubMed1982

Molecular cloning of translocations involving chromosome 15 and the immunoglobulin C alpha gene from chromosome 12 in two murine plasmacytomas.

Expression of IgA by plasmacytomas occurs as a result of a DNA rearrangement that brings the variable region gene, VH, a few kilobases 5' to the constant region gene, C alpha. In this study, we show that the allelic nonexpressed C alpha gene also is rearranged in most plasmacytomas. Cloning, restriction mapping, heteroduplex analyses, and sequence analyses of the nonproductively rearrange C alpha genes from two plasmacytomas, M603 and M167, have demonstrated that the nonproductive rearrangement occurs within the alpha switching region, S alpha. In each case, the same DNA sequence has been joined to the 5' side of C alpha and we have termed this DNA "NIRD" (for nonimmunoglobulin rearranged DNA). Southern blotting analyses of genomic DNAs from various IgG-, IgM-, or IgA-producing plasmacytomas suggest that NIRD is rearranged in almost all plasmacytomas. However, NIRD rearranges to the S alpha region only in IgA-producing cells, not in IgM or IgG producers. Cytogenetic evidence has shown that T(12;15) translocations are common in murine plasmacytomas. Immunoglobulin heavy chain genes are located on chromosome 12, and the translocation breakpoint in plasmacytomas occurs near the immunoglobulin genes. NIRD has been mapped to chromosome 15 by Southern blotting analysis of mouse-hamster cell lines, suggesting that the nonproductively rearranged C alpha clones represent the T(12;15) translocations identified cytogenetically. Therefore, we have identified a region of DNA on chromosome 15 that is commonly rearranged in transformed mouse lymphocytes. We speculate on the significance of NIRD in neoplastic transformation of mouse lymphocytes.

Animals↗
PubMed1982

A transposable element that splits the promoter region inactivates a Drosophila cuticle protein gene.

Two mutations that affect larval cuticle protein gene expression in the 2/3 variant Drosophila melanogaster strain were investigated. We demonstrate that this strain synthesizes an electrophoretic variant, fast 2 (CPf2), of wild-type cuticle protein 2(CP2). It also lacks detectable amounts of cuticle protein 3 (CP3). The other major cuticle proteins are still present. Protein and DNA sequence analyses indicate that point mutations cause two amino acid substitutions that change the electrophoretic mobility of CPf2 relative to that of CP2. The mutation abolishing the expression of CP3 was found to be a 7.3-kilobase DNA insertion located within the T-A-T-A box region of this gene, at -31 base pairs from the mRNA start site. This DNA insertion, called H.M.S. Beagle, belongs to a conserved family of repeated DNA elements that have characteristics similar to those of previously characterized Drosophila transposable elements. H.M.S. Beagle elements are repeated approximately 50 times in the haploid genome and exhibit restriction fragment-length polymorphisms around points of insertion between Canton S, Oregon R, and 2/3 Drosophila strains. Sequence analysis indicates that H.M.S. Beagle contains 266-base-pair direct repeats at its termini and is flanked by a duplication of 4 base pairs of target DNA sequence, T-A-T-A, in the CP3 gene insertion. Thus, insertion of a transposable element into the putative promoter region of the CP3 gene is evidently responsible for inactivating CP3 gene expression.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Superior vena caval obstruction. Is it a medical emergency?

With the question in mind is superior vena caval obstruction a medical emergency, we reviewed 107 cases of superior vena caval obstruction in adult patients. We sought details of the time duration between the onset of symptoms and the treatment, and examined the complication and survival of patients with this disorder. Fifteen percent of the cases developed from benign causes. In 41 percent there was a previously recognized disease as the etiology. Benign disorders required longer to make the diagnosis. No serious complication resulted from the superior vena caval obstruction itself nor investigative procedures leading to the diagnosis despite, in some cases, a prolonged period between the onset of symptoms and the initiation of therapy. Prognosis and response to treatment were dependent on the underlying cause of the superior vena caval obstruction. Although several cases of tracheal obstruction were included in this series, we did not address the question of whether tracheal obstruction is or is not a medical emergency. No support was found for the notion that superior vena caval obstruction in itself represents a radiotherapeutic emergency.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

A deleted chromosome no. 13 in human retinoblastoma cells: relevance to tumorigenesis.

In this report of banded karyotypes prepared after short-term culture (72 hr) from human retinoblastoma tumor tissue, on del(13)(pter leads to q14:) chromosome and one normal chromosome #13 were found in all of the metaphases examined. Similar deletions (always involving 13q14) have previously been described in the somatic cells of individuals with one form of retinoblastoma. In the present case, however, the constitutional karyotype is normal. The presence of tumors in both eyes suggests that this is the genetic form of retinoblastoma, even though the patient's family history is negative for this tumor. The normal constitutional karyotype argues that the chromosome deletion occurred as a postzygotic event. The modal chromosome number of the tumor cells is 47 and rearrangements involving chromosomes #2, #17, and #20 were also identified.

Child, Preschool↗