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Biomedical subjects

R Wright

Publications and source records attributed to R Wright.

At least 253 records · Page 14Linked to original sources

Coppr deficiency in the rat. Relationship to chronic cyanide poisoning.

Daily administration of increasing doses intraperitoneally of 2.5-4.0 mg NaCN/kg to male Wistar rats for 5 weeks produced acute signs of poisoning immediately post-injection but no sign of chronic toxicity except lower final body weights than in control rats. CN-treated rats had less liver copper than controls, but not below the range of normality, and their liver mitochondrial membranes were 24% less able to bind adenine nucleotides than control membranes. No other biochemical or pathological sign of copper deficiency occurred. Liver cytochrome oxidase activity was normal after the 5 weeks of CN-administration, as was the ability of liver mitochondria to synthesize phospholipids. The ultrastructure of hepatocytes was normal without evidence of the enlarged, misshapen mitochondria produced by copper deficiency. Normal cytochrome oxidase activity of liver mitochondria, together with reduced liver copper levels and reduced binding affinity of mitochondrial membranes for adenine nucleotides, indicate that the membrane binding site for adenine nucleotides is not cytochrome oxidase per se but may involve copper, perhaps by virtue of its cationicity. With repeated exposure to CN- rats develop tolerance to acute poisoning. It is suggested that this may be due to the switch in glucose catabolism towards the pentose pathway at the expense of other pathways.

Adenosine Diphosphate↗

Smooth-muscle antibodies in infertility.

Sera from 77 infertile women and 77 post-partum controls were examined for autoantibodies by indirect immunogluorescence. 27 (35%) of the infertile group had smooth-muscle antibody compared with 2 (3%) controls. Significantly more infertile patients had anti-nuclear factor, and reticulin antibodies were also more commonly found in this group. The differences for organ-specific autoantibodies between the two groups were not significant. There was no correlation between the occurrence of smooth-muscle antibodies and immunofluorescent anti-sperm antibodies. The high frequency of smooth-muscle antibodies in infertile women requires further study to determine whether an underlying viral infection is involved.

Antibodies, Antinuclear↗

Histological evidence of carcinoma in a hepatic tumour associated with oral contraceptives.

A primary hepatic tumour occurred in a 21-year-old woman who had been taking oral contraceptives for two years; she was treated by partial hepatectomy. Part of the neoplasm showed features suggestive of focal nodular hyperplasia, while the remainder had the histological characteristics of a well-differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma. This is the first report of malignant transformation of a tumour in a patient taking oral contraceptives.

Adult↗

Bird-fancier's lung and jejunal villous atrophy.

Sixteen patients with bird-fancier's lung were screened for evidence of coeliac disease by assessing their clinical features, red-bloodcell or serum folate levels, and serum for reticulin antibodies. Five of nine patients selected for jejunal biopsy showed villous atrophy, and in some this seemed to be a true gluten-sensitive enteropathy.

Adult↗

Controlled prospective study of the effect on liver function of multiple exposures to halothane.

Patients who had received halothane within a periof of one year and who required another anaesthetic were allocated at random to be given halothane or a control anaesthetic, the control being fiben using halothane-free apparatus. There were 76 patients entries in each group. Serum-glutamic-oxaloacetic-transaminase (S.G.O.T.) levels were measured before the anaesthetics and serially postoperatively for two to three weeks. The S.G.O.T. levels in the halothane group were significantly higher than in the controls. High levels were confined to patients who had had less than four previous halothane anaesthetics, increases above normal in the remainder and in the controls being rate. 1 patient in the halothane group had an S.G.O.T. of 440 I.U. per litre and hepatocellular necrosis on liver biopsy. 2 patients in the halothane group whose S.G.O.T.s rose to more than twice normal showed a similar reaction to re-exposure to halothane, although they had not shown a reaction to an intervening control anaesthetic.

Aged↗

[Application of a reversed passive hemagglutination test to the detection of HBs antigen].

In this report we present an evaluation of the sensitivity, specificity and ability to detect HBs Ag carriers of a new reversed passive hemagglutination test, using immunochemically purified chimpanzee anti HBs bound to stabilized human erythrocytes. The method was shown to have a sensitivity equal (within one two fold dilution) to that of the Ausria I 125 ratio immuno assay, and in a double blind comparison detected essentially the same number of Hbs Ag containing specimens among volunteer blood donors. The method therefore provides an economical method for the third generation testing of blood donors. The methodology which has been described incorporates a definitive specificity test in which serum drawn before and after immunization of chimpanzees with purified HBs Ag is compared for its ability to neutralize the hemagglutination reaction. The use of serum from the same animal for this purpose avoids the theoretical possibility that antiglobulin antibodies directed at subclass determinants such as Gm of Inv could be differentially inhibited due to possible subclass differences in the blocking sera employed. A reliable test for specificity of HBs Ag screening results is essential to avoid false notification of donors that they are carriers of hepatitis B virus.

Animals↗

A new reversed passive hemagglutination test for detection of HBsAg.

A new reversed passive hemagglutination test for HBsAg, termed Raphadex B, has been developed using immunochemically purified chimpanzee anti-HBs bound to stabilized human erythrocytes. The test has been found to have equivalent sensitivity to the Ausria 125I radioimmunoassay, and detected a similar number of HBsAg-containing specimens in screening of volunteer blood donors. This method offers an economical approach to third generation methodology for hepatitis B screening of blood donors.

ABO Blood-Group System↗

Reticulin antibodies in patients with coeliac disease and their relatives.

The sera of 69 index coeliac patients, 121 of their first-degree relatives, and 104 controls were screened for the presence of reticulin antibodies. Among the untreated coeliac patients 75% of adults and 93% of children had reticulin antibody in their serum. Reticulin antibody was not present in any adequately treated coeliac patient. Of the first-degree relatives, 21 were reticulin antibody positive; 17 of these were biopsied and 12 were shown to have coeliac disease. Sixty-five of the coeliac relatives who did not have reticulin antibodies in their sera were biopsied and two had coeliac disease. Of the 68 relatives and 63 controls with normal biopsies, five of the relatives and four of the controls were reticulin antibody positive.

Adolescent↗

Quantitative liver imaging using 131-I Rose Bengal as an index of liver function and prognosis.

A technique for assessing quantitatively hepatic function by direct measurement of liver parenchymal cell uptake of 131I Rose Bengal using a scintillation camera with a digital store and retrieval system is described. Ninety-four studies were performed on 84 patients with a variety of hepatic disorders over a two-year period, the diagnosis in each case being established by liver biopsy or laparotomy. The results were compared with the clinical, biochemical and histological assessment of the patients. A good correlation was found between the half-time for hepatic uptake of 131I Rose Bengal and the histological changes, as well as with clinical prognosis measured in terms of clinical improvement or deterioration to death. The rate of liver uptake was found to be a better index than the clearance of radioisotope from the blood and was superior to conventional biochemical investigations in both icteric and anicteric patients. The test was not shown to be of clinical value in discriminating between intra- and extrahepatic causes of jaundice. It is suggested that this technique may provide a safe and sensitive method for assessing the severity of liver dysfunction and also for monitoring clinical progress, especially in situations where liver biopsy may be unreliable or hazardous.

Biopsy↗