Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

S Berry

Publications and source records attributed to S Berry.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

The opiomelanocortin peptide family: neuronal expression and modulation of neural cellular development and regeneration in the central nervous system.

1. Pro-OMLC is amongst a small number of propeptide-encoding genes which are expressed at highest levels in the CNS early in development. 2. The reappearance of the peptide products in injured neurones suggests that they fulfill a function in neuronal growth, differentiation and regeneration. 3. Axonal cues may regulate gene expression in neurones with greater or less functional interaction with their target cells. 4. alpha-MSH and ACTH stimulate the differentiation of neurones by accelerating their energy uptake and axonal growth during its early phases. 5. Their neurotrophic action is mediated through a common N-terminal amino acid sequence. 6. The structure activity requirements of the molecular second messenger responses underlying this action have yet to be conclusively determined. 7. Endorphins may regulate the transition from the mitotic cycle to the onset of differentiation of neurones and glia in the CNS. 8. Little is yet known of the cellular mechanism underlying this response, but the control of peptide processing to favour opiate and non-opiate receptor-mediated responses may be a key factor in determining whether they accelerate or retard neuronal differentiation.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Agonist-induced changes of platelet tubulin phosphorylation.

Changes in the phosphorylation of platelet tubulin were analyzed as a function of platelet activation. Non-activated platelets incubated with [32P]-phosphate showed multiple peaks of radioactivity when solubilized platelet proteins were analyzed by SDS-polyacrylamide gradient gel electrophoresis. Both tubulin monomers were found to be phosphorylated. Agonistic stimulation (thrombin or 1,2-diacylglycerol) resulted in a lowering of the phosphate incorporation into alpha- and beta-tubulin. Such changes we believe are important in the modulation of the reversible polymerization-depolymerization of platelet tubulin that occurs in the course of the agonistic stimulation of platelets.

Autoradiography↗
PubMed1988

Reproducibility of the measurement of plasma noradrenergic and dopaminergic metabolites in normal subjects.

The object of this study was to determine the reproducibility of the measurement of plasma catecholamine metabolites in normal control subjects and to assess the influence of factors such as time of day, diet, activity, blood pressure, and mood on the variance of these measures. Plasma free homovanillic acid (HVA), 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG), and vanillylmandelic acid (VMA) were simultaneously measured by high performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection. Samples were collected from 15 doctors and nurses at 8 a.m. and at noon on 2 separate days. After the fasting 8 a.m. sample, the subjects ate a regular hospital breakfast. Activity in their usual tasks on an inpatient psychiatric unit was monitored electronically by an activity meter. Levels of each metabolite were not significantly different between days at the respective assay times and were highly correlated for individuals. MHPG showed a significant increase from morning to noon, while HVA showed a significant decrease. Activity, dietary intake of tyrosine and tyramine, blood pressure, pulse, scores on the Profile of Mood States, age, and sex were not related to plasma levels. The results demonstrate that measures of dopamine and norepinephrine metabolites have significant reliability in normal subjects in a setting used for research studies with psychiatric patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Effects on infants of a first episode of genital herpes during pregnancy.

Although genital herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections occurring during pregnancy are known to be associated with neonatal and maternal complications, their frequency and contributing risk factors are not well understood. We prospectively followed 29 patients who acquired genital herpes during pregnancy, to evaluate the perinatal effects of the infection. The patients were classified on the basis of clinical or serologic criteria. Fifteen patients had a primary first episode of genital HSV Type 2 (HSV-2), and 14 had a nonprimary first episode. Although no patient had disseminated disease, 6 of the 15 with primary genital herpes but none of 14 with nonprimary first-episode infection had infants with serious perinatal morbidity (P less than 0.01). Four of the five infants whose mothers acquired primary HSV-2 in the third trimester had perinatal morbidity such as prematurity, intrauterine growth retardation, and neonatal infection with HSV-2. Perinatal complications occurred in one of five infants whose mothers acquired primary HSV-2 during the first trimester, as well as in one of five infants whose mothers had primary HSV-2 during the second trimester. Asymptomatic cervical shedding of HSV-2 was detected at 10.6 percent of weekly visits made after a primary first episode, as compared with 0.5 percent of visits after a nonprimary first episode (P less than 0.01). We conclude that infants born to women who acquire primary genital herpes during pregnancy are at high risk of exposure to HSV, either during premature labor at the time of the primary episode or subsequently because of asymptomatic cervical shedding of the virus. The 40 percent incidence of serious perinatal morbidity in such women suggests that studies of preventive measures such as the use of antiviral chemotherapy are warranted.

Cervix Uteri↗
PubMed1987

Neurophysiological assessment of sensory gating in psychiatric inpatients: comparison between schizophrenia and other diagnoses.

Gating of auditory sensory responsiveness was examined in 75 psychiatric inpatients using a conditioning-testing paradigm with the P50 wave of the auditory evoked response, in which pairs of stimuli are presented to the subject. In previous studies, most schizophrenics did not decrement the second response to the extent seen in normals. Acutely ill patients, who were representative of patients admitted to a public university teaching service and a proprietary hospital, were used to examine the extent to which diminished sensory gating is found in diagnoses other than schizophrenia. About half of these patients showed diminished sensory gating that correlated with measures of severity of illness. The data, taken together with that from other studies using this paradigm, suggest that diminished sensory gating, like several other psychophysiological abnormalities, is a trait deficit in schizophrenia, but a state deficit in many other mental illnesses.

Adjustment Disorders↗
PubMed1986

Growth hormone regulates the abundance of insulin-like growth factor I RNA in adult rat liver.

Insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) is a mitogenic polypeptide present in the plasma of man and rat that is thought to mediate the actions of pituitary growth hormone on cartilage to promote skeletal elongation. In the rat, plasma levels of IGF-I show both developmental and hormonal regulation: levels are low at birth, increase with age, and are decreased in growth hormone-deficient adult animals. The present study demonstrates that these changes in plasma IGF-I reflect the abundance of IGF-I RNA in rat liver. A human IGF-I cDNA probe hybridized to multiple RNA species in adult rat liver with sizes 8.6, 4.6, 3.2, 2.1, and 1.0-1.4 kilobases. These RNA species were decreased by greater than 80% in neonatal (2- and 12-day-old) rat liver and by greater than 90% in liver from adult rats made growth hormone-deficient by hypophysectomy. Treatment of hypophysectomized rats with growth hormone increased the abundance of all species of IGF-I RNA. These results suggest that growth hormone regulates the expression of its physiological mediator by altering the synthesis, stability, or both of IGF-I RNA in rat liver.

Aging↗
PubMed1986

Coordinate developmental regulation of high and low molecular weight mRNAs for rat insulin-like growth factor II.

Insulin-like growth factor II (IGF-II) is a mitogenic polypeptide that is thought to play a role in fetal growth and development. To study the hormonal and developmental regulation of IGF-II gene expression, we have isolated a cDNA clone for rat IGF-II (rIGF-II) from a 12S [1.2-kilobase-pair (kbp)] fraction of mRNA from a rat liver cell line (BRL-3A) that directs the cell-free synthesis of pre-pro-rIGF-II. In the present study, the rIGF-II probe was used to determine the size of IGF-II RNA. Surprisingly, in BRL-3A cells and in neonatal liver, the probe hybridized under stringent conditions 10-20 times more strongly to a larger (4 kbp) RNA than to 1.2-kbp RNA. The 4-kbp RNA is almost exclusively cytoplasmic and is colinear with a 551-base fragment of the rIGF-II cDNA insert containing coding and 3' noncoding regions. The 4-kbp and 1.2-kbp RNA species are regulated coordinately with developmental age, being high in liver from neonatal rats but not detectable in liver from older animals, suggesting that both IGF-II mRNA species arise from a single primary transcript by alternative RNA processing. Although oligodeoxynucleotide hybridization and S1 nuclease protection experiments suggest that the 4-kbp RNA contains an intact protein-coding region, fractions enriched in 4-kbp RNA do not direct the translation of pre-pro-rIGF-II in vitro. This may indicate that the 4-kbp RNA specifies an altered protein product that has not yet been recognized, or alternatively that it contains a normal protein-coding region but requires further RNA processing to be activated for translation.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Genital herpes simplex virus infections complicating pregnancy. Natural history and peripartum management.

The current practice of obtaining weekly herpes simplex virus cultures from 34 weeks of gestation until the onset of labor is costly, traumatic, anxiety producing to patient and physician and directed at the wrong population; also, it increases the rate of cesarean section but has not arrested the rising rate of neonatal herpes. Instead, the entire obstetric population should receive a careful history, speculum examination of the cervix, tactile examination of the labia and herpes simplex virus cultures of the cervix and labia at the onset of labor.

Antibodies, Viral↗
PubMed1985

Genital herpes in pregnancy: risk factors associated with recurrences and asymptomatic viral shedding.

One hundred forty-seven women with recurrent symptomatic genital herpes simplex virus acquired prior to the start of pregnancy (group 1) and 15 women whose first symptomatic episode of genital herpes was acquired during pregnancy (group 2) were followed weekly during the course of gestation. Among women with recurrent genital herpes antedating pregnancy, the mean number of recurrences per trimester increased from 0.97 to 1.26 to 1.63 in the first through third trimester, respectively (p less than 0.05 for comparison between each trimester). The median number of symptomatic recurrences of genital herpes during gestation was four in women in group 1 compared to one in women in group 2 (p less than 0.01). Asymptomatic viral excretion from the genital tract was, however, more common in women in group 2 (33%) than in women in group 1 (12.9%) (p less than 0.05). Herpes simplex virus was isolated at 5.5% of routine visits in group 2 women compared to 1% of routine visits among group 1 women. Logistic regression analysis indicated young age also was associated with more frequent asymptomatic viral shedding. Asymptomatic herpes simplex virus excretion was more common from the vulvar area than the cervix, and women in group 2 were more likely to shed virus from both sites simultaneously than women in group 1. Age and recent acquisition of genital herpes are risk factors for asymptomatic excretion of herpes simplex virus during pregnancy.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

A functional membrane repair system in Duchenne muscular dystrophy fibroblasts.

Experiments have been performed to determine if fibroblasts from patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) are defective in a process of membrane repair. Normal and DMD fibroblasts were treated with phospholipase C from Clostridium perfringens to degrade plasma membrane phosphatidylcholine, and then phosphatidylcholine synthesis was measured as the incorporation of [3H] choline into lipid. Phosphatidylcholine synthesis was stimulated by phospholipase C treatment to a similar extent in normal and DMD fibroblasts. The activity of CTP: phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase, the enzyme regulating phosphatidylcholine synthesis in phospholipase C-treated mammalian cells, was also stimulated to the same extent in both cell types. The subcellular location of the cytidylyltransferase was changed by phospholipase C treatment from mostly cytosolic to mostly particulate in both normal and DMD fibroblasts. It appears, therefore, that at least one type of membrane repair system functions normally in DMD fibroblasts.

Cell Membrane↗
PubMed1983

Patterns of mortality in homes for the elderly.

High rates of mortality are an abiding feature of homes for the elderly. Almost a fifth (19.2%) of a cohort of 6947 residents died in the 12 months following initial assessment. Survival rates vary widely, however, for different groups within the residential population. Using data from a longitudinal study of 175 homes for the elderly, this paper examines the relationship between mortality, age, length of stay, and dependency. The interaction between these variables within the residential setting helps to identify the 'high risk' groups of residents who require special surveillance and care.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1983

A physiological dose of triiodothyronine normalizes cardiac myosin adenosine triphosphatase activity and changes myosin isoenzyme distribution in semistarved rats.

The possibility that the lowering of thyroid hormone levels which occurs in the nonthyroidal illness syndrome results in a hypothyroid state at the cardiac tissue level was examined in semistarved rats. Rats were fed 50% of their normal food intake in the form of a regular diet (R. diet) or low carbohydrate diet (L.C. diet) for 8 weeks. Animals semistarved for 8 weeks on the R. diet lost 42% of their body weight, while plasma T3 and T4 levels decreased by 45-50%. Semistarvation on the L.C. diet resulted in a 19% weight loss and a similar 46-49% decrease in plasma T3 and T4 levels. Ca++-activated myosin ATPase activity declined by 28% and 48% with the R. and L.C. diets, respectively [normal rats myosin ATPase, 1.30 +/- 0.18 mumol Pi/(mg protein . min) (mean +/- SD); semistarvation R diet, 0.93 +/- 0.15; semistarvation L.C. diet, 0.67 +/- 0.15]. The administration of physiological amounts of T3 (0.3 micrograms T3/100 g BW daily) restored the cardiac myosin ATPase activity in both groups. To confirm that the T3 effect was due to a normalization of the thyroid status at the tissue level, hypothyroid animals on a normal diet were injected with 0.3 micrograms T3 for 4 weeks, which resulted in normalization of myosin ATPase activity levels. Thyroidectomized rats receiving daily T3 injections, and when placed on a 50% reduction of food intake for 4 weeks still maintained normal myosin ATPase activity even though they lost 36% of their body weight. Distribution of cardiac myosin isoenzymes was determined by pyrophosphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. In normal cardiac ventricles, myosin isoenzyme V1 predominates and represents 68 +/- 7% (+/- SD) of the total myosin. Semistarvation resulted in a redistribution of myosin isoenzymes so that V3 myosin was the predominant species (53 +/- 3% of the total myosin). The administration of 0.3 microgram T3/100 g BW daily for 4 weeks to semistarved rats reverted myosin isoenzyme distribution to V1 predominance (V1 myosin, 54 +/- 3% of the total myosin). These results indicate that the semistarvation-induced lowering plasma T3 and T4 levels is an important determinant of myosin ATPase activity and myosin isoenzyme distribution. Restoration of myosin ATPase activity to its normal level and return to myosin V1 predominance after T3 administration make it likely that these changes are related to the lowering of thyroid hormone levels.

Adenosine Triphosphatases↗
PubMed1982

A light microscope method for following the incorporation of gluten into dough or other foodstuffs containing different proteins.

It has been shown that gluten powder stained for one minute and forty-five seconds in a 0.192% solution of fast green FCF and then washed repeatedly with distilled water can be detected both by visible light and fluorescence microscopy when incorporated into doughs. Evidence that the functional properties of the gluten are not affected by this treatment suggested that the technique may be useful for following the incorporation of other proteins into various food systems.

Food↗