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Biomedical subjects

S Brenner

Publications and source records attributed to S Brenner.

At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

[Treatment of androgenic alopecia with topical minoxidil].

Minoxidil, a vasodilator, was first marketed in 1979 as an oral antihypertensive. Since hypertrichosis occurred as an adverse effect in most patients treated, a 2% topical solution was developed for use in men with androgenic alopecia. It was approved by the American Food and Drug Administration and by the Israel Ministry of Health. A follow-up of 30 cases treated with the preparation is presented. Efficacy of treatment was assessed by hair counts in a marked area on the balding scalp, as well as by subjective evaluations of patients and physicians. The treatment was beneficial in 63%: balding was slowed in most, while in a minority hair density actually increased. However, in only 6.6% was dramatic cosmetic improvement achieved.

Administration, Topical↗
PubMed1991

Cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase is a direct descendant of the first aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase.

The gene encoding the cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase of E. coli was cloned from an E. coli genomic library made in lambda 2761, a lambda vector which can integrate and which carries a chloramphenicol resistance gene. A thermosensitive cysS mutant of E. coli was lysogenised and chloramphenicol-resistant colonies able to grow at 42 degrees C were selected to isolate phages containing the wild-type cysS gene. The sequence of the gene was determined. It codes for a 461 amino-acid protein and includes the sequences HIGH and KMSK known to be involved in the ATP and tRNA binding respectively of class I synthetases. The cysteinyl enzyme has segments in common with the cytoplasmic leucyl-tRNA synthetase of Neurospora crassa, the tryptophanyl-tRNA synthetase of Bacillus stearothermophilus, and the phenylalanyl-tRNA synthetase of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Sequence comparisons show that the amino end of the cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase has similarities with prokaryotic elongation factors Tu; this region is close to the equivalent acceptor binding domain of the glutaminyl-tRNA synthetase of E. coli. There is a further similarity with the seryl enzyme (a class II enzyme) which has led us to propose that both classes had a common origin and that this was the ancestor of the cysteinyl-tRNA synthetase.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

A phorbol ester/diacylglycerol-binding protein encoded by the unc-13 gene of Caenorhabditis elegans.

Mutations in the unc-13 gene cause diverse defects in the nervous system of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Molecular cloning of the gene and sequencing of the cDNA revealed that the product encodes a protein, 1734 amino acids in length, with a central domain with sequence similarity to the regulatory region of protein kinase C. The domain was expressed in Escherichia coli and shown to bind specifically to a phorbol ester in the presence of calcium; diacylglycerol inhibited the binding in a competitive manner. These findings confirm that the unc-13 gene product has binding sites similar to those of protein kinase C and may be a component of an alternative transduction pathway of the diacylglycerol signal to a different effector function in the nervous system.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Canonical ordered cosmid library of the symbiotic plasmid of Rhizobium species NGR234.

Many of the bacterial genes involved in nodulation (nod) and nitrogen fixation (nif) are dispersed over the 500-kilobase plasmid pNGR234a of the broad host-range Rhizobium species NGR234. As a first step toward generating a complete physical and genetic map of the plasmid, a full overlapping collection of cosmids was derived from a total genomic library. Clones were aligned by combining fingerprinting, hybridization, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis data. Symbiotic loci were localized by probing a representative set of cosmids with both homologous and heterologous genes. nodABC, nodD1, nodD2, nodSU, nolB, and region II are widely dispersed over pNGR234a, while the two functional copies of nifKDH are separated by only 28 kilobases. Interestingly, sequences homologous to nodE, nodG, nodP, and nodQ have been assigned to another autonomously replicating element in Rhizobium species NGR234. Similarly one copy of the structural dctA gene is located on the symbiotic plasmid (dctA1) while the other is on what we assume to be the chromosome.

Cosmids↗
PubMed1991

Pemphigus gestationis (herpes gestationis): a case report.

Pemphigus gestationis is a rare disease, probably of immunologic origin, that causes the placenta to absorb immunoglobulins and deposit them in its basement membrane. The resulting placental insufficiency leads to increased morbidity and mortality among the offspring of such patients. A case of pemphigus gestationis is presented, and the importance of early diagnosis is discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Description of the erythromycin-producing bacterium Arthrobacter sp. strain NRRL B-3381 as Aeromicrobium erythreum gen. nov., sp. nov.

Arthrobacter sp. strain NRRL B-3381T (T = type strain) is a nonmycelial, nonsporulating actinomycete that produces the macrolide antibiotic erythromycin. This bacterium differs in many ways from the type species of the genus Arthrobacter (Arthrobacter globiformis), suggesting that a taxonomic revision is appropriate. The G + C content of strain NRRL B-3381T DNA is 71 to 73 mol%, and the peptidoglycan of this organism contains LL-diaminopimelic acid. Evolutionary distance data obtained from 16S rRNA sequences identified NRRL B-3381T as the deepest branching member of the Nocardioides group of actinomycetes. The principal long-chain fatty acids which we identified that distinguished strain NRRL B-3381T from related G + C-rich bacteria were 10-methyloctadecanoic (tuberculosteric), octadecenoic, and hexadecanoic acids. These characteristics, together with phage typing and biochemical characteristics, form the basis for our recommendation that strain NRRL B-3381 should be the type strain of a new taxon, for which we propose the name Aeromicrobium erythreum.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1991

Cutaneous manifestations and impaired chemotaxis of polymorphonuclear leukocytes associated with Kartagener's syndrome.

Persistent deep-seated folliculitis and impaired chemotaxis are described in a 24-year-old woman with situs inversus, bronchitis and sinusitis, i.e. the three characteristics of Kartagener's syndrome. While patients with chemotactic defects not associated with the syndrome often suffer from skin infections, to the best of our knowledge this is the first report of a Kartagener patient with cutaneous manifestations.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Drug-induced versus drug-triggered pemphigus.

112 cases of induced pemphigus were reviewed. The causative drugs were divided into three groups according to their chemical structure, and the clinical, prognostic and laboratory characteristics were analyzed and compared. Our literature screening indicates that the biological progress and clinical course of the disease depend upon the type of the inducing/triggering drug in the majority of patients. Patients with penicillamine-induced pemphigus or with pemphigus induced by SH drugs (drugs containing a sulfhydryl radical) showed spontaneous recovery in 39.4 and 52.6%, respectively, once the drug was discontinued. Patients whose pemphigus was induced by other drugs showed spontaneous recovery in only 15% of the cases. These results indicate that in patients with pemphigus induced by penicillamine (or SH drugs), the drug plays a major role in the pathogenesis of the disease, as compared to patients with pemphigus induced by other drugs. It seems that penicillamine (and SH drugs) actually induces pemphigus in most of the cases, whereas other drugs only trigger the disease in patients with a previous predisposition.

HLA Antigens↗
PubMed1991

Follow-up of schoolchildren in the vicinity of a coal-fired power plant in Israel.

This study was carried out in the framework of a health monitoring system set up in the vicinity of a 1400 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Israel. Second- and fifth-grade school children were followed up every 3 years; they performed pulmonary function tests (PFT), and their parents filled out American Thoracic Society-National Heart and Lung Institute health questionnaires. Among the cohort of second graders (in 1983) living in the area expected to be most polluted, a significant increase in the prevalence of part of the respiratory symptoms (such as cough and sputum, wheezing with and without cold and wheezing accompanied by shortness of breath) was evident in 1986. The prevalence of asthma among fifth graders in this area doubled (p = 0.0273) compared with prevalence when they were second graders. Among the children from the older cohort (fifth graders in 1983) living in this community, a similar although milder trend could be observed, especially in regard to an increased prevalence of asthma in 1986 compared with 1983 (13.9% versus 8.1%). Annual increases in PFT in the four groups of children (boys and girls from both cohorts) were found to be higher in the community expected to be polluted (especially in the younger cohort) compared with the two other communities. The discrepancy between the increased prevalence of respiratory symptoms and diseases and the higher annual increase in PFT among children from the expected more polluted community may be partly attributable to differential annual increase in height and to different distribution of background variables (such as socioeconomic status, passive smoking, heating, and respiratory diseases among parents) in the three communities.

Air Pollution↗
PubMed1991

Halitosis measurement by an industrial sulphide monitor.

Previous studies have established that hydrogen sulphide and mercaptans are the primary components of halitosis (bad breath). In the present investigation, we report a simple, rapid technique for measurement of halitosis-related sulphides. The technique is based on a portable instrument generally used for environmental safety applications. Seventy-five volunteers were measured using this technique, and the results (in peak ppb hydrogen sulphide equivalents) compared with organoleptic assessment by 7 judges. A highly significant overall correlation (r = 0.603; P less than 0.001) was obtained between these 2 methods. Moreover, in most cases, the organoleptic ratings of the individual judges correlated more highly with sulphide monitor values than with one another. The simplicity of the technique suggests its use in clinical studies as well as in diagnosis and treatment of patients with this complaint.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Intact cells on the laser handpiece--a non-contact contamination.

Material adhering to the handpiece of the laser instrument was collected and analysed. Examination of semithin sections of the material by light microscopy revealed small clusters of clearly defined whole cells among the abundant debris. Electron microscopy of the cells revealed the presence of cell membranes, cytoplasm and organelles such as mitochondria. This could mean that infected cells or virus particles could adhere to the laser instrument or the hands of the operator as well. The medical implication of this finding requires serious consideration in regard to risks of infection from this procedure, to both patient and clinical personnel.

Cells↗
PubMed1991

Noninvasive procedures in dermatology. Potential infective risks and need for sterility.

Although in the area of incisional surgery the level of sterile techniques has improved in recent years and approaches that of the surgical standards in other specialties, one cannot say the same with regard to some of the nonsurgical or semisurgical procedures. Here, unfortunately, there are even no standards to aim for and no guidelines to adopt. Since in the field of nonsurgical cosmetic skin care dermatologists have a unique position, we alone must shoulder the responsibility for setting the standards and determining the appropriate conditions for carrying out these procedures. Unfortunately, it appears that in certain of the dermatologic procedures not involving actual skin incision, the level of sterility has not improved for decades. In such dermatologic procedures there are marked discrepancies between the care taken to maintain a high degree of sterility of instruments that penetrate the skin, compared with the lack of attention to sterility of instruments that do not directly penetrate the skin and the area surrounding the procedure site. It seems that the guiding principle we must strive for is to prevent the transmission of infection from one patient to another. The emphasis should be not on sterility per se but on the prevention of transmission of disease from patient to patient.

Cross Infection↗
PubMed1991

Vaginal ulcerations due to lithium carbonate therapy.

A twenty-nine-year-old woman who had been taking lithium carbonate for seven years experienced ulcerated lesions of the vaginal mucosa and acneiform eruption on both thighs. Histopathologic appearance of the skin biopsy specimens was consistent with lichenoid cutaneous changes. The cutaneous lesions cleared when use of the drug was discontinued.

Acne Vulgaris↗