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Biomedical subjects

S C Smith

Publications and source records attributed to S C Smith.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources

Effects of physical training and competition on the iron status of female field hockey players.

Female collegiate field hockey players showed decreases in iron stores (as measured by serum ferritin) in each of 3 successive fall seasons studied. After the 1st season of regular play, a decrease (25-23 ng/ml was observed, but measurements after post-season tournament play for the 2nd and 3rd seasons showed significant (P less than 0.05) decreases of 37% (30-19 ng/ml) and 30% (24-17 ng/ml), respectively. The added stress of tournament play appeared to cause additional loss of reserve iron nearly as great as that experienced during early season training. After several years of play, serum ferritin levels in these athletes were frequently between 10 and 20 ng/ml, with the lowest levels occurring in 3rd- and 4th-year athletes. Those women who participated in all 3 years had progressively declining serum ferritin levels throughout their collegiate careers. Participation in collegiate field hockey jeopardizes body iron stores, and iron reserves tend to become progressively more depleted after successive seasons of competition.

Adult↗

Plasma ionized calcium monitoring during liver transplantation.

Plasma ionized calcium and citrate concentrations were measured in 11 patients undergoing liver transplantation. During the anhepatic phase of the procedure, ionized calcium concentrations fell to as low as 40% of normal, in spite of calcium supplementation. Simultaneously, citrate concentrations rose to between 20 and 100 times preoperative levels. In two patients low plasma ionized calcium concentrations were associated with hypotension that responded to calcium infusion. Intraoperative monitoring of plasma ionized calcium during liver transplantation is helpful in the rational control of the patient's calcium status.

Calcium↗

A novel two-dimensional polyacrylamide-gel pattern, which may be due to allelic genes, of phenylalanine hydroxylase in monkeys.

Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of immunopurified monkey liver phenylalanine hydroxylase showed a novel form of the enzyme, in 4 out of 24 monkeys, in which each polypeptide spot was split into a doublet with the same charge but slightly different mobility in the sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel-electrophoresis (as opposed to the isoelectric-focusing) dimension. Phenylalanine hydroxylase formed by translation of RNA from a liver containing the novel form showed the doublet pattern, suggesting that it is due to differences in mRNA. By analogy with the rat, this mRNA difference could be due to allelic genes.

Alleles↗

A comparative study of Neo Sampoon, Ortho Vaginal Tablets and Emko Vaginal Tablets in Accra, Ghana.

Neo Sampoon is an effervescent contraceptive vaginal tablet manufactured in Japan that contains 60 mg of the spermicide menfegol. Ortho Vaginal Tablets (OVT) and Emko Vaginal Tablets (EVT), both containing 100 mg of the spermicide nonoxynol-9, were manufactured in the USA. The three products were compared in a randomized clinical trial conducted at the family planning clinics of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital and the Kotobaabi Polyclinic in Accra, Ghana. Three-hundred volunteers participated. At 12 months, the life-table pregnancy rates were 9.6, 11.3 and 12.5 per 100 women in the Neo Sampoon, OVT and EVT groups, respectively (p greater than 0.10). More EVT than Neo Sampoon or OVT users discontinued because of discomfort as well as for other product-related reasons (p less than 0.01). The most common reason for discontinuation was the temporary absence of sexual partner, with more than 40% of the women overall terminating for this reason. The 12-month life-table continuation rates per 100 women were higher for the Neo Sampoon group (62.4) than the OVT group (48.6) or the EVT group (38.5) (p less than 0.01). The effectiveness of the three products seems to be similar, but Neo Sampoon and OVT appear to be more acceptable than EVT in this Ghanaian population.

Adult↗

Vocal/verbal response times of normal-hearing and hearing-impaired children.

A series of experiments are reported that contrast vocal/verbal reaction-time measures from 16 normal-hearing and 25 hearing-impaired children 7 to 14 years old. Sixteen of the hearing-impaired children were enrolled in a residential school, 9 in a day school. Vocal reaction time of the children in response to visually presented stimuli was measured in four tasks: phonating "uh", saying the word "one", counting to digits, and naming digits. No significant differences were found between the response latencies of the two hearing-impaired groups on any task. Nor were differences found between the normal and hearing-impaired groups when the task was simply phonating "uh". Differences between these groups began to emerge when the word "one" was spoken. These differences increased systematically with the phonetic complexity of the task. Hearing level, latency in the counting responses, and magnitude of a ratio between phonating and digit counting latencies were identified as major predictors of speech intelligibility. The results suggest that central phonetic processing functions may be related to the quality of speech production by hearing-impaired talkers.

Adolescent↗

Massive skeletal muscle invasion by lymphoma.

Three patients had diffuse enlargement of skeletal muscle of the thigh as the result of infiltration by diffuse large-cell lymphoma. One case presented de novo as diffuse lymphoma, but the other two had previous diagnoses of nodular lymphoma and Hodgkin's disease. Computed tomographic scanning disclosed an enhancing mass in the thigh with infiltration of skeletal muscle groups; abnormal medullary cavities were noted in the adjacent long bones. Muscle biopsy established the diagnosis in two of the patients.

Adult↗

Two apparent molecular weight forms of human and monkey phenylalanine hydroxylase are due to phosphorylation.

Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel analyses of purified human and monkey liver phenylalanine hydroxylase reveal that the enzyme consists of two different apparent molecular weight forms of polypeptide, designated H (Mr = 50,000) and L (Mr = 49,000), each containing three isoelectric forms. The two apparent molecular weight forms, H and L, represent the phosphorylated and dephosphorylated forms of phenylalanine hydroxylase, respectively. After incubation of purified human and monkey liver enzyme with purified cAMP-dependent protein kinase and [gamma-32P]ATP, only the H forms contained 32P. Treatment with alkaline phosphatase converted the phenylalanine hydroxylase H forms to the L forms. The L forms but not the H forms could be phosphorylated on nitrocellulose paper after electrophoretic transfer from two-dimensional gels. Phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of human liver phenylalanine hydroxylase is not accompanied by significant changes in tetrahydrobiopterin-dependent enzyme activity. Peptide mapping and acid hydrolysis confirm that the apparent molecular weight heterogeneity (and charge shift to a more acidic pI) in human and monkey liver enzyme results from phosphorylation of a single serine residue. However, phosphorylation by the catalytic subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase does not account for the multiple charge heterogeneity of human and monkey liver phenylalanine hydroxylase.

Animals↗

Serum free thyroxine concentrations in normal euthyroid subjects and ones with high serum thyroxine binding globulin concentration.

Serum free thyroxine (fT4) was assayed by a commercial fT4 method in 30 normal euthyroid subjects, 19 pregnant females, 13 euthyroid subjects with high thyroxine binding globulin (TBG) and three with low or undetectable serum TBG concentration. In a number of these fT4 was also calculated on the basis of the application of the law of mass action to the binding situation. In states in which TBG was altered for congenital reasons both the experimentally determined and calculated fT4 were not significantly different from their respective means in the normal euthyroid population. Pregnant females had both lower experimental and theoretical free T4 concentrations. It is inferred from these data that TBG concentration per se is without effect on serum fT4 concentration.

Blood Proteins↗

Interpretation of in-vitro thyroid function tests during pregnancy.

In-vitro thyroid function tests are difficult to interpret in pregnancy because of, among other things, the effect of oestrogens on thyroid binding globulin (TBG) concentrations. In an attempt to clarify the position, serum concentrations of total thyroxine (T4), free T4, TBG, T4/TBG ratio, tri-iodothyronine (T3) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) were measured. Total T4 and TBG concentrations rose to above the non-pregnant reference range by 20 weeks. The T4/TBG ratio fell to hypo-thyroid values by 20 weeks but although the free T4 level was lower in the third trimester compared with values in the first and second trimesters, only a few subjects had hypothyroid values. The TSH values remained unchanged throughout pregnancy. The significance of these changes is discussed and reference ranges for these hormones at each trimester are provided.

Adolescent↗

Comparative trial of the contraceptive sponge and diaphragm. A preliminary report.

We evaluated the results from an ongoing comparative trial of the VLI contraceptive sponge and the diaphragm used with a spermicide. Among women who were not using vaginal contraceptives when enrolled in the study, the cumulative 12-month pregnancy rates were similar for the two contraceptive methods. Among women who were using vaginal contraceptives (principally diaphragms) when they were enrolled in the study, the group of women assigned to the diaphragm, as might be expected, had a significantly lower pregnancy rate. Rates of side effects and acceptability appeared to be similar for sponge and diaphragm users.

Adolescent↗

An evaluation of the ICA1 ionized calcium analyzer in a clinical chemistry laboratory.

A production model of the Radiometer ICA1 ionized calcium analyzer has recently been evaluated in this Department. Performance characteristics such as stability, precision and selectivity are described and the problem of assessing accuracy is discussed. The influence of pH changes and of packed red cell volume on results is described. The potential of the instrument in routine and in research applications in clinical chemistry is considered. We conclude that the instrument represents a significant advance in providing convenient and precise ionized calcium measurement.

Autoanalysis↗

Clinical studies on ionized calcium using the radiometer ICA1 analyzer.

It is generally believed that measurement of ionized calcium in blood should more clearly reflect changes in calcium metabolism than measurements of total calcium concentration. We have investigated ionized calcium levels using the Radiometer ICA1 Analyzer in number of clinical situations where total calcium, hydrogen ion or protein concentrations are abnormal. While there are a number of clearcut situations in which ionized calcium measurements are superior to total calcium, it is apparent that chemical activity of calcium ions in blood may sometimes not reflect their physiological activity. In addition, the problem of clinical interpretation of ionized calcium levels found in patients with extreme disorders of acid-base balance or of plasma protein concentration remains to be resolved. The role of ionized calcium measurement in routine clinical chemistry will be discussed.

Acid-Base Equilibrium↗