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Biomedical subjects

S Friedman

Publications and source records attributed to S Friedman.

At least 397 records · Page 22Linked to original sources

Mechanisms of proteinuria in human glomerulonephritis.

We evaluated glomerular barrier function in 28 patients with glomerulonephritis. Neutral dextrans of graded size were used to characterize the size-selective properties of the barrier. Charge selectivity was characterized by electrofocusing excreted urinary proteins. A fractional IgG clearance (relative to freely permeable inulin), smaller or greater than 100 x 10(-5) was used to distinguish patients with minor (group I, n = 13) and major (group II, n = 15) urinary IgG leakage, respectively. Fractional clearances of smaller dextrans (radii 20-50 A) were similar, but those of larger dextrans (radii 52-60 A) were elevated in group II relative to group I patients. A model of solute transport through a bimodal pore size distribution revealed the values for pore radius in the lower mode to approximate 51-55 A in both group I and group II patients. Pore radius in the upper mode, by contrast, was much larger in group II than in group I patients, approximating 87-97 vs. 72-77 A, respectively. Electrofocusing of urinary protein from group I patients revealed mostly albumin (isoelectric point 5.2). In group II patients, however, immunoglobulin excretion was copious. Moreover, the distribution of anionic, neutral, and cationic species (isoelectric points 5.5-8.5) in urinary and plasma eluates of IgG2 and IgG4 was similar. We conclude that when glomerulonephritis is associated with selective albuminuria, as in group I,, there is an isolated reduction of electrostatic retardation of relatively small anionic proteins. Major urinary IgG leakage (group II), however, appears to result from the development in the glomerular membrane of a subpopulation of enlarged pores that are highly permeable towards proteins of large size and varying charge.

Albuminuria↗

Effect of fat feeding on intestinal alkaline phosphatase activity in tissue and serum.

Serum intestinal alkaline phosphatase activity is increased by fat feeding, but the mechanism of this increase is not fully understood. Fasting rats were fed a single feed of either corn oil (12 kcal) or an isocaloric elemental feed (Vivonex 100 HN). Changes in enzyme activity in the small bowel mucosa and serum were followed for 20 h. Only the fat-fed rats had increased serum enzyme activity, being maximal at 7 h and three times the fasting level. This resulted from an increase in the amount of enzyme protein in the serum and not from an increase in its catalytic efficiency. The serum biological half-life of 125I-labeled intestinal alkaline phosphatase was the same in fasted (2.51 min) and fat-fed rats (2.55 min). Both types of feed caused a quantitatively similar increase in brush-border-bound alkaline phosphatase activity. However, levels of soluble intracellular alkaline phosphatase in intestinal mucosa were affected differently: the elemental diet caused a substantial rise, whereas no significant change was seen after fat feeding. The isoelectric pattern of phosphatase activity in serum after fat feeding was identical to that of soluble intracellular and not membranous alkaline phosphatase. Therefore, serum intestinal alkaline phosphatase activity rises in response to a single fat feed as a result of increased delivery of the enzyme to the blood and not as a result of an increase in its normally short biological half-life. This rise cannot be directly linked to an increase in the amount of brush-border-bound enzyme, and it appears that the serum enzyme is derived directly from a pool of soluble intracellular enzyme in the small bowel mucosa.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗

Sexual orientation stereotypy in the distortion of clinical judgment.

It has been suggested that if a person's sexual orientation is unconventional, their nonsexual psychological problems will be construed in sexual terms to a marked degree. An experiment is described in which undergraduates read a case study of a man troubled by depression, catastrophizing, heavy drinking, and other maladaptive behavior not obviously related to his sexuality. Half the subjects were told that the patient had had several extramarital affairs, exclusively with men; the others, affairs exclusively with women. Blind content analyses of subject responses revealed that when the man was described as having had homosexual involvements, he was more likely to receive a diagnosis of sexual deviation or have his nonsexual diagnosis justified on the basis of homosexuality, more likely to have his sexual or marital life investigated, and more likely to have his sexuality construed as important in the etiology of his nonsexual psychological problems. The authors' analogue findings confirm cautions voiced by previous researchers regarding predictable distortions to which clinicians may be susceptible in their interpretation of patient problems when homosexuality is part of the patient's past or present life-style.

Adult↗

Homologous artificial insemination after long-term semen cryopreservation.

Although there are sporadic reports of pregnancies using semen after long-term cryopreservation, there are no data on the success rate of this procedure and its clinical feasibility. Between 1969 and 1980, 475 men deposited semen specimens prior to vasectomy or therapeutic sterilization. Prefreeze sperm counts and motility were significantly higher in the prevasectomy group. Later, 5 wives of 177 vasectomized men and 16 wives of 183 therapeutically sterilized men returned for artificial insemination with their husbands' semen. Only 1 conception resulted among the 21 women. This occurred after a single insemination of a 7-year-old specimen obtained prevasectomy. The post-thaw motility of this specimen (45%) was better than that of most other thawed specimens. Post-thaw motilities were unpredictable despite comparable prefreeze motilities. Because of this unpredictability, semen cryopreservation is clearly no guarantee of "fertility insurance".

Female↗

Subclavian--left coronary artery anastomosis (Meyer operation) for anomalous origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery.

Six patients, ages 2--76 months, had subclavian--coronary artery anastomosis (the Meyer operation) through a left thoracotomy without cardiopulmonary bypass for anomalous origin of the left coronary artery. Five of the six had congestive heart failure and ischemic abnormalities on the ECG. All six had cardiomegaly by chest x-ray. Preoperative left ventricular rejection reactions averaged 0.46 +/- 0.171. In three patients in whom peak systolic pressure was measured in the left coronary artery at operation, pressure increased by a mean of 26 mm Hg when the anastomosis was unclamped. One patient died. Five patients are alive 8--92 months postoperatively and four of the five anastomoses were patent at postoperative cardiac catheterization. Postoperative ECGs were normal or showed reduced T-wave abnormalities in all patients, and heart size by chest x-ray has decreased or is normal. Postoperative ejection fractions increased by a mean of 0.12 in four of the five patients (p = 0.01). On patient had a normal ejection fraction preoperatively and it remained unchanged postoperatively. No patient receives cardiac medications or is symptomatic at late follow-up. The Meyer operation can be performed at an early age, establishes a two-coronary-artery system, has growth potential, requires one vascular anastomosis, and in this series, resulted in reversal of left ventricular ischemic changes and improvement in left ventricular contractility.

Child, Preschool↗

[Simultaneous intra- and extra- uterine pregnancies (author's transl)].

Six further cases of simultaneous intra- and extra-uterine pregnancies are reported. The findings confirm those reported in the published literature. The frequency of such cases in one in 30 000 pregnancies. It is evident, however, that some cases, in which spontaneous abortion occurs, remain unrecognized, the haemorrhage being attributed to the extra-uterine gestation. In 90 p. cent of cases they are detected because of the extra-uterine pregnancy, and their clinical course is very variable. The association of pregnancies is almost as frequent as triplets but is very rarely mentioned. Valid clinical and pathogenic data could be obtained from their more systematic study.

Adult↗

The ral gene of phage lambda. I. Identification of a non-essential gene that modulates restriction and modification in E. coli.

Host controlled restriction in Escherichia coli can be relieved by pre-infecting restricting cells with modified lambda helper phages. This process, in which intact unmodified phage genomes are allowed to escape restriction attack, is mediated by a newly identified lambda function called ral. The ral gene has been located by deletion mapping between cIII and N. Efficient expression of the ral gene requires the product of the regulator gene N. Polyacrylamide gel analysis of the lambda proteins specified by the cIII-N region failed to reveal the product of the ral gene, but demonstrated that protein Ea10 is encoded by a gene located immediately to the left of ral. From these results the map order cIII-Ea10-ral-TL1-N was deduced. Ral specifically alleviates restriction in E. coli K and E. coli B, but does not affect restriction systems EcoRI, EcoRII and EcoP1. In addition, ral enhances the modification activity of the EcoK and EcoB restriction enzymes: we observed that efficient modification of progeny phages obtained by propagating unmodified lambda phages in r-m+ hosts, is dependent upon the presence of ral. We thus conclude that the ral gene product acts by modulating the restriction and modification activities of the type I restriction systems in E. coli, and the possible mechanisms will be discussed.

Bacteriophage lambda↗

Successful apexification technique in an immature tooth with dens in dente.

This is the first case report which documents the successful treatment by apexification of an immature permanent tooth with dens in dente. The patient, an 11-year-old boy in good health, presented with unilateral facial swelling and a "sore tooth." Clinical and radiographic examination revealed a partially erupted anomalous permanent canine with a radiolucent periapical area. After initial management with antibiotics, the anomalous structure within the canine was removed. Calcium hydroxide dressings were placed to facilitate apical closure. After 1 year the canal was filled with gutta-percha using a lateral condensation technique.

Child↗

Artificial insemination with donor semen mixed with semen of the infertile husband.

Mixing an oligoasthenospermic husband's semen with that of a donor prior to insemination (AIM) has been criticized, since such semen may contain antibodies which could interfere with normal sperm function. The efficacy of AIM was reviewed in 227 patients who underwent AI with frozen donor semen. Thirty-four patients requested AIM and thirteen conceived (38.2%). Seven who failed to conceive after AIM changed to donor insemination (AID), and two conceived. One hundred and ninety-three patients had AID alone, and eighty conceived. Thus, 200 patients had AID, with 82 pregnancies (41%). There were no significant differences between the AIM and AID groups with regard to age, prior fertility, and additional infertility factors. The conception rates between groups were not significantly different. Pregnancy rates per cycle of AI and dropout rates were also similar. Postinsemination testing after AIM did not reveal any effect of husband's semen upon donor spermatozoa. This study failed to show a deleterious effect of semen from azoospermic or oligoasthenospermic, infertile men upon normal semen, as used in AIM.

Female↗