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Biomedical subjects

S Thompson

Publications and source records attributed to S Thompson.

At least 307 records · Page 17Linked to original sources

Nasogastric tube feeding at home: a method for adjunctive nutritional support of malnourished patients.

Many patients with chronic diseases develop malnutrition. Force feeding with either enteral tube of parenteral infusions often succeeds in ameliorating this problem in hospitalized patients. However, after discharge many patients are incapable of sustaining adequate dietary intake. As a consequence, malnutrition may persist or recur. The authors' previous experience using nocturnal enteral tube feedings in patients with glycogen storage disease suggested that malnourished patients also might benefit from enteral tube feedings at home. Fourteen undernourished patients selected for domestic enteral tube feedings clearly demonstrated a tolerance, which included adequate gastric emptying, to the infusions during their hospitalization. They ranged in age from 2 months to 68 yr. Infusion pumps delivered the feedings continuously. At home, 12 patients experienced substantial weight gains. Two maintained their weight while they received intensive chemotherapy for malignancies. Except for the two patients with short bowel syndrome, all patients were weaned successfully to oral feedings after 1 to 3 months. The only apparent complication was possible aspiration pneumonia in a patient with neurological dysfunction. This further experience with domestic enteral tube alimentation indicates that selected patients can be managed effectively, safely and economically with nasogastric nutritional support on an outpatient basis.

Adolescent↗

Identification of surface proteins of a bacterial membrane using thiolactone-activated polyacrylamide beads.

A new method for the determination of protein accessibility in membranes and membrane fractions using a resin, 'Enzacryl' polythiolactone, is described. Enzacryl polythiolactone is a hydrophilic polymer of acrylamide and acrylamide derivatives with thiolactone ring substituents. The binding of enzymes and proteins to this resin is accomplished very simply by mixing them together in a simple aqueous buffer. Groups which react with the polymer in the pH range 5--9 include aliphatic and phenolic hydroxyls and aliphatic amino groups. Surface proteins of Bacillus licheniformis membrane and solubilised membrane fractions are bound irreversibly to this resin. Inaccessible proteins remaining in the fractions are solubilised with sodium dodecyl sulphate and examined by sodium dodecyl sulphate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.

Acrylic Resins↗

A re-evaluation of the surface complexity of the intact erythrocyte.

Surface proteins and glycoproteins of intact human red blood cells were labelled with 125I by the lactoperoxidase method. The radioactive proteins were then separated in each of the Fairbanks and Laemmli one-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis systems. The radioactive polypeptides had different mobilities in the two systems, largely due to the anomalous migration of glycoproteins in polyacrylamide gels. A two-dimensional system was therefore developed using the Fairbanks and Laemmli buffer systems to exploit these anomalies. This procedure clearly resolved radioactive glycoproteins and proteins and enabled the identification of many more surface components than had previously proved possible.

Adult↗

The identification of polypeptides synthesised during the acquisition of teichoic acid synthetic activity in Bacillus licheniformis.

An attempt has been made to identify proteins synthesised during induction of teichoic acid synthesis in Bacillus licheniformis ATCC 9945. The proteins are recognised as those produced on the change from teichuronic acid to teichoic acid synthesis that occurs after the transfer of the bacteria from phosphate-limited to phosphate-rich conditions. B. licheniformis was grown in phosphate-limiting conditions in the presence of threonine to stimulate threonine uptake. The bacteria were then transferred to phosphate-rich conditions and were pulse-labelled with [14C]threonine during the change to teichoic acid synthesis. All of the proteins were extracted from the cells with sodium dodecyl sulphate and were examined by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel elecstrophoresis. Radioactive polypeptides were identified by fluorography of the polyacrylamide gels. The radioactive polypeptides that were formed on change from teichuronic acid to teichoic acid synthesis were compared with the polypeptides present in a membrane sub-fraction that had high teichoic acid-synthesising activity. The labelling of nine polypeptides with [14C]threonine was dependent on new RNA synthesis. Of these nine polypeptides, five were also present in the membrane sub-fraction with the highest teichoic acid-synthesising activity.

Bacillus↗

Contact hypersensitivity, humoral immunity, and specific unresponsiveness can be induced in Syrian hamsters with simple haptens.

Several inbred strains of Syrian hamsters have been immunized by skin painting with highly reactive haptens. Classical contact hypersensitivity has been assayed by the ear swelling response: the response is hapten-specific, exaggerated after re-immunization with the original hapten, and can be transferred adoptively to naive syngeneic hamsters with viable lymphoid cells, suggesting that contact hypersensitivity is mediated in hamsters by T lymphocytes. Moreover, skin painting with hapten induces significant serum titers of anti-hapten antibodies, indicating that antigen-specific B lymphocytes are also activated. Hamsters can be rendered unresponsive to these same haptens by conventional methods: 1) i.v. inoculation of the soluble hapten sulfonate or 2) inoculation of hapten-derivatized syngeneic lymphoid cells. Hamsters treated with these "tolerizing" maneuvers develop profound hapten-specific unresponsiveness that can be adoptively transferred to naive recipients with living lymphoid cells. "Unresponsive" animals, however, make strong anti-hapten antibody responses that rival the humoral immune responses found after skin sensitization. The data suggest that an active process is involved in the induction and maintenance of the unresponsive state, but responsibility can not be assigned firmly to putative suppressor T cells or to an antibody-mediated B suppressor modality.

Animals↗

Human erythrocyte fraction in "Percoll" density gradients.

A new rapid method for the age fractionation of human erythrocytes by centrifugation through a "Percoll" density gradient is described. The fractionation is demonstrated by density-related changes in the volume, haemoglobin concentration, pyruvate kinase and acetylcholine esterase activities and potassium contents of the erythrocytes, and the distribution of reticulocytes on the gradients.

Acetylcholinesterase↗

A question of choice.

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Education, Nursing, Diploma Programs↗

Late effect of bacteriophage T4D on the permeability barrier of Escherichia coli.

Cold centrifugation of lysis-inhibited Escherichia coli B infected with wild-type T4D results in extensive lysis beginning around 20 min after infection at 37 degrees C. Infection with an e mutant, which fails to make lysozyme, prevents lysis, but does not prevent a marked loss of K+ and Mg3+. The t gene product, thought to disrupt the cytoplasmic membrane in natural lysis, is not required for this handling-induced cation loss or lysis. Three lines of evidence argue that late protein synthesis is required to develop this potential for cation loss; the potential does not develop in infections by: (i) mutants defective in DNA synthesis, (ii) mutants defective in gene 55, and (iii) wild-type T4 when chloramphenicol is added at 6 min after infection. All late mutants examined, which are blocked in the major pathways of morphogenesis, do not prevent development of the potential. The evidence argues for a new, late effect of T4 infection on the cytoplasmic membrane.

Cell Membrane Permeability↗

Evaluation of the in vivo function of the Hancock porcine xenograft in the aortic position.

We evaluated the vivo hemodynamic function of the stent-mounted glutaraldehyde-fixed porcine xenograft in 23 patients who had undergone aortic valve replacement from 2 days to 24 months prior to the study. Functional aortic valve orifice areas for the porcine xenograft ranged from 0.58 to 3.0 sq. cm., the average area being 1.36 sq. cm. Six patients had calculated prosthetic valve orifice areas less than 1.0 sq. cm. Valve orifice area did not correlate significantly with valve size or the time interval from surgery to postoperative study. Left ventricular stroke volume showed a significant, positive correlation with calculated xenograft orifice area. Systemic thromboembolism was not encountered. One patient required reoperation for xenograft stenosis caused by dense fibrin deposition on the aortic leaflets. We conclude that use of the stent-mounted glutaraldehyde-fixed porcine xenograft can be associated with significant functional stenosis which may be related to annulus size or inertial properties of the valve. These factors should be taken into consideration when considering use of the stent-mounted glutaraldehyde-fixed porcine xenograft in individual patients.

Adult↗