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T Craig

Publications and source records attributed to T Craig.

45 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1982

Half-width scaling of electric field autocorrelation functions of light scattered from bull spermatozoa.

The half-width scaling of experimental and model electric field autocorrelation functions of light scattered from normally swimming, defectively swimming, and immotile bull spermatozoa is examined. It is found that a scatter of size 9.0 x 2.3 x 0.45 micrometers is most appropriate for this Rayleigh-Gans-Debye ellipsoid model. In the case of the immotile cells, this model correctly predicts the features seen in the scaling data as well as the absolute value of the data. For the normally swimming and defective populations the model proves to predict correctly the features seen in experimental scaling curves, but not the absolute value of the data. This discrepancy appears to be related to a lack of detail in the model, since the agreement is poorest at large scattering angles.

Animals↗
PubMed1979

Quasi-elastic light-scattering spectra of swimming spermatozoa. Rotational and translational effects.

The electric field autocorrelation functions of light scattered from normal swimming bull spermatozoa are shown to be dependent on the mean head rotation frequency and not on the translational speed of the cells, as previously believed. This result was obtained from numerical generation of functions in which spermatozoa were modeled as Rayleigh-Gans-Debye ellipsoids having semiaxes a = 0.5 micrometer, b = 2.3 micrometer, and c = 9.0 micrometer. The magnitude of c required to achieve agreement with the experimental data is larger than the half-length of the head region of the cell. This implies that the midpiece, which also lies along c, contributes to the scattering power. Details regarding swimming trajectory and head orientation are included in the model. Analyses of the calculated functions and comparisons with experimentally determined ones suggest that at a scattering angle of 15 degrees the electric field autocorrelation function can be fit a simple Lorentzian whose half-width is inversely proportional to the scattering vector and the mean head rotational frequency.

Animals↗
PubMed1978

Swimming speed distributions of bull spermatozoa as determined by quasi-elastic light scattering.

88 semen samples from 39 bulls have been investigated by the quasi-elastic light scattering technique. Normal, defective, and dead cells each yielded characteristic autocorrelation functions. The form of these functions indicates that the swimming speed distribution of normal cells is a gamma distribution with two degrees of freedom while that for defective or circular swimmers is a gamma distribution with one degree of freedom. The resulting analysis of the experimental autocorrelation functions yields the fraction of the sample that is normal, the fraction that is defective, and the average speed of each group. The average helical swimming speed of normal cells was found to be 384 micron/s, while the average trajectory speed of the circular swimmers was found to be 103 micron/s. The overall quality of the semen samples as determined by light scattering is compared to quality determination on the same samples by technicians from the artificial insemination industry.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Long-acting beta2-agonist monotherapy vs continued therapy with inhaled corticosteroids in patients with persistent asthma: a randomized controlled trial.

CONTEXT: Long-acting beta(2)-agonists are prescribed for patients with persistent asthma and are sometimes used without inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs). No evidence exists, however, to support their use as monotherapy in adults with persistent asthma. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness of salmeterol xinafoate, a long-acting beta(2)-agonist, as replacement therapy in patients whose asthma is well controlled by low-dose triamcinolone acetonide, an ICS. DESIGN AND SETTING: A 28-week, randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled, parallel group trial conducted at 6 National Institutes of Health-sponsored, university-based ambulatory care centers from February 1997 to January 1999. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred sixty-four patients aged 12 through 65 years with persistent asthma that was well controlled during a 6-week run-in period of treatment with inhaled triamcinolone (400 microg twice per day). INTERVENTIONS: Patients were randomly assigned to continue triamcinolone therapy (400 microg twice per day; n = 54) or switch to salmeterol (42 microg twice per day; n = 54) or to placebo (n = 56) for 16 weeks, after which all patients received placebo for an additional 6-week run-out period. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Change in morning and evening peak expiratory flow (PEF), forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV(1)), self-assessed asthma symptom scores, rescue albuterol use, asthma-specific quality-of-life scores, treatment failure, asthma exacerbation, bronchial reactivity, and markers of airway inflammation, compared among the 3 treatment groups. RESULTS: During the 16-week randomized treatment period, no significant differences between the salmeterol and triamcinolone groups were observed for conventional outcomes of clinical studies of asthma therapy-morning PEF, evening PEF, asthma symptom scores, rescue albuterol sulfate use, or quality of life. Both active treatments were superior to placebo. However, the salmeterol group had more treatment failures than the triamcinolone group (13/54 [24%] vs 3/54 [6%]; P =.004), as well as more asthma exacerbations (11/54 [20%] vs 4/54 [7%]; P =.04), greater increases in median (interquartile range) sputum eosinophils (2.4% [0.0% to 10.6%] vs -0.1% [-0.7% to 0.3%]; P<.001), eosinophil cationic protein (71 [-2 to 430] U/L vs -4 [-31 to 56] U/L; P =.005), and tryptase (3.1 [2.1 to 7.6] ng/mL vs 0.0 [0.0 to 0.7] ng/mL; P<.001). The duration of benefit when patients were switched from active treatment to placebo after 22 weeks of randomized treatment was not significantly longer in the triamcinolone group than in the salmeterol group. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with persistent asthma well controlled by low doses of triamcinolone cannot be switched to salmeterol monotherapy without risk of clinically significant loss of asthma control.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Inhaled corticosteroid reduction and elimination in patients with persistent asthma receiving salmeterol: a randomized controlled trial.

CONTEXT: Inhaled long-acting beta(2)-agonists improve asthma control when added to inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) therapy. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether ICS therapy can be reduced or eliminated in patients with persistent asthma after adding a long-acting beta(2)-agonist to their treatment regimen. DESIGN AND SETTING: A 24-week randomized, controlled, blinded, double-dummy, parallel-group trial conducted at 6 National Institutes of Health-sponsored, university-based ambulatory care centers from February 1997 through January 1999. PARTICIPANTS: One hundred seventy-five patients aged 12 through 65 years with persistent asthma that was suboptimally controlled during a 6-week run-in period of treatment with inhaled triamcinolone acetonide (400 microg twice per day). INTERVENTION: Patients continued triamcinolone therapy and were randomly assigned to receive add-on therapy with either placebo (placebo-minus group, n = 21) or salmeterol xinafoate, 42 microg twice per day (n = 154) for 2 weeks. The entire placebo-minus group was assigned and half of the salmeterol group (salmeterol-minus group) was randomly assigned to reduce by 50% (for 8 weeks) then eliminate (for 8 weeks) triamcinolone treatment. The other half of the salmeterol group (salmeterol-plus group) was randomly assigned to continue both salmeterol and triamcinolone for the remaining 16 weeks (active control group). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Time to asthma treatment failure in patients receiving salmeterol. RESULTS: Treatment failure occurred in 8.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 2%-15%) of the salmeterol-minus group 8 weeks after triamcinolone treatment was reduced compared with 2.8% (95% CI, 0%-7%) of the salmeterol-plus group during the same period. Treatment failure occurred in 46.3% (95% CI, 34%-59%) of the salmeterol-minus group 8 weeks after triamcinolone therapy was eliminated compared with 13.7% (95% CI, 5%-22%) of the salmeterol-plus group. The relative risk (95% CI) of treatment failure at the end of the triamcinolone elimination phase in the salmeterol-minus group was 4.3 (2.0-9.2) compared with the salmeterol-plus group (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that in patients with persistent asthma suboptimally controlled by triamcinolone therapy alone but whose asthma symptoms improve after addition of salmeterol, a substantial reduction (50%) in triamcinolone dose can occur without a significant loss of asthma control. However, total elimination of triamcinolone therapy results in a significant deterioration in asthma control and, therefore, cannot be recommended.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Best-estimate versus structured interview-based diagnosis in first-admission psychosis.

In a sample of first-admission psychotic patients, best-estimate diagnoses made by psychiatrists at entry to the study (N = 310) and 6 months later (N = 228) were compared with Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID) algorithm diagnoses. Sensitivity, specificity, and agreement (kappa) at entry and at 6-month follow-up evaluation were satisfactory for schizophrenia (sensitivity, .89 and .98; specificity, .96 both times; kappa, .86 and .92) and bipolar disorder with psychosis (sensitivity, 1.00 and .94; specificity, .96 both times; kappa, .89 and .88), moderate for major depression with psychosis (sensitivity, .90 and .81; specificity, .94 and .95; kappa, .75 and .72), but mixed for the organic psychoses (sensitivity, .50 and .23; specificity, 1.00 both times; kappa, .66 and .36). Reasons for disagreement included the role of drugs and other organic factors in the etiology of the disorder, and clinical judgment versus the rules of the structured interview. We conclude that the SCID, when administered by closely supervised experienced nonpsychiatrist clinicians and incorporating information from other sources, can produce a reliable diagnosis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. However, the best-estimate procedure seems mandatory in studies investigating a broad range of psychoses, where the use of drugs is not an exclusion criterion.

Bipolar Disorder↗