Search PubMedSearch

Biomedical subjects

W A Greene

Publications and source records attributed to W A Greene.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Cardiovascular reactivity in Type A and B males to mental arithmetic and aerobic exercise at an equivalent oxygen uptake.

Cardiovascular hyperreactivity (i.e., response in excess of metabolic requirements) to psychological stress has been implicated in the development of coronary heart disease. The purpose of this study was to evaluate cardiovascular hyperreactivity to psychological stress in Type A and B subjects. Fifteen Type A and 15 Type B young men performed mental arithmetic and cycle ergometry tasks. Linear regressions were calculated for each dependent variable during exercise with oxygen uptake serving as the independent variable. All cardiovascular variables were significantly correlated (p less than .0001) with oxygen uptake during exercise. The regression equations obtained during exercise were then used to predict the value of each cardiovascular variable at the oxygen uptake level obtained during mental arithmetic for each person. Repeated measures ANOVA compared responses observed during arithmetic with responses predicted from exercise at an equivalent oxygen uptake in Type A and B subjects. Heart rate, total peripheral resistance, and mean arterial pressure were significantly greater (p less than .0001) and stroke volume was significantly lower (p less than .0002) during arithmetic than during exercise, while Heather index, cardiac output, and arteriovenous oxygen difference did not differ significantly. No significant differences were found between Type A and B males. Results demonstrated that cardiovascular hyperreactivity was equally robust across Type A and B subjects.

Adult

Comparison of probiotic and antibiotic intramammary therapy of cattle with elevated somatic cell counts.

The effects of treating subclinical mastitis with intramammary infusions of either a Lactobacillus or an antibiotic preparation on intramammary infection cure rate and on milk SCC were compared. Cows with two consecutive monthly DHIA composite SCC greater than 300,000 cells/ml (5.4771 log10/ml) were defined as high SCC cows. Twenty-six subclinical cows were randomly assigned to one of two treatments. Quarter foremilk samples were obtained from all quarters at d 0, 7, and 14 following infusion to determine the microbiological status and SCC. Composite milk SCC were determined monthly by DHIA and at d 0, 7, and 14 of the study. Coagulase-negative staphylococci were the predominantly isolated pathogens. Treatment of cows with Lactobacillus cured 21.7% of infected quarters, whereas 73.7% of infections treated with antibiotic were eliminated. Treatment of quarters with antibiotic did not reduce quarter SCC unless infected quarters were cured. Intramammary infusion of quarters with Lactobacillus increased quarter SCC, mainly because of an increase in SCC of initially uninfected, low SCC quarters. Monthly composite SCC were similar between treatments. The results indicate that administering Lactobacillus or antibiotic treatment to all quarters based on elevated composite SCC should not be adopted. Lactobacillus treatment increased SCC with no effect on infection rate.

Animals

Use of graded exercise to evaluate physiological hyperreactivity to mental stress.

Physiological hyperreactivity (i.e., response in excess of metabolic requirements) to mental stress has been implicated in the etiology of coronary heart disease. This study evaluated potential hyperreactivity of cardiovascular, pulmonary, and biochemical variables to mental stress. Thirty healthy males, 19-36 yr, performed a mental arithmetic task and cycle ergometry at three powerloads. Linear regressions were calculated for each of 17 dependent variables during exercise, with oxygen uptake (VO2) serving as the independent variable. Ten variables were significantly correlated (P less than 0.003) with VO2 during exercise and, therefore, were predicted at the VO2 observed during the arithmetic task. The actual level of each variable observed during the arithmetic task was compared with the level predicted from the exercise by paired t-tests. Heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, rate-pressure product, minute ventilation, respiratory frequency, and respiratory exchange ratio were significantly greater (7-32%, P less than 0.005) during the arithmetic task than predicted from the exercise at an equivalent VO2. Plasma cortisol and serum lipid variables were not useful for evaluating hyperreactivity. Results demonstrated that graded aerobic exercise can serve as a reference for evaluating physiological hyperreactivity to mental stress for a group of ten variables which were significantly correlated with VO2 during graded exercise.

Adult

Effects of prepartum milking on milk production and health performance.

A field study using seven Holstein herds was conducted to determine effects of prepartum milking on milk production, health disorders, and reproductive performance. In each herd, 80 cows (30% first lactation cows) were assigned 1 mo prior to expected calving date to one of two treatments: postpartum or prepartum milking. The group milked prepartum was machine-milked twice daily at regular milking intervals beginning 14 d prior to date of expected calving. The group milked postpartum was milked for the first time after calving. The day prior to calving, 36, 33, and 31% of the cows milked prepartum produced less than 4.5 kg, 4.5 to 9 kg, and greater than 9 kg of milk, respectively. No relationship existed between days milked prepartum and prepartum milk yield. Lactation milk yield and persistency were not affected by prepartum milking. Prepartum milking reduced incidence of milk fever and mastitis during the 1st mo after parturition. Treatment was not a significant source of variation for reproductive performance or body condition; however, culling was higher for cows milked postpartum. Results indicate no adverse effects on cow performance due to prepartum milking nor increase in lactation milk yield.

Animals

Growth and reproductive development in freemartins hormonally treated from 1 to 79 weeks of age.

Postnatal growth, steroid hormone profiles and response to steroid hormone treatment were studied in 18 freemartins and one normal female born co-twin with a bull. They were either treated postnatally with testosterone or estrone at one week of age, or left untreated until 50 weeks of age when they received silastic implants calculated to release either 12.9 microgram of estrone or 2.6 microgram of estradiol per day per kg of body weight. Later a dihydrotestosterone-treated group was added. Reproductive development was studied by palpation per rectum and by examination when animals were slaughtered at 79 weeks of age. Treated animals grew slightly faster than untreated animals. Testosterone in untreated freemartins averaged 76 and 87 pg/ml of blood plasma during weeks 1 to 48 and 52 to 56. Corresponding values for those animals with small testosterone implants (weeks 1 to 48) and with larger implants (weeks 52 to 56) were 130 and 272 pg/ml. Estrone and estradiol values appeared to fluctuate between 10 and 50 pg/ml but values are uncertain because they were below the sensitivity of the assay then available. Thus, circulating steroid hormone concentrations were similar to those reported for castrates. Testosterone stimulated clitoral development prenatally and postnatally. None of the treatments influenced vaginal depth, which averaged 4.0, 9.0 and 10.9 cm at 1, 24 and 52 weeks of age. Vaginal depth at birth was not a reliable indicator of freemartinism. Androgen may have inhibited udder development, whereas estrogen appeared to be stimulatory. The reproductive organs of the freemartin were characterized by differences in underdevelopment and the general presence of seminal vesicles. The latter structures, plus clitoral development at birth in 3 animals and postnatal response of the clitoris to testosterone is interpreted to indicate that the presence of androgens is one factor in abnormal development. Otherwise, gross morphology of the reproductive tract was not related to hormone treatment, postnatal gonadal histology, endocrinology or lymphocyte chromosomal karyotypes.

Animals

Behavioral characteristics of freemartins administered estradiol, estrone, testosterone, and dihydrotestosterone.

Eighteen genetic females born co-twin with males and diagnosed as being sterile intersexes (freemartins) were studied from birth to 79 weeks of age. Testosterone (T) and estrone (EI) were administered in Silastic capsules of two groups from birth to 50 weeks of age and other animals were left untreated. At 50 weeks the two treated groups had larger implants installed and the untreated animals were assigned to a new estrone (EII) and estradiol (E2) treatment. Later a dihydrotestosterone (DHT) group was formed in comparison with new E2 and testosterone propionate-enanthate (TP-TE) groups, plus untreated controls. Vulvar interest, Flehmen lip curl, mounting, and agonistic behavior were recorded daily for 30 min while animals were allowed social interaction. Agonistic behavior, interest in the genital area, and mounting were induced or stimulated by T, TP-TE, and E2, but not by DHT or estrone (EI or EII). Also, only animals in the T, TP-TE, and E2 groups induced to mount displayed the standing type of behavioral estrus. Flehmen lip curl was stimulated only by T or TP-TE. The evidence is interpreted to indicate that T, per se, evokes the lip curl, but it probably stimulates other responses at the neural level by conversion to E2. Also, the freemartin response, the response of castrates to steroid hormones, and current knowledge of circulating steroid hormones in male and female cattle could be interpreted to indicate that the neural tissue responsible for sexual behavior in both sexes of this species may respond similarly in several respects.

Agonistic Behavior

Release rate of testosterone and estrogens from polydimethylsiloxane implants for extended periods in vivo compared with loss in vitro.

Release rates of testosterone, estrone, and estradiol placed in chambers made from polydimethylsiloxane (PDS) tubing (Dow Corning "Silastic," 3.35 mm ID x 4.65 mm OD) were studied in 14 freemartin cattle with minimal or non-detectable endogenous hormone secretion, and in 0.9% saline:methanol (1:1) baths shaken at 38 degree C. Eighty-seven implants, varying in length from 2 to 10 cm, were placed in 14 animals for 27 to 235 days. The average release rates +/- standard errors, in microgram/cm/day, were testosterone, 55.9 +/- 2.4, estrone, 12.6 +/- 1.8, and estradiol, 11.1 +/- 1.1. A relatively constant release rate was found over the period of time studied and sufficient steroid remained for potential release over periods exceeding 1 year. The dose of hormone delivered was sufficient to increase mounting activity in testosterone-treated animals and estrual activity in those receiving estrogens. Corresponding release rates in vitro for four 10-cm implants containing either testosterone, estrone, or estradiol were 94.3 +/- 1.9, 15.5 +/- 0.7, and 12.7 +/- 0.6 microgram/cm/day, respectively. The general magnitude of release rate in animals could be predicted from laboratory tests.

Animals

Sex-chromosome ratios in cattle and their relationship to reproductive development in freemartins.

Nineteen "female" Holstein-Friesian calves born co-twin with a bull were purchased shortly after birth. One subsequently was judged to be a normal female with 0% XY (100% XX) karyotypes in cultures of blood lymphocytes. However, one typical freemartin also had 0% XY (100% XX) Karyotypes in 300 cells when examined at three ages. Overall, 18 freemartins examined at 1, 24, and 52 weeks of age averaged 60.7%, 57.9%, and 55.5% XY cells, respectively (P greater than 0.05). No systematic relationship was found between the proportion of XY cells and the abnormalities of the reproductive organs, as judged by vaginal depth and clitoral development at 1, 24, and 52 weeks, and examination of the reproductive organs per rectum at 54 weeks of age. The clitoris of untreated freemartins and those treated with estrone or estradiol postnatally did not enlarge. Testosterone treatment caused enlargement. None of the hormones affected vaginal depth. These studies provide convincing evidence that the blood lymphocyte XX:XY karyotype ratio (1) is not related to the degree of masculinization and (2) is stabile in the postnatal freemartin. Thirdly, the freemartin reproductive organs do not respond to common sex-steroid hormones postnatally other than the clitoral response to testosterone.

Animals

Development of and fluid accumulation in mammary glands of freemartins administered estradiol, estrone, or testosterone..

Eighteen Holstein freemartins acquired at 1 wk of age were assigned to a control and to four treatment groups, but only two of the groups received hormone the first 50 wk. Testosterone administered for the first 50 wk appeared to inhibit teat growth whereas estrone stimulated teat and udder length. At 50 wk of age, implants releasing daily approximately 12.9 microgram of testosterone, 2.9 microgram of estrone, or 2.6 microgram of estradiol-17beta per kg of body weight were implanted for 6 wk. One of three testosterone-treated and 9 of 11 estrogen-treated animals exhibited increased udder development associated with fluid accumulation. The 10 animals with fluid accumulation in the udders were milked once 39 days after implanting. The fluid contained 15.0% total solids, 4.1% fat, and 7.0% protein, values which are between those for normal milk and colostrum. These studies support the concept that administration of low concentrations of estrogens alone, released continuously from implants, were capable of stimulating fluid secretion in mammary glands of animals that had no detectable gonadal luteal tissue.

Animals

Testosterone and libido in holstein bulls of various ages.

Testosterone was measured by radio-immunoassay in the blood plasma collected from 197 and 195 Holstein bulls in the spring and fall seasons, respectively. Bulls ranged in age from 8 mo to 13.5 yr. The average value for spring was 8.0 ng/ml, higher than the value of 5.7 ng/ml in the fall. Also, there was a tendency for testosterone to increase with age of the bulls up to 6 to 7 yr. The concentration of circulating testosterone was unrelated to libido or semen quality.

Age Factors

Hematology and the Derivation of Psychosomatic Concepts.

During the past 25 years, Dr. Lawrence Young has played a major role in the evolution of the Medical-Psychatric Liaison Unit at the University of Rochester and in development of new psychsomatic concepts. Investigations of patients with leukemia and lymphoma highlighted the occurrence of separation and loss in the prodromal period of the illness, perphaps serving as precipitating role in its manifest development. Study of these fatally ill patients required scrutiny and clarification of the dying process through the past two decades. Similarly, consideration of accompanying emotional distress in patients' family members necessitated attention to the manifestations of grief.

Anxiety

Prognostic grading and significance of ventricular premature beats after recovery from myocardial infarction.

A 6-hour taped electrocardiogram recording was obtained prior to hospital discharge on 193 patients less than 66 years of age with a definite or probable myocardial infarction. All ventricular premature beats (VPBs) were identified on the 6-hour recording, and the various VPB characteristics were related to a complicated course (CC) defined as cardiac death or myocardial reinfarction within 4 months after hospital discharge. Only three univariate VPB characteristics (multiform pattern, bigeminal rhythm, and frequency greater than or equal to 20/hr) were significantly associated with a 4-month posthospital CC. By use of bivariate and multivariate combinations of these three VPB characteristics, a two-grade prognostic stratification system was derived: Grade I VPBs (CC = 8%) included patients with less than 20 VPB/hr but with neither multiform nor bigeminal beats: Grade II VPBs (CC = 31%, P less than 0.001) contained patients with greater than or equal to 20 VPBs/hr or with multiform or bigeminal beats or both. Patients with Grade II VPBs had more severe cardiac disease, but when patients were stratified by the clinical severity of their cardiac disease, Grade II VPBs identified patients with higher CC rates. The clinical significance of these findings together with a critical analysis of the prognostic stratification method are discussed.

Aged

Stimulus control of skin resistance responses on an escape-avoidance schedule.

The effects of discrimination and avoidance training on the skin resistance response were studied in eight humans. Responses occurring during one stimulus delayed the interruption of music for 30 sec; responses during a second stimulus either had no effect or interrupted the music for 15 sec. The results showed stimulus control in all subjects and an increased discrimination between the first one-half and last one-half of the sessions for seven of the eight subjects.

Adolescent