Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to W Breed.
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Oxytocin and its carrier protein, neurophysin, are both associated with luteal secretory granules which migrate from the paranuclear region to the cell membrane where exocytosis takes place. Rab3 proteins are thought to be associated with membrane vesicles or granules undergoing exocytotic fusion with the plasma membrane. The objective of this study was to determine whether Rab3B is co-localized with oxytocin within the same secretory granules of large luteal cells obtained from corpora lutea of 16 Merino cross ewes at day 3, 7, 12 or 15 of the estrous cycle using immunocytochemistry. The mean granule density (granules/microm3) was not significantly different (P > 0.05) between the days examined. Electron microscopic immunocytochemistry showed that oxytocin and Rab3B were co-localized to the secretory granules on all days evaluated. Rab3B immunostaining was primarily located within secretory granules scattered throughout the cytoplasm. The mean intensity of labelling (number of gold particles) for oxytocin per microm2 cytoplasmic luteal tissue was significantly decreased on day 15 compared to those observed on days 3, 7 and 12 of estrous cycle. No significant changes were observed in the mean intensity of the Rab3B label at the different times of the cycle. The present study provides evidence that a member of the subfamily of Rab proteins, Rab3B, is present and co-localized with oxytocin in the same secretory granules of the ovine corpus luteum. These results implicate Rab3B protein directly or indirectly in the hormone secretory pathway of ovarian tissue.
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BACKGROUND: Failure to reach complete remission (CR) with chemotherapy in advanced stages of Hodgkin's disease is considered a poor prognostic factor for progression-free and overall survival. The role of radiotherapy after chemotherapy-induced remission is controversial. PATIENTS AND METHODS: In 1989, the EORTC/GPMC started a randomized phase III trial on involved-field RT (IF-RT) after MOPP/ABV hybrid-induced remission in patients with stage III/IV Hodgkin's disease. In this ongoing trial, patients in CR after chemotherapy are randomized between IF-RT and no further treatment. Patients in partial remission (PR) all receive IF-RT. Patients, age 15-70 years, with previously untreated stage III/IV Hodgkin's disease are eligible. The randomized treatment arms are still blinded. The interim analysis of May 1996 focuses on the outcome of patients in chemotherapy-induced PR. RESULTS: A total of 405 of 493 registered patients were evaluable for response to chemotherapy. Fifty-nine percent of patients attained a CR, 37% a PR, and only 4% failed to respond. The IF-RT was actually given to 90% of the PR patients. After a median follow-up of 43 months, the five year progression-free and overall survival for patients in PR was 75% and 87%, respectively. CONCLUSION: IF-RT after MOPP/ABV-induced partial remission in stage III/IV Hodgkin's disease produces excellent failure-free and overall survival. Early intensification of treatment of this group of patients is not indicated.
In four patients, men of 64, 66 and 69 years old and a woman of 65 years, who suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and used inhalation corticosteroids in a relatively high dose (800-1600 micrograms of budesonide per day), a pulmonary infection was diagnosed caused by Mycobacterium malmoense (the first two patients) and Aspergillus (the other two) respectively. Inhalation corticosteroids are of great importance in the treatment of asthmatic patients. Their place in the treatment of patients with COPD is much less clear. The patients did not have an immunological deficiency or anatomical pulmonary or bronchial deformation which could have explained the occurrence of these infections. The high dosages of inhalation corticosteroids may have been involved in the cause of these infections by suppressing the T-cell response locally. In view of this, longterm inhalation corticosteroid treatment should be prescribed in COPD patients only if the efficacy of the medication has been proved in the individual patient involved.
Sulphasalazine is an active agent in the treatment of chronic inflammatory bowel disease, but there are a number of well-known side effects, including pancreatitis. The newer 5-ASA agents are thought to be equally effective but less toxic. Here we describe a patient who developed a pancreatitis due to mesalamine; this was confirmed at rechallenge.
The authors report on the frequency and nature of alcohol advertisements in a representative sample of college newspapers from 1984/85 and compare these with results of a similar study conducted 7 years earlier, in 1977/78. On average, nearly 24 column inches of space per issue were devoted to national alcohol advertisements in 1984/85. This represents a significant decrease from an earlier period. The space devoted to national alcohol advertisements, however, still far exceeded that for comparison products (books, soft drinks). Local alcohol advertisements averaged 20 column inches per issue and were somewhat more frequent than in the previous study. The content of the advertisements differed markedly from the messages presented 7 years earlier. Although national alcohol advertisements in 1977/78 frequently ridiculed education and study, none did so in 1984/85, when appeals were to taste and product quality instead. Fantasy themes also were relatively common. Very few national alcohol advertisements featured athletes or group drinking. Sponsorship of campus activities by the alcohol industry, however, had increased since the earlier study. In contrast to national advertisements, many local advertisements consisted of inducements to drink through special offers and happy hours. Some encouraged irresponsible and heavy drinking. Interestingly, alcohol advertisements were just as frequent in papers from states with higher minimum drinking ages and were more frequent in papers from campuses with higher proportions of women students.
Alcohol portrayals were analyzed for a 3-week composite sample of prime-time fictional television programs aired in the fall of 1986. Approximately 64% of the 195 episodes contained one or more appearances of alcohol. Alcohol was ingested on 50% of all programs. Overall, there were 8.1 alcohol drinking acts per hour. Movies made-for-television had the highest rate of drinking acts per hour (10.0) followed by situation comedies (9.2) and then theatrical movies (7.4) and dramas (7.4). Within the category of dramas, evening soap operas stand out with 13.3 acts per hour. Drinking and nondrinking characters were compared on a number of attributes relevant to role modeling. Regularly appearing characters were more likely to drink than nonregular characters. Drinking characters also tended to be of high status, largely being white, upper-class professionals. A time trend analysis showed a regular increase in alcohol on television from 1976 to 1984, reaching 10.2 acts in 1984. After 1984 the trend appears to reverse.
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The mass media have long been criticized, particularly on the issue of youth and morality. Attempts to intervene with media executives to change the messages are a familiar accompaniment of the criticism. A specific issue is the presentation on television of incidents involving youth and drinking. Numerous relevant scenes, taken from field notes on prime-time television programs starting in the 1976-77 season, are described. They are also evaluated as to their appropriateness with respect to youth and alcohol. Several, but not all incidents are found to be useful to alcohol education for young people, and for adults as well. A series of suggestions for alternative portrayals is presented; these will be disseminated to producers, writers, and directors in the industry.
Alcohol acts and scenes from a sample of 122 hours of prime-time television programs aired in the fall of 1984 were studied. Approximately 80% of the 116 episodes studied contained one or more appearances of alcohol. The appearance of alcohol on dramatic series was especially high with 9 of 10 episodes containing some verbal or visual reference to alcohol. Alcohol was ingested on 60% of all the programs. Overall, the sample contained 10.65 drinking acts per hour. Dramas, comprising 56% of the sample hours, accounted for most alcohol behavior--11 drinking acts per hour. Put in audience terms, a regular viewer of dramas would be likely to see more than 20 drink acts per evening.
In a multicenter trial, 123 patients with advanced breast cancer who had been treated with tamoxifen and/or chemotherapy were randomized to receive medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) orally 300 mg X 3 daily or im 500 mg daily for 4 weeks and 500 mg X 2 weekly thereafter. All case histories were reviewed extramurally by the criteria of the International Union Against Cancer. Five and 11 patients were not eligible and evaluable for response, respectively. Pretreatment characteristics were well balanced in both treated groups. Twenty-five of all 107 (23%) evaluable patients achieved an objective remission, whereas in a further 15% the disease became stable after previous progression. Results in both treatment arms did not differ significantly. The median duration of objective remission was 12 and 14 months for orally and im treated patients, respectively (P greater than 0.10). No statistically significant differences in the survival times of orally and im treated patients were found. Pretreatment characteristics positively correlated with an objective remission during MPA therapy in both groups were age greater than 50 years (P less than 0.02) and no previous chemotherapy (P less than 0.01). Toxicity included an increase in body weight, cushingoid effects, muscle cramps, and tremors in both groups. In four patients on im therapy, local infections developed. Mean serum MPA levels reached values above 100 ng/ml in nine orally and eight im treated patients (P greater than 0.10), and neither differed significantly in the patients responding to or failing therapy. In both MPA arms, plasma cortisol levels were suppressed. The drop in plasma cortisol levels was more pronounced in patients with objective remissions than in patients who failed (P = 0.04). In conclusion, oral and im MPA in the given doses had similar activity. Im administration of MPA should be reserved for patients not able to take oral medication.
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Explore the source record for details and available documents.
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To determine the effects of photoperiod and ovarian steroids on fat stores in the marsupial S. crassicaudata, animals were ovariectomised (OVX) or sham operated, and maintained under either short-day (SD) or long-day (LD) photoperiods for 104 days. Photoperiod had no effect on body weight in the sham animals. In the LD OVX animals, body weight fell and remained below baseline for about 45 days, whereafter it returned to baseline. In contrast, body weight of SD OVX animals increased over the first 45 days then returned to baseline. Tail width (a reflection of body fat stores) increased in both sham and OVX animals exposed to SD. When exposed to LD, tail width increased only in the OVX animals. There was no effect of either photoperiod or OVX on total cumulative energy intake. Leptin mRNA expression was increased in the LD OVX animals compared to the shams. Photoperiod had no effect on UCP2 mRNA expression in any tissue; however, OVX decreased UCP2 mRNA expression in muscle. These data indicate that in S. crassicaudata: (a) fat mass increases in response to both SD photoperiod and OVX and they have additive effects; (b) the effects of photoperiod on fat mass are mediated by both gonadal steroid dependent and independent mechanisms; (c) alterations in UCP2 mRNA expression may mediate the effect of OVX, but not photoperiod; and (d) UCP2 mRNA is differentially regulated in muscle and fat.