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Biomedical subjects

W W Hofmann

Publications and source records attributed to W W Hofmann.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1973

Observations on the efficiency of dystrophic muscle in vitro.

A study of muscles of the dystrophic mouse has failed to substantiate earlier claims that these muscles were especially resistant to fatigue in vitro or that fast muscles are preferentially damaged. It has been found that the fast muscle selected for previous studies is very often unable to withstand isolation in an organ bath if it is working, and both the difficulty in removing the normal gastrocnemius muscle intact and the need to trim it surgically contribute independently toward its deterioration in vitro. The smaller dystrophic gastrocnemius muscle is less liable to excision damage, is able to satisfy its resting metabolic needs in nutrient solution, and requires no damaging dissection, but is nevertheless unable to recover normally from fatigue. Using EDL and soleus muscles which are small enough to withstand isolation in vitro, no differences are found between fatigue patterns of normal and dystrophic specimens. Responses to rest, KCl, and 2 mM caffeine are also quite similar, and the only distinguishing biomechanical characteristic we have found in dystrophic mouse muscle is a weaker contraction and a longer total twitch time.

Animals↗
PubMed1970

A controlled study of L-DOPA in Parkinson's disease.

A small group of patients with Parkinson's disease were treated with oral l-dopa. In ten cases the drug was given according to a randomized, double-blind-crossover protocol, and in 13 cases both the physician and the patient knew what treatment was being given. With subjective bias at a minimum the salutary effects of the amino acid were confirmed in 90 percent of the patients. The general level of improvement with l-dopa was better than with standard agents, and a combination of drugs was sometimes very helpful. Toxic psychosis was a problem in three cases, but other adverse reactions were minimal. Further extensive trial and study is indicated.

Aged↗
PubMed1967

Motor activity following the silent period in human muscle.

1. When a muscle is unloaded during voluntary contraction, there is normally a silent period in the electromyogram. The silence is terminated by a sudden return of muscle action potentials.2. In order to investigate the mechanism of the terminal motor volley, the unloading reflex was studied in six human subjects. The independent variables were the initial muscular force, the inertia of the limb and the amount of motion permitted. The dependent variables were the size and latency of the terminal volley.3. During isometric contraction, the amplitude of the surface-recorded muscle action potentials increased monotonically with increasing muscular tension.4. The action potentials were significantly larger during the terminal volley than during the period before unloading.5. When acceleration of the limb was reduced by increasing the inertia, the terminal volley was decreased in size, but the latency was not affected.6. When movement was interrupted by a mechanical block, the latency of the terminal volley was reduced, but the size was not affected.7. The results suggest that the terminal motor volley is not the result of a decrease in Renshaw feed-back or in autogenetic inhibition.8. The motor volley must be regulated by proprioceptive feed-back, because it is affected by the velocity and displacement of the limb.9. The muscle frequently responded within 20 msec after motion of the limb was blocked. Hence it appears that the mechanism involves a spinal reflex.10. Because the motor discharge occurs while the muscle is shortening, it cannot be an ordinary stretch reflex. If the discharge is attributed to spindle afferent driving, one must assume that the gamma motor neurones are active during the silent period.11. The authors postulate a fusimotor reflex, which is driven by afferent impulses from the moving limb and excites the alpha motoneurones by way of the ;gamma loop'.

Action Potentials↗