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At least 379 records · Page 21Linked to original sources
PubMed1985

High frequency of triplicated alpha-globin loci and absence or low frequency of alpha thalassemia in Polynesian Samoans.

Most of the population in certain areas of Melanesia have one alpha-globin gene deletion (alpha thal2). It is thought that the high frequencies of alpha thal2 in this population is due to a selective advantage given by malaria infection to carriers of alpha thal2. We are interested in neighboring Polynesia which, although adjacent to Melanesia, has always been free of malaria due to the absence of the vector anopheles. We studied 60 Polynesian Samoans and 150 Malaysians by restriction endonuclease gene mapping using Eco RI, Bam HI, and Bgl II and hybridization to 32P-labeled alpha-globin gene probe. Seven among the 60 (11.7%) Samoans had triplicated alpha-globin loci type 1, while none had alpha thal2. On digestion with Bgl II the third alpha-globin gene was found in an additional 3.7 kb fragment in all seven Samoans with triplicated alpha-globin loci, while digestion with Bam HI produced an abnormal elongated 18.2 kb fragment carrying alpha-globin genes in addition to the normal 14.5 kb fragment. None of the Polynesian Samoans had alpha thal2 or alpha thal1. Only two of the Malaysians had triplicated alpha-globin loci.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Fattening of large white, local Samoan and crossbred pigs.

Large White, local Samoan and Large White X local Samoan crossbred pigs were fattened under 3 different systems of management. Under the first, simulating village conditions, pigs were fenced in a grass paddock and fed copra and scraps. The crossbreds grew significantly faster than Large White and local Samoan pigs. In the second system where a 30% crude protein supplement was fed in addition to feedstuffs from village resources there were no significant differences in production characteristics between the various types of pigs. The growth rate of all groups of pigs still lagged behind the growth rate of Large White and crossbred pigs in the third system fed a complete balanced diet. Under commercial management local Samoan pigs grew more slowly and had a higher feed conversion than Large White and crossbred pigs.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Development of a Samoan nutrition exchange list using culturally accepted foods.

Samoans are known to be the most overweight population in the world. They suffer from high rates of weight-related diseases such as heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus. In the past, dietary intervention has either been nonexistent or reliant on food exchange lists that do not include foods traditionally part of a Samoan diet. Therefore, exchange lists specific for Samoan foods were developed. A literature search, personal interviews, and site visits at local grocery stores and village homes were conducted to determine what foods are common to the Samoan diet. These foods and recipes were then computer-analyzed. Foods that are high sources of vitamins A and C, sodium, and fat are also high-lighted in the Samoan exchange lists. The Samoan exchange lists are now being distributed worldwide to health care professionals who work with Samoan clients. An ongoing effort is being made to revise and update this tool so that Samoans can eat foods familiar to them, and in doing so, better manage their diet-related problems.

Culture↗
PubMed1983

To love them and to leave them? A review of a Samoan community and health service research project in New Zealand.

The place of Samoan and other Polynesian healing practices and related community projects in New Zealand society has only recently become a subject for study. This paper is an attempt to circumscribe for the people, both Samoan and non-Samoan, with whom I have been working, some of our cross-cultural associations in this field. To do this I have focused on moments in a process which has as many histories and as many futures as there are people participating in it. The interpretation presented here is a chronicle of significant information and events belonging to a 3-year period (1978-1980 inclusive). Behind the choice, to concentrate on describing the process of our dialogue and action rather than the end results--our 'successes' past and present--lie some fundamental questions. Can the growing understanding and on-going communication of people involved in community projects be documented so that this process is appreciated as valuable? This work takes a long commitment by researchers, even if they are members of the community project, and questions of practicality are raised. Is there a method of documentation which is acceptable both to the funding institutions that sponsor community health projects and to the people who are engaged in them? Could the present commonly accepted short-term assessment of end results, which I find objectionable, be right? And researchers evaluating community health projects, should they continue to become involved with the people they are studying for short times and then withdraw--to love them and leave them?

Communication↗
PubMed1990

Modernization and catecholamine excretion of young Samoan adults.

Urinary catecholamine excretion rates have been used as a cross-culturally valid measure of generalized stress. The purposes of this paper are to examine group differences in catecholamine excretion rates in three Samoan groups who differ in degree of modernization and to compare these findings to rates of norepinephrine and epinephrine excretion in other populations. In 1986-1987, 24-hr urine samples were collected from 18-37-year-old Samoans; 46 rural Western Samoan villagers, 53 American Samoans, and 49 Samoans residing in Honolulu. The results show that norepinephrine excretion is significantly higher in more modernized Samoan groups (P less than 0.05), while epinephrine excretion is not significantly different in the three groups. The higher norepinephrine excretion rate in the more modernized Samoan groups may be related to differences in relative work load associated with changes in body weight, work capacity, and work patterns which accompany modernization. Samoan epinephrine excretion rates are relatively high compared to the results of other population studies, while norepinephrine excretion in three Samoan samples ranged from among the lowest rates observed worldwide to among the highest.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

Genetic variation between New Zealand and Western Samoan isolates of Aujeszky's disease virus.

A total of 14 isolates of Aujeszky's disease virus were examined by restriction-endonuclease analysis using BamH1, Xho1 and Kpn1 restriction enzymes. BamH1 was the enzyme of choice as it produced only 15 major fragments. All isolates produced similar BamH1 patterns but minor variation in the mobility of fragments 5/5'/6, 10, 12 and 13 was evident. In a number of isolates, additional bands were present in fragment regions 4,5/5'/6 and 8. The technique of restriction-endonuclease analysis has proved to be an effective method for differentiating between Aujeszky's disease virus isolates, and has shown the BamH1 patterns generated in the NZ and Western Samoan isolates to resemble closely those described overseas as Group 1 patterns.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

The effectiveness of Hernandia spp. (Hernandiaceae) in traditional Samoan medicine and according to scientific analyses.

The use of Hernandia nymphaefolia (Presl.) Kubitzki, Hernandia ovigera Linn., Hernandia peltata Meissner and Hernandia sonora Linn. in traditional Samoan medicine is given. The constituents have been listed and the effectiveness of the various plant parts deducted from them. A comparison of the traditional medicinal use with the assigned medicinal effectiveness shows clear concordances. Further pharmacological investigations are needed.

Alkaloids↗
PubMed1993

Research on pharmacologically active natural products at the Department of Pharmacognosy, Uppsala University.

Since 1954, research at the Department of Pharmacognosy at Uppsala University has been oriented towards modern natural products chemistry with emphasis on pharmacologically active compounds. Studies of plants used in the traditional medicine of different cultures have been of major interest. The research strategy is based on: inventory and identification of the plants used, demonstration of pharmacological activity of an extract of the plant, bioassay-guided fractionation, isolation and characterisation of the active compounds and studies of structure activity relationships. Plants from Africa, Asia, The Americas, The Pacific and Europe have been collected in collaboration with botanists and ethnobotanists. Investigations of these plants have resulted in the isolation, and chemical and pharmacological characterization of many different types of compounds. At present the work is focused on compounds with anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects.

Africa↗
PubMed1995

Ten-year changes in the obesity, abdominal adiposity, and serum lipoprotein cholesterol measures of Western Samoan men.

Previously reported associations between abdominal adiposity and coronary heart disease (CHD) may be mediated through serum lipids. In the present longitudinal study, 43 Western Samoan men who participated in a 1982 study were recontacted for a second determination of anthropometric and serum lipoprotein cholesterol levels. The men showed dramatic increases in weight (mean change +/- SD: 10.5 +/- 8.8 kg), abdominal circumference (10.0 +/- 7.6 cm), total cholesterol (49.5 +/- 26.4 mg/dl), and non-HDL cholesterol (53.1 +/- 26.6 mg/dl). A new indicator was used to estimate changes in abdominal adiposity: the residual from the regression of change in the abdominal circumference on change in body weight (the AR). The AR was significantly correlated with changes in total (r = 0.38) and non-HDL cholesterol (r = 0.39). Changes in HDL cholesterol were correlated with changes in weight only (r = -0.37). These bivariate relations remained significant in multiple linear regression analyses. These longitudinal results are the first to suggest changes in abdominal adiposity are related to changes in total and non-HDL cholesterol levels.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2005

Necrotising fasciitis and cellulitis after traditional Samoan tattooing: case reports.

Traditional Samoan tattooing, ta tatau, is a vital part of Samoan culture. It is being performed with greater frequency on New Zealand resident Samoans. Unfortunately, ta tatau has recently been the causal factor in two significant infectious cases, in one of which death resulted. The two cases were clinically reviewed. An investigation into the history and practice of ta tatau was made in an attempt to identify causal factors that could be addressed. The two cases had similar causal themes. These included improper sanitary techniques, ta tatau being performed in unlicensed premises by temporary tattooists, patients that were unwilling to access medical services due to the expectations of tradition, lack of follow-up and lack of infection advice by the tattooist. Life threatening infectious complications has not previously been described for traditional Samoan tattooing. Improper sanitary conditions in combination with late presentation to medical services have been suggested as the cause of these cases. The technique, tools, culture and trends are discussed and recommendations are made for reducing infectious complications.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Reduced size of the pre-supplementary motor cortex and impaired motor sequence learning in first-episode schizophrenia.

Increasing evidence suggests that schizophrenia is associated with various morphological and functional abnormalities of the frontal cortex. So far research has concentrated on the dorsolateral and orbitofrontal cortex. Behavioral evidence suggests however that regions responsible for higher motor control are compromised in schizophrenia as well. The current study assessed volumes of the anterior supplementary motor area (pre-SMA) and implicit motor sequence learning in 15 subjects with first-episode schizophrenia and 15 healthy matched controls. Pre-SMA volumes were assessed by three-dimensional structural magnetic resonance imaging (3D-MRI) and manual parcellation according to an established protocol. Implicit motor sequence learning was assessed using the Serial Reaction-Time Task (SRTT). Compared with control subjects, schizophrenia subjects had significantly smaller volumes of the left pre-SMA (16%). Subjects with schizophrenia were severely impaired on sequence-specific implicit motor learning. Size of the left pre-SMA of schizophrenia subjects was significantly related to impaired implicit learning. We conclude that subjects with first-episode schizophrenia have a morphological abnormality of the left pre-SMA that might predispose them to develop disturbances of higher motor control during acute episodes of psychosis. These structural and behavioral abnormalities might be conceptualized within a broader model that views schizophrenia as a disorder of disturbed coordination of thought and action.

Adult↗