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PubMed2006

Diversity and phylogenetic relationships of entomopathogenic nematodes (Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae) from the Sky Islands of Southern Arizona.

A survey for entomopathogenic nematodes was conducted in oak-juniper woodlands of four mountain ranges (Santa Rita, Santa Catalina, Pinaleño, and Chiricahuas), in southeastern Arizona. From a total of 120 soil samples, 23.3% were EPN-positive. Of them 78.5% were positive for Steinernema spp. and 21.5% were positive for Heterorhabditis spp. An integrated approach, combining both traditional (morphological) and molecular methods, was used for examining the diversity of species of these entomopathogenic nematodes. Two named-species S. oregonense and S. riobrave are reported for the first time in Arizona, expanding their currently known geographic range. In addition to this, three undescribed Steinernema and three Heterorhabditis spp. were recovered. Insular evolution, in part, could account for the geographic distribution of entomopathogenic nematodes in Arizona.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Asthma outpatient education by multiple implementation strategy. Outcome of a programme using a personal notebook.

More than 10 years after publication, international guidelines remain poorly implemented. To better implement them, we need to develop new strategies adapted to the expectations of patients and health professionals outside hospital settings and to ensure better outpatient follow up in the community. We developed a bilingual education programme including a brochure designed to support an interdisciplinary health care network and measured hospitalisations (H), work absenteeism (WA), emergency visits (EV), asthma medication (AM) and quality of life (QL Juniper) before and 12 months after the intervention. All QL scores improved significantly in comparison with pre-intervention values. Health service use decreased dramatically when comparing the 12 months prior to and after the intervention(H: 35-8%, WA: 39-14%, EV: 88-53%). The final cost/benefit ratio of the programme was 1.96. Interdisciplinary implementation strategy of patient education is cost-effective, improves quality of life for asthmatics, and reduces strain on health services. Such a health care network does not require an expensive infrastructure and is better adapted to the reality and competences of clinical practice.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Improvement of asthma control with beclomethasone extrafine aerosol compared to fluticasone and budesonide.

Qvar Autohaler efficacy on asthma control, assessed with E. Juniper asthma control questionnaire (ACQ), was compared with fluticasone and budesonide. An open randomized study, stratified (2:1) on the intake of long-acting beta2-mimetics (LAbeta2), was performed in patients with moderate to severe poorly controlled asthma (defined by at least one nocturnal discomfort in the last 5 days or a mean of 2 puffs of short-acting beta2-mimetics in the last 7 days or exercise dyspnea) despite treatment with beclomethasone < or = 1000 microg/day (or equivalent). 460 patients received Qvar Autohaler 800 microg/day (n = 149), fluticasone Diskus 1000 microg/day (n = 149) or budesonide Turbuhaler 1600 microg/day (n = 162) during 12 weeks. Asthma control improved in all groups, with no difference between groups. For patients treated with LAbeta2 (n = 286) a significantly greater improvement of the ACQ score was obtained with Qvar Autohaler versus fluticasone (1.0 +/- 1.0 vs. 0.6 +/- 0.9; P = 0.019), but not versus budesonide (0.9 +/- 0.9). Pulmonary function test improvements were similar in the 3 groups. The significant improvement in asthma control in patients receiving LAbeta2 suggests potential advantages for extrafine aerosols as part of anti-inflammatory treatment optimization.

Administration, Inhalation↗
PubMed2000

Bone-related mineral content of water samples collected on the Navajo reservation.

Although dairy food intake is low among the Navajo people, hip fracture rates are lower than in Caucasians. Genetic differences in bone density have been cited as the reasons for low fracture rates among Native Americans and other segments of the population. However, more detailed examination of mineral intakes suggests that environmental factors may provide part of the explanation for the lower fracture rates. Cultural practices such as the addition of ash to traditional foods and the high mineral content of water may provide much higher intakes of bone-related minerals than food intake surveys have previously reported. As part of a larger study to assess overall intake of minerals related to bone health and other conditions, water samples were collected from the Navajo reservation. Duplicates were collected at least one week apart from 53 sites including wells, springs, taps, and storage barrels and analyzed by atomic absorption and inductively coupled plasma spectrometry for a number of minerals. For average intakes of 2 l/day, water could provide up to 212 mg of calcium, 150 mg of magnesium and 8 mg of zinc. The combined contribution of mineral intakes provided by the addition of juniper ash to traditional foods, not genetic differences, may partially explain the lower fracture rates of the Navajo people. Further research in this area is required to confirm this hypothesis.

Bone and Bones↗
PubMed2000

The serrate leaf margined Juniperus (Section Sabina) of the western hemisphere: systematics and evolution based on leaf essential oils and Random Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs).

The volatile leaf essential compositions of all 17 serrate leaf margin species of Juniperus (sect. Sabina) of the western hemisphere are reported and compared: J. angosturana, J. ashei, J. californica, J. coahuilensis, J. comitana, J. deppeana, J. durangensis, J. flaccida, J. gamboana, J. jaliscana, J. monosperma, J. monticola, J. osteosperma, J. occidentalis, J. pinchotii, J. saltillensis, and J. standleyi. A number of previously unidentified compounds of the leaf essential oils have now been identified. In addition, DNA data (RAPDs) of all these species were analyzed. Both the leaf essential oils and DNA show these species to be quite distinct with few apparent subgroups, such that the species groupings were not strong in either data set. These data support the hypothesis that this group of junipers originated in Mexico as part of the Madro-Tertiary flora by rapid radiation into new arid land habitats, leaving few extant intermediate taxa.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2001

Adaptation of the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire to a second language preserves its critical properties: the Spanish version.

To test the metric proprieties of the Spanish version of the Juniper Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ), we studied 116 adult asthmatic patients with a wide range of disease severity (53 patients were recruited from the respiratory outpatient department, 38 from a primary health care centre and 25 were patients admitted into hospital due to acute asthma). The patients were assessed twice, at recruitment and after 2 months. The AQLQ showed a high internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.78 to 0.96) and a high 2-week reproducibility (ICC = 0.82 to 0.92). Expected significant differences in AQLQ scores were observed according to disease severity as measured by symptoms, medication, use of services and recruitment setting. The cross-sectional and longitudinal correlations between AQLQ and the overall St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire were strong, moderate to strong between AQLQ and dyspnea and weak to moderate between AQLQ and FEV(1). The changes in AQLQ scores were significantly different in patients who either improved or deteriorated from those patients who remained stable (P <.0001 and P <.01, respectively, for the overall AQLQ). We conclude that the Spanish version of the AQLQ is reliable, valid and sensitive to changes.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed2006

Impact of omalizumab on quality-of-life outcomes in patients with moderate-to-severe allergic asthma.

BACKGROUND: Moderate-to-severe allergic asthma has a substantial impact on patients' quality of life (QOL). Despite care consistent with treatment guidelines, many patients with moderate-to-severe asthma still experience variability in asthma control, signaling an unmet need within this population. Omalizumab has recently demonstrated clinical efficacy and safety in treating IgE-mediated asthma. OBJECTIVE: To summarize asthma-related QOL outcomes associated with omalizumab therapy in moderate-to-severe allergic asthma. METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis of asthma-related QOL on data from published clinical trials and unpublished clinical study reports were conducted on omalizumab. The Juniper Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) measured asthma-related QOL. RESULTS: Statistically significant results for asthma-related QOL end points consistently favored omalizumab over placebo. Moderate to large effect sizes in the omalizumab groups were observed across the clinical trials and during study extension phases. A meta-analysis indicated a 1.6- to 2-fold increase in moderate (> or = 1 point) and a 1.8- to 2.1-fold increase in large (> or = 1.5 point) improvements in AQLQ overall scores in the omalizumab-treated group compared with placebo during the steroid-stabilization and steroid-reduction phases of the trials. CONCLUSIONS: Significant differences and large effect sizes favoring omalizumab were observed despite the control group receiving active, guideline-consistent treatment. The meta-analysis findings demonstrate that omalizumab treatment provides QOL benefits in patients with moderate-to-severe allergic asthma.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Effects of triamcinolone on quality of life in patients with persistent allergic rhinitis.

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of triamcinolone acetonide on health-related quality of life (HRQL) in adult patients with allergic rhinitis. METHODS: This study was conducted in South Africa as a placebo-controlled, multicenter, randomized, double-blind study. Following a 7-day baseline run-in, patients were treated for 28 days with either triamcinolone or placebo. Interviewer-assisted quality-of-life assessments were conducted using the Juniper Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire (RQLQ). Total symptom scores, including nasal congestion, were measured using daily diary cards. RESULTS: A total of 337 patients were recruited and 253 patients completed the study per protocol, of which 55 had seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) and 198 had persistent allergic rhinitis (PAR). Improvements in the mean scores per area of the RQLQ were significantly better with triamcinolone compared with placebo for the entire study group for activities (P = .04 at visit 4) and sleep, nasal symptoms, emotional problems, and overall score (P = .002, P = .04, P = .03, and P = .04, respectively, at visit 3). When the patients with SAR were separated from the patients with PAR in the analysis, improvement with triamcinolone was better than placebo only in the PAR patients. The overall investigator and patient assessments of relief favored triamcinolone. CONCLUSIONS: Triamcinolone given for 4 weeks improves symptom scores and HRQL in patients with allergic rhinitis. The ability of triamcinolone to relieve nasal congestion symptoms in PAR patients was correlated with improvements in HRQL.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Clinically important differences in health-related quality of life for patients with asthma: an expert consensus panel report.

BACKGROUND: Standards for change in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) measures used among asthmatic patients have been established by considering only patient preferences to determine important differences and may not reflect an informed clinical evaluation of change. OBJECTIVE: To establish clinically important difference (CID) standards through the consensus of an expert physician panel for the Juniper Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) and Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form 36-Item Health Survey (SF-36, version 2) when used to measure HRQoL among asthmatic patients. METHODS: We organized an 8-person panel of physicians familiar with measuring HRQoL among asthmatic patients with the AQLQ and the SF-36. This expert panel participated in 2 rounds of a modified Delphi process before attending an in-person consensus meeting to establish the CID standards for small, moderate, and large changes in the AQLQ and the SF-36. After the consensus meeting, the panel used an iterative improvement process to cooperatively complete their final report. RESULTS: The expert panel's thresholds for detecting CIDs in the domains of the AQLQ were much higher than previously established levels using patient-perceived changes. CIDs for asthma were also ascertained on the scales of the SF-36, version 2, which were markedly greater than previously cited cross-sectional differences between patient groups. CONCLUSIONS: The CID standards established by this expert panel elucidate a potential distinction between patient and physician perspectives of important HRQoL changes. The many stakeholders of HRQoL difference standards should consider this distinction when adopting standards to evaluate patient change.

Asthma↗
PubMed2000

Cross-reactivity among conifer pollens.

BACKGROUND: There are increasing reports of Cupressaceae pollinosis from various geographic areas. Cross-reactivity among a limited number of species within the Cupressaceae family has been suggested. Juniperus ashei (mountain cedar) is the leading cause of respiratory allergy in South Texas. OBJECTIVE: This study examines in vivo and in vitro cross-reactivity among 12 Cupressaceae species, one Taxodiaceae species, one Pinaceae species, and an angiosperm. METHODS: Cross-reactivity among pollen extracts of mountain cedar (MC) and the other 14 trees was investigated by: (1) prick skin testing of each tree pollen extract in ten patients with MC pollinosis. (2) Ouchterlony gel immunodiffusion employing rabbit antisera to MC. (3) IgE immunoblotting using high-titer MC pooled human sera, and immunoblot inhibition after pre-incubation with MC protein. (4) Monoclonal antibody immunoblotting using a murine monoclonal antibody with strong affinity for the gp40 major allergen of MC. RESULTS: Positive skin wheal-and-flare responses occurred to all 12 Cupressaceae and Japanese cedar (the Taxodiaceae), but not to the Pinaceae or the angiosperm. In Ouchterlony gels, lines of identity or partial identity formed between MC and all pollens except the Pinaceae and the angiosperm. Immunoblots demonstrated IgE binding to the 40 to 42 kD protein in each Cupressaceae, and to a parallel band in Japanese cedar at 43 to 46 kD. Immunoblot inhibition by MC pollen was complete for all trees. The monoclonal bound both the 40 to 42 kD protein in 11 of 12 Cupressaceae species and the 46 kD band in Japanese cedar, but bound no protein bands in the Pinaceae or the angiosperm. CONCLUSION: Pollen proteins of the 12 Cupressaceae (including MC) and the Taxodiaceae (Japanese cedar) are extensively cross-reactive. In particular, the MC major allergen, gp40, is cross-reactive with 40 to 42 kD proteins of the other Cupressaceae and with the Japanese cedar major allergen of 46 kD. Component-based immunotherapy may someday allow a standard treatment for both Juniper-allergic and C. japonica-allergic patients.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Asthma severity, atopic status, allergen exposure and quality of life in elderly persons.

BACKGROUND: Although asthma can be associated with significant airflow obstruction in those over the age of 65, it is often underdiagnosed and undertreated. OBJECTIVE: To describe severity of asthma, allergy skin test sensitivities, indoor allergen exposures, and the impact on quality of life (QOL) and health status in elderly persons with asthma. METHODS: A cross-sectional data analysis with 80 elderly persons with asthma recruited from medical, geriatric, and allergy/immunology tertiary care centers. Asthma severity was determined by symptoms and measurements of lung function. House dust specimens were collected from mattresses and bedroom carpets and analyzed separately for the major allergens of house dust, using monoclonal antibody-based immunoenzymetric assays. QOL was measured using Juniper's Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire. Health status was measured using the Short Form Health Survey Medical Outcome Questionnaire which included Ferrans and Powers' Quality of Life Index subscales. RESULTS: Two-thirds of participants had either moderate or severe persistent asthma. Skin tests to a battery of common airborne allergens were positive to at least one allergen in 56 of the 75 participants tested (74.7%). Reservoir dust allergen levels were often high enough to place participants at risk of symptoms or at risk of developing sensitization. Increased asthma severity was associated with significantly lower QOL and a trend toward decreased health status. CONCLUSIONS: Asthma is a significant chronic problem in the elderly. Atopy was common. Asthma severity impacts on these participants' QOL and health status. Results support interventions aimed at identifying allergens precipitating attacks and reducing them in the home.

Aged↗
PubMed2003

Common herbs, essential oils, and monoterpenes potently modulate bone metabolism.

During our survey of herbs looking for activity on bone metabolism, we found that the dried leaves of sage strongly inhibit bone resorption. Therefore, we investigated several common herbs rich in essential oils (sage, rosemary, and thyme) and essential oils extracted from these herbs and other plants (oils of sage, rosemary, juniper, pine, dwarf pine, turpentine, and eucalyptus) as well as their monoterpene components (thujone, eucalyptol, camphor, borneol, thymol, alpha-pinene, beta-pinene, bornylacetate as well as menthol) and found that they inhibit bone resorption when added to the food of rats. Pine oil, used as a representative essential oil, protects an osteoporosis model, the aged ovariectomized rat, from bone loss. The monoterpenes borneol, thymol, and camphor are directly inhibitory in the osteoclast resorption pit assay. Nonpolar monoterpenes may require metabolism to be active in vitro, for example, cis-verbenol, a metabolite of alpha-pinene occurring in human urine, inhibits osteoclast activity in contrast to the parent compound. Within 30 min borneol inhibits the formation of actin rings, a characteristic of resorbing osteoclasts indicating cell polarization. Both the in vitro and the in vivo effects of borneol are reversible. Our study demonstrates for the first time that essential oils and monoterpenes are efficient inhibitors of bone resorption in the rat.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Chemical composition of Juniperus communis L. fruits supercritical CO2 extracts: dependence on pressure and extraction time.

Ground fruits of the common juniper (Juniperus communis L.), with a particle size range from 0.250-0.400 mm, forming a bed of around 20.00 +/- 0.05 g, were extracted with supercritical CO(2) at pressures of 80, 90, and 100 bars and at a temperature of 40 degrees C. The total amount of extractable substances or global yield (mass of extract/mass of raw material) for the supercritical fluid extraction process varied from 0.65 to 4.00% (wt). At each investigated pressure, supercritical CO(2) extract fractions collected in successive time intervals over the course of the extraction were analyzed by capillary gas chromatography, using flame ionization (GC-FID) and mass spectrometric detection (GC-MS). More than 200 constituents were detected in the extracts, and the contents of 50 compounds were reported in the work. Dependence of the percentage yields of monoterpene, sesquiterpene, oxygenated monoterpene, and oxygenated sesquiterpene hydrocarbon groups on the extraction time was investigated, and conditions that favored the yielding of each terpene groups were emphasized. At all pressures, monoterpene hydrocarbons were almost completely extracted from the berries in the first 0.6 h. It was possible to extract oxygenated monoterpenes at 100 bar in 0.5 h and at 90 bar in 1.2 h. Contrary to that, during an extraction period of 4 h at 80 bar, it was possible to extract only 75% of the maximum yielded value of oxygenated monoterpene at 100 bar. Intensive extraction of sesquiterpenes could be by no means avoided at any pressure, but at the beginning of the process (the first 0.5 h) at 80 bar, they were extracted about 8 and 3 times slower than at 100 and 90 bar, respectively. Oxygenated sesquiterpenes were yielded at fast, constant extraction rates at 100 and 90 bar in 1.2 and 3 h, respectively. This initial fast extraction period was consequently followed by much slower extraction of oxygenated sesquiterpenes.

Chromatography, Supercritical Fluid↗
PubMed1998

Psychometric performance of the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire in a US sample.

The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric characteristics of the Juniper Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) in a sample of asthmatics from the USA, employing data from the Asthma Symptom Utility Index (ASUI) validation study. One hundred and sixty-one adults (66 men) undergoing standard care in an asthma clinic participated in the study (mean age = 34.7 +/- 10.7 years, mean duration of illness = 17.3 +/- 11.22 years and mean FEV1% predicted = 85.6% +/- 17.1%). The internal consistency reliability (infinity) ranged from 0.90 (environment subscale) to 0.95 (overall score) and the 2 week reproducibility (ICC) ranged from 0.81 (activities subscale) to 0.93 (symptoms subscale). The AQLQ was significantly correlated with an asthma disease severity scale and the Health Utilities Index (p < 0.001). No relationship was found between the AQLQ score and FEV1% predicted. Men reported better overall quality of life (QoL), fewer activity limitations and less environmental exposure than women (p < 0.01), while patients with a high school education or less had more severe asthma and poorer QoL across all subscales (p < 0.001). This may reflect the differential experiences of asthma across gender and socioeconomic groups. The results suggest that the AQLQ may be a useful outcome measure for clinical trials conducted in the USA.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

The spanish version of the paediatric asthma quality of life questionnaire (PAQLQ): metric characteristics and equivalence with the original version.

UNLABELLED: The Paediatric Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAQLQ), developed by Juniper et al., assesses the impact of asthma on children's daily life. It contains 23 items, covering three dimensions: symptoms, activities limitation and emotional function. AIMS: To develop an equivalent Spanish version of the PAQLQ, and to assess its measurement characteristics. METHODS: The forward and back-translation method was used for the adaptation. A longitudinal study (assessments at the 1st and 5th weeks), with patients from the emergency and outpatient departments of three Spanish hospitals, was designed to test the properties of the new adapted version. At each visit, a trained interviewer administered the PAQLQ, a Global Index of Change and a General Health Perception scale. The Peak Expiratory Flow Rate (PEFR) was also recorded daily, together with symptoms, during the prior week. RESULTS: Ninety-nine patients (66.7% males, 42.4% suffering an exacerbation, mean age of 11.3 years) with the following types of asthma were evaluated: mild intermittent (31.3%), mild persistent (36.4%), moderate persistent (29.3%) and severe persistent (3%). At the 1st visit, the mean pre-bronchodilator %PEFR was 87.3%. The Cronbach's alpha ranged from 0.86 to 0.95. As expected, correlations between the PAQLQ scores, and the Asthma Control Score (0.53-0.67), the General Health Perception (0.34-0.55), and the %PEFR (0.44-0.55) were moderate. The PAQLQ scores remained unchanged in stable patients while increased significantly in those showing improvements. CONCLUSIONS: After a standard cross-cultural adaptation process, the Spanish version of the PAQLQ has shown to be equivalent to the original, with similar internal consistency reliability, validity and sensitivity to clinical changes.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Health-related quality of life in asthma: a comparison between the St George's Respiratory Questionnaire and the Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire.

The aim of the study is to compare the performance of the Juniper Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ) and the St George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ) in a sample of asthmatic patients, representative of a broad spectrum of asthma severity. We studied 116 patients with a mean age (SD) of 42.6 (18.3) year. Patients were assessed twice, at recruitment and after 2 months, to determine the reliability, validity and responsiveness of the AQLQ and the SGRQ. Both questionnaires showed good reliability coefficients (> or = 0.70) which reached the standards for comparison at individual level (> or = 0.90) in the case of activity, impacts and overall SGRQ scores as well as symptoms, activities and overall AQLQ scores. Both AQLQ and SGRQ were able to discriminate among groups of patients based on asthma severity and control and showed, except for the symptoms domain of the SGRQ, large (standardized response means >0.8) and significant changes in the group of patients that improved at follow-up. We conclude that the AQLQ and SGRQ have shown high reliability and validity and, with the exception of the SGRQ symptoms, a high level of responsiveness. In overall terms, not one of these instruments seems to behave better than the other.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Methyl jasmonate as an allelopathic agent: sagebrush inhibits germination of a neighboring tobacco, Nicotiana attenuata.

Artemisia tridentata ssp. tridentata is the dominant and defining shrub in the Great Basin Desert, with well-documented allelopathic tendencies that have generally been ascribed to its most abundantly released secondary metabolites. However, as a minor component, sagebrush releases a highly biologically active substance, methyljasmonate (MeJA), which is known to function as both a germination inhibitor and promoter in laboratory studies. Nicotiana attenuata is a tobacco species native to the Great Basin Desert and grows in newly burned juniper-sagebrush habitats for 2-3 yr following a fire. With a combination of field and laboratory studies, we examined the role of MeJA release from sagebrush by both air and water transport in inhibiting N. attenuata seed germination. We demonstrated that sagebrush interacts allelopathically with the seed bank of N. attenuata through its release of MeJA. In the field, seeds buried 0-40 cm from sagebrush plants for 4 months in net bags had significantly reduced germination compared to seeds buried similarly but protected in plastic bags. Moreover, germination on soils collected from underneath sagebrush plants was reduced by 60% compared to seeds placed on soils collected between sagebrush plants or outside of the sagebrush population. Exposure to A. tridentata seeds and seedlings did not affect N. attenuata germination, suggesting that established sagebrush plants only influence the tobacco's seed bank. In the laboratory, exposure of seeds to sagebrush emissions resulted in germination delays of up to 6 d. Exposure to volatile and aqueous MeJA also inhibited germination of N. attenuata seeds at quantities that are released naturally by sagebrush: 3.5 microg/hr and 1.12 microg/seed cup (56 ng/seed), respectively. A. tridentata seeds were significantly more resistant to MeJA, being inhibited at 336 microg MeJA (16.8 microg/seed), 300 times greater than the level of aqueous MeJA required to inhibit N. attenuata seeds. MeJA inhibited N. attenuata germination regardless of the seed's dormancy state and the specific epimer (trans- or cis-) of MeJA. Germination on sagebrush chaff that had been heated to reduce MeJA content was negatively correlated with the amount of MeJA remaining in the chaff. Germination of a nondormant, conspecific tobacco, N. trigonophylla, which grows in the same area but is not associated with fire, is less sensitive than N. attenuata to the extracts of sagebrush litter, but similarly sensitive to MeJA. Additionally, four of five other tobacco species that are not known to be associated with sagebrush are less sensitive to MeJA, suggesting an evolved sensitivity to MeJA. To determine the proportion of germination inhibition of a sagebrush extract that could be attributed to MeJA, we serially diluted sagebrush extracts with water and restored the quantity of MeJA of the original extract by adding appropriate quantities of synthetic MeJA; 16-60% of the inhibitory activity of the original extract could be attributed to the MeJA. We conclude that MeJA release from sagebrush plays an allelopathic role for N. attenuata seed banks, but other unidentified compounds are also involved.

Acetates↗
PubMed1998

The responsiveness of disease-specific and generic health measures to changes in the severity of asthma among adults.

The objective of the study was to compare the validity of asthma-specific and generic health outcome measures in relation to changes in the severity of asthma and to treatment. Adult patients (n = 142) participating in a randomized placebo-controlled trial at six clinics were assessed at baseline, prior to the withdrawal (placebo) or continuation of treatment with Vanceril and again after 8 weeks. The criterion measures of change in severity included pulmonary function expressed as the percent predicted FEV1, five physician-assessed asthma severity measures (cough, chest tightness, wheezing, shortness of breath and overall condition) and two patient-assessed severity measures (night-time symptoms and overall symptoms). The 8 week change scores were estimated for all generic and specific measures and the results were compared across groups of patients who did and did not change in terms of clinical criteria of disease severity and across treatment groups. The responsiveness of each generic and specific measure was estimated independently using the relative validity (RV) methodology, which compares F-ratios for the mean change scores across measures in analyses of the same comparison groups. RV coefficients estimate how much worse each measure discriminated between comparison groups, relative to the best measure (RV = 1.0). Four standardized asthma-specific measures and a total scale score (based on the Marks questionnaire), an individualized asthma-specific scale measuring limitations in activities most important to each patient (based on the Juniper method) and two newly-developed scales measuring physical and psychosocial symptoms were used as outcome measures, generic health outcome measures included eight functional health and well-being scales as well as the physical and mental health summary scales from the SF-36 health survey. A standardized asthma-specific scale was most valid in discriminating between groups of patients who did and did not change according to all of the clinical criterion variables studied and in discriminating between treated and untreated groups. Different scales performed best, depending on the clinical criterion. The asthma-specific Marks breathlessness scale was significant in all nine comparisons (RV = 0.62-1.0) and was most valid in discriminating between groups in six of nine tests. The overall scale also performed well in all comparisons (RV = 0.58-1.0). The newly-developed physical symptoms scale was significant in discriminating between groups in eight out of nine tests (RV = 0.52-1.0) and was most valid in three of the nine, including the treatment comparison. The psychosocial impact scale discriminated significantly in eight of the nine comparisons (RV = 0.16-0.38), but was less valid than other specific measures. The asthma-specific individualized activities scale discriminated significantly in seven of the nine tests, but performed less well than the other specific measures (RV = 0.21-0.35) and was not significant in the treatment comparison. One or more SF-36 scales discriminated significantly between groups in all nine comparisons. Two of those scales (physical functioning and role-physical) were consistently more valid than the others (RV = 0.17 and 0.58, respectively) and were the only two generic scales that discriminated between groups of patients defined in terms of changes in FEV1 (RV = 0.26-0.58). The SF-36 physical summary scale discriminated significantly between groups in all nine comparisons (RV = 0.19-0.61) and was the most valid generic measure in the treatment comparison (RV = 0.55). The SF-36 mental summary scale was significant only for the two patient-assessed changes in disease severity (RV = 0.31 and 0.32) and for physician-assessed overall severity (RV = 0.12). A comprehensive battery of generic and specific measures is likely to be most useful in understanding the impact of changes in disease severity on the functional health and well-being of adults with asthma, a

Activities of Daily Living↗