A Somatomedin Assay using Normal Rabbit Cartilage in Clinical Studies

1975 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 403-409 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Marvin Bala ◽  
Catherine Hankins ◽  
Glen R. Smith

Somatomedin (SM) is a growth hormone (GH) dependent biological growth factor in serum. A SM assay, using mechanically sliced discs from young normal rabbit costal cartilage was developed and evaluated. This assay is as sensitive and precise, while much less laborious and costly, than the hypophysectomized rat cartilage SM assay. The elevated serum SM levels in patients with acromegaly returned to normal in two patients who were cured, and remained elevated in four incompletely treated patients. The low serum SM levels in five GH deficient patients were increased to normal after treatment with human GH. SM levels were normal in 10 patients with normal GH levels and short stature due to various causes. SM levels in serum were very low in patients with chronic renal insufficiency; the mean SM level increased significantly after renal transplantation, however, it increased only minimally after hemodialysis. SM levels were subnormal in 14 patients with severe chronic liver disease. One patient with severe acute liver disease had low serum SM levels which increased after clinical recovery. These results further suggest that the liver produces SM, while the relationship of the kidney and SM is not clear.

Author(s):  
Sergey Staroverov ◽  
Sergey Kozlov ◽  
Alexander Fomin ◽  
Konstantib Gabalov ◽  
Alexey Volkov ◽  
...  

Background: The liver disease problem prompts investigators to search for new methods of liver treatment. Introduction: Silymarin (Sil) protects the liver by reducing the concentration of free radicals and the extent of damage to the cell membranes. A particularly interesting method to increase the bioavailability of Sil is to use synthesized gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) as reagents. The study considered whether it was possible to use the silymarin-AuNP conjugate as a potential liver-protecting drug. Method: AuNPs were conjugated to Sil and examine the liver-protecting activity of the conjugate. Experimental hepatitis and hepatocyte cytolysis after carbon tetrachloride actionwere used as a model system, and the experiments were conducted on laboratory animals. Result: For the first time, silymarin was conjugated to colloidal gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). Electron microscopy showed that the resultant preparations were monodisperse and that the mean conjugate diameter was 18–30 nm ± 0.5 nm (mean diameter of the native nanoparticles, 15 ± 0.5 nm). In experimental hepatitis in mice, conjugate administration interfered with glutathione depletion in hepatocytes in response to carbon tetrachloride was conducive to an increase in energy metabolism, and stimulated the monocyte–macrophage function of the liver. The results were confirmed by the high respiratory activity of the hepatocytes in cell culture. Conclusion: We conclude that the silymarin-AuNP conjugate holds promise as a liver-protecting agent in acute liver disease caused by carbon tetrachloride poisoning.


1970 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 583-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert V. Carron

The present report is based on reanalysis of data of Marisi (1969) in order to examine the relationship of consistency of motor response among the component responses of a single motor task. 120 high school Ss were tested on a special task, the rho. A single trial on this motor task can be logically separated into three component motor responses: reaction time, a short circular movement, and a short linear movement. The results indicated that consistency of motor response was moderately reliable within the response components but tended to be response-component specific. Further, both the reliability and specificity of motor-response consistency were independent of the size of the mean performance scores.


2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 249-260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Waag Carlson ◽  
Virginia J. Neelon ◽  
John R. Carlson ◽  
Marilyn Hartman ◽  
Sunil Dogra

The aim of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship of electroencephalogram (EEG) arousals to breathing patterns and the relationship of both arousals and breathing patterns to arterial oxygenation during sleep in older adults. Five older adults were monitored using standard polysomnography. Records were divided into 5-min segments and breathing patterns identified based on the level of respiratory periodicity and the variability in the frequency of breathing cycles. Standard criteria were used to determine sleep states and occurrence of EEG arousals. High respiratory periodicity was seen in 23% of the segments, whereas 24% had low respiratory periodicity with minimal variability in the frequency of breathing (Type A low respiratory periodicity) and 53% had low respiratory periodicity with high variability in the frequency of breathing (Type B low respiratory periodicity). Nearly all (97%) segments with high respiratory periodicity had EEG arousals, whereas fewer segments (33%) with low respiratory periodicity had arousals, regardless of the stage of sleep. Desaturations occurred more often in segments with high respiratory periodicity, F (2,4) = 57.3, p < .001, but overall, the mean SaO2 of segments with high respiratory periodicity did not differ from levels seen in segments with low respiratory periodicity, F( 2,4) = 0.77, ns. Our findings suggest that high respiratory periodicity is a common feature of EEG arousals and, in older adults, may be important for maintaining oxygen levels during desaturations during sleep.


BMJ Open ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (9) ◽  
pp. e017058 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alba Sánchez-Mascuñano ◽  
Cristina Masuet-Aumatell ◽  
Sergio Morchón-Ramos ◽  
Josep M Ramon

ObjectivesThe aim of this study is to analyse the relationship between smoking andaltitude mountain sicknessin a cohort of travellers to 2500 metres above sea level (masl) or higher.SettingTravel Health Clinic at the Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, in Barcelona, Spain.ParticipantsA total of 302 adults seeking medical advice at the travel clinic, between July 2012 and August 2014, before travelling to 2500 masl or above, who agreed to participate in the study and to be contacted after the trip were included. Individuals who met the following criteria were excluded: younger than 18 years old, taking carbonic anhydrase inhibitors for chronic use, undergoing treatment with systemic corticosteroids and taking any medication that might prevent or treat altitude mountain sickness (AMS) prior to or during the trip. The majority of participants were women (n=156, 51.7%). The mean age was 37.7 years (SD 12.3). The studied cohort included 74 smokers (24.5%), 158 (52.3%) non-smokers and 70 (23.2%) ex-smokers. No statistical differences were observed between different sociodemographic characteristics, constitutional symptoms or drug use and smoking status.OutcomesThe main outcome was the development of AMS, which was defined according to the Lake Louise AMS criteria.ResultsAMS, according to the Lake Louise score, was significantly lower in smokers; the value was 14.9%, 95% CI (6.8 to 23.0%) in smokers and 29.4%, 95% CI (23.5 to 35.3%) in non-smokers with an adjusted OR of 0.54, 95% CI (0.31 to 0.97) independent of gender, age and maximum altitude reached.ConclusionsThese results suggest that smoking could reduce the risk of AMS in non-acclimated individuals. Further studies should be performed in larger cohorts of travellers to confirm these results. Despite the results, smoking must be strongly discouraged because it greatly increases the risk of cardiorespiratory diseases, cancer and other diseases.


2013 ◽  
Vol 71 (4) ◽  
pp. 216-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos Cosentino ◽  
Yesenia Nuñez ◽  
Luis Torres

Introduction: Non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease are often not well recognized in clinical practice. Non-motor symptoms questionnaire (NMSQuest) is a simple instrument that allows patients or caregivers to report non-motor symptoms in a practical manner. Objective: We attempted to determine the prevalence of non-motor symptoms in three hundred Parkinson's disease outpatients. Results: The mean total non-motor symptoms was 12.41, ranging from 0 to 27 of a maximum of 30. At least one was present in 99.3% of patients. A progressive increase in mean total score was observed across each 5-year interval. Depression domain scored the most “positive” answers while urinary and anxiety /memory were secondly and thirdly most prevalent respectively. Conclusion: The large number of patients included in this study allowed evaluation of the occurrence of non-motor symptoms in early and advanced disease in addition to the relationship of these kinds of symptoms with progression of disease.


SLEEP ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 44 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. A248-A248
Author(s):  
Kristi Porterfield-Pruss ◽  
Denise Willis ◽  
Beverly Spray ◽  
Supriya Jambhekar

Abstract Introduction Limited evidence suggests a familial association of OSA. It is not known how often children who require positive airway pressure (PAP) devices have a family member with OSA or that requires PAP. It is felt that PAP adherence in children is affected by PAP adherence in parents. We wanted to explore the relationship of OSA in children requiring PAP to OSA in immediate family members as well as the association of obesity and adherence between children and family members. Methods Caregivers of children who utilize PAP devices at home were invited to complete an electronic questionnaire regarding family history of OSA. Descriptive statistics were utilized to summarize results. Results The study was completed by 75 participants. The majority of children were male (64%, 48/75), black (47%, 35/75) and non-Hispanic (88%, 66/75). The mean age was 11.8 years (median 13) and mean BMI was 32.8 (median 29.8). The mean AHI on the diagnostic polysomnogram was 28.4 events per hour (median 15.3). Mean adherence to PAP &gt; 4 hours per night was 56.5 (Median 68.2). Most, 87% (65/75), have other underlying medical problems. Twenty-four percent (18/75) have a biological father with OSA of whom 61% (11/18) are considered moderately/extremely obese. Of mothers, 13% (10/75) have OSA and 70% (7/10) are obese. Overall, 29% (22/75) had either a paternal (11%, 8/75) or maternal (19%, 14/75) grandfather with OSA of which 36% (8/22) are obese. For grandmothers, 31% (23/75) have OSA and 22% (5/23) are obese with more being paternal (19%, 14/75) compared to maternal (12%, 9/75). Of the 73 total family members reported to have OSA, 86% (63/73) use PAP and most (65%, 41/63) use it for &gt; 4 hours every night. Few participants had siblings with OSA. Conclusion There were more fathers with OSA than mothers, but mothers were reported to be obese more often. Grandparents were reported to have OSA but were reported to be obese less often than parents. Maternal grandparents with OSA were reported to be obese more than paternal grandparents. The majority of family members with OSA who use CPAP report nightly use. Support (if any):


Blood ◽  
1975 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 599-609 ◽  
Author(s):  
ER Eichner ◽  
CJ Paine ◽  
VL Dickson ◽  
MD Jr Hargrove

Abstract We studied the effect of serum folate-binding protein (FBP) on folate radioassays and the relationship of the serum level of unsaturated FBP to the serum folate level in various clinical states. Our modification of a heat-extracted radioassay was compared to a whole serum radioassay. Our results confirmed the existence of elevated serum levels of unsaturated FBP in some normal subjects, in some women taking oral contraceptives, and in most patients with uremia. Elevated levels of unsaturated FBP will produce falsely low results in folate radioassay unless the FBP has been destroyed by heat, as was done in the modified radioassay here presented. In normal and uremic subjects, serum folate and unsaturated FBP levels tended to correlate, whereas in patients taking large doses of folic acid the level of unsaturated FBP fell as the level of serum folate rose.


2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Donogh Maguire ◽  
Dinesh Talwar ◽  
Alana Burns ◽  
Anthony Catchpole ◽  
Fiona Stefanowicz ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) is routinely treated with B-vitamins. However, the relationship between thiamine status and outcome is rarely examined. The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between thiamine and magnesium status in patients with AWS. Methods Patients (n = 127) presenting to the Emergency Department with AWS were recruited to a prospective observational study. Blood samples were drawn to measure whole blood thiamine diphosphate (TDP) and serum magnesium concentrations. Routine biochemistry and haematology assays were also conducted. The Glasgow Modified Alcohol Withdrawal Score (GMAWS) measured severity of AWS. Seizure history and current medications were also recorded. Results The majority of patients (99%) had whole blood TDP concentration within/above the reference interval (275–675 ng/gHb) and had been prescribed thiamine (70%). In contrast, the majority of patients (60%) had low serum magnesium concentrations (< 0.75 mmol/L) and had not been prescribed magnesium (93%). The majority of patients (66%) had plasma lactate concentrations above 2.0 mmol/L. At 1 year, 13 patients with AWS had died giving a mortality rate of 11%. Male gender (p < 0.05), BMI < 20 kg/m2 (p < 0.01), GMAWS max ≥ 4 (p < 0.05), elevated plasma lactate (p < 0.01), low albumin (p < 0.05) and elevated serum CRP (p < 0.05) were associated with greater 1-year mortality. Also, low serum magnesium at time of recruitment to study and low serum magnesium at next admission were associated with higher 1-year mortality rates, (84% and 100% respectively; both p < 0.05). Conclusion The prevalence of low circulating thiamine concentrations were rare and it was regularly prescribed in patients with AWS. In contrast, low serum magnesium concentrations were common and not prescribed. Low serum magnesium was associated more severe AWS and increased 1-year mortality.


Author(s):  
B.L. Evatt ◽  
D. Triplett ◽  
J. Koepke

The independent effects that different thromboplastins and types of methods have on prothrombin time were studied by analyzing data from a 1977 proficiency testing survey of 2735 laboratories. Each laboratory received three plasma samples with prothrombin times of approximately 12, 16 and 24 seconds which represented normal, partially anticoagulated, and fully anticoagulated plasma respectively. Combinations of 12 different instruments and 12 different thromboplastins were used by the laboratories in evaluating the samples. As determined by a two-way analysis of variance, both the type of thromboplastin and the type of instrument have similar effects upon the prothrombin time. When the mean prothrombin time corrected for independent effects of thromboplastin and method are plotted against the overall mean prothrombin times of each of the three types of plasma samples, the linear relationship between the two is obvious. These relationships can used to convert to a common scale a prothrombin time obtained with any thromboplastin method combination and provides a means for standardizing the prothrombin time test. Retrospective, analysis of data obtained from individual proficiency testing surveys in 1976, 1977, and 1978 suggests that the relationships remained constant during those years. These data suggest that the relationship of any thromboplastin to a thromboplastin standard should be determined independently of the method effect.


1986 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 110-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
DANIEL R. SAMPLES ◽  
SUSAN L. DILL ◽  
RONALD L. RICHTER ◽  
CHARLES W. DILL

Individual milk samples from 32 cows were analyzed to determine the relationship between somatic cell concentration and total sulfhydryl concentration (cysteine plus reduced cystine). A significant relationship was detected between somatic cell count, which ranged from 1.7 × 104 to 1.0 × 107 cells/ml, and total sulfhydryls per gram of milk protein. The regression equation, total sulfhydryls/g of milk protein = 31.96 + 7.99 (log10 somatic cell count) with r2 = 0.19, was calculated. The mean total sulfhydryl concentration was 73.1 μmol/g of protein. The minimal effect of somatic cell concentration on total sulfhydryl concentration indicates that somatic cell concentration should have little influence on chemical parameters of milk protein determined by sulfhydryl analysis when proper experimental controls are used.


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