Teaching basic gastrointestinal physiology using classic papers by Dr. Walter B. Cannon

2007 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 136-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul P. Bertrand ◽  
Rebecca L. Bertrand
Keyword(s):  
Gastrointestinal Tract ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Scientific Method ◽  
The Body ◽  
X Rays ◽  
Experimental Science ◽  
Gastrointestinal Physiology ◽  
Classic Papers ◽  
Insight Into

The movements of the gastrointestinal tract, as described by Walter B. Cannon 100 years ago, reveal much about the functions of this unique organ and how it is controlled by the body. Two classic papers by Cannon provide a rare glimpse into the hidden functions of the body and give students a great example of the scientific method in action. In this essay, we describe the basic movements and functions of the gastrointestinal tract as revealed by X-rays, contrast meals, and Cannon's careful observations. It is Cannon's experimental care and obvious interest in his subject matter that can provide your students with a taste of the excitement of discovery and insight into the processes by which experimental science moves forward.

X-ray micro tomography in the scanning electron microscope

1978 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 106-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Brünger
Keyword(s):  
Electron Beam ◽  
Electron Microscope ◽  
Scanning Electron Microscope ◽  
Target Surface ◽  
The Body ◽  
X Rays ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Micro Tomography ◽  
Scanning Electron

Reconstructive tomography is a new technique in diagnostic radiology for imaging cross-sectional planes of the human body /1/. A collimated beam of X-rays is scanned through a thin slice of the body and the transmitted intensity is recorded by a detector giving a linear shadow graph or projection (see fig. 1). Many of these projections at different angles are used to reconstruct the body-layer, usually with the aid of a computer. The picture element size of present tomographic scanners is approximately 1.1 mm2.Micro tomography can be realized using the very fine X-ray source generated by the focused electron beam of a scanning electron microscope (see fig. 2). The translation of the X-ray source is done by a line scan of the electron beam on a polished target surface /2/. Projections at different angles are produced by rotating the object.During the registration of a single scan the electron beam is deflected in one direction only, while both deflections are operating in the display tube.

Fictions of the Human Right to Health: Writing Against the Postcolonial Exotic in Western Medicine

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosemary J. Jolly
Keyword(s):  
Health Research ◽  
Western Medicine ◽  
Scientific Method ◽  
Medical Humanities ◽  
Right To Health ◽  
The Body ◽  
Health And Wellness ◽  
Human Right ◽  
Cultural Specificity ◽  
The Social

The last decade has witnessed far greater attention to the social determinants of health in health research, but literary studies have yet to address, in a sustained way, how narratives addressing issues of health across postcolonial cultural divides depict the meeting – or non-meeting – of radically differing conceptualisations of wellness and disease. This chapter explores representations of illness in which Western narrators and notions of the body are juxtaposed with conceptualisations of health and wellness entirely foreign to them, embedded as the former are in assumptions about Cartesian duality and the superiority of scientific method – itself often conceived of as floating (mysteriously) free from its own processes of enculturation and their attendant limits. In this respect my work joins Volker Scheid’s, in this volume, in using the capacity of critical medical humanities to reassert the cultural specificity of what we have come to know as contemporary biomedicine, often assumed to be

Basic Concepts and Definitions of Allergology

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoran Vrucinic
Keyword(s):  
Immune Reaction ◽  
The Body ◽  
The Other ◽  
Specific Response ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Medical Vocabulary ◽  
The Future ◽  
Basic Concepts ◽  
Basic Insight ◽  
Insight Into

The future of medicine belongs to immunology and alergology. I tried to not be too wide in description, but on the other hand to mention the most important concepts of alergology to make access to these diseases more understandable, logical and more useful for our patients, that without complex pathophysiology and mechanism of immune reaction,we gain some basic insight into immunological principles. The name allergy to medicine was introduced by Pirquet in 1906, and is of Greek origin (allos-other + ergon-act; different reaction), essentially representing the reaction of an organism to a substance that has already been in contact with it, and manifested as a specific response thatmanifests as either a heightened reaction, a hypersensitivity, or as a reduced reaction immunity. Synonyms for hypersensitivity are: altered reactivity, reaction, hypersensitivity. The word sensitization comes from the Latin (sensibilitas, atis, f.), which means sensibility,sensitivity, and has retained that meaning in medical vocabulary, while in immunology and allergology this term implies the creation of hypersensitivity to an antigen. Antigen comes from the Greek words, anti-anti + genos-genus, the opposite, anti-substance substance that causes the body to produce antibodies.

Force in Nature

2020 ◽  
pp. 146-160
Author(s):  
David Carus
Keyword(s):  
Natural Science ◽  
The Body ◽  
The Core ◽  
Thing In Itself ◽  
The Will ◽  
Insight Into

This chapter explores Schopenhauer’s concept of force, which lies at the root of his philosophy. It is force in nature and thus in natural science that is inexplicable and grabs Schopenhauer’s attention. To answer the question of what this inexplicable term is at the root of all causation, Schopenhauer looks to the will within us. Through will, he maintains that we gain immediate insight into forces in nature and hence into the thing in itself at the core of everything and all things. Will is thus Schopenhauer’s attempt to answer the question of the essence of appearance. Yet will, as it turns out, cannot be known immediately as it is subject to time, and the acts of will, which we experience within us, do not correlate immediately with the actions of the body (as Schopenhauer had originally postulated). Hence, the acts of will do not lead to an explanation of force, which is at the root of causation in nature. Schopenhauer sets out to explain what is at the root of all appearances, derived from the question of an original cause, or as Schopenhauer states “the cause of causation,” but cannot determine this essence other than by stating that it is will; a will, however, that cannot be immediately known.

scholarly journals Minimally Invasive Autopsy Practice in COVID-19 Cases: Biosafety and Findings

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 412
Author(s):  
Natalia Rakislova ◽  
Lorena Marimon ◽  
Mamudo R. Ismail ◽  
Carla Carrilho ◽  
Fabiola Fernandes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Minimally Invasive ◽  
Cause Of Death ◽  
Diffuse Alveolar Damage ◽  
The Body ◽  
Protective Equipment ◽  
Safe Alternative ◽  
Minimally Invasive Autopsy ◽  
Postmortem Studies ◽  
Death Investigation ◽  
Insight Into

Postmortem studies are crucial for providing insight into emergent diseases. However, a complete autopsy is frequently not feasible in highly transmissible diseases due to biohazard challenges. Minimally invasive autopsy (MIA) is a needle-based approach aimed at collecting samples of key organs without opening the body, which may be a valid alternative in these cases. We aimed to: a) provide biosafety guidelines for conducting MIAs in COVID-19 cases, b) compare the performance of MIA versus complete autopsy, and c) evaluate the safety of the procedure. Between October and December 2020, MIAs were conducted in six deceased patients with PCR-confirmed COVID-19, in a basic autopsy room, with reinforced personal protective equipment. Samples from the lungs and key organs were successfully obtained in all cases. A complete autopsy was performed on the same body immediately after the MIA. The diagnoses of the MIA matched those of the complete autopsy. In four patients, COVID-19 was the main cause of death, being responsible for the different stages of diffuse alveolar damage. No COVID-19 infection was detected in the personnel performing the MIAs or complete autopsies. In conclusion, MIA might be a feasible, adequate and safe alternative for cause of death investigation in COVID-19 cases.

Effects of maternal and post-weaned rumen-protected folic acid supplementation on slaughter performance and meat quality in the offspring lambs

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
H.Q. Li ◽  
B. Wang ◽  
Z. Li ◽  
H.L. Luo ◽  
C. Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Folic Acid ◽  
Gastrointestinal Tract ◽  
Meat Quality ◽  
Maternal Diet ◽  
Folic Acid Supplementation ◽  
The Body ◽  
Morphological Development ◽  
Muscle Area ◽  
Eye Muscle ◽  
Slaughter Performance

Abstract This study was undertaken to evaluate the influence of rumen-protected folic acid (RPFA) on slaughter performance, visceral organ and gastrointestinal tract coefficients, and meat quality in lambs. Sixty-six lambs from 120 Hu ewes were selected based on body weight and maternal diets, and then assigned to six groups using a randomized block experimental design in a 3 × 2 factorial arrangement. The first factor was folic acid (FA) as RPFA in the maternal diet (0 mg/kg [M0F], 16 mg/kg [M16F] or 32 mg/kg [M32F] on dry matter basis). The second factor was FA in the lambs’ diet from weaning until slaughter (0 mg/kg [OC] or 4.0 mg/kg [OF]). The results indicated that the addition of 16 mg/kg FA to the maternal diet increased pre-slaughter weight (PSW), dressing and meat percentage, the reticulum and omasum coefficients, length of the jejunum and ileum, tail fat and perirenal fat coefficient and a* value of the meat color. The addition of RPFA to the lambs’ diet increased PSW, dressing and meat percentage, eye muscle area, abomasum weight, weight and length of the small intestine, but reduced the coefficients of tail fat. A M×O interaction was observed for the weights of heart, lungs, rumen and total stomach, weight and coefficient of omental fat and the GR value. Collectively, RPFA in the maternal and lambs’ diet improved slaughter performance and meat quality by stimulating the morphological development of the gastrointestinal tract and the distribution of fat in the body.

The Effect of X Rays, DTPA, and Aspirin on the Absorption of Plutonium from the Gastrointestinal Tract of Rats

1983 ◽  
Vol 94 (1) ◽  
pp. 89 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. F. Sullivan ◽  
L. S. Gorham ◽  
B. M. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Gastrointestinal Tract ◽  
X Rays

scholarly journals The Psychoprophylactic Method of Painless Childbirth in Socialist Czechoslovakia: from State Propaganda to Activism of Enthusiasts

2016 ◽  
Vol 60 (4) ◽  
pp. 534-556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ema Hrešanová
Keyword(s):  
Pain Relief ◽  
Scientific Method ◽  
Communist Regime ◽  
The West ◽  
Medical Journals ◽  
History Of ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Pharmacological Method ◽  
Insight Into

This paper explores the history of the ‘psychoprophylactic method of painless childbirth’ in socialist Czechoslovakia, in particular, in the Czech and Moravian regions of the country, showing that it substantially differs from the course that the method took in other countries. This non-pharmacological method of pain relief originated in the USSR and became well known as the Lamaze method in western English-speaking countries. Use of the method in Czechoslovakia, however, followed a very different path from both the West, where its use was refined mainly outside the biomedical frame, and the USSR, where it ceased to be pursued as a scientific method in the 1950s after Stalin’s death. The method was imported to Czechoslovakia in the early 1950s and it was politically promoted as Soviet science’s gift to women. In the 1960s the method became widespread in practice but research on it diminished and, in the 1970s, its use declined too. However, in the 1980s, in the last decade of the Communist regime, the method resurfaced in the pages of Czechoslovak medical journals and underwent an exciting renaissance, having been reintroduced by a few enthusiastic individuals, most of them women. This article explores the background to the renewed interest in the method while providing insight into the wider social and political context that shaped socialist maternity and birth care in different periods.

scholarly journals Does the possession of virulence factor genes mean that those genes will be active?

2009 ◽  
Vol 7 (S1) ◽  
pp. S19-S28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen C. Edberg
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Gastrointestinal Tract ◽  
Virulence Factors ◽  
Alimentary Tract ◽  
The Body ◽  
Normal Flora ◽  
Mucosal Surfaces ◽  
Stomach Acid ◽  
Specific Receptors ◽  
Virulence Factor Genes

There are a number of relationships the host can establish with the microbes we ingest. For the vast majority of microbes, they have a short-lived liaison with the human host. Either they are destroyed by the stomach acid or bile, or can not establish even a temporary residency in the gastrointestinal tract. Early in life the mucosal surfaces of the body establishes a resident, and generally stable, normal flora. These normal flora microbes, the majority of which are bacteria, have specific receptors for specific areas of the alimentary tract. If the foreign microbe can establish residency, it then may transiently or permanently become part of the normal flora. However, in order to produce disease, it must possess an additional set of virulence factors. While some of these are known, many are not. Those that are known include enzymes, such as protease, lipase, and esterase. Accordingly, VFAR may not be associated with human disease and its presence or absence has no public health meaning.

THE PHYSILOGICAL CONCEPT OF AGNI AND TRIDOSH WITH REFERENCE TO GRAHANI, A LITERARY REVIEW

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (02) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vrushali P. Kale Vrushali Purushottam Kale
Keyword(s):  
Gastrointestinal Tract ◽  
Life Style ◽  
Food Habits ◽  
Digestive System ◽  
The Body ◽  
Main Role ◽  
Classical Literature ◽  
Root Cause ◽  
Digestion Process ◽  
Physiological Analysis

According to Ayurveda, Jatharagni plays main role in the digestion process. Jatharagni carries its functions through Pachaka pitta. Grahani is an organ of gastrointestinal tract located between Amashaya and Pakwashaya, where digestion takes place. According to classical literature Pitta is same as Agni. Tridosha also plays very important role in the digestion process. In the recent days, irregular life style affects the digestive system and Jatharagni very badly. Whenever Agni gets (Vikrut) unbalanced due to wrong food habits and lifestyle, it should be understood that along with Agni, Pachaka Pitta will also get disturbed. Agnimandya is the root cause of most of the disorders like Grahani. Grahani organ is the main location of Jatharagni. Grahani is the organ where Pachak Pitta and Samanvayu carry out digestion. The most important function of Grahani is digestion of food with the help of Jatharagni, Pachakpitta, Pittadhara Kala and Samnvayu. Agni inside the body, digest the food give strength and maintain health. Samanvayu regulates the movements of the Grahani and helps in digestion. Hence, in this article we attempt to analyze and correlate patho-physiology of Grahani with respect to Physiological analysis of Agni and disturbed doshas. Etiological factors induces imbalance in Jatharagni, Pachak Pitta and Samanvayu and prolonged imbalance state weakens the Pittadhara Kala, which results in disease Grahani. Health of Grahani entirely depends on balanced state of Jatharagni, Pachaka Pitta, Pittadhara Kala and Samanvayu. The irregular life style, incompatible food habits creates Ama causes Grahani, affecting the digestive system and Jatharagni very badly.

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