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Biomedical subjects

A J Moore

Publications and source records attributed to A J Moore.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1995

Genetic aspects of communication during male-male competition in the Madagascar hissing cockroach: honest signalling of size.

Male Madagascar hissing cockroaches, Gromphadorhina portentosa, engage in agonistic contests with other males and produce audible sounds or 'hisses' during these interactions. Hisses are used to maintain, rather than to establish, social relationships among males. The agonistic hisses of males are variable and could be used as signals to communicate size or competitive ability of an individual. In this study we examined how size influences male-male competition, as well as the genetic variation and covariation of male body size and components of the agonistic hiss. We found that male size affected the outcome of agonistic interactions between pairs of males: a male that dominated in a pair was significantly larger than the male that was subordinate. However, we found no differences in the hisses produced by dominant and subordinate males after controlling for male weight. We estimated heritabilities, evolvability and genetic correlations for male size and characteristics of the hiss from a full-sib analysis of brothers. The patterns of heritabilities and evolvabilities were very similar. The heritabilities of both male weight and duration of the hiss were significantly greater than zero. There was a significant positive genetic correlation between duration of the agonistic hiss and male weight, and a significant negative genetic correlation between hiss duration and the beginning dominant frequency. There was also a positive phenotypic correlation and a negative environmental correlation between male weight and hiss duration. Thus, hiss duration can signal the present influence of the environment on male size, whereas information from hiss duration and beginning dominant frequency can signal the male's ability to transmit genetic influence for size.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Outcome after repeat lumbar microdiscectomy.

One of the standard treatments for herniation of lumbosacral disc material has become the microdiscectomy. Although multiple studies have assessed the outcome of microdiscectomy, only a few studies have evaluated the outcome of those patients who have undergone a second microdiscectomy at the same location as the original one. The purpose of this study was to review 55 patients who, over a 4-year period, underwent a second microdiscectomy at the same location as their original operation and to evaluate those factors associated with improved outcomes. The results showed the overall outcome to include 86% with complete or partial relief of all pain symptoms; 88% with complete or partial relief of sciatica; 85% with complete or partial relief of back pain; 100% returning to work in an average of 7 weeks; and 89% were glad they had the second operation. Those factors without predictive value included age, sex, weight, height, level of operation, side of operation, surgeon at the first or second operation (e.g. consultant or junior staff), length of the first operation ( < or = 60 min or > 60 min) and duration of symptoms before the first operation. The key features centred on preoperative job status, the interval between recurrence of symptoms and the second operation, and the duration of the second operation ( < or = 90 min).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Coronary heart disease risk factors in a rural and urban Orange Free State black population.

OBJECTIVE: To determine and compare the prevalence of ischaemic heart disease (IHD) risk factors in a rural and an urban black population. DESIGN: A survey to determine the prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, smoking, obesity, central obesity and dyslipidaemia in black subjects 25 years and older. SETTING: The indigenous black populations of QwaQwa and Mangaung. PARTICIPANTS: A random sample of 950 households was selected from each area. From each household an unrelated male and/or female subject was selected in a standardised way. From QwaQwa 853 subjects (279 men and 574 women) and from Mangaung 758 subjects (290 men and 468 women) participated in the study. The response rate was 68% and 62% respectively for QwaQwa and Mangaung. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Few urban-rural differences in the prevalence of IHD risk factors were found in this study. A low prevalence of clustering of major IHD risk factors was noted. RESULTS: The age- and sex-adjusted prevalences of hypertension were 29% in QwaQwa and 30.3% in Mangaung. Diabetes was present in 4.8% of the QwaQwa sample and 6% of the Mangaung sample. The prevalence of heavy smoking in the Mangaung sample was almost double that of the QwaQwa sample and mostly confined to men. High-risk hypercholesterolaemia was present in 12.5% of QwaQwa and 6% of Mangaung men in the 25-34-year age group. The corresponding figures for moderate-risk hypercholesterolaemia were 34% and 44.8% and both levels of risk declined with increasing age. The mean body mass index of women in both samples exceeded 25 kg/m2. CONCLUSION: All the elements for a potential epidemic of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease are present in the study populations. The similarity of findings in the two samples may be indicative of the advanced stage of urbanisation and westernisation of the rural group. It is alarming that subjects in the younger age groups tended to have the highest prevalences of moderate and even high-risk hypercholesterolaemia.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Systematics of the Saguinus oedipus group of the bare-face tamarins: evidence from facial morphology.

The systematics of the Saguinus oedipus group within the bare-face tamarins remains open to question. Hershkovitz (Living New World Monkeys (Platyrrhini), Vol.1. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1977) places the cotton-top and rufus-naped tamarins as subspecies of Saguinus oedipus (S. o. oedipus and S. o. geoffroyi, respectively). In contrast, several other authors have argued that these two taxa should be considered separate species (S. oedipus and S. geoffroyi). Phylogenetic relationships within the group are also disputed. Resolving these different interpretations has been difficult in part because no study of this group has included an objective measure of expected levels of specific vs. subspecific variation. We used facial measurements from 179 adult crania to address the systematics of this group and included a related species that is known to include multiple subspecies. Our sample included three taxa from the S. oedipus group of the bare-face tamarins (S. oedipus, S. geoffroyi, and S. leucopus) and six subspecies from the related hairy-face tamarin species S. fuscicollis. Comparisons to S. leucopus provided a relative measure of species-level differences. Analyses that included S. fuscicollis provided a measure of subspecific variation. There was no evidence of facial sexual dimorphism in any of these taxa. A variety of multivariate statistical analyses including discriminant function and cluster analysis suggest that S. oedipus and S. geoffroyi differ morphologically at a level consistent with species-level distinctions. The extent of differences between these taxa is large. The differences in their facial morphology was on the order of differences between S. oedipus or S. geoffroyi and S. leucopus rather than the extent of variation among S. fuscicollis subspecies. Furthermore, a comparison of collecting localities revealed that the variation we observed among S. oedipus and S. geoffroyi was not clinical but presented a large morphological discontinuity at the boundary between taxa. Our analyses also suggested that S. leucopus is more similar to S. oedipus than is either to S. geoffroyi. Finally, it may be that there are some distinct species within the S. fuscicollis group. However, this hypothesis, along with other phylogenetic relationships suggested by this study, will require more data and further study.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Heritability and association of cortical petalias in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta).

Frontal and occipital petalias, the anterior or posterior protrusions of a cerebral lobe on one side or the other, are among the most striking anatomical asymmetries in human brains. Our previous studies of rhesus macaques revealed a relatively high frequency of right frontal petalias, whereas occipital petalias were seen less often and were equally common on right and left sides. In the present study, we test the hypothesis that variation in frontal and occipital lobular morphology is, in part, genetically based, and that frontal and occipital petalias are associated with one another. With a sample of 403 rhesus macaque endocasts, we found that right frontal petalias were more commonly associated with left occipital petalias than would be expected by chance. The concurrence of right frontal and left occipital petalias is the most common variant in human brains. We also found significant but moderate heritability for frontal petalias, while the heritability estimate for occipital petalias was relatively low and not statistically significant. This result suggests a genetic basis for variation in the degree of anatomical cerebral lateralization.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Sexual selection in Nauphoeta cinerea: inherited mating preference?

In the cockroach, Nauphoeta cinerea, female preferences with respect to sexual selection can be easily examined. Mating is nonrandom due to female preferences based on olfactory differences among males. This mate choice results in a mating advantage for socially dominant males. In this paper, results of experiments designed to explore the relationship between female choice in daughters and the preferred male character are described. Using females with male parents of known status and an olfactometer to determine preferences, it is shown that the type of male preferred depends on the status of the female's father. Because social experiences of females were experimentally controlled, these preliminary results suggest that (1) variation in female preferences may have a genetic basis and (2) because of assortative mating, mate choice may be genetically linked to the preferred male character, as predicted by mathematical models of the sexual selection process. N. cinerea appears to be an ideal species for testing predictions and assumptions of models of sexual selection.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Allometry of resting metabolic rate in cockroaches.

1. Resting VO2 at 22.7 degrees C was 0.217 +/- 0.007 ml O2/g/hr in Nauphoeta cinerea of 0.51 +/- 0.008 g body mass. 2. Whole animal resting metabolic rate for 11 cockroach species scaled allometrically: VO2 = 0.261 M0.776. 3. Allometry of resting VO2 among cockroach species is similar to that in vertebrates, and is consistent with models based on both "elastic similarity" and "biological similitude."

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Anterior decompression and stabilization of the spine in malignant disease.

Evidence has accumulated that indicates that laminectomy with or without radiotherapy is not necessarily the best mode of treatment for all cases of spinal cord compression of malignant pathogenesis. Success is limited, and there is a high risk of adverse neurological developments, particularly where there is anterior vertebral collapse. A prospective series of 26 consecutive patients with neurological complications of neoplastic extradural cord compression is described. Anterior decompression followed by stabilization in a single stage procedure was selected as the most appropriate method of treatment for all 26 patients. Various techniques were used in the replacement of the excised vertebral body, including the use of two types of prosthesis created specifically for the purpose. Of the patients who were not ambulatory at the time of surgery, 62% became so postoperatively; 71% of those with intractable pain were pain free after surgery. The postoperative mortality rate was 30%, which reflected the poor condition of the patients; in light of this, the criteria for operative selection are reviewed. Neurological deterioration did not occur in any patient. The method is recommended, for selected patients, for the management of cord compression caused by collapse of the vertebral body. The patient's prospects of restored ability to walk after a single-stage operation are good, and the risk of adverse neurological effects is negligible.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Brain tumors. What are the general and focal effects?

In most patients with brain tumor, manifestations are due to a combination of increased intracranial pressure and focal changes in brain function. Specific signs and symptoms depend more on the location of the tumor than its histology, and tumors affecting vital sites in the brain may cause rapid deterioration and death. Increased intracranial pressure alone may blunt the intellect and cause confusion and memory difficulties. In some cases, confusion is caused by the effects of the therapeutic agents.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Remineralization of softened bovine enamel following treatment of overlying plaque with a mineral-enriching solution.

Pre-softened, gauze-covered bovine enamel blocks were worn in the buccal sulcus of five subjects for seven days. Artificial plaque enmeshed in the gauze was treated four times per day for four days with an enzyme-dependent mineralizing solution, resulting in 20-, 10-, and 200-fold increases in Ca, P, and F, respectively. Enamel beneath this mineral-enriched plaque recovered 37% of the hardness lost from pre-softening, while control enamel beneath untreated plaque recovered only 14%. Test enamel contained from five to 13 times as much F as did control enamel in the outer four layers sampled. Even though direct use of the mineralizing solution without the interposition of plaque caused a hardness recovery and F uptake similar to those in test enamel in vivo, a direct solution effect on enamel is not thought to explain the in vivo effects. Plaque treated with the urea-containing solution rapidly reaches a pH greater than 8, when a precipitate develops, leaving much-reduced ion concentrations in solution. Direct exposure of softened enamel to such a supernatant resulted in reduced hardness recovery and F uptake. It is concluded that the in vivo enamel remineralization was due mainly to the presence of a mineral phase in the overlying plaque. This mineral could have promoted remineralization by creating mildly supersaturated conditions during normal plaque pH cycles.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Fluoride uptake by partially-decalcified enamel: a study of possible involvement of acid phosphate ions.

Ionic fluoride and HPO(2-)4 concentrations were determined in partially-decalcified enamels before and after exposure to NaF or MFP toothpastes, to determine whether fluoride uptake could be attributed to reactions with HPO(2-)4. Acid phosphate concentrations did not alter upon exposure to fluoride, even though large uptake of fluoride did occur. Infra-red spectroscopy showed HPO(2-)4 in artificially decalcified enamel to be adsorbed rather than present as a discrete secondary orthophosphate.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

The design and development of a computerised I.T.U. planned preventive maintenance system.

This paper outlines the design and development of a Planned Preventive Maintenance System, from its initiation in 1973 through to a fully computerised package in 1979, Manual, semi-automatic, and fully computerised systems are compared and the philosophy behind the computer package described in detail along with the file store. The objectives behind the establishment of the computer system are discussed and an assessment of the package by the West Midlands Regional Health Authority is detailed. Conclusions are reached concerning the effectiveness of the package in an Intensive Therapy Unit and suggestions make with regard to the incorporation of the present Estmancode system onto a computer; enabling the package to be used by Works Departments.

Computers↗
PubMed1977

Prevention of thromboembolic disease by external pneumatic compression in patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty.

A prospective study was undertaken in order to test the efficacy of intermittent calf compression for prevention of thromboembolism in patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty. The patients were studied pre- and postoperatively by routine Doppler ultrasound examinations in addition to clinical assessment. Statistically significant evidence substantiates the view that intermittent calf compression decreased the incidence of thr thromboembolic problem.

Adolescent↗