Biomedical subjects

B R Muller

Publications and source records attributed to B R Muller.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

A new antiglycolytic agent.

BACKGROUND: Glycolysis is not completely or predictably inhibited by the glucose preservative currently in use, with glucose values falling by as much as 0.5 mmol/L during a 2-4-h period after sample collection. Immediate centrifugation of all samples is also impractical and therefore misdiagnosis of disease can occur, especially if more emphasis is being placed on fasting glucose for the diagnosis of diabetes. METHODS: Glycolysis at room temperature was evaluated over time using glyceraldehyde alone as well as in conjunction with standard antiglycolytic agents. RESULTS: Glyceraldehyde alone does not inhibit glycolysis completely. The combination of 11 mmol/L glyceraldehyde, 119 mmol/L sodium fluoride and 21.7 mmol/L potassium oxalate gave the best antiglycolytic results. The glucose values measured in samples stored at room temperature for 48 h was no different from those measured in samples centrifuged immediately after venepuncture and this is clinically superior to conventionally used sodium fluoride and potassium oxalate. CONCLUSION: Plasma glucose concentrations obtained from blood collected into tubes containing glyceraldehyde, sodium fluoride and potassium oxalate will more closely reflect those of the patient at venepuncture.

Blood Glucose↗

PubMed2002

Analysis of serum angiotensin-converting enzyme.

Serum angiotensin-converting enzyme (SACE) levels are influenced by genetic polymorphism. Interpretation of serum levels with the appropriate genotypic reference range improves the diagnostic sensitivity of the assay for sarcoidosis. SACE assays are performed by a large number of routine clinical laboratories. However, there is no external quality assessment (EQA) for SACE other than an informal regional scheme. This showed analytical performance of SACE assays to be poor, with a diversity of reference ranges, leading to widely disparate clinical classification of EQA samples. Genetic polymorphism combined with poor analytical performance suggest that perhaps SACE assays should revert to being the province of specialized laboratories.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed1996

Cataract formation in the Cronkhite-Canada syndrome.

A 69-year-old man with Cronkhite-Canada syndrome presented with a 6 month history of gradually blurring vision resulting from early lens opacities that 1 month later had reduced visual acuity to hand movement in both eyes. Extracapsular cataract extraction with intraocular lens implantation resulted in good visual rehabilitation.

Aged↗

PubMed1992

Prevalence of haemochromatosis amongst patients with diabetes mellitus.

Four hundred and six white caucasian patients with diabetes mellitus (243 male, mean age 54 +/- 16 (SD) years) were screened for haemochromatosis. Four patients had a fasting transferrin saturation > 62% and all were HLA A3 positive. Two were probable homozygotes for haemochromatosis and two heterozygotes. Homozygote haemochromatosis prevalence in this diabetic population was therefore 2/406 (0.0049) which is identical to that reported in the general population. These findings do not support a genetic relationship between the two conditions.

Adult↗

PubMed1988

C-reactive protein in haemodialysis patients with dialysis arthropathy.

Increased plasma C-reactive protein was found in one-third of 99 patients on maintenance haemodialysis and there was a significant correlation between C-reactive protein and years on haemodialysis. Patients with dialysis arthropathy had a significantly higher mean C-reactive protein than the patients with no joint symptoms. Our results suggest that chronic inflammatory reactions occur in long-term haemodialysis patients and that dialysis arthropathy may have an inflammatory basis.

C-Reactive Protein↗

PubMed1984

Urinary iron loss in the nephrotic syndrome--an unusual cause of iron deficiency with a note on urinary copper losses.

Two patients with long-standing nephrotic syndrome are described in whom urinary iron losses may have contributed towards an iron deficiency state. Seven other nephrotic patients were also studied. Increased urinary iron excretion was found in six out of nine patients and increased urinary copper excretion in all eight patients in whom it was measured. Trace metal losses in the urine in nephrotics may be important clinically.

Adult↗

PubMed1983

Early time course of the acute phase protein response in man.

The rate at which the acute phase protein response occurred after both major and minor surgery was explored. Increases in the plasma concentration of C-reactive protein (CRP), alpha-1-acid glycoprotein (alpha 1 AG) and fibrinogen were not detected until 6-8 h after the initial incision. The peak concentration of CRP occurred at 48 h and that of fibrinogen at 96 h; alpha 1 AG concentrations rose rapidly until 48 h followed by little change until about 120 h. Although there was widespread variation in the concentrations of individual proteins in patients, severity of injury did not seem to have a significant effect on the time course of the change. Plasma cortisol concentration and the total white blood cell count (WBC) reached their peaks before the acute phase proteins, cortisol at 6 h and WBC at 12 h.

C-Reactive Protein↗

PubMed1979

Identification and incidence of a urinary fragment of IgG.

Urine from some patients, when concentrated approximately three hundred fold and immunoelectrophoresed against anti-IgG, shows an unexpected additional precipitin line in the alpha-globulin region. This reaction has been shown to be due to the presence of a low molecular weight (approximately 20 000) fragment of the heavy chain of IgG. A retrospective examination of immunoelectrophoretic plates run over a period of five years has revealed that this fragment was present in 30 out of 110 patients.

Humans↗

PubMedDate not supplied

IgG ratios and oligoclonal IgG in multiple sclerosis and other neurological disorders.

The findings are reported of various CSF abnormalities, including IgG indices and oligoclonal IgG, in 160 patients with multiple sclerosis of differing diagnostic certainty and 146 patients with other neurological disorders. An abnormal IgG index, defined as the ratio of IgG/albumin in CSF to that in serum, has been found in 77.7% of definite MS cases, falling to a figure of 32.1% in the single lesion group. A tendency, reported previously, for IgG levels to be higher in disabled patients, particularly those with a short history or early onset, has been confirmed. Oligoclonal IgG, on the other hand, has been found in 56% of definite MS cases, less frequently than in most other reported series. Analysis of the literature suggests considerable variability in the finding of oligoclonal IgG in other than definite MS, and in other neurological disorders. The possibility that subjective factors are partly responsible for this variability, rather than discrepancies in patient selection requires consideration, and suggests that CSF electrophoresis and IgG estimations are complementary aids in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. Differences have been expressed regarding the relationship of oligoclonal IgG to clinical parameters of the disease. Further sequential analysis of the development and variability of the oligoclonal pattern in MS is required.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Acute phase proteins in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms.

Both stenosis and aneurysmal dilatation are associated with atherosclerosis of the distal aorta. As part of an investigation into factors predisposing to aneurysmal dilatation we compared the levels of acute phase proteins in patients with stenosing and aneurysmal disease. Increased levels of acute phase proteins were found in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms compared with patients with stenosing aortic disease. In 20 aneurysm patients the C-reactive protein was 56 +/- 10 mg/l, alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor 2.5 +/- 0.13 g/l and ceruloplasmin 0.41 +/- 0.01 g/l. In 20 patients with stenosing aortic disease the C-reactive protein was 28 +/- 8 mg/l, alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor 1.65 +/- 0.11 g/l and ceruloplasmin 0.35 +/- 0.03 g/l. These results argue for the participation of an inflammatory process in the aortic wall in the pathogenesis of all aneurysms.

Acute-Phase Proteins↗