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Biomedical subjects

C J Van Dongen

Publications and source records attributed to C J Van Dongen.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Smoking and persistent mental illness: an exploratory study.

The rate of smoking is alarmingly high among persons with persistent mental illness and they are no less susceptible to the harmful effects of smoking. Nicotine is a potent, addictive drug which affects neurotransmitters. Smoking can affect psychiatric symptoms as well as blood levels of psychotropic and other medications. Most persons with mental illness are aware of the detrimental health risks of smoking and many are interested in quitting. Poor physical health is associated with efforts to quit. Personal commitment is important to successfully quitting.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

A quit smoking group. Pilot study.

1. While the rate of smoking is extremely high among persons with mental illness, there have been efforts to assist this population to quit. A 10-week smoking cessation program was provided for 10 highly nicotine dependent persons with persistent mental illness. 2. No significant differences were found in psychiatric symptoms or drug side effects prior to and after smoking cessation efforts. Four months later, for the 7 subjects who completed the program, 14% were abstinent, 43% maintained reduced tobacco intake, and 43% had resumed previous smoking patterns. 3. Specific barriers to quitting include a lack of nonsmoking coping skills, long-term identity as a smoker, ready access to tobacco products, nicotine addiction, and limited nonsmoking social support.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Is the treatment worse than the cure? Attitudes toward medications among persons with severe mental illness.

1. Patients' attitudes toward taking long-term psychotropic medications and factors that may influence drug attitudes are important factors in compliance. 2. Patients in this study had generally positive drug attitudes and perceived their medications as important in preventing relapse. 3. Attitudes toward psychotropic medications may be more positive than has been assumed by mental health professionals, as patients seem to realize that the advantages of medications outweight side effects.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Quality of life and self-esteem in working and nonworking persons with mental illness.

The purposes of this research were to examine first the relationship between work status and quality of life and self-esteem in persons with severe, persistent mental illness and secondly, the relationship between (a) demographic characteristics, attitudes toward psychotropic medications, and perceptions of the meaning of work and (b) quality of life and self-esteem in working and nonworking persons with severe mental illness. The sample included 92 persons (51 workers and 41 nonworkers). Instruments included the quality of Life (QOL) Interview (Lehman, 1983), Rosenberg's (1965) Self-Esteem Inventory, the Drug Attitude Inventory (DAI) (Hogan, 1983), and a Perception of Work instrument, developed by the researcher. Workers reported significantly higher self-esteem than did nonworkers (t = 2.17, df = 90, p = .033). A significant difference in overall QOL was not found, but workers scored higher on all but one QOL subscale. There were no significant differences in self-esteem, QOL, or valuing of work based on demographic factors. No significant differences in drug attitudes were found based on work status. Workers rated the importance of work higher than did nonworkers (t = 6.46, df = 90, p = .000). Analysis of qualitative data revealed that contrary to the nonworkers' fears, workers reported that work provided a distraction from symptoms and contributed to better mental health.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Pilot study results: the psychiatric RN case manager.

1. It is important to examine client and staff satisfaction with the RN case management (RNCM) model to enhance the quality of care in psychiatric settings. 2. Ninety-two percent of clients surveyed ranked the RNCM care as "excellent" or "above average." Clients valued most the humanistic role of the RNCM and repeatedly commented on the importance of the nurse being caring, genuine, and supportive. 3. RNCMs expressed high satisfaction with their role, which they described as collaborative with the psychiatrist, yet also professional and independent. Psychiatrists expressed a high degree of confidence that clients were receiving excellent care by competent nurse professionals.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Survivors of a family member's suicide: implications for practice.

Survivors of suicide are people who are coping with the loss of a loved one through an act of suicide. Primary health care providers are well-positioned to identify and intervene with this population, which is known to be at high risk for health disturbances. A research study was conducted to further clinicians' understanding of the experiences and needs of survivors. The major research question was, "What do adult survivors report about their perceived life experiences three to nine months after the suicide of a family member?" Data from audiotaped interviews with 35 adult survivors of suicide were analyzed to determine a description of the experiences and needs of this population. A recurrent theme discovered in the lives of survivors was the persistence of agonizing, unanswerable questions related to the death. Surviving family members struggled with why the suicide had occurred and worried about the impact of the death on themselves and others. Profound changes in the emotional, cognitive, physical and social functioning of survivors were also evident. Implications for clinical practice are discussed.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1991

Experiences of family members after a suicide.

BACKGROUND: Survivors of suicide are the family members and significant others in the life of the person who commits suicide. A recent study by the author explored the life experiences of survivors of suicide, affirmed the severity of postsuicide bereavement, and revealed the critical role of the family physician in intervention. METHODS: Thirty-five adult survivors participated in in-depth audiotaped interviews during the 3- to 9-month period after the suicide death of a family member. Demographic data and the transcribed interview data were analyzed through descriptive statistics and systematic methods of qualitative data analysis. RESULTS: Subjects stressed the importance of the family physician understanding the nature of their experiences in order to intervene effectively. All survivors experienced profound disruptions in their lives, including changes in physical, emotional, cognitive, and social functioning. Variations among survivors of suicide, based on the survivor's perception of the victim before his or her death, were evident and are illustrated by three case studies. Interventions for the family physician, including specific suggestions from survivors, are proposed. CONCLUSIONS: Survivors of suicide experience a very severe bereavement, yet significant variations exist among their responses. The family physician is identified as the key individual to initiate and ensure follow-up care for this bereaved population.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1988

Contribution of de novo synthesis of acetylcholinesterase to spontaneous recovery of neuromuscular transmission following soman intoxication.

The role of the de novo synthesis of acetylcholinesterase in the spontaneous recovery of neuromuscular transmission was studied in diaphragms isolated from soman-intoxicated rats. Ten minutes after soman (3 X LD50 i.v.), the acetylcholinesterase activity and the neuromuscular transmission appeared to be completely blocked. Acetylcholinesterase activity in endplate and endplate-free regions recovered linearly during a 3 h experiment (1.5 and 2.9%h, respectively); and neuromuscular transmission was also improved. Since both inhibition of the de novo synthesis of acetylcholinesterase by cycloheximide and the re-inhibition of acetylcholinesterase in vitro by soman did not affect the improvement of neuromuscular transmission, it was concluded that this recovery of neuromuscular transmission can not be attributed to synthesis of new acetylcholinesterase.

Acetylcholinesterase↗
PubMed1987

Influence of pinacolyl dimethylphosphinate on soman storage in rats.

Atropinized rats pretreated with pinacolyl dimethylphosphinate (PDP) or saline were intoxicated with 6 X LD50 soman and, after 30 and 60 min, the absolute amounts of soman in diaphragms and lungs were measured gas chromatographically. The absolute amounts of free soman in both types of tissues were similar and were decreased after 60 min intoxication compared with the 30 min intoxication period. Pretreatment of rats with PDP reduced the amount of soman in the tissues by 63-78%. Incubation of isolated diaphragms and lungs with sodium fluoride (2.5 mM) increased the amount of free soman in these tissues by 2.6 X 10(3) and 16 X 10(3)%, respectively. An assay to study the binding of tritiated PDP was developed. Although this assay was suitable to study the binding of tritiated quinuclidinyl benzilate to rat brain, no binding between tritiated PDP and diaphragm or brain tissue could be detected. It was concluded that PDP may counteract soman storage by another mechanism than occupation of binding sites.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Further evidence for the effect of pinacolyl dimethylphosphinate on soman storage in muscle tissue.

Diaphragms isolated from rats 60 or 120 min after the intravenous injection of 6 X LD50 soman were incubated with electric eel acetylcholinesterase. As calculated from the enzyme inhibition, detectable amounts of P(-)-soman (1,2-dimethylpropyl methylphosphonofluoridate) were released from the diaphragm into the medium even 120 min post-injection. This release was reduced by additional pretreatment of the rats with pinacolyl dimethylphosphinate, providing further evidence that this compound prevents the storage of soman in diaphragm tissue.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Modulation of the activity of purified phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate kinase by phosphorylated and dephosphorylated B-50 protein.

To investigate the modulation of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate kinase activity by the degree of phosphorylation of the B-50 protein, the enzyme was purified from rat brain cytosol by ammonium sulphate precipitation and DEAE-cellulose column chromatography. Purified rat brain B-50 was phosphorylated with protein kinase C and dephosphorylated with alkaline phosphatase. Incubation of the semi-purified phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate kinase with 1 microgram of the B-50 preparation enriched in the dephospho-form, resulted in a small reduction of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate kinase activity (-16%), whereas incubation with the phospho B-50 preparation inhibited the enzyme activity by 40%. The effect of exogenous B-50 was studied in the presence of 10 micrograms albumin to minimize aspecific protein-protein interactions. The present data on the effect of exogenous B-50 protein on phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate kinase activity, further support our hypothesis that the phosphorylation state of B-50 may be a regulatory factor in phosphoinositide metabolism in rat brain.

Albumins↗
PubMed1984

Purification and partial characterization of the phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate kinase from rat brain.

Phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PtdIns4P) kinase was purified from cytosolic and particulate material of rat brain. The purification procedure of the enzyme from cytosol consisted of (NH4)2SO4 precipitation. DEAE-cellulose column chromatography and preparative isoelectric focusing. Other methods after DEAE-cellulose column chromatography failed to achieve further purification of the PtdIns4P kinase, probably caused by the tendency of the enzyme to aggregate with contaminating proteins. The final purification was 67-fold, and the recovery was 0.6%. After isoelectric focusing the fraction containing the highest PtdIns4P kinase activity showed only one protein as visualized by sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis and silver staining. The apparent Mr of this protein was 45 kDa and the isoelectric point about 5.8. The activity of PtdIns4P kinase was dependent on the concentration of divalent cations in the incubation medium. PtdIns4P kinase activity was found to be optimal at 10-30 mM-Mg2+. In an attempt to compare the cytosolic with the membrane-derived kinase activity, a Triton/KCl extract from synaptic membranes was subjected to the same purification procedure as the cytosolic enzyme. A difference in isoelectric focusing was observed, possibly due to a higher tendency to form aggregates. However, we tend to conclude that also in the membranes the PtdIns4P kinase activity is present as a 45 kDa protein, identical with that found in the cytosol.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Affinity-purified anti-B-50 protein antibody: interference with the function of the phosphoprotein B-50 in synaptic plasma membranes.

Affinity-purified anti-B-50 protein antibodies were used to study the previously proposed relationship of the phosphorylation state of B-50 protein and polyphosphoinositide metabolism in synaptic plasma membranes. Antibodies were raised against a membrane extract enriched in the B-50 protein and its adrenocorticotropin-sensitive protein kinase, obtained from rat brain. Anti-B-50 protein immunoglobulins were purified by affinity chromatography on a solid immunosorbent prepared from B-50 protein isolated by an improved procedure. The purified antibodies reacted only with the B-50 and B-60 protein, a proteolysis derivative (of B-50), as assessed by the sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel immunoperoxidase method. These antibodies inhibited specifically the endogenous phosphorylation of B-50 protein in synaptic plasma membranes, without affecting notably the phosphorylation of other membrane proteins. This inhibition was accompanied by changes of the formation of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-diphosphate and phosphatidic acid in synaptic plasma membranes, whereas formation of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate was not altered. Inhibition by ACTH 1-24 of the endogenous phosphorylation of B-50 protein in membranes was associated only with an enhancement of the phosphorylation of phosphatidyl-inositol 4-phosphate to phosphatidylinositol 4,5-diphosphate. These data support our hypothesis on the functional interaction of B-50 protein and phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate kinase in rat brain membranes. The evidence shows that purified anti-B-50 protein antibodies can be used to probe specifically the function of B-50 protein in membranes.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Self-esteem among persons with severe mental illness.

There has been little research to substantiate the nature and degree of self-esteem among persons with mental illness. The results reported here are from a study involving 92 clients with severe mental illness. The study explored the relation between work status and quality of life, drug attitudes, and self-esteem. In this analysis, positive self-esteem was found among all subjects and was significantly higher in workers than in nonworkers. In stepwise multiple regression analysis, feelings regarding functioning, valuing of work, social relationships, and activities with family explained 50% of the variance in self-esteem. Mental health professionals should not assume that clients with mental illness experience low self-esteem.

Adult↗