PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

D H O'Neill

Publications and source records attributed to D H O'Neill.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

Transfer of spinal cord material to subsequent bovine carcasses at splitting.

During the slaughter process, cattle carcasses are split by sawing centrally down the vertebral column, resulting in contamination of each half with spinal cord material. Using a novel method based on a real-time PCR assay, we measured saw-mediated tissue transfer among carcasses. Up to 2.5% of the tissue recovered from each of the five subsequent carcasses by swabbing the split vertebral face came from the first carcass to be split; approximately 9 mg was spinal cord tissue. Under controlled conditions in an experimental abattoir, between 23 and 135 g of tissue accumulated in the saw after splitting five to eight carcasses. Of the total tissue recovered, between 10 and 15% originated from the first carcass, and between 7 and 61 mg was spinal cord tissue from the first carcass. At commercial plants in the United Kingdom, between 6 and 101 g of tissue was recovered from the saw, depending on the particular saw-washing procedure and number of carcasses processed. Therefore, if a carcass infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy were to enter the slaughter line, the main risk of subsequent carcass contamination would come from the tissue debris that accumulates in the splitting saw. This work highlights the importance of effective saw cleaning and indicates that design modifications are required to minimize the accumulation of spinal cord tissue debris and, hence, the risk of cross-contamination of carcasses.

Abattoirs↗
PubMed2000

Ergonomics in industrially developing countries: does its application differ from that in industrially advanced countries?

Demographic characteristics of industrially developing countries (IDCs) and some comparisons with industrially advanced countries (IACs), particularly those aspects relevant to ergonomics, are presented. The majority of IDC populations are engaged in subsistence agriculture (the "informal" sector) and consideration is given to the scope for ergonomics interventions, aimed primarily at raising productivity to alleviate the poverty suffered by rural families. Ergonomics issues prevalent in the "formal" sector are also discussed and the importance of finding simple, low-cost solutions through participatory approaches emphasised. The possible contributions of ergonomics to alleviating problems common to both sectors, such as transport, are also indicated and attention is drawn to the difficulties of applying formal standards. The improvement of living and working conditions from incorporating an ergonomics approach into the sustainable livelihoods model, by enhancing human capital, is described in the context of the other livelihood assets. This demonstrates the importance of the cultural dimension for the successful delivery of ergonomics benefits. The application of ergonomics differs between IDCs and IACs particularly through the limited infrastructure in IDCs to support ergonomics activity and interventions. This broaches the different contributions that can be made by ergonomics and occupational health practitioners and implies the need for closer collaboration between these professions.

Agriculture↗
PubMed2000

The application of ergonomics in rural development: a review.

The importance of ergonomics issues in rural development is highlighted in this paper. Some examples are given of the contribution that ergonomics has already made to industrially developing countries, cases which are mainly concentrated in the industrial sector. Key areas for future ergonomics research are identified, focusing on the needs of communities living and working in the agricultural sector where most of the population in the industrially developing world is located.

Agricultural Workers' Diseases↗
PubMed1987

Administration of bovine superoxide dismutase fails to prevent chronic pulmonary sequelae of neonatal oxygen exposure in the rat.

Using a rat model, we assessed the efficacy of varying doses of superoxide dismutase of (SOD) to affect plasma and tissue SOD concentrations and to attenuate dysplastic changes of lung and pulmonary vascular growth, which are chronic sequelae of neonatal oxygen exposure. One hundred forty-three 1-day-old Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into two groups and exposed to hyperoxia (0.96 to 1.0 Fio2) or room air for 8 postnatal days. Each group was subdivided into five treatment groups, which received 6, 20, 100, or 200 mg/kg/d SOD or a placebo, intramuscularly every 12 hours. All rats were then placed in room air; 52 were killed, and lung tissue and blood samples were obtained for measurement of bovine SOD concentration. The remaining rats received routine care until 58 to 60 days of age, when functional and morphologic cardiopulmonary changes were assessed. Bovine SOD concentration of pooled plasma samples increased 26-fold, from 2 to 50 micrograms/mL, between the 6 and 200 mg/kg/d SOD groups, but mean tissue concentration increased only six-fold, from 0.34 to 2.1 micrograms/lung. Cardiovascular and pulmonary changes found in each oxygen group, regardless of SOD dosage, included elevated right ventricular pressure, increased right ventricular weight, decreased number of small pulmonary arteries/mm2, decreased number of alveoli/mm2, and increased volume proportion of lung parenchyma. Thus, high plasma concentrations of bovine SOD failed to prevent the chronic cardiovascular and pulmonary sequelae of neonatal oxygen exposure in the rat, possibly because SOD did not reach the intracellular sites of action.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Neonatal pulmonary hypoplasia with premature rupture of fetal membranes and oligohydramnios.

We assessed pulmonary function and compression deformities in 76 preterm infants less than or equal to 34 weeks gestation who had premature rupture of membranes (PROM) for longer than 5 days (mean +/- SD 18.8 +/- 15.4 days, range 6 to 90 days). Twenty-one of the 76 infants had oligohydramnios and positional deformities at birth; however, only two infants met all the criteria for the oligohydramnios tetrad. All 21 required assisted ventilation from the moment of birth. Twenty infants had clinical evidence of pulmonary hypoplasia; 18 of these died. Pulmonary hypoplasia was confirmed by significantly low wet lung weights, low lung DNA content, or low radial alveolar counts in the 13 infants with postmortem examinations. Fifty-five infants with PROM for longer than 5 days did not have positional deformities. Twenty-one required assisted ventilation, of whom 10 had severe oligohydramnios. Eleven of the 21 died; autopsies were performed. All had normal wet lung weights, but seven had significantly decreased radial alveolar counts, implying a less severe but still fatal form of pulmonary hypoplasia. None of the remaining 34 infants had lung disease, and only three had oligohydramnios. We conclude that pulmonary hypoplasia can result from PROM associated with severe oligohydramnios of as short as 6 days duration. Furthermore, fatal pulmonary hypoplasia can occur with little or no external deformation.

Amniotic Fluid↗