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Biomedical subjects

D R Gamble

Publications and source records attributed to D R Gamble.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Viruses and the aetiology of diabetes: a study in identical twins.

Sera were collected from 49 pairs of identical twins, 27 of whom were discordant (only one twin affected) and 22 concordant (both diabetic) for insulin-dependent diabetes. All were tested for antibodies to mumps, cytomegalovirus, rubella, Coxsackie virus types B1-5, and Mycoplasma pneumoniae. The diabetic co-twins had no more antibodies to any of the viruses than the non-diabetic co-twins of the discordant pairs. Antibodies to Coxsackie B2, rubella virus, and M pneumoniae were found more often in the discordant than in the concordant twins. In 30 of the 71 diabetic twins symptoms began when they were aged 4-6 years or 10-15 years. More concordant than discordant twins were diagnosed during the months January to March. Hence there was no direct evidence of a virus aetiology of juvenile onset diabetes in these twins, and the difference in antibody titres between the concordant and discordant twins was in keeping with a genetic difference between them. The age and time of onset suggested that environmental factors may be important in causing diabetes in the twins.

Adolescent↗

Register of newly diagnosed diabetic children.

In November 1972 the British Diabetic Association sponsored a register to which notification was invited of all new cases of diabetes occurring in children aged 0-15 years in Great Britain and Ireland. More than 2000 cases were notified in the first two years. Notification suggested that there was a minimum yearly incidence of 7-67 cases per 100 000, though incidences varied from year to year and by geographical area. Several reports of simultaneous onset of diabetes in sibs of different ages provided evidence of clustering. A seasonal variation in incidence was found in children aged 5-15 years with peaks in the autumn and winter. The age distribution was bimodal with a main peak at about 11 years and a secondary peak at about 5 years. The sex ratio showed a male excess from 0-4 years and from 11-15 years and a female excess from 5-10 years. Overall there were slightly more male cases. Altogether 11% of patients had a first-degree relative with diabetes. The register and several investigations based on it will continue.

Adolescent↗

Islet-cell antibodies in juvenile diabetes mellitus of recent onset.

Antibodies reacting with human pancreatic islet cells were found by immunofluorescence in the sera of 51 of 105 children with diabetes mellitus of recent onset. These antibodies were of IgG class, and several of them fixed complement and reacted with pancreatic islets of other species. Thyroid microsomal and/or gastric-parietal-cell antibodies were found in only 10 of the patients with islet-cell antibodies, and none of them had adrenal antibodies. These findings contrast with previous reports which have stressed the rarity of islet-cell antibodies in adult diabetics and their occurrence only in patients with other evidence of autoimmune disease.

Adolescent↗

A comparative study of viruses associated with acute haemorrhagic conjunctivitis.

Seven representative isolates from six outbreaks of acute haemorrhagic conjunctivitis were shown to have the characteristics of enteroviruses. Two viruses differed from the remaining five isolates in producing paralysis in suckling mice and being resistant to 2-hydroxybenzyl-benzimidazole. These two viruses were also closely related antigenically and distinct from the other five viruses which were serologically similar to each other. Neither group of viruses was inhibited by antisera to the known enteroviruses and they probably represent two new enterovirus types one related to the Coxsackie A viruses and the other to the echoviruses.

Acute Disease↗

Coxsackie viruses and diabetes mellitus.

Serum specimens from 162 patients with insulin-dependent diabetes of recent onset and 319 controls were tested for neutralizing antibodies to Coxsackie viruses types B1 to B5. Antibody to type B4 virus was more often found in diabetics than in controls, particularly in the 10-19 year age group. Though controls were not matched for geographical area it was thought that this was unlikely to explain the difference found. The month of onset of diabetes in the patients studied showed a pronounced seasonal incidence, which resembled that found in earlier studies.

Adolescent↗

Diabetes in mice after Coxsackie B 4 virus infection.

The intraperitoneal inoculation of CD(1) mice with Coxsackie virus B(4) resulted in the raising of blood sugar levels to diabetic values 12 days after the administration of the virus. Serum insulin remained inappropriately low. Light microscopy changes in the islets of Langerhans showed mononuclear cell infiltration of the islets and marked degranulation of the beta cells. The acinar tissue appeared to be little changed. It is concluded that Coxsackie B(4) virus may cause a diabetic state compatible with islet cell damage.

Animals↗

Viral antibodies in diabetes mellitus.

Sera from 123 patients with diabetes mellitus of recent onset, 155 patients with diabetes of more than two years' duration, and 250 normal persons were collected over a period of two and a half years. All sera were tested for neutralizing antibody to Coxsackie virus types B1-6, and a sample was tested for complement-fixing antibody to a number of viral, rickettsial, and mycoplasmal antigens.In diabetics of recent onset no evidence was found of any excess of antibodies to mumps virus or some common respiratory viruses. Insulin-dependent diabetes within three months of onset were found to have higher antibody titres to Coxsackie B virus, particularly of type B4, than either normal subjects or patients with diabetes of longer duration.

Adolescent↗