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Biomedical subjects

E Perry

Publications and source records attributed to E Perry.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Neuroleptic sensitivity in patients with senile dementia of Lewy body type.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the outcome of administration of neuroleptics to patients with senile dementia of Lewy body type confirmed at necropsy. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis of clinical notes blind to neuropathological diagnosis. SETTING: Specialist psychogeriatric assessment units referring cases for necropsy to a teaching hospital neuropathology service. PATIENTS: 41 elderly patients with diagnosis of either Alzheimer type dementia (n = 21) or Lewy body type dementia (n = 20) confirmed at necropsy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Clinical state including extrapyramidal features before and after neuroleptic treatment and survival analysis of patients showing severe neuroleptic sensitivity compared with the remainder in the group. RESULTS: 16 (80%) patients with Lewy body type dementia received neuroleptics, 13 (81%) of whom reacted adversely; in seven (54%) the reactions were severe. Survival analysis showed an increased mortality in the year after presentation to psychiatric services compared with patients with mild or no neuroleptic sensitivity (hazard ratio 2.70 (95% confidence interval 2.50-8.99); (chi 2 = 2.68, p = 0.05). By contrast, only one (7%) of 14 patients with Alzheimer type dementia given neuroleptics showed severe neuroleptic sensitivity. CONCLUSIONS: Severe, and often fatal, neuroleptic sensitivity may occur in elderly patients with confusion, dementia, or behavioural disturbance. Its occurrence may indicate senile dementia of Lewy body type and this feature has been included in clinical diagnostic criteria for this type of dementia.

Aged↗
PubMed1991

Distribution of nerve growth factor receptor immunoreactivity in the human hippocampus.

Nerve growth factor (NGF) receptor-like immunoreactivity has been demonstrated in the normal adult human hippocampus, using minimally fixed cryostat sections obtained from snap-frozen tissue and incubated with the mouse monoclonal antibody, ME 20.4. The majority of the reactivity was associated with nerve fibre processes and their terminals. Numerous fibres were apparent in the alveus, originating from the fornix, and extending into the stratum oriens and pyramidal layer of the hippocampal formation. A more diffuse particulate reactivity, presumed to be nerve terminal, was observed around the pyramidal neurons and in the stratum radiatum, stratum lacunosum moleculare and also in the dentate fascia. The pattern of hippocampal NGF receptor immunoreactivity was broadly similar to acetylcholinesterase histochemical localization, indicating a principal localization on cholinergic axons innervating this area. Preliminary observations indicate an overall reduction in NGF receptor-immunoreactive axons and terminals in old age and Alzheimer's disease.

Acetylcholinesterase↗
PubMed1989

Fatty acid profiles of Chlamydia using capillary gas chromatography.

Fatty acid profiles of purified elementary bodies of Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) serotypes D, G and L3 were investigated by gas liquid chromatography (GLC) utilizing three fused silica capillary columns of different polarities. CT serotype C and C. psittaci (CP) strain DD34 were investigated using one column only due to the lack of adequate quantities of purified material. Significantly similar fatty acid profiles were observed in the serotypes examined. However, based on the percentage ratio of 13-methyl tetradecanoate (i-15:0) to 12-methyl tetradecanoate (a-15:0), serotypes D and L3, with ratios of 0.18 and 0.19, respectively, could be differentiated from serotypes C and G with ratios of 1.3 and 1.5, respectively. CP demonstrated a ratio of 0.4, thus differentiating it from the CT serotypes examined. Fatty acids i-15:0 and a-15:0 were absent in uninfected McCoy cells. Results were significantly comparable in all three capillary columns. This study suggests that GLC could be used for identification and differentiation of Chlamydia serotypes.

Chlamydia trachomatis↗
PubMed1989

Chemical and biological characterization of products of incomplete combustion from the simulated field burning of agricultural plastic.

Chemical and biological analyses were performed to characterize products of incomplete combustion emitted during the simulated open field burning of agricultural plastic. A small utility shed equipped with an air delivery system was used to simulate pile burning and forced-air-curtain incineration of a nonhalogenated agricultural plastic that reportedly consisted of polyethylene and carbon black. Emissions were analyzed for combustion gases; volatile, semi-volatile, and particulate organics; and toxic and mutagenic properties. Emission samples, as well as samples of the used (possibly pesticide-contaminated) plastic, were analyzed for the presence of several pesticides to which the plastic may have been exposed. Although a variety of alkanes, alkenes, and aromatic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) compounds were identified in the volatile, semi-volatile, and particulate fractions of these emissions, a substantial fraction of higher molecular weight organic material was not identified. No pesticides were identified in either combustion emission samples or dichloromethane washes of the used plastic. When mutagenicity was evaluated by exposing Salmonella bacteria (Ames assay) to whole vapor and vapor/particulate emissions, no toxic or mutagenic effects were observed. However, organic extracts of the particulate samples were moderately mutagenic. This mutagenicity compares approximately to that measured from residential wood heating on a revertant per unit heat release basis. Compared to pile burning, forced air slightly decreased the time necessary to burn a charge of plastic. There was not a substantial difference, however, in the variety or concentrations of organic compounds identified in samples from these two burn conditions. This study highlights the benefits of a combined chemical/biological approach to the characterization of complex, multi-component combustion emissions. These results may not reflect those of other types of plastic that may be used for agricultural purposes, especially those containing halogens.

Agriculture↗
PubMed1989

Current advances in research in Alzheimer's disease.

The pace of research into Alzheimer's disease has quickened remarkably in the last few years as it has entered the realms of genetics and molecular biology. The nature of the protein giving rise to the amyloid deposits in senile plaques has been identified together with its location on chrosome 21, which is also the chromosome (although at a different locus) on which the abnormality in the familial form of the disease is found. Together with previous neuropathological and neurochemical data implicating specific neuronal populations - particularly the basal forebrain cholinergic system projecting to the cortex - in cardinal clinical features of the disease such as memory loss, it would seem that scientists are on the verge of understanding the foundamental nature of the disease process. However, in the absence of any clues regarding the cause of the disease in the predominantly "sporadic" cases and of any effective clinical treatment, new insights are clearly urgently needed. The present review highlights currently active areas of research and attempts to outline unexplored areas where novel approaches are now required.

Alzheimer Disease↗
PubMed1988

Acetylcholine and Alzheimer's disease.

The hypothesis that cognitive impairment in Alzheimer's disease is related to cholinergic degeneration in the brain is still, a decade after its formulation, subject to critical evaluation. In marked contrast to the monoamine hypotheses of affective disorders or schizophrenia--based primarily on the mechanisms of action of therapeutic drugs, and yet lacking convincing pathological data on the human brain itself--the cholinergic hypothesis of Alzheimer's disease currently rests largely on evidence of neurochemical pathology in affected tissue, but still depends on effective therapy for its ultimate validation. The urgent need for a means of countering cognitive impairment in degenerative dementias such as Alzheimer's disease (probably the most important cause of intellectual decline in old age) hardly needs emphasising. In this annotation, a number of key questions specifically relating to the cholinergic involvement in Alzheimer's disease are considered. These questions are already being answered both within and, as so often in the history of biological psychiatry, outside the immediate area of investigation.

Acetylcholine↗
PubMed1984

Assessing the effect of colony counting methods and genetic drift on Ames bioassay results.

Accuracy of automatic colony counters and variation among subcultures of the Salmonella tester strains are two factors that cause variation within the Ames bioassay. This paper examines these potential sources of variation. In contrast to results seen by other researchers, this genetic drift study demonstrated that except for TA100 the subcultures of tester strains from four research laboratories are very stable in biochemical characteristics measured using Analytical Profile Index (API) strips. This study also documented the levels of accuracy for hand- and automatic-counting techniques, and provides a simple method for generating acetate calibration transparencies for use with most colony counters.

Bacteriological Techniques↗
PubMed1983

A flexible sealed tube transverse radio frequency excited carbon dioxide laser for dermatologic surgery.

A new CO2 laser system, of special characteristics, has been found to be effective for CO2 laser dermatological surgery. The unit is compact, freely movable, and suitable for office practice. A highly flexible operating probe makes for precision surgery. The initial investigative clinical series included resistant warts in many areas including extensive plantar warts, oral lesions, and condylomata. There were also excisions of broad base granuloma pyogenicum, large seborrheic warty lesions, thermal photocoagulation of rhinophyma, and laser dermabrasion of tattoos. Flaps were done in animals.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Comparison of five methods of cytomegalovirus antibody screening of blood donors.

A group of 120 sera from blood donors was screened by complement fixation and commercially available immunofluorescence, solid-phase fluorescence immunoassay, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and indirect hemagglutination tests. Twenty-four of the sera were positive by three or more of the five tests and judged to be true positives; 89 were negative by three or more of the tests and considered to be true negatives. The tests were ranked for accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, false-positive rate, and false-negative rate. The indirect hemagglutination test scored best, followed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, solid-phase fluorescence immunoassay, complement fixation, and immunofluorescence, in that order. When the tests were ranked on the basis of technical demands, turnaround time, requirement for special equipment, and subjectivity in reading, the indirect hemagglutination test again scored best, followed by solid-phase fluorescence immunoassay, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, immunofluorescence, and complement fixation in that order. Our findings suggest that the indirect hemagglutination test is the most reliable and effective commercially available test for the identification of those donors who are very unlikely to transmit cytomegalovirus to recipients.

Antibodies, Viral↗
PubMed1982

Surgery with the argon laser: recent advances in instrumentation and techniques.

There have been several recent advances in the instrumentation and techniques of use of the argon laser in dermatologic surgery. Dispersion lenses that enlarge the areas of impact, operation through a microscope that permits precise microsurgery, templates that delimit areas of treatment, special eyeshields, nerve block anesthesia, and intermittent, light general anesthesia feasible in an out-patient setting are discussed.

Anesthesia, Local↗