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Biomedical subjects

F Cockburn

Publications and source records attributed to F Cockburn.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Infant cerebral cortex phospholipid fatty-acid composition and diet.

It has not been established whether nutrition in early infancy affects subsequent neurodevelopment and function. If there is an effect, it seems probable that the essential fatty acids and their metabolites, the major constituents of brain structure, will be the most susceptible to dietary influence. We determined the phospholipid fatty-acid composition of cerebral cortex grey matter obtained from 20 term and 2 preterm infants who had died of "cot deaths" and related results to the milk diet the infants had received. Tissues were analysed by gas chromatography. The mean weight percentage of docosahexaenoic acid was significantly greater (p less than 0.02) in 5 breast-milk-fed infants (9.7%) than in 5 age-comparable formula-milk-fed infants (7.6%). In these formula-fed babies, the overall percentage of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids was maintained by increased incorporation of the major n-6 series fatty acids. In 1 formula-fed preterm infant, in whom the lowest concentration of cortical docosahexaenoic acid was found, the compensatory effect was only partial with both n-9 series eicosatrienoic acid or Mead acid and docosatrienoic acid also detected in the phospholipid. Supplementation of formula milks for term infants with docosahexaenoic acid and those for preterm infants with both docosahexaenoic and arachidonic acid could prove beneficial to subsequent neurodevelopment.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1992

Direct gas chromatographic assay of urinary medium-chain fatty acylcarnitines by their thermal decomposition.

We report a gas chromatographic assay for urinary medium-chain acylcarnitines which employs their property of thermal lability, and by circumventing the need for specialised mass spectroscopy is suitable for routine laboratory use. The method produces readily interpreted, uncomplicated chromatograms and has proved to be both sufficiently sensitive and specific to enable detection of octanoylcarnitine in a symptomatic individual with medium-chain CoA dehydrogenase deficiency and in two asymptomatic siblings following administration of a carnitine load.

Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase↗
PubMed1992

Ethics and ethics committees: HIV serosurveillance in Scotland.

Knowledge of the heterosexual spread of HIV is needed to plan future health-care needs. In December 1989 we gained approval and finance for unlinked anonymous testing of neonatal Guthrie card samples in Scotland. Local ethics committee approval was required before testing could start. Twenty ethics committees were approached in the 15 Scottish health board areas. Nineteen of the committees have agreed, representing 99.6 per cent of births in Scotland. Our method of contacting ethics committees is discussed, as are the points raised.

Anonymous Testing↗
PubMed1992

Restraint-review committee: a working model.

Initially, the goal of this committee was to reduce the number of unnecessary physical restraints (see Table 4). This was achieved by a team approach and a systematic process of assessment, monitoring, and evaluation. In addition, this process provided a means by which restraint use could be thoroughly documented and functionally monitored. Efforts are continuing in order to provide a safe environment while at the same time promoting quality of life through reduction of restraints.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Multisystem disorder of Punjabi children exhibiting spontaneous dermal and submucosal granulation tissue formation: LOGIC syndrome.

We describe a multisystem disease that affects children of Muslim families originating in the Punjab region of Pakistan and India. An altered cry due to vocal cord thickening, skin ulceration, nail abnormalities, and conjunctival scarring appear in the first few months of life. Progression and spread of the disease in these sites may be accompanied by involvement of other epithelial surfaces. The teeth may exhibit defective enamel formation. Histology reveals the formation of simple granulation tissue arising in the dermis and submucosa which become massively thickened and ulcerated. There is good evidence for an autosomal recessive gene defect, but the actual mechanism of the disease is not known. Medical and surgical therapy have been ineffective in altering the course of this devastating and usually fatal condition. We suggest the term LOGIC (laryngeal and ocular granulation tissue in children from the Indian subcontinent) for this newly established disease.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1991

Prevalence of maternal HIV infection in Scotland based on unlinked anonymous testing of newborn babies.

Dried blood spot samples from newborn babies have been successfully tested for HIV-1 antibody by the particle agglutination method to assess the prevalence of infection in the mothers. In January, 1990, unlinked anonymous testing of Guthrie cards for HIV antibody was begun in Scotland. 99.6% of Scottish births were tested. 9 mothers spontaneously refused to allow testing of their baby's blood. Samples were coded by district postcodes. Eluates of 65,773 dried blood spots were initially tested for HIV-1 antibody with the Fujirebio technique. Of the 31 positive samples 19 were confirmed to be positive by enzyme-linked radioimmunoassay and western blot (seroprevalence 0.29 per 1000). All these samples came from large metropolitan areas on the east coast. Prevalences were 2.5 per 1000 for Edinburgh city, 1.4 per 1000 for Dundee, and 0.7 per 1000 for Aberdeen. We identified as HIV-positive all babies known to be so in named testing programmes. HIV testing of Guthrie cards can be used to monitor HIV status in mothers who have just given birth. The use of district postcode data in sample identification will allow accurate targetting of prevention strategies and early detection of spread of infection by geographic area.

Agglutination Tests↗
PubMed1991

Management of inborn errors of metabolism during pregnancy.

An increasing number of women with inherited metabolic disorders survive, conceive and have children. In order to safeguard the health of the mother and the developing embryo, fetus, and newborn during pregnancy, delivery, and the neonatal period it is necessary to be aware of the range of metabolic disorders, the risks to mothers and children, and appropriate management strategies. The roles of the Paediatrician, Obstetrician and Dietitian in the management of Maternal Hyperphenylalaninaemia and phenylketonuria are reviewed.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed1991

The cholinergic regulation of potassium (86Rb+) permeability in sweat glands isolated from patients with cystic fibrosis.

Sweat glands isolated from skin obtained from normal subjects and patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) were pre-loaded with 86Rb+ and superfused with a physiological salt solution and the rate of 86Rb+ efflux was measured as an indicator of cellular potassium permeability. Acetylcholine always evoked a permeability increase in the glands from control subjects and this response could be resolved into calcium-dependent and calcium-independent components. Sweat glands from CF patients did not show such consistent responses. In three individuals the glands were abnormally insensitive to acetylcholine but normal responsiveness was seen in a fourth case. It is proposed that CF can induce dysfunction of calcium-dependent control processes in sweat glands.

Acetylcholine↗
PubMed1989

Haplotype distribution of the human phenylalanine hydroxylase locus in Scotland and Switzerland.

RFLP haplotypes at the phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) locus were determined in 45 nuclear Caucasian families from Switzerland and Scotland. The RFLPs at the PAH locus are highly informative, and prenatal diagnosis is possible in 85% of the families studied. The data were combined with the profiles previously observed in the Danish population, in order to study the variation in RFLP haplotype distribution among European populations. A total of 22 different haplotypes were observed in Denmark, Switzerland, and Scotland. Fifteen and 19 haplotypes are associated with the normal (non-PKU) and with the mutant chromosomes, respectively. The haplotype distribution and the allele frequency of normal chromosomes remain constant between Denmark, Switzerland, and Scotland. However, both the haplotype distribution and allele frequencies of mutant chromosomes show significant variation between the three countries. Our results suggest there may be additional mutations in the PAH gene that cause PKU.

Alleles↗
PubMed1988

The effects of thermally-induced activity in vivo upon the ultrastructure and Na, K and Cl composition of the epithelial cells of sweat glands from patients with cystic fibrosis.

The secretory cells of the fundus of sweat glands from cystic fibrosis (CF) patients had higher Na and Cl contents and showed more granule depletion, cellular disruption and dilated intercellular canaliculi than normal. The cells of the coiled duct also had higher cytoplasmic levels of Na and Cl but were structurally normal. Thermal stimulation produced ultrastructural changes in the CF fundus comparable to normal, including further dilatation of the basolateral clefts, but did not induce the marked changes in the coiled duct which normally occur. The elevated Na and fall in K in the fundus and raised Na and Cl in the coiled duct upon activation, were not observed in the CF glands in which no significant changes were detected.

Chlorides↗
PubMed1988

The interaction of infant formula with macrophages: effect on phagocytic activity, relationship to expression of class II MHC antigen and survival of orally administered macrophages in the neonatal gut.

The effect of infant formula on human peritoneal and breast milk macrophages has been investigated. The ability of peritoneal macrophages to subsequently ingest and degrade immune complexes was slightly impaired, but breast milk cells were not affected. However, the cells were found to have bound antigenically intact casein and beta-lactoglobulin, although little, if any, alpha-lactalbumin was bound. Furthermore, a positive correlation was found between binding of these proteins and expression of HLA-DR antigen. Labelled macrophages fed to newborn mice survived for at least 4 hr in the gastrointestinal tract and, in some cases, localized in the mucosal tissue. In one case a labelled cell was found in the spleen. These findings indicate that breast milk macrophages may be able to perform immunological functions in the gut, and suggest that binding of cows' milk proteins by macrophages may constitute a first step in the sensitization of the neonate to cow's milk proteins. Human milk macrophages may also play a protective role by acting as antigen-presenting cells in the local immune response of the gut.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Determination of red-cell mass in assessment and management of anaemia in babies needing blood transfusion.

A new method for the rapid determination of red-blood-cell mass (RCM) in infants needing blood transfusion is described. RCM is estimated from the fall in the baby's fetal haemoglobin level resulting from transfusion of a known mass of adult-haemoglobin-containing red cells. In severe blood loss and refractory anaemias in preterm infants, in addition to the red-cell deficit, the plasma volume is low, leading to a falsely high haematocrit of about 0.30, which conceals a deficiency of 50-70% in circulating red cells. Red-cell transfusion in such infants based on haematocrit often fails to restore RCM to normal, leading to repeated transfusions. The frequency of transfusions may be reduced by giving enough red cells fully to correct the deficiency based on RCM estimation.

Adult↗
PubMed1986

Children intoxicated by alcohol in Nottingham and Glasgow, 1973-84.

The circumstances of ingestion, clinical course, and long term sequelae were examined retrospectively in 143 children (108 boys, 35 girls) admitted with acute alcohol intoxication in Glasgow and Nottingham over the 12 years 1973-84. Fifty three of the children were aged less than 7 years and 90 were aged 7-14. Twelve of the children were hypoglycaemic on arrival at hospital. Trauma related to intoxication occurred in 14 cases, and nine boys became drunk under duress, which in four cases was associated with sexual abuse.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1986

A comparison of energy metabolism in the new-born infant, piglet and lamb.

Characteristics of energy metabolism in the new-born infant, piglet and lamb have been compared quantitatively in order to assess how the constraints imposed by the availabilities of energy substrates in body reserves and colostrum differ between species and affect the new-born's well being during the first day after birth. Three air temperature ranges, described as thermoneutral (32-38 degrees C), moderate (18-26 degrees C) and cold (0-10 degrees C) and representing the usual birth environments of infants, piglets and lambs, respectively, have been considered. The analysis revealed the following noteworthy points. Carbohydrate and lipid are the major energy substrates for heat production because protein catabolism is minimal during the first day after birth in all three species. The availability of carbohydrate determines how long the new-born can avoid hypoglycaemia, which threatens well being because it leads to hypothermia or compromised cerebral function, but lipid availability can affect the periods for which the carbohydrate can last. Thus, in unfed piglets and lambs the available reserves of liver and skeletal muscle glycogen (g/kg body weight) are similar in normal (n.) and growth retarded (g.r.) individuals, but glycogen exhaustion occurs earlier in g.r. new-borns because a reduced lipid availability in them increases their dependence on carbohydrate. In contrast, lipid energy is plentiful in g.r., preterm (p.) and n. infants, so that the faster depletion of glycogen in g.r./p. than in n. individuals is primarily due to a restricted prenatal glycogen deposition in the former. The usual colostrum intakes of n. infants are very low during the first day, but their body reserves can supply the required energy, the major source of carbohydrate being liver glycogen. However, g.r./p. infants require supplementary feeding, the choice of feed being determined by factors such as the intakes the infants can achieve, the carbohydrate content of the feed and the need to ensure a balanced supply of minerals, electrolytes and other substances. In their usual birth environments piglets and lambs, whether growth retarded or not, require colostrum to avoid hypothermia during the first day. The colostrum of both species is rich in lipid, which corrects any deficit in the new-born and thus extends the availability of glycogen, but at the usual colostrum intakes the amounts of lactose can provide sufficient carbohydrate energy for only about half a day. Piglets and lambs, even when fed fully, are therefore obliged to call on their body glycogen reserves in order to make up the difference.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Animals↗