PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

H Stöhr

Publications and source records attributed to H Stöhr.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

A gene map of the Best's vitelliform macular dystrophy region in chromosome 11q12-q13.1.

Best's vitelliform macular dystrophy is an autosomal dominant disorder of unknown causes. To identify the underlying gene defect the disease locus has been mapped to an approximately 1.4-Mb region on chromosome 11q12-q13.1. As a prerequisite for its positional cloning we have assembled a high coverage PAC contig of the candidate region. Here, we report the construction of a primary transcript map that places a total of 19 genes within the Best's disease region. This includes 14 transcripts of as yet unknown function obtained by EST mapping and/or cDNA selection and five genes mapped previously to the interval (CD5, PGA, DDB1, FEN1, and FTH1). Northern blot analyses were performed to determine the expression profiles in various human tissues. At least three genes appear to be good candidates for Best's disease based on their abundant expression in retina or retinal pigment epithelium. Additional information on the functional properties of these genes, as well as mutation analyses in Best's disease patients, have to await their further characterization. [The GenBank/EMBL accession numbers and details of the isolation, localization, and characterization of ESTs and selected cDNAs are available as online supplements in Online Tables 1-3 at http://www.genome.org.]

Calcium-Binding Proteins↗

[Wheelchair basketball from the orthopedic viewpoint].

155 (aged 16 to 52 years) wheelchair basketball players were surveyed to determine athletic injuries and overload-syndromes. During their active participation in wheelchair basketball 60.6% of the players have suffered 272 injuries and overload-syndromes. Those were mainly localised at the upper extremity (74.6%). Acute injuries predominate with 57.7%. Strains of the finger joint and skin injuries were found to be the most common injuries. Myogelosis and tendinosis were the most common reported overload-syndromes. A significantly higher number of complaints were associated with wheelchair basketball participation at league-level and depending on the player's position. At the end of the article the means of possible additional disability and consequences to specify therapy and prevention for disabled will be discussed.

Adolescent↗

[Osteolysis of the lateral clavicle after Tossy II injury in ice hockey players].

Injuries of the acromioclavicular joint in hockey mainly occur after trauma directly to the shoulder joint. E.g. at a fall against the border, onto the ground or in case of a body check. Tossy-III-lesions lead directly to surgery meanwhile type Tossy-II-lesions are mainly treated conservatively. Despite healing of the acromioclavicular ligaments often acromioclavicular joint pain remains despite conservative treatment because of discuss lesions or a osteolysis of the lateral end of the clavicle. The resection of the lateral end of the clavicle with certain pain relief, very good functional results and quick full level participation in hockey has been shown as the method of choice in our patients.

Acromioclavicular Joint↗

A physical analog of the failing left ventricle for in vitro studies of mechanical wall actuation.

Mechanical repowering of a failing heart with devices or skeletal muscle could circumvent blood-pump lining problems. Requirements are complex: indefinite support with preservation of valve competence and coronary flow, avoidance of wall coaptation, and allowance of both rapid low impedance refilling and independent left and right pressures. An accurate in vitro physical failing-heart analog could facilitate the choice and screening of surgical and engineering approaches in mock circulation experiments. Prosthetic models, transplant recipient hearts, normal animal hearts, existing in vivo animal failure models, and failing cadaver hearts all have serious limitations. One hundred and four excised porcine hearts were dilated and fixed by three iterative protocols. Geometric and passive mechanical parameters were assessed and compared with targets expected for an end-stage failing heart. For Protocol 3, Subgroup 2 (reinforcing valve support, dilatation by compliant ventricular balloon, and ethyl alcohol fixation), the left ventricular shape and capacity (ellipsoid, 201-377 ml/500 g of heart weight), passive valve function, wall flexural rigidity (Et3 range 0.101-0.331 Nm), and refilling mechanics (99 +/- 17.46 ml during 200-400 ms at < or = 10 mm Hg transmural gradient) were all within goal criteria.

Animals↗

Heart rate variability in isolated rabbit hearts.

The presence of heart rate variability (HRV) in patients with cardiac denervation after heart transplantation raised our interest in HRV of isolated, denervated hearts. Hearts from seven adult white ELCO rabbits were transferred to a perfusion apparatus. All hearts were perfused in the working mode and in the Langendorff mode for 20 minutes each. HRV was analyzed in the frequency domain. A computer simulated test ECG at a constant rate of 2 Hz was used for error estimation of the system. In the isolated, denervated heart, HRV was of random, broadband fluctuations, different from the well-characterized oscillations at specific frequencies in intact animals. Mean NN was 423 +/- 51 ms in the Langendorff mode, 406 +/- 33 ms in the working heart mode, and 500 ms in the test ECG. Total power was 663 +/- 207 ms2, 817 +/- 318 ms2, and 3.7 ms2, respectively. There was no significant difference in any measure of HRV between Langendorff and working heart modes. The data provide evidence for the presence of HRV in isolated, denervated rabbit hearts. Left atrial and ventricular filling, i.e., the working heart mode, did not alter HRV, indicating that left atrial or ventricular stretch did not influence the sinus nodal discharge rate.

Animals↗

A second independent Tyr168Cys mutation in the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-3 (TIMP3) in Sorsby's fundus dystrophy.

Sorsby's fundus dystrophy (SFD) is a rare autosomal dominant macular disorder with age of onset usually in the fourth decade. It is characterised by loss of central vision owing to subretinal neovascularisation and disciform macular degeneration. In an effort to identify the SFD gene, the disease locus was first mapped to chromosome 22q13-qter by genetic linkage analysis, the same chromosomal region as the gene encoding the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-3 (TIMP3). Subsequently, two separate mutations in TIMP3 were found in affected members of two unrelated SFD pedigrees (Tyr168Cys and Ser181Cys). More recently, two additional SFD related mutations, Ser156Cys and Gly167Cys, have provided further confirmation that heterozygous mutations in TIMP3 are causally responsible for the SFD phenotype. We now report the occurrence of the Tyr168Cys mutation in an SFD patient of Austrian descent and show that this mutation found earlier in an American SFD family arose independently. The new findings add to an emerging pattern of SFD mutations which all seem to affect the C-terminal region of the mature TIMP3 protein. In addition, all known mutations cause a change of an amino acid to a cysteine residue. This suggests a critical role for the additional C-terminal free thiol group in SFD pathogenesis.

Adult↗

A recombination event excludes the ROM1 locus from the Best's vitelliform macular dystrophy region.

Best's vitelliform macular degeneration has been genetically linked to chromosome 11. Subsequently, the disease locus has been refined to an interval between D11S903 and PYGM and, more recently, between D11S986 and D11S480. The gene encoding ROM1, a photoreceptor-specific membrane protein, has been independently mapped within the Best's disease region and has thus become a strong candidate for the Best's disease gene. In this study, we have mapped ROM1 relative to Best's disease and the loci D11S986, UGB (uteroglobin), and PYGM (human muscle glycogen phosphorylase) in recombinant Best's disease chromosomes. We demonstrate that UGB is localized proximal to ROM1 and that both UGB and ROM1 recombine with the disease phenotype. Thus, this analysis excluded ROM1 as the Best's disease gene.

Chromosome Mapping↗

Genomic organization of the human tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-3 (TIMP3)

The tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) play a crucial role in the physiological turnover of the extracellular matrix (ECM) by tightly regulating matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activities. Disturbances in the TIMP/MMP system have been implicated in many disease processes where loss of ECM integrity is a principal feature. More recently, we have shown that mutations in TIMP3 cause the autosomal dominant disorder Sorsby's fundus dystrophy (SFD). This is a macular degeneration disorder with characteristic ECM irregularities in Bruch's membrane. To further facilitate mutational analysis and to provide a basis for functional studies, we now report the genomic organization of the human TIMP3 gene.

Animals↗

[Assessment of experimentally-induced pain effects and their elimination by hypnosis using pupillometry studies].

Hypnotherapeutical technique were often used for control of pain. However, an objective examination of this phenomenon was seldom carried out. The aim of the study was the psychophysiological objectivation of the effect of experimental induced pain and the elimination of pain by means of hypnosis. 22 healthy volunteers (11 female and 11 male) aged between 22 and 35 years participated in the study. In the 1st phase of the experiment static pupillometry was carried out before randomized presentation of a light stimulus (143 lux, 0.3 sec) and of a pain stimulus (coldness-spray, -50 degrees C, 0.5 sec) respectively. Afterwards the dynamic pupillary measurement was done. Additionally the Fourier analyses of pupillary oscillations reflecting central nervous activation during the static measurement (25,6 sec) was calculated. In the 2nd phase the subjects were investigated by means of the same techniques during hypnosis with specific suggestions for elimination of pain. Under light condition as well as after induction of pain an autonomic deactivation could be observed during hypnosis. Furthermore under pain condition a central deactivation could also be found, reflecting the depth of the hypnosis and the reduced perception of pain.

Adult↗

Characterization of a cosmid library from flow-sorted chromosomes 11.

A cosmid library specific for human chromosome 11 has been constructed from flow-sorted chromosomes. The flow-purified chromosomes were prepared from the hamster/human hybrid line J1 which contains chromosome 11 as the only human chromosome. Individual clones were sampled in 187 microtitre plates, resulting in a total of 17,952 colonies. Hybridization analysis revealed that 83.7% of these clones were of human and 10.4% of hamster origin. The average insert size was estimated at 33.6 kb, and only 2.4% of insert fragments appear to be rearranged. This should result in 494,487 kb of cloned human DNA representing 3.5 chromosome 11 equivalents. We have prepared high-density nylon membranes of the arrayed library containing 1,536 single colonies per filter. We have demonstrated the usefulness of the library in the molecular genetic analysis of human chromosome 11 by testing for the presence of possibly polymorphic simple repeat motifs, by identifying cosmids that contain inserts from the telomeric ends of chromosome 11 and by assessing the potential of the library for rapid chromosome walking.

Animals↗

Mutations in the tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-3 (TIMP3) in patients with Sorsby's fundus dystrophy.

The hereditary macular dystrophies are progressive degenerations of the central retina and contribute significantly to irreversible visual loss in developed countries. Among these disorders, Sorsby's fundus dystrophy (SFD), an autosomal dominant condition, provides an excellent mendelian model for the study of the genetically complex age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the most common maculopathy in the elderly. Recently, we mapped the SFD locus to 22q13-qter. This same region contains the gene for tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-3 (TIMP3), which is known to play a pivotal role in extracellular matrix remodeling. We have now identified point mutations in the TIMP3 gene in affected members of two SFD pedigrees. These mutations are predicted to disrupt the tertiary structure and thus the functional properties of the mature protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

High-resolution meiotic and physical mapping of the best vitelliform macular dystrophy (VMD2) locus to pericentromeric chromosome 11.

Best vitelliform macular dystrophy (VMD2) has previously been linked to several microsatellite markers from chromosome 11. Subsequently, additional genetic studies have refined the Best disease region to a 3.7-cM interval flanked by markers at D11S903 and PYGM. To further narrow the interval containing the Best disease gene and to obtain an estimate of the physical size of the minimal candidate region, we used a combination of high-resolution PCR hybrid mapping and analysis of recombinant Best disease chromosomes. We identified six markers from within the D11S903-PYGM interval that show no recombination with the defective gene in three multigeneration Best disease pedigrees. Our hybrid panel localizes these markers on either side of the centromere on chromosome 11. The closest markers flanking the disease gene are at D11S986 in band p12-11.22 on the short arm and at D11S480 in band q13.2-13.3 on the proximal long arm. This study demonstrates that the physical size of the Best disease region is exceedingly larger than previously estimated from the genetic data, because of the proximity of the defective gene to the centromere of chromosome 11.

Base Sequence↗

[Computer-assisted determination of rigidity in the differentiation of psychopathologic groups].

The measurement of rigidity and perseveration respectively gets increasing importance in clinical psychodiagnostics. Recently we have developed a computer-assisted technique which allows to get information about inadequate persisting in psychic processes and behaviour within shortest time and to differentiate between psychopathological groups. 257 patients of both sexes who came for elucidation of their disorders to the department of clinical psychodiagnostics were investigated. The most significant differences between the groups were found in redundance of second degree (the patient has to press 10 buttons indiscriminately according to the beat of a metronom--standard condition) and in personal speed (the patient has to press 10 buttons as fast as possible--speed condition). Furthermore the psychopathological groups were ranged in the particular variables of rigidity according to their mean values and their average ranges the schizophrenics and effective psychoses were characterized by a high tendency of perseveration while the neurotics, patients with organic brain syndrome and alcohol and drug dependents showed more flexibility.

Affective Disorders, Psychotic↗