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Biomedical subjects

J Calvert

Publications and source records attributed to J Calvert.

18 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

Chlamydia trachomatis infection in a colposcopy unit: an audit of a fast track referral system for infected patients to a genitourinary medicine department and a survey of patients' demography, clinical findings and partner details.

We had previously shown that screening and treating patients for Chlamydia trachomatis prior to termination of pregnancy significantly reduces postoperative morbidity. Our success led us to consider screening women attending our colposcopy unit and this was introduced in 1998. However, it became apparent that a formal protocol was needed for managing women who had positive results to ensure that all patients and their partners were adequately treated. An interdepartmental protocol was devised for fast track referral of infected patients to the Genitourinary Medicine (GUM) clinic Health Advisor who arranged immediate treatment and partner notification. A re-audit, presented here, has shown that the introduction of the protocol has resulted in all infected patients receiving adequate treatment and partner notification with minimal use of doctor time or disruption of routine GUM services. We suggest that our system is effective and could be extended to other clinics where chlamydia screening is carried out.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Dementia in people with Down's syndrome.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of dementia in an Irish sample of people with Down's syndrome (DS) and to examine associated clinical characteristics of dementia in this group. METHOD: 285 people with DS (Age 35-74 years, mean age +/- SD 46.5 +/- 8.2 years) were included in this cross-sectional study. The diagnosis of dementia was made using modified DSMIV criteria. Cognitive tests used were the Down's syndrome Mental Status Examination (DSMSE), Test for Severe Impairment (TSI) and adaptive function was measured by the Daily Living Skills Questionnaire (DLSQ). RESULTS: The overall prevalence of dementia was 13.3%. The presence of dementia was associated with epilepsy, myoclonus, and head injury. The demented DS group were significantly older (n = 38, mean age 54.7 years SD +/- 7.5) than the non-demented (n = 246, mean age 45.6, SD +/- 7.3). The TSI and DLSQ had a satisfactory spread of scores without 'floor' or 'ceiling' effects in people with moderate and severe learning disability. Median scores in demented versus the non-demented groups were significantly different for each measure of function. CONCLUSIONS: Dementia had a prevalence of 13.3% and occurred at a mean age of 54.7 years. The combination of DLSQ score, age and presence of epilepsy were found to predict presence of dementia.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1999

Presenilin 1 and alpha-1-antichymotrypsin polymorphisms in Down syndrome: no effect on the presence of dementia.

As people with Down syndrome (DS) age, they are at greater risk for Alzheimer disease (AD) than the general population. It has been suggested that polymorphisms at the genes for presenilin-1 (PS-1) and alpha-1-antichymotrypsin (ACT) confer an increased risk for AD in the general population, and therefore potentially to AD in people with DS. We obtained DNA from 231 individuals with DS and 233 population controls. People with DS were evaluated for dementia. Allele frequencies at PS-1 and ACT polymorphisms in people with DS were compared to those in age-matched controls. There were no frequency differences between the control sample and DS sample for PS-1 or ACT alleles or genotypes. Similarly, there were no differences in allele frequencies between the demented and age-matched non-demented DS samples. However a higher frequency of PS-1 heterozygotes in the demented DS group was noted. We conclude that unlike the general population, neither PS-1 nor ACT polymorphisms appear to have a similar detrimental effect on dementia in DS. Am. J. Med. Genet. (Neuropsychiatr. Genet.) 88:616-620, 1999.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Recombinant DNase in cystic fibrosis: a protocol for targeted introduction through n-of-1 trials. Scottish Cystic Fibrosis Group.

Nebulized recombinant human deoxyribonuclease (DNase) reduces sputum viscosity and improves lung function in some cystic fibrosis patients, but individual responses are unpredictable. The aim of this study was to investigate how DNase can be targeted to those cystic fibrosis patients who would benefit most. The Scottish Cystic Fibrosis Group agreed on a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled n-of-1 assessment protocol. Patients underwent a maximum of three 4-week assessment periods (2 weeks saline, 2 weeks DNase each). Measurements performed at hospital (exercise, oximetry and spirometry) and home (symptom scores) were used to derive a scoring system to discriminate maximally between DNase and placebo effects. The data on 89 4-week assessments in 52 patients were reported. Twenty-four patients have completed the assessment process (12 responders and 12 nonresponders) to date. Forced expiratory volume in one second (FEVI) was the best discriminator of response, rising by >200 mL after DNase in 33 of 89 (37%) assessments compared with 3 of 89 (3%) after saline. N-of-1 trials, while laborious, permitted genuine treatment effects to be quantified within individuals with confidence, permitting appropriate treatment targeting. This provides a model of how other new expensive therapies may be introduced to maximize patient benefit.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1994

Two regions of an avian hepadnavirus RNA pregenome are required in cis for encapsidation.

We have constructed a series of deletion mutants spanning the genome of duck hepatitis B virus in order to determine which regions of the viral genome are required in cis for packaging of the pregenome into capsid particles. Deletion of sequences within either of two nonadjacent regions prevented replication of the mutant viral genomes expressed in a permissive avian hepatoma cell line in the presence of functionally active viral core and P proteins. Extraction of RNA from cells transfected with these replication-defective mutants showed that the mutants retained the capacity to be transcribed into a pregenomic-size viral RNA, but that these RNA species were not packaged into viral capsids. The two regions defined by these deletions are located 36 to 126 (region I) and 1046 to 1214 (region II) nucleotides downstream of the 5' end of the pregenome and contain sequences which are required in cis for encapsidation of the duck hepatitis B virus pregenome.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Adaptation to movement in right and left visual fields.

102 subjects reported on movement aftereffects (MAEs) produced by stimuli presented in the left or right visual field. MAEs were both faster and longer when the stimuli were presented in the right visual field. Possible reasons for the asymmetry are discussed.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed1987

Gestational diabetes.

The perinatal morbidity and mortality associated with gestational diabetes can be significantly reduced when cases are recognized and closely monitored. There is much controversy about the diagnosis of gestational diabetes and the practicality of universal screening.

Blood Glucose↗
PubMed1972

Demonstration of rhodanese activity in polyacrylamide gels.

Rhodanese activity from crude extracts of Thiobacillus sp. strain IV-85 was demonstrated in polyacrylamide gels after incubation in the reaction mixture by staining with dichloroindophenol in the presence of methylphenazonium methosulfate. The sensitivity of the staining system was found to be 8 x 10 moles of sulfite.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1969

Studies on polyphenol content, activities and isozymes of polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase during air-curing in three tobacco types.

The change in polyphenol content in the primed leaves of burley, flue-cured, and Turkish tobaccos during air-curing was related to the activities and isozymes of polyphenol oxidase and peroxidase. The quantity of chlorogenic acid was rapidly reduced during the first week of curing. The decrease in rutin content during curing was less significant, especially when the concentration of chlorogenic acid was high in leaf tissues. This result was further confirmed by in vitro assays with partially purified tobacco polyphenol oxidase.The polyphenol oxidase activity did not differ at any stage of curing in the 3 tobaccos. When the activity was measured by the oxidation of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine it rose rapidly during the first day of curing and then decreased sharply so that in the fully cured leaf only 15% activity remained. The increase in activity was not observed when chlorogenic acid was used as the substrate. A similar level of peroxidase activity was found in the 3 tobaccos before curing. Peroxidase activities increased rapidly during the first 24 hr of curing, declined thereafter, and remained highest in the flue-cured tobacco, less in the Turkish line, and least in the burley at the end of curing process.By polyacrylamide gel block electrophoresis, 10 peroxidase isozyme bands, 2 cationic and 8 anionic, appeared identical in all 3 tobaccos. When catechol replaced benzidine-2 HCl as the electron donor, 1 cationic and 2 anionic peroxidase isozymes did not form. Of interest is that the same 10 peroxidase isozyme bands also exhibited polyphenol oxidase activities when treated with 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine or chlorogenic acid. Results suggest that in the crude tobacco leaf extract the peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase may associate as protein complexes, and peroxidase isozymes may differ in electron-donor requirements. Isozyme patterns for both oxidases at various curing intervals differed only quantitatively.

Journal Article↗