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Biomedical subjects

J Robertson

Publications and source records attributed to J Robertson.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1979

Prescription for a better British diet.

A new approach to establishing an upper or prescriptive level of recommended intakes of nutrients was devised for use in Britain. It was based on present food supplies in the UK, and the following measures were proposed to improve the national diet: moderate reductions in intakes of fat, sugar, meat, and alcohol; increased intakes of cereals, potatoes, and other vegetables and fruit; while intakes of milk and eggs and fish, pulses, and nuts were to remain unchanged. The proportions of food energy derived from protein would be increased, despite reduced meat consumption. Nutrient content of the diet may be expressed in terms of food groups or as nutrient concentrations per energy unit, which is particularly applicable to planning or prescribing diets for individuals or small groups. The suggested changes in the national diet are large enough to be meaningful, yet would not disrupt agricultural or trade policies if implemented over the next decade. Furthermore, the methods used to assess the recommended intakes of nutrients are flexible enough to be used both for planning and prescribing diets and for evaluating results of dietary surveys or histories.

Diet↗
PubMed1979

Feeding and depression of abomasal secretion in sheep elicited by elfazepam and 9-aza-cannabinol.

Elfazepam (7-chloro-1-[2-(ethylsulfonyl)ethyl]-5-(2-fluorophenyl)-1,3-dihydro-2H-1,4benzodiazepin-2-one) and-9-aza-cannabinol )10 hydroxy-beta-(3-methyl-2-octyl)-5',5-dimethyl-5H-1 benzopyranol 3,4-d pyridine, HC1) were administered IV to study their effects on feed intake and acid secretion in abomasal Pavlov pouches in sheep. Elfazepam and 9-aza-cannabinol increased 3-fold 3 hr postinjection feed intake and decreased abomasal acid secretion compared to saline and DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide) control treatments. At doses which elicit feeding, 9-aza-cannabinol was a much more potent inhibitor of acid secretion than elfazepam. These results are consistent with the theory of localized hypothalamic nuclei which have roles in the control of both feed intake and gastric acid secretion. However, in contrast to feeding associated with normal hunger, the benzodiazepine and cannabinol stimulated feeding is associated with decreased gastric acid secretion.

Abomasum↗
PubMed1979

Trace nutrients. 3 Magnesium, copper, zinc, vitamin B6, vitamin B12 and folic acid in the British household food supply.

1. Intakes of magnesium, copper, zinc, vitamin B6, vitamin B12 and folic acid in Britain were calculated by applying the values selected for the 4th edition of McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods (Paul & Southgate, 1978) to the amounts of food recorded in the National Food Survey made during 1976 (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, 1977). 2. National average intakes were (/person per d): Mg 249 mg, Cu 1.51 mg, Zn 9.1 mg, vitamin B6 1.36 mg, vitamin B12 6.6 micrograms free folic acid 105 microgram and total folic acid 190 micrograms. Corresponding intakes (/person) in families with four or more children were 10-20% lower. 3. A comparison of intakes with those recommended in Canada (Department of National Health and Welfare, 1976) and the USA (National Research Council, 1974) or by WHO (1973) indicated that for folic acid average values were particularly low, and only for vitamin B12 were the recommendations significantly exceeded. 4. Contributions from alcoholic drinks and confectionery were also calculated and found, on average, to be significant for cu, vitamin B12 and folic acid. 5. The losses of B-vitamins which might occur on cooking are discussed.

Alcoholic Beverages↗
PubMed1979

The effect of raw carrot on serum lipids and colon function.

Two hundred grams of raw carrot eaten at breakfast each day for 3 weeks significantly reduced serum cholesterol by 11%, increased fecal bile acid and fat excretion by 50%, and modestly increased stool weight by 25%. This suggests an associated change in bacterial flora or metabolism. The changes in serum cholesterol, fecal bile acids, and fat persisted 3 weeks after stopping treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed1979

A chromosome survey of a hospital for the mentally subnormal.

A cytogenetic survey of 756 resident, but otherwise unselected, mentally retarded patients in a Scottish hospital is reported. The karyotypes of all patients were examined using orcein-stained cells, and those found to be abnormal, other than those with standard trisomy 21, were further investigated using a banding technique. A total of 103 patients were found to have an abnormal chromosome complement, of whom 91 had Down's syndrome (including six with translocations), six had some other autosomal abnormality, and six had an abnormality of the sex chromosome complement, including two with an XXYY complement. Details of the clinical and cytogenetic features are presented.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

A cytogenetic survey of men being investigated for subfertility.

A study of 336 men attending a subfertility clinic but otherwise unselected, and a further 12 men studied as a part of the investigation of the female partner, revealed 10 with major chromosome anomaly and 3 with unambiguous chromosomal variants. In addition to those with sex chromosome aneuploidy, an extra, small marker chromosome and D/D Robertsonian translocations, anomalies which have been reported in other studies, there were 7 men with rearrangements, including a paracentric inversion of chromosome 7 and an X/21 reciprocal translocation. These would have been difficult or impossible to identify without good banded preparations, suggesting that such rearrangement may be more frequent in association with subfertility than was appreciated.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Trace nutrients. Selenium in British food.

1. The amount of selenium in nationally representative samples of prepared and cooked groups of foods, and in a variety of raw individual foods, was determined fluorimetrically. 2. The average British diet was calculated to provide approximately 60 microgram Se/d, of which half was derived from cereals and cereal products and another 40% from meat and fish. Milk, table fats, fruit and vegetables provided little or no Se. 3. Individual foods which were particularly rich in Se (greater than 0.2 mg/kg) included 'bread-making' and wholemeal flours, kidney, fatty fish, brazil nuts (Bertholletia excelsa) and several other varieties of nut. In contrast, breast milk and other foods for babies (except some cereal products) contained little Se. 4. The total intake, and the amounts of Se in major foods, were lower than in most other studies. This is probably the result of the comparatively low levels of this element in British soil.

Food Analysis↗
PubMed1978

An XYY boy with short stature and a case of Klinefelter's syndrome (XXY) in a family with inversion 9.

A patient with Klinefelter's syndrome and a boy with XYY sex chromosomes were both found to have a pericentric inversion of chromosome 9. An unusual feature of the XYY patient was that he presented because of short stature and disturbed behaviour. A family study showed that the patients were related and that there was an excess of males in the pedigree. Another member of the family was found to have some XYY cells in the blood.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1978

An unusual variant of membranous nephropathy with abundant crescent formation and recurrence in the transplanted kidney.

A patient with what initially appeared to be a typical membranous nephropathy had a progressive course to renal failure, nephrectomy, and transplantation. The nephrectomy specimen revealed abundant glomerular crescents and capsular synechiae. Post-transplantation the patient again developed a membranous nephropathy with florid crescents. Radioimmunoassay and indirect immunofluorescence tests failed to reveal anti-glomerular basement membrane antibody in the serum or kidney. It appears that there is a form of membranous nephropathy with crescent formation, unrelated to anti-GBM antibody, which has the capacity to recur after transplantation.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Pulmonary complications of general surgery.

1. Patients should be divided preoperatively into low- or high-risk categories, depending on their probability of developing postoperative pulmonary complications. The evaluation should include spirometry as well as an assessment of the previously defined risk factors. 2. Patients in a low-risk category need only instruction in deep breathing pre- and postoperatively. Routine use of supplemented oxygen postoperatively is reasonable until it can be demonstrated whether such is necessary. 3. High-risk patients should be as free as possible of respiratory secretions at the time of surgery. A regimen for this purpose includes cessation of smoking, and administration of inhaled bronchodilators followed by chest percussion and postural drainage. 4. High-risk patients should be carefully instructed in deep breathing and coughing preoperatively. A mechanical device such as an incentive spirometer may be beneficial in this regard. If it is not possible to achieve spontaneous deep breathing, an attempt to accomplish this by IPPB may be undertaken. The tidal volume desired should be ordered. If IPPB does not result in large tidal volumes, it should be discontinued. 5. The deep breathing procedure found to be most successful preoperativelly should be continued postoperatively. 6. The patient should be as mobile as possible while in bed and ambulated as soon as is feasible. 7. Patients with preoperative expiratory flows of less than 20% of predicted values or with chronic hypercapnia should be carefully observed for postoperative ventilatory failure.

Anesthesia↗
PubMed1977

Humoral regulation of vitamin B12 absorption by pregnant mouse small intestine.

In vivo experiments in which pregnant mice were fed an oral dose of 40 ng of [57Co]B12 demonstrated that there was a progressive increase in B12 absorption in the 3rd week of pregnancy. The absorptive mechanism resembled that in nonpregnant animals on the grounds that the mechanism was saturable, and presumably intrinsic factor (IF) dependent, and that it was localized to the ileum. In vitro studies of IF-57Co B12 binding to ileal homogenates confirmed the requirement for IF. Studies in late pregnancy showed that IF-[57Co]B12 binding to ileal homogenates, expressed as nanograms of IF-[57Co]B12 bound per milligram of protein, was twice that of nonpregnant animals. When ileal homogenates were prepared from mice on days 20 to 21 of gestation, IF-[57Co]B12 binding fell to nonpregnant levels within 2 to 4 hr of hysterectomy. Hourly injections of serum from mice in late pregnancy, or from a female at the 37th week of gestation, maintained IF-B12 binding at levels reached during pregnancy, whereas nonpregnant serum was ineffective.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

Spermatogenesis in an infertile XYY man.

Testicular histology and meiosis has been studied in an XYY male patient identified at an infertility clinic. This man was found to have an XYY set chromosome complement in 15% of spermatogonial metaphases. There was no evidence of 2 Y chromosomes at diakinesis but there appeared to be a slight excess of sperm with a fluorescent Y body.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

A method to measure the adsorption of bile salts to vegetable fiber of differing water holding capacity.

Dietary vegetable fibers have physico-chemical properties which may influence their role in nutrition. A method is described which measures bile acid adsorption to fibers of differing water holding capacity. Such absorption studies are complicated by the water held in the fiber matrix which includes bile acid in solution. The entrapped solution gives some apparent adsorption but this can be removed by washing the fibers with water. This method differentiates between strong adsorption and reversible adsorption. This enables dietary vegetable fibers to be classified according to their bile acid absorption capacity which may be useful in selecting fibers for clinical trials.

Adsorption↗