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Biomedical subjects

K McHenry

Publications and source records attributed to K McHenry.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

Cryosurvival of Trichomonas vaginalis during cryopreservation of human semen.

Despite a 90% cryosurvival of Trichomonas vaginalis in their growth medium trypticase yeast maltose (TYM) with DMSO, none of these parasites have previously been observed to survive during cryopreservation of infected human semen with glycerol (Andrologia 18, 323 (1986)). This could have been due to the failure of the culture method used to detect low numbers of survivors. The prospects of possible transmission of T. vaginalis by artificial insemination with cryobanked (-196 degrees C) semen prompted an investigation of the cryosurvival of this parasite in the presence of semen with the cryoprotectant glycerol, using a more sensitive culture method for viability evaluation. Semen and seminal fluid from the same 23 ejaculates, as well as culture medium, were inoculated with small clinical numbers of T. vaginalis and evaluated as to their survival before and after cryopreservation. Results indicated: (i) The highest cryosurvival of T. vaginalis (4.5%) was in cryobanked (glycerolated) semen, (ii) semen, as well as glycerol, shows cryoprotective action, and (iii) glycerol reduced survival of parasites in semen, seminal fluid, and TYM medium during exposure prior to freezing. Clinical information on infectivity of small numbers of T. vaginalis and the data presented here suggests that these organisms could be transmitted by artificial insemination with infected cryobanked human semen.

Animals

Evaluation of two food frequency methods of measuring dietary calcium intake.

To assess the ability of food frequency methods to measure current dietary calcium intake in elderly women, the authors administered two types of food frequency instruments to 37 randomly selected women who attended two senior citizens centers in San Francisco, and they compared those responses to seven-day food records. A 34-item food frequency instrument (with portion sizes rated as small, medium, or large) correlated well (r = 0.76) with the estimated calcium intake from seven-day records. Limiting the instrument to the top 15, 10, or five foods that contribute to dietary calcium intake had little effect on this correlation (r = 076, 0.75, and 0.67, respectively). Rating all portions as "medium" reduced these correlations somewhat. An 18-item instrument, which asks respondents to rate portion sizes in ounces or cups, did not correlate as well with the seven-day records (r = 0.49). The authors conclude that brief food frequency instruments which rate portion sizes on a simple qualitative scale may be suitable for many clinical uses and adequate for some types of epidemiologic studies of calcium intake in elderly women.

Aged

Techniques for assessing alveolar bone mass changes in periodontal disease with emphasis on 125I absorptiometry.

No practical methods are presently available for measurement of alveolar bone activity at one instant of time. However, roentgenological methods making measurements at 2 different times can be used to assess alveolar bone activity. The most sensitive, specific and accurate method for this purpose presently in use is 125I absorptiometry. This method has the further advantage of giving the patient minimal radiation exposure. New methodology is under development which obviates the need for fixed geometry and could provide a 3-dimensional image of alveolar bone.

Alveolar Process

Effects of immunization with B. macacae on induced periodontitis--preliminary findings.

This preliminary study examined the effects of immunization with Bacteroides macacae, the monkey equivalent of the human species of B. gingivalis on ligature-induced periodontitis. During a 12 week immunization period, 8 out of the 12 Macacae fasicularis monkeys were immunized weekly with B. macacae washed cells and 4 were sham-immunized with saline. At the same time, all were scaled and pumiced weekly to establish gingival health. Following this period, the mandibular first molars were ligated in 8 out of the 12 monkeys to induce periodontitis. The immunized, ligated experimental group, the ligated, sham-immunized control group, and the immunized, non-ligated control group were then followed for a 6 months ligation period while plaque was allowed to accumulate. Gingival indices, attachment levels, pocket depths, plaque indices, radiographs, serum and crevicular fluid antibodies and subgingival bacteria were assessed. Immunization led to elevated antibody levels to B. macacae while ligation increased plaque, gingival inflammation, and bone loss. Following the 6 month ligation period, B. macacae comprised 1.7% of the cultivable flora in the immunized, non-ligated monkeys, 2.1% in the immunized, ligated monkeys, and 5.6% in the sham-immunized, ligated monkeys. Similar differences between the immunized, ligated and and the sham-immunized, ligated groups were not seen for B. intermedius, nor B. melaninogenicus. These results suggest a heightened humoral response to B. gingivalis reduces subgingival re-colonization by this organism and modulates the course of ligature-induced periodontitis.

Animals