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Biomedical subjects

N Krieger

Publications and source records attributed to N Krieger.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Recent developments in microbial inulinases. Its production, properties, and industrial applications.

Microbial inulinases are an important class of industrial enzymes that have gained much attention recently. Inulinases can be produced by a host of microorganisms, including fungi, yeast, and bacteria. Among them, however, Aspergillus sp. (filamentous fungus) and Kluyveromyces sp. (diploid yeast) are apparently the preferred choices for commercial applications. Among various substrates (carbon source) employed for their production, inulin-containing plant materials offer advantages in comparison to pure substrates. Although submerged fermentation has been universally used as the technique of fermentation, attempts are being made to develop solid-state fermentation technology also. Inulinases catalyze the hydrolysis of inulin to D-fructose (fructose syrup), which has gained an important place in human diets today. In addition, inulinases are finding other newer applications. This article reviews more recent developments, especially those made in the past decade, on microbial inulinases--its production using various microorganisms and substrates. It also describes the characteristics of various forms of inulinases produced as well as their applications.

Aspergillus↗
PubMed1999

Embodying inequality: a review of concepts, measures, and methods for studying health consequences of discrimination.

Investigating effects of discrimination upon health requires clear concepts, methods, and measures. At issue are both economic consequences of discrimination and accumulated insults arising from everyday and at times violent experiences of being treated as a second-class citizen, at each and every economic level. Guidelines for epidemiologic investigations and other public health research on ways people embody racism, sexism, and other forms of social inequality, however, are not well defined, as research in this area is in its infancy. Employing an ecosocial framework, this article accordingly reviews definitions and patterns of discrimination within the United States; evaluates analytic strategies and instruments researchers have developed to study health effects of different kinds of discrimination; and delineates diverse pathways by which discrimination can harm health, both outright and by distorting production of epidemiologic knowledge about determinants of population health. Three methods of studying health consequences of discrimination are examined (indirect; direct, at the individual level, in relation to personal experiences of discrimination; at the population level, such as via segregation), and recommendations are provided for developing research instruments to measure acute and cumulative exposure to different aspects of discrimination.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

The realm of microbial lipases in biotechnology.

In this review, a comprehensive and illustrious survey is made of the applied aspects of microbial lipases in modern biotechnological practices. Lipases are the most versatile biocatalyst and bring about a range of bioconversion reactions such as hydrolysis, interesterification, esterification, alcoholysis, acidolysis and aminolysis. After a brief description of the microbial sources of lipases, the pivotal role of lipases in the processes and products of the food and flavourings industry is illustrated. An illustration is presented of biomedical applications. The panorama of lipases in the manufacture of fine chemicals is depicted with special emphasis on pharmaceuticals, pesticides, cosmetics, biosensors and detergents. Widening applications such as those in waste management and improved tanning techniques are other novel aspects of lipase utilization that are discussed in this review.

Bacteria↗
PubMed1998

Adult female twins' recall of childhood social class and father's education: a validation study for public health research.

To assess recall of childhood socioeconomic position for public health research, the authors conducted a cross-sectional study of 352 adult women twin pairs enrolled in Examination II of the Kaiser Permanente Women Twins Study carried out in 1989-1990 in Oakland, California. Among twin pairs, 91% (95% confidence interval (CI) 89-94%) agreed on their father's educational level and 81% (95% CI 77-85%) on their childhood social class. Recall did not differ by adult socioeconomic position, zygosity, race/ethnicity, or age. Thus, epidemiologic studies can validly use retrospective data on childhood socioeconomic position to study its relation to adult health status.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Racial discrimination and skin color in the CARDIA study: implications for public health research. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults.

OBJECTIVES: This study assessed whether skin color and ways of handling anger can serve as markers for experiences of racial discrimination and responses to unfair treatment in public health research. METHODS: Survey data on 1844 Black women and Black men (24 to 42 years old), collected in the year 5 (1990-1991) and year 7 (1992-1993) examinations of the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study, were examined. RESULTS: Skin color was not associated with self-reported experiences of racial discrimination in 5 of 7 specified situations (getting a job, at work, getting housing, getting medical care, in a public setting). Only moderate associations existed between darker skin color and being working class, having low income or low education, and being male (risk ratios under 2). Comparably moderate associations existed between internalizing anger and typically responding to unfair treatment as a fact of life or keeping such treatment to oneself. CONCLUSIONS: Self-reported experiences of racial discrimination and responses to unfair treatment should be measured directly in public health research; data on skin color and ways of handling anger are not sufficient.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

[Kidney-pancreas transplantation. Clinical results in 23 consecutive patients].

Immunosuppressive approaches to combined kidney-pancreas tx include quadruple therapy with either antilymphocyte globulin (ATG) or OKT3 for a short period (7-14 days) immediately after transplantation. Maintenance therapy with prednisone, azathioprine and cyclosporin is then used to ensure the long-term survival of the graft. This study reports 23 cases of combined kidney-pancreas tx under ATG induction (n = 7) and OKT3 induction (n = 16). Both groups had maintenance therapy with azathioprine, prednisone and cyclosporin. The follow-up was 12 months. Graft loss was 3 out of 7 vs 1 out of 16 (p < 0.05) for the kidney and 3 out of 7 vs 3 out of 16 for the pancreas in ATG treated vs OKT3 treated patients respectively. There were two deaths in the ATG group and one in the OKT3 group; two patients died with functioning graft, one in each group. The one year actuarial survival was 87% for graft and patient, 83% for kidney and 77% for pancreas. Combined kidney-pancreas tx with ATG or OKT3 have a similar outcome. OKT3 allows a longer period before the onset of rejection. There is a trend in survivals which suggests a better survival in OKT3 treated recipients. Infections and other complications were similar in ATG and OKT3 patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Association between high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and breast cancer varies by menopausal status.

A nested case-control study was conducted to investigate the hypothesis that women with high levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are at an increased risk of breast cancer. The source population was a cohort of 95,000 women enrolled in the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program who underwent a routine multiphasic health examination between 1964 and 1971. From the more than 2,000 breast cancer cases diagnosed in this cohort, 200 cases were randomly selected for this study. For each case, one control who matched on age and date of examination was chosen. Lipid and lipoprotein levels were measured in archived serum samples collected at the time of the women's examinations. Breast cancer risk factor information was obtained from questionnaires completed by the women when their blood was drawn and was supplemented with information from medical records. HDL-C levels were not significantly different between the cases and controls overall; however, a statistically significant interaction between the HDL-C level and menopausal status at diagnosis was detected. Premenopausal cases had mean HDL-C levels 3.48 mg/dl lower than matched controls [95% confidence interval (CI), -7.05, 0.09], whereas postmenopausal cases had levels 2.05 mg/dl higher than controls (95% CI, -0.94, 5.03). In multivariate conditional logistic regression analyses, the odds ratio associated with each 1 mg/dl increase in HDL-C was 0.96 (95% Cl, 0.93-1.0) for premenopausal women and 1.02 (95% CI, 0.99-1.05) for postmenopausal women. Although many breast cancer risk factors are associated with high HDL-C, the relationship between breast cancer and HDL-C was independent of other factors evaluated.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Measuring social class in US public health research: concepts, methodologies, and guidelines.

Increasing social inequalities in health in the United States and elsewhere, coupled with growing inequalities in income and wealth, have refocused attention on social class as a key determinant of population health. Routine analysis using conceptually coherent and consistent measures of socioeconomic position in US public health research and surveillance, however, remains rare. This review discusses concepts and methodologies concerning, and guidelines for measuring, social class and other aspects of socioeconomic position (e.g. income, poverty, deprivation, wealth, education). These data should be collected at the individual, household, and neighborhood level, to characterize both childhood and adult socioeconomic position; fluctuations in economic resources during these time periods also merit consideration. Guidelines for linking census-based socioeconomic measures and health data are presented, as are recommendations for analyses involving social class, race/ethnicity, and gender. Suggestions for research on socioeconomic measures are provided, to aid monitoring steps toward social equity in health.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Reframing women's risk: social inequalities and HIV infection.

Social inequalities lie at the heart of risk of HIV infection among women in the United States. As of December, 1995, 71,818 US women had developed AIDS-defining diagnoses. These women have been disproportionately poor, African-American, and Latina. Their neighborhoods have been burdened by poverty, racism, crack cocaine, heroin, and violence. To explain which women are at risk and why, this article reviews the epidemiology of HIV and AIDS among women in light of four conceptual frameworks linking health and social justice: feminism, social production of disease/political economy of health, ecosocial, and human rights. The article applies these alternative theories to describe sociopolitical contexts for AIDS' emergence and spread in the United States, and reviews evidence linking inequalities of class, race/ethnicity, gender, and sexuality, as well as strategies of resistance to these inequalities, to the distribution of HIV among women.

Female↗
PubMed1997

Prevalence and health implications of anti-gay discrimination: a study of black and white women and men in the CARDIA cohort. Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults.

This study investigates the prevalence of self-reported experiences of discrimination based on sexual orientation among black and white women and men (25 to 37 years old) who are members of CARDIA, a multisite longitudinal study of cardiovascular risk factors. Among the 1,724 participants who responded to a 1989 questionnaire obtaining data on lifetime number of sexual partners and who participated in the Year 7 exam (1992-1993), which included questions about discrimination, 204 (12 percent) reported having at least one same-sex sexual partner: 27 (7 percent) of the 412 black women, 13 (6 percent) of the 221 black men, 87 (14 percent) of the 619 white women, and 77 (16 percent) of the 472 white men. Among these four groups, 33, 39, 52, and 56 percent, respectively, reported having experience discrimination based on sexual orientation. Additionally, 85 percent of black women and 77 percent of the black men reported having experienced racial discrimination, and 89 percent of the black women and 88 percent of the white women reported having experience gender discrimination. In the light of research associating negative stressors with poor health outcomes, including elevated blood pressure, future studies should assess public health implications of discrimination based on sexual orientation, in conjunction with racial and gender discrimination.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Induction of tolerance to small bowel allografts in high-responder rats by combining anti-CD4 with CTLA4Ig.

This study was designed to investigate the effectiveness of combined perioperative anti-CD4 and human (h)CTLA4Ig therapy in preventing allorejection of small bowel transplantation in high-responder Lewis rat recipients of ACI grafts. Anti-CD4 (5 mg/kg x 4 days) or hCTLA4Ig (0.5 mg/rat x 2 days) therapy alone delayed, but did not prevent, allograft rejection after small bowel transplantation of ACI into Lewis rats. All grafts were rejected in 18 and 10 days, respectively. However, a regimen of anti-CD4 (5 mg/kg x 4 days) combined with hCTLA4Ig (0.5 mg/rat x 2 days) allowed indefinite survival of ACI small bowel allografts. Second donor-matched heart grafts were permanently accepted, whereas third-party (Sprague-Dawley) heart allografts were rejected by the tolerant recipients. These data suggest that these two reagents produced a synergistic effect in preventing allorejection of small bowel transplantation.

Abatacept↗
PubMed1996

Racial discrimination and blood pressure: the CARDIA Study of young black and white adults.

OBJECTIVES: This study examined associations between blood pressure and self reported experiences of racial discrimination and responses to unfair treatment. METHODS: Survey data were collected in year 7 (1992/93) of the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study, a prospective multisite community-based investigation. Participants included 831 Black men, 1143 Black women, 1006 White men, and 1106 White women 25 to 37 years old. RESULTS: Systolic blood pressure among working-class Black adults reporting that they typically accepted unfair treatment and had experienced racial discrimination in none of seven situations was about 7 mm Hg higher than among those reporting that they challenged unfair treatment and experienced racial discrimination in one or two of the situations. Among professional Black adults, systolic blood pressure was 9 to 10 mm Hg lower among those reporting that they typically challenged unfair treatment and had not experienced racial discrimination. Black-White differences in blood pressure were substantially reduced by taking into account reported experiences of racial discrimination and responses to unfair treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Research on racial/ ethnic distributions of blood pressure should take into account how discrimination may harm health.

Adult↗