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P Crooks

Publications and source records attributed to P Crooks.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Does pre-dialysis care management reap rewards for patients, renal staff, and payers.

This article describes one renal disease management organization's experience in implementing a pre-dialysis care management program to improve outcomes in patients who develop end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Optimal Renal Care, a national renal disease management company, has implemented care management programs for 600+ ESRD patients and 600+ pre-ESRD patients in Oregon (1998) and Hawaii (1999). This article describes our Oregon pre-ESRD program's start-up experience.

Disease Management↗
PubMed1998

The heterocyclic substituted pyridine derivative (+/-)-2-(-3-pyridinyl)-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]octane (RJR-2429): a selective ligand at nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.

The present report describes in vitro studies demonstrating that the heterocyclic substituted pyridine compound (+/-)-2-(3-pyridinyl)-1-azabicyclo[2.2.2]octane (RJR-2429) is extremely potent in activating human muscle nicotine ACh receptor (nAChR) (EC50 = 59 +/- 17 nM; Emax = 110 +/- 09% vs. nicotine). RJR-2429 is markedly less potent in activating nAChRs in the clonal cell line PC12, with EC50 = 1100 +/- 230 nM and Emax = 85 +/- 20% when compared with nicotine. The activation of a putative alpha 3 beta 4-containing nAChR in PC12 by RJR-2429 reveals a potency intermediate between nicotine and epibatidine (EC50 of 20,000 nM for nicotine and 30 nM for epibatidine). Dose-response curves for agonist-induced ileum contraction indicate that RJR-2429 is equipotent with nicotine, having an EC30 of approximately 2 microM. RJR-2429 binds with high affinity to alpha 4 beta 2 receptor subtype (Ki = 1.0 +/- 0.3 nM), and chronic exposure results in significant up-regulation of the high-affinity [3H]nicotine binding sites. In addition, RJR-2429 does not activate nAChRs present in rat thalamic preparations but is a potent inhibitor of this receptor subtype. It antagonizes nicotine-stimulated ion flux in thalamic synaptosomes with an IC50 of 154 +/- 37 nM. It also is a potent partial agonist at nAChRs mediating dopamine release from rat synaptosomal preparations (EC50 = 2 +/- 1 nM; Emax = 40%; epibatidine and nicotine have EC50 values of 0.4 and 100 nM, respectively). A model for the structure-activity profile of RJR-2429, nicotine and epibatidine was derived by molecular forcefield and quantum mechanics calculations and may provide important clues for the development of ligands selective for nAChR subtypes as probes in the life sciences or as potential therapeutic tools.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Ischemic preconditioning: a long term survival study using behavioural and histological endpoints.

In this study we sought to determine if ischemic preconditioning provided long term behavioral and histological protection. A second goal was to see if ischemic preconditioning conveys its protective effect on CA1 neurons by altering post-ischemic brain temperature. While preconditioning episodes of short duration ischemia (i.e. 1.5 min) provided significant histological protection of CA1 pyramidal cells against a subsequent severe ischemic insult (i.e. 5 min), this did not result in complete behavioural protection. Preconditioned ischemic animals initially displayed habituation deficits in an open field test that were comparable to untreated ischemic gerbils. A significant decline in CA1 preservation in preconditioned animals was observed when survival time was extended from 10 (81% protection) to 30 (53% protection) days. In addition, protection was not observed in the subiculum and CA2 sector of the hippocampus where consistent damage was observed in 21/22 gerbils. Ischemic preconditioning did not markedly affect post-ischemic brain temperature suggesting that the observed protection was not due to a reduction in temperature during or after the severe ischemic insult. The lack of functional protection within the first 10 days after ischemia, along with the decline of cellular preservation over time, suggests that this paradigm may not provide permanent protection.

Animals↗