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Biomedical subjects

R Gall

Publications and source records attributed to R Gall.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

Vergence facility and target type.

PURPOSE: Target suppression-cues are considered important for valid binocular accommodative facility response. However, there are no comparable recommendations concerning the effect of target type on vergence facility response. METHODS: Ten subjects ages 16 to 19 years of either sex and any race were pooled, based on the lack of any asthenopic symptoms determined by a verbal interview with the investigator. Inclusion/exclusion criteria included vision correctable to 6/6 (20/20) Snellen acuity or better in each eye, and near-normal phorias. Vergence facility response was tested over a 1-min period using 8 delta base-in (BI) and 20 delta base-out (BO) loose prisms at near (0.4 M) for 3 different vertically oriented targets: 6/9 (20/30) Snellen letters, back-illuminated anaglyphic shapes, and modified Wirt circles. RESULTS: For the group, the mean facility response was similar among the target types [Snellen letters: 9.5 cycles per minute (cpm) +/- 5.6; anaglyphic shapes: 9.0 cpm +/- 6.3; and Wirt circles: 9.4 cpm +/- 4.5]. Group response-differences were not significantly different by one-way ANOVA polynomial regression testing at the 0.05 level (F-value = 0.03, p = 0.97, df = 2). CONCLUSIONS: Whereas a binocular accommodative facility target must have additional vectographic or anaglyphic suppression-cues, vergence facility testing may incorporate a simple and available vertical row of 6/9 (20/30) Snellen letters, which provide inherent fusional suppression-cues, for a valid binocular response.

Adolescent↗

Vergence facility: establishing clinical utility.

PURPOSE: Vergence facility testing attempts to assess the ability of the fusional vergence system to respond rapidly and accurately to changing vergence demands over time [defined as the number of cycles per minute (cpm) that a stimulus can be fused through, alternating base-in (BI) and base-out (BO) prisms]. Decisions to use vergence facility as a clinical test are hampered by a lack of systematically gathered normative data. METHODS: Twenty symptomatic and 20 control subjects with ages between 18 to 35 years of either sex and any race were pooled, based on vision-symptom level determined by a self-report questionnaire. Inclusion/exclusion criteria included vision correctable to 6/6 (20/20) Snellen acuity or better in each eye and normal phorias. Vergence facility response was tested over a 1-min period, using 16 combinations of BI/BO flip prisms at 4.0 and 0.4 m, based on Morgan's norms and pilot data. RESULTS: Horizontal vergence facility responses were not the same among those with and without symptoms, and not all magnitudes of BI/BO flip prisms produced the same response difference. A single flip prism, 3 delta BI/12 delta BO, was found to differentiate optimally between groups at distance and near. Repeatability of test results (with the 3 delta BI/12 delta BO prism) was poor at distance and good at near. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to providing valuable normative data, this study indicates that the vergence system nearly resets its "zero point" at any distance and sheds further light on the results of dynamic convergence and divergence stimulation on the accommodative-vergence system. From a clinical standpoint, the results improve the diagnosis of binocular vision abnormalities. The recommended near vergence facility test is easily implemented, using a commonly available flip prism (3 delta BI/12 delta BO) and having a clinical failure criterion that is easily recalled (15 cpm, sum of the BI and BO magnitudes).

Adolescent↗

Calcium/calmodulin-dependent phosphorylation and the effect of cadmium in cultured fish cells.

1. Calmodulin constitutes approximately 0.7% of the soluble protein in rainbow trout gonadal cells (RTG-2). 2. Calcium-dependent phosphorylation of endogenous proteins was examined in vitro in cytosol fractions of RTG-2 cells. Phosphorylation of numerous proteins was stimulated by calmodulin and calcium, and inhibited by the calmodulin-binding phenothiazine, trifluoperazine. 3. Cadmium was as effective as calcium in stimulating calmodulin-dependent phosphorylations of endogenous substrates in cytosolic fractions of RTG-2 cells.

Animals↗

Immunoassay detection of drugs in racing horses. III. Detection of morphine in equine blood and urine by a one step ELISA assay.

A one step enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test for morphine was evaluated as part of a panel of pre- and post-race tests for narcotic analgesics in racing horses. This ELISA test is very sensitive to morphine with an I-50 for morphine of about 400 pg/ml. The test is also rapid, and ten samples, a normal pre-race complement, can be analyzed in about thirty minutes. The test can be read with an inexpensive spectrophotometer, or even by eye. The test readily detects the presence of morphine or its metabolites in equine blood for up to six hours after administration of sub-therapeutic doses. The antibody also cross-reacts with hydromorphone, orymorphone, nalorphine, levorphanol, and codeine, and the test either can detect or is likely to detect these drugs in blood or urine shortly after their administration to horses. As such this test is capable of dramatically improving the speed and efficacy of both pre-race and post-race testing for morphine and its congeners in racing horses. On initial introduction into post-race urine screening this test flagged 18 of 166 samples positive for opiates, and 13 of these samples were confirmed positive for opiates by mass spectrometry.

Animals↗

Synthesis of thioether phosphocholine analogues.

The synthesis of thioether phospholipids, which represent a new class of antitumor agents, is reported here. In particular, the route of synthesis of 3-hexadecylmercapto-2-methoxymethylpropyl-2'-trimethylammoni o-ethyl phosphate (BM 41.440, Ilmofosine), one of the most potent cytostatic/cytotoxic derivatives, is described in detail. Starting with diethyl bis-hydroxymethylmalonate, ethyl 2-phenyl-1,3-dioxane-5-carboxylate is formed via diethyl 2-phenyl-1,3-dioxane-5,5-dicarboxylate and 5-ethoxycar-bonyl-2-phenyl-1,3-dioxane-5-carboxylic acid. Reduction of ethyl 2-phenyl-1,3-dioxane-5-carboxylate with LiAlH4 affords 5-hydroxymethyl-2-phenyl-1,3-dioxane. Alkylation with dimethyl sulfate gives 5-methoxymethyl-2-phenyl-1,3-dioxane. The ring structure then is opened by N-bromosuccinimide, resulting in the formation of 3-bromo-2-methoxymethylproply benzoate. Reaction of 3-bromo-2-methoxymethylpropyl benzoate with the sodium salt of hexadecanethiol leads to 3-hexadecylmercapto-2-methoxy-methylpropanol, which is reacted with a cyclic chlorophosphate to give the corresponding phosphorylated 3-hexadecylmercapto-2-methoxymethylpropanol. Treatment with trimethylamine yields BM 41.440. This compound already has been tested in clinical phase I/II trials in West Germany.

Antineoplastic Agents↗

Immunoassay detection of drugs in horses. I. Particle concentration fluoroimmunoassay detection of fentanyl and its congeners.

We investigated the use of particle concentration fluorescence immunoassay (PCFIA) as a technique for drug detection in racing horses. The test was constructed from an antiserum to a carboxyfentanyl-BSA conjugate and carboxyfentanyl linked to b-Phycoerythrin. Using these reagents and a PCFIA apparatus levels of fentanyl as low as 0.1 ng/ml could be detected by the assay. In addition, cross-reactivity studies on this assay showed that the anti-serum cross-reacted well with carfentanil, sufentanil and the methylated analogs of fentanyl. We therefore evaluated the ability of these agents to produce pharmacological effects in the horse and the ability of this test to detect pharmacologically significant doses of this drug in racing horses. All of these agents produced good locomotor responses in horses at doses of between 0.1 and 10 micrograms/kg. Of these agents, carfentanyl was the most potent followed by 3-methylfentanyl, sufentanyl, alpha-methylfentanyl, and fentanyl. Similarly, when these agents were administered to horses at doses sufficient to produce a pharmacological response, all produced sufficient inhibition of fluorescence in the PCFIA system to enable their detection in post-race urines from these horses. Since PCFIA is a much faster technique than radioimmunoassay, is of approximately similar sensitivity, and requires much less instrumentation we concluded that this technique holds considerable promise as an equine drug testing technique.

Animals↗

Severe dyspnea and dysphagia resulting from an aberrant cervical thymus.

A 5-month-old infant presented with severe dyspnea and dysphagia resulting from a right-sided cervical mass. At 5 months of age, a large aberrant thymus was excised, resulting in the disappearance of all symptoms. Pathological examination showed normal thymus tissue. Since the preoperative chest X-ray film showed a normal thymic shadow and the T-lymphocyte functions were normal, we conclude that this was not an ectopic gland but an undescended thymic implant.

Choristoma↗