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Biomedical subjects

R Ulrich

Publications and source records attributed to R Ulrich.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

The prevalence of autoantibodies among right and left handed schizophrenic patients and control subjects.

Sera from schizophrenic patients (n = 186) and healthy control subjects (n = 346) were tested for the presence of seven common autoantibodies by standard immunological methods. The association between handedness and autoantibodies was tested in a multi-way contingency table using a log-linear model. For men, but not women, nondextrals (patients and controls) were twice as likely to test positive for autoantibodies than dextrals (p = 0.0002). Although more women (33%) than men (24%) tested positive for autoantibodies, handedness was not a distinguishing factor among women. These data suggest that sinistrality and gender are associated with autoantibodies in a subgroup of schizophrenic patients and healthy control subjects.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

A digitized-fluorescence-imaging study of mitochondrial Ca2+ increase by doxorubicin in cardiac myocytes.

The objective of the present study was to investigate the role of mitochondrial Ca2+ in doxorubicin-induced cell injury. The effect of doxorubicin on cultured cells was investigated by digitized fluorescence imaging. The Ca2+ sensitive fluorescent dye fura-2 was used to estimate cytosolic, mitochondrial and total cellular Ca2+. Rhodamine 123 was used to estimate the mitochondrial membrane potential, and cellular ATP was determined by h.p.l.c. The data showed that doxorubicin induced greater-than-2-fold increases in mitochondrial Ca2+ before changes in cytosolic Ca2+ could be detected. An increase in mitochondrial Ca2+ paralleled the observed dissipation in mitochondrial membrane potential. Cellular ATP levels appeared to decrease as a result of mitochondrial dysfunction, which in turn produced greater-than-2-fold increases in cytosolic Ca2+. The data suggest that doxorubicin-induced alterations in mitochondrial Ca2+ homoeostasis are associated with a dissipation in energy conservation, which may result in cell injury.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗
PubMed1992

Immunogenicity of recombinant core particles of hepatitis B virus containing epitopes of human immunodeficiency virus 1 core antigen.

A Gag protein segment of human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) has been fused to a C terminally truncated core antigen of hepatitis B virus (HBcAg) using an E. coli expression system. Fusion of 90 amino acids of HIV-1 Gag protein to HBcAg still allowed the formation of capsids presenting on their surface epitopes of HIV-1 core protein, whereas fusion of 317, 189, or 100 amino acids of Gag prevented self-assembly of chimeric particles. Mice immunized with recombinant particles emulsified with Freund's complete adjuvant (CFA) or aluminium hydroxide developed high anti-HBcAg titers. However, anti-HIVp24 antibodies were detected only in mice inoculated with immunogen emulsified with CFA.

AIDS Vaccines↗
PubMed1992

Ultrastructural alterations in ileal M cells of rats after chronic ethanol ingestion: reversal after cessation of ethanol.

Membranous (M) cells within the dome epithelium of ileal Peyer's patches have been shown to provide selective antigen entry for mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue. This study produced morphologic evidence of ethanol-induced disruption of the architecture in follicle-associated epithelium. The adherens type junctions of the lateral plasma membranes between M cells and columnar absorptive cells were disrupted. A 45-day exposure by ingestion of ethanol also produced marked changes in the ultrastructure of M cells. All experimental animals showed mitochondrial swelling with loss of matrix density, dilation of the endoplasmic reticulum and cytoplasmic vacuolization. The ethanol content of serum and chyme samples were 180 mg/dl and 160 mg/dl, respectively. This was well below the 4,280 mg/dl of the diet therefore a systemic mechanism was implicated for the changes observed. Membranous cells from the recovery group were normal 15 days after withdrawal from ethanol. We concluded that the ethanol-induced cytopathology in ileal M cells is reversible when ethanol exposure is discontinued.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

[Chronic urticaria in enterobiasis vermicularis (oxyuriasis)].

We report on a patient with chronic urticaria associated with enterobiasis vermicularis (oxyuriasis). The current distribution of Enterobius vermicularis and its importance concerning chronic urticaria of endogenous origin is evaluated and discussed.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

[Use of polychlorinated biphenyl congener analysis for monitoring food and raw material of animal origin].

Occurrence of individual polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners in the environment, foodstuffs and other biological materials was assessed. Analysis of specific PCB congeners (28, 52, 101, 138, 153, 180), occurring in animal raw materials and foodstuffs most frequently, has been implemented. Sample processing, isolation of fat from milk, meat, organs, fat tissue and eggs, and separation of PCB from fats using the sorbents Florisil or Ekosorb (a new Czechoslovak sorbent based on modified silica gel, Kavalier Glassworks, Votice) are described in detail. Individual PCB congeners were determined by capillary gas chromatography (gas chromatograph Varian VISTA 6,000, equipped with a 63Ni ECD; silica capillary column SPB-5, 30 m x 0.32 mm I.D., 0.25 micron film; column temperature programme: 60 degrees C for 2 min, then to 250 degrees C at 20 degrees C/min and held for 13 min; splitless injection). Chromatograms of commercial chemicals Delor 103 and Delor 106 (corresponding to Aroclor 1242 and 1260, respectively), of a mixture of six specific PCB congener standards and of a PCB--containing milk sample are presented in Fig. 1-3. Methods of PCBs estimation, currently used in Czechoslovakia, and benefits of congeneric analysis of PCBs (reproducibility of results, quantification of individual congeners) are discussed. Analysis of specific PCB congeners is used for the assay of PCBs in foodstuffs and investigations of PCBs dynamics in food chains and distribution and accumulation of PCBs in animal organisms. Contents of specific PCB congeners in milk, pork and pig liver and kidney samples are given in Tab. II.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Dairy Products↗
PubMed1991

[Treatment of acute episodes of atopic dermatitis. Double-blind comparative study with 0.05% halometasone cream versus 0.25% prednicarbate cream].

In a double-blind, randomized multicenter study in patients with acute episodes of atopic dermatitis, the efficacy and tolerance of 0.5% halometasone (Sicorten) cream were compared with those of 0.25% prednicarbate cream. A total of 165 patients (88 men, 77 women) were admitted to the study. The halometasone group contained 9% more cases with severe disease than did the prednicarbate group. Two daily nonocclusive applications were permitted, and treatment lasted 14 days. No difference in the onset of the effect was observed between the two groups. With respect to clinical efficacy, higher healing rates were found in the halometasone group: 50.6% versus 34.5% in the patients as a whole, and 39.5% vs. 16.2% in the subgroup of clinically severe cases. Applying stratification, a statistical difference was found in the clinically severe cases. Both creams were well tolerated; undesired side effects were observed neither with halometasone cream nor with prednicarbate cream. Cosmetic acceptance was assessed as very good by 50.6% of patients treated with halometasone cream, and 46.0% of patients treated with prednicarbate cream. Summarizing, it may be noted that halometasone cream is more effective than prednicarbate cream, and is equally well tolerated.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1991

Use of random-sequence riboflavin as a marker of medication compliance in chronic schizophrenics.

Adherence to prescribed medications is believed to be a major problem in medicine. However, actual medication taking behaviour is rarely measured as no reliable objective measures of adherence are available. 50 mg of riboflavin administered at night could be reliably detected in urine, under UV light, for the next 18-24 h. The ability of 20 schizophrenic outpatients to adhere to a once-a-night dosage was studied by dispensing riboflavin or placebo in a random sequence and testing the urine for UV fluorescence the next day. The majority of patients (80%) had errors between 40-80% of the times tested. Only age and sex predicted the level of adherence. Clinicians were very poor predictors of the error rates in their patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

A recruitment theory of force-time relations in the production of brief force pulses: the parallel force unit model.

A theory, the parallel force unit model, is advanced in which the buildup and decline of force in rapid responses of short duration are assumed to reflect variability in timing of several parallel force units. Response force is conceived of as being a summation of a large number of force units, each acting independently of one another. Force is controlled by either the number of recruited force units or the duration each unit contributes its force. Several predictions are derived on the basis of this theory and are shown to be in qualitative agreement with empirical findings about both the mean and variability of brief force impulses. The model also has consequences for the temporal properties of a response. For example, under certain circumstances, it predicts a reciprocal relation between reaction time and response force. Although the theory is proposed as a psychological account, relations between the assumptions and basic principles in neurophysiology are considered. Possible future applications and generalizations of the theory are discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

The processing of temporal intervals reflected by CNV-like brain potentials.

The present study employed event-related potentials (ERPs) of the brain to improve the understanding of temporal processing. A reproduction paradigm was realized by presenting a visual stimulus (illuminated screen) for intervals of varying length. A few seconds after presentation of such standard intervals the visual stimulus was switched on again and subjects were asked to reproduce the duration of the standard interval by turning off the illumination after a corresponding interval had elapsed. The length of standard intervals varied randomly with each of the following lengths being presented 20 times: 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 s. Reproduction was accurate for standard intervals up to 3 s but deteriorated with increasing interval length. Brain potentials during reproduction intervals of 1-3 s differed from those recorded during the longer intervals. A CNV-like slow negative shift developed during the shorter reproduction intervals. Negatively was reduced or even absent, when subjects had to reproduce standard intervals of 4 s or longer. The ERP results suggest that intervals shorter than 3-4 s may evoke a processing mode that is qualitatively different from the one dominating when periods in the range of several seconds have to be processed.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Expression of bovine leukaemia virus antigens fused to MS2 polymerase in E. coli.

The main core protein and segments of envelope proteins of bovine leukaemia virus fused to MS2 polymerase were expressed in E. coli. The synthesis rate varied between 3 and 25% of the total cellular proteins. BLV-MS2 polymerase fusion proteins were detected immunologically using rabbit anti-BLV sera, monoclonal antibodies and a serum of a BLV-infected cow.

Antigens, Viral↗
PubMed1990

Lack of changes in cytosolic ionized calcium in primary cultures of rat kidney cortical cells exposed to cytotoxic concentrations of gentamicin.

Gentamicin nephrotoxicity in vivo has a delayed onset. Our assessment of gentamicin-induced cell death in vitro, by measuring the release of cytosolic lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), indicated a prolonged onset as well. A recent study, which showed that gentamicin caused an abrupt increase in the concentration of cytosolic free calcium ([Ca2+]i) in a trypsin-harvested kidney cell line, suggested that immediate changes in calcium homeostasis may initiate the pathogenesis of gentamicin nephrotoxicity. To study the immediate effect of gentamicin on [Ca2+]i, gentamicin was perfused for 1 hr over primary monolayer cultures of renal cortical epithelial cells, and suspensions of trypsin-harvested renal cells (from primary cultures and a cell line) were treated with gentamicin for 30 min. [Ca2+]i was determined using the fluorescent probe fura-2. Positive controls (ionomycin and mercury) reliably increased [Ca2+]i in each experimental model, but no increase in [Ca2+]i was observed with gentamicin. Because enzyme release data indicated that significant cytotoxicity did not occur until 48 hr of exposure to 2 mM gentamicin, primary cultures were exposed to gentamicin (1-2 mM) for 24-48 hr and [Ca2+]i was measured. No gentamicin-induced increase in [Ca2+]i was observed in these longer exposures, whether or not significant LDH release occurred. These results do not support a role for elevated [Ca2+]i in the cytotoxicity of gentamicin in cultured kidney cells, either immediately after exposure or following prolonged exposures.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

[Allergic contact eczema to etofenamate and dwarf pine oil].

A typical case of contact dermatitis following topical applications of etofenamat is reported and a short review of literature is given. Considering the frequent administration of etofenamat, contact sensitization is relatively rare.

Administration, Topical↗
PubMed1990

Females and males in an intake psychiatric setting.

It is generally acknowledged that some psychiatric disorders are more commonly found among members of one sex rather than the other (e.g., Dohrenwend and Dohrenwend 1976; Gove and Tudor 1973; Kass et al. 1983; Robins et al. 1984; Rosenfield 1980; Weissman and Klerman 1977). Females, moreover, are consistently overrepresented in treatment populations of different sorts, and various reasons involving responses to illness and inclination to seek treatment have been offered to account for this (Finkler 1984; Kessler et al. 1981; Nathanson 1975; Verbrugge and Wingard 1987). In contrast to accepted gender differences in prevalence, incidence and inclination to use services, a prevailing view about psychopathology is that the actual content or manifestations of a disorder should be "culture free" or universal. In the theory of psychopathology (e.g., implicit in DSM-III), general descriptors of the person (i.e., demographic and cultural) play a comparatively minor role in the stipulation of the manifestations of psychiatric illness. Among socially and culturally oriented psychiatrists, on the other hand, such descriptors are considered important clues to origins of psychopathology. However, in such analyces, sociocultural is usually equated with altogether different symbolic/language traditions (e.g., Finkler 1985; Lieban 1978), although reports exist of sex differences in symptom expression in Western societies (Brown and Harris 1976; Hinkle et al. 1960; Nathanson 1979). Feminist critics assert that even within the sociocultural tradition linked to Anglo-American society, a bias exists with respect to how psychopathology is shaped, defined and handled (Kaplan 1983; Showalter 1985). The topic of gender differences in psychiatric morbidity is thus of considerable general interest and one that can be approached from a number of different perspectives. In this study we compare psychopathology in males and females who were referred to an intake setting. The DSM-III formulations and level and type of symptoms were the focus of analysis. The results are interpreted in light of findings in psychiatric epidemiology and social psychiatry.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Immunological characterization of BLV proteins synthesized in Escherichia coli.

Hybrid proteins composed of beta-galactosidase and polypeptides of the bovine leukaemia virus (BLV) including those of the main core protein p24, the envelope protein gp51 and the transmembrane protein gp30 were produced in Escherichia coli and immunologically characterized. The hybrid proteins were immunologically reactive with sera from cattle naturally infected with BLV, demonstrating a possible use for diagnosis of BLV infection. Detection of antibodies was most sensitive with the p24 derivative.

Animals↗