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S Nicolson

Publications and source records attributed to S Nicolson.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

An antidiuretic factor in the forest ant: purification and physiological effects on the Malpighian tubules.

Formica polyctena antidiuretic factor (FopADF) was purified from a 15% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) extract of the abdomens of 150,000 worker ants. After solid phase extraction of the crude extract and reversed-phase HPLC on two C(18) columns, an antidiuretic factor was isolated. Tested at a concentration of 1.0 ant-equivalents/µl (ant-eq/µl), the factor reversibly inhibited fluid secretion of isolated Malpighian tubules to 29+/-5% (mean+/-SE, n=24) of the control value. The same concentration of FopADF reversibly depolarized both the basolateral membrane potential (V(bl)), from -21+/-2 mV to -3+/-1 mV (n=5), and the apical membrane potential (V(ap)), from -65+/-5 mV to -20+/-5 mV (n=5). Similar effects on fluid secretion and V(ap) were caused by a TFA extract of the haemolymph of ants with non-secreting tubules. Unfortunately, further purification of FopADF on a C(4) column led to a loss of activity in the fluid secretion assay. This is the first time an endogenous antidiuretic factor acting directly on Malpighian tubules has been partially purified and shown to depolarize the tubule cell membranes.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2000

Bilateral sequential lung transplant for ectodermal dysplasia.

A case of bilateral sequential lung transplantation for anhidrotic ectodermal dysplasia is presented. The patient was a 16-year-old male with end-stage lung disease secondary to chronic severe respiratory infection. Although a relatively rare disease, the common association of fatal pulmonary compromise in those affected with this disorder warrants consideration of lung transplantation as a viable therapeutic option.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Evaluation of ventricular septal defect repair using intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography: frequency and significance of residual defects in infants and children.

Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (IOTEE) is commonly used to assess for residual defect and the need to return to bypass after repair of ventricular septal defect (VSD). The frequency and significance of residual septal defects as noted on IOTEE has not been well defined. We evaluated the frequency of residual VSD via IOTEE and the relationship between size of a residual VSD and rate of reoperation. In addition, we looked at the relationship between the presence of a residual VSD via IOTEE and the presence of residual VSD at follow-up transthoracic echocardiography (TTE). Residual VSD was measured via the largest width of the Doppler color jet diameter originating at the left ventricular septal surface. Of the 294 patients evaluated with IOTEE after VSD repair, one-third had a residual defect by IOTEE Doppler color flow mapping. Two-thirds of these defects closed spontaneously on TTE by the time of hospital discharge. There was no difference in frequency of residual VSD between simple (VSD closure alone, n = 90) and complex (VSD with associated lesions, n = 204) repair. Return to bypass with immediate reoperation was undertaken in nine patients, all of whom had significant shunt via oximetry (Qp/Qs > 1.5:1.0). All had residual VSD color jet diameters > 3 mm. Seven patients had residual color jet equal to 3 mm; however, hemodynamic studies did not reveal a significant shunt and none of these had reoperation. Seven patients with no VSD or < 3 mm residual VSD via had late reoperation to close residual VSD at 4 days to 5 months after initial operation. These were due to patch dehiscence or development of an "intramural" VSD in patients with conotruncal anomaly. A residual defect on IOTEE color Doppler measuring > or = 4 mm predicts the need for immediate reoperation, while a 3 mm defect may be significant and requires additional intraoperative hemodynamic evaluation. The majority of small defects noted on IOTEE are not present at discharge TTE. Patients with conotruncal defect repair should be followed closely for development of late significant "intramural" defects.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1996

Electrical transients in the cell-volume response to cyclic AMP of the tsetse fly Malpighian tubule

1. Using cyclic AMP to stimulate perfused tsetse fly Malpighian tubules bathed in SO42- Ringer frequently causes an immediate but transient peak in transtubular potential (Vt), before stabilisation of Vt at an increased value. 2. These transients were investigated by monitoring the associated changes in cable properties and current&shy;voltage (I/V) relationships. Tubules were perfused and bathed in either Cl- Ringer or SO42- Ringer (containing 8 mmol l-1 Cl-). 3. Tubules bathed in Cl- Ringer showed a transient swelling of the cells on exposure to cyclic AMP. Cable analysis confirmed the visually observed narrowing of the tubular lumen and revealed transient increases in core resistance (Rc) and transtubular resistance (Rt). As the cells returned to their initial volume, the lumen became distended, and Rc and Rt fell below their initial levels. These changes were accompanied by an increase, and a subsequent decrease, in the slope of the I/V plot. 4. None of the above changes was apparent in SO42- Ringer, other than a fall in Rt and in the slope of the I/V plot. 5. The results suggest that, in Cl- Ringer, cyclic AMP induces swelling of the tubular cells by promoting increased basolateral solute (and water) entry and that the subsequent rapid return to normal cell volume, with a concomitant progressive increase in the rate of tubular secretion, reflects the operation of a specific cell-volume regulatory mechanism of transepithelial transport. 6. The cyclic-AMP-induced peak that occurs in Vt in SO42- Ringer appears to be primarily due to a transient overshoot in the fall in series resistance (i.e. an increase in basolateral Na+ conductance), accompanied by a proportionately lesser increase in shunt resistance.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1994

CONCEALED TRANSEPITHELIAL POTENTIALS AND CURRENT RECTIFICATION IN TSETSE FLY MALPIGHIAN TUBULES

1. Electrophysiological techniques have been applied to tsetse fly Malpighian tubules for the first time. 2. In either Cl- or SO42- Ringer, both non-perfused and perfused tubules displayed transtubular potentials (Vt) at or close to 0 mV. Exposure to cyclic AMP elicited a marked secretory response and, in SO42- Ringer, a sharp (lumen-positive) increase in Vt. In Cl- Ringer, despite more than double the secretory response, there was little or no change in Vt. 3. Replacing Cl- with SO42- Ringer, in the presence of cyclic AMP, promptly increased Vt. In perfused tubules, this occurred irrespective of the Cl- or SO42- composition of the perfusate. 4. In Cl- Ringer, the transepithelial resistance (Rtrans) was less than half that previously reported in Malpighian tubules of other species. Cyclic AMP reduced Rtrans still further, whether tubules were bathed in Cl- or SO42- Ringer. 5. Current&shy;voltage (I/V) plots often displayed current rectification, both before and more frequently after exposure to cyclic AMP, thus permitting estimation of both the electromotive force of the Na+ transport mechanism (ENa) and of the shunt resistance (Rshunt). Both ENa and Rshunt were markedly lower in tubules bathed in Cl- than in SO42- Ringer. Cyclic AMP was without effect on ENa and Rshunt, in either Cl- or SO42- Ringer. 6. In terms of the equivalent electrical circuit, the secretory response to cyclic AMP was due solely to a fall in resistance of the active transport pathway (Rseries). The absence of an appreciable Vt, in Cl- Ringer, is consistent with an apical Cl- shunt.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1991

Comparison of the hemostatic effects of fresh whole blood, stored whole blood, and components after open heart surgery in children.

In a double-blind study, we compared the postoperative (post-op) blood loss in 161 children undergoing open heart surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass whose immediate post-op transfusion requirements were met with either very fresh whole blood (VFWB), 24- to 48-hour-old whole blood or reconstituted whole blood (packed red blood cells, fresh frozen plasma [FFP], and platelets). Assignment to treatment groups was not strictly random but dependent, in part, on the ability of families to provide directed donors for fresh blood. The three patient groups were comparable with respect to patient age, pre-op coagulation profiles (bleeding time, prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, platelet count, fibrin split products, fibrinogen, and platelet aggregation tests) difficulty of operative procedures and time spent on CPB. Mean 24-hour post-op blood loss in milliliters per kilogram was 50.9 +/- 9.3 in the VFWB group, 44.8 +/- 6.0 in the 24- to 48-hour-old group, and 74.2 +/- 8.9 in the reconstituted group (p = .03). When blood loss was compared in the 93 children less than 2 years of age, mean blood loss was 52.3 +/- 10.8 in the VFWB group, 51.7 +/- 7.4 in the 24- to 48-hour-old group, and 96.2 +/- 10.7 in the reconstituted group (P = .001). For subjects who had received reconstituted blood, 30-minute and 3-hour post-op platelet aggregation responses to adenosine diphosphate (10 mumol/L) and 30-minute aggregation response to epinephrine (2.5 mumol/L) were more depressed than in the VFWB and 24- to 48-hour groups (P less than .001, P = .005, and P = .02). Comparison of other post-op coagulation tests could not explain the increased blood loss in the reconstituted group. We conclude that the transfusion of less than 48 hours old whole blood is associated with significantly less post-op blood loss than the transfusion of packed red blood cells, FFP, and platelets in children under 2 years old who underwent complex cardiac surgery. The blood losses associated with the transfusion of VFWB and 24- to 48-hour-old blood are comparable and may be, in part, due to better functioning platelets.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1991

A new method of preparing the basal membrane of renal tubules for patch clamp, using beetle malpighian tubules.

Access to the basal membrane of beetle Malpighian tubules (Onymacris rugatipennis) was achieved by a new method of stripping tubules of the surrounding connective tissue and basement membrane, in a simple squeezing process. We recorded single channel currents in the cell-attached configuration from basal K+ channels. The peeling method described in this paper allows quick and easy preparation of Malpighian tubules for patch clamp studies on the basal membrane.

Animals↗