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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1977

Ecology of Capillaria hepatica (Bancroft 1893) (Nematoda). 1; Dynamics of infection among Norway rat populations of the Baltimore Zoo, Baltimore, Maryland.

Seventy-five per cent of 845 Norway rats examined in the Baltimore Zoo for Capillaria hepatica were infected. Nearly all adult rats and 65% of juveniles were infected. Only 8% of 299 infected rats were heavily infected. The prevalence and intensity of infection increased with the size of the host. There were no seasonal differences in infection rates among adults, but juveniles collected during spring had higher infection rates than those collected during winter. Prevalence of C. hepatica infection varied from one place to another. No correlation between infection rate, vegetative cover, soil type, monthly rainfall, mean daily temperature, or food habits of rats was found. The dynamics of rat populations are perhaps the most important factors in the maintenance and dynamics of C. hepatica infections. Rapid population turnover contributes to the rapid release of a great number of eggs into the environment and high recruitment rates provide sufficient numbers of susceptible hosts for the parasite to complete its cycle.

Animals↗
PubMed1975

Defective alpha-polymerization in the conversion of fibrinogen Baltimore to fibrin.

The subunit structure of fibrinogen Baltimore and fibrin formed from this inherited dysfibrinogenemia was analyzed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulfate. The molecular weights of the alpha-, b- and gamma-chains of fibrinogen Baltimore were found to be identical to those of normal fibrinogen. Noncross-linked fibrin formed from both purified fibrinogen Baltimore as well as normal fibrinogen contained two alpha-monomers (alpha1 and alpha2). alpha2 was presumed to be alpha-monomer from which fibrinopeptide A had been released. The evolution of alpha2 during clotting of fibrinogen Baltimore was delayed and appeared to be quantitatively reduced when compared to normal. Crosslinked fibrin formed from fibrinogen Baltimore possessed an abnormal subunit structure. alpha-polymers were not generated in thrombin-induced, factor XIII-rich clots of fibrinogen Baltimore under conditions of pH and calcium concentration suitable for complete alpha-polymerization in normal fibrin. If clotting was carried out with calcium concentrations twice that required for normal clots or at pH 6.4, fibrin from fibrinogen Baltimore was completely cross-linked. These structural analyses of fibrin formed from fibrinogen Baltimore substantiate earlier findings that indicate a defect in the alpha-chain of this dysfibrinogenemia.

Blood Coagulation Disorders↗
PubMed2000

Modeling the epidemiology and economics of directly observed therapy in Baltimore.

SETTING: From 1958 to 1978, Baltimore maintained one of the highest pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) rates in the US. But, from 1978 to 1992 its TB rate declined by 64.3% and its ranking for TB fell from second highest among large US cites to twenty-eighth. This TB trend coincided with the implementation of an aggressive directly observed therapy (DOT) program by Baltimore's Health Department. OBJECTIVES: We used modeling to estimate the range of TB cases prevented in Baltimore under DOT. Case estimates equal the difference between the observed number of TB cases in Baltimore versus the expected number if Baltimore's TB trend was replaced by the TB trend for the US (low estimate) or the TB trend for all US cities with over 250,000 residents (high estimate). Economic savings are estimated. RESULTS: Without DOT we estimate there would have been between 1,577 (53.6%) and 2,233 (75.9%) more TB cases in Baltimore, costing $18.8 million to $27.1 million. Cases prevented and expenditures saved increased with increased DOT participation. CONCLUSION: Our model predicts that Baltimore's TB decline accompanying DOT resulted in health care savings equal to twice the city's total TB control budget for this period. These results are most plausibly due to DOT, since it was the only major change in Baltimore's TB control program, and rising TB risk factors-AIDS, injection drug use, poverty-in a city where TB had been epidemic should have triggered a TB increase as in comparable US cities, rather than the observed decline. As national TB rates continue to decline it will be important to identify ways to capture and reinvest these savings to support effective TB control programs.

Antitubercular Agents↗
PubMed2006

Chronic exposure of Leptocheirus plumulosus to Baltimore Harbor sediment: bioenergetic and population-level effects.

We investigated the long-term effects of contaminants in sediment from Baltimore Harbor, MD, USA, on a burrowing amphipod (Leptocheirus plumulosus) via a full life-cycle laboratory exposure. Contaminants in the Baltimore Harbor sediment included PAHs (10,800 ng/g), PCBs (152 ng/g), and heavy metals (including As, Cd, Cu, Pb, Hg, Ni, and Zn). Exposures were initiated with neonate amphipods, placed in microcosms containing either contaminated or reference sediment, and were maintained for 42 days, allowing ample time for the initial cohort to mature and reproduce. At the end of the exposure period, the populations of amphipods were surveyed to ascertain the number and size of amphipods in each size class (neonate, juvenile, and adult), and bioenergetic measurements were performed on adults, including metabolic rate, lipid content, and fecundity. Contaminated sediment from Baltimore Harbor caused lower growth and reproductive rates; in Baltimore Harbor sediment, the average dry weight of amphipod offspring in each size class was significantly lower and there were less than one-third as many individuals in each size class, compared to reference sediment. By the end of the exposure, the total amphipod biomass in Baltimore Harbor sediment was less than one quarter of that in reference sediment. On average, gravid females in reference sediment produced at least twice as many viable offspring as those in contaminated sediment. Adult male amphipods in Baltimore Harbor sediment possessed significantly lower lipid concentrations. Lipid content in neonates also appeared to be negatively affected by parental exposure to contaminants. Metabolic rate was elevated in adult amphipods exposed to Baltimore Harbor sediment. Overall, the results suggest that contaminated sediment conditions in the urban estuary may chronically affect L. plumulosus by diverting energy from production to maintenance pathways, resulting in slower growth and reduced fecundity, and ultimately leading to retarded population growth rates. The results of this study reinforce the need for long-term toxicological exposures to reveal chronic effects.

Amphipoda↗
PubMed2001

Study of distribution and factors affecting syphilis epidemic among inner-city minorities of Baltimore.

Disparities in health and medical conditions among ethnic and racial groups have been repeatedly documented. These inequalities, which have been noted in the recent past, include health outcomes such as quality of life and mortality, process, accessibility and appropriateness of care, and the prevalence of certain degenerative conditions and infectious diseases. Syphilis, a sexually transmitted disease (STD) which seemed to have disappeared or had been controlled over the years, has now re-emerged as a major public health problem in many rural, urban and suburban communities. Progression of the current rate of syphilis, which erupted in Baltimore during the later part of 1994, has continued unabated, most especially among the ethnic minorities, despite efforts of the Baltimore City Health Department and Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to control the epidemic. With the current incidence rates of 270 per 100 000 live births for congenital syphilis and 99.3 per 100 000 population for primary, secondary and latent syphilis (96% of the cases being in the non-white population), Baltimore becomes the city with the highest number of syphilis cases in the nation, surpassing the national average of 2.6 cases per 100 000 population. This study, which utilizes a combination of retrospective and questionnaire-oriented approach, was designed to assess factors that influenced the high incidence of syphilis among Baltimore inner-city dwellers between 1994 and 1998. Data for the study included syphilis reports from private physicians, the Baltimore City Health Department, STD clinics, the Center for Disease Control (CDC), and ethnographic interviews. Factors favoring the distribution and infectivity of the disease among the inner-city dwellers include greater poverty, high level of communication gaps between providers and a cross-section of minority inner-city dwellers, exchange of sex for crack cocaine, lower educational background, and inadequate and inappropriate health education/health promotion programs for the ethnic minorities.The paper calls for, among other things, culturally-sensitive and competent syphilis elimination/prevention health education and health promotion programs for the ethnic minority inner-city dwellers of Baltimore.

Adolescent↗