Practical approaches to low density lipoprotein oxidation: whys, wherefores and pitfalls.

The purpose of this review is to bring together the different approaches for studying the oxidation of low density lipoproteins and try to identify some critical factors which will permit greater comparability between laboratories. These issues are discussed both in terms of the variety of exogenous mediators of oxidation applied (transition metal ions, haem proteins, azo initiators, peroxynitrite, cells etc.) and their raisons d'être, as well as the methodologies (formation of conjugated dienes, hydroperoxides, decomposition products of lipid peroxidation, altered surface charge, macrophage uptake) applicable to the different stages of the oxidation and the factors underlying their accurate execution and interpretation.

Analytic sensitivities of hybrid-capture, consensus and type-specific polymerase chain reactions for the detection of human papillomavirus type 16 DNA.

Human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) DNA is detected commonly in cervical carcinomas; in this study, we have determined the analytical sensitivities of Hybrid Capture, HPV-consensus PCR, and three HPV-16-specific polymerase chain reactions (PCRs) for the detection of HPV-16 DNA. Samples investigated included a cervical cancer cell line, cervical scrapes from 20 patients attending colposcopy clinics, and buccal swabs from eight immunosuppressed children. HPV-16 E7 and E5-nested PCRs [Cavuslu et al.

Quantitative radiography in osteoarthritis: microfocal radiography.

Quantitative macroradiography of patients with hand and knee OA, employing standardized radiographic and mensural procedures, permit: accurate and reproducible measurements of all radiographic features. significant changes in JSW and osteophyte number and size to be detected within as short a period as 18 months. therapeutic effects upon articular cartilage to be determined from changes in JSW.

Influence of ethnic group on asthma treatment in children in 1990-1: national cross sectional study.

Objective: To examine the extent to which the prescription of drugs for asthma adhered to recommended guidelines in 1990-1 and to assess the influence of ethnic group on prescription.

Design: Cross sectional.

Setting: Primary schools in England and Scotland in 1990-1.

Information technology in diabetes care 'Diabeta': 23 years of development and use of a computer-based record for diabetes care.

In this article we have stressed that a diabetes care information system should be useful to, usable and actually used by carers at the point of patient contact. Information resulting from such encounters should, at no extra cost, furnish the needs of communication, audit, research and management. Diabeta is a clinical record system for supporting the management of patients with diabetes.

The cone synapses of DB1 diffuse, DB6 diffuse and invaginating midget, bipolar cells of a primate retina.

The distribution of synapses between cones and two types of diffuse cone bipolar cell in a rhesus monkey retina is described. The dendrites of representative Golgi-stained cells of each of the diffuse cone bipolar cell types DB1 and DB6 were serially sectioned for EM examination. Bipolar cells of the DB1 type have axons terminating in the outer half of the inner plexiform layer.

Validation of the U.K. diagnostic criteria for atopic dermatitis in a population setting. U.K. Diagnostic Criteria for Atopic Dermatitis Working Party.

One reason why so little is known about the epidemiology of atopic dermatitis (AD) is lack of suitable diagnostic criteria. A simple list of diagnostic criteria for AD for use in epidemiological studies has recently been developed by a U.K.

Polycythemia.

Plethora ('a morbid condition due to excess of red corpuscles') has been recognized since antiquity as a manifestation of disease. The use of leeches and blood letting, which was for centuries the mainstay of therapy in many clinical situations, reflected the importance then attached to having too much blood. Greater knowledge has achieved greater precision, so that measurement of packed cell volume (PCV) or hematocrit now defines polycythemia (> 0.

Role of immune responses in protection and pathogenesis during Semliki Forest virus encephalitis.

The course of Semliki Forest virus (SFV) A7(74) infection in immunocompetent BALB/c, athymic nu/nu and severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice was compared. BALB/c mice remained healthy and exhibited transient viraemia and infectious virus in the brain from days 2 to 7. Antibodies were detectable by day 5.

Passive immunization with monoclonal antibodies against Porphyromonas gingivalis in patients with periodontitis.

Selective inhibition of recolonization of Porphyromonas gingivalis was investigated by topical application of monoclonal antibody (MAb). To select a MAb to P. gingivalis with the potential for recognizing most strains of P.

Co-cultivation of Niemann-Pick disease type C fibroblasts belonging to complementation groups alpha and beta stimulates LDL-derived cholesterol esterification.

Niemann-Pick disease type C (NPC) is a neurovisceral storage disorder with an unknown primary deficiency. Somatic cell hybridization experiments using human cultured fibroblasts have shown that two complementation groups (NPC-alpha and NPC-beta) are associated with the biochemical and clinical phenotypes comprising NPC. We identified the rarer complementation group NPC-beta originally using the technique of filipin staining as a marker for complementation.

Ultrastructural changes in 9-day old mouse embryos following maternal tobacco smoke inhalation.

Mice were exposed to tobacco smoke inhalation for three ten-minute episodes on days 6, 7 and 8 of pregnancy. The effects of a higher tar cigarette (tar 12.9 mg, nicotine 1.

The action spectrum for induction of chronic actinic dermatitis is similar to that for sunburn inflammation.

The action spectrum for induction of the abnormal cutaneous response at 24 h in the photosensitivity disorder chronic actinic dermatitis (CAD) was determined in 15 patients and found to be the same in shape as that for normal sunburn in fair-skinned individuals at 24 h, as determined for 47 control volunteers, although displaced in magnitude. This suggests that an endogenous chromophore(s), the same as or similar to that/those responsible for human sunburn, may be responsible for initiation of the abnormal reaction to irradiation in CAD, and that the putative antigen associated with the CAD reaction may be derived from that/those or associated molecules.

Deoxycholic acid influences cholesterol solubilization and microcrystal nucleation time in gallbladder bile.

Little is known about the effects of biliary deoxycholic acid on the partitioning of biliary cholesterol between vesicles and micelles and on the rate of nucleation of cholesterol microcrystals, key steps in gallstone formation. Therefore, 43 samples of fresh gallbladder bile were obtained from a heterogeneous group of patients with and without stones. Univariate and multivariate analyses were then applied to determine the inter-relationships between biliary cholesterol saturation, total lipid concentration, and bile acid species and (1) the distribution of biliary cholesterol between vesicles and micelles and (2) the cholesterol microcrystal nucleation time.

Evaluation of guided tissue regeneration in the treatment of paired periodontal defects.

The aim of the present study was to compare guided tissue regeneration with conventional surgery in matched periodontal defects within the same subject. Twenty pairs of sites in nine subjects were treated. Surgery was performed at both test and control sites on the same visit.

Primary care research ethics.

Research activity in primary care is increasing rapidly, and raises a range of specific ethical issues. Many of these relate to the involvement of individuals in the community who are not seeking medical care and to the impact of research participation on relationships between general practitioners and their patients. The ethical issues pertinent to a range of quantitative and qualitative research methodologies in primary care are identified and considered.

The influence of bur blade concentricity on high-speed tooth-cutting interactions: a video-rate confocal microscopic study.

This study aimed to determine the degree of eccentricity between different tungsten carbide bur manufacturing techniques and to study the effect of bur inaccuracy on dental enamel. Error in bur concentricity may arise from malalignment of the steel shaft and carbide head in a two-piece construction bur. Cutting blades rotate at multiple radii from the shaft axis, potentially producing vibrations and damage to the cut substrate.

Setting priorities for research and development in the NHS: a case study on the interface between primary and secondary care.

Since 1991 the NHS has attempted to identify and prioritise its needs for research and development in a systematic manner. This has not been done before and there is little evidence on which to draw. Multidisciplinary expert groups have identified priorities in different topics using explicit criteria and after widespread consultation within the NHS and research community to identify pressing problems and opportunities for research.

A mechanism for ectopic firing in central demyelinated axons.

Intracellular recordings of ectopic activity were made from demyelinated axons in rat dorsal columns using in vitro techniques. On-going bursts of discharges were observed in some axons, and these were sometimes superimposed upon slow depolarizing potentials. These intracellularly recorded, depolarizing potentials were strongly reminiscent of the slow negative potentials previously recorded extracellularly from the periaxonal region of normal myelinated fibres following potassium loading of this space.