'Talk to me' patient communication in a long-term care facility

1. Staff are important facilitators for communication among elderly patients, who often are alone and bored for long periods. 2. Staff serve as an essential link between the patients and the outside world, and serve as a conduit for initiating contact between residents. 3. Environment--including the selection of roommates, the proximity of residents, and the volume of radios and televisions--may greatly alter residents' ability to communicate.     

Nurse cell polytene chromosomes of Drosophila melanogaster otu mutants: morphological changes accompanying interallelic complementation and position effect variegation

The effect of platelet factor 4 (PF4) on myoblast cultures with or without basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) or other growth factors was investigated in the present in vitro experiments, with reference to bFGF binding to myoblast membrane fraction. When PF4 was added to the culture medium 1 day after myoblast cultivation, the nuclei of both myoblasts and myotubes were markedly reduced in number in a dose-dependent manner, whereas the inhibitory effect of PF4 on myoblast development was not observed when PF4 was added to the culture medium 3, 7, or 14 days after myoblast cultivation. In contrast, bFGF significantly increased the numbers of myoblast and myotube nuclei. When bFGF and PF4 were simultaneously added to the culture medium, PF4 abolished the facilitatory effects of bFGF on myogenesis. The real-time biospecific interaction analysis (BLA) core system showed that the myoblast membrane fraction at 1 day after cultivation contains bFGF-binding elements which are blocked by PF4 in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, [126I]-bFGF binding experiments indicated the existence of both high and low affinity binding sites on myoblast membranes, although the high affinity binding sites decreased in number and the dissociation constant increased in value as the culture period was prolonged. Among the six other growth factors examined, acidic fibroblast growth factor and platelet-derived growth factor-BB stimulated myogenesis, and their effects were blocked by PF4 treatment. These findings suggest that: 1) PF4 inhibits myoblast proliferation and myotube formation only for a limited initial period of cultivation, possibly because of the time-dependent down-regulation of high affinity bFGF receptors: and 2) PF4 may be used as a tool to investigate the function of endogenous heparin-binding growth factors upregulated transiently at a certain developmental stage or in case of tissue damage and repair, even though it is not monospecific to bFGF.     

Evaluation and control of the microbiological quality of hands in foodhandlers

Microbiological analyses of workers' hands were made for the common indicators, including aerobic mesophilic plate counts (APC), as well as the common food pathogens. Opportunities were observed for cross-contamination of roast beef by workers' hands during slicing operations. Workers' hands showed APC counts of up to 10(7) CFU/hand and the presence of S. aureus and C. perfringens. Salmonella spp were not isolated from hands. These results show that handling of these foods by such workers would be a risk in transmitting pathogenic microorganisms to the foods and is apparent that it is necessary for these workers to take care of personal hygiene. Decimal reductions obtained in the microbiological counts after washing and antisepsis of workers' hands were at 2,6 logs cycles and still demonstrated the importance of this practice in food services by the fact that pathogens such as S. aureus and C. perfringens were inhibited or killed.     

Chronic pancreatitis and neoplasia: correlation or coincidence

Renal biopsy specimens from patients with membranous nephropathy (MN) were studied using immunohistochemical labelling to clarify the aetiological significance of Helicobacter pylori antigen in this disease. Sixteen specimens were examined, from 7 male and 9 female MN patients. Renal specimens from patients with diabetic nephropathy and IgA nephropathy, and from autopsied patients without renal diseases were obtained as controls. Immunohistochemical labelling was performed using one polyclonal antibody and three monoclonal antibodies against H. pylori. Specimens from 11 of the MN patients revealed granular deposits along the glomerular capillary walls, which reacted positively with polyclonal antibody after trypsin pretreatment. None of the control specimens revealed positive labelling. The MN specimens showed no positive reaction with the primary antibody, which had been treated for immunoabsorption testing using sonicated H. pylori. We also determined H. pylori status in these MN patients histologically and/or serologically. Of the 11 patients whose glomeruli were positive for anti-H. pylori antibody, 7 were suitable for analysis, and all were regarded as positive for H. pylori infection. These results suggest that the presence of a specific antigen in the glomeruli of patients with MN and H. pylori infection may be involved in the pathogenesis of MN.     

Adenoviral-mediated gene transfer in lymphocytes

Although adenovirus can infect a wide range of cell types, lymphocytes are not generally susceptible to adenovirus infection, in part because of the absence of the expression of the cellular receptor for the adenoviral fiber protein. The cellular receptor for adenovirus and coxsackievirus (CAR) recently was cloned and shown to mediate adenoviral entry by interaction with the viral fiber protein. We show that the ectopic expression of CAR in various lymphocyte cell lines, which are almost completely resistant to adenovirus infection, is sufficient to facilitate the efficient transduction of these cells by recombinant adenoviruses. Furthermore, this property of CAR does not require its cytoplasmic domain, consistent with the idea that CAR primarily serves as a high affinity binding site for the adenoviral fiber protein, and that viral entry is mediated by interaction of the viral penton base proteins with cellular integrins. As a demonstration of their functional utility, we used CAR-expressing lymphocytes transduced with an adenovirus expressing Fas ligand to efficiently kill Fas receptor-expressing tumor cells. The ability to efficiently manipulate gene expression in lymphocyte cells by using adenovirus vectors should facilitate the functional characterization of pathways affecting lymphocyte physiology.     

Relationships between dental hygienists' career attitudes and their retention of practice. Part II. From the results of the Ohio Dentist and Dental Hygiene Surveys

This article utilizes findings from the Ohio Dental Hygiene Survey and Ohio Dentist Survey to uncover what specific dental hygiene attitudes exist relative to employment and what factors have led to job termination and to re-entry. Ohio dental hygiene employees are most satisfied with patient relationships, co-worker relationships, and flexible working hours. The dental hygienists are least satisfied with fringe benefits, financial growth, and career creativity. Salary, benefits, nor career longevity were significant factors in determining satisfaction. Dental hygienists who were not working when surveyed, said they would consider returning to practice if a better salary were available, if they could find part-time work, if there were a good wage scale with benefits, or if their own financial need changed. Thirty-six percent of the non-practitioners said they would not ever consider returning to practice due to working conditions, establishment of a new career, or inadequate compensation. Dentist employers stated that they were satisfied or very satisfied with their dental hygienists' patient care and contribution to the practice.     

Cytokines cause cultured retinal pigment epithelial cells to secrete metalloproteinases and to contract collagen gels

PURPOSE: Because retinal pigment epithelial cells in epiretinal membranes remodel and contract their surrounding extracellular matrix, investigations were performed to determine if these cells can produce matrix metalloproteinases and contract collagen gels in vitro in the presence of serum or cytokines. METHODS: Cells were grown on collagen gels and their production of metalloproteinases was measured using zymography. RESULTS: Cells grown in a three-dimensional collagen gel culture system produce several latent metalloproteinases that are secreted into the gel and the surrounding medium. These include molecules of 49, 56, 66, and 100 kD. In addition, an enzyme that is probably the active form of the 66 kD enzyme is present. When interleukin 1 beta is added to the cultures, latent 49 kD and 100 kD gelatinase production is greatly stimulated and an active form of both enzymes is also observed in the medium. In contrast, transforming growth factor beta has no stimulatory effect. The cells contract the collagen gel but this is small without cytokines; however, contraction is greatly enhanced in the presence of serum or interleukin 1 beta plus transforming growth factor beta. Contraction is unlikely to be the result of metalloproteinase action on the underlying extracellular matrix because complete inhibition of these enzymes has little effect. CONCLUSIONS: These results show that cytokines can cause cultured retinal pigment epithelial cells to produce metalloproteinases that can, when activated, degrade most collagens and other structural molecules in extracellular matrix. In addition, they can stimulate the contraction of extracellular matrix constituents but there is not a simple causal relationship between matrix remodeling and contraction.