| FET | field-effect transistor; forced expiratory time |
|---|---|
| HWE | healthy worker effect; hot water extract |
| IGFET | insulated gate field effect transistor |
| ITE | insufficient therapeutic effect; in the ear [hearing aid]; in-training examination; intrapulmonary i... |
| JFET | junction field effect transistor |
| toxic effect | <physiology> The physiologic, physical or laboratory manifestations or derangement that can be attributed to the presence of a substance within the body. (12 Jan 1998) |
|---|---|
| enhancement effect | Property of higher plant photosynthesis, discovered by Robert Emerson. The quantum yield of red light (less than 680nm) and far red light (700nm), when shone simultaneously on a plant, is greater than the sum of the yields of the light of the two wavelengths separately. This effect provides evidence for the cooperative interaction of two photosystems in photosynthesis. (18 Nov 1997) |
| tunneling effect | <radiobiology> In quantum mechanics, a particle approaching a potential energy barrier of finite extent has a chance (usually small) of tunneling through the barrier, even though it lacks the energy to go over the barrier. Tunneling plays a strong role in fusion reactions: particles which do not have enough energy to climb over the electrostatic energy barrier (into the region where nuclear attractions dominate) can still fuse by tunneling through. (09 Oct 1997) |
| Tyndall effect | The visibility of floating particles in gases or liquids when illuminated by a ray of sunlight and viewed at right angles to the illuminating ray. Synonym: Tyndall effect. (05 Mar 2000) |
| extrapyramidal effect | A combination of neurologic effects which includes tremors, chorea, athetosis and dystonia. A common side effect of neuroleptic agents (phenothiazines). Other medications known to cause these reactions include haloperidol, molindone, perphenazine & amitriptyline, loxapine, pimozide and rarely, benzodiazepines. (27 Sep 1997) |
| Fahraeus-Lindqvist effect | The decrease in apparent viscosity that occurs when a suspension, such as blood, is made to flow through a tube of smaller diameter; observed in tubes less than about 0.3 mm in diameter. Synonym: sigma effect. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Zeeman effect | The splitting of spectral lines into three or more symmetrically placed lines when the light source is subjected to a magnetic field. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Fenn effect | The increased liberation of heat in a stimulated muscle when it is allowed to do mechanical work; the amount of heat liberated is increased in proportion to the distance the muscle is allowed to shorten and in proportion to the tension it must develop (e.g., the weight it lifts) during shortening; thus increased chemical energy is consumed both to liberate increased heat and to do increased mechanical work. (05 Mar 2000) |
| zygotic effect gene | <genetics> A gene whose phenotype is dependent on the genotype of the zygote, rather than the genotype of the mother. See: maternal effect gene. (18 Nov 1997) |
| late effect | Side effects of chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy which only become apparent with long-term monitoring of the patient over a period of years. These are of particular concern in patients below the age of puberty. (18 Nov 1997) |
| founder effect | The establishment of a new population by a few original founders (in an extreme case, by a single fertilized female) which carry only a small fraction of the total genetic variation of the parental population [Ernst Mayr, 1963]. The result is that a given allele, gene, chromosome, or part of a chromosome found in members of the population can be traced back to one ancestral individual. (09 Oct 1997) |
| accelerated phase of leukaemia | Refers to chronic myelogenous leukaemia that is progressing. The number of immature, abnormal white blood cells in the bone marrow and blood is higher than in the chronic phase, but not as high as in the blast phase. (12 Dec 1998) |
| acceleration phase | <cell biology, cell culture> A period of increasing growth before the log phase in a culture of microbes. After the culture is started on a medium, at first there is no growth (the lag phase) and then the microbes start to gradually grow (acceleration phase) until they reach a constant maximum rate of growth (log phase). (15 Jan 1998) |
| acute-phase protein | <haematology> These plasma proteins (in addition to fibrinogen) increase 25% or more in response to inflammation and injury are under direct control of interleukin-6 (IL-6) (hepatocyte-stimulating factor). Other proteins which increase are ceruloplasmin, C3 and C4 which increase 50% or more; alpha-1 acid glycoprotein, alpha-1 antitrypsin, haptoglobin and fibrinogen (the major determinant of viscosity 1 ) which increase two- to fourfold; C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid A which increase several hundred-fold. Despite long-held clinical opinion to the contrary, available data indicate that neither ESR nor measurement of specific acute-phase reactants are useful in excluding underlying infection or inflammation regardless of the pretest probability. These proteins are secreted into the blood in increased or decreased quantities by hepatocytes in response to trauma, inflammation, or disease. They can serve as inhibitors or mediators of the inflammatory processes. Certain acute-phase proteins have been used to diagnose and follow the course of diseases or as tumour markers. See also: amyloid, c-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, viscosity. (25 Jun 1999) |
| acute-phase reaction | <immunology, rheumatology> Refers to the changes in synthesis of certain proteins within the serum during an inflammatory response, which provides rapid protection for the host against microorganisms via non-specific defense mechanisms. It consists of fever, an increase in inflammatory humoral factors, and an increased synthesis by hepatocytes of a number of proteins or glycoproteins usually found in the plasma; the reaction is mediated by endogenous pyrogens, the hypothalamus, adrenal hormones, and other factors. (12 Jul 2000) |