Biomedical subjects

A Hashimoto

Publications and source records attributed to A Hashimoto.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

PubMed1998

[Pulmonary dirofilariasis associated with pleural effusion].

A 61-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of a long history of productive coughing. A chest roentgenogram and CT scan showed a right-sided pleural effusion. The effusion fluid was blood-stained but showed no cytological evidence of malignancy. Marked eosinophilia was found in blood and in the pleural effusion fluid. Ouchterlony's double-diffusion test done with the patients serum and pleural effusion fluid in agarose showed specific bands toward Dirofilaria immitis antigen, and this specificity was confirmed with an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay inhibition test. The final diagnosis was pulmonary dirofilariasis, and the patient responded to diethylcarbamazine.

Animals↗

PubMed1998

Comparison of PCR, (1-->3)-beta-D-glucan and galactomannan assays in sera of rats with experimental invasive aspergillosis.

We compared PCR, galactomannan detection assay using a latex agglutination test and (1-->3)-beta-D-glucan detection assay in detecting infection in rats experimentally infected with Aspergillus fumigatus. On day 2 after inoculation, (1-->3)-beta-D-glucan and nested PCR were positive for 80%, while galactomannan detection assay was positive for 60%. In addition, the positive result of nested PCR (87.5%) was higher than those of galactomannan detection assay (75%) and (1-->3)-beta-D-glucan (71.4%) on day 3 after inoculation. The sensitivity of nested PCR was superior to those of galactomannan detection assay and (1-->3)-beta-D-glucan detection assay. The three diagnostic tests were compared with histopathological findings, and the sensitivity of three diagnostic tests was correlated with histopathological changes. In addition, the elevated levels of (1-->3)-beta-D-glucan paralleled the development and progression of pulmonary aspergillosis. Our results indicate that a combination of two or three of these tests seems to provide a rapid diagnosis of invasive aspergillosis and assist in the evaluation of the development and severity of invasive aspergillosis.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

The release of nitroglycerin absorbed into the central venous catheter.

This study was conducted to evaluate the release of nitroglycerin (NG) that has been absorbed into the central venous catheter. A 0.05% NG solution was infused through a central venous catheter and the flow rates were set at 1, 5, or 10 ml/h, given over 12, 24, or 48 h. The catheter was flushed with lactate Ringer solution after completion of the NG infusion. The elution of the lactate Ringer solution from the tip of the catheter was then collected and assayed for its NG concentration by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). A higher concentration of NG was released with a faster flow rate and a longer infusion. The high level of NG release continued during the first 20 min, and ranged from a minimum of 0.07 mg/ml to a maximum that exceeded 0.15 mg/ml. Subsequently, the NG concentration gradually declined, but low concentrations of 0.006-0.02 mg/ml were still maintained 360 min later. Thus, it is suggested that if a catheter such as the Swan-Ganz continues to be used after the completion of a NG infusion, certain pharmacological effects due to the absorption of NG into the catheter body should be expected for at least 60 min.

Absorption↗

PubMed1997

Heart valve operation in acromegaly.

BACKGROUND: Intractable congestive heart failure is known as a serious complication of acromegaly, but valvular heart disease rarely occurs in acromegalic patients. We experienced 5 surgical cases of valvular heart disease associated with acromegaly. We describe the features of those cases in this report. METHODS: The patient characteristics and operative and pathologic findings were retrospectively studied. RESULTS: There were 4 men and 1 women. Age at operation was 59 +/- 5.5 years. Cardiac lesions consisted of 1 case of aortic regurgitation associated with mitral regurgitation, 1 of aortic regurgitation, and 3 of mitral regurgitation. Operative procedures consisted of 1 double valve replacement (aortic and mitral valve replacement), 1 aortic valve replacement, and 3 mitral valve replacements. The causes of aortic valvular regurgitation were aortic valvular degeneration and aortic annular dilatation. The causes of mitral regurgitation were chordal rupture and mitral valvular degeneration. Histopathologic examination of the excised valves showed mucopolysaccharide deposits and myxomatous degeneration of the leaflets. The myocardium showed fibrosis of interstitial spaces and endocardium, and disarrangement of muscle fibers. CONCLUSIONS: We report 5 successful surgical cases of valvular heart disease associated with acromegaly. Earlier operation is recommended for such cases because of acromegalic cardiomyopathy.

Acromegaly↗

PubMed1997

Free D-aspartate and D-serine in the mammalian brain and periphery.

It has long been assumed that L-forms of amino acids exclusively constitute free amino acid pools in mammals. However, a variety of studies in the last decade has demonstrated that free D-aspartate and D-serine occur in mammals and may have important physiological function in mammals. Free D-serine is confined predominantly to the forebrain structure, and the distribution and development of D-serine correspond well with those of the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-type excitatory amino acid receptor. As D-serine acts as a potent and selective agonist for the strychnine-insensitive glycine site of the NMDA receptor, it is proposed that D-serine is a potential candidate for an NMDA receptor-related glycine site agonist in mammalian brain. In contrast, widespread and transient emergence of a high concentration of free D-aspartate is observed in the brain and periphery. Since the periods of maximal emergence of D-aspartate in the brain and periphery occur during critical periods of morphological and functional maturation of the organs, D-aspartate could participate in the regulation of these regulation of these developmental processes of the organs. This review deals with the recent advances in the studies of presence of free D-aspartate and D-serine and their metabolic systems in mammals. Since D-aspartate and D-serine have been shown to potentiate NMDA receptor-mediated transmission through the glutamate binding site and the strychnine-insensitive glycine binding site, respectively, and have been utilized extensively as potent and selective tools to study the excitatory amino acid system in the brain, we shall discuss also the NMDA receptor and uptake system of D-amino acids.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Separation and quantification of corticosteroid-induced, bone and liver alkaline phosphatase isoenzymes in canine serum.

Quantifying alkaline phosphatase (ALP) isoenzymes in canine serum would provide a useful index in a clinical laboratory. To achieve this goal, we tested a semi-automatic assay combining wheat germ lectin (WGL) precipitation and chemical inhibition of isoenzymes of the TNS gene with levamisole to quantify bone ALP (BALP) and corticosteroid-induced ALP (CALP), respectively. The liver ALP (LALP) isoenzyme was then calculated from the equation: TALP = BALP + LALP + CALP BALP, LALP and CALP standards from serum of puppies, bile-duct ligated dogs and dogs on 4.4 mg/kg/day prednisolone for 30 days, respectively, were used. The suitability of standard sera was tested by affinity electrophoresis. Levamisole (4.2 mM) inhibits 98% of BALP and LALP but only 42% CALP. Multiplying measured CALP by 1.8 gives the total CALP value in serum. WGL precipitated 92.3% BALP, 23.3% LALP and 26.8% heated CALP standards. These values were used to adjust precipitated ALP to obtain the exact levels of BALP. WGL was then tested on pooled serum standards in which the relative proportions of all the ALPs were known and controlled. BALP was adequately quantified except when LALP and CALP levels were extremely high. The assay was also applicable under conditions resulting in high ALP. Therefore, combining WGL and levamisole inhibition provides an adequate separation and quantification of canine ALP isoenzymes. The method has great potential for diagnostic use and should be tested further for routine implementation.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

PubMed1997

[A pathological study of cytomegalovirus infections in autopsied cases with adult T-cell leukemia].

In this study, cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection was found in eleven of 21 autopsied cases (52.4%) with adult T-cell leukemia (ATL). Seven cases (63.6%) revealed disseminated infection in more than three organs. The lungs were involved in all eleven cases (100%), adrenal glands in eight cases (72.7%), esophagus in four cases (36.4%), and stomach, small intestine and urinary bladder in three cases (27.3%). Histopathological findings suggested that lung involvement was the cause of death in five of the 11 cases, the small intestine were involved in two of the 3 cases, and the adrenal glands were involved in one of the 8 cases. In summary, CMV infection was found to be the main cause of death in five (45.5%) of the 11 ATL patients.

Adrenal Glands↗

PubMed1997

[Detection of Aspergillus species DNA in serum samples of the patients with non-invasive pulmonary aspergillosis].

We investigated the possible presence of Aspergillus species DNA in serum samples of two patients diagnosed as having non-invasive pulmonary aspergillosis by a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. The nested PCR results were negative in serum samples of the patients with chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis and pulmonary aspergilloma. When left pneumothorax happened to the patient with chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis and bronchial washing was performed to the patient with pulmonary aspergilloma, the nested PCR results turned positive. We consider this method useful for the diagnosis of semi-invasive stage of pulmonary aspergillosis. However, further prospective evaluation with a large clinical sample is required.

Aged↗

PubMed1997

Studies on the "signal" constituents for the evaluation of animal crude drugs. III. Nucleic acid components.

An analytical method for determining the contents of 7 nucleic acid bases, 6 ribonucleosides and 5 deoxyribonucleosides in animal crude drugs were established. The contents in free nucleic acid components (the ice-cold extracts) and in total nucleic acid components (the heated extracts) of 8 crude drugs were quite different from one another, indicating that these content patterns could be used as a "signal" of each animal crude drug. For example, the contents of inosine in Lumbricus, uracil in Cervi Parvum Cornu, and guanine and hypoxanthine in Hippocampus were high. The total contents in each crude drug were about twice or three times as large as the free contents. The main degradation products by the heated extracts were adenine and guanine. These results suggested that the contents of nucleic acid components could be one of the "signal" constituents for evaluation of animal crude drugs.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Bronchial responsiveness to inhaled histamine in canine pulmonary congestion.

To elucidate the role of bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) in pulmonary congestion, an inhaled histamine provocation test was performed in dogs with acute pulmonary congestion, and the role of vagal nerve activity and arachidonic acid metabolites on bronchial responsiveness was evaluated. We assessed BHR with the provocation concentration of histamine causing a 100% increase in pulmonary resistance (PC100) in an openchest anesthetized and tracheotomized canine model before and after left atrial balloon inflation. Twenty-two mongrel dogs (8-14 kg) were anesthetized with sodium thiopental (15-20 mg/kg) and mechanically ventilated with positive end-expiratory pressure at 3 cmH2O. A Foley catheter was inserted into the left atrium to cause pulmonary congestion, in which mean left atrial pressure was increased to 18 mmHg. In 6 dogs, histamine provocation was examined before and after pulmonary congestion was effected. Intravenous indomethacin (1 mg/kg) administration and vagotomy were performed in 5 dogs. In pulmonary congestion, PC100 was significantly decreased both before and after vagotomy and after indomethacin administration. We conclude that pulmonary congestion augments bronchial responsiveness to inhaled histamine and that neither vagotomy nor indomethacin administration prevents bronchial hyperresponsiveness in pulmonary congestion. These findings suggest that bronchial hyperresponsiveness in pulmonary congestion is related to another factor such as bronchial edema.

Administration, Inhalation↗

PubMed1997

The age dependent levels of serum ALP isoenzymes and the diagnostic significance of corticosteroid-induced ALP during long-term glucocorticoid treatment.

Three isoenzymes of total alkaline phosphatase (TALP) are known in canine serum: Bone alkaline phosphatase (BALP), liver alkaline phosphatase (LALP) and corticosteroid-induced alkaline phosphatase (CALP). Using an assay developed by combining selective precipitation of BALP by wheat germ lectin (WGA) and an automated levamisole inhibition method for quantifying CALP, age-related reference ranges of the isoenzymes in 75 canine serum samples were investigated. BALP comprised 96, 38 and 26% of TALP in young, middle aged and old dogs, respectively, and CALP was respectively 12, 11 and 27% of TALP. LALP was less than 10% in the young but represented more than 50% of TALP in middle aged and old dogs. Furthermore, the significance of monitoring LALP and CALP and their relationship to hepatopathy in dogs receiving long term prednisolone therapy was assessed. In this study, TALP increased in all dogs receiving prednisolone. But only LALP was responsible in dogs with minor vacuolization of the liver, while in severely degenerated cases both LALP and CALP increased. It is concluded that a high TALP due solely to LALP, rather than LALP and CALP represents lesser liver pathologic involvement. Monitoring the 2 isoenzymes has greater significancy in assessing in the level of liver damage than relying on an increased TALP value alone. Quantifying the individual isoenzymes may further be useful in assessing the clinical significance of these isoenzymes in various conditions that result in elevated TALP values.

Adrenal Cortex Hormones↗

PubMed1997

In Vitro Antimicrobial Activity Against Enterococci Isolated in a University Hospital in São Paulo, Brazil.

The prevalence of multiresistant enterococci (MRE) is rapidly increasing and becoming an important problem in several countries. São Paulo Hospital is a 600-bed tertiary hospital located in São Paulo, Brazil. The use of vancomycin is very high in the hospital due to the high prevalence of multi-resistant S. aureus (around 70%). We susceptibility tested 250 isolates of Enterococci consecutively collected between March, 1994 and June, 1995. Isolates were susceptibility tested using agar dilution disc diffusion BHI screen plating, and E test. In addition to vancomycin and teicoplanin, the isolates were tested against ampicillin, gentamicin, streptomycin and RP 59-500. Methods used for susceptibility testing were compared. None of the isolates showed high-level resistance to vancomycin or teicoplanin. The MIC90s for teicoplanin were &lte;1µg/mL for E. faecalis (EF, n=216), E. faecium (EFM, n=23) and for the non-faecalis-non-faecium (NFNF, n=11) species. The MlC90s for vancomycin were 2µg/mL, 4µg/mL and 4µg/mL for EF, EFM and NFNF respectively. Eight isolates (3.2%), 5 E. faecalis, 2 E. casseliflavus and 1 E. gallinarum presented intermediate MICs for vancomycin (6 - 12µg/mL), but they were highly susceptible to teicoplanin (MIC 0.19 - 1µg/mL). The percentage of resistance to ampicillin and high-level resistance to gentamicin and streptomycin were, respectively: 4.8%, 26.4%, and 24.8%. In spite of the high usage of vancomycin in our hospital, the prevalence of glycopeptide resistance among enterococci seems to be low. Teicoplanin appears to be more potent than vancomycin, RP 59-500, gentamicin, streptomycin and ampicilin against this genus, especially EFM and NFNF species.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1997

Studies on the metabolism of the new antidiabetic agent pioglitazone. Identification of metabolites in rats and dogs.

Metabolic studies of pioglitazone (CAS 105355-27-9, AD-4833), a new agent, in rats and dogs using liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry and 1H-nuclear magnetic resonance led to characterization of the following metabolites; the parent compound, (+/-)-5-(p-hydroxybenzyl)-2-4-thiazolidinedione (M-I), (+/-)-5-[p-[2-(5-ethyl-2-pyridyl)-2-hydroxyethoxy]benzyl] -2,4-thiazolidinedione (M-II), (+/-)- 5-[p-[2-(5-acetyl-2-pyridyl)ethoxy]benzyl]2,4-thiazolidinedione (M-III), (+/-)-5-[p-[2-[5-(1-hydroxyethyl)-2- pyridyl]ethoxy]benzyl]-2,4-thiazolidinedione (M-IV), (+/-)-5-[p-[2-(5- carboxymethyl-2-pyridyl)ethoxy]- benzyl]-2,4-thiazolidinedione (M-V), and (+/-)-5-[p-[2-(5-carboxy-2- pyridyl)ethoxy]benzyl]-2,4-thiazolidinedione (M-VI). Pioglitazone is considered to be metabolized by cleavage of aliphatic C-O bond to lead to M-I, hydroxylation of aliphatic methylene groups to form M-II and M-IV, oxidation of M-IV to give M-III, oxidation of the ethyl group to form M-V, and oxidative loss of the terminal carbon to lead to M-IV. Furthermore, part of metabolites exist as conjugated form. Among the conjugates, M-IV conjugated with sulfuric acid and M-V conjugated with taurine were identified.

Administration, Oral↗

PubMed1997

[Simultaneous tricuspid valve operation in patients undergoing aortic and mitral double valve replacement].

In triple valvular surgery, AVR+MVR+TVR or TVP, there are some problems around operation, because patients impaired cardiac function after a long history of the disease and some of them are reoperation cases. The sixty-five patients operated from May in 1980 to June in 1993 were examined. They were divided into two groups, group P and group R, depending upon procedure of tricuspid position. Group P consisted of 51 patients and group R of 14 patients. There were 22 (34%) reoperations. In group P, organic changes in tricuspid valve were mild, however in group R, there were commissural fusion in 8 patients, destruction of leaflet due to infectious endocarditis in one patient, and marked tricuspid annular dilatation in five patients. There was one early death in group R, no early death in group P. Actuarial survival rate at the 10th postoperative year was good as 81.6% in group P and 85.7% in group R. There were no significant differences in operative mortality and actuarial survival between group P and R.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

[The leaflet fracture of a 19 mm SJM (HP) valve during valve insertion to the calcified small aortic annulus].

Aortic valve replacement was undergone in a 70-year-old woman with calcified aortic stenosis. Calcified and fused tricuspid aortic valve was excised and a 21 mm sizer passed with some difficulty through the annulus. A 19 mm SJM HP serious was selected and the horizontal mattress suturing technique was used. The valve was held at the cuff near the hinge guard and seated into the annulus by the usual amount of pressure, however, one leaflet fracture was retrieved and the valve was removed. A 19 mm standard SJM valve was then successfully implanted. The potential factors of leaflet fracture suggested that the leaflet thickness of smaller sized SJM valves showed smaller values than other bileaflet valves in the same sized-valves. In addition, the SJM valve does not have an orifice stiffening ring like other bileaflet valves. So, needless to say direct pressure to the leaflet, indirect pressure might cause valve destruction during insertion. The abnormal pressure applied to the direction from one hinge guard to the other can introduce deforming of the orifice ring resulting in leaflet fracture like this case. The pressure directed to the perpendicular direction may introduce leaflet escape due to the deforming of the valve orifice.

Aged↗

PubMed1997

Sustained right ventricular dyskinesis complicated by right ventricular infarction.

We encountered a 66-yr-old man with acute left inferior and right ventricular infarction. Tomographic radionuclide ventriculography and Fourier analysis clearly demonstrated reduced wall motion in the inferior walls of both ventricles and markedly delayed phase angles in the inferior right ventricular segment, indicating dyskinesis, which was confirmed by two-dimensional echocardiography and contrast right ventriculography. Four years later, right ventricular dyskinesis was still present and corresponded to a right ventricular perfusion defect on 99mTc-labeled tetrofosmin tomogram. Right ventricular imaging with tomographic radionuclide ventriculography with Fourier analysis and 99mTc-labeled myocardial tomography demonstrates that, even after improved global function and hemodynamics, right ventricular dyskinesis related to right ventricular perfusion defect can be sustained for several years. Thus, these imaging techniques may contribute to diagnosing right ventricular infarction and investigating the pathophysiology.

Aged↗

PubMed1997

Short-term hemodialysis treatment in dogs and cats with total uretic obstruction.

This study evaluated the single-pass system for the short-term dialysis treatment of dogs and cats with experimental renal failure. The hemodialyzer was equipped with a thin and highly permeable Cuprophan membrane. Four animals (two dogs and two cats) with total uretic obstruction were dialyzed twice in a one-week period. The vascular access by venipuncture of external jugular vein delivered more than 5 ml/min/kg/body weight of blood repeatedly, even for the cats. The evaluation of the effects of the blood flow, dialysate flow and ultrafiltration pressure revealed that the blood flow was the most important factor for effective dialysis. A 300 ml/min dialysate flow provided enough clearance of blood urea nitrogen and creatinine. The ultrafiltration pressure played an important role in ensuring that the fluid removal was constant. Laboratory studies revealed a 50.0% (range 42.0 to 59.3%) reduction of blood urea nitrogen, a 48.7% (range 42.5 to 58.7%) reduction of creatinine, and a 49.8% (range 34.3 to 66.2%) reduction of inorganic phosphate during the dialysis treatment. No dialysis disequilibrium syndrome was shown by the clinical signs. We conclude that this short-term dialysis using a single-pass system for small animals was sufficiently applicable to dogs and cats, and that the optimal duration of the dialysis was 2 hours.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

An approach to detection of protein structural motifs using an encoding scheme of backbone conformations.

This paper presents an approach to detection of protein structural motifs. In our approach, first all protein backbone conformations are converted into character strings using an encoding scheme. Then we use the Smith-Waterman local alignment algorithm to detect common structural motifs. By comparing results with the PROSITE regular expression patterns, our method can detect several motifs which the PROSITE patterns fail to detect.

Amino Acid Sequence↗