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Biomedical subjects

C Mori

Publications and source records attributed to C Mori.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

Upshaw-Schulman syndrome in two siblings.

Upshaw-Schulman syndrome is a rare disease, and familial occurrence has not been reported. In this paper, two Japanese brothers, aged 2 and 6 years, with microangiopathic hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia and fragmented red cells from the newborn period are reported. Unusually large von Willebrand factor (vWF) multimers were found in the plasma samples from both cases during remission, while the quantities of the unusually large vWF multimers decreased greatly at a low platelet count. They were temporarily relieved from hemolytic anemia and thrombocytopenia by infusions of plasma from normal donors. It appears that our patients lack an unidentified plasma factor, which is genetically determined.

Anemia, Hemolytic, Congenital↗

Left ventricular diastolic function of children in high blood pressure tracking group.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether left ventricular (LV) diastolic function in children with high blood pressure (BP) is abnormal. We measured the corrected LV isovolumic relaxation time (IRT), peak velocity of increase in LV dimension (dD/dt) and the LV muscle volume in a high systolic BP tracking group (10 boys and 22 girls) and a low BP tracking group (22 boys and 11 girls) at 3-year intervals from the ages of 6 to 15. The corrected IRT of the high BP tracking group was significantly longer than the low BP tracking group. Left ventricular dD/dt/D of the high BP tracking group was significantly lower than the low BP tracking group from the ages of 12 in boys and 9 in girls. The left ventricular muscle volume index of both groups, however, was not significantly different. Both corrected IRT and dD/dt/D were well correlated with diastolic BP. These data suggest that children in the high BP tracking group might have LV diastolic abnormalities from age 12 or 15, in contrast to children of the low BP tracking group, without increased LV muscle volume. Therefore, it might be useful to examine BP and LV function of children from ages 12 or 15 for prevention of hypertension.

Blood Pressure↗

Japan: perspectives in school health.

In Japan, the original Law of School Health was established some 65 years ago to improve the environment and to prevent infectious diseases in school. Most recently, new environmental problems and behavioral issues have emerged. In addition to environmental health and health education, a major aspect of school health has been the development of a mass screening system both to detect present problems and to prevent adult diseases. In this article, the school health system in Japan is described and the application of mass screening by reference to heart disease as detected in Shimane Prefecture is illustrated. In the future, mass screening may be combined with a computer-based analysis system for managing data on new kinds of problems. New disciplines may become involved and improved programs developed, based on the lessons already learned from mass screening.

Delivery of Health Care↗

Relationship between liver degeneration and the production of dark firm dry meat in slaughtered pigs.

Sixty-five of 77 slaughtered pigs with liver degeneration produced dark firm dry (DFD) meat. The biochemical properties of blood, liver and muscle of those pigs were examined. In the blood, the NEFA level was higher, which indicated the mobilization of lipids from adipose tissues. The serum CPK and LDH5 levels were higher, the enzymes being derived from muscle. In the degenerative liver with yellowish discoloration, the TG level was higher and the glycogen level was lower than in a normal liver. In the DFD muscle with the final pH above 6.0, both the glycogen level immediately after slaughter and the lactic acid level 24 hr after slaughter were lower than in a normal muscle with the final pH below 6.0. Five pigs exhausted experimentally by 53-hr fasting and hard exercise showed the same changes in the blood and liver as the pigs with liver degeneration. Four of the 5 exhausted pigs showed the same changes in the muscle as in DFD meat. From these data, it was confirmed that exhaustion before slaughter led to lipid accumulation in the liver and to a decrease in muscle glycogen, and consequently caused both liver degeneration and DFD meat in the same pig.

Alanine Transaminase↗

Two cases of double superior vena cava.

Two cases of double superior vena cava were found among 300 Japanese cadavers dissected at Kyoto University from 1980 to 1989. Case 1 was an 82-year-old male patient who died of cerebral infarction. Case 2 was a 39-year-old well-developed male patient who died of sepsis. They had no history of cardiovascular disorders. Common features in both cases are as follows: In addition to a right superior vena cava with normal appearance located in the normal position, on the left side, a normal-looking extra superior vena cava persisted and descended vertically in front of the aortic arch between the left pulmonary vein and the left auricle, traversed the coronary sulcus and finally drained into the right atrium. No differences in diameter were found between right and left venae cavae. No communicating vessels were present between them. Therefore, both cases, which had a persistent left superior vena cava draining into the coronary sinus, may be classified as McCotter's 1st type (1916) or Donadio's 3rd type (1925). Furthermore, in Case 2, the double azygos vein persisted symmetrically, suggesting the 4th type of Nandy and Blair (1965). In addition to venous anomalies, Case 2 had arterial anomalies such as the right subclavian artery arising as the last branch of the aortic arch similar to the G type of Adachi (1928), and the right vertebral artery arising from the right common carotid artery. The present cases are considered to be the 53rd and 54th cases of double superior vena cava found in Japanese cadavers, and the 18th and 19th cases of double superior vena cava without communicating vessels between them.

Adult↗

The effect of sodium intake on ventricular performance in healthy men.

We analyzed the effects of acute sodium intake on left ventricular performance in 11 healthy normotensive men using Doppler echocardiography. For 2 weeks, they took 2,700-kcal diets containing 6 g and 24 g sodium chloride per day in the low sodium phase (5 days) and in the high sodium phase (5 days), respectively. Blood pressure, urine, hematocrit, and echocardiographic values were measured every day throughout this study. Although a decrease in the serum norepinephrine concentration and an increase in the ejection fraction were noticed in the low sodium phase, there was no significant change in the relation between end-systolic stress and mean velocity of circumference shortening. All subjects also performed a cold pressor test in both phases, and we analyzed the end-systolic stress-volume relation (modified Emax). Modified Emax of the high sodium phase was significantly larger than that of the low sodium phase. As published in previous research on dogs, we consider that this discrepancy at rest may be caused by a dysfunction at the cardiac adrenergic neuroeffector junction in humans, too, and that sodium intake may enhance the change in ventricular contractility by a cold pressor test.

Adult↗

Effects of prolactin during preincubation of mouse spermatozoa on fertilizing capacity in vitro.

In the present study, some beneficial effects of mouse prolactin (PRL) on spermatozoa were demonstrated in mice. The motility rate of spermatozoa is well maintained during incubation in modified Krebs-Ringer bicarbonate solution (mKRB) containing PRL (10 or 100 ng/ml) for up to 120 min. When spermatozoa that had been preincubated in the same PRL-containing mKRB were incubated with oocytes in mKRB, significantly more spermatozoa attached to the zona pellucida of each oocyte. When spermatozoa that had been preincubated in mKRB with PRL (50 and 100 ng/ml) for only 15 or 30 min were used for in vitro fertilization (IVF), significantly higher fertilization rates were yielded by those spermatozoa than by control spermatozoa preincubated without PRL for the same periods. The prolongation of the preincubation period did not result in increased fertilization rates. Thus, PRL demonstrated biological effects on spermatozoa by shortening the optimal preincubation period for spermatozoa to acquire capacitation and by maintaining their motility and ability of the attachment to the oocyte during IVF. The results are relevant to clinical application of PRL for infertile patients with oligozoospermia or asthenozoospermia.

Animals↗

A lambda gt11-cDNA clone specific for chronic hepatitis C generated from pooled serum presumably infected by hepatitis C virus.

A lambda gt11-random-primed-cDNA clone specific for chronic hepatitis C was isolated from pooled serum presumably infected by hepatitis C virus. The translation product of the clone detect 50% of patients with chronic hepatitis C in 4 test panels but none of the patients with acute hepatitis C, other liver diseases or normal controls was positive for the peptide. The nucleotide sequence of the cDNA clone, the size of which is 66 bp, has no homology to the complete sequences of known human viruses such as adenovirus, coxsackievirus, rhinovirus, immunodeficiency virus type 1, Epstein-Barr virus, polioma virus, poliovirus, papilloma virus, parvovirus, papovavirus, varicella-zoster virus, yellow fever virus, endogenous retrovirus, T-cell lymphotropic virus types I, II, and III Japanese encephalitis virus, and hepatitis A, B, and D viruses. Probably only one or two epitopes are present on the molecule encoded by the clone as the peptide consists of only 22 amino acid residues.

Animals↗

Cloning of serum RNA associated with hepatitis C infection suggesting heterogeneity of the agent(s) responsible for the infection.

Fifty-six lambda gt11-random-primed-cDNA recombinants of which translation products react with antibodies in the serum drawn from patients with hepatitis C (blood-borne non-A, non-B hepatitis) were cloned from serum pooled from donors presumably infected with hepatitis C. The specificity of these clones for hepatitis C infection was determined using 3 test panels. Of these 29 clones were determined to be specific for Japanese hepatitis C infection. However one of the 29 clones was positive for 1 out of 5 normals in an American test panel while 12 clones were positive for the American panel as well. The remaining 28 clones reacted well with serum from transfusion associated chronic hepatitis C comparing to the sporadic cases in the Japanese panel. When they were tested with normal donors, another clone reacted with a distinct donor group with which the other clones did not react. These results may suggest the presence of heterogeneity in Japanese hepatitis C.

Cloning, Molecular↗

Quantitative analysis of systolic blood pressure tracking during childhood and adolescence using a tracking index: the Shimane Heart Study.

We used a tracking index to carry out a quantitative analysis of blood pressure tracking in children and adolescents. The index was calculated according to changes in blood pressure quintiles for the whole population during the observation period. The study population consisted of 463 Japanese children living in Izumo, who were examined every 3 years from 6 to 12 years of age in cohort 1, and from 9 to 15 years of age in cohort 2. In both sexes, the tracking index decreased transiently during the period from 9 to 12 years of age and increased again thereafter. The index was higher in girls than in boys except for the period from 12 to 15 years. Correlation coefficients between blood pressure at the first and that at the second examination increased with age in both sexes. We conclude that the tracking index could quantify the degree of tracking. Systolic blood pressure tracked well during childhood and adolescence, and the degree of tracking increased after the age of 12 years in both sexes.

Adolescent↗

Ectopic posterior lobe of the pituitary gland and intractable nocturnal enuresis in a case with pituitary dwarfism.

An 11 5/12-year-old girl with pituitary dwarfism had intractable nocturnal enuresis. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed pituitary stalk transection and the formation of an ectopic posterior lobe. The results of responses to dehydration, infusion of hyperosmolar NaCl solution, and 1-desamino-8-D-arginine vasopressin showed that the nocturnal enuresis in the present case was due to a partial vasopressin deficiency. We suggest that the ectopic posterior lobe is one cause of nocturnal enuresis.

Child↗

Determination of left to right shunt by thermodilution in patients with ventricular septal defect.

A modified thermodilution technique was used to determine the quantity of shunt in patients suffering from congenital heart disease with a left to right shunt. In our modification, the thermistor was placed within the pulmonary artery and an indicator was injected into both sides of the heart. In a series of 33 cardiac catheterizations in children (1-17 years) with ventricular septal defect (VSD), pulmonary blood flow (Qp), systemic blood flow (Qs) and the ratio of Qp to Qs (Qp/Qs) were determined by this and ordinary oximetry (Fick) methods. Correlation coefficients between indexes obtained by these methods were 0.54 (Qp), 0.78 (Qs), and 0.75 (Qp/Qs). The estimates of Qp and Qp/Qs obtained by thermodilution were smaller than those obtained by the Fick method. This modification of thermodilution is simple, rapid, and useful in clinical practice.

Adult↗

Production of dark firm dry meat in slaughtered pigs with so-called liver degeneration characterized by yellowish discoloration and high lipid contents.

The livers which are discolored yellowish and have a large amount of lipids (liver degeneration) are frequently observed in slaughtered pigs. Dark firm dry (DFD) meat and liver degeneration have a common etiological agent of exhaustion in pigs before slaughter. The correlation between them was examined. In 65 cases of 77 slaughtered pigs with the degenerative liver, which contained more than 6.6% total lipids of liver wet weight, the carcasses showed early rigor mortis and the higher final pH above 6.0. R values of the muscles, which indicated the decrease of ATP, were higher. The meat had a DFD appearance and the muscle fibers had no tendency to shrink. These data showed that the pigs with liver degeneration produced DFD meat at a high rate. In 4 cases of 5 pigs exhausted experimentally by 53 hr fasting and hard exercise before slaughter, both liver degeneration and DFD meat were produced simultaneously. The livers of them were discolored and contained about 8.0% or more total lipids. The carcasses of them showed early rigor mortis and the higher final pH above 6.0. From these data, it was suggested that the exhaustion in pigs before slaughter caused both liver degeneration and DFD meat.

Animals↗

[In vitro cultivation of human pulpal fibroblast strains--permanent and deciduous teeth].

We succeeded in separating and the cultivating stable monolayer cultures of dental pulp fibroblast strains derived from permanent and deciduous human teeth. Human permanent (n = 67) and deciduous teeth (n = 26) were extracted under acupuncture anaesthesia for the correction of malocclusion. After splitting the teeth, the pulp tissues were carefully removed, placed in tissue culture flasks, and grown in Dulbecco's modified Eagle medium supplemented with 10% fetal calf serum (FCS). The human pulpal fibroblasts (HPF) of permanent teeth and deciduous teeth (DHPF) were subcultured. Both the HPF and DHPF appeared to migrate from adherent tissues within 24 to 48 hr after explanation. They proliferated in the pulp explants, and lined up in parallel rows of cells closest to the explant tissue within 7 to 10 days in all of the experimental cases. The outgrowing cells were subcultured at 1.3 x 10(4) cells/cm2 in tissue culture flasks every 4-11 days. They showed vigorous proliferation. The average number of cells in the 6-7 day cultures of HPF were 5.6 x 10(4) cells/cm2 from 3 to 16 passages. It was 4.7 x 10(4) cells/cm2 from 3 to 10 passages with DHPF. However, no difference was observed between HPF and DHPF in the amount of synthesized protein in culture flasks. Furthermore, the growth rate of DHPF was more sensitive than that of HPF to the FCS percentages of the culture media.

Cell Division↗

[Parvovirus-induced aplastic crisis in a child with hereditary spherocytosis: studies on the mechanisms of hemopoietic suppression].

A 4 4/12-year-old girl with hereditary spherocytosis (HS) who presented with an aplastic crisis during a human parvovirus (HPV) B19 infection is reported. IgM and IgG antibodies to the HPVB19 and HPV19 DNA were detected. Each of Leu 7+, Leu 11+ and HLA-DR+ cells increased. OKT4/OKT8 ratio decreased to 0.71. In order to investigate the mechanism of aplastic crisis, we used an in vitro culture technique for erythroid and granulocyte-macrophage progenitor cells (BFU-E, CFU-E and CFU-C). The patient's HPV19 DNA-containing aplastic phase serum inhibited the formation of BFU-E, CFU-E and CFU-C. After removal of the adherent cells from the aplastic phase bone marrow, the numbers of BFU-E significantly increased. These results suggest that aplastic crisis of the patient with HS was caused by HPVB19, and that monocytes-macrophages and NK cells played an important role in the pathogenesis of aplastic crisis.

Anemia, Aplastic↗

Study of inhibition of platelet aggregation of 1,8-naphthyridine derivatives.

The antiplatelet activity of some 1,8-naphthyridine derivatives was studied. The compounds displayed different abilities in blocking the effects of ADP, collagen and arachidonic acid. Four of them showed an in vitro remarkable activity similar to that of dipyridamole and papaverine.

3',5'-Cyclic-AMP Phosphodiesterases↗