A case of de novo distal duplication of chromosome 15.
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Abnormalities, Multiple↗
Biomedical subjects
D Tanaka
Publications and source records attributed to D Tanaka.
Growth and endocrine function during school age in very low-birth weight infants.
BACKGROUND: Short stature and low bodyweight are commonly encountered problems in the clinical follow up of premature infants. However, details about the underlying pathophysiology are unknown in these cases. METHODS: Evaluations of growth and endocrine function were performed in 23 very low-birth weight (VLBW) infants between 11.3 and 14.3 years of age. RESULTS: The mean (+/-SD) scores for height and weight were -0.50+/-0.97 and -0.50+/-1.10 SD, respectively. Mean serum insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I and urine growth hormone (GH) levels were 402+/-138 ng/mL and 18.0+/-17.5 pg/mg creatinine, respectively. Serum IGF-I and urine GH levels were within the normal range for all patients. The bone age values were consistent with the patient's true age. Physical signs of puberty were detected in 15 of 23 patients (65%). Using bone ages to predict final adult height yielded a score of -0.52+/-1.08 SD. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the almost normal results of serum IGF-I, urine GH levels and bone age, the physical growth of these VLBW infants was less than that of normal birth weight children, as was their predicted adult growth.
Adolescent↗
Enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus sequence-based PCR (ERIC-PCR); its ability to differentiate Streptococcus pyogenes strains and applicability to the study of outbreaks of streptococcal infection.
We evaluated the ability of enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus sequence-based PCR (ERIC-PCR) to differentiate 95 Streptococcus pyogenes strains with M or T serotypes isolated from sporadic streptococcal infections as compared with M or T serotypings and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Although the ERIC-PCR had less discriminatory power, defined as the ability to divide the strains with the same serotypes into the different sub-types, than PFGE, it consistently classified the strains into 16 patterns with a high correlation with M or T serotyping. The PCR method further discriminated 4 M or T serotypes into sub-types. The application of ERIC-PCR to 5 outbreaks of streptococcal infection produced the results that agreed closely with those of T serotyping and PFGE. ERIC-PCR has sufficient discriminatory power and is a quick and relatively easy technique, making it useful for routine epidemiological investigations.
Bacterial Typing Techniques↗
A computer-aided cleft lip simulation surgery system.
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Cleft Lip↗
Web-based educational tool for cleft lip repair using XVL.
Recent web-based technologies have brought a variety of new possibilities to the field of medical information. Nevertheless, transferring 3D patient models through usual low-band-width networks is difficult because of the large size of data file. XVL (eXtensive VRML with Lattice), a new framework for 3D Data representation with high quality surface shape, has solved this problem. In cooperation with Lattice Technology Inc., we have created XVL-formatted patient 3D models. The XVL model takes less than 100 kilobytes, whereas the same quality model in Virtual Reality Modeling Language(VRML) format requires more than 5 megabytes. Because of the many advantages of XVL, we have created a 3D web-based educational tool for repair of cleft lip--plastic surgery for congenital defects of the lips that requires complex incisions and reconstruction. Our system can interact with the model and 3D visualization of the incision lines, displacement of skin flaps, and suturing. Our educational tool for cleft lip repair has demonstrated that the XVL model and its web-based application can open up new possibilities for 3D medical information systems. We are currently refining the XVL model and developing XVL-based applications to simulate the actual surgery on the World Wide Web.
Cleft Lip↗
c-Mos forces the mitotic cell cycle to undergo meiosis II to produce haploid gametes.
The meiotic cycle reduces ploidy through two consecutive M phases, meiosis I and meiosis II, without an intervening S phase. To maintain ploidy through successive generations, meiosis must be followed by mitosis after the recovery of diploidy by fertilization. However, the coordination from meiotic to mitotic cycle is still unclear. Mos, the c-mos protooncogene product, is a key regulator of meiosis in vertebrates. In contrast to the previous observation that Mos functions only in vertebrate oocytes that arrest at meiotic metaphase II, here we isolate the first invertebrate mos from starfish and show that Mos functions also in starfish oocytes that arrest after the completion of meiosis II but not at metaphase II. In the absence of Mos, meiosis I is followed directly by repeated embryonic mitotic cycles, and its reinstatement restores meiosis II and subsequent cell cycle arrest. These observations imply that after meiosis I, oocytes have a competence to progress through the embryonic mitotic cycle, but that Mos diverts the cell cycle to execute meiosis II and remains to restrain the return to the mitotic cycle. We propose that a role of Mos that is conserved in invertebrate and vertebrate oocytes is not to support metaphase II arrest but to prevent the meiotic/mitotic conversion after meiosis I until fertilization, directing meiosis II to ensure the reduction of ploidy.
Amino Acid Sequence↗
Oral glucose retention, saliva viscosity and flow rate in 5-year-old children.
There are significant differences of glucose retention in site-specificity and individuals. Sixty-two 5-year-old nursery schoolchildren participated in this study on the relation between the viscosity of saliva and flow rate and glucose retention. Each child was instructed to rinse his/her mouth with a glucose solution (0.5 M, 5 ml) and then to spit out. Three minutes after rinsing, glucose retention was determined. Resting saliva was collected by a natural outflow method, then the flow rate was determined. A rotational viscometer was used to determine the viscosity. Glucose retention and flow rate were correlated at the left maxillary primary molars, and glucose retention and viscosity were correlated at the maxillary central primary incisors. It was concluded that glucose retention after glucose mouth rinsing was site-specific, and that glucose retention and the index of decayed, missing and filled primary teeth (dmft) were slightly correlated with the salivary viscosity and flow rate.
Analysis of Variance↗
Distance of target search of isolated rat hippocampal neuron is about 150 microm.
Although the survival of neuronal cells is highly dependent on neural connections with afferents or targets,(10,14,15) little is known about the survival of immature neurons that have not yet encountered the partners. Herein, using cultures of isolated hippocampal neurons of rat embryos, we have attempted to elucidate the contribution of neurite outgrowth to neuron survival and found that neurons died at a certain degree of neurite length with apoptotic characteristics in cases of no contact with other neurons. The threshold was 143.4microm, which was about five times as long as the cell body diameter. It was altered by depolarization or in the presence of basic fibroblast growth factor. Thus, neurons may be designed to kill themselves if they cannot find their targets after exploration within a particular area, the extent of which is variable due to cellular conditions.
Animals↗
Sensitivity of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans and Capnocytophaga spp. to the bactericidal action of LL-37: a cathelicidin found in human leukocytes and epithelium.
The bactericidal activity of synthetic LL-37, a cathelicidin, was assessed against Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans (three strains) and Capnocytophaga spp. (three strains). All strains were sensitive to LL-37, and exhibited 99% effective dose of 7.5-to-11.6 micrograms/ml. An amidated form of LL-37, pentamide-37, killed with about the same efficacy as LL-37. Partial inhibition of killing was noted at physiologic concentrations of NaCl, and complete inhibition was observed at 400 mM NaCl. At approximately the 99% effective dose--i.e., 10 micrograms/ml--LL-37 also lost activity against A. actinomycetemcomitans in the presence of native or heat-inactivated 10-15% normal human AB serum. Pentamide-37 was less sensitive to serum inhibition than LL-37. In conclusion, certain oral, gram-negative bacteria are sensitive to the bactericidal activity of LL-37 at low concentrations of serum and salt, a condition likely to be found within the membrane-delimited phagolysosome. Modified forms of LL-37, such as pentamide-37, may be more suitable for future therapeutic application in the presence of serum.
Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans↗
Smoking cessation in primary care clinics.
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Humans↗
Effects of dark-rearing on triphenyl phosphate-induced neuropathy in the visual system of the developing European ferret (Mustela putorius furo).
Results of a previous study in our lab (Tanaka et al., 1994) suggested that the onset of susceptibility to the organophosphorus compound triphenyl phosphite (TPP) in the developing ferret visual system might be closely related to eye opening and the onset of light stimulation. In order to explore this idea further, TPP was administered to ferret kits that had been raised for varying periods of time in total darkness to assess whether a delay in the onset of light stimulation to the visual system might also result in a delay in its susceptibility to TPP. Ferret kits were raised from birth either in total darkness or in open-sided sheds exposed to ambient light, injected subcutaneously with TPP (888 mg/kg body weight) at 5.5, 7.5, 9.5, or 21.5 wk of age, euthanized, and perfused transcardially with a 10% formalin-saline solution 4 d after injection. Brains were sectioned parasagittally at a thickness of 40 microm and subsequently processed with the Fink-Heimer silver impregnation technique to reveal the presence of degenerating axons and terminals, and with cresyl violet stain to delineate nuclear boundaries and cell soma morphology. Comparisons among degeneration patterns present in light-reared and dark-reared kits at the four ages examined revealed that the time of onset, extent, and density of TPP-induced axonal and terminal degeneration seen in the lateral geniculate nucleus and primary visual cortex did not differ significantly between light- and dark-reared groups, with the possible exception of dark-reared kits exposed to TPP at 7.5 wk of age. In addition, neurons in the primary visual cortex showed shrinkage and increased packing densities in kits exposed to TPP in both light and dark environments, as well as in dark-reared non-injected kits. The results of this study indicate that dark-rearing does not delay the onset or lessen the severity of TPP-induced axonal and terminal degeneration in the developing visual system of the ferret. Data suggest that light activation and stimulation of the retino-geniculo-striatal visual pathway is not a necessary prerequisite for the onset of visual system susceptibility to the axonopathic effects of triphenyl phosphite.
Animals↗
Organophosphorus-induced neurotoxicity in the absence of neuropathy target esterase inhibition: the effects of triphenyl phosphine in the European ferret.
Abou-Donia et al. (in Toxicologist, Vol. 30, 1996) have reported that repeated oral administration of the organo-phosphorus compound triphenyl phosphine (TPPn) to the domestic chicken results in neuropathological changes in the spinal cord and peripheral nerves, accompanied by ataxia and paralysis. This study also noted that single doses of TPPn resulted in no inhibition of the enzymes neuropathy target esterase (NTE) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE). We undertook the present study to determine the biochemical, neuropathological, and clinical effects of single doses of TPPn in the European ferret, a mammalian species shown to be susceptible to organophosphorus-induced neurotoxicity. Eight 12-week-old ferrets were each injected subcutaneously with either 250 mg TPPn/kg bw or 500 mg TPPn/kg bw, or with the peanut oil/ethyl ether vehicle. Twenty-four h after dosing, the brains of 5 animals from each dose group were examined for NTE and AChE activities. The remaining 3 animals in each group were observed for 6 days for the development of clinical signs, after which their brains were processed for the presence of axonal degeneration using the Fink-Heimer silver impregnation method. Single injections of TPPn had no effect on the activities of whole-brain NTE or AChE 24 h after injection. The animals observed for clinical signs showed increasing trunk and hindlimb ataxia beginning 4 days after injection, culminating in fore-and hindlimb paralysis 6 days after injection. All brains exposed to either dose of TPPn showed widespread axonal degeneration extending from the brainstem and cerebellum into midbrain and forebrain areas. The results of this study support the hypothesis that TPPn-induced neurotoxicity is a separate and distinct form of organophosphorus-induced neurotoxicity not dependent on NTE inhibition, and therefore not a variant of organophosphorus-induced delayed neurotoxicity (OPIDN).
Acetylcholinesterase↗
Management of vaginal candidiasis: a review.
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Antifungal Agents↗
Potentiation of organophosphorus-induced delayed neurotoxicity following phenyl saligenin phosphate exposures in 2-, 5-, and 8-week-old chickens.
Phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride (PMSF), a nonneuropathic inhibitor of neurotoxic esterase (NTE), is a known potentiator of organophosphorus-induced delayed neurotoxicity (OPIDN). The ability of PMSF posttreatment (90 mg/kg, sc, 4 hr after the last PSP injection) to modify development of delayed neurotoxicity was examined in 2-, 5-, and 8-week-old White Leghorn chickens treated either one, two, or three times (doses separated by 24 hr) with the neuropathic OP compound phenyl saligenin phosphate (PSP, 5 mg/kg, sc). NTE activity was measured in the cervical spinal cord 4 hr after the last PSP treatment. Development of delayed neurotoxicity was measured over a 16-day postexposure period. All PSP-treated groups exhibited > 97% NTE inhibition regardless of age or number of OP treatments. Two-week-old birds did not develop clinical signs of neurotoxicity in response to either single or repeated OP treatment regimens nor following subsequent treatment with PMSF. Five-week-old birds were resistant to the clinical effects of a single PSP exposure and were minimally affected by repeated doses. PMSF posttreatment, however, significantly amplified the clinical effects of one, two, or three doses of PSP. A single exposure to PSP induced slight to moderate signs of delayed neurotoxicity in 8-week-old birds with more extensive neurotoxicity being noted following repeated dosing. As with 5-week-old birds, PMSF exacerbated the clinical signs of neurotoxicity when given after one, two, or three doses of PSP in 8-week-old birds. Axonal degeneration studies supported the clinical findings: PMSF posttreatment did not influence the degree of degeneration in 2-week-old chickens but resulted in more severe degeneration (relative to PSP only exposure) in cervical cords from both 5- and 8-week-old birds. The results indicate that PMSF does not alter the progression of delayed neurotoxicity in very young (2 weeks of age) chickens but potentiates PSP-induced delayed neurotoxicity in the presence of 0-3% residual NTE activity in older animals. We conclude that posttreatment with neuropathic or nonneuropathic NTE inhibitors, following virtually complete NTE inhibition by either single or repeated doses of a neuropathic agent in sensitive age groups, can modify both the clinical and morphological indices of delayed neurotoxicity. This study further supports the hypothesis that potentiation of OPIDN occurs through a mechanism unrelated to NTE.
Age Factors↗
Assessment of cerebral hemispheric symmetry in hatchling chickens exposed in ovo to polychlorinated biphenyl congeners.
Previous investigators have reported that exposure to a mixture of environmental contaminants, including polychlorinated biphenyls, results in morphologic asymmetry of the cerebral hemispheres in hatchling great blue herons (Ardea herodias) and have suggested that this asymmetry may be a useful biomarker for contamination. This study was made to determine whether exposure to PCB congeners 3,3',4,4'-tetrachlorobiphenyl (IUPAC #77) and 3,3',4,4',5-pentachlorobiphenyl (IUPAC #126) causes similar asymmetry in hatchling domestic chickens (Gallus domesticus). Eggs were injected at day 0 of incubation with either a high dose, low dose, or combination of each congener. At hatching, the chicks were perfused with 10% formalin-saline. The brains were removed, sectioned and stained with cresyl violet. Width and height measurements of each hemisphere were taken at eight locations, caudal to rostral, 400 microm apart starting at the level of the anterior commissure (CA) and ending at the lobus paraolfactorius (LPO). The absolute differences between measurements of the left and right sides were used to run a univariate split plot analysis of variance to determine if the amount of asymmetry present was associated with specific congeners or doses. Significant differences in asymmetry were found between noninjected control groups and vehicle-injected control groups (p </= 0.05), but not between noninjected controls and treatment groups. A first degree orthogonal polynomial contrast analysis illustrated a linear trend with asymmetry increasing from the most caudal section at the CA to the most rostral section at the LPO for both non-injected control and treatment groups (p </= 0.05). These data indicate that asymmetry may be normal in avian brains resulting from both intrinsic structural asymmetry and extrinsic molding forces acting on the head during development. Both of these factors should be taken into consideration when assessing the usefulness of cerebral asymmetry as a biomarker.
Abnormalities, Drug-Induced↗
Heights and weights of Head Start preschool children in Hawaii.
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Anthropometry↗
Serotyping of Streptococcus pyogenes isolated from common and severe invasive infections in Japan, 1990-5: implication of the T3 serotype strain-expansion in TSLS. The Working Group for Group A Streptococci in Japan.
To clarify the relationship between the epidemics of severe invasive group A streptococcal infections (streptococcal Toxic Shock-Like Syndrome: TSLS) and common group A streptococcal infections in Japan, we examined the T serotypes of S. pyogenes strains (group A streptococci) isolated from clinical specimens of the streptococcal infections (17999 cases) in the period 1990-5, including the severe infections (TSLS) (29 cases) in the period 1992-5. Characteristic points of the analyses were: (1) dominant serotypes of the infections in these periods were T12, T4, T1, T28 and TB3264, which were consistently isolated; (2) isolates of T3 rapidly increased through 1990 to 1994 while T6 decreased in the period 1990-3; (3) when Japanese area was divided into three parts, T3 serotype tended to spread out from the north-eastern to the south-western area; (4) strains of T3 and T1 serotypes were dominant in the TSLS. Dominant-serotype strains of streptococcal infections did not always induce severe infections and dominance of T3 serotype in the TSLS seemed to be correlated with the increase of T3 in streptococcal infections. These results may indicate that certain clones of S. pyogenes are involved in the pathogenesis of the TSLS.
Adolescent↗
Triphenyl phosphite and diisopropylphosphorofluoridate produce separate and distinct axonal degeneration patterns in the central nervous system of the rat.
This study compared the neurotoxic effects of triphenyl phosphite (TPP) in the rat with those seen after exposure to diisopropylphosphorofluoridate (DFP), a compound known to produce organophosphorus-induced delayed neurotoxicity (OPIDN). Animals received either three subcutaneous injections of TPP (1184 mg/kg body wt each dose) administered at 3-day intervals or a single subcutaneous injection of DFP (4 mg/kg body wt). TPP-induced clinical signs were initially observed 2 to 18 days after the last injection and included ataxia, flaccid paresis, stereotyped alternating side-to-side movements, and circling behavior. Axonal and terminal degeneration were present in the cerebellum, vestibular nuclear complex, cochlear nuclei, and superior and inferior colliculi. The subthalamic nucleus, substantia nigra, septal region, hypothalamus, thalamus, hippocampus, and cerebral cortex also contained degenerating axons and terminals. Degeneration was particularly evident in the sensorimotor cerebral cortex, mediodorsal, ventromedial, and medial geniculate thalamic nuclei and in the magnocellular preoptic and medial mammillary nuclei of the hypothalamus. Very light degeneration was present in the gracile fasciculus and nucleus. In contrast, rats injected with DFP showed moderate degeneration in the gracile fasciculus and nucleus but did not display degeneration in any other brain region. Injections of DFP did not produce delayed onset clinical signs. The results indicate that in the rat, different central nervous system cell groups are affected by these two organophosphorus compounds and that TPP affects nuclei and tracts at all levels of the neuraxis, including those associated with higher-order processing and cognitive functions. In addition, the distinct degeneration patterns produced by these two compounds support the view that TPP-induced neurotoxicity should not be considered as a type of OPIDN, but rather as a separate category of organophosphorus-induced neurotoxicity.
Animals↗