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Biomedical subjects

E Takayama

Publications and source records attributed to E Takayama.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2000

[Indication and effectiveness of endoscopic percutaneous gastrostomy as a route of parenteral alimentation for the home care patient].

We are managing 8 home care patients who have a gastrostomy made using an endoscopic percutaneous technique as a route of parenteral alimentation. Based on our experience, the preconditions for an endoscopic percutaneous gastrostomy as a route of parenteral alimentation are 1. normal gastrointestinal function, 2. difficulty in swallowing, 3. possibility that the caregiver can manage the gastrostomy. When we performed an endoscopic percutaneous gastrostomy as a route of parenteral alimentation for 8 home care patients, we obtained the several advantages mentioned below. 1. Swallowing pneumonia was prevented. 2. Adequate amount of alimental liquid could be infused. 3. Patient could take a bath or shower with the gastrostomy, and good QOL was realized. 4. The home care patient with the gastrostomy could have a satisfactorily long life.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Detection of anti-annexin IV and V antibodies in patients with antiphospholipid syndrome and systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE: Annexins (Anx) are a family of structurally related proteins that bind to phospholipids in a calcium dependent manner. It has been reported that antibodies to Anx V, which acts as an antithrombotic protein, are associated with thrombosis in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and/or antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). Homology between the primary structures of Anx IV and Anx V is the highest among members of the Anx family. We investigated whether anti-Anx IV autoantibodies can be detected in the sera of patients with SLE and/or APS. METHODS: Seventy-four patients with SLE/APS were divided into 3 groups: Group A, patients with SLE but no clinical or serological features of APS; Group B, patients with SLE having only serological signs of APS; and Group C, patients with clinical symptoms and serological signs of APS. Anx IV and Anx V were prepared by recombinant technique. Anti-Anx IV, Anx V, cardiolipin (CL), and CL beta2-glycoprotein I were detected by ELISA. RESULTS: Anti-Anx IV was found in 15.4% of Group A, 20.0% of Group B, and 21.7% of Group C. Anti-Anx V was found in 3.8% of Group A, 28.0% of Group B, and 30.4% of Group C. Significant correlations were noted between anti-Anx IV titer and anti-Anx V titer (p<0.001), and between anti-Anx IV titer and aCL titer (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: Anti-Anx IV and V antibodies were characterized in the sera of patients with SLE/APS. Significantly higher frequency of arterial or venous thrombosis was found in patients with anti-Anx V.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Molecular cloning of ssd-form neural cell adhesion molecules (N-CAMs) as the major form in Xenopus heart.

Different forms of neural cell adhesion molecule (N-CAM) are generated by alternative splicing of primary transcripts and considered to have distinct biological functions. We cloned cDNAs encoding a new form of N-CAMs from the Xenopus heart cDNA library. Comparison of the sequences with chicken and mouse N-CAMs revealed that these clones code for ssd-form N-CAM. We demonstrate by Northern blot analysis that the ssd form is the major form expressed in the Xenopus adult heart. We obtained two types of ssd-form N-CAM, which are transcripts from N-CAM 1 and N-CAM 2 genes. Both types contain muscle specific domain (MSD) but not pi domain. Northern blot analysis also indicated that this form is not expressed in adult brain, in which ld-form N-CAM is the main N-CAM expressed. It is possible that high levels of specific expression of ssd-form N-CAM are related with the differentiation of cardiac muscles.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1998

Inhibitory effect of protease inhibitor on endothelial cell activation.

BACKGROUND: Endothelial cells (EC) are important for regulating the hemostatic balance of prothrombotic and antithrombotic activities. Proinflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha) play an important role in the regulation of EC and also regulate the production of plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 (PAI-1), which is an EC-producing factor with the inhibitory activity of fibrinolysis, and the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), which is an adhesion molecule that plays an important role in inflammation. Protease inhibitors such as gabexate mesilate (GM) and ulinastatin (UTI) have been shown to improve the microcirculatory environment and reduce tissue damage, but the mechanism for this has yet to be fully elucidated. We investigated the effect of GM or UTI on EC regarding PAI-1 synthesis and ICAM-1 expression. METHODS: Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were obtained and stimulated with TNFalpha. GM or UTI was added to HUVECs just before TNFalpha stimulation. The PAI-1 activity in the culture medium of HUVECs was measured by using an enzymatic assay kit. The PAI-1 mRNA expression was assayed by a semiquantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction assay. The ICAM-1 expression on HUVECs was assayed by a flow cytometric analysis. RESULTS: GM inhibited the PAI-1 synthesis of HUVECs stimulated with TNFalpha in a dose-dependent manner as shown by the mRNA expression. However, UTI was not able to inhibit PAI-1 synthesis. In contrast, both GM and UTI significantly inhibited the ICAM-1 expression on HUVECs stimulated with TNFalpha. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that GM may thus provide a beneficial effect which improves the microcirculatory environment and prevents tissue damage by inhibiting the activation of the vascular EC themselves.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1998

Carbonic anhydrase I and II as a differentiation marker of human and rat colonic enterocytes.

Carbonic anhydrase (CA) is an enzyme that is expressed in the intestine and catalyzes the reversible hydration of CO2 in the following reaction: CO2 + H2O<==>H2CO3<==>H(+)+HCO3-. To elucidate the association of CA expression with the differentiation of colonic enterocytes, we investigated the expression and localization of CA using a Northern blotting analysis, Western blotting analysis, and immunohistochemical staining. A Northern blotting analysis revealed an abundant expression of CA I and II mRNA in the colonic epithelial cells. However, the expression of CA III mRNA was not detected. According to the results of immunohistochemical staining of the human colonic mucosa using antisera against CA I and II, both CA I and II were localized on the cytoplasm of non-goblet columnar cells in the upper half of the crypts where more differentiated cells are located. According to the results of immunohistochemical staining of the rat colonic mucosa, neither CA I and II were detected at the new-born stage. The expression of CAs in the upper half of the crypts began to rise from 1 week after birth, and thereafter increased according to the growth of the rats. At 3 weeks after birth, the expression of CAs was almost the same as that of the adult rats. The amount of CA proteins evaluated by a Western blotting analysis revealed that the expression of CAs increased gradually until reaching a maximum level at 6 or 8 weeks. These results therefore suggest that CA I and II appear to be good markers for the differentiation of enterocytes in the colonic mucosa.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Enhancement of activation-induced cell death by fibronectin in murine CD4+ CD8+ thymocytes.

Development of T cells in the thymus is achieved through the interactions of thymocytes with their microenvironments. This study focused on the function of fibronectin (FN), a major extracellular matrix molecule in the thymus, in the cell death induced by activation via the T-cell antigen receptor. FN alone did not increase cell death in murine thymocytes above the baseline level, but it significantly enhanced the cell death induced by fixed anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody (mAb), especially when a high concentration of anti-CD3 mAb was used. DNA fragmentation increased in parallel with cell death, indicating that cell death was a result of the apoptosis. Fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS) analysis revealed that the activation-induced cell death (AICD) caused by anti-CD3 mAb alone, or by a combination of anti-CD3 mAb and FN, occurred selectively in CD4+ CD8+ thymocytes. Very late activation antigen (VLA)-4 and VLA-5 are two major ligands to FN on thymocytes. The expression of both ligands was investigated at different stages of thymocyte development. VLA-4 was predominantly expressed at the CD4- CD8- stage, and thereafter the expression was reduced, whereas VLA-5 was constantly expressed during maturation. Furthermore, the enhancing effect by FN was inhibited in the presence of the Gly-Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser-Pro (GRGDSP) peptide but not in the presence of the connecting segment-1 (CS-1) peptide, suggesting that enhancement of AICD observed in CD4+ CD8+ thymocytes is mediated through VLA-5.

Animals↗
PubMed1998

Cloning and expression of an alpha-2,8-polysialyltransferase (STX) from Xenopus laevis.

Polysialic acid (polySia) is a carbohydrate structure found on neural cell adhesion molecules (N-CAM). Two polysialyltransferases (polySiaTs) that catalyze synthesis of polySia have been described, and designated PST-1/PST/ST8SiaIV and STX/ST8SiaII. We cloned a polySiaT (xSTX) from a nonmammalian vertebrate, Xenopus laevis . xSTX had 80% amino acid similarity to the rat STX. This clone induced polySia expression when transfected into polySia-negative COS-1 cells. Northern blot analysis of whole embryos at different stages of development revealed that xSTX mRNA was most abundantly expressed in premetamorphic stages. The relative level of xSTX and N-CAM mRNAs was also examined and found to change in parallel to the extent of polysialylation on N-CAM. In adult tissues, the expression of xSTX mRNA was restricted to brain, eye and heart, which also expressed polySia. These results suggest that xSTX is the major enzyme responsible for the synthesis of polysialylated N-CAM in embryos at certain stages of development and also in adult tissues.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Modulation of cell surface lectin receptors on K562 human erythroleukemia cells induced by transfection with annexin IV cDNA.

Annexin IV was found to be highly expressed in various human adenocarcinoma cell lines, but not in an erythroleukemia cell line, K562. We investigated the effects of transfection of human annexin IV cDNA into K562 cells on cell surface lectin receptors. cDNA transfectants were found to be more sensitive to cytotoxic lectins such as Ricinus communis agglutinin and wheat germ agglutinin than mock transfectants. The results of flow cytometric analyses with various lectins showed that the transfectants expressed more sugar chains which bind to Ulex europaeus agglutinin I and Maackia amurensis mitogen than mock transfectants. These results suggest that transfection of annexin IV cDNA increases the expression of alpha-2,3-sialylated and/or fucosylated sugar chains on the surface.

Annexin A4↗
PubMed1997

Color pattern formation on the wing of the butterfly Pieris rapae. 1. Cautery induced alteration of scale color and delay of arrangement formation.

Experimental approaches to color pattern formation of lepidopteran insects have been made exclusively by analyzing pattern alterations in adult wings induced by operations. We microcauterized the presumptive black region of the dorsal forewing of the butterfly Pieris rapae and analyzed not only the resultant color pattern in the adult wing but also the cell behavior in the pupal wing epidermis around the injury. Cautery induced color alterations were as follows: (i) cautery up to 49.5 h after pupation resulted in white regions appearing within the black region while later cauteries induced larger white regions; (ii) cautery between 50 and 59.5 h resulted in the white regions induced by the cauteries being dramatically decreased; (iii) cautery after 60 h resulted in white regions that had almost disappeared. The examination of the cell behavior in the pupal wing epidermis after cauteries showed that the row formation of scale precursor cells was delayed. This delayed area varied with the time of cautery, in the same manner as that in the induced white area in the adult wing ((i)-(iii) above). The relationship between scale color alteration and the developmental delay of the scale row formation is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Color pattern formation on the wing of a butterfly Pieris rapae. 2. Color determination and scale development.

It has been shown that microcautery on the prospective apical black region of the early pupal forewing of a butterfly, Pieris rapae, causes alteration of the scale color on the adult wing and a delay in histogenesis of the pupal wing. From these results, it has been assumed that the developmental delay of scale cells in the pupal wing alters their developmental fate and the hypothesis that different color fates of scales are determined by differences in the developmental timetables between scale cells is proposed. In this study, we attempted to find the developmental timetables of individual scales expressing specific color to test this hypothesis. It was found that the holes on the upper surface of a scale become larger as they develop and the hole sizes of scales in the white region are always larger than in the black region on the same wings either during pupal period or after eclosion. This suggests that the scale hole size is a good index that reflects developmental rate of the scale and a difference in the hole size between adult scales is attributed to a difference in the developmental timetables when their ancestral scale precursor cells were in the pupal period. A comparison of the hole sizes between adult scales in different color regions suggested that normal white scales were in a more advanced state than were the black ones but white scales induced by microcautery were in a less advanced state than black ones on the same wing. This supports our hypothesis.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Molecular cloning and growth hormone-regulated gene expression of carp insulin-like growth factor-I.

Two distinct insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) cDNAs were isolated from a juvenile carp liver cDNA library. Both of the cDNAs encoded a full length prepro IGF-I with 161 amino acids: a mature peptide (70 residues), its signal peptide (44 residues), and a carboxy-terminal E domain (47 residues). The similarity of the two cDNA in the open reading frame was 95.1%. The amino acid sequences of E domain predicted by the two cDNAs were different while those of the signal peptide and the mature peptide were the same. By Northern blot analysis, four different sizes (1, 1.5, 2, and 4.5 kb) of IGF-I mRNA were recognized in the liver of juvenile carp. The two smaller species (1 kb and 1.5 kb) were not detected in adult carp. The expression of these two species was preferably induced by exogenous growth hormone administration in the liver of juvenile carp.

Aging↗
PubMed1997

Characterization of human p33/41 (annexin IV), a Ca2+ dependent carbohydrate-binding protein with monoclonal anti-annexin IV antibodies, AS11 and AS17.

p33/41 (annexin IV) is a member of the family of Ca(2+)-dependent phospholipid binding proteins known as annexins. We previously described that bovine kidney p33/41 (annexin IV) has Ca(2+)-dependent carbohydrate binding activity. In this study, we purified human p33/41 (annexin IV) from the HT29, human colon adenocarcinoma cell line, as well as the bovine kidney annexin by affinity chromatography. Then, we prepared recombinant human p33/41 (annexin IV) expressed in Escherichia coli. The apparent size and the Ca(2+)-dependent carbohydrate binding properties of purified recombinant p33/41 (annexin IV) were indistinguishable from those of the bovine kidney protein. We also performed inhibition assays of carbohydrate binding and of phosphatidylserine/phosphatidylcholine liposome binding of recombinant p33/41 (annexin IV) with anti-p33/41 monoclonal antibodies (AS11 and AS17). We determined the epitopes recognized by the monoclonal antibodies by Western blot analysis using deleted-recombinant p33/41 (annexin IV). The monoclonal antibodies recognized domain 1 and/or 2 of p33/41 (annexin IV). The results of the inhibition assays and the determination of the epitope showed that a carbohydrate binding site is located at domains 3 and 4 of p33/41 (annexin IV) and on the cell surface.

Annexin A4↗
PubMed1997

Relation of abdominal and thigh adipose tissue distribution to serum lipids and glucose metabolism in obese males.

Spin-echo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and postprocessing for fat quantification were used to examine the relationship of abdominal and thigh adipose-tissue distribution to serum lipids and glucose metabolism in obesity. Thirteen simple obese male patients and 12 non-obese male volunteers were examined by MRI, blood pressure, and fasting blood sample levels of serum lipids, glucose, immunoreactive insulin, c-peptide, HbA1C and hematocrit. Correlations of thigh visceral and subcutaneous fat areas to serum lipid levels were generally similar, but marked differences were found between relationships of thigh versus abdominal fat areas to serum lipid levels. In addition, diastolic blood pressure was significantly correlated with the fat area, especially with the abdominal visceral fat area (r=0.51, p<0.01), but not with abdominal subcutaneous fat area. The thigh muscle area was highly and inversely correlated with c-peptide (r=-0.72, p<0.01) and systolic blood pressure (r=-0.65). Differences in correlations between visceral and subcutaneous fat areas in the abdomen to metabolic parameters were found between abdominal visceral fat areas and HbA1C and between the abdominal subcutaneous fat areas and HbA1C. These findings suggest that the character of regional fat could be heterogeneous with respect to lipid and glucose metabolism and blood pressure levels in obese males.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1996

Purification of AV-1, a position-specific molecule, and the effects of its antiserum on chick limb pattern formation.

AV-1 protein is a membrane-localized glycoprotein which is expressed in a stage- and position-specific manner during limb development and is a candidate pattern formation molecule. In this study, we have purified the AV-1 protein using an affinity column coupled with the anti-AV-1 monoclonal antibody. Using the purified protein, we produced a rat anti-AV-1 antiserum. Characterization of the antiserum by immunoblotting and immunostaining showed highly specific reactivity which was identical to that of the anti-AV-1 monoclonal antibody. The rat anti-AV-1 antiserum was injected into the vitelline vein of stage 20 chick embryos and these embryos were allowed to develop further to examine the effect of the antibody on limb pattern. The injected embryos developed deformed limbs. Many of the abnormalities in limb cartilage pattern were related to the normal pattern of the AV-1 expression, suggesting an involvement of the AV-1 protein in the process of limb pattern formation.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗
PubMed1996

Inhibition of head and neck metastatic and/or recurrent cancer by local administration of multi-cytokine inducer OK-432.

The multi-cytokine inducer OK-432 is a pulverized preparation of the low-virulence SU strain of Streptococcus pyogenes of human origin. A reduction of the tumour mass in the OK-432-injected areas was observed in 11 out of 13 patients with metastatic and/or recurrent head and neck cancer. Complete response (CR), partial response (PR) and minor response (MR) were noted in six, three and two cases respectively. OK-432 local administration therapy could create a new strategy for cancer therapy.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Expression of carbohydrate-binding protein p33/41 in human tumor cell lines.

We previously reported a new type of lectin, p33/41 (annexin IV), which was isolated from a bovine tissue extract [Kojima, K. et al. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 20536-20539]. When the expression of p33/41 (annexin IV) was surveyed in the lysates of 39 human tumor cell lines by SDS-PAGE, followed by Western blot analysis with polyclonal anti-bovine p33/41 and monoclonal anti-annexin IV (Z016, Zymed) antibodies, 21 cell lines were found to be reactive with the polyclonal antibody, whereas all 39 cell lines were stained with Z016. These results together with those obtained with standard proteins, annexins IV and V, suggested that the monoclonal antibody, Z016, recognizes annexin V, but not p33/41 (annexin IV). Therefore, we performed cDNA cloning of human p33/41 (annexin IV) to prepare a recombinant protein and raised monoclonal antibodies against the protein. Northern blot analysis with the cDNA as a probe showed that a human colon cancer cell line, HT29, contains p33/41 (annexin IV) mRNA of two sizes, 2.0 and 3.0 kb. The two monoclonal antibodies, AS11 and AS17, against the recombinant protein generated were useful for flow cytometric analysis, ELISA, Western blot analysis and immunoprecipitation. Flow cytometric analysis with AS17 showed that p33/41 (annexin IV) is located in the cytoplasm of HT29 cells, but not on the cell surface. However, one of the cell surface proteins first labeled with biotin and then solubilized with a detergent was immunoprecipitated with AS17. The results suggest the existence of a membrane spanning form of p33/41 (annexin IV).

Adenocarcinoma↗