[A case of duodenal gangliocytic paraganglioma].
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to F Kobayashi.
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An 84-year-old woman visited a private dermatologist and gynecologist due to pain in the external genitals. However, no abnormality was found. She was referred to a surgeon in our hospital to clarify the etiology of the pain. Rectal cancer and liver metastatic tumor were detected, and the rectal cancer was resected. However, the pain increased after the operation and she was referred to our department. No macroscopic abnormalities of the external genitals were found. However, a vaginal examination could not be performed due to severe pain. By local examination under anesthesia, enlargement of the clitoris was detected. A simple clitoridectomy was performed. Histological examination revealed that the clitoral tumor was metastatic cancer originating from rectal cancer.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to establish the diagnostic reliability of anterior displacement of the articular disk in the temporomandibular joint on helical computed tomography. STUDY DESIGN: Ninety-four consecutive patients were examined through use of both computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. On axial computed tomography, anterior disk displacement was defined as the presence of an area of soft tissue density that was semilunar in shape and located in front of the mandibular condyle. RESULTS: With magnetic resonance imaging taken as the diagnostic gold standard in evaluation of articular disk position, the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for computed tomography were 91%, 100%, and 97%, respectively, in the closed mouth position and 96%, 99%, and 98%, respectively, in the open mouth position. CONCLUSIONS: The detectability on axial helical computed tomography of anterior displacement of the articular disk in the temporomandibular joint in the open mouth position was almost equal to that on magnetic resonance imaging. It is recommended that the open mouth position be added when helical computed tomography is used to evaluate patients with temporomandibular joint disease.
It is reported that plasma platelet-activating-factor-acetylhydrolase (PAF-AH) is elevated in patients with essential hypertension. In this study, plasma PAF-AH activity was measured during pregnancy and after delivery to examine the relationship between plasma PAF-AH activity and the development of transient hypertension (TH) during pregnancy. Moreover, in order to examine the involvement of endothelial injury in TH, the plasma level of nitric oxide metabolite (NOx; NO2+NO3) was measured. The plasma PAF-AH activity in 51 pregnant women was consecutively measured in the 1st, 2nd and 3rd trimesters of gestation, and after delivery. Forty-one cases were normal pregnancies and 10 cases were complicated by TH later during pregnancy. The PAF-AH activity in the normal pregnancy group decreased in the 2nd trimester of gestation compared with the 1st trimester, but was elevated in the TH group. The incidence of elevation of PAF-AH in the TH group was significantly (7/10; 70.0%; P<0.01, Chi-squared test) higher than in the normal pregnancy group (9/41; 22.0%). The plasma NOx levels in the 2nd trimester were higher than those in the 1st trimester in both the normotensive and TH group (P<0.05 for both comparisons). The 51 patients were classified into two groups according to the change in the PAF-AH in the 2nd trimester: group A consisted of 35 patients whose PAF-AH activity did not increase, and group B consisted of 16 patients whose PAF-AH activity increased. The incidence of development of TH during later pregnancy in group B was significantly (7/16; 43.8%; P<0.01, Chi-squared test) higher than in group A (3/35; 8.6%). Hypertension developed after 36 weeks' gestation in all patients in the TH group. The results of the present study suggest that changes in PAF metabolism may relate to regulation of blood pressure in pregnant women whose pregnancy is complicated with TH, whereas NO metabolism does not differ between women with TH and those having a normal pregnancy.
Osteoprotegerin (OPG)/osteoclastogenesis inhibitory factor (OCIF) is a soluble member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor family of proteins and plays an important role in the negative regulation of osteoclastic bone resorption. Whether OPG/OCIF circulates in human blood and how its level changes under pathological conditions is not known. To address these issues, a panel of monoclonal antibodies was generated against recombinant OPG/OCIF and screened for reactivity with solid-phase monomeric and homodimeric forms of the recombinant protein. Antibodies that showed high affinity for both forms of OPG/OCIF and those that selectively recognized the homodimer were identified, enabling development of two types of sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA): one that detects both forms of OPG/OCIF equally and one specific for the homodimer. Characterization of circulating OPG/OCIF with these ELISAs revealed that the protein exists in human serum mainly in the monomeric form. The serum concentration of OPG/OCIF increased with age in both healthy Japanese men and women, and was significantly higher in postmenopausal women with osteoporosis than in age-matched controls. Within the osteoporotic group, serum OPG/OCIF concentrations were higher in patients with low bone mass. Serum OPG/OCIF concentrations were also significantly increased in those postmenopausal women with a high rate of bone turnover, as determined by increased serum bone-specific alkaline phosphatase and urinary excretion of pyridinoline and deoxypyridinoline. The results suggested that circulating OPG/OCIF levels are regulated by an age-related factor(s) and that the increased serum concentration may reflect a compensative response to enhanced osteoclastic bone resorption and the resultant bone loss rather than a cause of osteoporosis.
Prevalence of diabetes mellitus in Japan was investigated through studying the published reports from 1964 to 1992 by searching the electronic data base and some leading Japanese journals following certain inclusion criteria. Out of total 74 retrieved reports, 14 were found eligible for review, some containing data of multiple community and/or periods and were converted into total of 40 reports following a predetermined criteria. Review analysis of only the prevalence of diabetes was done paying much attention to age range, survey methodology and response rate. Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was done in 19 (47.5%) with and in 21 (52.5%) reports without initial urine and/or blood sugar screening. OGTT was done using 75, 50, or 100 grams glucose following either Japan Diabetes Society or WHO criteria. The recent prevalence was estimated ranging from 9.6-11.9% in both sexes of 40 years or over, 4.2-13.1% in men and 2.6-12.9% in women. The higher prevalences were found in and around 1990 and the lower values in and around 1970. Regression analysis shows the upward trend of the prevalence of diabetes 2.2% in men (p < 0.01), 1.6% in women (p < 0.01) by 10 years.
To determine whether the baroreflex control of sympathetic nerve activity is attenuated in the elderly, muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) from the tibial nerve was monitored using microneurography, and heart rate and blood pressure were recorded during the depressor (phase II) or pressor (phase IV) period to Valsalva's maneuver in 10 younger subjects and 7 aged subjects. The baroreflex slope for heart rate showed attenuation in the aged subjects during the pressor phase but not during the depressor phase, the baroreflex slope for MSNA was also attenuated in the aged subjects during the pressor and tended to be attenuated during the depressor phases. These data suggest impaired baroreflex function for both heart rate and sympathetic nerve activity in the elderly.
Osteoclastogenesis inhibitory factor (OCIF) is a heparin-binding secretory glycoprotein that belongs to the tumor necrosis factor receptor (TNFR) family. OCIF is present both as a approximately 60-kDa monomer and a disulfide-linked homodimer. We attempted to characterize the seven structural domains of OCIF by determining the capabilities of various OCIF mutants to inhibit osteoclastogenesis, to interact with heparin, and to form dimers. We also examined a potential of domains 5 and 6, death domain homologous regions (DDHs), for inducing cell death by expressing OCIF/Fas fusion proteins. Our results show that: (i) the N-terminal portion of OCIF containing domains 1-4, which have structural similarity to the extracellular domains of the TNFR family proteins, is sufficient to inhibit osteoclastogenesis; (ii) a heparin-binding site is located in domain 7, and affinity for heparin does not correlate with the inhibitory activity; (iii) Cys-400 in domain 7 is the residue responsible for dimer formation; and (iv) the C-terminal portion containing domains 5 and 6, DDHs, has a high potential for mediating a cytotoxic signal when it is expressed in cells as an OCIF/Fas fusion protein in which the transmembrane region of Fas is inserted in front of DDHs.
This study was conducted to examine of [4-(N-hydroxyamino)-2R-isobutyl-3S-(phenylthiomethyl)-succinyl]-L- phenylalanine-N-methylamide (GI 129471), a matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor, for its effects on increase of serum pro-inflammatory cytokine levels as well as hepatic injury in D-galactosamine plus lipopolysaccharide-injected mice. In vitro experiments showed that GI 129471 was able to inhibit the elevation of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) in LPS-stimulated human and mouse whole blood with IC50 values of 370 nM and 260 nM, respectively. When administrated i.p. at 40 mg/kg, GI 129471 significantly reduced serum TNF-alpha level but not other pro-inflammatory cytokines in D-galactosamine plus lipopolysaccharide-injected mice. Treatment of mice with GI 129471 also reduced biochemical indices of hepatic injury to the normal level. Histopathological findings indicated that GI 129471 treatment can prevent severe centrilobular necrosis in liver. These results suggest that release of TNF-alpha from lipopolysaccharide-stimulated cells is the critical step leading to hepatic injury in endotoxemia and that a matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor with an inhibitory action on this step may be a promising drug for the clinical treatment of endotoxemia accompanied by hepatic injury.
Steam explosion pretreatment of potato for the efficient production of alcohol was experimentally studied. The amount of water-soluble starch increased with the increase of steam pressure, but the amounts of methanol-soluble material and Klason lignin remained insignificant, regardless of steam pressure. The potatoes exploded at high pressure were hydrolyzed into a low molecular liquid starch, and then easily converted into ethanol by simultaneous saccharification and fermentation using mixed microorganisms: an amylolytic microorganism, Aspergillus awamori, and a fermentation microorganism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The maximal ethanol concentration was 4.2 g/L in a batch culture at 15 g/L starch concentration, and 3.6 g/L in a continuous culture fed the same starch concentration. In the fed-batch culture, the maximal ethanol concentration increased more than twofold, compared to the batch culture.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether gas is present in the cavities of simple bone cysts. STUDY DESIGN: Computed tomographic images of 52 simple bone cyst cases were reviewed and compared with the findings at surgery. RESULTS: Whereas gas was confirmed at the time of surgery in 28 cases, no computed tomographic images indicated the presence of gas in the cavity. Bone expansion was noted in 13 of these 28 cases. CONCLUSIONS: From these findings, we concluded that the presence of gas in the simple bone cyst cavity at surgery has been erroneously interpreted.
Flow cytometric methods for the analysis of incorporated bromodeoxyuridine are extremely rapid and simple. We investigated whether these methods were useful for detecting drug-allergic hepatic injury in 18 patients with drug-allergic hepatic injury, 18 healthy controls, and 9 nonallergic patients receiving drugs. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were stimulated with drug solutions. Incorporation of bromodeoxyuridine was detected after labeling with FITC, and S-phase cells were counted by flow cytometry. Percentages of S-phase cells in drug-stimulated culture minus those in spontaneous cultures were less than 1% in both healthy controls and nonallergic patients receiving drugs. Taking 1% as the upper limit, 13 patients (72%) were judged as positive. After the in vitro addition of interleukin-2, two patients among five who had been judged as negative were judged as positive. Lymphocyte transformation test by flow cytometry may be useful in the diagnosis of drug-allergic hepatic injury.
Muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) was measured directly along with blood pressure at rest in 69 healthy women (20-79 yr old) and 76 age-matched healthy men (16-80 yr old). All were nonobese and normotensive. In the women and men the MSNA was positively correlated with age (women: y = 0.788x - 5.418, r = 0.846, P < 0. 0001; men: y = 0.452x + 12.565, r = 0.751, P < 0.0001). The regression intercept of y was significantly lower (P < 0.0001) in the women than in the men, and the regression slope was significantly steeper (P < 0.0001) in the women. The MSNA was lower in women than in men among those <30 (P = 0.0012), 30-39 (P = 0. 0126), and 40-49 yr old (P = 0.0462) but was similar in women and men among those 50-59 (P = 0.1911, NS) and >/=60 yr old (P = 0.1739, NS). The results suggest that MSNA increases with age in women and men and that the activity is markedly lower in young women than in men but is markedly accelerated with age.
A factor which inhibits osteoclast-like cell formation was found in the conditioned medium of human embryonic lung fibroblasts, IMR-90. The factor, termed osteoclastogenesis inhibitory factor, OCIF, was purified to homogeneity. OCIF is a heparin-binding basic glycoprotein and has been isolated as a monomer with an apparent molecular weight (Mr) of 60,000 and a homodimer with a Mr of 120,000. The N-terminus of OCIF is blocked and the determination of internal amino acid sequences revealed that OCIF has no homology to known proteins. OCIF inhibited in a dose-dependent manner osteoclastogenesis elicited through three distinct signaling pathways stimulated by 1 alpha,25-dihydroxy vitamin D3, parathyroid hormone, and interleukin-11, respectively, in a dose range of 1 to 40 ng/ml (IC50 = 4 to 6 ng/ml). OCIF neither inhibits bone resorption by mature osteoclasts nor exerts any other biological activities. These data strongly suggest that OCIF is a novel cytokine which specifically inhibits osteoclastogenesis.
The effects of changing from a full-day to a half-day shift work before a night duty shift on physiological and psychological functions during the night shift were investigated in 12 healthy unmarried nurses working on the same ward of a university hospital. Three shift patterns, i.e., a day shift following a day shift, a night shift following a day shift, and a night shift following a half-day shift, were studied in terms of physical activity level, sympathetic and parasympathetic activity levels, cortisol, prolactin, NK cell activity, and changes in mood states. The change to the half-day shift increased the duration of sleep before night duty by about 86 min and brought wake-up times forward by about 1 h, resulting in increases in rest and time before work. In addition, the change was revealed to reduce the influence of reversed-phase circadian rhythms on autonomic nervous activity during the night shift. The score for sleepiness was significantly lower at 0500 hours following a half-day shift. There were some marginal but not significant differences in the scores reflecting the degree of vigor, tiredness and irritation during the night shift. Although the prolactin concentration was significantly decreased at the start of the night shift after the half-day shift, there was no difference in cortisol concentration or NK cell activity between the usual night shift after a day shift and the night shift after the half-day shift. The half-day shift was not observed to cause any marked change in the fixed biorhythms of these nurses. The cortisol and NK cell activity levels were low during the night shift, suggesting that the night shift itself is a high stress level, which is prejudicial to biodefense.
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Recent studies have suggested that platelet activating factor (PAF) plays an important role in various reproductive functions, including ovulation, implantation and parturition, and that the local concentration of PAF is modulated by PAF-acetylhydrolase (PAF-AH), a potent PAF inactivator. In this study, we investigated the possible effects of various bioactive substances, which are present at high concentrations in the human pregnant uterus, on PAF-AH secretion from decidual macrophages using a monocyte-macrophage model system, human myelocytic leukaemia cells (HL-60). By treatment with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA), HL-60 cells were transformed to macrophage-like cells, which secreted PAF-AH into the culture medium time- and dose-dependently. After treatment with 10(-8) M TPA, the effects of various substances on the secretion of PAF-AH were examined. Among the substances examined, cortisol and TGF-beta suppressed PAF-AH secretion from TPA-stimulated HL-60 cells in a significant and dose-dependent way. Endothelin, epidermal growth factor, and brain natriuretic peptide had no significant effect on PAF-AH secretion from TPA-stimulated HL-60 cells. These results suggest that local PAF concentrations in the pregnant uterus might be regulated, at least partly, by cortisol and TGF-beta; thus these substances may play a role in the initiation of parturition via regulation of local PAF concentrations.
We recently encountered a case of term placenta with a diffuse cystic lesion of the villi. A 19-year-old primipara at 36 weeks of gestation underwent cesarean section due to breech presentation with premature rupture of the membranes; she delivered a mature male baby of 2,502 g with an Apgar score of 9/9. The placenta was 940 g in weight and 29 x 20 x 3 cm in size, and macroscopically had multiple cystic lesions (3-8 mm in diameter) that resembled hydatidiform moles. However, histopathological examination revealed that the severe hydropic change was localized in the stem villi but not remarkable in the terminal chorionic villi. Moreover, abnormal proliferation of the trophoblast was not observed. However, the hypertrophic change was observed in the vascular wall of stem villi, in which hyperplasia of smooth muscle-like cells was present. The urinary hCG levels at 1 month and 2 months after delivery were less than 50 IU/l. These findings indicate that the multiple cystic lesions of the placenta in this case are essentially different from those of a trophoblastic disease, and that the diffuse cystic lesion of the villi might have been secondary to changes in the local circulation.