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Biomedical subjects

H Fujii

Publications and source records attributed to H Fujii.

At least 739 records · Page 41Linked to original sources

[Relationship between an involvement of Oddi's sphincter in a choledochopancreatic junction and clinical appearances in 120 patients with anomalous arrangement of the pancreatico-biliary ductal system].

We studied relationship between an involvement of Oddi's sphincter in a choledochopancreatic junction and clinical appearances in 120 patients with anomalous arrangement of the pancreaticobiliary ductal system. The 120 composed of 83 with a sphincteric mechanism at the junction of the common bile and pancreatic duct and 37 without the sphincteric mechanism. We found that influences of sphincteric mechanism at the junction closely related to the length of the common duct between an orifice of the papilla of Vater and a junction of the common bile and pancreatic duct. And in all 83 with a sphincteric mechanism at the junction the length of the common duct showed less than 1.5 cm, and in all 37 without a sphincteric mechanism at the junction the common duct showed more than 1.5 cm in length. There was no correlation between a distribution of the sphincter muscle and clinical appearances, association with congenital choledochal cyst, cholelithiasis and bile duct cancer in the 120 patients.

Adult↗

[A successful surgical repair of bilateral atrioventricular valve regurgitation in corrected transposition of the great arteries].

The patient was a 52-year-old female with bilateral atrioventricular valve regurgitation, who had SLL-type corrected transposition of the great arteries (C-TGA) accompanied by atrial fibrillation and ventricular extrasystoles (Lown 4b). In performing C-TGA in a patient at such an age, the ability of the anatomical right ventricle to maintain the systemic circulation is reduced, and so it is most important to maintain ventricular function at operation. In this case, we preserved the tricuspid valve and transplanted a biological valve at the tricuspid annulus, while the mitral valve was repaired with Kay's method of annuloplasty. Her postoperative progress was favorable and the echocardiography confirmed that the preserved tricuspid valve did not disturb the motion of the leaflets of the biological prosthesis.

Female↗

Comparative histopathological findings in the pancreas of cigarette smokers and non-smokers.

Although a correlation has been suggested between cigarette smoking and pancreatic cancer, studies on pathological changes in the pancreas of smokers are fragmentary. In the present study we examined histopathologically 73 pancreases obtained by autopsy from 42 heavy cigarette smokers and 31 non-smoker patients. One invasive adenocarcinoma (2 cm in diameter) and three small carcinomas (2-5 mm in diameter) were found in smokers and one small carcinoma in a non-smoker patient. Although the incidence of pancreatic cancer in smokers was higher than in non-smokers, the difference was statistically not significant. Of smokers with pancreatic cancer, 2 had lung cancer, 1 skin cancer, 1 colon cancer and 1 was free of any malignancies. Ductal changes, including mucinous or squamous cell metaplasia and papillary hyperplasia, were found with equal frequencies in both groups of patients. The type and the incidence of these ductal alterations were not related to smoking but to the age. Our results do not indicate that cigarette smoking increases the incidence of pancreatic cancer, although, the limited number of the sections of the pancreas examined, as well as exclusion of other important variables, such as alcohol, diet and diabetes weaken the value of this study.

Adult↗

Two cytosolic components of the neutrophil NADPH oxidase, P47-phox and P67-phox, are not flavoproteins.

Two cytosolic proteins, p47-phox and p67-phox, have been shown to be essential components of the NADPH-dependent oxidase of human neutrophils, although the specific role of each of these proteins in the multicomponent electron transport complex is undetermined. The superoxide-generating activity of this oxidase can be reproduced in a cell-free system, combining cytosol and membranes from unstimulated neutrophils in the presence of fatty acid and NADPH. In the present studies, cytosol was treated with myristic acid, arachidonic acid, or sodium dodecyl sulfate in the absence of membranes and the resultant precipitate collected by centrifugation and analyzed. Both p47-phox and p67-phox precipitated in the presence of fatty acid. However, neither FAD nor FMN was localized in the precipitates, even though substantial amounts of p47-phox and p67-phox precipitated. These results suggest that neither p47-phox nor p67-phox is a flavoprotein and that neither, therefore, is the oxidase component which accepts electrons from NADPH.

Arachidonic Acid↗

Postural myoclonus associated with long-term administration of neuroleptics in schizophrenic patients.

Postural myoclonus associated with long-term administration of neuroleptics was demonstrated in schizophrenic patients. Sixty patients who had been taking neuroleptics for more than 3 months were investigated for myoclonus and the relationships between postural myoclonus and age, duration of illness, duration of medication, current daily dose, cumulative dose, occurrence of abnormal finger movement, parkinsonism, and tardive dyskinesia were evaluated. Twenty-three patients (38%) showed postural myoclonus when holding the hands forward with the elbow joints flexed at about 90%. Male patients showed a higher incidence of myoclonus than female patients. Patients with myoclonus had been given significantly higher doses of neuroleptics than those without myoclonus. There was a significant correlation between the occurrence of myoclonus and abnormal finger movement. Electromyographic recordings in 7 patients with prominent myoclonus revealed that arrhythmic jerks occurred in the extensor carpi radialis and posterior deltoid muscles and that the jerks on the left and right side were not synchronized. Clonazepam reduced the frequency of the myoclonic activity.

Adult↗

Actions of human interleukin-4/B-cell stimulatory factor-1 on proliferation and differentiation of enriched hematopoietic progenitor cells in culture.

We studied the effects of recombinant human interleukin-4 (IL-4) on colony formation by enriched hematopoietic progenitors. IL-4 alone did not support colony formation at all. When IL-4 was combined with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), the number of pure neutrophil colonies increased three times over that supported by G-CSF alone. IL-4 added 5 days after the addition of G-CSF failed to exert this synergistic effect, indicating that IL-4 acts on the early stage of proliferation. The mapping experiments (sequential observation of colony formation) have clearly shown that IL-4 did not initiate progenitor cell proliferation. Based on these data, IL-4 may possess a direct action on progenitor cells; however, it can only act as a costimulant with G-CSF. In contrast, IL-4 had possible inhibitory effects on macrophage colony formation supported by interleukin-3 (IL-3) and macrophage colony-stimulating factor (M-CSF). In other words, IL-4 may induce progenitor cells to become sensitive to G-CSF and thereby induce neutrophil differentiation. Delayed addition experiments demonstrated that human IL-4, unlike murine IL-4, could support neither proliferation nor survival of erythroid burst or mixed colony forming cells. Neutrophil colony forming cells only survived and recovered after addition of G-CSF and erythropoietin on day 5 of incubation. On the other hand, IL-3 supported neutrophil, erythroid burst, and mixed colony forming cells as reported previously (Sonoda et al, Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 85:4360, 1988). These results led us to propose that IL-4 possibly acts with more mature progenitor cells than those of IL-3 or granulocyte-macrophage (GM)-CSF.

Bone Marrow↗

Measurement of 5'-methylthioadenosine in patients with neoplasms.

The amount of polyamines in urine from patients with various neoplasms is larger than in normal subjects. We have determined the concentration of 5'-methylthioadenosine (MTA), a by-product of the polyamine biosynthesis, in patients with malignancies as well as normal subjects. Our studies indicate that the amount of MTA in urine from patients with leukemias and malignant lymphomas was higher than in normal subjects (p less than 0.005). Urine samples from patients with other malignancies contained normal amounts of MTA. The levels of blood MTA in patients with leukemias before treatment or in relapse was higher than in control subjects (p less than 0.005), while in patients with other malignancies and leukemia in remission, the levels were not different from control subjects. Peripheral blood MTA levels clearly decreased after effective chemotherapy. The measurement of MTA levels in urine and blood may not be as useful as polyamine assays for the detection of malignancies, but blood levels of MTA may be useful as an indicator of the efficacy of chemotherapy in leukemic patients.

Adenosine↗

Chromosomal abnormalities define clonal proliferation in CD3- large granular lymphocyte leukemia.

Six patients with lymphoproliferative disorder of large granular lymphocytes (LDGL) were studied for chromosomal abnormalities. When the patients were divided into two groups depending on the expression of a mature antigen of T cell lineage, CD3, two with CD3+ phenotype had a stable disease, whereas three of the four patients with CD3- phenotype had marked hepatosplenomegaly and a highly aggressive disease. Chromosomal abnormalities were detected in four of six patients, indicating a clonal proliferation of large granular lymphocytes in individual patients. In particular, chromosomal abnormalities were found in three of the four patients with CD3- LDGL, all of which had a germ-line configuration of the T cell receptor beta-chain gene. Thus, the chromosomal abnormalities provide definitive evidence for the clonal origin of the expanded cells in the CD3- LDGL.

Adult↗

Patient with pyruvate kinase deficiency developed acute myelogenous leukemia.

A 44-year-old previously healthy male was diagnosed as anemic and treated at a nearby hospital. A year later, he was admitted to our hospital for precise examination of the progression of refractory anemia. Blood examination showed hemolytic anemia and more detailed examination of this hemolysis revealed pyruvate kinase deficiency. The activity was 15.1% of a normal control. Pyruvate kinase activities of his family members were normal or slightly decreased. Ten months after admission to our hospital, 2% of blast cells with Auer's body in the peripheral blood were noted which increased progressively. The bone marrow contained 17.3% of blast cells with a subsequent diagnosis of acute myelogenous leukemia being made. Although intensive chemotherapy was performed, the patient achieved a brief remission and died 2 years after admission to our hospital.

Adult↗

Recent progress in the molecular genetic analysis of erythroenzymopathy.

During the relatively recent period in which normal genes for most red cell enzymes have been isolated, the techniques of molecular biology have been applied to the studies of erythroenzymopathy. Single nucleotide substitutions have been identified in aldolase, triosephosphate isomerase, glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase, and adenylate kinase variants by the cloning and nucleotide sequence of the patients' genes. Up to now, all of the enzyme-deficient variants which have been investigated have been caused by point mutations. An exception is a hemolytic anemia secondary to increased adenosine deaminase (ADA) activity. Red cell ADA activity increases on the order of a hundred-fold in affected individuals. The basic abnormality appears to result from overproduction of structurally normal enzyme due to abnormal transcriptional or translational efficiency.

Adenosine Deaminase↗

Ph chromosome in a patient with non-leukemic non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphoma.

A standard Philadelphia translocation, t(9;22) (q34;q11), was found in lymph node cells from a patient with non-leukemic non-Hodgkin lymphoma at the time of diagnosis. The rearrangement of the breakpoint cluster region (bcr) was not detected with a bcr-3' probe. The neoplastic clone was of monoclonal B-cell character with E-, CD5-, CD10-, CD13-, CD19+, CD20+, CD21+, CD25-, HLA DR+, and positive surface Ig(kappa). The patient showed no evidence of chronic myelogenous leukemia.

Aged↗

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas induced in Syrian hamsters by N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl)amine contain a c-Ki-ras oncogene with a point-mutated codon 12.

We have used the polymerase chain reaction and dideoxynucleotide sequencing to amplify and sequence exons 1 and 2 of the c-Ki-ras proto-oncogene from the normal Syrian golden hamster. Similar methods were employed to screen for the presence of point mutations in the c-Ki-ras oncogene in primary hamster pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDC) induced by N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl)amine (BOP). A GGT to GAT point mutation was detected in codon 12 of the c-Ki-ras gene in 10 primary hamster PDCs. This same point mutation was present in two nonclonal cell lines, PC-1 and PC-1-0, established from tumors that were produced in hamsters by subcutaneously implanting a preparation of minced BOP-induced PDC. Two clonal cell lines, Cl-3 and Cl-7, were cloned from the PC-1 cell line, and these cell lines also carried the GAT point mutation at codon 12. This point mutation was the same as that detected in greater than 75% of adenocarcinomas from the human exocrine pancreas. Thus, our findings provide further validation for the use of the BOP-induced hamster PDC model as a relevant experimental model for human pancreas cancer: not only did the hamster pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas closely resemble their human counterpart in histopathological morphology and sequential development, but they also contained the same point mutation in codon 12 of the c-Ki-ras oncogene, as has been reported for human pancreatic adenocarcinomas.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

The proportions of fiber types in human external urethral sphincter: electrophoretic analysis of myosin.

The proportions of fast and slow myosin molecules in external urethral sphincter specimens from ten urodynamically normal male bladder carcinoma patients were estimated from the contents of fast and slow myosin light chains in two-dimensional electrophoretic gels. The percentages of fast and slow myosin molecules ranged from 5.0% to 61.4% with a mean of 35.5% and from 38.6% to 95.0% with a mean of 65.5% respectively. It is therefore concluded that the human external urethral sphincter is composed of both fast and slow muscle fibers as well as other voluntary muscles. The human external urethral sphincter is considered to be a highly fatigue-resistant muscle with a very high proportion of slow muscle fibers. In the cases studied so far, there is a great diversity in the proportions of fast and slow myosin molecules; the reason for this remains unknown.

Electrophoresis, Gel, Two-Dimensional↗

Pyruvate kinase deficiency.

Pyruvate kinase (PK) deficiency was initially described by Valentine et al. in 1961. Since then, more than 300 cases have been described, including 65 in Japan. PK deficiency is the most common hereditary nonspherocytic hemolytic anemia among several red cell enzyme defects of the Embden-Meyerhof glycolytic pathway. The clinical manifestations are highly variable. Splenectomy usually increases the hemoglobin level by about 2 g/100 mL. Standardization of methods for characterization of PK variants was achieved in 1979. There are four PK isozymes, M1, M2, L and R, in mammalian tissues. We have clarified the switch from M2-type to L-type PK during maturation of erythroid precursor cells. Recently we cloned and sequenced a full length human L-type PK cDNA. It will be useful to clarify the molecular basis of PK deficiency.

Anemia, Hemolytic, Congenital↗

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) in human plasma and urine using monoclonal antibody.

A reliable and sensitive ELISA for cAMP in human plasma and urine is described, using a monoclonal antibody and a 96 well microtiter plate. Succinyl cAMP is conjugated to human serum albumin and adsorbed to the ELISA plate, giving an immobilized antigen approach which simplifies subsequent assay procedures. As low as 1.56 fmol/well of both plasma and urinary cAMP is measurable. Recoveries of added cAMP in plasma and urine were from 99% to 109%. Intra-assay coefficients of variation were less than 6.1% for plasma and 7.0% for urine samples. Inter-assay coefficients of variation for plasma and urine samples were less than 8.9% and 9.5%, respectively. There was a good correlation between the values obtained by ELISA and radioimmunoassay (RIA) (plasma: r = 0.94, n = 66; urine: r = 0.98, n = 64; nephrogenous cAMP: r = 0.96, n = 51).

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗