Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

H Matsubara

Publications and source records attributed to H Matsubara.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources

Logistic character of myocardial twitch force curve: simulation.

We found that the isovolumic pressure-time curve of the canine left ventricle closely fitted the difference of two logistic function curves and that the isovolumic relaxation-pressure curve segment was more reliably characterized by a logistic time constant than by the conventional exponential time constant. We therefore hypothesized that the calcium (Ca) transient and the Ca-troponin (Tn) binding and crossbridge (CB) kinetics underlay the logistic character of the ventricular isovolumic pressure curve. We tested this hypothesis with a computer simulation of a simple Ca and CB kinetics model of myocardial isometric twitch force development. We assumed the instantaneous number of attached CBs that was theoretically given as the difference between the cumulative CB attachment and detachment curves. We radically changed the Ca transient, Ca-Tn binding, and CB kinetic parameters. We always found that both the cumulative CB attachment and detachment curves closely fitted logistic functions. The difference curve of these two best-fit logistic functions closely fitted the theoretical F curve with certain combinations of the Ca transient, the Ca-Tn binding, and the CB kinetic parameters. These results seem to support our hypothesis.

Animals↗

Three-dimensional structure of bovine cytochrome bc1 complex by electron cryomicroscopy and helical image reconstruction.

Cytochrome bc1 complex from bovine heart has been reconstituted into tubular crystals. The three-dimensional structure of the complex in lipid bilayer has been obtained at an effective resolution of 16 angstrom by electron cryomicroscopy and helical image reconstruction. The complex is in a dimeric form, in which the monomers are associated closely in extramembrane domains on both sides of the membrane. The large inner domain is distinctively hollow and the small outer domain consists of a flat mass and two bulbous extrusions. These domains are connected by two narrow transmembrane columns. Locations of the subunits and the redox centres in the model are proposed.

Animals↗

Augmentation of endotoxin-induced pulmonary responses by mononuclear cell phagocytosis in the reticuloendothelial system.

OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that the effects of intravenous injection of latex particles would demonstrate the contribution of phagocytosis by mononuclear phagocytes to the development of Escherichia coli-induced acute lung injury in neutropenic guinea pigs. DESIGN: Prospective, controlled, experimental study. Intravenously injected the latex particles into 41 guinea pigs to investigate the contribution of the phagocytosis in acute lung injury. SUBJECTS: Forty-one guinea pigs. INTERVENTIONS: Forty-one guinea pigs were divided into five experimental groups: a saline group (n=9); an endotoxin group (n=10) receiving 2 mg/kg of intravenous E. coli endotoxin; a latex group (n=7) receiving 2 x 10(9)/kg of intravenous polystyrene latex (mean diameter 3.19 micrometers); an endotoxin + latex group (n=8); and an E. coli group (n=7) receiving 2 x 10(9) live E. coli/kg. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The lung wet/dry ratio was increased in the live E. coli-treated guinea pigs (6.71 +/- 0.16 [SEM], p < .01) as compared with the saline control (5.40 +/- 0.16, whereas the ratio was not increased in the endotoxin (5.52 +/- 0.14) or latex (5.58 +/- 0.20) groups. However, the lung wet/dry ratio was greater in the endotoxin + latex group (6.11 +/- 0.16, p < .05) than in the saline control. The 125I albumin lung tissue/plasma ratio was greater in the E. coli (2.00 +/- 0.29, p < .01) and endotoxin + latex (0.84 +/- 0.12, p < .05) groups than in the saline group (0.18 +/- 0.07), whereas no increases were observed in the endotoxin group (0.22 +/- 0.10) and the latex (0.34 +/- 0.13) group. More than 40% of the injected radiolabeled latex was observed to have accumulated in the reticuloendothelial system (liver and spleen), in both the saline control (40.1 +/- 2.3%, n=4) and endotoxin (57.3 +/- 6.8%, n=5) groups, with 2.6 +/- 1.5% and 3.1 +/- 1.7% in the lungs for the saline control and the endotoxin groups, respectively. The percent deposition of radiolabeled latex in the liver was greater in the endotoxin group (51.7 +/- 3.8%, p < .05) than in the saline group (37.6 +/- 5.9%). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that, in neutropenic guinea pigs: a) the combination of endotoxin and latex particles induces acute lung injury; and b) the phagocytic properties of mononuclear phagocytes in the reticuloendothelial system augment endotoxin-induced pulmonary responses and may play a role in the development of live E. coli-induced acute lung injury.

Animals↗

Constancy and variability of contractile efficiency as a function of calcium and cross-bridge kinetics: simulation.

We simulated myocardial Ca2+ (Ca) and cross-bridge (CB) kinetics to get insight into the experimentally observed constancy and variability of cardiac contractile efficiency in generating total mechanical energy under various inotropic and pathological conditions. The simulation consisted of a Ca transient, Ca association and dissociation rate constants of troponin C, and CB on and off rate constants. We evaluated sarcomere isometric twitch contractions at a constant muscle length. We assumed that each CB cycle hydrolyzes one ATP and that the force-length area (FLA) quantifies the total mechanical energy generated by CB cycles in a twitch contraction. FLA is a linear version of pressure-volume area, which quantifies the total mechanical energy of cardiac twitch contraction and correlates linearly with cardiac oxygen consumption (H. Suga, Physiol. Rev. 70: 247-277, 1990). The simulation shows that the contractile efficiency varies with changes in the Ca transient and Ca and CB kinetics except when they simultaneously speed up or slow down proportionally. These results point to possible mechanisms underlying the constancy and variability of cardiac contractile efficiency.

Animals↗

Regulation of angiotensin II type 2 receptor gene by the protein kinase C-calcium pathway.

In the present study, rat angiotensin II type 2 (AT2) receptor expression was upregulated in confluence-arrested PC12 cells compared with expression in proliferating cells. Treatment with cycloheximide inhibited the increase in mRNA levels in confluent cells. The state of growth arrest by serum deprivation was associated with increased expression of the AT2 receptor, which was markedly suppressed by exposure to the active phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate and the calcium ionophore A23187. Similar inhibitions were also observed in myocytes isolated from neonatal rat heart. The change in AT2 mRNA levels by serum deprivation was due to the increase in the gene transcription rate. The effect of 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate was mediated through decreases in gene transcription and mRNA stability, whereas A23187 affected mRNA stability. Vasoactive substances with the protein kinase C-calcium pathway, such as norepinephrine and angiotensin II, also downregulated the AT2 mRNA level in myocytes. These findings indicate that the expression of AT2 receptor in PC12 cells is regulated in a growth state-dependent manner, which is involved in confluence-induced new protein synthesis, thus providing a means by which cells can modulate their responsiveness to external angiotensin II stimulus. The activation of protein kinase C or calcium mobilization modifies this regulatory mechanism, suggesting that neurotransmitters or vasoactive substances with the protein kinase C-calcium pathway at least in part affect neuronal activity or blood pressure control by downregulating AT2 receptor expression.

Animals↗

Translational regulation of angiotensin II type 1A receptor. Role of upstream AUG triplets.

The cDNA sequence of rat angiotensin II type 1A receptor (AT1AR) shows that AT1AR transcripts have AUG triplets in the 5'-leader region that may begin a short open reading frame encoding an 11-amino acid peptide. In this study, the mutational inactivation of the start codon of the short open reading frame in AT1AR-chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) reporter gene constructs resulted in a 2.6-fold increase in CAT activity, whereas CAT transcript levels were not affected. Furthermore, experiments with rat AT1AR cDNA-transfected Cos-7 cells revealed that mutagenesis of the upstream AUG increased the AT1AR protein up to 2.5-fold, although AT1AR transcript levels showed no changes. The synthetic peptide corresponding to the sequence of the short open reading frame significantly suppressed the amount of AT1AR product in the in vitro translation system. The inhibiting effect of the short open reading frame appears to operate at least in part at the level of translation initiation, because polysome analysis with transfected Cos-7 cells showed that mutagenesis of the upstream AUG resulted in a shift of AT1AR mRNA distribution from a smaller to larger fraction of polysomes. Taken together, these results show that the upstream AUG inhibits translational regulation, suggesting that the short open reading frame in the 5'-leader region of AT1AR transcripts has a certain role in the translation of AT1AR protein.

Animals↗

Mechanical stretch induces enhanced expression of angiotensin II receptor subtypes in neonatal rat cardiac myocytes.

Mechanical stress plays a pivotal role in the development of cardiac hypertrophy during hemodynamic overload, and angiotensin (Ang) II secreted from stretched myocytes plays an important role in mechanical stretch-induced hypertrophy. In the present study, we examined stretch-induced expression of Ang II receptors in an in vitro stretch model using 1-day-old rat myocytes. Both Ang II type 1 receptor (AT1-R) and type 2 receptor (AT2-R) mRNA levels were upregulated by myocyte stretching with similar time courses: significant increases were evident 6 hours after stretching, maximal levels (2.8- and 3.3-fold, respectively) were observed at 12 hours, and these were sustained for up to 18 hours. Ang II receptor expression in fibroblast-rich cultures was not affected by stretching. Conditioned medium in which myocytes were stretched for 12 hours significantly downregulated AT1-R and AT2-R mRNA levels in recipient myocytes, and this effect was almost completely blocked by AT1-R antagonists but not AT2-R antagonists. Stretch-induced expression of AT1-R and AT2-R mRNAs was further increased by 27% and 31%, respectively, after pretreatment with AT1-R antagonists, suggesting that Ang II secreted from stretched myocytes downregulates both AT1-R and AT2-R. Western blot and binding assays showed that the number of AT1-Rs and AT2-Rs increased by 2.4- and 2.6-fold, respectively, without affecting receptor affinities. Inositol phosphate response to 0.5 mumol/L Ang II was enhanced 2.1-fold in stretched myocytes. Nuclear runoff assays and treatment with actinomycin D revealed that stretch-induced upregulation of AT1-R was mainly due to increased transcription, whereas that of AT2-R resulted from a stabilizing effect on AT2-R mRNA metabolism. Stretch-induced changes in levels of Ang II receptors were inhibited by genistein but not by H-7, staurosporin, and protein kinase C depletion or by BAPTA-AM. Exposure to cycloheximide did not affect stretch-induced changes. These findings indicate that nonsecretory pathways activated by myocyte stretching upregulate the expression of Ang II receptor subtypes transcriptionally and posttranscriptionally through mechanisms involving stretch-activated tyrosine kinases independently of de novo protein synthesis and that the AT1-R-mediated action of Ang II is functionally enhanced in stretched cardiac myocytes.

Angiotensin II↗

Heat-killed Corynebacterium parvum enhances endotoxin lung injury with increased TNF production in guinea pigs.

Corynebacterium parvum (CP) is known to increase susceptibility to endotoxin, which is associated with increased production of tumor necrosis factor (TNF). We investigated the effect of CP-priming on the pathogenesis of acute lung injury caused by intratracheal Escherichia coli endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide [LPS]). Guinea pigs were divided into four groups: (1) control (n=6), (2) CP-alone (n=6), (3) LPS-alone (n=6) and (4) CP + LPS (n=6). A CP dose of 4 mg/kg was injected intraperitoneally 7 d before the study. Animals were observed for 4 h after intratracheal administration of 0.02 mg/kg of LPS. The lung wet-to-dry weight ratio (W/D), [125I] albumin concentration ratio of lung tissue to plasma (T/P) and of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid to plasma (B/P) and differential cell count in BAL fluid were examined. In the LPS-alone group, neither excess lung water nor increased albumin leakage was observed. The CP + LPS group showed increased lung water and albumin leakage as compared with the other three groups (p<0.05). We also observed increased cell counts in BAL fluid (p<0.05), in the CP + LPS group. The spleen weight was increased in guinea pigs pretreated with CP, indicating reticuloendothelial system (RES) activation. In the CP + LPS group, the TNF level was increased in both plasma and BAL fluid. We conclude that pretreatment with CP enhances LPS-induced acute lung injury in parallel with increasing TNF production, which suggests that the activation of mononuclear phagocytes contributes to increased susceptibility to intratracheal endotoxin in guinea pigs.

Administration, Topical↗

Local Pseudomonas instillation induces contralateral lung injury and plasma cytokines.

We investigated whether local bacterial instillation leads to lung injury in noninstilled lung regions and examined local and systemic cytokine accumulation. Rats were challenged by intrabroncheal instillation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, 10(7) colony-forming units (CFU) (HD group, n = 11), 4 x 10(6) CFU (LD group, n = 10), or saline (control group, n = 12). 99mTc-labeled macroaggregated albumin was added to the P. aeruginosa or saline solution for later documentation of the instilled area. At 4 h the right lung, including instilled segment, and the left lung were sampled. Lung injury was assessed by lung tissue to plasma 125I-labeled albumin (T/P) and lung wet-dry (W/D) ratios. We measured plasma and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant (CINC). HD bacterial instillation induced neutrophil recruitment and TNF and CINC elevation in BALF (p < 0.05) associated with increased T/P (p < 0.005) and W/D (p < 0.05) ratios in both instilled and the noninstilled lungs as compared with the saline-instilled and noninstilled controls. LD bacterial instillation induced neutrophil recruitment and TNF and CINC elevation only in the instilled lung (p < 0.05), and not in the noninstilled lung, and did not increase the T/P or W/D ratio. Plasma levels of TNF and CINC were increased in the HD, but not the LD, group when compared with the saline controls (p < 0.05). These data indicate that, when the dose is high enough to cause an excess inflammatory response, local bacterial instillation leads to neutrophil sequestration, lung injury, and cytokine elevation in the noninstilled lung associated with systemic cytokine release.

Albumins↗

A derivative of cationic antimicrobial protein attenuates lung injury by suppressing cell adhesion.

Cationic antimicrobial protein of 18 kD (CAP18) was identified and purified from rabbit granulocytes and shown to inhibit various activities of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We investigated the effect of a 32-amino-acid C-terminal fragment of CAP18 (CAP18-derived peptide, CDP) on the pathogenesis of acute lung injury caused by intravenous endotoxin. Guinea pigs were divided into six groups: (I) saline control (n = 8), (2) CDP-alone (n = 8), (3) LPS-alone (n = 8), (4) LPS+CDP0m (n = 8), (5) LPS+CDP10m (n = 8), and (6) LPS+CDP60m (n = 8). A CDP dose of 0.2 mg/kg was injected at various time points after LPS injection. Lung wet-to-dry weight ratio, [125I]albumin leakage in lung tissue and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid, differential cell count in BAL fluid, and histopathologic features were examined 4 h after intravenous administration of 0.02 mg/kg of LPS. The LPS+CDP0m and the LPS+CDP10m groups showed significantly attenuated lung injury compared to that seen in the LPS-alone group, however the LPS+CDP60m group revealed no attenuation of lung injury. The accumulation of peripheral white blood cells into pulmonary vasculature was attenuated only in the LPS+CDP0m but not in the LPS+CDP10m groups. We examined the effect of CDP on the expression of adhesion molecules using human umbilical vein endothelial cells, the result of which showed that CDP suppressed the LPS-induced expression of adhesion molecules in a dose-dependent manner. We conclude that CDP attenuates inflammatory cell migration into alveoli resulting in the attenuation of lung injury.

Albumins↗

Down-regulation by cAMP of angiotensin II type 2 receptor gene expression in PC12 cells.

The rat angiotensin II type 2 receptor (AT2-R) gene was isolated, and cis-regulatory regions in its 5'-flanking area were analyzed. Primer extension and RNase protection analyses revealed a single transcriptional initiation site at the position 24 bp downstream of the TATA box. The 5'-flanking region of AT2-R contained several cis-regulatory elements, such as AP-1, AP-2, C/EBP, NF-1, NF-IL6, NF-kappa B, and glucocorticoid- and cAMP-responsive elements (CRE). The treatment of PC12 cells with dibutyryl cAMP caused a marked decrease (90%) in the AT2-R mRNA level, which was blocked by the inhibitor of protein kinase A and did not require new protein synthesis. The protein level was also reduced 84% after a 24-h exposure to cAMP and the binding affinity was unchanged. The half-life of the AT2-R mRNA decreased -66% by cAMP as compared with control (18.4 +/- 0.4 h). Deletion and mutation analyses of the 5'-flanking region (1.2 Kb) revealed that there were one negative (-1,199 to -739) and two positive cis-regulatory regions (-739 to -436 and -59 to +45), and that the CRE motif located at -426 repressed (-23%) the promoter activity of the rat AT2-R gene. The region between -59 and +45 containing TATA box and AP-2 site accounted for 70% of the promoter activity. These findings indicate that the promoter activity of the rat AT2-R gene is modulated by several cis-regulatory regions and that cAMP markedly downregulates the expression of the AT2-R mainly by inducing AT2-R mRNA destabilization rather than CRE-mediated inhibition of the gene transcription. Thus, humoral factors that transduce cAMP as an intracellular signal may modulate AT2-R-mediated function of Ang II by reducing AT2-R expression.

Animals↗

[High concentrations of interleukin-8 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from a patient with adult respiratory distress syndrome].

A 75-year-old man was admitted to the hospital due to acute onset of a dry cough and dyspnea on exertion. Arterial blood gas analysis showed hypoxemia (PaO2 = 63 Torr) on room air. Chest radiography and computed tomography showed diffuse bilateral infiltrates. Adult respiratory distress syndrome was diagnosed from the findings described above and from the lack of evidence of left heart failure. Diffuse alveolar damage was confirmed at autopsy. During the course of his illness, the patient underwent bronchoalveolar lavage five times. The recovered fluid had high concentrations of interleukin-8 (IL-8), with a maximum of 6260 pg/ml and a minimum of 190 pg/ml, and these values correlated with the number of polymorphonuclear cells in the fluid. Levels of leukotriene B4, another chemotactic factor for PMN, in the lavage fluid were not high. We conclude that IL-8 was a major chemoattractant for PMN in the alveoli of this patient.

Aged↗

[Indications of rethoracotomy after esophagectomy for esophageal cancer].

Indications of rethoracotomy after esophagectomy for esophageal cancer are reviewed in this paper. Hemothorax, pneumothorax, pyothorax and chylothorax are the main causes of rethoracotomy. Complications indicating rethoracotomy are summarized as follows: 1) Hemothorax; emergency rethoracotomy is indicated in cases of bleeding through the chest drain over 100ml/hr, which is continuing over 5 hours or in cases when normal blood pressure cannot be maintained without blood transfusion. In many cases the bleeding point is the chest wall, from the branches of the intercostal artery. 2) Pneumothorax; reoperation for pneumothorax is rare. But rethoracotomy and bullectomy or closure of fustula is indicated when a large volume of air leakage and lung collapse continues over a week. 3) Pyothorax; old pyothorax with bronchial fistula is treated by closure of fistula and plombage with omentum or muscle flap. 4) Chylothorax; chylothorax is not a frequent complication of esophageal surgery but when it occurs reoperation is not rare. In cases with 1,500ml/day or more of chyle drainage for over 5 days under fasting with intravenous hyperalimentation, rethoracotomy and ligation of thoracic duct is indicated.

Chylothorax↗

[Assessment of proliferative cell nuclear antigen expression and clinical prognosis in gastric malignant lymphoma].

Clinicopathological study was performed in 15 resected cases of gastric malignant lymphoma. The clinicopathological features were as follows. 1) In 6 of 15 cases, the tumor was located in the upper part of the stomach. 2) Lymph node metastasis was observed in 5 of 12 cases. 3) In 3 of 15 cases, multiple tumorous lesions were noted. We also studied the relationship between PCNA expression and clinical prognosis in 10 cases, specimens of which were well preserved, out of 15 cases. About 500 nuclei immunohistochemically stained by PCNA monoclonal antibody were counted, and results were expressed by positive cell ratio (PCNA labelling index LI%). In conclusion, 1) the positive cases of lymph node metastasis showed a tendency for PCNA LI to increase compared with the negative cases. 2) The recurrent cases showed a tendency for increased PCNA LI compared with the cases without recurrence. 3) Cases with more than 60% of PCNA LI tended to have a poor prognosis compared with those of less than 60%.

Adult↗

[Roles of inflammatory cells in the pathogenesis of acute lung injury in guinea pigs exposed to heat-killed bacteria].

To study the contribution of polymorphonuclear (PMN) and mononuclear (MN) phagocytes to the development of acute lung injury, we studied lung injury after intratracheal instillation of lipopolysaccharide (0.02 mg/kg) in guinea pigs previously exposed to heat-killed Corynebacterium parvum. In on group, cyclophosphamide was given to deplete peripheral PMNs. In another group, gadolinium chloride (GdCl3) was injected to suppress the function of MNs. Four hours after instillation of lippoly soccharide, the animals were killed, bronchoalveolar lavage was done, and the lungs were examined histopathologically. 125I-labeled albumin was injected to estimate the endothelial damage, and 131I-labeled albumin was injected to correct for blood contamination in the samples. In the group given cyclophosphamide, lung injury was no less than in the control group. In contrast, lung injury was less sever in the group given GdCl3 than in the control group. These findings suggest that MN are important in the pathogenesis of lung injury, especially in individuals who are immunologically primed by infection.

Acute Disease↗

Bindings of metallothionein to supranucleosomal fibers in mouse pancreatic nuclei after induction by 4-aminopyrazolo [3,4-D] pyrimidine.

To examine intranuclear localization of metallothionein (MT) induced by administration of 4-aminopyrazolo [3,4-d] pyrimidine (4-APP), the present study of MT was performed by immuno-electron microscopy. One day after oral administration of 4-APP, the mouse pancreas removed and frozen with dry ice was cut at about 1 mm thickness. Pancreatic slices were reacted with anti-MT antibody, fixed with formaldehyde and glutaraldehyde, and embedded in hydrophilic Lowicryl K4M resin. Ultrathin sections were reacted with the secondary antibody labelled with colloidal gold, and stained both with uranyl acetate and with lead citrate. It was found that the MT site was shown simultaneously in the chromatin and in the rough endoplasmic reticulum of mouse pancreatic exocrine cells one day after administration of 4-APP. The structure of MT-binding chromatin was composed of supranucleosomal fibers, but not of nucleosomal fibers.

Adenine↗