Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

H Tamai

Publications and source records attributed to H Tamai.

At least 271 records · Page 15Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Changes in serum angiotensin-converting enzyme in acutely starved non-obese patients. A possible dissociation between angiotensin-converting enzyme and the thyroid state.

We investigated changes in the serum angiotensin-converting enzyme, as an index of thyroid hormone action, before, during and after fasting in 15 non-obese, hospitalized patients. Serum angiotensin-converting enzyme decreased significantly from 14.6 +/- 1.1 U/l before fasting to 13.2 +/- 1.1 U/l on the 5th day (P less than 0.05, N = 15) during fasting, and to 10.6 +/- 1.0 U/l on the 10th day (P less than 0.05, N = 8). The serum TSH and T3 levels decreased significantly to below the normal range, and the serum T4 level decreased gradually during fasting, whereas free T4 (Amerlex) changed slightly, but within normal range. Although re-feeding did not lead to any reduction in the serum TSH, T3, or T4 level, the serum angiotensin-converting enzyme further decreased to 8.7 +/- 0.9 U/l on the 5th day of re-feeding compared with that on the 10th day of fasting (P less than 0.01, N = 8). There was a delay in the re-elevation of serum angiotensin-converting enzyme following a rise in serum T3. No correlations were found between serum angiotensin-converting enzyme levels and thyroid hormone levels throughout the study period. It is concluded that a significant reduction in the serum angiotensin-converting enzyme level occurs under a 'low T3' state during acute starvation, although there is no clear association between serum angiotensin-converting enzyme and thyroid hormone levels.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Alpha-tocopherol and fatty acid levels in red blood cells in patients treated with antiepileptic drugs.

Red blood cell (RBC) alpha-tocopherol and fatty acid levels in children undergoing long-term antiepileptic therapy were examined. Antiepileptic drugs included diphenylhydantoin (PHT), valproic acid (VPA), phenobarbital (PB), and carbamazepine (CBZ). RBC alpha-tocopherol levels were low in patients receiving multi-drug combination therapy, as compared with children receiving no treatment (controls), but plasma alpha-tocopherol levels were the same in both groups. With respect to fatty acid composition in RBCs, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) level was decreased in children receiving antiepileptic therapy, while no changes were documented in the other fatty acids.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Determination of alpha-tocopherol in buccal mucosal cells using an electrochemical detector.

Using HPLC with an electrochemical detector, tocopherol concentration in human buccal mucosal cells was determined, and compared with that in plasma, RBCs, and platelets. The values were expressed on the basis of protein concentration. The reproducibility and recovery were enough to be used clinically. In healthy young male adults, tocopherol concentration in buccal cells was 46.4 ng/mg protein, and this increased three fold, after daily administration of 600 mg of d-alpha-tocopherol for one month. Comparison of correlations between all the measurements showed that the highest correlations were between RBC tocopherol level and the tocopherol/lipid ratio in plasma, and between platelet tocopherol level and the tocopherol/lipid ratio. Tocopherol concentration in buccal cells correlated at r = 0.66 (p less than 0.03) with RBC tocopherol, r = 0.65 (p less than 0.03) with the tocopherol/lipid ratio, and r = 0.60 with platelet tocopherol concentration, respectively.

Adult↗
PubMed1988

[Venous hemangioma of the urethra: a case report].

A case of urethral hemangioma in a 61-year-old female is reported. She had the complaint of urethral bleeding and difficulty on urination since November 2, 1986. Physical examination revealed a reddish colored, thumb-head sized tumor at the external urethral meatus. All laboratory tests revealed normal findings. At cystoscopy reddish mucosa was found at the distal urethra. With the preoperative diagnosis of urethral tumor, the tumor was removed en masse under spinal anesthesia. The tumor mass was 2.0 x 1.7 x 1.2 cm. The specimen was pathologically diagnosed as venous hemangioma of the urethra. The patient remains symptomless for 2 months after the operation. Six cases of urethral hemangioma including this case have been reported in the Japanese literature and are reviewed briefly.

Female↗
PubMed1987

Free-radical chain oxidation of rat red blood cells by molecular oxygen and its inhibition by alpha-tocopherol.

The oxidation of rat red blood cells (RBC) by molecular oxygen was performed in an aqueous suspension with an azo compound as a free-radical initiator. The RBC were oxidized at a constant rate by a free-radical chain mechanism, resulting in hemolysis. The extent of hemolysis was proportional to the concentration of free radical. alpha-Tocopherol in RBC membranes suppressed the oxidation and hemolysis to produce an induction period. Tocopherol was constantly consumed during the induction period, and hemolysis developed when tocopherol concentrations fell below a critically low level. Among the membrane lipids, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylserine, and arachidonic acids were predominantly oxidized in the absence of tocopherol. In the presence of tocopherol, however, such lipid changes were suppressed during a 120-min incubation even when hemolysis started. Membrane proteins as well as lipids were oxidized. The formation of proteins with high molecular weight and concomitant decrease of the low-molecular-weight proteins were observed on gel electrophoresis with the onset of hemolysis. This study clearly showed the damage of RBC membranes caused by oxygen radical attack from outside of the membranes, and suggested that membrane tocopherol even below a critically low level could suppress lipid oxidation but that it could not prevent protein oxidation and hemolysis.

Amidines↗
PubMed1987

Thyroid carcinoma and hot nodule.

A 70-year-old woman presented with a nodule in the thyroid gland. 131I scintigraphy of the gland showed a hot nodule. Histology of the resected thyroid revealed a papillary adenocarcinoma. Although a thyroid carcinoma with a hot nodule seen on the radioiodine isotope scan is a very rare occurrence, it is clinically very important because it may indicate a thyroid malignancy.

Adenocarcinoma, Papillary↗
PubMed1987

Serum thyrotropin (TSH) responses to thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) in patients with anorexia nervosa and bulimia: influence of changes in body weight and eating disorders.

Serum thyrotropin (TSH) responses to thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) were studied in 47 women with anorexia nervosa (AN) (group I) and in 11 bulimic patients of normal weight (group II). In group I, TSH responses were low in nine patients, delayed in 32 and normal in six. Patients with a normal TSH response had a lesser degree of anorexia than those with a delayed TSH response. Bulimia and vomiting were more frequently observed in the low response group. The maximum increase in TSH concentrations following TRH administration in the group I patients with vomiting (4.0 +/- 0.90 microU/ml, mean +/- S.E.) was significantly lower than that in the group I patients without vomiting or in normal controls (11.2 +/- 0.82 microU/ml and 11.1 +/- 2.34 microU/ml, respectively). Twenty-five patients with abnormal TSH responses in group I were retested after weight gain. Initially, TSH responses were low in six and delayed in 19. Following weight recovery, responses continued to be abnormal in five of the six and in eight of the 19, respectively. The symptoms of eating disorders continued in all patients with abnormal TSH responses even after weight recovery, whereas patients with normal responses after weight gain recovered from all symptoms. Of 11 patients in group II, six had abnormal TSH responses to TRH; the responses were delayed in four and low in two. Patients with normal responses had a lesser degree of eating disorder, compared with abnormal responders. These observations suggest that abnormal TSH responses in patients with AN were not necessarily due to weight loss alone; rather, they may be related to the eating disorder itself.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Abnormal serum prolactin responses to luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) in patients with anorexia nervosa and bulimia.

Abnormal responses of serum prolactin (PRL) to luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) stimulation have been observed in anovulatory women and in hypogonadal patients. Various endocrinological abnormalities have been demonstrated in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN). The present study was undertaken to further investigate responses of serum PRL, growth hormone (GH), luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) to LHRH stimulation in 65 patients with AN and in 12 patients with bulimia before therapy and in the AN patients after several months of treatment, and in comparison to 12 normal women of the same age. Serum PRL responses to LHRH were positive (peak PRL levels greater than 25 ng/ml and delta increase in PRL greater than 10 ng/ml) in 16.9% of AN and 16.6% of bulimic patients; they were negative (absent) in all controls. Following restoration of the AN patients to normal body weight, the PRL responses to LHRH became normalized in those patients whose eating disorder behavior also returned to normal. However, in those patients whose eating disorder patterns continued to be abnormal, abnormal PRL responses persisted. The bulimic patients were of normal body weight, and yet had abnormal PRL responses. Thus, the responses of PRL correlated more closely with the behavior of the underlying eating disorder rather than with body weight gain or normal body weight.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

The mechanism of spontaneous hypothyroidism in patients with Graves' disease after antithyroid drug treatment.

The natural course of Graves' disease results in hypothyroidism in up to 20% of patients previously treated with antithyroid drugs. The precise mechanisms are not known, although autoimmune destruction of thyroid tissue has been proposed. We studied sequentially obtained serum samples from three patients with hyperthyroid Graves' disease previously treated with an antithyroid drug who became hypothyroid to determine possible causes of their hypothyroidism. Antithyroglobulin and antithyroid microsomal autoantibodies, TSH binding inhibitory immunoglobulin (TBII), thyroid-stimulating antibody (TSAb), and thyroid stimulation-blocking activity were measured. Autoantibodies were markedly elevated throughout the clinical course in all three patients. Patient 1 had no TBII and blocking activity and extremely high TSAb when she was euthyroid as well as hypothyroid. Hypothyroidism was probably the result of autoimmune thyroid destruction. In patient 2, TSAb disappeared, and TBII and blocking activity increased markedly when she developed hypothyroidism, which thus appeared to result from blocking antibodies. Patient 3 had intermittent periods of hyper- and hypothyroidism before becoming and remaining euthyroid. While initially hypothyroid, TBII was weakly positive, and TSAb was strongly positive; subsequently, when hyperthyroidism recurred, TBII and TSAb were strongly positive. Hypothyroidism appeared to result from focal autoimmune thyroiditis. Patients with hyperthyroid Graves' disease may develop hypothyroidism later by different means. Autoimmune thyroiditis, diffuse or focal, with thyroid destruction is one mechanism. The appearance of antibodies that block TSH stimulation may be another.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

HLA and thyrotoxic periodic paralysis in Japanese patients.

Periodic paralysis (PP) is a well recognized although rare and peculiar complication of thyrotoxicosis, especially among Chinese and Japanese patients. The susceptibility to autoimmune thyroid disease has recently been reported to be strongly linked to certain immunogenetic factors, and increased frequency of certain HLA antigens has been found in patients with Graves' disease. This study was, therefore, undertaken to determine HLA haplotypes in Japanese men with thyrotoxic periodic paralysis (TPP). HLA typing in 35 TPP patients and 263 normal men and women demonstrated highly significant increases (P less than 0.01) in HLA-A2, Cw3, and DRw8 in the TPP patients. In comparing TPP patients with thyrotoxic men who did not have PP, the frequency of DRw8 antigen was 2.5-fold greater in patients with PP than in those without it (62.8% vs. 28.6%). The data suggest that the HLA-DRw8 gene itself may play a significant role in the susceptibility to TPP among Japanese men.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

[Emphysematous pyelonephritis complicated by liver cirrhosis and diabetes mellitus: a case report and a review of the literature].

A case of emphysematous pyelonephritis is presented and a review of literatures is made. A 67-years-old woman with diabetes mellitus, complained of severe left flank pain and high fever and was referred from the department of gastroenterology. A computed tomography film demonstrated gas in the left renal parenchyma and a diagnosis of emphysematous pyelonephritis was made. She was in a state of shock and died after 4 days of conservative treatment. Emphysematous pyelonephritis is a rare, life-threatening disorder and 85 cases in the world have been reported to date. Our case is the 18th one in Japan. Its etiology, symptomatology, treatment and prognosis are discussed.

Aged↗
PubMed1987

Synthesis and antitumor activity of 1- or 3-(alpha-hetero substituted)alkyl-5-fluorouracil derivatives.

Two classes of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) derivatives were prepared from 1,3-bis(hydroxymethyl)-5-fluorouracil (1). The first group was obtained by the direct esterification of 1 with various acids. The second one was derived by the nucleophilic substitution of N-(chloromethyl)-5-FUs, which were easily prepared by halogenation of 1, with hetero nucleophiles. The antitumor activities of the prepared compounds were examined against Leukemia L1210 and the results were compared with that of 1-hexylcarbamoyl-5-fluorouracil (HCFU, Carmofur).

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Hemolysis and membrane lipid changes induced by xanthine oxidase in vitamin E deficient red cells.

A procedure to induce hemolysis by the hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase reaction was developed and applied to vitamin E deficient red blood cells (RBCs) in rats. The reaction system was as follows: 0.16 mM hypoxanthine, 0.05 U/ml xanthine oxidase in 2.5% RBC suspensions with an isotonic buffer (pH 7.4) containing 10 mM phosphate buffer and 125 mM saline (277 mOsm). Hemolysis was observed to depend on the vitamin E concentrations in the RBCs. Hemolysis was inhibited by catalase but not by SOD. After the reaction with vitamin E deficient RBCs, an increase in TBARS in the aqueous phase of the reaction mixture was observed. This accompanied the increase in fluorescent substances in the lipid extracts, in association with a significant decrease in the PE and PS of the RBCs, and a decrease in arachidonic acid in membrane lipids. The above changes were almost completely inhibited by tocopherol incorporated into vitamin E deficient RBCs.

Animals↗