Biomedical subjects

J Shimazaki

Publications and source records attributed to J Shimazaki.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

PubMed1998

Terrien's marginal degeneration associated with erythema elevatum diutinum.

PURPOSE: To describe a patient with Terrien's marginal degeneration associated with a chronic skin disease, erythema elevatum diutinum. METHODS: A 27-year-old woman with peripheral thinning of her left cornea associated with adjacent conjunctival and episcleral inflammation was clinically examined. RESULTS: Episodes of worsening skin lesions were associated with development of inflammation in her left eye. Administration of sulfones was effective for reducing both skin and ocular inflammation. CONCLUSION: Erythema elevatum diutinum should be considered an underlying systemic disease of Terrien's marginal degeneration.

Adult↗

PubMed1998

[Results of clinical study with epirubicin hydrochloride injectable solution for superficial bladder cancer. IMI28 Injectable Solution Study Group for Superficial Bladder Cancer].

A 7-center cooperative clinical study with a new formulation of epirubicin hydrochloride injectable solution (Epirubicin-RTU) was conducted in patients with superficial bladder carcinoma. Epirubicin-RTU at the dose of 60 mg/30 ml was administered by intravesical instillation once daily for three (3) consecutive days and a 4-day drug-free interval followed; then the above intravesical instillation of Epirubicin-RTU was repeated for three consecutive days. All 20 registered cases were eligible, and 18 cases completed the whole course of the study. In 18 completers, CR was observed in 12 cases and PR was observed in one (1) case, for an efficacy rate of 72.2%. The primary adverse reaction was bladder irritation including pollakiuria 85.0% (17/20), miction pain 85.0% (17/20), and hematuria 80.0% (16/20), which were all reversible and tolerable. In urinalysis, urinary sediment showed leukocytes and erythrocytes, and proteinuria was observed. All were reversible. From the above results, this new formulation of Epirubicin-RTU was considered useful for the treatment of superficial bladder carcinoma.

Administration, Intravesical↗

PubMed1998

[Development and progression of prostate cancer in relation with androgen dependency].

Although carcinogen to human prostate cancer has not clarified yet, androgen is necessary for genetic damage on epithelial tissue of the prostate. There are many factors influencing promotion of cancer cells under certain androgenic environment; IGF, somatostatin, nutriments including beta-carotin, fat and green tea. Loss of androgen dependency gradually occur during progression. This may be attributable to adaptation, paracrine regulation and genetic change, but the latter is main course to acquire autonomous growth with metastatic ability. Mutation of androgen receptor which occurs in some cases plays a role on antiandrogen withdrawal syndrome.

Androgens↗

PubMed1998

[Trends of prostate cancer: comparison between 1986-90 and 1991-95 at Asahi General Hospital].

Patients with prostate cancer treated during 1986-95 were divided into two groups: the first five years as early period and the recent five years as late period. Background factors, therapeutic modality and prognosis were compared between these two groups. The number of patients during the late period (245) was about 1.5 fold that during the early period (161). The average age for each stage are similar within the same period, and also similar between early and late periods. Almost the same ratios were noticed on stage distribution and on histological grade between early and late periods. Therefore, the increase in the number of patients in recent years was due mainly to expansion with the same proportion of background factors. Patients with T2 and T3 during the late period received more aggressive treatments with/without endocrine therapy. Subsequently these patients seemed to show better prognosis than the patients during the early period. No differences in survival of patients with metastosis was revealed between these two periods. Therefore, the outcome was not improved by recent endocrine therapy.

Androgen Antagonists↗

PubMed1997

Location of KAI1 on the short arm of human chromosome 11 and frequency of allelic loss in advanced human prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND: We recently isolated the KAI1 gene, a metastasis suppressor gene for prostate cancer, from human chromosome region 11p13-cen-containing rat prostate cancer cells. The present study was performed to further locate the region of the KAI1 gene on the short arm of chromosome 11, and to examine whether loss of this region is significant during progression of human prostate cancer. METHODS: The small portion of human chromosome 11 (i.e., 11p13-cen) was reintroduced into highly metastatic rat prostate cancer cells by using microcell-mediated chromosome transfer. Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) at polymorphic microsatellite loci on the human chromosome 11 was examined in human prostate cancer tissues. RESULTS: The minimum region of human chromosome 11 that contained the KAI1 gene was located on the proximal region of 11p11.2 divided by the D11S554 locus. The percentage of LOH or allelic imbalance at the D11S1344 locus, which is located on the same region as the KAI1 locus, in metastasis tissues from autopsy cases who died from metastatic prostate cancer was 70% (7 of 10 informative cases), whereas the percentages in primary tumors from the same cases and from cases with clinically localized prostate cancer were 33% (3 of 9 informative cases) and 8% (1 of 12 informative cases), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate a high frequency of LOH or allelic imbalance at the centromeric region of 11p, which contains the KAI1 gene in advanced prostate cancer.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed1997

Association between HLA-DPB1 matching and 1-year rejection-free graft survival in high-risk corneal transplantation.

We analyzed the effect of matching for HLA class II alleles on corneal graft outcome in a single-center, retrospective study from January 1991 through April 1996. The study involved 81 transplant recipients at high and low risk of corneal graft rejection, who were typed by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method and who completed at least 1-year of follow-up. The DRB1, DQB1, and DPB1 alleles were analyzed together and transplant recipients were subdivided into groups with matching (one to four alleles matched in the high risk or one to five alleles matched in the low risk) and without matching (no allele matched) for HLA class II. A significantly higher rate of 1-year rejection-free graft survival was revealed in high-risk transplant recipients with matching, compared with those without matching (P=0.0238). We have shown that matching for at least one HLA class II allele was actually beneficial in high-risk transplants. An analysis of matching for each allele separately, detected that only HLA-DPB1 matching was significantly associated with a higher rate of 1-year rejection-free graft survival in high-risk transplant recipients with matching (one or two alleles matched) compared with those without matching (no allele matched) (P=0.0139). In particular, matching for one DPB1 allele was significantly beneficial compared with no matching (P=0.0140). There was no significant effect of HLA-DRB1 and -DQB1 matching (P=0.3177 and P=0.2878, respectively). Furthermore, a strong association between DPB1 matching and 1-year rejection-free graft survival was observed in DRB1-incompatible high-risk transplant recipients (P=0.0308). Nevertheless, no significant effect of DPB1 matching was detected in DQB1-incompatible transplant recipients. Our findings indicate that HLA class II DNA typing is clinically relevant for corneal transplant recipients and that especially HLA-DPB1 matching has a beneficial effect in high-risk corneal transplantation.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1997

Suppression of invasive ability of highly metastatic rat prostate cancer by introduction of human chromosome 8.

BACKGROUND: Introduction of human chromosome 8 to a highly metastatic subline (AT6.2) from the Dunning R-3327 rat prostate cancer resulted in suppression of metastatic ability of the resultant microcell hybrids (AT6.2-8 clones) [12]. The present study has been performed to clarify which step of metastasis was suppressed in the microcell hybrids. METHODS: Northern blot analysis of E-cadherin and alpha-catenin, in vitro invasion assay, and intra-venous metastasis assay by injection of tumor cells into the lateral tail vein of nude mice were performed. RESULTS: No detectable expressions of either E-cadherin or alpha-catenin were found in either AT6.2 parental or AT6.2-8 microcell hybrid clones. In the invasion assay, invasiveness of AT6.2-8 hybrid clones was less than that of the AT6.2 parental clone. In the intravenous metastasis assay, no significant differences in the number of lung metastases were observed among these cell lines. CONCLUSIONS: Introduction of human chromosome 8 to AT6.2 cells shows suppression of invasiveness and no suppression of cell dissociation or process after entry into blood circulation. This suggests that human chromosome 8 contains suppressor gene(s) for the invasive ability of prostate cancer.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Ex vivo phosphorus magnetic resonance spectroscopy on eye bank corneas and corneal metabolic health.

BACKGROUND: Since a potential exists for untoward effects on the cornea from the high magnetic fields and radio-frequency energies, and the further manipulation required for phosphorus-31 magnetic resonance spectroscopy (31P-MRS), we determined the effects of this technology on tissues using paired human corneas (n = 4) meeting criteria acceptable for transplantation. METHODS: Slit-lamp biomicroscopy, pachometry, specular microscopy, and redux fluorophotometry were performed on all corneas. One cornea of each pair was examined (< 30 min) by 31P-MRS. Following 31P-MRS, slit-lamp biomicroscopy, pachometry, and redox fluorophotometry were again performed. RESULTS: Data tabulated included the 31P energy modulus (1.37 +/- 0.28), the ATP/Pi (2.92 +/- 0.59) and SP/Pi (0.76 +/- 0.04) ratios, and the intracorneal pH (7.24 +/- 0.09). CONCLUSION: Since there were no significant differences in slit-lamp biomicroscopy, endothelial density and morphometry, cell counts, and pachometric and redox fluorophotometric measurements between corneas of each pair before and after 31P-MRS analysis, it was concluded that there was no detectable metabolic damage secondary to such analysis. This study suggests that MRS analysis of human eye-bank tissues does not damage the cornea metabolically and may provide a practical evaluation of the health of the cornea at the biochemical level.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

PubMed1997

Lacrimal punctal occlusion for the treatment of superior limbic keratoconjunctivitis.

PURPOSE: To test the hypothesis that superior limbic keratoconjunctivitis is caused by insufficient tear supply to the superior keratoconjunctiva. METHODS: We used cautery and sutures to permanently occlude the lacrimal puncta of 11 patients (22 eyes) with superior limbic keratoconjunctivitis for whom topical treatment was ineffective. RESULTS: All 11 patients (22 eyes) responded favorably to lacrimal punctal occlusion. After lacrimal punctal occlusion, rose bengal and fluorescein staining (both on a scale of 0 [no staining] to 9 [complete staining]) were reduced (mean +/- SD, 2.7 +/- 1.6 to 1.1 +/- 1.8 and 1.4 +/- 1.2 to 0.4 +/- 0.8, respectively). Impression cytology disclosed improvement of squamous metaplasia in the superior conjunctiva as well as increased goblet cells in nine of 13 eyes (69%) examined. Subjective symptoms improved in all 22 eyes (100%). CONCLUSIONS: Improvement of local tear deficiency to the superior limbic portion by punctal occlusion was an effective treatment in this small series. Superior limbic keratoconjunctivitis might be caused by the insufficient local tear supply.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

Analysis of videokeratography after penetrating keratoplasty: topographic characteristics and effects of removing running sutures.

OBJECTIVE: Previous studies have shown that removal of running sutures after penetrating keratoplasty causes unpredictable changes in astigmatism. The current study was conducted to investigate whether computer-assisted videokeratography is beneficial for predicting visual outcomes after running sutures are removed. DESIGN: The design was that of a prospective clinical study. PARTICIPANTS: The authors prospectively studied 29 consecutive eyes undergoing a 10-0 nylon running suture removal after penetrating keratoplasty. INTERVENTIONS: Videokeratography was performed before, 1 week, 1 month, and 3 months after removal of sutures. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Changes in refractive and topographic astigmatism after suture removal were measured. Topographic patterns and their quantitative descriptors also were analyzed. RESULTS: An asymmetric bowtie was the most common videokeratography pattern both before and after suture removal. After suture removal, the incidence of peripheral corneal steepening increased significantly (2 vs. 21 eyes, P < 0.0001), and that of focal flattening of the midperipheral cornea decreased (13 vs. 5 eyes, P = 0.046). The mean topographic astigmatism, surface regularity index, and corrected visual acuity were improved significantly by suture removal in eyes that had localized flattening but not in eyes without this finding. Eyes having either skewed axis in astigmatism or topographic astigmatism of more than 9 diopters also showed significant decreases in astigmatism. CONCLUSIONS: Suture removal after keratoplasty is advantageous for both reducing astigmatism and normalizing topography, especially in eyes that have localized flattening of the midperipheral cornea. Predictability of visual outcomes of a running suture removal in postkeratoplasty eyes may be improved by the use of videokeratography.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1997

Amniotic membrane transplantation for ocular surface reconstruction in patients with chemical and thermal burns.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study is to examine the usefulness of preserved human amniotic membrane transplantation in patients with chemical and thermal burns. DESIGN: The study design was a nonrandomized clinical trial. PARTICIPANTS: Seven eyes of six patients with severe chemical (n = 5) and thermal (n = 2) burns were studied. INTERVENTION: Eyes were treated with excision of cicatricial tissues followed by a placement of amniotic membrane on the sclera. Transplantation of limbal grafts from an opposite eye (n = 4) or from donor eyes preserved at -80 degrees C (n = 2) was performed simultaneously. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Reconstruction of ocular surface epithelia and visual acuity were measured. RESULTS: With the mean observation period of 53.3 weeks, central corneal epithelium was reconstructed successfully in all eyes. Neither amniotic membrane nor limbal grafts were rejected. A persistent epithelial defect developed in one eye, which was treated successfully by tarsorrhaphy. After surgery, the corneal epithelium showed normal arrangements on specular microscopy, and its barrier function recovered to seminormal. Corrected visual acuity markedly improved in each eye. Regenerated conjunctiva on the amniotic membrane was stable and uninflammed with minimum-to-mild scarring. Slight recurrence of conjunctivalization was noted in three eyes. However, because these eyes were stable and central cornea was clear, no further surgery was needed. CONCLUSIONS: Amniotic membrane transplantation promotes normal conjunctival epithelialization while suppressing fibrosis formation. The procedure, especially when performed with limbal autograft transplantation, appears to be effective for the treatment of chemical or thermal burns of the ocular surface.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1997

Differences in the p53 gene mutational spectra of prostate cancers between Japan and Western countries.

Mutations of the p53 gene are related to development of human cancers and their frequencies and spectra, the latter representing fingerprints left by carcinogens, provide information about the molecular epidemiology of the disease. Prostate cancer is the most common neoplasm in American males and although its incidence is still relatively low in Japanese people, it has recently been increasing with the westernization of life style. To assess the frequency and spectrum of p53 gene mutations in Japanese prostate cancers, we examined a series of 90 lesions using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis. The patients' mean age was 69.3 years (range 57-87). Of the total, six were well-, 34 moderately- and 50 poorly-differentiated adenocarcinomas, and the median Gleason score was 7.9. Eleven of the 90 cases (12%) had mutations in exons 2-11 of the p53 gene: none of the five clinical-stage A, one of 25 stage B (4%), three of 35 stage C (9%) and seven of 25 stage D (28%) cancers. The correlation with an advanced stage was statistically significant. One insertion and 10 base pair substitutions were encountered, comprising six transversions (55%) and four transitions (36%). Two of the latter involved methylated cytosine-guanine (CpG). These 11 mutations were combined with 18 other mutations in previous reports concerning Japanese prostate cancers to facilitate comparison of the p53 gene mutational spectrum with those reported for American and European prostate cancers. In the latter, 61% were transitions and 33% were transversions. The greater proportion of transversions in the Japanese population suggests that there are different factors responsible for carcinogenesis of the prostate glands in the various countries.

Aged↗

PubMed1997

Prognostic factors in patients with prostate cancer refractory to endocrine therapy: univariate and multivariate analyses including doubling times of prostate-specific antigen and prostatic acid phosphatase.

Although several prognostic factors have been discussed, multivariate analysis that includes tumor marker doubling time has not yet been examined in patients with prostate cancer refractory to endocrine therapy. A number of conventional prognostic factors including doubling times of prostate-specific antigen and/or prostatic acid phosphatase were examined in 56 prostate cancer patients who were refractory to endocrine therapy, using univariate and multivariate analyses. On univariate analysis, 6 parameters (doubling times of prostate-specific antigen and prostatic acid phosphatase at the time of refractory status, performance status, duration from beginning of endocrine therapy to prostate-specific antigen/prostatic acid phosphatase failure, mode of recurrence, the presence or absence of prostate-specific antigen/prostatic acid phosphatase normalization, and alkaline phosphatase) were shown to be significant prognostic factors. On multivariate analysis, only performance status and doubling times of prostate-specific antigen and prostatic acid phosphatase were significant. These observations showed that the doubling times of prostate-specific antigen and prostatic acid phosphatase, calculated at the time of prostate-specific antigen/prostatic acid phosphatase failure by estimating serial prostate-specific antigen or prostatic acid phosphatase, were a valuable prognostic factor in patients with prostate cancer refractory to endocrine therapy.

Acid Phosphatase↗

PubMed1997

Genetic alterations of androgen receptor gene in Japanese human prostate cancer.

In order to determine the significance of androgen receptor (AR) gene mutations for Japanese prostate cancers, we examined the entire coding region, from exon A to H, in 36 primary lesions. Five in stage A, 12 in stage B, six in stage C and 13 in stage D were subjected to PCR-SSCP analysis for genomic DNA and nucleotide sequencing. Mutations were detected in five samples (14%). Two in stage D and refractory to anti-androgen treatment showed mis-sense mutations. The other three showed changes in the length of the CAG repeat in exon A, with an expansion or a contraction of one repeat unit. However, no association with changes in AR function was indicated because they had not been refractory to hormone therapy. Since these latter three tumors were associated with microsatellite instability, the changes might have been the result of an impairment of mismatch repair. This study indicates that AR gene mutations play a role, in only a subset of prostate cancer patients, in a treatment-refractory state.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

PRLTS gene alterations in human prostate cancer.

Since loss of heterozygosity on 8p22-p21.3 has been found frequently in prostate cancer, the status of a candidate tumor suppressor gene named PRLTS gene, recently cloned from the same region in some human malignancies, was examined in the present study. DNAs were isolated from 69 Japanese prostate cancer patients (37 localized and 32 cancer-death cases). Loss of heterozygosity at this gene locus was observed in 15 of 36 (42%) localized prostate cancer patients and 22 of 32 (69%) cancer-death patients. One cancer-death patient had a missense mutation, ACG-->ATG (Thr-->Met) at codon 64 in metastatic tumor tissues of pelvic lymph node and liver, and these tissues showed loss of the homologous allele, indicating that "two-hit" mutation of the PRLTS gene had occurred in this case. The others did not show any mutation, regardless of the presence or absence of loss of heterozygosity. Although loss of heterozygosity at the PRLTS gene locus is a relatively common abnormality, mutation of this gene is rare in prostate cancer.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed1997

Surgical approach to tumor thrombus of renal cell carcinoma at the level between hepatic vein and diaphragm.

BACKGROUND: The curative resection of tumor thrombus of renal cell carcinoma often provides a good prognosis, but the best surgical method for resection at the level between hepatic vein and diaphragm is still a matter of controversy. METHODS: We performed transabdominal surgery without cardio-pulmonary bypass on 4 patients with tumor thrombus at the level between hepatic vein and diaphragm. The surgical procedures were as follows: The right lobe of the liver was separated and detached from the retroperitoneum, and then the vena cava was clamped just below the diaphragm simultaneous with clamping the porta hepatis. After complete circulatory isolation of the vena cava, the tumor thrombus was resected. RESULTS: There were no severe complications postoperatively. Two patients died of cancer 18 and 38 months after surgery, and the other 2 are alive without evidence of disease after 62 and 66 months. CONCLUSION: This anatomically rational approach is thought to be a good alternative to the pull-through method or cardio-pulmonary bypass for removing a tumor thrombus at this level.

Carcinoma, Renal Cell↗

PubMed1997

Prostate-specific antigen levels from a mass screening program using highly sensitive RIA kits.

BACKGROUND: This study was designed to evaluate the distribution of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels of men in a mass screening program for prostatic disease. METHODS: A total of 763 men over 40 years of age underwent mass screening for prostatic disease in a Japanese prefecture using the highly sensitive Eiken kit and the Hybritech (Tandem-R) kit. The screening tests consisted of serum PSA determination, digital rectal examination, a questionnaire on symptoms, evaluation of prostate volume, and determination of the obesity rate. RESULTS: Serum PSA levels of all subjects were measured with both kits. The correlation between the values obtained by the Eiken kit and those of the Tandem-R kit was high (r = 0.990), but the values of the former were slightly higher than those of the latter. Serum PSA weakly correlated with age, however, when estimated within decade age brackets, the levels of PSA showed significant differences among only 1 pair of groups stratified by age. In contrast, the levels of PSA showed significant differences among 9 pairs of groups stratified by prostate volume. CONCLUSION: A highly sensitive assay kit is useful to evaluate both the distribution of PSA levels and the relationship of PSA values to age and prostate volume of men in mass screening programs for prostatic disease, since approximately 40% of the subjects who underwent the present mass screening showed PSA values under 1.0 ng/mL, which have been the the lower limit of detection of many PSA kits.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

Relationship between prostate-specific antigen, clinical stage, and degree of bone metastasis in patients with prostate cancer: comparison with prostatic acid phosphatase and alkaline phosphatase.

BACKGROUND: The study was designed to examine the relation of the levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) to clinical stage and bone metastasis in prostate cancer patients. METHODS: Serum PSA, PAP, and ALP levels were evaluated in 272 patients with prostate cancer. The relation of the level of PSA, PAP, and ALP to clinical stage and to degree of bone metastasis were examined by a multiple comparison method using ranks. The superiority of a marker in the rate of detection of bone metastasis was evaluated with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. The correlation coefficients of the order of the extent of bone metastasis with PSA, PAP, and ALP were examined with Spearman's rank order correlation coefficient test. RESULTS: The levels of PSA showed significant differences among 8 pairs of clinical stages. In contrast, the levels of PAP showed significant differences among 6 pairs, and the levels of ALP showed significant differences among only 4 pairs. The area under the ROC curves of PSA, PAP, and ALP for revealing bone metastasis was 84.9%, 81.4%, and 77.3%, respectively. The correlation coefficients of the order of extent of disease (EOD) with log (PSA), log (PAP), and log (ALP) were 0.346, 0.394, and 0.618, respectively, and the levels of ALP showed the most significant differences regarding the extent of bone metastasis. CONCLUSION: PSA was the best marker for differentiating clinical stages, but showed limited reliability for stratifying the extent of bone metastasis.

Acid Phosphatase↗