Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to K Suda.
A rare case of cerebral varix associated with a venous angioma is reported. Findings on dynamic computed tomography were highly characteristic and closely correlated to those on angiography. To our knowledge, such a combination of cerebral vascular anomalies has been reported only once previously.
To investigate the mechanisms initiating pancreatic enzyme activation followed by the development of a choledochal cyst and/or pancreatitis under anomalous choledocho-pancreatic ductal junction (ACPDJ), choledocho-pancreatic end-to-side ductal anastomosis was successfully performed in 40 puppies as an experimental model of ACPDJ. As a result, reflux of pancreatic juice into the common bile duct readily and continuously occurred, and all pancreatic enzymes in bile obtained from the common bile duct were activated. Total bile acids increased about 2 months after surgery, and the ratio of taurodeoxycholic acid to total bile acids increased within the first months after surgery. Various degrees of common bile duct dilatation developed in all puppies within 7 to 10 days after the surgery, and no further dilatation occurred in the subsequent period. Histological change in the pancreatic duct was less prominent than that in the common bile duct, but histologically proved chronic pancreatitis was found in three of 23 sacrificed dogs, in which there was strong evidence of free and massive regurgitation of the bile-pancreatic juice mixture between the bile and the pancreatic duct systems. These findings in this experimental study constitute the first step to prove that ACPDJ, which is often found in patients with choledochal cyst, is an important etiologic factor not only for choledochal cyst but also for pancreatitis, and bile acids play an important role in the mechanism of pancreatic enzyme activation under the condition of ACPDJ.
Seventeen teratomas with well-differentiated pancreatic tissue were found in 469 cases obtained from the files in our respective departments for the last ten years. These cases included 11 cases with a teratoma located in the anterior mediastinum, five cases with a teratoma located in the sacrococcygeal region, and one case with a teratoma located in the retroperitoneal space. The islets of Langerhans, as well as exocrine elements, were usually found in the pancreatic tissue. The blood glucose level was mildly depressed in one case of five teratomas, and a very high amylase level was observed in one other case. These levels were estimated in the fistulous discharge from the teratoma. Therefore, we felt that the pancreatic tissue observed in the teratomas was similar in nature to normal pancreatic tissue both histologically and functionally.
Clinical examinations including echocardiography were performed for 14 acromegalic patients (five men and nine women, whose mean age was 48.6 years). Three of these had hypertension (HT) above 160/95 mmHg, three had diabetes mellitus (DM). Their cardiac sizes and functions were correlated with the durations of disease and plasma growth hormone (GH) levels. The incidences of HT and DM were also evaluated. Three of 14 patients (22%) had increased cardiothoracic ratios (greater than 55%). Electrocardiographic abnormalities were noted in three patients including two with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and one with interventricular conduction defects with abnormal Q waves. By echocardiography (Table 2), nine patients (64%) were judged to be normal. The remaining five patients (36%) had abnormal echocardiograms. These included LVH (sums of the interventricular and posterior wall thicknesses greater than or equal to 25 mm) in two (25 mm in Case 10, 30 mm in Case 11), increased left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (EDD greater than or equal to 55 mm) in one (72 mm in Case 14) and both abnormalities in two patients (Cases 12 and 13). Two patients (Case 13 and 14), whose %FS were 17% and 22%, respectively, had definite evidence of congestive heart failure. Two patients (Case 11 and 13) met the diagnostic criteria for asymmetric septal hypertrophy. One patient with echocardiographic LVH and another who had increased EDD with LVH had histories of HT (Case 11 and 12). Plasma GH levels in patients with LVH were greater than 100 ng/ml (Cases 10 and 11). The left ventricular hypertrophy and/or increased EDD observed in these patients seemed related to the duration of acromegaly but not to the presence of DM. Myocardial biopsy of the right ventricle in two patients with congestive heart failure disclosed myocardial hypertrophy, myocardial fiber disarray, interstitial fibrosis and large nuclei.
Pontine gliomas have been considered to be out of indication for operative treatment. However, in case of a cystic type, evacuation of the cyst alone can possibly extend the survival time of the patient. Since the advent of high resolution CT the nature of the pontine tumor, whether cystic or solid, can be easily differentiated, and cystic ones subjected to operation will be increasing in number. We report a case of cystic pontine glioma associated with von Recklinghausen's disease. The patient showed a remarkable improvement in her neurological status after evacuation of the cyst. A 16-year-old girl was admitted to our clinic with complaints of tinnitus and hearing difficulty of the left ear, progressive gait disturbance and double vision. Neurological examination revealed a sensory disturbance on the left side of the face, left abducens palsy, left facial paresis, left deafness, left cerebellar ataxia, right hemiparesis and right hemisensory disturbance excluding the face. Signs and symptoms of increased intracranial pressure were absent. There were many cafe-au-lait spots and several subcutaneous nodules. CT scan demonstrated a cystic lesion with a mural nodule in the left cerebello-pontine angle. The patient underwent left suboccipital craniectomy, and a puncture of the cyst between the trigeminal and facial-acoustic nerves which were displaced dorsally yielded yellowish fluid. The content of the cyst was evacuated and its wall was widely opened. After the operation the patient showed a remarkable improvement in her neurological deficits only with left deafness remained unchanged. Histological examination showed anaplastic astrocytoma. She was discharged after irradiation of 5000 rads.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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Symptomatic tension pneumocephalus developed after an evacuation of chronic subdural hematoma is reported. In this 71 year-old man, a rapid deterioration of consciousness was noted 5 days after a trephination for bilateral chronic subdural hematomas. An evacuation of hematoma was performed under a local anesthesia, and the preoperative and immediate postoperative course was uneventful. Subdural tension pneumocephalus was confirmed by typical CT findings and treated by re-trephination and drainage. The literature on the tension subdural pneumocephalus was reviewed, and the mechanism of its development was briefly discussed.
Cytochrome c1 was purified from the bacterium Paracoccus denitrificans. It is an acidic, hydrophobic polypeptide with an apparent molecular weight of around 65000 and a single, covalently attached heme; it cross-reacts immunologically with cytochrome c1 from yeast mitochondria. The amino acid sequence of the tryptic heme peptide of the bacterial cytochrome c1 shows extensive homology to the corresponding region of beef heart cytochrome c1 [Wakabayashi, S. et al. (1982) J. Biol. Chem. 257, 9335-9344]. Positive evidence for a stable association of the Paracoccus cytochrome c1 with other polypeptides and b-type heme components ('bc1-complex') has not yet been obtained.
A histopathologic study on how the common bile duct and main pancreatic duct open into the duodenum was performed on 72 autopsied cases of biliary tract carcinoma. Type IIIb which was considered to be an abnormal pancreatico-choledocho-ductal junction was identified in 8 of 34 cases in common bile duct carcinoma and in 4 of 24 cases in gallbladder carcinoma, while none of the control cases belonging to Type IIIb. In cases of Type IIIb, reflux of pancreatic juice may occur into the bile duct and produce the repeated inflammation on the biliary tract. Therefore, the abnormal pancreatico-choledocho-ductal junction was suggested to be one of the pathogenic factors which cause biliary tract carcinoma.
Postnatal development of striate cortical neurons projecting to the superior colliculus (SC) was studied in cats, ranging in age from newborn to adult, by injection of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) into the SC. At birth HRP-labelled cells were widely distributed throughout the cortex between the splenial and suprasylvian sulci, although a very rough topographic correspondence seemed to exist between the striate cortex and SC. The labelled cells were confined to layer V of the cortex, as in the adult. They were very densely packed and their somas were already pyramidal in shape although very slender. During the third to eighth days, apical dendrites of a substantial number of cells, mostly located in the upper bank of the splenial sulcus, were filled with HRP up to layer I and their somas were larger than those of cells located near the crown of the lateral and postlateral gyri. At the eighth day and thereafter, the distribution of the labelled cells across the visual cortex was not so widespread as that seen in the newborn kittens. The dendritic arborization pattern of labelled cells became nearly adultlike at the four week, and its full maturation was seen at the eighth week. A quantitative analysis of the cross-sectional areas of the cells and their packing density in layer V of the cortex revealed that (1) the size of cells increased very rapidly during the second week and became almost adultlike at the fifth week; (2) the density of cells reduced dramatically during the second week and thereafter at a low rate until the eighth week; and (3) the ratio of the labelled to unlabelled cells in layer V decreased remarkably also during the second week. These results suggest that an elimination of axon collaterals of corticotectal cells or their death may take place mostly during the second week of age, when eye-opening occurs in kittens. By comparison with previous data on functional development of the SC, it is also suggested that the maturation of visual response properties of SC neurons may depend on postnatal development of corticotectal cells.
The cytoplasmically made subunit V was isolated from enzymically active yeast cytochrome c oxidase and its NH2-terminal amino acid sequence was determined to be (formula; see text) In order to exclude that this NH2 terminus had been generated by proteolysis during the lengthy isolation of the subunit, subunit V was directly immunoprecipitated from yeast cells that had been pulse-labeled with [35S]methionine; radiochemical sequencing revealed methionine at position 12, in agreement with the sequence given above. When the precursor to subunit V was synthesized in vitro in the presence of either [35S]methionine, [3H]leucine, or [3H]histidine and then incubated either with isolated yeast mitochondria or the partially purified matrix protease (Böhni, P. C., Daum, G., and Schatz, G. (1983) J. Biol. Chem. 258, 4937-4943), it was converted to a polypeptide co-migrating with mature subunit V on dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels. Radiochemical sequence analysis of the processed in vitro product showed that it contained histidine, leucine, and methionine in positions 4, 6, and 12, respectively, exactly as the authentic mature protein. In contrast, the unprocessed precursor contained methionine only at position 9, but not at position 12; thus, the precursor has a NH2 terminus different from the mature polypeptide. Similarly, if the in vitro synthesized cytochrome b2 precursor is incubated with isolated mitochondria, it is converted to a polypeptide which co-migrates with mature cytochrome b2 and, like the latter, contains leucine and methionine in positions 4 and 6, respectively. These data show that isolated yeast mitochondria convert the precursors to polypeptides which have the NH2 terminus of the authentic mature polypeptides. In the case of cytochrome c oxidase subunit V, correct NH2-terminal processing was also demonstrated with the purified matrix protease.
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The yeast mitochondrial outer membrane contains a major 70-kd protein which is coded by a nuclear gene. Two forms of this gene were isolated from a yeast genomic clone bank: the intact gene, and a truncated gene which had lost a large part of its 3' end during the cloning procedure. Upon transformation into yeast, both the intact and the truncated gene are expressed; the truncated gene generates a shortened protein missing 203 amino acids from the carboxy-terminus. This truncated polypeptide reacts with a monoclonal antibody against the authentic 70-kd protein and is transported to the mitochondrial outer membrane. By integrative transformation, we have constructed a yeast mutant which lacks the 70-kd protein and is unable to adapt to growth on a nonfermentable carbon source at 37 degrees C. This phenotypic lesion can be corrected by transforming the mutant with the intact, but not the truncated gene. The carboxy-terminal sequence of 203 amino acids is thus necessary for the function of the protein, but not for its targeting to the mitochondrion.
The nucleotide sequence of the yeast chromosomal gene coding for the 70-kd protein of the mitochondrial outer membrane was determined. The deduced amino acid sequence of the protein agrees with the experimentally determined size and amino acid composition of the purified protein and correctly predicts the fragments obtained by cleaving the protein at its single tryptophan residue. The deduced NH2-terminal sequence features an uninterrupted stretch of 28 uncharged amino acids flanked on both sides by basic amino acids. By sequencing a truncated version of the gene it was found that the corresponding polypeptide product lacks the 203 carboxy-terminal amino acids of the authentic 70-kd protein. As shown in the accompanying paper, this protein fragment still becomes attached to the mitochondrial outer membrane in vivo.
Various chemical inducers have effects on the induction of terminal differentiation of human myelogenous leukemia cell lines. We studied morphological and functional changes of human leukemia cells freshly obtained from patients using 12-0-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA), retinoic acid (RA) or dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO). The myeloid leukemia cells cultured with TPA became adherent to plastic culture dishes, and then developed macrophage-like morphology with long filamentous pseudopods within 48 h incubation. They showed marked enhancement of the ability to phagocytose latex particles. But these acquired properties did not always parallel each other, suggesting that the mechanism of functional maturation of leukemic cells induced by chemical agents was not identical with that of morphological changes. On the other hand, the lymphoid leukemia cells did not show morphological and functional changes when cultured with the above inducers. It is suggested that exposure of leukemic cells to TPA for relatively short times (12-24 h) may be useful for determining whether they are of myeloid or lymphoid origin. These characteristic changes were also observed in leukemic cells from the myeloid or lymphoid crisis of chronic myelogenous leukemia.
In cats ranging in age from the second week to adult, the postnatal functional development of striate cortical neurons projecting to the superior colliculus (SC) was studied by observing their visual responses, axonal conduction velocities and spontaneous activities. One-hundred-and-fifty-seven cells were identified as projecting to the SC (C-T cells) on the basis of antidromic activation from SC. At the second week of age, 57% of the C-T cells had receptive fields of the complex type and the others were visually unresponsive. C-T cells with 'special complex' properties, which are characteristic of the adult C-T cells, first appeared at the third week and made up 19% of the total. The proportion of such C-T cells increased very rapidly and attained the adult-like value at the fourth week. The spontaneous activity of the C-T cells was very sparse or absent at the second week and increased thereafter with age. The proportion of cells with the high level of spontaneous activity found in the adult increased with the same time-course as did the special complex cells. The axonal conduction velocity of C-T cells was slower than 2 m/s until the third week. C-T cells with the faster velocities, suggestive of axonal myelination, appeared at the fourth week and thereafter the average value increased very rapidly until the weeks 8-9. These results indicate that the most remarkable functional development of C-T cells may occur around the fourth week of age. By comparison with previous data on postnatal development of neurons in the cortex and SC, we suggest that C-T cells may be one of the early-maturing groups of cells in the striate cortex and their maturation may exert a crucial influence on the development of visual response properties of SC neurons.