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Biomedical subjects

K Ueda

Publications and source records attributed to K Ueda.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

Antibodies to a putative hepatitis C virus polyprotein in Japanese patients with chronic liver disease.

To investigate the frequency of exposure to hepatitis C virus (HCV) in chronic liver disease, sera from Japanese patients were tested with the original anti-HCV assay (Ortho) and an anti-HCV assay based on synthetic peptides corresponding to a variety of regions in the HCV genome. Thirty-one (67%) of 46 patients with chronic non-A,non-B hepatitis were anti-HCV-positive by the Ortho ELISA, 20 of whom were also positive by ELISA based on synthetic HCV peptides. Eight (53%) of the 15 patients negative by the Ortho ELISA tested positive for anti-HCV by ELISA based on HCV peptides. Serum HCV RNA was detected in all cases positive for antibody to the HCV peptide and in 14 (78%) of 18 cases without antibody. Thirty-seven hepatitis B virus carriers were without anti-HCV by the Ortho ELISA and were negative for serum HCV RNA, six (16%) of whom were positive by ELISA based on HCV peptides. Antibody responses were directed against each synthetic HCV peptide used, with a considerable difference in incidence, indicating possible expression of the corresponding region in the course of HCV propagation. These findings indicate that exposure to HCV may be more common than expected based on the results of the Ortho ELISA.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1992

Effect of increase in heart rate on interatrial shunt in atrial septal defect.

The effect of increases in heart rate by atrial pacing was investigated in 20 children [mean 9 +/- 4 (SD) years] with atrial septal defect. Systemic blood flow increased by 13 +/- 10 and 27 +/- 22% with a 25 and 50% increase in heart rate, respectively. Pulmonary blood flow, however, remained unaltered. Thus, rapid pacing decreased the pulmonary to systemic blood flow ratio significantly (-15 +/- 10 and -22 +/- 13%, respectively). This hemodynamic alteration was attributed to the difference in diastolic distensibility (compliance) between the left and right ventricles, and the ratio of right ventricular to left ventricular compliance (defined by dV/dP) near the end-diastolic pressure was estimated to be 6.5 +/- 4.2. It is suspected that the increase in heart rate may contribute to the lowering of pulmonary to systemic flow ratio during exercise in children with atrial septal defect.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Immune status of children on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis.

Immunological parameters including serum IgG, IgA and IgM, lymphocyte phenotypes (CD3, CD4, CD8, HLA-DR+CD3-), natural killer cell activity and lymphocyte proliferation with phytohaemagglutinin were assessed in 10 children on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and 10 control subjects. Live vaccines were injected into 6 of the 10 children on CAPD (4 had a combined measles-mumps-rubella vaccine and the other 2 mumps vaccine). Serum antibody titres to these viruses were measured before and after vaccination. The serum IgG level was statistically lower in the CAPD group than in the control group (P less than 0.01), but there was no difference in the percentage of HLA-DR+CD3- cells and in the ratio of CD4 to CD8 between the two groups. There were no differences in the other parameters between the two groups. All of the 6 vaccinated children seroconverted, and serious side effects were not noted. Our results suggest that children on CAPD have no significant immune impairment.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

The inflammatory cytokines in measles: correlation between serum interferon-gamma levels and lymphocyte subpopulations.

Interleukin-1 (IL-1 beta), tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) and interferon gamma (IFN-gamma) were measured in serum from children with measles using an immunoradiometric assay. The IFN-gamma level was increased in 52 out of 54 patients in the acute phase of measles (less than 7 days of illness), and then declined to an undetectable level in the convalescent phase. Neither IL-1 nor TNF could be detected during the course of the illness. The mean serum IFN-gamma level was at its peak on day 4 and could be detected over a 7-day period after the onset of fever, coinciding with the febrile period (6.9 +/- 1.5 days). In the acute phase, the phytohaemagglutinin responses, absolute number of platelets, total lymphocyte counts, CD3+, CD4+, CD8+ cell counts and the CD4/8 ratio were depressed, while stab cell number and lactate dehydrogenase levels were higher than those in the convalescent phase. Using Spearman rank sum test, the IFN-gamma level was correlated negatively with the peripheral lymphocyte (P less than 0.01), CD3+ (P less than 0.05), CD4+ (P less than 0.05) cell counts and the CD4/8 ratio (P less than 0.05) and correlated positively with the stab cell count (P less than 0.01) but not with any other parameter. When the acute phase findings were compared between 28 complicated and 40 uncomplicated patients, the former were younger (P less than 0.01) and had higher maximum body temperature during the illness (P less than 0.05) than the latter, there was no difference in their IFN-gamma levels. These results show that endogenous IFN-gamma appears in the circulation during the acute febrile phase of measles, but does not contribute directly to any complication of the disease.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1992

Intrasplenic pancreatic pseudocyst: a case report.

An intrasplenic pseudocyst associated with the acute relapsing phase of chronic pancreatitis in a 51-year-old woman is reported, with a review of the Japanese literature. The patient was admitted with a complaint of left lateral and back pain. Abdominal US and CT revealed communicating cysts at the pancreatic tail and the subcapsule of the spleen. A repeat US and CT 1 month after admission demonstrated enlargement of the cyst at the pancreatic tail. ERCP revealed a dilated main pancreatic duct without any definite evidence of stenosis, and direct communication with the cyst at the pancreatic tail. Percutaneous cystography revealed that the subcapsular cyst of the spleen, the cyst of the pancreatic tail, and the main pancreatic duct communicated with each other. The cyst contained serous fluid with an amylase content of 57,500 IU/I. Distal pancreatectomy and splenectomy was performed. Histologically, there was a nonepithelial lining on the inner surface of the cysts at the pancreatic tail and the subcapsule of the spleen. Severe chronic inflammatory changes were present in the resected tail of the pancreas. Timely surgical treatment is advocated to reduce the mortality and morbidity associated with complications of intrasplenic pseudocysts.

Alcoholism↗
PubMed1992

Effects of sublingually administered nifedipine on left ventricular isovolumic relaxation, diastolic filling, and distensibility in patients with chronic coronary artery disease.

The acute effects of nifedipine (20 mg) on left ventricular diastolic function were investigated in 16 patients with chronic coronary artery disease by measuring left ventricular pressure with a manometer-tipped catheter and by measuring volume with cineangiography. Heart rates were maintained by right atrial pacing. Left ventricular peak systolic pressure (-15%; p less than 0.01 vs control) decreased significantly. With afterload reduction, left ventricular ejection fraction (+11%; p less than 0.01) increased. There was no significant change in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure. The diastolic peak filling rate of left ventricular volume significantly increased (+36%; p less than 0.05), whereas the time from end-systole to the peak filling rate remained unchanged. Administration of nifedipine did not improve left ventricular relaxation as assessed by the isovolumic pressure decay. There was also no significant change in the left ventricular diastolic pressure-volume relationship. We conclude that nifedipine improves left ventricular systolic function with afterload reduction but has little or no effect on left ventricular diastolic properties in patients with chronic coronary artery disease.

Administration, Sublingual↗
PubMed1992

Detection of hepatitis C virus RNA in chronic non-A, non-B liver disease.

Serum samples were tested for detection of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA from 156 patients with chronic non-A, non-B liver disease. HCV RNA was detected in 121 (93.8%) of 129 patients positive for anti-C100-3 but was also found in 15 (55.6%) of 27 patients negative for anti-C100-3. The rate of positivity for HCV RNA was not significantly different among various stages of liver diseases. These results showed that HCV continues to replicate even in advanced liver disease and that it seems to be related to half of the cases of chronic non-A, non-B liver disease negative for anti-C100-3.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Anorexia induced by toxohormone-L isolated from ascites fluid of patients with hepatoma.

To ascertain anorexigenic effect of toxohormone-L, a polypeptide extracted and purified from ascites of patients with hepatoma were infused into the rat third cerebroventricle. Food intake decreased on the first day after infusion of an optimum dose of 10.0 micrograms (p less than 0.05). The suppressive effect on feeding was linearly dose dependent (p less than 0.05). Meal size and latency to the first meal decreased in the 12-h dark period, and the first and the second 4-h cumulative blocks after infusion of a 10.0 micrograms dose (p less than 0.01 for each). The suppressive effects on total food intake and meal size were completely recovered within 24 h after infusion. Neither postprandial intermeal interval nor eating speed was affected. Periprandial drinking, a ratio of water intake to food intake, was not affected after infusion of 5.0 and 10.0 micrograms toxohormone-L. Infusion of a 10.0 micrograms dose showed no effect on ambulation. These findings suggest that anorexia and cachexia produced in cancer patients may essentially be due to the suppressive effect of toxohormone-L on food intake.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Production and specificity of antisera raised against 25-hydroxyvitamin D3-[C-3]-bovine serum albumin conjugates.

In order to obtain specific antisera for use in the enzyme immunoassay of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3, three hapten-carrier conjugates having different lengths of bridges at the C-3 position were prepared from 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 by coupling with bovine serum albumin using the active ester method. The specificity of anti-25-hydroxyvitamin D3 antisera elicited in rabbits was tested by a cross-reaction study with closely related secosterols and by measuring the plasma levels of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 by means of radioimmunoassay using tritium-labeled antigen. The results indicated that the specificity of the antisera obtained is higher than that of vitamin D-binding protein, and that some of these antisera are suitable for enzyme immunoassay.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Independent association of antibodies against human papillomavirus type 16 E1/E4 and E7 proteins with cervical cancer.

The E4 open reading frame (ORF) of human papillomaviruses (HPVs) is transcribed in abundant mRNAs encoding an E1/E4 fusion gene during the productive infection, and the HPV 16 E7 ORF encodes an oncoprotein detectable in the cell lines derived from cervical carcinoma. We examined 421 human sera, which included 108 samples from the patients with cervical carcinoma, for the presence of IgG antibodies against the HPV 16 E4 and E7 proteins by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Bacterially expressed fusion protein lac-E1/E4 and nonfusion protein E7 were purified and used as antigens. All of the 22 serum samples positive for anti-E7 antibody and the 11 out of 15 samples positive for anti-E1/E4 antibody were from the patients with cervical carcinoma, but only one sample was found to contain both anti-E1/E4 and anti-E7 antibodies. These findings show specific and independent association of these antibodies with cervical carcinoma.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1992

Vascular supply in adenomatous hyperplasia of the liver and hepatocellular carcinoma: a morphometric study.

Vascular supply of adenomatous hyperplasia (AH) of the liver, a preneoplastic or early neoplastic lesion of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and that of HCC were morphometrically examined. Seventy-three nodules of AH were divided into 43 ordinary and 30 atypical AHs. The latter showed a variety of hepatocellular atypias that were, however, insufficient to make a diagnosis of HCC, while the former lacked such atypias. Arteries were slightly more numerous and portal veins were slightly less frequent in both ordinary and atypical AHs compared with the surrounding liver. In ordinary AHs, cumulative areas of arterial lumen and portovenous lumen were almost equal to or less than those in the surrounding liver in two thirds of our cases. The cumulative area of arterial lumen was equal to, and that of portovenous lumen was less than, the cumulative area in the surrounding liver in the remaining one third of our cases. In a majority of atypical AHs, the cumulative area of arterial lumen was equal to, and that of portovenous lumen was less than, the cumulative area in the surrounding liver. In most HCC nodules, the number and cumulative luminal area of arteries were much more, and those of portal veins were much less, than the number and cumulative area in the surrounding liver. The relative number and cumulative luminal area of abnormal arteries compared with all arteries showed a stepwise increase in the following order: ordinary AH (20.7% and 17.5%), atypical AH (46.8% and 52.5%), and HCC (93.6% and 92.0%). These data suggest that ordinary AH, atypical AH, and HCC are different in vascular supply, and that these differences may reflect sequential changes in the hemodynamic state during hepatocarcinogenesis.

Aged↗
PubMed1992

Enhanced expression of HLA class I by inhibited replication of hepatitis B virus.

HLA class I display on hepatitis B virus (HBV)-infected hepatocytes is important for limiting HBV infection. However, the effect of HBV replication on HLA class I expression on host cells has not been determined. Since acyclovir is known to inhibit HBV replication of the novel cell line HB611, which was transfected with HBV genome using human hepatoblastoma cells as the recipient and continuously replicates HBV DNA, we analyzed HLA class I expression on acyclovir-treated HB611 by quantitative flow cytometry. The results demonstrated that acyclovir treatment clearly increases the level of HLA class I on HB611, and suggested that HBV replication inhibits expression of HLA class I on infected hepatocytes. This effect of HBV replication on the host cell may be a means by which HBV evades immune surveillance to maintain chronic infection.

Acyclovir↗
PubMed1992

Age-related changes in the proportion of amyloid precursor protein mRNAs in Alzheimer's disease and other neurological disorders.

In the human brain, alternative splicing of amyloid precursor protein (APP) gene transcript generates at least three types of mRNA coding for APP770, APP751 and APP695. The former two types harbor, but the latter one lacks a domain of Kunitz-type serine protease inhibitor (KPI). We studied, by using the RNase protection technique, the expression of APP mRNAs in brains of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurological disorders with special reference to aging. We found that the ratio of (APP770 mRNA+APP751 mRNA)/APP695 mRNA in the frontal cortex increased approximately 1.5-fold in AD compared with other neurodegenerative or cerebrovascular disorders. The ratio in other neurological disorders did not change significantly from control even in their affected brain regions. On the other hand, we found a positive correlation between the ratio and age; the ratio (y) increased gradually with the advance of age (x) as expressed by y = 0.005x + 0.014 (r = 0.372) for the AD group, and y = 0.004x -0.037 (r = 0.486) for the non-AD group. These correlations indicate that the AD brain reached the same ratio of KPI-harboring to lacking APP mRNAs a few decades earlier than the non-AD brain in senescence. This finding of AD-specific and age-related change led us to the idea that a relative increase in KPI-harboring APPs over a KPI-lacking APP may perturb normal degradation of APPs, thereby leading to deposition of beta A4 protein as amyloid.

Aging↗
PubMed1992

Monozygotic twins with discordant sex.

A nine-year-old girl with short stature was referred to the department of pediatrics at Kyushu University. The clinical diagnosis was Turner syndrome; karyotypic analysis performed on peripheral blood, using GTG techniques, demonstrated a 45,X/47,XYY (17:83) mosaicism. Her twin brother, a phenotypically normal male, had the same karyotype; 45,X/47,XYY (3:97) on peripheral blood. Their skin fibroblast karyotypes showed the same mosaicism, ie. 45,X/47,XYY (41:59 and 31:69 respectively). On eleven biochemical genetic markers the twin pair were concordant, thus the likelihood of monozygosity was 0.99527034. In addition, the analysis of variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) markers revealed the likelihood of monozygosity to be 0.99944386. The most plausible explanation of the X/XYY mosaicism was nondisjunction of the Y in the first cleavage division of the 46,XY zygote. A disproportionate rate of cell populations with 45,X and 47,XYY in the twinning process of the X/XYY embryo, especially in the germ lines, would result in discordant sex in twin pairs.

Blood Group Antigens↗
PubMed1992

Determination of thiocyanate in human saliva and urine by ion chromatography.

A simple ion-chromatographic method has been developed for the determination of trace amounts of thiocyanate in human saliva and urine. Thiocyanate separation and detection were carried out on an ODS column coated with cetyldimethylamine and by an ultraviolet detector, respectively. Citrate solution (1 mmol l-1) was used as the mobile phase. Thiocyanate was clearly separated from many organic and inorganic anions found in saliva and urine samples. The analytical results obtained by the proposed method agreed with those of the Fe(3+)-thiocyanate spectrophotometric method. Thiocyanate concentrations in the saliva and urine of smokers were found to be significantly higher than those of non-smokers.

Chromatography, Ion Exchange↗