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Biomedical subjects

K Yagi

Publications and source records attributed to K Yagi.

At least 253 records · Page 14Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Recommendation of early surgery from the viewpoint of daily quality of life.

We surveyed pre- and postoperative levels of satisfaction with a range of the daily quality-of-life (QOL) domains in 132 sets of epilepsy surgery patients and their families. All patients underwent resective surgery for temporal lobe epilepsy and were monitored for > 2 years. Patient and family assessments showed patients' overall QOL markedly improves after surgery, depending on freedom from seizures. However, factors such as social contacts, family relations, or financial status improved little. Some families and patients were not satisfied with the postsurgical status, despite freedom from seizures. Patients who had surgery at a later age were not so satisfied with their postsurgical status as were patients who had surgery at a younger age, particularly on the QOL domains of role activities, memory function, leisure activities, or emotional well-being. This lower satisfaction level in older patients likely results from a variety of problems affecting patients during the long-lasting epileptic process; social handicaps, psychologic conflicts, and deterioration of cognitive/behavioral functions. Based on each case, we recommend that investigations start at an early stage of the illness, so that surgical intervention may be considered as early as possible.

Activities of Daily Living↗
PubMed1996

Evolution of Lennox-Gastaut syndrome: a long-term longitudinal study.

In 102 patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) observed for an average of 16 years (range, 10-20 years), 12 of the patients worked normally, 36 worked part-time or at a sheltered workshop, and most of the remaining 54 were under home care or institutionalization. LGS evolved from West syndrome or from unspecified epilepsies, or as the primary form, mostly in childhood and rarely in adolescence or adulthood. At the worst stage, there were diverse types of generalized seizures, slow spike-and-wave EEG complexes, fast rhythms, and multiple spike-and-wave complexes. Mental subnormality progressively worsened. Characteristic symptoms of LGS continued in one third of patients, and various abortive forms of LGS were seen in the other two thirds, although LGS did not evolve into a localization-related epilepsy during the survey period. The evolution of seizure and EEG epileptic discharges suggests that LGS has a characteristic clinical course as it progresses. The persistent generalized tonic seizures of various magnitude over a long time in the vast majority of patients indicate that the brainstem rather than the cortical mantle is involved as the seat of seizure-generating mechanisms in LGS.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Biosynthesis of Poly(3-Hydroxyalkanoic Acid) Copolymer from CO(inf2) in Pseudomonas acidophila through Introduction of the DNA Fragment Responsible for Chemolithoautotrophic Growth of Alcaligenes hydrogenophilus.

Pseudomonas acidophila is a bacterial strain producing a poly(3-hydroxyalkanoic acid) (PHA) copolymer from low-molecular-weight organic compounds such as formate and acetate. The genes responsible for PHA production were cloned in cosmid pIK7 containing a 14.8-kb HindIII fragment of P. acidophila DNA. With the aim of developing a means of producing a PHA copolymer from CO(inf2), cosmid pIK7 was introduced into a polymer-negative mutant of the chemolithoautotrophic bacterium Alcaligenes eutrophus PHB(sup-)4. However, the recombinant strain produced a homopolymer of 3-hydroxybutyric acid (polyhydroxybutyric acid) from CO(inf2). Since it was thought that the composition of the accumulated polymer might depend not on the PHA biosynthetic genes but on the metabolism of the host strain, a recombinant plasmid, pFUS, containing the genes for chemolithoautotrophic growth of the hydrogen-oxidizing bacterium A. hydrogenophilus was introduced into P. acidophila by conjugation. The recombinant plasmid pFUS was stably maintained in P. acidophila in the absence of chemolithoautotrophic or antibiotic selection. This pFUS-harboring strain possessed the ability to grow under a gas mixture of H(inf2), O(inf2), and CO(inf2) in a mineral salts medium, and PHA copolymer accumulation was confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance spectral analysis. A gas chromatogram obtained by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry showed the composition of the polymer to be 52.8% 3-hydroxybutyrate, 41.1% 3-hydroxyoctanoate, and 6.1% 3-hydroxydecanoate. This is the first report of the production of a PHA copolymer from CO(inf2) as sole carbon source.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1996

Analysis of urinary pyridinoline and deoxypyridinoline in patients undergoing long-term anticonvulsant drug therapy.

Urinary pyridinoline and deoxypyridinoline were analyzed in 23 patients undergoing long-term anticonvulsant drug therapy and compared with those in an age-matched control group, which consisted of 218 healthy premenopausal women. Values of urinary pyridinoline and deoxypyridinoline in the patient group were significantly higher than those in the control group. However, mean serum levels of alkaline phosphatase in the patient group were within the control range. Our data demonstrate that bone resorption is accelerated by long-term anticonvulsant drug therapy and there may be an imbalance between bone resorption and bone formation in the patient group.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Alveolar hydatidosis in a gorilla and a ring-tailed lemur in Japan.

Alveolar hydatidosis by Echinococcus multilocularis (Em) infection occurred on a 22-year-old (approx.) male gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) and a 4-year-old female ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) in a zoo, in Hokkaido, Japan. Case 1: The gorilla presented neurologic signs in course of nine months and died. Pathologically, alveolar hydatid lesions were found in the liver, the liver-associated lymph nodes, the cerebrum, and the lungs. A protoscolex was found only in one hepatic cyst. Case 2: In the lemur, large masses of hydatide cysts were found on the liver and at the lung-associated lymph nodes. Cysts contained numerous calcareous corpuscles and protoscolices. The lemur appears a favorable intermediate-host for Em. The identification of Em in both cases were confirmed by PCR.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

[The usefulness of mediastinoscopy for primary lung cancer].

The usefulness of mediastinoscopy for lung cancer was retrospectively evaluated for the aspect of prognosis. The subjects were 421 patients with primary lung cancer except exploratory thoracotomy. In the MD(+) group, there was no difference in prognosis between right and left sided thoracotomies, but in the MD(-) group there was a tendency for poorer prognosis in the left-sided thoracotomy (p < 0.1). In the right-sided thoracotomy, there was no difference of prognosis between the MD(+) group and MD(-) group. On the contrary, in the left-sided thoracotomy there was a statistically better prognosis in the MD(+) group than in the MD(-) group (p < 0.05). In the left-sided thoracotomy group, there was a statistically better prognosis in the MD +) group than in the MD(-) group in the pN 0 or pN 1 group (p < 0.01), but there was no difference of prognosis in the pN 2 group. In lung cancer of the left side, the mediastinal lymph node dissection would be more incomplete because of the presence of the aorta and the mediastinal lymph node metastasis would tend to be missed. Mediastinoscopy gives the right diagnosis of mediastinal lymph node metastasis and an accurate staging of lung cancer. Mediastinoscopy is very useful especially in the left-sided lung cancer.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

[The elevation of serum creatine kinase in the course of Parkinson disease.--in relation to malignant syndrome].

In the long course of Parkinson disease, we encounter the elevation of serum creatine kinase (CK) occasionally. Such elevation was not necessarily accompanied by severe symptoms as malignant syndrome. To delineate the basis of its situation, we selected the patients showing CK-elevation from 697 cases of Parkinson disease who had entered our hospital and their serum CK level had been measured. The cases with common cause of CK-elevation like trauma or myocardial infarction were excluded in advance. Those patients with CK-elevation were investigated with reference to age, gender, severity, duration of illness, dementia, and psychiatric symptoms retrospectively. High CK level was observed in 95 cases who were composed predominantly of advanced male patients. No obvious anticipatory cause of CK-elevation like a modification of anti-parkinson drug was recognized in 65 cases. On the other hand, CK-elevation caused by the modification of anti-parkinson drug was recognized in 10 cases. CK-elevation was observed in patients with dementia, delirium, and hallucination at higher rate. Most of these patients with CK-elevation did not show high fever and did not necessarily meet the criteria of malignant syndrome. However, 9 cases who showed marked increase of CK level over 10 times of upper limit of normal value contained some cases who had features of malignant syndrome. In Parkinson disease, especially in advanced cases dopamine may be unstable controlled in a few locations of their brain. Some situation of the disease may elicit imbalance of dopamine in patients' brain and induce CK elevation as in the similar condition in which neuroleptics are administrated.

Aged↗
PubMed1996

[The clinical significance of minimal residual disease of acute leukemia with t(4;11) (q21;q23)].

Hybrid fusion genes are specific tumor markers of several leukemic subtypes. The use of reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to amplify chimeric cDNAs allows sensitive detection of the leukemia clone. The clinical relevance of minimal residual disease (MRD) remains controversial. In this report, an infantile acute lymphoblastic leukemia with t(4;11) (q21; q23) was analyzed after each treatment for the presence of MRD by RT-PCR amplification of the MLL/LTG4 fusion gene which became available recently. The patient soon achieved a hematological CR, after induction therapy, and underwent autologous BMT following consolidation chemotherapy for 9 months. However, he relapsed three months after the BMT. MRD was always detectable during his clinical course. These findings suggest that the detection of MRD of the MLL/LTG4 fusion transcript is a useful tool for monitoring MRD and selecting treatment.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1996

[Acute thrombocytopenic purpura following rubella vaccination].

A case of acute thrombocytopenic purpura following rubella vaccination is reported. A 3-year-old boy developed purpura on the 22nd days after rubella vaccination. His platelet count was 34 x 10(3)/microliter. Platelet-associated IgG was elevated, but the amount of megakaryocytes in bone marrow aspirates was within the normal range, suggesting immune mechanism-associated thrombocytopenia. He recovered spontaneously within one month. Thrombocytopenic purpura is a well-documented complication of natural rubella infection. Attention should be paid rubella vaccination-associated thrombocytopenia, though it seems to be less frequent than after natural infections.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1996

Analysis of c-Ki-ras oncogene and p53 immunocytochemistry in the gallbladder mucosa of an experimental dog model of anomalous arrangement of the pancreaticobiliary ducts.

Anomalous arrangement of the pancreaticobiliary ducts is a congenital condition which predisposes the affected person to biliary tract carcinoma. We developed an experimental dog model of anomalous arrangement of the pancreaticobiliary ducts to investigate the mechanism of carcinogenesis in this condition. We used this model to analyze point mutations in the c-Ki-ras gene, and to assess the expression of mutant p53 protein in the gallbladder mucosa. The histopathological appearance of the gallbladder mucosa was also examined. Glandular structures were seen in four of seven (57%) gallbladders examined 14 months after the surgical creation of an anastomosis between the gallbladder and the pancreatic duct. Goblet cells were seen in two of seven gallbladders (29%). However, dot-blot hybridization and immunohistochemical study did not reveal any mutations in the c-Ki-ras gene, or any over-expression of the p53 protein in the specimens. These results show that the gallbladder mucosa is damaged by refluxing pancreatic juice in this dog model of anomalous arrangement of the pancreaticobiliary ducts, but that severe damage may be necessary to induce mutations in the c-Ki-ras proto-oncogene, or in the p53 gene.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Construction and characterization of adenoviral vector expressing biologically active brain-derived neurotrophic factor.

To deliver brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) to the central nervous system, we sought to attain adenovirus-mediated transfer and expression of the gene in both in vitro and in vivo experiments. For this purpose, we constructed AxCA-BDNF, a recombinant adenoviral vector containing the BDNF cDNA expression cassette. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction analyses of the infected HeLa cells and the transduced mouse brain revealed successful expression of the BDNF gene both in vitro and in vivo. The results of a survival assay of chick dorsal root ganglion cells showed that the produced BDNF was biologically active. We consider, therefore, this newly constructed recombinant adenovirus to be a useful tool to deliver BDNF to degenerating neurons and to be applicable to gene therapy of neurodegenerative diseases and nerve trauma.

Adenoviridae↗
PubMed1995

Clinical efficacy of fluvastatin in the long-term treatment of familial hypercholesterolemia.

The long-term clinical efficacy of fluvastatin was assessed in 24 patients with familial hypercholesterolemia over a total treatment period of 104 weeks. Patients received an initial fluvastatin dose of 20 mg/day for 8 weeks, which was increased to 30 mg/day for a further 16 weeks. From week 24, if serum total cholesterol remained > or = 230 mg/dL, the fluvastatin dose could be increased to 40 or 60 mg/day, as necessary. By the end of treatment, 4 patients were receiving 30 mg/day fluvastatin, 1 patient was receiving 40 mg/day, and 19 patients were receiving 60 mg/day. Serum total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels showed a significant decrease from baseline at week 104 (total cholesterol, -26.8 +/- 2.4%; LDL-C, -33.1 +/- 3.3%; p < 0.001). The reductions in total cholesterol and LDL-C were dose-related. Statistically significant (p < 0.05) increases in serum high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were observed at week 24 (12.1 +/- 5.0%) and at week 76 (11.0 +/- 3.3%), although the effect was variable. Nevertherless, at the end of treatment the LDL-C: HDL-C ratio showed a 35% reduction from baseline. Changes in triglyceride levels failed to achieve statistical significance, with a reduction from baseline of -13.9 +/- 7.3% at week 104. Changes in apolipoprotein A-I were variable, with statistically significant (p < 0.01) increases observed at week 24 (7.6 +/- 2.3%) and week 76 (8.4 +/- 2.7%). By contrast, a significant reduction from baseline in apolipoprotein B was achieved by week 12 (-15.0 +/- 2.3%; p < 0.001) and was maintained throughout the study.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Cationic multilamellar liposome-mediated gene transfer into primary myoblasts.

To transfer foreign genes into myoblasts in primary culture, we found cationic multilamellar liposomes to be a useful mediator. When the cells were transfected with 2 micrograms of the plasmid pRSV-luc encapsulated into 50 nmol of our cationic multilamellar liposomes that had been prepared from N-(alpha-trimethylammonioacetyl)-didodecyl-D-glutamate chloride, dilauroyl phosphatidylcholine, and dioleoyl phosphatidylethanolamine in a molar ratio of 1:2:2, luciferase was expressed with high efficiency without cytotoxicity. When the cells were transfected with the plasmid pRSV-lacZ encapsulated into the same liposomes, 0.7% of the cultured myoblasts expressed beta-galactosidase without cytotoxicity. This is the first successful instance of introducing foreign genes into primary cultures of myoblasts by means of liposomes.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Reciprocal regulation of prothrombin secretion and tyrosine aminotransferase induction in hepatocytes.

Multicellular spheroids of hepatocytes are known to maintain liver functions for a long period. Rat hepatocytes were isolated to form spheroids by rotation culture and immobilized within calcium alginate. Immobilized spheroids had a much higher extent of tyrosine aminotransferase induction, which is one of the liver-specific differentiated functions, than immobilized non-aggregated cells, while the spheroids secreted significantly less prothrombin than non-aggregated cells. Co-culture of hepatocytes and non-parenchymal liver cells in a monolayer enhanced tyrosine aminotransferase induction and suppressed prothrombin secretion, while conditioned medium prepared from non-parenchymal cells greatly stimulated tyrosine aminotransferase induction and suppressed the prothrombin secretion and DNA synthesis in monolayer-cultured hepatocytes. Prothrombin secretion in hepatocytes was subjected to cell-density-dependent regulation. In a similar manner to other growth-related functions, prothrombin secretion was stimulated at low cell density. It has been reported that thrombin activates the zymogen of hepatocyte growth factor activator [Shimomura, T., Kondo, J., Ochiai, M., Naka, D., Miyazawa, K., Morimoto, Y. & Kitamura, N. (1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268, 22,927-22,932]. Therefore, prothrombin secretion could be one of the growth-related functions and involved in wound healing and liver regeneration.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Conservative management of idiopathic pneumoperitoneum masquerading as peritonitis: report of a case.

Pneumoperitoneum is most commonly caused by the perforation of a hollow viscus, in which case an emergency laparotomy is indicated. We report herein the case of a patient who presented with the signs and symptoms of peritonitis, but who was found to have idiopathic pneumoperitoneum which was successfully managed by conservative treatment. A 70-year-old man presented with epigastric pain, nausea, and a severely distended and tympanitic abdomen. Abdominal examination revealed diffuse tenderness with guarding, but no rebound tenderness. He was febrile with leukocytosis and high C-reactive protein. Chest X-ray and abdominal computed tomography demonstrated a massive pneumoperitoneum without pneumothorax, pneumomediastinum, pneumoretroperitoneum, or subcutaneous emphysema, and subsequent examinations failed to demonstrate perforation of a hollow viscus. Thus, a diagnosis of idiopathic pneumoperitoneum was made, and the patient was managed conservatively, which resulted in a successful outcome. This experience and a review of the literature suggest that idiopathic pneumoperitoneum is amenable to conservative management, even when the signs and symptoms of peritonitis are present.

Aged↗