Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

K Yasui

Publications and source records attributed to K Yasui.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources

Specific tropism of Japanese encephalitis virus for developing neurons in primary rat brain culture.

Among all the neural cells in fetal rat brain culture developing neurons showed the highest rate of infection by Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). JEV specifically bound to these cells as measured by immuno-staining. These results indicate that developing neurons are the major target of JEV, and that the initial specific binding of virus to these cells may be one of the reasons for the neurotropism of JEV.

Animals↗

Improvement of neutropenia and neutrophil dysfunction by granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in a patient with glycogen storage disease type Ib.

Patients with glycogen storage disease type Ib (GSD Ib) suffer from recurrent bacterial infections due to neutropenia and neutrophil dysfunction. To improve the quality of life in a 9-year-old boy with GSD Ib, we subcutaneously administered recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF). Daily injections of 100 micrograms/m2 of G-CSF significantly increased absolute neutrophil counts and augmented neutrophil mobility. The patient was then treated with 70 and 100 micrograms/m2 of G-CSF daily and twice-weekly. The treatment maintained absolute neutrophil counts at significantly higher levels than those without treatment for 22 months and markedly decreased the frequency of infections and the necessity for hospitalisation. Weekly injections of 70 micrograms/m2 of G-CSF were less efficient. No adverse effects were observed during treatment. These findings indicate that daily and twice-weekly treatment with G-CSF of long duration are safe and effective for patients with GSD Ib. G-CSF may be a useful therapeutic agent in patients with neutrophilic impairment as a consequence of a metabolic disorder.

Cell Movement↗

Platelet cyclic GMP. A potentially useful indicator to evaluate the effects of nitroglycerin and nitrate tolerance.

BACKGROUND: The present study was designed to investigate the intracellular production of cyclic GMP (cGMP) in platelets in response to nitroglycerin and to determine the potential clinical value of platelet cGMP as an indicator of the effects of nitroglycerin and nitrate tolerance. METHODS AND RESULTS: Platelet cGMP levels and the diameters of the coronary arteries before and 2 minutes after intracoronary injection of 200 micrograms nitroglycerin were measured in 15 patients who had previously received nitrates (nitrates group) and in 16 who had not received any nitrates (no-nitrates group). Platelet cGMP levels increased significantly after nitroglycerin injection in the two groups, but plasma cGMP levels and plasma atrial natriuretic peptide levels did not change. The percent increase in platelet cGMP levels and the percent dilatation of the left anterior descending (LAD) and left circumflex (LCx) coronary arteries after nitroglycerin injection were higher in the no-nitrates group than in the nitrates group (platelet cGMP levels: artery, 74.2 +/- 18.3% versus 11.5 +/- 4.2%, P < .01; vein, 73.6 +/- 22.9% versus 9.0 +/- 3.1%, P < .01; coronary dilatation: LAD, 46.7 +/- 6.0% versus 9.9 +/- 2.5%, P < .01, LCx, 51.2 +/- 8.7% versus 6.1 +/- 3.0%, P < .01). The percent increase in platelet cGMP levels was significantly correlated with the percent dilatation of the coronary arteries (LAD: r = .90, P < .01; LCx: r = .92, P < .01) in the no-nitrates group and not in the nitrates group. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that platelet cGMP can be used as an indicator for in situ evaluation of nitroglycerin effects and that patients who have received nitrates develop nitrate tolerance, which affects intracellular production of cGMP and vasodilation in the response to nitroglycerin.

Atrial Natriuretic Factor↗

Synthesis of manool-related labdane diterpenes as platelet aggregation inhibitors.

Enantioselective total synthesis of the labdane diterpene (-)-1, was achieved starting from the R-(-)-enantiomer of the Wieland-Miescher ketone. The enantiomer (+)-1 was obtained by partial synthesis via microbial transformation of sclareol. These results established that the natural compound (+)-1, a platelet aggregation inhibitor, has a normal absolute stereochemistry like that of manool. The B-norlabdane-related compound 44 was also synthesized using a novel ring contraction reaction.

Crystallography, X-Ray↗

Cryoprotective effect of gelatin and albumin on recombinant human tumor necrosis factor liposome.

A search for a cryoprotective agent of a liposome containing recombinant human tumor necrosis factor (rHuTNF) was undertaken. Various additives were added and liposomes were freeze-thawed. As a result of these studies, albumin and gelatin were found to suppress the leakage of rHuTNF from liposome. This cryoprotective effect was only observed when the additives were added to the inside of the liposomal membrane; their addition to the outside of the membrane stimulated the leakage. This characteristic was clearly different from well-known cryoprotective agents, such as saccharides which have the cryoprotective effect on both sides of the liposomal membrane. Although this cryoprotective effect was also observed for recombinant human interleukin-1 alpha (rHuIL-1 alpha), it was not observed for fluorescein sodium. These effects of gelatin and albumin were restricted to macromolecular proteins such as rHuTNF and rHuIL-1 alpha, but both substances were very effective cryoprotectants for a liposome containing protein.

Albumins↗

Safety and efficacy of amlodipine. A new once-daily calcium antagonist in non-hypertensive patients with coronary artery disease.

To analyze the effects of the treatment of 5 mg amlodipine on blood pressure and heart rate with a 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring device and to evaluate its antiischemic efficacy using treadmill exercise testing, 7 non-hypertensive patients with coronary artery disease were studied. The systolic and diastolic blood pressure and heart rate recorded over the entire day and during daytime did not change significantly after the treatment. On the other hand, the systolic blood pressure decreased significantly at night (122 +/- 19-->113 +/- 17 mmHg, p < 0.05) after treatment, but the change can be considered to be within the physiological range. Exercise duration increased significantly after the administration of amlodipine (9.7 +/- 4.8-->11.1 +/- 4.9 min, p < 0.05). Systolic blood pressure, heart rate and rate-pressure product decreased significantly and in addition, ST segment depression was significantly less marked (-0.25 +/- 0.09-->-0.21 +/- 0.09 mV, p < 0.05) after treatment, when compared at the same level of work load. Therefore, the new once-daily calcium antagonist amlodipine is safe and efficacious in non-hypertensive patients with coronary artery disease.

Amlodipine↗

[A case of lung adenocarcinoma with high CT number, high calcium concentration but no calcification].

A 36-year-old woman with lung adenocarcinoma is reported. Chest X-ray film showed a high CT number, but no calcified lesion was detected. Histologic examination demonstrated no bone formation, calcification, or psammoma bodies. Calcium staining with Kossa method was negative. An elementary analysis with penetrating type electron microscopy and energy dispersion type analyzer showed high calcium concentration in the tumor. It was thought that the tumor showed a high CT number because of masked soluble calcium.

Adenocarcinoma↗

[Hepatic arteriography under temporary hepatic venous occlusion].

Hepatic arteriography with and without temporary segmental hepatic vein occlusion was performed in 10 patients, five of whom had chronic liver injury. Hepatic arteriograms obtained during hepatic venous obstruction demonstrated significantly more peripheral and definite arterial branches in the occluded area and fewer peripheral branches in the non-occluded segment. A prolonged, dense hepatogram (sinusoidogram) showing hepatofugal opacification of the portal vein was obtained in the occluded area. Only one case with a large veno-venous anastomosis did not show these findings. Hepatic arteriograms in two cases with hepatocellular carcinoma provided clear visualization of peripheral portal branches that could act as efferent tumor vessels during regional temporary hepatic vein occlusion. Temporary hepatic venous occlusion may cause a sudden increase of hepatic arterial flow in the occluded area and transsinusoidal arterioportal communication there. This method can be useful for the diagnosis and arterial infusion or embolization therapy of hepatic diseases.

Adult↗

CAP-50, a newly identified annexin, localizes in nuclei of cultured fibroblast 3Y1 cells.

A 50-kDa protein, which binds to the growth-regulated gene (2A9) product, calcyclin in a calcium-dependent manner, was purified from bovine lung. Partial amino acid sequencing of the protein revealed it to be the bovine equivalent of rabbit lung CAP-50 (calcyclin-associated protein, 50 kDa), which is a member of the annexin family and binds to calcyclin in a calcium-dependent manner. Specific polyclonal antibodies to bovine lung CAP-50 were prepared. Comparative studies between CAP-50 and synexin (annexin VII) on the immunoreactivity against anti-CAP-50 antibodies and the ability of binding to calcyclin revealed that CAP-50 was a distinct molecule from synexin. Using specific polyclonal antibodies to bovine lung CAP-50, tissue distribution and subcellular distribution of CAP-50 were investigated. In most rat tissues, except those in the central nervous systems and kidney, CAP-50 is expressed at a high or moderate level. Both studies by subcellular fractionation and by indirect immunofluorescence staining of the rat embryonic fibroblast cell line, 3Y1, revealed that CAP-50 mainly localized in nuclei. Moreover, between the cells at interphase and at mitotic phase, different distributions of CAP-50 were observed. That is, in the cells at interphase, CAP-50 seemed to localize throughout the nucleoplasm. On the other hand, in the cells during mitosis, CAP-50 was concentrated at the loop-like structure around the mitotic apparatus. CAP-50 was found in isolated 3Y1 nuclei lacking outer nuclear membranes, and approximately 50% of CAP-50 was extracted from the nuclei by chelating calcium. Thus, CAP-50, a unique annexin, localizes in nuclei.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Lipopolysaccharide and serum cause the translocation of G-protein to the membrane and prime neutrophils via CD14.

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) in combination with human serum, in the absence of a second stimulus, causes an increase in the amount of the alpha -subunit (Gi alpha 2) of the guanine nucleotide binding protein Gi2 associated with the membrane. The LPS-serum complex also primes human neutrophils for O2- production in response to stimulation by the chemotactic factor fMet-Leu-Phe. Added serum factor is essential for priming at low concentrations of LPS. In the presence of serum, significant potentiation can be observed at LPS concentration as low as 0.1 ng/ml. The priming is dose and time dependent. Furthermore, the observed actions of the LPS-serum complex are not reversible since they cannot be overcome by washing. Monoclonal antibody against CD14 inhibits both the direct and priming actions of the LPS-serum complex. On the other hand, neither the antibody against CD11b nor the antibody against TNF-alpha inhibits the action of this complex.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Embryonic development of the house shrew (Suncus murinus). I. Embryos at stages 9 and 10 with 1 to 12 pairs of somites.

The embryonic development during the period from 1 to 12 pairs of somites was observed in an insectivore species, the house shrew (Suncus murinus), which has been bred within a closed colony. Embryos were staged by the number of somite pairs. Each stage was punctuated at every addition of three pairs of somites and numbered after the Carnegie system. The first somite became apparent between 8 and 9.0 days after fertilization, and the 12th somite appeared between 9.5 and 10.0 days. The rate of somite formation was one pair in every 3-4 h on average. The embryonic events during this period were as follows: 1. From the beginning of stage 9, the embryonic body consistently displayed a kyphosis, and as development progressed, the caudal portion of the embryo spiralled clockwise. 2. The first and second pharyngeal arches formed; their development was precocious among mammalian embryos in relation to somitic count. 3. The segmental pattern of the neural fold was similar to that of laboratory rodents and primates. The first fusion of the cranial neural folds took place in the occipital somite region, the second fusion in the diencephalic region, and the third at the end of the neural plate, thus leaving two neuropores in the cephalic region. 4. The timing of appearance of the optic sulcus was similar to that of human embryos but was delayed in comparison with that of laboratory rodents. 5. The heart always showed a more advanced state than that of other mammalian embryos. From the beginning of stage 9, an unpaired endocardial tube was seen in the bulbo-ventricular region, and deflection from a symmetrical appearance soon took place. 6. The differentiation of foregut was also precocious, and the thyroid and respiratory primordia appeared earlier than in other mammals. The present study emphasizes that there are considerable variations in timing and manner of morphogenesis among early mammalian embryos.

Animals↗

Hepatic resection for metastatic squamous cell carcinoma from the uterine cervix.

A solitary hepatic tumor was diagnosed 3.5 years after a 67-year-old woman had undergone radical hysterectomy and postoperative irradiation for stage Ib squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix. Hepatic resection confirmed squamous cell carcinoma that had metastasized from the uterine cervix. One year and 10 months following hepatic resection, this patient is doing well with no evidence of any recurrence. This is a report of successful hepatic resection for metastatic carcinoma from the uterine cervix.

Aged↗

Mechanism of the protective immunity against murine typhoid: persistence of Salmonella L forms in the liver after immunization with live-cell vaccines.

Live-cell vaccines of Salmonella typhimurium, either a sub-lethal dose of a wild-type (strain LT2) or a high dose of its two-heptose Rd1 mutant (strain SL1004), induced acquired resistance to murine typhoid, which remained 180 days after immunization. Growth of S. typhimurium as a bacillary form ceased between days 30 and 60 of immunization, but L forms of this bacterium colonized the liver (the mean number of L forms in the liver: 600 L-forming units) even at 180 days post-immunization. In contrast, a high inoculum of either a Ra mutant (strain TV148) of strain LT2 or S. schottmülleri 8006 sharing the same O antigenic components with those of S. typhimurium induced only a short-lived protection in proportion to the number of L forms in the liver, and the protective immunity was lost before day 180. However, there was no significant difference in the salmonella-specific T-cell responses among groups of immunized mice on day 180 of immunization. A lethal infection with strain LT2 in mice which had been immunized 75 days previously with living cells of strain SL1004 resulted in a rapid clearance of the challenge inoculum, together with a rapid elevation of anti-S. typhimurium antibody responses. Thus, the present data suggest that the long-lived immunity conferred upon live S. typhimurium vaccines is attributable to the colonization of this bacterium in the liver as L forms and the ability to colonize the liver as L forms is independent of the chain length of salmonella O-antigens.

Animals↗

A tiaramide derivative, 5-chloro-3-(4-hydroxypiperadinocarbonylmethyl)benzothiazoline-2-one (HPR-611), a potent inhibitor of anaphylactic chemical mediator release--a distinctive feature from disodium cromoglycate.

Effects of a tiaramide derivative, 5-chloro-3-(4-hydroxypiperadinocarbonylmethyl)benzothiazoline++ +-2-one (HPR-611), on anaphylactic chemical mediator release from rat peritoneal exudate cells (RPEC), guinea pig lung fragments (GPLF) and human lung fragments (HLF) were investigated in comparison with those of tiaramide and disodium cromoglycate (DSCG). HPR-611 at 10(-6) - 10(-4) g/ml showed a concentration-dependent inhibition of the histamine release from RPEC regardless of its pretreatment time. Tiaramide also inhibited the release with slightly less potency than HPR-611. The treatment of DSCG 1 min before antigen challenge markedly prevented the release but the inhibitory potency was clearly deteriorated by prolongation of the pretreatment time. Tiaramide tended to influence the anaphylactic release of histamine from GPLF with only 20% inhibition of the release at either 10(-5) or 10(-4) g/ml, whereas HPR-611 at 10(-5) and 10(-4) g/ml significantly suppressed the release in a concentration-dependent fashion. DSCG was not effective on that even at higher concentrations. Anaphylactic release of not only histamine but also immunoreactive leukotriene B4 (i-LTB4) and i-LTC4 from HLF was markedly inhibited by 10(-8) - 10(-4) g/ml of HPR-611. Tiaramide inhibited the release to a somewhat less extent than HPR-611, while nominal or no inhibitions by DSCG were found. From these results, it is clearly apparent that anti-allergic actions of HPR-611 are quite different from those of DSCG.

Animals↗

Effect of AS-35 on agonist-induced contractions and the resting tonus of airway smooth muscles and the in vitro release of chemical mediators from passively sensitized lung fragments from humans and guinea pigs.

Effects of 9-[(4-acetyl-3-hydroxy-2-n-propylphenoxy)methyl]-3-(1H-tetrazol -5-yl)-4H-pyrido[1,2-alpha]pyrimidin-4-one (AS-35) on the resting tonus or contractions induced by agonists, such as leukotriene (LT) D4 and specific antigen of isolated guinea pig tracheas or human bronchi, and the in vitro anaphylactic release of histamine and LTs from human lung fragments were investigated and compared with the effects of FPL 55712 and disodium cromoglycate. AS-35 as well as FPL 55712 did not affect the contractions induced by acetylcholine and histamine of the isolated guinea pig trachea. However, the compound at relatively low concentrations obviously inhibited contractions induced by LTD4, and the antagonistic activity was stronger than that of FPL 55712. Treatment of the isolated human bronchus with AS-35 tended to induce the inhibition of both LTD4- and antigen-induced contractions and the relaxation of the resting tonus in a concentration-dependent manner. The inhibitory potency at 10(-6) g/ml was slightly stronger than that of FPL 55712, but this was not statistically significant. The anaphylactic release of histamine and LTs from the lung fragments appeared to be inhibited by the treatment with AS-35 5 min prior to the antigen challenge. From these results, it is suggested that AS-35 is effective against allergic asthma through antagonism towards peptide-LTs released anaphylactically in addition to inhibition of the chemical mediator release.

Animals↗

Significant role of peptide leukotrienes (p-LTs) in the antigen-induced contractions of human and guinea pig lung parenchymas and bronchi or tracheas in vitro.

Chemical mediators responsible for the antigen-induced contractions of isolated, passively sensitized human and guinea pig lung parenchymas and bronchi or tracheas were evaluated by several antagonists and enzyme inhibitors, with emphasis on the effects of the potent and selective peptide leukotriene (p-LT) antagonist MCI-826. All of these preparations showed long-lasting contractions in response to an antigen challenge which lasted for more than 60 min. In either the human lung parenchyma and brochus or guinea pig lung parenchyma, pretreatment with 10(6) g/ml (2.4 x 10)-6) M) MCI-826 significantly inhibited the late phase at 10 to 60 min after the challenge of the contraction following slight suppression of the early phase. The early phase contractions of these preparations were moderately antagonized by 10(-6) g/ml mepyramine, but the late phases were not influenced or even rather enhanced. The combination treatment of MCI-826 with mepyramine additionally and markedly inhibited both phases of these preparations. On the other hand, although mepyramine apparently inhibited the early phase of the guinea pig tracheal contraction but not the late phase, no synergistic inhibitions of the contraction were observed when it was combined with MCI-826. The p-LT antagonist FPL 55712, atropine and indomethacin at 10(-6) g/ml either slightly inhibited or enhanced the contractions of human lung parenchymas, guinea pig tracheas and lung parenchymas, but the effects were not significant. From these results, it should be emphasized that p-LTs largely contribute to induction of the anaphylactic contractions of human lung parenchymas as well as human bronchi and guinea pig lung parenchymas but not guinea pig tracheas.

Animals↗