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Biomedical subjects

M Miyao

Publications and source records attributed to M Miyao.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Visual accommodation and subject performance during a stereographic object task using liquid crystal shutters.

Virtual reality has become popular in a variety of fields. Three experiments to study visual accommodation and task performance during stereographic vision were carried out in order to better understand the human response to virtual reality. Visual accommodation to stereograms on CRT was studied. Subjects could see the target on the CRT display binocularly through liquid crystal shutters. Accommodation to a stereogram with step changes in distance was tested first. As the second experiment, accommodation to a stereogram with gradual changes in distance, and comparison of ability to perform a colour photograph stereogram task were tested. Finally, accommodation and subject performance during a prolonged stereographic object task were observed for 30 min. A virtual 'gate' was formed at a position 1.2m from the subject. The virtual target moved forward and backward through this gate between the positions of 0.8m and 2.0m. The subjects were asked to focus on the target and press a button as it moved through the virtual gate. Subjective response to the task and the error between the position where the button was pressed and the gate was recorded. It was concluded that there are some people who exhibit large changes in accommodation while performing a stereographic task. There is a tendency to accommodate to a distance nearer than the baseline. Prolonged stereoscopic viewing caused visual fatigue or loss of accommodation and diminished task performance.

Accommodation, Ocular↗
PubMed1996

[A case of abnormal hemoglobin (HbJ Cape Town) with high serum levels of HbAlc].

We describe a case of hemoglobinopathy detected on admission for examination for high blood glucose levels and abnormal liver function. In 1991, it was pointed out that he had postprandial hyperglycemia. In 1994, at age 60, he had lassitude and anorexia. He was admitted to our hospital on the suspicion of diabetes mellitus and liver disease. Glycosylated hemoglobin levels was very high, but the 75 gram oral glucose tolerance test result was within the normal range. After abstinence from alcohol, his glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, glutamic pyruvic transaminase and gamma glutamyl traspeptidase became normal. Diabetes was excluded and abnormal hemoglobinopathy had been suspected. We analyzed his abnormal hemoglobin. In isoelectro-phoresis a fast moving variant was detected suggesting the presence of abnormal hemoglobin at the cathode. We fractionated hemolytic globin by CM-chromatography and detected an abnormal peak before the alpha chain band. Subsequently, we sequenced isolated abnormal alpha chain and detected the substitution of Ariginine for Glutamamine at position 92 (Hb J Cape Town). So far he has not demonstrated any symptoms or signs of HbJ Cape Town. Hemoglobinopathy is not uncommon in aged people.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1996

[Hypersensitivity in the pupil dilation response to a cholinergic antagonist in patients with Alzheimer's disease and Down's syndrome].

In 1994, Scinto et al. reported hypersensitivity in the pupil-dilation response to topical application of a cholinergic antagonist, tropicamide, in patients with Alzheimer-type dementia. Similar tests on Japanese subjects showed significant differences in pupil response between subjects with Alzheimer-type dementia (under age 70 years) and age-matched controls. The present study included 24 patients with early-onset Alzheimer-type dementia, 29 patients with late-onset Alzheimer-type dementia, 15 healthy controls (all spouse of patients with Alzheimer-type dementia), 9 patients with vascular dementia and 5 patients with Down's syndrome. After adapting to semi-darkness (10 lux), a solution of tropicamide (Midrin-P, Santen Co, Ltd) was instilled into the right eye. Pupil diameters were measured every 5 to 10 min, and the maximum pupil diameter for each eye was used in the data analysis. The solution was diluted until the tropicamide concentration reached 0.01%. Pupil diameters were measured, and differences between baseline and maximum pupil diameter were computed. Among 18 patients with early-onset Alzheimer-type dementia (mean age 63.9 years) the pupils dilated by 1.12 +/- 0.52 mm (mean +/- SD) as compared with 0.20 +/- 0.75 mm in 7 age-matched controls (mean age 57.8 years); this difference was significant (T-test, p < 0.05). Correlations between the degrees of pupillary dilation and the scores on the revised version of Hasegawa's Dementia Scale were not significant. These data suggest that in subjects under 70 years of age, the diagnostic methods described by Scinto et al. can be used to distinguish those with Alzheimer-type dementia from those without dementia, but those methods may not be effective in subjects over 70 years of age.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Specific degradation of the D1 protein of photosystem II by treatment with hydrogen peroxide in darkness: implications for the mechanism of degradation of the D1 protein under illumination.

The D1 protein of the photosystem II (PSII) reaction center has a rapid turnover and is specifically degraded under illumination in vivo. When isolated PSII membranes were treated in darkness with 10 mM hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), an active form of oxygen that is generated at the acceptor side of PSII under illumination, proteins of the PSII reaction center were specifically damaged in almost the same way as observed under illumination with strong light. The D1 protein and, to a lesser extent, the D2 protein were degraded to specific fragments, and cross-linked products (the covalently linked adduct of the D1 protein and the alpha subunit of cytochrome b559 and the heterodimer of the D1 and D2 proteins) were generated concomitantly. The site of cleavage of the D1 protein that gave rise to a major fragment of 22 kDa was located in the loop that connects membrane-spanning helixes IV and V. Treatment with H2O2 caused the same damage to proteins in isolated thylakoids and in core complexes that contained the non-heme iron at the acceptor side, but not in isolated reaction centers depleted of the iron. From these observations and the effects of reagents that are known to interact with the non-heme iron, it is suggested that the damage to proteins is caused by oxygen radicals generated by the non-heme iron in the Fe(II) state in a reaction with H2O2. It is proposed, moreover, that a similar mechanism is operative during the selective and specific degradation of the D1 protein under illumination.

Chloroplasts↗
PubMed1995

Cardiac implications of the morning surge in blood pressure in elderly hypertensive patients: relation to arising time.

Although morning surge in blood pressure has been shown to be associated with the occurrence of myocardial ischemic events and stroke, few studies have been done regarding its pathogenesis, probably because of a lack of method for the quantitative assessment of awakening time. We conducted an echocardiographic study and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring in 23 elderly hypertensive patients to evaluate the relationship between the hypertensive cardiac change and morning surge in blood pressure. Of note was that the time of arising from bed was assessed quantitatively by an activetracer equipped with an internal acceleration sensor to monitor the physical activity. The change in systolic blood pressure after arising from bed was correlated significantly with the left ventricular mass index (r = 0.51, P < .02) and the A/E ratio, which represents the diastolic function (r = 0.70, P < .01). In contrast, the change in systolic blood pressure before rising from bed was not correlated with any echocardiographic parameters. We conclude that the magnitude of morning surge in blood pressure after arising from bed was related with the severity of hypertensive target organ damage.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

Overhead work and shoulder-neck pain in orchard farmers harvesting pears and apples.

The effects of overhead work were studied by comparing orchard farmers' musculoskeletal symptoms while bagging pears with those same symptoms while bagging apples. The subjects were 52 Japanese female farmers, who were examined twice an evening in late June for bagging pears, and during another evening of late July for bagging apples, when each task had been almost finished. They were questioned about musculoskeletal complaints of stiffness and pain during each job, and examined for muscle tenderness and pain from joint movement. Arm elevation angles during the work were measured for each type of bagging. The prevalence of stiffness and pain in the neck and shoulder, muscle tenderness in the shoulder regions, and pain in neck motion were found to be significantly higher when bagging pears than apples. Musculoskeletal symptoms of parts other than the neck and shoulder did not differ between the two types of bagging. The working posture of elevating the arm more than 90 degrees was assumed to account for 75% of the time bagging pears, against 40% for bagging apples. Overhead work requiring arm elevation and head extension was considered to be closely related with shoulder-neck disorders among farmers.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma: analysis of prognostic factors in transcatheter management.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the effect of transcatheter management of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) on survival. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective trial of transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) was performed in patients with unresectable HCC. Three hundred twenty-two patients (265 men, 57 women; age range, 30-83 years) underwent TAE alone: 60 patients underwent TAE with gelatin sponge (GS) that contained anticancer agents (protocol 1); 78, TAE with GS and iodized oil mixed with anticancer agents (protocol 2); and 159, TAE with iodized oil with anticancer agents (protocol 3). A Cox proportional hazard model was used to analyze prognostic factors. RESULTS: In the randomized group (n = 272), survival rates for protocols 1, 2, and 3 were 80.4%, 86.3%, and 65.9%, respectively, at 1 year. Findings of analysis of prognostic factors showed that extrahepatic metastases, ascites, tumor extension, and icterus were the important factors. CONCLUSION: TAE with GS was superior to TAE without GS. Patient characteristics were important factors for survival.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Occupational allergy to adult chironomid midges among environmental researchers.

A case of occupational allergy to chironomid midges in research work is described. A researcher was exposed to adult chironomid midges during his research and developed allergic rhinitis after 10 years of such exposure. Using the midge extract of adult Chironomus plumosus (CP) (Linnaeus, 1758), both immediate skin test and the ophthalmic challenge test gave positive results. IgE antibody against adult CP was also demonstrated by the radioallergosorbent test. Four of the five serum samples of the environmental researcher examined showed a positive radioallergosorbent test to at least one of the adult midges breeding around eutrophic Japanese lakes. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay inhibition test and immunoblot experiments indicated that the remaining hemoglobin is one of the major allergens of adult CP. These results demonstrate that the exposure to adult chironomid midges is an important occupational hazard among environmental researchers.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

A matched-pair longitudinal study on the relationship between maternal smoking and head circumference of newborns.

The relationship between maternal smoking and the head circumference of newborns were analyzed using a matched-pair longitudinal method. For the study, data was collected from Japanese primiparas in Aichi, Japan. Forty-seven smoking and nonsmoking mothers were matched using multivariate caliper matching for birth weight and gender for their newborns, and gestational period and age for the gravidas. Significantly smaller head circumferences of the newborns from the smoking mothers were observed.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed1995

On the focal distance of the eye during sighting in pistol shooting.

We measured the focal distance and pupil diameter on the eyes of 11 marksmen sighting a pistol target at 23 m distance. Both upon the focal distance and pupil diameter of the subjects, we estimated the point at which they were looking during sighting. Calculation based on depth of field which can be divided from the pupil diameter of 4.5 mm suggested that the subjects were looking at the foresight of the pistol approximately 80 cm in front of the eye during sighting.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

[Bone mineral density in postmenopausal elderly women with type 2 diabetes].

We measured lumbar bone mineral density (L2-4 MBMD) in the postmenopausal elderly diabetic women and made comparisons with age-matched controls in terms of the age, body mass index (BMI) and % BMD of age-matched. In addition we evaluated the correlation between BMD and menarche age, menopause age, HbA1c, serum calcium, serum phosphate, serum alkaline phosphatase (S-Alp) and the ratio of urine calcium to urine creatinine (UCa/Cr). Moreover we divided non-insulin dependent diabetic patients (NIDDM) into two groups; the high BMD group and the low BMD group. Serum Alp and the ratio of UCa/Cr were compared in these two groups. The relationships between regimen of therapy and BMD were also analyzed in female NIDDM. There were no significant differences of BMD and background factors between controls and NIDDM. The ratio of UCa/Cr in the high BMD group were significantly less than that in low BMD group (p < 0.05). BMD in NIDDM with retinopathy was lower, but not significantly, than that in NIDDM without retinopathy. The methods of therapy for NIDDM such as diet alone, an oral hypoglycemic agent and insulin did not influence BMD in elderly postmenopausal diabetics. These results indicated that BMD in elderly postmenopausal diabetics are dependent on UCa/Cr and retinopathy.

Aged↗
PubMed1995

[Pharmacokinetics of balofloxacin in the intraocular tissues of pigmented rabbits].

We performed the pharmacokinetics of balofloxacin in plasma and intraocular tissues in pigmented rabbits upon its oral administration. The penetrations of balofloxacin into plasma and aqueous humor of the anterior chamber reached their peaks of 6.46 micrograms/ml and 0.70 microgram/ml, respectively, and the ratio of drug concentration in aqueous humor to that of plasma was 0.12 at 1 hour after an oral administration of 20 mg/kg. Concentrations in plasma and aqueous humor of the anterior chamber reached 0.27 microgram/ml and 0.18 microgram/ml, respectively, at The T 1/2 (alpha) and T 1/2 (beta) of the drug in aqueous humor were longer than those in plasma The T 1/2 (alpha) and T 1/2 (beta) of the drug in aqueous humor were longer than those in plasma at a dose of 20 mg/kg. The concentrations in iris and ciliary body were much higher than in any other intraocular tissue in 24 hours after single administration of 20 mg/kg, and those concentrations remained at high levels for a long time.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1994

Involvement of active oxygen species in degradation of the D1 protein under strong illumination in isolated subcomplexes of photosystem II.

The effects of strong illumination on the proteins in photosystem II (PSII) were investigated using three different isolated subcomplexes of PSII, namely, the PSII complex depleted of major light-harvesting proteins, the core complex, and the reaction center complex. Under illumination, not only the D1 protein of the reaction center but also other intrinsic proteins sustained some damage in all three subcomplexes: Coomassie blue-stained bands after polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis were smeared, and their migration distances on the gel were reduced with increasing duration of illumination. Such damage occurred first in the D1 and D2 proteins and subsequently in the 43- and 47-kDa proteins of the core antenna and the subunit of cytochrome b559. Immunoblot analysis using an antibody specific to the D1 protein showed that the D1 protein was degraded to major fragments of about 23 and 16 kDa during illumination. The smearing and changes in mobility of protein bands, as well as the fragmentation of the D1 protein, were greatly suppressed by scavengers of active oxygen species. From the effectiveness of scavengers, it appeared that superoxide anions participate in the protein damage in the PSII complex, hydrogen peroxide in the PSII and core complexes, and singlet oxygen, hydroxyl, and alkoxyl radicals in all three subcomplexes. We also found that fragments of the D1 protein of 23 and 16 kDa were formed even when PSII complexes that had been completely solubilized with sodium dodecyl sulfate were illuminated. This fragmentation was also suppressed by active oxygen scavengers.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Bacterial Proteins↗
PubMed1994

Digital nerve conduction velocity as a sensitive indication of peripheral neuropathy in vibration syndrome.

Digital nerve conduction velocities in the median and ulnar nerves were measured in order to obtain a more accurate indication of peripheral nerve impairment induced by hand-arm vibration. The subjects were 26 patients with vibration syndrome and 28 healthy controls, both groups of about the same age. Two pairs of surface electrodes were attached to the finger and one pair was positioned on the palm, while electrical stimulation was applied to the nerve at the wrist and elbow. Then sensory nerve conduction velocities were antidromically measured within the finger, and also from the wrist to the palm and from the elbow to the wrist. Slowed conduction within the finger was mostly found among the patients. The slowing was also encountered from the wrist to the palm across the carpal tunnel. Abnormalities were observed in the digital nerve segment in about 50-70% of the patients, and in the wrist-to-palm segment in about 10-25% of them. The present study indicates that digital nerve impairment predominantly occurs in the vibration-exposed patients, and that measurement of digital nerve conduction velocity can be a useful objective means to detect peripheral neuropathy in vibration syndrome.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Tuberculosis among the homeless people of Nagoya, Japan.

A survey was conducted in order to clarify the tuberculosis (TB) situation in the homeless during the period from 1982 to 1991 in an urban district of Nagoya, using the registration cards of pulmonary TB patients and the data of chest roentgenograms of the Nagoya City Nakamura Health Centre. The incidence and prevalence of pulmonary TB per 100,000 among the homeless were estimated at 950-2150 and 1900-3250, respectively, which were around 30 and 20 times higher than those for the non-homeless. An increase in the incidence rate among homeless pulmonary TB patients was found in 1989, after a gradual decrease to the year 1988. The detected prevalence rate by chest examinations of the homeless was also around 30 times higher than that for the non-homeless. The percentage of patients with cavities indicated by chest roentgenograms when they were first registered was 76.9% among the homeless, but only 42.9% among the non-homeless.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Dietary salt intake and blood pressure among schoolchildren.

We studied the relationship between dietary salt intake, urinary salt excretion, blood pressure and anthropometric measurements in 322 Japanese schoolchildren, aged between 6 and 11 years. Two surveys were carried out: one among a small group of 22 children from the 322, and one involving all 322. In the former group, both a detailed and a simplified dietary questionnaire were used, and nocturnal and 24 hr urinary salt excretion samples were collected. The latter group's survey used only the simplified questionnaire and nocturnal salt excretion measurements. The surveys from the two different groups were then compared to each other. It was found that the simplified questionnaire and nocturnal urinary samples were statistically accurate enough to be used for the purpose of this study. From the latter survey, dietary salt intake among the children was 7.5 +/- 2.7 g per day, (mean +/- SD), and 65 pupils (20%) consumed more than 10 g of salt per day. It was also found that nocturnal urinary salt excretion levels were 1.47 +/- 0.82 g per day, with 30 pupils (9.3%) registering levels of more than 2.5 g per day. There was a significant correlation between these dietary and urinary salt levels. Systolic blood pressure (SPB) among the schoolchildren showed significant correlation with age, height, weight and BMI. For diastolic blood pressure (DBP), a significant correlation was seen in age only. SBP and DBP showed little relation with either dietary salt intake or urinary salt excretion.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Anthropometry↗