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Biomedical subjects

M Ueki

Publications and source records attributed to M Ueki.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Adnexal torsion.

We performed a retrospective audit of 24 cases of adnexal torsion managed at National Women's Hospital from 1996 to 1997 inclusive. There have been several reports in the recent literature of ovarian conservation in cases of ovarian infarction secondary to torsion in women desiring further fertility (1-3). In our review 50% (12 of 24) of patients were treated by oophorectomy or salpingo-oophorectomy and most of these women desired further fertility. In spite of torsion being suspected in 73% (17 of 24), the time interval between admission and operation varied from 0.5 to 52 hours with a mean of 8 hours; 46% (11 of 24) were treated laparoscopically without recourse to laparotomy. As expertise increases, we consider that adnexal torsion will be increasingly managed laparoscopically. These results suggest that more urgent surgery should be scheduled if ovarian torsion is suspected, and in view of recent reports in the literature greater consideration should be given to conservation of infarcted ovaries if further fertility is required.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Biological implications of growth factors on the mechanism of invasion in gynecological tumor cells.

We investigated the effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha) on migration, invasion and proteinase expression of gynecological cultured cancer cells (SKG-IIIb cervical squamous cell carcinoma, OMC-4 cervical adenocarcinoma, SNG-M endometrial adenocarcinoma and OMC-3 ovarian adenocarcinoma), and whether these growth factors affect thymidine phosphorylase/platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor expression of tumor cells. Tumor cell migration along a gradient of substratum-bound fibronectin and invasion into reconstituted basement membrane were stimulated by 0.1-10 nM EGF and TGF-alpha in a concentration-dependent manner. The zymography of tumor-conditioned medium showed that the treatment of tumor cells with EGF and TGF-alpha resulted in the increase of type IV collagenases, stromelysin and urokinase-type plasminogen activator which was partly confirmed by immunoblot analysis. The expression of thymidine phosphorylase/platelet-derived endothelial cell growth factor which has angiogenic activity, was also upregulated by these growth factors. These results suggest that EGF and TGF-alpha act as positive regulators on the invasion process of gynecological tumor cells which may be associated with their stimulatory action on the motility of tumor cells, the expression of proteinases secreted by tumor cells and the angiogenic phenotype.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1999

Correlations between the apparent diffusion coefficient, water content, and ultrastructure after induction of vasogenic brain edema in cats.

OBJECT: The authors examined the correlation between changes in the apparent diffusion coefficient, regional water content, and tissue ultrastructure after vasogenic brain edema. METHODS: Vasogenic edema was induced in the white matter of six cats by cortical cold lesioning. The trace of diffusion tensor (Trace[D]) obtained from magnetic resonance imaging to measure the orientationally averaged water diffusibility was compared with the corresponding tissue water content determined by gravimetric studies and with ultrastructural water localization. Edema fluid had spread to the subcortical and deep white matter by 4.5 hours postlesioning. The increase in Trace(D) showed a significant linear correlation with the increase in tissue water content, both in the subcortical and deep white matter as follows: y = 45.5x - 2367 (r = 0.94) and y = 37.0x - 1769 (r = 0.93), respectively, where x is the water content (gram water/gram tissue) and y the Trace(D) (x 10(-6) mm2/second). On histological examination, nerve fibers were found to be dissociated in the white matter and the extracellular space was markedly enlarged with protein-rich fluid. No noticeable hydropic swelling of the cellular components was observed. CONCLUSIONS: A linear correlation was observed between increases in Trace(D) and increases in extracellular water volume in in vivo vasogenic brain edema. A similar correlation between the subcortical and deep white matter showing different arrangements of nerve fibers (parallel compared with intermingled, respectively) indicated that measurement of Trace(D) is a suitable parameter for the evaluation of vasogenic brain edema.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

UK-2A, B, C and D, novel antifungal antibiotics from Streptomyces sp. 517-02. IV. Comparative studies of UK-2A with antimycin A3 on cytotoxic activity and reactive oxygen species generation in LLC-PK1 cells.

UK-2A, a novel antifungal antibiotic, is a structural relative of antimycin A3 (AA) and its mode of action is similar to that of AA which inhibits mitochondrial electron transport at complex III. In spite of their structural resemblance, AA had strong cytotoxicity while UK-2A had little cytotoxicity against LLC-PK1 cells as well as other types of cultured cells. When cells were treated with UK-2A or with AA the intracellular ATP content decreased significantly within 5 minutes in glucose-free medium to almost the same extent in both cases. Moreover, under the same conditions, UK-2A killed cells at a similar rate to AA. This suggested that UK-2A entered into the cells and, like AA, inhibited mitochondrial electron transport. On the other hand, AA stimulated reactive oxygen species (ROS) production within 5 minutes even at a low concentration of 1 microM whereas UK-2A did not show such an effect. The difference in the ROS-producing abilities of UK-2A and AA may account for the different cytotoxic effects of the two compounds.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Pathological indications for conservative therapy in treating cervical cancer.

BACKGROUND: Neodymium-ytlium, argon, gadolinium (Nd-YAG) laser conization was performed in 366 patients with carcinoma in situ (CIS), and 198 with microinvasive carcinoma (MIC), and 29 with early invasive cancer (IC). The diagnostic accuracy was 72.5% in the CIS group, and 74.6% in the MIC and early IC group. RESULTS: All of the patients who obtained complete excision are now alive and doing well following the conization, with no evidence of recurrence of the disease. Incomplete excision was found in 21.7% of the MIC, 50.0% of the IC with 3 mm or less invasion, 22.2% of the IC with 3.1-4 mm, 60.0% of the IC with 4.1-5 mm invasion, 100% of the IC with 5 mm or more invasion. The residual rate of the MIC and IC with 4 mm or less invasion was 8.5%, lower than 62.5% of the IC with 4.1-5 mm invasion. The cure rate by conization in the patients with IC of 4.0 mm or less was much higher than that in the patients with IC of over 4.1 mm. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggested that the indication of laser conization for early IC was the case within 4 mm invasion, completely excised.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

[Present status of forensic analyses and possible approach for a rapid identification of toxins].

Frequency of public harm that associated with hazardous chemicals has been increasing in the last several years. These incidents involve nerve gas attacks on Matsumoto-city and on the subways in central Tokyo, doping in sports, amphetamines abuse problem among adolescent boys and girls, potential health risks due to a contamination of environment by endocrine disrupters, and scheduled contamination of foods and drinks by several toxic compounds. US government has learnt from unexpected Sarin-affairs in Japan, and fast-track defensive action has been taken in the USA for a better safe of general public. The Japanese system for forensic analyses consists of a number of in-organizational laboratories that founded in each individual universities, hospitals and police offices etc. Such system allows laboratories to fit regional requirements and to achieve highly professional outcome on a specific area depending on their scientific interests. On the other hand, such situation sometime can cause difficulty in timely identification of certain compounds, which are not frequently analyzed in their laboratories. This paper refers to the possible bottlenecks, critical points and key success factors for a rapid identification of toxins. Two stage testing systems, namely, a) simple rapid examination such as one-step specific immunoassays for on-site emergency testing, and b) following conclusive identification of the compounds in the nearest expert laboratories seemed to be effective and practical corrective measures for the problems that were focused in the recent crises. Documentation of the course of action to be taken in case of emergency, improved supply system of reference standards, circulation of information through the Internet mailing list or other communication infrastructures, use of quality control program, and financial supporting of other educational programs for analyses, may improve the situation.

Computer Communication Networks↗
PubMed1999

Serum soluble ICAM-1 levels in the patients with cervical cancer.

BACKGROUND: We hypothesize that serum levels of the soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (s-ICAM-1) in patients with cervical cancer are significantly higher than that in healthy donors and this is examined in vivo, and in vitro. METHODS: We measured the serum levels of the s-ICAM-1 in patients with cervical cancer. Furthermore, in vitro, we examined the relationship between the expression of ICAM-1 on the cell surface of cultured cervical cancer cells and the s-ICAM-1 levels in the spent media. RESULTS: The mean+/-s.d. in the patients with cervical cancer 884.4+/-332.4 ng/ml were significantly (all, p<0.001) higher than those of normal controls (mean 364.6+/-134.8 ng/ml) and in patients with benign disease (536.3+/-204.8 ng/ml). Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) treated cells expressed more ICAM-1 on cell surfaces than did the non-treated cells, and s-ICAM-1 shed in the spent media from IFN-gamma treated cells were much higher than those of non-treated cells. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that the reason for increase of s-ICAM-1 in the patients with cervical cancer were both expression and shedding of ICAM-1 from cervical cancer cells especially influenced by cytokines, for example, IFN-gamma from surrounding lymphocytes.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Apoptosis and tumor angiogenesis in cervical cancer after preoperative chemotherapy.

The correlation between apoptosis and tumor angiogenesis in uterine cervical cancer treated by preoperative intraarterial infusion chemotherapy (IAC) was investigated. Cervical cancer samples surgically obtained from 12 patients (stages Ib-IIIb) receiving IAC and from 10 patients (stages Ib-IIb) receiving no chemotherapy and biopsy specimens from the 12 patients before IAC were examined. The apoptotic index (AI) was determined with an in situ end-labeling assay. Intratumoral microvessel density (IMVD) and thymidine phosphorylase (dThdPase) expression were evaluated immunohistochemically using anti-CD34 and anti-dThdPase antibodies. AIs were higher in the 8 patients with complete or partial response to IAC than they were in the 4 nonchemoresponsive patients and in the 10 patients who received no chemotherapy (P < 0.01) and were inversely related to IMVDs (r = 0.724; P < 0.01). AIs and IMVDs after IAC were higher and lower than those before IAC (P < 0.01), respectively. The expression of dThdPase, which has angiogenic activity, was markedly decreased after IAC. These results suggest that the antitumor effects of IAC are closely associated with apoptotic cell death, which may be influenced in part by the extent of tumor angiogenesis inhibition.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Inhibitory action of spinorphin, an endogenous regulator of enkephalin-degrading enzymes, on carrageenan-induced polymorphonuclear neutrophil accumulation in mouse air-pouches.

Whether spinorphin, an endogenous regulator of enkephalin-degrading enzymes, plays a role in an anti-inflammatory action was examined, using a mouse air-pouch assay as a model of acute inflammation. Repeated intravenous administration (6 times) of spinorphin every hour significantly suppressed carrageenan-induced polymorphonuclear neutrophil (PMN) accumulation, an indicator of inflammation (3.21+/-0.95 x 10[6] cells vs 8.92+/-0.96 x 10[6] cells, 10mg/kg spinorphin-treated vs saline-treated group, n=5, P<0.01) at 6 hr. The combination of spinorphin and leuhistin (2 mg/kg, i.v.), a specific inhibitor of aminopeptidase N (APN), markedly suppressed the PMN accumulation induced by carrageenan (1.11+/-0.17 x 10[6] cells, 88% inhibition compared to the saline-treated group, n=5, P<0.01). This inhibition was less than, but comparable to that of dexamethasone (30 mg/kg/one shot, i. v.), a representative anti-inflammatory drug. These results indicate that spinorphin may be an endogenous anti-inflammatory regulator, its inhibitory activity being modulated by APN.

Aminopeptidases↗
PubMed1998

Repetitive post-training exposure to enflurane modifies spatial memory in mice.

BACKGROUND: Previously the authors found that a single post-training exposure to enflurane or isoflurane, but not halothane, enhanced memory storage in an active avoidance task, which is a behavior with underlying mechanisms that are poorly understood and still debated. In contrast, spatial tasks are known to depend on hippocampal functions. This study investigated the effects of repetitive post-training exposure to enflurane on spatial memory in mice. METHODS: Using an eight-arm radial maze, 80 mice were trained to eat a pellet placed on the end of each of the eight arms. Training occurred on four consecutive days with one trial per day. The number of errors in the first eight choices was recorded to determine performances for each day of training. Immediately after each training session, mice in the enflurane group received 1 h exposure to 0.5%, 1%, or 2% enflurane in air through a calibrated vaporizer. The performance ratios (the ratio of errors on each day compared with the first day of the 4 days) in the control and the enflurane groups were compared. RESULTS: The performance ratios (which equals the mean of the error in the fourth day/the error in the first day) in the control, and 0.5%, 1%, and 2% enflurane groups were 0.66, 0.65, and 0.32 (P < 0.01, vs. control), and 0.46 (P < 0.05, vs. control), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Repetitive post-training exposure to 1% and 2% enflurane significantly enhanced spatial memory in the eight-arm radial maze task. Enflurane enhances consolidation of spatial memory, possibly by affecting hippocampal activity.

Anesthetics, Inhalation↗
PubMed1998

Accelographic and mechanical post-tetanic count and train-of-four ratio assessed at the great toe.

We examined post-tetanic count (PTC) and train-of-four (TOF) ratios at the great toe assessed accelographically or mechanically and compared these with post-tetanic count and train-of-four ratios evaluated mechanically at the thumb in 24 patients who were given vecuronium. An acceleration transducer was attached to the right great toe, a force transducer to the left great toe and another force transducer to the thumb of the left hand. In the PTC group (n = 12) and TOF group (n = 12), post-tetanic count and train-of-four ratios were simultaneously recorded using the two great toes and the thumb of the left hand respectively. Accelographic post-tetanic count at the great toe was greater than the post-tetanic count at the thumb; however, mechanical post-tetanic count at the great toe was lower than the mechanical post-tetanic count at the thumb. Accelographic and mechanical train-of-four ratios at the great toe were greater than the mechanical train-of-four ratios at the thumb. But mechanical train-of-four ratios at the great toe became similar to mechanical train-of-four ratios at the thumb as the degree of neuromuscular block lessened. In conclusion, the mechanical post-tetanic count at the great toe is lower than the mechanical post-tetanic count at the thumb. In contrast, mechanical train-of-four ratios at the great toe are greater than the mechanical train-of-four at the thumb. Nevertheless, as the mechanical train-of-four ratios at the great toe became comparable with the mechanical train-of-four ratios at the thumb, mechanical assessment of the train-of-four ratio at the great toe may be useful for the evaluation of residual neuromuscular block.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Effects of sex steroids and growth factors on invasive activity and 5'-deoxy-5-fluorouridine sensitivity in ovarian adenocarcinoma OMC-3 cells.

Effects of sex steroids (estradiol-17 beta, E2; progesterone, Prog) and growth factors (epidermal growth factor, EGF; transforming growth factor-alpha, TGF-alpha) on invasive activity and 5'-deoxy-5-fluorouridine (5'-dFUrd) sensitivity of ovarian adenocarcinoma OMC-3 cells were investigated. Tumor cell migration along a gradient of substratum-bound fibronectin and invasion into reconstituted basement membrane were inhibited by 10 microM Prog, but stimulated by 0.1-10 nM EGF and TGF-alpha in a concentration-dependent manner. E2 did not have any effect on tumor cell migration or invasion. The zymography of tumor conditioned medium showed that the treatment of OMC-3 cells with EGF and TGF-alpha resulted in increases of type IV collagenase, stromelysin and urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA). EGF and TGF-alpha up-regulated thymidine phosphorylase (dThdPase) expression of tumor cells and consequently enhanced the antiproliferative action of 5'-dFUrd, which is converted to 5-fluorouracil by dThdPase. E2 and Prog did not have significant effects on the expression of proteolytic enzymes and dThdPase, or on the 5'-dFUrd sensitivity of tumor cells. The inhibitory effect of Prog on tumor cell invasion may depend on its inhibitory action on the motility of tumor cells. These results suggest that EGF and TGF-alpha simultaneously up-regulate the potential of ovarian adenocarcinoma cells to invade extracellular matrices and their dThdPase expression, both of which are associated with the specific action of 5'-dFUrd selectively to kill tumor cells with high invasive and metastatic potential.

Basement Membrane↗
PubMed1998

Different apparent diffusion coefficient: water content correlations of gray and white matter during early ischemia.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Early and accurate diagnosis of brain edema in stroke patients is essential for the selection of appropriate treatment. We examined the correlations between the changes in the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC), regional water content, and tissue ultrastructure during early focal cerebral ischemia. METHODS: The left middle cerebral arteries of cats were occluded with an intramagnet occlusion/recirculation device. T2-weighted, diffusion-weighted, and perfusion imaging were performed repeatedly during the initial 3 hours after occlusion. The ADCs obtained from ADC maps were compared with the corresponding tissue water content values determined by gravimetry and electron microscopic water localization. RESULTS: ADC reduction was detected in areas of low perfusion 15 minutes after occlusion and thereafter. The water content increase correlated linearly with the ADC decreases in both the gray and white matter. However, both the water content corresponding to an ADC value and the rate of ADC change of the gray and white matter differed significantly (P<.05) as follows: y = -10105x + 8533 (r=.86) and y = -6174x + 4611 (r=.67), respectively, where x is the water content (grams water per gram tissue) and y is the ADC (x 10(-6) mm2/s). Hydropic astrocytic swelling was seen in both structures, and in the white matter, oligodendroglial and myelinated axonal swelling and periaxonal space enlargement were observed. CONCLUSIONS: When early ischemic edema in experimental focal cerebral ischemia is evaluated with ADC mapping, the different slopes and intercepts of the water content and ADC correlation lines for the gray and white matter, which probably reflect different ultrastructural localization of water, should be taken into account.

Analysis of Variance↗