Biomedical subjects

M Usami

Publications and source records attributed to M Usami.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

PubMed1997

Coexistence of renal cell carcinoma and renal angiomyolipoma developing in a kidney: a case report.

Coexistence of renal cell carcinoma and angiomyolipoma in the same kidney is rare. A 54-year-old woman without tuberous sclerosis was admitted for further examination of incidental renal masses on ultrasonography. Computerized tomography revealed a 17-mm high density mass in the mediolateral portion of the right kidney and a 5-mm low density mass near the right lower pole. Because the former mass showed a typical tumor pattern on selective renal angiography and the latter mass was strongly hyperechoic on ultrasonography, a clinical diagnosis of renal cell carcinoma and angiomyolipoma was made. A right radical nephrectomy confirmed the preoperative diagnosis. She has been followed for 61 months with no recurrence.

Angiomyolipoma↗

PubMed1997

Treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma with a combination of human lymphoblastoid interferon-alpha and cimetidine.

PURPOSE: We examined whether cimetidine could augment the efficacy of interferon-alpha therapy for advanced renal cell carcinoma. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Of 31 male and 6 female patients treated with interferon-alpha and cimetidine 21 had metastases at diagnosis and 15 had a recurrence after nephrectomy. One patient had a primary tumor with thrombus in the inferior vena cava. Lymphoblastoid interferon-alpha was administered at 5 megaunits daily intramuscularly 5 to 7 days a week for at least 8 weeks, and cimetidine was administered orally at 800 mg. daily in 4 divided doses. The evaluable tumors included 30 in the lung, 6 lymph nodes, 5 bone, 4 kidney and 1 inferior vena cava. RESULTS: Combined therapy with interferon-alpha and cimetidine resulted in a complete response in 7 patients, a partial response in 8, stable disease in 12 and progression in 10. The objective response rate was 41%. The lung metastasis showed the best response to combined therapy. The 5-year survival rates for patients with and without response, and overall were 74, 20 and 41%, respectively. Histopathologically, high grade tumors had a better response to combined therapy than did low grade tumors. CONCLUSIONS: Combined therapy with interferon-alpha and cimetidine for advanced renal cell carcinoma resulted in a definitively good response. A prospective randomized trial should be performed to elucidate the efficacy of the combined therapy.

Adult↗

PubMed1997

[Clinical outcome of radical prostatectomy for stage C prostate cancer: comparison with other treatment modalities].

Of the 69 patients with clinical stage C prostate cancer under 75 years old and with good performance status between 1986 and 1995, 29 underwent radical prostatectomy combined with endocrine therapy, 21 underwent radiation therapy combined with endocrine therapy and remaining 19 patients were treated by endocrine therapy alone. The median followup was 44 months (range 4 to 122). Radical prostatectomy resulted in progression-free rates of 79% and 61% at 5 and 10 years, respectively. Progression-free rates were lower in patients with lymph node metastasis or positive surgical margins. In patients with clinical stage T3a-c and well or moderately differentiated tumor, radical prostatectomy resulted in a progression-free rate of 100% at 5 years. However, in patients with clinical stage T4a or poorly differentiated tumor, radiation therapy resulted in a better progression-free rate than radical prostatectomy. These findings suggest that patients with clinical stage T3a-c and well or moderately differentiated tumor will benefit from radical prostatectomy combined with endocrine therapy and that radiation therapy well be effective for advanced diseases.

Aged↗

PubMed1997

[A case of scrotal cancer with inguinal lymph node metastasis treated by multidisciplinary modalities including chemotherapy with methotrexate, bleomycin and cisplatin].

We report a case of scrotum with inguinal lymph node metastasis which was successfully treated by multidisciplinary modalities including combination chemotherapy and radiotherapy. A 60-year-old man was admitted with ulcerative induration of the scrotum and inguinal lymph node swelling. Biopsy of the scrotal skin showed squamous cell carcinoma. He received 4 courses of combination chemotherapy with methotrexate, bleomycin and cisplatin. The primary lesion disappeared macroscopically and metastatic lymphadenopathy showed 50% reduction in size. Both lesions were further treated with radiotherapy (60 Gy). Because the primary lesion became ulcerative 7 months after irradiation, partial resection of the scrotum was performed. He has been free of recurrence 22 months after chemotherapy.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols↗

PubMed1996

Partial purification and characterization of serum embryotrophic factor required for early postimplantation growth of rat embryos in culture.

Serum embryotrophic factor (SEF) required for the growth of cultured postimplantation rat embryos was partially purified from rat serum. Rabbit serum was used as a basal medium for the embryo culture, and embryotrophic activity was measured as embryonic protein increase. For partial purification of SEF, the rat serum globulin fraction obtained by ultracentrifugation and (NH4)2SO4 precipitation was fractionated by gel filtration, diethylaminoethyl ion-exchange chromatography, and hydroxyapatite chromatography. Partially purified SEF was characterized by stability tests and affinity chromatography. SEF was inactivated by heat, acid, dithiothreitol reduction, or trypsin digestion. SEF bound to concanavalin A but not to heparin. These results indicated that SEF was an acid-labile acidic glycoprotein with disulphide bonds and no affinity for heparin. The M(r) of SEF was estimated to be about 180 x 10(3) by gel filtration. The specific activity (U/g protein) was increased about 25-fold with 9.4% recovery by the partial purification, when 1 U of SEF was defined as the amount giving 50% embryonic protein increase. By polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, a protein most likely to be SEF was identified as a heterodimer composed of subunits of M(r) 116 x 10(3) and 62 x 10(3) linked by disulphide bonds, and was shown to be contained in the medium at micromolar concentrations. SEF appeared to be distinct from known protein embryotrophic factors, growth factors, or cytokines.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

Abnormal gel-electrophoretic behavior of presenilin 1 and it's fragment.

Presenilin 1 (PS-1) is the main causal gene of familial Alzheimer's disease. In this report, we describe the abnormal behavior of PS-1 in gel electrophoresis in the presence of SDS. Freshly in vitro synthesized PS-1 was identified as a single molecule with the molecular size of 43,000 on SDS gels but was found to disappear after incubation at 37 degrees C for 24 hr due to the formation of aggregates. Intermediate aggregates with M(r) 74,000 and 100,000 were formed before the final aggregate which was retained at the top of the gel. Thus the amount of 43,000-protein species of PS-1 was found to decrease on gels with a concomitant increase in the amount of 74,000/100,000 proteins. Similar abnormality was seen in PS-1 expressed in COS cells transfected with PS-1 cDNA. Moreover, cellular PS-1 was strongly suggested to be cleaved into the fragments with M(r) approximately 20,000 in COS and CHO cells. Fragmentation of cellular PS-1 was not affected by the missense point mutation of Ala260Val on PS-1 which was identified in a pedigree with familial Alzheimer's disease.

Alzheimer Disease↗

PubMed1996

Identification and characterization of presenilin I-467, I-463 and I-374.

We cloned a novel isoform of presenilin I (presenilin I-374) besides previously published presenilin I-467 and I-463 in human lymphocytes. Presenilin I-463 was identical to presenilin I-467 except a 12 bp nucleotides deletion in its amino terminal region. Another isoform, presenilin I-374 was produced by an alternative splicing with an additional exon consisting of 92 bp nucleotides (exon 11), which resulted in the frame shift with a stop codon to generate a truncated presenilin consisting of 374 amino acids. The transcripts for presenilin I-467/463 was ubiquitously detected while that for presenilin I-374 was selectively detected in liver, spleen, kidney. Abnormal behavior of presenilin I on gel electrophoresis was found with affinity-purified antibodies against presenilin I.

Alzheimer Disease↗

PubMed1996

Teratogenic effects of selenium compounds on cultured postimplantation rat embryos.

Embryonic susceptibility to selenium (Se) teratogenicity was examined in rats using postimplantation embryo culture. Rat embryos at day 9.5 of gestation were cultured by the roller bottle method for 48 hr in the presence of Se compounds. Sodium selenite, sodium selenate, seleno-DL-methionine, and seleno-DL-cystine were embryolethal at 20, 300, 1,000, and 1,000 microM Se, respectively. All of these compounds caused abnormalities such as deformed optic vesicle and swollen rhombencephalon in the viable embryos. These abnormalities were considered to correspond to in vivo malformations caused by Se in hamster fetuses or in bird embryos. These results indicate that rat embryos are susceptible to Se teratogenicity. It seems that there are differences in potency ranking of Se compounds between rat and bird embryos.

Abnormalities, Drug-Induced↗

PubMed1996

Effect of a parenteral nucleoside-nucleotide mixture on hepatic metabolism in partially hepatectomized cirrhotic rats.

After hepatectomy, purine and pyrimidine metabolism is a key process in synthesis of DNA and RNA and in energy metabolism. To supply nucleosides for salvage synthesis, nucleoside-nucleotide mixture solutions have been developed, and they have been found to improve protein metabolism and hepatic regeneration after partial hepatectomy in normal rats. However, the effect of the solution in cirrhotic liver, common in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma, has not been reported. The aim of this study was to evaluate the metabolic effect of the nucleoside-nucleotide mixture on cirrhotic rats after partial hepatectomy. Seventy percent partial hepatectomy was performed in thioacetamide-administered cirrhotic rats. The fractional protein synthetic rate, nitrogen balance, hepatic content of nucleic acid, and blood chemistry after the administration of the nucleoside-nucleotide mixture solution (OG-VI) with total parenteral nutrition was evaluated at 7 d after partial hepatectomy. OG-VI increased hepatic RNA level and hepatic fractional protein synthetic rate (p < 0.05). It is concluded that the nucleoside-nucleotide mixture solution is an effective nutritional supplement to the metabolism of cirrhotic rats after partial hepatectomy.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

Recommended dose of flutamide with LH-RH agonist therapy in patients with advanced prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND: In a recent study by the Casodex Combination Study Group, USA, patients in a flutamide (750 mg/day) plus LH-RH agonist group showed a high treatment failure rate, mainly due to flutamide-induced diarrhea and hepatotoxicity. Our current study was conducted to determine the optimal dose of flutamide for use in this type of combination therapy. METHODS: In a randomized, multicenter study, 30 patients (hormone untreated; stage C or D) were divided into 2 groups: flutamide 250 mg (125 mg x 2; 14 patients) and flutamide 375 mg (125 mg x 3; 16 patients, and each dose combined with either goserelin acetate (3.6 mg every 4 weeks) or leuprolide acetate (3.75 mg every 4 weeks). Goserelin and leuprolide were administered to patients in a 1:1 ratio. Flutamide monotherapy at a daily dose of 375 mg was determined to be the optimal dose in Japan in our previous phase II study. The endpoints of this pilot study were the objective response and adverse events during the 12-week treatment. RESULTS: The objective response rate was 83.3% in the flutamide 250 mg group and 85.7% in the flutamide 175 mg group according to the Japanese response criteria for prostate cancer. Elevated PSA levels fell to within the normal range in 83.3% of the patients in the former group and in 93.3% of the patients in the latter group. One patient administered 250 mg of flutamide experienced diarrhea, while the serum GOT and/or GPT were elevated in 3 patients administered 250 mg of flutamide and 4 patients administered 375 mg of flutamide. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the findings of this pilot study of maximal androgen-depletion therapy for advanced prostate cancer, 375 mg/day of flutamide is recommended in combination with an LH-RH agonist. Assessment of the effects of our recommended regimen on longer term survival, quality of life and antiandrogen withdrawal syndrome of patients treated requires additional patients and time for follow-up.

Aged↗

PubMed1996

Primary adenocarcinoma in an ileal conduit.

Reports of primary small intestine malignancies are rare. Even more uncommon is primary carcinoma in an ileal conduit. Here, we report a case of primary adenocarcinoma in an ileal conduit that developed 14 years after radical cystectomy and diversion to an ileal conduit for transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder. To our knowledge, only one case of primary adenocarcinoma developing in an ileal conduit after a radical surgery for bladder cancer has been reported previously.

Adenocarcinoma↗

PubMed1996

Determination of hemoglobin A1C in normal and diabetic mice: neonatal streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice and KK-Ay mice.

We have determined Hemoglobin A1C (HbA1C) in normal, neonatal streptozotocin-induced diabetic animals (NSZ), a model of lean-type non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) with hypoinsulinaemia, and KK-Ay mice, a model of obese-type NIDDM with hyperinsulinaemia. The HbA1C of NSZ mice was slightly increased from 5 to 20 weeks while the HbA1C of KK-Ay mice was markedly increased from 5 to 10 weeks. Our findings showed a difference between experimentally-induced (NSZ) and genetically (KK-Ay) diabetic animals.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

Effect of ginseng radix on GLUT2 protein content in mouse liver in normal and epinephrine-induced hyperglycemic mice.

The oral administration of the water extract of Ginseng Radix (GR) to normal and epinephrine-induced hyperglycemic mice caused a significant decrease in the blood glucose level 4 h after its administration. The hepatic content of facilitative glucose transporter isoform 2, liver type glucose transporter (GLUT2) protein content from mouse liver significantly increased in the orally GR-treated normal and epinephrine-induced hyperglycemic mice compared to that in the controls. These results suggest that the hypoglycemic activity of GR is presumably due, at least in part, to the increment of GLUT2 protein content.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

[Recent improvements and results of radical prostatectomy].

In Japan, the proportion of patients with localized prostate cancer treated by radical prostatectomy is increasing rapidly. The recent improvements and treatment results of radical prostatectomy were reviewed. As for the qualifications of patient candidates for radical surgery, including patient age, various clinical and pathological findings to predict tumor extent and disease-free outcome (clinical stage, serum prostate specific antigen, PSA density, number of positive biopsies, histological grade, etc) must be kept somewhat tidy. Recently, there has been increased interest in the application of preoperative hormone treatment for localized tumor group in order to improve radicality and survival. Several studies reported the results of neoadjuvant endocrine therapy. As for stage C tumors, the proportion of patients with capsular invasion, positive surgical margin, invasion of seminal vesicle and positive node metastasis are 67-86%, 39-64%, 32-47% and 38-50%, respectively. Prospective randomized studies should provide conclusive information on the potential benefits of this treatment modality. The new anatomical approach to radical retropubic prostatectomy with its nerve-sparing option assures preservation of erection. This procedure achieves excellent cancer control for patients with a definite organ-confined tumor, but it is difficult to diagnose a specimen-confined tumor preoperatively. There is limited information on cancer control with the nerve-sparing option. More time is needed to obtain information on the long-term outcome after radical prostatectomy.

Aged↗

PubMed1996

[Phase I study of bicalutamide (Casodex), a nonsteroidal antiandrogen in patients with prostatic cancer].

A phase I study (open trial) of bicalutamide (Casodex), a non-steroidal antiandrogen, was conducted on 16 patients with prostatic cancer (stage C to D). The patients were given 10, 30, 50, 80 or 100 mg of bicalutamide orally daily for 12 weeks. Adverse reactions were observed in 8 out of 16 patients, but almost all were mild. Breast pain, gynecomastia and hot flushes were observed in 6 patients. Adverse reactions regarding liver function tests were observed in 3 patients. These were increased glutamic-oxalacetic transaminase (GOT), glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (GPT), alkaliphosphatase (AL-P) or gamma guanosine 5'-triphosphate (gamma-GTP). However, during or after the treatment period the elevated values were reversed to the pretreatment level. In terms of efficacy, anti-tumor effect was observed in 1 or 2 patients at each dose. Serum concentrations of luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), testosterone and estradiol increased during treatment. Plasma concentrations of the R (-) enantiomer, which has antiandrogenic activity, reached the steady state 6-8 weeks after the initiation of treatment; its apparent plasma elimination half-life observed following repeated administration was 8.4 +/- 1.1 days. In conclusion, bicalutamide (10-100 mg od) is considered to be tolerated well enough to be administered to patients with prostatic cancer and has shown evidence of anti-tumor effect.

Administration, Oral↗

PubMed1996

[Clinical early phase II study of bicalutamide (Casodex) in patients with prostatic cancer].

To investigate the efficacy and safety of bicalutamide (Casodex) with its clinically recommended dose, the randomized early phase II study was performed in 124 patients with prostatic cancer (stage C, D). The patients were given 50, 80 or 100 mg of bicalutamide orally once a day in fixed doses for 12 weeks; 122 patients were eligible for evaluation. The overall response rate was 50.0% (20/40), 61.0% (25/41) and 53.7% (22/41) in the 50 mg, 80 mg and 100 mg groups, respectively. The response rate in prostate lesion, bone and lymph node metastases was slightly higher in the 80 mg group than in the 50 mg and 100 mg groups. The proportion of patients showing a response with regard to serum PSA (CR and PR) was 84.2, 92.7 and 97.6% in the 50, 80 and 100 mg groups, respectively. The incidence of adverse reactions was 65.0, 61.0 and 61.0% in the 50, 80 and 100 mg groups, respectively, and there was no significant difference in overall safety rating in the three groups. Frequent adverse reactions were gynecomastia and breast pain. Only one patient in the 80 mg group was withdrawn due to shortness of breath. Serum concentrations of LH, testosterone and estradiol increased significantly after treatment. Bicalutamide was concluded to be effective and well tolerated in patients with prostatic cancer, and its recommended dose was 80 mg once daily.

Administration, Oral↗

PubMed1996

[Regional left ventricular contraction kinetics in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: investigation by ECG-gated myocardial SPECT with 99mTc-MIBI].

To investigate the regional left ventricular (LV) contraction kinetics in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), we performed ECG gated myocardial tomography (gated-SPECT) with 99mTc methoxy-2-isobutyl isonitrile (MIBI) at rest in 11 patients with HCM and 13 normal subjects. In order to evaluate regional LV contraction kinetics, multi-plane long axial tomograms were constructed and LV was divided into 17 segments. From the time activity curve of myocardial count, percent change during systole (%CC) was calculated in each segment. Normal range of %CC in each segment was derived from normal files. Systolic asynchrony in each patient was expressed as SD (standard deviation) of R-wave to peak count (R-PC) intervals of 17 segments. Decreased %CC was observed in 87 of 187 segments (47%) in HCM (8 +/- 5 segments/patient, range; 2-14 segments/patient). SD in patients with HCM was significantly greater than that in normal subjects (5.9 +/- 1.3 vs. 3.5 +/- 0.6, p < 0.01). The extent of decreased %CC in patients with HCM correlated well with global 123I-BMIPP (BMIPP) uptake and the extent of regional abnormality of BMIPP (Defect Score) (r = -0.79, r = 0.88 each, p < 0.01). On the other hand, SD correlated well with left ventricular (LV) filling rate during early diastole (r = -0.66, p < 0.01). Patients with HCM were divided into 2 groups whether LV ejection fraction (EF) increased (Group 1) or decreased (Group 2) by exercise stress. SD in Group 2 was significantly greater than that in Group 1. In segments with decreased %CC, the distribution of R-PC interval was different with that in segments with normal %CC. These results suggested that indexes which were derived from gated-SPECT with MIBI could bring several informations which were important to assess the pathologic condition of HCM.

Adult↗

PubMed1996

[Bacterial translocation induces remnant liver injury after subtotal (90%) hepatectomy in rats--the effect of decontamination of gram-negative rods in digestive tract by oral polymyxin B treatment].

To clarify the relationship of bacterial translocation (BT) to remnant liver injury after subtotal (90%) hepatectomy, we compared orally polymyxin B treated rats (PL-B (+)), of which gram-negative rods (GNR) in digestive tract decreased, with control rats (PL-B (-)). The increase in intestinal permeability assessed by lactulose/mannitol ratio in urine, the increase in GNR positive in tissue culture including mesenteric lymphnode, liver, spleen, portal blood, and kidney, and the elevation of serum endotoxin levels showed BT after subtotal hepatectomy in PL-B (-) group. Liver injury was also observed by increased serum GPT levels and massive coagulative necrosis of hepatocytes with bleeding in the remnant liver. In PL-B (+) group rats, BT and liver injury decreased and hepatocyte DNA synthesis increased, while intestinal permeability was the same as PL-B (-) group. It is suggested that BT is the cause of remnant liver injury after subtotal hepatectomy, and oral PL-B treatment is effective in preventing liver injury.

Administration, Oral↗