Biomedical subjects

M Wada

Publications and source records attributed to M Wada.

869 records · Page 49Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

Mechanism of apoptosis induced by cisplatin and VP-16 in PANC-1 cells.

Cisplatin and VP-16 were used to study the induction of apoptosis in Panc-1 cells. Cisplatin and VP-16 inhibited the growth of Panc-1 cells. After 2 hours exposure to cisplatin or VP-16, attached and detached cells were subjected to TUNEL staining to calculate the ratio of apoptosis. In detached cells TUNEL positive ratios increased in a time- and dose-dependent manner. In Western blotting, Bax expression was obviously up-regulated, but Bcl-2 remained almost constant. The results suggested that in Panc-1 cells cisplatin and VP-16 induced apoptotic cell death which was mediated through the interaction of Bax expression in the presence of mutated p53.

Antineoplastic Agents↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Calcium crystal deposition in the ligamentum flavum of the lumbar spine.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the histological and immunohistochemical properties of the lumbar ligamentum flavum with calcium crystal deposition. METHODS: We examined the histological characteristics of the ligamentum flavum of the lumbar spine containing calcium deposits, obtained from 16 surgical cases with symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis. Sections of the ligaments were also immunostained for elastase, chymotrypsin and S-100 protein, and examined by energy dispensive X-ray microanalysis and scanning electron microscopy. The results were compared with those of ligaments without calcium deposits. RESULTS: The elastic fibres of ligaments with calcium deposits showed marked degeneration (irregular arrangement and fragmentation of the fibre bundles) and nodular granulomatous lesions. Calcium crystal deposits were present in this area and in the nodular granulomatous areas. The calcified areas were surrounded by neutrophils and new small blood vessels. Immunostaining for elastase and chymotrypsin was positive in these areas, and S-100 protein-containing chondrocytes were detected around and within the calcified areas. Calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystals were identified in the calcified areas in all patients. CONCLUSION: Nodular degeneration of the elastic fibres of the ligament is probably caused by the action of proteolytic enzymes. Degeneration results in small granulomatous areas that form the nidus for calcium crystal deposition. Accumulated neutrophils, and S-100 protein-containing chondrocytes appear to precipitate the deposition of calcium crystals in the granulomatous lesions of the degenerated lumbar ligamentum flavum.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Relationship between radiographic classification and arthroscopic findings of articular cartilage lesions in osteoarthritis of the knee.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between radiographic abnormalities and arthroscopic findings of the cartilage lesions in patients with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. METHODS: Arthroscopy was performed in 190 patients with primary medial compartment (MC) OA of the knee to assess the severity of the cartilage lesion. Standing radiographs of all patients were graded according to the joint space narrowing (JSN) and Kellgren-Lawrence (K/L) scales. In addition to evaluating the correlation between arthroscopic articular cartilage lesions and the radiographic scale, multiple regression analysis was used to identify the arthroscopic findings and clinical factors that influenced the cartilage lesions. RESULTS: The positive predictive values of the JSN and K/L scales of the MC for the presence of essentially abnormal articular cartilage in the MC by arthroscopy were high (0.98, 0.96, respectively). The sensitivity and specificity of the JSN scale and the sensitivity and negative predictive value of the K/L scale were also high in the MC. In contrast, the positive predictive values of these radiographic scales for the presence of arthroscopic lesions in the lateral compartment (LC) were poor (0.20 and 0.19). In this study population with severe OA, there were more patients with a high K/L score than with a high JSN score in the MC. CONCLUSION: In MC-OA of the knee, the JSN and K/L scores for the MC correlated highly with cartilage lesions of the MC by arthroscopy. However, the cartilage lesion of the LC correlated poorly with both of these radiographic scales.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

An exogenous cdk inhibitor, butyrolactone-I, induces apoptosis with increased Bax/Bcl-2 ratio in p53-mutated pancreatic cancer cells.

We investigated the effects of an exogenous cdk inhibitor, butyrolactone-I, on cell growth inhibition, apoptosis induction, and the regulation of apoptosis in pancreatic cancer cells with mutated p53. Cell growth was dose-dependently inhibited by Butyrolactone-I in PANC-1 and AsPC-1 cells. Phosphorylation of pRb and Cyclin A expression were significantly inhibited in Butyrolactone-I-treated cells. Apoptotic cell death was detected by both Hoechst staining and TUNEL assay. In butyrolactone-I-treated PANC-1 cells, expression of p53 protein was unchanged, but Bax expression was slightly upregulated and Bcl-2 expression was predominantly down-regulated. Bax/Bcl-2 ratio reached 9.6-fold increase compared to the control at the maximum. The time course of changes in Bax/Bcl-2 ratio was similar to that in the TUNEL-positive ratio. These data, suggest that dynamic changes of the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio might be important in determining point of apoptosis induction in pancreatic cancer cells with p53 mutation.

4-Butyrolactone↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The importance of initial daily administration of interferon alpha for the eradication of hepatitis C virus in patients with chronic hepatitis C: a multicenter randomized trial.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: We studied the effect of initial daily administration of interferon for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C, to clarify a more effective treatment protocol for the eradication of the hepatitis C virus. METHODOLOGY: Consecutive patients who met the inclusion criteria were randomly enrolled in two groups in this study. One hundred and five patients were randomized and assigned to two groups. Patients, who enrolled in group A, were treated with 6 million units of natural interferon-alpha given subcutaneously daily for an initial two weeks and then thrice a week for 22 weeks. Patients, who were enrolled in group B, were treated with the same dose of interferon-alpha given for 26 weeks thrice a week from the first administration. RESULTS: In groups A and B, 58 and 47 patients were analyzed, respectively. At the end of treatment, 37 patients in group A (63.8%) had negative serum HCV-RNA test, compared with 26 in group B (55.3%), but at 6 months after discontinuation of interferon administration, 27 patients in group A (46.6%), compared with 8 in group B (21.3%). The rate of complete remission in group A (46.6%) was higher than that in group B (21.3%) (P<0.01). In patients with genotype 1b virus, the rate of complete remission was higher in group A (31.3%) than in group B (12.5%) (not significantly), and the relapse rate was lower in group A (9.4%) than in group B (37.5%), significantly (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that initial daily interferon administration is necessary to gain a higher rate of serum HCV-RNA eradication in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

Alanine Transaminase↗