[Public health nursing to assist the activities initiated by citizens: in support of the examples at Matsukawa-cho. Discussion].
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to R Hayashi.
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Pemphigus vulgaris, a bullous dermatosis, rarely occurs during pregnancy. Previous reviews have suggested that pemphigus has no significant effect on pregnancy. A case report of pemphigus occurring during pregnancy and resulting in an intrauterine death is presented. A reevaluation of the literature indicates that maternal pemphigus is associated with a significant risk of fetal mortality.
Lipoprotein lipase [EC 3.1.1.34, LpL] was purified from human postheparin plasma (PHP) almost to homogeneity (a 210,000-fold purification) using columns of heparin-Sepharose, hydroxylapatite, and concanavalin A-Sepharose, and its properties were compared with the purified bovine milk LpL. The specific activity of the PHP-LpL was 26 mmol free fatty acids (FFA)/h/mg of protein at 37 degrees C; close to that of bovine milk LpL (35 mmol FFA/h/mg). For both enzyme preparations, the pH optimum (about 8.7) and the inhibition by sodium chloride were almost the same. The apparent Michaelis constants were also similar; 2.5 mM for human PHP-LpL and 2.1 mM for bovine milk LpL. The apparent molecular weight of the purified human PHP-LpL was 58,000 by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecylsulfate, slightly larger than that of the bovine milk LpL (56,000). Although the amino acid composition of the two LpL preparations had only slight differences, antibody raised against bovine milk LpL cross-reacted very weakly with purified human PHP-LpL. With 1% bovine serum albumin, bovine milk LpL was highly stable, but the human PHP-LpL was unstable; it lost 60% of its activity within 60 min at 0 degrees C. In the absence of apolipoprotein C-II (apo C-II), the activity of human PHP-LpL was very weak. However, human PHP-LpL was activated by apo C-II more strongly than bovine milk LpL; the fold activation of human PHP-LpL by apo C-II was 7-8 times that of bovine milk LpL. The apparent Km value of human PHP-LpL for apo C-II (1.00 +/- 0.58 microM) was larger than that of bovine milk LpL (0.15 +/- 0.03 microM).
A new temperate phage, phiBA1, was isolated from Bacillus aneurinolyticus, phiBA1 had an icosahedral head with a diameter of about 70 nm and a tail about 20 nm long and contained a circularly permuted, linear duplex DNA of about 38 x 106 daltons. This phage showed two activities: bacteriocin-like killing activity against five strains of B. aneurinolyticus and normal temperate phage activity against three other strains. phiBA1 killed sensitive cells by a single-hit process. After adsorption of phiBA1 to cells sensitive to killing, the content of intracellular ATP increased for the first 5 min and then gradually decreased. Phage DNA injected into the cell immediately after infection was degraded rapidly. Killing was also caused by heavily UV-irradiated phiBA1. Killing-resistant mutants showed normal adsorption of phiBA1 and normal injection of the DNA with its instantaneous restriction. Our results indicate that the killing action of phiBA1 is different from the phenomenon of abortive infection and suggest that the killing might be caused by a proteinaceous component of phiBA1.
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We studied HLA typing of 17 stage III gastric cancer patients who survived for more than 5 years after gastrectomy, in comparison with normal healthy controls and other gastric cancer patients. As a result, the long-term survivors had a high frequency of HLA-DR4 antigen compared with normal healthy controls (P less than 0.0025). This remains statistically significant after correction of the P value according to the number of HLA-DR antigens tested (corrected P value, less than 0.025), strongly suggesting that the presence of this antigen is associated with long-term survival time for postoperative stage III gastric cancer patients.
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A method for simultaneously quantitating the enantiomers in the alpha-substituted propionic acid moiety of loxoprofen and its two monohydroxy metabolites, trans- and cis-alcohols, by column liquid chromatography was described. Loxoprofen and its metabolites were readily converted to the amides by condensation with a chiral reagent (1S)-1-(4-dimethyl-aminonaphthalen-1-yl) ethylamine. The diastereoisomers were separated on a normal-phase column with n-hexane-ethylacetate (68:32) as a mobile phase and detected with a fluorescence detector. The established method was applied to the determination of the enantiomers of these compounds in the urine of human subjects having received loxoprofen sodium. The results indicated that the three compounds were largely composed of the (2S)-isomer, in accordance with previous findings in rats.
Carboxypeptidase Y hydrolyzed N-substituted peptide-4-methylcoumarin-7-amides (peptide-NH-Mec) at pH 7 by releasing 7-amino-4-methylcoumarin (NH2-Mec) which was then followed by carboxypeptidase action. In particular, a chymotrypsin-directed substrate, Suc-Leu-Leu-Val-Tyr-NH-Mec, was hydrolyzed by the enzyme with a second-order rate constant of 7200 M-1 s-1, which is compatible with the rate for an anilide substrate and some N-substituted dipeptides. The activity was completely inhibited by phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride and competitively depressed by the presence of an N-substituted dipeptide. Dependences of kinetic parameters on pH were different from those of carboxypeptidase, esterase, amidase, and anilidase activities. Carboxypeptidases P from Penicillium janthinellum and W from wheat also hydrolyzed some of these peptide-NH-Mec derivatives in a similar manner but at a rather low rate. Thus, the NH2-Mec-releasing activity may be considered to be intrinsic to serine carboxypeptidases in general. Taking into consideration this endopeptidase-like activity of serine carboxypeptidases, fluorogenic substrates should be used carefully to specify endopeptidases in crude extracts.
A human cell line established from a patient of an acute monocytic leukemia (THP-1) retained an ability to synthesize and secrete plasma apolipoprotein E like protein. The protein was identified with monospecific antibody raised against human plasma apolipoprotein E. The cells also secreted lipoprotein lipase (EC 3.1.1.34). The enzyme was characterized as lipoprotein lipase on the basis of the requirement of apolipoprotein C-II as an activator and the inhibition of its activity by sodium chloride. The secretion of both apolipoprotein E and lipoprotein lipase was markedly enhanced in the process of differentiation into macrophage-like cells by the addition of 4 beta-phorbol 12 beta-myristate 13 alpha-acetate.
Methionine sulfoxide in peptides and proteins was determined by use of 3 N p-toluenesulfonic acid as a hydrolyzing agent. Samples were hydrolyzed at 110 degrees C for 22 h in an evacuated sealed tube and analyzed for amino acid content. Amino acid analysis showed that the recovery of methionine sulfoxide from a synthetic peptide and its mixture with proteins was consistently better than 90%. The recovery of all other amino acids except tryptophan was complete, and was similar to that observed after hydrolysis with 6 N HCl. The presence of carbohydrates had no effect on the yield. Thus, the present procedure can be used for general and simultaneous determination of methionine sulfoxide as well as other amino acids in proteins.
Glucocorticoid administration to developing chick embryos is known to promote cataract formation with a decreasing level of glutathione in the lens. To gain further understanding of this process, the level of ascorbic acid, a biological antioxidant, in the lenses was measured during the course of glucocorticoid treatment. When 0.25 mumol of hydrocortisone hemisuccinate sodium (HC) were administered to 15-day-old chick embryos, the level of ascorbic acid in the lens began to decline after 30 hr and became around 40% of the control value at 48 hr after HC treatment. At this time about 90% of the lenses showed opacity in the nuclear region. However, the level of ascorbic acid in the cataractous lens recovered to the control level at 96 hr, a time when the lens has recovered from cataract formation. A triple application of ascorbic acid (20 mumol/egg) at 3, 10 and 20 hr after HC treatment significantly prevented lens opacification. The administration of ascorbic acid prevented the decline of ascorbic acid content and partially that of glutathione content in the lens caused by HC.
Decreased free water excretion and the development of interstitial edema are recognized characteristics of preeclampsia. However, the pathophysiology of decreased urine excretion in preeclampsia is presently controversial: diminished glomerular filtration, renal arteriolar spasm, elevated plasma vasopressin levels, and plasma volume contraction have been suggested as etiologies. We studied seven pregnant patients with a diagnosis of mild preeclampsia to assess the role of vasopressin, serum protein, and glomerular function in the renal excretion of water. The ability to excrete a water load was significantly and directly correlated with serum albumin (P less than 0.05) and protein (P less than 0.02) concentrations. Neither plasma vasopressin nor creatinine clearance correlated with water excretion. The similarity of preeclampsia and the nephrotic syndrome with regard to the renal excretion of water is discussed.
Phenylethylamine-agarose column chromatography has been used to compare inactive renins in amniotic fluid, in control plasma during estrogen treatment and in maternal plasma during normal pregnancy. Inactive renin in all three was retained by the column and separated from renin substrate. Inactive renin in control and maternal plasma desorbed similarly and was different than that in amniotic fluid. The results suggest that during normal pregnancy the elevated concentrations of inactive renin in maternal plasma are more likely of renal than placental origin.
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