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Biomedical subjects

S Fujikawa

Publications and source records attributed to S Fujikawa.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1987

Antibody titer to group A streptococcal polysaccharide in rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease.

Antibody to group A streptococcal polysaccharide (ASP) is the only antibody of cellular components which is now detectable in clinical practice. Streptococcal polysaccharide is known to have cross-immunity with the glycoprotein of human heart tissue, and has been discussed as a pathogenesis of rheumatic carditis and valvular heart disease. In this study, ASP titer was determined by passive hemagglutination technique in patients with rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease. ASP titer showed higher levels in these patients compared to control children, but there was no specificity in rheumatic carditis or rheumatic heart disease.

Antibodies, Bacterial↗
PubMed1986

A new latex agglutination test for rapid diagnosis of group A streptococci.

A rapid diagnostic test for group A streptococci from throat swabs (Culturette Brand 10-Min Strep ID test of Marion Inc.) was performed in 210 patients with acute pharyngitis. This agglutination test is based on the extraction of streptococcal polysaccharide by nitrous acid and observe agglutination with anti-polysaccharide-coated latex suspension. There was a 95.2% total agreement with a standard culture method and agglutination test and specificity of 93.4%, sensitivity of 96.0% positive predictive value of 90.5% and negative predictive value of 97.3%. From the results of our study, the agglutination test for group A streptococci is of diagnostic value. This new kit would be most useful in out-patient clinics, especially in a small private medical office without culture facilities.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1985

Freeze-etching study on membrane ultrastructural changes caused by freezing: cooling rate-dependent intramembrane particle aggregation in erythrocyte stripped ghosts.

The changes of membrane ultrastructures by freezing stresses were examined on stripped ghosts which were made by removing almost all peripheral membrane proteins from human erythrocyte membranes. By freezing these stripped ghost membranes showed cooling rate-dependent intramembrane particle (IMP) aggregation. With the cooling rates at and faster than 30,000 degrees C/min, their IMPs were evenly distributed on the fracture faces. However, cooling rates at and slower than 8000 degrees C/min resulted in IMP aggregation. The degree of IMP aggregation increased in parallel with decreasing cooling rates. Without freezing, the IMP aggregation in stripped ghosts could be induced by exposing these ghosts to hypertonic salt solutions, but lowering the temperature did not affect IMP aggregation. The cooling rate-dependent IMP aggregation during freezing was suppressed by adding cryoprotective agents which were known to reduce the salt concentration of the medium during freezing. It is suggested that the IMP aggregation in stripped ghosts by freezing occurs by exposure to concentrated salt solutions during freezing. This result indicates the possibility that IMP aggregation may arise during slow freezing of some biomembranes as a result of an increase in salt concentration rather than as a result of reduction in temperature.

Erythrocyte Membrane↗
PubMed1985

A new scoring system for diagnosis of streptopharyngitis.

From the clinical signs and symptoms of 145 cases of streptococcal pharyngitis and 126 cases of non-streptococcal pharyngitis, a new scoring system for diagnosis of streptococcal pharyngitis was devised. Efficacy of diagnosis for streptopharyngits by this method was 54% if a case had 5 items, 75% if he had 6 items and 93% if he had more than 7 items respectively.

Anorexia↗
PubMed1984

Clinical significance of anti-streptococcal esterase (ASE) determination in rheumatic fever and other streptococcal diseases.

Streptococcal esterase is known as one of the extracellular products of Group A streptococci. In this paper, an antibody of streptococcal esterase titers in patients with rheumatic fever, acute glomerulonephritis and other streptococcal infections were determined. In cases with acute rheumatic fever and acute glomerulonephritis, ASE titers showed almost the same changes as ASO, ASK and ADN-B. The characteristics of the ASE determination, however, is that small changes in the titers could be detected because the final definition of this titer was determined by photometer.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1983

Tannic acid improves the visualization of the human erythrocyte membrane skeleton by freeze-etching.

The effect of fixatives on the membrane skeleton underlying the human erythrocyte membrane was examined by freeze-etching. An anastomosing fibrillar network was readily observed on the protoplasmic surface of the erythrocyte membrane treated with tannic acid. Such structure was much less defined in unfixed membrane or membrane fixed with glutaraldehyde or glutaraldehyde followed by osmium tetraoxide. Tannic acid caused a marked increase in diameter of the fibrillar components of the membrane skeleton and of the protoplasmic surface particles of inside-out vesicles prepared by alkali treatment but did not affect the size of intramembranous particles seen on fracture faces nor the appearance of exoplasmic surfaces. The improved visualization of the membrane skeleton after treatment with tannic acid resulted from interactions between tannic acid and exposed membrane proteins.

Erythrocyte Membrane↗
PubMed1983

Annual changes of upper limit of ASO titer in school children.

ASO titers of school children were studied during a period from 1975 to 1981, and the annual difference of this titer was investigated. As reported by many authors, the upper limit of normal ASO titer was 250 units and values of 333 units or more should be considered abnormal in our series of children, because 15 to 20% of the population had an antibody titer of 333 units or more. The upper limit of the normal titer was the highest in 1975 when 19.7% of the children showed more than 500 units, and the lowest in 1980 when 20.1% of the children showed more than 80 units. Thus, there was a six-dilution difference in the normal upper limit between these 2 years. We must consider the annual changes of the normal upper limit of streptococcal antibody titer in order to make an accurate diagnosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Heat-induced blebbing and vesiculation of the outer membrane of Escherichia coli.

Thermal damage to the outer membrane of Escherichia coli W3110 was studied. When E. coli cells were heated at 55 degrees C in 50 mM Tris-hydrochloride buffer at pH 8.0, surface blebs were formed on the cell envelope, mainly at the septa of dividing cells. Membrane lipids were released from the cells during the heating period, and part of the released lipids formed vesicle-like structures from the membrane. This vesicle fraction had a lipopolysaccharide to phospholipid ratio similar to that of the outer membrane of intact cells, whereas it had a lower content of protein than the isolated outer membrane. After heating bacterial cells at 55 degrees C for 30 min, the resulting leakage from the cells of a periplasmic enzyme, alkaline phosphatase, amounted to 52% of the total activity, whereas no release of a cytoplasmic enzyme, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, was detected. The results obtained suggest that surface blebs formed by heat treatment almost completely consist of the outer membrane and that the blebs may be gradually released from the cell surface into the heating menstruum to partially form vesicles.

Alkaline Phosphatase↗
PubMed1982

Significance of anti-deoxyribonuclease-B (ADN-B) determination in clinical practice.

The determination of anti-deoxyribonuclease-B (ADN-B) is very important for the diagnosis of antecedent streptococcal infection because almost all of group A streptococci have this antigen and a strong elevation of the antibody is observed in patients with acute rheumatic fever, acute glomerulonephritis and other streptococcal infections. Moreover, ADN-B titers are elevated in cases with streptococcal skin infection, whereas anti-streptolysin O (ASO) titers are rarely elevated in these cases. So the determination of ADN-B is recommended as the second streptococcal antibody test to ASO detection (manual of WHO). In our study, the upper limits of ADN-B in normal subjects were 1:60 in preschool age, 1:480 in school age and 1:340 in adult age groups. In acute rheumatic fever, ADN-B titers were elevated in 87% of the cases and also 87% of the patients with acute glomerulonephritis had high ADN-B titers. In inactive rheumatic fever, 72% of the patients had high ADN-B titers, while, ASO titers were elevated in only 22% of the cases. In streptococcal carrier states, 39% of the children had high ADN-B titers but ADN-B was positive only 8% in non-carrier children.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Upper limit of normal anti-strepto-polysaccharide (ASP) level and the relationship between ASP and antibodies against extracellular antigens.

Titers of anti-strepto-polysaccharide (ASP), antistreptolysin-O, antistreptokinase and antideoxyribonuclease-B were studied from the sera of 184 healthy school children. The upper limit of normal ASP titers in school children was 1:32 in this study, and titers of 1:64 or more were considered abnormal. The correlation coefficients between ASP and other antibodies against extracellular antigens were r = -0.04 to 0.06, and therefore it can be considered that ASP shows an independent value from other antibodies.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Competitive incorporation of dietary omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids into the tissue phospholipids in rats.

The incorporation of dietary omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids into the phospholipids of the liver, plasma and heart was studied by feeding rats with diets of increasing amounts of fish oil and/or corn oil up to 5% each for 2 weeks. Irrespective of the sources and amounts of dietary fat, total unsaturated fatty acids were 53-60% of phospholipid fatty acids in liver and plasma, and were 70-73% in heart. In all the animals either given or not given unsaturated fatty acid in diet, the sums of polyunsaturated fatty acids with more than three double bonds such as arachidonic acid, omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and endogenous omega-9 eicosatrienoic acid were always 31-35, 18-20 and 30-38% in liver, plasma and heart, respectively. Dietary omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids and arachidonic acid appeared to be comparably incorporated into the phospholipids and substituted for each other in the phospholipids. These data may suggest that omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids compete with arachidonic acid for the C-2 position of the phospholipids.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

The effect of various cooling rates on the membrane ultrastructure of frozen human erythrocytes and its relation to the extent of haemolysis after thawing.

Human erythrocytes suspended in buffered isotonic saline were frozen to the temperature of liquid nitrogen at various cooling rates of 3, 140, 700, 1800, 3500, 8000 and 11 500 deg. C/min. The membrane ultrastructure in the frozen state and the extent of haemolysis after thawing were examined at each cooling rate. As the cooling rates increased from 3 to 3500 deg. C/min, the extent of lysis gradually decreased, but further increase in cooling rates in excess of 8000 deg. C/min resulted in an abrupt increase of lysis. Membrane-associated vesicles devoid of intramembrane particles (IMPs) were formed in the erythrocyte membranes frozen at cooling rates slower than 1800 deg. C/min. The frequency and size of these vesicles were highly cooling-rate-dependent and they were no longer formed in the erythrocyte membranes frozen at cooling rates faster than 3500 deg. C/min. Another membrane ultrastructural change associated closely with the formation of intracellular ice crystals appeared at cooling rates faster than 8000 deg. C/min. The membrane regions in direct contact with intracellular ice crystals were physically damaged and had an appearance resembling worm-eaten spots. The erythrocytes frozen at a cooling rate of 3500 deg. C/min exhibited ultrastructural integrity of the membrane by avoiding the membrane changes caused by either slow or fast freezing. It is suggested, from the close relation between membrane ultrastructure and the extent of haemolysis, that the ultrastructural integrity of membrane in the frozen state is important for avoiding haemolysis after thawing, and that the membrane ultrastructural changes caused by both slow and fast freezing were responsible for the lysis after thawing.

Cytoplasm↗
PubMed1981

Diagnosis of streptococcal infection: previous or recent.

For the determination of streptococcal infection, it is necessary to test 3 antibodies, i.e., ASO, ASK and ADN-B at a time, and if 2 of the 3 titers are positive one can make diagnosis of fairly recent streptococcal infection, but if only one of the 3 titers are positive, previous or non-specific causes should be considered.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

The averaged evoked potential in the study of infant auditory discrimination.

This study was conducted to determine whether an averaged evoked potential technique using a random-versus-repetitive presentation mode, could be used to study auditory discrimination in infants. We were interested in which stimulus mode, random-novel or repetitive, would result in greater responsiveness in terms of central nervous system evoked potential latencies and amplitudes. Recordings were made of 20 normal full-term infants between 14 and 18 weeks of age. Two different stimuli were used to create the random and repetitive modes: a burst of 125-Hz square waves (a buzz) and a burst of white noise. Two interstimulus intervals were also used, fast (1,000 msec) and slow (1,700 msec), to determine which rate is most effective. Ten of the infants were tested at the slow rate and 10 at the fast rate. Results for the N2 component of the averaged evoked potential (AEP) showed a main effect of presentation mode with a shorter latency for random versus repetitive. The shortest onset latency was for the random stimulus at the fast rate. The mean amplitude of N2 for all repetitive presentations at the slow rate was significantly larger.

Audiometry↗
PubMed1980

The hearing performance inventory and hearing aid use in profound hearing loss.

Subjects with profound postlingual hearing loss completed the Hearing Performance Inventory (HPI) during the course of their hearing aid evaluations. Comparisons of responses to the HPI were made for (a) subjects who wore hearing aids versus subjects who did not, and (b) hearing aid users with losses greater than 100 dB versus users with losses between 80-100 dB. The former set of comparisons indicated consistently superior performance for the aided group, and the latter set indicated consistently superior performance for the 80-100 dB group. The HPI may be a valuable tool in hearing aid considerations.

Cues↗