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Biomedical subjects

S Kojima

Publications and source records attributed to S Kojima.

At least 217 records · Page 12Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

Quantitative analysis of Epstein-Barr virus load by using a real-time PCR assay.

To measure the virus load in patients with symptomatic Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infections, we used a real-time PCR assay to quantify the amount of EBV DNA in blood. The real-time PCR assay could detect from 2 to over 10(7) copies of EBV DNA with a wide linear range. We estimated the virus load in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNC) from patients with symptomatic EBV infections. The mean EBV-DNA copy number in the PBMNC was 10(3.7) copies/microg of DNA in patients with EBV-related lymphoproliferative disorders, 10(4.1) copies/microg of DNA in patients with chronic active EBV infections, and 10(2.2) copies/microg of DNA in patients with infectious mononucleosis. These numbers were significantly larger than those in either posttransplant patients or immunocompetent control patients without EBV-related diseases. In a patient with infectious mononucleosis, the virus load decreased as the symptoms resolved. The copy number of EBV DNA in PBMNC from symptomatic EBV infections was correlated with the EBV-positive cell number determined by the in situ hybridization assay (r = 0.842; P < 0.0001). These results indicate that the real-time PCR assay is useful for diagnosing symptomatic EBV infection and for monitoring the virus load.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Plasma adrenomedullin as an indicator of prognosis after acute myocardial infarction.

OBJECTIVE: To elucidate whether prognosis after acute myocardial infarction can be predicted by measuring plasma adrenomedullin, a novel vasorelaxant peptide. PATIENTS AND DESIGN: Plasma adrenomedullin concentrations on day 2 after myocardial infarction were measured in 113 patients with myocardial infarction with other clinical and haemodynamic variables related to mortality. RESULTS: During a mean follow up period of 25 months, 16 patients died of cardiac causes. Plasma adrenomedullin concentrations on day 2 increased significantly in patients with myocardial infarction compared with controls (mean (SD), 12.3 (8.8) v 4.9 (1.0) pmol/l, p < 0.001). Plasma adrenomedullin correlated negatively with left ventricular ejection fraction on admission (r = -0.47, p < 0.001), although it did not significantly correlate with any other haemodynamic variable. By univariate Cox proportional hazards analysis, plasma adrenomedullin, age, coronary reperfusion, maximum creatine kinase concentrations, pulmonary congestion, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, cardiac index, and left ventricular ejection fraction were all significantly related to mortality. Among the non-invasive variables, only plasma adrenomedullin was an independent predictor of mortality after myocardial infarction (p < 0.05). The Kaplan-Meier survival curves based on the median plasma adrenomedullin concentration (10.3 pmol/l) showed that patients with high plasma adrenomedullin had a higher mortality than those with low plasma adrenomedullin (p < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Plasma adrenomedullin on day 2 after myocardial infarction is strongly associated with long term mortality, and thus may complement standard prognostic indicators.

Adrenomedullin↗
PubMed1999

Activation of the right inferior frontal cortex during assessment of facial emotion.

We measured regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) using positron emission tomography (PET) to determine which brain regions are involved in the assessment of facial emotion. We asked right-handed normal subjects to assess the signalers' emotional state based on facial gestures and to assess the facial attractiveness, as well as to discriminate the background color of the facial stimuli, and compared the activity produced by each condition. The right inferior frontal cortex showed significant activation during the assessment of facial emotion in comparison with the other two tests. The activated area was located within a triangular area of the inferior frontal cortex in the right cerebral hemisphere. These results, together with those of previous imaging and clinical studies, suggest that the right inferior frontal cortex processes emotional communicative signals that could be visual or auditory and that there is a hemispheric asymmetry in the inferior frontal cortex in relation to the processing of emotional communicative signals.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

A retrospective study of late outcome in patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease: an association between prosthetic vascular graft and cancer death?

The authors assessed the relationship between cause of death and treatment modality in patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease. A total of 273 patients were treated with percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, surgical reconstruction, amputation, or medical therapy. We evaluated the outcome in various patient subgroups divided by treatments with a mean follow-up of 4.9 years. Most patients died because of cardiovascular or cerebrovascular events, and cancer was the second most frequent cause of death. Furthermore, there was a significant difference in cancer deaths between patients who received prosthetic vascular grafts and those with other types of treatment (9.3% vs. 2.8%, p<0.01, odds ratio = 3.34). It is noteworthy that patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease succumbed to cancer, especially the patients with prosthetic vascular grafts.

Aged↗
PubMed1999

Serum hepatocyte growth factor in patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease.

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is a multifunctional protein implicated in tissue regeneration, wound healing, and angiogenesis. We measured serum HGF concentrations in 37 patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD). Among them, 36 patients underwent arteriography. Serum HGF concentrations were also measured in 40 control subjects who remained free of vascular, liver, kidney, or lung disease. Patients with PAOD showed elevated serum HGF concentrations compared with control subjects (0.40+/-0.02 vs. 0.19+/-0.01 ng/mL; P<0.001). Serum HGF concentrations were significantly higher in smokers compared with nonsmokers (0.45+/-0.03 vs. 0.35+/-0.02 ng/mL; P = 0.003). The serum HGF concentrations in patients with collaterals tended to be higher than those in patients without collaterals (0.43+/-0.03 vs. 0.35+/-0.02 ng/mL; P = 0.06). Moreover, in patients who underwent bypass surgery or angioplasty, serum HGF concentrations decreased from 0.41+/-0.03 to 0.21+/-0.04 ng/mL after treatment (P<0.001). Serum HGF may be an useful marker for the diagnosis of PAOD. HGF may play an important role in angiogenesis and collateral vessel growth in PAOD.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

(2E,6R)-8-hydroxy-2,6-dimethyl-2-octenoic acid, a novel anti-osteoporotic monoterpene, isolated from Cistanche salsa.

(2E,6R)-8-Hydroxy-2,6-dimethyl-2-octenoic acid [(R)-HDOA], a novel monoterpene from Cistanche salsa, a Chinese herb, was found to be an anti-osteoporotic compound. The extract of Cistanche salsa significantly suppressed the bone weight loss in ovariectomized mice, a postmenopausal osteoporosis model. The active substance was then purified by using this osteoporotic model and the chemical structure was determined. The active compound from Cistanche salsa, (R)-HDOA, suppressed the decrease of bone weight and the mechanical strength in the ovariectomized mice. Furthermore, (R)- and (S)-HDOA were synthesized and the activity of each was evaluated. (R)-HDOA suppressed the bone weight loss, although (S)-HDOA did not showed any activity.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Localization of metallothioneins-I & -II and -III in the brain of aged dog.

Localization of metallothionein (MT) -I & -II and MT-III and its significance in the brain aging in dogs were examined using immunohistological and molecular pathological techniques. MT-I & -II immunohistochemistry showed positive staining in the hypertrophic astrocytes throughout the aged dog brains; these MT-I & -II immunoreactive astrocytes were predominant in the cerebral cortex and around the blood vessels in the brain. These findings dominated in the brain regions with severe age-related morphological changes. In situ hybridization using MT-I mRNA riboprobes also demonstrated signals for MT-I mRNA in these hypertrophic astrocytes. Immunohistochemistry using a guinea pig antiserum against a synthetic polypeptide of canine MT-III demonstrated positive MT-III immunoreactivity predominantly in neurons in the Zn-rich regions such as hippocampus and parahippocampus. The findings were supported by in situ hybridization using MT-III mRNA riboprobes. Both MT-III immunoreactivity and signals for MT-III mRNA were demonstrated in neurons in the brain regardless of the intensity of the age-related changes. These results suggest, first, MT-I & -II may be induced in relation to the progress of the age-related morphological changes in the brain, playing an important role in the protection of the brain tissue from the toxic insults responsible for the brain aging, and second, MT-III may play a role in maintenance of Zn-related essential functions of the brain.

Aging↗
PubMed1999

Poor reproducibility of false-positive tilt testing results in healthy volunteers.

Positive responses to head-up tilt testing occur in healthy subjects. However, the reproducibility of "false-positive" tilt testing results has not been clarified. To study the reproducibility of "false-positive" responses, we prospectively performed 2 tilt tests separated by 1 to 10 (mean 3.2) weeks in 20 healthy males aged 23 to 40 years (mean 30 years). The baseline tilt test (80 degrees for 30 minutes) ended positive in 4 (20%) subjects on the initial test and 2 (10%) on the second test with only 1 (5%) who had consecutive positive responses. No additional positive responses were noted during the isoproterenol (0.01 microgram/kg/min)-tilt test for 10 minutes. We demonstrated that a false-positive response occurred in 5 (25%) of 20 young males who underwent 2 tilt tests, however, only 1 (5%) subject had consecutive positive responses. Poor reproducibility may be characteristic of false-positive responses in head-up tilt testing.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Age-related hematological changes in normal F344 rats: during the neonatal period.

In order to clarify age-related changes in hematological values of normal rats after birth, blood samples from neonatal F344 rats of both sexes were examined periodically during the period from 0 to 40 days postpartum. The erythrocyte count (RBC) increased with time after birth as a function of age. In contrast, the reticulocyte count (Retics) continuously decreased with time after birth. Hemoglobin (Hb), hematocrit (Ht), and the mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) tended to decrease after birth until weaning (about 21 days postpartum), but they began to increase after weaning. Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) also gradually decreased after birth until weaning, but they were unchanged thereafter. The platelet count (PLT) gradually increased after birth and reached a plateau at weaning. Microscopic examination of blood smears revealed that erythrocytes at birth had characteristic morphological features such as anisocytosis, polychromasia, basophilic stippling, Howell-Jolly body, and erythroblastosis. These characteristic features, however, disappeared by 30 days after birth. The total leukocyte count (WBC) gradually increased with time after birth, due to an increase in the number of lymphocytes. The lymphocyte count started to rapidly increase within several days after birth and the increase continued thereafter. Other differential leukocyte counts also showed various characteristic patterns of changes during the neonatal period. There were no apparent differences between males and females in these changes in hematological values.

Aging↗
PubMed1999

Eosinophil and IgE responses of IL-5 transgenic mice experimentally infected with Nippostrongylus brasiliensis.

Eosinophil and IgE responses of interleukin (IL)-5 transgenic and normal C3H/HeN mice were studied after experimental infection with Nippostrongylus brasiliensis (Nb). Intestinal worms were recovered at day 5 post-infection (PI), and numbers of total white blood cells (WBC) and eosinophils, and total serum IgE and anti-hapten (dinitrophenyl) (DNP) specific IgE titers, were measured at days 0, 14 and 21 PI. IL-5 mice appeared resistant to Nb infection showing a significantly lower worm recovery rate than normal mice (P < 0.05). Total WBC and eosinophil counts (/mm3) were significantly increased in Nb infected normal mice (P < 0.05), but unchanged (total WBC) or decreased (eosinophils) in IL-5 mice at day 21 PI. The total serum IgE level remarkably increased in normal mice, but only a little in IL-5 mice at days 14 and 21 PI. Priming with DNP brought about more remarkable increases of the total and anti-DNP specific IgE in normal mice than in IL-5 mice. The results show that IL-5 mice are resistant to Nb infection, and that eosinophil and IgE responses in these mice are not augmented by Nb infection.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

[Wakana disease].

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Ancylostoma↗
PubMed1999

Serum granulocyte colony-stimulating factor levels in patients with chronic neutropenia of childhood: modulation of G-CSF levels by myeloid precursor cell mass.

The serum G-CSF levels of eight patients with severe congenital neutropenia (SCN) were found to be significantly higher than those of 22 patients with chronic benign neutropenia (CBN). The relative number of cells expressing the G-CSF receptor in light density bone marrow cells (LDBMC) was lower in patients with SCN than in patients with CBN or in normal subjects. When recombinant human G-CSF was incubated with LDBMC, G-CSF levels were decreased by LDBMC from normal subjects and CBN patients, but not by those from SCN patients. Serum G-CSF concentrations, which are affected by mature neutrophils, may also be modulated by myeloid precursor cells in the bone marrow.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

[Clinical trial of antithymocyte globulin for prophylaxis of acute graft-versus-host disease in pediatric recipients of bone marrow transplantation from unrelated donors].

We studied the effectiveness of antithymocyte globulin (ATG) in preventing acute graft-versus-host disease (a-GVHD) in children who received bone marrow transplants from unrelated HLA-matched donors at one institution. Of 39 patients who received transplants between 1993 and 1997, 23 were given ATG on the basis of informed consent. Either Thymoglobulin (Pasteur Merieux, 2.5 mg/kg/day) or Lymphoglobulin (15 mg/kg/day) was administered for 4 days. a-GVHD (> or = grade II) developed in 33% of the ATG group (n = 21) and in 44% of the non-ATG group (n = 16). Although a-GVHD (> or = grade II) appeared less frequent in the ATG group, the difference was not statistically significant. Among the subjects with hematological malignancies, no significant difference was observed in frequency of a-GVHD (> or = grade II) or 3-year survival rate for the ATG group (n = 10) and non-ATG group (n = 16). However, the incidence of cytomegalovirus infection was much higher (p < 0.01) in the ATG group (70%) than in the non-ATG group (19%). From this study, we were not able to confirm the benefits of ATG as described by other investigators.

Acute Disease↗
PubMed1999

Instability of chromosome 7 in colony forming cells of patients with aplastic anemia.

Monosomy 7 in isolated bone marrow mononuclear cells and colony forming cells from patients with aplastic anemia who later developed myelodysplastic syndrome/leukemia with monosomy 7 were examined by fluorescence in situ hybridization. Colonies derived from bone marrow mononuclear cells of the aplastic anemia patients consisted of a mixture of cells of normal karyotype and monosomy 7, ranging from 0 to 97.2%. This result suggests that colony forming cells initially had a normal karyotype but then lost chromosome 7 during growth in the semisolid culture. This finding suggests the genetically unstable condition of chromosome 7 in colony forming cells in aplastic anemia patients. This chromosome instability of colony forming cells may lead to malignant transformation.

Anemia, Aplastic↗
PubMed1999

[An infant case of sideroblastic anemia that responded to oral pyridoxine].

An 8-month-old boy was admitted because of paleness. Laboratory studies disclosed microcytic and hypochromic anemia: red blood cell count 156 x 10(4)/microliter, hemoglobin 3.5 g/dl, mean cell volume 66 fl, and reticulocytes 0.5/1000. Serum iron was 433 micrograms/dl and exocrine pancreatic dysfunction was not observed. Examination of bone marrow revealed prominent erythroid hyperplasia; 18% of the erythroblasts were distinct ringed sideroblasts. Electron microscopic studies found intramitochondrial iron deposits in the erythroblasts. The patient was given a diagnosis of sideroblastic anemia and responded to oral pyridoxine (50 mg/day) with an immediate increase of reticulocytes to 97/1000, resulting in an improved hemoglobin concentration. He has maintained remission for more than 1 year following discontinuation of pyridoxine, which was administered for 2 months. Congenital sideroblastic anemia is relatively rare and mostly occurs in males, suggesting an X-linked recessive mode of inheritance. Recently, X-linked sideroblastic anemia has been shown to be caused by missense mutations in the delta-aminolevulinic acid synthase (ALAS) gene. A point mutation in exon 5 of the ALAS gene was found in this patient. Iron-deficiency anemia is the most common hematologic disease of infancy and childhood, resulting from lack of sufficient iron for synthesis of hemoglobin. It is therefore mandatory to differentiate sideroblastic anemia from iron-deficiency anemia and other common anemias.

Administration, Oral↗