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Biomedical subjects

S Okubo

Publications and source records attributed to S Okubo.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

[Antimicrobial and microbicidal activities of tea and catechins against Mycoplasma].

We examined tea extracts, (-) epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) and theaflavin digallate (TF3) for their antimicrobial and microbicidal activities against Mycoplasma. Green tea and black tea showed antimicrobial activities against M. pneumoniae. At a concentration of 0.2% green tea and black tea showed microbicidal activities against M. pneumoniae and M. orale but not against M. salivarium. Extracts of pu-erh tea showed a slight microbicidal activity against M. pneumoniae and M. orale. EGCg purified from green tea and TF3 from black tea markedly showed microbicidal activities against M. pneumoniae. M. orale and M. salivarium. These results suggest that tea and catechins can be used as prophylactic agents against Mycoplasma pneumoniae infection.

Biflavonoids↗
PubMed1992

An orange-shaped aortic root aneurysm in aortitis syndrome with severe aortic regurgitation.

A 57-year-old man, who had undergone aorto-coronary bypass surgery 4 years before when the shape of the ascending aorta had been normal, had a unique orange-shaped aortic root aneurysm associated with severe aortic regurgitation and congestive heart failure. Replacement of the aneurysm and the aortic valve was successfully carried out, and histopathological examination revealed that the aneurysm was caused by aortitis syndrome.

Aorta, Thoracic↗
PubMed1992

[Steroid and gamma globulin therapy against virus-associated hemophagocytic syndrome].

A 21-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of high fever, cough, and headache. Other clinical manifestations included hepatosplenomegaly, anemia, leukopenia, and mild liver dysfunction. As she had been diagnosed to have systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) previously, we first suspected that this disease had become exacerbated. However, the titers of anti-EB virus (VCA-IgG) and some other viruses were high on admission, and hemophagocytosis by macrophages was observed on bone marrow examination. Therefore, she was diagnosed to have virus-associated hemophagocytic syndrome (VAHS). Prednisolone therapy was then initiated, but the patient responded poorly. We next tried gamma globulin, and the clinical findings and laboratory data were improved. Our patient showed a very favourable clinical course following gamma globulin therapy, suggesting that steroid and gamma globulin should be considered as a treatment even in the early stages of this syndrome in adults.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

[Blood concentrations of futraful, uracil and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) after UFT administration in the various reconstructions after gastrectomy. Saitama UFT Research Group].

The study was undertaken in the total of 58 gastric cancer patients among which 17 of Billroth (BI), 14 of Billroth II (B II) anastomosis after subtotal gastrectomy, and 7 of jejunal interposition, 9 of double tract and 11 of Roux en Y anastomosis after total gastrectomy were included. Blood samples were taken before 200 mg of per oral UFT administration and after 1, 2, 3, 5 and 7hrs. consecutively. The blood Futraful (FT) level in the total gastrectomy groups reached peak concentration within 1hr and kept in relatively high level during the observation period of 7hrs. The time to maximum FT concentration delayed in almost of B I and a few of B II patients. The concentration curves of uracil (URA) and 5-FU were similar in shape, revealing steep increase and decrease except B I anastomosis which showed gentle course. The plotted maximum concentrations of URA and 5-FU in the every type of reconstruction showed a significant correlation in the regression line. In the analysis of AUC, URA/FT was under 10%, suggesting the longer retention of the unmetabolite type of FT and early disappearance of URA. The ratio of 5-FU/FT was indifferent in each reconstruction. 5-FU/URA was higher in subtotal rather than total gastrectomy groups. From the data obtained, blood concentration of 5-FU after UFT administration was considered to depend on the emptying status in the gastrectomies. And moreover, it depended on blood URA level, since FT from which 5-FU was derived, was kept still sufficiently remained during observation period.

Anastomosis, Roux-en-Y↗
PubMed1992

[Comparison of exercise capacity evaluated by cardiopulmonary exercise test and hemodynamic parameters in patients with atrial septal defect].

We evaluated the maximal exercise tolerance using cardiopulmonary exercise testing, and investigated the relation of the hemodynamic parameters such as mean pulmonary artery pressure (PAm) and pulmonic-to-systemic flow ratio (Qp/Qs) to exercise tolerance in 18 adult patients consecutively. All the patients had atrial septal defect (ASD). Maximal oxygen uptake (VO2 max) averaged only 21.6 +/- 5.6 ml/min/kg and 63.5 +/- 16.2% of the predicted values (VO2max). And anaerobic threshold averaged 12.5 +/- 2.3 ml/min/kg and 56.7 +/- 12.4% of the predicted values. There were 2 patients who had marked pulmonary hypertension (PH, PAm more than 44 mmHg). Maximal exercise tolerance of these patients was severely impaired, and %VO2max was only 45.9% and 46.2% respectively. In patients without PH (PAm less than 20 mmHg), however %VO2 max ranged widely from 100.3 to 44.7% and PAm correlated with %VO2max weakly (r = -0.53, p less than 0.05). But there was a significant inverse relationship between Qp/Qs and %VO2max(r = -0.85, p less than 0.01). In 16 patients without PH, maximal O2-pulse during exercise was also inversely correlated with Qp/Qs (r = -0.76, p less than 0.01). The relation between PAm and %VO2max suggests that afterload on the right ventricle may be an important determinant of exercise capacity in patients with PH. And the relation between Qp/Qs and %VO2max or Qp/Qs and % maximal O2-pulse suggests that Qp/Qs may also be a very important determinant factor of exercise capacity in patients without PH.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

[Report of two cases of neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia caused by anti-HLA antibody, and their screening using umbilical cord blood].

Here reported are two cases with neonatal alloimmune thrombocytopenia (NAITP). In our 2 cases, anti-HLA antibodies, i.e. anti-HLA-A24+B51 and anti-HLA-Bw61+Cw3, respectively, were detected in the mother's sera, which reacted to each patient's lymphocytes and were presumed to have been contribute to NAITP. The thrombocytopenia, found on routine laboratory examination, recovered within 1 to 3 weeks without any therapy in both cases. Further, the relationship of platelet count and PAIgG in neonatal babies (umbilical cord blood) to anti-HLA antibodies in their mothers were examined in 284 pairs. Thrombocytopenia less than 150,000/microliters was found in 16/284 babies (5.6%), 3 of the 16 (1.1% of the total) being positive for anti-HLA, and one positive for PAIgG. Four (1.4%) of the 284 babies were positive for PAIgG, one of whom was thrombocytopenic, and one positive for anti-HLA. Anti-HLA antibody was found in 25/284 mothers (8.8%). Nevertheless, none of the pairs showed positive reactions in all of three tests. It seems that passive transfer of maternal anti-HLA antibodies to the fetus is not itself sufficient to cause thrombocytopenia. On the other hand, some NAITP cases may have been overlooked because of their mildness.

Female↗
PubMed1991

Intrapulmonary bronchial blood flow of rats as studied by the microsphere method.

The intrapulmonary bronchial blood flow of the left lung (systemic arterial blood flow to the left lung via the bronchial artery) was determined in 45 anesthetized and artificially ventilated male Wistar rats, weighing 263 +/- 5 g (mean +/- SEM). The microsphere method was employed and designed so that recirculating microspheres across the peripheral arteriovenous anastomoses were prevented from lodging in the left lung, and disturbances of the isovolemic state of the animals became minimal. Under normal conditions with a mean arterial pressure of 115 +/- 2 mmHg (n = 40), the bronchial blood flow of the left lung was found to be 0.307 +/- 0.033 ml/min on average, and amounted to 0.52 +/- 0.06% of the cardiac output. The flow (ml/min) normalized per kg body weight, 100 g wet lung, or 100 g dry lung was 1.14 +/- 0.12, 76 +/- 8, or 368 +/- 39, respectively. The total intrapulmonary bronchial blood flow of the left and right lungs could be estimated by multiplying the intrapulmonary bronchial flow of the left lung by the weight ratio (total:left) of 2.9. The variability of the flow data was small, as confirmed in a study with simultaneous injection of two differently radiolabeled microspheres. The reproducibility of duplicate measurements was excellent.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Recurrent epicardial fibrosarcoma which arose 12 years after the first resection.

Primary malignant tumours of the heart are very rare, with an incidence of only 0.0017%-0.03% in consecutive autopsy series. Fibrosarcoma of the heart is also rare, representing only about 0.3% of all cardiac tumours. We observed a case of epicardial fibrosarcoma which developed 12 years after the first resection of an epicardial tumour. A 31-year-old woman was referred to our hospital because of fatigue, nausea and right back pain. She had had surgery to resect an epicardial tumour when she was 19 years old. On admission, there was a huge, heterogeneous tumour on the right inferior side of the heart. At surgery, the tumour was totally resected and a pathological diagnosis of fibrosarcoma was made. The patient was free of symptoms for 6 months, but died of a recurrence 11 months after the operation. It is postulated that the epicardial tumour had only been partially resected and had been latent for a rather long period but began to grow rapidly 12 years after the initial resection.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

The protective activity of tea against infection by Vibrio cholerae O1.

Extracts of black tea exhibited bactericidal activity against Vibrio cholerae O1. The tea extract inhibited the haemolysin activity of V. cholerae O1, El Tor and the morphological changes of Chinese hamster ovary cells induced by cholera toxin. Tea extract also reduced fluid accumulation induced by cholera toxin in sealed adult mice and by V. cholerae O1 in ligated intestinal loops of rabbits. These findings suggest that tea has protective activity against V. cholerae O1.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

[Detection of human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) DNA by polymerase chain reaction using nonradioactive probe and virus isolation].

We compared the results obtained with the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and virus isolation from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in HIV seropositive and seronegative persons. Three primer pairs of SK38/39 (gag). SK29/30 (LTR) and SK68/69 (env) were used in the amplification of the HIV DNA sequences, and KM29/38 (beta-globin) was used as the inner control. The PCR-positive rate among the virus-isolation-positive persons was SK38/39:100% (22/22), SK29/30:95.5% (21/22) and SK68/69:90.0% (20/22). The PCR-positive rate among the virus-isolation-negative persons was SK38/39:60% (6/10), SK29/30:60% (6/10) and SK68/69:80% (8/10), and two subjects were PCR-negative with all primer pairs. We could not detect HIV DNA from seronegative samples, and all subjects were positive with the inner control. Each primer pair expressed a different PCR-positive rate. There are possible explanations for the low PCR-negative rate on virus-isolation negative-subjects that the number of infected cell was rare or infected HIV contained genetic variations or deletions. We considered that the results of PCR correlated with the character of HIV as infectivity.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1991

[Antifungal and fungicidal activities of tea extract and catechin against Trichophyton].

We examined tea extract, (-) epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) and theaflavin digallate (TF3) for their antifungal and fungicidal activities against Trichophyton mentagrophytes, T. rubrum, Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans. Tea extract (2.5%) inhibited completely the growth of both T. mentagrophytes and T. rubrum. EGCg at 2.5 mg/ml failed to inhibit their growth, whereas TF3 at 0.5 mg/ml inhibited the growth. EGCg (1mg/ml) showed no fungicidal activity against Trichophyton. TF3 (1mg/ml) killed Trichophyton by a long time contact (72-96 hrs). Tea extract showed a fungicidal activity against Trichophyton in a dose- and contact time-dependent manner. It did not inhibit the growth of C. albicans, but at a high concentration, inhibited slightly the growth of C. neoformans. It had no fungicidal activity against C. albicans or C. neoformans.

Antifungal Agents↗
PubMed1991

[Antibacterial and bactericidal activities of tea extracts and catechins against methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus].

We examined tea extract, (-) epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) and theaflavin digallate (TF3) for their antibacterial and bactericidal activities against methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and food poisoning strains of S. aureus. Twenty percent tea extract (50 microliters), EGCg (63 micrograms) and TF3 (125 micrograms) added to one ml of culture medium each inhibited the growth of all strains of MRSA and food poisoning S. aureus tested. Tea extract showed also a bactericidal activity against MRSA even at the same concentration of as in ordinarily brewed tea. EGCg at a concentration of 250 micrograms/ml showed a bactericidal activity against MRSA but not against food poisoning S. aureus, but at 500 micrograms/ml reduced markedly the viable number within 48h. These results suggest that tea and catechin can be used as prophylactic agents against MRSA infection.

Biflavonoids↗
PubMed1991

Plasma coagulation and fibrinolysis parameters in patients with collagen diseases, and analysis of the multimeric structure of von Willebrand factor (vWF).

We studied the relationship between vascular complications and coagulation and fibrinolysis parameters in 75 subjects with collagen diseases. Thirty normal healthy persons served as controls. We found that patients with collagen diseases were in a state of a hypercoagulation and hyperfibrinolysis. In SLE (systemic lupus erythematosus) in particular, coagulation and fibrinolysis parameters appeared to be indices of vascular complications. Increases in the levels of thrombin-antithrombin III complex (TAT) and alpha 2-plasmin inhibitor-plasmin (PIP) were particularly associated with proteinuria, while increases in fibrinopeptide A (FPA) levels were associated with Raynaud's phenomenon. Administration of glucocorticoid seemed to improve the hypercoagulation and hyperfibrinolytic states of patients with collagen diseases. Analysis of the multimeric structure of von Willebrand factor (vWF) revealed a tendency for large and intermediate multimers (LIM) of plasma vWF to increase in SLE patients with accompanying vascular complications, whereas such increases were not observed in SLE patients without any vascular complications. Therefore, analysis of the multimeric structure of vWF appeared to be a useful indicator of vascular complications in collagen diseases.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Doppler echocardiographic assessments of left ventricular diastolic filling in patients with amyloid heart disease.

Twenty-eight patients with amyloid heart disease, 9 with primary and 19 with familial amyloidosis, were examined by Doppler echocardiography to characterize transmitral flow velocity patterns and to assess restrictive ventricular hemodynamics. Six of the 28 patients had restrictive ventricular physiology, and the remaining 22 did not. Patients with a restrictive filling process had marked ventricular wall thickening with depressed fractional shortening. The transmitral flow velocity patterns in patients with restriction were characteristically manifested by the increased peak flow velocity and shortening of rapid diastolic filling, which was associated with a reduced flow velocity in atrial systole. In the 22 patients without restriction, the left ventricular filling patterns were subclassified as 1) filling patterns with the prolonged isovolumic relaxation time and reduced early diastolic filling, as well as enhanced atrial contribution to ventricular filling (16 patients with mild echocardiographic abnormalities), 2) normal filling patterns with normal echocardiograms (4 patients), and 3) normal filling patterns, with moderate ventricular wall thickening (2 patients). These findings suggested that restrictive ventricular hemodynamics can be characterized by the transmitral velocity pattern and that patterns of left ventricular diastolic filling are markedly varied depending on the magnitude of myocardial amyloid deposition in patients with amyloid heart disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

[Long-term respiratory effects of neonatal hypoxia in rats].

Rats maintained in a hypoxic environment during the first week after birth (NH rats) show a decrease in body growth and oxygen consumption and an increase in ventilation. At the same time the lungs undergo changes in structure which suggests protection of the gas exchange area. In this study, the extent to which these adaptive changes would persist after return to normoxia was investigated. Control rats (C) were given 10% O2 during the first week of life, then returned to normoxic breathing (NH), and rats exposed to the same level and duration of hypoxia after weaning (AH). Body weight increased very little during the week of hypoxia, but after return to normoxia body growth was more than in control rats, and eventually body weight reached the control value at 2 month of age. Both oxygen consumption and minute ventilation were above control levels in the first week after hypoxia, probably reflecting the higher O2 demands of the rapidly growing animals. However, minute ventilation remained elevated even at 7-8 week of age at a time when both body weight and oxygen consumption were the same as in controls. Measurements of blood gases at this age indicated that the persistent hyperventilation was not due to hypoxemia, and was accompanied by hypocapnia and alkalosis. Hematocrit and total heart weight, elevated in hypoxia, returned to control values within 1 week, whereas dry lung weight and right side heart weight remained above the control values as much as during the hypoxic exposure.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Airway Resistance↗