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S Yano

Publications and source records attributed to S Yano.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed2004

Chronomic community screening reveals about 31% depression, elevated blood pressure and infradian vascular rhythm alteration.

Depression, which is a risk factor for cardiac morbidity and mortality, is not an unusual occurrence among individuals with coronary heart disease (CHD), but evidence concerning its role in the pathogenesis of this condition is less clear. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) has become an important tool in the diagnosis and management of hypertension. Several previous studies have indicated that various kinds of target organ damage and cardiovascular morbidity are more strongly associated with a diagnosis by ABPM than through spot-checks in a clinical setting. This study investigated whether depressive mood was associated with changes in the about-weekly (circaseptan) and half-weekly (circasemiseptan) variations in blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR), including a BP surge on Mondays, in community-dwelling subjects monitored chronomically for the time structure (chronome) of their BP and HR variabilities. From April 2001 to April 2003, 217 subjects (85 men and 132 women; mean age: 56.8 +/- 11.3 yr) from U town, Hokkaido (latitude: 43.45 degrees N, longitude: 141.85 degrees E), self-monitored their BP and HR for 7 days starting around 11 a.m. on Thursday, and took readings at 30-minute intervals between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., then at 60-minute intervals between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. The data were retrieved and analyzed on a PC with appropriate commercial software (TM-2430-15; A&D Co., Japan). Subjects were asked about 15 items on a depression rating scale through a self-administered questionnaire. When the score amounted to 5 or higher, subjects were considered to be depressive. Student's t-test, a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and cosinor methods with parametric tests were also used. A p-value below 0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance (below 0.10: borderline statistical significance). Depression rating scales were obtained for 192 out of the 217 subjects enrolled in this study. Depression scores were (>) 5 in 72 subjects. The average values of systolic (S) and diastolic (D) BP were statistically significantly higher in depressed subjects (SBP: 129.2 vs 124.5 mmHg; p = 0.034; DBP: 79.0 vs 76.5 mmHg; p = 0.041). The 7-day average for HR did not differ between subjects with depression scores of < 5 or > 5. DBP dipping was less in the depressed subjects (16.30 vs 18.22%; p = 0.048). The dipping ratios of SBP and HR showed no statistically significant difference. In the group with depression scores of < 5, HR variability (estimated by the SD of HR and HR dip) was higher during vacations and lower on Mondays. The 24-h BP measures showed a novelty effect and a surge on Mondays. In the depressed group, a prominent circaseptan rhythm appeared to replace the novelty effect, vacation dip, and Monday surge. The results of this investigation indicate the clinical importance of the monitoring of depressed subjects. Fewer than 7 days of monitoring means a greater risk of false diagnosis, and thus a therapeutic decision including potentially unnecessary or inappropriate long-term treatment. Records shorter than 7 days would not have detected circaseptan BP dysrhythmia associated with a depressive state. Prominent circaseptans can provide new indications on the mechanisms underlying the strong relation between depression and adverse cardiac events. Future studies should aim at determining whether the treatment of depression, especially from the standpoint of a chronodiagnosis and chronotherapy, can reduce the incidence of adverse cardiac events, and whether this depends upon restoring normal BP and HR variability, i.e. anormal BP and HR chronome.

Blood Pressure Monitoring, Ambulatory↗
PubMed2004

Ischemia-induced neuronal cell death is mediated by the endoplasmic reticulum stress pathway involving CHOP.

Brain ischemia induces apoptosis in neuronal cells, but the mechanism is not well understood. When wild-type mice were subjected to bilateral common carotid arteries occlusion (BCCAO) for 15 min, apoptosis-associated morphological changes and appearance of TUNEL-positive cells were observed in the striatum and in the hippocampus at 48 h after occlusion. RT-PCR analysis revealed that mRNAs for ER stress-associated proapoptotic factor CHOP and an ER chaperone BiP are markedly induced at 12 h after BCCAO. Immunohistochemical analysis showed that CHOP protein is induced in nuclei of damaged neurons at 24 h after occlusion. In contrast, ischemia-associated apoptotic loss of neurons was decreased in CHOP(-/-) mice. Primary hippocampal neurons from CHOP(-/-) mice were more resistant to hypoxia-reoxygenation-induced apoptosis than those from wild-type animals. These results indicate that ischemia-induced neuronal cell death is mediated by the ER stress pathway involving CHOP induction.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Calcium-sensing receptor induces proliferation through p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase but not extracellularly regulated kinase in a model of humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy.

Using H-500 rat Leydig cancer cells as a model of humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM), we previously showed that high Ca(2+) induces PTH-related peptide (PTHrP) secretion via the calcium-sensing receptor (CaR) and mitogen- and stress-activated kinases, e.g. MAPK kinase 1 (MEK1), p38 MAPK, and stress-activated protein kinase 1/c-Jun N-terminal kinase. Because cellular proliferation is a hallmark of malignancy, we studied the role of the CaR in regulating the proliferation of H-500 cells. Elevated Ca(2+) has a mitogenic effect on these cells that is mediated by the CaR, because the calcimimetic NPS R-467 also induced proliferation. Inhibition of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) and p38 MAPK but not MEK1 abolished the mitogenic effect. Activation of PI3K by elevated Ca(2+) was documented by phosphorylation of its downstream kinase, protein kinase B. Because protein kinase B activation promotes cell survival, we speculated that elevated Ca(2+) might protect H-500 cells against apoptosis. Using terminal uridine deoxynucleotidyl nick end labeling staining, we demonstrated that high Ca(2+) (7.5 mM) and NPS R-467 indeed protect cells against apoptosis induced by serum withdrawal compared with low Ca(2+) (0.5 mM). Because the CaR induces PTHrP secretion, it is possible that the mitogenic and antiapoptotic effects of elevated Ca(2+) could be indirect and mediated via PTHrP. However, blocking the type 1 PTH receptor with PTH (7-34) peptide did not alter either high Ca(2+)-induced proliferation or protection against apoptosis. Taken together, our data show that activation of PI3K and p38 MAPK but not of MEK1/ERK by the CaR promotes proliferation of H-500 cells as well as affords protection against apoptosis. These effects are likely direct without the involvement of PTHrP in an autocrine mode.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Calcium-sensing receptor stimulates PTHrP release by pathways dependent on PKC, p38 MAPK, JNK, and ERK1/2 in H-500 cells.

Elevated extracellular calcium ([Ca2+]o) and other agonists potentially acting via the calcium-sensing receptor (CaR) increase parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTHrP) release from H-500 Leydig cells. Here, we provide strong evidence for the CaR's involvement by using a dominant negative CaR that attenuates high [Ca2+]o-induced PTHrP release. This effect is likely transcriptional, because high [Ca2+]o upregulates the PTHrP transcript, an effect that is abolished by actinomycin D. Regulation of PTHrP release by the CaR involves activation of PKC as well as ERK1/2, p38 MAPK, and JNK pathways. However, we show for the first time that high [Ca2+]o-induced activation of the stress-activated protein kinase SEK1 is PKC independent, because there is an additive effect of a PKC inhibitor in combination with the JNK inhibitor on [Ca2+]o-stimulated PTHrP release. Furthermore, high [Ca2+]o, in a PKC-independent fashion, induces phosphorylation of ERK1/2, SEK1, p38 MAPK, and its downstream transcription factor ATF-2. We conclude that CaR regulation of PTHrP release in H-500 cells involves activation of PKC as well as the ERK1/2, p38 MAPK, and JNK pathways.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Chronomics for chronoastrobiology with immediate spin-offs for life quality and longevity.

Effects of geomagnetic disturbance on heart rate variability (HRV), the 1/f fractal scaling in particular, are being assessed in adults living at high latitude, where magnetic storms are more frequent and more intense than at lower latitudes. The latter may constitute a signal or a proxy, and possibly a mechanism underlying both undesirable and desirable effects, depending upon circumstances yet to be elucidated. Any circadecadal stage-dependence of morbidity and/or mortality from certain conditions such as myocardial infarctions remains to be studied in both adult and pediatric populations. Further work could thus examine whether any associations of geomagnetic disturbances may account, at least in part, through effects upon the circulation, for long-term infra-annual changes, possibly anchored in the population's gene pool, observed in a number of anthropologic measurements at birth as well as in other population statistics. In order to assess the development of several chronome components of the electrocardiogram (ECG), around-the-clock ambulatory ECG were recorded from 19 infants (25 days-3 months of age), 22 children (3-9 years of age), 18 boys and girls (10-14 years of age), pubertal boys (15-20 years of age), and 10 young men (21-29 years of age). Time- and frequency-domain measures of HRV were obtained by spectral analysis, using the maximal entropy method (MEM). The frequency of detection of the circadian, circasemidian and circaoctohoran components, with periods of about 24, 12 and 8 h, respectively, was compared among the five groups for several HRV endpoints, notably 1/f fractal scaling, total spectral power within a 5-min span, and its distribution into several frequency regions. A circadian component is already detectable in a sizeable proportion of infants and children for most of the HRV indices considered. The incidence of detection of the circadian component increases with age for the spectral power in different frequency regions, notably around 10.5 s ("LF") and around 3.6 s ("HF"); it peaks around puberty for 1/f in our data; and it did not detectably change with age for the total spectral power. Similar changes with age are not observed for the circasemidian or circaoctohoran components. The latter characterizes primarily 1/f and less so the about 3.6 s power ("HF"). Several aspects of the HRV chronome may thus develop differently as a function of age. In 2000, we began a community-based study named "Longitudinal Investigation of Longevity and Aging in Hokkaido County (LILAC study)". The ambulatory blood pressure (BP) of middle-aged subjects, aged 40-74 years, was monitored 7-day/24-h, and the cardiovascular and neurobehavioral functions of elderly people above 75 years were evaluated. Our goal was the prevention of stroke and myocardial infarction and the decline in cognitive function of the elderly in a community. Of 115 elderly people recruited in a longitudinal community-based study in 2000, 72 completed yearly follow-ups in 2002. A cardiovascular score based on BP, pulse wave velocity, and 1-h ECG-based HRV endpoints served to distinguish between normal, mildly disordered, or disordered participants. A comparison of cognitive function in 2002 vs. 2000, assessed with the MMSE, HDSR, the Up & Go and Functional Reach tests, gauged any effect of social intervention. Cognitive function was maintained or improved, especially for people suffering from hypertension, tachycardia, or a decreased HRV, suggesting that cardiovascular function is a major factor affecting cognitive function.

Cardiovascular Diseases↗
PubMed2003

The neuroprotective effect of a novel calmodulin antagonist, 3-[2-[4-(3-chloro-2-methylphenyl)-1-piperazinyl]ethyl]-5,6-dimethoxy-1-(4-imidazolylmethyl)-1H-indazole dihydrochloride 3.5 hydrate, in transient forebrain ischemia.

A novel calmodulin (CaM) antagonist DY-9760e, (3-[2-[4-(3-chloro-2-methylphenyl)-1-piperazinyl]ethyl]-5,6-dimethoxy-1-(4-imidazolylmethyl)-1H-indazole dihydrochloride 3.5 hydrate), with an apparent neuroprotective effect in vivo, potently inhibits CaM-dependent nitric oxide synthase in situ. In the present study, we determined whether DY-9760e inhibits nitric oxide (NO) production and protein nitration by peroxynitrite (ONOO(-)) formation in the hippocampal CA1 region of gerbils after transient forebrain ischemia. In freely moving gerbils, NO production after 10-minute forebrain ischemia was monitored consecutively with in vivo brain microdialysis. Pretreatment with DY-9760e (50 mg/kg i.p.) significantly decreased the increased levels of NO(x)(-) (NO metabolites, NO(2)(-) plus NO(3)(-)) immediately after, 24 h after cerebral ischemia-reperfusion to the control levels of sham-operated animals. Western blot and immunohistochemical analyses using an anti-nitrotyrosine antibody as a marker of ONOO(-) formation indicated a marked increase in nitrotyrosine immunoreactivity in the pyramidal neurons of the CA1 region 2 h after reperfusion, and DY-9760e significantly inhibited increased nitrotyrosine immunoreactivity. Coincident with the inhibition of the NO production and protein tyrosine nitration, pretreatment with DY-9760e rescued the delayed neuronal death in the hippocampal CA1 region. These results suggest that the inhibitory effects of DY-9760e on the NO-ONOO(-) pathway partly account for its neuroprotective effects in cerebral ischemia.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Danger of high-protein dietary supplements to persons with hyperphenylalaninaemia.

A 16-year-old adolescent with mild hyperphenylalaninaemia was given a high-protein 'body building' supplement twice daily, causing headaches, decreased school performance and mild depression. All symptoms disappeared after cessation of the supplement. The phenylalanine hydroxylase mutation H170D/IVS1nt5G>T was found to be responsive to tetrahydrobiopterin with significant decrease in blood phenylalanine concentration and increase in tyrosine blood content. A brain phenylalanine level of 0.5 mmol/L was initially documented, which decreased to the normal carrier range of 0.2 mmol/L within one month of discontinuance of the protein supplement. At present, the patient is on a normal diet without phenylalanine restriction.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Infantile mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome associated with methylmalonic aciduria and 3-methylcrotonyl-CoA and propionyl-CoA carboxylase deficiencies in two unrelated patients: a new phenotype of mtDNA depletion syndrome.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) depletion refers to a quantitative defect in mtDNA and is heterogeneous with regard to causal genotypes and the associated clinical phenotypes. We report two unrelated infants with mtDNA depletion. A diagnosis of methylmalonic aciduria was initially raised in both on the basis of high urine methylmalonic acid and related organic acids and elevated propionylcarnitine and methylmalonylcarnitine. Carboxylase assay with skin fibroblasts revealed low propionyl-CoA and 3-methylcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase and normal pyruvate carboxylase activities. Quantitative Southern blot analysis of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA with muscle tissues revealed the patients' mtDNA to be depleted to 24% and 39% of normal controls. Our two patients showed multiple mitochondrial dysfunction including respiratory chain defects and deficiencies in the two nuclear DNA encoded carboxylases resulting in abnormal urine organic acids. To our knowledge, there is no obvious connection between the defective pathways other than their mitochondrial locations. These two cases may represent a new entity of mitochondrial disease that might be due to a defective common mechanism, such as assembly, maintenance and transport, affecting various mitochondrial enzymes and functions. Mitochondrial depletion should be considered in infants with atypical organic aciduria that may resemblemethylmalonicaciduria, propionicacidaemia, or 3-methylcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase deficiency.

Carbon-Carbon Ligases↗
PubMed2003

Intrabronchial lesion due to Cladosporium sphaerospermum in a healthy, non-asthmatic woman.

An intrabronchial lesion caused by to Cladosporium sphaerospermum in a healthy and non-asthmatic 59-year-old woman is reported. Intrabronchial infusion of amphotericin B was repeated three times followed by oral administration of prednisolone and itraconazole. The findings on chest radiographs subsequently improved. The possibility of intrabronchial lesions caused by C. sphaerosporum even in a healthy and non-asthmatic person is remarkable.

Asthma↗
PubMed2003

Effect of parathyroidectomy on bone mineral density in hemodialysis patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism: possible usefulness of preoperative determination of parathyroid hormone level for prediction of bone regain.

PURPOSE: To examine longitudinal changes of bone mineral density (BMD) after parathyroidectomy (PTx) in patients undergoing maintenance hemodialysis (HD) with severe secondary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) to determine which factor contributes most to bone changes. METHODS: Fifteen Japanese HD patients who had been refractory to medical therapy were subject to PTx with autotransplantation. We measured BMD by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) at the lumbar spine (L2 - 4 BMD) and the distal 1/3 region of the radius (1/3R BMD) at 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months after PTx. RESULTS: Baseline Z-score of BMD was markedly low at 1/3R (- 3.07) and slightly low at L2 - 4 (-0.59) in this group. A significant increase in L2 - 4 BMD was observed as early as one month after PTx, which was sustained afterwards. Annual percent changes in L2 - 4 and 1/3R BMD were + 15.6 % and + 6.4 %, respectively. The annual percent changes in BMD at both sites were positively associated with preoperative intact PTH levels (L2 - 4; r = 0.642, p = 0.010, 1/3R; r = 0.884, p < 0.001) and total alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels (L2 - 4; r = 0.663, p = 0.007, 1/3R; r = 0.858, p < 0.001). Stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that serum levels of intact PTH and ALP were the best predictors of both percentage and net changes in radial BMD with high determination coefficients (r 2 > 0.8). CONCLUSION: Successful PTx following appropriate supplementation with vitamin D and calcium provides a marked increase in lumbar BMD and a modest increase in radial BMD in HD patients with secondary HPT. Preoperative levels of PTH and ALP are useful for predicting postoperative changes in bone mass.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed2002

Degree of disorder in cubic mesophases in thermotropics: thermodynamic study of a liquid crystal showing two cubic mesophases.

Heat capacity of a thermotropic mesogen ANBC(22) (4(')-alkoxy-3(')-nitrobiphenyl-4-carboxylic acid with 22 carbon atoms in alkyl chain) showing two cubic mesophases was measured by adiabatic calorimetry between 13 and 480 K. Excess enthalpies and entropies due to phase transitions were determined. A small thermal anomaly due to the cubic Im3m-->cubic Ia3d phase transition was successfully detected. Through an analysis of chain-length dependence of the entropy of transition, the sequence of two cubic mesophases (with space groups Ia3d and Im3m) is deduced for thermotropic mesogens ANBC(n). It is shown that the disorder of the core arrangement decreases in the order of Sm-C-->cubic (Im3m)-->cubic (Ia3d) while that of the chain in the reverse order cubic (Ia3d)-->cubic (Im3m)-->Sm C.

Journal Article↗
PubMed2002

The presence and severity of vertebral fractures is associated with the presence of esophageal hiatal hernia in postmenopausal women.

We examined the relationship between the presence of esophageal hiatal hernia (HH) assessed by endoscopy and the presence of vertebral fractures (VFs) in 87 Japanese postmenopausal women (age range 52-87 years). We found that 29 (63%) of 46 patients with HH (71.2+/-6.1 years, mean +/- SD) had one or more VFs, compared with 14 (34%) of 41 patients without HH (70.8+/-6.8 years), which was a significant difference in the frequency of VFs (c2 = 7.242; p = 0.0071). The average number of VFs per patient was significantly higher for the patients with HH than for those without HH (1.67+/-1.75 vs 0.68+/-1.21, p = 0.0032). There were no significant differences in absolute or age-matched bone mineral density (BMD) values at the lumbar spine (0.656+/-0.131 vs 0.662+/-0.148 g/cm2; Z-score, -0.35+/-1.17 vs -0.26+/-1.00) and there were no significant differences in biochemical parameters, age, years since menopause or body mass index (BMI) between the two groups. When patients were divided into those with reflux esophagitis (RE) (n = 30, 70.2+/-7.3 years) and those without RE (n = 57, 71.4+/-5.9 years), no significant differences were detected in any of the above parameters including the presence or number of VFs. The patients were further subdivided into four groups: those with 'HH only' (n = 23, 72.3+/-4.6 years), with 'RE only' (n = 7, 70.9+/-7.7 years), with 'both' (n = 23, 70.0+/-7.3 years) and with 'neither' (n = 34, 70.8+/-6.7 years). One or more VFs were found in 12 (52%), 1 (14%), 17 (74%), and 13 (38%) patients in each group, respectively, and the difference in frequency was significant (c2 = 10.748; p = 0.0132). The average number of VFs per patient in each group was 1.57+/-2.06, 0.14+/-0.38, 1.78+/-1.41 and 0.79+/-1.30, respectively, and there were significant differences between the 'both' and 'neither' groups, and between the 'both' and 'RE only' groups (p<0.05). When univariate logistic regression analysis was performed with the presence of HH as a dependent variable and each of the presence of VFs, the number of VFs per patient, absolute or age-matched BMD values at the lumbar spine, BMI and plasma albumin as independent variables, the presence of VFs and the number of VFs per patient were selected as indices affecting the presence of HH (odds ratio: 3.29 and 1.59, 95% confidence interval: 1.36-7.94 and 1.14-2.23; p=0.0080 and 0.0064, respectively). These results show that the presence and severity of VFs are associated with the presence of HH but not of RE in Japanese postmenopausal women, and suggest that kyphosis induced by multiple VFs might predispose elderly women to a complication with HH.

Aged↗
PubMed2002

Depression, quality of life, and lifestyle: chronoecological health watch in a community.

The objectives are to explore the possibility of preventive non-drug interventions on vascular disease risk by examining the associations among health-related lifestyle (HLS), disease-related illnesses (DRI), subjective quality of life (QOL), depression, and blood pressure (BP). A sample of 181 adults (73 men and 108 women, mean age 57.3 +/- 10.2 years, range 24-76 years) in Urausu, Hokkaido, Japan, wore an ambulatory BP monitor around the clock for seven consecutive days. They completed a health survey questionnaire with which their HLS and DRI were assessed. QOL and depression were rated on the Visual Analogue Scales and the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form, respectively. For each participant's systolic (S) and diastolic (D) BP and HR, the circadian MESOR, amplitude, and acrophase were calculated, using cosinor analysis. Associations among the variables were analyzed, using Pearson's correlation coefficient and Kendall's tau-b. DRI was positively associated with depression (P = 0.005) and with HLS (P = 0.001), and was negatively associated with QOL (P = 0.041). Depression showed a moderate and negative correlation with QOL (P < 0.001). As expected, Body Mass Index (BMI) was associated with higher DRI (P = 0.008), SBP (P < 0.001), and DBP (P = 0.002), and with less variation of SBP (P = 0.006) and DBP (P = 0.004). Obesity as assessed by BMI was found to be a good indicator of the circadian BP endpoints and illnesses, warranting further investigation into dietary intake and health outcomes. Depression was also found to be a useful indicator of DRI, HLS, and QOL.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Gelatin-specific cellular immune responses persist for more than 3 years after priming with gelatin containing DTaP vaccine.

BACKGROUND: Gelatin-specific cell-mediated immunity develops in subjects inoculated with gelatin containing DTaP vaccine. However, it is not yet known whether such established sensitization to gelatin disappears or persists with time. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to follow the patients with gelatin sensitization elicited by DTaP vaccination for their lymphocyte responsiveness and IgE, IgG antibody specific to gelatin over several years and to compare the activities with those at the time of enrollment into the study. METHODS: We studied 28 subjects who developed positive lymphocyte proliferation test (LPT) after receiving gelatin containing DTaP vaccine and eight subjects who had a negative LPT after inoculation of non-gelatin DTaP. Determination of IgE, IgG antibodies and specific lymphoproliferative response directed against gelatin were performed at enrollment and on follow up. RESULTS: None of the subjects had antibody to gelatin at enrollment and none developed gelatin IgE or IgG during follow-up. There was no significant difference in the SIs of the subjects receiving gelatin DTaP (P = 0.150, 95% CI, -0.198-0.032), whereas lymphocyte activity to gelatin increased between enrollment and follow-up in the subjects with non-gelatin DTaP (P = 0.011, 95% CI, 0.063-0.338). CONCLUSION: Gelatin-specific lymphocyte activity persists at comparable levels for more than 3 years in subjects who acquire a positive LPT response to gelatin after receiving primary DTaP vaccine containing gelatin. Furthermore, five out of eight subjects initially with negative LPT to gelatin have been shown to acquire specific LPT with time.

Diphtheria-Tetanus-acellular Pertussis Vaccines↗
PubMed2002

Analysis of the expression of cutaneous lymphocyte-associated antigen on the peripheral blood and cutaneous lymphocytes of alopecia areata patients.

Alopecia areata has been reported to be accompanied by abnormal autoimmune dysfunction. We examined the expression of cutaneous lymphocyte-associated antigen (CLA), which is a skin-specific lymphocyte homing receptor, in the peripheral blood lymphocytes and skin of patients with alopecia areata. In the patients' peripheral blood, the percentage of CLA-positive CD4+ or CD8+ lymphocytes, was significantly higher than that of normal controls. The patients with severe or progressive alopecia areata showed a much higher CLA-positivity compared to patients recovering from the disease. A chronological study showed that the percentage of CLA-positive peripheral blood lymphocytes, CD4 + or CD8 + lymphocytes decreased in parallel with the patients' good clinical course. The CLA-positivity in peripheral blood lymphocytes, CD4+ or CD8+ lymphocytes of patients with alopecia areata who did not respond to oral corticosteroid therapy remained higher than in those who responded well to the treatment. In the affected scalp skin, many infiltrating lymphocytes around the hair follicles, which were CD4+ or CD8+ lymphocytes, expressed CLA. These findings suggest that the CLA-positivity correlates with clinical activity and that CLA-positive CD4+ or CD8+ lymphocytes may play an important role in alopecia areata.

Adolescent↗