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Biomedical subjects

T Komiya

Publications and source records attributed to T Komiya.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

Preparation of a diphtheria toxin-pullulan conjugate that elicits good IgG antibody production with poor IgE synthesis.

Diphtheria toxin is detoxified through conjugation with pullulan. The toxin-pullulan conjugate is easily purified by DEAE-Sephacel chromatography. The conjugate forms a transparent 'clear line' with anti-toxin antibodies on agarose plate, which offers a good indicator of conjugate formation. The toxin-pullulan conjugate induces both IgG1 and IgG2b antibody production with diminished IgE response, while the alum-precipitated conventional toxoid causes mainly increases in IgE as well as IgG1 antibody formation. The anti-toxin HA titre (IgG antibody) induced by the toxin-pullulan conjugate parallels the neutralizing activity of the immune-sera. These results suggest that the conjugation of toxin to pullulan is a very powerful method by which to develop a vaccine that induces neutralizing antibody with diminished IgE antibody synthesis.

Animals↗

Titration of botulinum antitoxin of low levels by the score method.

Botulinum antitoxin is commonly titrated by injecting a mixture of toxin and antitoxin into mice and by utilizing deaths as a marker to measure the amount of unneutralized toxin. We attempted to titrate antitoxin by converting the severity of symptoms (notably palsy) and time-to-death in days into scores. In neutralization tests with toxin levels at 5.9 LD50 and 23.5 LD50, a linear relationship was obtained for antitoxin dose in a range between 0.03 to 0.003 IU/ml. Statistical analysis showed that homogeneity of variance or slope was not denied for the scores obtained on any day from the first to the fourth days after injection, demonstrating that this method can titrate accurately antitoxin of such a low level as 0.003 IU/ml within 4 days after injection.

Animals↗

[Acute acquired toxoplasmosis presenting as polymyositis and chorioretinitis in a Japanese male].

A 55-year-old Japanese male who developed acute polymyositis and chorioretinitis due to toxoplasmosis is described. The patients was well until one month prior to the present admission, when he had an onset of painful swelling of lymphnodes in the posterior cervical region, proximal muscle weakness, myalgia and a partial defect in the visual field of the right eye. He admitted that he had had a chance to eat half-cooked mutton while he had visited Saudi Arabia 40 days before. He was unable to go up and down the stairs at the peak of the illness. Serum CPK was 2050 u/l (N = 5-50) on January 11, 1989. These symptoms improved spontaneously except for the visual field defect. He was admitted to our hospital on January 31, 1989. On admission, neurological examination was unremarkable except for retinal exudate in the right eye which appeared consistent with the clinical diagnosis of toxoplasma chorioretinitis. Serum CPK was 103 u/l, and EMG showed myogenic changes. The IgM-immunofluorescent (IFA) anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibody titer was elevated to 640, and IgG-immunofluorescent antibody to 20480 after IgM-IFA. These clinical and serological findings indicate acute and recent Toxoplasma gondii infection. It appeared likely that Toxoplasma gondii directly caused acute myositis and chorioretinitis. Clinical manifestations of toxoplasma myositis may mimic those of idiopathic polymyositis, however, the clinical course of the former is usually self-limited probably because of generation of antibodies which will inhibit the growth of the organism.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acute Disease↗

Nucleotide sequence analysis of cDNA encoding the coat protein of cucumber mosaic virus: genome organization and molecular features of the protein.

The cDNA sequence coding for the coat protein of cucumber mosaic virus (Japanese Y strain) was cloned, and its nucleotide sequence was determined. The sequence contains an open reading frame that encodes the coat protein composed of 218 amino acids. The nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences of the coat protein of this strain were compared with those of the Q strain; the homologies of the sequences were 78% and 81%, respectively. Further study of the sequences gave an insight into the genome organization and the molecular features of the coat protein. The coding region can be divided into three characteristic regions. The N-terminal region has conserved features in the positively charged structure, the hydropathy pattern and the predicted secondary structure, although the amino acid sequence is varied mainly due to frameshift mutations. It is noteworthy that the positions of arginine residues in this region are highly conserved. Both the nucleotide and amino acid sequences of the central region are well conserved. The amino acid sequence of the C-terminal region is not conserved, because of frameshift mutations, however, the total number of amino acids is conserved. The nucleotide sequence of the 3'-noncoding region is divergent, but it could form a tRNA-like structure similar to those reported for other viruses. Detailed investigation suggests that the Y and Q strains are evolutionarily distant.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Generation of multiple troponin T isoforms is a common feature of the muscles in various chordate animals.

1. Troponin T (TNT) expressed in various vertebrate skeletal and ascidian smooth muscles was examined by two-dimensional electrophoresis in combination with immunoblotting. 2. A monoclonal anti-TNT antibody, NT-302, exhibited binding ability to various TNT variants in the vertebrate and protochordate animals. 3. TNT isoform pattern differed among the animals, but the existence of multiple TNT isoforms in a single muscle tissue was the general feature of all the animals examined.

Animals↗

[Metrizamide encephalopathy in a child with hydrocephalus--effects of L-threo-DOPS on persistent disturbance of consciousness and L-dopa on extrapyramidal symptoms].

This report describes a case of metrizamide encephalopathy with persistent disturbance of consciousness and extrapyramidal symptoms. These two conditions have rarely been reported among the various adverse effects of metrizamide. An 11-year-old girl had been in almost good health until she was ten years old, at which time she received a ventriculo-peritoneal shunt operation, suffering from hydrocephalus of unknown etiology. At the age of eleven, she was admitted to our hospital due to hydrocephalus recurrence. She was examined by metrizamide shunt-gram (1200 mg iodide/4 ml). On the next day, she became drowsy. The CT scan disclosed the periventricular penetration of metrizamide into the medial part of the thalamus and the caudate nucleus. Thirteen days later, disturbance of consciousness continued, and extrapyramidal symptoms, that is, rigo-spasticity and postural tremor, were observed. Oral administration of L-threo-DOPS, the direct precursor of noradrenaline, was effective against the persistent disturbance of consciousness and L-DOPA was effective against the extrapyramidal symptoms. She soon recovered almost to normal and no neurological deficit remained. We thus conclude that the CT scan findings and effects of L-threo-DOPS and L-DOPA suggest that metrizamide encephalopathy in this case were respectively due to its periventricular penetration into the medial part of the thalamus and the caudate nucleus, and the resultant deficiency of the ascending noradrenergic reticular activating system and the nigrostriatal dopaminergic system.

Basal Ganglia Diseases↗

Identification of two variants of troponin T in the developing chicken heart using a monoclonal antibody.

Troponin T (TNT) expressed in the developing chicken cardiac muscle was examined by immunoblotting combined with two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-D PAGE) and peptide mapping. When the whole lysate of the neonatal heart was examined by 2-D PAGE, two TNT variants were detected on the gel by monoclonal antibody to TNT. Expression of the two variants was developmentally regulated: one isoform (type I) was expressed from embryonic through neonatal stages, and the other (type II) from the late embryonic stage through adulthood during cardiac muscle development. The type-I isoform, but not type-II isoform, was also expressed transiently in chicken skeletal muscle at embryonic stages. As judged from the peptide maps, the two isoforms differed in the N-terminal region but not in the C-terminal region.

Aging↗

[Basic and clinical evaluation of a new assay procedure "SCC RIABEAD" for estimation of squamous cell carcinoma related antigen].

We examined the efficacy of a new commercial assay procedure (SCC RIABEAD) for estimation of squamous cell carcinoma related antigen (SCC). Intraassay and interassay variance were 4.0-14.6% and 4.6-17.0% respectively. Recovery and dilution tests gave satisfactory results. The normal range was under the level of 1.63 ng/ml. The patients with uterine cervical cancer or squamous cell carcinoma of the lung showed high positive rates. The values of SCC measured by SCC RIABEAD were well-correlated to those by SCC RIAKIT. However, SCC RIABEAD showed lower values in low SCC level and higher values in high SCC level than SCC RIAKIT.

Adult↗

Expression of multiple troponin T variants in neonatal chicken breast muscle.

The types of troponin-T (TNT) expressed in neonatal chicken breast muscle were examined by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-D PAGE), immunoblotting, and peptide mapping. When troponin from neonatal chicken breast muscle or whole lysate of the muscle was displayed on 2-D PAGE, multiple spots were observed in the TNT region on the gel. They differed slightly from those in adult breast- and leg-type TNT, but were positively stained with the antibody specific for TN-T. These results indicate that multiple spots observed in the TNT region are all TNT isoforms. The TNT isoforms in the neonatal breast muscle were classified into two groups, based on size. Each group contained about five variants. The first group with a larger size was in the molecular weight range of adult breast TNT, while the smaller-sized second group was in the molecular weight range of adult leg TNT. Overall peptide map patterns of variants in the first group and also that of adult breast TNT resembled each other, whereas those of variants in the second group were similar to that of adult leg TNT. The TNT of adult breast-type appeared at about 2- to 3-weeks posthatch, and thereafter became a major TNT isoform.

Animals↗