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Biomedical subjects

T Kusunoki

Publications and source records attributed to T Kusunoki.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Tyrosine phosphorylation and its possible role in superoxide production by human neutrophils stimulated with FMLP and IgG.

Superoxide production by human neutrophils stimulated with FMLP and soluble aggregated human IgG were inhibited in a dose dependent manner by two kinds of tyrosine kinase inhibitors, erbstatin and genistein. Superoxide production stimulated with surface bound IgG, however, was scarcely inhibited by either inhibitor. Protein tyrosine phosphorylation studies with immunoblotting revealed specific tyrosine phosphorylation of a 40 Kd protein by soluble aggregated and surface bound IgG, and that of a 39 Kd protein, as well as the 40 Kd protein, by FMLP. These were all inhibited by the tyrosine kinase inhibitors. These data suggest that superoxide production induced by FMLP and soluble aggregated IgG are, at least in part, tyrosine kinase dependent, but the tyrosine kinases and/or substrates of tyrosine kinases involved may be different. In addition, tyrosine kinase independent pathways are also suggested to be involved in superoxide production by stimulation with surface bound IgG.

Humans

[The effect of bunazosin hydrochloride on intraocular pressure and aqueous humor dynamics in human].

The effects of bunazosin hydrochloride, a new highly selective alpha 1 adrenergic antagonist, on the intraocular pressure (IOP) and aqueous humor dynamics in healthy human volunteers were studied. Unilateral topical administration of 0.1% bunazosin significantly lowered IOP from 1 to 10 hrs in bunazosin-treated eyes, and from 2 to 8 hrs in contralateral placebo-treated eyes, with its maximum reduction at approximately 3 hrs, when the IOP decreased 5.0 mmHg in treated eyes, and 3.5 mmHg in contralateral eyes from the baseline, respectively. Fluorophotometrically measured aqueous humor flow rates did not change significantly either in treated or contralateral eyes. Bunazosin caused significant reduction of systolic and diastolic blood pressure 5 hr after application. The difference in pupil diameter between treated and contralateral eyes was found to be statistically significant from 1 to 5 hrs. A small but significant increase in anterior chamber depth also was observed from 2 to 6 hrs. Pulse rate and refraction were not substantially altered. There was moderate conjunctival vessel dilation, however, no serious complications were encountered. The results suggest that bunazosin hydrochloride appears to have great clinical potential for ocular hypotensive therapy.

Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists

Multicystic encephalomalacia in liveborn twin with a stillborn macerated co-twin.

Computed tomography showed multiple cystic lesions in the brains of three infants with cerebral palsy. Each patient was the product of a twin pregnancy with a stillborn, macerated co-twin. In two patients angiography was performed and suggested that the cystic lesions were multicystic encephalomalacia due to perinatal arterial occlusion.

Arterial Occlusive Diseases

Dynamics of cerebrospinal fluid circulation evaluated by metrizamide CT cisternography.

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) circulation has been analyzed by metrizamide computed tomography (CT) cisternography in 46 patients. Included were 7 patients without any clinical evidence of impaired CSF circulation, and 39 with hydrocephalus due to various causes. CT cisternography delineated the anatomical structures of the CSF pathways clearly and accurately and enabled us to analyze ventricular filling in a quantitative manner. As a result, a new, more precise CT cisternographic classification of the CSF flow patterns has been established. On the basis of the presence of ventricular reflux and stasis, extent of ventricular filling, and convexity flow of metrizamide, seven groups of flow patterns have been defined.

Adult

Immunologic and biochemical studies on the carcinoembryonic antigen-like substance in human neuroblastoma.

Several authors have observed that the plasma levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) in patients with neuroblastoma were significantly elevated. The present study was undertaken to investigate the nature of CEA activity in neuroblastoma tissue. This tumor tissue contains a small amount of CEA-like substance reacting with anti-CEA serum which is characterized by gamma-globulin electrophoretic mobility, a molecular weight that is approximately equal to that of albumin (4.6S) by gel filtration, and a glycoprotein staining with periodic acid-Schiff (PAS). According to the double immunodiffusion method, this antigen is partially identical to purified CEA of colon carcinoma, and is completely identical to nonspecific crossreacting antigen (NCA). This antigen is, therefore, referred to not as the CEA as described by Gold, but as NCA in neuroblastoma tissue. The elevation of plasma CEA activity in patients with neuroblastoma may be due to the release of NCA from tumor cells, or to the destruction tissues by metastasis, of normal which are rich in NCA, or to a combination of both.

Antigens, Neoplasm

Deficiency of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase found in a case of hepatic fructose-1,6-diphosphatase deficiency.

The first case of fructose-1,6-diphosphatase (FDPase) deficiency in Japan showed a decreased activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) in the liver, white, and red blood cells. In the enzymatic study of G6PD which was partially purified from red cells, the following characteristics were observed in the enzyme of the patient. 1) The G6PD activity of the patient was reduced to 17% of normal, but no evidence of a hemolytic episode was found in his past and family history. 2) In the investigation of G6PD of the patient, no abnormalities were observed in its enzymatic parameters such as electrophoretic mobility, Km for G6P and NADP, Ki for NADPH, the utilization of 2-deoxy G6P and deamino NADP, heat-stability, and pH curves. 3) The dissociation constants of red blood cell G6PD for NADP and NADPH, which were obtained from the investigations on the reactivation of cold-inactivated G6PD at 37 degrees C, were about 3 times higher in the patient as compared to the values of the normal controls. Based on these findings, it might be concluded that the G6PD deficiency found in the red blood cells of this case of a FDPase deficiency is a unique variant, which could not be characterized by using only the method recommended by a World Health Organization (WHO) scientific group. Considering that the abnormality observed in the G6PD of this patient was a decrease in the affinity of the enzyme for its coenzymes, the dissociation constants for the coenzymes in reactivation process might be another important kinetic parameter in characterizing the G6PD deficiency.

Biopsy

Quantitative analysis of dermatoglyphics. (2) Dermatoglyphic patterns.

Using medical students as controls, we devised a method of quantitative analysis of dermatoglyphic patterns. We calculated the frequency of appearance of each of the patterns and obtained the probability of occurrence of the dermatoglyphics of each of the controls. We showed usefulness of this method by presenting some examples of congenital anomalies where this has been put to use. Furthermore, patients with congential heart disease were compared with controls by this method.

Dermatoglyphics

An autoradiographic study of new fat cell formation in adipose tissue in adult mice during malnutrition and refeeding.

The renewal of adipose cells in adult mice has been autoradiographically studied. The number of adipose cells was diminished by eighty percent during malnutrition and the same number of adipose cells proliferated during the refeeding stage. The results of our study showed that adipose tissue, which had previously been believed to be stable in cell number, has the capacity for cell proliferation according to changes in nutritional status.

Adipose Tissue

Blastogenic response of spleen cells from C1300 neuroblastoma-bearing mice to tumor cells or soluble and insoluble tumor antigens.

Adult A/J mice inoculated with 1 x 10(6) syngeneic C1300 neuroblastoma cells had a palpable tumor after 1 week, and the tumor grew uniformly. The hypertonic KCl extract of the tumor induced blastogenic response of syngeneic spleen cells from tumor-bearing mice, and tumor antigens were considered to be solubilized by KCl from tumor cells. Although a higher blastogenic response to insoluble tumor antigens coupled to Sepharose 4B beads could have been expected as demonstrated in this mixed lymphocyte-tumor cell reaction (MLTR) assays, the blastogenic activity, which was approximately equal to that of soluble tumor antigens, was less than one-third of that in MLTR. The initial information of blastogenic response was found to be transmitted to the responder cells with out the entrance of tumor antigens into the cells by the use of insoluble tumor antigens. Blastogenic responses to soluble tumor antigens and to irradiated tumor cells (MLTR) in spleen cells from tumor-bearing mice were serially assayed after tumor inoculation. The response to soluble tumor antigens reached a peak 2 weeks after inoculation but a progressive depression of the responses was observed after a marked tumor growth. Although the blastogenic activity of soluble tumor antigens was small, changes in consecutive response to soluble tumor antigens in tumor-bearing mice were well correlated with those in MLTR. The blastogenic responses to soluble tumor antigens and MLTR were considered to be the manifestation of tumor-specific cell-mediated immunity. Furthermore, the serial blastogenic responses to concanavalin-A and lipopolysaccharide were also coincident with those of tumor-specific immunity.

Animals

Muscular form of glycogenosis type II (Pompe's disease).

An 11-year-old boy who was previously thought to have progressive muscular dystrophy was studied clinically, biochemically, and histologically. He was seen initially with an amyotonic syndrome with no clinical evidence of heart disease. Light and histochemical examination showed vacuolar degeneration and abnormal accumulation of glycogen in the muscular fibers. Electron microscopy showed aggregates of glycogen granules surrounded by a well-defined membrane, as in previously reported cases of type II glycogenosis. Enzymatic study disclosed that acid alpha-glucosidase was deficient in muscle, liver, and heart tissue, although neutral alpha-glucosidase was present within normal ranges. Measurement of acid and neutral alpha-glucosidase activity in muscle from the patient and his sisters and in urine from them and their parents indicated that his sisters are heterozygotes and his parents probably are heterozygotes. The disease was transmitted as an autosomal-recessive trait.

Child

Maturation of Purkinje cells in mouse cerebellum after neonatal administrations of cytosine arabinoside.

ICR-JCL strain mice were injected subcutaneously with 30 mg/kg body weight of cytosine arabinoside at 2, 3, and 4 days of age. This chemical prevented the production of the basket cells, stellate cells, and granule cells in the external granular layer of the cerebellum. Decrease in number of these microneutrons affected the noraml synaptic connections between the Purkinje cells and the microneurons, thus causing the disarrangement and abnormal arborization of the Purkinje cells. Of the three types of microneurons, the basket and a few stellate cells played a more important role in the disarrangement of the Purkinje cells and abnormal arborization of their primary dendrites than the granule cells did. Abnormal outgrowing directions of other smooth dendrites of the Purkinje cells were caused mainly by the diminution of stellate cells. Although parallel fibers were grossly decreased in number in the treated cerebellums, spines of the spiny dendrites of the Purkinje cells sprouted considerably in the 15-day-old mice, and then their morphological features remained even after 100 days of age.

Animals

Comparison of cerebrospinal fluid dynamics studied by computed tomography (CT) and radioisotope (RI) cisternography.

CT and RI cisternography were done on 55 cases with normal and abnormal CSF circulation. Of 19 cases in which both studies were done, 14 case disclosed a good correspondence. The remaining five cases showed no correspondence because of technical failure. Analyzing the results, CT cisternography demonstrates pathology of the CSF dynamics in a more precise and quantitative manner than RI cisternography does. Metrizamide CT cisternography will soon be the most reliable method of investigation for the evaluation of the CSF kinetics.

Adolescent