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Biomedical subjects

T Mizukami

Publications and source records attributed to T Mizukami.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Physical map of the linear chromosome of Streptomyces griseus.

The chromosomal DNA of Streptomyces griseus 2247 (a derivative of strain IFO3237) was digested with several restriction endonucleases and analyzed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Digestion with AseI and DraI gave 15 and 9 fragments, respectively, the total sizes of which were 7.8 Mb. All the AseI and DraI fragments were aligned on a linear chromosome map by using linking plasmids and cosmids. PFGE analysis of the intact chromosome also showed a linear DNA band of about 8 Mb. Detailed physical maps of both terminal regions were constructed; they revealed the presence of a 24-kb terminal inverted repeat on each end. PFGE analysis with and without proteinase K treatment suggested that each end of the chromosome carries a protein molecule.

Chromosome Mapping↗

Conserved organization of genes for biosynthesis of chlortetracycline in Streptomyces strains.

By genomic Southern blot analysis, the DNA sequences homologous to the gene cluster responsible for biosynthesis of 6-demethyl-chlortetracycline in Streptomyces aureofaciens NRRL3203 were shown to be highly conserved in independent chlortetracycline- or tetracycline producing Streptomyces strains. By contrast, oxytetracycline-producing Streptomyces strains had no hybridization with the cluster DNA.

Blotting, Southern↗

Direct observation of the thermal equilibria among lumirhodopsin, metarhodopsin I, and metarhodopsin II in chicken rhodopsin.

Using low-temperature time-resolved spectroscopy, we have directly observed thermal back reaction of metarhodopsin I (meta I) to lumirhodopsin (lumi) and that of metarhodopsin II (meta II) to meta I in chicken rhodopsin to demonstrate the presence of thermal equilibria among lumi, meta I, and meta II. The back reaction from meta I to lumi was observed when the rhodopsin sample irradiated at -35 degrees C was warmed to -20 degrees C, while that from meta II to meta I was observed when the sample irradiated at -10 degrees C was cooled to -20 degrees C. Thermodynamic parameters of lumi, meta I, and meta II were calculated from the equilibrium constants estimated by analyzing the spectra of the equilibrium states at temperatures ranging from -30 to -10 degrees C. The results showed that meta I has an enthalpy and an entropy considerably smaller than those of lumi and meta II, while the difference in thermodynamic parameters between lumi and meta II is not so large. These results suggest that meta I is a crucial stage of conversion of the light energy captured by the chromophore into restricted conformations of the chromophore and/or protein, from which a large conformational change of the protein starts to form meta II.

Animals↗

Development of a high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the analysis of enatiomer/enantiomer interaction in oxidative metabolism of bunitrolol in rat liver microsomes.

A high-performance liquid chromatographic method for the assay of enantiomeric 4-hydroxybunitrolol (4-OH-BTL) formed from racemic bunitrolol (BTL) in rat liver microsomes was developed. Racemic bunitrolol was incubated with rat liver microsomes fortified with an NADPH-generating system. Metabolites extracted with ethyl acetate were converted to acetyl derivatives with acetic anhydride in pyridine. The derivatives of 4-OH-BTL were well separated by the liquid chromatography equipped with a chiral column. Using this method, the metabolic interaction of BTL enantiomers was examined. The 4-OH-BTL-forming activities from enantiomeric BTL were higher than those from racemic BTL in rat liver microsomes, while the formation of ratios of 4-OH-BTL enantiomer to its antipode were the same under the two conditions. The Ki values obtained from kinetic studies using each BTL enantiomer as an inhibitor of its antipode were almost the same (ca 0.9 microM), which were close to their Michaelis constants (Km values). Oxidative activities of enantiomeric and racemic BTL were almost equally inhibited by debrisoquine and quinidine, a typical substrate and a selective inhibitor of the CYP2D subfamily, respectively. These results indicate that a BTL enantiomer is a mutual metabolic inhibitor of its antipode and BTL enantiomers compete for the same CYPD2D isozyme in rat liver microsomes.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗

A new system that analyzes erythropoietin-mediated early signal transduction: transfection of the c-fos enhancer.promoter-luciferase gene into a murine erythroid cell line.

Erythropoietin (Epo) exerts its effects by binding specific receptors on the surface of reactive cells. However, the signal transduction system after binding has not been well described. To develop a system to analyze the steps of signal transduction, we transfected the human c-fos-enhancer/promoter linked with the Photinus pyralis luciferase gene (pfosluc2) into a murine erythroleukemia cell line ELM-I-1, in which we previously showed that c-fos mRNA is rapidly induced upon Epo-stimulation. A stable transfectant was obtained. The cells transfected with pfosluc2 were stimulated with Epo and luciferase activity in the cells was measured as light intensity. The light intensity integrated for 2 min (LI2.0) was 3202 +/- 80 unit/1.5 x 10(5) cells before stimulation. This increased up to 5869 +/- 321 unit/1.5 x 10(5) cells by incubating the cells with 5 U/ml Epo for 2 h. After Epo stimulation, light intensity began to increase at 30 min, reached a peak (about 1.8 times the basal level) at 120 min, and then gradually dropped. The effect of Epo was dose-dependent; significant action occurred at as low as 0.5 U/ml, with a maximum at 5 U/ml. A similar response was observed when the cells were stimulated with interleukin-3 (IL-3) although the response was apparently lower than that with Epo. It was also found that IL-3 had an additive action with Epo on c-fos activity in this system. Thus, the above method was proven to be simple, rapid and sensitive enough to use to determine the early phase of signal transduction of Epo.

Animals↗

Cloning of the ATP phosphoribosyl transferase gene of Corynebacterium glutamicum and application of the gene to L-histidine production.

Corynebacterium glutamicum mutants lacking ATP phosphoribosyl transferase (PRT) were selected by complementation with the Escherichia coli PRT gene. The recombinant plasmid pCH13 carrying a wild type PRT gene from C. glutamicum T106 was obtained in one of the mutants, LH13. Transformants, LH13/pCH13 and T106/pCH13, had three times higher PRT specific activity than T106. The plasmid pCH99 specifying the PRT, which was desensitized to feedback inhibition by L-histidine fifty-fold higher than the wild type PRT, was derived from pCH13. L-Histidine productivity of C. glutamicum F81, was markedly decreased by pCH13, but increased twice by pCH99. In cultivation in jar fermentors, F81/pCH99 continued to accumulate L-histidine through fermentation and yielded to the titer of 22/5 g/liter, while F81 accumulated only 11.5 g/liter due to production retardation halfway through fermentation. Moreover, F81/pCH99 had a larger production rate than F81 even in its production phase. These results indicate that the yield improvement results from amplification of the highly desensitized PRT provided by pCH99.

ATP Phosphoribosyltransferase↗

[An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the detection of IgG antibodies against urease of Helicobacter pylori].

We have developed an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the detection of IgG antibodies against Helicobacter pylori (HP) using purified HP urease as an antigen. The urease was purified from ultrasonicated extract of HP by NaCl linear gradient system on DEAE-Sepharose 4B chromatography. Two molecular weight bands, 65kD and 27kD were observed on a SDS-PAGE gel in the purified urease sample. The urease antigen did not crossreact to rabbit antibodies prepared against Campylobacter coli and Campylobacter jejuni. Out of 93 gastric biopsy patients, sixty nine patients (74.2%) were positive in HP culture test. Serum HP antibody titers (AU: arbitrary unit) of HP culture positive and negative patients were 42.9 +/- 47.4 and 16.7 +/- 25.7 (mean +/- SD), respectively (p < 0.05). The ELISA system have sensitivity of 72.5% and specificity of 70.8%. We believe that the ELISA system is useful for diagnosis and monitoring of HP infection.

Adolescent↗

Photoisomerization mechanism of the rhodopsin chromophore: picosecond photolysis of pigment containing 11-cis-locked eight-membered ring retinal.

The primary photochemical event in rhodopsin is an 11-cis to 11-trans photoisomerization of its retinylidene chromophore to form the primary intermediate photorhodopsin. Earlier picosecond studies have shown that no intermediate is formed when the retinal 11-ene is fixed through a bridging five-membered ring, whereas a photorhodopsin-like intermediate is formed when it is fixed through a flexible seven-membered ring. Results from a rhodopsin analog formed from a retinal with locked 11-ene structure through the more flexible eight-membered ring (Ret8) are described. Incubation of bovine opsin with Ret8 formed two pigments absorbing at 425 nm (P425) and 500 nm (P500). P425, however, is an artifact because it formed from thermally denatured opsin or other proteins and Ret8. Excitation of P500 with a picosecond green pulse led to formation of two intermediates corresponding to photo- and bathorhodopsins. These results demonstrate that an appearance of early intermediates is dependent on the flexibility of the 11-ene and that the photoisomerization of P500 proceeds by stepwise changes of chromophore-protein interaction, which in turn leads to a relaxation of the highly twisted all-trans-retinylidene chromophore in photorhodopsin.

Animals↗

A 13 kb resolution cosmid map of the 14 Mb fission yeast genome by nonrandom sequence-tagged site mapping.

We present the application of a nonrandom sequence-tagged site (STS) content detection method in mapping an entire genome, that of fission yeast. The novelty of our strategy is in the use of STS probes made from both ends of cosmid clones, selected on the basis of "sample without replacement" (only library clones that show no previous positive hybridization are selected and made into probes). We developed powerful techniques, based on consistency analysis, for error detection and contig assembly. In addition, we probed our library with genetically mapped markers and Notl or Sfil linking clones, thereby anchoring contigs onto chromosomes. Our map contains more than 1000 sites, including genes (most were previously unmapped), occurrences of known repetitive elements, and Notl-Sfil restriction sites.

Chromosome Mapping↗

Exacerbation of latent heart failure by mild hypocalcemia after parathyroidectomy in a long-term hemodialysis patient.

A 60-year-old uremic patient treated with hemodialysis for 13 years developed acute hypotension during hemodialysis and overt heart failure subsequently in a period of relatively mild hypocalcemia after parathyroidectomy. Blood pressure during hemodialysis was maintained by continuous calcium infusion alone. Cardiomegaly was improved by normalization of serum calcium. The cardiac complication is considered to be exacerbation of the underlying myocardial dysfunction by the acute decline of serum calcium which might be a feature of the 'hungry bone' syndrome. Latent myocardial dysfunction might be exacerbated by only mild hypocalcemia after parathyroidectomy in long-term hemodialysis patients.

Heart Failure↗

Primary hypothyroidism and multiple endocrine failure in association with hemochromatosis in a long-term hemodialysis patient.

A 56-year-old male patient on chronic hemodialysis developed liver cirrhosis. He received a total of 20 liters of blood transfusion. Bronze pigmentation of the skin and iron deposition to the liver, spleen, pancreas and thyroid gland, which was demonstrated by computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging studies, and histological demonstration of iron deposition to the thyroid gland, bone marrow and gastric mucosa established a diagnosis of secondary hemochromatosis. Endocrine work-up revealed the presence of diabetes mellitus with minimum insulin secretory response, primary (or thyroprivic) hypothyroidism, hypoparathyroidism and hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. A wide-spread endocrine involvement as seen in this patient is a rare clinical feature of hemochromatosis secondary to massive blood transfusion in hemodialysis patients. Particularly, primary hypothyroidism due to iron deposition to the thyroid gland was quite a rare feature of hemochromatosis.

Diabetes Mellitus↗

Isolation and identification of the gene of cholesterol oxidase from Brevibacterium sterolicum ATCC 21387, a widely used enzyme in clinical analysis.

The gene coding cholesterol oxidase (CHOD) from Brevibacterium sterolicum, which is widely used in clinical analysis, has been selected from pUC19-based gene bank in E. coli MM294 by colony-hybridization using synthetic DNA as probe. The gene was identified to encode the protein having the same amino acid sequence as that determined from amino-acid sequence analysis. The expression of the CHOD gene in E. coli was not observed, probably due to the transcription failure. Attempts are being made to express it in various hosts including Streptomyces lividans, Corynebacterium glutamicum, and B. sterolicum itself.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Expression of human beta-interferon in Namalwa KJM-1 which was adapted to serum-free medium.

A Namalwa cell line, KJM-1, which was adapted to serum-free medium is thought to be a very useful host cell line for recombinant DNA technology. Thus, the utility of Namalwa KJM-1 for expression of foreign genes was examined. As a model system human beta-interferon (beta-IFN) gene was engineered for expression in this cell line. For construction of the beta-IFN expression vector pSE1 beta 1-4, the expression vector pAGE107 was constructed and used. It contains simian virus 40 (SV40) early promoter, the rabbit beta-globin RNA processing signals for splicing and polyadenylation, and SV40 early RNA processing signal for polyadenylation. In addition to the above transcription unit, pAGE107 contains the ampicillin-resistance gene and G418-resistance gene. They can confer ampicillin resistance to Escherichia coli (E. coli) and G418 resistance to animal cells. To introduce plasmid DNA into cells, electroporation is a useful method (Wong, 1982; Potter, 1984). We have established conditions for DNA-mediated transfection of Namalwa KJM-1 cell line by electroporation. Among pSE1 beta 1-4-introduced cells, clone 1-3 was further examined for the expression of beta-IFN in serum-free medium. The production level of beta-IFN was elevated with the increase of the cell density. The results indicated that the Namalwa KJM-1 cell line is useful for production of foreign gene products.

Base Sequence↗