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Biomedical subjects

T Munakata

Publications and source records attributed to T Munakata.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Mycoplasma stimulates HIV-1 expression from acutely- and dormantly-infected promonocyte/monoblastoid cell lines.

Treatment of a myelo-monocyte cell line, J22HL-60, dormantly infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) with heat-inactivated extracts of Acholeplasma (A) laidlawii (250 micrograms/ml) enhanced virus production more than 45-fold as assessed by p24 viral core antigen assay. When treated with a suboptimal dose of TPA or TNF-alpha, Acholeplasma extracts further augmented virus production in J22HL-60 cells. H7, an inhibitor of protein kinase C(PKC), almost completely abrogated HIV-1-inducing ability of Acholeplasma extracts in the cells. A. laidlawii and several other mycoplasmas also enhanced acute infection of U937 cells as shown by increased virus-positive cells and augmentation of HIV-1 production in the culture supernatant independent of their pathogenicity to humans.

1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine↗

Oncology and narrative time.

Oncologists encounter the uncertainty of time horizons in their patients' lives. Although American oncologists are given a cultural mandate to instill hope in the therapeutic narratives they create with patients, uncertainty leads them to expressions of time without horizons or of time with highly foreshortened horizons as they seek to create for patients an experience of immediacy rather than of chronology. The distinctiveness of the American pattern is highlighted through comparison with Japanese exemplar cases and stories of therapeutic practices in oncology. Concepts drawn from narrative analysis of temporality and the construction of the therapeutic plot are employed.

Anecdotes as Topic↗

Method for quantifying the contribution of overlying tissue to rat liver 31P-NMR spectra using the surface-coil technique.

A method for quantitatively analyzing the overlying tissue contribution to the in vivo 31P-NMR spectra from rat liver observed by the surface-coil technique is presented. The peak area of beta-ATP obtained either through the abdominal wall or directly from the liver was compared before and after occlusion of the portal vein or infusion of fructose. The phosphocreatine (PCr) signal is a characteristic signature of the 31P spectrum of muscle, and did not differ before and after portal vein occlusion or fructose infusion. After 30 min of occlusion, the beta-ATP obtained through the abdominal wall decreased to 25% of its initial value and that taken directly from the liver almost disappeared. Accordingly, the overlying tissue contribution to the in vivo liver spectra could be quantitatively assessed from the post-occlusion reduction of the beta-ATP peak in the spectra. The recovery of the beta-ATP concentration 10 min after fructose infusion should also reflect the augmentation of ATP synthesis in the liver. The difference of 25% in beta-ATP concentration between the spectra obtained through the abdominal wall and those directly from the liver following fructose infusion showed the overlying tissue contribution. We demonstrated that this contribution was 25% for the liver spectra obtained through the abdominal wall and 75% of the components in the spectra originated from the rat liver in our surface-coil measurements.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

[A case of IgA nephropathy with numerous interstitial foam cells--analysis of infiltrating mononuclear leucocytes in renal tissue].

A 27-year-old female was admitted to our hospital in order to examine proteinuria and microscopic hematuria. Light microscopic findings of her kidney showed proliferation of mesangial cells and numerous interstitial foam cells. Immunofluorescent and electron microscopic findings revealed IgA nephropathy. Immunoperoxidase studies using monoclonal antibodies disclosed that interstitial foam cells were positive for antibodies of the monocyte/macrophage lineage and also expressed adhesion molecules (CD11a, b, c, LFA-1) and MHC-class II antigens. Hereditary nephritis as Alport syndrome was negated by her familial history and electron microscopic study. We considered that it was a rare and interesting case with numerous interstitial foam cells, because the patient did not have hyperlipidemia as in nephrotic syndrome.

Adult↗

Interleukin 1 alpha, tumor necrosis factor alpha, and interferon gamma in psoriasis.

Although recent studies have suggested that a variety of cytokines released by keratinocytes and inflammatory leukocytes could contribute to induction or persistence of the inflammatory processes in psoriasis, it remains unclear how production of these cytokines is regulated in psoriatic patients. To elucidate the biologic relevance of these cytokines to the pathogenesis of psoriasis, we investigated serum levels of interleukin 1 alpha, tumor necrosis factor alpha, and interferon gamma in 21 patients with psoriasis vulgaris, together with 21 healthy controls. The mean serum levels of interleukin 1 alpha and tumor necrosis factor alpha were not significantly different from those in controls, while those of interferon gamma were significantly elevated in the patients with psoriasis. Serum levels of interleukin 1 alpha correlated negatively with clinical disease severity expressed as psoriasis area and severity index score and with duration of psoriasis. In contrast, interferon gamma levels were related, although not significantly, to disease severity. In addition, an inverse correlation was noted between the interleukin 1 alpha levels and interferon gamma levels. These results indicate that interleukin 1 alpha and interferon gamma may be relevant to the induction and perpetuation, respectively, of the inflammatory responses in psoriasis, and that these cytokines, which have similar biologic properties, may strictly regulate one another's production in vivo.

Adult↗

Mycoplasma can enhance HIV replication in vitro: a possible cofactor responsible for the progression of AIDS.

Mycoplasma membrane protein (MMP) augmented HIV production from MOLT-4 cells chronically infected by HIV. A nearly 3-fold increase of HIV p24 antigen was detected in MMP-treated culture as compared to control culture at 100 micrograms/ml. MMP also augmented HIV production in different T cells chronically infected by HIV-1 and ARV-1. Kinetic experiment showed that HIV production was maximally elevated 24 hr after exposure to MMP. Similarly, MMP also augmented HIV-induced cell fusion and virus production in coculture. Hybridization experiment revealed that this augmentation was due to enhancement of HIV transcription.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Mycoplasma and AIDS.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Role of natural killer cells and macrophages in the nonspecific resistance to tumors in mice stimulated with SMANCS, a polymer-conjugated derivative of neocarzinostatin.

Copoly(styrene-maleic acid)-conjugated neocarzinostatin (SMANCS), a lipophilic derivative of the proteinaceous antitumor antibiotic neocarzinostatin, has been reported to stimulate a nonspecific resistance to tumors (NSRT) in solid tumor-bearing mice, in addition to its chemotherapeutic antitumor effect through the arrest of DNA synthesis by direct DNA strand scission. In the present study, splenic or peritoneal effector cells were used to investigate the ability of SMANCS to augment natural killer (NK) cell activity and to generate cytostatic macrophages (A-M phi). Splenic NK cell activity augmented by SMANCS was characterized by cytotoxicity to various target cells, nylon wool nonadherence, and sensitivity to treatment with anti-asialo-GM1 antiserum or monoclonal anti-Thy-1.2 antibody followed by complement. The A-M phi generated by SMANCS stimulation were characterized by their adherence to a plastic surface coated with fetal calf serum and their ability to phagocytize carbonyl-iron. The maximum level of NK cell activity in the spleens of mice was detected 3 days after i.v. injection of SMANCS, and the highest activity of the peritoneal A-M phi was demonstrated in mice 4 days after SMANCS treatment. On the other hand, the NSRT of mice stimulated with SMANCS was not detectable in mice treated with carrageenan or trypan blue, whereas SMANCS-stimulated NSRT was observed in mice treated with anti-asialo-GM1 antiserum. The NSRT that was stimulated with SMANCS was also demonstrated in mice homozygous for the beige mutation and their non-beige littermates, when NK cell-resistant EL-4 thymoma was used as a tumor target. These results suggest that the expression of NSRT of mice stimulated with SMANCS may require the function of A-M phi, although NK cell activity was also augmented in spleens of mice by administration of SMANCS.

Animals↗