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Biomedical subjects

T T Kuo

Publications and source records attributed to T T Kuo.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

A new protein subunit k for RNA polymerase from Xanthomonas campestris pv. oryzae.

During the purification of RNA polymerase from Xanthomonas campestris pv. oryzae, a new subunit named k was found to be associated with this enzyme. The removal of subunit k from holoenzyme by DEAE-cellulose column chromatography results in a decrease in specific activity of the enzyme. The readdition of subunit k to subunit k-depleted holoenzyme results in restoration of enzymatic activity. Subunit k increase the activity of RNA polymerase; the activation was in proportion to the concentration of subunit k added. Antiserum against holoenzyme devoid of subunit k was prepared. This antiserum did not react with purified subunit k; therefore, subunit k may not be the proteolytic fragment of the beta, beta', sigma, or alpha subunit. When this antiserum was used to precipitate RNA polymerase obtained from a crude extract of bacterial cells, subunit k was coprecipitated as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoretic analysis. The molecular mass of subunit k is approximately 29 kDa, and the molar ratio of beta:beta':sigma:alpha:k was estimated to be 1:1:1:2:4. When native Xp10 DNA was used as template, subunit k stimulated subunit k-depleted holoenzyme, but not core enzyme. When the synthetic polynucleotide poly[d(A-T)] was used, subunit k activated both subunit k-depleted holoenzyme and core enzyme. Subunit k also activated the binding of RNA polymerase to template DNA.

Chromatography↗
PubMed1989

[Mosquito bite allergies terminating as hemophagocytic histiocytosis: report of a case].

A 21-year-old woman had suffered from repeated vasculitis and panniculitis with fever and chills after following mosquito bites since age 7. These manifestations were confirmed with a direct mosquito bite test during her admission to another hospital at age 17. The patient presented to our hospital with progressive dyspnea, productive cough and intermittent fever for one week. In addition to the bilateral infiltrative lesions on chest roentgenography, hepatosplenomegaly with an abnormal liver function test, pancytopenia, and elevated IgE were also detected. Blood and sputum cultures grew no microorganisms. Epstein-Barr virus-IgM, Cytomegalovirus-IgM and Mycoplasma pneumonia antibodies were all negative. Bone marrow aspiration and biopsy revealed histiocytosis with hemophagocytosis. No atypical histiocyte was found. The patient was put on dexamethasone treatment with improvement. Unfortunately, symptoms relapsed two weeks later. A repeated bone marrow aspiration and biopsy revealed a picture similar to the previous one. Despite antibiotic administration and ventilator support, a rapidly deteriorated course terminated in the patient's death by respiratory failure. Mosquito bite allergies were reported to be associated with malignant histiocytosis in Japan. However, atypical histiocytes were not found in our case upon repeated bone marrow aspirations, biopsies and skin biopsies. Mature histiocytes with hemophagocytosis were prominent instead. Reactive histiocytosis was thus favored rather than malignant histiocytosis. Although opportunistic infection cannot be excluded, we propose that a mosquito bite allergy with consequent histiocytic activation by antigen, immune complex or IgE is the possible pathogenetic mechanism for hemophagocytic histiocytosis in this patient.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

[Analysis of 128 cases of multiple myeloma and 31 cases of monoclonal gammapathies of undetermined significance].

Monoclonal immunoglobulin from 138 patients with multiple myeloma (MM) showed that 68 patients were of IgG type, 23 of IgA type,33 of BJ type, 6 of IgD type, one of IgM type, 5 of nonsecreting type and the remaining 2 of IgA and IgG double monoclonal type. Urinary Bence Jones protein was tested with concentrated urine specimen with a positive rate of 75%. Classification of light chain revealed the ratio of oK/L being 1.09:1. The difference of distribution of K or L among IgG, IgA BJ types was no significant. 31 cases with monoclonal gammapathies of undetermined significance (MGUS) were also analyzed in this study. There were some difficulties in the differential diagnosis of MGUS and MM,but a significant difference was present in the plasma cell percentage of bone marrow smear of the two groups. Dynamic investigation in this series showed that patients with percentage of plasma cell less than 10% persisting for a long duration are likely to have MGUS only.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

Identification and nucleotide sequence of attachment site of the Cflt filamentous phage from Xanthomonas campestris pv. citri.

It has been reported that the attachment site on the phage attP is located from 69.2 to 73.8 min on Cflt RF DNA. KpnI and PstI were used, which cut respectively at 67.2 and 72.6 min of Cflt RF DNA. A 0.54 kb fragment containing attP was obtained. For isolation of the right (attR) and left (attL) junctions of prophage and host chromosomal DNA, lysogen DNA was digested with HindIII and used to prepare a recombinant plasmid library. With Cflt RF DNA as a probe, three types of recombinant plasmids respectively containing inserts of 1.7, 4.3 and 2.8 kb DNA fragments were obtained. Since 1.7 kb represents the internal HindIII fragment of Cflt, 2.8 kb were from the junctional regions of prophage and host chromosomal DNA. Further analysis of restriction fragment patterns suggested that the 2.8 kb fragment contains attR, while the 4.3 kb fragment contains attL. To isolate the attachment site on the host bacteria (attB), recombinant plasmids constructed from HindIII DNA fragments of uninfected cells are screened by using molecular probes prepared from the host DNA sequences immediately adjacent to the prophage in the lysogenic host chromosomal DNA. A 1.45 kb fragment was obtained. Further analysis with HindIII site on this fragment established that it represents attB. The DNA nucleotide sequences of attP, attB attR and attL were determined. All of them contain a common 15 nucleotide core with the sequence of 5'-TATACATTATGCGAA-3'. The common core region of the recombination site shows two inverted-repeat DNA sequence.

Attachment Sites, Microbiological↗
PubMed1989

Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of Waldeyer's ring: an appraisal of therapeutic effect.

From July 1978 to June 1987, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was diagnosed in 667 patients at Chang Gung Memorial Hospital. Forty-eight (7%) patients presented primarily with involvement of Waldeyer's ring; their provisional clinical stage was I or II. The tonsils represented the most frequent site of involvement within Waldeyer's ring. A work-up showed 33.3% of patients with stage I, 50% with stage II, 8.3% with stage III and 8.3% with stage IV. All the patients had diffuse lymphomas. Diffuse large cell (46%) and immunoblastic lymphomas (23%) were the most common histologic subtypes. Eight patients received radiotherapy alone, 39 patients were treated with combination chemotherapy with or without local radiation and one patient was lost to follow-up. Eleven of 16 stage I (69%) and 18 of 23 stage II (78%) patients achieved a complete remission. The median survival for stage I patients was over 54 months and the median survival of stage II was 72 months. There was no significant difference between the stage I and II patients with lymphoma of Waldeyer's ring with respect to the complete remission rate and survival. Stage I patients had a relapse-free survival rate of 55% at 4 years, similar to that (49%) of stage II patients at 8 years. We recommend that chemotherapy be used as primary therapy for those patients with localized aggressive lymphoma of Waldeyer's ring.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1988

Cutaneous and pericardial extramedullary hematopoiesis with cardiac tamponade in chronic myeloid leukemia.

A 48-year-old woman with Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia developed skin and pericardial extramedullary hematopoiesis. The echocardiogram revealed massive pericardial effusion with signs of tamponade. The cytocentrifuge preparation of pericardial fluid demonstrated all three hematopoietic components. Assays for the granulocyte-macrophage progenitor cells and erythroid progenitors on her pericardial fluid gave rise to colony numbers comparable to those of normal bone marrow cells. The patient was successfully treated with pericardiocentesis followed by short-term indwelling catheter drainage and administration of hydroxy-urea. There was no reaccumulation of fluid at ten months.

Cardiac Tamponade↗
PubMed1988

Kimura's disease. Involvement of regional lymph nodes and distinction from angiolymphoid hyperplasia with eosinophilia.

The clinicopathologic features of nine patients with Kimura's disease and 15 patients with angiolymphoid hyperplasia with eosinophilia (ALHE) were studied and compared in order to clarify the confusion between these two entities. The common features shared by both conditions included male predominance, predilection for the head and neck regions, tendency to recur, and vascular nature of the lesion with lymphoid and eosinophilic infiltrates. However, Kimura's disease was usually seen in younger individuals for a longer duration and occurred as a deeply seated, large soft-tissue mass, without significant change of the overlying skin initially. In addition, it was often accompanied by peripheral blood eosinophilia and elevated serum IgE. In contrast, ALHE lesions were multiple small dermal papular or nodular eruptions observed in older patients and present for a shorter duration; they were less frequently accompanied by peripheral blood eosinophilia. The main histopathological difference was the presence of "histiocytoid" or "epithelioid" blood vessels in ALHE but not in Kimura's disease. Kimura's disease was further characterized by eosinophilic folliculolysis; IgE deposits in the germinal centers; and frequent involvement of regional lymph nodes, salivary glands, and skeletal muscles. The eosinophilic infiltration, especially the formation of eosinophilic microabscesses, along with increased number of small blood vessels, perinodal eosinophilic infiltration, and eosinophilic folliculolysis characterized the nodal involvement by Kimura's disease. Our study indicates that Kimura's disease and ALHE are two distinct clinicopathologic entities. We place particular emphasis on the involvement of regional lymph nodes in Kimura's disease. In addition, we observed Charcot-Leyden crystals and polykaryocytes in both conditions. One of the patients with Kimura's disease also had an associated nephrotic syndrome.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Alpha-chain disease. Report of a case from Taiwan.

The occurrence of alpha-chain disease (alpha-CD) in a Chinese patient, a resident of Taiwan, is reported. The patient's clinical features were characterized by severe malabsorption and ran a rapidly deteriorated course. Duodenal biopsy showed total villous atrophy with a heavy infiltration of the lamina propria by lymphoplasmacytic cells. Colonic biopsy revealed immunoblastic lymphoma. alpha-CD protein was demonstrated in the patient's serum and concentrated urine by the immunoselection method, and also detected in the cellular infiltrate by immunoperoxidase technique. Postmortem examination disclosed that the lymphoma involved not only the entire gastrointestinal tract and mesenteric nodes, but also the retroperitoneal and peripheral lymph nodes. Immunoperoxidase studies support the concept of a common clonal origin of the lymphoplasmacytic proliferation and immunoblastic lymphoma in alpha-CD.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Orbital angiosarcoma with subconjunctival presentation. Report of a case and literature review.

An otherwise healthy 37-year-old woman had, over the course of 2 years, a recurring subconjunctival lesion associated with blepharoptosis. Computed tomography (CT) demonstrated a large anterior and superior orbital mass. A diagnosis of angiosarcoma (AS) was made from biopsy material. The patient is alive and well 18 months after exenteration and radiation therapy. The clinical and histopathologic features of this tumor are discussed with emphasis on the differential diagnosis of malignant vascular tumors of the orbit.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Lymphoblastic lymphoma presenting as a huge intracavitary cardiac tumor causing heart failure.

A huge intracavitary cardiac tumor causing heart failure in a 13-year-old girl was detected by two-dimensional echocardiography and was successfully resected to relieve her life-threatening symptoms. On pathologic examination, the tumor was found to be a nonconvoluted lymphoblastic lymphoma of B-cell lineage rather than a myxoma. This case is reported because of its rarity and unusual mode of growth and presentation, and illustrates that lymphoma should be included in the differential diagnosis of pedunculated cardiac tumors, especially in young individuals. The precise cytologic diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is important because chemotherapy and radiotherapy may achieve palliation or control of the disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Clear cell papulosis of the skin. A new entity with histogenetic implications for cutaneous Paget's disease.

A new skin condition characterized by multiple white papular eruptions was observed in two young brothers. Histologic study revealed many benign pagetoid clear cells in the basal layer of the acanthotic epidermis with decreased pigmentation. These cells contained cytoplasmic mucin and were positive for keratin AE1/AE3, carcinoembryonic antigen, and epithelial membrane antigen. The staining pattern was identical to that of extramammary Paget's disease. The presence of mucin granules and cytoplasmic filaments corresponding to AE1/AE3 were confirmed ultrastructurally. Comparative histochemical and immunohistochemical studies with normal eccrine sweat glands, Toker's nipple clear cells, and Paget cells of mammary and extramammary Paget's disease suggest that these clear cells are an aberrant derivative of sweat-gland epithelial cells in the epidermis. AE1/AE3 is an excellent marker for the "clear cells" of both the condition described and the cells in the nipple. The term "clear cell papulosis" is proposed for this new entity. The clear cell identified provides evidence for the existence of potential precursor cells in the epidermis for cutaneous Paget's disease.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1987

Integration of the DNA of filamentous bacteriophage Cflt into the chromosomal DNA of its host.

It was demonstrated for the first time that filamentous bacteriophage Cflt, which contains single-stranded DNA, can incorporate its genome into that of its host. Evidence in support of the incorporation was obtained from a Southern blot hybridization analysis of DNA isolated from Cflt-lysogenized cells. DNAs from different Cflt-lysogenized cells were purified, and the integration patterns were compared. Because all integration patterns were identical and only one fragment in Cflt replicative-form DNA was missing, it appears that the integration was site specific. Only one complement of viral DNA was integrated per host chromosome. To determine the attachment site on the viral DNA, the physical map of EcoRI, XhoI, SstII, and BglII on Cflt DNA was constructed. Based on this physical map and a Southern blot hybridization analysis of lysogen DNA with these restriction endonucleases, we demonstrated that DNA sequences from all regions of the Cflt genome were represented in the integrated viral sequences. The attachment site on the viral genome was located at 69.2 to 73.8 min on the Cflt DNA.

Bacteriophages↗
PubMed1987

Regulation of transcription of the Xp10 genome in bacteriophage-infected Xanthomonas campestris pv. oryzae.

Results of in vivo studies showed that the transcription of the Xp10 genome in Xp10-infected cells shifted from rifampin sensitivity to rifampin resistance. Results of in vitro studies showed that a rapid reduction of rifampin-sensitive RNA polymerase activity coincided with a rapid increase of rifampin-resistant RNA polymerase activity in cell extracts with time after infection. Host and Xp10-encoded RNA polymerases were purified, and the transcripts from these two enzymes were hybridized to the restriction fragments of Xp10 DNA. The RNA probe generated by host RNA polymerase hybridized strongly to the leftmost 25% of Xp10 DNA and weakly to the rightmost 75% of Xp10 DNA. The RNA probe generated by Xp10 RNA polymerase hybridized strongly to the rightmost 75% of Xp10 DNA and weakly to the leftmost 25% of Xp10 DNA. Studies with 32P-labeled RNA isolated at various intervals after infection did not reveal any evidence for early versus late differences in transcription.

Bacteriophages↗
PubMed1987

Cutaneous protothecosis. A clinicopathologic study.

In what we believe to be the first case of cutaneous protothecosis identified in Taiwan, a 5-year-old Chinese girl presented with a pruritic erythematous plaque on her right upper eyelid. A clinical diagnosis of eczematous dermatitis was made initially, and sporotrichosis was diagnosed subsequently. Later, histopathologic and cultural studies of the lesion finally led to the diagnosis of protothecosis. The recognition of the characteristic sporangia containing symmetrically arranged endospores is the most important initial diagnostic clue of protothecosis. Biochemical assimilation tests and direct immunofluorescence study using species-specific antibodies identified the organism as Prototheca wickerhamii. Systemic ketoconazole treatment proved to be effective for our patient. The in vitro minimal inhibitory concentrations of tetracycline hydrochloride, amphotericin B, and ketoconazole were also determined.

Biopsy↗
PubMed1986

Loss of sigma-factor of RNA polymerase of Xanthomonas campestris pv. oryzae during phage Xp10 infection.

Ten min after infection of Xanthomonas campestris pv. oryzae by phage Xp10, a sharp decrease in the activity of the host RNA polymerase was observed. Host RNA polymerase from phage-infected and uninfected cells was purified, and their properties were compared. The enzyme from uninfected cells contained four polypeptides with Mr = 155,000, 155,000, 93,000, and 37,000, respectively, and assembled with a stoichiometry of alpha 2 beta beta' sigma. The enzyme from infected cells lacked the sigma-subunit. The enzyme from uninfected cells utilized Xp10 DNA and poly[d(A-T)] as templates, the enzyme from phage-infected cells failed to transcribe Xp10 DNA, but retained the ability to transcribe poly(A-T). The regions of the Xp10 genome transcribed by the two enzymes were also investigated. The enzyme from uninfected cells transcribed the leftmost 25-30% of the Xp10 genome. The enzyme from phage-infected cells also transcribed the same region, but the enzyme activity was very low. Other properties such as (a) the response to RNA polymerase inhibitors, (b) the effect of N-ethylmaleimide, (c) the requirement of Mg2+ and Mn2+, and (d) the optimum temperature and pH of the two enzymes were very similar.

Bacteriophages↗