[A case of primary sclerosing cholangitis having autoimmune hepatitis-resembling clinical features at the onset of illness].
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Adult↗
Biomedical subjects
T Tsuda
Publications and source records attributed to T Tsuda.
[A case of chronic hypertrophic cranial pachymeningitis causing cranial polyneuropathy and unilateral central retinal vein occlusion].
We presented a 70-year-old woman who developed unilateral visual loss due to central retinal vein occlusion caused by chronic hypertrophic cranial pachymeningitis. She had developed right blindness with optic atrophy due to chronic intracranial pachymeningitis one year before admission. In June 1999, she noticed visual loss of the left eye. On admission, neurological examination revealed left visual loss and sensory impairment in the first branch area of bilateral trigeminal nerves. Ophthalmological examination revealed central retinal vein occlusion of the left eye. Brain MRI showed dural thickening with gadolinium enhancement of the cavernous sinus near the left optic nerve and dilatation of the left supraorbital vein. There was no compression of the left optic nerve. We suggest that central retinal vein occlusion may be caused by compression of the supraorbital vein by dural thickening. This is the first case report of central retinal vein occlusion associated with chronic hypertrophic cranial pachymeningitis.
Aged↗
[Acquired pendular nystagmus associated with the lesion of tegmentum mesencephali in a patient with probable multiple sclerosis].
A 42-year old woman was admitted to our hospital because of sudden onset of dizziness and oscillopsia. Neurologic examination revealed horizontal, binocular pendular nystagmus, which increase their amplitude on left lateral gaze. She also showed that mild right blephaloptosis, right facial spasms, increased tendon reflexes and positive pathological reflexes of four limbs and mild chorea-like movement of both feet. MRI showed an abnormal high intensity area on a T2weighted and proton density images located at the right tegmentum mesencephali. She was diagnosed as clinically probable multiple sclerosis according to the Poser's criteria. The nystagmus was suppressed by clonazepam and diazepam. To our knowledge, it is a first report of acquired pendular nystagmus associated with the lesion of tegmentum mesencephali. We speculate that the involvement of the tract of paramedian pontine reticular formation causes the nystagmus and the dysfunction of GABAnergic neurons might play an important role of the nystagmus.
Adult↗
[A case of welder presenting with parkinsonism after chronic manganese exposure].
A 56-year-old welder working for 30 years developed postural instability and writing clumsiness since October, 1998. Neurologic findings revealed dystonia of the bilateral shoulders and distal four limbs as well as parkinsonism such as masked face, bradykinesia, rigidity, and retropulsion. Brain MRI showed hyperintensity lesions on T1-weighted images in the bilateral globus pallidus, midbrain, pontine tegmentum, dentate nucleus and cerebral white matter, which reduced in size and density after ten months. The diagnosis of manganese poisoning was made by the high manganese levels of both serum and urine, and by the marked elevated urinary manganese level after administration of the cheleting agent. We pointed out the diagnostic significance of brain MRI in patients with chronic manganese exposure.
Brain↗
Advances in capillary chromatography.
Capillary columns are used in both capillary liquid chromatography and capillary electrochromatography. The design for capillary liquid chromatography is discussed in comparison with capillary gas chromatography. The difference of diffusion coefficient in gas and liquid phase is a key role. The study for obtaining a high performance capillary liquid chromatography is discussed. Capillary electrochromatography is recently interesting for its instinct ability to realize a high performance chromatography. Capillary electrochromatography with and without pressurized flow is reviewed briefly. Instrumentation for capillary electrochromatography with pressurized flow is discussed. The port of splitting, and gradient elution of both solution and potential are described. The new findings of both the variation of column resistance and capacity factor according to the value of applied electric voltage are also discussed.
Chromatography, Liquid↗
Noninvasive approach for study of human reaction and transferring velocity of nervous system by using a new instrumentation devised for concurrent microscopic observation and analysis of sweat secretion on human body under 1G and microgravity.
Human sweating is generally caused by thermal and mental stimuli. The former role is well known as a response for thermo regulation. The insensible perspiration may be generally controlled by the autonomic nervous system, and the responses due to mental and/or emotional stress by the sympathetic nervous system. As human sweating is directly concerned with some nervous systems, sweating may be a good indicator for the body reactions of feeling, surprise, emotional stress and etc. The measuring of sweat secretion and microscopic observation of active sweat glands can be presented the direct information of working of sympathetic nervous system and sudomotor. In the present report, we devised an instrumentation for the estimation of time lag of sweating [correction of seating] after physical stimuli. Variation of gravity during parabolic flights is a kind of physical stimulus. Iwase et al reported the changes of sympathetic outflow to muscle in humans during short periods of microgravity. We studied also the variation of number of active sweat glands under this condition for the evaluation of human sympathetic nervous system.
Humans↗
Molecular cloning of two bovine aquaporin-4 cDNA isoforms and their expression in brain endothelial cells.
Two cDNA isoforms of bovine aquaporin-4 (bAQP4-A and bAQP4-B) were newly isolated. Sequence analysis of both cDNAs revealed open reading frames of 972 (bAQP4-A) and 906 nucleotides (bAQP4-B) with deduced proteins of 323 (bAQP4-A) and 301 amino acid residues (bAQP4-B). Partial 5'-genomic sequence analysis showed that the 5'-noncoding sequences specific to bAQP4-A and -B transcripts were contained in distinct exons, exon 0 for bAQP4-A and new exon X for bAQP4-B. RNase protection assay demonstrated the definite expression of both isoforms in bovine brain. The deduced amino acid sequence of bAQP4-A was highly homologous to the human (97%), rat (95%), and mouse (93%) AQP4. Reverse transcription-PCR detected the expression of AQP4 mRNAs in bovine brain endothelial cells as well as in a variety of bovine organs such as brain, lung, spleen, and kidney. Northern blot analysis indicated that a 6.0 kb message is predominantly expressed in bovine brain and lung.
Amino Acid Sequence↗
Methylmercury level in umbilical cords from patients with congenital Minamata disease.
A total of 151 umbilical cords during the period from 1950 to 1969 were collected from the residents of the Minamata area (including 25 patients with congenital Minamata disease) for methylmercury (MeHg) analysis. When the MeHg discharge from the Chisso Company's Minamata factory into the Minamata Bay is compared with the incidence of congenital Minamata disease, the abrupt increase of the former in 1952 [Nishimura H. Chem. Today 1998;323:60-66] was found to precede that of the latter by approximately 2 years, thereby indicating that MeHg is the cause of the disaster. This was confirmed by the elevated levels of MeHg in the umbilical cords from residents of the Minamata area [from 0.35 +/- 0.30 (S.D.) ppm in 1952 to 0.96 +/- 0.75 ppm in 1955], the MeHg levels (1.60 +/- 1.00 ppm) in the cords from patients with congenital Minamata disease showing the highest values [P < 0.01 vs. acquired Minamata disease (0.72 +/- 0.65 ppm), mental retardation (0.74 +/- 0.64 ppm), other diseases (0.22 +/- 0.15 ppm), and no symptoms (0.28 +/- 0.20 ppm), respectively]. Thus, in order to fill a gap, which extends over a long period of time, in studies on environmental Hg pollution, umbilical cord samples were considered to be a useful tool.
Female↗
Protective effects of dietary cyanidin 3-O-beta-D-glucoside on liver ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats.
We recently reported that feeding cyanidin 3-O-beta-d-glucoside (C3G), a typical anthocyanin pigment, lowered the serum thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS) concentration and increased the oxidation resistance of the serum to lipid peroxidation in rats. These results suggest that C3G acts as a potent antioxidant in vivo when acute oxidative stress is encountered. In the present study, we evaluated whether feeding C3G suppresses oxidative injury to the liver caused by hepatic ischemia-reperfusion (I/R), which was used as a model for oxidative stress. Rats were fed a diet containing C3G (2 g/kg diet) for 14 days and then subjected to hepatic I/R. I/R treatment elevated the liver TBARS concentration and the serum activities of marker enzymes (glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, glutamic pyruvic transaminase, and lactate dehydrogenase) for liver injury and lowered the liver reduced glutathione concentration. Feeding C3G significantly suppressed these changes caused by hepatic I/R. Although the liver ascorbic acid concentration was also lowered by hepatic I/R, feeding C3G restored this concentration more quickly compared to the control rats. These results indicate that orally administered C3G suppresses I/R-induced oxidative damage and suggest that C3G functions as a potent antioxidant in vivo under oxidative stress.
Animals↗
Effects of sympathetic nerve blockades on low-frequency oscillations of human earlobe skin blood flow.
Earlobe skin blood flow measured by laser Doppler flowmetry often shows low-frequency oscillations with a frequency around 0.1 Hz. We evaluated the effects of different sympathetic blocking techniques on the oscillations. Power spectrum of 5-min time series of beat-to-beat peak earlobe skin blood flow showed a distinct spectral peak at a frequency around 0.1 Hz (mean +/- SD, 0.107+/-0.016 Hz). The power of the spectral peak measured as coefficient of component variance (CCV) was diminished with total spinal anesthesia (TSA, n = 4) and cervicothoracic epidural anesthesia (CTEA, n = 4; P<0.05 for both). The CCV was unchanged significantly with bilateral thoracic sympathetic ganglionic excision (TSGE, n = 5). Right stellate ganglion block (RSGB, n = 6) caused a trend towards an increase in the CCV on the right (blocked)-side (P = 0.072) but no change on the left (intact)-side. Cross-spectrum analysis revealed that the low-frequency oscillations were not coherent between the right- and left-side earlobes or with low-frequency oscillations in systolic blood pressure either before or after RSGB. TSA and CTEA are known to cause extensive sympathetic nerve blockade in a broad area, while TSGE and RSGB are known to cause local and partial sympathetic blockade. Our results suggest that although the low-frequency oscillations in earlobe skin blood flow may be mediated non-neurally, magnitude of the oscillations may be modified by sympathetic vasomotor tone.
Adult↗
Absorption and metabolism of cyanidin 3-O-beta-D-glucoside in rats.
We have clarified for the first time how cyanidin 3-O-beta-D-glucoside (C3G), which is a potent antioxidant anthocyanin, is absorbed and metabolized in vivo. Rats were orally administered C3G (0.9 mmol/kg body weight), and C3G rapidly appeared in the plasma. However, the aglycon of C3G (cyanidin; Cy) was not detected, although it was present in the jejunum. Protocatechuic acid (PC), which may be produced by degradation of Cy, was present in the plasma and the concentration was 8-fold higher than that of C3G. These results suggest that plasma PC and C3G may contribute to the antioxidant activity of the plasma. In the liver and kidney, C3G was metabolized to methylated C3G (methyl-C3G), suggesting that C3G and/or methyl-C3G act as antioxidants in the tissues.
Absorption↗
[Case of chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy with its onset during infancy].
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Adolescent↗
Monitoring of mercury pollution in Tanzania: relation between head hair mercury and health.
Through 1996 into 1997, a spot investigation on mercury contamination was conducted three times in Tanzania, especially around the Lake Victoria. A total of 150 goldminers, 103 fishermen and their families, and 19 residents of Mwanza City volunteered for the current study. A high total mercury level of 48.3 ppm (near to 50 ppm, a critical level of Minamata disease) and over in the head hair was observed in six goldminers (highest value, 953 ppm), four fishermen and their families (highest value, 416 ppm), and four Mwanza people (highest value, 474 ppm). With the exception of these 14 subjects, however, each mean total mercury level was well within the normal range (below 10 ppm). Out of the goldminers examined, 14 cases were diagnosed as a mild form of inorganic-mercury poisoning according to their clinical symptoms (such as polyneuropathy mercurialis, neuroasthemia, or tremor mercurialis) and the low ratio of methylmercury to total mercury, whereas neither inorganic-mercury poisoning nor methylmercury poisoning (Minamata disease) was noted in the fishermen and their families or in the Mwanza people. In addition, some subjects who showed a high total mercury level made habitual use of toilet soap containing much mercury. The findings obtained suggest that the mercury pollution in Tanzania is not very serious, however, it should be observed continuously.
Adolescent↗
Gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric determination of 4-nonylphenols and 4-tert-octylphenol in biological samples.
A simple and rapid method is described for the GC-MS determination of 4-nonylphenols (NOs) and 4-tert-octylphenol (OC) in biological samples. The NOs and OC in the sample are extracted with acetonitrile and the lipid in the sample extract is eliminated by partitioning between hexane and acetonitrile. After Florisil PR column clean-up, the sample extract is analyzed by GC-MS in the selected ion monitoring (SIM) mode. Average recoveries in pale chub (fish) and corbicula (shellfish) are 86.0 and 93.4% for NOs, and 95.8 and 96.4% for OC, respectively, spiked at the levels of 1.0 microg of NOs and 0.1 microg of OC per 5 g of fish and shellfish samples. The detection limits are 20 ng/g for NOs and 2 ng/g for OC.
Animals↗
Tau expression in denervated rat muscles.
We studied whether denervation affects the expression of tau, in particular phosphorylated tau, and how it is degraded in rat soleus muscles. Immunoblot analysis showed a high molecular weight, approximately 110 kDa (big tau), in normal muscle. Tau levels increased significantly in denervated muscles treated with chloroquine (a lysosomotrophic agent) and in untreated ones, as compared to levels of similarly treated contralateral, innervated muscles. Most of the tau in the innervated and denervated muscles was phosphorylated. Immunohistochemically, tau and beta-tubulin colocated in the sarcoplasm of innervated, saline-treated (intact) muscle, but the staining intensities were very weak. Both proteins, however, were expressed extensively in these areas in the denervated muscles from saline-treated rats. In the denervated muscle of chloroquine-treated rats there were numerous autophagic vacuoles in the sarcoplasm, and phosphorylated-tau accumulation was marked within these vacuoles, indicative that tau first was taken into autophagic, vacuoles by nonselective autophagy then degraded via the lysosomal as well as the nonlysosomal calpain system. Our findings suggest that phosphorylated big tau accumulates with beta-tubulin in denervated muscular atrophy, possibly in order to maintain or preserve the integrity of the muscle fiber during progressive atrophy or regeneration.
Animals↗
Voltage-induced variation of distribution coefficient in electrochromatography.
Upon application of an electric field along a column packed with anion exchange support materials, the output of a recorder jumps beyond the baseline, and with continued application a peak is obtained. If, instead, the electric field is applied in a pulsed manner, two peaks result. These observations are explained as caused by a change in the concentration of the solvent. Applying positive and negative voltages produces positive and negative peaks, respectively. The peak height depends on the value of applied voltage. Simulations using the plate height theory agree well with chromatograms obtained experimentally. The value of the local applied voltage is also estimated. Overall, the behavior is something like an injection arising from the pulsed application of an electric field. We suggest that voltage pulsing might be used as a new technique for sample injection.
Chromatography, Liquid↗
Study of the relationship between electrophoretic mobility of the diabetic red blood cell and hemoglobin A1c by using a mini-cell electrophoresis apparatus.
A mini-cell electrophoresis system using capillary tubing (50 microm inner diameter, length ca. 10 mm and volume ca. 20 nL) was applied to measure the electrophoretic mobility of red blood cells of 89 patients with diabetes on single cell level. A significant negative correlation was observed between hemoglobin A1c and the average electrophoretic mobility, with a correlation coefficient of 0.793. By statistically processing the electrophoretic mobility of each single red blood cell, it became clear that the reduction of the average value of electrophoretic mobility was caused by the reduction of the relative frequency of the red blood cell with high mobility. The cause of the average reduction was not the shift of electrophoretic mobility of all red blood cells to the lower mobility.
Diabetes Mellitus↗
Postoperative inflammatory reactions of impregnated Dacron grafts.
The clinical efficacy of Dacron grafts that are impregnated with collagen or gelatin has been well demonstrated, but inflammatory reactions during the first few postoperative weeks have been reported. We experienced two patients, an 87-year-old man with a reconstruction of an abdominal aorta and a 7-year-old boy with a reconstruction of aortic arch with a collagen-impregnated graft (Hemashield), who continued to demonstrate a high fever with a high serum level of C-reactive protein (CRP) and immunoglobin for more than 5 months. The body temperature, the white blood cell (WBC) counts, and the serum level of CRP were compared on the seventh and 14th postoperative day among the 37 patients who underwent a reconstruction of either a thoracic or abdominal aorta using the Hemashield graft (Hemashield group) and a nonimpregnated graft (control group) in our hospital. An elevation of body temperature above 38 degrees C was seen 29% of the patients in the Hemashield group and 0% in the control group. No significant differences were seen in the WBC counts, but the serum level of CRP was significantly higher on the 14th postoperative day in the Hemashield group. We should therefore pay careful attention to inflammatory reactions after the implantation of the impregnated grafts.
Aged↗