Studies of a glomerular permeability factor in patients with minimal-change nephrotic syndrome

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from patients with minimal-change nephrotic syndrome (MCNS) were tested for their ability to produce a factor which increases the urinary protein excretion levels of rats. It was shown that enhanced proteinuria can be produced in 8-hour urine specimens from rats by the injection of concentrated supernatants of cultured concanavalin-A-stimulated PBMC of patients with MCNS, but not from other nephrotics or normal subjects. The increase in urinary protein excretion was associated with a significant alteration of glomerular epithelial cells similar to that seen in MCNS. These results suggest that in MCNS, PBMC release a factor, which we termed a glomerular permeability factor (GPF), causing changes in glomerular permeability with resulting proteinuria.

Studies on the energy expenditure following surgical stress (II. The correlation between energy expenditure and hormonal changes)

The correlation between energy expenditure and hormonal changes following surgical stress was studied using rats. Blood concentrations of catecholamine, insulin, corticosterone, glucagon, T3, and T4 were compared between the rats (IIa and IIb) in the ebb phase and those (III and IV) in the flow phase, 6 hours after being inflicted with a burn. Noradrenaline was higher, though not significantly, and glucagon was significantly higher in the latter groups than in the former groups. When glucagon was administered to the rats in the ebb phase, RME increased significantly. From these results, it is suggested that glucagon plays an important role in the transition from ebb phase to flow phase.

Efficacy of defibrinogenation and steroid therapies on sudden deafness

Effects of defibrinogenation therapy and steroid therapy for sudden deafness were compared by paired double-blind testing. The average hearing recovery for five frequencies (250 to 4000 Hz) was more than 30 dB; overall improvement rate was 57.3% (47/82) for the patients assigned to defibrinogenation therapy and 38.7% (31/80) for the patients assigned to steroid therapy. Thus, the former treatment resulted in significantly better hearing recovery.

Strong transcriptional promoter in the 5' upstream region of the human beta-actin gene

We isolated the 4.3-kb nucleotide sequence 5' upstream from the coding region of the human beta-actin gene and tested its promoter function by using the chloramphenicol acetyl transferase assay. We found that the sequence required for efficient transcription was contained within the 1.2-kb DNA fragment of the actin 5'-noncoding region. The 1.2-kb fragment contained a TATA box, a CCAAT box and two highly conserved elements. The transcriptional start point was located 24 bp downstream from the TATA box. The 1.2-kb fragment showed strong promoter activity when it was transfected into human and rodent non-muscle cells. In human FL cells and in mouse NIH3T3 and L cells, the promoter activity of the 1.2-kb DNA fragment was greater than that of the SV40 early region.

Studies on the energy expenditure following surgical stress--(I. The effects of the severity of stress and the administration of nutrients)

Energy expenditure was studied in male Donryu rats, following two types of surgical stress, namely, laparotomy and burns. The rats with burns were subsequently fasted for 6 hours, by which time the resting metabolic expenditure (RME) became significantly decreased (84.3 +/- 9.5 per cent), as when compared to the pre-burn value (100 per cent), then increased 24 hours after the burn (132.9 +/- 10.1 per cent). The RME in burned rats receiving an intravenous infusion of electrolyte fluid, slightly increased 6 hours after the burn (109.0 +/- 15.8 per cent) and was almost identical to the RME in rats fed ad libitum for 24 hours after the burn. Rats with burns, that were given intravenous infusions of electrolytes and nutrients (TPN) already had a high RME value (134.6 +/- 7.0 per cent) 6 hours after the burn. In laparotomized rats fed ad libitum, no obvious changes in energy expenditure were observed 6 hours or 24 hours after the laparotomy, however, rats receiving TPN showed a moderately increased RME 6 hours after the laparotomy (113.9 +/- 3.4 per cent, p less than 0.05) which returned to the pre-stress level 24 hours post-operatively. These results confirmed that a phase of decreased RME (ebb phase), followed by a phase of increased RME were clearly observed after severe surgical stress, which indicated that appropriate treatments could shorten or extinguish the ebb phase.

[A case of retroperitoneal chylous cyst developed after cholecystectomy and choledochotomy]

A 43-year-old woman complaining of upper abdominal pain was referred to our clinic. Well movable mass was detected in the right hypochondria region by palpation. Three years before, she underwent cholecystectomy and choledochotomy for cholelithiasis. After that she had been aware of painless mass in the right hypochondria region, but because of no symptom she regarded it as operative scar and had no treatment. Abdominal CT, ultrasonography, upper GI series and barium enema revealed a retroperitoneal cyst compressing the 3rd portion of the duodenum upward and the vena cava backward. Laparotomy showed an unilocular chylous cyst, 5 cm in diameter in the retroperitoneal cavity. Histologically, the cyst was cystic lymphangioma. Etiologically, the previous operation of cholecystocholedocholithiasis was supposed to be a trigger of the development of the chylous cyst.

A case of arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia with prominent late potential

A case of arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia with frequent episodes of ventricular tachycardia (VT) in a 57-year-old man is reported. His electrocardiogram showed a normal axis and inverted T waves in V1-V3 during sinus rhythm and a left bundle branch block pattern during VT. The VT could be terminated by either intravenous administration of lidocaine or procainamide or by cardioversion. Echocardiogram and right ventriculography showed reduced wall motion of the apex and infundibulum of the dilated right ventricle. No evidence of ischemic heart disease was found by left ventriculography, coronary arteriography and RI scintigraphy. A prominent late potential following the QRS complex was recorded by averaging and magnifying the surface electrocardiogram. The combination of oral mexiletine and disopyramide partially suppressed the VT attacks and relieved the subjective symptoms, however the late potential remained almost unchanged.

Identification of the human beta-actin enhancer and its binding factor

An enhancer of the human beta-actin gene and a factor that specifically interacts with it were detected. A mobility shift assay showed that the factor bound to the 25-base-pair sequence (between +759 and +783 downstream from the cap site) with high specificity. This finding correlated with those of DNase I protection and exonuclease III digestion assays. This binding region of the beta-actin enhancer contained a hyphenated dyad symmetry and an enhancer core-like sequence. In vitro competition experiments indicated that the factor did not bind to the simian virus 40 enhancer core region.

The personalized auditory cortex of the mustached bat: adaptation for echolocation

1. In the mustached bat, Pteronotus parnellii, the "resting" frequency of the constant-frequency component of the second harmonic (CF2) of the orientation sound (biosonar signal) is different among individuals within a range from 59.69 to 63.33 kHz. The standard deviation of CF2 resting frequency is 0.091 kHz on the average for individual bats. The male's CF2 resting frequency (61.250 +/- 0.534 kHz, n = 58) is 1.040 kHz lower than the female's (62.290 +/- 0.539 kHz, n = 58) on the average. Females' resting frequencies measured in December are not different from those measured in April when almost all of them are pregnant. Therefore, the orientation sound is sexually dimorphic. 2. In the DSCF (Doppler-shifted CF processing) area of the auditory cortex, tonotopic representation differs among individual bats. The higher the CF2 resting frequency of the bat's own sound, the higher the frequencies represented in the DSCF area of that bat. There is a unique match between the tonotopic representation and the CF2 resting frequency. This match indicates that the auditory cortex is "personalized" for echolocation and that the CF2 resting frequency is like a signature of the orientation sound. 3. If a bat's resting frequency is normalized to 61.00 kHz, the DSCF area overrepresents 60.6-62.3 kHz. The central region of this overrepresented band is 61.1-61.2 kHz. This focal band matches the "reference" frequency to which the CF2 frequency of a Doppler-shifted echo is stabilized by Doppler-shift compensation. 4. Since DSCF neurons are extraordinarily sharply tuned in frequency, the personalization of the auditory cortex or system is not only suited for the detection of wing beats of insects, but also for the reduction of the masking effect on echolocation of consepecific's biosonar signals. 5. Because the orientation sound is sexually dimorphic and the auditory cortex is personalized, the tonotopic representation of the auditory cortex is also sexually dimorphic.

Effect of chlorpheniramine on muricide induced by thiamine deficiency: pharmacokinetic and behavioral studies

Chlorpheniramine (5-10 mg/kg) showed a dose-dependent suppressive effect on muricide induced by thiamine deficiency at 1 hr after oral administration. The ED50 value for muricidal suppression was about 7.1 mg/kg (95% confidence limits, 5.4-9.3 mg/kg). The maximum effect of muricidal suppression lasted for 1-2 hr after oral dosage (10 mg/kg). Chlorpheniramine was detectable at 10 min in the blood and brain of thiamine deficient killer-rats by using a high-performance liquid chromatographic method. Maximum brain and blood levels of chlorpheniramine appeared at 45 and 60 min, respectively. In terms of regional distribution, the highest levels were measured in the limbic system, especially in the hippocampus. Although neither blood nor brain levels of chlorpheniramine reflect its pharmacological activity, it can easily enter the brain and suppress muricide more potently than imipramine.

Experimental study on mechanism of absorption of cryonecrotized tumor antigens

On Day 7 of subcutaneous MRMT-1 tumor inoculation in the thigh of Sprague-Dawley rats, the tumor was treated cryosurgically by contact method. Postoperative changes in local blood circulation were observed by colloidal carbon perfusion and hydrogen-clearance methods, and the pathway and time course of tumor antigen absorption were observed by measuring uptake in serum and lymph nodes of [3H]thymidine injected intratumorally. Results were: At 0.5 to 1 hr after cryosurgery, vascular stasis, dilatation, and tortuosity were observed. There was no inflow of carbon and almost no uptake of [3H]thymidine. At 6 hr, vascular stasis and sludging become more marked. There was no inflow of carbon, while uptake of [3H]thymidine markedly increased. At 24 hr, some carbon inflow in fin vessels and partial recovery of blood circulation in the peritumoral region were observed. Rate of [3H]thymidine uptake was further increased. At 72 hr, carbon inflow and blood circulation increased further, while the cryonecrotized tumor showed hyaline degeneration. At 168 hr, increase of newly formed vessels and recovery of blood circulation were remarkable, but uptake of [3H]thymidine was decreased in parallel with increased demarcation of the cryonecrotized tumor. From these results, it was suggested that the absorption of cryonecrotized tumor antigens started through lymphatic channels in the early period and then took place also through newly formed capillaries surrounding the tumor at 24 hr after cryosurgery and continued until 72 hr after cryosurgery.

Significance of renal hyaline arteriolosclerosis and tubulo-interstitial change in IgA glomerulonephropathy and focal glomerular sclerosis

The relationship between glomerular sclerosis and hyaline arteriolosclerosis (HA) or tubulo-interstitial (T-I) change was investigated in 66 patients with IgA glomerulonephropathy (IgA-GN) and in 12 patients with idiopathic focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FGS). More than a 10% incidence of global sclerosis was noted in 15 patients with IgA-GN and in 9 patients with FGS. There was no significant discrepancy of age between patients with IgA-GN and those with FGS (IgA-GN: 37.5 +/- 12.5; FGS: 35.7 +/- 10.3). In patients with IgA-GN, 7 out of 15 were HA-positive (46.7%), whereas in patients with FGS, 7 out of 9 were HA-positive (77.8%). However, a close correlation was observed between glomerular sclerosis and T-I change only in patients with IgA-GN (r = 0.82; p less than 0.001). The results suggested that in the case of IgA-GN, T-I change was related to the prognosis of glomerular sclerosis. In addition, it is assumed that a possible correlation exists between FGS and HA.

Factors influencing the prognosis of wheezy infants

Forty-eight wheezy infants were followed up for 25 to 44 months. These infants were classified into three groups: those with asthma (developed asthma later), the wheezy group (had successive wheezing episodes), and the non-wheezy group (grew out of the wheezy episodes). Serum IgE levels at the first visit were not significantly different in the three groups, but the frequency of exposure to cigarette smoke was higher in the asthma and wheezy groups than in the nonwheezy group.