Intranuclear actin bundles induced by dimethyl sulfoxide in interphase nucleus of Dictyostelium

Electron microscopic evidence demonstrated that dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) induces formation of giant intranuclear microfilament bundles in the interphase nucleus of a cellular slime mold, Dictyostelium. These giant bundles are approximately giant bundles are approximately 3 micrometer long, 0.85 micrometer wide, and composed of microfilaments 6 nm in diameter. Studies in which glycerinated cells were used showed that these microfilaments bind rabbit skeletal muscle heavy meromyosin, forming typical decorated "arrowhead" structures, and that this binding can be reverted by Mg-adenosine triphosphate. These data verify that the intranuclear microfilaments are the contractile protein actin, and that DMSO affects intranuclear actin, inducing the formation of such giant bundles. The intranuclear actin bundles appear at any developmental stage in two different species of cellular slime molds after treatment with DMSO. The native form of the intranuclear actin molecules and their possible functions are discussed, and it is proposed that the contractile protein has essential functions in the cell nucleus.

Real time observation of the echo source of systolic hump in hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy with high speed ultrasono-cardiotomography

The present study was undertaken to discuss the echo source of systolic hump in hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM) from a viewpoint of B-mode echocardiography. Cross-sectional images were obtained from 4 patients with HOCM using a Sonolayergraph of Toshiba, SSL-51H. This equipment is characterized by its high speed mechanical sector scanning and wider angle. Recordings were made with ordinary 35 mm camera or Polaroid in conjunction with 8 mm cinecamera. Our data showed that systolic hump in this lesion was not caused by anterior systolic movement of anterior mitral leaflet, but was emanated from the chordae tendineae attached to the anterior or posterior mitral leaflet. In systole, the anterior mitral leaflet moved backward for closure, while the chordae tendineae approached the bulged interventricular septum resulting in the formation of systolic hump.

Clinical study on the acoustic phenomena in coronary venous system with intracardiac phonocardiography

In order to study the intracardiac murmurs in coronary venous system, right heart catheterization was carried out on 35 patients with or without mitral regurgitation. The double-lumen phonocatheter of A. E. L. was used for 33 cases but for 2 the microtip phonocatheter of Millar was employed. As a rule, simultaneous recording of intracardiac and external phonocardiograms was made with the pressure tracing in the majority of cases. The examined subjects were divided into 3 groups; 9 cases with mitral regurgitation confirmed by left ventriculography (Group I), 20 without mitral regurgitation (Group II), and 6 with functional systolic murmur (Group III). In Group I, a loud systolic murmur was recorded in 7 cases (MR 5, MR + AR 1, ECD 1), but in none of IHSS in the coronary sinus or great coronary vein. In Group II, no systolic bruit was noted in VSD and other lesions except ASR in the coronary venous system. The same was true in patients with functional systolic murmur (Group III). Intracardiac phonocardiography is thought to be useful to record mitral regurgitant murmurs in the coronary venous system, since the latter is in the close proximity to the mitral posterior commissure or mitral annulus.

Fertility of ewes treated with prostaglandin F2α and artificially inseminated at predetermined intervals thereafter

An experiment was conducted to investigate the fertility rate in ewes inseminated with either fresh undiluted or frozen-thawed ram semen, without the use of vasectomized rams, at the first synchronized oestrus after a single intramuscular injection of 16 mg prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α). It was also investigated whether two injections of PGF2α at an interval of 12 days would improve the degree of synchronization of oestrus and the subsequent fertility. The degree of synchronized oestrus with two injections was similar to that with a single injection (72%v. 74% respectively). Inseminations at 46 and 54 hr or at 70 and 78 hr after treatment showed fertility comparable with that from those inseminations at oestrus detected by vasectomized rams (50% v. 45% for fresh undiluted semen and 22% v. 25% for frozen-thawed semen respectively). Inseminations at 70 and 78 hr after treatment showed a much higher fertility rate for both fresh undiluted (62% v. 39% respectively) and frozen-thawed semen (39% v. 9% respectively) than inseminations at 46 and 54 hr. Two injections of PGF2α resulted in similar fertility rates in control ewes following insemination with either fresh undiluted semen (50%) or frozen-thawed semen (22%).

Differential diagnosis of pulmonic stenosis by means of intracardiac phonocardiography

The purpose of the present paper is to describe the origin of the systolic murmur in pulmonic stenosis and to discuss the diagnostic possibilities of intracardiac phonocardiography. Right heart catheterization was carried out with the aid of a double-lumen A.E.L. phonocatheter on 48 pulmonic stenosis patients with or without associated heart lesions. The diagnosis was confirmed by heart catheterization and angiocardiography in all cases and in 38 of them, by surgical intervention. Simultaneous phonocardiograms were recorded with intracardiac pressure tracings. In valvular pulmonic stenosis, the maximum ejection systolic murmur was localized in the pulmonary artery above the pulmonic valve and well transmitted to both right and left pulmonary arteries, the superior vena cava, and right and left atria. The maximal intensity of the ejection systolic murmur in infundibular stenosis was found in the outflow tract of right ventricle. The contractility of the infundibulum greatly contributes to the formation of the ejection systolic murmur in the outflow tract of right ventricle. In tetralogy of Fallot, the major systolic murmur is caused by the pulmonic stenosis, whereas the high ventricular septal defect is not responsible for it. In pulmonary branch stenosis, the systolic murmur was recorded distally to the site of stenosis. Intracardiac phonocardiography has proved useful for the differential diagnosis of various types of pulmonic stenosis.

Real-time observation of cardiac movement and structures in congenital and acquired heart diseases employing high-speed ultrasonocardiotomography

Echocardiography has proved useful for cardiac diagnosis during the past several years; however, the conventional one-dimensional ultrasound pulse echo method cannot easily visualize the anatomical relationships of the various cardiac structures. To overcome the limitation, the authors attempted a real-time observation of cardiac structures and introduced high-speed ultrasonocardiotomography with a Sonolayergraph Model SSL-51H (Toshiba) having a logarithmic amplifier. Thirty sector images are produced per second by a mechanically operated, single flat or 75 mm. focus transducer measuring 10 mm. in diameter. The angle of a sector image composed of about 120 scanning lines is arbitrarily changeable from null to 65 degrees. The fast succession of images produced enables clear observation of the movement of cardiac structures in real time. Study of 230 patients by means of the proposed system suggests that it is advantageous as a quick method to provide two-dimensional echocardiograms for cardiac diagnosis and assessment, especially in noninvasive diagnosis.

The effect of motor-response-deprivation on contingent negative variation (CNV). III: relation with Maudsley Personality Inventory (MPI)

The contingent negative variation (CNV) was correlated with Maudsley Personality Inventory (MPI) in 43 healthy adults as follows: (1) The conventional CNV with motor-response showed a negative correlation with the scores of extroversion in the MPI (E-scores). The recovery of the conventional CNV after verbal extinction showed both a negative correlation with the E-scores and a politive correlation with the scores of neuroticism (N-scores). (2) The motor-response-deprived CNV in the stimuli and nonresponse sessions (Sa and Na) showed no correlation with the MPI, because they fluctuated according to the subject's attentiveness. On the other hand, the CNV in the discrimination session (Da) with constant attentiveness to stimuli showed a positive correlation with the N-scores. (3) The response times in the control and response sessions showed a positive correlation with the N-scores in males and a negative correlation in females. The correlation with the E-scores was nearly opposite.

Real-time observation of ruptured right sinus of Valsalva aneurysm by high speed ultrasono-cardiotomography. Report of a case

A two-dimensional echocardiographic manifestation of a ruptured right sinus of Valsalva aneurysm is described in this case report. The ultrasono-cardiotomograms demonstrated the aneurysm cut longitudinally and protruding into the outflow tract of the right ventricle. The configuration of the aneurysm was consistent with the contrast medium-filled sinus demonstrated by angiocardiography. In systole, the aneurysmal sinus moved anteroinferiorly together with the aortic wall. The echocardiogram revealed an abnormal two-layered horizontal echo in the right ventricle which showed the aneurysm when the ultrasonic beam passed through the interventricular septum near the aortic root and mitral leaflets. During the operation, the protruding sinus and a small interventricular septal defect in the membranous septum under it were observed through the opened right ventricle. After the closure of the aneurysm, the two-dimensional echocardiogram no longer showed an abnormal configuration.

Effect of motor-response-deprivation on contingent negative variation (CNV). I: Normal adult data

CNV's were obtained in S1-S2-MR paradigm from 22 normal subjects between the ages of 19 and 67 years (the mean age, 33.5+/-12.5). And then the effect of the presence or absence of a motor response on the CNV was studied. Results were as follows; (1) In the control session (S1-S2-MR), the mean CNV amplitude was 14+/-5 muV, and the mean response time was 291+/-76 msec. There was no significant difference with age, but the mean CNV amplitude for female was significantly higher than that for male. (2) Under the nonresponse condition (S1-S2) where the subject was instructed to attend to S1-S2 without a motor response, CNV amplitude significantly reduced for all subjects (7+/-5 muV). The mean voltage of the attentive-to-stimuli group was significantly higher than that of the inattentive group, and sex difference was not significant for the attentive group. However, CNV of the inattentive male disappeared completely, while the CNV of the inattentive female was significantly higher (8+/-5 muV). (3) Under the response condition (S1-S2-MR), CNV recovered almost to the magnitude level of the control condition (14+/-3 muV), in spite of the fact that the mean response time was significantly shortened between the control and response sessions. (4) We speculate that CNV changes may be dependent upon the dynamic balance of the excitatory-inhibitory activity.

Purification and properties of dextransucrase and invertase from Streptococcus mutans

Invertase (beta-d-fructofuranoside fructohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.26) and dextransucrase (alpha-1, 6-glucan: d-fructose 2-glucosyltransferase, EC 2.4.1.5) were purified from the culture fluids of Streptococcus mutans by chromatography on Sepharose 6B and diethylaminoethyl-cellulose followed by treatment with hydroxyapatite. Each of the enzyme preparations gave a single band when analyzed by either polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis or immunodiffusion. The antigenic determinant of invertase was different from that of dextransucrase on immunodiffusion. The pH optima were 5.25 for invertase and 5.75 for dextransucrase, and the K(m) values were 20 mM for invertase and 2.0 mM for dextransucrase. The molecular weights determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis were 160,000 for invertase and 170,000 for dextransucrase. The data obtained suggest that the dextransucrase had dextran-synthesizing activity and invertase-like activity.

Acceleration of dextransucrase activity of Streptococcus mutans by secretory immunoglobulin A

The effect of immunoglobulins on the activity of dextransucrase purified from Streptococcus mutans strain HS-6 is described. When human salivary immunoglobulin A (IgA) or colostral IgA, either natured or denatured, was incubated with dextransucrase, the rate of the dextran synthesis was markedly accelerated, whereas human serum IgA or IgG neither accelerated nor inhibited the enzyme activity. The results suggest that a portion unique for secretory IgA, the secretory component, might be related to the enzyme acceleration. On the other hand, specific rabbit antiserum against the dextransucrase inhibited completely dextran synthesis by the enzyme.

Source of neuraminidase in human whole saliva

Whole saliva specimens from eight healthy human adults were examined for neuraminidase. The presence of two types of neuraminidase in four samples out of eight was demonstrated by means of polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and sucrose density gradient centrifugation. One type is soluble and the other an insoluble, perhaps particle-bound, enzyme. The pH optima were 5.8 for the former and 5.0 to 5.3 for the latter. However, the soluble enzyme could not be detected in the other four saliva specimens which showed low activity. A comparative study of the salivary and other neuraminidases was carried out. It was found that both salivary neuraminidases were closely similar to the enzymes in submandibular-sublingual secretions and in human liver, but not to the oral streptococcal enzymes. The results suggest that the salivary neuraminidases might originate from cells such as epithelial cells or polymorphonuclear leukocytes, or both, in the oral cavity.

Inhibition of enzymes by human salivary immunoglobulin A

Human whole saliva inhibited bacterial neuraminidases and the inhibition was found to reside in the salivary IgA fraction. Further, salivary immunoglobulin (Ig)A inhibited various bacterial enzymes and toxins: neuraminidases from Streptococcus mitis, Streptococcus sanguis, and Clostridium perfringens, hyaluronidase and chondroitin sulfatase from oral bacteria, diphtheria toxin, and streptolysin O. The inhibitory activity of salivary IgA did not correlate with that of serum on the basis of minimum inhibitory dose. A small amount of salivary IgA was required to inhibit oral bacterial neuraminidases, whereas a large amount was required to inhibit other bacterial neuraminidase. Therefore, it is concluded that the absence of neuraminidase activity of oral bacteria in whole saliva may be due to specific inhibition by salivary IgA.