[Involvement of chymase in angiogenesis in hamster sponge granulomas]

We investigated the angiogenic effect of chymase, an alternative angiotensin II-generating enzyme, on angiogenesis using hamster sponge implant model. Exogenous administration of angiotensin II (Ang II) or angiotensin I (Ang I) directly into the sponges enhanced angiogenesis, as determined from the hemoglobin contents in the sponge granuloma tissues. Chymostatin, an inhibitor of chymase, inhibited angiogenesis induced by Ang I but not by Ang II, suggesting the presence of a chymase-like Ang II-generating activity in the sponge granuloma. TCV-116 (5 mg/kg p.o.), an antagonist of Ang II type 1 receptor, and chymostatin suppressed bFGF-induced angiogenesis, suggesting the significance of the endogenous angiotensin system. Chymase activity in the sponge granuloma increased in parallel with the rise in hemoglobin contents induced by bFGF. We also examined the effects of direct administration of human pro-chymase gene or purified hamster chymase, and demonstrated that in vivo human pro-chymase gene transfection and direct injection of purified chymase enhanced angiogenesis, which was 50% inhibited by TCV-116. Sponge granulomas treated with Ang II was supressed by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) antisense. Our results suggest that chymase enhanced angiogenesis partly through the local production of Ang II, followed by up-regulation of VEGF.

Suppression of STAT5 functions in liver, mammary glands, and T cells in cytokine-inducible SH2-containing protein 1 transgenic mice

Various cytokines utilize Janus kinase (JAK) and the STAT (signal transducers and activators of transcription) family of transcription factors to carry out their biological functions. Among STATs, two highly related proteins, STAT5a and STAT5b, are activated by various cytokines, including prolactin, growth hormone, erythropoietin, interleukin 2 (IL-2), and IL-3. We have cloned a STAT5-dependent immediate-early cytokine-responsive gene, CIS1 (encoding cytokine-inducible SH2-containing protein 1). In this study, we created CIS1 transgenic mice under the control of a beta-actin promoter. The transgenic mice developed normally; however, their body weight was lower than that of the wild-type mice, suggesting a defect in growth hormone signaling. Female transgenic mice failed to lactate after parturition because of a failure in terminal differentiation of the mammary glands, suggesting a defect in prolactin signaling. The IL-2-dependent upregulation of the IL-2 receptor alpha chain and proliferation were partially suppressed in the T cells of transgenic mice. These phenotypes remarkably resembled those found in STAT5a and/or STAT5b knockout mice. Indeed, STAT5 tyrosine phosphorylation was suppressed in mammary glands and the liver. Furthermore, the IL-2-induced activation of STAT5 was markedly inhibited in T cells in transgenic mice, while leukemia inhibitory factor-induced STAT3 phosphorylation was not affected. We also found that the numbers of gamma delta T cells, as well as those of natural killer (NK) cells and NKT cells, were dramatically decreased and that Th1/Th2 differentiation was altered in transgenic mice. These data suggest that CIS1 functions as a specific negative regulator of STAT5 in vivo and plays an important regulatory role in the liver, mammary glands, and T cells.

[A case of superior mediastinal neurinoma resected from the supra-clavicular area]

We report a case of superior mediastinal neurinoma that was resected from the supra-clavicular area. An abnormal shadow on the chest X-ray film was pointed out in a 53-year-old male. A left supra-clavicular mass was subsequently also discovered. We underwent extirpation of the tumor through supra-clavicular approach and confirmed to be a neurinoma histologically. We consider supra-clavicular approach which allows a good view might be useful.

[A case of metachronous lung cancer in which tumor developed within the different ipsilateral lobe over a short period of time and completion pneumonectomy was required]

A 51-year-old man underwent a middle-lower lobectomy for squamous cell carcinoma on February 8, 1996. In July, 1997, a computed tomography revealed a mass shadow in the right upper lung field. Completion pneumonectomy was performed. Histopathological examination showed poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma. This case was the shortest time to occurrence of second tumor in our metachronous lung cancer cases. We must always give attention to exist second primary lung cancer and double primary lung cancer after resection of primary lung cancer.

Primary amebic meningoencephalitis due to Naegleria fowleri: an autopsy case in Japan

Free-living amebas represented by Naegleria fowleri, Acanthamoeba and Balamutia have been known to cause fatal meningoencephalitis since Fowler and Carter (1965) reported the first four human cases. An autopsy case of a 25-year-old female with primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) due to Naegleria fowleri is described. Headache, lethargy and coma developed in this patient, and her condition progressed to death 8 days after the onset of clinical symptoms. Cerebral spinal fluid examination confirmed clusters of amebas, which were grown in culture and identified as Naegleria fowleri. At autopsy, lesions were seen in the central nervous system (CNS) and the ethmoid sinus. The CNS had severe, suppurative meningoencephalitis with amebic trophozoites mingled with macrophages. This case is the first report of PAM due to Naegleria fowleri in Japan.

Left antero-axillary thoracotomy as an alternative approach for aortic arch reconstruction

Antero-axillary thoracotomy--a new approach for the reconstruction of the aortic arch--provides a wide view of the arch and makes accessible the superior vena cava for retrograde cerebral perfusion as well as the coronary sinus for retrograde infusion of cardioplegia. This procedure has been used over 22 months for 26 patients with aortic arch aneurysm or aortic dissection, and the surgical results were evaluated. The distal arch was replaced in 16 patients, the total arch in 9 patients, and the proximal arch in 1 patient, using this technique. The mean duration of deep hypothermic circulatory arrest was 38 min, and the hospital mortality was 15.4%. Antero-axillary thoracotomy may be an excellent approach for the reconstruction of the aortic arch, minimizing the duration of hypothermic circulatory arrest.

[Subacute necrotizing lymphadenitis associated with mononeuritis multiplex. A case report]

A 20-year-old man noticed lymph node swelling in his neck in May 1997. He was admitted to our hospital on July 30 because of numbness and weakness in the right hand and bilateral lower extremities. Neurological examinations revealed that the patient had right ulnar and bilateral deep peroneal nerve palsies. Nerve conduction study showed severe axonopathy in these nerves. The sural nerve biopsy demonstrated axonal degeneration and thickening of the small arterial wall. There was no significant increase of virus titer in the serum, such as EB virus, nor human herpesvirus 6. CSF examination was normal. During the course of this disorder, he acutely developed severe pain in his right testis. Pathological finding of the testis showed necrosis with vasculitis in the small arteries. Treatment with corticosteroid was effective. Usually subacute necrotizing lymphadenitis has been thought to be a benign disease. Only a few neurological complications, such as aseptic meningitis and cerebellar ataxia have been reported. Mononeuritis multiplex associated with subacute necrotizing lymphadenitis has not been reported. We speculated that the present case initially had some viral infection, and its reaction of the host produced subacute necrotizing lymphadenitis and mononeuritis multiplex.

Effect of prolonged administration of a urinary kinase inhibitor, ebelactone B on the development of deoxycorticosterone acetate-salt hypertension in rats

The effect of prolonged administration of a carboxypeptidase Y-like kininase inhibitor, ebelactone B (EB) (2-ethyl-3, 11-dihydroxy-4, 6, 8, 10, 12-pentamethyl-9-oxo-6-tetradecenoic 1, 3-lactone), on the development of deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)-salt hypertension was tested. The systolic blood pressure (SBP) of non-treated 6-week-old Sprague-Dawley strain rats was gradually increased by DOCA-salt treatment from 137+/-2 mmHg (n=11) to 195+/-7 mmHg at 10 weeks of age. With daily oral administration of lisinopril (5 mg kg(-1), twice a day), which is an inhibitor of angiotensin converting enzyme, a major kininase in plasma, the development of hypertension was not suppressed. By contrast, administration of EB (5 mg kg(-1), twice a day), completely inhibited the development of hypertension (SBP: 146+/-1 mmHg, n=5, 10 weeks old). The reduced SBP at 10 weeks of age was equal to the SBP before any treatment (142+/-1 mmHg, n=5). Direct determination of mean blood pressure (MBP) in conscious, unrestrained rats confirmed that MBP elevation was completely inhibited by EB. Continuous subcutaneous infusion (5 mg kg(-1) day(-1)) of HOE140, a bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist, restored the elevation of SBP, which was suppressed by EB. The weights of left ventricle of DOCA-salt treated rats 10-weeks-old (0.36+/-0.02 g 100 g body weight(-1), n=11) was significantly reduced by EB (0.27+/-0.01, n=5), as were the sodium levels in serum, cerebrospinal fluid and erythrocyte. These findings suggested that EB is effective in preventing salt-related hypertension presumably by eliminating sodium retention.

Reduction of sodium deoxycholic acid-induced scratching behaviour by bradykinin B2 receptor antagonists

1. Subcutaneous injection of sodium deoxycholic acid into the anterior of the back of male ddY mice elicited dose-dependent scratching of the injected site with the forepaws and hindpaws. 2. Up to 100 microg of sodium deoxycholic acid induced no significant increase in vascular permeability at the injection site as assessed by a dye leakage method. 3. Bradykinin (BK) B2 receptor antagonists, FR173657 and Hoe140, significantly decreased the frequency of scratching induced by sodium deoxycholic acid. 4. Treatment with aprotinin to inhibit tissue kallikrein reduced the scratching behaviour induced by sodium deoxycholic acid, whereas treatment with soybean trypsin inhibitor to inhibit plasma kallikrein did not. 5. Although injection of kininase II inhibitor, lisinopril together with sodium deoxycholic acid did not alter the scratching behaviour, phosphoramidon, a neutral endopeptidase inhibitor, significantly increased the frequency of scratching. 6. Homogenates of the skin excised from the backs of mice were subjected to gel-filtration column chromatography followed by an assay of kinin release by trypsin from each fraction separated. Less kinin release from the fractions containing kininogen of low molecular weight was observed in the skin injected with sodium deoxycholic acid than in normal skin. 7. The frequency of scratching after the injection of sodium deoxycholic acid in plasma kininogen-deficient Brown Norway Katholiek rats was significantly lower than that in normal rats of the same strain, Brown Norway Kitasato rats. 8. These results indicate that BK released from low-molecular-weight kininogen by tissue kallikrein, but not from high-molecular-weight kininogen by plasma kallikrein, may be involved in the scratching behaviour induced by the injection of sodium deoxycholic acid in the rodent.

Functional beta1-integrins release the suppression of fibronectin matrix assembly by vitronectin

beta1-null GD25 fibroblasts adherent to vitronectin fail to bind the N-terminal 70-kDa matrix assembly domain of fibronectin or to assemble fibronectin (Sakai, T., Zhang, Q., Fässler, R., and Mosher, D. F. (1998) J. Cell Biol. 141, 527-538). We have made four observations that extend this finding. First, the presence of vitronectin on a substrate that otherwise can support fibronectin assembly has a dominant-negative effect on assembly. Second, the dominant-negative effect is lost when active beta1A is expressed. Third, beta1A containing the extracellular D130A inactivating mutation has a dominant-negative effect on fibronectin assembly. Fourth, beta1-null cells adherent to vitronectin are flat and lack filopodia, whereas beta1-null cells adherent to fibronectin or beta1A-expressing cells adherent to either vitronectin or fibronectin are contracted and exhibit numerous filopodia. These results reveal, therefore, that GD25 cells adherent to vitronectin can only assume a shape suitable for assembly of fibronectin when there is a countervailing signal from functional beta1-integrins.

Crucial suppressive role of renal kallikrein-kinin system in development of salt-sensitive hypertension

Tissue kallikrein and low molecular weight kininogen are localized in the particular cells of the connecting tubules, indicating that kinin is immediately generated in the lumina of the lower nephrons. The role of the renal kallikreinkinin system was studied using mutant kininogen-deficient Brown NorwayKatholiek (BN-Ka) rats, and compared with that in normal BN-Kitasato rats of the same strain. Mutant BN-Ka rats showed no visible changes, but they were very sensitive to excess sodium ingestion and to the tendency of sodium to accumulate in the body by aldosterone released by angiotensin II, so that sodium was accumulated in erythrocytes and cerebrospinal fluid in BN-Ka rats and hypertension was induced. After four days infusion of 0.3 M NaCl solution to conscious and unrestrained mutant BN-Ka rats, the sensitivity of the vascular smooth muscle to norepinephrine and angiotensin II increased 30-fold and 10-fold, respectively. Bradykinin was degraded by neutral endopeptidase (NEP) and carboxypeptidase Y-like exopeptidase (CPY) in rat and human urine. Daily oral administration of a selective inhibitor of CPY, ebelactone B, or that of NEP, BP1O2, prevented development of deoxycorticosterone acetate-salt hypertension in Sprague-Dawley rats. These results indicate that: 1) the renal kallikrein-kinin system allows excretion of excess sodium in the body, 2) decreased sodium excretion due to reduced excretion of urinary kallikrein in patients with essential hypertension or in genetically hypertensive rats may cause hypertension, and 3) urine kininase inhibitors such as ebelactone B may emerge as a new antihypertensive drug.

Higher-order structure and thermal instability of bovine mitochondrial tRNASerUGA investigated by proton NMR spectroscopy

Although mammalian mitochondrial serine-specific tRNA with the anticodon UGA (tRNASerUGA) appears to possess an almost normal cloverleaf secondary structure, it exhibits an extraordinarily low melting temperature (tm). An in vitro tRNASerUGA transcript without modified nucleosides had an even lower tm and slightly less hyperchromicity, but its tertiary structure was apparently very similar to that of the native counterpart judging from its aminoacylation activity and the body of experimental evidence so far obtained for canonical tRNAs. The transcript was therefore used to investigate the higher-order structure and thermal instability of tRNASerUGA. 1H-NMR analysis of the transcript showed that it takes a nearly L-shaped tertiary structure with similar tertiary base-pairings to those found in yeast tRNAPhe, which is representative of canonical tRNAs. However, magnesium ion titration revealed that Mg2+ affected the chemical shifts of the tRNASerUGA transcript differently than those of canonical tRNAs so far studied; the former was less sensitive toward Mg2+, especially in the D-arm region. This observation was confirmed by NMR analysis with paramagnetic manganese ion titration. Hill plots derived from the CD spectral changes caused by titration with Mg2+ suggested that the tRNASerUGA transcript had fewer Mg2+ binding sites than those of yeast tRNAPhe as well as its transcript, a finding that was consistent with the NMR data. We thus surmise that the thermal instability of both the transcript and tRNASerUGA itself originated from a reduction in the number of the divalent ion binding sites within the tRNA molecule. These results suggest a new type of thermal instability for mitochondrial tRNA.

Right vagal nerve stimulation during minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass grafting in dogs. A preliminary study

BACKGROUND

Minimal access coronary artery bypass grafting without cardiopulmonary bypass has been used with increasing frequency. However, some surgeons are still unwilling to perform MIDCAB because the anastomosis is technically demanding. The aim of this study was to assess whether autonomic activation via right vagal nerve stimulation will be an effective support technique on heart rate during MIDCAB in dogs.

EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN

Preliminary study.

SETTING

Cardiothoracic Surgery Unit, University Clinic.

METHODS

The right cervical vagal nerve was stimulated in five dogs. In one dog, right thoracotomy was performed to isolate the vagal nerve. Bipolar hook electrodes were attached to the vagal nerve. The vagal nerve was stimulated (3-5 mA, 40 Hz) for a few seconds while suturing the coronary artery. Experiments were conducted in two groups. In Group I, two dogs received vagal stimulation via the right neck, and one dog received vagal stimulation via the right thoracic cavity approach. In Group H, all vagal stimulations were performed via the neck during intravenous infusion of diltiazem (10 mg/hrs) or verapamil (5 mg/hrs).

RESULTS

In Group I, when the cervical nerve stimulation started the heart rate decreased from 190 to 45 beats/min in one dog, and from 180 to 42 beats/min in another dog. During thoracic nerve stimulation, the heart rate decreased from 205 to 70 beats/min. In Group II, vagal stimulation of one dog (10 mg/hr diltiazem) caused ventricular arrest, and in the other dogs (5 mg/hr verapamil) vagal stimulation caused marked bradycardia with atrioventricular block. After the cessation of nerve stimulation, the heart rate returned to normal sinus rhythm immediately in each dog.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on our findings, this type of autonomic stimulation (especially with i.v. administration of diltiazem or verapamil) can be an effective technique in reducing heart beats, thus obtaining relatively quiet surgical field for coronary anastomosis in CABG without cardiopulmonary bypass.

Effects of a neutral endopeptidase inhibitor, BP102, on the development of deoxycorticosterone acetate-salt hypertension in kininogen-deficient Brown Norway Katholiek rats

The nature of all of the peptides critical to the mechanism(s) of the antihypertensive action of neutral endopeptidase (NEP) inhibitors is still unclear, but bradykinin is thought to be one such peptide. This study was designed to assess the effectiveness of an NEP inhibitor in deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)-salt treated kininogen-deficient Brown Norway Katholiek (BN-Ka) rats. Oral administration of BP102 (10-100 mg/kg), an NEP inhibitor, increased urine volume and urinary sodium excretion in a dose-dependent manner in anesthetized Sprague-Dawley rats. DOCA-salt hypertension was induced in both BN-Ka and Brown Norway Kitasato (BN-Ki) rats after left nephrectomy. The development of DOCA-salt hypertension in normal BN-Ki rats was prevented, and that in BN-Ka rats was also significantly reduced, by an 8-day administration of BP102. When BP102 was administered for 5 weeks, the high blood pressure of DOCA-salt treated BN-Ka rats was markedly lowered, and their heart weights were reduced. These results suggest that kinins play no role in the antihypertensive effect of this inhibitor and that other factors may be involved in this effect.

Hepatitis B virus DNA is frequently found in liver biopsy samples from hepatitis C virus-infected chronic hepatitis patients

Human hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are two major etiologic agents of chronic hepatitis, which is closely related to the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). A possible involvement of HBV co-infection was investigated in ongoing HCV-related liver diseases in HCV-infected patients. A prevalence of anti-HBc in anti-HCV-positive/HBsAg-negative chronic hepatitis patients and a low copy number of HBV DNA were found in most of the liver biopsy samples of anti-HCV-positive/HBsAg-negative patients. The present data suggest that HBV co-infects frequently with HCV and may play an important role in the development of HCC in the anti-HCV-positive/HBsAg-negative patients with chronic hepatitis.

Purification and amino acid sequence of halystase from snake venom of Agkistrodon halys blomhoffii, a serine protease that cleaves specifically fibrinogen and kininogen

We have isolated a serine protease, halystase, from Agkistrodon halys blomhoffii venom by chromatography on DEAE-Sepharose, heparin-Sepharose and Q-Sepharose columns, and have determined the complete amino acid sequence by Edman degradation and by mass spectral analysis of peptides generated by enzymatic and chemical cleavage. The 238-residue sequence of halystase, containing N-linked carbohydrates (about 13%) at two sites showed significant similarity to other thrombin-like snake venom serine proteases (66-72%), mammalian tissue kallikrein (42%) and thrombin (26%). Halystase contained the tentative catalytic triad of His43, Asp88 and Ser184 common to all serine proteases and Asp178 in the primary substrate-binding site. Although halystase contained an RGD sequence at residues 181-183, it did not inhibit platelet aggregation induced by ADP or collagen. It hydrolyzed most efficiently a tissue-kallikrein substrate, prolylphenylalanylarginyl-4-methyl-coumaryl-7-amide, and released bradykinin from bovine kininogen. Halystase did not coagulate human plasma, but it cleaved the fibrinogen B beta chain at the carboxyl side of Arg42 and cleaved slowly the fibrogen A alpha chain. Fibrinogen thus treated gradually became insensitive to thrombin. The proteolytic activity was inhibited with diisopropyl fluorophosphate, phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride or leupeptin. These results indicate that halystase is a serine protease structurally similar to coagulating thrombin-like snake venom proteases, but it specifically cleaves fibrinogen at sites different from thrombin without inducing fibrin clotting, and hydrolyzes kininogen to produce bradykinin, resulting in the reduction of blood pressure.

Renal ACE immunohistochemical localization in NIDDM patients with nephropathy

A role of renal angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) in diabetic nephropathy has been suggested. Immunohistochemical localization of ACE was studied in 20 non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus patients with diabetic nephropathy and 17 healthy kidney transplant donors, with ACE gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism also examined in the latter. Immunohistochemical studies indicated that ACE staining was significantly (P < 0.01) enhanced in glomeruli and slightly decreased in proximal tubules in diabetic patients. Glomeruli positive for ACE immunostaining were observed in 23.5% of the healthy subjects and in 80% of the diabetic patients. All patients with nodular lesions had ACE-positive glomeruli and showed significantly (P < 0.01) more intense glomerular ACE immunostaining than patients without nodular lesions. Among healthy controls, subjects with the DD genotype had ACE-positive glomeruli more frequently and tended to show slightly increased intensity on proximal tubule ACE immunostaining compared with subjects with other genotypes. These observations suggest that increased ACE localization in glomeruli is likely to be one of the factors in the increased renin-angiotensin system activity in glomeruli in patients with diabetic nephropathy. There is a possibility that ACE gene I/D polymorphism may be related to renal ACE immunohistochemical localization.

Clinicopathologic study of multiple primary superficial carcinoma of the esophagus

Endoscopic examination with iodine staining has led to the easy detection of multiple superficial esophageal carcinoma (MSEC). The purpose of this study was to better understand the characteristics of MSEC. Of 49 patients with multiple esophageal carcinomas, 19 had superficial carcinoma. Multiple esophageal carcinomas were more often found in superficial carcinomas (31.1%) than in advanced carcinomas (14.4%). Comparing the depth of invasion of multiple esophageal carcinomas, the secondary lesions represented relatively early stages. Ki-67-positive cells were seen significantly more frequently in the main lesion of MSEC than in the secondary lesions, but proliferating cell nuclear antigen positivity and p53 expression did not differ significantly. Since multiple carcinoma occurs more frequently, care should be taken to look for small secondary lesions when treating superficial esophageal carcinoma. Ki-67 immunohistochemistry suggested that tumor cells proliferate more slowly in secondary lesions than in main lesions of MSEC.

Relationship among risk factors of atherosclerosis, leukocyte count, and soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1

We investigated the effects of risk factors of atherosclerosis on soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (sICAM-1) concentration and leukocyte count by using multivariate statistical analysis. The subjects were 90 people who were hospitalized for a complete check-up examination. Eight risk factors were selected as candidates for predictor variables: age, body mass index (BMI), uric acid, glycohemoglobin A1c, number of cigarettes smoked daily, total cholesterol, triglyceride, and high density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol. The predictor variables were selected using a stepwise method, [criterion variable - predictor variable (standardized regression coefficient)]; sICAM1 - age (0.1859), number of cigarettes (0.2558), triglyceride (0.2447); leukocytes - number of cigarettes (0.2827), triglyceride (0.2526), HDL-cholesterol (-0.2800); stab leukocytes - number of cigarettes (0.2460); segmented leukocytes - glycohemoglobin A1c (0.1495), number of cigarettes (0.2716), HDL-cholesterol (-0.3254); lymphocytes - BMI (0.2639), number of cigarettes (0.1495), triglyceride (0.3520); monocytes - glycohemoglobin A1c (0.2617). These findings indicated that the risk factors of atherosclerosis may influence sICAM1 concentration and leukocyte count.

Significant roles of inducible cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 in angiogenesis in rat sponge implants

Angiogenesis in rat sponge implants, as determined from the concentration of hemoglobin in the sponge granuloma tissues, was gradually increased over a 14-day experimental period. The inducible cyclooxygenase COX-2 was detected in the sponge granuloma tissues at day 4 by Western blot analysis using specific mouse COX-2 antibody. Angiogenesis in the sponge implants was enhanced by daily topical injections of human recombinant basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) or human recombinant epidermal growth factor (EGF) (100 or 1000 ng/sponge/day) for 4 days. These treatments clearly enhanced the expression of COX-2 in the sponge granuloma tissues. In immunohistochemical studies, COX-2-positive staining was mainly observed in the endothelial cells of the neovasculature and in the fibroblasts of the granuloma capsule. Administration of the selective COX-2 inhibitor NS-398 (p.o., 3 mg/kg, 3 times a day) for 14 days significantly inhibited the angiogenesis. The angiogenesis enhanced with bFGF or EGF (day 4) was inhibited by administration of indomethacin or NS-398, both in the above regimen, and fell to the level obtained without growth factor treatment. These results suggest that COX-2 induced in the sponge granuloma tissues may participate in neovascularization through prostaglandin formation.

First case of surgical treatment of Farber's disease

Farber's disease (Farber's lipogranulomatosis), which is inherited as an autosomal recessive trait, was first reported by Farber in 1952. We report a case of Farber's disease in a 12-year-old female. Her younger brother was affected with Farber's disease and died of it at 2 years of age. When she first presented, our patient's main clinical features were a shrill voice; subcutaneous nodules; contracture of the joints throughout the body; and granulomas of the oral cavity, the pharynx, and the upper and lower eyelids. Serial radiographs disclosed deformation of the joints throughout the body. Due to the granulomas in her oral cavity, she could take little food orally and therefore was malnourished. We performed a granulectomy under general anesthesia, and her difficulty with feeding and upper airway obstruction improved. There is no specific treatment for Farber's disease, and most patients reported have died by 2 years of age. This is the first reported patient with Farber's disease who has been surgically treated.

Expression of bovine mitochondrial tRNASer GCU derivatives in Escherichia coli

By replacing a stretch of five A-U base pairs in the acceptor stem with G-C pairs, mitochondrial tRNA-SerGCU lacking a D arm could be expressed in Escherichia coli cells in considerable amounts. The expressed tRNA with no modified nucleoside was serylated in vitro with the mitochondrial enzyme. The tRNASerGCU derivatives carrying identity elements for alanine tRNA and the related anticodons were expressed. However, this expression event did not affect cell growth, probably because the expression started from the late log phase, which suggests that these mitochondrial tRNA derivatives are not involved in E.coli gene expression systems. Although there are some restrictions in the secondary structure of tRNAs that can be expressed by this method, it could prove useful for preparing large amounts of heterologous tRNAs in vivo.

Limited sampling model for the area under the concentration versus time curve of irinotecan and its application to a multicentric phase II trial

We previously established a limited sampling model (LSM) for the area under the concentration versus time curve (AUC) of irinotecan (CPT-11). Using this LSM, we performed a pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic analysis of CPT-11 in a multicentric Phase II study for non-small cell lung cancer. Ten institutes participated in this study, 36 patients were registered, and 30 patients were evaluable for the pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic analysis. CPT-11 and etoposide were administered daily for three consecutive days, both at a dose of 60 mg/m2. Blood samples were obtained 4 and 8 h after infusion on days 1 and 3. When using the LSM, there is a significant possible source of error in the timing of these selected points. In this study, however, the sample timing error was small. Mean timing errors were 1.0-4.0 min at each point. The estimated CPT-11 AUCs were: Day 1 Day 2 Day 1 + 3 Mean +/- SD (mg.h/liter) 3.76+/-0.68 4.10+/-0.86 7.86+/-1.43 Range 2.01-5.03 2. 29-5.72 4.30-10.68 Max/min 2.50 2.45 2.48 High interpatient variability was observed in the AUC. The CPT-11 AUC correlated positively with the grade of emesis (P = 0.003) and the percent decreases in WBC count (P = 0.001) and absolute neutrophil count (P =0.0006), but it did not correlate with the grade of diarrhea or response. We concluded that the LSM was useful in estimating individual pharmacokinetic parameters in multicentric trials.