Detection of peripheral vestibular disorders by the pendular rotation test in cats

Unilateral vestibular disorders were induced in 3 cats by means of the injection of a small amount of sodium hydroxide into the middle ear, and vestibulo-ocular responses (VOR) to various kinds of pendular stimulation were investigated at 1 week and at 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 months after the operation. The pendular rotation test was performed at frequencies of 0.025, 0.1, 0.25 and 0.5 Hz, and peak velocities of 50, 100, 150, and 200 degrees/s, and the directional preponderance of the VOR gain (DP%) was measured using a computer. DP% 1 week after the operation was still very high at each frequency and velocity of the stimulation. On the other hand, DP% more than 1 month after the operation had decreased markedly, although it increased with an increase in the velocity of stimulation at all frequencies except at 0.5 Hz, and DP% at a velocity of 200 degrees/s was still high even 5 months later. This suggests that high velocity pendular stimulation should be used to detect unilateral vestibular disorders.

Effect of aging on smooth pursuit eye movement

Examination of smooth pursuit eye movement is useful for detecting central nervous system disorders. It is important to take patient's age into consideration when evaluating smooth pursuit eye movement. The purpose of the present study was to clarify the effect of aging on smooth pursuit eye movement. Thirty healthy volunteers (three groups of 10 volunteers, in their fifties, sixties, and seventies and over, respectively) served as subjects, and 10 healthy young volunteers (23 to 33 years old: mean age 26) served as controls. The pursuit target was driven by sinusoidal waveform with various amplitudes and frequencies. Target peak velocities ranged from 12.6 to 94.2 degrees/s. Eye movement signals were recorded d.c. EOG and pursuit gain (ratio of eye peak velocity to target peak velocity) was measured by a computer. Pursuit gain decreased with increasing target frequency and velocity in all age groups. This tendency was more remarkable in the older groups than in the young controls; in particular, it was more frequently seen at a frequency of 0.5 Hz. On the other hand, there was no significant relationship between pursuit gain and the target amplitude. In the group in their seventies and over, pursuit gain was saturated at about 60 degrees/s.

[A clinical study of chronic lower respiratory tract infections with Pseudomonas aeruginosa by transtracheal aspiration]

We investigated the yearly changes of the incidence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) isolated from chronic lower respiratory tract infections (CLRTI), and also performed a clinical study on CLRTI with P. aeruginosa by transtracheal aspiration (TTA) to clarify the recent trend of P. aeruginosa infection in CLRTI and the predisposing clinical factors to the acute exacerbation. The isolation rate of P. aeruginosa among the total isolated bacteria in CLRTI between December 1978 and March 1983 was 8.4%, but it increased to 23.1% between April 1988 and March 1993. In 69 episodes (40 cases) of P. aeruginosa isolated from CLRTI between April 1983 and March 1993, monomicrobial infections of P. aeruginosa were 42 episodes (60.9%) and polymicrobial infections were 27 episodes (39.1%). When the diseases were classified into acute exacerbated and non-exacerbated phases, polymicrobial infections were seen more in the former phase, and the principal organisms detected with P. aeruginosa were Haemophilus influenzae and Streptococcus pneumoniae. In the acute exacerbated cases, predisposing conditions concerning the exacerbation were divided into four patterns: 1. polymicrobial infections with H. influenzae or S. pneumoniae, 2. after acute upper respiratory tract infections due to viral superinfection, 3. early phase from bacterial replacement by P. aeruginosa, 4. immunocompromised states such as adrenal corticosteroid administration or systemic underlying diseases. These results suggest that the importance of P. aeruginosa in CLRTI is increasing year by year and we must pay attention to the fact that P. aeruginosa alone may also cause acute exacerbation in the latter 2 patterns of the condition.

[Clinical study of acute bacterial bronchitis]

Eighty-two episodes (77 cases) in which any pathogens were isolated from transtracheal aspiration (TTA) and which satisfied the new clinical criteria of acute bacterial bronchitis were clinically evaluated. Major pathogens isolated from TTA included H. influenzae, S. pneumoniae and B. catarrhalis. Fever developed in 91.5% of the patients. Sputum volume averaged 16.3 +/- 14.9 ml per day. All the patients suffered from coughs, which were so severe as to disturb sleep in 8.5% of the patients. Inflammatory indices included WBC 9738.0 +/- 3158.5/microliter, CRP 10.1 +/- 7.9 mg/dl and ESR 69.0 +/- 38.8 mm/hr on average, PaO2 fell in most cases. Compared to the group of patients with acute bacterial bronchitis from which a single pathogen was isolated, the numbers of elderly patients and smokers were significantly more in the group of multiple pathogens isolated from TTA. Prior episodes related to the development of acute bacterial bronchitis were upper respiratory inflammation in 46.3% and undergoing bronchoscopy in 4.9% of the patients. Antibiotics therapy cured acute bacterial bronchitis in 96.3% of the patients. In spite of treatment, 3 patients developed pneumonia and died.

Reduction by niceritrol treatment of serum lipoprotein(a) in normolipidemic patients with coronary artery disease

The effect of niceritrol at an ordinary dose (1500 mg/day) on the serum lipoprotein(a) (Lp(a)) concentration was investigated in 25 normolipidemic patients with coronary artery disease. The serum Lp(a) level was reduced by approximately 21% after 3 months of treatment (before treatment, 30.3 +/- 4.1 mg/100 ml; during treatment, 22.6 +/- 2.4 mg/100 ml; p < 0.01). By one month after the drug was discontinued, the Lp(a) returned to a pretreatment level (30.8 +/- 2.8 mg/100 ml). The levels of LDL-cholesterol and apoB were decreased significantly by the drug therapy; LDL-cholesterol increased closely to a pretreatment level after withdrawal of the drug. The percentage reduction of Lp(a) was significantly correlated with that of fibrinogen (r = 0.763, p < 0.01). Plasma concentration of fibrinogen was decreased in the patients whose reduction rate of Lp(a) was 30% or more. These results indicate that niceritrol has Lp(a)-lowering effect; sufficient reduction of Lp(a) may improve dyscoagulopathy of patients with coronary artery disease.

[Clinical study of anaerobic respiratory infection]

This clinical study involved 35 cases, anaerobic bacteria were detected by TTA (transtracheal aspiration) or percutaneous lung aspiration, or pleural puncture. These cases were treated over the last 8 years in our department. There were 9 empyema, 9 pneumonitis, 5 lung abscess, 1 necrotizing pneumonia and 11 chronic lower airway infection. In 13 cases (37%), anaerobic bacteria alone were detected, whereas both anaerobic and aerobic bacteria were observed in the other 22 cases (63%). Of all bacteria detected. Bacteroids and Peptostreptococcus were the most common. With respect to host factors involved in the pathogenesis of pleural and parenchymal infection, aspiration was though to be a major trigger in only 11 out of the 24 cases (46%). The other 13 cases (54%) showed no evidence of aspiration, indicating that some other triggers was responsible. In further study, these 13 cases were found either to be heavy smokers with Brinkman index of more than 600, or to show sign of chronic lower airway infection. Both conditions were characterized by an inhibition of the mucociliary transport in the lower airway. Therefore, this study suggested that in the case without apparent aspiration the failure of local defense mechanisms in the airway, as a result of heavy smoking and/or chronic lower airway infection are involved in the pathogenesis of anaerobic respiratory infection.

[Long-term chemotherapy using erythromycin (EM) for chronic lower airway infection: effectiveness of clarithromycin in EM ineffective cases--the fourth report]

The effectiveness of long-term chemotherapy using Erythromycin (EM) for chronic lower airway infection has been practically proved. However, there still exist some ineffective cases, or cases in which the clinical effect was scarcely seen. In the present study was administered Clarithromycin (CAM) to such cases and found that CAM was effective in alleviating symptoms in some of them. The results were presented along with clinical findings and other basic studies. The subjects were 4 cases in which EM was either ineffective or low in its clinical effect. The subjects consisted of 1 case of DPB and 3 cases of bronchiectasis. EM was clinically ineffective in 2 cases and slightly effective in the two others. The pathogen was Pseudomonas aeruginosa in all cases. The dosage of EM was 200-1200 mg/day. The period of administration ranged from 2 years to 6 years 9 months. CAM was given orally after meals at a dose of either 200 or 400 mg/day. Chemotherapy had continued for 3-8 months at the time of final observation (Feb. 1992). Clinical effectiveness was evaluated on the basis of sputum volume and PaO2 examination, as well as evaluation by the patients themselves. As a result, in all 4 cases, reduction in sputum volume and improvement of PaO2 were observed. All subjects evaluated CAM therapy as being more effective than EM therapy. Moreover, it was found that CAM inhibited both the elastase and leucocidin produced in one of the ineffective cases by P. aeruginosa, whereas EM didnt.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Indica-Japonica differentiation of rice cultivars viewed from variations in key characters and isozymes, with special reference to landraces from the Himalayan hilly areas

To assess the extent of differentiation into the Indica and Japonica types of Asian rice in its diversity center, we investigated landraces collected from the hilly areas of Nepal, Sikkim and Assam. We examined variations in four key characters and six isozyme loci known to be diagnostic for classifying Indica and Japonica types, and compared the results with those from a control set of rice cultivars representing the whole of Asia. The hill cultivars showed a high level of genetic diversity in key characters as well as in isozymes. A marked feature found in their character variation was the occurrence of various atypical cultivars that were intermediate between the Indica and Japonica types. With respect to isozymes, however, the hill cultivars could be classified mostly as either Indicas or Japonicas, although the patterns of allelic association were more random than in the control cultivars. Indica-Japonica variation in key characters and in isozymes corresponded well with each other in the controls, but not in the hill cultivars. This means that nonrandom association in characters as well as in genes (gametic disequilibrium) is not fully developed in the diversity center. Populations of hill cultivars were highly polymorphic genetically, but did not show a trend to Indica-Japonica differentiation within their populations. The process of Indica-Japonica differentiation is discussed in view of these observations.

[The long-term chemotherapy with erythromycin (EM) in chronic lower respiratory tract infections--third report: clinical study of cases administered EM over 3 years]

An investigation was made of the use of EM therapy which began in 1986 or earlier in 31 cases with chronic lower respiratory tract infections. 1) Of the 20 cases in which EM (Erythromycin stearate) administration (600-1200 mg/day) was continued for 3 years or more and its usefulness could be evaluated, treatment with this agent was judged markedly effective in three, effective in 14, somewhat effective in two, and ineffective in one. This amounted to an effectiveness rate (effective or better) of 85%. 2) Improved QOL was observed in 15 of the 20 cases. 3) In the Pseudomonas infected cases, a discrepancy was seen between the effectiveness rate of 87.5% and the disappearance rate of the organism (12.5%), while in the Haemophilus cases no such discrepancy was found (75%). 4) EM administration was stopped in 11 cases because of side effects in two (stomatitis, gastrointestinal disorder) death in five, desire of the patient in three, and transfer to another hospital in one. The cause of death cases had no connection with administration of EM. 5) In the three patients who stopped EM on their own, the agent was again administered because of exacerbation of symptoms, although this readministration proved ineffective in two of the cases. The above results suggest that long term EM therapy is useful and that its continued administration is important.

[A clinical study of respiratory tract infection due to Staphylococcus aureus detected by transtracheal aspiration]

A clinical study of 24 patients with respiratory tract infection due to S. aureus detected by transtracheal aspiration (TTA) was conducted, and the following results were obtained. 1) The detection frequency of S. aureus was relatively low (4.6%). 2) Pneumonia was the principal clinical manifestation. 3) Approximately one half of the patients had previously received antimicrobials. 4) Multiple organisms were frequently detected, particularly in cases of hospital-acquired infection. H. influenzae was the most frequently simultaneously detected organism. 5) On sputum examination, approximately 20 ml of purulent sputum was found in most cases, and S. aureus was detected in sputum specimens from 20 of the patients. 6) The largest number of cases was found in 1987. Onset was most common from autumn to spring. 7) Undernutrition was the most frequently associated host factor. As indicated by the above findings, the clinical expression of S. aureus infection is variable, and it is important that it be diagnosed accurately.

[The study on bacterial infection in chronic lower respiratory tract infection--from the viewpoints of acute and chronic infection]

Using mainly changes in the amount of sputum as an index of the infectious course of chronic lower respiratory tract infection associated with purulent sputum over years, the disease was divided into stable and acute exacerbated phases and a bacteriological investigation using transtracheal aspiration (TTA) conducted. TTA was performed 107 and 45 episodes during stable phases and acute exacerbated phases respectively. Monomicrobial and polymicrobial infection were detected most frequently during the stable and acute exacerbated phases respectively (p less than 0.01). During the stable phases, the single organisms detected most frequently were H. influenzae (26 episodes) and P. aeruginosa (20 episodes), while in the cases in which multiple organisms were detected during stable phases, combination including H. influenzae were most common (19 episodes). H. influenzae was the most frequently detected organism in cases showing single organisms during acute exacerbated phases (7 episodes). In the cases in which multiple organisms were detected as well, H. influenzae was the most commonly detected organism assumed to predispose to exacerbation (7 episodes), while P. aeruginosa was not found. These results suggest that in chronic lower respiratory tract infection. H. influenzae and P. aeruginosa are important as persistent infective organisms, while H. influenzae are important in acute exacerbation.

Quantitative analysis of ocular movements in Parkinson's disease

In the present study, oculomotor abnormalities were investigated in 24 patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Pursuit gain, slow and fast phase velocity of optokinetic nystagmus (OKN), saccade latency, amplitude and velocity, as well as vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) gain were quantitatively analyzed. Twenty-one out of 24 patients showed some abnormalities in their ocular movement. A reduction in pursuit gain, impaired OKN and a significantly increased saccade latency were observed in 11 patients. In 12 patients, hypometric saccade was seen, while a decrease in saccade velocity was observed in 10 patients. All patients registered normal values for VOR gain. Only one patient who had impaired smooth pursuit and decreased saccade velocity before treatment with a dopaminergic drug showed a remarkable improvement in these ocular abnormalities after treatment. These results suggest the possibility of dopaminergic control on these ocular movements.

Serum Lp(a) lipoprotein concentrations of Japanese patients with coronary heart disease

The serum Lp(a) lipoprotein concentration in 103 healthy control subjects was determined by ELISA (TintElise Lp(a) kit, Biopool, Umea, Sweden). The distribution of Lp(a) in the controls was highly skewed (mean 132, S.D. 109, median 99 mg/liter), which is similar to the results previously reported. Serum Lp(a) level in 104 subjects who underwent coronary angiography was also measured. These subjects were divided into two groups: 59 cases of stenosis(-) and 45 of stenosis(+) groups. Lp(a) level of the stenosis(+) group (mean 235, S.D. 197, median 159 mg/liter) was significantly higher than that of the stenosis(-) group (mean 156, S.D. 133, median 123 mg/liter) and of the controls (Wilcoxon test, p less than 0.05 and p less than 0.01, respectively). Further, stenosis(+) group was divided into three subgroups: 20 with single vessel disease, 13 with double vessel disease and 12 with triple vessel disease subgroups. Lp(a) level was correlated with the number of stenotic coronary vessels (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient, p less than 0.05). These results suggest that Lp(a) may play an important part as a risk factor for coronary heart disease.

Isozyme markers in rice: genetic analysis and linkage relationships

Segregations of rice isozymes made it possible to ascertain the genetic control of 13 enzymes by 30 loci. In addition to numerous cases of independence, several linkages were observed. Got-2 and Enp-1 were localized on chromosome 3 and a linkage group composed of Pox-3, Pox-4, and Est-1 was identified. Inconsistencies of recombination rates between linked loci among different crosses were noted. Several cases of distorted segregations and pseudolinkages were recorded. The relationships between these results and the study of genome organization in cultivated rice are discussed.Key words: Oryza, isozyme, genetic analysis, segregation distortion, linkage.

Variation of the intergenic spacer region of ribosomal DNA in cultivated and wild rice species

Spacer-length variation in ribosomal DNA (rDNA) was surveyed in two cultivated rice species and their wild relatives. Among 243 accessions observed, 18 different spacer-length variants were detected. Length heterogeneity was found within and among species as well as within individuals. Conventional genetic analysis revealed that two spacer-length variants were located at two unlinked loci. Restriction enzyme maps showed that length heterogeneity resulted from repetition of short repeated sequences in the intergenic spacer region in the Asian cultivar and its progenitor; however, the spacer region greatly differed from those of reproductively isolated taxa with respect to the length and the sequence. Furthermore, the Asian cultivated species and its progenitor were highly polymorphic for rDNA spacer-length variation and they were differentiated in frequencies of spacer-length variants as well as varietal groups within the cultivated species. Asian cultivars tended to carry homogeneous repeats of rDNA compared with their progenitor, suggesting different forms of homogenization occurring in Asian cultivars.Key words: ribosomal DNA, intergenic spacer, polymorphism, inheritance, Oryza.

Optical distortion of transmissive optics at high power CO(2) laser irradiation

The optical distortions of transmissive optics for high power CO(2) lasers have been measured by the interference of a probe He-Ne laser beam. The change of interference fringes is observed by a video camera when the sample is irradiated by a cw high power CO(2) laser. From the change of fringe pattern, the optical distortion is obtained and the spatial distribution of the temperature rise is derived. Thermal expansion and thermal change of the optics cause optical distortions. Both factors have to be added to large thermal lensing effects for ZnSe optics but they are small for KCI optics.

Comparative study on computed tomography and neurotological findings in spinocerebellar degeneration

The classification of SCD on the basis of the neurotological findings was with classification based on CT findings in 40 cass of SCD. The areas of pons, cerebellar hemisphere, vermis and posterior fossa on CT films were measured by craniometer, and were compared in order to estimate the degree of atrophy. From these assessments, patients were classified into 3 types as follows; (1) 14 cases of cerebellar type, (2) 9 cases of brain stem type and (3) 17 cases of combined type. The classification of SCD based on the neurotological findings including the findings of gaze test, positioning test, eye tracking test, OKN, and fixation suppression test of caloric nystagmus, was well correlated to the classification based on CT findings. From the results, neurotological examination was demonstrated to make a contribution to the estimation of lesions and types in SCD.

Apolipoprotein E phenotypes of normo- and hyperlipoproteinemia in Japanese

Apolipoprotein E phenotypes of normo- and hyperlipoproteinemia in Japanese were examined by the disc gel isoelectric focusing technique, which was modified according to the method of Kashyap et al. (1981). Apoprotein E isoproteins were clearly separated by this method. Six phenotypes (E2/2, E3/3, E4/4, E2/3, E2/4 and E3/4) were determined in 107 cases of normolipoproteinemia and 75 cases of hyperlipoproteinemia. In normolipoproteinemia, apoE phenotype frequencies were similar to those of the Japanese and Caucasian populations which were reported previously. In hyperlipoproteinemia, a higher frequency of phenotype E2/2 and a lower frequency of E3/3 were observed. The apo E phenotypes of type IIa and IIb were distributed similarly to that of normal subjects. In contrast, only 27.8% of type IV patients had E3/3 phenotype. Among type V patients 64.3% was homozygous or heterozygous for E-4, and only 14.3% was homozygous for E-3 (E3/3). The results suggest that the apolipoprotein E phenotypes are similarly distributed among different human races and the apolipoprotein E phenotypes could be one of the etiological factors associated with some types of hyperlipoproteinemia.

[An epizootic Staphylococcus infection in a nude mouse colony]

An epizootic of Staphylococcus infection causing abscesses was encountered in a small-scale breeding colony of nude mice of BALB/c background. The incidence of abscess was sporadic and mostly nude (nu/nu) mice aged over 3 months were affected. Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from the face, oral cavity, and feces of almost all nu/nu and heterozygous (nu/+) mice in the colony. After a prolonged time period, up to 10 to 14 months of age, almost all the S. aureus-carrying nu/nu mice produced abscesses and eventually died. Athymicity of the host seemed to be a prerequisite for the abscess formation since nu/+ mice were spared from the lesions. Also, transfer of immunocompetent spleen cells cured the abscesses of the affected nude mice.

Biological characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from nude mice

The characteristics of 50 strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from BALB/c nude mice (nu/nu, nu/+) with or without subcutaneous abscesses [13] were examined. All the 50 strains belonged to biotype B according to the classification by Hájek and Marsálek. All of them were phage typable, showing a single phage pattern of 52A/79/47/53/77/83A/85. The coagulase type was classified as VII. All of the 50 strains were highly sensitive to penicillin, methylphenylisoxazolyl penicillin, erythromycin, spiramycin, lincomycin, chloramphenicol, tetracycline, kanamycin, gentamicin and cephaloridine, but were resistant to sulfisoxazole. Two S. aureus strains isolated from the nostril and finger of one person working in the mouse colony were identified as the same biotype as the murine strains but different in phage type, coagulase type and drug resistance pattern.

Effect of low density lipoprotein on DNA synthesis of cultured human arterial smooth muscle cells

Increased concentration of plasma low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is one of the risk factors in atherosclerosis. We studied how DNA synthesis of human arterial smooth muscle cells (SMC) was influenced in the culture added with or without small dose (25 micrograms of protein/ml) of LDL. LDL were ultracentrifugally obtained from normal subjects and diabetics. DNA synthesis was investigated at 6-h intervals during 36 h in the culture with or without LDL using [methyl-3H]thymidine. We found that DNA synthesis reached a maximum value at 24 h after addition of LDL. On the other hand sequential changes were not detectable in the culture without LDL addition. This effect of diabetic LDL was significantly (P less than 0.001) greater than that of normal LDL. These results suggested that LDL induces synchronization of the cultured SMC to synthesize DNA and diabetic LDL may play an atherogenic role more strongly than normal LDL in the arterial wall even in the normal range of LDL concentration.