Direct modification of obsessive thinking with messages

We treated 2 patients with obsessive-compulsive disorders for years using messages, and their symptoms had improved. We provided the messages that utterly disproved the core reason of their fears, and suggested the patients to repeat, listen or read these messages whenever the obsessive thinking occurred. We supposed that the therapeutic intervention we proposed here have the following benefits: 1. This could dispel the patients' fears and correct the contents of obsessive thinking. 2. This could avoid involving others around and remove the disadvantages following the involvement. We discussed the mechanism of this intervention on the basis of the learning theory.

[Magnetic resonance imaging of subarachnoid hemorrhage due to ruptured intracranial aneurysm]

We report MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) findings of 31 cases with subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) due to ruptured intracranial aneurysm. Among these cases, 25 were studied within 72 hours after onset of SAH. A resistive type MRI scanner operating at a field of 0.2 Tesla was used in obtaining inversion recovery (IR) and saturation recovery (SR) images. IR 1500/43/400 (T1 weighted image, T1W), SR 1000/60 (SR image) and SR 2000/100 (T2 weighted image, T2W) were chosen for analysis. The SR image was usually adopted and coronal and/or sagittal images were added when there was enough time for examination. Slice thickness was 10 mm and slice interval was 15 mm. The scan was not necessarily aimed at the visualization of aneurysm itself. 1) In the acute phase of SAH, subarachnoid spaces near the ruptured aneurysm were appeared as isointensity areas on T1W and as high intensity areas on SR image. In the subacute phase, they were depicted as high intensity areas on both T1W and SR images, and as high intensity areas on T2W. 2) Intraventricular hemorrhage was visualized as a niveau-like high intensity area, especially, within the posterior horns on the SR images. 3) SR and T2W images were suitable for detection of aneurysm itself. In a resistive-type scanner, small aneurysms were not easily visualized due to the lack of high resolution. However, 29% of aneuysms, which were not giant, could be visualized on MRI. 4) Identification of intracerebral hemorrhage and cerebral ischemia from various causes was easy on both T1W and T2W images.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Intracranial metastasis of a spinal cord astrocytoma--case report

The authors report a case of cerebral metastasis from a spinal cord astrocytoma. The first metastatic tumor was controlled by radiation therapy. A second metastatic brain tumor was detected 2 years later, but attempts to control it through subtotal removal and chemotherapy failed. Metastasis from a spinal cord tumor to the brain is a rare event.

Neurovisceral sphingomyelinosis in a Siamese cat

This report presents the clinical, morphological and biochemical findings on an 11-month-old female Siamese cat with neurovisceral sphingomyelinosis. Gross pathological features and histochemical findings are compared with the human disease counterpart and the previously described animal models. Hepatomegaly was observed while splenomegaly was not. Although sphingomyelin in liver and spleen was biochemically elevated, histochemical results in this case were slightly different from those previously recorded in human and feline Niemann-Pick disease. These results suggest that this feline case might be a different type of animal Niemann-Pick disease to that reported previously.

Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in allogeneic bone marrow transplantation

A Phase II study of recombinant granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) in allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) was performed. The recovery of leukocytes and neutrophils was markedly accelerated in G-CSF-administered recipients. The days to WBC count greater than 1,000/microliters (11.5 +/- 1.9) and the days to neutrophil count greater than 500/microliters (11.5 +/- 1.4) were significantly shorter than those of the monocyte-CSF (M-CSF) and CSF(-) groups. In the G-CSF group the WBC count at nadir was higher than in other groups, and neutrophil recovery preceded monocyte recovery. After the discontinuation of G-CSF, the WBC count first decreased for a few days and then increased again slowly. The short duration of leukopenia brought about a reduction in the number of febrile (greater than 38 degrees C) days which, until day 30, were 1.8 +/- 1.9 in the G-CSF group, also significantly shorter than in others. Acute graft-versus-host disease (greater than grade II) appeared in two of eight patients from the G-CSF group, this incidence being comparable to those found in the other groups. A side effect of G-CSF-mild bone pain-was observed in one patient, but it was tolerable. Six of eight patients in the G-CSF group survived for between five and 13 months after BMT with a Karnofsky score greater than 90%. No relapses were observed in the six, including one patient with chronic myelogenous leukemia and two with acute non-lymphoblastic leukemia. To determine the final influence of G-CSF on myeloid leukemia, further long-term follow-up studies are needed. G-CSF was well tolerated and seemed promising against allogeneic BMT.

Clinical effects of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in leukemia patients: a phase I/II study

A phase I/II study of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) in 24 leukemia patients was conducted at our institute. Recombinant human G-CSF (50-200 micrograms/m2/day) was administered i.v. In seven allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT) recipients, treatment with rhG-CSF was started 5 days after BMT. Neutrophils began to increase within 3 days after the start of rhG-CSF administration in five of seven patients. The mean duration necessary for recovery of neutrophils to greater than 500/microliters was 11.3 days after BMT with rhG-CSF; 26.8 days is the figure for recovery without rhG-CSF from Japanese historical data. In seven out of eight patients who received rhG-CSF administration after the first remission-induction chemotherapy, the neutrophil counts increased from less than 300/microliters to greater than 4000/microliters within 10 days. Blasts did not increase in all patients including four acute nonlymphocytic leukemia (ANLL) patients. Severe infections such as septicemia and pneumonia, which were unable to be controlled by antibiotics only, were successfully treated with rhG-CSF and antibiotics. rhG-CSF either stimulated or inhibited myeloid leukemic cells in some refractory cases. Mild bone pain occurred in one patient while receiving rhG-CSF i.v. rhG-CSF seems to have the ability to shorten the period of neutropenia, prevent infections after allogeneic BMT and remission-induction chemotherapy for acute leukemia, and support therapy for infections.

Detection of antibodies against Akabane virus in bovine sera by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

An enzyme-linked immunonosorbent assay was established for detection of antibodies to Akabane virus in bovine sera. The assay was shown to be a useful serological tool for studies on Akabane virus infection.

[Specific cardiomyopathy caused by high dose cyclophosphamide immediately after bone marrow transplantation]

An 11-year-old girl with CML in chronic phase was treated with allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). She had had no episode of heart disease, and her chest roentgenogram and electrocardiogram were within normal ranges. She had no anthracycline, but 120 mg/kg (2.01 g/m2/d x 2 days) of cyclophosphamide (CY) for conditioning of BMT. She suffered from an acute heart failure on 14 days after BMT and died 2 days later. Autopsy revealed "specific heart muscular disease" with apparent degeneration and necrosis of heart muscle cells. More than 30 fatal cases of CY cardiotoxicity after BMT have been reported, and most patients developed acute heart failure within 10 days after CY dosing. Goldberg et al. reviewed 14 cases of CY cardiotoxicity, and considered more than 1.55 g/m2/day to be the critical doses for the onset of fatal cardiomyopathy. This case was considered to be first case in Japan. CY cardiomyopathy is an early fatal complication of BMT when CY used for conditioning. The dosing schedule may be considered.

Chromosomal assignment of human VIP/PHM-27 gene to 6q26----q27 region by spot blot hybridization and in situ hybridization

We determined the chromosomal location of the human VIP/PHM-27 gene in two different ways. First, we performed chromosome sorting with a cell sorter. Sufficient numbers of chromosomes for sorting were obtained by cultivating peripheral blood lymphocytes with interleukin-2. Spot blot hybridization of a molecularly cloned fragment of the gene to the sorted chromosomes revealed that this gene is located on chromosome 6. To define the location more precisely, in situ hybridization of the same fragment to the metaphase spreads was then performed, and human VIP/PHM-27 gene was assigned to a region near the terminus of the long arm of chromosome 6 (q26----q27).

Complete nucleotide sequence of human vasoactive intestinal peptide/PHM-27 gene and its inducible promoter

We have previously shown that the VIP precursor contains a novel PHI-27-like peptide, PHM-27, and that the synthesis of the prepro-VIP/PHM-27 mRNA is induced with cAMP and TPA in human neuroblastoma cells. In this study, we have determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the human VIP/PHM-27 gene. The gene spans 8,837 bp and consists of seven exons and six introns. Exon I of 165 bp consists of the 5' untranslated region of the gene, exon II of 117 bp encodes the signal peptide of prepro-VIP/PHM-27, exon III of 123 bp encodes the amino-terminal region, exon IV of 105 bp encodes PHM-27, exon V of 132 bp encodes VIP, exon VI of 89 bp contains the termination codon of the prepro-VIP/PHM-27 mRNA, and exon VII of 724 bp consists of the 3' untranslated region of the gene. VIP and its structurally related peptide, PHM-27, were encoded in different exons V and IV, and the sequences around the splice junctions between these exons and their adjacent introns were highly conserved, suggesting that the VIP-encoding and PHM-27-encoding exons have been duplicated from an ancestral exon over a broad area containing its adjacent introns. We also determined the 1,929-bp sequence of the 5' flanking region of the human VIP/PHM-27 gene and found that four TATA-box sequences were present at 28 bp, 145 bp, 772 bp, and 900 bp upstream of the cap site. Primer extension, exon mapping, and mung bean nuclease mapping analyses revealed that only the TATA-box sequence 28 bp upstream of the cap site was the promoter that is inducible by cAMP and TPA in the human neuroblastoma cells. An 18-bp sequence 52 bp upstream from the TATA-box sequence was suggested to be a cAMP/phorbol esters-responsive element of the human VIP/PHM-27 gene.

Protective effect of taurine on the irregular beating pattern of cultured myocardial cells induced by high and low extracellular calcium ion

Abnormal beating patterns were induced in spontaneously contracting cultured embryonic mouse myocardial cells either by elevating or by lowering extracellular calcium. At low calcium (0.4 mM), the number of beating cells and beating rate decreased while the number of arrhythmic cells increased. By contrast, at high calcium (20 mM), the number of beating cells decreased while beating rate and the number of arrhythmic cells increased. Addition of taurine (20 mM) to the medium attenuated the response to varying calcium; the taurine effect appeared to be specific since neither taurine analog tested (beta-alanine nor glycine) provided much protection against these abnormalities. The protective effect of taurine also appeared to differ from that of verapamil, which was effective only in decreasing beating rate in the high calcium condition. Uptake of 14C-taurine by the cells was higher at both low and high extracellular calcium when compared to the normal calcium (2 mM) concentration. The results raise the possibility that the protective effect of taurine on beating abnormalities caused by low or high calcium is related to taurine uptake.

Detection of antibodies against porcine parvovirus in swine sera by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed for detection of antibody against porcine parvovirus in swine sera. The antigen used for the assay was partially-purified virus treated with fluorocarbon and shown to contain 7 proteins by sodium dodecylsulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Of these proteins 83-, 64- and 60-K proteins reacted in Western immunoblotting with swine serum after infection with porcine parvovirus. Antibody responses were demonstrated by ELISA in pigs subcutaneously-infected with porcine parvovirus as by hemagglutination-inhibition (HI) test and Western immunoblotting reaction with the 83-, 64- and 60-K viral proteins. The results of ELISA on random swine-serum samples were well-correlated with those of the HI test. These findings indicate the usefulness of the ELISA as a serological tool for porcine parvovirus infection.

[Repeated transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary adenomas]

It is well known that the risks in patients subjected to repeated transsphenoidal surgery are higher than in patients without prior therapy. The authors report their experience of repeated transsphenoidal surgery in 18 pituitary adenoma cases, 7 as the second step of two staged operation, 7 for recurrent adenomas and 4 for the postoperative CSF rhinorrhea. Technical points in re-opening and closure of the transsphenoidal route are presented. A huge adenoma with suprasellar extension may be successfully removed by two staged operation. Some adenomas become less hemorrhagic at the second operation. Recurrent adenomas are also safely operated when the goal of the surgery is limited to the decompression of the optic nerve with sparing the pituitary function. CSF rhinorrhea is easily controlled by packing the sella turcica and the sphenoid sinus with one piece of fat for each compartment.

Image restoration in singular vector space by the method of convex projections

In singular vector space produced by singular value decomposition, the effect of noise on the expansion coefficients of an object is clear. A new image restoration method estimates the expansion coefficients corrupted by noise from the expansion coefficients corresponding to large singular values by incorporating a priori information about the noise and the object. This information can be described as closed convex sets. Iterative projections onto the convex sets are performed to obtain a restored image. The effectiveness of the method in singular vector space is made clear through computer simulations for 2-D bandlimited degraded images.

Chilaiditi's syndrome in schizophrenic patients

The condition that a part of the digestive tract interposes between the liver and diaphragm has been called Chilaiditi's syndrome. Although it has been reported that this condition had a higher rate of incidence in patients of mental hospitals than in other individuals, there are hardly any enlightening papers of this condition in the domain of psychiatry. Three schizophrenic patients who had this condition are described in this paper. Many factors such as meteorism, the medication of antipsychotic drugs and negative symptoms of schizophrenic patients are considered as risk factors that bring about this condition in them. Psychiatrists should pay more attention to this condition in the chest roentgenograms of patients because this state can possibly develop into more serious conditions such as ileus.

An immunohistochemical study of intracranial germ cell tumours

Histologically verified intracranial tumours, mainly germ cell tumours of the pineal and suprasellar regions, were studied immunohistochemically using anti-serum of alpha fetoprotein (AFP), human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), human placental lactogen (HPL), pregnancy specific beta-1 glycoprotein (SP-1), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), S-100 and neuron specific enolase (NSE). In germinomas, HCG positive cells were occasionally demonstrated in cells presenting as syncytiotrophoblastic giant cells (STGC), and GFAP and S-100 positive cells were found in the surrounding gliotic lesions. Teratomas were positive for CEA in their epithelial components. Endodermal sinus tumours were positive for AFP, choriocarcinomas for HCG and SP-1, and embryonal carcinomas for AFP, HCG and SP-1. HCG and SP-1 positive cells were demonstrated in STGC. As for the relationship between serum AFP level and tissue localization, many cases presenting a serum AFP level exceeding 220 ng/ml were positive for AFP in tumour tissue.

Characterization of Newcastle disease viruses isolated from field cases in Japan

Seven Newcastle disease viruses isolated in Japan from 1930 to 1984 were cloned on chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEFs) and characterized biologically. All seven produced two or more types of plaques on CEFs. The plaques were classified into four types. Plaque cloning was carried out five times, and 22 cloned viruses were established. The biological characters of the cloned viruses suggested that the strains contain different clones and that their clones are different even among close cases, such as G strain and H strain.

Formaldehyde dismutase, a novel NAD-binding oxidoreductase from Pseudomonas putida F61

A novel enzyme, formaldehyde dismutase, was purified and crystallized from the cell extract of an isolated bacterium, Pseudomonas putida F61. The enzyme catalyzes the dismutation of aldehydes and alcohol:aldehyde oxidoreduction in the absence of an exogenous electron acceptor. The enzyme is composed of four identical subunits with a Mr of 44 000. Each subunit contains 1 mol NAD(H) and 2 mol zinc/mol. The ratio of NAD+ and NADH in a crystalline preparation of the enzyme was about 7:3. The enzyme-bound coenzyme was completely reduced and oxidized on the addition of a large amount of an alcohol and an aldehyde respectively. Both the oxidized and reduced enzymes catalyzed the dismutation reaction to the same extent. Steady-state kinetics of the enzyme were investigated using an oxidoreduction reaction between an alcohol and p-nitroso-N, N-dimethylaniline. The enzyme obeys a ping-pong mechanism and is competitively inhibited by an alcoholic substrate analogue, pyrazole, but not coenzyme analogues, such as AMP, N-methylnicotinamide. These results indicate that NAD(H) binds firmly (but not covalently) at each active site. The enzyme-bound NAD(H) was reduced and oxidized only by the added second substrates, alcohol and aldehyde respectively, and not by exogenous electron acceptors [including NAD(H)].

[CT findings of growth hormone secreting pituitary adenomas]

The value of high-resolution computed tomography (CT) in the diagnosis of pituitary adenoma has recently been stressed, especially of the coronal view with contrast enhancement. Analysis of the CT scans of 33 growth hormone (GH) secreting pituitary adenomas was done (11 cases of microadenomas, 7 cases of intrasellar adenomas and 15 cases of macroadenomas with suprasellar extension). In macroadenomas, the density was high in five cases, high with isodense portion in two cases, mixed in four cases, isodense in three cases, and isodense and low dense in one case. Six adenomas showed homogeneous density and nine were heterogeneous. After contrast enhancement, two cases showed marked enhancement, ten cases mild and three cases ring enhancement. Margin of adenoma was smooth in nine cases and irregular in six. Among seven cases of intrasellar adenoma one accompanied primary empty sella. In microadenomas ten of eleven cases had hypodense mass inside the normally enhanced pituitary gland. The margin was ill-defined in seven cases and well-defined in three. Eight cases had pituitary height 7 mm or more. Upper surface of the pituitary gland was convex upward in five cases, flat in four and concave in two. Deviation of pituitary stalk was found in seven cases. Bony changes of sellar floor were recognized in three cases. There was a tendency that serum GH level increased with the increment of the size of adenoma. Serum GH levels in adenomas with ring enhancement were lower than those in the homogeneously enhanced adenomas of similar size. One case with marked enhancement showed the highest GH level among all adenomas of the presented series.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Long-term follow-up of large or invasive pituitary adenomas

A long-term follow-up study of pituitary adenomas showed that 60 out of 83 patients with mild or moderate suprasellar extension, but only three out of 19 patients with huge or invasive adenomas, were alive at a mean post-operative period of 12.8 and 12 years, respectively. Cerebral ischemic attacks and complications of radiotherapy affected their fate and quality of survival. Patients in the post-computed tomography scan era had a good prognosis, and this may be due partly to the brevity of the postoperative period.

Transsphenoidal extracapsular approach to pituitary tumors

Two years' experience with an extracapsular transsphenoidal approach to pituitary adenomas is presented. Some pituitary tumors contain an inordinate amount of connective tissue that often makes transsphenoidal resection difficult. By opening the tumor capsule and adjacent arachnoid membrane, such tumors with suprasellar extension can be safely removed. In some cases of functioning adenoma, resection of the diaphragma sellae and adjacent arachnoid membrane results in hormonal control. Among 62 cases of transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary adenomas, eight cases required this procedure. The surgical procedure is described and the cases are summarized. The indication and limitations of this procedure are discussed.

[Clinical analysis of large and/or invasive pituitary adenomas]

To establish a more reasonable therapeutic guide line for large and/or invasive pituitary adenomas, 257 cases of pituitary adenoma were analyzed. Among 83 cases with slight or moderate suprasellar extension (Wilson's Grade II-A & B) in the pre-CT era, 57 patients were alive at the time of follow-up (mean follow-up period: 12.7 years). Death of unspecified causes other than cancer, myocardial infarction, etc. were reported in nine patients. Among 60 cases of Grade II-A & B in the post-CT era, 59 patients were alive (mean follow-up: 3.4 years). Comparing these groups, cases with huge suprasellar extension (Grade C) had much worse prognosis. Only two patients were alive among 14 cases of Group C in the pre-CT era. Seven cases of death with unspecified causes were reported. In the 13 cases of Group C in the post-CT era, 12 patients were alive but at least four of them were severely handicapped. In 10 cases with sphenoid invasion (Grade IV) in the pre-CT era, only two were alive. In the group of Grade IV in the post-CT era, one patient died and three patients were operated repeatedly. Severe complications of irradiation therapy occurred in seven patients (mean interval: 6.6 years) among 120 cases of irradiated pituitary adenomas in every category. Among six cases with histological malignancy, three were operated repeatedly; among the latter group, two patients died and the third showed intracranial metastases. The present data indicate that large and/or invasive pituitary adenomas have a pessimistic prognosis, although adenomas with mild or moderate simple suprasellar extension have fairly good prognosis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Synergistic stimulation of VIP/PHM-27 gene expression by cyclic AMP and phorbol esters in human neuroblastoma cells

The effects of dibutyryl cAMP (Bt2cAMP) and phorbol esters such as 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and phorbol-12,13-didecanoate (PDD) on VIP/PHM-27 gene expression in human neuroblastoma cells in culture were investigated. Bt2cAMP and phorbol esters increased the VIP/PHM-27 mRNA level by about 9- and 4-fold, respectively. In the presence of both Bt2cAMP and phorbol esters, the VIP/PHM-27 mRNA level increased by about 36-fold. The intracellular cAMP level was essentially unaffected by phorbol esters. The VIP/PHM-27 gene dosage was unchanged by Bt2cAMP and phorbol esters. The results suggest that cAMP and phorbol esters synergistically induce the VIP/PHM-27 gene expression through independent pathways.

[Estrogen-induced pituitary tumors--in relation to the changes in the pituitary gland after estrogen withdrawal]

Pituitary tumors were induced in female rats of Wistar strain by administration of estradiol valerate (E2) and the effect of estrogen withdrawal on E2-induced tumors were studied to elucidate the nature of the induced tumors. Ten mg of E2 was administered to 100 rats intraperitoneally once every 2 weeks, totally four times. Experimental animals were sacrificed at 1 week before, 2, 6, 10, and 14 weeks after stopping injection of E2. The incidence of pituitary tumor and hyperplasia (Table 1). Pituitary glands in each animals were examined and were classified into three groups, namely pituitary tumor, hyperplasia, and normal gland according to histological findings. The incidence of pituitary tumors was highest in rats sacrificed 6 weeks after E2 withdrawal. Pituitary tumors became less frequent and hyperplasias and normal glands became more frequent in rats sacrificed thereafter. Pituitary weight (Table 2, Fig. 1) Irrespective of timing of sacrifice, the weight of pituitary gland (mean +/- SE) was 134 +/- 70 mg in the group which were judged as having a pituitary tumor, 38 +/- 17 mg in the hyperplasia group, and 17 +/- 5 mg in the normal group, respectively. Pituitary weight of control rats were 12 +/- 3 mg. The tumor group had a significantly heavier pituitary weight than hyperplasia and normal groups (p less than 0.01). In each group, there was no significant difference of pituitary weights between animals sacrificed at different intervals after E2 withdrawal.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Histologic changes in rat brain tissue caused by neodymium-yttrium aluminum garnet laser irradiation. II. Cerebellum

Histologic changes after neodymium-yttrium aluminum garnet laser irradiation were evaluated in the rat cerebellum. Irradiation of 60 W (corresponds to 45.2 W/mm2) to the posterior fossa was dangerous even in adult rats, although this value was safe for the rat cerebral hemisphere as previously reported. The histologic changes caused by neodymium-yttrium aluminum garnet laser irradiation were similar to those caused by thermal energies. To the adult rat cerebellum, 45 W (35.2 W/mm2) can safely be applied. For the further use of the neodymium-yttrium aluminum garnet laser in neurosurgery, our findings should be taken into consideration.

Image restoration by iterative estimation of the expansion coefficients of an object in singular vector space

The singular-value-decomposition (SVD) method has been utilized in an algebraic image-reconstruction problem. The effect of noise on a reconstructed image can be understood from the expansion coefficients of an object in singular vector space calculated by the SVD algorithm. We propose a method in which the coefficients corresponding to small singular values are estimated by using a priori information about the object. Results of computer simulations for iterative restoration of an image subjected to low-pass frequency filtering show the utility of the method.

Astroblastoma of pure type

A rare case of astroblastoma of the pure type occurring in the left occipital lobe of a 54-year-old female is reported. The predominant histologic feature was that of perivascular pseudorosettes. The tumor tissues were not stained by the Mallory's phosphotungstic acid-hematoxylin, but the perikarya of some tumor cells were positively stained for the glial fibrillary acidic protein.

High-performance liquid chromatography of coenzyme Q-related compounds and its application to biological materials

A convenient and precise method for the separation and determination of coenzyme Q (CoQ)-related compounds (CoQ homologues, plastoquinone-9, ubichromenol-9, etc.) was developed using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). All compounds tested were separated using a reverse-phase column with a suitable mobile phase and detected at a wavelength of 275 nm. CoQ extracts in plasma and erythrocytes were purified by thin-layer chromatography prior to HPLC analysis, but such purification was not necessary when determining CoQ in urine and tissues. Hydroquinone forms of CoQ existing in animal tissues were oxidized to the corresponding quinone forms with potassium hexacyanoferrate(III). This HPLC method was applied satisfactorily to the determination of the contents of CoQ homologues in human and animal samples. CoQ10 was the only homologue detected in human samples, and CoQ8, CoQ9 and CoQ10 were native homologues of CoQ in rat tissues. Ubichromenol-9 and plastoquinone-9 were not detected in these samples.

[Treatment of primary empty sella with intractable headache via the transsphenoidal approach]

Two cases of primary empty sella with intractable headache were treated via the transsphenoidal approach. One patient was a fifty-three-year-old female with right upper nasal quadrantanopsia and intractable retrobulbar pain and the other was fourty-six-year-old female with continuous retrobulbar pain with a history of transient right temporal hemianopsia. Both cases were diagnosed by metrizamide CT cisternography. They had normal endocrinological functions. They did not respond to drug therapy and were treated surgically. In each case, the dura mater of the floor of the sella was elevated with lyophilized human dura mater and bone fragments obtained during the procedure. In the former case, significant improvement of visual field defect was not obtained but the retrobulbar pain disappeared completely after the operation. In the latter case which had intractable headache for six months, the symptom disappeared just after the operation. Until now, retroorbital pain has not recurred in both cases for several months. Primary empty sella has been considered to be a benign condition except in some cases with CSF rhinorrhea or with visual disturbance. Headache which is often accompanied to primary empty sella has rarely been treated surgically because it is difficult to know whether the headache is related to the empty sella or not. Another reason may be that there is few available data concerning to the efficacy of surgical treatment. Headache caused by stretching of the dura of the floor of the sella is usually frontal or retrobulbar, continuous, profound and intractable.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Histologic study of normal rat brain tissue after neodymium-yttrium aluminum garnet laser irradiation. I. Cerebral hemisphere

We report a histologic study of normal rat brain tissue after neodymium-yttrium aluminum garnet laser irradiation. Morphological changes occurred at a maximum depth of 5 mm after 60-W, 1-second exposure, at a 2-mm distance between the optical fiber tip and the brain surface. Polymorphonuclear leukocyte infiltration into the irradiated area was observed 48 hours after irradiation. After 72 hours, macrophages and fibroblasts appeared; their number increased thereafter. At 1 month, tissue defects attributable to neodymium-yttrium aluminum garnet laser irradiation were small. Gliotic changes were rarely seen. We conclude that 60-W irradiation is harmful to young rats but not to adult rats.

Therapeutic effect of taurine in congestive heart failure: a double-blind crossover trial

In a double-blind, randomized, crossover, placebo-controlled study, we investigated the effects of adding taurine to the conventional treatment in 14 patients with congestive heart failure for a 4-week period. Compared with placebo, taurine significantly improved the New York Heart Association functional class (p less than 0.02), pulmonary crackles (p less than 0.02), and chest film abnormalities (p less than 0.01). A benefit of taurine over placebo was demonstrated when an overall treatment response for each patient was evaluated on the basis of clinical examination (p less than 0.05). No patient worsened during taurine administration, but four patients did during placebo. Pre-ejection period (corrected for heart rate) decreased from 148 +/- 14 ms before taurine treatment to 137 +/- 12 ms after taurine (p less than 0.001), and the quotient pre-ejection period/left ventricular ejection time decreased from 47 +/- 9 to 42 +/- 8% (p less than 0.001). Side effects did not occur in the patients during taurine. The results indicate that addition of taurine to conventional therapy is safe and effective for the treatment of patients with congestive heart failure.

Induction of rat pancreatic B-cell tumors by the combined administration of streptozotocin or alloxan and poly(adenosine diphosphate ribose) synthetase inhibitors

Streptozotocin and alloxan were administered to Wistar rats in combination with poly(adenosine diphosphate ribose) synthetase inhibitors. Ten to 16 months after the injection of streptozotocin (50 mg/kg body weight i.v.) and 3-aminobenzamide (345 mg/kg i.v.), streptozotocin (50 mg/kg) and nicotinamide (350 mg/kg i.p.), streptozotocin (50 mg/kg) and picolinamide (250 mg/kg i.p.), alloxan (40 mg/kg i.v.) and nicotinamide (350 mg/kg), alloxan (40 mg/kg) and 3-aminobenzamide (345 mg/kg), and alloxan (40 mg/kg) and picolinamide (250 mg/kg), pancreatic islet cell tumors developed in 100, 98, 60, 26, 22, and 20% of surviving rats, respectively. However, after the single injection of streptozotocin and alloxan, islet cell tumors developed in 42 and 11% of surviving rats, respectively. The tumors were rich in B-granules on electron micrographs and contained as large amounts of proinsulin messenger RNA as normal pancreatic islets. The results indicate that poly(adenosine diphosphate ribose) synthetase inhibitors enhance the tumorigenic effect of streptozotocin and alloxan on islet B-cells.

Acromegaly with multiple secreting pituitary adenomas

A case of acromegaly with two separate growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenomas is presented. The multiplicity was suspected on computerized tomographic scan and confirmed at transsphenoidal surgery. Possible occurrence of multiple adenomas is discussed.

Extent of thermal penetration of Nd-YAG laser--histological considerations

The extent of thermal penetration of Nd-YAG laser was studied histologically. The material was obtained from seven cases of various types of intracranial and extracranial tumours and normal temporal muscle obtained at operation. After irradiation of the tumour surface with the laser, the tumours were removed and depth and width of pathological changes caused by heat were studied. Histologically, materials consisted of a vaporized surface, carbonized, vesicular, necrotic, oedematous layer and surrounding intact brain tumour tissue. There was a direct relationship between the thermal effect and the irradiated thermal energy (watt x exposure time x pulse number). The results showed that the thermal effect was limited to a depth of 6 to 10 mm from the irradiated surface when irradiated 4 times at the power of 90 watts for 2 seconds.

Nd-YAG laser as a surgical tool

As neurological operation has necessitated effective haemostatic devices, CO2 and Nd-YAG lasers have been introduced in this field. The CO2 laser was first studied and used in neurological surgery and many problems, such as safety, mobility, and others, were overcome by pioneers. The Nd-YAG laser has been developed mainly for endoscopic surgery. However, we noticed its strong haemostatic effect, used it in neurosurgery and found it to be quite effective in removing tumours. The following properties of the Nd-YAG laser are especially fitted for neurosurgical surgery: the laser beam is conducted through a light, thin and flexible quartz fibre; penetration of the laser beam into tissues is controlled by the output wattage, and the grade of coagulation is controlled by duration of irradiation time and by the output wattage.