CD34 expression by murine hematopoietic stem cells. Developmental changes and kinetic alterations

For more than a decade it was believed that hematopoietic stem cells express CD34. However, this dogma was recently challenged by the observation that stem cells of normal adult mice are CD34-. In order to clarify the controversy, we carried out systematic examination of stem cells by using C57BL/6 mice that are congenic for Ly-5. As reported previously, stem cells in the normal adult mice were CD34-. However, stem cells stimulated in vivo by 5-fluorouracil injection or in vitro by a combination of interleukin-11 and steel factor were CD34+. The activated CD34+ stem cells reverted to CD34- when the recipients' marrow achieved steady state. The majority of G-CSF-mobilized stem cells also were CD34+ and reverted to CD34- under steady-state conditions. Most recently, we examined the developmental changes of stem cell CD34 expression. In order to gain information on the total population of stem cells we prepared CD34+ and CD34- populations of mononuclear cells without prior enrichment and studied their engrafting potentials. All stem cells from perinatal to 5-week-old mice were CD34+. In 7-week-old mice CD34- stem cells began to emerge, and the majority of the stem cells were CD34- in the 10- and 20-week-old mice. An estimated 20% of the adult stem cells expressed CD34. These observations provide insight into the current controversy regarding CD34 expression by adult hematopoietic stem cells.

Reciprocal expression of CD38 and CD34 by adult murine hematopoietic stem cells

The effects of activation of adult murine stem cells on their expression of CD38 were studied using a murine transplantation model. First, the published finding that the majority of long-term engrafting cells from normal adult steady-state marrow are CD38(+) was confirmed. Next, it was determined that the majority of stem cells activated in vivo by injection of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) or mobilized by granulocyte colony-stimulating factor are CD38(-). Stem cells that were activated in culture with interleukin-11 and steel factor were also CD38(-). Previous studies have shown that expression of CD34 by adult stem cells is also modulated by in vivo or in vitro activation. To determine whether there is reciprocal expression of CD38 and CD34, 4 populations of post-5-FU marrow cells were analyzed. The majority of the stem cells were in the CD38(-)CD34(+) fraction. However, secondary transplantation experiments indicated that when the bone marrow reaches steady state, the majority of the stem cells become CD38(+)CD34(-). In addition, the minority populations of CD34(+) stem cells that occur in steady-state bone marrow are CD38(-). This reversible and reciprocal expression of CD38 and CD34 by murine stem cells may have implications for the phenotypes of human stem cells.

The laminar structure of the common opossum masseter (Didelphis marsupialis)

Using three heads of the common opossum (Didelphis marsupialis), which may be considered to have a primitive mammalian form and therefore be appropriate for this study, the laminar structure of the masseter was investigated. We also attempted a comparative anatomical study of the relationships of food habits to the laminar structures of the masseter, zygomatic arch and mandibular ramus. In the common opossum masseter, a total of six layers, the primary and secondary sublayers of the superficial layer, the intermediate layer, and the primary, secondary and third sublayers of the deep layer as a proper masseter, were observed. These layers showed a typical reverse laminar structure, with the layers of tendons and muscles alternating. The maxillomandibularis and zygomaticomandibularis muscles were observed in one layer each, as an improper masseter. The laminar structure of the common opossum masseter was shown to be more similar to that of carnivorous placental animals than that of the herbivorous red kangaroo, a similar marsupial. In regard to the number of layers in the laminar structure of the masseter, the results of both this study and those of our predecessors' showed that differences in food habits affect the deep layer in the proper masseter of marsupials and placental mammals, and that of the maxillomandibularis muscle of placental mammals in the improper masseter.

[Testicular pure teratoma: a case report]

A 46-year-old man visited our hospital, complaining of fever and painful swelling of the right scrotum contents. The symptoms and signs suggested epididymitis, but testicular tumor could not be excluded. Therefore, high inguinal orchiectomy was performed. Macroscopic findings were compatible with the testicular teratoma, containing hair, and epididymitis. Histological findings revealed that the tumor was composed of mature epidermis with skin appendages, cartilage, hair, bone and adipose tissue, and that many leucocytes infiltrated in the epididymis, resulting in the diagnosis of pure mature teratoma with epididymitis. For 6 months after the operation, no evidence of recurrence has been observed. Despite its histologically benign appearance, primary pure teratoma of the testis has a metastatic and recurrent potential. Therefore, primary pure teratoma should be man aged in the same way as other nonseminomatous germ cell tumors.

Pathologic significance of Staphylococcus saprophyticus in complicated urinary tract infections

OBJECTIVES

To determine the pathologic significance of Staphylococcus saprophyticus in complicated urinary tract infections.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective analysis of specimens demonstrating this organism based on a survey of 9980 urine specimens cultured in our clinic during an 11-year period. Forty-two specimens from 34 patients were positive for S. saprophyticus.

RESULTS

S. saprophyticus was isolated in 13 women without underlying urologic disease, and their symptoms were compatible with acute cystitis or acute pyelonephritis. S. saprophyticus was isolated from 7 men and 14 women with underlying urologic disease. In most of these 21 patients, S. saprophyticus was thought not to be a true uropathogen but rather a colonizer, because the isolated organism was usually low in numbers and found with a low degree of pyuria, and the hosts were usually asymptomatic. However, 2 patients demonstrating S. saprophyticus colonization developed sepsis after urologic surgery.

CONCLUSIONS

Although this organism is pathogenic in certain circumstances, suggesting the necessity of preoperative antimicrobial elimination, it is usually a colonizer in complicated urinary tract infections.

Homing-associated cell adhesion molecule (H-CAM/CD44) on human CD34+ hematopoietic progenitor cells

Human CD34+ hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs) express CD44 and can directly adhere to hyaluronate (HA) via CD44. Furthermore, CD44 may also be involved in the regulation of CD34+ HPC proliferation and development. The expression of CD44 molecules on CD34+ hematopoietic progenitor cells is significantly lower on bone marrow (BM) CD34+ cells compared with circulating CD34+ cells in cord blood and peripheral blood. Myeloid and erythroid progenitor cells are found predominantly in CD34+ CD44+ cell fractions. More interestingly, CD34+ CD44- cells expressing B-lymphocyte-associated CD10 and CD19 would represent unique B-lymphocyte committed precursors in the BM, which might undergo apoptotic cell death in the early steps of B-cell differentiation.

Increased activity and intranuclear expression of phospholipase D2 in human renal cancer

We examined the PLD activities of human renal cancers and found that the PLD2 activity was greatly elevated in almost all cases examined as compared with the adjacent normal region. Western blot analysis showed the increased levels of PLD2 protein, but the PLD1 was not discernible. The oleate-dependent PU) activity was very low but appeared to increase in most cases. Interestingly, the immunohistochemical observations indicated the high expression of PLD2 in the nuclei of clear carcinoma cells. This is the first demonstration which suggests the possible involvement of PLD2 in tumorigenesis of renal cancer.

Effects of pH and light on the storage stability of the purple pigment, hordeumin, from uncooked barley bran fermented broth

The pigment retention rate of hordeumin was higher than that of two standard anthocyanidins, cyanidin and delphinidin, when hordeumin and anthocyanidins were dissolved in Walpole buffer (pH 1.0) and stored. Moreover, when pigment solutions were stored at 15 degrees C under light irradiation, the pigment retention rate of the hordeumin solution became higher than those of standard anthocyanidins (2 to 10 times) as the storage period increased. Comparing various pH buffers (MacIlvaine buffer, pH 2.2 to 7.0), the pigment retention rate of hordeumin at pH 5.0 was highest. Furthermore, the half-life of hordeumin at pH 5.0 was increased from 9 days to 17.5 days when nitrogen gas was bubbled into the hordeumin solution. We considered that the storage stability of hordeumin is higher than standard anthocyanidins because hordeumin is a complex with anthocyanin, tannin, and protein.

In vitro selection of fluoroquinolone-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae harboring alterations in DNA gyrase and topoisomerase IV

PURPOSE

We attempted to select increasingly fluoroquinolone-resistant strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in vitro and to assess whether selected mutants harbored alterations in the GyrA subunit of DNA gyrase and the ParC subunit of DNA topoisomerase IV, which were analogous to those in fluoroquinolone-resistant clinical isolates.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A fluoroquinolone-susceptible strain was exposed to norfloxacin in vitro. Selected mutants were sequentially exposed to norfloxacin, and this procedure was repeated. For 11 mutants, minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of antimicrobial agents were determined, and mutations in the region corresponding to the quinolone resistance-determining region (QRDR) of the Escherichia coli gyrA gene and the analogous region of the parC gene were analyzed.

RESULTS

Mutants obtained in one step exhibited significantly increased MICs of norfloxacin, ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin and had a single amino acid change in GyrA. Two-step mutants exhibited significantly higher norfloxacin MICs. Three of four two-step selected strains had single amino acid changes in both GyrA and ParC. Three-step mutants exhibited further increases in fluoroquinolone MICs and were assigned to the ciprofloxacin-resistant category. Two had a double amino acid change in GyrA, and one had a double GyrA change and a single amino acid change in ParC.

CONCLUSION

We selected fluoroquinolone-resistant strains that carried GyrA and ParC alterations analogous to those in clinical isolates. The serial accumulation of changes in the QRDR of GyrA and the analogous region of ParC was associated with a stepwise increase in fluoroquinolone resistance, although the development of additional alterations in other regions of GyrA and ParC or other mechanisms of fluoroquinolone resistance also might contribute to the enhancement in fluoroquinolone resistance. The clinical emergence of fluoroquinolone-resistant strains may be due to in-vivo stepwise selection of strains with genetic alterations in GyrA and ParC, as observed here in the in-vitro selection of fluoroquinolone-resistant mutants.

Identification of the origin of a vesical mass occurring after cadaveric renal transplantation using short tandem repeat markers

We report a case of polypoid cystitis in a 54-year-old female occurring 4 years after cadaveric kidney transplantation. Endoscopic exploration revealed a polypoid tumor near the stoma opened for the transplanted ureter. The diagnosis of polypoid cystitis was confirmed histopathologically. Genotyping of cells from the tumor with polymorphic short tandem repeat (STR) and amelogenin loci revealed that the tumor contained alleles from both the donor and recipient. Molecular genetic analysis provided strong evidence that the tumor cells arose from the donor tissue.

Radical scavenging activity of a purple pigment, hordeumin, from uncooked barley bran-fermented broth

A novel purple pigment called hordeumin, a type of anthocyanin-tannin pigment, was produced from barley bran-fermented broth. The radical scavenging activity of hordeumin was analyzed by using an electron-spin resonance (ESR) spectrometer. The hordeumin scavenged superoxide radical in a concentration-dependent manner. Superoxide dismutase-like activity values were 118 and 195 units/mg for crude and partially purified hordeumin, respectively. The two types of hordeumins also scavenged the DPPH radical. Furthermore, barley bran-fermented filtrate before pigment formation and extract of barley bran also scavenged the DPPH radical. However, the DPPH radical scavenging activity of a filtrate, fermented over a long period, was stronger than that fermented over a short period. Thus, it was considered that radical scavenging activity of hordeumin resulted from barley bran polyphenol such as proanthocyanidins.

[Small cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder: a case report]

We report a case of small cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder. The patient was a 58-year-old man complaining of gross hematuria. Clinical examination revealed a non-papillary, broad-based tumor on the right bladder wall with a clinical stage of T3a, N0, M0. Neoadjuvant intraarterial infusion chemotherapy with methotrexate, adriamycin and cisplatin was performed, but it was ineffective. Three weeks later we performed a radical cystectomy. The operative specimen of the tumor revealed small cell carcinoma. It was staged pT3aN0M0R0L2V1. Postoperatively, 1 course of adjuvant chemotherapy using cisplatin and etoposide was performed. The patient is alive without any evidence of tumor recurrence at 6 months after operation.

Bacillus Calmette-Guérin instillation treatment for carcinoma in situ of the upper urinary tract

OBJECTIVE

To analyse the efficacy and safety of bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) perfusion treatment forcarcinoma in situ (CIS) of the upper urinary tract.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Six patients with cytologically diagnosed CIS of the upper urinary tract were treated by BCG instillation via retrograde catheterization using a 6 F ureteric catheter or an 8 F indwelling JJ ureteric stent between the ureter and bladder. BCG (Tokyo 172 strain, 80 mg in 100 mL normal saline) was instilled weekly for 4 or 8 weeks. The efficacy and safety of the treatment was assessed.

RESULTS

The mean (range) follow-up was 22 (9-38) months; none of the patients died, and all were negative for cytology in urine collected from the upper urinary tracts. However, one patient had recurrent CIS in the prostatic urethra; the patient was treated by intravesical BCG instillation. In all patients, positive cytology became negative after one or two instillations of BCG. The ureter became stenotic in two patients. Although irritative symptoms occurred in all patients, such side-effects disappeared in a few months and were not clinically significant.

CONCLUSION

In these six patients retrograde BCG instillation for CIS of the upper urinary tract was effective and safe. Based on the cytology results after only two BCG treatments, the dose or number of BCG instillations could possibly be reduced, but further study is needed.

The difference in temporal distribution of c-Fos immunoreactive neurons between the medullary dorsal horn and the trigeminal subnucleus oralis in the rat following experimental tooth movement

The difference in temporal distribution of c-Fos-immunoreactivity (Fos-IR) was assessed in the medullary dorsal horn (MDH) and in the dorsomedial part of the trigeminal subnucleus oralis (Vodm) following experimental tooth movement of the rat maxillary molars. The number of MDH c-Fos-immunoreactive neurons increased bilaterally at 2 h and decreased markedly by 12 h, and then increased again with a small peak at 48 h. In contrast, Vodm c-Fos expression was not up-regulated until 12 h, but increased in number after 24 h, which increase lasted until 72 h. These findings indicate that experimental tooth movement induced nociceptive c-Fos response in a biphasic manner. Furthermore, the later response appeared after 24 h, and lasted for a few days, mainly manifested in the Vodm during experimental tooth movement.

Development of a rapid assay for screening point mutations associated with quinolone resistance in the Pseudomonas aeruginosa parC gene

To detect quinolone resistance-associated mutations within the Ser-80 and Glu-84 codons of the Pseudomonas aeruginosa parC gene, we developed a rapid and simple assay based on polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of the region of the parC gene containing the mutation sites and digestion of the PCR products with a restriction enzyme. The mutations generating alterations at Ser-80 and Glu-84 were detected as restriction fragment length polymorphisms of the PCR products digested with HinfI. Among 22 clinical isolates tested by this assay, mutations at the Ser-80 and Glu-84 codons were detected in all 10 isolates in which the presence of the mutations had been confirmed previously by DNA sequencing. This rapid and simple assay could be a useful screening device for genetic alterations associated with resistance to quinolones in the P. aeruginosa parC gene.

[A clinical study on active vitamin D pulse therapy in hemodialysis patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism]

The oral active vitamin D pulse therapy was performed for 20 chronic hemodialysis patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism (2 degrees HPT). Before pulse therapy, all patients showed high-turnover bone diseases, elevated serum alkaline phosphatase (Alp) and elevated serum parathyroid hormone (PTH). They had at least one parathyroid gland detected by ultrasonography. In one patient, serum PTH level did not decrease during three months. In five patients, hypercalcemia was observed so that the pulse therapy was with drawn. Another patient was resistant to the second pulse therapy for recurrence of 2 degrees HPT. Total parathyroidectomy and autotransplantation was performed in these seven patients. The size of parathyroid gland in patients undergoing surgical treatment was significantly larger than those estimated by ultrasonography in patients successfully treated with pulse therapy (p < 0.005). In all patients with surgical treatment, the conventional oral active vitamin D therapy was performed with caution to hypercalcemia preoperatively. The preoperative Alp levels decreased compared with those of at the beginning of the pulse therapy. Postoperatively, the total amount of intravenous administered calcium decreased, and serum calcium levels were easily controlled.

[Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the urinary bladder: report of a case]

The patient was a 78-year-old man with gross hematuria. A non-papillary and non-pedunculated tumor was found on the posterior wall of the bladder by cystoscopic examination. Total cystectomy with construction of ileal conduit was performed. Histologically, the tumor was composed of carcinomatous and sarcomatous elements. The carcinomatous element was compatible with grade 3 transitional cell carcinoma. The sarcomatous element was composed of osteosarcomatous, chondrosarcomatous pattern and undifferentiated malignant spindle cell component. Immunohistochemical examination demonstrated the presence of keratin, cytokeratin and epithelial membrane antigen in both carcinomatous and sarcomatous elements. Therefore, we diagnosed this tumor as sarcomatoid carcinoma. The patient has remained well without any evidence of recurrence for 10 months after operation.

Antimutagenicity of the purple pigment, hordeumin, from uncooked barley bran-fermented broth

The novel purple pigment hordeumin, an anthocyanin-tannin pigment, was produced from barley bran-fermented broth. The mutagenicity or antimutagenicity of hordeumin was investigated according to the Ames method, an indication of the safety of food, using Salmonella typhimurium TA98. Despite the presence of S-9 mix, hordeumin was not mutagenic. On the other hand, hordeumin effectively decreased a reverse mutation from Trp-P-1, Trp-P-2, IQ, and B[a]P. Furthermore, hordeumin also decreased the reverse mutation from dimethyl sulfoxide extracts of grilled beef.

Loss of tissue immunoreactive androgen receptor in prostate cancer presenting initially as an intracranial tumor

We report a case of prostate cancer that presented initially as an intracranial tumor. Biopsy specimens of the prostate before endocrine treatment were nearly negative immunohistochemically for prostate-specific antigen and the androgen receptors. All metastases including those in the brain expressed neither androgen receptor nor prostate-specific antigen at the protein and mRNA levels. The tumor, which did not respond to the anti-androgen therapy, had an aggressive course. In this case, the androgen-independent growth and rapid progression might be associated with the initial loss of the antigen and androgen characteristics of the prostate.

Long-term application of chincup force alters the morphology of the dolichofacial Class III mandible

The conventional orthopedic Milwaukee brace exerts a large and continuous force that induces malocclusion and a significant deformation of the mandible. Our previous chincup study examined its use in moderately severe mandibular prognathism without retrusion of the maxilla. The orthopedic force was approximately 500 g at the center of chin and was applied during sleep for 6 to 24 months. For mandibular prognathism subjects (means, 1.0 degrees and -1.3 degrees of ANB angle in the prepubertal and pubertal subjects), the resultant changes were maintained after retention. However, research reported that the changes obtained during chincup treatment (average, 4 (1/2) years' use) were often not maintained in severe skeletal Class III malocclusion. The aim of this clinical study was to investigate the immediate and long-term effects of prolonged use (mean, 7 years 2 months) of chincup appliances in subjects with dolichofacial Class III mandibles. Thirty-six female subjects with severe skeletal Class III malocclusions, associated with large gonial angles, were selected from the dental records of a private clinic. At posttreatment (T1, 65 months' duration) and postretention (T2, 56 months after T1), Ar-Me and Wits appraisal cephalometric parameters were significantly different (P <.01) between patients and control subjects (n = 230). Furthermore, the Go-Me parameter in treated subjects was longer than that of the controls at T0 but became significantly shorter at T2 (P <.01). Treatment was associated with a finding that the Ar-Go parameter increased less than the controls at T2. Our results indicate that long-term use of the chincup appliance (>5 years) is effective in subjects with severe skeletal Class III abnormality.

[Pheochromocytoma of the urinary bladder: a case report]

A 49-year-old man was hospitalized with the chief complaint of coagulation in urine. The patient was not hypertensive. Cystoscopic examination showed a submucosal tumor in the left lateral wall of the bladder. A transurethral sonogram revealed a low echoic nodule. Transurethral resection of the tumor in the urinary bladder was performed. The histopathological diagnosis indicated pheochromocytoma. Blood pressure was stable. After operation, the patient's course was uneventful, and there has been no recurrence for one year after surgery. This patient is the 52nd patient with pheochromocytoma of the urinary bladder reported in the Japanese literature.

[Bacillus Calmette-Guerin intravesical instillation treatment for carcinoma in situ of the bladder. Gifu BCG Instillation Therapy Research Group]

We performed a retrospective long-term study to evaluate the efficacy of intravesical instillation of Tokyo 172 strain Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) on carcinoma in situ (CIS) of the bladder. Between 1989 and 1998, 42 patients with CIS of bladder underwent intravesical instillation of BCG. In the follow-up period from 6 to 116 months (mean: 37.3 months), the efficacy rate of intravesical BCG instillation for CIS of the bladder was 81.0%. Two patients died from the bladder cancer. The non-recurrence rate in patients with grade 2 carcinoma (19 cases) was not significantly different from that in those with grade 3 carcinoma (23 cases). However, the recurrence rate in patients with secondary CIS (15 cases) was significantly higher than in those with primary CIS (27 cases). The recurrence of CIS was observed in 7 of 42 cases. In 6 of 7 patients, CIS recurred within one year after treatment. Total cystectomy was performed in 10 of 42 patients, and pathological findings of muscle layer invasion were detected in 8 patients. Although side effects occurred in 33 patients (77.5%), no clinically significant side effects were observed. Our results suggest that intravesical BCG therapy may be useful for the treatment of CIS of the bladder.

[The current status of molecular detection of micrometastatic prostate cancer cells]

We summarized and reviewed published reports, including our studies, on the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) detection of micrometastatic prostate cancer cells in lymph nodes, bone marrow and peripheral blood. Some published data preliminarily suggest that the RT-PCR assay of micrometastatic prostate cancer cells may allow a more accurate assessment of lymph node and bone metastases of prostate cancer, and offer a presurgical prediction of the pathological stage of clinically localized disease. In addition, the RT-PCR assay may have a unique prognostic value in prostate cancer. However, controversy remains over the clinical significance of the RT-PCR assay. This assay could potentially develop into a diagnostic procedure for the clinical decision making in patients with prostate cancer. To establish the clinical significance of the RT-PCR assay, further optimized and standardized RT-PCR assay studies are needed, investigating large populations and involving long-term follow-up for the determination of any association between the results of the RT-PCR assay and specific clinical outcome.