[Evaluation of clinical efficacy of sulbenicillin following surgery of malignant maxillary tumors. Transport of sulbenicillin to the exudates from the surgical wound of the maxilla and its therapeutic effects]

In order to know the amount of sulbenicillin (SB-PC) transported to the maxillary sinus through the blood supply after injecting by intravenous drip infusion, the authors measured SB-PC content of the exudate which was gathered from the exploratory operative maxillary sinus. This measurement was performed 3 times at 2, 4 and 6 hours after injecting 5 g of SB-PC by intravenous drip infusion. From results of these measurements, it became obvious that the SB-PC content reached to the maximum value (24.5 +/- 16.69 mcg/ml) at 2--4 hours after the injection. Next, the preventive and therapeutic effect on the postoperative maxillary infection was evaluated for 13 patients of maxillary cancer. The effect was excellent in 2 cases (16.7%), good in 8 cases (66.7%) and fair in 2 cases (16.7%). So, the ratio of effectiveness was 83.3%. The side effect of SB-PC was observed only in 1 patient who complained of palpitation, but it was not severe.

Role of uridine phosphorylase for antitumor activity of 5'-deoxy-5-fluorouridine

5'-Deoxy-5-fluorouridine (5'-DFUR) was parenterally and orally effective on various transplantable tumors and its activity was better than that of other fluorinated pyrimidines. However, like 5-fluorouracil and 2'-deoxy-5-fluorouridine (FUdR), 5'-DFUR was ineffective on L1210 leukemia resistant to 5-fluorouracil, suggesting that it would exert its antitumor activity through converted 5-fluorouracil. In tissue culture, 5'-DFUR inhibited the growth of various tumor cells similarly to ther fluorinated pyrimidines. However, 5'-DFUR was unique in that uridine completely reversed its inhibitory effect. Enzymological study clarified that uridine inhibited the conversion of 5'-DFUR to 5-fluorouracil by a uridine phosphorylase, in parallel to its reverse effect on cell growth inhibition by 5'-DFUR. Furthermore, a subline of L1210 leukemia resistant to 5'-DFUR but not to 5-fluorouracil was found to lack the uridine phosphorylase. These results indicate that 5'-DFUR is a depot form of 5-fluorouracil which can be promptly activated by uridine phosphorylase. In addition, the uridine phosphorylase was found to be abundant in sarcoma-180 solid tumor, leading to a significantly higher concentration of converted 5-fluorouracil in this tumor than in other normal tissues. This provides a good explanation for the high chemotherapeutic index of 5'-DFUR against this tumor, which may be applicable also for other tumors.

Neuraminidase in mucolipidoses: normal activity in frozen autopsy tissues from three patients with I-cell disease and adult beta-galactosidase deficiency

Neuraminidase was assayed in the frozen autopsy tissues from three patients with I-cell disease and an adult patient with cherry-red spots, myoclonus, cerebellar ataxia and beta-galactosidase deficiency. Both diseases showed normal neuraminidase activity toward neuramine lactose and fetuin in cerebral gray matter, liver and kidney. These results suggest that the neuraminidase deficiency is limited only to some tissues and that this biochemical abnormality is not caused by a primary genetic mutation in these diseases.

GM1-gangliosidosis: accumulation of ganglioside GM1 in cultured skin fibroblasts and correlation with clinical types

Uptake of radioactivity from 14C-galactose into gangliosides by cultured skin fibroblasts was studied. GM3 was the major ganglioside in control human fibroblasts. An increase of GM1 was demonstrated in GM1-gangliosidosis fibroblasts. The degree of GM1 accumulation was correlated with the clinical types of this disease. The fibroblasts from an infantile-type patient showed a marked increase of GM1. In late-onset types the amount of total gangliosides was only slightly increased, but the distribution of individual gangliosides was definitely abnormal; a relative increase of GM1 was demonstrated in these cases. GM1 beta-galactosidase activities were not detectable in either infantile or late-onset cases.

beta-Galactosidase deficiency in juvenile and adult patients. Report of six Japanese cases and review of literature

Six juvenile and adult patients with progressive neurological diseases and beta-galactosidase deficiency were reported. Any diseases known to date were denied. These cases together with ten case reports in the literature were reviewed and were classified into three groups from clinical and biochemical points. Group 1 patients were characterized by progressive ataxia and myoclonus with gargoyl changes and macular cherry-red spots. In this syndrome beta-galactosidase activity seems to be secondarily affected by other biochemical defects. A group 2 patient showed similar neurological manifestations without gargoyle changes or macular cherry-red spots. Patients with these clinical features not associated with beta-galactosidase deficiency have also been described in the literature. Group 3 patients had progressive pyramidal and extrapyramidal disease without gargoyl changes or macular cherry-red spots. These cases may represent juvenile and adult type GM1-gangliosidosis. Accumulation of GM1 has not yet been demonstrated.

beta-Galactosidase in mucopolysaccharidoses and mucolipidoses. Deficiency of GM1 beta-galactosidase in liver and leukocytes

beta-Galactosidase activities were studied in livers and leukocytes of mucopolysaccharidoses and mucolipidoses (I-cell disease and adult "beta-galactosidase deficiency" with macular cherry-red spots). Marked deficiency of hepatic 4-methylumbelliferyl (4MU) and GM1 beta-galactosidases was demonstrated in these diseases. Leukocyte GM1 beta-galactosidase was also deficient in mucolipidoses. The parents of the patients with I-cell disease and "beta-galactosidase deficiency" had normal beta-galactosidase activity in plasma and leukocytes, compared to the low enzyme activity in heterozygous carriers of GM1-gangliosidosis. The cause of this enzyme deficiency in these diseases is not clear at present. It seems to be affected seondarily by exgenous factors such as unknown stored materials in the cells. Mucopolysaccharides were not increased in the livers of two cases of I-cell disease and a case of "beta-galactosidase deficiency".