K-252 compounds, novel and potent inhibitors of protein kinase C and cyclic nucleotide-dependent protein kinases

K-252 compounds (K-252a and b isolated from Nocardiopsis sp. (1) and their synthetic derivatives) were found to inhibit cyclic nucleotide-dependent protein kinases and protein kinase C to various extents. The inhibitions were of the competitive type with respect to ATP. K-252a was a non-selective inhibitor for these three protein kinases with Ki values 18-25 nM. K-252b showed a comparable potency for protein kinase C (Ki, 20nM), whereas inhibitory potencies for cyclic nucleotide-dependent protein kinases were reduced. KT5720 and KT5822 selectively inhibited cAMP-dependent (Ki, 60nM) and cGMP-dependent (Ki, 2.4nM) protein kinases, respectively.

The cryb mutation identifies cryptochrome as a circadian photoreceptor in Drosophila

A new rhythm mutation was isolated based on its elimination of per-controlled luciferase cycling. Levels of period or timeless clock gene products in the mutant are flat in daily light-dark cycles or constant darkness (although PER and TIM oscillate normally in temperature cycles). Consistent with the fact that light normally suppresses TIM, cryb is an apparent null mutation in a gene encoding Drosophila's version of the blue light receptor cryptochrome. Behaviorally, cryb exhibits poor synchronization to light-dark cycles in genetic backgrounds that cause external blindness or demand several hours of daily rhythm resets, and it shows no response to brief light pulses. cryb flies are rhythmic in constant darkness, correlating with robust PER and TIM cycling in certain pacemaker neurons.

Peripheral lung cancer: screening and detection with low-dose spiral CT versus radiography

PURPOSE

To compare low-dose spiral computed tomography (CT) with radiography of the chest for the screening and detection of small peripheral lung cancers in a high-risk population.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Posteroanterior and lateral radiographs and low-dose spiral CT scans were obtained twice a year from September 1993 to April 1995 in 1,369 individuals (a total of 3,457 examinations) who were at high risk for lung cancer. Low-dose spiral CT parameters were 120 kvP, 50 mA, 10-mm collimation, and 2:1 pitch.

RESULTS

Peripheral lung cancer was detected in 15 of 3,457 examinations (0.3%). Among the 15 cases, the results of chest radiography were negative in 11 (73%), and the tumors were detected only at low-dose spiral CT. The detection rates of low-dose spiral CT and chest radiography were 0.43% (15 of 3,457 examinations), respectively. Fourteen (93%) of the 15 (exclusion of one pulmonary lung cancer) tumors were stage I.

CONCLUSION

Low-dose spiral CT was superior to chest radiography in the screening and detection of peripheral lung cancer in high-risk individuals. Further large-scale studies are warranted, however, to clarify the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of low-dose spiral CT in a randomized, controlled population.

CRY, a Drosophila clock and light-regulated cryptochrome, is a major contributor to circadian rhythm resetting and photosensitivity

Light is a major environmental signal for circadian rhythms. We have identified and analyzed cry, a novel Drosophila cryptochrome gene. All characterized family members are directly photosensitive and include plant blue light photoreceptors. We show that cry transcription is under circadian regulation, influenced by the Drosophila clock genes period, timeless, Clock, and cycle. We also show that cry protein levels are dramatically affected by light exposure. Importantly, circadian photosensitivity is increased in a cry-overexpressing strain. These physiological and genetic data therefore link a specific photoreceptor molecule to circadian rhythmicity. Taken together with the data in the accompanying paper, we propose that CRY is a major Drosophila photoreceptor dedicated to the resetting of circadian rhythms.

Mechanical work and efficiency in level walking and running

1. The mechanical power spent to accelerate the limbs relative to the trunk in level walking and running, W(int), has been measured at various ;constant' speeds (3-33 km/hr) with the cinematographic procedure used by Fenn (1930a) at high speeds of running.2. W(int) increases approximately as the square of the speed of walking and running. For a given speed W(int) is greater in walking than in running.3. In walking above 3 km/hr, W(int) is greater than the power spent to accelerate and lift the centre of mass of the body at each step, W(ext) (measured by Cavagna, Thys & Zamboni, 1976b). In running W(int) < W(ext) up to about 20 km/hr, whereas at higher speeds W(int) > W(ext).4. The total work done by the muscles was calculated as W(tot) = W(int) + W(ext). Except that at the highest speeds of walking, the total work done per unit distance W(tot)/km is greater in running than in walking.5. The efficiency of positive work was measured from the ratio W(tot)/Net energy expenditure: this is greater than 0.25 indicating that both in walking and in running the muscles utilize, during shortening, some energy stored during a previous phase of negative work (stretching).6. In walking the efficiency reaches a maximum (0.35-0.40) at intermediate speeds, as may be expected from the properties of the contractile component of muscle. In running the efficiency increases steadily with speed (from 0.45 to 0.70-0.80) suggesting that positive work derives mainly from the passive recoil of muscle elastic elements and to a lesser extent from the active shortening of the contractile machinery. These findings are consistent with the different mechanics of the two exercises.

Independent photoreceptive circadian clocks throughout Drosophila

Transgenic Drosophila that expressed either luciferase or green fluorescent protein driven from the promoter of the clock gene period were used to monitor the circadian clock in explanted head, thorax, and abdominal tissues. The tissues (including sensory bristles in the leg and wing) showed rhythmic bioluminescence, and the rhythms could be reset by light. The photoreceptive properties of the explanted tissues indicate that unidentified photoreceptors are likely to contribute to photic signal transduction to the clock. These results show that autonomous circadian oscillators are present throughout the body, and they suggest that individual cells in Drosophila are capable of supporting their own independent clocks.

Proposal for a new clinical entity, IgG4-positive multiorgan lymphoproliferative syndrome: analysis of 64 cases of IgG4-related disorders

BACKGROUND

Mikulicz's disease (MD) has been considered as one manifestation of Sjögren's syndrome (SS). Recently, it has also been considered as an IgG(4)-related disorder.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the differences between IgG(4)-related disorders including MD and SS.

METHODS

A study was undertaken to investigate patients with MD and IgG(4)-related disorders registered in Japan and to set up provisional criteria for the new clinical entity IgG(4)-positive multiorgan lymphoproliferative syndrome (IgG(4)+MOLPS). The preliminary diagnostic criteria include raised serum levels of IgG(4) (>135 mg/dl) and infiltration of IgG(4)(+) plasma cells in the tissue (IgG(4)+/IgG+ plasma cells >50%) with fibrosis or sclerosis. The clinical features, laboratory data and pathologies of 64 patients with IgG(4)+MOLPS and 31 patients with typical SS were compared.

RESULTS

The incidence of xerostomia, xerophthalmia and arthralgia, rheumatoid factor and antinuclear, antiSS-A/Ro and antiSS-B/La antibodies was significantly lower in patients with IgG(4)+MOLPS than in those with typical SS. Allergic rhinitis and autoimmune pancreatitis were significantly more frequent and total IgG, IgG(2), IgG(4) and IgE levels were significantly increased in IgG(4)+MOLPS. Histological specimens from patients with IgG(4)+MOLPS revealed marked IgG(4)+ plasma cell infiltration. Many patients with IgG(4)+MOLPS had lymphocytic follicle formation, but lymphoepithelial lesions were rare. Few IgG(4)+ cells were seen in the tissue of patients with typical SS. Thirty-eight patients with IgG(4)+MOLPS treated with glucocorticoids showed marked clinical improvement.

CONCLUSION

Despite similarities in the involved organs, there are considerable clinical and pathological differences between IgG(4)+MOLPS and SS. Based on the clinical features and good response to glucocorticoids, we propose a new clinical entity: IgG(4)+MOLPS.

Neuroanatomy of cells expressing clock genes in Drosophila: transgenic manipulation of the period and timeless genes to mark the perikarya of circadian pacemaker neurons and their projections

Subsets of brain neurons expressing the clock genes period (per) and timeless (tim) are involved in the generation of circadian behavioral rhythms. However, current knowledge of projection patterns of these neurons is limited to those immunoreactive to an antibody against a crustacean neuropeptide. The GAL4-expression system was utilized to visualize neuronal processes from all per and tim-expressing neurons in the central nervous system. Each of two types of GAL4-driver fusion genes, per-gal4 or tim-gal4, was combined in transgenic flies with marker genes-lacZ, and sequences encoding green fluorescent protein or TAU protein-under the control of the GAL4-responsive element UAS. This allowed visualization of the cytoplasm of GAL4-expressing cells. Thus, neurites of clock neurons in the adult brain as well as those of larvae and pupae were revealed. Among the anatomical patterns revealed by per-gal4- or tim-gal4-driven marker expression were a previously unknown, dorsally located neuronal cluster, along with the projections of these cells and of other dorsal neurons characterized in earlier studies only by the location of their perikarya. The similarity of projections from PER- or TIM-containing neurons during development to those in the adult implies that these features of mature clock neurons are established by the larval stages. Neurons that have never been identified as PER- or TIM-immunoreactive were also visualized in this assay system, indicating promoter activity of the clock genes in these cells and suggesting that their products cannot accumulate to detectable levels in certain neurons.

Lymphoid chemokine B cell-attracting chemokine-1 (CXCL13) is expressed in germinal center of ectopic lymphoid follicles within the synovium of chronic arthritis patients

A unique feature in inflammatory tissue of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is the formation of ectopic lymphoid aggregates with germinal center (GC)-like structures that can be considered to contribute to the pathogenesis of RA, because local production of the autoantibody, rheumatoid factor, is thought to be a causative factor in tissue damage. However, the factors governing the formation of GC in RA are presently unknown. To begin to address this, the expression of B cell attracting chemokine (BCA-1) (CXCL13), a potent chemoattractant of B cells, was examined in the synovium of patients with RA or with osteoarthritis (OA). Expression of BCA-1 mRNA was detected in all RA samples, but in only one of five OA samples. Lymphoid follicles were observed in four of seven RA samples and in two of eight OA samples, and in most of them BCA-1 protein was detected in GC. BCA-1 was not detected in tissues lacking lymphoid follicles. Notably, BCA-1 was detected predominantly in follicular dendritic cells in GC. CD20-positive B cells were aggregated in regions of BCA-1 expression, but not T cells or macrophages. These data suggest that BCA-1 produced by follicular dendritic cells may attract B cells and contribute to the formation of GC-like structures in chronic arthritis.

Suppressed severity of collagen-induced arthritis by in vivo transfection of nuclear factor kappaB decoy oligodeoxynucleotides as a gene therapy

OBJECTIVE

In both rheumatoid arthritis and collagen-induced arthritis (CIA), the nuclear factor kappaB (NF-kappaB) transcription factor plays a pivotal role in the coordinated transactivation of many cytokines related to pathogenesis. This study investigated whether synthetic double-stranded DNA that show a high affinity for NF-kappaB could be introduced in vivo as "decoy" cis elements to bind the transcription factor and block the activation of such proinflammatory cytokine genes as interleukin-1 (IL-1) and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha), and thus suppress the severity of joint destruction.

METHODS

NF-kappaB decoy oligonucleotides (ODN) were introduced by an intraarticular injection into the bilateral hind ankle joints of CIA rats using the hemagglutinating virus of Japan (HVJ)-liposome method. Joint destruction was evaluated by histology and radiography. IL-1 and TNFalpha levels were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Northern blot analysis.

RESULTS

Using the HVJ-liposome method, the presence of fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled ODN in the synovium was confirmed until 28 days after intraarticular injection. In vivo transfection of NF-kappaB decoy ODN by an intraarticular injection into CIA rats decreased the severity of hind-paw swelling. Histologic and radiographic studies showed a marked suppression of joint destruction treated by NF-kappaB decoy ODN transfection. This treatment method also suppressed the production of IL-1 and TNFalpha in the synovium of arthritic joints.

CONCLUSION

The present results demonstrate that administration of NF-kappaB decoy ODN in arthritic joints of rats with CIA led to an amelioration of arthritis. These findings suggest that intraarticular transfection of NF-kappaB decoy ODN may provide a useful therapeutic approach for the treatment of inflammatory arthritis.

Computer-aided diagnosis for pulmonary nodules based on helical CT images

In this paper, we present a computer-assisted automatic diagnostic system for lung cancer that detects nodule candidates at an early stage from helical CT images of the thorax. Our diagnostic system consists of analytical and diagnostic procedures. In the analytical procedure, first we extract the lung and the pulmonary blood vessel regions using the fuzzy clustering algorithm, then we analyze the features of these regions using image-processing techniques. In the diagnostic procedure, we define diagnostic rules utilizing the extracted features which support the determination of the candidate nodule locations. We show the effectiveness of our system by giving the results from its application to image data for mass screening of 450 patients.

Cigarette smoke induces DNA single-strand breaks in human cells

Epidemiological evidence suggests that smoking is a major cause of human lung cancer. However, the mechanism by which cigarette smoke induces the cancer remains obscure, although in tobacco carcinogenesis, promotion and/or co-carcinogenesis may have crucial roles. The epidemiological data show that if an individual stops smoking, the risk of his contracting lung cancer increases no further. Moreover, laboratory experiments show that cigarette smoke condensate (CSC) exhibits co-carcinogenic and promoting activities in tumour production and malignant transformation. Clastogenic action is thought to be intimately involved in tumour promotion, and it is therefore interesting that visible chromosome changes such as chromosome aberrations and sister chromatid exchanges are known to be caused by cigarette smoke. However, there has been no previous direct demonstration that cigarette smoke can cause single-strand breaks (SSB) in DNA. Here we report that cigarette smoke induces considerable numbers of DNA SSB in cultured human cells, and that such strand breaks may be ascribed to active oxygen generated from cigarette smoke.

DEEP BIOSPHERE. Exploring deep microbial life in coal-bearing sediment down to ~2.5 km below the ocean floor

Microbial life inhabits deeply buried marine sediments, but the extent of this vast ecosystem remains poorly constrained. Here we provide evidence for the existence of microbial communities in ~40° to 60°C sediment associated with lignite coal beds at ~1.5 to 2.5 km below the seafloor in the Pacific Ocean off Japan. Microbial methanogenesis was indicated by the isotopic compositions of methane and carbon dioxide, biomarkers, cultivation data, and gas compositions. Concentrations of indigenous microbial cells below 1.5 km ranged from <10 to ~10(4) cells cm(-3). Peak concentrations occurred in lignite layers, where communities differed markedly from shallower subseafloor communities and instead resembled organotrophic communities in forest soils. This suggests that terrigenous sediments retain indigenous community members tens of millions of years after burial in the seabed.

Determining surgical indications for acute type B dissection based on enlargement of aortic diameter during the chronic phase

BACKGROUND

In patients with Stanford type B dissection who have been treated successfully with medical hypotensive therapy during the acute phase, a large number have incurred the risk of surgery during their chronic phases because of enlargement of the dissected aorta. The purpose of this study was to determine the indications for surgical treatment of acute type B dissection by studying chronic-phase enlargements of aortic dissections in patients treated successfully with medical hypotensive therapy during the acute phase.

METHODS AND RESULTS

In 41 patients with type B dissection who had been treated medically during the acute phase, univariate and multivariate factor analyses were made to determine the predominant predictors for chronic-phase enlargement (> or = 60 mm) of the dissected aorta. Computed tomography was performed every 4 to 14 months to observe whether there was enlargement of the maximum aortic diameter. The predominant predictors for aortic enlargement in the chronic phase were the existence of a maximum aortic diameter of > or = 40 mm during the acute phase (P < .001) and a patent primary entry site in the thoracic aorta (P = .001). The values of actuarial freedom from aortic enlargement for the patients with a large aortic diameter (> or = 40 mm) during the acute phase and a patent primary entry site in the thorax at 1, 3, and 5 years were 70%, 29%, and 22%, respectively. No aortic enlargement was observed in the other patients throughout the entire follow-up period.

CONCLUSIONS

These data suggest that patients with acute type B dissection who have a large aortic diameter (> or = 40 mm) and a patent primary entry site in the thorax should be treated surgically during the acute phase on the condition that the surgical risk in this phase is limited.

Adrenal sensitivity to adrenocorticotropin varies diurnally

To further characterize diurnal changes in the rhythm in adrenal responsiveness to ACTH, we have measured ACTH distribution volume, MCR, and t 1/2. These do not change between morning and evening in groups of untreated, dexamethasone-pretreated, or hypophysectomized female rats. To characterize the nature of the change in adrenal responsiveness to ACTH, dexamethasone-pretreated rats were infused for 2 h with a variety of doses of ACTH in the morning and evening. The adrenal response to an infusion rate of ACTH that maximally stimulated the adrenals (200 pg/100 g BW.min) was the same in the morning and evening, showing that adrenal capacity does not change. However, infusion of ACTH at lower rates (50-100 pg/100 g BW.min) revealed that the slope of the steroid response curve increased between morning and evening, demonstrating a diurnal change in adrenal sensitivity to ACTH. These results together with previous data showing that the magnitude and time course of the adrenal cAMP response to ACTH changes diurnally strongly suggest that ACTH receptor affinity or coupling with adenylate cyclase changes diurnally. In other experiments, plasma ACTH and corticosterone levels were determined in groups of young and adult male and adult female untreated rats killed at 4-h intervals around the clock. Peak sensitivity to ACTH was found at lights-out, and trough sensitivity was found at lights-on, suggesting that the experimentally demonstrated rhythm occurs normally.

Disruption of synaptic transmission or clock-gene-product oscillations in circadian pacemaker cells of Drosophila cause abnormal behavioral rhythms

To study the function of clock-gene-expressing neurons, the tetanus-toxin light chain (TeTxLC), which blocks chemical synaptic transmission, was expressed under the control of promoters of the clock genes period (per) and timeless (tim), each fused to GAL4-encoding sequences. Although TeTxLC did not affect cycling of a clock-gene product at the gross level, it disrupted the rhythmic behavior of adult Drosophila. In constant darkness, the proportion of rhythmic flies was reduced in flies expressing active TeTxLC compared to controls, including those expressing inactive toxin. The behavior of TeTxLC-expressing flies was less synchronized to light:dark cycles than that of controls. To determine which neurons are responsible for these effects on behavior, the toxin was also expressed in restricted subsets of per/tim-expressing, laterally located pacemaker neurons by expressing TeTxLC under the control of a driver in which GAL4-encoding sequences are fused to the promoter of the pigment dispersing factor (pdf) gene. pdf-gal4-driven TeTxLC expression had relatively little effect on behavioral rhythms, implying that per/tim neurons other than pdf-expressing lateral neurons participate in the generation of rhythmic behavior. In another set of experiments, period gene products were expressed under the control of per-gal4 or tim-gal4. This resulted in an increased level of PER protein in many brain cells and reduction of bioluminescence cycling reported by a per-luciferase transgene, especially in the case of per expression affected by tim-gal4. This indicates a disruption of the transcriptional feedback loop that is a part of the oscillatory mechanism underlying Drosophila's circadian rhythms. Consistent with this molecular defect, the proportion of rhythmic individuals in constant darkness was subnormal in flies expressing PER under the control of tim-gal4, and their behavior in light:dark cycles was abnormal.

Mitochondrial DNA is required for regulation of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in a mouse pancreatic beta cell line, MIN6

To determine whether mtDNA and mitochondrial respiratory function in pancreatic beta cells are necessary for the phenotypic expression of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, we used a cultured mouse pancreatic beta cell line, MIN6, and two derivative lines, mtDNA knockout MIN6 (rho0 MIN6) and mtDNA repopulated cybrid MIN6. The MIN6 cells retain the property of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, but their mtDNA knockout induced the loss of mitochondrial transcription, translation, and respiration activity, without inhibition of transcription of the insulin gene or loss of succinate dehydrogenase activity, indicating that the observed mitochondrial dysfunction in rho0 MIN6 cells was not due to a cytotoxic side effect derived from the mtDNA knockout. Moreover, the mtDNA depletion also inhibited both the glucose-stimulated increase in the intracellular free Ca2+ content and the elevation of insulin secretion. The possibility of the involvement of nuclear genome-encoded factors in this process was excluded by the observation that the missing sensitivity to extracellular glucose stimulation in rho0 MIN6 cells was restored reversibly by repopulation with foreign mtDNA and isolating cybrid MIN6 clones. Therefore, these findings provide unambiguous evidence for the involvement of the mitochondrial dysfunction induced by mtDNA impairment in developing pathogeneses of some forms of diabetes mellitus.

Olivary enlargement: chronological and morphometric analyses

Chronologic and morphometric changes in the inferior olivary nucleus of the human medulla oblongata were studied in eight cases of primary pontine hemorrhage with different survival periods. To measure the olivary areas and analyze the neuronal and glial components, an optic electronic planimeter was used. A desk-top computer was also used for the calculation of the obtained data. The olivary enlargement was observed in cases with survival periods ranging from 3 weeks after the onset to 9.5 months. A morphometric analysis revealed six different stages of olivary changes after the destruction of the central tegmental tract in the pons: (1) no olivary changes, (2) olivary amiculum degeneration, (3) olivary hypertrophy, (4) culminant olivary enlargement, (5) olivary pseudohypertrophy, and (6) olivary atrophy. In stage (3) - noticed here for the first time -, neuronal cellular hypertrophy and sclerotic neurons with "insect-bite appearance" were observed. In stages (4) and (5), we also found the presence of prominent gemistocytic astrocytes in the characteristically enlarged inferior olivary nuclei. However, no proliferation of astrocytes during the olivary enlargement was confirmed in the morphometric analysis.

Salivary duct carcinoma (cribriform salivary carcinoma of excretory ducts). A clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical study of 12 cases

Salivary duct carcinoma (cribriform salivary carcinoma of the excretory ducts [CSCED]) is an uncommon malignant tumor which occurs predominantly in men (83% in this series; mean age, 61 years) and most often in the parotid gland (92% in this series). The outcome is unfavorable for most patients; of 11 of 12 patients with follow-up, 45% had local recurrence, 54% had distant metastasis, and 45% were dead of disease within 10 years of diagnosis (mean, 3 years). Metastases to lymph nodes were common (72%). Immunohistochemical studies on paraffin-embedded tissue revealed that most tumors reacted with antibodies known to mark adenocarcinoma: B72.3 (11 of 11) and Lewis Y (ten of ten). High and low molecular weight cytokeratins were present in most tumors (nine of ten and seven of nine cases, respectively), supporting the concept that these adenocarcinomas were of ductal origin. Parotid ducts adjacent to CSCED expressed B72.3 in six of nine cases studied, but parotid ducts from normal tissue (adjacent to benign mixed tumors or enlarged periparotid lymph nodes) rarely expressed this marker (one of 17 cases). The detection of B72.3 diffusely in parotid ducts, especially those with atypia, may imply the presence of malignant tumor nearby, which could be useful in evaluating limited tissue from the parotid. However, further studies are necessary to confirm the significance of this finding.

Neurotrophic 3,9-bis[(alkylthio)methyl]-and-bis(alkoxymethyl)-K-252a derivatives

A series of 3,9 disubstituted [(alkylthio)methyl]- and (alkoxymethyl)-K-252a derivatives was synthesized with the aim of enhancing and separating the neurotrophic properties from the undesirable NGF (trk A kinase) and PKC inhibitory activities of K-252a. Data from this series reveal that substitution in the 3- and 9-positions of K-252a with these groups reduces trk A kinase inhibitory properties approximately 100- to > 500-fold while maintaining or in certain cases enhancing the neurotrophic activity. From this research, 3,9-bis[(ethylthio)methyl]-K-252a (8) was identified as a potent and selective neurotrophic agent in vitro as measured by enhancement of choline acetyltransferase activity in embryonic rat spinal cord and basal forebrain cultures. Compound 8 was found to have weak kinase inhibitory activity for trk A, protein kinase C1 protein kinase A, and myosin light chain kinase. On the basis of the in vitro profile, 8 was evaluated in in vivo models suggestive of neurological diseases. Compound 8 was active in preventing degeneration of cholinergic neurons of the nucleus basalis magnocellularis (NBM) and reduced developmentally programmed cell death (PCD) of female rat spinal nucleus of the bulbocavernosus motoneurons and embryonic chick lumbar motoneurons.