Phosphatidylinositol synthase (PIS) catalyses the formation of phosphatidylinositol from CDP-diacylglycerol and myo-inositol. PIS is known to be a key enzyme in the synthesis of lipids, including phosphoinositides, which produces several second messengers. The expression of PIS mRNA was investigated in the young rat (postnatal day 21) central nervous system by in situ hybridization. The expression in PIS mRNA was remarkably high in the olfactory bulb, hippocampus, cerebellum, and spinal cord. The quantitative changes of PIS mRNA during the early postnatal period were studied using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis in these 4 areas. In all 4 areas, the expression of PIS mRNA increased sharply in the first postnatal week, and peaked at postnatal days 7-28. However, the expression of PIS mRNA declined in the olfactory bulb and cerebellum, and declined slightly in the hippocampus and spinal cord in the adult rat. The expression of PIS mRNA may be regulated during development. The development of PIS correlates with cell proliferation and growth as well as synaptogenesis, suggesting that PIS might play an important role in these processes during the early post natal period.

View full abstract

Gonadotropic hormones induce ovarian genes to achieve ovarian follicular development. In this study gonadotropin inducible genes were identified by a subtractive hybridization method. Among several hundred genes characterized so far, we identified a clone encoding a novel gonadotropin inducible gene. Nucleotide sequence of the clone was determined and the predicted protein designated P52 was comprised of 387 amino acids with six transmembrane domains and it showed 79% identity with a human putative transporter protein and about 20% identity with bacterial and yeast aromatic amino acid transporter proteins, suggesting that P52 is a novel member of transporter proteins. Northern blot analysis revealed that gene expression of P52 was observed only in the liver and the ovary. The gene expression was induced by PMSG (pregnant mare serum gonadotropin) with a maximal levels at 6 hrs after the stimulation. In situ hybridization study revealed that P52 mRNA was predominantly expressed in the granulosa cells. These observations suggest that a novel putative transporter protein designated P52 may participate in the gonadotropin induced development of ovarian follicles.

View full abstract

The number of detected cases of prostate cancer has increased 7-fold in 16 years, and 60% of the prostate cancer detected by mass screening was early stage. The detection reliability improved due to prostate specific antigen (PSA) and a new biopsy method from 1992. Serum levels of PSA should be measured using kits that recognize the free and complex types of PSA completely equimolarly. We also use other detection methods such as age-specific PSA, PSA density, and PSA velocity. Presently, 70% of autonomies have adopted mass screening by the measurement of PSA only. An important problem is that 14% (43 of 303) of prostate cancer cases has a negative PSA measurement, while only 2% (6 of 303) of prostate cancer cases has bone metastasis. A mass screening method which measures PSA only is more tolerable than digital rectal examination or transrectal ultrasonography. We believe that more prostate cancer cases will be detected as the number of subjects who receive PSA screening increases.

View full abstract

Granulocyte-macrophage (GM) -colony formation was suppressed in patients with acute myelocytic leukemia (AML) at diagnosis and relapse but normal colony formation was observed in complete remission. In order to investigate the relationship between GM-colony formation and the progress of other malignancies, an in vitro colony formation assay was performed in 21 patients with chronic myelocytic leukemia (CML). In 12 patients with chronic phase (CP) CML, GM-colony formation was not different from that in normal control (66.2±8.6 vs. 82.0±15.2/dish, not significant; NS : n=12, 5 respectively). However, GM-colony formation was significantly low in patients with CML at blastic crisis (BC) (4.7± 1.6/dish) compared with both patients with CP and the control group (P <0.001). In five patients with CML-CP, GM-colony formation was observed after the transformation to BC. Colony formation was significantly decreased after transformation (54.4±10.5 vs. 3.6±3.0/dish, P <0.001; n=5).

View full abstract

Twenty newborn infants with exanthematous disease, the criteria of which are systemic exanthema and at least one of thrombocytopenia, serum C-reactive protein elevation and fever, are reported. Their gestational ages were 29-40 weeks and birth weights were 1, 084-3, 320 g. Nineteen infants had platelet counts of 15 × 10⁴/μl or less. The serum C-reactive protein level was 1.0 mg/dl or more in 7 patients. Throat and / or stool cultures revealed methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in 6 patients. Coxsackie B4 virus was isolated from stool and throat-swab specimens from one patient. Recently this disease was reported to be induced by toxic shock syndrome toxin 1. However the clinical findings of this disease are similar to those of a viral infection. It should be added to the diagnostic criteria of the exanthematous disease induced by toxic shock syndrome toxin 1 that Staphylococcus aureus which produces the toxin is isolated and that other pathogens such as enteroviruses which cause similar symptoms are negated.

View full abstract

We retrospectively analyzed the clinical results of 20 patients treated at Saiseikai Maebashi Hospital from 1986 to 1996, with the objective of describing the characteristics of patients for more than 5 years on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD).
Among 10 withdrawals, (duration of CAPD less than 5 years; positive selection 5, negative selection 5; diabetic 1, chronic glomerulonephritis 9) 6 were switched over to hemodialysis (HD) and 4 died.
The reasons for transfer to HD were peritonitis in 3, cardiac failure in 1, and others in 2. The causes of death were arrhythmia in 2 cases, peritonitis in one, and sepsis in one. These patients were elderly and had more cardiovascular diseases. The frequency of peritonitis was 1 per 23.8 patient months.
Peritoneal function assessed by the clearance of urea (KT/V) remained normal in 10 continuations. (duration of CAPD more than 5 years; positive selection 9, negative selection 1; chronic glomerulonephritis 10) Mean urea clearance was a KT/V of 1.73. Although the KT/V values were lower than those proposed nowadays, the patients showed good rehabilitation. The frequency of peritonitis was 1 per 52.5 patient months.
The prevention of peritonitis and proper patient selection are important for achieving long term continuation of CAPD.

View full abstract

Districts with taller or shorter resident 40 years of age or over were identified by mass screening examinations in 46 areas in Gunma Prefecture. No district had an average hight that was taller than the Japanese average. The average height of inhabitants in Gunma Prefecture is shorter than the average 40 year-old and over Japanese.
The difference in height between Gunma and the average for Japan decreases, in 4070 years olds, while the height of 517 years olds is almost the same. Therefore, the past socio-economic situation seems to have an effect on height and may account for the large gap between the two groups. In the future, the average height of adults in Gunma may reach the Japanese average.
The height of infants in Japan did not increase from 1980 to 1996, indicating that the infant nutrirional state remaind almost the same from 1980 to 1996.
Among 517 year old, taller height are found in eastern Japan and shorter height in western Japan, indicating the climate may affect height.

View full abstract

We clinically examined 137 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (99 males, 38 females, mean age : 65.7 years) who were treated at the Department of Surgery, Public Fujioka General Hospital between June 1989 and December 1997. The proportion of HBsAg-positive patients was 5.1%. The proportion of HCV-positive patients was 83.2%. The incidence of liver cirrhosis was 90%.
The clinical stage was evaluated as I in 24.8% of the patients, II in 54.0% of the patients and III in 21.2% of the patients. In most patients, hepatic functional reserve was reduced. Concerning the number of tumors, 46% of the patients had solitary tumor, while 25.5% of the patients had 5 or more tumors. More than half the patients had multiple tumors. The maximal mean tumor diameter was 5.6 cm. According to staging, 5.8%, 29.9%, 10.2%, 46.0% and 8.0% of the patients had stage-I, -II, -III, -IV A and-IV B lesions, respectively.
Surgery was performed in 22.6% of the patients. There were no surgical deaths. In the hepatectomy group, 1-year, 3-year and 5-year cumulative survival rates were 84.6%, 63.8% and 54.9%, respectively. In the TAE group, 1-year and 3-year cumulative survival rates were 54.9% and 24.9%, respectively. In the LPD group, 1-year, 3-year and 5-year cumulative survival rates were 68.4%, 13.0% and 13.0%, respectively. In the arterial infusion group with a reservoir, the 1-year cumulative survival rate was 31.5%.
Therefore, hepatectomy may be effective for patients in whom surgery is possible. In patients in whom surgery is impossible, TAE, LPD and arterial infusion with a reservoir may prolong survival.

View full abstract

A 68-year-old woman with generalized lymphadenopathy suffered from disconsciousness due to hypercalcemia. The lymph node biopsy showed T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. However, the Southern blot analysis had not recognized human T-cell lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV-I) integration. Therefore, she was not diagnosed as having adult T cell lymphoma. The X-ray film showed punched out shadows in the cranium and osteolytic lesions on her arms. Thirteen days after death, the autopsy and microscopic examination showed massive bone metastatic lesions. parathyroid hormone (PTH), PTH related protein (PTHrP), urine cAMP or 1, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 had not increased. Therefore, the hypercalcemia may have been due not to the humoral hypercalcemia, but to osteolytic hypercalcemia resulting from lytic bone metastasis. Lymphoma associated hypercalcemia is mainly due to humoral hypercalcemia. Hypercalcemia with non-Hodgkin lymphoma may be partly due to osteolytic hypercalcemia.

View full abstract

A 31 year-old Brazilian male complained of paresthesia in the right hand and then developed right hemiplegia and left cranial nerve III paresis. Magnetic resonance imaging brain scanning revealed a 3 cm diameter mass lesion occupying the left midbrain to thalamus. Since the mass was indistinguishable from a primary CNS lymphoma, the patient underwent stereotactic brain biopsy and was diagnosed as toxoplasma encephalitis by an immunostaining technique. He was treated by 3 combined therapy with pyrimethamine, clindamicin and salfamonomethoxine. The mass was remarkably diminished in MRI and his leval of consciousness improved although his neurological symptoms had not changed. About 13 months later, he developed systemic convulsions and sudden apnea, suggesting brain herniation. He died even though treatment with pyrimethamine had been continued.

View full abstract

An abdominal wall tumor was discovered in a 65-year-old man when he was admitted to our hospital for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. The needle biopsy specimen indicated peripheral neuroepithelioma. The patient underwent a simple resection of the tumor and reconstruction of the abdominal wall with artificial peritoneum and Dexon mesh. He has survived with liver cirrhosis for 31 months after the operation. Peripheral neuroepithelioma in the abdominal region is rare and thus the reported English literature is discussed.

View full abstract