Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) r mutants, which were defective in fusion function, were isolated from fusion inducing strains G7471 and G51, and classified into several groups by complementation (Yamamoto and Kabuta, 1977; Yamamoto et al. 1989). Marker rescue experiments of intact DNA from r mutants with EcoRI fragments of G7471 DNA revealed that the r mutations belonging to the groups A, B, E, F, G, and H were located in EcoRI-g, -c, -d, -h, -b, and -d fragments, respectively. The mutations be-longing to the groups A, B, F, and G cover the loci affecting cell fusion which have been already reported by other investigators. The two novel mutations localized in EcoRI-d fragment were further finely mapped, and it was demonstrated that the mutations belonging to groups E and H were involved in the open reading frames UL 10 and UL 13, respectively.

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The components of the afterhyperpolarization (AHP) of the sympathetic preganglionic neuron were studied in the slice of the upper thoracic spinal cord of the cat. In this neuron, the AHP consists of a fast (fAHP) followed by a slow (sAHP) component. While the fAHP had similar time course in all neurons studied (n=116), the sAHP had considerable variability. Two components could be identified and the variability resulted from variation in the relative magnitude of these. Fifteen percent of neurons showed only an early component of the sAHP, 16% showed only a late component, and 69% showed both components. The early component of the sAHP was selectively blocked by apamin and d-tubocurarine, while the late component was selectively blocked by ryanodine, procaine or phenylephrine.

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A retrospective study of ninety patients with early squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity was undertaken to evaluate clinical and histopathologic parameters in predicting cervical lymph node metastasis. Medical records were examined for age, sex, primary site, growth pattern, and size. The specimens from biopsy and surgical excision were examined for the degree of differentiation, mode of invasion, tumor thickness, muscular invasion, vascular invasion, and inflammatory response. The mode of invasion and tumor thickness were important indicators in the prediction of cervical lymph node metastasis. Tumors with Grade 4 mode of invasion exceeding 3 mm in thickness or with Grade 3 and 4 modes of invasion and more than 6 mm in thickness had a high incidence of cervical nodal metastasis. These important prognostic variables were best evaluated in the deeper portions of the lesions.

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A case of transfusion-associated graft versus host disease (TAGVHD) following hepatectomy for hepatocellular carcinoma is described in a 53 year-old male patient. The intraoperative bleeding was estimated to be 1220ml, and he was transfused with 4 units of fresh whole blood. On postoperative day (POD) 12, a fever of 38°C developed, followed by a systemic erythema on POD 14, and a marked progressive leukopenia starting from POD 19. The patient died of multiple organ failure (MOF) on POD 29. Just before death, the results of skin, bone marrow, and liver biopsies had no physical evidence of GVHD. TA-GVHD was found in the HLA typing of the patient's family. This TA-GVHD case was considered to be a reduced immunity due to severe surgical stress or preoperative transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE), in view of the fact that he was transfused with fresh whole blood during the operation. TA-GVHD has frequently been reported in patients after open heart surgery, but also after hepatectomy. It is therefore necessary to take all available means to prevent it by restricting the use of blood preparations as much as possible, and if hetero blood transfusions are performed, blood should be irradiated prior to transfusion.

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The changes in arachnoid granulations following the depletion of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In the normal tissue, the arachnoid granulations located at the inner walls of the superior sagittal sinus and the straight sinus had bulging protrusions of various sizes, as viewed with the SEM. With TEM, the outermost cells covering the surface of the arachnoid granulations had “giant vacuoles” in the cytoplasm. With CSF hypotension, the arachnoid granulations were smaller in size and the outermost layer of cells were thinner. The vacuoles in the outer layer were not developed. In the apical region of the individual arachnoid granulations with CSF hypotension, the arachnoid cells were densely clustered under the endothelial cells. With recovery to normal CSF pressure, the arachnoid cells appeared to protrude between the endothelial cells covering the apical portion of the arachnoid granulation.

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The efficacy and safety of oral of loxacin, 400 mg once daily, for the treatment of patients with lower respiratory tract infections were studied. The most common species recovered from the sputum specimens of these patients were Haemophilus influenzae, followed by Streptococcus pneumoniae (S.pneumoniae), Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), Gram positive cocci unidentified, Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa), Morexella catarrhalis, Streptococcus epidermidis, and another Haemophilus species in this order. All these bacteria were susceptible to of loxacin except for one strain of methicillin resistant S. aureus. A satisfactory clinical outcome was achieved in 34 of 40 patients (85%). It is concluded that of loxacin, 400 mg once daily, is useful for patients with respiratory tract infections.

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Seventy-two cases of Stage I lung adenocarcinomas in females were analyzed and compared with 84 cases in males, all of which were surgically resected at the National Kyushu Cancer Center Hospital in Japan. The females with Stage I adenocarcinomas had a tendency, that was not signif icant, towards a longer survival than the male patients. When subdivided by age into less than 50, between 50 and 70, and more than 70 years-old, the female patients had a tendency, that was not significant, towards a longer survival in each group. In each age group, the ratio of smokers to nonsmokers was higher in the males. The female group of ages 50 to 70 had the best 5-year survival rate. By multiregression analysis, age was found to be the most important factor for improved survival. The results indicate that a hormonal factor in Stage I lung adenocarcinoma does not influence survival.

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Middle ear cholesteatoma is not a genuine tumor but has a remarkable proliferative activity which causes serious destruction of the mastoid bone. In the present study, we used immunohistochemistry with antiproliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) antibody on cholesteatomatous tissues to evaluate the localization of PCNA, as it has been said that PCNA is a very available protein for showing cell proliferative activity. Moderately concentrated PCNA was demonstrated within the germinal basal layer cells of the cholesteatomatous epithelium in three of eight surgical specimens. Furthermore, in one case of very active osteolytic cholesteatoma, PCNA activity was demonstrated in the mesenchymal cells, probably fibroblast-like cells, in direct contact to the destroying mastoid bone lesions. Although the etiology and histopathology of the invasive and proliferative activity of middle ear cholesteatomatous tissues are unclear, this observation suggests that immunohistopathological examination using PCNA antibody might be a useful tool for evaluating bone resorption activity and for establishing the prognosis of various types of cholesteatoma.

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In the oral region, granular cell tumors often occur in the tongue, but rarely in the buccal mucosa. A case of a granular cell tumor in the right buccal mucosa of a 74 year-old female is described. An elastic-hard solid mass about 1 cm in diameter was palpated under the right buccal mucosa. It was well-defined from the proximal tissues and adhered to part of the buccal mucosa. As a result of a biopsy, the diagnosis of a granular cell tumor was made. The tumor was resected together with the surrounding tissues under local anesthesia. Histopathological examination revealed large tumor cells with eosinophilic, PAS-positive fine granules under the hyperplastic epithelium. The granular cells stained negatively with PTAH, but positively with S-100 protein. Electron microscopic observations revealed a number of lysosomes of various sizes and densities within the cytoplasm of the tumor cells.

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To investigate pediatric brain impairment, beta-endorphin levels, one of the opioid peptides that modulate human high cortical functions, were measured in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The study included 19 patients with infantile autism, 3 patients with Rett syndrome, 6 patients with infantile spasms, 16 patients with aseptic meningitis, and 23 age-matched controls. In the control group, the CSF beta-endorphin concentrations were negatively correlated with increasing age. There was no correlation between body temperature and the levels, and no significant difference in the levels according to sex. In infantile autism, the CSF level was not significantly different from that in controls. In Rett syndrome, it was significantly higher, while in infantile spasms it was lower than in controls. In aseptic meningitis, the CSF beta-endorphin level was significantly higher than in controls. The alterations in CSF beta-endorphin levels may play a role in these neurologic disorders and/or in central nervous system (CNS) infections.

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The effects of the benzamide derivatives, (-)-sulpiride, sultopride and nemonapride, on spontaneous and electrically evoked dopamine (DA) release from striatal slices of rats were investigated. Nemonapride at concentrations of 100 nM or higher caused a dose-dependent increase in spontaneous DA release from the slices. (-)-Sulpiride and sultopride had little effect on spontaneous DA release. The electrically evoked DA release was enhanced by (-)-sulpiride at concentrations of 100 nM or higher in the superfusate and reduced by nemonapride at 100 nM or higher. Sultopride caused a small increase in the evoked release of DA. The different activities of these drugs on DA release may account for the different clinical results they produce.

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We measured antibodies to hepatitis C virus (anti-HCV) in patients who were receiving hemodialysis or continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). Sixty seven patients (28%) were anti-HCV positive. The anti-HCV positive frequency increased with the time of treatment with dialysis, the frequency being 50 % with a dialysis period ≥10 years. The frequency of anti-HCV positivity was similar in patients with a history of blood transfusion (48/152, 32%) and in those without this history (19/89, 21%, p>0.05) . Therefore, in addition to blood transfusion, there may be other routes of HCV infection associated with long-term dialysis. Chronic liver disease was observed in 31% (21/67) of the patients positive for anti-HCV but in only 6 % (11/174) of the negative patients (p<0.01). HCV seems to be important as a cause of chronic liver disease in dialysis patients.

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