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Volume 192 (2000)
- Issue 4 Pages 239-
- Issue 3 Pages 165-
- Issue 2 Pages 99-
- Issue 1 Pages 1-
Volume 192, Issue 3
November
Displaying 1-7 of 7 articles from this issue
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Regular Contributions
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Mieko Sato, Masaaki Suzuki, Takeshi Oshima, Masaki Ogura, Akira Shimom ...2000 Volume 192 Issue 3 Pages 165-172
Published: 2000
Released on J-STAGE: March 29, 2005
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSObstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is characterized by recurrent apneas during sleep, resulting in repetitive hypoxemia. The present study retrospectively analyzed subjective and objective assessments of the patients with OSAS in a relatively long-term follow-up. From February 1986 to August 1996, 53 patients received surgical treatment for OSAS and snoring. Thirty-seven (27 males and 10 females) out of 53 patients completed the questionnaire and postoperative sleep study was obtained in 6 patients. In 20 children (<15 years), snoring, sleep apnea, and daytime sleepiness completely disappeared in 12, 19, and 16, and improved in 8, 1, and 4, respectively. These findings confirm that tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy in children may be the first selection for treatment. In 17 adults, snoring, sleep apnea, and daytime sleepiness completely disappeared in 2, 5, and 8, improved in 11, 8, and 7, and was unchanged in 4, 4, and 1, respectively. The apnea index in adults was significantly decreased in both early and late postoperative periods. These results suggest that surgery is a satisfactory alternative for adult patients if performed accurate preoperative diagnosis of the localization of the airway collapse and careful long-term follow-up.View full abstractDownload PDF (487K) -
Yasuhiro Watanabe, Yukio Sawaishi, Hitoshi Tada, Etsuko Sato, Toshio S ...2000 Volume 192 Issue 3 Pages 173-180
Published: 2000
Released on J-STAGE: March 29, 2005
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSWe encapsulated marker genes, pRSV-lacZ or pRSV-luc, in immunoliposomes conjugated with antibody targeting laminin B2 in the basal lamina of myotubes. The immunoliposomes were incubated with matured non-proliferating myotubes differentiated from C2C12 myoblasts. We then evaluated the efficiency of gene transfection by measuring luciferase activity and β-galactosidase staining. The immunoliposomes conjugated with the antibody specific for myotubes were three times as efficient as control immunoliposomes conjugeted with an antibody not specific for myotubes. However, the efficiency was no more than that by the cationic liposomes without the antibody. These results suggest that laminin B2 is not effective in enhancing the efficiency of gene transfection for non-proliferating myotubes. A specific antibody for surface antigen other than laminin B2 should be chosen in further studies.View full abstractDownload PDF (1352K) -
Teruyuki Yanagisawa, Takeya Sato, Hiroaki Yamada, Jun Sukegawa, Kazuo ...2000 Volume 192 Issue 3 Pages 181-193
Published: 2000
Released on J-STAGE: March 29, 2005
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe selectivities, potencies and efficacies of β3-adrenoceptor (β3-AR) agonists on human three β-AR subtypes expressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells were investigated using radioligand binding assay and cyclic AMP (cAMP) accumulation assay. The three β-AR subtypes showed the nature of G protein-coupled receptors with the constitutive activity. BRL37344, CL-316, 243 and a newly synthesized β3-AR agonist N-5984, 6-[2-(R)-[[2-(R)-(3-chlorophenyl)-2-hydroxyethyl]amino]propyl]-2, 3-dihydro-1, 4-benzodioxine-2-(R)-carboxylic acid, were compared for the potency and selectivity for the β3-AR. In the radioligand binding assay, the affinity of N-5984 for β3-ARs was 14, 70 and 220 times more potent than those of BRL37344, isoproterenol and CL-316, 243, respectively. N-5984 had higher selectivity than BRL37344 for human β3-ARs compared with either for β1-ARs or β2-ARs. N-5984 showed higher potency and intrinsic activity of cAMP production than BRL37344 in CHO cells expressing the β3-ARs. CL-316, 243 had almost no activity of cAMP production in CHO cells expressing any subtype of β-ARs. These results indicate that N-5984 is the most potent and selective agonist for human β3-ARs than any other agonists tested.View full abstractDownload PDF (758K) -
Kyoko Miura, Seiichiro Himeno, Nori Koide, Nobumasa Imura2000 Volume 192 Issue 3 Pages 195-210
Published: 2000
Released on J-STAGE: March 29, 2005
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSInhibition of the growth of nerve fibers by mercurials was quantitatively estimated by measuring the length of fibers in the cultured chick dorsal root ganglion. Morphological changes in nonneuronal cells were also evaluated. The growth rates of nerve fibers were constant for 2 to 6 days after the start of incubation. Methylmercury depressed nerve fiber growth dose- and time-dependently by 50% and completely at 3×10−6 M and 7×10−6 M, respectively. About 10-fold higher concentrations of inorganic mercury were required for the same extent of inhibition. The nerve fibers exposed to inorganic mercury shrank at an early stage of exposure and thereafter grew again within 24 hours. Electron microscopic examination revealed that methylmercury decreased microtubule mass extensively in nerve fibers, while inorganic mercury markedly altered surface membrane structure. These results suggested that microtubule disruption is involved in methylmercury-induced depression of nerve fibers but not in that induced by inorganic mercury. Characteristic effects on the growth of nerve fibers and the proliferation of nonneuronal cells were observed on the treatment with other metals such as cadmium, silver and chromium. Thus, dorsal root ganglion culture seems to be useful for the evaluation of toxic effects of metals in vitro.View full abstractDownload PDF (3045K) -
Short-Term Effects of Prednisolone on Neuromuscular Transmission in the Isolated Mdx Mouse DiaphragmTakayasu Fukudome, Noritoshi Shibuya, Toshiro Yoshimura, Katsumi Eguch ...2000 Volume 192 Issue 3 Pages 211-217
Published: 2000
Released on J-STAGE: March 29, 2005
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSTo determine the mechanism of the beneficial effects of prednisolone on Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), we examined the short-term effects of prednisolone on neuromuscular transmission by using conventional microelectrode methods in the mdx mice. High (56 μmol/liter) and low (2.8 μmol/liter) concentrations of prednisolone were applied to a bath containing phrenic nerve-diaphragm preparations from mdx mice, and several parameters related to neuromuscular transmission were recorded. The high dose of prednisolone significantly decreased parameter n on quantal release by nerve impulse and decay time-constant of end-plate potentials, which showed adverse effect on neuromuscular transmission. The low dose of prednisolone did not significantly increase quantal content, but could assist the compensatory reaction to maintain the safety margin of neuromuscular transmission in the mdx mice. Our results suggest that the latter effect represents one of the possible mechanisms of the therapeutic effects of prednisolone on DMD.View full abstractDownload PDF (427K) -
Ahmet Belce, Ezel Uslu, Mine Kucur, Meltem Umut, Ali Ipbüker, H. ...2000 Volume 192 Issue 3 Pages 219-225
Published: 2000
Released on J-STAGE: March 29, 2005
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSIn this study, our aim was to determine whether or not type 1 diabetes mellitus affects salivary sialic acid level and SOD activity. For this purpose, unstimulated saliva specimen was collected. Saliva sialic acid level and SOD activity were measured by the methods of Warren and Sun, respectively. We found significantly decline in salivary sialic acid level and SOD activity. The decrease of salivary sialic acid level in type 1 diabetes may be due to changes in the activities of the enzymes taking part of in the synthesis and catabolism of sialic acid. The main reason for the decrease of salivary SOD activity may be increased glycation of the enzyme and/or deleterious effect of increased free oxygen radicals by glycated proteins on SOD activity in diabetes. We conclude the decline both in sialic acid and SOD in saliva may be a possible factor leading to oral complications of diabetes mellitus.View full abstractDownload PDF (438K) -
Yousuke Takemura, Yutaka Sakurai, Yutaka Inaba, Nobuo Kugai2000 Volume 192 Issue 3 Pages 227-237
Published: 2000
Released on J-STAGE: March 29, 2005
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSSeveral researchers have investigated the relationship between physical activity and coronary risk factors. Little is known about the strength of the relationship between physical activity and each coronary risk factor. The aim of this study is to determined the strength of the relationship between leisure or recreational physical activity and selected coronary risk factors. The subjects were 781 male Japanese office workers who underwent an annual physical examination in 1999, including interview about the type and frequency of their leisure or recreational physical activities, other lifestyle questionnaire, and biological measurement. We calculated a physical activity index (PAI) for each subject. To investigate the strength of the relationship between PAI and each coronary risk factor, we carried out multiple regression analysis. Smoking habit, log triglycerides, self-rating depression scale (SDS) score, alcohol habit and left ventricular hypertrophy were significantly related to the physical activity (partial R2: 0.031, 0.018, 0.016, 0.0092, 0.0075, respectively). Smoking habit was the strongest determinant of the physical activity. Furthermore, we found the inverse relationship between SDS score and physical activity independently.View full abstractDownload PDF (680K)
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