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Background: Strains of Streptococcus mutans expressing the cell surface collagen-binding protein, Cnm, encoded by cnm (cnm-positive S. mutans), are associated with hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) and the occurrence of cerebral microbleeds (CMBs). Small diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) hyperintensities in patients with acute ICH are also associated with CMBs. However, the association between cnm-positive S. mutans and DWI hyperintensities is unclear. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the association between cnm-positive S. mutans and DWI hyperintensities in patients with acute ICH., Methods: Patients with acute ICH were prospectively registered at three hospitals. Dental plaque specimens were collected within 4 days after admission, and cnm-positive S. mutans was detected using the polymerase chain reaction. Magnetic resonance imaging at 14 ± 5 days after admission was used to evaluate DWI hyperintensities and CMBs., Results: A total of 197 patients were enrolled in this study. cnm-positive S. mutans was detected in 30 patients (15.2%), and DWI hyperintensities were observed in 56 patients (28.4%). Patients with cnm-positive S. mutans had a higher frequency of DWI hyperintensities (50.0% vs 24.6%; p = 0.008) and a higher number of CMBs (5.5 vs 1.5; p < 0.001) than those without cnm-positive S. mutans. Multivariable logistic analysis revealed that the presence of cnm-positive S. mutans was independently associated with DWI hyperintensities (OR 2.38; 95% CI 1.01-5.61; p = 0.047) after adjusting for several confounding factors., Conclusion: This study found an association between the presence of cnm-positive S. mutans and DWI hyperintensities in patients with acute ICH., (© 2021 European Academy of Neurology.)

Pentazocine has been found to be measurable with much higher sensitivity by gas chromatography (GC)/surface ionization (SI) organic mass spectrometry (OMS) than by the conventional GC/electron ionization (EI) mass spectrometry. The compound was extracted from human whole blood and urine with Sep-Pak C(18) cartridges before analysis by GC/SIOMS; recoveries were > 96.6% for both samples. The calibration curves were linear in the range 6.25-100 ng ml(-1) and the detection limits were 500 pg ml(-1) of a sample by selected ion monitoring (SIM) with GC/SIOMS. The intra- and inter-day relative standard deviations for the determination of pentazocine in whole blood and urine were not greater than 9.6%. The sensitivity for pentazocine obtained by SI-SIM was about 60 times higher than that obtained by EI-SIM. To validate the present GC/SIOMS method for pentazocine, whole blood and urine samples collected from two volunteers 1-6 h after intramuscular injection of 15 mg of pentazocine were analyzed. The concentrations were 13.5-59.3 ng ml(-1) for whole blood and 0.39-4.00 microg ml(-1) for urine., (Copyright 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

Background: Proliferation, apoptosis, and angiogenesis are essential for carcinogenesis. Little is known regarding the relation between proliferation, apoptosis, and angiogenesis in untreated prostate carcinoma as well as alterations associated with androgen ablation., Methods: Eighty patients who underwent radical prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate carcinoma were recruited for the study. The study population included 2 groups: 35 patients receiving 3-month neoadjuvant hormonal treatment using a combination of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analogue and the antiandrogen flutamide (NHT group) and 45 patients without prior treatment (non-NHT group). The authors measured the Ki-67 labeling index (Ki-67 LI) by MIB-1 immunohistochemistry, the apoptotic index (AI) by the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP biotin nick end labeling technique, and intratumoral microvessel density (IMVD) by CD31 immunohistochemistry on serial sections of formalin fixed, paraffin embedded tissues. Correlations among these parameters were examined in both groups., Results: A significant decrease in the Ki-67 LI coupled with a significant increase in AI was found in the NHT group compared with the non-NHT group, whereas IMVDs in both groups were not significantly different. AI was related to IMVD inversely in the non-NHT group (correlation coefficient [r] = -0.327; P = 0.03); in contrast, AI was related to IMVD positively in the non-NHT group (r = 0.579; P < 0.001). The Ki-67 LI was related to AI significantly in the non-NHT group but not in the NHT group. There was no correlation between Ki-67 LI and IMVD in either group., Conclusions: Correlations between proliferation, apoptosis, and angiogenesis in prostate carcinoma are altered significantly in association with androgen ablation. The results indicate that spontaneous apoptosis is suppressed by neovascularization, whereas hormone-induced apoptosis is enhanced in hypervascular tumors.

The pharmacokinetics of tamsulosin hydrochloride in patients with renal impairment were compared with those in healthy volunteers, and the factors that influenced plasma levels of tamsulosin were elucidated. A single oral dose of 0.2 mg of tamsulosin was given and blood and urine samples were obtained for 36 hours after administration. Unbound plasma concentration of tamsulosin was measured by a combination of equilibrium dialysis and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry methods to examine the effect of protein binding on the pharmacokinetics of tamsulosin. Mean values for maximum concentration (Cmax) and area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) of total drug (Cmax,t and AUC1) in patients with renal impairment were 73% and 211% greater, respectively, than those in healthy volunteers. Mean Cmax and AUC of unbound drug (Cmax,u and AUCu), however, were almost the same in the two groups. A high correlation was found between alpha 1-acid glycoprotein (alpha 1-AGP) concentration and AUCt, but no correlation was found between alpha 1-AGP concentration and AUCu,0-36) or between creatinine clearance (ClCR) and AUCu,0-36). These results show that in patients with renal impairment, the pharmacokinetics of tamsulosin are affected by the change in protein binding that is associated with alteration of plasma alpha 1-AGP concentration, but are not largely affected by the decrease in the renal excretion. Although total tamsulosin levels increased as plasma protein binding increased, unbound tamsulosin levels (which are directly associated with the pharmacologic effects) remained unchanged in these patients.

The authors investigated the influences of recombinant human growth hormone (rh-GH) on rat urinary bladder carcinogenesis induced with N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl) nitrosamine (BBN). Rats belonging to the control group (Group I, n = 19) were given 0.05% BBN in drinking water for 9 weeks, and the bladder was excised on the 22nd week after the initiation of BBN administration and inspected. All animals developed visible tumors in the bladder. The mean number of tumors per bladder was 11.26 +/- 5.21, and the mean total volume of tumors per bladder was 126.1 +/- 212.7 microliters. In all but one of the experimental groups (Group V) and in the control group, all animals developed visible tumors in the bladder. When 0.5 units of rh-GH was injected subcutaneously once a week from the week 1 through the week 6 (Group II; n = 20), the mean number of tumors and mean total volume of the tumors were 12.15 +/- 6.59 and 206.6 +/- 318.0 microliters, respectively. When the administration period of rh-GH was changed to between week 7 through the week 12 (Group III; n = 19), the mean number of tumors and mean total volume of the tumors were 16.95 +/- 7.07 and 204.5 +/- 317.7 microliters, respectively. When rh-GH was administered from the week 13 through the week 18 (Group IV; n = 19), the respective values were 16.79 +/- 10.75 and 213.4 +/- 274.6 microliters. In Group V (n = 19), which received only rh-GH from week 1 through the week 6, no tumors were detected. There were statistically significant differences in the mean tumor numbers between Groups I and III, Groups I and IV, and Groups II and III. The mean volume of individual tumor was the greatest in Group II, although the differences were not statistically significant in comparison with the other groups. Histologically, all tumors were transitional cell carcinoma in every group. There were no statistically significant differences in distributions of tumor stage and tumor grade between any groups. These findings suggest that rh-GH enhances the promotion of carcinogenesis of chemically induced rat urinary bladder cancer. It will be necessary to elucidate whether this effect of rh-GH is expressed by the somatostatin hypothesis of GH action, its direct action, or some other mechanisms.