Search

PTB-like protein (PTBLP) is a new homologue of pyrimidine tract binding protein (PTB), and has been cloned as a possible autoantigen in cancer-associated retinopathy. PTBLP has two functional domains, the nuclear localization signal and the RNA recognition motifs (RRMs). Full-length PTBLP (PTBLP-L) has four RRMs, and its alternative splicing product (PTBLP-S) lacks the third and fourth RRMs. Although PTBLPs are expressed in neuronal tissues, the function of PTBLPs has not been determined. We have studed whether PTBLP plays a role in neuronal differentiation using PC12 cells. During the process of nerve growth factor-induced neuronal differentiation of PC12 cells, PTBLP-L was down-regulated whereas PTBLP-S was up-regulated. Transfection of PTBLP-L into PC12 cells led to the suppression of neuronal differentiation. In PTBLP-S transfected cells, however, this suppression was not evident. When both PTBLP-L and PTBLP-S were co-transfected, the suppressive effect of PTBLP-L decreased. In differentiated cells, PTBLP-S localized in the nucleus and PTBLP-L was found dispersed throughout the cytoplasm and neuronal growth cone. These findings suggest that PTBLP-L acts as a negative regulator of neuronal differentiation and PTBLP-S acts as a competitor of PTBLP-L. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents titles of papers published in the 2004 Japanese editions of the "Journal of the Textile Machinery Society of Japan", the "Journal of the Society of Fiber Science and Technology," and the "Journal of the Japan Research Association for Textile End-Uses." "Effect of Weave Pattern on Estimation Surface Height of Yarn in Fabrics," by Ikeguchi Tatsuharu, Ohta Kouichi, Tsuduki Hidenori and Okamura Masaaki; "Structural Changes of Hair Keratin by Reduction, Heat and Subsequent Oxidation Treatments," by Satoshi Ogawa, Sumi Tokuda, Kazuki Fujii, Katsumi Kaneyama and Kyohei Joko; "Consideration of a Form of Arm-Hole Lines," by Tamiko Yamada, Hitoshi Akami and Haruki Imaoka.

The Editors-in-Chief of I Current Eye Research i wish to acknowledge the contributions of the following peer reviewers for Volume 44, 2019: Liu, Chia-Yang Liu, Yang Woo, Kyung In Yoon, Kyung-Chul. [Extracted from the article]

The article presents a list of reviewers for the journal's Volume 43 issue including Monica Acosta, Jennifer Acton and Nikhat Ahmed.

Abstract: Objective: This multicenter cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the clinical features and varieties of non-motor fluctuation in Parkinson''s disease (PD). Methods: To identify motor and non-motor fluctuation, we employed the wearing-off questionnaire of 19 symptoms (WOQ-19) in 464 PD patients. We compared the frequency of levodopa-related fluctuation as identified by the WOQ-19 with recognition by neurologists. We compared patients with both motor and non-motor fluctuations with those who only had motor fluctuations. Non-motor fluctuations were separated into psychiatric, autonomic, and sensory categories for further analysis. Results: The patients'' average age was 70.8 ± 8.4 years (mean ± SD) and disease duration was 6.6 ± 5.0 years. The frequency of motor fluctuations was 69% and for non-motor fluctuation 40%. Fifty-three percent of patients with motor fluctuations also had non-motor fluctuations, whereas 93% of patients with non-motor fluctuations also had motor fluctuations. The WOQ-19 showed a sensitivity of 82% but a specificity of only 40%. The patients with both non-motor and motor fluctuations exhibited more severe motor symptoms, more non-motor symptoms and higher levodopa daily doses (p < 0.05). Patients had significantly higher fluctuation rates if they had psychiatric (49%) and sensory (45%) symptoms than patients with autonomic symptoms (32%, p < 0.01). Forty-eight percent of patients with non-motor fluctuations exhibited more than one type of non-motor fluctuation. Conclusion: Forty percent of PD patients presented with non-motor fluctuations, and almost half of these exhibited more than one type. Appropriate recognition of levodopa-related fluctuations, both motor and non-motor, can lead to treatment modifications in PD patients. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

People that the author would like to thank for their assistance in the creation of the book are mentioned, including Huban Atilla and Rene Cano.

REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is known to be observed more frequently in patients with an α-synucleinopathy such as Parkinson's disease (PD) than in the general population. The precise prevalence of RBD in Japanese PD patients is not known. Therefore, we investigated the prevalence and the clinical characteristics of patients with RBD in a large population of Japanese patients with PD. We investigated various clinical features and employed the Japanese version of the RBD screening questionnaire on 469 non-demented Japanese PD patients in this multicenter study. Probable or possible RBD was detected in 146 patients (31.1%) and was significantly associated with longer PD duration, higher Hoehn and Yahr stage, higher Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale part III subscale (7 items), more motor fluctuations, and a higher levodopa-equivalent daily dose ( p < 0.01). As to the major autonomic dysfunctions, severe constipation was significantly more frequent in PD patients with RBD than in those without it ( p < 0.01). The RBD symptoms of 53 patients (39.0%) preceded the onset of PD motor symptoms. The median interval from the onset of RBD symptoms to PD motor symptoms was 17.5 years, and 3 patients had intervals of over 50 years. This large-scale multicenter study revealed that RBD is a frequent non-motor symptom in Japanese patients with PD, which may precede the onset of motor symptoms. Moreover, RBD that increases with the duration and severity of PD may be associated with autonomic dysfunction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The aim of this work was to investigate the prevalence of camptocormia and the clinical characteristics of patients with camptocormia in a large population of PD patients. Background: Although camptocormia has been recognized as a prominent phenomenon in PD, the previous epidemiological reports were limited, especially in terms of sample size. Methods: We evaluated 531 PD patients (disease duration: 7.0 ± 5.5 years, mean ± standard deviation). We examined their clinical features and the prevalence of camptocormia. Results: Camptocormia was detected in 22 patients (4.1%) and found in patients who were older and had more severe motor symptoms and a higher levodopa ( L-dopa) dose ( P < 0.05), compared to the patients without camptocormia. Patients with camptocormia showed significantly higher frequencies of autonomic symptoms, such as constipation and urinary incontinence ( P < 0.05). Conclusions: Camptocormia is uncommon in PD and is associated with disease severity, higher L-dopa dose and higher frequencies of autonomic symptoms. © 2011 Movement Disorder Society [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Background: Some encephalitides or seizure disorders once thought idiopathic now seem to be immune mediated. We aimed to describe the clinical features of one such disorder and to identify the autoantigen involved. Methods: 15 patients who were suspected to have paraneoplastic or immune-mediated limbic encephalitis were clinically assessed. Confocal microscopy, immunoprecipitation, and mass spectrometry were used to characterise the autoantigen. An assay of HEK293 cells transfected with rodent GABAB1 or GABAB2 receptor subunits was used as a serological test. 91 patients with encephalitis suspected to be paraneoplastic or immune mediated and 13 individuals with syndromes associated with antibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 were used as controls. Findings: All patients presented with early or prominent seizures; other symptoms, MRI, and electroencephalography findings were consistent with predominant limbic dysfunction. All patients had antibodies (mainly IgG1) against a neuronal cell-surface antigen; in three patients antibodies were detected only in CSF. Immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry showed that the antibodies recognise the B1 subunit of the GABAB receptor, an inhibitory receptor that has been associated with seizures and memory dysfunction when disrupted. Confocal microscopy showed colocalisation of the antibody with GABAB receptors. Seven of 15 patients had tumours, five of which were small-cell lung cancer, and seven patients had non-neuronal autoantibodies. Although nine of ten patients who received immunotherapy and cancer treatment (when a tumour was found) showed neurological improvement, none of the four patients who were not similarly treated improved (p=0·005). Low levels of GABAB1 receptor antibodies were identified in two of 104 controls (p<0·0001). Interpretation: GABAB receptor autoimmune encephalitis is a potentially treatable disorder characterised by seizures and, in some patients, associated with small-cell lung cancer and with other autoantibodies. Funding: National Institutes of Health. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

An essential eukaryotic DNA polymerase, DNA polymerase δ(pol δ), synthesizes DNA processively in the presence of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). Recently, a 66 kDa polypeptide (p66) that displays significant homology within its PCNA binding domain to that of fission yeast cdc27 was identified as a component of mouse and calf thy-mus pol δ. Our studies show that p66 interacts tightly with other subunits of pol δ during size fractionation of human cell extracts, and co-immunoprecipitates with these sub-units along with PCNA-dependent polymerase activity. Active human pol δ could be reconstituted by co-expressing pl25, p50, and p66 recombinant baculoviruses, but not by co-expressing pl25 and p50 alone. Interaction studies demonstrated that p66 tabilizes the association between pl25 and p50. Pull-down assays with PCNA-linked beads demonstrated that p66 increases the overall affinity of pol 8 for PCNA. These results indicate that p66 is a functionally important subunit of human pol 8 that stabilizes the pol 8 complex and increases the affinity of pol δ for PCNA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research is being conducted on regional personal computer (PC) communication network systems to provide convenient and cost-effective PC communication services to local home users and small companies. A group communication service was proposed that offers connectionless communication to registered users via an Ethernet interface on the customers' premises. An experimental system was developed and tested. This paper presents a newly developed multiplex-port brouter that can accommodate a large number of subscribers and evaluates its performance. The system configuration and brouter architecture are also described. The configuration and function of custom LSIs that perform high-speed HDLC coding and decoding are presented. A measurement scheme that simulates multiple PC accesses is shown. The brouter performance is evaluated using PCs connected via a subscriber network system. © 1999 Scripta Technica, Electron Comm Jpn Pt 1, 82(8): 13–21, 1999 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Some encephalitides or seizure disorders once thought idiopathic now seem to be immune mediated. We aimed to describe the clinical features of one such disorder and to identify the autoantigen involved.Methods: 15 patients who were suspected to have paraneoplastic or immune-mediated limbic encephalitis were clinically assessed. Confocal microscopy, immunoprecipitation, and mass spectrometry were used to characterise the autoantigen. An assay of HEK293 cells transfected with rodent GABA(B1) or GABA(B2) receptor subunits was used as a serological test. 91 patients with encephalitis suspected to be paraneoplastic or immune mediated and 13 individuals with syndromes associated with antibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 were used as controls.Findings: All patients presented with early or prominent seizures; other symptoms, MRI, and electroencephalography findings were consistent with predominant limbic dysfunction. All patients had antibodies (mainly IgG1) against a neuronal cell-surface antigen; in three patients antibodies were detected only in CSF. Immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry showed that the antibodies recognise the B1 subunit of the GABA(B) receptor, an inhibitory receptor that has been associated with seizures and memory dysfunction when disrupted. Confocal microscopy showed colocalisation of the antibody with GABA(B) receptors. Seven of 15 patients had tumours, five of which were small-cell lung cancer, and seven patients had non-neuronal autoantibodies. Although nine of ten patients who received immunotherapy and cancer treatment (when a tumour was found) showed neurological improvement, none of the four patients who were not similarly treated improved (p=0.005). Low levels of GABA(B1) receptor antibodies were identified in two of 104 controls (p<0.0001).Interpretation: GABA(B) receptor autoimmune encephalitis is a potentially treatable disorder characterised by seizures and, in some patients, associated with small-cell lung cancer and with other autoantibodies.Funding: National Institutes of Health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intensity and decay time of a near-band-edge photoluminescence (PL) of a Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) thin film grown on a Mo/soda lime glass (SLG) substrate decreased with air exposure time, showing the degradation of the CIGS film surface. The dependence of Mo sputtering conditions on intensity and decay time of PL was studied in CIGS films deposited on Mo/SLG substrates. The Mo/SiO2 (20 nm)/SLG substrate was used to control Na diffusion during CIGS deposition. Intensity and decay time of PL with time in air changed depending on the Mo-film sputtering temperature and pressure. Based on the secondary ion mass spectroscopy, the in-depth profile of Na in the CIGS film is correlated with those of H and O, which depended on the Mo-film sputtering condition and air exposure time. The degradation of the CIGS film in view of PL is discussed in terms of the Na close to the CIGS surface, which reacted with O2 and H2O. CIGS solar cells were examined in relation to Mo sputtering conditions and the SiO2 sodium barrier. The control of Na diffusion was found to be important for both reducing the rate of CIGS film surface degradation and the realization of a CIGS solar cell with a uniform PL intensity image. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]