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The anti-arthritic effect of NM-3, a new isocoumarin, was examined using a type II collagen-induced arthritis model for human rheumatoid arthritis in DBA/1J mice. NM-3 by oral administration suppressed dose-dependently (2-20 mg/kg/day) not only macroscopic changes such as erythema and swelling of limbs but also histopathologic changes and radiographic changes such as bone lesions. The efficacy of NM-3 was greater than those of disease-modifying anti-rheumatoid drugs (DMARDs), auranofin (40 mg/kg/day) and bucillamine (10 mg/kg/day). NM-3 failed to suppress carageenan-induced edema and to inhibit the activities of inflammation-related enzymes including cyclooxygenase-1 and -2, 5-lipoxygenase and phospholipase A2, suggesting that the mode of anti-arthritic action of NM-3 may be different from those of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs). Since NM-3 inhibits angiogenesis in a mouse dorsal air-sac model, the observed anti-arthritic effect of NM-3 might be partly attributed to the antiangiogenic activity. Thus, NM-3 is a potential orally active therapeutic agent for the treatment of human rheumatoid arthritis.

An iron(III) complex of thiacalix[4]arenetetrasulfonate on a modified anion-exchanger (Fe3+-TCAS(A-500)) has shown high peroxidase-like activity at pH 5 - 6 for the reaction of quinoid-dye formation between 3-methyl-2-benzothiazolinone hydrazone and N-(3-sulfopropyl)aniline in the presence of hydrogen peroxide. Utilizing the peroxidase-like activity of Fe3+-TCAS(A-500) for this reaction, a method using Fe3+-TCAS(A-500) was applied for the spectrophotometric determination of hydrogen peroxide. The calibration curve by the method using Fe3+-TCAS(A-500) was linear over the range from 1 to 10 microg of hydrogen peroxide in a 1 ml sample solution. The apparent molar absorptivity for hydrogen peroxide was 2.4 x 10(4) l mol(-1) cm(-1). which was about 80% of that by peroxidase under the same conditions. This determination method of hydrogen peroxide using Fe3+-TCAS(A-500) was applied for the determination of glucose in diluted normal and abnormal control serum I and II.

A 63-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of cough and slight fever up. A tumor shadow in right S6 and obstructive pneumonia was detected by X-ray and CT. Bronchoscopic study showed that right B6 bronchous was occluded by the tumor and in which malignant cell (squamous cell carcinoma suspect) were detected. Therefore right middle and lower lobectomy was performed. Histological examination of the resected specimen showed that the tumor was composed of poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma and abnormal spindle cell component. Both components of the tumor were mixed each other in part. Immunohistologically, malignant cell of sarcomatous elements were positively stained by vimentin and actine, but was not found such as osteosarcoma or rabdomyosarcoma. He was diagnosed as so-called carcinosarcoma of the lung.

One of the useful and practical methods for solving quantum-mechanical many- body systems is to recast the full problem into a form of the effective interaction acting within a model space of tractable size. Many of the effective-interaction theories in nuclear physics have been formulated by use of the so called box introduced by Kuo et. al. It has been one of the central problems how to calculate the box accurately' and efficiently. Introducing new basis states, the Hamiltonian is transformed to a block-tridiagonal form in terms of submatrices with small dimension. With the transformed Hamiltonian we derive a recursion method of calculating the box non-perturbatively and analytically. The box given in this study corresponds to a non-perturbative solution for the energy-dependent. Hamiltonian interaction which is often referred to as the Bloch-Horowitz or the Feshbach form. The present approach has a possibility of resolving many of the theoretical and practical difficulties encountered in the calculation of effective-interaction and/or Hamiltonian.

A 21 year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of chest and back pain after blunt chest trauma. On admission, consciousness was clear and a physical examination showed labored breathing. Her vital signs were stable, but her breathing gradually worsened, and artificial respiration was started. The chest roentgenogram and a subsequent chest computed tomographic scans revealed contusions, hemothorax of the left lung and multiple rib fractures. A transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) revealed normal left ventricular wall motion and mild mitral regurgitation (MR). TTE was carried out repeatedly, and revealed gradually progressive MR and prolapse of the posterior medial leaflet, although there was no congestive heart failure. After her general condition had recovered, surgery was performed. Intraoperative transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) revealed torn chordae at the posterior medial leaflet. The leaflet where the chorda was torn was cut and plicated, and posterior mitral annuloplasty was performed using a prosthetic ring. One month later following discharge, the MR had disappeared on TTE.

A gene encoding an endo-beta-1,4-glucanase, which is highly resistant to high temperature, protease and surfactant treatment, was isolated from Aspergillus niger IFO31125 and designated as eng1. The deduced amino acid sequence encoded by eng1 showed high homology with the sequence of a not-well-characterized cellulase encoded by eglB which has not yet been shown to be a stable enzyme. To confirm the sequence of the gene encoding the highly stable endo-beta-1,4-glucanase, the cloned gene was expressed in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, in which no cellulase activity was found, and the gene product was purified and subjected to enzymatic characterization. The enzyme retained 56% of the initial activity after 1 h of incubation at 80 degrees C and was stable in the range of pH 3.0-10.0. The optimal temperature for enzyme activity was 70 degrees C and the optimal pH was 6.0. The enzyme was highly protease-resistant and retained more than 80% of the initial activity after protease treatment for 3 d at 40 degrees C. The enzyme was also resistant to various surfactants. From these results, eng1 was confirmed to encode a very stable endo-beta-1,4-glucanase.

Recently, cases of collecting duct carcinoma have been reported which were thought to have arisen from the renal collecting ducts or distal tubuli. We present here a rare case of collecting duct carcinoma mixed with common (conventional) renal cell carcinoma. A 51-year-old man underwent right nephrectomy under the diagnosis of renal tumor. Histochemically, markers for the collecting ducts/distal tubuli, such as peanut agglutinin (PNA) and soybean agglutinin (SBA), were identified in the collecting duct carcinoma as well as on several luminar surfaces of the common renal cell carcinoma. Based on the results of histological, histochemical and chromosomal examinations, we speculated on the histogenesis of this collecting duct carcinoma.

A 16-year-old girl was hospitalized because of anemia and thrombocytopenia in April 1998, and was diagnosed as having AML (FAB:M2). After failure of initial remission induction therapy, she was successfully treated with the MEC regimen as a second-line chemotherapy. On June 22, the first consolidation therapy was started. One week later, the patient developed a high fever with backache. Chest computed tomography (CT) on July 8 showed a 3cm mass lesion adjacent to the thoracic descending aorta in the left upper lobe. She was given fluconazole and antibiotics, and remained in remission. On July 24, the mass lesion changed to a cavitary lesion on chest CT, suggesting a fungal infection, probably aspergillosis. With recovery from neutropenia, the patient became asymptomatic, and fluconazole was changed to itraconazole. On July 27, she suffered sudden, massive hemoptysis and died. Autopsy revealed a localized adhesion between the cavitary lesion and the thoracic descending aorta, and the aortic wall was ruptured at this site. Microscopic examination revealed invasion of mucormycotic hyphae into the wall of the aorta with infiltration of inflammatory cells. The vasa vasorum were occluded by thrombi, in which mucormycotic hyphae were detected.

The microbial biotechnology of amino acids production which was developed and industrialized in Japan have been summarized. The amino acids include L-glutamic acid, L-lysine, L-threonine, L-aspartic acid, L-alanine, L-cysteine, L-dihydroxyphenylalanine, D-p-hydroxyphenyl-glycine, and hydroxy-L-proline.

Neoxanthin, a precursor of the plant hormone abscisic acid, is an allenic xanthophyll recognized as the last product of carotenoid synthesis in green plants. A cDNA for neoxanthin synthase (NSY) was isolated from tomato using a molecular approach based on the mechanistic and structural similarities of NSY to two other closely related carotenogenic enzymes, lycopene cyclase (LCY) and capsanthin-capsorubin synthase (CCS). The identified tomato NSY cDNA (T.NSY) encodes a 56-kDa plastid-targeted protein that when expressed in Escherichia coli, catalyzes the conversion of violaxanthin to neoxanthin. In tobacco leaves that transiently express T.NSY, an increase in neoxanthin content with a concomitant decrease in violaxanthin is observed. NSY is structurally similar to LCY and CCS. However, in Cyanobacteria, the generally accepted progenitor of plastids, both CCS and NSY are absent while LCY is present. LCY catalyzes a simplified version of the reaction catalyzed by NSY and CCS suggesting that these two enzymes were remodeled from LCY during higher plant evolution to create new forms of oxidized carotenoids.

We describe a patient who underwent minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass (MIDCAB), who had previously undergone coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) through a median sternotomy with a left internal mammary artery (LIMA) graft to the left anterior descending artery (LAD) and a right gastroepiploic artery (GEA) graft to the posterior descending artery. MIDCAB was less invasive and was an effective alternative procedure for the second operation. Because the patient had no LIMA or GEA available for a graft because of prior use, we used a saphenous vein graft (SVG) for bypassing from the left subclavian artery to the coronary artery by MIDCAB via a left minithoracotomy. The left subclavian artery was selected as the proximal anastomotic site because this artery was less diseased and was easier to reach. The SVG-to-coronary artery anastomosis was facilitated by firm adhesion between the epicardium and the pericardium, which reduced the motion of the epicardium itself. These results suggest that the procedure is safe and promising in selected cases of redo CABG.

We experienced a 48-year-old man who was diagnosed as having a saccular aneurym of the coronary artery by CAG after an otherwise uneventful percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA). At the time of operation, the aneurysm, measured 15 mm, and arose from the 3rd segment of the right coronary artery. Aneurysmal formation after successful PTCA is not rare and is related to the overinflating balloon. It is necessary to evaluate the coronary artery after PTCA by IVUS. There were no symptoms after the operation and he was discharged at 21th postoperative day.

Tobamoviral vectors have been developed for the heterologous expression of glycoproteins in plants. The rice alpha-amylase gene (OS103) was placed under the transcriptional control of a tobamovirus subgenomic promoter in a RNA viral vector. One to two weeks after inoculation, transfected Nicotiana benthamiana plants accumulated glycosylated alpha-amylase to levels of at least 5% total soluble protein. The 46kDa recombinant enzyme was purified, and its structural and biological properties were analyzed. Post-translational modifications of the secreted protein were compared to rice alpha-amylase expressed in amylolytic strains of Pichia pastoris and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Endo-H analysis revealed that the alpha-amylase was moderately glycosylated in transfected plants and hyperglycosylated in yeast.

The purpose of this study was to observe the incidence of occlusal contact with complete dentures during mastication using a 6-channel telemetry system whose accuracy had been improved. The telemetry system consisted of the transmitter unit and the receiver unit. The transmitter unit was embedded in the lower complete denture. This system detects occlusal contacts by the shift of frequency in 100 kHz. The transmitter allowed 6 channels for the occlusal contacts. The data was telemetered by a time division multiplex communication method. A special switch was designed to measure excursive movement on the occlusal surface. After careful occlusal adjustment, the special switches were inserted in the lower first molars. On the basis of preliminary measurements on a 64-year-old edentulous male, it appears that the width of the gliding on the occlusal surface at the lower first molar was mostly 0.2-1.2 mm and the majority of the excursive movements ended at the centric occlusal position.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate differences between the occlusal contacts of edentulous patients with mandibular implant-supported hybrid dentures opposing maxillary complete dentures and those of patients with conventional maxillary and mandibular complete dentures. Six parameters related to occlusion were measured in the 2 groups (n = 40 for each group) using pressure-sensitive film. The mean values generated by each test group for each parameter were compared using a t test. Pearson's correlation coefficients between occlusal force, age, and time in function were examined. Occlusal force and area in the implant denture wearers were larger than those in the conventional denture wearers. No significant difference was seen in occlusal force balance between the left and right sides. The center of occlusal load in the implant denture wearers was more anterior. The maxillary denture may become more unstable in implant denture wearers. It is suggested that the stability and retention of a maxillary denture be checked and the occlusion be adjusted more frequently in the hybrid denture wearer than in the conventional denture wearer.

An active MR tracking system was implemented on a 0.2 Tesla open MRI system. Interventional devices with receive-only microcoils at their tips were developed and investigated on the scanner. Microcoils having a diameter of about 1 mm and 20 turns were found to provide sufficient signal-to-noise ratios for stable tracking. Positional accuracy and precision were found to be acceptable under practical conditions. Simulation of MR-guided biopsy using biplane images with tracking was performed in a gelatin phantom and dog livers. Successful tracking of catheters with integrated microcoils was also demonstrated in the aorta and IVC of live dogs.

This review summarizes the methods employed to evaluate denture cleansers and makes some suggestions on the methodology of evaluation.More than 20 articles evaluating the efficacy of denture cleansers were compared, and the advantages and disadvantages of each method were evaluated.The results obtained vary depending on the methods used to evaluate the efficacy of denture cleansers, particularly among in vitro and in vivo assays. In addition, it is pointed out that chemical denture cleansers are not as efficacious in clinical use as in the in vitro assay. The uncertainty over efficacy may be caused by nonstandardized methodology and reports of conflicting results.A standardization of the methodology is needed. This should include evaluation of the efficacy of cleansers through both in vivo and in vitro assay methods; standardization of the materials and methods used in studying the efficacy of denture-cleansing regimens; and the examination of not only selected microorganisms from limited surface areas of a denture, but the microorganisms in denture plaque from the whole surface of a denture. It would also be preferable to use methods and/or media that make it possible to not only qualify but also quantify the microbial plaque.

We analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography and radioimmunoassay angiotensin I (Ang I), Ang II, Ang-(1-7), and metabolites in the adrenal, kidney and heart of normotensive female Sprague-Dawley (SD) and transgenic hypertensive [TGR(mRen-2)27] rats carrying the murine Ren-2d renin gene. The monogenetic model of hypertensive rats had significant increases in adrenal Ang II; whereas in the kidney Ang II was unchanged, but Ang I and Ang-(1-7) were significantly lower. Cardiac Ang I, Ang II, and Ang-(2-10) were significantly reduced in transgenic rats, while Ang-(2-7) was increased. In SD and transgenic rats kidney and adrenal angiotensins increased primarily during estrus or proestrus. In female transgenic rats the increased adrenal Ang II and the sustained renal Ang II may contribute to the established phase of hypertension.

A bacterial strain isolated from soil and identified as a Bacillus species produced two endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidases in the culture broth when it was cultivated on medium containing only hen ovomucoid. Almost no production of the enzymes occurred when the bacterium was grown on glucose medium. The two endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidases, named Endo-BI and Endo-BII, were separated and purified to homogeneity by preparative gel electrophoresis after partial purification by column chromatography on DEAE-resins. Endo-BI hydrolysed oligosaccharides of both hen ovalbumin and ovomucoid. In contrast, Endo-BII could act only on oligosaccharides of hen ovalbumin and showed almost no activity towards those of hen ovomucoid. Deglycosylation of hen ovomucoid was performed with the partly purified endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase preparation, with the aid of contaminating beta-N-acetylhexosaminidase. The deglycosylated ovomucoid exhibited no changes in trypsin inhibitory activity but was very unstable to heat treatment in comparison with native ovomucoid. These results suggest that oligosaccharides of ovomucoid have an important role in the stabilization of the protein against heat.

Studies were performed to investigate the association of the body mass index (BMI) with long-term survival of non-diabetic hemodialysis patients who were monitored for up to 12 years.In 116 patients having undergone hemodialysis in 1984, a Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was performed, and a proportional hazard model was applied to calculate the relative risk of mortality in body mass index quintiles.Those patients with BMI of less than 16.9 kg/m2 and more than 23.0 kg/m2 showed lowered survival relative to the patients with BMI of 17.0-18.9 kg/m2. A proportional hazard model revealed that the patients with BMI of less than 16.9 kg/m2 had the highest risk of mortality independent of age, gender, smoking, duration of hemodialysis, serum albumin, blood pressure and urea reduction rate. Those patients with BMI of over 19.0 kg/m2 also had a high risk of mortality which was progressively elevated with increasing BMI. This higher risk of mortality in those patients with high BMI was associated with such atherosclerotic risk factors as low HDL-cholesterol and high total-/HDL-cholesterol ratio. The number of hospitalizations showed a similar trend to mortality in the body mass index quintiles. The survivors lost their body weight slightly but significantly for 12 years, although there were no significant changes in serum albumin and creatinine. Serum albumin, prealbumin and IGF-1 were within normal range in 1996, suggesting that the survivors did not exhibit severe malnutrition.These results suggest that long-term survival could be attained by patients with relatively low BMI who have no serious nutritional problems. Nutritional intervention might be required in the overweight patients, in addition to extremely lean patients.

We describe a 64-year-old man with thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP), transient pure red cell aplasia (PRCA) and thymoma. TTP in this case was thought to be idiopathic and was accompanied by microangiopathic hemolytic anemia. The patient, therefore, had an aplastic crisis due to PRCA. He was treated with peritoneal dialysis, plasma exchange with plasma infusion, red blood cell transfusion, methylprednisolone pulse therapy followed by maintenance dosing with intravenous prednisolone, gamma-globulin, vincristine, and dipyridamol. As a result, the patient's mental disorder, acute renal failure, anemia and thrombocytopenia improved; however, the haptoglobin level remained low. The pathogenesis of PRCA and thymoma indicates that these are immunological disorders often associated with each other. To our knowledge, there are no reports of TTP with transient PRCA and thymoma. Although such a combination is considered relatively rare, this case suggests that there is an immunological contribution to the pathogenesis of the association of these disorders.

This paper presents the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) Interorbit Communication System (ICS) Data Handling Subsystem (DHS), which will be installed on International Space Station (ISS). Since JEM is manned space systems, ICS-DHS had designed to provide 1) two-way link based on the Advanced Orbiting Systems (AOS) recommendations, which were prepared by Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (CCSDS), for multimedia space communications, 2) autonomy to maintain interorbit connection as much as possible and 3) audio, video and Ethernet channels between ground and payload for telescience assistant.

An active MR tracking system was installed in a 0.2 T open-type MRI. Interventional devices with a receive-only microcoil at their tips were newly developed for tracking at 0.2T. The low signal-to-noise ratio at 0.2T required the microcoils to have a diameter of about 2 mm and 20 turns for stable tracking. Simulation of MR-guided biopsy using biplane images with tracking in the gelatin phantom was performed. MR tracking in the aorta and IVC of a dog by a catheter with a microcoil at its tip was successful.

The rnfABCDE genes in Rhodobacter capsulatus are essential for diazotrophic growth under illuminated conditions. They locate near fdxN gene whose product is a major electron donor to nitrogenase. Since disruption of rnf genes conferred metronidazole resistance under pseudo-diazotrophic conditions and two of the rnf products, RnfB and RnfC, are supposed to hold iron-sulfur clusters, the genes are expected to encode some ferredoxin reductase. Because most of rnf products are highly hydrophobic it is hypothesized that rnf products constitute a membrane protein complex. In this study, we have 1) experimentally investigated their presence at chromatophore membranes, 2) made a prediction of enzymatic function and 3) collected data that the rnf products also serve for nitrogen fixation in darkness and that their homologs present in non-diazotrophs.

The neutron drip line determination up to fluorine has been performed by projectile fragmentation of a 94.1AMeV 40Ar beam at the fragment separator RIPS at RIKEN. A new neutron-rich isotope 31F has been observed for the first time while clear evidence for the particle instability of 25N and 28O has been obtained. The sudden change of stability from oxygen to fluorine may demonstrate the onset of a deformation for the neutron-rich fluorine isotopes.

Hypertension is one of important causes of impairment in renal function. Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) remains stable while renal blood flow (RBF) declines in patients with long-term essential hypertension, resulting in an increased filtration fraction. Myogenic response of afferent arterioles and tubuloglomerular feedback to maintain RBF and GFR and sodium homeostasis can be impaired in salt-sensitive hypertension, whereas they are relatively normal in essential hypertension and its rat model. Position of pressure-natriuresis curve is shifted to the right without alteration in the slope of the curve in essential (non-salt-sensitive) hypertension, whereas the slope is significantly decreased in salt-sensitive hypertension, such as nephritis-related hypertension and diabetic nephropathy because of decreased ultrafiltration coefficient and increased sodium reabsorption.

This study evaluated the efficacy of a new occlusal analysis system (Dental Prescale System) composed of pressure-sensitive sheets and a computer for analysis for complete denture wearers. In the laboratory portion of the study, the system registered values that were greater than the actual applied loads (mean 6.3 +/- 10.6 N). Clinical measurements of five parameters related to the analysis of occlusion were made using two groups: 50 wearers of nonadjusted complete dentures and 50 wearers of adjusted prostheses. An error discrimination rate of 16% resulted between the two groups. This system is capable of measuring occlusal pressure at every contact point and can be considered a useful method for occlusal analysis and patient screening.

The reactions of 1-seleno-2-silylethenes 1 with highly electrophilic tricarbonyl-substitued olefins in the presence of Lewis acids have been investigated. The reaction of 1-(phenylseleno)-2-(trimethylsilyl)ethene (1a) with tris(alkoxycarbonyl) olefins 2 or 1,1-bis(alkoxycarbonyl)-2-acyl olefins 3 in the presence of ZnBr(2) at -30 degrees C gave cis-substituted cyclopropanes exclusively. The origin of the cis stereochemistry is ascribed to the synclinal addition path of the ZnBr(2)-coordinated electrophilic olefin to 1. Application of the highly functionalized selenium- and silicon-substituted cyclopropane products to the preparation of a useful synthetic intermediate 20 for the pyrethroid class of insecticides is also demonstrated.

Cytogenin (8-hydroxy-3-hydroxymethyl-6-methoxyisocoumarin) is a new microbial product with antitumor and antirheumatoid arthritis effects in vivo when administered orally, although its mechanism(s) of action is not known well. Both neoplasia and rheumatoid arthritis are referred to as angiogenesis-dependent diseases. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of cytogenin on both physiological and pathological angiogenesis, using the growing chick embryo chorioallantoic membrane and mouse dorsal air sac assay systems, respectively. The microbial product at doses up to 100 micrograms/egg did not significantly affect embryonic angiogenesis when topically placed on the surface of the chorioallantoic membrane, suggesting that it has no effect on the physiological (or normal) angiogenic response. By contrast, systemic administration of cytogenin (100 mg/kg p.o., for 5 consecutive days) significantly suppressed angiogenesis induced by malignant tumor cells (S-180), one of pathological neovascularization, in a mouse dorsal air sac assay system. Pharmacokinetic studies in mice revealed that the maximal concentration of cytogenin in plasma after a single 100 mg/kg oral dose of the compound was 32 microM. In vitro experiments involving cultured vascular endothelial cells showed that cytogenin at concentrations determined by pharmacokinetic study, had little effect on plasminogen activator secretion, tube formation and the proliferation of endothelial cells. These results suggest that cytogenin is a novel oral antiangiogenic agent, that the mechanism of its antiangiogenic action contributes to its suppressive effects on both tumor growth and rheumatoid arthritis that we previously found, and that it could be developed as a potential therapeutic agent for cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and other angiogenesis-dependent disorders such as diabetic retinopathy.

We analyzed 119 patients with cervical carcinoma treated by postoperative radiotherapy from 1983 to 1993. Five- and 10-year survival rates of all patients were 77% and 67%, respectively. The 10-year survival rates for stage I (54 patients) and stage II (65 patients) were 76% and 58%, respectively. Ten-year survival rate for patients with both deep stromal invasion and lymph node metastasis was 37% which was much lower than in those without them (more than 90 %), indicating that they seemed to be factors related to poor prognosis. The results of multivariate analysis showed that the number of metastatic lymph nodes was the most important prognostic factor. Leg edema and intestinal and urinary insufficiency as late complications of postoperative radiotherapy occurred at low incidences and were well tolerated.

The effect of two dietary sugars, glucose and galactose, on biofilm formation of the oral fungal pathogen Candida on denture acrylic strips coated with saliva and serum pellicles was examined in vitro using Candida albicans (3 isolates), C. glabrata (2 isolates) and C. tropicalis (2 isolates). The degree of biofilm activity was affected by both the dietary sugar and the nature of the pellicle (ANOVA, p0.01). With most isolates the glucose grown yeasts demonstrated significantly more bioflim activity than the galactose grown fungi, in the presence of pellicles (ANOVA, p0.01 or P0.01). In contrast, one isolate of galactose-grown yeast elicited significantly higher biofilm activity than glucose-grown yeasts on the control strips (ANOVA, p0.01). Taken together, these results imply that a saliva or a serum pellicle, and the carbon source in the environment, act a complex manner modulating Candida bioflim formation.

The correlation between oblique sagittal T2-weighted images and oblique coronal T2-weighted images was determined in 86 patients who had symptoms and signs suggesting rotator cuff tears. Abnormal high signal lesions suggesting full and partial thickness tear of the supraspinatus tendon were observed on the oblique coronal images in 20 and 27 of 86 patients, respectively. The oblique sagittal images showed the lesions just the same as the oblique coronal images. In the other 39, abnormal high signal lesions were not observed on oblique coronal images or on oblique sagittal images. The oblique sagittal images were proved not useful to detect tears of the supraspinatus tendon. However, the oblique sagittal T2-weighted images showed posterior extension of high signal lesions and clarified abnormal high signal lesions near the long head of the biceps tendon in two patients. These results suggested that oblique coronal images should always be taken at the first step to identify supraspinatus tendon tear, and oblique sagittal images can be taken as an adjust to the former images.

We report a new and simple optical fiber backreflectance method for accurate measurement of either focal lengths of optical elements or short distances by the spatial location of three specific points: the focal point and two object points.

The solid-state laser crytsal with waveguide structure has several advantages over bulk one due to the optical confinement which leads to the low-threshold and efficient oscillation. Among various solid-state laser media, neodymium doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd: YAG) waveguide has strong potential for application to diode-pumped waveguide lasers1,2) and is also an ideal candidate for integrated optoelectronics applications such as Q-switched microchip lasers3,4) which can be realized by monolithically combining their waveguide lasers with other optical components (e. g. Cr YAG thin film) on the same substrate. Thus, the possibility of fabricating YAG thin films with waveguide structure on various substrates will widen their applications in the fields of integrated optics.

A simple and highly sensitive fiber-optic autocollimation method for refractive-index dispersion measurement of solid-state and liquid optical materials is presented, based on the use of single-pass fiber Raman laser which generates a white-light (0.42-1.01 µm) continuum spectrum.

gamma-Glutamyltranspeptidase [EC 2.3.2.2] of Escherichia coli K-12 consists of one large subunit and one small subunit, which can be separated from each other by high-performance liquid chromatography. Using ion spray mass spectrometry, the masses of the large and the small subunit were determined to be 39,207 and 20,015, respectively. The large subunit exhibited no gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase activity and the small subunit had little enzymatic activity, but a mixture of the two subunits showed partial recovery of the enzymatic activity. The results of native-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis suggested that they could partially recombine, and that the recombined dimer exhibited enzymatic activity. The gene of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase encoded a signal peptide, and the large and small subunits in a single open reading frame in that order. Two kinds of plasmid were constructed encoding the signal peptide and either the large or the small subunit. A gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase-less mutant of E. coli K-12 was transformed with each plasmid or with both of them. The strain harboring the plasmid encoding each subunit produced a small amount of the corresponding subunit protein in the periplasmic space but exhibited no enzymatic activity. The strain transformed with both plasmids together exhibited the enzymatic activity, but its specific activity was approximately 3% of that of a strain harboring a plasmid encoding the intact structural gene. These results indicate that a portion of the separated large and small subunits can be reconstituted in vitro and exhibit the enzymatic activity, and that the expressed large and small subunits independently are able to associate in vivo and be folded into an active structure, though the specific activity of the associated subunits was much lower than that of native enzyme. This suggests that the synthesis of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase in a single precursor polypeptide and subsequent processing are more effective to construct the intact structure of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase than the association of the separated large and small subunits.

The carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is the most frequent clinical symptom of dialysis-related amyloidosis. We examined CTS by ultrasound imaging and correlation between CTS and bone amyloidosis was sought. One hundred and forty-two wrists of 71 hemodialysis (HD) patients and 28 of 14 normal volunteers (group 1) were studied. Patients on HD were divided into 4 groups based on HD duration: Group 2, less than 5 years; group 3, 5-10 years; group 4, 10-15 years; and group 5, more than 15 years. The frequency of CTS increased gradually with HD duration: 0% in group 2, 35.3% in group 3, 36.4% in group 4 and 74.1% in group 5. The thickness of the palmar radiocarpal ligament (PRL), corresponding to the posterior wall of the carpal tunnel was significantly greater in groups 4 (p0.05), and 5 (p0.05) than in group 1 (2.25 +/- 1.30 and 3.11 +/- 1.02 in group 4 and 5 vs 1.15 +/- 0.34 mm in group 1); and the width of the carpal tunnel (CT) was significantly larger in group 5 than in group 1 (6.92 +/- 1.78 in group 5 vs 5.53 +/- 1.48 mm in group 1, p0.05). Wrists operated on for CTS had significantly increased PRL and CT compared to the control group and patients without CTS. Patients with CTS had wider PRL than the control and HD patients without CTS. Cystic radiolucent lesions (CRL) of carpal bones characteristic of bone amyloidosis were noted in 15 of 71 HD patients. The thickness of PRL and width of CT in HD patients with CRL exceeded those in patients without CRL. These data indicated that ultrasonographic findings of wrists were closely correlated with the degree of CTS and CRL. The usefulness of ultrasonographic evaluation of PRL thickness and CT width in the evaluation of dialysis-related amyloidosis should be evaluated.

Chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis is a chronic disorder that primarily affects the renal tubules and interstitium while sparing the glomeruli and vasculature. Although there are variable underlying causes, 10% to 25% of the cases of chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis are entirely idiopathic. A thorough search for the underlying causes of chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis is especially important because to avoid or to correct such underlying causes may prevent progression or even allow for some reversal of renal failure. Thus, diagnosis of idiopathic form of chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis is carefully made after the exclusion of potential underlying causes. The major pathologic features of idiopathic chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis are 1) interstitial fibrosis, 2) tubular atrophy and 3) infiltration of the parenchyma with mononuclear inflammatory cells. Of these three features, the extent of interstitial fibrosis is significantly correlated with decreased glomerular filtration rate and progression rate of renal failure. Idiopathic chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis seems to be slowly progressive and develop to end stage renal failure. Since there is no specific treatment for idiopathic chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis, avoidance and correction of exacerbation factors are essential for progression to renal failure. It is acceptable that protein-restricted diet be applied to idiopathic chronic tubulointerstitial nephritis although its effects on the disease still remain equivocal.

Copper-containing monoamine oxidase (EC 1.4.3.6) from Escherichia coli is a periplasmic enzyme containing topa quinone in addition to divalent copper as a cofactor. The amino acid sequence of E. coli monoamine oxidase was compared to several cloned amine oxidase genes and five well-conserved histidine residues were found. Site-directed mutagenesis studies were performed to determine which histidine residue serves as the binding Ligand to the copper. Enzyme activity, absorption spectrum, and atomic absorption spectrophotometry of the mutant enzymes indicated that histidines 470, 554, and 556 are the copper binding ligands. The absorption spectra of phenylhydrazine derivatives suggested that copper is necessary for topa quinone formation.

gamma-Glutamyltranspeptidase [EC 2.3.2.2] of Escherichia coli K-12 is thought to be synthesized from a single precursor polypeptide into a heterodimeric form through post-translational processing. Cells of a gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase-overproducing transformant of E. coli K-12 were fractionated and the localization of the enzyme was examined by Western blot analysis. The periplasmic fraction only contained the mature form of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase, membrane fraction only contained the precursor of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase, and no precursor of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase was detected in the cytoplasmic fraction. Amino acid residues at the cleavage site for processing into the large and small subunits were substituted by site-directed mutagenesis. The processing phenotypes of six mutants were examined by Western blot analysis, and their gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase activities were measured. Mutations at the N-terminal amino acid residues of the small subunit (Thr-391, Thr-392, and His-393) prevented the maturation of the enzyme and the immature mutants exhibited no enzymatic activity. A mutation at the C-terminal residue of the large subunit (Gln-390) had less effect on the processing and enzymatic activity. These results suggest that the sequence of threonyl-threonyl-histidinyl residues at the N-terminal of the small subunit is very important for the processing of E. coli K-12 gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase and this processing is essential to the expression of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase activity of E. coli K-12.