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The transmittance of diagnostic X-ray beams through concrete of two different densities were measured. Broad-beam X-ray transmissions were estimated using a Monte Carlo simulation at tube voltages of 50-150 kV and compared with National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements (NCRP) data. The observed levels were higher than those predicted by the NCRP data; that is, the NCRP data underestimate the leakage radiation from widely used inverter systems. Some of the issues were resolved and new data were proposed.

The Transporter Classification Database (TCDB), freely accessible at http://www.tcdb.org, is a relational database containing sequence, structural, functional and evolutionary information about transport systems from a variety of living organisms, based on the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology-approved transporter classification (TC) system. It is a curated repository for factual information compiled largely from published references. It uses a functional/phylogenetic system of classification, and currently encompasses about 5000 representative transporters and putative transporters in more than 500 families. We here describe novel software designed to support and extend the usefulness of TCDB. Our recent efforts render it more user friendly, incorporate machine learning to input novel data in a semiautomatic fashion, and allow analyses that are more accurate and less time consuming. The availability of these tools has resulted in recognition of distant phylogenetic relationships and tremendous expansion of the information available to TCDB users.

We consider the task of learning mappings from sequential data to real-valued responses. We present and evaluate an approach to learning a type of hidden Markov model (HMM) for regression. The learning process involves inferring the structure and parameters of a conventional HMM, while simultaneously learning a regression model that maps features that characterize paths through the model to continuous responses. Our results, in both synthetic and biological domains, demonstrate the value of jointly learning the two components of our approach.

The first long pulse production of high power D(-) ion beams has been demonstrated in the JT-60 U negative ion sources, each of which was designed to produce 22 A, 500 keV D(-) ion beams. Voltage holding capability and the grid power loading were examined for long pulse production of high power D(-) ion beams. From the correlation between voltage holding and the light intensity of cathodoluminescence from the Fiber Reinforced Plastic insulators, the acceleration voltage for stable voltage holding capability was found to be less than 320-340 kV where the light was sufficiently suppressed. By tuning the extraction voltage, the grid power loadings in the ion sources were decreased to the allowable levels for long pulse injection without a significant reduction of the beam power. After tuning the acceleration and extraction voltages, D(-) ion beams of 12.5 and 9.8 A were produced at 340 keV with cesium seeding at a rate of approximately 14 microg/s into the ion sources. The pulse duration of these D(-) ion beams was extended step by step, and then was successfully extended up to 18 s without degradation of the negative ion production. The D(-) ion beams were neutralized to yield 3.6 MW D(0) beams by a gas cell, and then injected into the JT-60 U plasma. Further, a slight reduction of D(-) ion beam power allowed the longer injection duration of 21 s at a D(0) beam power of 3.2 MW. The success in the long pulse production of a high power D(-) ion beam shows that negative ion beams can be produced during a few tens of seconds without degradations of negative ion production and the voltage holding in a large Cs-seeded negative ion source.

New 4'-methoxybenzyl-, 4'-methylbenzyl-, benzyl-, 3',5'-difluorobenzyl-, 3',5'-dichlorobenzyl-, and 4'-nitrobenzyl-armed monoazatrithia-12-crown-4 ethers were prepared by the reductive amination of monoazatrithia-12-crown-4 with the appropriate benzenecarbaldehyde in the presence of NaBH(OAc)3. Cold electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and X-ray crystallography show that silver complexes with armed monoazatrithia-12-crown-4 ethers bearing aromatic side arms with electron-donating groups or electron-withdrawing groups are coordination polymers and trimers, respectively. The structures of the silver complexes were strongly dependent on the strength of the CH...pi interactions, which are controlled by substituent effects on the aromatic side arms.

Motivation: The process of transcription is controlled by systems of factors which bind in specific arrangements, called cis-regulatory modules (CRMs), in promoter regions. We present a discriminative learning algorithm which simultaneously learns the DNA binding site motifs as well as the logical structure and spatial aspects of CRMs., Results: Our results on yeast datasets show better predictive accuracy than a current state-of-the-art approach on the same datasets. Our results on yeast, fly and human datasets show that the inclusion of logical and spatial aspects improves the predictive accuracy of our learned models., Availability: Source code is available at http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~noto/crm

Background: The process of transcription is controlled by systems of transcription factors, which bind to specific patterns of binding sites in the transcriptional control regions of genes, called cis-regulatory modules (CRMs). We present an expressive and easily comprehensible CRM representation which is capable of capturing several aspects of a CRM's structure and distinguishing between DNA sequences which do or do not contain it. We also present a learning algorithm tailored for this domain, and a novel method to avoid overfitting by controlling the expressivity of the model., Results: We are able to find statistically significant CRMs more often then a current state-of-the-art approach on the same data sets. We also show experimentally that each aspect of our expressive CRM model space makes a positive contribution to the learned models on yeast and fly data., Conclusion: Structural aspects are an important part of CRMs, both in terms of interpreting them biologically and learning them accurately. Source code for our algorithm is available at: http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~noto/crm.

Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of alpha1-adrenoceptor (alpha1-AR) antagonist monotherapy with combination therapy using alpha1-AR antagonist and anticholinergic agent for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) with storage symptoms as the chief complaint., Methods: In this prospective comparative study, either 25-75 mg/day of naftopidil monotherapy (monotherapy group) or combination therapy using 25-75 mg/day of naftopidil and an anticholinergic agent (10-20 mg/day of propiverine hydrochloride or 2-6 mg/day of oxybutynin hydrochloride; cotherapy group) were administered for 12 weeks to 101 BPH patients with storage symptoms., Results: International prostate symptom score (IPSS) and quality of life (QOL) index improved significantly in both groups, with no marked differences between groups. Maximum flow rate (Qmax) and residual urine volume (RUV) tended to improve in both groups, again with no marked differences between groups. However, median post-therapeutic RUV was significantly worse for the cotherapy group (45.0 mL) than for the monotherapy group (13.5 mL; P = 0.0210). Ratio of patients with increased RUV was also significantly worse for cotherapy (22.9%) than for monotherapy (5.0%; P = 0.038)., Conclusions: Although the anticholinergic dosage was low, the present results suggest that naftopidil monotherapy was as useful as combination therapy of naftopidil and an anticholinergic agent. Therefore, naftopidil is a useful agent as the first choice in BPH patients with storage symptoms.

The applications of interventional radiology (IVR) increasingly are being used in clinical examinations, where they tend to extend examination time. In addition, the risk of occupational exposure necessarily is increasing with this technology. In this study, the dose distributions in a sliced acrylic-acid phantom involving the bore for each irradiation condition were measured using a thermoluminescence dosimeter (TLD). Four patterns of set-up for the fluoroscopy unit were chosen as references for the conditions generally used clinically. Exposure also was measured with dose area product (DAP), and we then calculated the entrance skin dose and effective dose for the patient. The results showed that the effective dose was 7.0 mSv to 8.0 mSv at LAO45 degrees and RAO30 degrees; 100 kV, 2.3 mSv to 3.3 mSv at LAO45 degrees and RAO30 degrees; 80 kV. The effective dose is greatly influenced by the setup of fluoroscopy in IVR. The change in DAP is especially influenced. We found that the relation between DAP and effective dose was corrected with the exponential function. The effective doses were not necessarily less than those of other radiation examinations, and increase. When PCI and TAE are repeated many times in IVR, we propose that the effective dose should be taken into consideration together with the skin dose for dose control management.

Diazahexathia-24-crown-8 (2) has been isolated from the reaction mixture during the preparation of monoazatrithia-12-crown-4 (1). When N-Boc protected bis(2-chloroethyl)amine was employed as a starting material, N-Boc protected monoazatrithia-12-crown-4 (3) and N-Boc protected diazahexathia-24-crown-4 (4) were separated easily. Double-armed diazahexathia-24-crown-8 having two 3',5'-dichlorobenzyl groups (5a) or two 2-phenylethyl groups (5b) were also prepared using reductive amination. The stoichiometry and detailed structures of the Ag+ complexes with and were investigated by 1H NMR titration experiments and X-ray crystallography.

To avoid radiation injury from interventional radiology (IVR), quality assurance (QA) of IVR equipment based on dosimetry is important. In this study, we investigated the usefulness of measuring patient skin dose with a passive integrating dosimeter and water phantom. The optically stimulated luminescence dosimeter (OSLD) was chosen from among various passive integrating dosimeters. The characteristics of the OSLD were compared with a reference ionization dosimeter. The effective energy obtained from the OSLD was compared with that found by the aluminum attenuation method for using the reference ionization dosimeter. Doses and effective energies measured by OSLD correlated well with those of the reference ionization dosimeter. (dose: y=0.971x, r=0.999, effective energy: y=0.990x, r=0.994). It was suggested that OSLD could simultaneously and correctly measure both patient skin dose and effective energy. Patient skin dose rate and effective energy for 15 IVR units of 10 hospitals were investigated using OSLD and a water phantom for automatic brightness control fluoroscopy. The measurement was performed at the surface of a water phantom that was located on the interventional reference point, and source image intensifier distance was fixed to 100 cm. When the 9-inch field size was selected, the average patient skin dose rate was 16.3+/-8.1 mGy/min (3.6-32.0 mGy/min), the average effective energy was 34.6+/-4.1 keV (30.5-42.5 keV). As a result, it was suggested that QA should be performed not only for patient dose but also for effective energy. QA of equipment is integral to maintaining consistently appropriate doses. Consequently, the dosimetry of each IVR unit should be regularly executed to estimate the outline of patient skin dose. It was useful to investigate patient skin dose/effective energy with the passive integrating dosimeter for IVR equipment.

Medical personnel involved in abdominal angiography are exposed not only to direct radiation but also scattered radiation from inspection tables, patients, image intensifiers, and the beam-limiting system (collimator), among others. Japanese standard JISZ4831 prescribes protective coats of at least 0.25 mm lead equivalent, which is the uniform thickness of lead equivalent. The most commonly used protective coats are 0.25 mm Pb, 0.35 mm Pb, or 0.5 mm Pb in thickness. The weight of a typical protective coat is about 3 kg. While some coats weigh up to 6 kg, wearing such heavy coats becomes physically burdensome as inspection time increases. The trade-off between physical burden and protection was considered by analyzing the X-ray intensity distribution and attenuation rate of scattered radiation in each position assumed by the medical staff. In the case of inspections performed at an x-ray tube voltage of 80 kV, it may be possible to reduce the weight of the lead rubber apron by about 33%. Namely, the lead thickness can be reduced uniformly by 0.20 mm Pb at 70 cm and 0.05 mm Pb at 100 cm, when the shielding capability of a 0.25 mm thick Pb layer is accepted as the standard at 40 cm above the gonad position. The same range of permeated X-ray dose for the gonad position may be reduced as well. In the case of 110 kV, when the lead thicknesses are 0.30 mm Pb at 40 cm and 70 cm, and 0.10 mm Pb at 100 cm, it is possible to reduce the weight of the lead rubber apron by about 28%.

Objective: To determine utility of practice of chest computed tomography (CCT) and bone scan (BS) in patients with early-stage hepatoma evaluated for transplantation (LT)., Summary Background Data: Consensus-based policy mandates routine CCT and BS in LT candidates with hepatoma. No data exist either to support or refute this policy., Methods: From January 1999 to December 2002, stages I and II hepatoma patients evaluated at 4 centers were included. Scan interpretation was positive, indeterminate, or negative. Outcomes of evaluation and transplantation were compared between groups based on scans. Total charges incurred were derived from mean of charges at the centers., Results: One hundred seventeen stages I and II patients were evaluated. None had positive scans, 78 had negative, 29 had at least 1 indeterminate, and 10 did not have 1 or both scans. Twelve patients were declined listing, 6 from progression of hepatoma but none from CCT or BS findings. Two listed patients were delisted for progression of the hepatoma. Proportion of patients listed, transplanted, clinical and pathologic stage of hepatoma, and recurrence after LT were similar in groups with negative and indeterminate scans. Indeterminate scans led to 6 invasive procedures, 1 patient died of complications of a mediastinal biopsy, and none of the 6 showed metastases. Charges of $2933 were generated per patient evaluated., Conclusions: Positive yield of routine CCT and BS in patients with hepatoma is very low despite substantial charges and potential complications. CCT and BS performed only when clinically indicated will be a more cost-effective and safer approach.

One of the advantages of MBR is its excellent effluent quality, which is suitable for a wide range of reuse purposes. We investigated the characteristics of MBR effluent and evaluated them based on the Japanese guideline for the reuse of treated wastewater. As the result, MBR effluent showed qualitative coaracteristics that satisfy the requirement except chromaticity for recreational purpose. Further treatment, such as by oxone or activated carbon, will be required to remove the remaining color. MBR shows high removal efficiency of bacteria and other hazardous microorganisms such as Cryptosporidium. We investigated the removal efficiency of virus by MBR using coliphage as an alternative index. The results showed that high removal efficiency for coliphage could be obtained by MBR. The removal mechanism appears to be that coliphage are attached to the activated sludge and thus rejected by the membrane together with activated sludge particles. With regard to the endocrine disrupters, no significant differences were observed between MBR and CAS in the removal of main endocrine disrupters.

Various pharmaceutical companies in Japan are making radioactive drugs available for positron emission tomography (PET) in hospitals without a cyclotron. With the distribution of these drugs to hospitals, medical check-ups and examinations using PET are expected to increase. However, the safety guidelines for radiation in the new deployment of PET have not been adequately improved. Therefore, we measured the shielding effect of a clinical X-ray protector and lead glass against annihilation radiation and gamma rays of (99m)Tc. We then calculated the shielding effect of a 0.25 mm lead protector, 1 mm lead, and lead glass using the EGS4 (Electron Gamma Shower Version 4) code. The shielding effects of 22-mm lead glass against annihilation radiation and gamma rays of (99m)Tc were approximately 31.5% and 93.3%, respectively. The clinical X-ray protector against annihilation radiation approximately doubled the skin-absorbed dose.

We investigated the evolution of transmembrane (TM) topology by detecting partial sequence repeats in TM protein sequences and analyzing them in detail. A total of 377 sequences that seem to have evolved by internal gene duplication events were found among 38,124 predicted TM protein sequences (except for single-spannings) from 87 prokaryotic genomes. Various types of internal duplication patterns were identified in these sequences. The majority of them are diploid-type (including quasi-diploid-type) duplication in which a primordial protein sequence was duplicated internally to become an extant TM protein with twice as many TM segments as the primordial one, and the remaining ones are partial duplications including triploid-type. The diploid-type repeats are recognized in many 8-tms, 10-tms and 12-tms TM protein sequences, suggesting the diploid-type duplication was a principle mechanism in the evolutionary development of these types of TM proteins. The "positive-inside" rule is satisfied in whole sequences of both 10-tms and 8-tms TM proteins and in both halves of 10-tms proteins while not necessarily in the second half of 8-tms proteins, providing fit examples of "internal divergent topology evolution" likely occurred after a diploid-type internal duplication event. From analyzing the partial duplication patterns, several evolutionary pathways were recognized for 6-tms TM proteins, i.e. from primordial 2-tms, 3-tms and 4-tms TM proteins to extant 6-tms proteins. Similarly, the duplication pattern analysis revealed plausible evolution scenarios that 7-tms TM proteins have arisen from 3-tms, 4-tms and 5-tms TM protein precursors via partial internal gene duplications.

Radiation is controlled by the recent revision of the Enforcement Regulations of the Medical Service Law. Law No. 188 prescribes X-ray data for estimating effective dose in the controlled area of a medical facility. For X-ray data such as kerma in air, transmission data are based on NCRP. We compared various X-ray data, and NCRP and Simpkin were compared with law No. 188. Leakage effective doses in a general-purpose radiography room, fluoroscopy room, and X-ray CT room were calculated. All three calculations were below the dose limit for controlled areas, 1.3 mSv/3 months. In the general-purpose radiography room (including fluoroscopy), NCRP and Simpkin underestimated from 1/3 to 1/2 in comparison with law No. 188. In the X-ray CT room, NCRP and Simpkin showed underestimates from 1/2 to 2/3 compared with law No. 188. There were no significant differences between law No. 188, NCRP, and Simpkin, but significant differences were found for individual numerical values. A need for the re-examination of basic data was suggested by the above findings.

An 82-year old man was admitted with dyspnea, productive cough and wheezing. In addition to antibiotics (meropenem trihydrate 0.5 g/day), glucocorticoids (hydrocortisone 1.250 mg, methylpredonisolone 4.250 mg) were administered for the severe bronchospasms. Since his respiratory condition deteriorated, he underwent mechanical ventilation using a muscle relaxant (vecuronium bromide, total dose 776 mg) in combination with high dose glucocorticoid. As his pneumonia improved on the 10th hospital day, we started weaning him from the ventilator. However, we were unable to complete weaning from the ventilator because of prolonged quadriplegia and paralysis of the respiratory muscles. A few days later, myoglobinuria appeared. Electrophysiological examinations suggested the involvement of both neuromuscular junctions and muscles. Muscle biopsy showed rhabdomyolysis. Acute necrotizing myopathy was diagnosed due to high doses of glucocorticoid, muscle relaxant, or both. He required about 3 months to be weaned from the mechanical ventilation, and another 3 months to leave the hospital. Based on our experience, we should consider acute myopathy as an adverse effect of glucocorticoids, muscle relaxants or both in elderly patients who require mechanical ventilation.

A 75-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of high fever and appetite loss. A chest roentgenogram and computed tomographic scans revealed pleural effusion without obvious infitrative or interstitial shadows in both lung fields. Laboratory data showed microhematuria, proteinuria, and telescoped sediment with a moderate increase in C-reactive protein, suggestive of acute glomerulonephritis. Because infectious pleuritis, was initially suspected, the patient was treated with antibiotics. However, her general condition deteriorated, and the right pleural effusion increased. Levels of myeloperoxidase-specific anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (MPO-ANCA) in serum and pleural effusion were markedly elevated, yielding a conclusive diagnosis of MPO-ANCA-related vasculitis, especially microscopic polyangitis (MPA). The Patient was immediately treated treated with prednisolone, cyclophosphamide, and plasma exchange. Several weeks later, her general condition dramatically improved, and the level of MPO-ANCA in serum markedly decreased. In addition, the pleural effusion completely disappeared. Unfortunately, the patient eventually died of opportunistic infections (MRSA-pneumonia and Aspergillus-pneumonia) 6 months after admission. This was a unique case of MPA associated with pleuritis without interstitial pneumonia or alveolar hemorrhage.

Bacterial community structure and the predominant nitrifying activities and populations in each compartment of a three-compartment activated sludge system were determined. Each compartment was originally inoculated with the same activated sludge community entrapped in polyethylene glycol gel granules, and ammonium nitrogen was supplied to the system in an inorganic salts solution at a rate of 5.0 g of N liter of granular activated sludge-1 day-1. After 150 days of operation, the system was found to comprise a series of sequential nitrifying reactions (K. Noto, T. Ogasawara, Y. Suwa, and T. Sumino, Water Res. 32:769-773, 1998), presumably mediated by different bacterial populations. Activity data showed that all NH4-N was completely oxidized in compartments one and two (approximately half in each), but no significant nitrite oxidation was observed in these compartments. In contrast, all available nitrite was oxidized to nitrate in compartment three. To study the microbial populations and communities in this system, total bacterial DNA isolated from each compartment was analyzed for community structure based on the G+C contents of the component populations. Compartment one showed dominant populations having 50 and 67% G+C contents. Compartment two was similar in structure to compartment one. The bacterial community in compartment three had dominant populations with 62 and 67% G+C contents and retained the 50% G+C content population only at a greatly diminished level. The 50% G+C content population from compartment one hybridized strongly with amo (ammonia monooxygenase) and hao (hydroxylamine oxidoreductase) gene probes from Nitrosomonas europaea. However, the 50% G+C content population from compartment two hybridized strongly with the hao probe but only weakly with the amo probe, suggesting that the predominant ammonia-oxidizing populations in compartments one and two might be different. Since different activities and populations come to dominate in each compartment from an identical inoculum, it appears that the nitrification processes may be somewhat incompatible, resulting in a series of sequential reactions and different communities in this three-compartment system.

Background: Although Carbohydrate antigen19-9 (CA19-9) is known to be high of its positive rate in blood in pancreatic cancer, etc., recently there have been scattered of cases of urothelial carcinoma in which elevated CA19-9 levels have been detected in both serum and urine. In this study we determined both urine and serum levels of CA19-9 in order to evaluate their diagnostic role of urinary CA19-9., Materials: A total 82 patients, i.e., 32 with bladder cancer, 4 with renal pelvic/ureteral cancer, 5 with renal cancer, 13 with prostatic cancer, 5 with other malignancies, 10 with prostatic hyperplasia, 6 with urolithiasis, 7 with other benign diseases, served as the subjects of this study., Methods: CA19-9 was determined by EIA method in first-morning urine and serum using a CA19-9 measurement kit (Centocor). Urinary values corrected for the creatinine level in the same sample have been used and are shown as U/mg creatinine (Cr). Urinary CA19-9 and urinary cytology were evaluated in some cases. An immunohistochemical study of CA19-9 for surgical specimens was conducted by the ABC method, using a Histo 19-9 kit (COMPAGNIE ORIS INDUSTRIES S.A.)., Results: The cut-off value for serum levels was 37 U/ml, and urine levels were determined in U/mg Cr with a cut-off value of 100 U/mg Cr. The urinary CA19-9 levels was significantly higher (390.9 +/- 934.1 U/mg Cr) in urothelial cancer than in the control group (91.48 +/- 20.0 U/ mg Cr). In urothelial cancer, grade 1 and grade 2 cases were more sensitive than grade 3 cases and they also tended to be high level, although only 27.8% of urothelial cancer patients showed an elevation of serum CA19-9. CA19-9 was detected in all urothelial cancers which could be studied immunohistochemically. In 8 out of 16 superficial cancers CA19-9 was detected in more than 90% of cancer cells, though there were few CA19-9 positive cells in infiltrating cancers. Urinary CA19-9 was more sensitive than urinary cytology, especially in low grade cancers., Conclusion: The determination of urinary CA19-9 may be a useful tumor marker of urothelial cancer, and especially in low grade cancer it may be useful in diagnosing of them because its urinary level is high and it is more sensitive than urinary cytology.

In 1992, a 49-year-old woman was admitted to the hospital because of exertional dyspnea. Three years earlier sarcoidosis had been diagnosed, and the patient was found to have bilateral hilar lymphadenopathy. The eye, skin, and knee joint were also involved. During the second hospital stay, atrial flutter with advanced A-V nodal block, scattered defects on a 201T1 scintigram, and marked cardiomegaly on chest roentgenogram led to the diagnosis of cardiac sarcoidosis. Signs and symptoms of cardiac failure subsided after placement of an artificial cardiac pacemaker, but the patient still complained of mild muscle weakness in the lower extremities on exertion. 67Ga scintigraphy revealed marked accumulation in the lower extremities, and muscle biopsy of the left gastrocnemius revealed numerous epithelioid cell granulomas with muscle fiber degeneration. Oral corticosteroid therapy was effective. A review of the 24 cases of sarcoid myopathy reported in Japan indicated that the male-to-female ratio is 1:3.8. As compared to patients in whom myopathy led to the diagnosis of sarcoidosis, those in whom myopathy developed after sarcoidosis was diagnosed were (1) relatively older, (2) more likely to have multiple organ involvement, and (3) more likely to have cardiac sarcoidosis. Corticosteroids were beneficial in about three quarters of these 16 cases, who received corticosteroid therapy.

The beta 1 integrin subfamily, alternatively called very late activation antigen (VLA), has been implicated in various cellular functions. In this study, we generated a mAb against the mouse beta 1 subunit (CD29) to examine the functional property of mouse VLA proteins. After immunization with affinity-purified mouse VLA-4 (alpha 4 beta 1), a hamster mAb, HM beta 1-1, was established by screening mAb that reacted with alpha 4-negative neuroblastoma C1300. The antigen defined by HM beta 1-1 was widely distributed in various mouse cell lines and HM beta 1-1 immunoprecipitated a 110-120 kDa protein common to VLA-1 and VLA-6, indicating that HM beta 1-1 recognizes the beta 1 subunit of mouse integrins. We then examined the inhibitory effect of HM beta 1-1 on VLA-dependent cell adhesion and activation. HM beta 1-1 blocked the adhesion of mouse tumor cell lines to extracellular matrix proteins including collagen, laminin and fibronectin. Moreover, splenic T cell proliferation induced by anti-CD3 mAb and allogeneic mixed lymphocyte response were strongly inhibited by HM beta 1-1 in combination with an anti-LFA-1 mAb. We conclude that HM beta 1-1 reactive with mouse CD29 can inhibit VLA-dependent cellular functions and, thus, would be useful for studying the physiological role of beta 1 integrins in vivo.

Advances in recombinant DNA technology and molecular and cellular biology have made it feasible to introduce genes into living cells. The most sophisticated gene transduction methods have bee applied to gene therapy strategies for the potential treatment of genetic diseases. In regard to lung diseases, alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency and cystic fibrosis, the most common hereditary lung disorders in Caucasians, have been targeted for gene therapy. To date, gene therapy studies have been confined to ex vivo strategies for treatment of ADA deficiency with retroviral vectors. However, there are two major obstacles to gene transfer to the bronchial epithelium. First, bronchial epithelium, such as that with ciliated cells, is terminally differentiated, and does not divide rapidly. Second, the complex architecture of the lung precludes replacing the existing bronchial epithelium with cells modified by gene transfer. In the context of these properties of bronchial epithelium, adenovirus vectors have been evaluated for direct introduction of therapeutic genes to bronchial epithelium via the airway in vivo. An in vivo experiment revealed that gene transfer with a replication-deficient adenovirus containing the E. coli lacZ (beta-galactosidase) gene driven by cytomegalovirus promoter (AdCMVlacZ) was 10(4) times more efficient than gene transfer with a plasmid containing the same expression cassette (pCMVlacZ). An experiment based on in vitro data was done to evaluate the distribution of the expression of the exogenous genes transferred by adenovirus vectors. Intratracheal administration of AdCMVlacZ into lungs of experimental animals resulted in a high number of beta-gal-positive epithelial cells in bronchiols, rather than in proximal bronchi. Thus, a replication-deficient adenovirus can be used to transfer exogenous genes to airway epithelial cells in vivo. This technique may be useful in gene therapy for cystic fibrosis. Gene transfer can be thought of as the use of genetic information to modity the milieu of the target organ. In addition, gene transfer may allow the introduction of new genes, or the alteration tion of existing genes in intact animals. Gene transfer could them be used to produce animal models of human lung diseases that are particularly difficult to study.

An 18-year-old unmarried man, who had shown arterial priapism caused by mild perineal trauma sustained during skate-boarding, has been successfully treated by autologous clot embolization at the common penile artery. He was able to have a normal erection and ejaculate 5 d after embolization.

Previous studies have revealed that adhesion molecules are involved in immune responses, such as the interaction between T cells and antigen presenting cells. Recent investigations demonstrated that one of these molecules, integrins, which was concerned with cell-cell adhesion and cell-extracellular matrix proteins, was prominently expressed on lymphocytes and neutrophils in inflammatory diseases. In addition, administration of monoclonal antibodies against integrins in vivo abrogated the inflammatory responses completely in rats. These findings suggest that adhesion molecules are involved in not only immune responses but also in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases. As shown here, integrins also play an important role in the metastasis of small cell lung cancers.

Pigs are frequently used in basic studies of the middle ear because they have a middle ear air cell system which resembles the human mastoid air cell system. However, the morphology of epithelial cells of the middle ear of pigs has not been thoroughly studied. In this study, the morphological features of the mucosal epithelium of the normal porcine middle ear from juveniles to adults were investigated by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The features were compared with the mucosal epithelium of the human middle ear. Macroscopic observation of the resected middle ears showed all normal. The mucoepithelial cells of the normal porcine middle ear consisted of ciliated cells, non-ciliated cells, secretory cells and basal cells. Ciliated cells were distributed most densely in the Eustachian tube and tube orifice of the middle ear cleft, decreasing in number towards the air cell system, where no ciliated cells were found. The distribution of secretory cells was similar to that of ciliated cells, while non-ciliated cells distributed conversely. Ciliated cells of juvenile pigs had 40 to 100 cilia 5 to 6 mu in length and 0.2 to 0.3 mu in thickness and microvilli on the cell surface. On the other hand, pigs 4 weeks old or older, had ciliated cells with 80 to 100 cilia 5 to 8 mu in length and 0.3 to 0.4 mu in thickness. Younger pigs had a smaller range of ciliated cell distribution. The range increased with growth, and rapidly expanded by 2 weeks after birth; then the expansion slowed down to 4 weeks, when the distribution was similar that in maturity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

In previous studies, the morphology of the mucoepithelial cells of the middle ear of normal pigs has been found to be similar to that of humans. In this study, otitis media was induced in 18 ears by transcanal injection of glycerin into the middle ear cleft and morphological changes were investigated by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The mucoepithelial cells of the inflamed porcine middle ear consisted of ciliated cells, non-ciliated cells, secretory cells and basal cells, and the distribution of these cells was similar to that of normal cases. In the inflamed Eustachian tube and middle ear cleft, the epithelial cells were detached, the intracellular junctions ruptured and there was subepithelial thickening in some places. In addition, the cilia were detached or deformed irregularly. On the other hand, ciliated cells, bulging non-ciliated cells, secretory cells and columnar cells were increased in numbers. These features suggested that the muco-ciliary system of the inflamed ears had been stimulated. In the air cell system, however, there were signs of mucoepithelial cell injury, but no evidence suggesting that the muco-ciliary system had been stimulated as in the Eustachian tube or middle ear cleft. The inflammatory changes in the mucoepithelial cells in the Eustachian tube and middle ear cleft gradually returned to normal but in the air cell system, the changes were persistent. Moreover, the signs of mucoepithelial cell injury remained longer when inflammation occurred at a younger age.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

An eighty year-old woman was diagnosed as left ureteral carcinoma and right dysfunctional kidney in 1984. Left partial ureterectomy, partial cystectomy, and left ureterocutaneostomy were performed and her bladder was left behind after the operation. In 1990 (72 months after the operation), she was aware of bleeding from the urethra. A bladder wash was performed, demonstrating malignant cells on cytological examination, and cystoscopy revealed a papillary tumor in the defunctionalized bladder. Total cystectomy was performed and the histological findings of the surgical specimen showed transitional cell carcinoma, grade 2, pTaNoMo. This case shows the need for periodic examinations of the defunctionalized bladder, because renal pelvic and ureteral carcinoma tends to recur in the bladder within two years after operation and because tumors rarely developed in the defunctionalized bladder.

We evaluated enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (Adenoclone) in 253 cases of epidemic keratoconjunctivitis (EKC), pharyngeal conjunctival fever (PCF) and acute conjunctivitis. The clinical diagnosis due to adenoviral ocular infection was 86/114 (75%) in EKC, 26/50 (52%) in PCF and 25/89 (28%) in acute conjunctivitis, Adenoclone was positive only within 7 days after the disease onset. The specificity (87%) and sensitivity (74%) of Adenoclone were confirmed by isolate cell culture. Cases with corneal complication due to adenoviral infection show higher a value than the OD value in Adenoclone and the bulbar conjunctiva is a suitable site to detect adenoviral antigen. In this survey, isolated adnovirus type 4 was recognized in 53%, Ad8 in 14%, Ad3 in 13%, Ad37 in 5%, Ad19 in 2% and non typed Ad in 12%. Clinical findings due to Ad4 showed EKC in 50%, PCF in 30% and acute conjunctivitis in 20% respectively.