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C Inoue

Publications and source records attributed to C Inoue.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Evidence for two sets of structural genes coding for ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase in Thiobacillus ferrooxidans.

Previously, we reported the cloning of the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase genes (rbcL1-rbcS1) of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans Fe1 (T. Kusano, K. Sugawara, C. Inoue, and N. Suzuki, Curr. Microbiol. 22:35-41, 1991). With these genes as probes, a second set of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase genes (rbcL2-rbcS2) was identified in the same strain and cloned. rbcL1 and rbcL2 encode the large subunits, and rbcS1 and rbcS2 encode the small subunits. Similar restriction patterns between these gene sets suggested a high level of sequence homology. In fact, sequence analysis showed that a 2.2-kb region, including the entire large and small subunit structural genes, was totally conserved in rbcL1-rbcS1 and rbcL2-rbcS2. The rbcL1 (rbcL2) and rbcS1 (rbcS2) genes were 1,422 and 333 bp in length and encoded 473- and 110-amino-acid proteins, respectively. The genes were separated by a 90-bp spacer sequence and were preceded by possible ribosome-binding sites. The N-terminal amino acid sequences of the subunit proteins, synthesized in Escherichia coli, were determined by Edman degradation and found to agree with the deduced amino acid sequences, except for the N-terminal methionine residue. The transcriptional start site of the rbc genes was determined by primer extension, and the size of the rbc transcript was estimated to be about 2.1 kb, suggestive of the cotranscription of rbcL1-rbcS1 and/or rbcL2-rbcS2 mRNAs. Comparisons of amino acid sequences of both subunits with those of other organisms revealed that the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase of T. ferrooxidans, a chemoautotrophic bacterium, is phylogenetically closer to the photosynthetic bacterium Chromatium vinosum than to another chemoautotrophic bacterium, Alcaligenes eutrophus.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Successful treatment of hemosiderosis with regular phlebotomy and recombinant human erythropoietin. Case report and ferrokinetic studies.

A 55-year-old female patient with hemosiderosis induced by administration of excessive doses of parenteral iron was successfully treated with regular phlebotomy combined with recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO). Ferrokinetic data before therapy showed 28.0 mumol/l of serum iron, 4.1 mumol/l of unsaturated iron-binding capacity, 4,060 ng/ml of serum ferritin, 148 min of plasma iron disappearance time, 45% of red cell iron utilization and 0.4 mg/kg/day of plasma iron turnover rate. She had 300-ml phlebotomies, first every other week then weekly, and subcutaneous injections of rHuEPO twice a week. Two years later, the total volume of phlebotomized blood reached 31 liters and her ferrokinetic data showed: serum iron 8.6 mumol/l, iron-binding capacity 39.6 mumol/l, serum ferritin 277 ng/ml, plasma iron disappearance time 52 min, red cell iron utilization 100% and plasma iron turnover rate 0.5 mg/kg/day. During the phlebotomy therapy, her hemoglobin levels were maintained above 12 g/dl. No adverse effect due to rHuEPO occurred. These findings provide evidence for the efficacy of rHuEPO in multiple phlebotomy therapy for hemosiderosis and may open new avenues for its clinical application.

Bloodletting↗
PubMed1991

[Myelodysplasia predominantly involving in megakaryocytic lineage successfully treated with low-dose Ara-C].

A 17 year old male was admitted because of pancytopenia. Bone marrow aspiration revealed myelodysplasia, no increase of blast cells and excessive expansion of megakaryocytic lineage. Although mild increase of bone marrow reticulin fiber was observed, no hepatosplenomegaly was recognized. Therefore he was diagnosed as refractory anemia (RA) or MDS with myelofibrosis and treated with low dose Ara-C regimen. Remission was achieved in June 1987, but the relapse occurred in Oct. 1987. His bone marrow at the relapse showed more remarkable dysplastic change than before. Sequential bone marrow examinations thereafter, revealed an increase of megakaryocytic lineage, especially immature dysplastic megakaryocytes, leading to the appearance of the abnormal megakaryoblasts (detected with anti GP IIb/IIIa antibody) as well as uncharacterized blast cells in his terminal stage. Transformation from MDS to megakaryocytic leukemia was strongly suggested. He died of severe pneumonia in March 1989. The invasion of abnormal immature megakaryocytic cells including megakaryoblasts was observed in liver, spleen and lymph nodes at autopsy. There are several reports on cases having a common hematological features such as 1) pancytopenia in peripheral blood, 2) myelodysplasia, 3) excessive growth of megakaryocytic lineage, 4) myelofibrosis without hepatosplenomegaly, although other clinical features were different. We propose all these cases should be reviewed at the point of MDS mainly involved in megakaryocytic lineage.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

[Sweet's syndrome with pregnancy].

A 31-year-old pregnant woman had eruptions on her wrist, face and neck. We diagnosed her as having Sweet's syndrome from clinical symptoms, histopathological and laboratory findings. We successfully treated her with prednisolone and there are no relapses after delivery. We studied her polymorphonuclear leukocyte activity by the polarization assay with N-formyl-methionyl-leucyl-phenylalanine as a chemoattractant and it is higher than that of control. It is known that Sweet's syndrome is accompanied with collagen diseases and malignant diseases or others as underlying diseases or conditions. Three cases of Sweet's syndrome associated with pregnancy have been reported before and this is the first one in Japan.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Thiobacillus ferrooxidans mer operon: sequence analysis of the promoter and adjacent genes.

The merA upstream nucleotide (nt) sequence (1378 bp) of the Hg2(+)-resistance-encoding gene system (mer) in Thiobacillus ferrooxidans, was determined. The region contains two open reading frames: unidentified reading frame 1 (URF1) and merC. URF1 has 63-73% homology with those of Tn501, R100 and pDU1358, although the corresponding product has not yet been identified. Thiobacillus merC had 61% and 55% homology with R100 merC at the nt and amino acid (aa) sequence levels, respectively, and its product, consisting of 143 aa, was highly hydrophobic. No sequence homologous to merR, merT. merP or merD of R100 were observed on either strand. Within the 70-100-bp sequence upstream from the merC start codon. there was a sequence highly homologous to the promoter of merT of other Gram- mer systems. From primer extension and Northern-blot analyses, it became clear that merC and merA were co-transcribed from this putative transcription start point. The mer transcript in T. ferrooxidans was only detected in Hg2(+)-induced cells. Therefore, it was concluded that the T. ferrooxidans mer system is an inducible operon.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1990

Nucleotide sequence determination of mouse, chicken and Xenopus laevis rig cDNAs: the rig-encoded protein is extremely conserved during vertebrate evolution.

Mouse, chicken and Xenopus laevis homologues to rig (rat insulinoma gene) cDNA were isolated and their nucleotide sequences were determined. Each homologue encoded a 145-amino acid protein; the amino acid sequence remained invariant in the murine and avian genes, and there were only 6 amino acid substitutions in the salientian gene. The evolutionary rate calculated for rig mRNA was sufficiently low to be viewed as evidence that rig is vital to vertebrate species. Southern blot analysis indicated that haploid sets of the mammalian genomes contain several copies of rig or rig-related sequences, whereas there appeared to be only one copy in the amphibian and bird genomes. The possibility that rig belongs to the class of housekeeping genes is discussed.

Adenoma, Islet Cell↗
PubMed1990

Response of leukemic cells to the sequential combination of GM-CSF and G-CSF.

We designed two experiments using delayed stimulation by granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) or granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) with colony-type analysis in order to elucidate the characteristics of factor-dependent proliferation and differentiation of leukemic progenitor cells. Eight patients with acute myelogenous leukemia showing non-autonomous colony growth were selected. Three of the six cases showed that delayed addition of G-CSF to agar culture initiated by GM-CSF had no influence on the type and number of colonies; whereas, delayed addition of GM-CSF to G-CSF resulted in additional GM colonies. These findings were the same for normal bone marrow progenitors. In two cases, granulocytic colonies markedly increased with delayed addition of G-CSF to GM-CSF. Synergism occurred in one case where GM-CSF was used first. In the next experiment, regardless of whether CSF was used during the 48 hour preincubation, subsequent colony types were affected by the CSF used in agar culture. But colony numbers increased 1.5 fold in two of six cases by preincubation with GM-CSF, and 1.2 to 1.7 fold in all normal cases by preincubation with G-CSF. These results suggest that although there is a great heterogeneity in the response to CSF, some leukemic progenitors act like normal progenitors.

Colony-Stimulating Factors↗
PubMed1990

Patchy haemopoiesis in long-term remission of idiopathic aplastic anaemia.

13 patients with idiopathic aplastic anaemia in remission for more than 2 years were examined to define the haemopoietic status by means of bone marrow scintigraphy, ferrokinetics and bone marrow culture for haemopoietic progenitor cells. Haemoglobin levels reached the normal range in all these patients although mild neutropenia and thrombocytopenia were still observed in 5 patients. Bone marrow scintigrams using indium-111 showed normal distribution in 2, diffuse low accumulation in 3, patchy distribution in 7, and expanded distribution with patchy uptake in 1 patient. The defective haemopoiesis was also confirmed by ferrokinetic and bone marrow culture studies. The patchy haemopoiesis appears to characterize the residual marrow damage in remission of idiopathic aplastic anaemia.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Constitutive synthesis of a transport function encoded by the Thiobacillus ferrooxidans merC gene cloned in Escherichia coli.

Mercuric reductase activity determined by the Thiobacillus ferrooxidans merA gene (cloned and expressed constitutively in Escherichia coli) was measured by volatilization of 203Hg2+. (The absence of a merR regulatory gene in the cloned Thiobacillus mer determinant provides a basis for the constitutive synthesis of this system.) In the absence of the Thiobacillus merC transport gene, the mercury volatilization activity was cryptic and was not seen with whole cells but only with sonication-disrupted cells. The Thiobacillus merC transport function was compared with transport via the merT-merP system of plasmid pDU1358. Both systems, cloned and expressed in E. coli, governed enhanced uptake of 203Hg2+ in a temperature- and concentration-dependent fashion. Uptake via MerT-MerP was greater and conferred greater hypersensitivity to Hg2+ than did uptake with MerC. Mercury uptake was inhibited by N-ethylmaleimide but not by EDTA. Ag+ salts inhibited mercury uptake by the MerT-MerP system but did not inhibit uptake via MerC. Radioactive mercury accumulated by the MerT-MerP and by the MerC systems was exchangeable with nonradioactive Hg2+.

Biological Transport↗
PubMed1989

Nucleotide sequence of the Thiobacillus ferrooxidans chromosomal gene encoding mercuric reductase.

The nucleotide sequence of the Thiobacillus ferrooxidans chromosomal mercuric-reductase-encoding gene (merA) has been determined. The merA gene contains 1635 bp, and shares 78.2% and 76.6% sequence homology with the transposon, Tn501, and plasmid R100 merA genes, respectively. From the sequence, a 545-amino acid (aa) polypeptide was deduced, and comparison with those of Tn501 and R100 revealed 80.6% and 80.0% homology, respectively, at the aa sequence level. Divergence among the three merA aa sequences was clustered within a specific region (aa positions 41-87). By analysis of codon usage frequency, it is speculated that the T. ferrooxidans merA gene originated from Tn501, R100, or a common ancestral gene, but not from T. ferrooxidans itself.

Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans↗
PubMed1989

Nicotinamide prolongs survival of primary cultured hepatocytes without involving loss of hepatocyte-specific functions.

When hepatocytes isolated from adult rats were cultured in the presence of 10 mM nicotinamide, insulin- and epidermal growth factor-induced DNA synthesis and cell proliferation were found to be greatly stimulated, and the cells were able to be kept alive for more than one month. In the nicotinamide-treated hepatocytes, albumin and tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase mRNAs were present at much higher levels than in the untreated control, and the inducibility of tryptophan oxygenase gene expression by dexamethasone and glucagon was also preserved. Without nicotinamide, primary cultured hepatocytes were viable for only 5-7 days and the hepatocyte-specific phenotypes were rapidly lost. The intracellular NAD level was maintained in the nicotinamide-treated hepatocytes at or above the level in intact liver but depleted in hepatocytes without nicotinamide. These results suggest that the maintenance of the intracellular NAD level is essential for the growth and functioning of hepatocytes and that nicotinamide can preserve the NAD level by blocking NAD degradation as well as by acting as a precursor for NAD synthesis.

Albumins↗
PubMed1989

Cloning and expression of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans mercury ion resistance genes in Escherichia coli.

A search of various domestic isolates of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans revealed that some were fairly resistant to mercury ion. A proportion of mercury-resistant clones were able to volatilize mercury, and their corresponding gene was localized not in the plasmid DNA but in chromosomal DNA. This mercury ion resistance gene was cloned in Escherichia coli. E. coli carrying the recombinant plasmid was able to grow in the presence of more than 40 micrograms of HgCl2 per ml. Deletion analysis of the recombinant plasmid showed that the entire coding sequence of the mercury ion resistance gene was located within a 2.3-kilobase fragment of the chromosomal DNA from strain E-15. At least two polypeptides (molecular mass, 56 and 16 kDa, respectively) were coded by this fragment.

Bacterial Proteins↗
PubMed1989

[Salvage chemotherapy with a combination of VP-16, ifosfamide, procarbazine, prednisolone, bleomycin and methotrexate (VIPP-BM) for refractory malignant lymphoma].

Twenty patients with refractory malignant lymphoma were treated with a combination of VP-16, ifosfamide, procarbazine, prednisolone, bleomycin and methotrexate (VIPP-BM) as salvage chemotherapy. These patients were either resistant to front-line therapy or refractory in their relapses. Two patients (10%) achieved a complete remission and eleven patients (55%) attained a partial remission. An overall response rate was 65%. Major toxicities were myelosuppression, nausea and vomiting, and mucositis. However they were well tolerated. This regimen has been effective in the treatment for the patients with refractory lymphoma.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

Breathing 30 per cent oxygen attenuates bronchial responsiveness to methacholine in asthmatic patients.

The effect of breathing 30% oxygen on bronchial responsiveness to inhaled methacholine was studied in 30 asthmatic patients using a direct graphical recording method. An aerosol of methacholine solution was inhaled during tidal breathing by measuring respiratory resistance (Rrs) continuously, and dose-response curves were obtained on two separate days during air and 30% oxygen inhalation. Oxygen inhalations for 20 min caused no change in baseline Rrs. The threshold dose of methacholine, the dose which increased Rrs from the baseline value while breathing 30% oxygen, increased significantly compared with that while breathing air (p less than 0.01). No significant difference was found between the mean values of the slopes of the dose-response curves of the two groups. End-expiratory oxygen concentration (FETO2) during air breathing decreased significantly from 13.7% to 12.0% at the point where methacholine dosage reached threshold. This study suggests that hyperoxia attenuates the bronchial responsiveness to methacholine in asthmatic patients.

Adolescent↗