PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

J Morikawa

Publications and source records attributed to J Morikawa.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Connection of atopic disease in Japanese patients with juvenile dermatomyositis based on serum IgE levels.

Serum IgE levels of 22 patients with juvenile dermatomyositis (JDMS), 44 normal children, and 43 patients with adult dermatomyositis were compared. The geometric mean of serum IgE levels was significantly higher in the juvenile patients when compared with normal children (p < 0.01) and adult patients (p < 0.01). Of the 22 patients with JDMS, 11 (50%) had elevated serum IgE levels accompanied by atopic disease. Dermatomyositis was accompanied by atopic dermatitis (AD) in 9 (41%) of these 22 patients, a high prevalence when compared with reports among the general population. Following the appearance of muscular symptoms in JDMS patients with AD, the ratio of OKT4 to OKT8 cells rose due to a reduction in the percentage of OKT8-positive cells, along with further elevations in serum IgE levels and intractable cutaneous manifestations of dermatomyositis. All this may be a result of an interaction between the immuno-mechanism of this disease and that of AD. We suspect that, in general, children with impaired cell-mediated immunity, presenting with such symptoms as AD, may have a higher tendency for developing JDMS.

Adolescent↗

Characterization of recombinant human neuron-specific enolase and its application to enzyme immunoassay.

Human gamma-enolase cDNA prepared by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction was cloned into the Escherichia coli expression vector pKK223-3. The resulting plasmid, pHTK503, expressed human gamma-enolase as a 46-kDa protein in SDS-PAGE, and in the cells as the active gamma gamma form (designated as recombinant human NSE; R-NSE). R-NSE was purified from E. coli by several chromatographic elutions. Finally, 6.0 mg of R-NSE from 8.1 g cells was purified with a specific activity of 86 units/mg protein. The structural properties of R-NSE were compared with the NSE purified from human brain tissue (B-NSE). The biochemical and enzymatic characteristics were essentially the same, except for the isoelectric point (4.5 for B-NSE and 4.7 for R-NSE). In an NSE immunoassay system, R-NSE and standard NSE were almost equal in reactivity to the anti-NSE antibody. These results indicate that R-NSE can be used as standard assay material.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Analysis of bites on three-dimensional vectorcardiography after coronary artery ligation in dogs.

The serial changes in the QRS loops of vectorcardiograms were investigated following ligation of a branch of the left anterior descending artery (LAD) by the three-dimensional rotation method in 18 dogs. Concave inflections of the QRS loop, defined as "bites," were best delineated when the loop was viewed from a left cranial or right caudal direction. Bites appeared 48 +/- 8 minutes after LAD ligation in all of the dogs, and their development was closely related to the temporal changes in the % sigma R and QRS point score on a standard 12-lead electrocardiogram. Q waves were not observed on the electrocardiograms in 9 dogs. In the remaining 9, they appeared 117 +/- 18 minutes after LAD ligation. The bite duration, area, and amplitude were compared with the anatomical extent of the infarcts. A significant positive correlation was found between bite duration and infarct size. The detection of bites on the three-dimensionally rotated vectorcardiogram appears to have a high sensitivity for anterior myocardial infarction and could potentially become a useful diagnostic tool.

Animals↗

[Early duodenal cancer of the bulb--report of a case].

A 70-year-old woman was referred for an evaluation of evidence indicating occult bleeding found in the feces and epigastralgia. Radiologic and endoscopic examinations disclosed a duodenal polyp at the bulb. A pathological examination of a biopsied specimen revealed a well-differentiated adenocarcinoma. The patient underwent a gastrectomy and an extensive duodenectomy, and the surgical specimen examined indicated a pedunculated polyp (1.0*2.0) at the duodenal bulb which, histologically, consisted of two distinct parts: one, a tubular adenocarcinoma, and the other, non-tumorous tissue. Most of the lesion was the former, whereas the latter was found at the bottom and at the stalk of the polyp, and consisted of hyperplastic foveolar structures with gastric type cells and pyloric type glands. The histological findings of the mucosa, which was clearly duodenal around the root of the polyp, indicated that the carcinomatous portion was confined to the mucosal layer. These findings indicate that the adenocarcinoma in this case originated from a duodenal polyp composed of aberrant gastric mucosa. Also included in this study is a review of 57 cases of early duodenal cancer of the bulb, that have been reported in Japan.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Sensitivity and accuracy in recording His-Purkinje activity by surface-averaged electrocardiography.

A clinical evaluation of the surface-averaged ECG (SAE) to record His-Purkinje activity (HPA) was made on 70 patients who underwent His bundle electrograms (HBE). The recorded signals first judged as HPA in 43 patients by the noninvasive method alone were later verified in 37 patients by HBE; the accuracy of the HPA recordings (predictive value) was 86.0%. The HPA-V interval measured noninvasively had a high correlation with the HV interval by HBE (r = 0.89, p less than 0.01). The verified detection rate in all 70 patients was 52.9%: HPA was detected in 12 of 18 patients (66.7%) with sclerotic and hypertensive heart disease (Group I), five of 19 patients (26.3%) with rheumatic heart disease (Group II), 11 of 17 patients (64.7%) with congenital heart disease (Group III), and nine of 16 patients (56.2%) with miscellaneous conditions (Group IV). The detection rate was markedly lower in Group II than in other groups (Group II vs Group I or III, p less than 0.025). The PR segment was significantly longer in the patients in whom HPA was detected than in those in whom it was not detected (71.5 +/- 22.3 msec vs 43.9 +/- 19.5 msec, p less than 0.001). His-Purkinje activity (HPA) was detected in 32 of 52 recordings (61.5%) with sinus rhythm and seven of 20 recordings (35.0%) with atrial fibrillation, including two recordings in each of two cardioverted patients (p less than 0.05). We conclude that the surface-averaged ECG (SAE) has clinically acceptable sensitivity and accuracy except in patients with rheumatic heart disease, short PR segments or atrial fibrillations.

Atrial Fibrillation↗

Pulmonary hypertension in a patient with rheumatoid arthritis.

A 53-year-old woman who had suffered from severe rheumatoid arthritis developed pulmonary hypertension. Her small arteries in the lung showed plexogenic arteriopathy with fibrous intimal hyperplasia. There was also vasculitis of the small arteries in other organs and mural thrombosis in the pulmonary stem and abdominal aorta. The plexogenic arteriopathy which was responsible for pulmonary hypertension appears to be the result of vasculitis in association with rheumatoid arthritis.

Arthritis, Rheumatoid↗

Three-dimensional vectorcardiography (3-D VCG) by computer graphics in old myocardial infarction.

By using computer graphics we rotated the vector loop and three coordinate axes to find the viewpoint where the infarctional changes are maximally exposed and demonstrated the advantage of the "3-D VCG" over the conventional VCG by defining the quantitative "MI index." The orthogonal electrocardiogram recorded by the Frank lead system was digitally measured and processed by a microcomputer. The loops and axes were rotated about the X axis (X-rot) and the Y axis (Y-rot). The spatial vector loop and orthogonal coordinates can be presented as viewed from any spheric direction. Eight quadrants were illustrated with four colors and red circles. The subjects consisted of 30 patients with old anterior myocardial infarction (MI) and 15 patients with old inferior MI. We measured the area of "Bite" in anterior MI and superior displacement in inferior MI. The MI index was defined and averaged in 361 directions. In anterior MI, the maximum mean index was obtained when X-rot is +90 degrees and Y-rot -40 degrees, viewed from upward and leftward, whereas in inferior MI it was obtained when X-rot is -50 degrees and Y-rot -80 degrees, viewed from downward and leftward. These values were significantly higher than those in conventional VCG projections, substantiating superior diagnostic sensitivity of 3-D VCG.

Adult↗

Radioimmunoassay development for human neuron-specific enolase: with some clinical results in lung cancers and neuroblastoma.

A double-antibody radioimmunoassay for human neuron-specific enolase (NSE) was developed, using rabbit antiserum against the gamma subunit of enolase purified from human brain. Intra-assay variance was 3.8-5.1% and inter-assay variance 4.3-7.3%, and recovery of NSE added to normal serum was 100.2% on average. Normal serum NSE levels for 451 adults ranged from 3.6 to 10.8 ng/ml (mean 6.6 ng/ml). Antibodies raised against the gamma gamma enolase isozyme did not cross-react with the alpha alpha and beta beta isozymes at concentrations of 1,000 ng/ml, but showed a cross-reactivity of 41.5% (theoretically 50%) with the alpha gamma isozyme. It was also shown that hemolysis of 160 mg/dl hemoglobin can add 5.73 ng/ml of NSE to the true level. The coefficient of correlation between the radioimmunoassay and the sandwich enzyme immunoassay [1] was 0.99 (n = 21), and values determined by the RIA were about twice those obtained by the EIA. Serum NSE was abnormally high in 42 of 52 patients (80.8%) with small cell lung carcinoma, and in all 38 children with neuroblastoma.

Adolescent↗

[Purification and determination of human prostate specific antigen in the serum].

A human prostate specific antigen (PA) has been purified from an extract of prostatic tissue obtained during operation for benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH). The antigen, which can be demonstrated a single component by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), has an apparent molecular weight of about 34,000 and has lower mobility for the positive pole than prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP). Double antibody radioimmunoassay (RIA) for PA in serum was developed with the antiserum raised in rabbit against partially purified PA. In normal serum of 30 controls the concentration were studied by the RIA. The normal upper limit of the serum PA levels in assay was set at 2.5 ng/ml. Elevated levels were observed in serum from 19 out of 21 untreated patients with prostatic carcinoma and 9 out of 23 patients with BPH, but latter less than 10 ng/ml. The results indicate that the PA is a potentially useful marker as well as PAP for prostatic cancer.

Adult↗

Differential assay of choline acetyltransferase activity in human neuroblastomas and cloned adrenergic neuroblastoma of mouse.

A differential assay for the determination of choline acetyltransferase activity in neuroblastoma is described, and the importance of using the differential assay is discussed. In addition, changes in cholinergic-adrenergic activity of cloned adrenergic neuroblastoma cells after serial transplantations are reported. The changes of the cholinergic activity could not be detected precisely without the use of the differential assay.

Animals↗

[Sensitivity and precision of the 13C-breath test].

Sensitivity and precision of the 13C-breath test were assessed by examining a couple of limiting factors caused by the sensitivity of the instrument used for 13CO2 analysis, endogenous fluctuation of 13CO2 abundance, and the residual CO2 in sample storing tubes, vacutainers, etc. For 13CO2 analysis, a mass spectrometer equipped with a dual inlet, a dual collector, and an automated pressure matching system, was used. 15 ml vacutainers were used for sample storage. Endogenous fluctuation of 13CO2 abundance, however, was measured by putting the breath samples directly into the evacuated CO2 purification system, instead of using vacutainers. Endogenous fluctuation (S.D. = 0.202%) was the most significant limiting factor, compared with instrumental limitation (0.085%), or with influence of the residual CO2 (0.136%). Consequently, the sensitivity of the 13C-breath test was figured out to be 0.52%. This sensitivity is about 1,000 times lower than that of 14C-breath test. The precision was linearly dependent on 13C increase from basal 13C observed after administration of 13C enriched compounds, delta 13C, and was determined to be expressed as 1.94 delta 13C.

Adult↗