Biomedical subjects

K Takeishi

Publications and source records attributed to K Takeishi.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2001

Contribution of heat transfer to turbine blades and vanes for high temperature industrial gas turbines. Part 1: Film cooling.

This paper deals with the contribution of heat transfer to increase the turbine inlet temperature of industrial gas turbines in order to attain efficient and environmentally benign engines. High efficiency film cooling, in the form of shaped film cooling and full coverage film cooling, is one of the most important cooling technologies. Corresponding heat transfer tests to optimize the film cooling effectiveness are shown and discussed in this first part of the contribution.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Characteristics of various film cooling jets injected in a conduit.

In the present study, film cooling characteristics by the jets through various easy-to-make straight holes and slots have been investigated. In this experiment, seven kinds of injection geometries were used. They were circular, rectangular, elliptic and oval holes and slots, respectively.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Contribution of heat transfer to turbine blades and vanes for high temperature industrial gas turbines. Part 2: Heat transfer on serpentine flow passage.

The improvement of the heat transfer coefficient of the 1st row blades in high temperature industrial gas turbines is one of the most important issues to ensure reliable performance of these components and to attain high thermal efficiency of the facility. This paper deals with the contribution of heat transfer to increase the turbine inlet temperature of such gas turbines in order to attain efficient and environmentally benign engines. Following the experiments described in Part 1, a set of trials was conducted to clarify the influence of the blade's rotating motion on the heat transfer coefficient for internal serpentine flow passages with turbulence promoters. Test results are shown and discussed in this second part of the contribution.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Characterization of nuclear factors that bind to the human thymidylate synthase gene in HL-60 cells differentiated by all-trans retinoic acid treatment.

HL-60 cells differentiate into granulocyte-like cells by all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) treatment, and the cellular proliferation is markedly reduced during the differentiation. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of the growth arrest during the cellular differentiation, we examined the regulated expression of the thymidylate synthase (TS) gene. Northern blot analysis revealed that the expression of the TS gene was almost suppressed in the differentiated HL-60 cells. The change in the levels of nuclear factors, NF-TS2 and NF-TS3, that bind to the 5'-terminal regulatory region of the human TS gene was examined during the differentiation of the HL-60 cells. The amount of NF-TS2 did not change significantly during the differentiation, whereas that of NF-TS3 clearly increased as the cells differentiated. We previously reported that NF-TS2 and NF-TS3 bind to the sequence around the initiation codon ATG of the human TS gene. Further analyses revealed that the DNA sequences of NF-TS2 and NF-TS3 are very similar, and the first and second positions of the ATG triplet codon are important for the formation of rigid DNA-protein complexes. The present findings concerning the binding site and changes during the differentiation induced by ATRA treatment are very similar to those previously reported on the differentiation induced by 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 treatment. These findings suggest that NF-TS3 is involved in regulating the expression of the human TS gene during the differentiation of HL-60 cells, regardless of the terminal cell type: macrophage-like cells or granulocyte-like cells.

Cell Differentiation↗

PubMed2000

Mechanical stretch augments PDGF receptor beta expression and protein tyrosine phosphorylation in pulmonary artery tissue and smooth muscle cells.

With regard to the mechanotransduction mechanisms of vasculature involved in hypertensive diseases, we aimed to identify tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins in pulmonary artery that responded to mechanical stress. Mechanical stretch simultaneously augmented protein-tyrosine phosphorylation in p55, p95, p105, p115, p130, p165, p180 in pulmonary artery tissue and pulmonary artery-derived smooth muscle cells (PASMC), whereas p115 and p55 were preferentially phosphorylated by the stretch in endothelial cells (PAEC). A series of experiments designed to characterize these proteins indicated that p115 and p180 were focal adhesion kinase (FAK) and platelet-derived growth factor receptor beta (PDGF-Rbeta), respectively, and that stretch augmented the surface-expression of PDGF-Rbeta in PASMC but not in PAEC. Moreover, a significant increase in the steady-state mRNA level for PDGF-Rbeta was observed in the pulmonary artery of rats with monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension, where the artery should be overstretched due to increasing pulmonary arterial blood pressure. These results suggest that stretch-induced overexpression of cell-surface PDGF-Rbeta as well as augmentation of yrosine phosphorylation of proteins including FAK in PASMC might be involved in the mechanotransduction of pulmonary artery.

Animals↗

PubMed2000

Correlation between Bcl-2 overexpression and H-ras mutation in naturally occurring hepatocellular proliferative lesions of the B6C3F1 mouse.

The correlation between the mutation at codon 61 of the H-ras gene and the expression of the Bcl-2 protein was investigated in naturally occurring hepatocellular proliferative lesions in B6C3F1 mice. Specimens of histologically diagnosed neoplastic or preneoplastic lesions of the liver, obtained from the control mice used for 2-year carcinogenicity studies, were examined by immunohistochemical techniques. All of 25 lesions confirmed to be hepatocellular carcinomas stained positive for the Bcl-2 protein. Three of 12 foci of cellular alterations, as well as 24 of 42 hepatocellular adenomas, stained weakly positive. Bcl-2 protein was expressed to a greater degree in hepatocellular carcinomas as opposed to adenomas and confirmed by Western blot analysis. Seven of 18 hepatocellular adenomas that stained positive for Bcl-2 and three of 16 hepatocellular adenomas that stained negative had a mutation at codon 61 of the H-ras gene. Overexpression of Bcl-2 protein is likely to enhance the malignant turnover of the neoplastic cells, following a mutation at codon 61 of the H-ras gene particularly. These findings suggest that Bcl-2 overexpression and the mutation at codon 61 of the H-ras gene may be critical factors in the development of naturally occurring hepatocellular tumors in B6C3F1 mice.

Animals↗

PubMed1999

Transcriptional regulation of cellular retinol-binding protein, type II gene expression in small intestine by dietary fat.

We have previously demonstrated that dietary fat, especially unsaturated fatty acids, induces cellular retinol-binding protein, type II (CRBPII) gene expression in rat jejunum. In the present study, we showed that feeding a high-fat diet caused parallel increases in jejunal CRBPII mRNA and CRBPII pre-mRNA levels. Nuclear run-on assay also revealed that this increase of CRBPII mRNA level by high-fat diet was, at least in part, triggered at a transcription level. Moreover, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARalpha) mRNA level was also increased in the jejunum by high-fat diet. Gel shift assay showed that the binding activity of rat jejunal nuclear protein to the nuclear receptor response elements located in the rat CRBPII gene (RXRE and RE3) was greater in rats fed high-fat diet than in those fed fat-free diet and were enhanced by addition of bacterially expressed PPARalpha protein. Also PPARalpha-retinoid X receptor alpha (RXRalpha) heterodimer was capable of binding to the CRBPII-RXRE and RE3 elements and these binding activities were enhanced by addition of some PPARalpha ligands in the gel shift assay. Taken together, these studies suggest that dietary fatty acids may lead to induction of CRBPII gene transcription through increases of PPARalpha as well as its ligand levels.

Animals↗

PubMed1998

Transcriptional regulation by C/EBP alpha and -beta in the expression of the gene for the MRP14 myeloid calcium binding protein.

Transcriptional regulation of the gene for the myeloid calcium binding protein, MRP14, was investigated in human monocytic leukemia cell lines. The MRP14 gene was not expressed in monoblastic ML-1 cells, promonocytic U-937 cells, or promyelocytic HL-60 cells. On the other hand, the gene was expressed in monocytic THP-1 cells and in the HL-60 cells treated with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (VD3). The level of MRP14 in VD3-treated HL-60 cells was two-fold higher than that in THP-1 cells. Among several known transcription factor binding motifs, nuclear protein(s) of VD3-treated HL-60 cells and THP-1 cells bound to the CCAAT/enhancer binding protein (C/EBP)-binding motif that was located in the upstream region of the MRP14 gene (-81), as evidenced by the competitive gel mobility-shift assay. An antibody for C/EBP alpha super-shifted the nucleoprotein complex in THP-1 cells but not in the VD3-treated HL-60 cells, whereas an antibody for C/EBP beta blocked the formation of the complex with the nuclear factor of the HL-60 cells but not with that of THP-1 cells. An anti-C/EBP delta antibody had no effect on the complex in either cell. Thus, it was concluded that C/EBP alpha and -beta were able to bind to the C/EBP motif, and that C/EBP alpha bound to the motif in THP-1 cells and C/EBP beta bound to that in the VD3-treated HL-60 cells. Furthermore, to examine the transcriptional activity of the C/EBP motif, we transfected several constructed luciferase reporter DNAs into HL-60 cells and THP-1 cells. The luciferase activity of the C/EBP motif in HL-60 cells was increased by VD3 treatment. The C/EBP motif in the MRP14 gene was confirmed to function as a regulatory region in VD3-treated HL-60 cells and THP-1 cells by the assay. Since C/EBP beta was also detected in VD3-untreated HL-60 cells by immunoblotting, VD3 activated C/EBP beta to bind to the motif, probably through post-translational modification.

Antigens, Differentiation↗

PubMed1998

Cloning and characterization of the promoter region of monkey thymidylate synthase gene.

Thymidylate synthase (TS) catalyzes the conversion of deoxyuridylate to thymidylate. Promoter regions of the TS gene from three vertebrates, human, mouse and rat, have been analyzed so far. A unique inverted repeat was present in the promoter region of the human, but not in the mouse and rat, TS genes, and the feature of the promoter region is considerably different between the human TS gene and the two rodent TS genes. To examine whether the characteristics of the human TS gene promoter is intrinsic to human or primate, we cloned a DNA fragment containing the promoter region of the monkey TS gene and determined the nucleotide sequence in this region. The nucleotide sequence in the promoter region of the monkey TS gene was revealed to have 88% homology with that in the corresponding region of the human TS gene. The unique repeated structure mentioned above was also found in the monkey TS gene. Furthermore, the Sp1-binding motif and the CACCC box were found to be conserved in the monkey TS gene. The result of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase assay suggested that the Sp1-binding motif and the CACCC box are essential for the promoter activity of the monkey TS gene, as in the case of the human TS gene.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Identification of functional elements in the promoter region of the human gene for thymidylate synthase and nuclear factors that regulate the expression of the gene.

To identify the essential motifs of the promoter of the human gene for thymidylate synthase (TS), we constructed a set of deletion mutants from the 5'-terminal region of the human TS gene. From the results of assays of the expression of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT), we identified two functional elements with positive effects on the promoter activity: a CACCC box (CCACACCC) and an Sp1-binding motif (GAGGCGGA) that was homologous to the Sp1-binding site in the mouse TS gene. In addition, negative regulatory sequences were identified between the two positive elements and in the region upstream of the CACCC box. The results of gel mobility shift analyses suggested that Sp1 binds to the Sp1-binding motif of the human TS gene promoter and that multiple nuclear factors that are related to Sp1 bind to the CACCC box. Furthermore, the binding of Sp1 to mutated Sp1-binding motifs in the promoter region of the human TS gene was correlated with the promoter activity, as measured by the CAT assay. Therefore, the Sp1 motif seems to be a major contributor to the basic promoter activity of the human TS gene, although multiple positive and negative regulatory elements are involved in the regulated expression of this gene.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

Functional analysis and DNA polymorphism of the tandemly repeated sequences in the 5'-terminal regulatory region of the human gene for thymidylate synthase.

Triple tandemly repeated sequences and the corresponding complementary sequence are known to exist in the 5'-terminal regulatory region of the human gene for thymidylate synthase (TS). To examine the function of these sequences, a set of deletion mutants was prepared and used in a transient expression assay. The results showed that at least one repeated sequence and its complementary sequence were necessary for the efficient expression of the gene. As another approach to understanding the function of this unique structure, DNA polymorphism in the same region was analyzed. In addition to the TS gene with the triple tandem repeat, the TS gene with a double tandem repeat was found in genomes of normal human subjects at an estimated frequency of 19% when genomes of 21 unrelated Japanese were analyzed. The expression activity of a reporter gene linked to the promoter region of the human TS genes with the two types of repeated sequence was examined and the result showed that the expression activity of the gene with the double repeat was lower than that of the gene with the triple repeat in the transient expression assay. Thus, it appears that the unique repeated sequences in the 5'-terminal region of the human TS gene are polymorphic and contribute to the efficiency of expression of the gene.

Base Sequence↗

PubMed1995

Functional structure of the promoter region of the human thymidylate synthase gene and nuclear factors that regulate the expression of the gene.

To identify the essential motifs of the promoter of the human thymidylate synthase (hTS) gene, we constructed a set of deletion mutants that covers the region from -441 to +28 of the hTS gene. (The nucleotide positions are numbered from the first position of the initiation codon of the hTS gene.) From the results of chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) assay of these mutants, two positive elements for the promoter activity were identified: one contains CACCC box (CCACACCC) that is found in the SV40 enhancer motif and the other contains the sequence that is homologous to the Sp1 binding site in the mouse TS gene. Furthermore, two negative regulatory sequences were identified between the two positive elements and upstream from the CACCC box. Cassette mutations were introduced into these motifs and the function of the motifs was confirmed. From the results of gel mobility shift analysis, we found that three nucleoprotein complexes were formed in the promoter region of the hTS gene. The formation of one of the complexes was competed by the DNA fragment bearing the GC box. The gel mobility shift analyses using the DNA fragments with cassette mutations revealed that the complex was formed on the Sp1 binding site of the hTS gene and the formation of the complex correlated with the promoter activity of the fragments with cassette mutations measured by the CAT assay.

Animals↗

PubMed1993

Characterization of regulatory sequences and nuclear factors that function in cooperation with the promoter of the human thymidylate synthase gene.

To identify the essential sequence of the promoter of the human thymidylate synthase (hTS) gene, deletion mutants were constructed and assayed for promoter activity. The essential sequence was located within 65 bp upstream from the major cap site and a sequence that reduces the promoter activity was found in a region upstream from the essential promoter sequence. We previously identified two DNA-binding nuclear factors, NF-TS2 and NF-TS3, that bind to a region around the site of initiation of translation of the hTS gene. In this study, we confirmed the binding site of these factors by gel mobility shift analysis and found that NF-TS2 is the major factor that binds to the hTS gene in HeLa cells, whereas NF-TS3 is the major factor in the TIG-1 line of human fibroblast cells. To clarify the function of these factors, we examined the effects of the binding of these factors on the promoter activity. Our findings suggest that the binding of NF-TS2 enhances the promoter activity of the hTS gene in HeLa cells, whereas the binding of NF-TS3 represses the activity of the same promoter in TIG-1 cells.

Animals↗

PubMed1993

Appearance of nuclear factors that interact with genes for myeloid calcium binding proteins (MRP-8 and MRP-14) in differentiated HL-60 cells.

Myeloid calcium binding proteins MRP-8 and MRP-14 were induced, and their genes were coordinately expressed, during differentiation of human leukemia HL-60 cells into macrophage-like cells after treatment with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (VD3). Both MRP-8 and MRP-14 mRNAs appeared on the day after VD3 treatment. Their level reached a peak on day 2, and then quickly declined. Nuclear factors that interact with the 5'-upstream regions of MRP-8 and MRP-14 genes were studied with gel mobility-shift assays. Two factors (MP8FI and MP8FII) that interacted with 379 bp (426-48 bp upstream from the transcription-initiation site of MRP-8 gene) and 67 bp (-47 - +20) DNA fragments, respectively, were found in the cells treated with VD3 for 1 day. MP8FI and MP8FII were present neither in the nuclei of untreated HL-60 cells, nor in the nuclei of the cells treated with VD3 for 6 days. Human monocytic leukemia THP-1 cells, which constitutively expressed MRP genes, had MP8FII but not MF8FI. MP8FII was found to interact with the 19-mer sequence located just upstream of the TATA box. Also, two factors that bound to the different upstream regions (-400 - -150 and -149 - +50) of MRP-14 gene were detected in the differentiated HL-60 cells. One of these, MP14FI, appeared on day 1, but on day 6 its concentration greatly decreased. The other, MP14FII, was found in greater quantity on day 6 than on day 1. MP14FI, but not MP14FII, was found in THP-1 cells. These factors may be involved in the expression of MRP-8 and MRP-14 genes in VD3-differentiated HL-60 cells.

Base Sequence↗

PubMed1993

Cloning and structural analysis of a human thymidylate synthase pseudogene splitted by several Alu sequences.

An unidentified genomic DNA fragment of 2.4kb that is weakly hybridizable with thymidylate synthase (TS) cDNA was cloned from a human genomic DNA library. Sequencing of the cloned DNA fragment and comparison of the sequence with that of the known human TS cDNA revealed that the DNA fragment contained a human TS processed pseudogene with unusual features. Based on the rate of nucleotide substitutions for neutral mutations in the 3'-untranslated regions between the gene and the pseudogene, it was estimated that the human TS pseudogene was formed about 16 million years ago.

Biological Evolution↗

PubMed1992

Identification of cellular differentiation-dependent nuclear factors that bind to a human gene for thymidylate synthase.

Three nuclear factors were identified that interact with sequences in the 5'-upstream region of the human thymidylate synthase gene. Two of these factors interact with a sequence around the initiation codon of the thymidylate synthase gene. The amounts of these two factors changed dramatically as human promyelocytic leukemia HL-60 cells differentiated into macrophage-like cells by the treatment with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3. The change was closely correlated with the decrease in the amount of thymidylate synthase mRNA during the differentiation. These findings suggest that the specific nuclear factors are involved in the regulation of the expression of human thymidylate synthase gene during the differentiation of HL-60 cells.

Base Sequence↗

PubMed1992

Regulatory sequences clustered at the 5' end of the first intron of the human thymidylate synthase gene function in cooperation with the promoter region.

A human thymidylate synthase (TS) minigene containing 5'- and 3'-flanking sequences, all the exons, and only intron 1 showed a normal frequency of stable transformation when transfected into TS-negative mutant cells, whereas minigenes in which intron 1 was replaced by intron 2 or deleted in the above construct showed only a few percent of the above frequency. Introduction of intron 1 into the above intronless or intron 2 minigene restored the transforming activities regardless of its position and orientation. Deletion analysis revealed two positive and one negative regulatory sequences in the 5' end of intron 1, each of which seemed to bind specific proteins as shown by gel shift analysis. Intron 1 also stimulated expression of a TS promoter-CAT gene construct but not that of an SV40 promoter-CAT gene construct. These results indicate that the multiple regulatory sequences clustered in intron 1 stimulate TS gene expression in concert with the 5'-flanking sequences.

Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic↗

PubMed1990

Structural and functional analysis of the human thymidylate synthase gene.

The complete nucleotide sequence of the human thymidylate synthase (TS) gene was determined. The biologically active unit spans about 16 kilobase pairs (kbp) and is composed of seven exons and six introns. The promoter region and the major transcriptional start sites were located within about 400 base pairs (bp) and 160-180 bp, respectively, upstream from the ATG initiation codon. A minigene consisting of a 5'-flanking sequence of about 4 kbp, a coding sequence of about 1.7 kpb was sufficient for cell cycle-dependent expression of TS when introduced into a TS-deficient mutant of rodent cells. The 5'-flanking region does not contain a "TATA," "CAAT," or the consensus sequence for Sp1 binding (GC box), whereas intron 1 contains three GC boxes. The gene is G + C-rich and the CpG-rich region extends from 5'-flanking region to intron 1. These sequence characteristics were compared with those of the mouse TS gene and other cell cycle-regulated genes.

Animals↗