[Rare case of ulcerative colitis and ankylosing spondylitis associated with aortitis and severe aortic valve insufficiency].
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Publications and source records attributed to K Tokuda.
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Microspheres containing cisplatin (CDDP) embedded in poly-d,l-lactic acid (PLA) and polyethylene glycol acid (CDDP-PPMS) were developed to improve treatment of malignant effusions. In vitro studies demonstrated that CDDP was released continuously for more than 4 weeks from CDDP-PPMS without initial burst. CDDP-PPMS was compared with CDDP aqueous solution (CDDP-SOL) by i.p. administration in rats for 1) tissue distribution, 2) toxicity and 3) therapeutic effects against Yoshida sarcoma. We found that the CDDP concentration in the omentum was maintained at a higher level than in the CDDP-SOL group, while the particles of CDDP-PPMS were observed in the stomata of the omentum by electron microscopy. Concentrations of CDDP in the lung, liver, kidney and blood were lower in the CDDP-PPMS group than in the CDDP-SOL group. All rats given CDDP-PPMS containing < or = 28 mg/kg were alive, whereas in the CDDP-SOL group, all rats given > or = 16 mg/kg died from side effects. The LD50 of CDDP-PPMS and CDDP-SOL were 32.8 and 14.8 mg/kg, respectively. The survival of rats with peritoneal metastasis was better in the CDDP-PPMS group than in the CDDP-SOL group.
This study was designed to clarify the clinical and pathologic features of diffusely infiltrative squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus. Diffusely infiltrative squamous cell carcinomas were classified grossly into two types, namely, scirrhous carcinoma and nonscirrhous carcinoma. There were seven patients with the former type and three with the latter type. Scirrhous-type carcinoma was associated with a prominently thickened esophageal wall with strictures, whereas nonscirrhous-type carcinoma demonstrated thickening of the esophageal wall without strictures. Microscopically, all patients had lymph node metastases and lymphatic invasion. Blood vessel invasion was found in seven patients and extranodal invasion was found in seven. The prognosis of patients with both types of carcinoma was extremely poor. Only two patients who underwent curative surgery as well as chemoradiotherapy survived for more than 1 year. Therefore, further morphological studies on the early stages of diffusely infiltrating esophageal carcinoma should be performed. New treatment strategies such as intensive preoperative chemoradiotherapy based on sensitivity tests in individual patients will be required for treating the advanced stages of this disease.
Pyogenic sacro-iliitis (PS) is a rare disease in childhood. Three cases of PS are reported that were difficult to diagnose. Scintigraphy and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were useful for diagnosis. One patient suffered from an episode of relapse. Seventeen other cases of PS were reviewed in the literature to investigate the incidence of abnormal imaging findings and various factors in disease relapse. It was found that the incidence of abnormal findings by scintigraphy was significantly higher than that by computed tomography (P = 0.0057). The duration of intravenous antibiotic administration of the relapse group (14.7 +/- 4.7 days) was significantly shorter than that of the non-relapse group (24.3 +/- 10.7 days; P = 0.0376). The statistical analysis suggested that intravenous antibiotic administration is necessary at least for 20 days to prevent a relapse of PS.
Dural arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) are considered to be acquired lesions that develop secondary to venous obstruction, which sometimes happens in head trauma. However, there has been a report of an anterior cranial fossa dural AVM that occurred independently of a history of head trauma, and there has been speculation that these malformations are congenital. The authors recount their experience with a patient who had an anterior cranial fossa dural AVM that was discovered incidentally. The lesion was fed by the bilateral anterior ethmoidal arteries and drained into the superior sagittal sinus via frontal cortical veins. The patient had a history of severe head trauma that had occurred 30 years earlier. This is the first case report in which a previous head trauma is strongly believed to be the cause of an anterior cranial fossa dural AVM. The authors postulate that anterior cranial fossa dural AVMs can develop secondary to a head trauma.
Research groups were formed in 20 institutions nationwide to investigate carbapenem resistance of clinical isolates. Activities of various antibacterial agents, principally carbapenems, were tested against clinical isolates collected from these institutions. The broth microdilution method was used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 17 antibacterial agents for 1,326 strains of 11 bacterial species isolated at the institutions between October and December 1994. The results are as follows: 1. Carbapenems exhibited strong antibacterial activities against MSSA and Streptococcus pneumoniae. Their activities against Enterococcus faecalis were comparable to that of ABPC. Carbapenems showed low activities against MRSA. 2. OFLX exhibited the greatest antibacterial activity against Haemophilus influenzae, followed by MEPM. Antibacterial activities of the other carbapenems were comparable to those of FMOX, CTM, and ABPC. 3. The carbapenems showed high activities against Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae, and Bacteroides fragilis group. Their activities were greater than those exhibited by other beta-lactam antibacterial agents. The carbapenems also exhibited stronger antibacterial activities against Serratia marcescens than the other beta-lactam antibacterial agents, but some resistant strains were detected. 4. The antibacterial activities of carbapenems against Pseudomonas aeruginosa were comparable to those of CAZ, AZT, AMK.
Cisplatin incorporated into polylactic acid/polyethylene glycol acid blend polymeric microspheres was prepared as a dosage (CDDP-MS) by solvent evaporation method in oil-in-oil emulsion system. CDDP-MS and CDDP aqueous solutions (CDDP-SOL) were intraperitoneally administered to compare the tissue distribution of CDDP in 72 rats each. On 0.5, 1, 7, 14, 21 and 30 days, the omentum, lung, liver and kidney were removed, and the CDDP concentration was measured. The CDDP concentration of CDDP-MS group was maintained at a high level in the omentum for a long time. On the other hand, the CDDP level of the CDDP-MS group was low in the lung, liver and kidney, compared with the CDDP-SOL group. Additionally, acute toxicity of anticancer drug in CDDP-MS group was reduced, compared with CDDP-SOL. The effects of CDDP-MS, CDDP-SOL, empty-MS and non-therapy group on survival time were compared using intraperitoneally administered Yoshida sarcoma. The survival time in CDDP-MS, CDDP-SOL, non-therapy and empty-MS group were 43 +/- 24, 11.7 +/- 4.7, 9.8 +/- 1.1, and 7.8 +/- 1.1 days each. Consequently, it was suggested that CDDP-MS is useful as a tool in loco-regional chemotherapy using drug delivery system.
Because of the therapeutic potential of oxacalcitriol (OCT, 22-oxa-dihydroxyvitamin D3), in vivo studies were conducted in adult and neonatal rats to identify the nuclear receptor sites of action in different tissues of the skin. Results were compared with those for 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3) and oestradiol from previous studies. Autoradiograms were prepared from the dorsal skin of adult rats and the skin of the leg and head regions of neonatal rats 1 or 2 h after the injection of 3H-OCT. Specific nuclear concentrations of radioactivity, eliminated by competition with unlabelled OCT or 1,25(OH)2D3, were found in cells of the epidermis, outer hair sheath, hair bulb and sebaceous glands, but were absent or low in most fibroblasts of the dermis and hypodermis. The strongest nuclear binding of OCT was conspicuous in outer hair sheaths, where it was 1.5 to 3.2 times higher than in keratinocytes of the epidermis. The distribution of nuclear receptors for OCT was similar to that for 1,25(OH)2D3 but in part dissimilar to that for oestradiol. Oestradiol binding was found in the epidermis and hair sheaths, and also predominantly in fibroblasts of the dermis and hair dermal papillae. The results suggest genomic regulatory effects of OCT, similar to the effects of vitamin D, on proliferation, differentiation and activity of keratinocytes, growth and maintenance of hair, and proliferation and secretion of sebaceous glands. This may be utilized therapeutically, since OCT has a lower calcaemic effect than 1,25(OH)2D3.
CASE REPORT: A 6-year-old boy had symptoms such as unstable gait, behavioral symptoms, and irregular appetite, evacuation, and sleep. Giant cavum septi pellucidi and cavum vergae of 3 x 3 x 5 cm were revealed by computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). After stereotactic cyst-peritoneal shunting, regression of the cavities was revealed by CT and MRI, in association with marked improvement in the above-described symptoms. In the corpus callosum particularly, which had been preoperatively revealed on sagittal MRI sections to be extended circumferentially as a result of compression by a cyst; the compression was relieved postoperatively, and compression of the pericallosal brain tissue was also relieved. CONCLUSIONS: Compression of the brain tissue around the cyst (limbic system, etc.) was considered the most important cause of the behavioral symptoms in this patient.
BACKGROUND: Lymph node metastases occur very frequently and extensively in patients with esophageal cancer. The aim of this pilot study was to try the targeting chemotherapy for lymph node metastases by use of bleomycin adsorbed on silica particles (BLM-SI). METHODS: BLM-SI or bleomycin solution (BLM-SOL) was injected into the submucosa of the esophageal wall by means of endoscopy 3 days before operation in 16 patients with middle thoracic esophageal cancer. The distribution of bleomycin in the regional lymph nodes and surrounding connective tissues was studied. RESULTS: When BLM-SI was administered, bleomycin activity was found in both the regional lymph nodes and connective tissues, not only in the mediastinal region but also in the cervical and abdominal region. Bleomycin activity was significantly higher in all regions after BLM-SI administration than after BLM-SOL administration. Degenerative or necrotic changes were microscopically observed in 11 of 36 lymph nodes with metastatic foci. Bleomycin activity in the blood was significantly lower after BLM-SI was administered than after BLM-SOL. Serious systemic side effects except for fever were not observed in any patients. CONCLUSIONS: These results indicate that BLM-SI could be a useful treatment modality for targeting lymph node metastasis of esophageal cancer without serious side effects.
This is a report of an accidental breakaway of a microcatheter during endovascular embolization for cerebral arteriovenous malformation occurring in a 48-year-old female. She had a sudden onset of cerebral herniated signs caused by a large hemorrhage in the region of the right parietal lobe. An angiogram showed a large arteriovenous malformation in the same region. 48 days after emergency evacuation of the hematoma and clipping of a feeding artery, we performed endovascular embolization using a microcatheter as assistant therapy for total removal of the nidus. However, accidentally, the microcatheter broke and migrated to the distal middle cerebral artery. Although we tried to retrieve the catheter using a loop snare, we had no success. We eventually retrieved it by open surgery next day. Fortunately the migrated catheter could be seen through a cortical artery, so after trapping it by using elastic thread and cutting off the artery we were able to extract the migrated catheter. Finally we were able to remove the nidus totally without other complications. Since breaking and migration of a microcatheter is a rare but possible accident, we should be prepared to cope with it appropriately.
Cisplatin incorporated into polylactic acid/polyethylene glycol acid blend polymeric microspheres was prepared as a dosage (CDDP-MS) by the solvent evaporation method in an oil-in-oil emulsion system. When CDDP-MS was preserved in phosphate-buffer saline, the dissolution rate of cisplatin from CDDP-MS was 14% after one day, 25% after 5 days, 33% after 7 days, 66% after 21 days and 85% after 30 days. CDDP-MS and CDDP aqueous solution (CDDP-SOL) were intraperitoneally administered to compare the tissue distribution of cisplatin in 42 rats each. On days 0.5, 1, 5, 7, 14 and 21, omentum, lung, liver and kidney were removed, and the CDDP concentration was measured. The CDDP concentration of the CDDP-MS group was maintained at a high level in the omentum for a long time. On the other hand, the CDDP level of CDDP-MS group was low in the lung, liver and kidney, compared with the CDDP-SOL group. Consequently, it was suggested that CDDP-MS is useful as a carrier in a drug delivery system, since it improves the burst effect and releases CDDP for a long time without serious side effects.
The authors assessed proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) in patients with unilateral refractory temporal bole epilepsy. The subjects consisted of 20 patients (those with brain tumors, trauma, malformations or definite organic lesions were excluded) and 10 normal volunteers. 1H-MRS and MRI were performed using a 1.5 tesla machine. 1H-MRS was achieved using point-resolved spectroscopy (PRESS) or the stimulated echo acquisition mode (STEAM), and a 3 x 3 x 3 cm volume of interest was positioned at the hippocampus. N-Acetyl-aspartate (NAA) and choline-containing substance (Cho) signals were evaluated. The results showed decreased NAA and elevated Cho or asymmetry of both NAA and Cho in the epileptogenic focus in 19/20 cases. The reductions in NAA presumably reflect neuronal loss, while the elevation of Cho probably represents membrane break down within the lesion. These abnormalities were observed in 19/20 cases (95%), whereas abnormal magnetic resonance imaging was detected in only 6/20 (30%) of the patients. Thus, 1H-MRS appears to be a useful, non-invasive modality for evaluating metabolic changes in epileptogenic foci, and these metabolic changes can serve as a more sensitive indicator than magnetic resonance imaging.
Target cells for 3H-labeled 1 alpha, 25(OH)2 vitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3, vitamin D] and its analog 3H-labeled 22-oxa-1 alpha, 25(OH)2 vitamin D3 (OCT) have been identified during endochondral and intramembranous ossification in developing, undecalcified, unembedded bone, using thaw-mount autoradiography. Two-day-old neonatal rats were injected with [3H]1,25(OH)2D3 or [3H]OCT; after 2 h leg, spine, and head were frozen and sectioned. In the epiphyseal-metaphyseal region specific nuclear concentrations of [3H]1,25(OH)2D3 and [3H]OCT were observed in identical cell populations, being low in cells of the articular and resting zone, intermediate in the proliferating zone, and highest in hypertrophic chondrocytes and in osteoblasts and precursor cells. In the primary spongiosa intertrabecular spaces there were a large number of cells with nuclear labeling--probably osteoblasts and precursor cells. In contrast, in the secondary spongiosa intertrabecular spaces, apparent blood-forming cells were mostly unlabeled. Osteoblasts along bone spicules and compact bone in long bones, vertebrae, and head also showed strong nuclear labeling, as did cells of the periosteum. These data suggest that 1,25(OH)2D3 and OCT regulate development, differentiation, and activities of chondrocytes and osteoblasts, including differentiation of resting chondrocytes into proliferating and hypertrophic chondrocytes that involve "chondroclastic" enlargement of lacunae and "trans-differentiation" of surviving hypertrophic chondrocytes; differentiation of stroma cells into osteoblasts; and in periosteum and other regions of intramembranous ossification differentiation of precursor cells and osteoblasts. Nuclear receptor binding and their selective and hierarchical distribution during cell differentiation appear to correspond to multiple genomic effects toward growth, regeneration and repair. The findings indicate a physiological significance and therapeutic potential of 1,25(OH)2D3 and in particular of its less hypercalcemic analog OCT.
The present study was performed to investigate the effects of head elevation on intracranial hemodynamics in patients with ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunts. The series included 35 hydrocephalic patients and five individuals without hydrocephalus who were used as controls. The hydrocephalic patients were divided into three groups: 15 patients who received VP shunts with a differential-pressure valve (DP group); 11 who received VP shunts with a variable-resistance valve (VR group), and 13 hydrocephalic patients (Hyd group) who had not received shunts (four underwent VP shunts later). The cerebral blood flow (CBF) of patients in the supine and upright positions was measured by technetium-99m hexamethylpropylenamine oxide (HMPAO) single-photon emission computerized tomography in each patient, using the subtraction technique. Cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) was taken as the difference between the mean arterial blood pressure and ventricular fluid pressure, both referenced to the level of the foramen of Mono. The patients' heads were elevated stepwise from supine to upright. Percent changes of the mean CBF in the upright position (% delta mCBFupr) were 24.9% +/- 4.3% (mean +/- standard error of the mean) in the DP group, 6.2% +/- 2.7% in the VR group, 3.5% +/- 2.6% in the Hyd group, and 4.5% +/- 2.2% in the control group. Patients in the DP group showed a pathological increase in CPP with head elevation, whereas those in the Hyd and VR groups showed a physiological decrease in CPP. Three patients with differential-pressure valves, whose % delta mCBFupr was markedly high, developed low-intracranial pressure syndrome. In conclusion, shunted patients with a DP valve showed pathological intracranial hemodynamics in the upright position. This pathological hemodynamic stress in patients with long-standing differential-pressure valve implantation may induce pathological changes in the brain such as subependymal gliosis.
Two bleomycin (BLM)-containing agents (BLM-PLA, BLM-SOL) were prepared, and the drug distribution and antitumor effect were studied. BLM-PLA is an agent in which BLM is incorporated into biodegradable low-molecular-weight polylactic acid, and BLM-SOL is an aqueous solution of BLM. BLM-PLA or BLM-SOL was subcutaneously administered in the back of rats. When BLM-PLA was implanted, high BLM activity of the connective tissues near the implants was maintained for 2 weeks. On the other hand, BLM activity was very low when BLM-SOL was administered. The effects of BLM-PLA, BLM-SOL and nontreatment on tumor growth and survival time were compared using subcutaneous tumor of Yoshida sarcoma in 21 rats each. The survivors and mean survival time in BLM-PLA group, BLM-SOL group and nontreatment group was 14 and 44.6 days, 5 and 23.7 days, and 0 and 11.3 days, respectively. BLM-PLA was superior to BLM-SOL in both drug distribution and antitumor effect, and consequently BLM-PLA could be a useful tool in loco-regional chemotherapy.
Chemotherapy with a combination of synthetic ACTH (ACTH-Zn) and valproic acid (VPA) induced remarkable hypofibrinogenemia in three children (5 months, 8 months, and 5 years and 10 months old) with intractable epilepsy. The lowest blood fibrinogen (Fbg) levels by this combination therapy were 22, 51 and 64 mg/dl (mean 45.7 mg/dl), respectively. These levels occurred, when ACTH-Zn was administered at an average dose of 0.33 mg/day (0.03 mg/kg/day) and the mean blood concentration of VPA was 59.7 micrograms/ml. With the administration of VPA without ACTH-Zn, the lowest blood Fbg levels were 232, 108 and 170 mg/dl (mean 170 mg/dl), respectively. The mean blood concentration of VPA was 109.0 micrograms/ml. The inadvertent-effects associated with this combination therapy consisted of thrombocytopenia (59,000/microliters) in one case and a mild GPT increase (65-109 IU/l) in three cases. However, all these changes were transient. No bleeding tendency was detected clinically, when this hypo-Fbg-emia appeared. The concentration of VPA and the blood level of Fbg were found inversely correlated with a correlation coefficient of -0.22 (p < 0.01) in 150 serum samples from 91 patients with childhood epilepsy treated with VPA without ACTH-Zn. In the three cases presented, the combination with ACTH-Zn resulted in considerably lower blood Fbg levels than those predicted from the blood VPA concentrations. This indicates that the combination of ACTH-Zn and VPA induces a further decrease of Fbg in blood. The reason why hypo-Fbg-emia results from this combination therapy is unknown.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Nucleotide sequencing of the region upstream of two ferredoxin genes, fdxC and fdxN, of Rhodobacter capsulatus revealed the existence of one open reading frame (ORF), ORFU1, in the same orientation as these genes and two other ORFs, ORFU2 and ORFU3, in the opposite orientation. Two potential -24/-12 promoters were found in front of ORFU1 and ORFU2, respectively, and there was a putative upstream activator sequence (UAS) or NifA-binding site between them. The ORFs corresponded to no known nif genes. However, analysis of their putative products showed that the product of ORFU1 (M(r) 47,912) and that of ORFU3 (M(r) 19,090) had a flavodoxin-like domain and a 2[4Fe-4S] ferredoxin-like domain, respectively, and that the product of ORFU2 (M(r) 20,424) was a hydrophobic protein with six potential membrane-spanning portions. Results of interposon mutagenesis and complementation experiments indicated that ORFU2 but not ORFU1 is essential for nitrogen fixation and that additional gene(s) essential for nitrogen fixation must be present in the unsequenced region adjacent to ORFU3. Translational fusion analysis involving lacZYA and fdxN or ORFU3 provided evidence that the putative UAS is responsible for regulation of both ORFU1-fdxC-fdxN and ORFU2-ORFU3 operons in opposite orientations, and that the control of the latter is stricter than that of the former.