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Kenichiro Kobayashi

Publications and source records attributed to Kenichiro Kobayashi.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

ARID3B induces malignant transformation of mouse embryonic fibroblasts and is strongly associated with malignant neuroblastoma.

ARID3B, a member of the AT-rich interaction domain (ARID) family of proteins, plays an essential role in the survival of neural crest during embryogenesis. Here, we report evidence that ARID3B is involved in the development of malignant neuroblastoma, a childhood tumor derived from neural crest. (a) ARID3B is expressed by all five cell lines derived from neuroblastoma tested by us. (b) Analysis of published DNA microarray data of fresh neuroblastoma tumors showed that ARID3B is expressed in 80% of stage IV tumors, whereas only in 9% of stage I-III+IVs tumors. (c) In vitro growth of several neuroblastoma cell lines is suppressed significantly by antisense as well as siRNA treatment. (d) An increase of the ARID3B expression level by transfection in the SY5Y neuroblastoma cell line enhances the malignancy in tumor growth assays in nu/nu mice. (e) ARID3B by itself can immortalize mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) in vitro and confers malignancy to MEF when transfected together with MYCN, the best characterized oncogene for neuroblastoma. Thus, ARID3B seems to play a key role in the malignant transformation of neuroblastoma and may serve not only as a marker of malignancy but also as a potential target for cancer therapy of stage IV neuroblastoma for which there is currently no effective treatment available.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Multi-institutional study on the correlation between chromosomal abnormalities and epilepsy.

While there is an abundance of literature describing the association of chromosome aberrations with epilepsy, only a few refer to the detailed features of epilepsy. It is important to investigate the associations between specific chromosome abnormalities and features of epilepsy to identify genes involved in epilepsy and treat them more effectively. We investigated the correlation between specific chromosome aberrations and epilepsy by sending questionnaires to the members of Kyoto Multi-institutional Study Group of Pediatric Neurology. Seventy-six patients were collected from 10 institutions. Chromosome abnormalities included: Down syndrome (n = 19); Angelman syndrome (n = 8); Prader-Willi syndrome (n = 4); 4p- syndrome (n = 3); 1q- syndrome (n = 2); 5p- syndrome (n = 2); Miller-Dieker syndrome (n = 2); 18q- syndrome; (n = 2); Klinefelter syndrome; (n = 2); and 32 other individual chromosomal aberrations. Overall, the severity of mental retardation correlated with the severity of epilepsy. We could abstract characteristic features of epilepsy in some syndromes. In Angelman and Prader-Willi syndromes, febrile seizures occurred frequently, the onset of epilepsy was in early childhood and seizure phenotype was multiple. Paroxysmal discharge of the occipital region and diffuse high voltage slow wave on electroencephalography were characteristic in Angelman syndrome. In Down syndrome, West syndrome and focal epilepsy were common and the prognosis of epilepsy in West syndrome with Down syndrome was good. In 4p- syndrome, febrile seizures were often seen, and unilateral or generalized clonic or tonic-clonic status epilepticus were characteristic. For the other chromosomal aberrations investigated here, the patient numbers were too small to abstract common features of epilepsy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2005

Thrombocytosis at an early stage of respiratory tract viral infection.

AIM: To determine whether thrombocytosis, a platelet count of more than 500 x 10(9)/l, occurs at an early stage of respiratory tract viral infection. METHODS: The medical records of 345 patients with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza, measles, adenovirus or human herpes virus 6 infections were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: The mean platelet count was significantly higher in RSV patients than in patients with other respiratory infections. Among the 29 patients with thrombocytosis, 24 (82.8%) had RSV infection. CONCLUSION: When thrombocytosis is positive at an early stage of respiratory tract infection, RSV should be taken into account as a causative agent.

Humans↗
PubMed2002

Reversible vascular changes in children with cerebral infarction.

A case of cerebral infarction in a 4-year-old male is described. The child presented with an acute onset of right hemiplegia, central facial palsy, and dysarthria. He had no predisposing factors for cerebral infarction. A computed tomography scan showed a diffuse low-density area in the territory of the left miiddle cerebral artery. Magnetic resonance angiography disclosed multiple irregular narrowings in the left anterior and middle cerebral arteries. He recovered spontaneously from the stroke with minimal long-term complications, and repeated angiography disclosed a complete regression of the vascular changes 2 months after the stroke. There was no recurrence of stroke after 2-year follow-up. This case demonstrates the importance of longitudinal angiographic follow-up in childhood cerebral infarction of idiopathic origin.

Child↗