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Biomedical subjects

M Omori

Publications and source records attributed to M Omori.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Quantitative EEG in never-treated schizophrenic patients.

To clarify whether patients with schizophrenia still show EEG slowing in the absence of psychopharmacological treatment, EEG was analyzed in 20 acute never-treated schizophrenics and 20 age-matched healthy controls using the computerized wave-form recognition method. Compared to controls, schizophrenics had more fast theta (6-8 Hz) and slow alpha (8-9 Hz) activity, and less fast alpha activity (9-13 Hz). The average EEG frequency at O1 correlated negatively with total and positive symptom scores on the BPRS in the schizophrenic group. These findings confirm that the frequency of alpha rhythm is slowed in schizophrenia and that this slowing is possibly related to the expression of psychopathology in this disorder.

Adult

Isolation and characterization of a mini-collagen gene encoding a nematocyst capsule protein from a reef-building coral, Acropora donei.

Genomic and cDNA clones of a mcol gene encoding mini-collagen (MCOL), a nematocyst capsule protein, have been isolated from a reef-building coral, Acropora donei (Anthozoa). The gene and its flanking regions, comprising 5382 bp and covering three exons and two introns, were sequenced. Exons 2 and 3 together have an open reading frame which can encode a MCOL of 176 amino acids (aa). The coral MCOL has all the characteristic regions present in the four hydra MCOL specified by the four mcol cDNA clones previously isolated from Hydra magnipapillata (Hydrozoa) by Kurz et al. [J. Cell Biol. 115 (1991) 1159-1169], including a central Gly-Xaa-Yaa region and flanking Pro-rich and Cys-repeat regions. This observation suggests that a mcol family is highly conserved in Anthozoa and Hydrozoa, and also that the characteristic regions present in MCOL are essential for the structure and function of these peptides.

Amino Acid Sequence

Serial proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy in a patient with the interval form of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Serial proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) studies were performed from immediately after the appearance of sequelae in a patient with the interval form of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. The volume of interest was set over the frontal lobe white matter. In the early period a persistent increase in choline was found, which was thought to reflect the course of progressive demyelination. The appearance of lactate and decrease in N-acetylaspartate reflected the point at which neuron injury became irreversible. These were followed later by the finding of irreversible changes on MRI and single photon emission computed tomography. The findings suggest that 1H-MRS may be a useful modality to determine neuron viability and prognosis early in the course of the interval form of CO poisoning.

Brain Diseases

Effect of vitamin A deficiency on the integrity of hepatocytes after partial hepatectomy.

The effect of vitamin A deficiency on hepatic regeneration in male and female rats was studied after partial hepatectomy. A fourfold increase in the number of positive dUTP end-labeled nuclei was observed in the deficient animals as early as 30 minutes after partial hepatectomy and their number reached a peak by 8 hours after the operation. The bile duct cells were both morphologically and biochemically intact at all time points. Administration of retinyl palmitate 1 hour before partial hepatectomy significantly reduced the number of positive nuclei, and treatment with retinyl palmitate 24 or 48 hours before the operation reduced the number of positive cells to the level observed in control vitamin A-supplemented rats. The level of transcripts for c-jun, c-fos, c-myc, and transforming growth factor-beta 1 were increased for an extended period of time in livers of deficient animals, whereas the expression of both p53 and max were unchanged. Immunocytochemistry demonstrated the presence of latent transforming growth factor-beta 1 in cells showing evident apoptotic or necrotic changes in their nuclei. This study demonstrates the importance of vitamin A for the survival of hepatocytes both in intact vitamin A-deficient liver and after partial hepatectomy, whereas the ductal cells appear to be less sensitive to vitamin A deficiency.

Animals

Inhibitory effects of (-)-epigallocatechin gallate on spontaneous hepatoma in C3H/HeNCrj mice and human hepatoma-derived PLC/PRF/5 cells.

The inhibitory effect of (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a main constituent of Japanese green tea, on spontaneous hepatoma in C3H/HeNCrj mice was investigated. A total of 72 mice were divided into three groups; the control group without EGCG, and two experimental groups receiving 0.05% (w/w) or 0.1% EGCG in drinking water. EGCG reduced the incidence of hepatoma-bearing mice from 83.3% (control) to 56.0% (0.05% EGCG) and 52.2% (0.1% EGCG), and also reduced the average number of hepatomas per mouse from 1.83 (control) to 0.72 (0.05% EGCG) and 0.91 (0.1% EGCG) at week 65. Ridit analysis of the distribution of the number of hepatomas in each group revealed that EGCG significantly increased the rate of mice without hepatoma in the two EGCG groups as compared to the control. EGCG did not affect body weight gain, food consumption or any serum biochemical parameter. EGCG inhibited the growth and secretion of alpha-fetoprotein by human hepatoma-derived PLC/PRF/5 cells without decreasing their viability. These results indicate that EGCG may be a practical, nontoxic preventive agent against human hepatoma.

Animals

Molecular cloning and nucleotide sequence of the beta-galactosidase gene from Enterobacter cloacae GAO.

The gene encoding a beta-galactosidase from Enterobacter cloacae GAO was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. The nucleotide sequence of the insert of a positive clone had an open reading frame of 3084 bp that encoded a polypeptide of 1028 amino acid residues with a calculated molecular mass of 116,677 daltons. The amino acid sequence of beta-galactosidase deduced from the nucleotide sequence, especially the sequence around the putative active site and of the fourteen regions, showed significant homology to beta-galactosidases of other microorganisms, E. coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, and Clostridium acetobutylicum.

Amino Acid Sequence

[Bathing a patient with cancer pain treated with continuous epidural blockade--subcutaneous catheter track and Lapack method].

Continuous epidural blockade is considered to be the most useful device for the management of cancer pain. However, it has the disadvantage to compel the patients to restrict their daily activities. We report a unique "Subcutaneous catheter track & Lapack-method" that enabled a patient with epidural catheter to safely bath at home. A 56-year-old male with a local recurrence of rectal cancer was suffering from perineal pain, which was well controlled by oral and epidural morphine. Since his wishing was to bath, we made a long subcutaneous catheter track with Tuohy-needle to prevent infection, and let him bath with transparent film dressings (Bioclusive) and Lapack to tightly cover and seal up the catheter. Although subcutaneous pustule occurred 7 days after the beginning of bathing, it was easily cured by local disinfection. He was able to enjoy bathing without any infection with this method at home for about 2 months after discharge, until he returned to the hospital. "Subcutaneous catheter track & Lapack-method" offers a safe and comfortable bathing to patients with epidural catheter, and contributes to the improvement of their quality of life.

Analgesia, Epidural

Two-way cleavage of beta-amyloid protein precursor by multicatalytic proteinase.

The beta-amyloid protein (beta-AP) derived from a beta-amyloid protein precursor (APP) is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. The abundant generation of beta-AP suggests the abnormal processing of APP, but the molecular mechanism remains unclear. The main APP-processing enzyme was purified from the rat brain and identified to be a macropain-like multicatalytic proteinase. The purified enzyme cleaved the Gln15-Lys16 bond of beta-AP, but altered to cleave at the N-terminus of beta-AP to release the extracellular domain of beta-AP in the presence of Ca2+. These findings suggest that the functional change in this multicatalytic proteinase may result in abnormal processing of APP.

Amino Acid Sequence

Quantitative EEG of elderly schizophrenic patients.

To investigate the brain function of elderly schizophrenic patients, quantitative EEGs of such patients were compared with those of healthy elderly controls. In schizophrenics, increases in delta and slow theta (4.0-6.0 Hz) waves were thought to be due to the influence of antipsychotics. Characteristic EEG features of these patients included the following: 1) more fast theta (6.0-8.0 Hz) wave was observed, with less alpha wave faster than 9.0 Hz, 2) the reduction in alpha 3 (10.0-11.0 Hz) wave was limited to the frontal regions. The present EEG findings are thought to characterize the traits of the subtype of chronic severe schizophrenia. The reduction in alpha 3 wave in the frontal regions may be one expression of the hypofrontality of schizophrenia.

Age Factors

Inhibitory effect of sarcophytol A on development of spontaneous hepatomas in mice.

The inhibitory effect of sarcophytol A, a cembrane-type diterpene isolated from a marine soft coral, Sarcophyton glaucum, on development of spontaneous hepatomas was investigated in C3H/HeNCrj mice. A total of 80 mice were divided equally into two groups. The experimental and control groups were given basal diets with and without 0.01% sarcophytol A, respectively. At week 65 of the experiment, mice were examined for hepatomas. The percentages of hepatoma-bearing mice of the subgroup with three or more tumors and the tumor diameters of the group treated with sarcophytol A were smaller than those of the control group. Ridit analysis revealed that these differences were statistically significant. The body weight gain, and the food intake were not significantly different between these two groups. Analysis of blood serum revealed that feeding the diet containing 0.01% sarcophytol A for 65 weeks did not show any adverse effects. These results suggest that sarcophytol A inhibits the development of spontaneous hepatomas without toxicity, and should be considered as a possible cancer chemopreventive agent for hepatomas in humans.

Alanine Transaminase

Inhibitory effects of acyclic retinoid (polyprenoic acid) and its hydroxy derivative on cell growth and on secretion of alpha-fetoprotein in human hepatoma-derived cell line (PLC/PRF/5).

Acyclic retinoid (polyprenoic acid) has a slightly different structure from retinoic acid. However, acyclic retinoid acts similarly to retinoic acid, because both bind to cellular retinoic acid-binding protein and cellular retinoid-binding protein. F-type, with the same strong binding affinity. We studied the effects of acyclic retinoid, the 7-hydroxy derivative of acyclic retinoid (7OH-acyclic retinoid) and retinoic acid on a human hepatoma-derived cell line PLC/PRF/5 (Alexander cells). Acyclic retinoid inhibited cell growth with an ID50 value of 14 microM, and reduced cell viability with an LD50 value of 86 microM. The ratios of LD50 value to ID50 value were 6.1 for acyclic retinoid, 2.4 for 7OH-acyclic retinoid and 1.4 for all-trans-retinoic acid. Taking this ratio as a parameter of relative cytotoxicity, we concluded that acyclic retinoid is the least toxic compound. Growth inhibition of cells by acyclic retinoid was associated with the incorporation of 3H-thymidine in the logarithmic phase. Acyclic retinoid reduced secretion of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) and reciprocally increased secretion of albumin in the culture media, suggesting that acyclic retinoid influences gene expression of these proteins. Thus, acyclic retinoid, one of the less toxic retinoids, inhibits cell growth of human cancer cell line PLC/PRF/5 and appears to alter gene expression of AFP and albumin toward a "normal" direction.

Acrylates

EEG analysis in patients with senile dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

An EEG frequency analysis using the wave-form recognition method was performed in different stages of senile dementia (SD), evaluated according to the Hasegawa Dementia Rating Scale (HDS), and the differences in EEG changes between patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and patients with SD were studied. We found that the EEG changes in the SD patients correlated with HDS, and that an increase in slow theta (4-5.8 Hz) and a decrease in fast theta (7-7.8 Hz) waves were early changes in the SD patients. Furthermore, delta and slow theta waves increased mainly in the anterior frontal and temporal areas in the severe SD patients. The AD patients showed more severe EEG abnormalities than the SD patients and showed severe focal abnormalities in the temporal area.

Aged

Insulin autoimmune syndrome with insulin-resistant diabetes at the incipient stage prior to hypoglycemic attacks.

Insulin autoimmune syndrome is characterized by spontaneous hypoglycemia, glucose intolerance, hyperinsulinemia and insulin-binding antibodies in serum without previous immunization. A 31-year-old man with Graves' disease developed insulin autoantibodies after therapy with methimazole. The patient was unique in that persistent hyperglycemia with polyuria and polydipsia had continued for several days before frequent hypoglycemic attacks appeared. We were able to extract a huge amount of immunoreactive insulin (116,000 microU/ml) with acid-ethanol from his serum obtained in the diabetic stage, and serum C-peptide immunoreactivity was as high as 268 ng/ml. The insulin-binding activity of his serum was quite potent, and when 1:5,000 diluted serum was incubated with 125I-porcine insulin, 71.2% of the label could be precipitated by polyethylene glycol. The insulin-binding protein was identified as mainly IgG with kappa light chains. Insulin-binding activity was not detected in serum obtained before methimazole therapy, suggesting that the drug was responsible for the induction of antibodies in this patient. The antibodies recognized porcine, sheep, bovine and horse insulins as well as human insulin. The mechanisms by which the antibodies produced hyper- and hypoglycemia have also been discussed.

Adult

[General pharmacology of T-2588, a new oral cephem antibiotic].

A new oral cephem antibiotic, T-2588, the pivaloyloxymethyl ester of (+)-(6R, 7R)-7-[(Z)-2-(2-amino-4-thiazolyl)-2-methoxyiminoacetamido]-3- [(5-methyl-2H-tetrazol-2-yl)methyl]-8-oxo-5-thia-1-azabicyclo[4.2. 0]oct-2-ene-2-carboxylic acid (T-2525), is mainly absorbed from the intestinal tract and biotransformed to T-2525 thereafter. General pharmacological activities of T-2588 were studied and following results were obtained. On the central nervous system, T-2588 did not show any effects at oral doses of 500-2,000 mg/kg and T-2525 produced only a slight elevation of body temperature in rabbits without any other effects at an intravenous dose of 500 mg/kg. On the respiratory and cardiovascular systems, T-2525 caused a slight hypotension and increased both respiratory rate and femoral blood flow, but no changes were observed in heart rate and electrocardiogram in dogs at an intravenous dose of 500 mg/kg. The T-2525 exerted no significant influence on blood pressure response to isoproterenol, acetylcholine or histamine, but showed a slight tendency to decrease pressor response to adrenaline in dogs at intravenous doses of 100-500 mg/kg. For the renal function in rats, T-2588 had no effects on urine volume, electrolytes and PSP excretion at oral doses of 500-2,000 mg/kg. Intravenous administration of T-2525 caused an increase of sodium excretion at 500 mg/kg and dose-dependent increases of PSP excretion at 20-500 mg/kg. Hematological studies revealed that both T-2588 at oral doses of 500-2,000 mg/kg and T-2525 at intravenous doses of 100-500 mg/kg had no effects on bleeding time in mice, blood coagulation and platelet aggregation in rats. The T-2588 exerted no effect on the gastrointestinal system in rats or mice and had no antiinflammatory activity in rats at oral doses of 500-2,000 mg/kg. The T-2525 scarcely affected the motilities of isolated smooth muscle preparations in experimental animals including stomach, ileum, colon, uterus, vas deferens and trachea at a concentration as high as 10(-3) g/ml. The T-2525 increased bile secretion in rats at intravenous doses of 100-500 mg/kg. The T-2525 slightly decreased the twitch tension of musculus gastrocnemius induced by electrical stimulation in rats at an intravenous dose of 500 mg/kg. These results indicate that T-2588 is a pharmacologically inactive antibiotic.

Animals