Biomedical subjects

M Shoda

Publications and source records attributed to M Shoda.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2001

Amiodarone-Induced thyroid dysfunction and ventricular tachyarrhythmias during long-term therapy in Japan.

In 232 Japanese patients receiving long-term amiodarone therapy for life-threatening ventricular tachyarrhythmias, hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism developed in 29 patients (12.5%) and 25 patients (10.8%), respectively. In patients with hyperthyroidism, the recurrence of sustained ventricular tachycardia was significantly higher with thyrotoxicosis than in the euthyroid period (31% vs 3%, p<0.01). Holter monitoring showed that the average heart rate and ventricular premature complexes significantly increased with hyperthyroidism. On the other hand, there was no increase in the recurrence of ventricular tachyarrhythmia with hypothyroidism. There was no change in the dose or the plasma concentration of amiodarone or desethylamiodarone in the euthyroid period or when hyperthyroidism or hypothyroidism manifested. It is important to monitor for arrhythmia when hyperthyroidism develops during amiodarone therapy.

Adult↗

PubMed2001

Characterization of aryl alcohol oxidase produced by dye-decolorizing fungus, Geotrichum candidum Decl.

Aryl alcohol oxidase (AAO) produced by Geotrichum candidum Dec1 (Dec1), a newly isolated decolorizing fungus, was purified by ultrafiltration and by using diethylaminoethyl (DEAE) Sephacel, Butyl-Toyopearl and Mono-Q columns. H2O2 produced by concomitant AAO oxidation of veratryl alcohol (VA) to veratraldehyde was consumed by a peroxidase (DyP) purified from Dec1 culture, leading to the decolorization of a dye (in vitro). In the liquid culture of Dec1, the existence of H2O2 and veratraldehyde was confirmed during cultivation, when dye-decolorization and AAO activities were maintained. This indicates that VA produced by Dec1 was oxidized by AAO to veratraldehyde, generating H2O2, which supported dye-decolorizing activity of Decl in vivo. The prevention of polymerization of DyP oxidation products of a dye in the presence of AAO was shown.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Comparison of the biological H2S removal characteristics among four inorganic packing materials.

Four inorganic packing materials were evaluated in terms of their availability as packing materials of a packed tower deodorization apparatus (biofilter) from the viewpoints of biological H2S removal characteristics and some physical properties. Among porous ceramics (A), calcinated cristobalite (B), calcinated and formed obsidian (C), granulated and calcinated soil (D), the superiority of these packing materials determined based on the values of non-biological removal per unit weight or unit volume of packing material, complete removal capacity of H2S per unit weight of packing material per day or unit volume of packing material per day and pressure drop of the packed bed was in the order of A approximately equal to C > D approximately equal to B, which is correlated with the maximum water content, porosity, and mean pore diameter.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Comparison of the biological NH3 removal characteristics among four inorganic packing materials.

Four inorganic packing materials were evaluated in terms of their availability as a packing material of a packed tower deodorization apparatus (biofilter) from the viewpoints of biological NH3 removal characteristics and some physical properties. Porous ceramics (A), calcinated cristobalite (B), calcinated and formed obsidian (C), granulated and calculated soil (D) were used. The superiority of these packing materials determined based on the values of non-biological removal per unit weight or unit volume of packing material, complete removal capacity of NH3 per unit weight of packing material per day or unit volume of packing material per day and pressure drop of the packed bed was in the order of A approximately = C > B > or = D. Packing materials A and C with high porosity, maximum water content, and suitable mean pore diameter showed excellent removal capacity.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Efficient production of a heterologous peroxidase, DyP from Geotrichum candidum Dec 1, on solid-state culture of Aspergillus oryzae RD005.

The productivity of a peroxidase (DyP) originating from Geotrichum candidum Dec 1 was enhanced in the solid-state culture using Aspergillus oryzae RD005. When the humidity, water content, and temperature were adjusted to 60%, 50% and 27 degrees C, respectively, the productivity of DyP reached 5.3 g per kilogram wheat bran, which was used as the solid medium. The yield of 5.3 g per kg wheat bran corresponded to the yield of a 56 kg submerged culture. The productivity per gram carbon of the medium in the solid-state culture was 4.1-fold that in the submerged culture.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Malaria infections in crews of Japanese ships.

Plasmodium falciparum malaria is the most dangerous infection for seafarers in West Africa. In December 1998, five cases of this infection occurred among Japanese seafarers in West Africa, two of them died, one on board ship, and another died five days after the admission to the hospital in Reunion island, East Africa. Six other cases of falciparum malaria infection occurred among Japanese seafarers on another ship in December 1999. Three infected persons were admitted to hospitals in Abidjan (Ivory Coast) and Point Noire (Congo). In Japan, over 100 cases of imported malaria were recorded each year during the period from 1990 to 1997, and about 40% of these cases were falciparum infections. It is not known how many of them occurred among seafarers. We estimate that at least 5% of all malaria cases in Japan are seafarers. Measures to protect crews of ships against malaria are discussed.

Adult↗

PubMed2001

Integrated biological and chemical control of damping-off caused by Rhizoctonia solani using Bacillus subtilis RB14-C and flutolanil.

Bacillus subtilis RB14-C was isolated as a potential biological agent to control the occurrence of various plant diseases. Integrated control of damping-off in tomato plants caused by Rhizoctonia solani was carried out in pots using B. subtilis RB14-C and chemical pesticide, flutolanil. The growth of RB14-C was the same in both the flutolanil-containing and the flutolanil-free media, indicating the resistance of RB14-C to flutolanil. Although the productivity of surfactin decreased to one-third in the flutolanil-containing medium, compared with that in the flutolanil-free medium, the productivity of iturin A which is mainly associated with the suppressive ability of RB14-C against plant pathogens was unaffected. The integration of RB14-C and flutolanil reduced the amount of flutolanil used to one-fourth of that of the single use of flutolanil, with the same efficacy of reducing disease occurrence.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2000

Pathogenicity of Rhodococcus equi expressing a virulence-associated 20 kDa protein (VapB) in foals.

Rhodococcus equi strains of intermediate virulence (IMV) for mice possess a 20kDa protein designated Virulence Associated Protein B (VapB) and a virulence plasmid of 79-100kb, and can be recovered from the submaxillary lymph nodes of pigs. The pathogenicity of such R. equi strains for foals is unknown. In this study, two foals, 42 and 43 days of age, were infected intratracheally with 10(6) and 10(9) cells of R. equi IMV strain A5, respectively. The foal infected with 10(9) cells of strain A5 became clinically ill, with the onset of illness (pyrexia and depression) occurring 21 days after inoculation. R. equi was isolated from the feces and tracheal washings of the foal from 14 to 28 days after inoculation. The foal infected with 10(6) cells of A5 showed no clinical signs, and no R. equi was isolated from any of the samples of feces or tracheal washings during the 28 days of observation. Two foals of 45 and 50 days of age were infected with 10(5) or 10(6) of virulent R. equi ATCC 33701 having 15-17kDa surface proteins designated VapA. Both exhibited severe clinical signs (pyrexia, depression and anorexia) at 12 and 13 days after inoculation. Histopathological examination revealed that strain A5 caused focal granulomatous pneumonia in the foals. R. equi IMV strain A5 was isolated from lung lesions of both foals and from the contents of the intestinal tracts of the foal infected with 10(9) bacteria. These results suggest that IMV R. equi having VapB is less virulent than virulent R. equi having VapA in foals. This finding supports our previous results on the pathogenicities of R. equi strains having these virulence-associated antigens assessed by mouse pathogenicity tests.

Animals↗

PubMed2000

Bacterial cellulose production by Acetobacter xylinum in a 50-L internal-loop airlift reactor.

Bacterial cellulose (BC) production was realized in a batch cultivation of Acetobacter xylinum subsp. sucrofermentans BPR2001 in a 50-L internal-loop airlift reactor. When the bacterium was cultivated with air supply, 3.8 g/L of BC was produced after 67 hours. When oxygen-enriched gas was supplied, the concentration of BC was doubled and the production rate of BC was 0.116 g/L. h, which was two times higher than that of air-supplied culture and comparable to that in a mechanically agitated stirred-tank fermentor. Bacterial cellulose produced by the airlift reactor formed a unique ellipse pellet (BC pellet), different from the fibrous form which was produced in an agitated stirred-tank fermentor. The BC-pellet suspension was demonstrated to have a higher volumetric oxygen transfer coefficient than the fibrous BC suspension in a 50-L internal-loop airlift reactor. The mixing time of BC-pellet suspension in the airlift reactor was also shorter than that in water.

Air↗

PubMed2000

Kinetics of product inhibition in alcohol fermentation. Reprinted from Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Vol. X, Issue 6, Pages 845-864 (1968).

The inhibitory effect of ethanol concentration p in a medium on the specific rates of growth mu and ethanol production nu of a specific strain of baker's yeast was studied in a chemostat, where except for ethanol as the product, only the concentration of glucose S was controlled to limit the metabolic activity of the yeast. This was designed to supplement the previous findings from the batch experiment, in which ethanol was added artificially and no substrate components were limiting the metabolism of the same yeast, that mu = mu(0)e(-k(1)p) and nu = nu(0)e(-k(1)p), where k(1) and k(2) are empirical constants and subscript the 0 denotes respective values at p = 0. The effects of p on the values of mu and nu were confirmed by the Line-weaver-Burk plot to belong to noncompetitive inhibition. The formulas here for mu and nu as affected by p, if extrapolated to the case of no limiting substrates, were in good agreement in respective forms with those derived previously from the batch experiment, though the values of corresponding coefficients in these formulas were different. The differential equations for mu and nu as functions of both p and S and, in addition for the rate of glucose consumption as correlated by the yield factors either with the cell growth rate or the rate of ethanol production, were solved properly with a digital computer. A kinetic pattern calculated so far was discussed with reference to the data obtained in the batch experiment and those relevant to actual "sake" brewing.

Culture Media↗

PubMed2000

Comparison of organic and inorganic packing materials in the removal of ammonia gas in biofilters.

Two organic and two inorganic packing materials were compared with regard to the removal of ammonia gas in a biofilter inoculated with night-soil sludge. By gradually increasing the inlet load of ammonia, the complete removal capacity, which was defined as the inlet load of ammonia that was completely removed, and the maximum removal capacity of ammonia, which was the value when the removal capacity leveled off for each packing material, were estimated. Both values which were based on a unit volume of packing material, were higher for organic packing materials than inorganic ones. By using kinetic analysis, the maximum removal rate of ammonia, V(m), and the saturation constant, K(s), were determined for all packing materials and the values of V(m) for organic packing materials were found to be larger. By using the kinetic parameters, the removal rates for ammonia were compared among the four packing materials, and the organic packing materials showed superior performance for the removal of ammonia in the concentration range of 0-300 ppm as compared to inorganic packing materials.

Aluminum Silicates↗

PubMed2000

Bacterial control of plant diseases.

This article focuses on the effective biocontrol of plant diseases by microorganisms, which is attracting attention as an alternative to chemical control methods. As most research has so far been concentrated on fluorescent Pseudomonas species, the use of Bacillus species which has been considered to be less effective compared to that of pseudomonads, has been mainly introduced to demonstrate the effectiveness of the bacteria.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2000

Effect of molasses on the production and activity of dye-decolorizing peroxidase from Geotrichum candidum Dec1.

The production of dye-decolorizing peroxidase (DyP) was investigated by cultivating Geotrichum candidum Dec1 using molasses as a carbon source. Molasses at concentrations greater than 10 g.l(-1) was found to increase the decolorization activity of the culture broth toward dye, reactive blue 5 mainly because the amount of enzyme produced was enhanced. However, complete inhibition of DyP activity by molasses was observed at the concentration of 20 g.l(-1), indicating that the inhibitory effect of molasses on the culture broth activity to decolorize the dye was involved. When the culture broth was diluted 25 times, the dye-decolorizing activity was 7 times as much as that of non-diluted culture broth. The molasses fractions separated by gel chromatography (300-400 ml and 400-500 ml fractions) completely inhibited the purified DyP. On the basis of these results, we propose a scheme to control both positive and negative effects of molasses on the dye decolorization process.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2000

Removal of a high load of ammonia gas by a marine bacterium, Vibrio alginolyticus.

A newly isolated marine bacterium, Vibrio alginolyticus was used to remove a high load of ammonia gas. By a stepwise increase in ammonia supply over the concentration range of 120-2000 ppm (v/v), complete removal of ammonia was observed from the start of the experiment in a suspended culture of the bacterium in basal medium containing 3% NaCl. When cells were inoculated onto an inorganic packing material in a biofilter, and a high load of ammonia was introduced continuously under nonsterile conditions, the average percentage of gas removed exceeded 85% for a 61-d operation. The maximum removal capacity and the complete removal capacity were 22.8 g-N/kg-dry packing material/d and 18.6 g-N/kg-dry packing material/d, respectively, which were about four times larger than those obtained in nitrifying sludge inoculated onto the same packing material. During this operation, the nonsterile air supply had no adverse effect on the removability of ammonia by V. alginolyticus.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2000

Neurosurgery at Fujita Health University, Japan.

Neurosurgery at the Fujita Health University began in 1972 with Dr. Tetsuo Kanno. In 1973, he was joined by Dr. Kazuhiro Katada and in the year 1976, an independent neurosurgery department was established with Dr. Kanno as the Chief of Neurosurgery. Under his guidance the department continued to grow and by 1978, a neurosurgical residency program recognised by the Japanese Board of Neurosurgery was established. Integration of laboratory research and clinical experience is the hallmark of this program. The current philosophy is directed towards subspecialization and academic training. This article provides a brief overview of the rapid development of a Neurosurgical Centre to reach international acclaim under the guidance of Prof. Tetsuo Kanno.

Hospitals, University↗

PubMed2000

Efficient heterologous expression in Aspergillus oryzae of a unique dye-decolorizing peroxidase, DyP, of Geotrichum candidum Dec 1.

Efficient expression of the dye-decolorizing peroxidase, DyP, from Geotrichum candidum Dec 1 in Aspergillus oryzae M-2-3 was achieved by fusing mature cDNA encoding dyp with the A. oryzae alpha-amylase promoter (amyB). The activity yield of the purified recombinant DyP (rDyP) was 42-fold compared with that of the purified native DyP from Dec 1. No exogenous heme was necessary for the expression of rDyP in A. oryzae. From the N-terminal amino acid sequence analyses of native DyP and rDyP, the absence of a histidine residue in both DyPs, which was considered to be important for heme binding of DyP, was confirmed. These results suggest that rDyP without a typical heme-binding region produced by A. oryzae exhibits a function similar to that of native DyP.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed1999

Decolorization of molasses and a dye by a newly isolated strain of the fungus Geotrichum candidum Dec 1.

A fungus, Geotrichum candidum Dec 1, newly isolated as a dye-decolorizing microorganism, was used to decolorize molasses and an anthraquinone dye in shaken flasks. A degree of decolorization of molasses of 87% was achieved after 12 days of cultivation, and the maximum rate of decolorization of the dye in the culture broth was obtained in 7 days. The apparent activity of peroxidase in the molasses, which is responsible for dye decolorization, was significantly lower than that of purified peroxidase, due to the inhibition by molasses, but the inhibition was reduced after the fungus was fully grown. As two ultrafiltered fractions of molasses were similarly decolorized by Dec 1, Dec 1 apparently degraded colored substances of a wide range of molecular weights. When Dec 1 was cultivated in a medium in which sucrose in the molasses was hydrolyzed with invertase, the degree of decolorization of molasses, and rate of decolorization of the dye were similar to these obtained above.

Biodegradation, Environmental↗

PubMed1999

High magnetic field enhances stationary phase-specific transcription activity of Escherichia coli.

When Escherichia coli B was aerobically grown at 37 degrees C under inhomogeneous 5.2-6.1 Tesla (T) magnetic fields in the superconducting magnet biosystem (SBS), the cell number in the stationary phase after the growth had leveled off, was about 3 times higher than that under a geomagnetic field. When the E. coli defective in the rpoS gene which encodes a sigma factor, sigmaS of RNA polymerase and is specifically expressed in the stationary phase was cultivated at 37 degrees C in SBS, such enhancement of cell survival was significantly reduced. The E. coli cells carrying rpoS-lacZ fusion gene or other rpoS dependent genes fused with lacZ were grown, significant increase in the activity of beta-galactosidase was observed in the stationary phase under high magnetic field. These data suggest that enhancement of the transcription activity in stationary phase is involved in the higher survival of the cells under magnetic field.

Bacterial Proteins↗