Biomedical subjects

Mai Ohsawa

Publications and source records attributed to Mai Ohsawa.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Cytochemical analysis of storage materials in cultured skin fibroblasts from patients with I-cell disease.

BACKGROUND: In cultured fibroblasts from I-cell disease patients the transport of many lysosomal enzymes is defective, and affected cells contain inclusion bodies filled with undegraded substrates. However, the contents of these inclusion bodies have not been well characterized yet. We attempted to identify accumulated substances in cultured I-cell disease fibroblasts cytochemically. METHODS: Cultured fibroblasts from I-cell disease patients were double-stained with a monoclonal antibody to lysosome-associated membrane protein-1 (LAMP-1) and that to GM2 ganglioside, or a series of lectins that specifically bind to sugar moieties. RESULTS: The patients' cells were granularly stained with the antibody to GM2 ganglioside and the lectins including Maakia amurensis, Datura stramonium, and concanavalin A. Their localization was coincident with that of LAMP-1. CONCLUSIONS: GM2 ganglioside and various kinds of glycoconjugates having sialic acidalpha2-3galactose, galactosebeta1-4N-acetylglucosamine and mannose residues accumulate in enlarged lysosomes in I-cell disease fibroblasts.

Cells, Cultured↗

PubMed2006

Significant decrease in tropoelastin gene expression in fibroblasts from a Japanese Costello syndrome patient with impaired elastogenesis and enhanced proliferation.

Costello syndrome is a connective tissue disorder associated with sparse, thin, and fragmented elastic fibers in tissues. In this study we demonstrated a significant decrease in the expression of tropoelastin mRNA in fibroblasts derived from a Japanese Costello syndrome patient with impaired elastogenesis and enhanced proliferation. In contrast, there were no changes in expression of the Harvey ras (HRAS), fibrillin-1, fibulin-5, microfibril-associated glycoprotein-1 (MAGP-1), lysyl oxidase (LOX), or 67-kDa non-integrin elastin-binding protein (EBP) gene. The proliferative activity of the Costello fibroblasts was about 4-fold higher than that of the normal and pathological control ones. However, no mutations were detected in the coding region of HRAS mRNA. Transduction of the bovine tropoelastin (bTE) gene with the lentiviral vector restored the elastic fiber formation and decreased the growth rate in the Costello fibroblasts. These results strongly suggest that the defect of human tropoelastin (hTE) gene expression should induce the impaired elastogenesis and enhanced proliferation of Costello fibroblasts, and that a primary cause other than the HRAS gene mutation should contribute to the pathogenesis in the present Costello case.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

PubMed2006

Phospholipid storage in the myocardium of a unique Japanese case of idiopathic cardiomyopathy.

BACKGROUND: A unique adult male patient who developed cardiomyopathy was first suspected to have cardiac Fabry disease based on the pathological findings in heart tissues obtained on biopsy, but the alpha-galactosidase activity in his leukocytes was normal and no mutation was detected in the coding region of the alpha-galactosidase gene. We identified accumulated materials in the myocardium of this patient. METHODS: Pathological and biochemical analyses were performed using the autopsied heart tissues as samples. RESULTS: Although numerous lamellar and concentric inclusion bodies were ultrastructurally found in the autopsied myocardium, the alpha-galactosidase activity in the heart tissues was not decreased. Lipid analysis revealed the accumulation of phospholipids including phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine, and phosphatidylinositol, but not globotriaosylcereamide or gangliosides. CONCLUSIONS: We found that a large amount of phospholipids accumulated in the myocardium of a patient with idiopathic cardiomyopathy, and electron microscopic findings of lamellar and concentric inclusion bodies in cardiomyocytes. A cardiac phospholipid storage disorder should be considered as an important candidate disease on differential diagnosis of myocardiac disorders including cardiac Fabry disease.

Autopsy↗

PubMed2006

Corrective effect on Fabry mice of yeast recombinant human alpha-galactosidase with N-linked sugar chains suitable for lysosomal delivery.

We have previously reported the production of a recombinant alpha-galactosidase with engineered N-linked sugar chains facilitating uptake and transport to lysosomes in a Saccharomyces cerevisiae mutant. In this study, we improved the purification procedure, allowing us to obtain a large amount of highly purified enzyme protein with mannose-6-phosphate residues at the non-reducing ends of sugar chains. The products were incorporated into cultured fibroblasts derived from a patient with Fabry disease via mannose-6-phosphate receptors. The ceramide trihexoside (CTH) accumulated in lysosomes was cleaved dose-dependently, and the disappearance of deposited CTH was maintained for at least 7 days after administration. We next examined the effect of the recombinant alpha-galactosidase on Fabry mice. Repeated intravascular administration of the enzyme led to successful degradation of CTH accumulated in the liver, kidneys, heart, and spleen. However, cleavage of the accumulated CTH in the dorsal root ganglia was insufficient. As the culture of yeast cells is easy and economical, and does not require fetal calf serum, the recombinant alpha-galactosidase produced in yeast cells is highly promising as an enzyme source for enzyme replacement therapy in Fabry disease.

Animals↗

PubMed2005

Establishment of immortalized Schwann cells from Sandhoff mice and corrective effect of recombinant human beta-hexosaminidase A on the accumulated GM2 ganglioside.

We have established spontaneously immortalized Schwann cell lines from dorsal root ganglia and peripheral nerves of Sandhoff mice. One of the cell lines exhibited genetically and biochemically distinct features of Sandhoff Schwann cells. The enzyme activities toward 4-methylumbelliferyl N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosamine (beta-hexosaminidases A, B, and S) and 4-methylumbelliferyl N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosamine-6-sulfate (beta-hexosaminidases A and S) were decreased, and GM2 ganglioside accumulated in lysosomes of the cells. Incorporation of recombinant human beta-hexosaminidase isozymes expressed in Chinese hamster ovary cells into the cultured Sandhoff Schwann cells via cation-independent mannose 6-phosphate receptors was found, and the incorporated beta-hexosaminidase A degraded the accumulated GM2 ganglioside. The established Sandhoff Schwann cell line is useful for investigation and development of therapies for Sandhoff disease.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Induction of tissue factor expression in human monocytic cells by protease inhibitors through activating activator protein-1 (AP-1) with phosphorylation of Jun-N-terminal kinase and p38.

Tissue factor (TF) is expressed rapidly by human monocytes exposed to a variety of agonists such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or tumor necrosis factor-alpha. Activation of both activator protein-1 (AP-1; c-Jun/c-Fos) and nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) pathways is necessary for maximal induction of the TF gene. It has been demonstrated that activation of both AP-1 and NF-kappaB is correlated with the degradation of both phosphorylated c-Jun and inhibitor kappaB (IkappaB) by proteasome. The present study was designed to investigate whether various protease inhibitors, including proteasome inhibitors, affect TF expression in monocytic cells. Protease inhibitors, 3,4-dichloroisocoumarin (DCI), N-tosyl-l-phenylalanine chloromethyl ketone (TPCK), and N-acetyl-Leu-Leu-norleucinal (ALLN) induced TF activity in monocytic cells in a dose- and time-dependent manner at the level of the transcription of the TF gene, which was mediated through inducing phosphorylation of both Jun-N-terminal kinase and p38. The early growth response-1 (Egr-1) pathway was not affected. The NF-kappaB pathway was not activated; rather it was inhibited. These results were distinct from the findings previously reported for LPS-stimulated cells. The present study demonstrated that some protease inhibitors might act as stress and induced TF expression with direct phosphorylation of JNK and p38, followed by phosphorylation and activation of AP-1 in monocytic cells. This evidence may help elucidate further regulatory mechanisms of TF induction, and might have physiological significance for the clinically challenged use of proteasome inhibitors. In addition to phosphorylation of JNK and p38, an unknown signal pathway needs to be clarified for TF induction.

Cell Line, Tumor↗

PubMed2002

A novel cell line derived from de novo acute myeloblastic leukaemia with trilineage myelodysplasia which proliferates in response to a Notch ligand, Delta-1 protein.

A novel human leukaemia cell line, designated TMD7, was established from blast cells of a patient with de novo acute myeloblastic leukaemia with trilineage myelodysplasia (AML/TLD). As seen in the original blast cells, TMD7 cells expressed CD7, CD13, CD33 and CD34 and showed an abnormal karyotype containing -5, -7, -8, der(16)t(10;16)(q22;q13). The cells proliferated without added growth factors. Growth was stimulated with the addition of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), granulocyte-macrophage CSF (GM-CSF) and interleukin 3. Differentiation was not observed with the addition of various cytokines. As a cell line derived from AML/TLD has not been reported, TMD7 will be a useful tool as a model of AML/TLD cells. Recently, it was reported that the Notch system has crucial roles to regulate the self-renewal and differentiation of haematopoietic stem cells. We found that TMD7 cells expressed Notch-1 and Notch-2 mRNA. The exposure to recombinant Delta-1 protein, which was one of the Notch ligands, significantly stimulated the growth of TMD7 cells. This is the first human cell line which was shown to proliferate in response to Delta-1, without artificially expressed Notch protein. Therefore, TMD7 will also be a useful tool to study the mechanism of the Notch-Notch ligand interaction.

Calcium-Binding Proteins↗