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Biomedical subjects

T Iwamoto

Publications and source records attributed to T Iwamoto.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Effects of ouabain on muscle tension and intracellular Ca2+ level in guinea-pig aorta.

The effects of ouabain on muscle tension and the intracellular Ca2+ level ([Ca2+]i) were examined in guinea-pig aorta loaded with fura-2. Ouabain caused a gradual and sustained increase in both [Ca2+]i and muscle tension. There was a positive correlation between these two parameters. In Ca(2+)-free solution, ouabain did not affect either [Ca2+]i or muscle tension, suggesting that the ouabain-induced increase in [Ca2+]i was not due to Ca2+ release from storage sites. The ouabain-induced increase in [Ca2+]i and muscle tension was inhibited by Ni2+, which inhibits the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger, but not by verapamil. Furthermore, anionic and cationic amphiphiles were used as modulators of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger. Sodium dodecyl sulfate accelerated the responses to ouabain, whereas dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide inhibited them. These results suggest that in the guinea-pig aorta, ouabain induces contraction by increasing the Ca2+ influx through the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger on the plasma membrane, but not through verapamil-sensitive Ca2+ channels.

Animals

Accelerated proliferation and interleukin-2 production of thymocytes by stimulation of soluble anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody in transgenic mice carrying a rabbit protein kinase C alpha.

Protein kinase C (PKC) has been believed to play an important role in the differentiation/proliferation of various kinds of mammalian cells. To analyze its function in living animals, we have established a transgenic mouse line carrying rabbit protein kinase C alpha cDNA under the control of the regulatory element of human CD2. Thymocytes of these transgenic mice overexpressed PKC alpha. Interestingly, the increase of PKC alpha was detected mainly in membrane fractions of transgenic thymocytes. Although the transgenic thymocytes did not show any distinct proliferative features in vivo, they displayed a unique property to extensively proliferate and produce interleukin-2 (IL-2) in response to the stimulation by a soluble form of anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody (mAb), an incomplete agonist for proliferation of normal thymocytes. Furthermore, co-stimulation of the phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate and anti-CD3 mAb intensely provoked the transgenic thymocytes to release IL-2. For the first time this result provided the direct evidence that PKC alpha translocated to the cell membrane of thymocytes works as an active second messenger of the T cell receptor-CD3 complex-delivered signal for proliferation and IL-2 production.

Animals

Delivery of an accessory signal for cell activation by exogenous phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C.

Digestion of phosphatidylinositol (PI) or glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchors of membrane proteins on the external cell surface with exogenous PI-specific phospholipase C (PIPLC) from Bacillus thuringiensis was shown to transmit a signal into the thymocyte to modulate the TCR/CD3 complex-induced signal delivery for cell activation. This was demonstrated for very early protein tyrosine phosphorylation, early c-fos transcription and late DNA synthesis. For this effect preincubation of the cells with PIPLC was required, but there was no evidence of involvement of any soluble products released from the cell surface by PIPLC in the signaling, suggesting a crucial role of the membrane-bound counterpart (diacylglycerol or diradylglycerol) of the PI/GPI hydrolysate. A possible role for this accessory signal in the microorganism-linked control of the (diacylglycerol or diradylglycerol) of the PI/GPI hydrolysate. A possible role for this accessory signal in the microorganism-linked control of the T cell receptor function is discussed.

Animals

Purification and characterization of a sperm motility-dynein ATPase inhibitor from boar seminal plasma.

A sperm motility inhibitor from boar seminal plasma was purified. The purification procedure included dialysis against 0.1 M Tris-HCl containing 0.1 mM DTT and chromatographies on SP-Sephadex C-25 and Phenyl-Sepharose CL-4B. With this procedure, the seminal plasma motility inhibitor (SPMI) preparation was highly purified with a 18% recovery of inhibitory activity. The molecular weight of SPMI in native conditions has been estimated at 50,000 by molecular sieving, but 3 polypeptides with molecular weights of 14,000, 16,000 and 18,000 were observed following polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in denaturing conditions. SPMI is a thermolabile basic protein that is stable between pH 6 and pH 11. The observations that SPMI effects on motility of demembranated spermatozoa are reversed by Mg.ATP and that SPMI inhibited bull dynein ATPase in a concentration-dependent manner suggest that this protein blocks the motility of demembranated spermatozoa by interfering with dynein arm function.

Animals

Arteriovenous malformation of the pancreas associated with hepatocellular carcinoma. A case report and review of the literature.

A case of pancreatic arteriovenous malformation (AVM) with hepatocellular carcinoma is reported. The patient, a 56-year-old Japanese man, was asymptomatic. The pancreatic lesion was found incidentally during an evaluation for hepatocellular carcinoma. Celiac arteriogram demonstrated tortuous feeding arteries, a racemose intrapancreatic stain, which disappeared before the venous phase, and early portal filling.

Arteriovenous Malformations

The ret oncogene can induce melanogenesis and melanocyte development in Wv/Wv mice.

We recently reported the establishment of transgenic mouse lines carrying the mouse metallothionein/ret fusion gene in which severe melanosis and melanocytic tumors developed. In the present study, we demonstrate that a significant number of pigmented hairs developed in Wv/Wv mice crossed to one of the transgenic mouse lines. The pigmented hair of Wv/Wv mice carrying the ret oncogene did not lose color during aging and reappeared after shaving, indicating that the melanocytes in the hair follicle function. The melanocytic tumors also developed in these mice, although the incidence was lower than that in the wild transgenic mice. Furthermore, the neutral tube culture of mouse embryos indicated that neural crest cells of the transgenic mice gave rise to a cell population that autonomously produced melanin even in the absence of melanocyte stimulating hormone. These results strongly suggested that the introduced ret oncogene could compensate for the defect of c-kit in Wv mice during both embryogenesis and postnatal life and induce a high level of melanin synthesis in the process of melanocyte development.

Aging

Bidirectional control by glycyrrhizin of the growth response of lymphocytes stimulated through a receptor-bypassed pathway.

This study demonstrates a unique action of glycyrrhizin (GL) in bidirectionally controlling the growth response of lymphocytes stimulated through a receptor-bypassed pathway by calcium ionophore A23187 and phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA). GL up-regulated the response of lymphocytes in vitro to lower concentrations of A23187 and PMA, and down-regulated the response to higher concentrations. We also provide evidence that GL controls the response of lymphocytes of different cell types or maturation stages in different ways, probably because these lymphocytes require different levels of signals as optimum. Finally, the GL-mediated bidirectional controls of the lymphocyte growth response were shown to be adherent cell-independent. The bidirectional controls demonstrated may be significant in normalizing the lymphocyte responses to very weak or very high stimuli.

Animals

T cell maturation stage-linked heterogeneity of the glycosylphosphatidylinositol membrane anchor of Thy-1.

We showed that some of Thy-1 molecules on murine thymocytes are resistant to phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC) derived from Bacillus thuringiensis. Both immature thymocytes with low CD3 expression and mature thymic T lymphocytes with high CD3 expression carried the PI-PLC-resistant Thy-1, and the PI-PLC-sensitivity of Thy-1 extensively varied among thymocyte subpopulations. In contrast, the same PI-PLC fully hydrolysed the anchor of Thy-1 on peripheral T lymphocytes. When the latter cells were activated with mitogen in vitro, however, some Thy-1 on them became resistant to PI-PLC. We then found that virtually all Thy-1 molecules on thymocytes became sensitive to PI-PLC when they were treated with hydroxylamine that should cleave ester-linked lipids. The result ruled out the possibility that the PI-PLC-resistant Thy-1 had a transmembranous peptide sequence, and suggested the presence of an additional fatty acyl group on the inositol ring of the Thy-1 anchor. In addition, the molecular size of the PI-PLC-resistant membrane-bound Thy-1 was only marginally larger than that of the PI-PLC-sensitive solubilized Thy-1 in detergent-partitioning SDS-PAGE analysis.

Animals

Enhanced inhibitory effect of alpha 2-adrenoceptor stimulation on the formation of cAMP in glomeruli of spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Renal alpha 2-adrenoceptors are known to be increased in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) compared with Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY). To investigate whether this difference affects the second messenger system, we examined the effect of alpha 2-adrenoceptor stimulation on the formation of cAMP in microdissected glomeruli and proximal convoluted tubules obtained from the kidneys of SHR and WKY. The formation of glomerular cAMP, which was stimulated by parathyroid hormone (PTH), was inhibited by alpha 2-adrenoceptor stimulation. In contrast, the inhibitory effect of alpha 2-adrenoceptor stimulation on PTH-induced cAMP formation in proximal convoluted tubules was not significantly different between SHR and WKY. These results confirm the inhibitory action of alpha 2-adrenoceptors on the formation of cAMP in glomeruli and proximal tubules and suggest that the greater inhibitory effect on glomerular cAMP formation in SHR may reflect an increase in alpha 2-adrenoceptor density in SHR kidneys.

Animals

Purification and localization of a calcium-binding protein in human spermatozoa.

The purpose of this study was to purify a calcium-binding protein (CalBP) from human spermatozoa of 226 men and to determine the localization of this protein in spermatozoa. The sperm cells were extracted with 0.6 M KCl, and the KCl extract was then subjected to gel filtration and high performance liquid chromatography. Two CalBPs of Mr = 38 kDa and 52 kDa were found by 45Ca(2+)-binding on blotted proteins. Only a 52 kDa CalBP (CalBP-52) was purified to a final yield of 0.007%. The isoelectric point of this protein was 5.1. The human CalBP-52 reacted with rabbit antiserum directed against rat 52 kDa CalBP. An immunocytochemical study showed that this protein was localized on the sperm head. It is postulated that this protein may have important functions related to Ca(2+)-transport into sperm cells.

Animals

Effect of dietary sodium on platelet alpha 2-adrenoceptors in young normotensive men with or without a family history of hypertension.

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of genetics on the response of platelet alpha 2-adrenoceptors to a change in salt intake. METHODS: Biochemical measurements and radioligand binding assays in platelets were performed in 11 normotensive male university students with a family history of essential hypertension (FH+) and in 17 students without a family history of hypertension (FH-). The 28 students were fed a high-sodium diet for 7 days and a low-sodium diet for 7 days. RESULTS: In FH+ subjects the number of alpha 2-adrenergic receptors on platelet membrane fractions increased significantly from the high-sodium diet to the low-sodium diet, even though plasma noradrenaline concentrations tended to increase with the low-sodium diet. There was no change in the number of alpha 2-adrenoceptors in the FH--group. In both groups the radioligand binding affinity was decreased during a low-sodium period compared with in a high-sodium period. CONCLUSION: In the FH+ subjects the change in platelet alpha 2-adrenoceptors associated with altered sodium status was similar to that seen in patients with salt-sensitive hypertension, suggesting that there is a genetic susceptibility to sodium.

Adult

Superoxide dismutase attenuated post-ischaemic contractile dysfunction in a myocardial xanthine oxidase deficient species.

1. We assessed the effect of polyethylene glycol conjugated superoxide dismutase (PEG-SOD) on myocardial stunning in the rabbit heart in which xanthine oxidase level is extremely low. 2. In open-chest anaesthetized rabbits, the left marginal branch of the coronary artery was occluded for 10 min and then reperfused for 30 min. A group of rabbits (PEG-SOD group) received 1000 units/kg of PED-SOD and another group (control group) was given saline 15 min before the coronary occlusion. 3. Regional systolic thickening fraction (TF) was similarly reduced to approximately -25% of baseline value during ischaemia in both groups. However recovery of TF after reperfusion was significantly better in the PEG-SOD group (n = 9) and TF at 30 min after reperfusion was 70.1 +/- 3.9% of baseline value compared with 44.9 +/- 3.4% in the control group (n = 9; P less than 0.05). Rate-pressure products, left ventricular pressure, and LV dP/dt max were not significantly different between the PEG-SOD treated and untreated control rabbits at any time during the experiment. PEG-SOD did not modify the regional myocardial blood flow (coloured microsphere method) during ischaemia/reperfusion, which was assessed by using separate groups of rabbits. 4. These findings indicate that oxygen free radicals are important in the pathogenesis of myocardial stunning in xanthine oxidase deficient hearts.

Animals

Novel procedure for measuring psychosine derivatives by an HPLC method.

We developed a sensitive and simple method to determine galactosylsphingosine and glucosylsphingosine as a 4-fluoro-7-nitrobenzofurazan autofluorescent compound, using HPLC equipped with a Showdex sugar column. Amounts of galactosylsphingosine were successfully measured in the picomole range. This novel procedure is more stable and simpler than the previous method using o-phthalaldehyde. It was applied to tissues from the twitcher mouse, an animal model of human globoid cell leukodystrophy. The amount of galactosylsphingosine was 34-102 micrograms/kg of wet tissues in control cerebrum and cerebellum, whereas in twitcher mice the range was 2,251-4,228 micrograms/kg of wet tissues. The psychosine concentration was also increased in the liver and kidney of twitcher mice, respectively, 1,513 micrograms and 1,106 micrograms/kg of wet tissue (normal liver, 125 micrograms; normal kidney, 74 micrograms/kg of wet tissue). This novel procedure is useful for the pathochemical evaluation of lysosphingolipids in various sphingolipidoses as well as in other neuropathological and cellular conditions.

4-Chloro-7-nitrobenzofurazan

Proliferation and neoplastic transformation of pigment cells in metallothionein/ret transgenic mice.

Although melanoma is a common human disease, there were few animal models in which melanoma developed at high incidence. To date, the Xiphophorus fish has been used as a model system to study melanoma formation. Studies on this fish showed the presence of a dominant oncogene, Tu, which encodes a transmembrane, tyrosine kinase of epidermal growth factor receptor type (Wittbrodt et al., Nature, 341:415-421, 1989). Recently, we succeeded in establishing novel transgenic mouse lines in which melanosis and melanocytic tumors developed stepwise by introducing another transmembrane tyrosine kinase oncogene, ret (Iwamoto et al., EMBO J., 10:3167-3175, 1991). In our transgenic mice, high levels of expression of the ret transgene induced proliferation and neoplastic transformation of melanin-producing cells. In addition, crossbreeding experiments between transgenic mice and Wv mice showed that the ret oncogene can also induce melanogenesis and melanocyte development in Wv/Wv mice.

Animals

Antiallergic activity of 6-(2-cyclohexylethyl)-[1,3,4]thiadiazolo- [3,2-a]-1,2,3-triazolo-[4,5-d]pyrimidin-9(3H)-one (DS-4574) in rats.

The antiallergic activity of DS-4574 was evaluated in several commonly used rat models for allergic diseases. In passive cutaneous anaphylaxis, DS-4574 given intravenously and orally induced dose-dependent inhibition with ID50 values of 0.55 and 2.8 mg/kg, respectively. In contrast, this compound had no antagonistic activity against the histamine- and serotonin-induced cutaneous vascular permeability. In lung anaphylaxis, DS-4574 inhibited pulmonary function changes induced by the antigen in a dose-dependent manner when it was given intravenously and orally, the ID50 values being 0.04 and 0.89 mg/kg, respectively. DS-4574 also inhibited antigen-induced histamine and leukotriene release in passive peritoneal anaphylaxis following oral administration. In addition, this compound prevented antigen-induced histamine release in passively sensitized mast cells in vitro. These potent activities of DS-4574 in in vivo and in vitro models of immediate-type hypersensitivity reactions suggest that this compound could be useful in the treatment of allergic diseases including asthma.

Adrenalectomy

Dipyridamole potentiates the myocardial infarct size-limiting effect of ischemic preconditioning.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies implicated a key role for adenosine (ADO) receptor activation in the enhancement of ischemic tolerance by ischemic preconditioning. In this study, we aimed to test the hypothesis that dipyridamole, an ADO transport inhibitor, enhances the preconditioning effect. METHODS AND RESULTS: Six groups of rabbits underwent 30-minute coronary occlusion and 72-hour reperfusion. Infarct size (IS) and the area-at-risk (AR) were determined by histology and by use of fluorescent particles, respectively. IS expressed as the percentage of AR (%IS/AR) was 46.5 +/- 3.4% (n = 13) in control rabbits. Preconditioning with 2-minute ischemia tended to limit %IS/AR (%IS/AR, 35.5 +/- 3.5%, n = 9), and that possible protection was abolished by pretreatment with 10 mg/kg 8-phenyltheophylline (8-PT), an ADO receptor antagonist (%IS/AR, 43.9 +/- 5.8%, n = 9). Administration of dipyridamole (0.25 mg/kg) before the 2-minute preconditioning markedly limited %IS/AR to 13.8 +/- 2.6% (n = 12), indicating the potentiation of the preconditioning effect by this agent. Furthermore, this enhancement of preconditioning effect by dipyridamole treatment was significantly attenuated by 8-PT (%IS/AR, 27.6 +/- 2.1%, n = 11). Dipyridamole given before the 30-minute ischemia, without preconditioning, did not reduce %IS/AR (55.3 +/- 5.2%, n = 7), and a previous study from this laboratory had demonstrated that the present dose of 8-PT alone did not modify IS in the rabbit. CONCLUSIONS: Dipyridamole significantly potentiated the IS-limiting effect of preconditioning. This finding strongly supports the hypothesis that stimulation of ADO receptors by endogenous ADO, which builds up during preconditioning ischemia, mediates the increased ischemic tolerance afforded by preconditioning.

Adaptation, Physiological

Synthesis and antiallergy activity of [1,3,4]thiadiazolo[3,2-a]-1,2,3-triazolo[4,5-d]pyrimidin-9(3H)-one derivatives. II. 6-Alkyl- and 6-cycloalkylalkyl derivatives.

A series of 6-alkyl- or 6-(cycloalkylalkyl)-[1,3,4]thiadiazolo[3,2- a]-1,2,3-triazolo[4,5-d]pyrimidin-9(3H)-ones 1b--o was synthesized from the corresponding 1,3,4-thiadiazol-5-amines 3b--o and the antiallergic activities of the products were evaluated. Among the compounds 6-(2-cyclohexylethyl)- [1,3,4]thiadiazolo[3,2-a]-1,2,3-triazolo[4,5-d]pyrimidin-9(3H)-one 1h, whose X-ray crystallographic stereostructure is shown, was found to be a promising new antiallergic agent, which has low toxicity and dual activity as a leukotriene D4 receptor antagonist and as an orally active mast cell stabilizer.

Animals