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T Koseki

Publications and source records attributed to T Koseki.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Serum levels of eosinophil cationic protein and IL-5 in patients with asthma without systemic corticosteroids.

We measured the serum levels of eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) and interleukin-5 (IL-5) in 39 patients with asthma (symptomatic 12, asymtomatic 27) without systemic corticosteroids and 49 healthy subjects. There were significant differences in serum levels in both ECP and IL-5 between symptomatic and asymptomatic asthma, and healthy subjects. A significant positive correlation was found between serum levels of ECP and IL-5. No significant correlation was found between %FEV1 and serum level of ECP or IL-5, however, when the analysis was restricted to patients of less than 60 years of age, the correlations were significant. These results suggest that IL-5 is one of the factors that activate eosinophils even in peripheral blood, and that measurement of serum levels of ECP and IL-5 is useful for in vitro monitoring of asthma.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Activin A induction of cell-cycle arrest involves modulation of cyclin D2 and p21CIP1/WAF1 in plasmacytic cells.

Activins, members of the transforming growth factor-beta family, have been implicated in the regulation of growth and differentiation of various types of cells. We have recently found that activin A induces apoptotic cell death of plasmacytic cells including B cell hybridoma cells and myeloma cells. In the present study, we demonstrated that activin A caused cell-cycle arrest in the G1 phase before appearance of apoptotic cells in mouse B cell hybridoma cells. Phosphorylation of retinoblastoma protein (Rb) and in vitro Rb kinase activity of cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK)4 was inhibited in activin A-treated cells. Analysis of expression of genes regulating Rb phosphorylation revealed that activin A suppressed cyclin D2, the sole D-type cyclin gene expressed in the hybridoma cells, and activated p21CIP1/WAF1 but had no effect on expression of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDK2, CDK4, CDK6) and other CDK inhibitors (p27KIP1, p16INK4a, p15INK4b). Modulation of cyclin D2 and p21CIP1/WAF1 expression resulted in a decrease in level of cyclin D2-CDK4 complex and an increase in level of CDK4 complexed with p21CIP1/WAF1. Moreover, overexpression of cyclin D2 partially abrogated inhibition of Rb phosphorylation and G1 arrest in the hybridoma cells.

Activins↗
PubMed1997

[Results of a survey of Japanese cedar pollinosis in Hachijyojima].

We performed a questionnaire survey of Japanese cedar pollinosis among 7,946 residents of the Sakashita region (Mitsune, Ogago) and Sakaue region (Kashidate, Sueyoshi, Nakanogo) of Hachijyojima who were at least 15 years of age. The response rate was 21.3%. The percentage of respondents who reported three or more nasal symptoms concurrentry with two ocular symptoms in early spring (from the end of February to the end of March) was 1.8% in the Sakashita region and 0.3% in the Sakaue region. About 1.5% of Hachijyojima residents were suspected to have Japanese cedar pollinosis. On scratch tests of symptomatic subjects, 9.2% showed positive reactions for Japanese cedar antigen, and 12.1% had an IgE RAST score of 2 or more. The peak Japanese cedar pollen concentration between February 11 and March 31, 1992 was 74/cm2 on March 6 in the Sakashita region and 127/cm2 on the same day in the Sakaue region. This survey confirmed the presence of a low incidence of Japanese cedar pollinosis in Hachijyojima, an isolated island 290 km from Tokyo.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

[The prevalence of orthostatic dysregulation complicated with bronchial asthma].

Orthostatic dysregulation (OD) has been reported to be complicated with childhood bronchial asthma. 42 patients (28 females and 14 males) with adult-onset bronchial asthma were selected randomly to investigate the prevalence of OD. OD was diagnosed by both questionnaire for subjective symptoms and tilting test (Schellong test and upright ECG). Our results revealed that 64.3% (both 64.3% in females and males) of the patients were complicated with OD. There was no significant difference in the duration of asthma, FEV0.1, %FEV1.0, serum IgE level, and severity of asthma between patients with OD and without OD. Furthermore, no significant difference in the results of tilting test were observed. In serum level of theophylline we couldn't detect any subjective difference between the two groups, however there was significant difference between positive patients and negative patients in tilting test. In conclusion, OD is frequently complicated with adult-onset asthma and we should be careful of the subjective symptoms concerned with OD.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Lectin cytochemical analysis of glycoconjugates in photoreceptor cell membranes of Lampetra japonica.

Seven types of ferritinized lectin were used to examine the distribution of glycoconjugates on the outer segment membranes of lamprey photoreceptor cells. Ultrastructural pre-embedding labeling revealed that peanut agglutinin, soybean agglutinin and Ricinus communis agglutinin I were preferentially bound to the proximal, lateral and luminal surfaces of the long cell outer segments, whereas Griffonia simplicifolia agglutinin II and concanavalin A agglutinin were bound to the corresponding surfaces of the short cell outer segments. The results indicate that there is marked difference in the composition of glycoconjugates over the outer segment membranes between long and short photoreceptors.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Characterization of the immunodominant antigens of Porphyromonas gingivalis 381 in high-responder patients.

The immunodominant antigens of Porphyromonas gingivalis 381 whole cells that reacted with sera from high-responder patients were examined in this study. Whole cells, phenol-water extracted lipopolysaccharide, and fimbriae from P. gingivalis 381 were analyzed using sera from 14 patients with adult periodontitis, rapidly progressive periodontitis or juvenile periodontitis as well as from two healthy subjects. Western blot analysis and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were performed. On Western blots, among many prominent protein bands, a smear was observed which was removed after adsorption of the sera with P. gingivalis phenol-water extracted lipopolysaccharide. Two major protein bands of 43 kDa and 41 kDa were found to be prominent even at very high dilutions of sera, the latter of which showed the same molecular weight as the fimbrilin band. These two bands were resistant to treatment by papain and trypsin. ELISA titers remained high after adsorption of the sera with P. gingivalis phenol-water extracted lipopolysaccharide. The results of this study suggest that the 43-kDa and the fimbrilin (41 kDa) proteins may play an important role as immunodominant antigens of P. gingivalis 381.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Nutritional analysis and an enriched medium for fermentative treponemes isolated from subgingival plaque.

In order to cultivate fermentative treponemes isolated on Medium 10 with the plate-in-bottle method from subgingival plaque, we developed the enriched Medium 10. Enriched Medium 10 broth consisted mainly of Trypticase peptone (2 g/L), yeast extract (10 g/l), glucose (5 g/l) and volatile fatty acids mixture (3.1 ml/l). The growth curves in enriched Medium 10 broth showed that clinical isolates of Treponema socranskii reached the early stationary phase on the 3rd-5th day, and the doubling times averaged 22.2h. By using enriched Medium 10, the nutritional analysis of oral treponemes was examined for each compound of the volatile fatty acid and various sera. Clinical isolates were found to require iso-butyric acid, 2-methylbutyric acids and/or iso-caproic acid independently for their growth. However, the growth of these fermentative treponemes was inhibited by addition of various sera to this medium.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Detection frequencies and the colony-forming unit recovery of oral treponemes by different cultivation methods.

Selected media were compared for primary isolation and detection of oral treponemes from clinical samples. Forty-eight subgingival plaque samples from 45 patients suffering from periodontitis were anaerobically cultivated for 2 weeks at 37 degrees C. Of the 9 media studied, Medium 10 (M10), which was supplemented with 10% rabbit serum and incubated using the plate-in-bottle method, supported the highest colony-forming units of the anaerobes. The treponemal colonies were detected at least on one medium from 83% of the subgingival plaque samples. The new oral spirochete medium in an anaerobic chamber supported the highest detection frequency of the oral treponemes (64% of samples); however, M10 in the plate-in-bottle was found to produce the highest colony-forming unit recovery of the oral treponemes (median 3.6% of the total colony-forming units). This study suggests that M10 in the plate-in-bottle and new oral spirochete medium in the anaerobic chamber are essential in cultivating oral treponemes.

Anaerobiosis↗
PubMed1996

pH-dependent changes in interphotoreceptor matrix domains surrounding cone photoreceptors.

The cone matrix sheath is a biochemically and structurally distinct domain of the retinal interphotoreceptor matrix (IPM). In the present study, the insoluble components of the cone matrix sheath were extracted from bovine retina, and examined for pH-dependent morphological changes by light and electron microscopy. After soaking unfixed retinas in 25 mM HEPES-buffered solution (pH 2.0), sheets of aqueous-insoluble IPM containing cone matrix sheaths were physically dissociated from the inner retina. The insoluble IPM preparations were treated with 1.0% Triton X-100 to extract contaminating photoreceptor outer segment membrane, and exposed to HEPES-buffered solutions at pH 2.0, 4.5, 7.0, or 9.5. The cone matrix sheath, specifically stained with peanut agglutinin, appeared finely granular at pH 2.0, but was markedly condensed at pH 4.5. Cone sheath morphology became dispersed and appeared as a network of thick fibrils at pH 7.0, and further dispersed fibrillar and granular elements at pH 9.5. These findings suggest that pH changes in the interphotoreceptor space can alter the molecular organization of the IPM and influence the function of the IPM in the transport of nutrients and metabolites, and in retinal adhesion.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Activin A-induced apoptosis is suppressed by BCL-2.

Activin A, a member of TGF beta superfamily has various activities including induction of apoptosis in mammalian cells. However, it remains unknown how activin A induces cell death. To clarify this, we investigated the expression of BCL-2 and BAX, and the effect of BCL-2 overexpression on activin A-induced apoptosis in B cell hybridoma cell lines. The activin A-sensitive cell lines expressed BAX but not BCL-2 and that activin A did not increase BAX levels. Overexpression of human BCL-2 suppressed activin A-induced apoptosis in these cells. Thus, activin A has been shown to induce apoptosis by a BCL-2-inhibitable mechanism without activating BAX.

Activins↗
PubMed1995

Specific inhibitors of vacuolar type H(+)-ATPases induce apoptotic cell death.

Concanamycin A and bafilomycin A1 are known as strong inhibitors of the vacuolar type H(+)-ATPases in vitro. These inhibitors exhibited cytotoxic effects on twelve cell lines in cell viability assay. On the other hand, the F1F0-type H(+)-ATPase inhibitor oligomycin and the E1E2-type H(+)-ATPase inhibitor vanadate showed no cytotoxic effect. We show here that concanamycin A and bafilomycin A1 induce a significant increase in the proportion of fragmented DNA in agarose gel electrophoresis. Flow cytometric cell cycle analysis of WEHI 231 cells stimulated with concanamycin A revealed the increased percentage of apoptotic cells with hypodiploid DNA. These findings indicate that cell death induced by specific inhibitors of vacuolar type H(+)-ATPases occurs through apoptosis.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Induction of apoptosis in B lineage cells by activin A derived from macrophages.

A factor produced by P388D1 cell line murine macrophages showed a profound suppressive effect on the in vitro proliferation of B lineage cells. It was purified to homogeneity from conditioned media of P388D1 cells stimulated with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate for 48 h by a three-step procedure. The purified factor gave a single band of protein with a molecular mass of 16 kD on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. We show here that exposure of B lineage cells to this factor results in the induction of a cytotoxic effect and a significant increase in the proportion of fragmented DNA. DNA fragmentation was detected in B lineage cells after 3 h culture with the factor in the quantitative colorimetric determination. The mechanism of cell death was characterized by a ladder-like electrophoretic pattern of degraded chromosomal DNA, indicating that the factor induces apoptosis. The NH2-terminal amino acid sequence of this factor was identical with that of activin A over the 26 amino acid residues identified. We sought to determine whether apoptosis could be modulated by two kinds of inhibitor of protein kinases, H7 and HA1004, in concentrations that are below their toxicity limits. Apoptosis induced by the factor was suppressed by H7 but was relatively unaffected by HA1004. These findings suggest that the signals by protein kinases may regulate apoptotic B cell death by the factor activin A, derived from macrophages.

Activins↗
PubMed1995

Characterization of oral treponemes isolated from human periodontal pockets.

A total of 90 clinical strains of oral treponemes was isolated from subgingival plaque in patients with periodontal disease. They were characterized by biochemical means as well as cell enzyme, protein analysis using sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and DNA dot blot hybridization. Sixty strains were isolated on Medium 10 (M10), which was fundamentally serum-free. The remainder were isolated on serum-containing media. Isolates were divided into 6 groups according to their biochemical characteristics. Three of the 6 groups were asaccharolytic, and 2 of these 3 groups were Treponema denticola and "Treponema vincentii". The other 3 groups were saccharolytic and further divided into 9 subgroups. The analysis of cell enzyme, cell protein and dot blot hybridization with the DNA probe of Treponema socranskii indicated that all the saccharolytic groups were T. socranskii or closely related species. This study indicated that the newly characterized saccharolytic oral treponemes could be identified using M10 from the human periodontal pocket.

Bacterial Proteins↗
PubMed1995

Membrane-associated interleukin-1 on macrophages stimulated with Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans lipopolysaccharide induces osteoclastic bone resorption in vivo.

The effect of paraformaldehyde-fixed murine macrophage P388D1 cells stimulated with Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans Y4 lipopolysaccharide (membrane-associated interleukin-1) on osteoclastic bone resorption was investigated. Both the number of osteoclasts and the bone resorption surfaces increased considerably along the inside of the marrow space of mouse calvaria when membrane-associated interleukin-1 mediated by A. actinomycetemcomitans Y4 lipopolysaccharide were injected into the subcutaneous tissues overlying the central calvaria of 4-week-old C3H/HeJ mice. Membrane-associated interleukin-1 caused hypercalcaemia when injected into C3H/HeJ mice twice a day for 2 days. The calvaria of C3H-HeJ mice injected with membrane-associated interleukin-1 contained less mineral than those of the control mice. These results suggest that membrane-associated interleukin-1 on macrophages stimulated with A. actinomycetemcomitans Y4 lipopolysaccharide plays an important role in inflammatory osteoclastic bone resorption in periodontal diseases.

Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans↗
PubMed1995

[Investigation of Cryptomeria japonica pollinosis in Izu-Oshima].

We surveyed by questionnaire 4,673 residents of Izu-Oshima who were 15 or more years of age with regard to Cryptomeria japonica pollinosis. The response rate was 22.3%. In the early spring, nasal symptoms were reported by 8.9% of the respondents, ocular symptoms by 5.7%, and dermal symptoms by 8.1%. On scratch tests of symptomatic subjects, 13.8% were positive for Cryptomeria japonica antigen, and 33.3% had an IgE RAST score of 2 or more. The peak Cryptomeria japonica pollen concentrations between February and April 1990 were 118/cm2 on March 7 at the Northern Clinic and 271/cm2 at the Southern Clinic. A second questionnaire survey (response rate: 53.1%), designed to estimate the number of persons with Cryptomeria japonica pollinosis among all residents, revealed that 4.7% concurrently had three or more nasal symptoms and two ocular symptoms. By combining these results with those of a telephone survey of 100 randomly selected nonrespondents, 5.64% of all inhabitants were estimated to have suspected Cryptomeria japonica pollinosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

[Improvement of pulmonary eosinophilic granuloma after smoking cessation in two patients].

We encountered two cases in which pulmonary eosinophilic granuloma improved after cessation of smoking. The patient in case 1 was a 39-year-old woman. She smoked 10-15 cigarettes a day for 20 years. The patient in case 2 was a 19-year-old man. He smoked a pack of cigarettes a day for 5 years. CT revealed cystic lesions and small nodular lesions predominantly in the upper and middle lung fields. Diagnosis was made by thoracoscopic lung biopsy in case 1 and by transbronchial lung biopsy in case 2. After smoking cessation, symptoms, CT findings, and vital capacity of both patients improved remarkably. Smoking cessation may have been related to the improvement in these patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

[Measurement of serum and sputum eosinophil cationic protein concentrations in asthma].

Concentrations of eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) were measured in serum from patients with asthma, patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and healthy subjects. The relationships between serum ECP concentration and percent of predicted FEV1 (%FEV1), and between serum and sputum ECP concentrations were also examined in patients with asthma. Serum ECP concentration in asthma was significantly higher than those in COPD patients and healthy subjects. There was a significant inverse correlation between serum ECP concentration and %FEV1 when analysis was restricted to data from asthma patients less than 60 years old. ECP concentration in serum and in sputum were significantly correlated. These results suggest that in asthma patients, eosinophils are activated in serum, and that the degree of eosinophil activation in the airway can be estimated by measuring serum ECP to some extent. Because it does not require bronchial biopsy or bronchoalveolar lavage, measurement of serum ECP may be useful as a minimally invasive monitoring of asthma.

Adult↗