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Tsutomu Aoki

Publications and source records attributed to Tsutomu Aoki.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Optimizing pelvic organ prolapse research.

For many years, researchers on this field have suffered from the lack of an efficient method for describing pelvic organ prolapse. Struggling to solve this problem, the International Continence Society has proposed a pelvic organ prolapse quantification (POP-Q) system [Bump RC, Mattiasson A, Bo K, Brubaker LP, DeLancey JO, Klarskov P, Shull B, Smith ARB, Am J Obstet Gynecol, 175(1):1956-1962, 1996], which was validated as a precise and reproducible technique for describing pelvic organ position. However, even though very precise at describing pelvic organ position, our critic to this system is its limited ability to quantify the prolapse itself, since it still classifies prolapse into four grades, almost the same way as Baden and Walker did in 1972. As a result, the same grade can include a wide prolapse intensity range. The objective of this paper is to propose a method that makes POP research more efficient by directly measuring prolapse as a continuous variable that requires lesser number of subjects in order to achieve statistical significance.

Anthropometry↗
PubMed2006

Primary hypothyroidism presenting as ovarian tumor and precocious puberty in a prepubertal girl.

We report a case of a prepubertal girl with juvenile primary hypothyroidism presenting as ovarian cysts and precocious puberty. The 7-year-old female was referred to our clinic because of a pelvic/abdominal mass and vaginal bleeding. Besides these findings, on physical examination we noticed the thyroid gland globally increased and the presence of secondary sexual characteristics. Based upon the clinical profile and investigations, the patient was diagnosed with juvenile primary hypothyroidism due to autoimmune thyroiditis. The cysts and precocious puberty resolved spontaneously after the simple replacement of thyroid hormone. It is important to bear in mind hypothyroidism in cases of girls presenting ovarian cysts and precocious puberty in order to avoid unnecessary surgery on the ovaries.

Child↗
PubMed2005

Symptomatological structure of volatile solvent-induced psychosis: is "solvent psychosis" a discernible syndrome?

Solvent-induced psychosis has been clinically identified among patients suffering from dependence on volatile solvents and those in psychotic state due to chronic solvent use. To clarify the symptomatological difference between solvent-induced psychosis and schizophrenia, the principal component analysis with VARIMAX rotation was applied to the point and duration estimates of symptoms observed among the solvent group and among the schizophrenic group. There were no significant group differences in age and family history of any psychosis. The study findings are as follows: (1) It is difficult to distinguish two groups based on the prevalence rates of symptoms alone. (2) However, the principal component VARIMAX rotation analysis of the prevalence and duration observing among the solvent group revealed seven factors consisting of "amotivation", "intoxication", "emotional instability", "delusion", "hallucination", "disinhibition" and "memory". The seven factors explained 75.4% of the variance of the symptoms in this group. (3) The same analysis applied to the data from the schizophrenic group showed six factors consisting of "thought progression", "emotional instability", "amotivation (or negative symptoms)", "delusion", "hallucination" and "anxiety". These factors explained 62.9% of the variance in the data of the schizophrenic group. These results support clinical observations the "amotivational syndrome" may be a characteristic feature of patients suffering from solvent-induced psychosis. The results also suggest "solvent psychosis" is a discernible syndrome, and is distinctive from psychotic symptoms of typical schizophrenia.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Proteolytic targeting of transcriptional regulator TIP120B by a HECT domain E3 ligase.

Ubiquitin-protein ligases (E3s) of the HECT family share a conserved catalytic region that is homologous to the E6-AP C terminus. The HECT domain defines a large E3 family, but only a handful of these enzymes have been defined with respect to substrate specificity or biological function. We showed previously that the C-terminal domain of one family member, KIAA10, catalyzes the assembly of polyubiquitin chains, whereas the N-terminal domain binds to proteasomes in vitro (You, J., and Pickart, C. M. (2001) J. Biol. Chem. 276, 19871-19878). We show here that KIAA10 also associates with proteasomes within cells but that this association probably involves additional contacts with proteasome subunits other than the one (S2/Rpn1) identified in our previous work. We report that the N-domain of KIAA10 also mediates an association with TIP120B (TATA-binding protein-interacting protein 120B), a putative transcriptional regulator. Biochemical and co-transfection studies revealed that TIP120B, but not the closely related protein TIP120A, is a specific substrate of KIAA10 in vitro and within C2C12 myoblasts but not in Cos-1 cells. KIAA10 and TIP120B are both highly expressed in human skeletal muscle, suggesting that KIAA10 may regulate TIP120B homeostasis specifically in this tissue.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Pronuclear and morphological features as a cumulative score to select embryos in ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection) cycles according to sperm origin.

PURPOSE: To analyze best parameter to select embryos according to sperm origin in ICSI cycles. METHODS: One hundred seventy-two ICSI cycles were divided among three different groups: A (ejaculated spermatozoa from nonmale factor infertility), B (ejaculated spermatozoa from oligospermia), and C (spermatozoa from azoospermia). Embryos were divided on Day 1 into two patterns: S0 (pronuclei (PN) aligned and close with normal arrangement of nucleoli) and S1 (when these characteristics were absent) and also on transfer day according to morphological features. RESULTS: Relationships of PN patterns related to sperm origin were noted. More S0 embryos were detected with better sperm quality. Higher number of good quality embryos was obtained when male factor was absent. Ejaculated and epididymal spermatozoa provide better quality embryos than do testicular spermatozoa. CONCLUSIONS: PN classification associated with transfer day morphology is valuable additional noninvasive criterion for elective embryo transfer, mainly in the cases with severe male factor.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗
PubMed2002

Seizure-mediated neuronal activation induces DREAM gene expression in the mouse brain.

Various transcriptional activators are induced in neurons concomitantly with long-lasting neural activity, whereas only a few transcription factors are known to act as neural activity-inducible transcription repressors. In this study, mRNA of DREAM (DRE-antagonizing modulator), a Ca(2+)-modulated transcriptional repressor, was demonstrated to accumulate in the mouse brain after pentylenetetrazol (PTZ)-induced seizures. Accumulation in the mouse hippocampus reached maximal level in the late phase (at 7-8 h) after PTZ injection. Kainic acid induced the same response. Interestingly, the late induction of DREAM expression required new protein synthesis and was blocked by MK801 suggesting that Ca(2+)-influx via NMDA receptors is necessary for the PTZ-mediated DREAM expression. In situ hybridization revealed that PTZ-induced DREAM mRNA accumulation was observed particularly in the dentate gyrus, cerebral cortex, and piriform cortex. The results of the present study demonstrate that DREAM is a neural activity-stimulated late gene and suggest its involvement in adaptation to long-lasting neuronal activity.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

TBP-interacting protein 120B, which is induced in relation to myogenesis, binds to NOT3.

TBP-interacting protein 120 (TIP120) has been identified by TBP-mediated affinity screening. Classical TIP120, TIP120A, which functions as a transcriptional activator, is expressed ubiquitously whereas TIP120B is specifically expressed in muscle tissues. We found that TIP120B gene was induced in C2C12 myoblasts when these cells differentiated into myotubes, whereas TIP120A gene expression was down-regulated. Whole-mount in situ hybridization revealed that TIP120B mRNA was concentrated in limb buds of mouse embryos. TIP120B is thus thought to be a myogenesis-responding gene. We searched for TIP120B-binding proteins by yeast two-hybrid screening and identified NOT3. NOT3, a constituent of CCR4-NOT complex, is suggested to be involved in global gene regulation via interaction with TBP. The human NOT3 (hNOT3L), which we identified, has an extra 144 amino acids (AAs) at the C-terminus of a classical NOT3. GST pull-down and yeast two-hybrid assays demonstrated that hNOT3L is associated with TIP120B but not with TIP120A. A hNOT3L-specific C-terminal region of 92 AAs was assigned as a TIP120B-interacting domain. The N-terminus of 209 AAs of TIP120B was responsible for this binding. TIP120B presumably affects tissue-specific transcriptional regulation via interaction with NOT3.

3T3 Cells↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Laparoscopic resection of intestinal endometriosis: a 5-year experience.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical manifestations, surgical techniques, and complications observed in patients undergoing laparoscopic resection of intestinal deeply infiltrating endometriosis (DIE). DESIGN: Prospective nonrandomized (Canadian Task Force Classification II-3). SETTING: University hospital and private practice. PATIENTS: We evaluated 125 patients with intestinal DIE treated from February 2000 through September 2005. INTERVENTIONS: Laparoscopic radical excision of DIE followed by resection of the rectosigmoid colon. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The clinical examination of our patients demonstrated that 66.4% of patients had tenderness, whereas 80.8% had nodules on the pouch of Douglas. In 95.2% we observed pain caused by cervical mobilization, and all the patients had pain during the pouch of Douglas mobilization. Regarding bowel infiltration, preoperative investigation with rectal endoscopic ultrasonography was positive in all cases. Endoscopic rectal ultrasonography demonstrated the depth of intestinal infiltration. Superficial lesions were observed in 9.6% of patients and muscularis involvement in 71.2%. The segmental resection was performed in most of the patients (92%) and the linear resection in 6.4% of them. Median surgical time was 110 minutes, and the median hospital stay was 7 days after the surgery; the patients continued fasting for 3 to 7 days. The return to normal activity was achieved in a median 15 days after the surgery. The surgical procedure and the postoperative follow-up demonstrated no complications in 90.4% of the patients. Minor complications were observed in 4% of the cases. Major complications occurred in 5.6% of the patients, including 2 cases of intestinal fistulas (1.6%) and 3 cases of long-lasting urinary retention (2.4%). CONCLUSION: Clinical symptoms of patients with intestinal endometriosis are not specific. Operative laparoscopy is a safe and effective method to treat intestinal endometriosis. To avoid major complications, special attention must be paid to the intestinal anastomosis and to the nerve preservation.

Adult↗