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Biomedical subjects

Y Minowa

Publications and source records attributed to Y Minowa.

15 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1996

[Palliative radiation therapy for multiple myeloma].

PURPOSE: Radiation therapy is a useful palliative modality for refractory lesions of multiple myeloma. It has been reported that total doses of 10 to 20 Gy are usually adequate to obtain some degree of pain relief. However, there are many patients who need additional doses to obtain sufficient pain relief. In this study, we retrospectively analyzed the records of patients with multiple myeloma irradiated at our department, in an attempt to develop an effective treatment policy for this disease. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-nine patients with 53 lesions were treated between 1968 and 1993. Total irradiation doses were 4 to 60 Gy(median 40 Gy) with daily fractions of 2 Gy or less, and 16 to 51 Gy(median 30 Gy) with daily fractions greater than 2 Gy. Evaluated were 59 symptoms, including pain (68%), neurological abnormalities (15%), and masses (28%). RESULTS: Symptomatic remission was obtained in 33 of 36 (92%) lesions with pain, 6 of 8(75%) with neurological abnormalities, and 13 of 15(87%) mass lesions. Pain was partially relieved at a median TDF of 34, and completely at a median TDF of 66(equivalent to 40-42 Gy with daily fractions of 2 Gy). CONCLUSIONS: Radiation therapy is an effective and palliative treatment method for symptomatic multiple myeloma. However, the treatment seems to require higher radiation doses than those reported to obtain adequate relief of symptoms.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

Evoked otoacoustic emissions from ears with idiopathic sudden deafness.

Evoked otoacoustic emissions (EOEs) were examined in ears with idiopathic sudden deafness (ISD) at an early stage after onset and were compared with those in ears with long-standing sensorineural hearing losses of unknown etiology (SHLUE). In ears with SHLUE, EOEs were not recordable from ears with a hearing loss exceeding 35 dB at minimum hearing level of 4 audiometric frequencies: 500, 1,000, 2,000 and 4,000 Hz (4 MHL). On the other hand, although 4 MHLs were greater than 35 dB in most of the ears, EOEs could be detected in about one-half of the ears with ISD, and, moreover, the majority of these EOE detectable ears showed a good hearing prognosis in spite of the degree of hearing loss. There was, however, no correlation between EOE threshold and degree of hearing recovery. From these results it seems that EOE testing might be clinically applicable for predicting whether or not hearing loss due to ISD can be recovered.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1991

Frequency analysis of evoked otoacoustic emissions.

Evoked otoacoustic emissions (EOEs) were examined in 8 normal hearing ears without spontaneous otoacoustic emissions (SOEs), and the frequency of the first 10 ms after appearance of the EOE response wave was analyzed, dividing it into the first 5 ms half (First half A) and the last 5 ms half (Last half B). In the First half A, the peak frequency of the power spectrum tended to match the stimulus frequency, but in the Last half B, the peak frequency tended to be constant and moreover, it tended to match the frequency at which EOE can best be recorded. These findings suggest that each ear has its own characteristic EOE frequency.

Cochlea↗
PubMed1990

Purification and characterization of a novel intracellular acid proteinase from the plasmodia of a true slime mold, Physarum polycephalum.

An acid proteinase was purified to apparent homogeneity from the plasmodia of a slime mold, Physarum polycephalum, by a combination of detergent extraction, acid precipitation, and column chromatographies on DEAE-Sephadex, hydroxylapatite, CM-Sephadex, and Sephadex G-100. The enzyme was shown to be composed of two polypeptide chains (a 31-kDa heavy chain and a 23-kDa light chain) cross-linked by disulfide bond(s). The NH2-terminal amino acid sequence of the heavy chain was determined to be Ala-Gly-Val- Asp-Gly-Tyr-Ile-Val-Pro-Tyr-Val-Ile-Phe-Asp-Leu-Tyr-Gly-Ile-Pro-Tyr and that of the light chain to be Ala-Glu-Pro-Pro-Ile. The heavy chain contained carbohydrate moiety composed of mannose, glucosamine, fucose, and glucose. The enzyme was optimally active at pH 1.7 toward hemoglobin as a substrate. Among the proteinase inhibitors tested only diazoacetyl-D,L-norleucine methyl ester, a typical aspartic proteinase inhibitor, inhibited the acid proteinase in the presence of cupric ions. It was insensitive to the other typical aspartic proteinase inhibitors, pepstatin A and 1,2-epoxy-3-(p-nitrophenoxy)propane. The enzyme hydrolyzed Lys-Pro-Ile-Glu-Phe(4-NO2)-Arg-Leu at the Phe-Phe(4-NO2) bond, but could not hydrolyze another synthetic pepsin-substrate, N-acetyl-L-phenylalanyl-3,5-diiodo-L-tyrosine. The enzyme showed a unique substrate specificity toward oxidized insulin B chain. The major cleavage sites were the bonds Gly8-Ser9, Leu11-Val12, Cya19-Gly20, and Phe24-Phe25, and the Gly8-Ser9 bond was most susceptible. These results indicate that the enzyme is a novel type of intracellular acid proteinase with a unique substrate specificity.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1983

Alteration of strial capillary transport in kanamycin-treated guinea pigs.

Ferritin transport through the strial capillary during kanamycin intoxication was examined under a transmission electron microscope. Twelve guinea pigs were treated intramuscularly with kanamycin (400 mg/kg/day) for 2-3 weeks. When full hearing loss was recognized by estimating the Preyer reflex or auditory brain-stem response (ABR), ferritin was given intravenously and animals were sacrificed 1/3, 1, and 2 h later. At 1/3 h, ferritin was present diffusely not only in the endothelial cell but also in the basal lamina and within vesicles in the strial cell. Alternatively, it was discharged into the endolymphatic space. At 2 h, ferritin was seen on the luminal surface and in the cytoplasm of the endolymphatic cells of Reissner's membrane. These results suggest that the basal lamina of the strial capillary was altered qualitatively by kanamycin administration.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Enhancement of ciliary action by a beta-adrenergic stimulant.

It is known that beta-adrenergic stimulants enhance mucociliary transport in the respiratory tract. The present study clearly indicated that such an enhancement resulted from not only the alteration in secretory function but also the direct stimulation of ciliated cells. However, the enhancement of ciliary beating depended on the morphological changes in ciliated cells. On the other hand, the effect of terbutaline aerosol, a beta-adrenergic stimulant, on patients with chronic sinusitis was evaluated by paranasal sinus radiography. Consequently, marked improvements in shadows were achieved after 4 weeks in 40% of the cases examined.

Adult↗
PubMed1982

Ototoxicity of the anticancer drug cisplatin. An experimental study.

Cisplatin was administered to guinea pigs. Hearing function was tested using ABR, and morphological studies were conducted by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The following findings were made. (1) The susceptibility to cochlear damage by cisplatin was dose dependent. (2) At the same dose, damage was most severe in the lower turns, particularly in the second turn. This tallies with the high tone loss. (3) Mainly the outer hair cells are the site of the damage and the inner hair cells are rarely damaged. (4) The first row of the outer hair cells tend to be more severely damaged. (5) Variation of the stria vascularis was moderate compared with the damage to the organ of Corti. (6) A tendency of recovery was observed in ABR in some animals after they were given 2 mg/kg/day cisplatin intramuscularly consecutively for 8 days.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Application of loop diuretics for treatment of sensorineural hearing impairment. Experimental and clinical study.

In a series of animal experiments on guinea pigs and rats, conducted in an attempt to find a better solution for the treatment of sensorineural hearing impairment and tinnitus-known as diseases almost impossible to heal-it was revealed electrophysiologically, biochemically and electronmicroscopically that loop diuretics, referred to as ototoxic drugs, cause an increased amount of the therapeutic preparation to transfer to the inner ear fluid. It is concluded, on the basis of the encouraging results of these experiments, that combined medication with metabolic activator, steroid hormone and loop diuretics is significantly more effective in improving the symptoms of patients with inner ear deafness and tinnitus.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Value of low-dose gallium-67 imaging in detection of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma recurrence.

We evaluated the usefulness of low-dose Ga-67 scintigraphy as a diagnostic tool for the detection of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma recurrence. Forty-six patients were included in this retrospective study. Anterior and posterior whole body images were obtained two or three days after the injection of 74 MBq of Ga-67. Inter- and intraobserver variability in scintigraphic imaging interpretation was analyzed using the kappa (kappa) statistics. Ga-67 scintigraphy allowed correct detection of recurrence in 18 of 22 events (sensitivity, 82%), and excluded relapse in 34 of 39 events (specificity, 87%). The positive predictive value was 0.78 and negative predictive value 0.89. All cases involving superficial lymph nodes (10/ 10) could be detected by Ga-67. Chest lesions were diagnosed with a sensitivity of 86% (6/7), bone and soft tissue 83% (5/6), and abdomen 80% (8/10). The sensitivity and specificity of CT were 91% (22/24) and 67% (8/12), respectively. In abdominal lesions, ultrasonography had sensitivity and specificity of 93% (14/15) and 94% (15/16), respectively. Kappa (kappa) statistics demonstrated good to strong inter- and intraobserver agreement in the interpretation of Ga-67 scintigraphy. The diagnostic results of low-dose Ga-67 scans, currently applied in Japan, were similar to those reported by the authors using high doses of 296 MBq to 370 MBq. Ga-67 scintigraphy, even at low dose, is useful in the detection of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma recurrence.

Adult↗