Enhanced effect of high-dose leukocytapheresis using a large filter in rheumatoid arthritis.

To evaluate the efficacy of high-dose leukocytapheresis (LCAP) using a large filter in patients with refractory rheumatoid arthritis (RA), we conducted a multicenter, nonrandomized, open-label clinical study. Thirty patients with highly active RA were treated with high-dose LCAP performed 3-5 sessions at 1-week intervals using a CS-180S filter (CS-180S group); the treatment involves the removal of leukocytes from a higher blood volume per body weight (100;Sml/kg). The clinical response was evaluated at 4 and 8 weeks after a series of LCAP using the 28-joint disease activity score (DAS28).

Periodontal infection is associated with endothelial dysfunction in healthy subjects and hypertensive patients.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate endothelial function in patients with periodontitis. We evaluated forearm blood flow responses to acetylcholine and sodium nitroprusside in patients with periodontitis who had no other cardiovascular risk factors (32 men; 25+/-3 years of age), in a normal control group (20 men; 26+/-3 years of age), and in hypertensive patients with periodontitis (28 men and 10 women; 56+/-12 years of age) and without periodontitis (control group; 18 men and 6 women; 54+/-13 years of age). Forearm blood flow was measured using strain-gauge plethysmography.

Pycnogenol, French maritime pine bark extract, augments endothelium-dependent vasodilation in humans.

Pycnogenol, an extract of bark from the French maritime pine, Pinus pinaster Ait., consists of a concentrate of water-soluble polyphenols. Pycnogenol contains the bioflavonoids catechin and taxifolin as well as phenolcarbonic acids.

Estrone sulfate and progesterone profiles during late gestation in recipient cows transferred embryos produced by nuclear transfer and in vitro fertilization.

The aim of present experiment was to evaluate the plasma concentrations of estrone sulfate (E(1)S) and progesterone (P(4)) during late gestation in recipient cows transferred embryos produced by nuclear transfer (NT) and in vitro fertilization (IVF). Blood samples were collected from recipients transferred embryos produced by NT (n=9) and IVF (n=13) at 160, 220, 240, 260 and 270 d of gestation and then at 5 d intervals until parturition. Plasma samples were analyzed for E(1)S and P(4) by ELISA.

[Study on intermediate products in chloroform formation from L-tyrosine treated with sodium hypochlorite].

Possible intermediates in the formation of chloroform during by the sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) treatment of L-tyrosine were investigated using HPLC and LC/MS. One product showed the same MS characteristics as the substance formed by the NaClO treatment of 4-hydroxybenzyl cyanide (4-HBC), and it was suggested to be m-chloro-4-hydroxybenzyl cyanide (m-C-4-HBC). Since m-C-4-HBC is not commercially available it was synthesized by treating 4-HBC with NaClO, and purified by extraction with ethyl acetate, followed by HPLC on preparative isolation columns, using a column switching method.

Adaptive optics instrumentation in submillimeter/terahertz spectroscopy with a flexible polyvinylidene fluoride cladding hollow waveguide.

A simple instrument has been developed to carry out temperature dependent submillimeter/terahertz-wave spectroscopy using a polyvinylidene fluoride flexible hollow waveguide and an eggplant-shape launching lens.

A new definition of boundary point between early reflections and late reverberation in room impulse responses.

The early reflections in the room impulse response are usually defined as those observed within the initial 80 ms after the arrival of the direct sound, after which time the sound field is called reverberant. This number was chosen from measurements of other functions in a limited number of halls. In order to give an objective foundation to this time separation and to establish a physical indicator for it, a new method is proposed that defines a "transition time t(L)," which is the time at which the energy correlation between the direct plus initial sound and the subsequent decaying sound first achieves a specified low value.

Microbial population dynamics in a thermophilic methane digester fed with garbage.

The diversity of microbial communities in three full-scale thermophilic anaerobic digesters which treated garbage, sewage sludge and livestock wastes (hereafter called TGD, TSD and TLD, respectively) was investigated using 16S rDNA clone libraries in triplicate. The population dynamics of TGD were also studied. The purposes were to show the microbial diversity in each reactor and to suggest which key microbes in a thermophilic methane digester fed with garbage, including a check of reproducibility and the suggestion of an error range in this molecular biology method.

Retinoblastoma protein prevents staurosporine-induced cell death in a retinoblastoma-defective human glioma cell line.

Objective: To investigate the mechanism of staurosporine-induced glioma cell death and cell cycle arrest using adenovirus-mediated gene transfection, as well as the function of retinoblastoma (Rb) and genetic instability induced by staurosporine.

Methods: Cell cycle regulation, cell death and nuclear abnormalities induced by staurosporine were examined using an adenovirus vector expressing Rb, p16 or p21 genes in human glioma cell lines.

Results: The Rb-defective SF-539 cell line was resistant to staurosporine compared with cell lines expressing intact Rb.

Measurement of flow-mediated vasodilation of the brachial artery: a comparison of measurements in the seated and supine positions.

Background: Measurement of flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) is used to assess endothelial function in humans and according to the guidelines, subjects must remain supine during the study. However, measurement of FMD while seated would be more comfortable and convenient for patients, so the purpose of this study was to determine the effect of the patient's position on FMD results.

Methods And Results: High-resolution ultrasonography, a linear array transducer (13 MHz) and an arm-holding device were used to measure arterial diameter in response to reactive hyperemia (FMD, cuff inflated to 50 mmHg above systolic blood pressure for 5 min) and in response to sublingual nitroglycerine (NTG, 75 microg) in 31 subjects, which included those with cardiovascular diseases.

Expression of indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase and the recruitment of Foxp3-expressing regulatory T cells in the development and progression of uterine cervical cancer.

Foxp3(+) CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T (Treg) cells and immunoregulatory enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) play an important role in immunoregulation. Accumulating evidence shows that IDO and Treg cells have potent regulatory properties for immune escape in cancer. To evaluate the expression of IDO and the localization of Foxp3(+) Treg cells in the development and progression of uterine cervical cancer, IDO expression and Foxp3(+) Treg cells in the primary and metastatic lesions were studied using immunohistochemistry.

Genetic characterization of the natural SigB variants found in clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus.

The SigB concentrations in clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus were measured to examine their correlation with the antibiotic resistance. The SigB concentrations in methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) were higher than in the control strain, N315, and many of methicillin-susceptible S.

Geminin: a good prognostic factor in high-grade astrocytic brain tumors.

Background: Geminin is a nuclear protein that belongs to the DNA replication inhibitor group. It inhibits DNA replication by preventing Cdt1 from loading minichromosome maintenance protein onto chromatin, as is required for DNA replication. For this study, the authors investigated geminin expression in high-grade astrocytic tumors, including anaplastic astrocytoma (AA) and glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), with a view to predicting clinical outcomes on this basis in patients with these malignant brain tumors.

Interleukin-8 and glucose in amniotic fluid, fetal fibronectin in vaginal secretions and preterm labor index based on clinical variables are optimal predictive markers for preterm delivery in patients with intact membranes.

Aim: Various predictive markers for preterm delivery have been proposed in previous studies. We investigated which marker is most reliable.

Methods: In 126 patients with preterm labor before 32 weeks of gestation and intact membranes, who had regular uterine contractions with cervical changes effaced > or =50%, we evaluated seven markers: interleukin (IL)-8, glucose, and granulocyte count in amniotic fluid (AF); fetal fibronectin (fFN) in vaginal secretions; IL-8 in cervical mucus; cervical length; and preterm labor index (PLI) based on clinical variables.

Survivin subcellular localization in high-grade astrocytomas: simultaneous expression in both nucleus and cytoplasm is negative prognostic marker.

Objective: Subcellularly localized (nuclear and/or cytoplasmic) survivin has various functions, and correlates with prognosis of malignant tumors. However, there have been no reports about the significance of subcellularly localized survivin in high-grade astrocytomas. The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between prognosis and subcellular localization of survivin in high-grade astrocytoma.

Effects of acute administration of caffeine on vascular function.

Caffeine is the most widely used pharmacologic substance in the world. It is found in common nonessential grocery items (e.g.

Omission of lymphadenectomy is possible for low-risk corpus cancer.

Aim: The objective of this study is to ascertain whether omission of lymphadenectomy is possible when endometrial cancer is considered low-risk based on intraoperative pathologic indicators.

Patient And Methods: A total of 128 patients were deemed to be low-risk based on intraoperative evaluation, including frozen-section determination of grade and myometrial invasion. We divided these 128 patients into 2 groups, the total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (TAH-BSO) with lymphadenectomy (LA group, n=68) and the TAH-BSO without lymphadenectomy (non-LA group, n=60) group.

[A case of H. pylori and API2-MALT1 gene-negative gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma with a carcinoma-like signet-ring cell lymphoepithelial lesion].

A 60-year-old woman presented in February 2003 with an ulcer on the lesser curvature of the anglus. The endoscopic biopsy specimens showed epithelial signet-ring cell associated with lymphoid infiltration, suggesting a diagnosis of gastric cancer. Histopathological examination confirmed the diagnosis of low-grade B-cell lymphoma of MALT with epithelial signet-ring cell lymphoepithelial lesion, which was negative for H.

Successive, rapid recurrences of in-stent restenoses in a woman with angina pectoris.

A 62-year-old woman was admitted because of chest pain. Coronary angiography demonstrated stenosis of the left anterior descending coronary artery, where two bare metal stents had been implanted. Over 5 months in-stent restenosis occurred four times, and was treated at first with angioplasty but finally with two sirolimus-eluting stent insertions.

[Analysis of disulfoton sulfoxide in chingentsuai by pulsed splitless mass spectrometry using programmed temperature vaporization (PTV) inlet].

A peak considered to be due to disulfoton sulfoxide as a metabolite of disulfoton was detected in the analysis of the chingentsuai extraction solution of vegetables by GC-FPD. In the analysis by GC/MS for identification, though the retention time and the mass spectrum were the same as those of the standard, the spectrum was different from MS library data. It appeared that decomposition of disulfoton sulfoxide occurred at the inlet.

Paclitaxel/carboplatin versus cyclophosphamide/adriamycin/cisplatin as postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for advanced endometrial adenocarcinoma.

Aim: There is no standard chemotherapy regimen for patients with advanced endometrial adenocarcinoma. In our hospital, a cyclophosphamide/adriamycin/cisplatin (CAP) regimen was commonly used as adjuvant chemotherapy. However, since October 1999 a paclitaxel/carboplatin regimen has been substituted for CAP.

Possible tumor development from double positive foci for TGF-alpha and GST-P observed in early stages on rat hepatocarcinogenesis.

Expression of TGF-alpha during promotion of neoplastic development from GST-P-positive foci in rat chemical hepatocarcinogenesis was investigated. One-hundred male F344 rats were given a single intraperitoneal injection of DEN (200 mg/kg bodyweight) and subjected to two-thirds partial hepatectomy at week 3. Commencing 2 weeks from the start, PB at doses of 0 or 500 p.

A case of multiple hepatic peribiliary cysts which contributed to the obstructive jaundice and led to liver failure at the young man with von Recklinghausen's disease.

We treated a young man with obstructive jaundice, in whom multiple hepatic peribiliary cysts were detected at autopsy. He had been diagnosed with von Recklinghausen's disease in early childhood and had undergone surgery for a ventricular septal defect with massive blood transfusion at the age of 4 years. Examination at the age of 21 revealed prominent splenomegaly and a low platelet count.

A pituitary abscess showing high signal intensity on diffusion-weighted imaging.

The utility of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) for the diagnosis of intracranial abscesses has already been established. However, the use of DWI for pituitary abscesses has not been previously reported. We present a case of postoperative pituitary abscess in which T1-weighted and T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a supra-sellar cystic mass, with the cyst contents showing high intensity on DWI.