The C-terminal region affects the activity of photoactivated adenylyl cyclase from Oscillatoria acuminata.

Photoactivated adenylyl cyclase (PAC) is a unique protein that, upon blue light exposure, catalyzes cAMP production. The crystal structures of two PACs, from Oscillatoria acuminata (OaPAC) and Beggiatoa sp. (bPAC), have been solved, and they show a high degree of similarity.

HLA-A26 is a risk factor for Behçet's disease ocular lesions.

Background: How HLA-A26 modulates Behçet's disease (BD) ocular lesions such as iridocyclitis and retinochorioiditis has not been scrutinized.

Methods: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan provided us a database of BD patients who were registered from 2003 to 2014. We selected patients who satisfied International Criteria for BD and whose data for HLA-A26 was available.

The influence of HLA-B51 on clinical manifestations among Japanese patients with Behçet's disease: A nationwide survey.

To scrutinize the influence of HLA-B51 to each clinical manifestation of patients with Behçet's disease (BD) using a database of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan. The database of newly registered patients with BD was obtained from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Patients who met International Criteria for Behçet's Disease (ICBD) and had data for HLA-B51 were selected and analyzed.

Chemical synthesis of a two-domain scorpion toxin LaIT2 and its single-domain analogs to elucidate structural factors important for insecticidal and antimicrobial activities.

Scorpion venom contains various bioactive peptides. Among them, peptides having two different structural domains constitute a toxin family known as β-KTx or scorpine-like peptides. These peptides consist of an α-helical structure in the N-terminal region and a cysteine-stabilized structure in the C-terminal region.

Stretching of single DNA molecules caused by accelerating flow on a microchip.

DNA elongation induced by fluidic stress was investigated on a microfluidic chip composed of a large inlet pool and a narrow channel. Through single-DNA observation with fluorescence microscopy, the manner of stretching of individual T4 DNA molecules (166 kbp) was monitored near the area of accelerating flow with narrowing streamlines. The results showed that the DNA long-axis length increased in a sigmoidal manner depending on the magnitude of flow acceleration, or shear, along the DNA chain.

Clinical features of early-stage possible Behçet's disease patients with a variant-type major organ involvement in Japan.

Clinical data of patients with entro-, vasculo-, and neuro-variant possible Behçet's disease (BD) based on Japanese criteria has not yet comprehensively reported. This ongoing nation-wide registration has been carried out by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. The Ministry asked physicians who diagnosed a patient with confirmed or possible BD to register the patient data by filling out a registration form.

The ocular involvement did not accompany with the genital ulcer or the gastrointestinal symptoms at the early stage of Behçet's disease.

Objectives: This study aimed to identify patients with high-probability of ocular involvement of Behçet's disease (BD).

Methods: The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare provided dataset of ongoing nationwide BD registration project. A patient who had confirmed BD and who was suspected to have BD was registered.

Clinical manifestations of Behçet's disease depending on sex and age: results from Japanese nationwide registration.

Objective: This report aimed to scrutinize the prevalence of Behçet's disease (BD)-related clinical manifestations based on age- and sex-specific subgroups using a Japanese nationwide registration database.

Methods: The database of newly registered BD was obtained from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Patients who met the International Criteria for Behçet's Disease were selected and analysed.

Distinct clinical features between acute and chronic progressive parenchymal neuro-Behçet disease: meta-analysis.

Neuro-Behçet's disease (NBD) is subcategorized into parenchymal-NBD (P-NBD) and non-parenchymal-NBD types. Recently, P-NBD has been further subdivided into acute P-NBD (A-P-NBD) and chronic progressive P-NBD (CP-P-NBD). Although an increasing number of studies have reported the various clinical features of A-P-NBD and CP-P-NBD over the last two decades, there was a considerable inconsistency.

Clinical significance of induced left atrial macro-reentrant tachycardia after pulmonary vein isolation.

Background: The clinical significance of induced left atrial macro-reentrant tachycardia (LA-AT) after encircling pulmonary vein isolation (EPVI) is unclear. Our objective was to determine whether induced LA-ATs are associated with the clinical recurrence of ATs.

Methods: We studied 185 consecutive patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) who underwent their first EPVI with an 8-mm tip, nonirrigated catheter approach.

Marked difference in conformational fluctuation between giant DNA molecules in circular and linear forms.

We performed monomolecular observations on linear and circular giant DNAs (208 kbp) in an aqueous solution by the use of fluorescence microscopy. The results showed that the degree of conformational fluctuation in circular DNA was ca. 40% less than that in linear DNA, although the long-axis length of circular DNA was only 10% smaller than that of linear DNA.

Plasmonic staining of DNA molecules with photo-induced Ag nanoparticles monitored using dark-field microscopy.

We demonstrate a dark-field microscopic technique for real-time monitoring of DNA metallization. The growth of silver nanoparticles on DNA molecules was observed using plasmon resonance light scattering in the presence of a weak catalyst triggering photo-reduction of Ag(+). This simple strategy could facilitate the controlled fabrication of DNA-templated nanoelectronic devices.

Plasmonic imaging of brownian motion of single DNA molecules spontaneously binding to Ag nanoparticles.

We find the spontaneous binding of single DNA molecules to uncoated silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in aqueous solution with Mn(2+) (3 mM). From dark-field optical microscopic imaging of AgNPs bound to DNA molecules, we demonstrate analysis of the Brownian motion of single DNA molecules via plasmon resonance elastic light scattering. Our results provide that the plasmonic imaging technique is free from photobleaching and blinking and thus is useful in long-time observations of single-molecule DNA dynamics.

A new species of the genus Ocadia (Testudines: Geoemydidae) from the middle Miocene of Tanegashima Island, southwestern Japan and its paleogeographic implications.

A new geoemydid turtle, Ocadia tanegashimensis (Testudines: Geoemydidae) is described on the basis of a relatively well-preserved shell from the lower middle Miocene of Tanegashima Island, Kagoshima Prefecture, southwestern Japan. This species is clearly distinguished from two congeneric species (extant O. sinensis and O.

Pinophilins A and B, inhibitors of mammalian A-, B-, and Y-family DNA polymerases and human cancer cell proliferation.

Pinophilins A (1) and B (2), new hydrogenated azaphilones, and Sch 725680 (3) were isolated from cultures of a fungus (Penicillium pinophilum Hedgcok) derived from a seaweed, and their structures were determined using spectroscopic analyses. These compounds selectively inhibited the activities of mammalian DNA polymerases (pols), A (pol γ), B (pols α, δ, and ε), and Y (pols η, ι, and κ) families, but did not influence the activities of the four X-family pols (pols β, λ, μ, and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase). Compound 1 was the strongest inhibitor, with IC₅₀ values of 48.

Characterization of DNA polymerase β from Danio rerio by overexpression in E. coli using the in vivo/in vitro compatible pIVEX plasmid.

Background: Eukaryotic DNA polymerase β (pol β), the polymerase thought to be responsible for DNA repair synthesis, has been extensively characterized in rats and humans. However, pol β has not been purified or enzymatically characterized from the model fish species Danio rerio (zebrafish). We used the in vitro/in vivo dual expression system plasmid, pIVEX, to express Danio rerio pol β (Danio pol β) for biochemical characterization.

How environmental solution conditions determine the compaction velocity of single DNA molecules.

Understanding the mechanisms of DNA compaction is becoming increasingly important for gene therapy and nanotechnology DNA applications. The kinetics of the compaction velocity of single DNA molecules was studied using two non-protein condensation systems, poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) with Mg(2+) for the polymer-salt-induced condensation system and spermine for the polyamine condensation system. The compaction velocities of single tandem λ-DNA molecules were measured at various PEG and spermine concentrations by video fluorescent microscopy.

Production and partial purification of proteases from Aspergillus oryzae grown in a medium based on whey protein as an exclusive nitrogen source.

Several attempts have been made to incorporate whey proteins into curd to increase cheese yield. For some types of cheese, degradation of whey proteins that have been incorporated into the curd would be required to obtain acceptable flavor and texture. On the basis of the high potential for protease synthesis in Aspergillus oryzae, sodium nitrate as a nitrogen source in a minimal medium for fungi, known as Czapek-Dox medium, was replaced with whey protein isolate to induce the protease to hydrolyze whey protein using A.

Consecutive incorporation of fluorophore-labeled nucleotides by mammalian DNA polymerase beta.

In the present study, we investigated mammalian polymerases that consecutively incorporate various fluorophore-labeled nucleotides. We found that rat DNA polymerase beta (pol beta) consecutively incorporated fluorophore-labeled nucleotides to a greater extent than four bacterial polymerases, Sequenase Version 2.0, Vent(R) (exo-), DNA polymerase IIIalpha and the Klenow fragment, and the mammalian polymerases DNA polymerase alpha and human DNA polymerase delta, under mesophilic conditions.

Analysis of supercoiled DNA by agarose gel electrophoresis using low-conducting sodium threonine medium.

We describe a new low-ionic-strength sodium threonine (STh) medium with the advantage of avoiding relative DNA band migration changes following electrophoresis of supercoiled DNA in agarose gel when substituted for the standard conductive medium of TBE (Tris-boric acid-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid [EDTA]) or TAE (Tris-acetic acid-EDTA) or the low-ionic-strength sodium boric acid medium. Low-ionic-strength STh medium provided better resolution, less heat generation, and prevention of relative migration order changes among linear, covalently closed circular-, and open circular-formed DNA in the range of 2-10 kilobase pairs in 1% agarose gel electrophoresis.

Rapid sequencing gel electrophoresis using glycerol-tolerant sodium taurine medium.

We describe a new glycerol-tolerant sodium taurine (ST) medium for rapid sequencing gel electrophoresis by substituting the standard conductive media of Tris-boric acid-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) (TBE) and Tris-taurine-EDTA (TTE) and other low-ionic-strength media of sodium boric acid (SB). Low-ionic-strength and cost-effective ST media gave glycerol tolerance up to 50% (v/v) glycerol-containing DNA sample solution, shorter running time, and better resolution to separate small DNA oligonucleotides (20-45 mer) in 12% denaturing sequencing gel electrophoresis.

Measuring the length distribution of self-assembled lipid nanotubes by orientation control with a high-frequency alternating current electric field in aqueous solutions.

The present work addresses the length distribution of self-assembled lipid nanotubes (LNTs) by controlling the orientation of the LNTs using an alternating current (ac) electric field in aqueous solutions. The effect of the ac field on the orientation and rotation of individual LNTs was examined to evaluate the optimum orientation frequency by visualizing the individual LNTs in real time. By using the high-frequency ac field, we have successfully measured the length distribution for two different types of LNTs and have quantitatively analyzed the maximum occurrences of the length distribution as well as the extension of the longer length region.

Sizing of single globular DNA molecules by using a circular acceleration technique with laser trapping.

We describe a method for in situ sizing individual huge DNA molecules by laser trapping. Single DNA molecules are reversibly transformed, without mechanical fragmentation of fragile huge-sized DNA, from their random coil state into their globular state induced by condensing agents poly(ethylene glycol) and Mg(2+). With the use of a globular DNA molecule folded by condensation, the critical velocity of the circularly accelerated single globular DNA molecule by laser trapping was found to be proportional to the size of the DNA.

Self-sterilizing catheters with titanium dioxide photocatalyst thin films for clean intermittent catheterization: basis and study of clinical use.

Objective: Clean intermittent catheterization (CIC) requires a large number of disposable catheters or a large amount of water and disinfectant. We made titanium dioxide (TiO(2))-coated catheters for CIC using technology we have developed previously, and examined the photocatalytic antibacterial effect of this catheter using only light energy and the safety of this type of catheter for practical clinical use.

Methods: TiO(2)-coated catheters were filled with bacterial cell suspensions and illuminated with a 15-W black-light lamp for testing antibacterial potency.

Augmentation ileocystoplasty in patients with neurogenic bladder due to spinal cord injury or spina bifida.

Study Design: Retrospective analysis of augmentation ileocystoplasty for neurogenic bladder.

Objectives: To analyze the effects and complications of augmentation ileocystoplasty in patients with neurogenic bladder due to spinal cord injury (SCI) or spina bifida retrospectively.

Setting: Department of Urology, Kanagawa Rehabilitation Hospital, Japan.