A three-base-deletion polymorphism in the upstream non-coding region of human interleukin 7 (IL-7) gene could enhance levels of IL-7 expression.

Interleukin 7 (IL-7) is a key factor in the survival, development and proliferation of B and T lymphocytes. Elevation of plasma IL-7 has been reported in several lymphopenia cases such as HIV-1 patients. After patients started to receive antiretroviral drugs and their CD4(+) cell counts had recovered, IL-7 in plasma decreased to normal levels.

Pneumocystis pneumonia in patients with HIV infection: clinical manifestations, laboratory findings, and radiological features.

Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) remains the most common opportunistic infection in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Familiarity with the clinical features of PCP is crucial for prompt diagnosis, even if the patient is unaware of their HIV serostatus. We describe herein the clinical features of 34 episodes in 32 patients with AIDS-associated PCP and review the existing literature.

Induction of peptide-specific immune response in patients with primary malignant melanoma of the esophagus after immunotherapy using dendritic cells pulsed with MAGE peptides.

Primary malignant melanoma of the esophagus (PMME) is a very rare disease with an extremely poor prognosis. Surgery is currently considered its best treatment, while any other measures are ineffective. We studied the effect of active specific immunotherapy using monocyte-derived dendritic cells (DCs) pulsed with the epitope peptides of melanoma-associated antigens (MAGE-1, MAGE-3) in patients with PMME after surgery, for the first time.

Analysis of HIV-1 sequences before and after co-infecting syphilis.

Increasing syphilis incidence among men who have sex with men (MSM) has been reported. The index case was a human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-positive MSM who presented coincidentally with the secondary syphilis and a rebound of plasma viral load after complete suppression of HIV-1 (below 50 copies/ml) for 13 months with potent antiretroviral therapy (PART), suggesting a possibility of HIV-1 superinfection. We analyzed HIV-1 sequences before and after syphilis in four HIV-1-positive patients including the index case to explore drug resistance mutations (DRMs) and a possibility of HIV-1 superinfection.

Molecular epidemiology of hepatitis A virus in metropolitan areas in Japan.

Background: Transmission routes of hepatitis A virus (HAV) in Japan have changed. The present study investigated changes of transmission routes in relation to genetic drift.

Methods: All 60 patients who were admitted between 1993 and 2003 with a diagnosis of hepatitis A were retrospectively analyzed.

A novel immunotherapeutic modality with direct hemoperfusion targeting transforming growth factor-beta prolongs the survival of tumor-bearing rats.

Immune responses are frequently depressed in patients with cancer. One of the reasons for a poor immune response is the presence of increased levels of immunosuppressive substances associated with tumor growth. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), a representative immunosuppressive cytokine, plays various roles in the progression of cancer.

Successful coil embolization with assistance of coronary stenting in an adult patient with a huge coronary arterial-right atrial fistula.

A 55 year-old man with huge coronary artery fistula to the right atrium is presented. The Qp/Qs ratio was 1.6.

Flexor tendon repair in zone II with 6-strand techniques and early active mobilization.

Purpose: There are many biomechanic studies of 6-strand suture techniques for active mobilization, but few reports have described the clinical outcome in zone II flexor tendon lacerations. We discuss the clinical results of zone II flexor tendon repair using 2 of these techniques followed by controlled early active mobilization.

Methods: Six-strand sutures using the number 1 technique by Yoshizu or a triple-looped suture technique were used to repair flexor tendons in 27 fingers from 21 consecutive patients.

An anatomic and biomechanic study of the wrist extensor retinaculum septa and tendon compartments.

Purpose: The anatomy of the extensor retinaculum of the wrist has been described previously; the purpose of this study was to describe the specific anatomy of the septal attachments on the radius and to investigate the mechanical strength of each septal attachment on the radius and each of the 6 compartments of the extensor retinaculum.

Methods: Thirty-four wrists from 24 fresh-frozen and 10 embalmed cadavers were used. First, anatomic measurements of the individual extensor retinaculum septums were performed with calipers and a 3-dimensional digitizer.

Successful induction of clinically competent dendritic cells from granulocyte colony-stimulating factor-mobilized monocytes for cancer vaccine therapy.

Recent studies have suggested that dendritic cell (DC)-based immunotherapy is one promising approach for the treatment of cancer. We previously studied the clinical toxicity, feasibility, and efficacy of cancer vaccine therapy with peptide-pulsed DCs. In that study, we used granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF)-mobilized peripheral blood monocytes as a cell source of DCs.

Tumor cyclooxygenase-2 gene suppresses local immune responses in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma.

Aims And Background: In several neoplastic diseases including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) immunosuppression is correlated with disease stage, progression and outcome. Moreover, recent studies have demonstrated that cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) enhances tumor growth in HCCs. The present study analyzed the correlation between local immune responses and COX-2 gene expression levels in patients with primary HCCs.

Decrease in Epstein-Barr virus-positive AIDS-related lymphoma in the era of highly active antiretroviral therapy.

Recent introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is reported to have reduced the incidence of lymphoma among HIV-infected individuals. A clinicopathological study was performed on 86 AIDS-related lymphoma patients who were treated in Tokyo area from 1987 to 2005. The incidence of lymphoma detected by autopsy was 27% (53 cases/198 autopsies).

Mature dendritic cells generated from patient-derived peripheral blood monocytes in one-step culture using streptococcal preparation OK-432 exert an enhanced antigen-presenting capacity.

Dendritic cells (DCs) have been shown to be potent in inducing cytotoxic T cell (CTL) response leading to the efficient anti-tumor effect in active immunotherapy. Myeloid DCs are conventionally generated from human peripheral blood monocytes in the presence of interleukin (IL)-4 and granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). Streptococcal preparation OK-432, which is known to be a multiple cytokine inducer, has been extensively studied as to its maturation effects on immature DCs using an in vitro culture system.

Peptide-loaded dendritic-cell vaccination followed by treatment interruption for chronic HIV-1 infection: a phase 1 trial.

Immune response enhanced by therapeutic HIV-1 vaccine may control viral proliferation after discontinuation of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Although which strategies for therapeutic vaccination are feasible remains controversial, application of dendritic cells (DCs) as a vaccine adjuvant represents a promising approach to improving deteriorated immune function in HIV-1-infected individuals. The safety and efficacy of DC-based vaccine loaded with HIV-1-derived cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) peptides were thus investigated in this study.

Successful guidance by automatic output of music and verbal messages for daily behavioural disturbances of three individuals with dementia.

There have been no previous reports of daily home activities of individuals with dementia being guided by the combination of music and verbal messages. This study evaluated the effectiveness for three individuals of music and messages which were automatically output by an IC recorder. After music was presented, messages instructed the participants to go to a day care centre, behave more peacefully and eat more at meals, respectively.

Development of real-time bioradiographic system for functional and metabolic imaging in living brain tissue.

We have developed a novel imaging system "real-time bioradiography", which is able to estimate the dynamic changes of physiological function and metabolism in living tissues using positron emitter-labeled tracers and chemiluminescence probes. The apparatus is comprised of a photon-counting camera, image-controller, culturing chamber, reflexible solid scintillator and temperature-controlled imaging chamber. The image distribution of radioactivity and chemiluminescence was acquirable with the reflexible solid scintillator and without, respectively.

Insight into the basis of root growth in Arabidopsis thaliana provided by a simple mathematical model.

Plant organ growth changes under genetic and environmental influences can be observed as altered cell proliferation and volume growth. The two aspects are mutually dependent and intricately related. For comprehensive growth analysis, it is necessary to specify the relationship quantitatively.

Left atrial appendage function in patients with systemic embolism in spite of in sinus rhythm.

Objective: We sought to investigate whether left atrial (LA) appendage (LAA) function was impaired in patients with systemic embolism in sinus rhythm.

Methods: Transesophageal echocardiography was performed in 7 patients within 5 days after embolism (early group) and in 32 patients, more than 5 days after embolism (late group). We searched intracardiac thrombus and determined LAA area and LAA flow velocity, and the grade of spontaneous echocontrast.

AIDS-related cerebral toxoplasmosis with hyperintense foci on T1-weighted MR images: a case report.

The neuroradiological findings are helpful for the diagnosis of toxoplasmic encephalitis. The T1 hypersignal intensity foci on brain magnetic resonance (MR) images without contrast enhancement are presented and can be a pathognomonic sign of this disease.

Novel mechanism of antibiotic resistance originating in vancomycin-intermediate Staphylococcus aureus.

As an aggressive pathogen, Staphylococcus aureus poses a significant public health threat and is becoming increasingly resistant to currently available antibiotics, including vancomycin, the drug of last resort for gram-positive bacterial infections. S. aureus with intermediate levels of resistance to vancomycin (vancomycin-intermediate S.

[The effects of direct hemoperfusion using the filtration column filled with the adsorption fiber for immunosuppressive substances on cell-mediated immunity in tumor-bearing rats].

The patients with advanced cancer often lose their anti-tumor immune responses due to the increase of some immunosuppressive substances in the blood, such as cytokines and proteins derived from cancer cells or immune cells. We developed the adsorption fiber in transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta for the treatment to remove immunosuppressive substances and investigated the effects of direct hemoperfusion using the filtration column filled with this adsorption fiber in tumor-bearing rats. On day 0, KDH-8 tumor cells (1 x 10(6) cells/rat) were implanted subcutaneously into the back of WKAH/Hkm rats.

The gene expression level of transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) as a biological prognostic marker of hepatocellular carcinoma.

The question that transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) provides a tumor-suppressive or a tumor promoting role is still unknown in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). In the present study, we quantitatively investigated the gene expression levels of TGF-beta in liver tissues from patients with HCC. We also evaluated the prognostic importance of TGF-beta gene in HCC patients.

The pro-apoptotic human BH3-only peptide harakiri is expressed in cryptococcus-infected perivascular macrophages in HIV-1 encephalitis patients.

In the central nervous system (CNS), HIV-1 targets mainly microglia/macrophages. Like the CD4+ T cell depletion and neuronal loss in AIDS, apoptosis is thought to be involved in eliminating infected macrophages. In this study, we examined the expression of the pro-apoptotic BH3-peptide harakiri (Hrk) in brain tissues of AIDS patients.