Publications by authors named "Megumi Hirata"

Article Synopsis
  • This study evaluates the effectiveness of wheal size and skin index (SI) from skin-prick tests in predicting cow's milk allergy (CMA) outcomes in children.
  • Results showed that larger wheal sizes and higher SIs were linked to positive oral provocation test results, and half of the patients were likely to outgrow their CMA by age 5.
  • The findings suggest that a wheal diameter of 8 mm or an SI of 1.0 can be useful indicators for diagnosing CMA and predicting its natural outgrowth.
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Transposable elements (TEs) are considered to be parasites of host genomes because they act as powerful mutagens. If not kept in check, they can cause gene disruption, genome rearrangement, and genomic takeover. Hence, activities of TEs are under the rigid control of hosts.

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Cellular architectures require regulated mechanisms to correctly localize the appropriate plasma membrane lipids and proteins. Microvilli are dynamic filamentous-actin-based protrusions of the plasma membrane that are found in the apical membrane of epithelial cells. However, it remains poorly understood how their formation is regulated.

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Purpose: Abnormal fundus autofluorescence (FAF) is associated with the incidence or progression of dry and wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD). We previously developed a rabbit AMD model with drusen and type-1 choroidal neovascularization (CNV) that mimics the accumulation of lipofuscin using artificial glycoxidized particles. The objective of the current study was to investigate in vitro effects of glycoxidized particles on retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells, and the FAF and fate of injected particles in this model.

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A sulfated polysaccharide named naviculan was isolated from a diatom, Navicula directa (W. SMITH) RALFS, collected in deep sea water from Toyama Bay. The polysaccharide consisted of fucose, xylose, galactose, mannose, rhamnose and sulfate with an apparent molecular weight of 220000.

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