Publications by authors named "Nobuyo Yawata"

Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of genetic risk estimation in identifying primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) among Japanese individuals through a cross-sectional analysis involving 3,625 participants.
  • Genetic risk scores (GRSs) were developed based on a genome-wide association study, with the best-performing GRS comprising 98 significant variants showing strong predictive accuracy for POAG.
  • Results indicated that individuals in the top 10% of GRS had a substantially higher likelihood of having POAG compared to those in the lowest 10%, highlighting the potential of GRS as a tool for glaucoma risk assessment in this population.*
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Acute retinal necrosis (ARN) is a serious eye disease caused by herpesvirus that can threaten vision, and this study aims to identify factors determining visual outcomes during the initial visit.
  • The research included 34 ARN patients and analyzed factors like initial visual acuity, presence of retinal detachment, and the extent of necrotizing retinitis, using logistic regression analysis.
  • Results showed that greater circumferential extension of the necrotizing lesions was linked to poorer final vision outcomes, highlighting the importance of initial assessments in predicting prognosis for ARN patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are a unique subset of T cells that recognizes metabolites derived from the vitamin B2 biosynthetic pathway. Since the identification of cognate antigens for MAIT cells, knowledge of the functions of MAIT cells in cancer, autoimmunity, and infectious diseases has been rapidly expanding. Recently, MAIT cells have been found to contribute to visual protection against autoimmunity in the eye.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The conjunctival epithelium has two key cell types: goblet cells that produce mucus and keratinocytes that secrete water, with keratinocytes presenting mucins on their surface.
  • Research involves long-term organoid cultures of human and mouse conjunctiva, revealing essential gene expression and identification of conjunctival stem cells.
  • The study also explores viral infections (HSV1, hAdV8, SARS-CoV-2) in conjunctival cultures, demonstrating treatment options for some infections and documenting gene expression changes induced by these viruses, highlighting the potential for organoid transplantation to study conjunctival health and disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study evaluated clinical features of pediatric uveitis at a hospital in Western Japan, focusing on patients under 20 years from 2010 to 2019.
  • The most common causes of pediatric uveitis were tubulointerstitial nephritis and uveitis (TINU) and juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), with many patients requiring systemic therapy.
  • A significant portion of cases remained unclassified, often managed with topical corticosteroids, highlighting the need for accurate diagnosis for effective treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study focuses on the killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) that interacts with HLA class I molecules and affects natural killer cell function, highlighting its significance in immunity.
  • Researchers conducted deep sequencing of KIR genes from a large sample of individuals to enhance understanding of KIR genetics, discovering 118 alleles and establishing a detailed genetic linkage map.
  • Utilizing a highly accurate reference panel for KIR genotyping, the study also explored genetic associations with various traits, finding minimal significant links, even with those related to immune functions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infections develop into CMV diseases that result in various forms of manifestations in local organs. CMV-retinitis is a form of CMV disease that develops in immunocompromised hosts with CMV-viremia after viruses in the peripheral circulation have entered the eye. In the HCMV genome, extensive diversification of the UL40 gene has produced peptide sequences that modulate NK cell effector functions when loaded onto HLA-E and are subsequently recognized by the NKG2A and NKG2C receptors.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to investigate the low prevalence of Fuchs' uveitis syndrome (FUS) in Japan by reviewing medical records of 160 patients diagnosed with the condition at uveitis specialty facilities.
  • Results showed that a significant number of patients were referred for idiopathic uveitis, cataracts, and glaucoma, with most patients experiencing unilateral symptoms and common findings like anterior inflammation and keratic precipitates.
  • The conclusion suggests that the low prevalence of FUS in Japan may be due to misdiagnosis as milder conditions, affecting timely recognition and treatment of the syndrome.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Objectives: To evaluate long-term outcomes of infliximab (IFX) treatment in patients with Behçet's disease (BD)-associated uveitis.

Patients And Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the cases of patients with BD-associated uveitis treated with IFX for > 5 years. We compared the numbers of ocular inflammatory attacks, ocular disease activities, and visual acuity before and after the initiation of IFX treatment.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: This article presents a case of panuveitis that occurred after unrelated allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) in a patient with lymphoma-type human T-cell leukemia virus type-1 (HTLV-1)-associated adult T-cell leukemia (ATL).

Observations: A 45-year-old man developed unilateral panuveitis 18 months after undergoing allo-HSCT. He underwent vitrectomy, and depositions of grey-white granules localized on the retinal artery were observed in the eye.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This chapter is intended to serve as a practical guide for establishing a workflow using sequence-specific polymorphism PCR (SSP-PCR) for killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) genotyping in a clinical setting, especially in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). As clinical evidence accumulates on the application of KIR and HLA genetics to guide donor selection in HSCT, there is an increasing need for KIR genotyping in clinical settings, and thus medical institutes may need to build this capability. Among the various KIR genotyping approaches now available, SSP-PCR methods are well-established and are the most cost-effective and will likely be the method of choice especially when expenses will be passed on to the patient.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Natural killer (NK) cells play a critical role in defending against virus infections.Investigating human NK cell antiviral functions is of prime importance; however, there are challenges such as the human-specific nature of many viruses and differences in NK cell surface markers between humans and rodents. Research on the antivirus response of human NK cells must therefore be carefully planned around species tropism of the viruses of interest and the specific biological questions to be answered.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: Uveitis accounts for 10-15% of all cases of blindness in the developed world. Uveitic macular edema (UME) is a primary cause of permanent visual impairment in patients with uveitis. Because proinflammatory mediators elicit inflammation and lead to UME, we determined the profiles of proinflammatory mediators associated with complications, such as ME, in the vitreous humor of patients with panuveitis related to Behçet's disease (BD) and sarcoidosis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Autoimmune uveitis is a sight-threatening disease induced by pathogenic T cells that recognize retinal antigens; it is observed in disorders including Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease (VKH). The roles of specific T cell subsets and their therapeutic potential against autoimmune uveitis are not fully understood. Here we conducted multi-parametric single-cell protein quantification which shows that the frequency of CD161TRAV1-2 mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells that recognize vitamin B2 metabolite-based antigens is decreased in relapsing VKH patients compared to individuals without active ocular inflammation.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) causes clinical issues primarily in immune-suppressed conditions. CMV-associated anterior uveitis (CMV-AU) is a notable new disease entity manifesting recurrent ocular inflammation in immunocompetent individuals. As patient demographics indicated contributions from genetic background and immunosenescence as possible underlying pathological mechanisms, we analyzed the immunogenetics of the cohort in conjunction with cell phenotypes to identify molecular signatures of CMV-AU.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Vitreoretinal lymphoma (VRL) is a rare disease of B-cell origin with poor prognosis. Regulatory cytokines promote tumor development by suppressing antitumor immunity in several cancer types, including B-cell malignancies. To identify the regulatory cytokines associated with poor prognosis in patients with B-cell VRL, we determined the regulatory cytokines profiles in the vitreous humor of patients with VRL.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

: A prospective clinical study to assess the utility of CD4 + T cell lymphocyte profiling from peripheral blood in patients with ocular tuberculosis (TB).: Thirty-six Asian patients with presumed diagnosis of ocular TB were recruited for T-lymphocyte profiling. MTB antigen specific CD4 assay was set up, and flow cytometric data were analyzed using FlowJo software.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Endothelial keratoplasty (EK) is less invasive with faster recovery as compared to conventional penetrating keratoplasty, however, it relies on the clarity of the host corneal stroma. Corneal transplantation involves the induction of immune tolerance for allogeneic tissues as well as the corneal wound healing process, in which coordinated interactions between cytokines and growth factors are critical. In this study, we profiled the expression of 51 soluble factors in the tear fluid over the course of EK and have provided evidence of dynamic changes in cytokine expression in the ipsilateral and contralateral eyes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: The aim of this study was to test the antiviral effectivity of potassium peroxymonosulfate (RUBYSTA, KYORIN) against five epidemic keratoconjunctivitis-related types of in vitro.

Methods: Five types of (8, 37, 53, 54 and 56) were incubated with 1% potassium peroxymonosulfate, 0.1% sodium hypochlorite (NaClO) or alcohol-based disinfectant for 30 s or 1 min.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Adenoviral epidemic keratoconjunctivitis (EKC) is a major cause of ocular morbidity worldwide and specific antiviral therapies are not available. EKC is primarily caused by Human adenovirus D (HAdV-D) types 8, 37, 53, 54, 56 and 64. Considering the genomic variation in HAdV-D, we hypothesized that clinical signs could be differentiated by virus type.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Uveitis, which is a major cause of blindness worldwide, is defined as intraocular inflammation that affects the iris, ciliary body, vitreous, retina and choroid. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) is a key cytokine involved in the pathogenesis of many inflammatory diseases including uveitis. Corticosteroids and immunosuppressive agents are the conventional therapy to treat non-infectious uveitis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Adenoviral epidemic keratoconjunctivitis (EKC) presents as severe conjunctival inflammations involving the cornea that can lead to the development of corneal opacities and blurred vision, which can persist for months. EKC is highly contagious and responsible for outbreaks worldwide, therefore accurate diagnosis and rapid containment are imperative. EKC is caused by a number of types within Human adenovirus species D (HAdV-D): 8, 37 and 64 (formerly known as 19a) and these types were considered the major causes of EKC for over fifty years.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The functions of human NK cells in defense against pathogens and placental development during reproduction are modulated by interactions of killer cell Ig-like receptors (KIRs) with HLA-A, -B and -C class I ligands. Both receptors and ligands are highly polymorphic and exhibit extensive differences between human populations. Indigenous to southern Africa are the KhoeSan, the most ancient group of modern human populations, who have highest genomic diversity worldwide.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: The primary aim of this study is to isolate cytokines specific for active Graves' orbitopathy (GO) in the tears of affected patients. The secondary aim is to identify other cytokines of interest and to look at the profile of their levels over time.

Methods: This is a prospective pilot study conducted at the Singapore National Eye Centre.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF