Effects of sustained-release tulobuterol on asthma control and beta-adrenoceptor function.

1. Recently, a patch formulation of tulobuterol, a beta-adrenoceptor (AR) agonist, has been developed using a transdermal delivery system. The present study was designed to determine whether beta-AR function and asthma control were affected by the sustained-released beta-AR agonist.

Bioelectric toxicity caused by chlorpromazine in human lung epithelial cells.

Endogeneous and exogeneous amine-containing substances possess pneumophilic properties. Among them, tricyclic amphiphilic amine drugs like neuroleptics intensively accumulate in the lung cell membrane and occasionally cause severe respiratory disorders. In the present study, we examined the bioelectric toxicity of chlorpromazine (CPZ), a commonly used neuroleptic, in human lung epithelial cells.

A seroepidemiological study of the risks of Q fever infection in Japanese veterinarians.

The causative agent of Q fever, a widespread zoonotic disease, is the bacteria Coxiella burnetii. Although cases of Q fever have been documented in countries throughout the world, the prevalence of the disease in Japan is not yet known. Q fever is a demonstrated occupational hazard to those employed in zoological professions, but the risk to Japanese veterinarians has not yet been quantified.

Different effects of beta-adrenoceptor desensitization on inhibitory actions in guinea-pig trachealis.

1. To determine the inhibitory effects of agents that pass through and bypass beta-adrenoceptors under conditions of tolerance to beta-adrenoceptor agonists, we examined the inhibition by the beta-adrenoceptor agonists forskolin and theophylline against contraction induced by methacholine (MCh) after exposure to higher concentrations of a beta-adrenoceptor agonist for a long time in guinea-pig tracheal smooth muscle, using isometric tension records. 2.

Bisphenol A inhibits Cl(-) secretion by inhibition of basolateral K+ conductance in human airway epithelial cells.

There has been growing concern about the potential threat of hormone-disrupting chemicals like bisphenol A to various aspects of animal and human health. We studied the effects of bisphenol A on the Cl(-) secretion in human airway epithelial Calu-3 cells. Pretreatment with bisphenol A (IC(50) = 60 microM, for 30 min) prevented isoproterenol (10 nM)-generated short-circuit current (I(sc)) more potently than 17beta-estradiol or tamoxifen (IC(50) = 1 mM).

Attitudes of Japanese students toward people with intellectual disability.

Background: The purpose of the present study was to gain insight into the structure and organization of the attitudes of Japanese students toward people with intellectual disability (ID). The study also examined how these attitudes are related to individual characteristics, such as experience with people with ID, major field of study and career interests.

Methods: The participants completed a series of measures developed in the USA: three measures of attitudes toward people with ID, a demographic questionnaire and a social desirability scale.

Employment and income status of adults with developmental disabilities living in the community.

A comprehensive national portrait of employment and income status of adults with developmental disabilities was estimated through secondary analyses of the 1990 and the 1991 Survey of Income and Program Participation. Results indicate that the majority of adults with developmental disabilities had very limited economic resources, even when earnings from employment and benefits from governmental income support programs were both included. The minority, who worked in a variety of occupations, were earning higher incomes than previous estimates.

Regulation of capacitative and noncapacitative receptor-operated Ca2+ entry by rho-kinase in tracheal smooth muscle.

To determine the mechanisms of Ca2+ mobilization induced by receptor agonists, we examined the role of Rho-kinase on the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ stores-dependent and -independent Ca2+ influx in guinea pig tracheal smooth muscle (TSM). Isometric tension and intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) were simultaneously measured using fura-2-loaded tissues. Depletion of the SR Ca2+ stores by thapsigargin caused an increase in [Ca2+]i and contraction, demonstrating capacitative Ca2+ entry (CCE).

Effects of naturally occurring isoflavones on prostaglandin E2 production.

Previously, we reported that the isoflavones tectorigenin and tectoridin, a glycosylated tectorigenin, isolated from the rhizomes of Belamcanda chinensis have an activity to inhibit prostaglandin (PG) E2 production in 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA)-stimulated rat peritoneal macrophages. The inhibitory effect of tectorigenin is more potent than that of tectoridin. In this study, we investigated the structure-activity relationship of various isoflavones in the inhibition of PGE2 production in TPA-stimulated rat peritoneal macrophages.

Protection by tetracyclines against ion transport disruption caused by nystatin in human airway epithelial cells.

Polyene antifungal antibiotics like nystatin form monovalent cation pores on the plasma membrane that perturb the intracellular electrolyte milieu, resulting in cell damage. In the present study, we investigated the effects of tetracyclines (minocycline and tetracycline) on ion transporters disrupted by nystatin in cultured human airway Calu-3 cells. Apical application of nystatin (50 microM) on a monolayer of the cells stimulated Na(+)-K(+) pump activity as estimated by ouabain (1 mM)-sensitive short-circuit current (I(sc)).

Differential effect of phosphodiesterase inhibitors on IL-13 release from peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Increased cyclic AMP (cAMP)-phosphodiesterase (PDE) activity in peripheral blood leucocytes is associated with the immunological inflammation that characterizes allergic diseases, such as atopic dermatitis and allergic rhinitis. Recently, it has been found that IL-13 has similar biological functions to IL-4. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible involvement of cAMP-PDE activity on IL-13 release from peripheral blood mononuclears cells (PBMC) from atopic asthma patients.

An anatomic study of the extensor tendons of the human hand.

A total of 548 upper limbs (276 right and 272 left hands) from Japanese cadavers were dissected. The arrangements of extensor indicis proprius, extensor digitorum communis (EDC), and extensor digiti minimi tendons and the intertendinous connections were studied. The most common pattern of extensor tendons was as follows: the index finger had a single EDC tendon, the middle finger had a single EDC tendon, the ring finger had a single EDC tendon, and the small finger had a single EDC tendon or a single common EDC tendon distributed to the ring and small finger.

Novel effects of minocycline on Ca(2+)-dependent Cl(-) secretion in human airway epithelial Calu-3 cells.

The present study concerns previously unreported effects of the antibiotic minocycline on the transepithelial Cl(-) transport in Calu-3 cells, which display electrophysiological properties consistent with human airway serous cells. Basolateral 4,4'-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS, 200 microM) augmented Cl(-) secretion, which was detected as a 5-nitro-2-(3-phenylpropylamino)-benzoate (NPPB, 100 microM, a Cl(-) channel blocker)-sensitive short-circuit current (I(sc)). The DIDS-induced I(sc) was composed of Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (K(Ca)) channel-dependent and -independent components.

Role of lysophosphatidylcholine in the desensitization of beta-adrenergic receptors by Ca(2+) sensitization in tracheal smooth muscle.

Lysophosphatidylcholine (Lyso-PC) is generally considered to promote tissue inflammation. To determine the involvement of exogenous Lyso-PC in the beta-adrenergic desensitization by phospholipase A2, we examined the inhibitory effects of isoproterenol (ISO) on tension and intracellular Ca(2+) concentration by methacholine (MCh) after continuous exposure to Lyso-PC in guinea-pig tracheal smooth muscle, using isometric tension recordings and fura-2 signal (F340/F380 ratio). Pre- exposure to 10 microM Lyso-PC markedly reduced subsequent inhibition by 0.

[(Dihydroindenyl)oxy]alkonic acid inhibits the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator.

We investigated the effects of [(dihydroindenyl)oxy]alkaonic acid (DIOA) on the Cl(-) secretion in Calu-3 human airway epithelial cells that exclusively express the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) as an apical Cl(-) channel. The 5'-nitro-2-(3-phenylpropylamino) benzoate (NPPB)-sensitive short-circuit current (I(sc)) and apical conductance were markedly reduced by DIOA (100 microM) in the presence and absence of isoproterenol (10 nM). Replacement of the butyl group in DIOA with a methyl group attenuated the inhibitory effects.

Cloning and sequencing of a novel human gene that encodes a putative target protein of Nesh-SH3.

By using a conventional two-hybrid technique with an Src homology 3 (SH3) domain of Nesh as the bait protein, a novel full-length cDNA was isolated and sequenced from a human placenta cDNA library. This cDNA consists of 3023 bp and has a predicted open reading frame that encodes 486 amino acids. It possesses an SH3 binding motif, a nuclear targeting sequence, and no catalytic domain.

Adrenomedullin and proadrenomedullin N-terminal 20 peptide induce histamine release from rat peritoneal mast cell.

Adrenomedullin (ADM)-induced histamine release from rat peritoneal mast cells was investigated. We compared the ability of full-length ADM to induce histamine release to the fragments ADM-(1-25) and ADM-(22-52), as well as proadrenomedullin N-terminal 20 peptide (PAMP). ADM (10(-8) to 10(-5) M) and PAMP (10(-8) to 10(-5) M) dose-dependently increased histamine release from peritoneal mast cell preparations.

[Aortitis syndrome associated with ulcerative colitis, preceded by pulmonary infarction involvement].

A 21-year-old woman with a 6-year history of ulcerative colitis admitted to our hospital with chest pain, cough and fever of unknown origin in August 1998. On admission, laboratory data showed positive inflammatory signs. A chest radiograph and chest computed tomogram (CT) revealed nodular shadows in the right upper lung field.

Identification of autoreactive T cells in Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease.

Purpose: To determine the finer specificity and immunologic features of autoreactive T cells in Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) disease.

Methods: T-cell clones (TCCs ) specific to tyrosinase family proteins were raised from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of patients with VKH disease, and the response of the TCCs to 30-mer peptides was determined. The TCCs that were reactive to the peptides with strong binding sites for HLA DRB1*0405 were initially tested.

Identification of the hexon region of an adenovirus involved in a new outbreak of keratoconjunctivitis.

We tested 15 adenovirus (Ad)-positive patients involved in a case of nosocomial spread of keratoconjunctivitis. A neutralization test, PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis, and sequencing of the hypervariable regions of the hexons were performed in order to identify the type of Ad involved. The serotype of the Ad was not identical to any published Ad sequence by either method.

Effect of prolonged low-dose methylprednisolone therapy in acute exacerbation of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

We report on a 74-year-old man with an acute exacerbation of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) who was successfully treated with prolonged low-dose methylprednisolone, initiated at a loading dose of 2 mg/kg, followed by 2 mg/kg per day for 14 days. The dose was then tapered. The exacerbation observed on the chest radiograph and high-resolution computed tomography was found to have abated after the treatment.

Interleukin-15 prevents mouse mast cell apoptosis through STAT6-mediated Bcl-xL expression.

Interleukin (IL)-15 is a member of the cytokine family with T and natural killer (NK) cell growth-promoting activity. In mast cells, however, IL-15 uses a distinct receptor system different from that used in T and NK cells. We recently reported that IL-15 induces STAT6 activation and IL-4 production in a mouse mast cell line (MC/9) and bone marrow-derived mast cells.

Analysis of increased leukocyte ratio induced by tumor necrosis factor-alpha using several inhibitors in the undisturbed microcirculation of the rat mesentery.

Increased leukocyte ratio induced by intraperitoneal injection of TNF-alpha was analyzed in undisturbed rat mesentery venules, a long-term experimental model. TNF-alpha induced a biphasic increase in PMNL ratio in the mesentery venules; in particular, there was a large increase in PMNL ratio 3 h after injection of TNF-alpha. Anti-P and anti-L-selectin compounds, fucoidin and dextran sulfate, inhibited the PMNL ratio by about 40%.