Elucidation of the full genetic information of Japanese rubella vaccines and the genetic changes associated with in vitro and in vivo vaccine virus phenotypes.

Rubella is a mild disease characterized by low-grade fever, and a morbilliform rash, but causes congenital defects in neonates born from mothers who suffered from rubella during the pregnancy. After many passages of wild-type rubella virus strains in various types of cultured cells, five live attenuated rubella vaccines were developed in Japan. An inability to elicit anti-rubella virus antibodies in experimentally infected animals was used as an in vivo marker phenotype of Japanese rubella vaccines.

[The present situation and limitation of antibody assays for diagnosis of rubella virus infection in pregnant women].

Rubella virus infection during early stages of pregnancy often results in a number of developmental disorders referred to as congenital rubella syndrome(CRS). Both clinical and laboratory diagnosis of suspect cases of CRS can be made with relative ease, particularly when expectant mothers show the typical rubella-specific rash. Serological diagnosis of CRS is accomplished using hemagglutination inhibition (HI) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent(IgM-EIA) assays.

[Determination and survey of hexachlorobenzene in food red nos. 104 (phloxine) and 105 (rose bengale) by GC/MS].

The contents of hexachlorobenzene (HCB) in Food Red Nos. 104 and 105 samples certified in fiscal years 1998-2001 were determined by GC/MS. All 32 samples contained HCB ranging from 0.

[Estimated production by the official inspection of tar colors (including aluminum lakes) in fiscal year 2001].

There were 162 official inspections of tar colors and their lakes in fiscal year 2001, and 162 samples were qualified. Total production amount of tar colors that passed inspection in Japan in fiscal year 2001 reached 134.8 tons.