Plasma level of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) as a predictor of carotid intima-media thickness progression: six-year prospective study using carotid ultrasonography

This study was designed to determine the relationship between plasma asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) and the development of carotid atherosclerosis. Cross-sectional studies have revealed that plasma ADMA concentration is correlated with the intima-media thickness (IMT) of the carotid artery, but no prospective studies have appeared. Therefore we prospectively investigated whether or not plasma ADMA level can predict IMT progression. In a community-based cohort, we enrolled 712 subjects who were over 40 years old and who had no apparent cardiovascular diseases according to high-resolution carotid ultrasonography. Blood chemistries including ADMA were measured at baseline. In 575 subjects, IMT was re-measured 6 years later. The value of baseline ADMA for predicting IMT changes was investigated by multivariable analysis. At baseline, there was a significant (beta=0.321; p<0.001) relationship between IMT and ADMA levels. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that baseline ADMA (beta=0.241; p<0.01) was the only predictor of IMT progression after adjustments for age, sex, baseline IMT, and four major risk factors (hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes mellitus, and smoking) plus hyperuricacidemia. Plasma ADMA was a predictor of carotid IMT progression.     

Spontaneous regression of essential thrombocythemia with MPL mutation on menopause

Essential thrombocythemia (ET) is a subtype of myeloproliferative neoplasms. Approximately half of the patients with ET harbor a gain-of-function mutation in the JAK2 gene (JAK2-V617F), a small percentage have mutations in codon 515 of MPL (thrombopoietin receptor) gene, and the rest have neither mutation. Pregnancy is a rare complication of ET, and it has been reported that the number of blood platelets falls with pregnancy in ET patients and the number of blood platelets increases again after a delivery and this phenomenon is observed in JAK2-V617F-positive and JAK2-V617F-negative patients. We report the first case of an ET patient with MPL mutations, whose platelet count improved with the onset of menopause, not pregnancy, and the MPL mutation also simultaneously disappeared.     

Comparative allelotype of early and advanced stage non-small cell lung carcinomas

To identify chromosomal loci of tumor suppressor genes involved in the genesis and progression of non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), comparative allelotype analysis was performed in 23 stage I primary lung tumors and in 22 metastatic lung tumors to the brain. In total, 84 loci on all 22 autosomal chromosomes were examined for loss of heterozygosity (LOH) by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis with 40 polymorphic DNA probes and polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-LOH analysis of 44 polymorphic loci. LOH on chromosome arms 3p, 13q, and 17p was detected frequently (>60%) in both stage I primary lung tumors and brain metastases, whereas the incidence of LOH on chromosome arms 2q, 5q, 9p, 12q, 18q, and 22q was more than 60% only in brain metastases. In particular, the incidence of LOH on chromosome arms 2q, 9p, 18q, and 22q in brain metastases was significantly higher than that in stage I primary lung tumors (P < 0.05). These results indicate that tumor suppressor genes on chromosome arms 3p, 13q, and 17p are involved in the genesis of NSCLC, whereas those on several chromosome arms, especially on 2q, 9p, 18q and 22q, play an important role in the progression of NSCLC. Genes Chromosom Cancer 17:71–77 (1996). © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Nonflammable UV protective films consisting of clay and lignin with tunable light/gas transparency

In this paper, we present nonflammable UV protective films consisting of clay minerals and lignin derivatives. The nonflammable transparent films were produced by mixing clay with a lignin derivative extracted from plants by simultaneous enzymatic saccharification and comminution. The preparation procedure did not require hazardous chemicals. The optical properties and gas permeability of the films could be tuned by the components and phase separation structure of the clay minerals and lignin derivatives. In particular, the gas transmittance of the films could be controlled in the range of several mol m⁻² s⁻¹ Pa⁻¹. The present film uses mineral and plant components as high-value industrial materials and reduces the environmental load of extracting limited petroleum-based resources.

Nonflammable UV protective films consisting of clay and lignin with tunable light/gas transparency were prepared.     

Evaluation of Yanagihara facial nerve grading system based on a muscle fiber analysis of human facial muscles

European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - We morphometrically analyzed human facial muscles, and evaluated the Yanagihara facial nerve grading system using our data. We used 15 types of human...     

Microcirculatory changes in the development of the cerebrovascular adaptation]

Recently, long-term cerebrovascular adaptations after unilateral carotid ligation that increase the tolerance of the brain to subsequent episode of ischemia was reported(J Cereb Blood Flow Metab, 1998). However, the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the phenomenon was unknown. We examined regional cerebral blood flow(rCBF) before, during and after subsequent ischemia in the development of the adaptation. Male Wistar rats(n = 18) were used. Unilateral(right) carotid artery ligation was performed 3 hours(group A: n = 8), 3 days(group B: n = 10) before forebrain ischemia. With bilateral carotid arteries occlusion, mean arterial blood pressure(MABP) was reduced by hypobaric hypotension down to 50 mmHg and maintained constant for 30 min. After hypotension, the experiment continued for 90 min. Local CBF were registered at 25(5 x 5) identical locations by laser Doppler scanning in the cortex during the experiment in bilateral hemispheres(at control phase, after the left carotid artery ligation, during ischemia and after hypotension). The physiological variable such as blood pressure and gas analysis were within normal range in all groups. There were no differences of rCBF between the right and left hemispheres in group A during the experiment. In group A, rCBF of both hemispheres significantly decreased after the ligation of the left carotid artery, during the induced ischemia (P < 0.05), and recovered to the value of before ischemia. Whereas, in group B rCBF of the left side(non-occluded side) decreased after the ligation of the left carotid artery, during the induced ischemia(P < 0.05), and recovered to the value of before ischemia, but rCBF of the right side(occluded side) decreased only during the induced ischemia(P < 0.05) and rCBF of the right side was significantly higher than the left brain after ligation of the carotid artery, during ischemia and after hypotension(P < 0.05). On the basis of these data, we concluded that cerebrovascular adaptations can be acquired by 3 days after unilateral carotid artery occlusion and the tolerance phenomenon is certainly attributed to microcirculatory improvement.