Hair shaft miRNA‐221 levels as a new tumor marker of malignant melanoma

miRNA‐221 (miR‐221) is known to be abnormally expressed in many human cancers. The serum levels of miR‐221 have been reported as a tumor marker for malignant melanoma (MM). We hypothesized that the hair shaft miR‐221 levels may be increased in patients with MM. We therefore assessed the possibility that hair shaft miR‐221 levels could be a marker for MM. The hair shaft miR‐221 levels were significantly higher in patients with MM than controls. The rates of increased hair shaft miR‐221 levels above the cut‐off value were comparable to those of serum 5‐S‐CD, which is a tumor marker commonly used for MM. Measurements of the hair shaft miR‐221 levels could have potential clinical value in the detection of MM. This is the first report investigating the hair shaft levels of an miRNA in patients with MM. Our investigations offer new insight into the relationship between miR‐221 and MM, and may provide a new, non‐invasive way to screen for melanoma.     

Effects of Topically Applied Spironolactone on Androgen Stimulated Sebaceous Glands in the Hamster Pinna

The effects of spironolactone (5% SYC-201G, a preparation developed for clinical use in acne vulgaris by Searle Yakuhin K.K.), which is known to have antiandrogenic effects by competitively inhibiting dihydrotestosterone at androgen receptor sites, was topically applied to the androgen stimulated sebaceous glands of adult female golden hamsters. Androgen stimulation, induced by intramuscular injection of testosterone propionate (TP) every other day over a two week period, resulted in a 2.5 to 2.7 time increase in the size of the sebaceous glands of the hamster pinna. Once-daily treatment with 5% SYC-201G or matching placebo was applied to androgen-stimulated hamsters on one pinna only during the same period as TP injection. Comparison between the treated and untreated sides revealed a significant suppression in the sebaceous gland size (p<0.05) by 5% SYC-201G; no such effect was observed with placebo. The difference in the suppression rate of the sebaceous gland size between 5% SYC-201G (23%) and matching placebo (–4.7%) was significant (p<0.01).     

Combined operation for renovascular hypertension and ischemic heart disease

We have experienced two patients of ischemic heart disease associated with renovascular hypertension. Patient 1 (60-year-old man) underwent LV aneurysmectomy and triple aortocoronary bypass grafting (saphenous vein to diagonal branch, left internal mammary artery to obtuse marginal branch, and right gastroepiploic artery to right coronary artery). Seventy five days after the initial cardiac surgery endarterectomy for the left renal artery and bifurcated Dacron graft implantation for the iliac artery obstruction were performed. Patient 2 (62-year-old woman) underwent simultaneous operation of both right nephrectomy and triple aortocoronary bypass grafting (saphenous vein grafts to obtuse marginal branch and right coronary artery, and left internal mammary artery to left anterior descending artery). Their postoperative courses were uneventful except unstable and high blood pressure for four to seven days after the operation. It appears that it should be decided to achieve either simultaneous or two stage approach for ischemic heart disease associated with renovascular hypertension based on the preoperative cardiac function. And both postoperative cardiac function and hypertension should be carefully managed until the blood pressure becomes stable after the surgery.     

Decreased VIP content in peripheral nerve from streptozocin-induced diabetic rats

After induction of diabetes with streptozocin (STZ-D) in rats, we measured vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) content in sciatic nerve and spinal cord obtained from nondiabetic, untreated STZ-D, and insulin-treated STZ-D rats. Eight weeks after the onset of diabetes, caudal nerve conduction velocity (NCV) in the untreated STZ-D rats (n = 13) was slower than in the controls (n = 11; mean +/- SE 30.9 +/- 0.6 vs. 41.4 +/- 1.8 m/s, P less than 0.001). The decrease in NCV was less marked in the insulin-treated STZ-D rats (n = 11; 36.3 +/- 0.9 m/s, P less than 0.05 vs. control). VIP content in sciatic nerve decreased in the untreated STZ-D rats (1.33 +/- 0.23 ng/g wet wt) compared with the other groups (control, 3.10 +/- 0.44, P less than 0.01; insulin-treated STZ-D, 2.44 +/- 0.55, P less than 0.05). However, in spinal cord, VIP content was not significantly different among the three groups. The VIP levels in sciatic nerve showed a positive correlation with NCV (r = 0.430, P less than 0.01). In addition, an inverse correlation between VIP levels and blood glucose levels was observed (r = -0.5624, P less than 0.001). NCV was also inversely correlated with blood glucose levels (r = -0.7662, P less than 0.001). Together with a previous morphological study, these findings suggest a possible causal relationship between reduced VIP content and diabetic neuropathy.     

Study on reoperation in cardiac disease]

Between January in 1988 and September in 1990, 65 patients underwent reoperation for acquired heart disease. Previous operations were closed mitral commissurotomy in 19, open mitral commissurotomy in 19, mitral valve replacement in 22, aortic valve replacement in one, and mitral repair in 4. After median sternotomy performed by hand-operated chisel and hammer, minimized dissection of the adhesive lesion was achieved. During the sternotomy, two patients required additional right thoracotomy because of marked median sternal adhesion and major cardiovascular injury occurred in three patients. Cardioplegic solution was introduced in normograde fashion except in two patients. In two patients with previous MVR by porcine prosthesis severe calcification was found in the left atrial wall and the prosthesis was not removed in one. Postoperative complications were low cardiac output syndrome requiring intra-aortic balloon pumping in two, re-thoracotomy due to hemorrhage in one, and mild air embolism without neurological damage in two. There was one early death (1.5%) but no late death. Although perioperative complication seemed to increase in reoperation, post-reoperative results was as good as those in the primary cardiac operation and reoperation on cardiac surgery should be performed before losing the indication for operation.     

Anaplastic ganglioglioma with sarcomatous component: An immunohistochemical study and molecular analysis of p53 tumor suppressor gene

The present case report describes a case of ganglioglioma with a distinct sarcomatous component in the left temporal lobe of a 59‐year‐old Japanese man. Neoplastic neuroglial tissue contained both benign and anaplastic glial components with a MIB‐1 labeling index of 0.1% and 12.0%, respectively. Sarcomatous tissue adjacent to the anaplastic glial tissue was dominated by pleomorphic fibroblastic cells with a MIB‐1 labeling index of 10.8%. They were immunoreactive for smooth muscle actin, type IV collagen, and alpha 1 antitrypsin, but not for desmin and CD34. Interestingly, some of the sarcomatous cells were double‐positive for smooth muscle actin and GFAP. The p53 protein had accumulated in the anaplastic astrocytes and sarcomatous cells, but direct DNA sequencing of PCR products failed to detect any mutation in the p53 gene (from exon 4 to exon 10).     

Interspecific actions of α mating pheromones on the a mating-type cells of three Saccharomyces yeasts

Summary The a mating pheromones synthesized in three Saccharomyces yeasts (S. cerevisiae, S. kluyveri, and S. exiguus) displayed interspecific actions on the a cells of all three species despite the fact that the amino acid sequences of all three pheromones are different. Mating between species, however, did not occur. The interspecifie pheromone — a cell reaction was not necessarily more effective than the interspecific one. Deceased on March 28, 1987     

The critical role of ocular-infiltrating macrophages in the development of choroidal neovascularization

Choroidal neovascularization (CNV) is directly related to visual loss in some eye diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration. Although several human histological studies have suggested the participation of macrophages in CNV formation, the precise mechanisms are still not fully understood. In this study, we elucidated the role of ocular-infiltrating macrophages in experimental CNV using CCR2 knockout (KO) mice, wild-type mice, and C57BL/6 (B6) mice. CCR2 is the receptor of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, and the number of infiltrating macrophage and the area of CNV were significantly reduced in CCR2 KO mice. Enriched ocular-infiltrating macrophages from B6 mice actually showed angiogenic ability in a dorsal air sac assay. Moreover, their expression of class II, CD40, B7-1 and B7-2 molecules, and the mRNA for potential angiogenic factors, such as vascular endothelial growth factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, and tumor necrosis factor alpha, was also observed. Collectively, we conclude that ocular-infiltrating macrophages play an important role in CNV generation.     

In situ fluorescence imaging of organs through compact scanning head for confocal laser microscopy

We develop a compact scanning head for use in laser confocal fluorescence microscopy for in situ fluorescence imaging of organs. The head, cylindrical in shape, has 3.5 mm diameter and 30 mm length, and is thus small enough to operate in a living rat heart. The lateral and axial resolutions, defined as full widths at half maximum (FWHM) of a point spread function (PSF), measures 1.0 and 5.0 microm, respectively, for 488-nm excitation and 1.0 and 5.4 microm, respectively, for 543-nm excitation. The chromatic aberration between 488- and 543-nm laser beams is well suppressed. We perform Ca2+ imaging in cardiomyocytes through the right ventricular chamber of a perfused rat heart in line-scan mode with 2.9-ms time resolution. We also carried out two-color imaging of a fixed mouse heart and liver with subcellular resolution. The compact head of the microscope equipped with a line-scan imaging mode and two-color imaging mode is useful for in situ imaging in living organs with subcellular resolution and can advantageously be applied to in vivo research.