Severe Graves' ophthalmopathy accompanied by myasthenia gravis]

We report a 53-year-old woman with severe Graves' ophthalmopathy accompanied by uncontrolled myasthenia gravis. She presented remarkable exophthalmos, chemosis, and restriction of eye movement. Despite plasma exchange, steroid pulse therapy, local injection of steroid, and irradiation, ocular symptoms did not ameliorate. Since optic neuropathy was seen, orbital decompression surgery was performed in the left eye. Bilateral chemosis was improved after the surgery. Five years after surgery, there was no ocular palsy in the operated left eye, but in the contralateral eye. For the good prognosis of the eye movement, orbital decompression might be recommended in the severe Graves' ophthalmopathy accompanied by the optic neuropathy and/or ophthalmoplegia with proptosis.     

Dynamic MRI of the gallbladder lesions: Differentiation of benign from malignant

Forty-nine pathologically proven gallbladder lesions were evaluated in 45 patients using dynamic MRI with a spoiled gradient pulse sequence (SPGR), to access the ability of this technique to differentiate benign from malignant gallbladder lesions. The studies were reviewed retrospectively. Signal intensity of the lesions were measured. Twenty-one malignant and 28 benign lesions were classified into three categories: polypoid, diffuse wall thickening, and exophytic. Early and delayed enhancement patterns were evaluated. For the polypoid masses, malignant lesions (n = 9) demonstrated early and prolonged enhancements, whereas benign lesions (n = 14) had early enhancement with subsequent washout (P < .05). For diffuse gallbladder wall thickening, malignant lesions (n = 6) demonstrated early and prolonged enhancement and benign lesions (n = 14) showed relatively slow, prolonged enhancement (P < .05). The exophytic masses (n = 6) all were malignant and demonstrated early and prolonged enhancement. Dynamic MRI can help differentiate benign from malignant gallbladder lesions.     

Usefulness of body surface mapping to differentiate patients with Brugada syndrome from patients with asymptomatic Brugada syndrome

We attempted to determine the usefulness of body surface mapping (BSM) for differentiating patients with Brugada syndrome (BS) from patients with asymptomatic Brugada syndrome (ABS). Electrocardiograms (ECG) and BSM were recorded in 7 patients with BS and 35 patients with ABS. Following the administration of Ic antiarrhythmic drugs, BSM was recorded in 5 patients with BS and 16 patients with ABS. The maximum amplitudes at J0, J20, J40 and J60 were compared between the 2 groups, as were 3-dimensional maps. The maximum amplitudes at J0, J20 and J60 under control conditions were larger in patients with BS than in patients with ABS (P < 0.05). A three-dimensional map of the ST segments under control conditions in patients with BS showed a higher peak of ST elevation in the median precordium compared to that for patients with ABS. Increases in ST elevation at J20, J40 and J60 following drug administration were greater in patients with BS than in patients with ABS (P < 0.05). Evaluation of the change in amplitude of the ST segment at E5 caused by Ic drug administration was also useful for differentiating between the 2 groups. In conclusion, BSM was useful for differentiating patients with BS from those with ABS.     

Protodioscin isolated from fenugreek (Trigonella foenumgraecum L.) induces cell death and morphological change indicative of apoptosis in leukemic cell line H-60, but not in gastric cancer cell line KATO III

Protodioscin (PD) was purified from fenugreek (Trigonella foenumgraecum L.) and identified by Mass, and 1H- and 13C-NMR. The effects of PD on cell viability in human leukemia HL-60 and human stomach cancer KATO III cells were investigated. PD displayed strong growth inhibitory effect against HL-60 cells, but weak growth inhibitory effect on KATO III cells. Morphological change showing apoptotic bodies was observed in the HL-60 cells treated with PD, but not in KATO III cells treated with PD. Flow cytometric analysis showed that the hypodiploid nuclei of HL-60 cells were increased to 75.2, 96.3, and 100% after a 3-day treatment with 2.5, 5, and 10 microM PD, respectively. The fragmentation by PD of DNA to oligonucleosomal-sized fragments, that is a characteristic of apoptosis, was observed to be both concentration- and time-dependent in the HL-60 cells. These findings suggest that growth inhibition by PD of HL-60 cells results from the induction of apoptosis by this compound in HL-60 cells.     

Expression of interferon-gamma-inducible protein-10 in human endometrial stromal cells

Human endometrial stromal cells (ESC) can produce a variety of chemokines, especially after inflammatory stimulation. Interferon-gamma-inducible protein-10 (IP-10) is a potent chemoattractant for lymphocytes, and belongs to the family of non-ELR CXC chemokines. The expression of IP-10 in ESC after stimulation with interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), or lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was evaluated using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Northern blot analysis. A small amount of IP-10 protein was detected in the culture media of unstimulated ESC. The expression of IP-10 mRNA was detected in ESC. IFN-gamma, IL-1 beta, TNF-alpha and LPS significantly stimulated the expression of IP-10 mRNA and protein in ESC. These results suggest that the production of IP-10 by ESC is regulated by inflammatory mediators. The modulation of IP-10 concentrations in the local environment may contribute to the normal and pathological processes of human reproduction by regulating leukocyte trafficking in the endometrium.     

Isolation of vaccine-derived type 1 polioviruses displaying similar properties to virulent wild strain Mahoney from sewage in Japan

Type 1, 2, and 3 vaccine-derived polioviruses were isolated from a sewage disposal plant located downstream of the Oyabe River in Toyama Prefecture, Japan, between October 1993 and September 1995. Neurovirulence was analyzed in 13 type 1 vaccine-derived strains, using mutant analysis by polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme cleavage (MAPREC). Nine strains (69%) were estimated to have marked neurovirulence. Some of the neutralizing antigenic sites, temperature sensitivity, and plaque-forming ability of two virulent vaccine-derived poliovirus strains were similar to Mahoney strain. The neutralizing activity of human sera obtained after oral poliomyelitis vaccine (OPV) administration against one of the virulent vaccine-derived polioviruses was examined. Although all human sera showed sufficient neutralizing activity for the prevention of poliomyelitis by vaccine-derived poliovirus strains, a lower titer than that against Sabin type 1 strain was observed. Vaccination against virulent vaccine-derived poliovirus will be effective. However, the environmental presence of viruses that have properties similar to those Mahoney strain is a threat. The introduction of inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV), and well-maintained herd immunity, together with reinforced environmental surveillance is important for the final phase of the polio eradication program by the World Health Organization (WHO).     

Identity of the 3'-terminal sequences in ten genome segments of silkworm cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus

The double-stranded RNA genome of cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus consists of ten different segments. The RNA was oxidized and then reduced with [³H]sodium borohydride to label the ribose moieties of 3′-terminal nucleosides. The labeled genome segments were separated from each other by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and their 3′-termini were analysed by alkaline digestion and column chromatography. It was concluded that all ten genome segments have the identical 3′-terminal structure, carrying cytosine in one RNA chain and uracil in another chain:

In the course of experiments, some radioactive non-nucleosidic materials were found to be associated with every ³H-labeled RNA segment. These materials were released from RNA by dilute alkaline solution, and not adsorbed on charcoal.     

Werner helicase relocates into nuclear foci in response to DNA damaging agents and co-localizes with RPA and Rad51

BACKGROUND: Werner syndrome (WS) is an autosomal recessive disorder with many features of premature ageing. Cells derived from WS patients show genomic instability, aberrations in the S-phase and sensitivity to genotoxic agents. The gene responsible for WS (WRN) encodes a DNA helicase belonging to the RecQ helicase family. Although biochemical studies showed that the gene product of WRN (WRNp) interacts with proteins that participate in DNA metabolism, its precise biological function remains unclear. RESULTS: Using immunocytochemistry, we found that WRNp forms distinct nuclear foci in response to DNA damaging agents, including camptothecin (CPT), etoposide, 4-nitroquinolin-N-oxide and bleomycin. The presence of aphidicolin inhibited CPT-induced WRNp foci strongly but not bleomycin-induced foci. These WRNp foci overlapped with the foci of replication protein A (RPA) almost entirely and with the foci of Rad51 partially, implicating cooperative functions of these proteins in response to DNA damage. We also found that WRNp foci partially co-localize with sites of 5-bromo-2'-deoxy-uridine incorporation. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that WRNp form nuclear foci in response to aberrant DNA structures, including DNA double-strand breaks and stalled replication forks. We propose that WRNp takes part in the homologous recombinational repair and in the processing of stalled replication forks.     

Influence of the parameters of several pulse sequences on the image contrast: comparison between the two major contrast media

We compared the influences of the parameters of several pulse sequences using two major commercially available gadolinium (Gd) contrast media for MR imaging. The phantom of Gd solutions of various concentration (0.1 - 10mmol/L) was prepared, and was scanned with a 1.5T clinical MR unit, using a spin-echo T1-weighted sequence, 2DFLASH, 3DFLASH, and 3DVIBE. The signal intensity was measured and the contrast enhancement ratio (CER) was calculated and plotted as a function of Gd concentration. The results were compared between the pulse sequences, and between the contrast media as well. Both 3DFLASH and 3DVIBE showed higher CER than other two sequences, showing similar CER curve configuration. There was no significant difference both in CER value and CER curve configuration between the two contrast media for each pulse sequence.