Effect of a Device-Free Compressed Shell Fixation Method on Hepatic Respiratory Movement: Analysis for Respiratory Amplitude of the Liver and Internal Motions of a Fiducial Marker

Purpose

Suppression of respiratory movement of the liver would be desirable for high-precision radiation therapy for liver tumors. We aimed to investigate the effect of our original device-free compressed shell fixation method and breathing instruction on suppression of respiratory movement. The characteristics of liver motion based on the movement of a fiducial marker were also analyzed.

Experimental models of reflex contractile activity in the rabbit bladder

We were able to produce two highly reproducible experimental models (in the rabbit) that demonstrated a high degree of reflex bladder contractile activity. In one model, a somatovesical reflex was induced by touching or pinching the perineal area. This reflex may be organized through a neurogenic reflex at the spinal level. In another model, rhythmic bladder contractions were produced by distal urethral constriction in the absence of bladder distension. These rhythmic contractions were thought to be due to a supraspinal reflex. In both types of contractile reflexes, intravenous administration of hexamethonium inhibited the reflex contractile activity virtually completely, intravenous atropine inhibited over 90% of the induced contractile activity, thus suggesting that these contractions were mediated reflexly through cholinergic stimulation. These two models of reflex bladder contractions should be useful for the study of hyperreflexic bladders.     

Long-lasting effect of ceruletide on dyskinesia and monoaminergic neuronal pathways in rats treated with iminodipropionitrile

In a model of dyskinesia induced by the administration of iminodipropionitrile (IDPN) in the rat, we evaluated the effects of ceruletide, an analogue of cholecystokinin, on behavioral abnormalities and monoaminergic neuronal function. Vertical head twitching in the IDPN-treated animals was inhibited for over 5 h following a single subcutaneous dose of 160 micrograms/kg ceruletide. In animals dosed daily for 2 or 3 days, the number of head twitches at 24 h after the last dose was about one-third of the number before treatment. After repeated daily doses of ceruletide for 6 days, the number of head twitches was reduced to low levels and remained significantly below pretreatment levels until the 4th posttreatment day. These results indicate that the inhibition of dyskinesia by ceruletide was long-lasting. Assays of monoaminergic neurotransmitters and their metabolites in various brain regions indicate that an imbalance between dopaminergic and serotonergic neuronal systems plays a major role in the pathogenesis of the IDPN-induced dyskinesia, i.e. the ratio of (DOPAC+HVA)/5-HIAA was significantly greater in the striatum but significantly smaller in the hippocampus of the IDPN-treated vs normal animals. This initially abnormal ratio of (DOPAC+HVA)/5-HIAA in the striatum and hippocampus of IDPN-treated animals returned to normal following treatment with ceruletide, corresponding with the reduction of the head twitching. The alterations in monoaminergic neuronal function induced by repeated administration of ceruletide persisted for at least 3 days, even though its plasma half-life is several minutes. Ceruletide also exerted a marked effect on monoaminergic neuronal function in the IDPN-treated rats, in contrast to only a slight effect in normal animals.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Association of the insertion/deletion polymorphism of the angiotensin I-converting enzyme gene in patients of migraine with aura

Recently, several angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and an angiotensin II receptor blocker were demonstrated to have a clinically important prophylactic effect in migraine. ACE is one of the key enzymes in the rennin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, which modulates vascular tension and blood pressure. In humans, serum ACE levels are strongly genetically determined. Individuals who were homozygous for the deletion (D) allele showed increased ACE activity levels. To investigate the role of ACE polymorphism in headache, we analyzed the ACE insertion (I)/deletion (D) genotypes of 54 patients suffering from migraine with aura (MwA), 122 from migraine without aura, 78 from tension-type headache (TH), and 248 non-headache healthy controls. The ACE D allele were significantly more frequent in the MwA than controls (p<0.01). The incidence of the D/D genotype in MwA (25.9%) was significantly higher than that in controls (12.5%; p<0.01; odds ratio=5.26, 95% confidence interval: 1.69-16.34, adjusted for age and gender). No differences in the remaining groups were found. Our results support the conclusion that the D allele and the D/D genotype in the ACE gene is a genetic risk factor for Japanese MwA. There seems to be a possible relationship between ACE activity and the pathogenesis of migraine.     

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).     

Neutralizing antibody responses to human herpesviruses 6 and 7 do not cross-react with each other, and maternal neutralizing antibodies contribute to sequential infection with these viruses in childhood

Seroprevalence of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) and HHV-7 infections is very high throughout the world, and almost all people are exposed first to HHV-6 and second to HHV-7 in their childhood. However, it is not clear whether the neutralizing (NT) antibody response between each virus is cross-reactive or not. To elucidate the NT antibody response between each virus, 55 serum samples from an adult group (subjects 22 to 88 years old) and 60 serum samples from a young group (subjects 2 to 18 years old) were examined by a dot blot method for detecting viral late antigen. Thirty-nine serum samples obtained from cord bloods and a few serum samples obtained from pediatric patients with exanthem subitum were also examined to assess the maternal transferred NT antibodies against each virus. The NT antibody titers against HHV-7 in the adult group remained high throughout all the individuals, and none were negative. Those against HHV-6 were high values in the young group but low values, including negative values (three samples), in the adult group. These results suggested that the NT antibody response to either HHV-6 or HHV-7 in each individual was specific to each virus and did not cross-react with each other. In the adult group, the NT antibody response to HHV-6 decreased, while that to HHV-7 remained high throughout all the individuals. Maternal transferred NT antibody titers against HHV-7 were higher and remained longer after birth than those of HHV-6, and these findings were in accord with the clinical observation that HHV-6 infection usually occurs earlier than HHV-7 infection.     

Evaluation of a Membrane Filter Assay System, Ortho HCV Ab Quik Pack, for Detection of Anti-Hepatitis C Virus Antibody

A simple membrane immunoassay assay system, Quik Pack, for the detection of hepatitis C virus antibody was compared with two enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) in a study of 600 serum samples. Quik Pack exhibited excellent sensitivity and specificity: 96.0 and 99.7%, respectively, versus the ELISA-2 and 99.7 and 99.4%, respectively, versus the ELISA-3.     

Gene cluster for assembly of pilus colonization factor antigen III of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli

The assembly of pilus colonization factor antigen III (CFA/III) of enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) requires the processing of CFA/III major pilin (CofA) by a prepilin peptidase (CofP), similar to other type IV pilus formation systems. CofA is produced initially as a 26.5-kDa preform pilin (prepilin) and then processed to a 20.5-kDa mature pilin by CofP which is predicted to be localized in the inner membrane. In the present experiment, we determined the nucleotide sequence of the whole region for CFA/III formation and identified a cluster of 14 genes, including cofA and cofP. Several proteins encoded by cof genes were similar to previously described proteins, such as the toxin-coregulated pili of Vibrio cholerae and the bundle-forming pili of enteropathogenic E. coli. The G+C content of the cof gene cluster was 37%, which was significantly lower than the average for the E. coli genome (50%). The introduction of a recombinant plasmid containing the cof gene cluster into the E. coli K-12 strain conferred CFA/III biogenesis and the ability of adhesion to the human colon carcinoma cell line Caco-2. This is the first report of a complete nucleotide sequence of the type IV pili found in human ETEC, and our results provide a useful model for studying the molecular mechanism of CFA/III biogenesis and the role of CFA/III in ETEC infection.