Effects of proton pump inhibitor on gastric mucosa hemodynamics and tissue oxygenation in anesthetized rats.

Proton pump inhibitors have been reported to have a cytoprotective action in addition to the anti-secretory action of acid. The precise mechanism, however, remains obscure. In this study, the effects of proton pump inhibitors (omeprazole and NC-1300) on gastric mucosa hemodynamics and tissue oxygenation were investigated using organ reflectance spectrophotometry in a hemorrhagic shock-reperfusion model involving anesthetized rats. Neither drug affected gastric mucosa hemodynamics nor tissue oxygenation in the basal state before hemorrhage. During the hemorrhagic shock state, however, these drugs maintained tissue oxygenation and reduced ulcer formation, although they did not show a significant effect on gastric mucosa blood volume. The results suggest that both proton pump inhibitors have an anti-ulcer action by maintaining mucosal oxygenation in addition to the anti-secretory activity of acid.     

An autopsy case of cerebral embolism caused by atrial myxoma]

We reported an autopsy case of a 14-year-old girl with cardiac myxoma, presenting sudden onset of consciousness disturbance and right hemiplegia while running in an 800 meter race. Though CT scan showed no abnormal findings, cerebral angiogram revealed an embolic stenosis of the left middle cerebral artery, and abdominal aortogram showed complete obstruction of the bilateral common iliac artery. Histological study of emboli taken from obstructed femoral arteries showed systemic embolization of the cardiac myxoma. She died three days after admission. Autopsy was performed. Myxoma tissue was not found, but its stalk was left in the left atrial septum. The brain was very edematous, and a myxoma emboli was found in the left middle cerebral artery. Systemic embolization of myxoma to spleen, kidneys, liver, pancreas, etc. was found histologically. Left atrial myxoma is a rare but potentially treatable cause of stroke, and should be included in the differential diagnosis of cerebral vascular disease, especially in young patients.     

Esthesioneuroblastoma: a nasal catecholamine-producing tumor of neural crest origin

Summary An esthesioneuroblastoma in a 16-year-old male was studied ultrastructurally and immunohistochemically, using antiserum against tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), a rate-limiting enzyme in the catecholamine-synthesizing pathway. Tumor cells were fairly uniform in appearance, showing scantly cosinophilic cytoplasm and round to oval hyperchromatic nuclei, and were arranged in nests and cords of various sizes. Ultrastructurally, individual tumor cells had well-developed cell organelles including polyribosomes, microtubules, intermediate filaments, centrioles, Golgi apparatus and mitochondria. Secretory-like granules were occasionally found, predominantly in the cell processes. Immunohistochemically, many tumor cells were shown to be immunoreactive for TH. This finding strongly suggested that the present tumor was capable of producing catecholamines and that it might be derived from certain sympathetic neuronal cell nests in the superior nasal cavity.     

TRANSSYNAPTIC DEGENERATION IN THE INFERIOR OLIVARY NUCLEUS ASSOCIATED WITH PONTINE GLIOBLASTOMA

A case of glioblastoma arising in the pons of a 14-year-old boy in whom transsynaptic degeneration was found in the inferior olivary nucleus is reported. The tumor occupied most of the pons including the tegmental tract and invaded into the midbrain, medulla oblongata, cerebellar peduncles, thalamus, basal ganglia, and meninges. The right inferior olivary nucleus was devoid of the tumorous lesion, but many neurons were severely vacuolated. An im-munohistochemical study using glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), neuron-specific enolase (NSE), and S-100 protein was performed. GFAP and S-100 protein were positive in the reactive glia of the nucleus and NSE gave a faint reaction in some degenerated neurons. These degenerative changes found in neurons of the inferior olivary nucleus were considered to be transsynaptic degeneration due to the destruction of the tegmental tract at the pons and of cerebellar peduncles by invasive pontine glioblastoma. ACTA PATHOL. JPN. 35: 1495–1500, 1985.     

Lectin binding patterns in salivary glands treated with amylase

Lectin binding patterns of ConA (Glc, Man), PNA and SBA (Gal, GalNAc), RCA-I (Gal) DBA (GalNAc), WGA (GlcNAc), and UEA-I (Fuc) in the major salivary glands of mice, rats, hamsters, and guinea pigs were reported using paraffin sections subjected to alpha-amylase treatment at 1, 3, and 6 h digestions. Lectin staining following treatment with amylase was generally enhanced in acinar, duct, and GCT cells. However, increasingly different reactions were obtained depending upon the lectins used, the various salivary glands from different specimens treated, and the different properties of the serous, mucous, and sero-mucous cells in the histologic sections. The lectins that demonstrated rather markedly increased staining were ConA, PNA, SBA, WGA, and UEA-I, whereas RCA-I and DBA increased little in comparison, or actually decreased. It appears from these findings that complex carbohydrates within murine salivary glands contained large amount of glucose, mannose, galactose, and N-acetyl galactosamine residues. The basement membranes of glandular cells in salivary glands demonstrated markedly positive ConA staining following alpha-amylase digestion.     

Morphogenesis of the secondary palate in mouse embryos with special reference to the development of rugae

Morphological studies of secondary palate formation, with special reference to the development of rugae, were carried out on Jcl:ICR mouse embryos. Three rugae were observed on the anterior part of the future oral surface of the vertically developing palatal shelves in 13-day embryos. Rugae increased in number as the development of the palatal shelves proceeded, and five to six prominent rugae were observed in 14-day embryos just prior to shelf elevation. The folding of these five to six rugae progressed in conjunction with the formation of a sharp, valley-like groove at the base of the anterior two-fifths of the vertical palatal shelves. As palatal shelves elevated, the groove disappeared gradually, and, accordingly, the folding of rugae loosened. In the groove region, the superficial epithelial cells were roundish, while the basal ones were elongated. Such characteristic features were no longer observed when the disappearance of the groove was completed. Eight rugae were observed on the future hard palate of 14-day embryos with already completed palatal fusion. An additional ruga was frequently found in 15-day embryos, and the pattern then was almost the same as that of an adult. Epithelial thickening and condensation at the rugae region, as well as mesenchymal condensation under the epithelium of the rugae, were confirmed in embryos both before and after elevation of the palatal shelves. There is a possibility that these structural characteristics observed in the epithelial and mesenchymal cells of the rugae and groove regions may be related to palatal shelf elevation.     

Characterization of a strain-specific monoclonal antibody to hepatitis delta virus antigen

Sequences of the hepatitis delta virus (HDV) vary to different degrees among isolates. A monoclonal antibody, designated as HP6A1, against the antigen of HDV (HDAg) has been characterized for its specificity. HP6A1 bound to HDAg of isolate 25 (genotype I) that was used for immunization, but not to others of both genotypes I and II. The epitope recognized by HP6A1 was then determined by a phage library displaying various heptapeptides. A consensus peptide deduced has the best match with that of residues 4-10 of HDAg (isolate 25). To confirm the phage mapping result, Escherichia coli recombinant proteins containing different lengths and various segments of HDAg (isolate 25) were constructed. The shortest HDAg segment contained in the fusion protein that reacted with HP6A1 was residues 1-10. When this peptide was added to the N-terminus of a heterologous protein engineered for eucaryotic expression, the fusion protein was detected by HP6A1. It is concluded that HP6A1 recognizes an epitope located at the N-terminus of HDAg (isolate 25). Since viruses of quasi-species exist in natural infections, a question of how different viral strains interact in vivo remains to be explored. The highly specific MAb opens a possibility to examine the fate of one strain in the presence of other related species in a cell transfection system.     

Phylogenetic analysis of a coxsackievirus A24 variant: the most recent worldwide pandemic was caused by progenies of a virus prevalent around 1981.

Nucleotide substitutions in the viral-encoded proteinase 3C (3Cpro) region (549 nucleotides) of the RNA genome of a coxsackievirus A24 variant (CA24v), one of the agents causing acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis (AHC), were studied using 32 isolates collected from the Eastern hemisphere in 1970-1989. Based on regression analysis of nucleotide differences among isolates, the nucleotide substitution rate of CA24v 3Cpro was estimated to be 3.7 x 10(-3)/nucleotide/year. A phylogenetic tree constructed by the modified unweighted pair group method using arithmetic averages (UPGMA) indicated that CA24v had evolved from a common ancestor which appeared in one focal place in November 1963 +/- 21 months, about 7 years before the first isolation of CA24v in Singapore. The tree also revealed that all the recent epidemic isolates in 1985-1989 including Asian and Ghanian strains diverged from each other after 1981. This finding is consistent with the evidence that AHC due to CA24v had been confined to Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent until 1985, then suddenly and explosively spread to other areas where no CA24v isolations had been reported.     

A solid-phase blocking ELISA for detection of antibodies to Nipah virus

A monoclonal antibody (MAb) based solid-phase blocking ELISA was developed for detection of antibodies to Nipah virus. The ELISA was designed to detect remaining antigens on the plate with anti-Nipah MAb conjugate after the reaction with sample serum, and enabled simple procedure, detection of neutralizing antibody to Nipah virus, and application of samples from different animal species. Forty of 200 swine reference sera examined were positive by the ELISA, of which thirty seven were found positive by serum neutralization test. Sera from a total of 131 fruit bats captured in Malaysia were also tested and all found negative by the both tests. It is considered that the solid-phase blocking ELISA can be used as a screening test for Nipah virus infection followed by the serum neutralization test as confirmatory test.     

The quantitative kinetic study of dengue viral antigen by flow cytometry. I. An in vitro study

A system effective in the early diagnosis of Dengue virus infection was developed. The time course kinetics of Dengue virus type 2 (D-2) antigen in vitro were analyzed by Flow Cytometry. Early profiles of D-2 were also studied quantitatively through this method of analysis. The early events of host cell and virus interaction were investigated: attachment, internalization and replication. From these early profiles, the time at which new viral synthesis was detectable differed with each individual trial. These different times were found to be dependent of the phase of the cell cycle. From these results we could detect newly synthesized viral antigen within 10 h after infection.