検索

To elucidate the relationship between the high concentration of taurine in platelets and platelet aggregation in patients with EPH gestosis (gestosis with edema, proteinuria and hypertension), platelet aggregation and the platelet release response (release of ATP and beta-thromboglobulin) were studied in the washed platelet suspension (PS) obtained from normal pregnant or non-pregnant women and EPH gestosis patients. Platelet aggregation and platelet release response were significantly lower in EPH gestosis patients than in normal pregnant and non-pregnant women. Platelet aggregation, platelet release response induced by ADP and collagen and the aggregation induced by A23187 were inhibited in taurine-loaded PS from non-pregnant women. These results suggest that the decrease of platelet aggregation in EPH gestosis patients was caused by high concentrations of taurine in platelets, which may inhibit the intracellular Ca2+ movement and platelet release response. Therefore, taurine appears to have a protective effect against the hyper-coagulative state in EPH gestosis.

Constitutional lipid peroxidation in randomly selected 32 cases of clinically advanced carcinoma from human gastrointestinal tract (20 cases), breast (8 cases) and kidney (4 cases) was examined histochemically in frozen sections using cold Schiff's reagent. Only two cases of gastrointestinal carcinoma were positive by the reagent. Non-cancerous parenchymal cells were negative. These findings suggest that detectable constitutional lipid peroxidation seldom occurs in either cancerous or normal tissues. The capacity for normal and neoplastic tissues to undergo lipid peroxidation was also studied by incubation with an iron-NADPH pro-oxidant system. Normal parenchymal cells showed, to various degrees, a positive reactivity. In gastrointestinal carcinoma, 6 out of 7 cases of well differentiated adenocarcinoma reacted positively, whereas 2 out of 8 cases of moderately to poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma disclosed weakly positive reactions. Mucinous adenocarcinomas (4 cases) were all negative. Signet-ring cell carcinoma (1 case) was positive. One out of 8 cases of breast cancer also showed positive reaction. Four renal cell carcinomas were all negative. Cancer cells have lower capacity to undergo lipid peroxidation than normal cells, when the iron-NADPH pro-oxidant system was employed. In gastrointestinal carcinoma, the ability to undergo lipid peroxidation by the iron-NADPH pro-oxidant seems to be correlated with their histological differentiation. This fact may suggest that differences in lipid composition or the NADPH enzyme system exist between well differentiated and poorly differentiated gastrointestinal malignancies.

A cell line of human lung large cell carcinoma (LCC) was established directly from the metastatic skin tumor tissue. The clinical course of the patient who carried this carcinoma was peculiar; generalized lymphadenopathy, histologically resembling Hodgkin's disease, was found as the first clinical symptom. The lung tumor was not discovered until the time of autopsy. This cell line (KaMi) grew adherent to culture vessels with the population doubling time of 20.6h, formed colonies in soft agars with efficiency of 22.6%, and formed tumors in athymic nude mice. The authenticity of KaMi was confirmed by chromosomal analysis and isoenzyme patterns. KaMi cells bore a strong resemblance to the original tumor cells which were composed of small spindle cells, large polygonal cells, and multinucleated giant cells. Immunohistochemically, KaMi cells showed a weak tendency to differentiate to squamous cells, and these immunohistochemical reactivities were almost compatible to those of the original tumor cells, but ultrastructurally, KaMi cells were more immature than the original ones. Treatment with several reagents could not augment a differentiation of KaMi cells. Cytokeratin profiles showed a tendency of squamous cell differentiation. KaMi cells may aid in elucidating the pathogenesis and biology of LCC and its relationship to other lung tumors.

We performed pulmonary artery angioplasty in 19 patients with lung cancer. The procedure consists of segmental or wedge resrection of the infiltrated pulmonary artery stem followed by reconstruction to avoid pneumonectomy and preserve pulmonary function. Among these cases "double sleeve resection" was performed in 10 cases. The 5-year survival of the angioplasty patients was poor at a rate of 11％, but not significantly different from the survival rates for those patients who underwent bronchoplasy alone or pneumonectomy. A promising prognosis may be expected in cases with N0 and N1 lymph node metastasis. However, this procedure may not replace pneumonectmy in patients with intact pulmonary function.

A single subcutaneous injection of 20-methylcholanthrene into newborn AKR mice less than 24 hours old resulted in the acceleration of the development of lymphocytic leukemia, and induction of subcutaneous sarcomas and multiple-lung adenomas. Morphological descriptions of the respective tumors were given. It is suggested that the lungs of newborn mice of strain AKR may prove to be a sensitive organ to evaluate carcinogenicity of certain carcinogenic compounds.

1. Attempts have been made to confirm how the formazan formation is affected in the presence of oxygen gas when the cells are incubated with neotetrazolium salt and the subsrtates for the enzymes to be tested. 2. In the cases of succinoxidase formazan formation is minimized under pure O2tension, it increases with decrease in O2 tension, and reaches its maximum value under N2gas. 3. This relationship between the oxygen tension and the diformazan formmation can likewise be observed even after pretreatment of the system with KCN. 4. In measuring enzyme activity of the DPN-diaphorase system with L-glutamate and DPN as substrate and NT as hydrogen acceptor, the same relationships between the oxygen tension and the NT-reduction can be seen as in succinoxidase system. 5. In the determination of enzyme activity of the cytochrome-c-cytochrome oxidase system with p-phenylene-diamine as substrate and NT as hydrogen acceptor, likewise the diformazan formation is markedly affected by oxygen tension and increased with the reduced oxygen tension but under pure Ns gas the value is reduced. When the systen is pretreated with KCN, however, the diformazan formation reveals its maximum value under pure nitrogen gas, the values of which correspond to those values of endogenous reaction without substrate. 6. The above results show that the neotetrazolium salt can compete with O2 as hydrogen acceptor, and less values of formazan formation may be obtained under higher oxygen tension and the higher values under lower oxygen tension independently from the true activity of the enzyme.

Using the method given by GOLDSTEIN (1961)9 for the determination of serum beta-glucuronidase activity, this value was determined in both normal and patients with epilepsy, neuroses, psychoses and multiple sclerosis. Of the patient groups examined, the group of those suffering from epilepsy is the only one showing any difference of statistical significance for all four methods of determination. The group of patients suffering from neuroses differs significantly from the normal group as regards the results got by the method of heat coagulation for removal of the proteins. The material is however too small to provide any explanation of the results, but it appears to show that a determination of serum glucuronidase activity may be of interest in groups of diseases other than malignant tumors.

Following Fibrin Plate Method of SZOLLOSY and RENGEI² , and ASTRUP and MULLERTZ³, the author conducted a series of experiments in an attempt to identify human blood by detecting the proactivator believed to be one of the enzyme proteins contained abundantly in human blood. As the results it has been found that with 0.1 mg. % SK-solution human blood alone responds to the reaction, showing almost absolute species-specificity within 4 hours but not with blood of monkey. In addition, the sensitivity is so high that it responds positively up to the dilution of 1: 8,000 to 1: 10,000 (human blood: physiological saline solution). By means of this method using 0.1 mg% SK-solution it has been clearly demonstated that the identification of human blood is possible in a variety of conditions and states as may be encountered in practical legal medicine such as with blood stains in cloth, wood, stone, leaves of tree even with a trace of blood stain, old human blood stain left standing for 20 to 30 years, old blood mixed with iron rust, blood stains soaked in various oils, and even the blood stained cloth washed thoroughly and left standing in room temperature for 6 months. Therefore, this Fibrin Plate Method seems to be the excellent one for the identification of human blood.

1. The studies of structure and function of the plasma membranes of cancer cells is extremely important for the elucidation of specificity of phenotypes of cancer cells. In order to bring this subject to light, plasma membranes, mitochondria, microsomes and nuclei have been isolated from the AH 130 ascites carcinoma cells and rat liver cells. The electron cytochemical observations and biochemical assays of M g²+-Na+-K+-ATPase, ADPase, AMPase, and β-glycerophosphatase activities have been carried out before and after the fixation with glutaraldehyde. 2. M g²+-ATPase and Mg²+-N a +-K +-ATPase are present in the isolated plasma membranes, mitochondria and microsomes in both AH 130 cells and rat liver cells. ADPase and AMPase of the mitochondria and microsomes show far lower activities than those of the corresponding enzymes found in rat liver plasma membrane. ADPase and AMPase of AH 130 cell fraction exhibit activity much lower or zero. Generally, enzymatic activity of the AH 130 cell fraction is much lower than that of rat liver cell fraction. 3. Mg²+-Na+-K+-ATPase is completely abolished by 5% glutaraldehyde fixation while it shows less effect on Mg²+-ATPase in the plasma membrane. ADPase and AMPase activities of the mitochondria and microsomes are completely inhibited by glutaraldehyde fixation. AMPase of the plasma membrane of rat liver is completely abolished while ADPase activity is not affected in any way. 4. Only Mg²+-ATPase can be demonstrated electron cytochemically. Cytochemical reaction products of Mg²+-ATPase are located at the outer layer of the plasma membrane of the AH 130 cells and rat liver tissue. In the isolated membrane fractions it is located at the inner layer. 5. ρ-Chloromercuribenzoate has only a slight effect on Mg²+-ATPase and Mg²+-Na+-K+-ATPase activities of the rat liver membrane, while it inhibits these enzyme activities in the AH 130 cell membrane. NaF (1 mM) and NaN3 (1 mM) inactivate ADPase of the rat liver plasma memo brane. 6. In these experimental conditions, nonenzymatic hydrolysis of ATP by lead ions is not recognized. 7. It seems most reasonable to conclude that cytochemical electron microscopic demonstration of Mg²+-ATPase after fixation with glutaraldehyde may serve as the absolute marker for the plasma membrane of ascites hepatoma and liver cells.

Changes of basophil leucocyte counts of the peripheral blood in bronchial asthma were investigated mainly by our improved method of KOVACS (4). The results are as follows. I) The basophils in bronchial asthma generally show a higher count than in healthy controls. 2) During the interval of repeated asthmatic attacks the basophil count is higher than in the asymptomatic period. 3) Particularly in an episode of asthmatic attack, the basophils increase immediately before the attack and decrease to the normal level or lower after the attack has begun. 4) During asthmatic attacks it may be possible to expect another attack, if the basophil count again tends to increase from the previous low count. 5) This counting method of basophils is easy enough for the routine examination like calculation of peripheralleucocytes. 6) Observation of the changes of peripheral basophils appears to be a useful laboratory aid for the diagnosis and therapeutic evaluation of bronchial asthma, making possible an early detection of the next attack. A discussion is given of the behavior of the basophils in bronchial asthma.

Human thyroid cancer cells in the pleural effusion were serially cultivated in vitro. Three kinds of cell lines were established from the same primary culture and were designated as PS, TS and TR lines, respectively. These three have been cultured for 574 days up to May 1, 1968. The cells of PS and TR lines were epithelial-like, whereas those of TS line revealed fibroblastic character. The chromosome numbers of PS and TR lines exhibited the modes near the hypertetraploid region, while TS line showed the mode of hypo-triploid number. Eosinophilic particles which were stained metachromatically by toluidine blue were present in the cytoplasm of these cells. The histochemical findings of the cells of each line were identical with those of thyroid cancer cells in vivo. The cells aggregated by the gyratory culture showed epithelial characters under microscopic observation of the sectioned specimens. The tumors produced in conditoned hamsters demonstrated undifferentiated cancer, which resembled the metastatic thyroid cancer of the patient. Neither collagen nor argentaffine fibers were detected with Van Gieson staining or silver impregenation.

1. Dogs anesthetized with pentobarbital sodium were mainly used and effects of the distention of the small intestine on the movements of the gall bladder and the sphincter of Oddi were investigated. 2. The distention of the small intestine (jejunum or ileum) inhibited the rhythmic contraction of the gall bladder and duodenal movements, and relaxed the tone of the sphincter of Oddi, resulting in an increase of the outflow of fluid through the orifice of the common bile duct. 3. After cutting the bilateral thoracic splanchnic nerves together with extirpation of the bilateral upper lumbar sympathetic trunks, the inhibitory response on the movements of the gall bladder and the tone of the sphincter of Oddi was completely abolished. The vagus nerve did not take part in the reflex response described above. The transection of the spinal cord at the level between Thl and Th2 produced no change in the reflex responses. 4. Fwm the results described above it may be supposed that effects of the distention of the small intestine on the movements of the gall bladder and the sphincter of Oddi are produced via the thoracic and lumbar splanchnic nerves through the reflex center which is located in the spinal cord.

We fractionated the red cells of Japanese acatalasemic individuals (four individuals in two families) by SAss's method and counted the number of reticulocytes and determined the catalatic activity by manometric and perborate methods on each fraction containing reticulocytes in the descending order from the upper to the lower layers. We also incubated each of these fractions at 37°C for 4, 10,24 and 48 hours, to see the catalatic activity along with the maturation of reticulocytes. Heat stability of catalatic fraction separated by DEAE column was also examined. The results of the study may briefly be summarized as follows. 1. a. There was no parallel relationship between the number of reticulocytes and the catalatic activity in Japanese acatalasemic red cells. b. There could be seen no decrease in catalatic activity while the number of reticulocytes did decrease by the incubation. 2. Heat stability of crude catalatic fraction from acatalasemic blood is approximately the same as that of crude catalase fraction from normal blood.

The amygdalofugal fibers were studied III the cat with the silver method of NAUTA-GYGAX. 1. The amygdalofugal fibers are distributed by way of the stria terminalis, the longitudinal association bundle, the inferior thalamic peduncle, and the medial forebrain bundle. 2. The amygdalofugal fibers running through the longitudinal association bundle arise in the lateral principal, intermediate principal nuclei and the lateral and possibly intermediate parts of the periamygdaloid cortex, and terminate in the lateral preoptic nucleus, the bed nucleus of the anterior commissure, the olfactory tubercle, the nucleus of the diagonal band of Broca, the nucleus accumbens, the medial and posterior septal nuclei and the basal part of the head of the caudate nucleus. In addition, there are scattered fibers coursing along the longitudinal association bundle proper. These fibers may have a widespread origin from the amygdaloid complex. The longitudinal association bundle contributes no fibers to the medial forebrain bundle. 3. The fibers, originating from the lateral principal, intermediate principal and medial principal nuclei, join the medial forebrain bundle to distribute widely in the lateral hypothalamic nucleus. A few fibers are seen to reach the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus, and are considered to arise in the medial principal nucleus. 4. By way of the inferior thalamic peduncle some fibers from the amygdaloid complex course dorsally into the medial part of the dorsomedial thalamic nucleus at its caudal levels. They may arise widely from the amygdaloid complex. A few of them extend farther dorsally to reach the lateral habenular nucleus and the parataenial nucleus. They probably originate from the lateral principal nucleus. 5. The fibers forming the stria terminalis originate from the medial principal nucleus, the medial nucleus, the periamygdaloid cortex and the cortical nucleus, and are distributed in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis and the lateral preoptic nucleus (preoptic component), as well as the medial preoptic nucleus, the anterior hypothalamic nucleus and the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (supracommissural component). The cortical nucleus, particularly its caudal part, and possibly the medial part of the periamygdaloid cortex are regarded as the main sources of the stria terminalis fibers ending in the hypothalamic region. The intermediate principal and lateral principal nuclei do not appear to contribute fibers to the stria terminalis. 6. The ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus receives amygdalofugal fibers both from the medial principal nucleus by way of the medial forebrain bundle, and from the cortical nucleus via the stria terminalis. 7. In addition to intrinsic internuclear fibers within the amygdaloid complex, some of the fibers from the complex are distributed to the ventralmost part of the putamen, the medial part of the claustrum, the periamygdaloid cortex, the prepiriform area and the anterior amygdaloid area, but do not reach the hippocampus.

1) In order to study the molecular structure and electron transfer activities of mitochondrial inner membrane, dissolution and reconstitution of membranous structure and function of the inner membrane of beef heart mitochondria were carried out. 2) The inner membrane of mitochondria could be dissolved into some unit of particles 70-140 Å in diameter by the treatment with bile salts at the concentration 0.5 mg of deoxycholate per mg of protein, 0.5 mg of cholate per mg of protein and 74.5 mg of crystalline potassium chloride per ml of the suspension. 3) The dissolved unit particles readily reaggregated into a vesicular membrane simultaneously restoring over-all electron transfer activities by the removal of bile salts with dilution of the suspension.4) Isolated electron transfer unit particle fraction contammg all components of the electron transfer chain but no structural protein were soluble in aqueous solution due to some residual bile salts used in the preparation. The removal of bile salts by dilution led the dispersed particles to aggregate into membrane and restore their over-all enzymatic activities. 5) From these results and the results of the reconstitution of membrane from purified complexes as described in the previous paper, it may be concluded as follows: The mitochondrial inner membrane may consist of several kinds of repeating unit particles conjugating each other with adjacent particles. It is necessary for over·all enzymatic activities that some unit components aggregate into a single vesicular membrane. Structural proteins may play an important role in the constitution of the membranous structure and in the over-all enzymatic activities.

The liver cells obtained from a calf have been cultured continuously for 257 days in total at present (May 31, 1967). The primary culture was maintained in rotatory culture for about 2 months with gradual and continuous cell proliferation. The two original strains, LD-BS20 and LD-CS20, have been maintained in static culture since 4th subcultivation. Three substrains, LD-BS10, YLE-BS20 and LD-CS10, were derived from the original strains. Two kinds of appropriate media, in which the cells could be subcultured with trypsin without severe damages and maintained with some characteristic functions of liver cells, were reported. The one consisted of 20 per cent bovine serum, 0.4 per cent lactalbumin hydrolysate and saline D, and the other was added with 0.08 per cent yeast extract to the above mentioned medium. Calf serum examined was not so effective as bovine serum for cell proliferation. Morphologically, the cultured cells resembled parenchymal liver cells quite well. The cells spread wide with abundant pale staining cytoplasm and their large nuclei, oval or round, generally contained one to several nucleoli. The cells as well as the nuclei varied considerably in size, some being two to four times larger than others. Binuclear, trinuclear or polynuclear cells were also observed. No silver impregnated fiber was detected among the epithelial cells. Two attempts to characterize cell types in culture were made. First, the presence of glycogen was tested with PAS reaction and saliva digestion procedure. Secondly, the albumin formation in cultured liver cells was examined with the fluorescent antibody technique. The fact that both albumin and glycogen were observed in the cells suggests strongly that there is a possibility of the continuous cultivation of liver cells by the present method, and by these procedures it seems possible to identify functionally the cultured cells with the parenchymal liver cells.

A case of arteriosclerotic retinopathy associated with retinal venous thrombosis was treated with Anginin and the following results obtained: 1) Visual acuity was improved from 0.03 to 0.7. 2) Retinal hemorrhages were absorbed and pipe-stem sheathing of the branch of retinal artery decrease, with white sheathing remaining partially. 3) It was therefore considered that the pipe-stem sheathing was decreased because Anginin removed venous spasm and improved the blood stream of the branch of the artery, and that the organic changes already established on the arterial wall would remain as white sheathing. 4) Anginin could not prevent retinal veins from changing into white lines. 5) Consequently the authors considered that Anginin may be a drug effectively used for retinal arteriosclerosis and retinal venous thrombosis associated therewith.

Concentrations of ampholytes in the nitrogen pool of ox ocular tissues and nervous tissues were analyzed systematically by an automatic amino acid analyzer with a special reference to their minor components. DCEC was found in lens and also in nervous tissues. Ophthalmic acid was found in lens (highest), in retina (moderate), and in vitreous humor and spinal cord (trace). Glutathione content was extremely high in lens, and moderate in nervous tissues, retina and cornea. Carnosine content was moderate in cornea and in retina, but hemocarnosine may be rather high in nervous tissues. Anserine-like compound was found only in spinal cord, but free 1- and 3-methylhistidine were detected in most ocular tissues. Ethanolamine and γ-aminobutyric acid were high in retina and their concentrations were comparable to those of nervous tissues.

Non-hemin iron content in gastric juice was examined in 46 patients with various blood diseases, especially idiopathic hypochromic anemia and in 26 healthy controls. 1. The iron content in gastric juice was found to be 290 μg/ dl in healthy controls, a lower value of 110 μg/ dl in idiopathic hypochromic anemia and a higher value of 550 μg / dl in aplastic anemia. These values were in a close correlation with serum iron or sideroblasts. 2. In idiopathic hypochromic anemia there was also a close correlation between the iron content in gastric juice and hemoglobin. In the course of treating idiopathic hypochromic anemia (stage of recovery of anemia) the iron content in gastric juice showed a marked increase over the value in healthy controls as well as a transient increase after an intravenous iron tolerance test. This condition may be interpreted as an "iron-losing anemia". Iron excretion of gastric mucosa in various blood diseases and its changes in the course of treating idiopathic hypochromic anemia in relation to the cause of this anemia were discussed.

The results of our study may briefly be summarized as follows: 1) The irradiation with microrays (20∼30 watts) similar as 2,000 R and 5,000 R Gamma radiation did not substantially affect the activity of fibrinolysin (SK+SD). 2) By the irradiation method so far mentioned it has been demonstrated that the fibrinolytic activity of anticoagulant of the SK+SD preparation is preserved in all the clotting systems which we used. 3) Our findings indicate that it is possible to irradiate patients for therapeutical purpose with Radarmed (electromagneticrays) provided that there is produced some enhancing influence of the same blood clotting factors or systems. Together with earlier works in this field it appears that this method of the microirradiation could provide us with an important evidence on which we can base our further in vitro and in vivo radiohematologic studies; investigations with various preparations, types of radiation that are still underway9∼16.