Invited Review Articles
Oncological Problems in Pancreatic Cancer Surgery
AKIMASA NAKAO
pg(s) 1- 7
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Despite the development of more sophisticated diagnostic techniques, it remains difficult to detect pancreatic carcinoma in the early stage. The resection rate has been increasing due to recent advances in surgical techniques and the application of extensive surgery. However, the postoperative prognosis has been poor due to commonly occurring liver metastasis. Recent molecular-biological studies have been clarifying occult liver metastasis and systemic disease in pancreatic cancer. This paper will review our experience and several problems in pancreatic cancer surgery.
Cell Biology of Caveolae and Its Implication for Clinical Medicine
TOYOSHI FUJIMOTO
pg(s) 9- 18
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Caveolae are small invaginations of the plasma membrane found in many cell types, and caveolins are integral membrane proteins that form the framework of caveolae. In the past several years, research on caveolae has developed explosively, and caveolae and/or caveolins have been shown to play many important roles in cell physiology: in particular, they are thought to be related to signal transduction, cholesterol transport, endocytosis and tumor suppression. On the other hand, some studies have suggested that another membrane domain called rafts is also involved in the same processes, and some confusion remains concerning the relationship between these two domains. Abnormalities in caveolae and/or caveolins have been found in various diseases, including cancer, atherosclerosis, muscular dystrophy and the Alzheimer's disease, which may make this domain a new focus for pharmacological research. This review will focus on the cell biology of caveolae, caveolins and rafts, and then summarize the implications of these findings for clinical studies.
Cell Biology of Caveolae and Its Implication for Clinical Medicine
TOYOSHI FUJIMOTO
pg(s) 19- 24
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Caveolae are small invaginations of the plasma membrane found in many cell types, and caveolins are integral membrane proteins that form the framework of caveolae. In the past several years, research on caveolae has developed explosively, and caveolae and/or caveolins have been shown to play many important roles in cell physiology: in particular, they are thought to be related to signal transduction, cholesterol transport, endocytosis and tumor suppression. On the other hand, some studies have suggested that another membrane domain called rafts is also involved in the same processes, and some confusion remains concerning the relationship between these two domains. Abnormalities in caveolae and/or caveolins have been found in various diseases, including cancer, atherosclerosis, muscular dystrophy and the Alzheimer's disease, which may make this domain a new focus for pharmacological research. This review will focus on the cell biology of caveolae, caveolins and rafts, and then summarize the implications of these findings for clinical studies.
Original Papers
Identification of Plasma Antibody Epitopes and Gene Abnormalities in Japanese Hemophilia a Patients with Factor VIII Inhibitor
TAKURO SUGIHARA, ISAO TAKAHASHI, TETSUHITO KOJIMA, YOSHIHIRO OKAMOTO, KOJI YAMAMOTO, TADASHI KAMIYA, TADASHI MATSUSHITA and HIDEHIKO SAITO
pg(s) 25- 39
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Eleven Japanese hemophilia A patients with anti-factor VIII (FVIII)a) inhibitors were studied to localize both their inhibitory antibody epitopes and their genotypes. The inhibitor epitopes were studied in nine severe hemophilia A patients by means of a scanning method using the oligopeptide panel covering the FVIII polypeptides without the B domain. The 107 15 mer-peptides were synthesized on solid-phase pins and analyzed for their reactivity with diluted patient plasma. As indicated previously, a series of peptides corresponding to the A2 and C2 domains were recognized by plasma antibodies from 2 patients and 4 patients, respectively. In contrast, all the antibodies bound to several epitopes in the A3 domain, while an epitope 1809-1821 covering the putative factor IX binding site was found in 3 patients. Southern blotting analysis showed that 8 out of 11 patients had either gene deletions or inversions of the FVIII gene, indicating a higher proportion of gross gene alterations in inhibitor-positive hemophilia A patients. However, the correlation of gene abnormality type with epitope location was not fully established.
Water fat Separation Using the Single Acquisition "Sandwich" Type 3-Point Dixon Method to Optimize Knee Joint Scans
ERIKO SHIBAHARA, HIROSHI FUKATSU, SHINJI NAGANAWA, TOKIKO ITO, ERIKO IWAYAMA, TAKEO ISHIGAKI, TORU SEGAWA and WAGUO ZHANG
pg(s) 41- 49
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In this paper, we tried to evaluate the effect of water-fat separation on and to optimize the scan condition of the newly developed “Sandwiched” 3-point Dixon method at 0.35 Tesla (T), for knee joint imaging. Using a 0.35T superconductive open magnet system with a solenoid type knee coil, one male and two female normal volunteers (27–37y.o.) underwent knee joint imaging.
Each sequence provided good water-fat separated images. At 0.35T, the gradient echo provided a better contrast than the spin echo. Optimal cartilage-marrow and cartilage-fluid contrast could be obtained at a frip angle (FA) of 90 degrees. There was no significant correlation between cartilage-marrow, cartilage-fluid contrast and repetition time (TR) values within the tested range.
Cartilage-fluid and cartilage-marrow contrast were both best at an FA of 90 degrees with the gradient echo sequence. TR from 350 ms to 650 ms did not cause any significant contrast difference in the fat suppressed images. This method is useful and could be the only practical choice for obtaining fat suppressed T1 weighted images for joint magnetic resonance (MR) imaging at 0.35T.
A Preliminary Analysis of Platelet von Willebrand Factor Oligosaccharides
KAZUO KAGAMI, SYBIL WILLIAMS, MCDONALD HORNE and HARVEY GRALNICK
pg(s)1 51- 56
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Little is known about the carbohydrate structure of the platelet von Willebrand factor (vWf). We have analyzed N-linked oligosaccharides from both plasma and platelet vWf by Fluorophore-Assisted-Carbohydrate Electrophoresis (FACE) and isoelectric focusing before and after digestion of the proteins with neuraminidase. We observed a greater variety of N-linked oligosaccharides derived from plasma vWf than from platelet vWf. Neuraminidase treatment reduced the oligosaccharides from both proteins to only two or three bands and produced significant increases in their isoelectric points.
A Discussion of Anti-Aspergillus Niger Glucose Oxidase Monoclonal Antibody Reactivity to Red Blood Cells of Several Species
TAKASHI KOJIMA, HIROSHI NAGATA, YUTAKA TOKUNAGA, MASAAKI SANO, RYUICHIRO SASANABE, KAZUYOSHI SUZUMURA, TAISEKI KANEMITSU and TAKAYOSHI NARUSE
pg(s) 57- 61
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We observed that mouse spleen cells form rosettes with autologous red blood cells (RBCs) and that rosette-formation was suppressed by anti-Aspergillus niger glucose oxidase monoclonal antibody (mAb). In the present study, we investigated whether RBCs of species besides mice have the structure recognized by anti-A. niger glucose oxidase mAb by using rosette-formation and complement-mediated hemolysis. Lysates of monkey and human RBCs did not suppress rosette-formation whereas autologous (mouse), rat and sheep RBC lysates partially suppressed rosette-formation. Those lysates exerted their suppressive activity after they had been treated at 56°C for 30 min. A. niger glucose oxidase also suppressed rosette-formation with or without treatment at 56°C for 30 min. Alternatively, anti-A. niger glucose oxidase mAb lysed mouse, rat and sheep RBCs but not human RBCs with complement. These findings suggest that the cell surfaces of mouse, rat and sheep RBCs have a structure which can be recognized by anti-A. niger glucose oxidase mAb while the cell surfaces of monkey and human RBCs do not.
Abstracts
Nagoya, July 1999
pg(s)63-82
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