Carrier-mediated active transport of the glucuronide and sulfate of 6- hydroxy-5,7-dimethyl-2-methylamino-4-(3-pyridylmethyl) benzothiazole (E3040) into rat liver: quantitative comparison of permeability in isolated hepatocytes, perfused liver and liver i

ABSTRACT The hepatic uptake of glucuronic acid and sulfate conjugates of 6-hydroxy-5,7-dimethyl-2-methylamino-4-(3-pyridylmethyl) benzothiazole (E3040), a dual inhibitor of 5-lipoxygenase and thromboxane A 2 synthetase, was investigated in rats. The biliary excretion clearance values for the glucuronide and the sulfate, obtained after i.v. administration of E3040, were similar and corresponded to approximately 30% of the hepatic blood flow rate. The influx clearance values of E3040 conjugates in the presence of 3% bovine serum albumin, measured by a multiple indicator dilution method in the perfused liver, were 1.20 ml/min/g liver for the glucuronide and 0.74 ml/min/g liver for the sulfate, which were twice and equal to the normal hepatic plasma flow rate, respectively, which suggests the presence of an efficient transport system(s). The uptake of E3040 conjugates into the isolated hepatocytes is mediated by Na ϩ -independent active transport system(s), which is inhibited by dibromosulfophthalein and bile acids. The uptake for the sulfate had high-affinity and high-capacity transport activity (K m ϭ 25 M; V max ϭ 7.8 nmol/min/10 6 cells) compared with that for the glucuronide (K m ϭ 59 M; V max ϭ 2.2 nmol/min/10 6 cells). The uptakes of E3040 conjugates (glucuronide, sulfate) exhibited a mutual competitive inhibition. It is suggested that both conjugates share a multispecific organic anion transporter located on the sinusoidal membrane. Conjugative metabolism, such as glucuronidation and sulfation, is an important pathway for the inactivation or detoxification of xenobiotics. On the other hand, conjugative metabolites of certain drugs with pharmacologically active (such as the 6-glucuronide of morphine; In previous studies, we reported the disposition of glucuronide and sulfate of E3040, a novel dual inhibitor of 5-lipoxygenase and thromboxane A 2 synthetase, after administration Received for publication May 24, 1996. ABBREVIATIONS: E3040, 6-hydroxy-5,7-dimethyl-2-methylamino-4-(3-pyridylmethyl) benzothiazole; [ C]E3040, [2- 14 C]6-hydroxy-5,7-dimethyl-2-methylamino-4-(3-pyridylmethyl) benzothiazole dihydrochloride; SD rats, Sprague-Dawley rats; DBSP, dibromosulfophthalein; HEPES, N-2-hydroxyethylpiperazine-NЈ-2-ethanesulfonic acid; MID method, multiple indicator dilution method; HPLC, high-performance liquid chromatography; BSA, bovine serum albumin; TLC, thin-layer chromatography; AUC ϱ , the area under the plasma concentration-time profiles from zero to infinity; CL bile , the biliary excretion clearance; CL renal , the urinary excretion clearance; CL u,renal , the unbound urinary excretion clearance; X bile , the amount excreted into the bile; X urine , the amount excreted into the urine; CL tot , the total body clearance; PS inf , the influx clearance; PS u,inf , the unbound influx clearance; K inf , the influx rate constant; K eff , the efflux rate constant; K seq , the sequestration rate constant; K m , Michaelis constant; V max , maximal uptake rate; P dif , the nonspecific uptake clearance; LUR, the first-pass liver uptake ratio; UWL, the unstirred water layer; PCMBS, p-chloromercuriphenylsulfonic acid; DIDS, 4,4Ј-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2Ј-disulfonic acid; FCCP, carbonyl cyanide-p-(trifluoromethoxy)-phenylhydrazone; C/M, cell-to-medium concentration

Research and Development Work on Lithium-ion Batteries for Environmental Vehicles

Interest in electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) has risen dramatically on account of environmental and energy concerns. The biggest issues that must be addressed in order to popularize these advanced vehicles are related to the battery.We have been promoting vigorous R&amp D work on batteries for application to environmental vehicles since the beginning of the 1990s. Attention was focused on lithium-ion batteries early on as a fundamental solution to the critical issue mentioned above. The conclusion was reached that the development of those potentialities to their fullest extent would create completely new forms of value unobtainable with conventional batteries. As a result of extensive theoretical studies and many experimental demonstrations, we successfully showed ahead of others that those potentialities did in fact exist and could be achieved.This paper makes clear the various performance requirements of advanced batteries for EV or HEV application, focusing in particular on the critical aspects of the battery thermal design and construction for system stability. It also explains how the power output of the lithium-ion battery has been substantially improved for application to HEVs. Document type: Articl

Integrated optics europium aluminum polymer optical waveguide with graded index circular core

A Europium Aluminum Benzyl Methacrylate (Eu-Al/BzMA) integrated optical waveguide with 50 μm graded-index multimode circular core is fabricated by applying the Mosquito method for the potential application of optical interconnect. The parabolic index profile of the waveguide core is measured to confirm the profile exhibited by the waveguide. A preliminary experiment of the signal transmission is performed at 26 Gb/s to evaluate its capability in high dense and speed optical interconnections. According to the results, the waveguide successfully demonstrated free bit-error-rate through 5 cm waveguide transmission

Postoperative Radiographic Early-Onset Adjacent Segment Degeneration after Single-Level L4–L5 Posterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion in Patients without Preoperative Severe Sagittal Spinal Imbalance

Study Design Retrospective study. Purpose To investigate the relationship between preoperative total spinal sagittal alignment and the early onset of adjacent segment degeneration (ASD) after single-level posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) in patients with normal sagittal spinal alignment. Overview of Literature Postoperative early-onset ASD is one of the complications after L4–L5 PLIF, a common surgical procedure for lumbar degenerative disease in patents without severe sagittal imbalance. A better understanding of the preoperative characteristics of total spinal sagittal alignment associated with early-onset ASD could help prevent the condition. Methods The study included 70 consecutive patients diagnosed with lumbar degenerative disease who underwent single-level L4–L5 PLIF between 2011 and 2015. They were divided into two groups based on the radiographic progression of L3–L4 degeneration after 1-year follow-up: the ASD and the non-ASD (NASD) group. The following radiographic parameters were preoperatively and postoperatively measured: sagittal vertebral axis (SVA), thoracic kyphosis (TK), lumbar lordosis, pelvic tilt, and pelvic incidence (PI). Results Eight of the 70 patients (11%) experienced ASD after PLIF (three males and five females; age, 64.4±7.7 years). The NASD group comprised 20 males and 42 females (age, 67.7±9.3 years). Six patients of the ASD group showed decreased L3–L4 disc height, one had L3–L4 local kyphosis, and one showed both changes. Preoperative SVA, PI, and TK were significantly smaller in the ASD group than in the NASD group (p <0.05). Conclusions A preoperative small SVA and TK with small PI were the characteristic alignments for the risk of early-onset ASD in patients without preoperative severe sagittal spinal imbalance undergoing L4–L5 single-level PLIF

Inhibition of microRNA-33b in humanized mice ameliorates nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

マイクロRNA-33bの阻害は非アルコール性脂肪肝炎を改善する --核酸医薬による治療応用へ--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-06-13.Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) can lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma in their advanced stages; however, there are currently no approved therapies. Here, we show that microRNA (miR)-33b in hepatocytes is critical for the development of NASH. miR-33b is located in the intron of sterol regulatory element–binding transcription factor 1 and is abundantly expressed in humans, but absent in rodents. miR-33b knock-in (KI) mice, which have a miR-33b sequence in the same intron of sterol regulatory element–binding transcription factor 1 as humans and express miR-33b similar to humans, exhibit NASH under high-fat diet feeding. This condition is ameliorated by hepatocyte-specific miR-33b deficiency but unaffected by macrophage-specific miR-33b deficiency. Anti-miR-33b oligonucleotide improves the phenotype of NASH in miR-33b KI mice fed a Gubra Amylin NASH diet, which induces miR-33b and worsens NASH more than a high-fat diet. Anti-miR-33b treatment reduces hepatic free cholesterol and triglyceride accumulation through up-regulation of the lipid metabolism–related target genes. Furthermore, it decreases the expression of fibrosis marker genes in cultured hepatic stellate cells. Thus, inhibition of miR-33b using nucleic acid medicine is a promising treatment for NASH

MiR-33a is a therapeutic target in SPG4-related hereditary spastic paraplegia human neurons

Recent reports, including ours, have indicated that microRNA (miR)-33 located within the intron of sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP) 2 controls cholesterol homeostasis and can be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of atherosclerosis. Here, we show that SPAST, which encodes a microtubule-severing protein called SPASTIN, was a novel target gene of miR-33 in human. Actually, the miR-33 binding site in the SPAST 3′-UTR is conserved not in mice but in mid to large mammals, and it is impossible to clarify the role of miR-33 on SPAST in mice. We demonstrated that inhibition of miR-33a, a major form of miR-33 in human neurons, via locked nucleic acid (LNA)-anti-miR ameliorated the pathological phenotype in hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP)-SPG4 patient induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cortical neurons. Thus, miR-33a can be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of HSP-SPG4

microRNA-33 maintains adaptive thermogenesis via enhanced sympathetic nerve activity

褐色脂肪細胞の燃焼を促す新たなメカニズムを解明 --体の熱産生にマイクロRNA-33が関与--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2021-02-17.Adaptive thermogenesis is essential for survival, and therefore is tightly regulated by a central neural circuit. Here, we show that microRNA (miR)-33 in the brain is indispensable for adaptive thermogenesis. Cold stress increases miR-33 levels in the hypothalamus and miR-33−/− mice are unable to maintain body temperature in cold environments due to reduced sympathetic nerve activity and impaired brown adipose tissue (BAT) thermogenesis. Analysis of miR-33f/f dopamine-β-hydroxylase (DBH)-Cre mice indicates the importance of miR-33 in Dbh-positive cells. Mechanistically, miR-33 deficiency upregulates gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)A receptor subunit genes such as Gabrb2 and Gabra4. Knock-down of these genes in Dbh-positive neurons rescues the impaired cold-induced thermogenesis in miR-33f/f DBH-Cre mice. Conversely, increased gene dosage of miR-33 in mice enhances thermogenesis. Thus, miR-33 in the brain contributes to maintenance of BAT thermogenesis and whole-body metabolism via enhanced sympathetic nerve tone through suppressing GABAergic inhibitory neurotransmission. This miR-33-mediated neural mechanism may serve as a physiological adaptive defense mechanism for several stresses including cold stress

Cardiac diastolic dysfunction predicts in-hospital mortality in acute ischemic stroke with atrial fibrillation

Background: The aim of this study was to identify whether diastolic dysfunction predicts in-hospital death in ischemic stroke patients with atrial fibrillation. Method: We retrospectively analyzed data fromenrolled patients with ischemic stroke patients with atrial fibrillation who presented within 24 h of onset. All patients underwent transthoracic echocardiography to evaluate diastolic filling pressure estimated as the ratio of early transmitral flow velocity (E) to mitral annular velocity (e\u27)within 24 h of admission.Weevaluated initial ischemic lesion volume andNational Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score. Results: Two hundred and sixty-six patients were enrolled.During hospitalization, 30 patients (11%) died. The deceased group had a higher NIHSS score, a higher D-dimer level, a higher creatinine level, a larger initial ischemic lesion volumeand a higher E/e\u27 ratio than those in the survival group. In amultivariate analysis, a higher E/e\u27 ratio was an independent predictor of in-hospital death. The cutoff value for the E/e\u27 ratio for prediction in-hospital death was 20 with the sensitivity of 75% and specificity of 86%. Conclusion: Diastolic dysfunction may be associatedwith in-hospital death in ischemic stroke patientswith atrial fibrillation