Macromolecular lactate dehydrogenase linked to serum IgG of a patient with liver cirrhosis

An anomalous zymogram of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in the serum from a patient with liver cirrhosis was reported. Agar-gel electrophoresis of serum showed an extra LDH band close to the anodic side of LDH5 and a wide band of LDH5. Gel filtration of patient's serum in Sephadex G-200 demonstrated an abnormal LDH fraction eluted between immunoglobulin G (IgG) and macroglobulin in addition to a normal LDH component. Chromatographically abnormal LDH was demonstrated on agar gel as extra and wide LDH5 bands and resembled closely human hepatic LDH in various physico-chemical properties such as inhibition by urea or substrate, stability against heat, and Michaelis-Menten's constant. Immunological analyses demonstrated that abnormal LDH could be in the state combined with IgG. Molecular weight of the complex estimated by gel filtration was approximately 300,000. Mixtures of the heated patient's serum with normal or patient's hepatic LDH showed abnormal LDH fraction by gel filtration, whereas abnormal fraction was not demonstrated when heated normal serum was mixed with normal or the patient's hepatic LDH. These results strongly suggest that the occurrence of anomalous LDH zymogram in patient's serum is due to a formation of LDH-IgG complex, which is based on the binding of essentially normal hepatic LDH and abnormal IgG.</p

SDP reformulation for robust optimization problems based on nonconvex QP duality

Abstract In a real situation, optimization problems often involve uncertain parameters. Robust optimization is one of distribution-free methodologies based on worst-case analyses for handling such problems. In this paper, we first focus on a special class of uncertain linear programs (LPs). Applying the duality theory for nonconvex quadratic programs (QPs), we reformulate the robust counterpart as a semidefinite program (SDP) and show the equivalence property under mild assumptions. We also apply the same technique to the uncertain second-order cone programs (SOCPs) with &quot;single&quot; (not side-wise) ellipsoidal uncertainty. Then we derive similar results on the reformulation and the equivalence property. In the numerical experiments, we solve some test problems to demonstrate the efficiency of our reformulation approach. Especially, we compare our approach with another recent method based on Hildebrand&apos;s Lorentz positivity

Annual changes in pulmonary function in combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema: Over a 5-year follow-up

Background: Combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema (CPFE) is a unique disorder that has been previously described, and the distinct features of CPFE in comparison with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) have been reported. However, the yearly dynamics of pulmonary function parameters in CPFE patients compared with those in COPD patients have not yet been reported. Methods: We retrospectively enrolled patients with CPFE and COPD who had undergone pulmonary function tests more than five times during a follow-up period of more than five years. The baseline clinical characteristics and the annual changes in pulmonary function during the follow-up period in 16 stable CPFE patients were compared with those in 19 stable COPD patients. Annual changes in pulmonary function were estimated from linear regressions, with assumptions for time-dependency and linearity. We analyzed the time-dependent fluctuations in pulmonary function for the two disorders. Results: Annual decreases in VC and FVC in the CPFE group were significantly higher than those in the COPD group. Annual decrease in FEV1/FVC in the COPD group was significantly higher than in the CPFE group. During the follow-up period, FEV1/FVC in the CPFE group appeared to improve because of annual decrease in FVC. Annual decreases in DLco and DLco/VA in the CPFE group were significantly higher than those in the COPD group. Conclusion: This is the first report showing the yearly dynamics of pulmonary function parameters in CPFE patients compared with those in COPD patients during a follow-up period of more than five years. This study revealed that the physiologic consequences of CPFE including the rate of progression of pulmonary function impairment were different from those of COPD. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.ArticleRESPIRATORY MEDICINE. 107(12):1986-1992 (2013)journal articl

Development of Bioactivity and Pull-out Torque Control Technology on Ti Implant Surface and its Application for Cold Thread Rolled Bone Screw

AbstractThe influence of cold thread rolling conditions and a production method of titania (TiO2) films on surface bioactivity and pull-out torque of a titanium bone screw was investigated. The bone screw with micro surface roughness distribution was formed by cold thread rolling with a pair of parallel dies. The die shape and surface roughness distribution were changed to the 3 grades. The TiO2 films were coated on the surface of the bone screw using anodizing in aqueous solutions (hydro-coating). We introduced the rolled bone screws into tibia of rats for two weeks and examined the effects of the combinations of the surface morphology and the TiO2 film on osteoconductivity in an in-vivo experiment. As the results, it is found that we could control the bioactivity and pull-out torque by controlling the surface roughness at the bottom of the screw root

Development of Calorie Restriction Mimetics as Therapeutics for Obesity, Diabetes, Inflammatory and Neurodegenerative Diseases

Calorie restriction (CR) is the most robust intervention that decreases morbidity and mortality, and thereby increases the lifespan of many organisms. Although the signaling pathways involved in the beneficial effects of CR are not yet fully understood. Several candidate pathways and key molecules have been identified. The effects of CR are highly conserved from lower organisms such as yeast to higher mammals such as rodents and monkeys. Recent studies have also demonstrated beneficial effects of CR in humans, although we need much longer studies to evaluate whether CR also increases the lifespan of humans. In reality, it is difficult for us to conduct CR interventions in humans because the subjects must be kept in a state of hunger and the duration of this state needed to achieve a clinically meaningful effect is still unknown. Thus, research in this field is focusing on the development of molecules that mimic the beneficial effects of CR without reducing food intake. Some of these candidate molecules include plant-derived functional chemicals (phyto-chemicals), synthetic small molecules, and endocrine molecules such as adipokines. Several studies have already shown that this research field may yield novel drugs for the treatment of age-related diseases such as diabetes. In this article, we describe the target pathways, candidate molecules, and strategies to develop CR mimetics