The application of GPR Overlay analysis in archaeological prospection: Discovery at the Japanese Imperial Family tombs in Miyazaki Prefecture

A method introduced over a decade ago to synthesize important GPR reflections from overlay analysis is applied to the study of Imperial Family Tombs in Japan (Goodman, 2006). In overlay analysis, individual time slice levels are independently weighted, colorized, and then overlays of the relative-strongest-reflectors are synthesized into a single 2D map, containing all the relevant reflector levels desired by the interpreter. The overlay of the relative-strongest-reflector can be more simply ..

Metagenomic analysis of bacterial species in tongue microbiome of current and never smokers

Cigarette smoking affects the oral microbiome, which is related to various systemic diseases. While studies that investigated the relationship between smoking and the oral microbiome by 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing have been performed, investigations involving metagenomic sequences are rare. We investigated the bacterial species composition in the tongue microbiome, as well as single-nucleotide variant (SNV) profiles and gene content of these species, in never and current smokers by utilizing metagenomic sequences. Among 234 never smokers and 52 current smokers, beta diversity, as assessed by weighted UniFrac measure, differed between never and current smokers (pseudo-F = 8.44, R² = 0.028, p = 0.001). Among the 26 species that had sufficient coverage, the SNV profiles of Actinomyces graevenitzii, Megasphaera micronuciformis, Rothia mucilaginosa, Veillonella dispar, and one Veillonella sp. were significantly different between never and current smokers. Analysis of gene and pathway content revealed that genes related to the lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis pathway in Veillonella dispar were present more frequently in current smokers. We found that species-level tongue microbiome differed between never and current smokers, and 5 species from never and current smokers likely harbor different strains, as suggested by the difference in SNV frequency

1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 Stimulates Phagocytosis but Suppresses HLA-DR and CD13 Antigen Expression in Human Mononuclear Phagocytes

Abstract This study investigated the regulatory activity of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25-[OH]2D3) on phagocytic cells obtained from normal human peripheral blood. Flow cytometric analysis enabled identification of two discrete populations of cells, one predominantly monocytes (“monocyte” gate) and one containing primarily lymphoid and other cell types (“lymphoid” gate). The monocyte-associated antigens CD13 and CD33 were highly expressed by cells in this monocyte gate and used to monitor this population. Following 5 days of culture, cells in the monocyte gate manifested high phagocytic activity as determined by ingestion of fluorescent carboxyl microspheres and exhibited high expression of class II HLA-DR products. 1,25-(OH)2D3 profoundly upregulated phagocytic activity while downregulating HLA-DR antigen expression on the cells in the monocyte gate. Moreover, 1,25-(OH)2D3 also reduced cell surface CD13 expression on the cells with low but not high phagocytic activity in this gate. Proportional activities by the 1,24-(OH)2D3 and 24,25-(OH)2D3 metabolites indicated the regulatory effects are likely mediated by the 1,25-(OH)2D3 receptor (VDR). Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), a known modulator of monocyte/macrophage activity also markedly inhibited HLA-DR expression while enhancing the phagocytic activity of cells in the monocyte gate. In contrast to 1,25-(OH)2D3, PGE2 clearly upregulated CD13 expression in cells with high phagocytic activity. Since indomethacin, an inhibitor of PGE2 synthesis, failed to reverse the 1,25-(OH)2D3 induced inhibitory effect on HLA-DR expression, this effect is apparently not mediated through endogenous PGE2 synthesis. Based on these findings we speculate that 1,25-(OH)2D3 may be capable of acting as both an upregulating agent during natural immunity via the enhancement of phagocytosis by monocyte/macrophage populations and as a “downregulator” during acquired immune responses via an inhibitory effect on MHC class II antigen expression by professional antigen-presenting cells. [P.S.E.B.M. 1996, Vol 211

Differential regulation and expression of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and Ly-6 gene products on mouse testicular leydig and sertoli cell lines

The expression and regulation of Class I and Class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and Ly-6 antigens were examined in BALB/c testicular cells. Studies were performed utilizing differentiated murine Leydig (TM3) and Sertoli (TM4) cell lines. Neither Class I (D d) nor Class II (IA/E d) MHC antigens were detectable on untreated TM3 cells. However, concanavalin-A activated spleen cell supernatant (Con-A sup) or interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) treatment resulted in the marked induction of both Class I and Class II MHC antigens on virtually all of the Leydig cells. MHC Class II mRNA, which was not detected in resting cells, was clearly induced following IFN-γ incubation. Sertoli cells were found to constitutively express low levels of Class I (D d) but not Class II (IA/E d) antigens. However, in contrast to the enhanced MHC expression in TM3 cells, Con-A sup or IFN-γ treatment of TM4 cells resulted in marked augmentation of Class I, but not Class II, MHC antigens. Northern blot analysis failed to detect Class II mRNA in either the resting or IFN-γ treated TM4 populations. Neither ethanol nor tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alone, or together with IFN-γ had significant effects on MHC expression by TM3 and TM4 cells. Ly-6 antigens, predominantly expressed on hematopoietic cells, were found to be present on both TM3 and TM4 cells. Expression of the non-MHC encoded product was also shown to be markedly enhanced by IFN-γ treatment on both testicular cell lines. In total, these findings demonstrated that cytokines can differentially affect discrete cell populations arising from a particular tissue with respect to the un-regulation of MHC and non-MHC gene products. These findings are discussed in the context of autoimmune responses directed against this tissue

Villous adenoma of female urethra: An investigation of the mechanism of development regarding glandular neoplasms in the urinary tract

Villous adenomas are rare in the urinary tract. We herein report the fifth known such case while also making a review of the literature. A 54-year-old woman noticed a mass in her external genitalia and a tumor located on her external urethral orifice. The tumor was excised and pathologically confirmed to be a villous adenoma. Up to now, no sign of recurrence has been observed. However, we should be careful for malignant formation, because villous adenomas in the urinary tract frequently coexist with either adenocarcinoma or urothelial carcinoma