Utilization of titanium oxide-like compound as an inorganic phosphate adsorbent for the control of serum phosphate level in chronic renal failure

Hyperphosphatemia adversely affects the prognosis of patients with chronic renal failure (CRF). We synthesized a titanium oxide-like compound (TAP) as a phosphate adsorbent for treatment of hyperphosphatemia in CFR patients. We evaluated the ability of TAP to adsorb inorganic phosphate in vitro and in vivo. TAP was shown to contain sulfate and hydroxyl groups by thermal analysis, which probably involved in phosphate adsorption through an ionic exchange mechanism. TAP constantly adsorbed phosphate (66.20-72.84 mg/g TAP) over a wide pH range (1.22-7.27) in vitro. To evaluate the phosphate binding potential of TAP in vivo, adenine-induced CRF rats were fed AIN-76 diet containing 3% TAP, 10% TAP, 3% sevelamer hydrochloride (clinical phosphate adsorbent), or 3% calcium carbonate, and serum levels of phosphate and calcium and urinary phosphate were compared with those in untreated CRF rats. Orally administered TAP showed the inhibitory effect on serum phosphate level in adenine-induced CRF rats, which was equivalent to that of sevelamer hydrochloride. These results indicate that TAP is a useful alternative phosphate-binder with fewer side effects than sevelamer hydrochloride and calcium carbonate

Characterization of a gene cluster for sialoglycoconjugate utilization in Bacteroides fragilis

Recent analysis of the whole genome sequence of Bacteroides fragilis revealed extensive duplication of polysaccharide utilization genes in this anaerobe. Here we analyzed a unique 27-kb gene cluster (sgu) comprised of the 13 sialoglycoconjugates-utilization genes, which include the sialidase gene (nanH1) in B. fragilis strain YCH46. The genes were tightly organized and transcribed polycistronically. Comparative PCR scanning demonstrated that the sgu locus was conserved among the Bacteroides strains tested. Based on the transcriptional profiles generated by reverse transcriptase PCR, the sgu locus can be classified into at least three regulatory units : 1) sialic acid- or sialooligosaccharide-inducible genes, 2) constitutively expressed genes that can be down-regulated by catabolite repression, and 3) constitutively expressed genes. In vitro comparison of the growth of a sgu locus deletion mutant (SGUM172941) with a wild type strain indicates that this locus is necessary for B. fragilis to efficiently utilize mucin as a carbon source. Furthermore, SGUM172941 was defective in colonization of the intestines of germfree mice under competitive conditions. These data indicate that the sgu locus in B. fragilis plays a crucial role in the utilization of host-derived sialoglycoconjugates and the stable colonization of this anaerobe in the human gut

AIRE illuminates the feature of medullary thymic epithelial cells in thymic carcinoma

Despite the clear distinction between cortical (cTECs) and medullary thymic epithelial cells (mTECs) in physiology, the cell of origin of thymic carcinomas (TCs) and other thymic epithelial tumors remained enigmatic. We addressed this issue by focusing on AIRE, an mTEC-specific transcriptional regulator that is required for immunological self-tolerance. We found that a large proportion of TCs expressed AIRE with typical nuclear dot morphology by immunohistochemistry. AIRE expression in TCs was supported by the RNA-seq data in the TCGA-THYM database. Furthermore, our bioinformatics approach to the recent single-cell RNA-seq data on human thymi has revealed that TCs hold molecular characteristics of multiple mTEC subpopulations. In contrast, TCs lacked the gene signatures for cTECs. We propose that TCs are tumors derived from mTECs

PESI-MS for Diagnostic Cytology

Objectives: Cytology and histology are 2 indispensable diagnostic tools for cancer diagnosis, which are rapidly increasing in importance with aging populations. We applied mass spectrometry (MS) as a rapid approach for swiftly acquiring nonmorphological information of interested cells. Conventional MS, which primarily rely on promoting ionization by pre-applying a matrix to cells, has the drawback of time-consuming both on data acquisition and analysis. As an emerging method, probe electrospray ionization-MS (PESI-MS) with a dedicated probe is capable to pierce sample and measure specimen in small amounts, either liquid or solid, without the requirement for sample pretreatment. Furthermore, PESI-MS is timesaving compared to the conventional MS. Herein, we investigated the capability of PESI-MS to characterize the cell types derived from the respiratory tract of human tissues. Study Design: PESI-MS analyses with DPiMS-2020 were performed on various type of cultured cells including 5 lung squamous cell carcinomas, 5 lung adenocarcinomas, 5 small-cell carcinomas, 4 malignant mesotheliomas, and 2 normal controls. Results: Several characteristic peaks were detected at around m/z 200 and 800 that were common in all samples. As expected, partial least squares-discriminant analysis of PESI-MS data distinguished the cancer cell types from normal control cells. Moreover, distinct clusters divided squamous cell carcinoma from adenocarcinoma. Conclusion: PESI-MS presented a promising potential as a novel diagnostic modality for swiftly acquiring specific cytological information

Verification of the Impact of Blood Glucose Level on Liver Carcinogenesis and the Efficacy of a Dietary Intervention in a Spontaneous Metabolic Syndrome Model

Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus, vascular inflammation, atherosclerosis, and renal, liver, and heart diseases. Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a progressive representative liver disease and may lead to the irreversible calamities of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Metabolic disorders such as hyperglycemia have been broadly reported to be related to hepatocarcinogenesis in NASH; however, direct evidence of a link between hyperglycemia and carcinogenesis is still lacking. Tsumura Suzuki Obese Diabetic (TSOD) mice spontaneously develop metabolic syndrome, including obesity, insulin resistance, and NASH-like liver phenotype, and eventually develop hepatocellular carcinomas. TSOD mice provide a spontaneous human MS-like model, even with significant individual variations. In this study, we monitored mice in terms of their changes in blood glucose levels, body weights, and pancreatic and liver lesions over time. As a result, liver carcinogenesis was delayed in non-hyperglycemic TSOD mice compared to hyperglycemic mice. Moreover, at the termination point of 40 weeks, liver tumors appeared in 18 of 24 (75%) hyperglycemic TSOD mice; in contrast, they only appeared in 5 of 24 (20.8%) non-hyperglycemic mice. Next, we investigated three kinds of oligosaccharide that could lower blood glucose levels in hyperglycemic TSOD mice. We monitored the levels of blood and urinary glucose and assessed pancreatic lesions among the experimental groups. As expected, significantly lower levels of blood and urinary glucose and smaller deletions of Langerhans cells were found in TSOD mice fed with milk-derived oligosaccharides (galactooligosaccharides and lactosucrose). At the age of 24 weeks, mild steatohepatitis was found in the liver but there was no evidence of liver carcinogenesis. Steatosis in the liver was alleviated in the milk-derived oligosaccharide-administered group. Taken together, suppressing the increase in blood glucose level from a young age prevented susceptible individuals from diabetes and the onset of NAFLD/NASH, as well as carcinogenesis. Milk-derived oligosaccharides showed a lowering effect on blood glucose levels, which may be expected to prevent liver carcinogenesis

The Lifestyle of the Segmented Filamentous Bacterium: A Non-Culturable Gut-Associated Immunostimulating Microbe Inferred by Whole-Genome Sequencing

Numerous microbes inhabit the mammalian intestinal track and strongly impact host physiology; however, our understanding of this ecosystem remains limited owing to the high complexity of the microbial community and the presence of numerous non-culturable microbes. Segmented filamentous bacteria (SFBs), which are clostridia-related Gram-positive bacteria, are among such non-culturable populations and are well known for their unique morphology and tight attachment to intestinal epithelial cells. Recent studies have revealed that SFBs play crucial roles in the post-natal maturation of gut immune function, especially the induction of Th17 lymphocytes. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of mouse SFBs. The genome, which comprises a single circular chromosome of 1 620 005 bp, lacks genes for the biosynthesis of almost all amino acids, vitamins/cofactors and nucleotides, but contains a full set of genes for sporulation/germination and, unexpectedly, for chemotaxis/flagella-based motility. These findings suggest a triphasic lifestyle of the SFB, which comprises two types of vegetative (swimming and epicellular parasitic) phases and a dormant (spore) phase. Furthermore, SFBs encode four types of flagellin, three of which are recognized by Toll-like receptor 5 and could elicit the innate immune response. Our results reveal the non-culturability, lifestyle and immunostimulation mechanisms of SFBs and provide a genetic basis for the future development of the SFB cultivation and gene-manipulation techniques

Establishment of an Epicutaneously Sensitized Murine Model of Shellfish Allergy and Evaluation of Skin Condition by Raman Microscopy

Background: Shellfish allergy is one of the most common food allergies. Recent studies have shown that sensitization to allergens via the skin is involved in the development of food allergies. In this study, a mouse model of shrimp allergy was generated by epicutaneous sensitization and used to identify skin conditions associated with susceptibility to sensitization. Methods: Four-week-old female BALB/c mice were sensitized by repeated application of 0.1 mg of tropomyosin to tape-stripped skin on days 0, 7, and 15, followed by a challenge on days 28 and 35. Results: Epicutaneously sensitized mice exhibited higher serum levels of tropomyosin-specific IgE on day 15 than control mice. After the oral challenge, model mice had higher anaphylaxis scores and lower rectal temperature. After three tape-strip treatments for sensitization, the skin was analyzed by Raman microscopy. The sensitized mice exhibited lower relative intensities of Raman bands at 399, 915, and 1073 cm−1 than control mice, which could be helpful noninvasive markers in screening for potential sensitization via the skin. Conclusions: An epicutaneous sensitization shellfish allergy model was generated. This model will be useful in studies to elucidate the pathogenesis of skin sensitization. Raman microscopy may also be valuable for capturing subtle skin changes leading to sensitization

ジョウホウ ショリ キョウイク シエン パソコン ツウシン システム ALEPH ネット

パーソナルコンピュータ(パソコン)の急速な普及に伴う大学における情報処理教育環境の変化に対応し, ミニコンピュータ(VAX-8350)をホストとする教育支援パソコン通信システムAlephネットを開発し運用を開始したので, 報告する。本システムは, 情報交換を主目的とした従来型のパソコン通信機能と, プログラム開発用のTSS操作環境を統合化し, 主に本学応用数学科構成員を対象として運用している。本ネットの利用学生は, 学内外より時間の制約を受けず, 多様な情報処理教育支援サービスが受けられ, また, 当学科の教職員あるいは卒業生とネットを通じた新しい形態のコミュニケーションが可能である。The personal computer communication system, Aleph net, has been designed and implemented on the VAX-8350 minicomputer system linked with 5 telephone lines and about 100 personal computers and terminals. The design objective of this network is to aid education of computer and information science by releasing a part of the system resources to students. It provides both features of the conventional message communication and the TSS operational environment to develop programs with the language processing systems such as Pascal, FORTRAN or C. Another effect brought by this system is active communication between students and teachers and among students through this new medium. The VAX-C language and the DCL (DEC Command Language) have been used to describe the host control programs, which include about 6,300 source lines

チョウザイシツ ニオケル カンジャ マチ ジカン ノ カイセキ

Queues in rash-hour type were considered. The process of compounding of medicines constitutes a few of flows in hospital pharmacy. With due regard to this process, the hospital pharmacy of medical department in Okayama University in Japan was modelled for computer simulation. A prescription is expressed in list-structure and the simulation program is made in FORTRAN language

FORTRAN プログラム ノ フローチャート サクセイ 2

Two significant improvements over the flowcharter, FORTFLOW, were made by drawing flowcharts on a X-Y plotter and by listing the cross-reference tables about statement numbers and variable names. The flowcharts on X-Y plotter were paged for the convenience of programmers. By providing the cross-reference tables, the programs in the flowcharts could be modified more easily