[Mature teratoma combined with schizophrenia: report of a case].

A 20-year-old woman was admitted to another hospital due to schizophrenia in July 2003. The patient felt chest pain and palpitation in August, and she was referred to our hospital. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed a mass in the left thoracic cavity and a pleural/pericardial effusion. Since general condition did not improved in spite of aggressive supportive treatment, surgical treatment was chosen. An operation was performed via median sternotomy in September. The tumor was found to have adhered firmly to the surrounding organs. Pericardial fenestration was performed; then the tumor was resected with the left phrenic nerve due to tight adhesion. The patient received respiratory support in the intensive care unit for 5 days after surgery, uneventfully. Twenty-three months after surgery, she is surviving and free from schizophrenic symptoms without medication.

[Hemothorax following intraabdominal bleeding due to pedicle torsion of ovarian tumor via a small pore in the diaphragm: report of a case].

On February 25, 2004, 59-year-old woman visited a local clinic due to lower abdominal pain. On February 28, she was admitted to the clinic due to severe abdominal pain. Computed tomography (CT) showed a mass in the lower abdomen and plural effusion and athelectasis of the right lung. She had severe anemia (Hb 6.9 g/dl). On March 1, she was transferred to our hospital. Pleural fluid was revealed to be sanguineous by thoracentasis. She underwent thoracotomy on the day of admission. There was no source of bleeding in the pleural space. A small pore, 3 mm in diameter, was found in the tendinous portion of the diaphragm. An influx of bloody fluid from the abdomen via the pore caused hemothorax. Laparotomy was performed, followed by closure of the pore using direct suture. The origin of the abdominal bleeding was pedicle torsion of the right ovarian tumor. Seven months after surgery she was uneventful with no pleural effusion.

DS86 neutron dose: Monte Carlo analysis for depth profile of 152Eu activity in a large stone sample.

The depth profile of 152Eu activity induced in a large granite stone pillar by Hiroshima atomic bomb neutrons was calculated by a Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport Code (MCNP). The pillar was on the Motoyasu Bridge, located at a distance of 132 m (WSW) from the hypocenter. It was a square column with a horizontal sectional size of 82.5 cm x 82.5 cm and height of 179 cm. Twenty-one cells from the north to south surface at the central height of the column were specified for the calculation and 152Eu activities for each cell were calculated. The incident neutron spectrum was assumed to be the angular fluence data of the Dosimetry System 1986 (DS86). The angular dependence of the spectrum was taken into account by dividing the whole solid angle into twenty-six directions. The calculated depth profile of specific activity did not agree with the measured profile. A discrepancy was found in the absolute values at each depth with a mean multiplication factor of 0.58 and also in the shape of the relative profile. The results indicated that a reassessment of the neutron energy spectrum in DS86 is required for correct dose estimation.

Hapten-induced colitis is associated with colonic patch hypertrophy and T helper cell 2-type responses.

To investigate the potential involvement of T helper (Th)2-type responses in murine models of intestinal inflammation, we used trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBS)-hapten to induce inflammatory bowel disease in situations where Th1-type responses with interferon (IFN)-gamma synthesis are either diminished or do not occur. Intracolonic administration of TNBS to either normal (IFN-gamma+/+) or Th1-deficient IFN-gamma knockout (IFN-gamma-/-) BALB/c mice resulted in significant colitis. In IFN-gamma-/- mice, crypt inflammation was more severe than in IFN-gamma+/+ mice and was accompanied by hypertrophy of colonic patches with a lymphoepithelium containing M cells and distinct B and T cell zones resembling Peyer's patches. Hapten-specific, colonic patch T cells from both mouse groups exhibited a Th2 phenotype with interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-5 production. TNBS colitis in normal mice treated with anti-IL-4 antibodies or in IL-4(-/-) mice was less severe than in either IFN-gamma+/+ or IFN-gamma-/- mice. Our findings now show that the Th2-type responses in TNBS colitis are associated with colonic patch enlargement and inflammation of the mucosal layer and may represent a model for ulcerative colitis.

Deficiency of IL-5 receptor alpha-chain selectively influences the development of the common mucosal immune system independent IgA-producing B-1 cell in mucosa-associated tissues.

Deletion of IL-5R alpha-chain (IL-5R alpha-/-) selectively influenced the mucosal IgA responses in vivo. While levels of IgA in mucosal secretions were more reduced in IL-5R alpha-/- mice than in wild-type mice, the levels of IgA in serum were not changed. The frequency of IgA-producing cells was reduced in mucosal effector sites (e.g., intestinal lamina propria and nasal passage), but not in inductive sites such as Payer's patches and nasal-associated lymphoreticular tissues in IL-5R alpha-/- mice. IgA-committed (surface IgA+; sIgA+) B-1 cells mainly resided in mucosal effector tissues, while conventional sIgA+ B (B-2) cells formed in mucosal inductive sites of wild-type mice. In contrast, in the effector tissue of IL-5R alpha-/- mice, sIgA+ B-1 cells, but not sIgA+ B-2 cells in the inductive site, were significantly reduced. IL-5R alpha was more expressed on sIgA+ B-1 cells than was IL-6R, while both IL-5R alpha and IL-6R were expressed on sIgA+ B-2 cells in wild-type mice. sIgA+ B-1 cells produced high levels of IgA with rIL-5 rather than of rIL-6 in vitro. Taken together, the findings suggest that the IL-5/IL-5R signaling pathway is critically important for the development of common mucosal immune system independent sIgA+ B-1 cell in mucosal effector tissues in vivo.

A crack model of the Hiroshima atomic bomb: explanation of the contradiction of "Dosimetry system 1986".

There has been a large discrepancy between the Dosimetry system 1986 (DS86) and measured data, some of which data in Hiroshima at about 1.5 km ground distance from the hypocenter are about 10 times larger than the calculation. Therefore its causes have long been discussed, since it will change the estimated radiation risks obtained based on the Hiroshima and Nagasaki data. In this study the contradiction was explained by a bare-fission-neutron leakage model through a crack formed at the time of neutron emission. According to the present calculation, the crack has a 3 cm parallel spacing, which is symmetric with respect to the polar axis from the hypocenter to the epicenter of the atomic bomb. We made also an asymmetric opening closing 3/4 of this symmetric geometry, because there are some data which shows asymmetry. In addition, the height of the neutron emission point was elevated 90 m. By using the asymmetric calculation, especially for long distant data located more than 1 km, it was verified that all of the activity data induced by thermal and fast neutrons, were simultaneously explained within the data scattering. The neutron kerma at a typical 1.5 km ground distance increases 3 and 8 times more than DS86 based on the symmetric and asymmetric model, respectively.

Disposition and metabolism of the new hypocholesterolemic compound S-8921 in rats and dogs.

S-8921 (methyl 1-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-3-(3-ethylvaleryl)-4-hydroxy-6,7,8-trimeth oxy-2- naphthoate, CAS 151165-96-7) is a novel hypocholesterolemic agent which was found to inhibit ileal Na+/bile acid cotransporter. In this report, the pharmacokinetic profile of S-8921 was studied in rats and dogs. After dosing of 14C-S-8921 to rats at 1 to 25 mg/kg as 0.5% methylcellulose (MC) suspension, tmax was observed during 5-6 h, and AUCs increased with the dose, but not proportionally. The elimination half-lives were around 38-41 h for the doses examined. The apparent absorption ratio of 5 mg/kg of 14C-S-8921 as MC suspension was about 14%. Most of the radioactivity (98% of dose) was excreted into the feces and only 1-2% into the urine. Biliary excretion of radioactivity after dosing of 1, 5 or 25 mg/kg was 22, 20, 15%, respectively. Saturation of the absorption process was suggested. Even in case of intravenous dosing, about 88% was excreted into the bile. Enterohepatic circulation of biliary metabolites was also observed in rat. Its extent was small (6%), but, it may be contribute to the slow elimination of S-8921 from rat. The highest radioactivity was observed in the liver, with other tissues showing similar radioactivity profiles to that of plasma. The elimination half-lives of radioactivity from tissues were very long, e.g. 68 h for the liver and 58 h for the kidney. After 14 days multiple dosing, most tissues showed about two times higher radioactivity than that after a single dose. The simulation curves of liver and plasma showed a good fit with those of the observed values. These results suggested that there is no serious accumulation of radioactivity in tissues by multiple dosing of 14C-S-8921 in rats. The plasma radioactivity after oral dosing of 5 mg/kg of 14C-S-8921 to dogs as an MC suspension reached maximum concentration (c.a. 33 ng/ml) at 2 h, then decreased very slowly with a half-life of 169 h. The apparent absorption ratio was 4.6% for MC suspension. The excretion of radioactivity into bile, feces and urine after oral dosing of 14C-S-8921 at 5 mg/kg as an MC suspension were 3.0%, 94.6% and 0.3%, respectively. Even in the case of intravenous dosing, urinary excretion was very small (2.2%) and most of the radioactivity was excreted very slowly into the feces. The major metabolite of S-8921 in rat bile was its glucuronide. Other minor metabolites identified were the demethylated forms of 7-methoxy and 4'-methoxy moieties of S-8921. They were also excreted into bile as their glucuronides.

Nasal immune system: distinctive Th0 and Th1/Th2 type environments in murine nasal-associated lymphoid tissues and nasal passage, respectively.

The nasal mucosa, an important arm of the mucosal immune system, is the first site of contact with inhaled antigens to induce an IgA response. A major aim of this study was to characterize the Th1 and Th2 cytokine expression of mucosal T cells residing in nasal-associated lymphoid tissue (NALT) and nasal passages (NP) as IgA inductive and effector sites, respectively, at the transcription and cellular levels. An application of single-cell reverse transcription-PCR for analysis of Th1 (IFN-gamma) and Th2 (IL-4 and IL-6) cytokine-specific mRNA revealed the presence of CD4+ T cells with a Th0 profile in NALT, while high numbers of Th2 cytokine-specific mRNA expressed by CD4+ T cells were noted in NP followed by Th1-type cells. NALT CD3+ CD4+ T cells of Th0 type have the capacity to become Th1- and/or Th2-type cells since their activation via the TCR-CD3 complex resulted in the expression of an array of Th1 and Th2 cytokines. CD3+ CD4+ T cells from NP, but not NALT, provide a helper function for the induction of antibody-forming cells including IgA isotype in B cell cultures. These findings suggest that NALT is characterized by a Th0 environment which can gain a Th1 and/or Th2 phenotype. In contrast, NP is considered to be a Th2 dominant site with some Th1 cells that can support the induction of IgA-producing cells.

Structural determination of metabolites of S-1153, a new, potent, non-nucleoside, anti-HIV agent in rat liver microsomes.

1. S-1153, a non-nucleoside agent that is under development in the USA as a new anti-HIV agent, has potent antiviral activity based on the inhibition of reverse transcriptase. 2. S-1153 was incubated with rat liver microsomes and NADPH, and seven metabolites were formed. The main metabolites were identified as the S-oxide, N-oxide and sulphone of S-1153. 3. Two other minor metabolites were assumed to be S-1153 hydroxylated on the isopropyl moiety. 4. Our findings confirmed the existence of at least three oxidative metabolic pathways of S-1153.

Residual 60Co activity in steel samples exposed to the Hiroshima atomic-bomb neutrons.

Residual 60Co radioactivity produced by the neutrons from the Hiroshima atomic bomb has been measured by means of gamma-ray spectrometry for seven steel samples located up to 1,800 m slant range and one control sample obtained at 4.5 km from the hypocenter. After removing the main constituent of iron ions from the steel sample by the solvent extraction method, nickel and cobalt were chemically separated by the ion exchange process. Gamma-ray measurements were performed with a low background well-type germanium detector. Derived specific activities 60Co:Co were compared with previous measurements and with the calculation based on the neutron fluence of current dosimetry system DS86. It has been shown that a systematic discrepancy exists between the measured and calculated activity. The calculated-to-measured ratios for 60Co are consistent with those of 152Eu and 36Cl activity.

152Eu depth profiles in granite and concrete cores exposed to the Hiroshima atomic bomb.

Two granite and two concrete core samples were obtained within 500 m from the hypocenter of the Hiroshima atomic bomb, and the depth profile of 152Eu was measured to evaluate the incident neutron spectrum. The granite cores were obtained from a pillar of the Motoyasu Bridge located 101 m from the hypocenter and from a granite rock in the Shirakami Shrine (379 m); the concrete cores were obtained from a gate in the Gokoku Shrine (398 m) and from a pillar top of the Hiroshima bank (250 m). The profiles of the specific activities of the cores were measured to a depth of 40 cm from the surface using low background germanium (Ge) spectrometers. According to the measured depth profiles, relaxation lengths of incident neutrons were derived as 13.6 cm for Motoyasu Bridge pillar (granite), 12.2 cm for Shirakami Shrine core (granite), and 9.6 cm for concrete cores of Gokoku Shrine and Hiroshima Bank. In addition, a comparison of the granite cores in Hiroshima showed good agreement with Nagasaki data. Present results indicates that the depth profile of 152Eu reflects incident neutrons not so high but in the epithermal region.

137Cs concentration in soil samples from an early survey of Hiroshima atomic bomb and cumulative dose estimation from the fallout.

Low background gamma-ray measurement has been performed to determine the 137Cs content in soil samples collected in a very early survey of the Hiroshima atomic bomb. These soil samples were collected just 3 d after the explosion within 5 km from the hypocenter and were not exposed to the global fallout from nuclear weapon tests. Out of 22 samples, 137Cs was detected for 11 samples, and their radioactivities ranged from 0.16-10.6 mBq g-1 at the time of the measurement. A comparison of the 137Cs deposition with the rainfall area within Hiroshima city indicates that the rainfall area was wider than the previously proposed one. Cumulative exposure by the fallout has been estimated to be 0.31 mC kg-1 (0.12 R) in Hiroshima city except for the heavy fallout area and at most 1.0 mC kg-1 (4 R) in the heavy fallout area.

Benchmark test of neutron transport calculations: indium, nickel, gold, europium, and cobalt activation with and without energy moderated fission neutrons by iron simulating the Hiroshima atomic bomb casing.

A benchmark test of the Monte Carlo neutron and photon transport code system (MCNP) was performed using a bare- and energy-moderated 252Cf fission neutron source which was obtained by transmission through 10-cm-thick iron. An iron plate was used to simulate the effect of the Hiroshima atomic bomb casing. This test includes the activation of indium and nickel for fast neutrons and gold, europium, and cobalt for thermal and epithermal neutrons, which were inserted in the moderators. The latter two activations are also to validate 152Eu and 60Co activity data obtained from the atomic bomb-exposed specimens collected at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan. The neutron moderators used were Lucite and Nylon 6 and the total thickness of each moderator was 60 cm or 65 cm. Measured activity data (reaction yield) of the neutron-irradiated detectors in these moderators decreased to about 1/1,000th or 1/10,000th, which corresponds to about 1,500 m ground distance from the hypocenter in Hiroshima. For all of the indium, nickel, and gold activity data, the measured and calculated values agreed within 25%, and the corresponding values for europium and cobalt were within 40%. From this study, the MCNP code was found to be accurate enough for the bare- and energy-moderated 252Cf neutron activation calculations of these elements using moderators containing hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen.

Residual 152Eu and 60Co activities induced by neutrons from the Hiroshima atomic bomb.

Specific activities of 152Eu:Eu in stone samples exposed to the Hiroshima atomic bomb were determined for 70 samples up to a 1,500-m slant range from the epicenter. The specific activities of 60Co:Co were also determined for six samples near the Hiroshima hypocenter. First, the 152Eu data were investigated to find out the directional dependence of neutron activation. Directional anisotropy was not definite; however, there was an indication that the activation in the west-southwest was lower than in other directions. Second, measured 152Eu and 60Co radioactivity data were compared with activation calculations based on DS86 neutrons. It is clearly shown that the measured data are lower than the calculation near the hypocenter and vice versa at long distances beyond 1,000 m. The calculated-to-measured ratios of 152Eu are 1.6 at the hypocenter, 1.0 at approximately 900 m, and 0.05 at a 1,500-m slant range. Present results indicate that systematic errors exist in the DS86 neutrons concerning the source-term spectrum, neutron transport calculations in air, and/or activation measurements.

Benchmark test of transport calculations of gold and nickel activation with implications for neutron kerma at Hiroshima.

A benchmark test of the Monte Carlo neutron and photon transport code system (MCNP) was performed using a 252Cf fission neutron source to validate the use of the code for the energy spectrum analyses of Hiroshima atomic bomb neutrons. Nuclear data libraries used in the Monte Carlo neutron and photon transport code calculation were ENDF/B-III, ENDF/B-IV, LASL-SUB, and ENDL-73. The neutron moderators used were granite (the main component of which is SiO2, with a small fraction of hydrogen), Newlight [polyethylene with 3.7% boron (natural)], ammonium chloride (NH4Cl), and water (H2O). Each moderator was 65 cm thick. The neutron detectors were gold and nickel foils, which were used to detect thermal and epithermal neutrons (4.9 eV) and fast neutrons (> 0.5 MeV), respectively. Measured activity data from neutron-irradiated gold and nickel foils in these moderators decreased to about 1/1,000th or 1/10,000th, which correspond to about 1,500 m ground distance from the hypocenter in Hiroshima. For both gold and nickel detectors, the measured activities and the calculated values agreed within 10%. The slopes of the depth-yield relations in each moderator, except granite, were similar for neutrons detected by the gold and nickel foils. From the results of these studies, the Monte Carlo neutron and photon transport code was verified to be accurate enough for use with the elements hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, silicon, chlorine, and cadmium, and for the incident 252Cf fission spectrum neutrons.

Structures of new peptide antibiotics, plusbacins A1-A4 and B1-B4.

The constituent amino acids of plusbacins A1-A4 were determined to be two moles of L-trans-3-hydroxyproline and one mole each of D-threo-beta-hydroxyaspartic acid, L-threo-beta-hydroxyaspartic acid, D-allo-threonine, D-serine, D-alanine and L-arginine. In plusbacins B1-B4, one mole of L-trans-3-hydroxyproline is replaced by L-proline. The fatty acid residue of A1 and B1 was determined to be 3-hydroxy-tetradecanoic acid, for A2 and B2 to be 3-hydroxy-isopentadecanoic acid, for A3 and B3 to be 3-hydroxy-isohexadecanoic acid, and for A4 and B4 to be 3-hydroxy-hexadecanoic acid. A lactone linkage was suggested to reside between L-threo-beta-hydroxyaspartic acid and 3-hydroxy-fatty acid residues by degradation experiments. The amino acid sequences of plusbacins A2 and B2 were confirmed by Edman degradation of their deacylated products, and supported by mass spectrometric studies. From the above, structures of all components of plusbacins were concluded.

Specific activities of 60Co and 152Eu in samples collected from the Atomic-Bomb Dome in Hiroshima.

Neutron-induced activities 60Co and 152Eu have been measured for samples collected from the Atomic-Bomb Dome locating at 161 m from the hypocenter of the Hiroshima Bomb. Specific activities 60Co/Co and 152Eu/Eu at the time of the detonation have been determined as 10.0 +/- 1.0 Bq mg-1 (steel sample S4) and 80 +/- 9 Bq mg-1 (granite sample G1), respectively. Detailed measurements of 60Co and 152Eu activities for samples collected from various locations of the Dome show almost no directional dependence whether the sample faced to the epicenter or not, nor vertical height dependence between 17 m height and the ground level. In addition, 152Eu was not detected in the sample collected from the basement. It has been shown that the present 60Co activity value, the nearest steel one to the hypocenter, as well as other short distance data are systematically lower than the calculated values based on the neutron fluence of the DS86.