[One-week effects of Tamsulosin on benign prostatic hyperplasia assessed with a daily symptom score].

The early effects of Tamsulosin within one week of administration on lower urinary tract symptoms in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) were investigated. Patients with newly diagnosed BPH were randomized into a Tamsulosin group and a Eviprostat group. Changes in subjective symptoms daily for 7 days after the start of administration and in the 4th week (8 times in total) were evaluated using seven symptoms in the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and the quality of life (QOL) index entered in a self-scoring diary kept by the patients daily. In the Tamsulosin group, the IPSS total score showed significant improvements. Significant improvements were observed in the incomplete emptying and frequency scores from the day after the start of administration, in the intermittence and straining scores from day 2, in the urgency and weak stream scores from day 3 and in the nocturia score from day 5. The QOL index significantly improved on day 7. In comparison with Eviprostat, Tamsulosin showed a stronger improvement tendency in the total IPSS, voiding symptoms score and incomplete emptying score and the difference was significant. The difference between the two groups was especially marked for the intermittence and weak stream scores and Tamsulosin showed significantly better early effects. Tamsulosin also showed significantly better early effects than Eviprostat in the QOL index. In conclusion, it was clear that Tamsulosin caused significant improvement in lower urinary tract symptoms associated with BPH as a whole from a very early stage within one week after administration.

Protection against Shiga toxin 1 challenge by immunization of mice with purified mutant Shiga toxin 1.

Shiga toxin 1 (Stx1) of enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 was cloned, and four mutant Stx1s were constructed by site-directed mutagenesis with PCR. The wild-type and mutant Stx1s with amino acid replacements at positions 167 and 170 of the A subunit were purified by one-step affinity chromatography with commercially available Globotriose Fractogel, and the mutant Stxs were used for the immunization of mice. The mutant toxins were nontoxic to Vero cells in vitro and to mice in vivo and induced the immunoglobulin G antibody against the wild-type Stx1, which neutralized the cytotoxicity of Stx1. The induced antibody titers depended on the mutation at position 170 of the A subunit. The mice immunized with the mutant Stx1s were protected against a challenge of approximately 100 times the 50% lethal dose of the wild-type Stx1, suggesting that the mutant toxins are good candidates for toxoid vaccines for infection by Stx1-producing E. coli.