Highly c-axis orientated superconducting core and large critical current density in Ba0.6Na0.4Fe2As2 powder-in-tube tape.

Improvement of the critical current density (Jc) of superconducting wires/tapes is one of the key issues in the field of superconductivity applications. Here we report the fabrication of a silver-sheathed Ba1-xNaxFe2As2 (BaNa-122) superconducting tape by using a powder-in-tube technique and its superconducting properties, in particular transport Jc, as well as the tape-core texture. The optimally-doped BaNa-122 tape with Na concentration x = 0.4 exhibits the superconducting critical temperature (Tc) of 33.7 K and high transport Jc of 4 × 104 A/cm2 at 4.2 K in a magnetic field of 4 T. Patterns of x-ray diffraction for the superconducting core show that the degree of c-axis orientation is significantly enhanced through the tape fabrication process. The tendency of c-axis orientation is advantageous for achieving higher Jc, suggesting the high potential of BaNa-122 for superconducting wire/tape applications.

Airway basophils are increased and activated in eosinophilic asthma.

BACKGROUND: The impact of basophils on asthma pathogenesis remains largely unexplored, particularly in humans. Here, we evaluated the frequencies and activation status of basophils in the sputum of adult asthmatic patients and related our findings to other parameters of eosinophilic airway inflammation. METHODS: We enrolled 44 adult asthmatic patients who were being treated with inhaled corticosteroids (ICS). Analysis of the induced sputum, exhaled nitric oxide fraction (FeNO) measurement, and asthma control test (ACT) were carried out together with standard blood and pulmonary function tests. The cellular composition of the sputum was examined by flow cytometry, and the phenotypes of blood and sputum basophils were compared. RESULTS: Basophils were increased in the sputum of asthmatic patients. The expression of CD203c on sputum basophils was significantly higher than that on blood basophils. The percentage of sputum basophils was positively correlated with those of eosinophils and mast cells; it was also correlated with that of blood eosinophils and FeNO. However, sputum basophils were not correlated with serum IgE, lung function, or the percentage of blood basophils. A receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed the superiority of sputum basophils as a surrogate marker of the percentages of sputum eosinophils compared with absolute numbers of blood eosinophils and FeNO. CONCLUSION: The number of activated basophils was increased in the sputum of patients with eosinophilic asthma and correlated with airway and blood eosinophils. Our observations suggest that sputum basophils may serve as a biomarker to monitor new therapeutic approaches for the treatment of eosinophilic asthma.

Polypharmacy of medications and fall-related fractures in older people in Japan: a comparison between driving-prohibited and driving-cautioned medications.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Polypharmacy is a risk factor for fall-related fractures. However, it is unclear whether polypharmacy itself is a direct risk factor. The aim of this study was to assess the association between the risk of fall-related fractures and polypharmacy of driving-prohibited and driving-cautioned medications in older outpatients. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study of outpatients aged ≥65 years receiving any medication, using two sampling data sets from the October 2011 and October 2012 national insurance claims in Japan. Using logistic regression models, we analysed the association between the numbers of driving-prohibited or driving-cautioned medications administered or dispensed to patients and the occurrence of fall-related fractures. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: In both analysis populations (n = 303 311 and n = 326 219), the adjusted odds ratio of driving-prohibited medications for the occurrence of fall-related fractures significantly increased as the number of these medications per patient increased (95% confidence interval: 0, 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8 and ≥9 medications; reference, 0·95-1·24, 1·18-1·79, 1·47-2·96, 1·26-5·21 and 1·50-15·2 in October 2011 and reference, 1·11-1·42, 1·39-2·03, 1·33-2·72, 1·53-5·49 and 1·30-13·0 in October 2012). The association was maintained even for sensitivity analyses restricted to medications administered orally or orally and by injection. However, a similar association was not observed for driving-cautioned medications. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: Medication class is a more important risk factor for fall-related fractures rather than polypharmacy alone with no regard to medication class.

Comparing patient dissatisfaction and rational judgment in intentional medication non-adherence versus unintentional non-adherence.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Patients' poor adherence to medications is reported to be related to the individual patients' beliefs and cognitions and their trust of the medical staff. However, the causes of the two forms of non-adherence, intentional and unintentional behaviours, have yet to be clarified. This study compared psychological latent factors associated with intentional and unintentional non-adherence to chronic medication regimens, focusing on the potential effects of (i) patients' dissatisfaction with treatment and their relationships with the medical staff and (ii) patients' subliminal rational thinking processes, which weighed the positive values such as their expectations of benefits from treatment against negative values such as their dissatisfaction. METHODS: Two cross-sectional surveys were undertaken of patients given medications for chronic diseases, using a questionnaire developed and validated in this study. One survey was undertaken in three hospitals and the other survey, online throughout Japan. We scored the individual latent factors using the questionnaire and calculated the differential score between two negatively correlated latent factors to quantify patients' subliminal rational thinking process. We compared the adjusted odds ratio (OR) of latent factors between intentional and unintentional non-adherence to medication in both surveys. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Of the eligible subjects, 149 hospitalized patients and 524 survey participants completed the questionnaire. Intentional non-adherence was associated with patient dissatisfaction with treatment including interpersonal relationships with medical staff in both hospitalized patients and online survey participants (95% confidence interval of adjusted OR for Dissatisfaction, 1·20-16·26 in the hospital-based survey and 1·33-3·45 in the online survey). In both surveys, intentional non-adherence was significantly associated with the differential score between two negatively correlated latent factors, Willingness and Dissatisfaction (P = 0·02 in the hospital-based survey and P < 0·001 in the online survey). However, these associations were not evident in unintentionally non-adherent patients. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSIONS: Patients' dissatisfaction and their resulting rational judgments are unique, consistent determinants of intentional non-adherence to medications, but not of unintentional non-adherence.

Visual-statistical interpretation of (18)F-FDG-PET images for characteristic Alzheimer patterns in a multicenter study: inter-rater concordance and relationship to automated quantitative evaluation.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The role of (18)F-FDG-PET in the diagnosis of Alzheimer disease is increasing and should be validated. The aim of this study was to assess the inter-rater variability in the interpretation of (18)F-FDG-PET images obtained in the Japanese Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, a multicenter clinical research project. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study analyzed 274 (18)F-FDG-PET scans (67 mild Alzheimer disease, 100 mild cognitive impairment, and 107 normal cognitive) as baseline scans for the Japanese Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, which were acquired with various types of PET or PET/CT scanners in 23 facilities. Three independent raters interpreted all PET images by using a combined visual-statistical method. The images were classified into 7 (FDG-7) patterns by the criteria of Silverman et al and further into 2 (FDG-2) patterns. RESULTS: Agreement among the 7 visual-statistical categories by at least 2 of the 3 readers occurred in >94% of cases for all groups: Alzheimer disease, mild cognitive impairment, and normal cognitive. Perfect matches by all 3 raters were observed for 62% of the cases by FDG-7 and 76 by FDG-2. Inter-rater concordance was moderate by FDG-7 (κ = 0.57) and substantial in FDG-2 (κ = 0.67) on average. The FDG-PET score, an automated quantitative index developed by Herholz et al, increased as the number of raters who voted for the AD pattern increased (ρ = 0.59, P < .0001), and the FDG-PET score decreased as those for normal pattern increased (ρ = -0.64, P < .0001). CONCLUSIONS: Inter-rater agreement was moderate to substantial for the combined visual-statistical interpretation of (18)F-FDG-PET and was also significantly associated with automated quantitative assessment.

Application of the pencil-beam redefinition algorithm in heterogeneous media for proton beam therapy.

In proton beam therapy, changes in the proton range due to lateral heterogeneity may cause serious errors in the dose distribution. In the present study, the pencilbeam redefinition algorithm (PBRA) was applied to proton beam therapy to address the problem of lateral density heterogeneity. In the calculation, the phase-space parameters were characterized for multiple range (i.e. proton energy) bins for given pencil beams. The particles that were included in each pencil beam were transported and redefined periodically until they had stopped. The redefined beams formed a detouring path that was different from that of the non-redefined pencil beams, and the path of each redefined beam was straight. The results calculated by the PBRA were compared with measured proton dose distributions in a heterogeneous slab phantom and an anthropomorphic phantom. Through the beam redefinition process, the PBRA was able to predict the measured proton-detouring effects. Therefore, the PBRA may allow improved calculation accuracy when dealing with lateral heterogeneities in proton therapy applications.

Evaluation of the predictive performance of a pharmacokinetic model for propofol in Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata fuscata).

Propofol is a short-acting intravenous anesthetic used for induction/maintenance anesthesia. The objective of this study was to assess a population pharmacokinetic (PPK) model for Japanese macaques during a step-down infusion of propofol. Five male Japanese macaques were immobilized with ketamine (10 mg/kg) and atropine (0.02 mg/kg). A bolus dose of propofol (5 mg/kg) was administrated intravenously (360 mg/kg/h) followed by step-down infusion at 40 mg/kg/h for 10 min, 20 mg/kg/h for 10 min, and then 15 mg/kg/h for 100 min. Venous blood samples were repeatedly collected following the administration. The plasma concentration of propofol (Cp) was measured by high-speed LC-FL. PPK analyses were performed using NONMEM VII. Median absolute prediction error and median prediction error (MDPE), the indices of prediction inaccuracy and bias, respectively, were calculated, and PE - individual MDPE vs. time was depicted to show the variability of prediction errors. In addition, we developed another population pharmacokinetic model using previous and current datasets. The previous PK model achieved stable prediction of propofol Cp throughout the study period, although it underestimates Cp. The step-down infusion regimen described in this study would be feasible in macaques during noninvasive procedures.

Genetic analysis of hybrid seed formation ability of Brassica rapa in intergeneric crossings with Raphanus sativus.

A hybridization barrier leads to the inability of seed formation after intergeneric crossings between Brassica rapa and Raphanus sativus. Most B. rapa lines cannot set intergeneric hybrid seeds because of embryo breakdown, but a B. rapa line obtained from turnip cultivar 'Shogoin-kabu' is able to produce a large number of hybrid seeds as a maternal parent by crossings with R. sativus. In 'Shogoin-kabu' crossed with R. sativus, developments of embryos and endosperms were slower than those in intraspecific crossings, but some of them grew to mature seeds without embryo breakdown. Intergeneric hybrid seeds were obtained in a 'Shogoin-kabu' line at a rate of 0.13 per pollinated flower, while no hybrid seeds were obtained in a line developed from Chinese cabbage cultivar 'Chiifu'. F(1) hybrid plants between the lines of 'Shogoin-kabu' and 'Chiifu' set a larger number of hybrid seeds per flower, 0.68, than both the parental lines. Quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for hybrid seed formation were analyzed after intergeneric crossings using two different F(2) populations derived from the F(1) hybrids, and three QTLs with significant logarithm of odds scores were detected. Among them, two QTLs, i.e., one in linkage group A10 and the other in linkage group A01, were detected in both the F(2) populations. These two QTLs had contrary effects on the number of hybrid seeds. Epistatic interaction between these two QTLs was revealed. Possible candidate genes controlling hybrid seed formation ability in QTL regions were inferred using the published B. rapa genome sequences.

Effect of the C-terminal domain of Vibrio proteolyticus chitinase A on the chitinolytic activity in association with pH changes.

AIMS: To reveal the cause of the difference in activity of chitinase A from Vibrio proteolyticus and chitinase A from a strain of Vibrio carchariae (a junior synonym of Vibrio harveyi), we investigated the pH-dependent activity of full-length V. proteolyticus chitinase A and a truncated recombinant corresponding to the V. harveyi form of chitinase A. METHODS AND RESULTS: After overexpression in Escherichia coli strain DH5α, the full-length and truncated recombinant chitinases were purified by ammonium sulphate precipitation and anion exchange column chromatography. Chitinase activity was measured at various pH values using α-crystal and colloidal chitins as the substrate. The pH-dependent patterns of the relative specific activities for α-crystal chitin differed between the full-length and truncated recombinant chitinases, whereas those for colloidal chitin were similar to each other. CONCLUSION: The difference in the activity of V. proteolyticus chitinase A and V. harveyi chitinase A might be partly due to a change in the pH dependence of the chitinase activities against α-crystal chitin, resulting from C-terminal processing. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF STUDY: The present results are important findings for not only ecological studies on the genus Vibrio in association with survival strategies, but also phylogenetic studies.

Delimitation of a QTL region controlling cold tolerance at booting stage of a cultivar, 'Lijiangxintuanheigu', in rice, Oryza sativa L.

Low temperature at the booting stage of rice causes male sterility resulting in severe yield loss. Cold tolerance has long been an important objective in rice breeding. We identified a quantitative trait locus (QTL) for cold tolerance on the long arm of chromosome 3 from the cold-tolerant breeding line 'Ukei 840' by using F(2) and BC(1)F(2) populations from crosses between 'Ukei 840' and 'Hitomebore'. The cold tolerance of 'Ukei 840' is derived from the Chinese cultivar 'Lijiangxintuanheigu'. The effect of this QTL on cold tolerance was confirmed by developing 'Hitomebore' chromosome segment substitution lines having 'Lijiangxintuanheigu' alleles on chromosome 3. By producing recombinants in chromosome 3, the QTL region for cold tolerance was delimited to the region of about 1.2-Mb region between RM3719 and RM7000. All lines heterozygous for the QTL showed seed fertilities as low as that of 'Hitomebore', suggesting that the 'Lijiangxintuanheigu' allele for cold tolerance in the QTL region is recessive. Determination of a 1.2-Mb nucleotide sequence of 'Ukei 840' and comparison with the published genomic sequence of 'Nipponbare' showed 254 SNPs, of which 11 were in coding regions of genes, seven in five genes being non-synonymous. SNPs were detected in the 5-kb upstream regions of 89 genes, but no differences of gene expression levels were detected between alleles of these genes. Although further delimitation is required to identify the gene responsible for cold tolerance of 'Lijiangxintuanheigu', SNP markers developed here will be useful for marker-assisted selection in a breeding program using 'Lijiangxintuanheigu' as a donor of cold tolerance.

Heterodisaccharide 4-O-(N-acetyl-ß-D-glucosaminyl)-D-glucosamine is an effective chemotactic attractant for Vibrio bacteria that produce chitin oligosaccharide deacetylase.

AIMS: To investigate the attractant effect of 4-O-(N-acetyl-ß-D-glucosaminyl)-D-glucosamine (GlcNAc-GlcN) in the chemotaxis of Vibrio bacteria that produce carbohydrate esterase (CE) family 4 chitin oligosaccharide deacetylase (COD), an enzyme that catalyzes the production of GlcNAc-GlcN from N,N'-diacetylchitobiose (GlcNAc)(2). METHODS AND RESULTS: The chemotactic effect of disaccharides from chitin on several strains of Vibrio bacteria was investigated using an agar gel lane-migration method. The results demonstrated that GlcNAc-GlcN functions as an effective chemoattractant in the CE family 4 COD-producing vibrios, Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Vibrio alginolyticus. In contrast, this phenomenon was not observed in Vibrio nereis or Vibrio furnissii, which lack genes encoding this enzyme. From transmission electron microscope observation of V. parahaemolyticus cells following the chemotaxis assay, GlcNAc-GlcN appears to stimulate polar flagellum rotation. CONCLUSIONS: GlcNAc-GlcN is a specific chemoattractant for the CE family 4 COD-producing vibrios, V. parahaemolyticus and V. alginolyticus. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: It was clarified for the first time that GlcNAc-GlcN functions as a signalling molecule in the chemotaxis of Vibrio bacteria that have an ability to produce CE family 4 COD, which generate GlcNAc-GlcN from (GlcNAc)(2).

Dominant-negative effects of a novel mutation in the filamin myopathy.

BACKGROUND: Filamin myopathy is associated with mutations in the filamin C gene (FLNC) and is a myofibrillar myopathy characterized by focal myofibrillar destruction and cytoplasmic aggregates containing several Z-disk-related proteins. METHODS: This study investigated 6 Japanese patients with dominantly inherited myofibrillar myopathy manifested by adult-onset, slow and progressive muscle weakness and atrophy in the distal extremities. RESULTS: The abundantly expressed proteins in the affected muscles were identified as filamin C by nano liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. A genetic analysis of FLNC identified a heterozygous c.8107delG mutation that was localized to the dimerization domain of filamin C. A biochemical crosslinking analysis of bacterially expressed recombinant wild-type and mutant filamin C fragments demonstrated that the mutant monomer disturbed the proper dimerization of the wild-type filamin dimer, resulting in formation of a heterotrimer with the wild-type filamin dimer. The expression study in C2C12 myoblasts showed that the mutant filamin fragments formed cytoplasmic aggregates with endogenous wild-type filamin C. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides evidence for the dominant-negative effects of the FLNC mutation. These effects may be mutation-specific and likely result in the variation in the clinical phenotypes seen in patients with filamin myopathy.

Genetic analysis of interspecific incompatibility in Brassica rapa.

In interspecific pollination of Brassica rapa stigmas with Brassica oleracea pollen grains, pollen tubes cannot penetrate stigma tissues. This trait, called interspecific incompatibility, is similar to self-incompatibility in pollen tube behaviors of rejected pollen grains. Since some B. rapa lines have no interspecific incompatibility, genetic analysis of interspecific incompatibility was performed using two F(2) populations. Analysis with an F(2) population between an interspecific-incompatible line and a self-compatible cultivar 'Yellow sarson' having non-functional alleles of S-locus genes and MLPK, the stigmas of which are compatible with B. oleracea pollen grains, revealed no involvement of the S locus and MLPK in the difference of their interspecific incompatibility phenotypes. In QTL analysis of the strength of interspecific incompatibility, three peaks of LOD scores were found, but their LOD scores were as high as the threshold value, and the variance explained by each QTL was small. QTL analysis using another F(2) population derived from selected parents having the highest and lowest levels of interspecific incompatibility revealed five QTLs with high LOD scores, which did not correspond to those found in the former population. The QTL having the highest LOD score was found in linkage group A02. The effect of this QTL on interspecific incompatibility was confirmed by analyzing backcrossed progeny. Based on synteny of this QTL region with Arabidopsis thaliana chromosome 5, a possible candidate gene, which might be involved in interspecific incompatibility, is discussed.

Assessment of genetic diversity of accessions in Brassicaceae genetic resources by frequency distribution analysis of S haplotypes.

Plant genetic resources are important sources of genetic variation for improving crop varieties as breeding materials. Conservation of such resources of allogamous species requires maintenance of the genetic diversity within each accession to avoid inbreeding depression and loss of rare alleles. For assessment of genetic diversity in the self-incompatibility locus (S locus), which is critically involved in the chance of mating, we developed a dot-blot genotyping method for self-incompatibility (S) haplotypes and applied it to indigenous, miscellaneous landraces of Brassica rapa, provided by the IPK Gene Bank (Gatersleben, Germany) and the Tohoku University Brassica Seed Bank (Sendai, Japan), in which landraces are maintained using different population sizes. This method effectively determined S genotypes of more than 500 individuals from the focal landraces. Although our results suggest that these landraces might possess sufficient numbers of S haplotypes, the strong reduction of frequencies of recessive S haplotypes occurred, probably owing to genetic drift. Based on these results, we herein discuss an appropriate way to conserve genetic diversity of allogamous plant resources in a gene bank.

Type-1.5 superconductivity.

We demonstrate the existence of a novel superconducting state in high quality two-component MgB2 single crystalline superconductors where a unique combination of both type-1 (lambda{1}/xi{1}<1/sqrt[2]) and type-2 (lambda{2}/xi{2}>1/sqrt[2]) superconductor conditions is realized for the two components of the order parameter. This condition leads to a vortex-vortex interaction attractive at long distances and repulsive at short distances, which stabilizes unconventional stripe- and gossamerlike vortex patterns that we have visualized in this type-1.5 superconductor using Bitter decoration and also reproduced in numerical simulations.

Development of PCR markers to detect the glb1 and Lgc1 mutations for the production of low easy-to-digest protein rice varieties.

Limiting the ingestion of protein is the fundamental idea in the diet therapy for patients with chronic renal failure. Two mutations involved in the content of major rice storage proteins useful for developing low easy-to-digest protein rice variety have been isolated. The glb1 mutation causes the deficiency of alpha-globulin, and the Lgc1 mutation reduces the glutelin content. By combining the glb1 and the Lgc1 mutations, it is possible to reduce the easy-to-digest protein content by approximately 50%. The Lgc1 mutation has been shown to be caused by a 3.5-kb deletion between the glutelin structural genes, GluB4 and GluB5, while the molecular basis of glb1 mutation has been less understood. PCR analysis of the glb1 mutation revealed a 62.8-kb deletion, including the structural gene of alpha-globulin. Based on these lines of information, we generated PCR markers that make it possible to detect the glb1 and Lgc1 mutations. Using those PCR markers, we genotyped F(2) plants segregating for the glb1 mutation and the Lgc1 mutation and confirmed the consistency of genotype and phenotype. Because the PCR marker sets can distinguish heterozygotes, they will be very useful in developing new varieties of low easy-to-digest protein rice.

Novel QTLs for photoperiodic flowering revealed by using reciprocal backcross inbred lines from crosses between japonica rice cultivars.

The rice japonica cultivars Nipponbare and Koshihikari differ in heading date and response of heading to photoperiod (photoperiod sensitivity). Using simple sequence repeat (SSR) and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers, we conducted quantitative trait locus (QTL) analyses for heading date in a set of reciprocal backcross inbred lines (BILs) from crosses between Nipponbare and Koshihikari. Under natural-day conditions, transgressive segregation in days to heading (DTH) toward both early and late heading was observed in both BIL populations. QTL analyses revealed that two QTLs--on chromosomes 3 and 6--were involved in the difference in heading date between the parental cultivars. The Nipponbare allele at the QTLs on chromosomes 3 and 6 showed, respectively, increasing and decreasing effects on DTH in both BIL populations. The transgressive segregation observed in the BILs could be accounted for mainly by the complementary action of a set of alleles with opposing effects. Both QTLs were finely mapped as single Mendelian factors in secondary mapping populations (BC2F2 plants/BC2F3 lines). The QTL on chromosome 3 was mapped in the 1,140-kb interval between 94O03-4 (SSR) and OJ21G19-4 (SNP) and was designated Hd16. The QTL on chromosome 6 was mapped in the 328-kb interval between P548D347 (SSR) and 0007O20 (SSR) and was designated Hd17. Both Hd16 and Hd17 were involved in photoperiod sensitivity, as revealed by observation of the DTH of nearly isogenic lines of Nipponbare under short- and long-day conditions, suggesting that allelic differences in both Hd16 and Hd17 account for most of the difference in photoperiod sensitivity between the parental cultivars.

Emergence of highly neurofilament-immunoreactive zipper-like axon segments at the transection site in scalpel-cordotomized adult rats.

Following transection of the spinal cord, severed axonal ends retract from the lesion site and attempt regeneration within 24 h of injury. Molecular mechanisms underlying such rapid axonal reactions after severance are not fully characterized so far. To better understand the early axonal degenerating and regenerating processes, we examined the immunohistological expression of axonal cytoskeletal proteins from 5 min to 48 h after scalpel-transection of adult rat spinal cord white matter. Within 30 min of transection, expression of neurofilament (NF)- and peripherin-like immunoreactivity (-IR) was enhanced in severed axonal ends, which conversely lost beta-III-tubulin-IR expression, indicating differential expression of beta-III-tubulin-IR and NF/peripherin-IR. During the next few hours, the strongly-NF/peripherin-IR-positive severed axonal ends adhered to each other and these cytoskeletal alterations expanded bi-directionally (rostro-caudally) 100-300 microm away from the transection point. Within 6 h of transection, secondary axotomy occurred at about 300 microm-rostral and -caudal to the primary transection point, which finally formed strongly-NF/peripherin-IR-positive zipper-like axon segments at the transection site. Notably, sprouting of secondarily severed axons was observed within 6 h of injury. The regenerative axons, which extended toward the transection site, could not traverse the transection site where the zipper-like axon segments resided. The zipper-like axon segments showed abnormal axolemmal permeability through the leakage of an axonal tracer. Western blot analysis revealed a slight increase in peripherin content in transected spinal cord. Local treatment with cycloheximide suppressed the axotomy-induced peripherin-IR-enhancement in severed ends, suggesting the occurrence of intra-axonal peripherin synthesis in vivo. Treatment with calpain inhibitors frequently formed abnormally swollen microtubule-free ends, which suggests that calpain-activation is critical for functional growth cone formation in adult rat spinal cord. These observations indicate that adult rat cordotomy with a scalpel results in the rapid formation of intensely NF-IR-positive zipper-like axon segments at the transection site, which are similar to "preserved fibers" reported by Ramon y Cajal [Ramon y Cajal S (1928) Degeneration and regeneration in the nervous system. New York: Hafner]. On the other hand, axonal regenerative responses start within 6 h of injury, which may be supported by calpain-activation and intra-axonal protein synthesis.

Tonsillectomy in the treatment of pediatric Henoch-Schönlein nephritis.

The exact pathophysiology of HSN remains to be elucidated. Hence, a therapeutic strategy that enables curative treatments for all the various grades of HSN patients has yet to be established. We report our experience performing tonsillectomy combined with steroid therapy for 16 pediatric proteinuric Henoch-Schönlein nephritis (HSN) patients. All patients exhibited hematuria and proteinuria in their first HSN attack with the mean age of onset 7.7 years (range 4.75 - 13.9 years). Nine patients were diagnosed with clinically severe HSN presenting with massive proteinuria (> 1 g/m(2)/day). Renal biopsy findings performed in 6 patients were Grade II (3), Grade III (2) and Grade IV (1) according to the International Study of Kidney Diseases in childhood classification. Tonsillectomy was performed after 1-4 cycles of methylprednisolone pulses during oral prednisolone (0.5 - 1.5 mg/kg/day) therapy. In 2 patients, oral cyclophosphamide therapy was added before the tonsillectomy. The interval between the onset of HSN and tonsillectomy was 97.4 +/- 24.5 days (range 27 424 days). In all patients, proteinuria had disappeared by 6 months after the tonsillectomy and the urine findings had normalized. The interval between therapy initiation and complete remission was 9.6 +/- 2.0 months (range 2 - 26 months). Over follow-up periods of 4.9 +/- 0.6 years (range 2.2 - 9.3 years), no recurrences of Henoch-Schonlein purpura or HSN were observed. There was a significant correlation between early tonsillectomy performance and decreased time until normalization of the urine findings, indicating that the tonsils may have pivotal roles in the initiation and progression of HSN. Their elimination might promote the reversal of nephritis. Although this study is retrospective, we suggested that tonsillectomy at an early stage of HSN may be beneficial by shortening the period of illness and contributing to clinical recovery. Randomized controlled trials will be needed to confirm this supposition.

A novel wx mutation caused by insertion of a retrotransposon-like sequence in a glutinous cultivar of rice (Oryza sativa).

DNA polymorphism of the Wx gene in glutinous rice cultivars was investigated by PCR-RF-SSCP and heteroduplex cleavage analysis using Brassica petiole extract, and the nucleotide sequence variations were identified. Most japonica-type glutinous rice was found to have a 23-bp duplication in the second exon, which causes loss of the function of granule-bound starch synthase (GBSS) encoded by the Wx gene. Without the 23-bp duplication, there was an insertion of 7,764 bp in the ninth exon of the wx allele of 'Oragamochi'. Expression analysis of the wx allele using RT-PCR and Northern blot analysis revealed that transcripts of the 'Oragamochi' wx allele are about 1-kb shorter and that the deduced amino acid sequence of the transcript lacks a motif important for GBSS. Therefore, this insertion was considered to be the cause of the glutinous trait of 'Oragamochi'. This 7,764-bp insertion had long terminal repeats, a primer binding site, and a polypurine tract, but no sequence homologous with gag and pol, suggesting that it is a non-autonomous element. Furthermore, it had a structure similar to Dasheng and may be a member of Dasheng.