Herpes simplex virus type 2 infections presenting as brainstem encephalitis and recurrent myelitis

We describe here 3 patients with central nervous system infection caused by herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2); one patient with brainstem encephalitis and two with recurrent transverse thoracic myelitis. All three patients showed increased IgG antibodies to HSV in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). HSV-2 DNA was demonstrated in the CSF by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification. Upon treatment with acyclovir, one patient with myelitis partially recovered and the others completely recovered. It is important to recognize the wide spectrum of clinical manifestations of HSV-2 infection in the central nervous system (CNS).     

Vascular reconstruction using left renal vein graft in advanced hepatobiliary malignancy

BACKGROUND/AIMS: In surgical resection for advanced hepatobiliary malignancies involving the portal vein and inferior vena cava, vascular reconstruction is usually required. We utilized left renal vein grafts for vascular reconstruction in cases of these malignancies, and their clinical significance is evaluated in this study. METHODOLOGY: Left renal vein grafts were utilized for reconstruction of the portal vein in four patients and patch repair of the inferior vena cava was performed in two patients with advanced hepatobiliary malignancies. All six patients underwent hepatic resection with vascular resection and reconstruction. Postoperative renal function and graft patency were assessed. RESULTS: Transient slight renal disturbances appeared in some patients, but there was no severe renal dysfunction requiring specific therapy. Graft patency was maintained during the follow-up period in all patients. CONCLUSION: The use of left renal vein grafts as autovein grafts seems appropriate in cases involving reconstruction of the portal vein and in those involving patch repair of the inferior vena cava defect in surgical resection for advanced hepatobiliary malignancies.     

Spermatogenic cell apoptosis induced by mitomycin C in the mouse testis

Spermatogenic cell degeneration in the mature mammalian testis occurs both spontaneously during normal spermatogenesis and in response to cytotoxic agents. Mitomycin C (MC) is an antibiotic that affects DNA synthesis. In the present study, we examined the induction of mouse spermatogenic cell apoptosis by MC, using TdT-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling (TUNEL) to detect high levels of DNA fragmentation in situ, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to observe nuclear chromatin condensation, and molecular methods to detect DNA ladders. This study shows that in the testis of MC-treated mice: (i) apoptotic cell death with fragmentation of nuclear DNA is induced by MC dose-dependently, (ii) apoptotic cell death is most commonly found in the spermatogonia and less frequently in spermatocytes, and (iii) apoptotic cell death induced by MC is not specific for the seminiferous stage of the tubules. The present study suggests that the spermatogenic cell apoptosis induced by MC might be involved in its testicular toxicity.     

An improved synthesis of taurine- and glycine-conjugated bile acids

A simple and efficient method for the synthesis of taurine- and glycine-conjugated bile acids is described. The condensation reaction was achieved by the simple mixing of unconjugated bile acid (1.0 eq.), taurine (2.0 eq.) (or glycinate ester), diethyl phosphorocyanidate (1.2 eq.) in the presence of triethylamine at room temperature for 30–60 min. Sample clean-up was effected by the use of a prepacked Sep-Pak C₁₈ cartridge for reversed-phase solid extraction or by direct recrystallization, yielding the desired taurine and glycine conjugates in 89–93 and 92–96% isolated yields, respectively.     

An ecological study of child-mother attachments among Japanese sojourners in the United States.

Examined the effects of life stress and support on parenting and attachment security among 53 Japanese mothers and their preschoolers who were temporarily living in the US. Mothers who had been in the US for 6 mo or less reported more life stress and less social support than did mothers who had been in the US for more than 6 mo. Measures of life stress and support were differently related to measures of parenting stress and security of attachment. When life stress was high, mothers reported more parenting stress if support was not adequate and less parenting stress if support was adequate. High support, particularly high marital support, was associated with lower levels of attachment security. Findings call for further research on family dynamics (particularly on the interplay between husband–wife and mother–child subsystems) to develop ecological models of Japanese parenting and child development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Microstructures and mechanical properties of NbCr2 and ZrCr2 Laves phase alloys prepared by powder metallurgy

Microstructures, mechanical properties and oxidation behavior were investigated on NbCr₂ and ZrCr₂ Laves phase alloys prepared by powder metallurgy (P/M), and also by arc-melting, i.e. ingot metallurgy (I/M). These properties were also evaluated, in terms of alloying, heat treatment and alloy stoichiometry. High-temperature yield strength and brittle ductile transition temperature (BDTT) were generally lower in alloys prepared by P/M process than in those prepared by I/M process while micro hardness and fracture toughness were higher in alloys prepared by P/M process than in those prepared by I/M process, irrespective of NbCr₂ or ZrCr₂ alloys. Also, high-temperature strength and micro hardness were higher in NbCr₂ alloys than in ZrCr₂ alloys while fracture toughness was lower in NbCr₂ alloys than in ZrCr₂ alloys, irrespective of P/M or I/M process. For oxidation behavior at 1223 K, NbCr₂ alloys showed linear increase with increasing time accompanied with irregular fluctuation, while ZrCr₂ alloys showed parabolic increase with increasing time. It was also found that alloy stoichiometry greatly affected micro hardness, fracture toughness and oxidation behavior in ZrCr₂ alloys.     

Shape from focus

The shape from focus method presented here uses different focus levels to obtain a sequence of object images. The sum-modified-Laplacian (SML) operator is developed to provide local measures of the quality of image focus. The operator is applied to the image sequence to determine a set of focus measures at each image point. A depth estimation algorithm interpolates a small number of focus measure values to obtain accurate depth estimates. A fully automated shape from focus system has been implemented using an optical microscope and tested on a variety of industrial samples. Experimental results are presented that demonstrate the accuracy and robustness of the proposed method. These results suggest shape from focus to be an effective approach for a variety of challenging visual inspection tasks     

The photogenotoxicity of titanium dioxide particles

We employed a series of in vitro genotoxicity assays--a single cell gel (SCG) assay with mouse lymphoma L5178Y cells, a microbial mutation assay with Salmonella typhimurium, a mammalian cell mutation assay with L5178Y cells, and a chromosomal aberration assay with Chinese hamster CHL/IU cells--to evaluate the photogenotoxicity of titanium dioxide (TiO2) particles. Without UV/visible light irradiation, TiO2 particles exhibited no or weak genotoxicity. With irradiation, however, TiO2 particles exhibited significant genotoxicity in the SCG and chromosomal aberration assays. Therefore, we concluded that TiO2 particles are photogenotoxic.     

NF00659A1, A2, A3, B1 and B2, novel antitumor antibiotics produced by Aspergillus sp. NF 00659. II. Structural elucidation

NF00659A1, A2, A3, B1 and B2, having insecticidal and antitumor activities, were isolated from a culture mycelium of Aspergillus sp. NF 00659. The novel structure of NF00659s were determined mainly by spectroscopic studies including various NMR measurements. NF00659s have a common structure which consists of acyl, alpha-pyrone and 4,5-seco-tricyclic diterpene moieties.