Expression of intermediate filaments and other special markers by testicular germ cell tumors. With reference to embryogenesis.

Distribution of intermediate filament proteins (IFs) and several special markers was studied in 39 testicular germ cell tumors and 8 embryos and foetuses. The similarity and difference between development of germ cell tumor and embryogenesis were immunohistochemically investigated. Seminoma and embryonal carcinoma, as tumoral counterparts of undifferentiated germ cells, were characterized by little IF expression. This study revealed that the maturing and differentiating process in germ cell tumor is different from normal embryonal development and the tumor cells showed leaping maturing steps in tumorigenesis. Immunostaining for IFs helped to discover the further differentiation occurring in embryonal carcinoma and to demonstrate heterogeneous elements in non-seminoma germ cell tumors, which sometimes might not be apparent by light microscopical observation of H&E staining section. According to the findings, two patterns in mixed germ cell tumors are suggested; i.e., combined and diffuse types. The mechanism of tumorigenesis of the two types is supposed to be different. Clinically, the prognosis of most patients with testicular germ cell tumor is fairly good because of the improved chemotherapies that are dependent on histological diagnosis.     

Clinical studies on cell-mediated immunity in patients with renal cell carcinoma: interleukin-2 and interferon-γ production of lymphocytes

Summary The authors examined interleukin-2 (IL-2) production and interferon (IFN) production of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in 28 patients with renal cell carcinoma and 17 control subjects. The peripheral blood was obtained prior to the initiation of therapeutic procedures. The patients were divided into two groups according to tumor size, 5 cm and >5 cm. The production of IL-2 and IFN was measured by immunoradiometric assay. As a result, in the patients with tumors >5 cm, IL-2 and IFN production was impaired. However, in the patients with tumors 5 cm, IFN production was enhanced, though IL-2 production was not significantly different from that of the control subjects. There was no significant correlation between IL-2 production and IFN production.     

Marked increase in gastric histidine decarboxylase activity in patients with hypergastrinemia.

Histidine decarboxylase (HDC) activity and histamine content were measured in endoscopic gastric biopsy specimens of 19 control subjects with normogastrinemia and 6 patients with hypergastrinemia. In controls, the HDC activity was 3 fold higher in fundic mucosa (120 +/- 13 fmol/min/mg protein, mean +/- S.E.) than in antral mucosa (39 +/- 5 fmol/min/mg protein). In patients with hypergastrinemia, an extremely high HDC activity (713 +/- 181 fmol/min/mg protein) was observed in fundic mucosa, although the HDC activity in antral mucosa was not significantly different from that of controls. The histamine content in fundic mucosa was also significantly higher in patients with hypergastrinemia than in controls but no significant difference was seen in histamine content in antral mucosa between the two groups. These results are compatible with the hypothesis that in man, as well as in rat, histamine synthesis in fundic mucosa is enhanced by gastrin.     

Carbon isotope composition of CH4 from rice paddies in Japan

Carbon isotope ratios (¹³C) for bubble CH₄ in a submerged paddy soil were studied in Yokohama, Japan, throughout a growing period, and its variation was found. Bubble CH₄ collected from other 33 paddy fields in Japan was also measured for its ¹³C and the results agreed with Yokohama. Furthermore, the variation occurred irrespective of the amount and the type of supplied organic substances to the fields (whole rice straw, rice stubble, or compost). The ¹³C value (average value of -55.9 ± 4.24) from these paddy fields was higher than those of the CH₄ emitted from African and North American paddies. The higher value was little affected by their difference in the supplied organic substances. CH₄ oxidation likely occurs for bubble CH₄ in the shallow paddy fields. A rough estimate of the total CH₄ production, using isotope mass balance, showed that 17 to 22% of organic carbon supplied to Japanese paddies transforms to CH₄.     

Purification and characterization of chicken liver cathepsin B

Cathepsin B was purified, 400-fold, to homogeneity from chicken liver. The enzyme comprised a mixture of two kinetically indistinguishable forms (approximately 1:1), which were separated on concanavalin A (Con A)-Sepharose; one consisting of Mr 25,500 and 5,000 polypeptide chains bound to Con A-Sepharose but the other, composed of Mr 24,500 and 5,000 polypeptide chains, did not. N-terminal amino acid sequence analyses of a mixture of the Mr 25,500 and 24,500 polypeptide chains, and of the Mr 5,000 polypeptide chain revealed single amino acid sequences, respectively. These amino acid sequences were homologous to those of the heavy and light chains of mammalian enzymes, respectively. The chicken liver and mammalian cathepsin B were similar in structure and properties.     

Mass spectrometric detection of the plasma prealbumin (transthyretin) variant associated with familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy

A plasma prealbumin variant with a methionine-for-valine substitution at position 30 is closely associated with familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy (FAP) type I. Secondary ion mass spectrometry of the tryptic digest of a carrier's prealbumin could easily detect an abnormal peptide containing the substitution besides the normal peptide. This is a sensitive and reliable method for the diagnosis of FAP.     

Blue Light-Induced Phototropic Response and the Intracellular Photoreceptive Site in Adiantum Protonemata

Blue light-induced phototropism in Adiantum protonemata wasinvestigated with microbeam irradiation. Brief irradiation withblue light effectively induced a phototropic response when itwas applied to a half-side of the apical 200d µm regionof a protonema. The phototropic response was partly reversedby the subsequent far-red light irradiation but the full reversalof the response was not observed even when the fluence of far-redlight was increased. In the far-red reversible part of the response,blue/far-red photoreversibility was repeatedly observed. Thus,both phytochrome and a blue light-absorbing pigment (other thanphytochrome) seem to be involved in the blue light-induced phototropicresponse in Adiantum protonemata. Furthermore, detailed studiesof the far-red light effect on the fluence-response curve forblue lightinduced phototropism revealed that the concomitantmediation by the two receptors was limited to the response inthe relatively higher fluence range of blue light and that theblue light-absorbing pigment alone was responsible in the lowerfluence range. In the higher fluence range, the response mediatedby the blue light-absorbing pigment became saturated and thephytochrome response became evident, indicating a differencein the sensitivities of the two receptor pigments to blue light. When various regions of half-sides of protonemata were irradiatedwith a blue microbeam of 10 µm width, irradiation at theapical 5–25 µm region was most effective both forphytochrome- and blue light-absorbing pigment-mediated response,indicating that the site of blue light perception is almostidentical for each response. (Received July 14, 1986; Accepted September 26, 1986)     

N-Acetylglucosamine-Containing Glycopeptide Released from Rice Coleoptile Cell Walls by Protease Treatment

N-Acetylglucosamine-containing glycopeptides were released fromthe cell walls of rice coleoptiles by treatment with subtilisin.They were purified by successive treatments with different typesof proteases and by affinity chromatography using wheat germlectin- and concanavalin A-Sepharose columns. The glycopeptidefinally obtained after gel filtration contained glycine as theN-terminal amino acid and asparagine as the only amino acidcapable of linking with the sugar residue. This glycopeptidecontained only N-acetylglucosamine and mannose as sugars andcould be hydrolyzed by -mannosidase and by almond glycopeptidase.It seems to have an oligosaccharide structure, consisting of and ß-mannose and chitobiose attached to asparagine.The results indicate that this wall glycopeptide is a componentof asparagine-linked glycoprotein. ³Present address: Department of Biology, Faculty of Science,Osaka City University, Sumiyoshi-ku, Osaka 558, Japan. (Received May 22, 1985; Accepted December 10, 1985)     

Estimation of symbiotically fixed nitrogen in field grown soybeans: An application of natural15N/14N abundance and a low level15N-tracer technique

Summary Plants from agricultural and natural upland ecosystem were investigated for¹⁵N content to evaluate the role of symbiotic N₂-fixation in the nitrogen nutrition of soybean. Increased yields and lower δ¹⁵N values of nodulating soybeansvs, non-nodulating isolines gave semi-quantitative estimates of N₂ fixation. A fairly large discrepancy was found between estimations by δ¹⁵N and by N yield at 0 kg N/ha of fertilizer. More precise estimates were made by following changes in plant δ¹⁵N when fertilizer δ¹⁵N was varied near¹⁵N natural abundance level. Clearcut linear relationships between δ¹⁵N values of whole plants and of fertilizer were obtained at 30 kg N/ha of fertilizer for three kinds of soils. In experimental field plots, nodulating soybeans obtained 13±1% of their nitrogen from fertilizer, 66±8% from N₂ fixation and 21±10% from soil nitrogen in Andosol brown soil; 30%, 16% and 54% in Andosol black soil; 7%, 77% and 16% in Alluvial soil, respectively. These values for N₂ fixation coincided with each corresponding estimation by N yield method. Other results include: 1)¹⁵N content in upland soils and plants was variable, and may reflect differences in the mode of mineralization of soil organics, and 2) nitrogen isotopic discrimination during fertilizer uptake (δ¹⁵N of plant minus fertilizer) ranged from −2.2 to +4.9‰ at 0–30 kg N/ha of fertilizer, depending on soil type and plant species. The proposed method can accurately and relatively simply establish the importance of symbiotic nitrogen fixation for soybeans growing in agricultural settings.