No abstract available.
Antibody Formation* ; Immunoglobulin A* ; T-Lymphocytes*

Transforming growth factor-j31 (TGF-p1) has potential for therapeutic use in common clinical conditions for which there are no adequate pharmacological agents. However, in vivo studies using TGF-p1 were hindered by high price of this cytokine. As a first step towards large scale purification of TGF-p1, it was purified in a small scale (10 unit platelets) from human platelets by four purification steps: platelet extraction, gel filtration, cation exchange chromatography, and reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). A single protein band with a molecular weight of 25 Kd corresponding to purchased TGF-p1 (R8D Systems) was confirmed by silver staining after SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) of eluant from reversed phase HPLC. Recovery (%) of each step was about 50-60%, resulting in the final recovery of 20% based on the detection by a sandwich ELISA. Approximately, 3.7 p,g of purified TGF-p1 was obtained from 18 pg of platelet extracts. This result was confirmed by receptor (TGF-j31 type II) ELISA and bioassay using a mink lung epithelial'cell line (MV1LU). Further, in vitro characterization study showed that purified TGF-p1 inhibits G1/S transition of LPS-activated murine spleen B cells and increases surface IgA expression by the same cell population, which are typical activities of TGF-p1 in B cell differentiation. Taken together, the results from the present study reveals that purified TGF-p1 is fully biologically active and our purification methodology could be usbful to obtain a large scale of recombinant TGF-p1 in the future.
B-Lymphocytes ; Biological Assay ; Blood Platelets ; Cell Cycle ; Cell Differentiation ; Chromatography ; Chromatography, Gel ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Chromatography, Liquid ; Electrophoresis ; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ; Humans* ; Immunoglobulin A ; Lung ; Mink ; Molecular Weight ; Silver Staining ; Spleen ; Transforming Growth Factors*

The ideal graft requires acceptable size, less tissue toxicity, resistance to infection, and long-term durability. Great saphenous veins are gaining popularity as acceptable graft conduits, but they require time to grow in caliber. We report 2 cases of graft bypass and reconstruction using superficial femoral veins to acheive immediate high-flow patency.
Femoral Vein ; Saphenous Vein ; Transplants ; Vascular Diseases ; Veins

The incidence of the Buerger's disease is higher for the far-East Asian population that for western people, but the surgical outcomes have been documented to be unsatisfactory. So, more aggressive and multi-focused treatment modalities should be warranted such as stopping smoking or intravenous vasodilator infusion with surgery. We report here on a successful surgical case of intra-arterial direct infusion of Prostaglandin E1 concomitant with surgical bypass and lumbar sympathectomy to treat Buerger's disease.
Alprostadil ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Humans ; Incidence ; Lower Extremity ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Sympathectomy ; Thromboangiitis Obliterans ; Transplants

Haemophilus parainfluenzae, one of the member of the HACEK group of gram-negative oropharyngeal species, is a rare cause of subacute native valve endocarditis. Infective endocarditis caused by H. parainfluenzae appears to carry a high incidence rate of cerebral embolism, often making the timing of surgical intervention difficult. A 52-year-old male was diagnosed with acute endocarditis caused by H. parainfluenzae complicated with acute cerebral infarctions. After institution of antibiotic therapy, this patient was mechanically ventilated because of the sudden onset of dyspnea. Repeated two-dimensional echocardiography demonstrated rate-dependent mitral stenosis without interval change of vegetations on the mitral valve. Making a decision regarding the timing of surgical intervention was difficult because of a fear of clinical deterioration after early valve replacement.
Cerebral Infarction ; Dyspnea ; Echocardiography ; Endocarditis ; Endocarditis, Bacterial ; Haemophilus ; Haemophilus parainfluenzae ; Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation ; Humans ; Incidence ; Intracranial Embolism ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mitral Valve ; Mitral Valve Stenosis ; Paramyxoviridae Infections