A lg year-old female patient with pityriasis lichenoides et varioliforrnis acuta (PLEVA) was been treated with PUVA, At first, she was treated with tetracycline for 8 weeks with improvement somewhat. But 2 months later, her skin lesions aggravated slowly. So, we tried to treated her with PUVA and then she was cleared completely. The initial dose of UVA was 5 J/cm The UVA dosage increased by 10g of the previous exposure and increased to the maximum dose, 15 J/cm The patient exposed to UVA R times per week. 12 times after the PUVA therapy, the skin lesions begin to improve and completely improved at 21 times of Pl.JVA therapy. She was followed up every week and there was no side effect except hyperpigrnentation till 24 months. The total dose during treatment is 210 J/cm.
Female ; Humans ; Photochemotherapy* ; Pityriasis Lichenoides* ; Pityriasis* ; PUVA Therapy ; Skin ; Tetracycline

Objective: Vasospasm remains the leading cause of cerebral damage after aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. Although magnesium regulates the calcium influx in vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cells, it has not been reported whether L-type calcium channels are involved in magnesiuminduced vascular relaxation in rat basilar artery. So, the effect of magnesium sulfate on L-type calcium currents in freshly isolated smooth muscle cells from rat basilar artery was investigated. Methods: The smooth muscle cells were isolated from rabbit basilar artery by enzyme treatment. L-type Ca2+ currents were identified using cesium chloride, a potassium channel blocker and Bay K8644, an activator of L-type Ca2+ channel. Currents were recorded under step pulse whole cell patch clamp technique. Results: In the presence of cesium chloride (in pipette solution), inward currents were observed by depolarizing step pulses. The inward currents were significantly reduced by nimodipine (n=4, p<0.05), an L-type Ca2+ channel blocker and increased by Bay K8644 (n=5, p<0.05), an L-type Ca2+ channel activator. The L-type calcium currents (156±17.0 pA, n=12) were significantly reduced by the application of 5 mM magnesium sulfate (53.8±7.0 pA, n=12, p<0.01). Conclusion: These results suggest that magnesium may relax cerebral vessel of rat basilar artery through decreasing intracellular Ca2+ ion by inhibition of L-type Ca2+ channels.

No Abstract Available.
Electrophysiology* ; Neuroendocrine Cells*

No abstract available.
Transplants*

BACKGROUND: Oculocutaneous albinism (OCA) is a genetic disorder of the melanin pigment system in which melanin synthesis is reduced or absent in the skin, hair, and eyes. OCA is classified into two major types, and tyrosinase-related OCA can be produced by mutations of the structural gene for tyrosinase enzyme (TYR gene). OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to analyze the segregation of mutant alleles of the TYR gene in tyrosinase-negative and tyrosinase-positive Korean OCA patients and families. METHODS: We amplified exon I, II, and III of the TYR gene of Korean OCA patients and their families by polymerase chain reactions (PCR), and analyzed the mutations by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis in exon I and single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analyses in exon II and exon III. RESULTS: Two tyrosinase-negative cases showed mutations in exon I. Four tyrosinase-nega-tive cases and one tyrosinase-positive case showed mutations in exon II, and one tyrosinase-neg- ative case showed mutations in exon III. In summary, we found three kinds of mutation in four tyrosinase-negative OCA patients and one tyrsinase-positive OCA patient. CONCLUSIONS: RFLP and SSCP analysis can provide a basis for a rapid and sensitive screening system to detect TYR gene mutations of Korean OCA patients and their families.
Albinism, Oculocutaneous* ; Alleles ; Exons ; Hair ; Humans ; Korea* ; Mass Screening ; Melanins ; Monophenol Monooxygenase ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length ; Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational ; Skin

No abstract available.
Osteotomy*

BACKGROUND: As an antihypertensive drug, Nifedipine, a calcium channel blocker was introduced recently, which also has antianginal effect. But due to the relatively short duration of action, another antihypertensive agents having longer duration of action and stronger hypertensive effect were under investigation. Nilvadipine, a new calcium channel blocker, was introduced to have more prologned duration of action and to act more specifically on vascular smooth muscle. So the efficacy and safety of oral Nilvadipine on essestial hypertension was investigated and represented by our institute. METHODS: In order to investigate the efficacy and safety of oral Nilvadipine, daily doses of 4mg twice a day were administered in 30 hypertensive patients whose states were compatible to the criteria : 1) severity of hypertension rated in Stage I and Stage II according to the classification by WHO, 2) ages ranging from 30 to 74 years regardless of sex, 3) blood pressure with 95mmHg or higher but less than 115mmHg in diastolic pressure which was the mean in a sitting position at the last two out of not less three consultations in the 2 week observation period, 4) outpatients with informed consent for 6 weeks. Blood pressure and heart rate were measured every 2 weeks. The complete with blood count with platelet, uronalysis and the electrocardiography were performed at the beginning period and the 6th weeks of therapy. And kinds of side effects were questioned by examining physicians. RESULTS: The following results were obtained : 1) Blood pressure fell significantly in 6 weeks of treatment with Nilvadipine(Mean pressure+/-S.D., 6.00mmHg vs 108.90+/-9.68mmHg p<0.05), 2) There was no significant change in EKG in 6 weeks of treatment with Nilvadipine, 3) Pulse rate was decreased in 6 weeks of treatment with Nilvadipine(80.14+/-11.90/min vs 75.39+/-6.47/min, p<0.05). 4) No significant chsange in body weight was observed(64.50+/-8.7kg vs 63.50+/-10.25kg, p<0.05). 5) There were no significant changes in blood chemistry including blood sugar, cholesterol, electrolytes, serum creatinine and alkaline phosphatase values, 6) Hematologic findings and urinalysis findings reamained unchanged, 7) Total 10 patients(33.30%) had various side effects;facial flushing 30.00%, palpitation 23.33%, headache 20.00%, nausea 10.00%, drowsiness 3.33%, heaviness 3.33% and indigestion 3.33%. But there was no serious side effect that requires to discontinue the medication of the test drug. And there was no need to reduce the dosage due to the side effect, 8) The antihypertensive effect was judged to decrease markedly in 76.70%, decrease 20.00%, unchange 3.30% and increase 0.00%, 9) The utility which was assessed with the data from the overall safety and antihypertensive effect, the drug was judged to be very useful in 60.00%, useful 33.30%, useless 6.67% and inhibited 0.00%. CONCLUSION: From the above results, Nilvadipine in doses of 4mg twice a day was effective and useful in most cases without severe side effects in essential hypertensive patients with diastolic blood pressure of 95 to 115mmHg.
Alkaline Phosphatase ; Antihypertensive Agents ; Blood Glucose ; Blood Platelets ; Blood Pressure ; Body Weight ; Calcium Channels ; Chemistry ; Cholesterol ; Classification ; Creatinine ; Dyspepsia ; Electrocardiography ; Electrolytes ; Flushing ; Headache ; Heart Rate ; Humans ; Hypertension* ; Informed Consent ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; Nausea ; Nifedipine ; Outpatients ; Referral and Consultation ; Sleep Stages ; Urinalysis

No abstract available.
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell* ; Colon* ; Colonic Polyps* ; Female* ; Humans ; Urethra*

BACKGROUND: The gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) neurons represent the final output cells of the neural network that controls fertility. Dopamine (DA) has been shown to control gonadotropin release in many species. However, the direct membrane effects of DA and the related receptors on GnRH neurons remain poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to investigate the direct actions of DA on GnRH neurons and the related receptors using brain slice electrophysiology. METHODS: Gramicidin-perforated patch clamp recordings were made from the GnRH neurons to examine the direct membrane effects of DA in GnRH-EGFP mut5 mice. RESULTS: DA induced hyperpolarization of the GnRH neurons, which was maintained in the presence of tetrodotoxin (TTX), a Na+ channel blocker, suggesting a direct, rather than indirect, action of DA on GnRH neurons. DA-induced hyperpolarizing effects were blocked by prazosin, an alpah1-adrenergic antagonist, and mimicked by phenylephrine (PE), an alpha1-adrenergic agonist. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that DA exerts a direct inhibitory effect on GnRH neurons via the alpha1- adrenergic receptors. These results support the general concept that dopaminergic afference represents a predominantly inhibitory component of the GnRH neuronal network.
Animals ; Brain ; Dopamine* ; Electrophysiology ; Fertility ; Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone ; Gonadotropins* ; Membranes ; Mice ; Neurons* ; Phenylephrine ; Prazosin ; Receptors, Adrenergic ; Tetrodotoxin

During treatment of acute heart failure (AHF), worsening renal function is often complicated and results in a complex clinical course. Furthermore, renal dysfunction is a strong independent predictor of long-term adverse outcomes in patients with AHF. Traditionally, the predominant cause of renal dysfunction has been attributed to impairment of cardiac output and relative underfilling of arterial perfusion. Recently, emerging data have led to the importance of venous congestion and elevated intra-abdominal pressure rather than confining it to impaired forward cardiac output as the primary driver of renal impairment. Relief of congestion is a major objective of AHF treatment but therapy is still based on the administration of loop diuretics. The results of the recently performed controlled studies for the assessment of new treatments to overcome resistance to diuretic treatment to protect kidneys from untoward effects have been mostly neutral. Better treatment of congestion in heart failure remains a major problem.
Cardiac Output ; Cardio-Renal Syndrome ; Estrogens, Conjugated (USP) ; Heart ; Heart Failure ; Humans ; Hyperemia ; Kidney ; Perfusion ; Sodium Potassium Chloride Symporter Inhibitors