No abstract available.
Biopsy* ; Neoplasm Metastasis* ; Prostate* ; Prostatic Neoplasms*

Anthrax toxin consists of three separate proteins, protective antigen (PA), edema factor (EF), and lethal factor (LF). PA binds to the receptor on mammalian cells and facilitates translocation of EF or LF into its cytosol. PA is the primary component of anthrax vaccines. In this study we purified PA from culture filtrates of Bacillus anthracis. The purification involved sequential chromatography through hydroxylapatite, DEAE-Sepharose CL-4B, followed by Mono-Q. The purified PA was judged to be homogeneous on SDS-PAGE, and consisted of a single polypeptide chain with a relative molecular weight of 85,000.
Anthrax ; Anthrax Vaccines ; Bacillus anthracis* ; Bacillus* ; Chromatography ; Cytosol ; Durapatite ; Edema ; Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel ; Molecular Weight

PURPOSE: This study was designed to identify the possible mechanism of insensitivity of DU145 prostate cancer cells to the transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta1-mediated growth inhibition. MATERIALS AND METHODS: DU145 cells were treated with 4, 40, 100 pM TGF-beta1 for 3, 6, 9 days. Initially we performed the growth assay. After that, we analysed the change of cell cycle using fluorescence flow cytometry. At each time point, Western blot analysis with cell pellets was performed to investigate the change of expressions of epidermal growth factor(EGF), TGF-alpha, EGF receptor(EGFR) and TGF receptorII(TbetaR-II) proteins. RESULTS: The growth rate of TGF-beta1-treated cells was initially suppressed, but over time returned to control level. Flow cytometric analysis revealed that TGF-beta1-treated cells showed an increase in apoptotic/G1 phases, and concurrent decrease in S, G2/M phases until 6days. On day 9, however, TGF-beta1-treated cells showed a persistent increase of apoptotic unclei in spite of recovery of apoptotic/G1, S and G2/M phases. Western blot analysis showed that the intensity of EGF or TGF-alpha band decreased in dose-sependent manner on day 6. However, the intensity of each band increased up to the control level on day 9. the expression of EGFR or TbetaR-II protein did not change after treatment of TGF-beta1. CONCLUSIONS: these results suggest that EGF and TGF-alpha sould mediate in part the escape fron the inhibitory effect of TGF-beta1 in DU145 cells.
Blotting, Western ; Cell Cycle ; Epidermal Growth Factor* ; Flow Cytometry ; Fluorescence ; Prostate* ; Prostatic Neoplasms* ; Transforming Growth Factor alpha ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1 ; Transforming Growth Factors ; United Nations

PURPOSE: We investigated the efficacy of transurethral needle ablation (TUNA) of prostate for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in patients with low compliance to medical therapy and high risk operative morbidity and mortality. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Total 38 patients with BPH and low compliance to medical therapy and high risk operative morbidity and mortality were treated with TUNA under the local anesthesia and evaluated prospectively using the international prostate symtom score (IPSS), Qmax, satisfaction score and postvoid residuals (PVRs), and followed for 3 months after treatment. RESULTS: The mean pretreatment symptom score was 24.82+/-5.76. At 1 and 3 months after treatment, the mean symptom score was decreased to 13.63+/-7.07 and 9.21+/-6.28, respectively (p<0.01). The mean pretreatment satisfaction score was 4.63+/-0.85. It was decreased to 2.84+/-1.26, 1.92+/-1.34 at 1, 3 months (p<0.01). The mean pretreatment Qmax was 5.26+/-3.37mL/s. It was increased to 9.53+/-4.54mL/s, 11.97+/-4.52mL/s at 1, 3 months (p<0.01). The mean pretreatment PVRs were 131.85+/-123.05mL. It was decreased to 49.68+/-38.28mL, 26.77+/-17.92mL at 1, 3 months (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: TUNA treatment in the management of BPH improved symptom scores, peak flow rates with lower morbidity. TUNA appears to be a useful alternative treatment for BPH in patients with low compliance to medical therapy and high risk operative morbidity and mortality.
Anesthesia, Local ; Compliance* ; Humans ; Mortality* ; Needles* ; Prospective Studies ; Prostate ; Prostatic Hyperplasia* ; Tuna

As one of many cell-many cell-based cartilage repairing methods, transplantation of chondrocyte-embedded-collagen gels in cartilage defect was performed for more satisfactory regeneration of cartilage. The authors performed this study to investigate whether the TGF-beta1 treatment of chondrocytes can do some additional synergistic effect on the transplantation of chondrocyte-embedded-collagen gels for crtilage repair. Chondrocytes were isolated from the articular cartilage of newborn Sprague-Dawley rats. Chondrocytes cultured for 10 days in monolayer were embedded in the 0.45% type I collagen gel. Full-thickness cartilage defect was made in the patellar groove of adult Sprague-Dawley rats. Chondrocytes culdefect was made in the patellar groove of adult Sprague-Dawley rats. The cartilage defects were treated with the following methods in a total of 200 animals, which were assigned to 5 different groups of 40 rats. In the control group, the deffect was left without any treatment, in group I, the defect was filled with collagen gel only, in group II, with collagen gel coontaining 10 ng/ml concentration of TGF-beta1, in group III, with collagen gel containing chondrocytes, and in group IV, with collagen gel containing chondrocytes and TGF-beta1. At 1, 2, 4, 8, 12 weeks after the operation, eight rats of each group were sacrificed, and their distal femurs were harvested for the histologic and biomechanical tests. The section s were stained with hematoxilin and eosin. Alcian-blue, and Safranin-O. Regenerated cartilage was analyzed by the semiquantitative histological grading system. Point indentation test was performed as a biomechanical evaluation, and the stiffness was calculated. The results of the histological grading system revealed that the scores gradually increased with time in all groups, and the scores of group III and IV were higher than those of control, group I and II. The biomechanical study showed that the stiffness gradually increased to reach a plateau level in each group. In control, group I and II, the stiffness increased up to the eighth week and remained around the increased level at the twelfth week, and did not show any statistically significant difference between the groups. In group III and IV, the stiffness was higher than in control group, and increased markedly at the fourth week and the increased level was maintained onwards. The results of this study showed that the transplantation of chondrocyte-embedded-collagen gels enhanced the healing process, and the treatment of TGF-beta1 demonstrated at least partially significant improvement.
Adult ; Animals ; Cartilage ; Cartilage, Articular* ; Chondrocytes ; Collagen ; Collagen Type I ; Eosine Yellowish-(YS) ; Femur ; Gels ; Humans ; Infant, Newborn ; Rats* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Regeneration ; Transforming Growth Factor beta1

Post-menopausal osteoporosis is known to be related to estrogen deficiency. The purpose of this experimental study is to investigate whether or not estrogen administration can prevent or retard the process of osteoporosis induced by oophorectomy in rats. Fifty-two Sprague-Dawley rats, aged five months, were separated into three groups. Group 1 (4 rats) was control group that had sham operation without oophorectomy. Goup 2 (32 rats) was another control group that had bilateral oophorectomy alone. Group 3 (16 rats) was experimental group that had estradiol administration from the fourth week through the eighth week after bilateral oophorectomy. In group 1, all the rats were killed at the fourth week after sham operation. In group 2 and group 3, four rats in each group were killed weekly until the eighth week after oophorectomy. All the animals were subjected to radiological, histological studies on the tibia, ilium, skull, and the sixth lumbar vertebra. Also, histomorphometric measurements were 1. Osteoporotic changes were evident from the fifth week after oophorectomy and increased with time on the radiologic examination in group 2. In contrast, osteoporotic changes were evident from the second week after oophorectomy and progressed with time on the histological and histomorphometric studies in group 2. 2. After administration of estradiol, osteoporotic changes which include thinning of the cortex, decrease of the amount of trabeculae were partially restored on the radiological, histological studies in group 3. 3. Histomorphometric study revealed that the trabecular area percent (the proportion of total area of the trabeculae from the whole metaphyseal area), decreased progressively through the eight week after oophorectomy in gorup 2. Whereas the trabecular area percents of group 3 were higher than those of group 2, but still lower than initial value before oophorectomy. Based on the above observations, estradiol administration appeared to delay the progression of the osteoporotic changes induced by oophorectomy in rats.
Animals ; Estradiol ; Estrogens ; Female ; Humans ; Ilium ; Osteoporosis ; Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal ; Ovariectomy ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Skull ; Spine ; Tibia

BACKGROUND: Intraoperative collection of bile and a bile culture are of use in predicting bacterial infection in the biliary system. The aim of this study was to identify chronological changes in the bacteriology of the bile in the age and sex distributions for biliary tract disease of the patients. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the clinical records of 722 patients who had been operated on for biliary tract disease at the Department of Surgery Ewha Womans University Hospital, from Jan. 1979 to July 1998 and on whom intraoperative bile culture had been performed. We divided the 722 patients into two group based on the time of their treatment, period A being 1979-1988 and period B being 1989-1998. The statistical analysis was done by using the Mantel-Haenszel Chi-Square test. RESULTS: The overall bile culture positive rate was 56% (404 cases), and the male-to-female ratio was 1:1.64. There was no significant statistical difference in the sex ratio between the two periods (period A: 1:1.78, period B: 1:1.55) (p>0.05). Overall, the most commonly isolated organism in the bile was Escherichia coli (137 cases, 30%). Comparing the two periods, we found that the Enterococcus species was an organism found increasingly in biliary tract infections (period A: 0%; period B: 17%) whereas infection by Escherichia coli was significantly decreased in the latter period (period A: 43%; period B: 28%) (p<0.05). The sixth decade (29.1%) was the most prevalent age overall. The age distribution for period A showed no statistical difference between the 5th (21.58%) and the 7th decades (21.94%), but there was significant difference between the 7th (29.95%) and the 5th decades (16.89%) in the age distribution for period B (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: According to the above results, we concluded that there were significant chronological changes in the bacteriology of the bile & in the age distributions between the two periods, but no such difference was observed between the sex distribution.
Age Distribution ; Bacterial Infections ; Bacteriology* ; Bile* ; Biliary Tract ; Biliary Tract Diseases ; Enterococcus ; Escherichia coli ; Female ; Humans ; Retrospective Studies ; Sex Distribution ; Sex Ratio

PURPOSE: The recent development of posterior intravaginal slingplasty (IVS) has led to significant changes for the treatment of vaginal vault or uterine prolapse. We analyzed the efficacy of performing posterior IVS for the patients with vaginal vault and uterine prolapse. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study analyzed the treatment outcomes of 56 patients with vaginal vault or uterine prolapse and these patients were seen at our hospital from March 2004 to August 2005. The degree of prolapse was classified according to the POP-Q system. The grades were 17 cases of stage 2, 8 cases of stage 3 and 5 cases of stage 4 in the vaginal vault prolapse group, and 14 cases of stage 2, 6 cases of stage 3 and 6 cases of stage 4 in the uterine prolapse group. RESULTS: Fifteen cases in the vaginal vault prolapse group and 9 cases in the uterine prolapse group received combined tension-free vaginal tape (TVT) or the tension-free vaginal tape obturator system (TVT-O). The patients who received combined rectocele repair were 17 cases in the vaginal vault prolapse group and 17 cases in the uterine prolapse group. The mean operation time was 37 minutes and the mean bleeding volume was 94ml. The mean admission period was 3.5 days and the mean follow-up time was 9.5 months (1-17). Polypropylene tape was used for 56 patients without any rejection reactions or rectal perforation. Among the 30 patients operated on for vaginal vault prolapse, 24 patients were cured and 6 patients showed improvement. Among the 26 patients operated on for uterine prolapse, 23 patients were cured and 3 patients showed improvement. CONCLUSIONS: Posterior IVS proved to be a highly effective therapeutic procedure for vaginal vault and uterine prolapse.
Follow-Up Studies ; Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Pelvic Organ Prolapse ; Polypropylenes ; Prolapse ; Rectocele ; Suburethral Slings ; Surgical Mesh ; Uterine Prolapse* ; Vagina

No abstract available.
Bronchitis, Chronic* ; Humans

PURPOSE: We evaluated the ability of endo-rectal coil MRI (ER-MRI) to predict the local pathological stage of prostate cancer prior to radical prostatectomy and compared the results with those of transrectal ultrasonography (TRUS). MATERIALS AND METHODS: ER-MRI using high field magnets (1.5 Tesla) were performed in 22 patients (mean age 62.8 years, range 51-73) with clinically localized prostate cancer before radical prostatectomy. Of the 22 patients, 17 patients were also assessed by TRUS. The results of the imaging techniques were compared with the post-operative histopathological findings. As one patient with pelvic lymph node metastasis, which was detected on frozen-section examination during surgery, was spared radical prostatectomy, the final evaluation included 21 patients. RESULTS: DSeven of the 21 patients (33%) were found to have extraprostatic extension (EPE), and 5 had seminal vesicle invasion (SVI). The sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing EPE using ER-MRI were 62.5% and 84.6%, respectively, and 16.7% and 100% with TRUS. The sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing SVI were 80.0% and 93.8%, respectively with ER-MRI, and 0% and 92.3% with TRUS. The accuracy of predicting SVI was 90.5% with ER-MRI compared to 70.6% with TRUS. CONCLUSIONS: ER-MRI was significantly better than TRUS for determining the local extent of prostatic cancer and for prediction of SVI in the preoperative staging of clinically localized prostate cancer.
Humans ; Lymph Nodes ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Prostate* ; Prostatectomy ; Prostatic Neoplasms* ; Seminal Vesicles ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Ultrasonography