Radiative cooling of cationic carbon clusters, CN+, N = 8, 10, 13-16.

The radiative cooling of highly excited carbon cluster cations of sizes N = 8, 10, 13-16 has been studied in an electrostatic storage ring. The cooling rate constants vary with cluster size from a maximum at N = 8 of 2.6 × 104 s-1 and a minimum at N = 13 of 4.4 × 103 s-1. The high rates indicate that photon emission takes place from electronically excited ions, providing a strong stabilizing cooling of the molecules.

Cooling dynamics of photoexcited C6(-) and C6H(-).

We report conclusive evidence of an efficient cooling mechanism via the electronic radiative transitions of hot small molecular anions isolated in vacuum. We stored C6(-) and C6H(-) in an ion storage ring and observed laser-induced electron detachment with delays up to several milliseconds. The terminal hydrogen atom caused a drastic change in the decay profiles. The decay of photoexcited C6H(-) is slow and nonexponential, which can be explained by depletion cooling, whereas that for C6(-) occurs extremely fast, on a time scale below 0.1 ms and can only be explained by electronic radiative cooling via low-lying electronic excited states.

Radiative cooling of C7⁻.

The spontaneous and photo-induced neutralization of C7⁻ produced in a laser ablation source was measured in an electrostatic storage ring. The measurements provide three independent determinations of the radiative cooling of the ions, based on the short time spontaneous decay and on the integrated amplitude and the shape of the photo-induced neutralization signal. The amplitude of the photo-induced signal was measured between 0.5 ms and 35 ms and found to depend on photon wavelength and ion storage time. All three signals can be reproduced with identical thermal IR radiative cooling rates with oscillator strengths equal to theoretical predictions. In addition, the measurements provide the excitation energy distribution.

Mobilities of Li(+)-attached butanol isomers in He gas.

Mobilities of Li(+)-attached butanol isomers, (n-BuOH)Li(+), (s-BuOH)Li(+), (i-BuOH)Li(+), and (t-BuOH)Li(+), in helium gas were measured over a range of reduced electric fields (E/N = 25-96 Td) at room temperature. Arrival time measurements accurately identified small differences in the measured mobilities of the isomer ions. At low E/N (≤30 Td, corresponding to a mean collision energy ε≤0.05 eV), (n-BuOH)Li(+) showed a mobility about 1.5% greater than that of the other ions, but at high E/N (≥75 Td, ε≥0.1 eV) its mobility was about 1.1% less.

Direct observation of internal energy distributions of C5(-).

Photon induced decay of C5(-) has been measured in an electrostatic storage ring. The time dependence of the photo-enhanced decay is close to a 1∕t decay which indicates a thermal process. The deviation from the expected power of -1 is quantitatively explained by the small heat capacity of the anion. Measurements of the photo-enhanced decay at different storage times and photon energies allow a determination of the radiative cooling rate and the energy distribution of the ions. The average energy content between 15 and 70 ms is found to vary as time to the power -0.72, and at 50 ms the ions contain an average excitation energy of 0.5 eV. The time dependent energy distribution is consistent with cooling by infrared photon emission if published oscillator strengths are reduced by a factor 2.5, in contrast to cooling of larger molecular carbon-based ions where electronic transitions cause a much stronger cooling.

Absolute cooling rates of freely decaying fullerenes.

The cooling rates of C60- have been measured in an electrostatic storage ring between several hundred mus and several tens of ms with one-photon laser excitation. The absolute energy scale is established by the photon energy, and the cooling time interval is derived from the nonexponential decay of the ensemble of hot molecules. The energy decreases due to the combined action of depletion and thermal emission of IR photons with a total energy loss rate that varies inversely proportional to time, 0.9 eV/t. The radiative component decreases from a few hundred eV/s at submillisecond time scales to several tens of eV/s at 20 ms and confirms that the crossover from depletion to predominantly radiative cooling occurs around 5 ms. The method is applicable to any large molecule or cluster which decays spontaneously, irrespective of the specific decay channel.

Current topics in diagnosis and treatment of tinea unguium in Japan.

The number of patients with tinea unguium accounts for 0.5% to 2% of the total number of outpatients in Japan. The diagnosis of tinea unguium can be relatively easily made on the basis of clinical symptoms and direct microscopic findings. However onychomycosis due to fungi other than dermatophytes should always be suspected if no dermatophytes are cultured despite positive findings in direct microscopy. In such cases, it is necessary to repeat cultures and conduct histopathological evaluation using PAS-staining technique or enzyme antibody technique. At present, oral administration of griseofulvin and terbinafine are the treatments covered by health insurance in Japan. In the future, however, other orally active antifungal drugs such as itraconazole and fluconazole will become available for use by in-patients who do not respond to griseofulvin. It is essential to patiently continue treatment even if oral therapy is impossible, because other therapies such as ODT therapy using topical antifugal agents and urea ointment or abrading affected nails as much as possible with a file or dental drill may be effective without oral therapy.

Local cytokine expression in steroid-modified tinea faciei.

In tinea faciei, a dermatophyte infection of the face, early stage lesions show erythema with crust and/or vesicles, a condition often misdiagnosed as dermatitis. Steroid application retards the healing in some cases and may induce penetration of the dermatophyte hyphae into hair and hair follicles. In the present study, we examined local immunity mediated by cytokines derived from lesional T lymphocytes in late stage of this disease. Interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) were highly expressed, but neither interleukin-4 (IL-4) nor interleukin-5 (IL-5) could be detected by RT-PCR using cryosections. These data suggested that IFN-gamma and MIF may be important in the delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) response against the fungus in the hair follicle in late stages.

Pathogenesis and treatment of hyperkeratotic tinea pedis in Japan.

In this paper, we describe the major characteristics of hyperkeratotic tinea pedis and review therapeutic results obtained in the Department of Dermatology of Kitasato University Hospital and those reported in the literature in Japan and abroad.

Clinical evaluation of bifonazole for moccasin-type tinea pedis.

Moccasin-type tinea pedis (MTTP) is characterized by hyperkeratosis of the sole, which is generally refractory to treatment. As topical application of an antimycotic agent alone often fails to control this disease, oral griseofulvin is commonly used. We attempted the treatment of MTTP with topical bifonazole (Mycospor Solution) alone (group I) or in combination with 10% urea ointment (Urepearl) (group II) and compared the clinical benefit of these two therapies. The clinical improvement rate (percentage of 'marked improvement' plus 'moderate improvement') was 46.2% in group I and 83.3% in group II. The fungal eradication rate was 6.7% in group I and 26.7% in group II after 4 weeks of treatment and was 40% and 80%, respectively, after 12 weeks. The utility rate (percentage of 'beneficial' plus 'very beneficial') was 46.7% in group I and 86.7% in group II. These results indicate the superiority of combined therapy with 1% bifonazole solution and 10% urea ointment for the treatment of MTTP and suggest that this combination therapy can be recommended for patients for whom it is difficult to use oral griseofulvin or for patients who fail to respond to oral griseofulvin alone.

Clinical and pharmacokinetic investigations of oral intraconazole in the treatment of onychomycosis.

A clinical study was carried out in 19 patients with onychomycosis in whom itraconazole was orally administered in a single daily dose of 100 mg. A follow-up period was instituted subsequent to the administration period to that the course of the nail lesions could be monitored. The concentrations of the drug in the plasma and in the nails were also determined. In patients in whom itraconazole was administered for 12-16 weeks, the decrease in the turbidity and thickening of the nails was maintained even after the administration period was completed. The efficacy rating in the overall evaluation at 12 weeks was 84.2% (16/19). In the evaluation performed at 24 weeks, the rating was 94.7% (18/19). These data indicate that the effect of itraconazole was maintained even after completion of the administration period. The retention of the drug in the nail after completion of the administration period was investigated in terms of the mean concentration of the drug in the nail with the passage of time in patients administered itraconazole for 10-16 weeks. It was found that a certain level of itraconazole was retained in the nail until at least the 24th week. Adverse reactions seen in this study consisted of diarrhoea and drug eruption, one case cach, and elevations of glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase and glutamic pyruvic transminase in one case.

[Immunohistochemical studies in fungal diseases of skin].

The aim of the present work was to characterize the infiltrating cells in fungal diseases of the skin by using immunohistochemical methods. The lesions of superficial mycosis were characterized by a increase in the number of Langerhans cells (OKT6, HLADR+). In the upper dermis more OKT4 cells stained than OKT8, and in the deeper dermis the was a more decreased ratio of OKT4+/OKT8+ cells. On the other hand, the granulomatous reactions of deep mycosis mainly consisted of cells that were labeled positively for lysozyme and alpha 1-antichymotrypsin. In cases with secondary or local immunodeficiency, however, the infiltrating cells wer negative for these enzymes.

Usefulness of lanoconazole (Astat) cream in the treatment of hyperkeratotic type tinea pedis. Comparative study of monotherapy and combination therapy with 10% urea ointment (Pastaron).

Hyperkeratotic type tinea pedis is a refractory type of superficial dermatomycosis. Treatment for hyperkeratotic type tinea pedis is mainly with oral antimycotics, such as griseofulvin, and healing is generally considered to be difficult with only topical antimycotics. In this randomized comparative study, the usefulness of a topical application of 1% lanoconazole cream (Astat) monotherapy (group I) was compared with that of combination therapy with 1% lanoconazole cream and 10% urea ointment (Pastaron) (group II) in a series of patients with hyperkeratotic type tinea pedis. The clinical improvement rates (percentage of 'marked improvement' plus 'moderate improvement') was 70.0% in group I and 95.7% in group II. The fungal eradication rate was 5.0% in group I and 43.5% in group II after 4 weeks of treatment, and was 70.0% and 95.7% after 12 weeks of treatment, respectively. The usefulness rate (percentage of 'very useful' plus 'useful') was 70% in group I and 95.7% in group II. Both lanoconazole monotherapy and the combination therapy with 10% urea ointment were highly effective and safe. Both treatments should be recommended for patients with hyperkeratotic type tinea pedis for whom an oral treatment is not appropriate or for whom a sufficient improvement with oral medications cannot be expected.

A case of tinea barbae successfully treated with terbinafine.

Terbinafine was remarkably effective in tinea barbae due to Trichophyton rubrum on the cheek in front of the right ear in a 75-year-old man. This patient also showed tinea pedis and unguium, but these were due to Trichophyton mentagrophytes and were unrelated to the tinea in the cheek. This patient showed an atypical clinical picture slightly different from that during the initial visit, requiring histological differentiation from trichophytic granuloma.

Butenafine hydrochloride (Mentax) cream for the treatment of hyperkeratotic type tinea pedis and its transfer into the horny layer, with or without concomitant application of 20% urea ointment (Keratinamin).

Forty-five patients were divided into two groups: group I, 23 patients, treated with butenafine hydrochloride (Mentax) cream alone, and group II, 22 patients, treated with butenafine hydrochloride and 20% urea ointment (Keratinamin) to evaluate the usefulness of the treatments. We also measured the transfer of these drugs to the horny layer in some patients. The clinical improvement rate of dermatological symptoms (marked improvement + improvement) was 91.3% in group I, 100% in group II, with therapeutic effects evident earlier in group II than in group I. The mycological eradication rate was found to be 47.4% in group I, 50.0% in group II after 4 weeks of treatment, and 81.8 and 87.5% at 12 weeks thereaftcr. respectively, with no adverse reactions found. The clinical utility rate (markedly useful + useful) was 91.3% in group I and 86.4% in group II. These results demonstrate that application of butenafine hydrochloride alone was extremely effective for the treatment of hyperkeratotic-type tinea pedis and that combination application with urea ointment resulted in an earlier improvement of dermatological symptoms. The concentration of butenafine in the horny layer from healthy volunteers reached a steady state in both groups I and II at 2 weeks after the application, with a lower concentration found in group II (about 70 ng mg(-1)) than in group I (about 100 ng,mg(-1)). Although some variations in concentration were found in case by case, patients in whom the treatment was determined to be 'markedly effective and effective' showed the increase in concentration of the drug in the lesional horny layer to be directly proportional to the number of days of treatment, with a lower concentration found in group II than in group I. This trend was also seen in healthy volunteers.

Case report. Lymphatic vessel-type sporotrichosis: immunohistochemical evaluation and cytokine expression pattern.

A 57-year-old male carpenter living in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, visited the Department of Dermatology of Kitasato University Hospital because an ulcer which appeared in his left forearm around May 1992 had spread gradually. An oval, shallow ulcer measuring 39 mm x 18 mm was found on the flexor aspect of the left forearm. Histopathological examination showed partial ulceration on the epidermis and marked cell infiltration throughout the entire dermal layer with an abscess in the centre and granulomatous reactions around it. PAS-positive spores were present between infiltrating cells and in giant cells in abscess and in granulomatous reactions. The skin lesion rapidly disappeared after beginning treatment with 125 mg day(-1) terbinafine and only a slight redness remained 14 weeks after starting the treatment. At this time the culture was negative. We conducted immunohistochemical examinations of the affected skin before, during and after starting treatment with terbinafine and studied local expression of cytokines at the affected lesion.

Bifonazole (Mycospor cream) in the treatment of moccasin-type tinea pedis. Comparison between combination therapy of bifonazole cream + 10% urea ointment (Urepearl) and occlusive dressing therapy with the same agents.

Moccasin-type tinea pedis(MTTP) is a hardly curable superficial dermatomycosis primarily characterized by hyperkeratosis of the sole. In this study, we compared the usefulness of combination therapy of bifonazole (Mycospor cream) + 10% urea ointment (Urepearl) (overlapping application group = group I) with occlusive dressing therapy with the same agents (group II) in the treatment of MTTP, and obtained the following results. (1) The clinical improvement rate (percentage of "marked improvement" and "moderate improvement") was 60.4% in group I and 83.3% in group II. (2) The mycological eradication rate was 48.7% in group I and 82.1% in group II after 4 weeks of treatment and 90.9 and 96.9%, after 12 weeks of treatment, respectively. (3) The clinical utility rate (percentage of "very beneficial" and "beneficial") was 83.3% in group I and 93.8% in group II. These results indicate the superiority of both combination therapy of bifonazole + 10% urea ointment (overlapping application group) and occlusive dressing therapy with the same agents in terms of efficacy and safety for the treatment of MTTP, and suggest that they can be recommended for treatment of patients for whom it is difficult to use oral antimycotic agents or for patients who fail to respond to oral medications alone.

Case report. A case of chromoblastomycosis effectively treated with terbinafine. Characteristics of chromoblastomycosis in the Kitasato region, Japan.

A 38-year-old male with history of trauma in the left gluteal region 20 years ago presented with a dark red skin eruption at the traumatized area. It gradually grew to form an erythematous plaque with a well-defined border. Clinical findings and mycological cultures resulted in the diagnosis of chromoblastomycosis due to Fonsecaea pedrosoi. After initial administration of 5-fluorocytosine and local heat an almost complete cure was achieved with terbinafine combined with local heat therapy. A review is given on the chromoblastomycosis cases observed in the Kitasato region in Japan.

Case report. Kerion Celsi effectively treated with terbinafine. Characteristics of kerion Celsi in the elderly in Japan.

A 75-year-old non-working male living in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, had erythematous plaques with scales associated with follicular pustules in the head area extending from the occipital to right temporal regions about 1 month prior to his initial visit, when hair loss increased. The diagnosis was kerion Celsi. Trichophyton rubrum was isolated from scales and tissues taken from lesions in the head. Histopathological examinations showed irregular epidermal thickening with dense cell infiltration from the dermis to subcutaneous adipose tissues. Granulomatous reactions involving neutrophils, histiocytes and giant cells were seen mainly in the hair follicles. Periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) and Grocott-positive microbial elements were detected in the horny layer, and inside and outside the hair follicles. Pustules disappeared 1 week after starting the oral treatment with terbinafine (125 mg day-1). A cure was achieved 2 weeks after starting the treatment, with only slight scales remaining. No recurrence has been observed to date. Terbinafine was thought to be very effective and safe for kerion Celsi. We reviewed 27 cases of kerion Celsi reported in patients, aged at least 70 years, in Japan and found that the major characteristics of this disease in Japan include the following: (1) female cases outnumber male cases; (2) the causative organism was T. rubrum in 14 of 27 patients (51.9%); and (3) topical application of steroids often induces this disease in patients with superficial tinea capitis.

Efficacy of oral fluconazole in tinea pedis of the hyperkeratotic type. Stratum corneum levels.

In this study, in addition to studying the efficacy and safety of the once-daily administration of 100-mg capsules of fluconazole over an 8-week administration period with six patients with hyperkeratotic-type tinea pedis, we also measured the serum and horny layer concentrations of fluconazole to study the mobility into the horny layer in diseased areas of the sole skin. The final overall efficacy and overall safety were both 100% (six out of six), and no side-effects, including abnormal laboratory changes, were observed in any of the patients. The drug mobility study revealed that in the horny layer of the skin a steady state was reached after 4 weeks of administration, with the mean concentration being 12.8 micrograms g-1. This concentration was a high concentration that was no less than 13 times the geometric mean MIC (0.972 microgram ml-1) for fresh clinical isolates of Trichophyton rubrum. Based on the above results, fluconazole is considered to be highly useful for treating various kinds of dermatomycosis, including hyperkeratotic-type tinea pedis.