Postural sway and diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

The focus of this paper is to evaluate the relationship between postural sway assessed by a gravicorder and peripheral neuropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes. Posturography (GRAVICHART), electrophysiological tests, and power spectrum analysis of heart rate fluctuations were performed in the following age-matched subjects: 123 type 2 diabetic patients without peripheral neuropathy, 32 type 2 diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy, and 55 healthy control subjects. All diabetic patients with a history of clinical neurological dysfunction were excluded from the study. Significant correlations were found between parameters of GRAVICHART and some parameters of the electrophysiological tests as well as the parameters of heart rate variability. The envelope area and the length per time were larger in type 2 diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy than in patients without peripheral neuropathy and the control subjects. There were no significant differences in the GRAVICHART parameters between diabetic patients without neuropathy and the healthy control subjects. Type 2 diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy exhibited an inability to maintain an upright posture. The GRAVICHART can indicate the early stage of postural balance impairment.

Immunological and virological characterization of improved construction of recombinant vaccinia virus expressing rinderpest virus hemagglutinin.

We constructed a recombinant vaccinia virus (RVV) expressing rinderpest virus (RPV) hemagglutinin (H) by modifying the promoter region of the original RVV. The promotor region was modified at three points, i.e., an outframe ATG was eliminated, the sequence between the promoter and initiation codon was shortened and the base sequence just upstream of the initiation codon was changed. As compared with the original RVV, the modified RVV was found to produce a remarkably large amount of H protein in infected rabbit kidney cells cultured in vitro and to induce high titers of anti-RPV-H antibodies in rabbits. The median protective doses in rabbits of the modified and of the original RVVs were 10(2) pfu and 10(3.5) pfu, respectively, indicating that the modified RVV was at least 10-times more effective in protection than the original. The neurovirulence of the modified RVV and the parental LC16mO strain was roughly at the same level, and was much lower than that of WR strain. The modified RVV was as heat-stable as the original one. These results indicate that the modified RVV could be a candidate rinderpest vaccine for further examinations including cattle.