Rescue of an intracellular avirulent Rhodococcus equi replication defect by the extracellular addition of virulence-associated protein A.

Rhodococcus equi is a facultative intracellular bacterium that can escape from bactericidal mechanisms associated with phagocytosis. Virulence-associated protein A (VapA), encoded on a virulence-associated plasmid, is essential for intracellular survival in macrophages, but its function is not known. Here, we show that the extracellular addition of recombinant glutathione S-transferase (GST)-VapA fusion protein rescued the intracellular replication defect of a mutant lacking the vapA gene. Furthermore, the virulence-plasmid-cured strain could also multiply to nearly wild-type levels by the addition of GST-VapA. The present data suggest that VapA can alter the intraphagocytic environment, thereby affecting its suitability for the growth of R. equi.

Reduction and oxidation of SrCoO2.5 thin films at low temperatures.

Brownmillerite SrCoO(2.5) (010) thin films synthesized by pulsed laser deposition became amorphous when reduced at low temperatures by CaH(2), indicating that the infinite-layer structure with the square planar Co(2+)O(4) configuration is unstable. Ferromagnetic and conducting perovskite SrCoO(3) epitaxial thin films, on the other hand, were obtained topotactically at room temperature by oxidation with NaClO.

Selective reduction of layers at low temperature in artificial superlattice thin films.

Reduction and oxidation in transition-metal oxides are keys to develop technologies related to energy and the environment. Here we report the selective topochemical reduction observed when artificial superlattices with transition-metal oxides are treated at a temperature below 300 °C with CaH(2). [CaFeO(2)](m)/[SrTiO(3)](n) infinite-layer/perovskite artificial superlattice thin films were obtained by low-temperature reduction of [CaFeO(2.5)](m)/[SrTiO(3)](n) brownmillerite/perovskite artificial superlattice thin films. By the reduction only the CaFeO(2.5) layers in the artificial superlattices were reduced to the CaFeO(2) infinite layers whereas the SrTiO(3) layers were unchanged. The observed low-temperature reduction behaviors strongly suggest that the oxygen ion diffusion in the artificial superlattices is confined within the two-dimensional brownmillerite layers. The reduced artificial superlattice could be reoxidized, and thus, the selective reduction and oxidation of the constituent layers in the perovskite-structure framework occur reversibly.

Anisotropic oxygen diffusion at low temperature in perovskite-structure iron oxides.

Oxygen-ion conduction in transition-metal oxides is exploited in, for example, electrolytes in solid-oxide fuel cells and oxygen-separation membranes, which currently work at high temperatures. Conduction at low temperature is a key to developing further utilization, and an understanding of the structures that enable conduction is also important to gain insight into oxygen-diffusion pathways. Here we report the structural changes observed when single-crystalline, epitaxial CaFeO2.5 thin films were changed into CaFeO2 by low-temperature reductions with CaH2. During the reduction process from the brownmillerite CaFeO2.5 into the infinite-layer structure of CaFeO2, some of the oxygen atoms are released from and others are rearranged within the perovskite-structure framework. We evaluated these changes and the reaction time they required, and found two oxygen diffusion pathways and the related kinetics at low temperature. The results demonstrate that oxygen diffusion in the brownmillerite is highly anisotropic, significantly higher along the lateral direction of the tetrahedral and octahedral layers.

[The drug use results survey of Adenoscan injection 60 mg].

To investigate the safety and efficacy of Adenoscan injection 60 mg (adenosine), a pharmacologic stress agent that can be used for coronary vasodilation in patients unable to exercise adequately, the drug use results survey was conducted by consecutive patients-survey method in 166 nationwide medical institutes from 2006 to 2008. Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) occurred at the rate of 16.0% (343/2,150 patients), most of which disappeared shortly with no need for treatment. Major ADRs were chest discomfort at the rate of 4.9%, chest pain 2.0%, atrioventricular block 1.8% and dyspnea 1.4%. There were no differences in the incidences of ADRs between the elderly and the non-elderly. The overall efficacy rate was 97.9% (2,104/2,150 patients) according to the efficacy judgment of each primary physician. The sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic accuracy of myocardial perfusion scintigraphy in 608 patients who underwent coronary angiography were 70.8%, 58.1% and 65.0%, respectively. We conclude that adenosine stress is safe and useful for myocardial perfusion scintigraphy to detect ischemic heart disease for patients who are unable to exercise adequately.

Multicenter prospective investigation on efficacy and safety of carperitide as a first-line drug for acute heart failure syndrome with preserved blood pressure: COMPASS: Carperitide Effects Observed Through Monitoring Dyspnea in Acute Decompensated Heart Failure Study.

BACKGROUND: Recently, vasodilators have been increasingly being recognized as useful for the treatment of acute heart failure syndromes (AHFS). Although carperitide (alpha-human atrial natriuretic peptide) has vasodilatory, diuretic and organ-protective effects, its efficacy and safety for the first-line drug treatment of AHFS have not been reported. METHODS AND RESULTS: A prospective observational study was performed in AHFS patients with preserved systolic blood pressure (SBP >or=120 mmHg), pulmonary congestion and dyspnea who were receiving carperitide monotherapy. The analysis was conducted in 1,832 patients (male: 52.7%; mean age: 75.1+/-12.7 years). The initial SBP was 151.1+/-25.7 mmHg; 62.0% were diagnosed as having acutely decompensated chronic heart failure and 78.8% were assessed as functional class III-IV according to New York Heart Association classification. Carperitide was administered at an initial dosage of 0.025-0.05 microg x kg(-1) x min(-1) in 50.4% of patients. In 1,524 patients (83.2%), carperitide monotherapy restored the acute phase and improved the degree of dyspnea as assessed using the modified Borg scale. The incidence of adverse drug reactions was 4.64%; the most frequently reported adverse reaction was hypotension (3.55%). CONCLUSION: In the present study, following carperitide monotherapy, 83.2% of AHFS patients recovered from the acute phase. Based on these findings, carperitide seems useful for the first-line drug treatment of AHFS in patients with pulmonary congestion and preserved blood pressure.