In June 1993, two of five pet cats kept in Yokohama city in Japan suddenly became agitated and died. Feline calicivirus (FCV) was isolated from them. One strain (FCV-S) was isolated from the spinal cord, lung and tonsil of cat 1, another (FCV-B) from the ileum, medulla oblongata and cervical spinal cord of cat 2, and a third (FCV-SAKURA) from the oral cavity of one of the three surviving cats which showed no clinical signs. These three strains were equally resistant to pH 3.0 and serologically similar to each other, but distinct from strain F9. A genetic analysis, using a 208 base pair fragment from region E of the capsid, showed that FCV-Ari had a 70.4 per cent nucleotide and 77.3 per cent amino acid homology and FCV-F9 had a 68.6 per cent nucleotide and 73.9 per cent amino acid homology with the three strains, indicating that these two strains were genetically distinct from the three new isolates. Unvaccinated cats and cats which had been vaccinated against FCV-F9 developed watery diarrhoea but did not become agitated after the administration of FCV-S. The FCV-S strain did not induce signs of excitability after it was administered orally to specific pathogen-free cats.
To investigate the contamination of commercial fruit juice beverages by thermostable acidophilic bacteria (TAB) in Japan, 208 samples of fruit juice beverages produced in Japan and 162 samples of imported beverages (total of 370 samples) purchased in 2004 were investigated according to the 'Standard Test Method for Thermostable Acidophilic Bacteria' proposed by the Japan Fruit Beverage Association. TAB was isolated from 9 of the beverages made in Japan (4.3%) and 19 of the imported beverages (11.7%), showing about a 3-fold higher isolation rate. The origins of the imported beverages from which TAB was isolated were widely distributed: Thailand, Indonesia, Korea, France, Germany, Spain, Australia, America, Mexico, and South Africa. Three of the 9 domestic products from which TAB was isolated were mixed juice. As the 2nd most frequently contaminated beverage, 2 orange juice products were contaminated, and 1 sample each of apple, grape, grapefruit, and pineapple juices were also contaminated. Regarding the imported beverages, 5 of the 19 samples from which TAB was isolated were mixed juice, as in the Japan-made products. The 2nd most frequently contaminated beverages were 3 orange juice products. TAB was also isolated from 2 samples each of grape, mango, and pineapple juices, and 1 sample each of apple, cherry, peach, and prune juices. TAB was isolated from various fruit juice beverages regardless of whether they were domestic products or imports. All of the 9 Japan-made beverages contaminated with TAB were concentrated products, and the bacteria were not detected in any of the pure direct products. The same tendency was noted in the imported beverages. Ten of the 19 samples (52.6%) contaminated with TAB were concentrated, and only 1 straight sample (5.3%) was contaminated. Seven of the 9 contaminated domestic products (77.8%) were paper-packed, and 1 sample each was packed in a can or PET bottle. As for the imported beverages, 8 beverages (42.1%) were most frequently paper-packed, as in the Japan-made products, and 6 (31.6%), 3 (15.8%), and 2 (10.5%) beverages were packed in a bottle, PET bottle, and can, respectively.
Hair-loss diseases comprise heterogenous conditions with respective pathophysiology and clinicopathological characteristics. Major breakthroughs in hair follicle biology and immunology have led to the elucidation of etiopathogenesis of non-scarring alopecia (e.g., alopecia areata, AA) and cicatricial alopecia (e.g., lichen planopilaris, LPP). High-throughput genetic analyses revealed molecular mechanism underlying the disease susceptibility of hair loss conditions, such as androgenetic alopecia (AGA) and female pattern hair loss (FPHL). Hair loss attracted public interest during the COVID-19 pandemic. The knowledge of hair loss diseases is robustly expanding and thus requires timely updates. In this review, the diagnostic and measurement methodologies applied to hair loss diseases are updated. Of note, novel criteria and classification/scoring systems published in the last decade are reviewed, highlighting their advantages over conventional ones. Emerging diagnostic techniques are itemized with clinical pearls enabling efficient utilization. Recent advances in understanding the etiopathogenesis and management for representative hair diseases, namely AGA, FPHL, AA, and major primary cicatricial alopecia, including LPP, are comprehensively summarized, focusing on causative factors, genetic predisposition, new disease entity, and novel therapeutic options. Lastly, the association between COVID-19 and hair loss is discussed to delineate telogen effluvium as the predominating pathomechanism accounting for this sequela.
The purpose of this study is to estimate changes in the productivity of orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) resulting from an anticipated increase in CO 2 and a rise in temperature. Productivity of orchardgrass is primarily determined by mean temperature and solar radiation. Accordingly, a growth model was established on this basis by using the neural network method. Maps of areas where productivity is depressed in the summertime were drawn based on calculations applying anticipated climatic changes to this model. The direct influence of the increase in CO 2 density was also considered in making these maps. As a result, it was concluded that, in the future, the area adversely affected by summer heat will increase, while the area capable of sustaining high productivity will be reduced.
Abstract Corynebacterium amycolatum is a part of the normal skin flora and has been underestimated as a pathogen. However, in recent years, the species has gained recognition as an important pathogen causing severe infections, particularly in immunocompromised patients. Nevertheless, identifying these organisms at the species level is difficult in routine clinical microbiology, leading to limited knowledge of their clinical manifestations in infectious diseases. In this study, we report a rare case of multiple subcutaneous abscesses in a patient with severe neutropenia, wherein C.amycolatum was identified as the causative organism through genotyping tests. This case highlights the importance of this organism as an aetiological agent of severe skin infections in patients with compromised immune systems.
Digestion with Sal I facilitated the subclassification of 41 strains of Campylobacter jejuni into seven types, and digestion with Sma I enabled subclassification into twelve types. Sma I was potentially more useful for the detection of variability among the 41 strains, but both restriction enzymes seemed to be potentially useful for detecting variability among crossed-field gel electrophoresis profiles of the strains. The results clearly demonstrated that C. jejuni strains from different sources and with different routes of transmission had invaded the three farms investigated. At farms Sa and Ai, approximately 70% (23 strains) of isolates of C. jejuni (33 strains) were subclassified into the two major genotypes (I and II) on the basis of cleavage profiles with both Sal I and Sma I. These two major genotypes appeared to have invaded, expanded in and occupied the two chicken farms. All nine strains from farm Ai belonged genotype I.
