Showing papers by "Kamejiro Yamashita published in 1999"

Decreased Na,K-ATPase activity by glycation at the catalytic center.

Abstract: The in vitro activity of Na,K-ATPase isolated from outer medulla of dog kidney was decreased in a dose- and time-dependent manner by interaction with 100 mM glucose 6-phosphate (G6P) during the first 8 h. In the subsequent 16 h no change in activity was observed. On the other hand, Amadori-products of the enzyme increased in a dose- and time-dependent manner by glycation up to 100 mM G6P during 24 h. The presence of 5 mM ATP in glycation experiments protected the enzyme activity but did not inhibit the formation of Amadori-products. These results were consistent with inhibition of the Na,K-ATPase activity by glycation of the amino groups located in the catalytic center of the molecule.

MTHFR gene variant is not associated with diabetic nephropathy in Japanese.

Abstract: Genetic predisposition has been implicated in diabetic nephropathy. The C677T variant of the MTHFR gene has been suggested to play a role in the development of not only vascular diseases but also diabetic microangiopathies. By using polymerase chain reaction-restriction length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method using Hinf I, we investigated whether this variant is associated with diabetic nephropathy in Japanese. By analysing 274 unrelated Japanese patients with type II DM with or without nephropathy, there was no significant difference in the genotype distribution of this variant. The distribution of the three genotypes were not different among patients with micro- or macroalbuminuria and those without nephropathy. Although previous reports suggest a role of this variant with diabetic microangiopathies, our observations suggest that this variant is does not play an important role in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy in Japanese.