Identification of a novel SEREX antigen family, ECSA, in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Diagnosis of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) may improve with early diagnosis. Currently it is difficult to diagnose SCC in the early stage because there is a limited number of tumor markers available.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Fifty-two esophageal SCC SEREX antigens were identified by SEREX (serological identification of antigens by recombinant cDNA expression cloning) using a cDNA phage library and sera of patients with esophageal SCC. Sequence analysis revealed that three of these antigens were similar in amino acid sequences, and they were designated as ECSA (esophageal carcinoma SEREX antigen)-1, -2 and -3. The ECSA family was also similar to an EST clone, hepatocellular carcinoma-associated antigen 25a (HCA25a). Serum antibody levels to ECSA-1, -2 and -3 were significantly higher in patients with esophageal SCC than in healthy donors. Based on the conserved amino acid sequences, three peptides were synthesized and used for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA). The serum antibody levels against one of these peptides were significantly higher in patients with esophageal SCC. This peptide sequence was also conserved in FAM119A, GOSR1 and BBS5, suggesting that these are also ECSA family members. Reverse transcription followed by quantitative PCR analysis showed that the mRNA expression levels of ECSA-1, -2 and -3 and FAM119A but not of HCA25a, GOSR1 and BBS5 were frequently elevated in esophageal SCC tissues.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We have identified a new gene family designated ECSA. Serum antibodies against the conserved domain of the ECSA family may be a promising tumor marker for esophageal SCC.</p

A genome-wide association study in the Japanese population identifies the 12q24 locus for habitual coffee consumption : The J-MICC Study

Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages worldwide, and its role in human health has received much attention. Although genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have investigated genetic variants associated with coffee consumption in European populations, no such study has yet been conducted in an Asian population. Here, we conducted a GWAS to identify common genetic variations that affected coffee consumption in a Japanese population of 11,261 participants recruited as a part of the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort (J-MICC) study. Coffee consumption was collected using a self-administered questionnaire, and converted from categories to cups/day. In the discovery stage (n = 6,312), we found 2 independent loci (12q24.12–13 and 5q33.3) that met suggestive significance (P < 1 × 10−6). In the replication stage (n = 4,949), the lead variant for the 12q24.12–13 locus (rs2074356) was significantly associated with habitual coffee consumption (P = 2.2 × 10−6), whereas the lead variant for the 5q33.3 locus (rs1957553) was not (P = 0.53). A meta-analysis of the discovery and replication populations, and the combined analysis using all subjects, revealed that rs2074356 achieved genome-wide significance (P = 2.2 × 10−16 for a meta-analysis). These findings indicate that the 12q24.12-13 locus is associated with coffee consumption among a Japanese population

Development of standards for 'universal' blast primers: A state of the art review and experimental evaluation of industrial blast primers

10.00SIGLELD:f80/3584 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

歴青系舗装の新しい透湿試験方法

Water-related damage to bituminous pavement is considered to result from penetration of liquid water from the surface and/or subsurface. However, surface courses made of bituminous material such as runway pavements are usually not permeable for liquid water. Therefore, such phenomena may be caused by moisture vapor in the air. A new moisture permeation test apparatus was developed to analyze the mass transfer. Moisture permeation tests under typical hot summer conditions suggested that atmospheric moisture permeates and accumulates in bituminous mixtures through mass transfer by vapor diffusion despite the water impermeability of bituminous surface mixtures. The moisture permeation test provides an effective approach to analyze water storage mechanisms and moisture-related phenomena such as blistering in bituminous mixtures, although the test apparatus and condition settings require some improvement.水分による歴青系舗装の損傷は，表面や路床から液状浸入した水が原因であると考えられてきた。しかし，滑走路等のアスファルト舗装表層は実質的に不透水であることが多い。したがって，著者らは大気中の水蒸気（湿気）がこれらの要因であると考え，この検証のために新しい透湿試験装置を開発した。透湿試験から，たとえ表層材料が実質的に不透水性であっても，典型的な夏の暑い日の気象条件においては水蒸気透過による物質移動により大気中の水分が透過し，凝縮した水分が混合物中に多量に蓄積しうることが明らかとなった。試験装置や試験条件に関してさらなる改良を加えることが必要であるものの，透湿試験は水分蓄積メカニズムの解明とブリスタリング現象等の水分に関連する損傷を評価する有効な試験方法である。Research Not