A Case of Ovarian Actinomycosis

Background: Pelvic actinomycosis is uncommon and often presents as a complication of an intrauterine device (IUD). A diagnosis of actinomycosis can be made from the finding of sulfur granules within inflammatory exudate on histologic examination after surgery. However, it may be possible to diagnose actinomycosis before surgery by finding Actinomyces-like organisms on Papanicolaou smears. Case: A 41-year-old woman had been diagnosed as having a pelvic abscess, and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy was performed. She had been an IUD user for 6 years. Actinomyces-like organisms were detected in her previous Papanicolaou cervical smears. If the patient had been treated when the Actinomyces-like organisms were detected by Papanicolaou smears, the serious ovarian actinomycosis might have been avoided. Conclusion: We suggest that routine cervical examinations are important for women who are IUD users

Vaccination during the 2013-2014 influenza season in pregnant Japanese women

This questionnaire survey was conducted at 11 hospitals in Japan to determine vaccination coverage against seasonal influenza and the prevalence rate of influenza among pregnant Japanese women. Of 2,808 postpartum women who gave birth at the 11 hospitals during the study period from March 1, 2014, to July 31, 2014, 1,713 (61 %) participated in this study and 876 (51 %) reported having received vaccination against influenza in or after October 2013. Women aged < 25 years had a significantly lower vaccination rate than those aged a parts per thousand yen25 years (31 % vs. 53 %, respectively; p = 0.0000). Eighty-seven (5.1 %) and 1,626 (94.9 %) women did and did not contract influenza, respectively. Although prior birth did not affect overall vaccination coverage (50 % for primiparous vs. 53 % for multiparous), multiparous women had a significantly higher rate of contracting influenza than primiparous women, irrespective of vaccination status (5.6 % vs. 2.2 % [p = 0.0216] and 9.7 % vs. 3.5 % [p = 0.0003] for women with and without vaccination, respectively). The 2013-2014 vaccination program significantly reduced the influenza infection rate by 35 % (3.9 % vs. 6.3 % for women with and without vaccination, respectively; p = 0.0272). Seventy-two (83 %) of the 87 women took antiviral agents for the treatment of influenza and two (2.3 %) required hospitalization. These results suggested that pregnant Japanese women had a high level of concern regarding seasonal influenza. However, campaigns targeting young pregnant Japanese women, as well as multiparous women, for vaccination are needed in order to further reduce the incidence of influenza among pregnant Japanese women.The original publication is available at www.springerlink.co

Endocytosis-like vesicle fission by membrane-expanding molecular machine enabling virus encapsulation for in vivo delivery

Since the cellular process of endocytosis enables uptake of biomacromolecules interacting with the cell surface by outside-in vesicle fission, endocytosis-like membrane deformation is an ideal methodology for the incorporation of micrometer-size biomacromolecules into vesicles. However, such endocytosis-like vesicle fission, which requires expansion of the liposomal membrane, has never been realized using artificial liposomal systems. Here, we developed a membrane-expanding molecular machine containing a diazocine core (AzoMEx), which exhibits an opening/closing mechanical motion in response to visible light. Upon blue light irradiation, AzoMEx embedded in a 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine bilayer expanded the liposomal membrane, assembled, and eventually induced outside-in endocytosis-like fission. When this vesicle fission was induced in the presence of micrometer-size M13 phage, it was efficiently incorporated into the vesicle by interacting with AzoMEx. The encapsulated M13 phage was transiently protected from the external environment, retaining its biological activity, and thus could be distributed throughout the body after blood administration