Juvenile hormone acid O-methyltransferase in Drosophila melanogaster

Juvenile hormone (JH) acid O-methyltransferase (JHAMT) is the enzyme that transfers a methyl groupfrom S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) to the carboxyl group of JH acids to produce active JHs in thecorpora allata. While the JHAMT gene was originally identified and characterized in the silkwormBombyx mori, no orthologs from other insects have been studied until now. Here we report on thefunctional characterization of the CG17330/DmJHAMT gene in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster.Recombinant DmJHAMT protein expressed in Escherichia coli catalyzes the conversion of farnesoic acidand JH III acid to their cognate methyl esters in the presence of SAM. DmJHAMT is predominantlyexpressed in corpora allata, and its developmental expression profile correlates with changes in the JHtiter. While a transgenic RNA interference against DmJHAMT has no visible effect, overexpression ofDmJHAMT results in a pharate adult lethal phenotype, similar to that obtained with application of JHanalogs, suggesting that the temporal regulation of DmJHAMT is critical for Drosophila development

Randomized, Phase II Study Comparing Interferon Combined with Hepatic Arterial Infusion of Fluorouracil plus Cisplatin and Fluorouracil Alone in Patients with Advanced Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Objective: This randomized phase II trial compared the response rates to treatment with interferon (IFN) combined with hepatic arterial infusion of fluorouracil (FU) plus cisplatin (CDDP) or FU alone in patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Methods: A total of 114 patients with measurable advanced HCC were enrolled and randomized into 2 groups. FU (300 mg/m2, days 1–5, days 8–12) with or without CDDP (20 mg/m2, days 1 and 8) was administered via the hepatic artery. IFNα-2b was administered 3 times per week for 4 weeks. Results: The response rates were 45.6% for the IFN/FU + CDDP group and 24.6% for the IFN/FU group. The response rate was significantly higher in the IFN/FU + CDDP group (p = 0.030). The median overall survival period was 17.6 months in the IFN/FU + CDDP group versus 10.5 months in the IFN/FU group (p = 0.522). The median progression-free survival period was 6.5 months in the IFN/FU + CDDP group versus 3.3 months in the IFN/FU group (p = 0.0048). Hematological toxicity was common, but no toxicity-related deaths were observed. Conclusion: These results show the clinical efficacy of adding CDDP to the hepatic arterial infusion of FU in combined chemotherapy regimens with IFN

Beneficial effect of branched-chain amino acid supplementation on glycemic control in chronic hepatitis C patients with insulin resistance: Implications for type 2 diabetes

Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) improve disorders of albumin metabolism, quality of life, subjective symptoms, and prognosis in patients with chronic hepatitis. However, it remains unclear whether they improve insulin resistance. We examined the effects of BCAAs on glucose tolerance and insulin sensitivity in patients with chronic hepatitis C and insulin resistance. Individuals with a definitive diagnosis of chronic hepatitis C and insulin resistance were eligible for participation. Eligible participants were randomly assigned to the BCAA group or a control group. Participants were then crossed over to the other treatment for a further 12 weeks. Baseline clinical features, laboratory markers, fatty acid levels, and insulin sensitivity, assessed with oral glucose tolerance tests and a hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp, were also examined before and 12 and 24 weeks after the beginning of the study. Of the 27 patients who completed the study, 14 began in the BCAA group and 13 began as controls. There were no significant differences in glucose metabolism parameters or lipid profiles between the groups. HbA1c values were improved in 10 patients and worsened or remained unchanged in 17 patients. The only predictive variable for change in HbA1c was the baseline Matsuda index: the lower the index, the greater the improvement in HbA1c values. BCAA therapy did not have adverse effects on glucose tolerance or insulin sensitivity in patients with chronic hepatitis C and insulin resistance. Moreover, it had a therapeutic effect on HbA1c values in patients with marked peripheral (primarily muscle) insulin resistance. © 2012 Elsevier Inc

Simultaneous Optimization of Air̶Sea Exchange Coefficients and Initial Conditions near a Tropical Cyclone Using JNoVA

The impact ofoptimizing the air̶sea exchange coefficients and the initial state is examined for a tropical cyclone (TC) with the aim ofimproving an operational mesoscale four-dimensional variational data assimilation system. In our optimization approach for TC Chaba that approached the Ryukyu Islands in October 2010, the drag coefficient values are adjusted so that they saturate at extreme conditions, while the first guess increases with increasing wind speed. In addition, the latent heat exchange coefficient values are adjusted so that they significantly increase under extreme conditions relative to the first guess. Consequently, the term of the cost function, which represents the discrepancy between the model results and the observational data, decreases by 4.1̶22.4% relative to the existing system after some spin-up cycles. The intensity and location ofthe TC are brought close to those ofthe corresponding best track produced at the Japan Meteorological Agency. Our optimization approach has the potential to improve the forecast skill

GREATER DISPARITY BETWEEN AUDITORY STEADY-STATE RESPONSES AND PURE-TONE AUDIOMETRY IN PATIENTS WITH ACOUSTIC NEUROMA

Objective : The purpose of this study was to investigate whether auditory steady-state responses would reveal characteristics indicative of acoustic neuroma in patients. Methods : Subjects were 42 unilateral acoustic neuroma patients with an average age of 55.0 (±13.6) years.　The control group consisted of 19 idiopathic sensorineural hearing loss patients with an average age of 42.3 years (±18.8 years). Carrier frequencies used to obtain auditory steady-state response were 500, 1,000, 2,000 and 4,000 Hz, respectively. The measured auditory steady-state responses thresholds were compared with hearing levels of the pure tone audiogram. Results : The auditory steady-state response threshold was somewhat greater (6 to 12 dB) than the pure-tone threshold that has been reported. Even higher thresholds were found in the acoustic neuroma group. In fact, when the subtracted values obtained by auditory steady-state responses threshold minus pure tone audiogram threshold of each frequency in each case were compared between the two groups, the acoustic neuroma group showed significantly greater values in all frequency regions. On the other hand, no differences were found in the values between the control and intact ear side. Conclusion : The presence of acoustic neuroma may lower the auditory steady-state responses threshold. This might reflect that the tumor could jitter in creating a auditory steady-state responses