Follow-up Results of Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy using the Dye-Only Method for Breast Cancer

To demonstrate the validity of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) using the indocyanine green dye method (dye only method), we compared the survival of breast cancer patients negative to SLNB without axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) (SLNB group) to that of lymph node-negative patients undergoing ALND (ALND group). We studied a total of 174 patients with T1-2N0 invasive breast cancer diagnosed at our university hospital clinical department between 2000 and 2008, with follow-up till 31 December 2009, retrospectively. The SLNB group consisted of 108 SLNB-negative women without additional ALND (median follow-up, 25 months), diagnosed between May 2005 and 2008. The ALND group consisted of 66 axillary lymph node-negative women (median follow-up, 75 months) treated with ALND between 2000 and April 2005. SLNB was performed during operation by periareolar injection using indocyanine green. All sentinel lymph nodes were examined using the largest section along the major axis, and permanent sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin. In the SLNB group, no patients developed axillary recurrence during the 25-month median follow-up. The 4.5-year distant disease free survival and overall survival rates were 90.9% and 91.9%, respectively. The survival rate in the SLNB group was equivalent to that in the ALND group. This suggests that SLNB with the dye only method can safely replace ALND as the procedure of choice for axillary staging in breast cancer patients with a clinically negative axilla

ACTH-Producing Breast Cancer: A Patient Report

Ectopic ACTH secretion in the setting of breast cancer is extremely rare but when present affects both the tumor’s behavior and the incidence of complications. The patient, a 58-year-old woman, first presented with a mass in her left breast as well as multiple osseous metastases and a right femur fracture. Laboratory data revealed a hypokalemic alkalosis. Her plasma ACTH level was elevated. She was diagnosed with breast cancer with ectopic ACTH secretion, and underwent a left mastectomy and axillary lymph node dissection. Histological examination demonstrated a poorly differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma with ectopic ACTH secretion. Although the signs and symptoms of ectopic ACTH secretion from a breast cancer are frequently subtle, the recognition of ectopic ACTH secretion from breast cancer is important for patient management

Variation in Mitochondrial DNA of Vietnamese Pigs: Relationships with Asian Domestic Pigs and Ryukyu Wild Boars

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences (574 bp) of 30 Vietnamese pigs (large and small) were examined and compared with those of 61 haplotypes from wild boars and domestic pigs from various locations in Asia. The large Vietnamese pigs had genetic links to Ryukyu wild boars in southern Japan. The small Vietnamese pigs were closely related to other East Asian domestic pigs. These results indicate that Vietnamese pigs are genetically diverse and may be descendents of wild and domestic pigs from other regions of Asia

Variation in mitochondrial DNA of Vietnamese pigs: Relationships with Asian domestic pigs and Ryukyu wild boars

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences (574 bp) of 30 Vietnamese pigs (large and small) were examined and compared with those of 61 haplotypes from wild boars and domestic pigs from various locations in Asia. The large Vietnamese pigs had genetic links to Ryukyu wild boars in southern Japan. The small Vietnamese pigs were closely related to other East Asian domestic pigs. These results indicate that Vietnamese pigs are genetically diverse and may be descendents of wild and domestic pigs from other regions of Asia

MtDNA variation and human-mediated introgression of indigenous sus populations on several Indonesian Islands

o examine the genetic origin of the domestic pig, the distribution of wild boar, and　human-mediated translocation of the domestic pig, we collected 223 samples from domestic pigs and　wild boars from eight Indonesian islands, sequenced the control region of mitochondrial DNA　(mtDNA) from each sample, and compared these sequences with previously determined sequences from East and Southeast Asian domestic pigs and wild boars. Three Sus species (S. scrofa, S.verrucosus, and S. celebensis) were identified on the Indonesian islands. The mtDNA sequences of　three Indonesian Sus species were diverse, and they clustered into three lineages with low bootstrap　values (an S. scrofa group including East and Southeast Asian domestic pigs and wild boars, a group including indigenous S. scrofa together with S. verrucosus from Sumatra and Java Islands, and an S.celebensis group from Sulawesi Island). The mtDNA haplotypes of S. scrofa wild boars from three　(Sumbawa, Flores and New Guinea) islands and domestic pigs from two (Lombok and Timor) islands east of the Wallace Line, and some S. scrofa wild boars from Sumatra and Java Islands were related　to Vietnamese pig mtDNA sequences in the East and Southeast Asian domestic pig and wild boar　clade, supporting that ancient immigrants likely introduced domestic pigs from the Asian continent to east Indonesian islands. The mtDNA haplotypes of S. celebensis were broadly divided into three　groups, which were distributed in the north and southwest areas, central area and southeast area of　Sulawesi Island

Genetic structure of wild boar (Sus scrofa) populations from East Asia based on microsatellite loci analyses

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited.Abstract Background Wild boar, Sus scrofa, is an extant wild ancestor of the domestic pig as an agro-economically important mammal. Wild boar has a worldwide distribution with its geographic origin in Southeast Asia, but genetic diversity and genetic structure of wild boar in East Asia are poorly understood. To characterize the pattern and amount of genetic variation and population structure of wild boar in East Asia, we genotyped and analyzed microsatellite loci for a total of 238 wild boar specimens from ten locations across six countries in East and Southeast Asia. Results Our data indicated that wild boar populations in East Asia are genetically diverse and structured, showing a significant correlation of genetic distance with geographic distance and implying a low level of gene flow at a regional scale. Bayesian-based clustering analysis was indicative of seven inferred genetic clusters in which wild boars in East Asia are geographically structured. The level of genetic diversity was relatively high in wild boars from Southeast Asia, compared with those from Northeast Asia. This gradient pattern of genetic diversity is consistent with an assumed ancestral population of wild boar in Southeast Asia. Genetic evidences from a relationship tree and structure analysis suggest that wild boar in Jeju Island, South Korea have a distinct genetic background from those in mainland Korea. Conclusions Our results reveal a diverse pattern of genetic diversity and the existence of genetic differentiation among wild boar populations inhabiting East Asia. This study highlights the potential contribution of genetic variation of wild boar to the high genetic diversity of local domestic pigs during domestication in East Asia

A pristine record of outer Solar System materials from asteroid Ryugu’s returned sample

Volatile and organic-rich C-type asteroids may have been one of the main sources of Earth’s water. Our best insight into their chemistry is currently provided by carbonaceous chondritic meteorites, but the meteorite record is biased: only the strongest types survive atmospheric entry and are then modified by interaction with the terrestrial environment. Here we present the results of a detailed bulk and microanalytical study of pristine Ryugu particles, brought to Earth by the Hayabusa2 spacecraft. Ryugu particles display a close compositional match with the chemically unfractionated, but aqueously altered, CI (Ivuna-type) chondrites, which are widely used as a proxy for the bulk Solar System composition. The sample shows an intricate spatial relationship between aliphatic-rich organics and phyllosilicates and indicates maximum temperatures of ~30 °C during aqueous alteration. We find that heavy hydrogen and nitrogen abundances are consistent with an outer Solar System origin. Ryugu particles are the most uncontaminated and unfractionated extraterrestrial materials studied so far, and provide the best available match to the bulk Solar System composition

A dehydrated space-weathered skin cloaking the hydrated interior of Ryugu

Without a protective atmosphere, space-exposed surfaces of airless Solar System bodies gradually experience an alteration in composition, structure and optical properties through a collective process called space weathering. The return of samples from near-Earth asteroid (162173) Ryugu by Hayabusa2 provides the first opportunity for laboratory study of space-weathering signatures on the most abundant type of inner solar system body: a C-type asteroid, composed of materials largely unchanged since the formation of the Solar System. Weathered Ryugu grains show areas of surface amorphization and partial melting of phyllosilicates, in which reduction from Fe3+ to Fe2+ and dehydration developed. Space weathering probably contributed to dehydration by dehydroxylation of Ryugu surface phyllosilicates that had already lost interlayer water molecules and to weakening of the 2.7 µm hydroxyl (–OH) band in reflectance spectra. For C-type asteroids in general, this indicates that a weak 2.7 µm band can signify space-weathering-induced surface dehydration, rather than bulk volatile loss