A rare anomaly of left renal vein drainage into the left common iliac vein: A case report

AbstractIntroductionHerein, we describe a case of sigmoid colon cancer with a rare anomaly of the left renal vein located between the inferior mesenteric artery (IMA) and the left common iliac artery.Case presentationA 57-year-old woman with sigmoid colon cancer underwent three-dimensional computed tomography angiography for a preoperative assessment; the results revealed a rare variant of the left renal vein. There were two left renal veins: one retroaortically drained into the inferior vena cava, and the other was located between the IMA and the left common iliac artery and drained into the left common iliac vein. Laparoscopic sigmoid colectomy was performed safely while carefully avoiding any injury to the left renal vein located posterior to the IMA.DiscussionSeveral variations of the left renal vein have been reported, such as retroaortic or circumaortic left renal veins. The variants of renal vessels, which are frequently overlooked in the preoperative assessment, is rarely affected in colorectal surgery. However, if the surgeon is unaware of such renal vessel anomalies, an injury can occur, resulting in severe bleeding.ConclusionIt is important that surgeons identify retroperitoneal vessel variants before performing colorectal surgery

Applications of Carbon Nanotubes in Bone Regenerative Medicine

Scaffolds are essential for bone regeneration due to their ability to maintain a sustained release of growth factors and to provide a place where cells that form new bone can enter and proliferate. In recent years, scaffolds made of various materials have been developed and evaluated. Functionally effective scaffolds require excellent cell affinity, chemical properties, mechanical properties, and safety. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are fibrous nanoparticles with a nano-size diameter and have excellent strength and chemical stability. In the industrial field, they are used as fillers to improve the performance of materials. Because of their excellent physicochemical properties, CNTs are studied for their promising clinical applications as biomaterials. In this review article, we focused on the results of our research on CNT scaffolds for bone regeneration, introduced the promising properties of scaffolds for bone regeneration, and described the potential of CNT scaffolds.ArticleNANOMATERIALS. 10(4):659 (2020)journal articl

Physico-Chemical, In Vitro, and In Vivo Evaluation of a 3D Unidirectional Porous Hydroxyapatite Scaffold for Bone Regeneration

The unidirectional porous hydroxyapatite HAp (UDPHAp) is a scaffold with continuous communicated pore structure in the axial direction. We evaluated and compared the ability of the UDPHAp as a three-dimensional (3D) bone tissue engineering scaffold to the interconnected calcium porous HAp ceramic (IP-CHA). To achieve this, we evaluated in vitro the compressive strength, controlled rhBMP-2 release behavior, adherent cell morphology, cell adhesion manner, and cell attachment of UDPHAp. As a further in vivo experiment, UDPHAp and IP-CHA with rhBMP-2 were transplanted into mouse calvarial defects to evaluate their bone-forming ability. The Results demonstrated that the maximum compressive strengths of the UDPHAp was 7.89 +/- 1.23 MPa and higher than that of IP-CHA (1.92 +/- 0.53 MPa) (p = 0.0039). However, the breaking energies were similar (8.99 +/- 2.72 vs. 13.95 +/- 5.69 mJ, p = 0.055). The UDPHAp released rhBMP-2 more gradually in vivo. Cells on the UDPHAp adhered tightly to the surface, which had grown deeply into the scaffolds. A significant increase in cell number on the UDPHAp was observed compared to the IP-CHA on day 8 (102,479 +/- 34,391 vs. 32,372 +/- 29,061 estimated cells per scaffold, p = 0.0495). In a mouse calvarial defect model, the percentages of new bone area (mature bone + trabecular bone) in the 2x field were 2.514% +/- 1.224% for the IP-CHA group and 7.045% +/- 2.055% for the UDPHAp group, and the percentage was significantly higher in the UDPHAp group (p = 0.0209). While maintaining the same strength as the IP-CHA, the UDPHAp with 84% porosity showed a high cell number, high cell invasiveness, and excellent bone formation. We believe the UDPHAp is an excellent material that can be applied to bone regenerative medicine.ArticleMATERIALS. 10(1):33 (2017)journal articl

Expression of Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 in the Livers of Rats Treated with Diethylnitrosamine

It has been reported that levels of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) in the blood are elevated in hepatocellular carcinoma patients. In the present study, serial observations of the localization of ICAM-1 in the liver were made by light and electron microscopy in rats with carcinogen-induced cancer. Male Fisher rats were given diethylnitrosamine (DEN) orally in their drinking water. Rats were sacrificed at 6, 8, 12, or 14 weeks after the start of DEN administration and the liver tissue was collected. ICAM-1 expression in liver was assessed using indirect immunoperoxidase staining with anti-rat ICAM-1 antibody. Although ICAM-1 expression by endothelial cells in livers of DEN-treated rats was lower than in the control group at 8 weeks, it was higher in the membrane and cytoplasm of hepatocytes. The expression of ICAM-1 in mesenchymal cells was decreased, paralleling development of cellular atypia, whereas in hepatocyte membranes and cytoplasm it was increased in these atypia. ICAM-1 was localized to the cytoplasm of cancer cells, but to the membrane of hepatocytes in the treated livers at 14 weeks. Furthermore, the levels of ICAM-1 in mesenchymal cells tended to be lower in the cancerous area than in the atypical hyperplastic nodule, and were reduced as the density of cell atypia increased, in comparison to cells in areas without cancerous nodules. We concluded that ICAM-1 may be influenced the development of cancer induced in the rat liver by a chemical carcinogen

Self-Expandable Metal Stent Placement as a Bridge to Laparoscopic or Open Surgery for Obstructive Colorectal Cancer: Short-Term Outcomes of Nineteen Consecutive Cases

Purpose Laparoscopic colorectal resection is a feasible and less invasive procedure with short-term advantages compared with open surgery; however, the evidence for its efficacy for treating obstructive colorectal cancer (CRC) is lacking. In this study, we aimed to determine short-term outcomes of SEMS placement for obstructive CRC followed by laparoscopic colorectal resection.Methods As of August 2013, 51 patients with obstructive CRC underwent stent insertion. Thirty-two patients received palliation therapy not intended for tumor resection. After decompression of the proximal intestine, nine and 10 patients underwent laparoscopic and open surgery, respectively. Clinicopathological, intraoperative, and postoperative data were retrospectively collected.Results There were no differences in resection rates and curabilities between the two groups. All surgeries were performed with a single-stage anastomosis, and no anastomotic leakage was observed. There was one patient with abdominal morbidity in the open group (Open) and none in the Lap group. There was no mortality in either group. Time to flatus (3.4 ± 1.8 days, Lap; 2.6 ± 1.1 days, Open) and time to oral intake (7.9 ± 2.5 days, Lap; 7.7±1.9 days, Open) were similar between the groups. Postoperative hospitalization times for the Lap group were shorter, but the difference was not statistically significant (15.2 ± 3.9 days, Lap; 21 ± 11.7 days, Open, p = 0.21).Conclusion Our findings indicate that laparoscopic surgery combined with preoperative stent placement is feasible as well as safe compared with open surgery for obstructive CRC