Comparison of off-clamp microwave scissors-based sutureless partial nephrectomy versus on-clamp conventional partial nephrectomy in a canine model

ObjectivesTo compare the usefulness and safety of off-clamp microwave scissors-based sutureless partial nephrectomy (MSPN) with on-clamp conventional partial nephrectomy (cPN) in dogs.MethodsWe performed off-clamp MSPN using microwave scissors (MWS) in six dogs, and on-clamp cPN in three dogs, in two-stage experiments. The bilateral kidney upper poles were resected via a midline incision under general anesthesia. After 14 days of follow-up, the lower pole resections were performed. The renal calyces exposed during renal resections were sealed and transected using MWS in off-clamp MSPN and were sutured in on-clamp cPN. In the off-clamp MSPN group, the generator's power output of MWS was set as either 50 W or 60 W for each kidney side. We compared the procedure time (PT), ischemic time (IT), blood loss (BL), and normal nephron loss (NNL) between the two techniques using the Mann–Whitney U-test.ResultsWe successfully performed 24 off-clamp MSPNs and 12 on-clamp cPNs. The off-clamp MSPN was significantly superior to on-clamp cPN in avoiding renal ischemia (median IT, 0 min vs. 8.6 min, p < 0.001) and reducing PT (median PT, 5.8 min vs. 11.5 min, p < 0.001) and NNL (median NNL, 5.3 mm vs. 6.0 mm, p = 0.006) with comparable BL (median BL, 20.9 ml vs. 23.2 ml, p = 0.804). No bleeding and major urine leakage were noted during the reoperations.ConclusionsOff-clamp MSPN outperforms on-clamp cPN in lowering the risks of postoperative renal function impairment in dogs

Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate, an Adrenal Androgen, Is Inversely Associated with Prevalence of Dynapenia in Male Individuals with Type 2 Diabetes

Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) is thought to be associated with life expectancy and anti-aging. Although skeletal muscle disorders are often found in diabetic people, the clinical significance of DHEAS in skeletal muscle remains unclear. Therefore, we aimed to determine whether DHEAS is associated with the development of skeletal muscle disorders in individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D). A cross-sectional study was conducted in 361 individuals with T2D. Serum DHEAS levels, skeletal muscle mass index (SMI), handgrip strength (HS), and gait speed (GS) were measured in the participants. Pre-sarcopenia, sarcopenia, and dynapenia were defined according to the definitions of the AWGS 2019 criteria. DHEAS level was positively associated with HS but not with SMI or GS after adjustment of confounding factors. Multiple logistic regression analyses in total subjects showed that DHEAS level had an inverse association with the prevalence of dynapenia but not with the prevalence of pre-sarcopenia or sarcopenia. Furthermore, a significant association between DHEAS level and dynapenia was found in males but not in females. ROC curve analysis indicated that cutoff values of serum DHEAS for risk of dynapenia in males was 92.0 μg/dL. Therefore, in male individuals with T2D who have low serum levels of DHEAS, adequate exercise might be needed to prevent dynapenia

Feasibility of Microwave Scissors-Based Off-Clamp Laparoscopic Partial Nephrectomy in a Porcine Model.

Objectives:To assess the feasibility of off-clamp laparoscopic partial nephrectomy using microwave scissors.Methods:We performed transperitoneal laparoscopic partial nephrectomy, without hilar clamping or renorrhaphy, using only microwave scissors for renal resection in a porcine model. For each kidney, 2 types of procedures were performed: a middle pole resection excising an area of 2-cm diameter and approximately 1-cm depth and a lower pole resection at the level of the lower polar line. The renal calyces exposed during renal resection were sealed and transected using microwave scissors. After 3 days of follow-up, the pigs were reoperated to inspect for postoperative complications. Euthanasia was performed to collect the remaining kidneys for histopathological examination.Results:Ten procedures were successfully performed, without hilar clamping or suturing of the renal calyces and parenchyma, in 5 kidneys from 3 pigs. The median resecting time, blood loss, and lateral thermal injury were 23.2 min, 47.1 mL, and 6.8 mm in the middle pole resection, and were 15.1 min, 26.5 mL, and 6.9 mm in the lower pole resection, respectively. No complications were noted during reoperation, such as postoperative hemorrhage and major urine leakage. Extravasation occurred in 2 middle pole resections and 3 lower pole resections during retrograde pyelogram. Hematoxylin and eosin staining revealed thermal injury characterized by tissue microwave fixation in the near zone and acute coagulative necrosis in the intermediate zone.Conclusions:Microwave scissors-based off-clamp laparoscopic partial nephrectomy is feasible in pigs and can be used for clinical applications

Inhaled steroid therapy and hospitalization for bronchial asthma : trend in Tokushima University Hospital

With the recognition that airway inflammation is present even in patients with mild bronchial asthma, therapy with inhaled corticosteroids is now indicated in various stages of patients. In the present article, we retrospectively examined the prescriptions for inhaled corticosteroids and other drugs for the treatment of outpatients with bronchial asthma at Tokushima University Hospital. We also analyzed asthma control in these patients, in terms of the incidence of emergency consultations and hospitalizations due to asthma exacerbations. To analyze the recent trend, the patients observed from 1998 to 2000 (recent years) were included, and for control purpose, those in 1990 and 1991 (earlier years) were also included. The percentage of patients treated with inhaled corticosteroids remarkably increased in recent years (mean 81.3%) compared to earlier years (mean 23.5%). In contrast, the usage of oral corticosteroids, oral xanthine derivatives, β2-adrenergic receptor agonists and anti-allergic agents tended to decrease in the 10 years period. After the introduction in 1995, considerable patients up to 25% have been treated with anti-leukotrienes. Emergency consultations decreased in recent years (mean 0.18/patient/year) compared to earlier years (mean 0.79/patient/year). Emergency hospitalizations also decreased in recent years (mean 0.043/patient/year) compared to earlier years (mean 0.23/patient/year).In the present study, spread of inhaled corticosteroid therapy and decline in incidence of emergency consultation and hospitalization were simultaneously observed at Tokushima University Hospital, and the former has, at least in part, a contribution to the latter

Salvage Haploidentical Transplantation Using Low-dose ATG for Early Disease Relapse after First Allogeneic Transplantation: A Retrospective Single-center Review

Second allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) is a potentially curative therapy for patients who relapse after first allo-SCT. Human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-haploidentical related donors provide the broad opportunity to conduct second SCT at the appropriate time, but the efficacy of second SCT from haploidentical donors after relapse has not been established. We retrospectively analyzed the records of 33 patients who underwent second SCT. Twenty patients underwent haplo-SCT with low-dose antithymocyte globulin (ATG), and the other 13 patients underwent conventional- SCTs, including HLA-matched related peripheral blood, unrelated bone marrow or cord blood. Three years after the second SCT, the overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) of all patients were 32.5% and 23.9%. Multivariate analyses indicated that non-complete response at second SCT, less than 1-year interval to relapse after first- SCT, and total score ≥ 3 on the hematopoietic cell transplantation-specific comorbidity index were significantly associated with a lower PFS rate. The haplo- and conventional- SCT groups showed equivalent results regarding OS, PFS, cumulative incidences of relapse, non-relapse mortality and graft-versus-host disease. The neutropenic period after transplantation was significantly shorter in haplo- SCT than conventional- SCT (10.5 days vs. 16 days, p=0.001). Our analysis revealed that haplo-SCT could be an alternative therapeutic option for relapsed patients after first SCT

Heterologous expression and characterization of CpI, OcpA, and novel serine-type carboxypeptidase OcpB from Aspergillus oryzae

In the genome of Aspergillus oryzae, 12 genes have been predicted to encode serine-type carboxypeptidases. However, the carboxypeptidase activities of the proteins encoded by these genes have not yet been confirmed experimentally. In this study, we have constructed three of these 12 genes overexpressing strains using Aspergillus nidulans and characterized their overproduced recombinant proteins. Of these three genes, one was previously named cpI; the other two have not been reported yet, and hence, we named them ocpA and ocpB. The recombinant proteins released amino acid residues from the C terminus of peptides, and the activity of the enzymes was inhibited by phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, indicating the enzymes to be serine-type carboxypeptidases. Recombinant OcpA, OcpB, and CpI were stable at 45°C, 55°C, and 55°C, respectively, at a low pH. The enzymatic properties of recombinant OcpB were different from those of any reported serine-type carboxypeptidase. On the other hand, recombinant OcpA had similar enzymatic properties to A. oryzae carboxypeptidases O1 and O2. The DNA and N-terminal amino acid sequences of carboxypeptidases O1 and O2 from A. oryzae IAM2640 were similar to those of OcpA. Result of transcriptional analysis of ocpA, ocpB, and cpI suggest differences in transcriptional regulation between these genes

Vimentin Expression in Tumor Microenvironment Predicts Survival in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma: Heterogeneity in Fibroblast Population.

BACKGROUND:The tumor microenvironment, including cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), plays various clinical roles in cancer growth. CAFs are a heterogeneous population and express a variety of mesenchymal markers. However, the clinical roles for CAFs expressing different markers in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remain unknown.METHODS:We reviewed 67 resected PDAC patients who had not received preoperative therapy. Each primary tumor was analyzed for vimentin and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) expression by immunohistochemical and dual immunofluorescence staining.RESULTS:There was no correlation between the percentage of cells expressing vimentin and α-SMA in the tumor stroma (Pearson\u27s correlation coefficient: r = 0.171). Higher vimentin expression (p = 0.018) was associated with significantly shorter overall survival in PDAC patients. Using dual immunofluorescence staining, vimentin-positive CAFs were divided into two subpopulations: co-expression of α-SMA, and no co-expression of α-SMA. In PDAC, the level of co-expression had no effect on survival using univariate analysis (median survival time, 33.3 months for low co-expression vs. 18.2 months for high co-expression; log-rank, p = 0.143). However, multivariate analysis clarified that CAFs expressing vimentin alone was an independent predictor of poor survival (p = 0.014; hazard ratio, 2.305; 95% confidence interval, 1.181-4.497).CONCLUSIONS:Vimentin-positive CAFs without co-expression of α-SMA were associated with poor survival in PDAC, and CAFs possessed molecular and functional heterogeneity in this disease

Fibrosis in metastatic lymph nodes is clinically correlated to poor prognosis in colorectal cancer.

Background:Tumor microenvironment including fibrosis has a pivotal role in cancer growth and distant metastasis. Fibrosis is a known risk factor for carcinogenesis, but its biological role in disease invasion and metastasis in colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. In particular, there is no report on how fibrosis of metastatic lymph nodes(MLNs) in CRC contributes to prognosis.Methods:We reviewed 94 colorectal adenocarcinoma patients with MLNs who underwentcolectomy. Both the primary tumors and MLNs were analyzed for alpha-smooth muscleactin (α-SMA) expression and collagen deposition.Results:Higher α-SMA expression and collagen deposition in MLNs were associated withsignificantly shorter relapse-free survival and overall survival in CRC patients. α-SMA expression in MLNs (HR, 1.53; p = 0.034) was independent predictive factor of overallsurvival in multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis of clinicopathologicalfactors. In the Stage III patient subgroup, α-SMA expression in MLNs was a strong prognostic marker (HR, 3.01; p = 0.006). On the other hand, higher α-SMA expressionand collagen deposition in primary tumors were associated with short overall survival, but they were not significant factors in multivariate Cox regression analyses. In MLNs,the podoplanin signals co-localized with α-SMA expression and were confirmed by thedual immunofluorescence staining, implying that the MLN stromal cells were fibroblasticreticular cells.Conclusion:Both high collagen deposition and high α-SMA expression in MLNs predicted poor prognosis in CRC

Progression Potential of Ductal Carcinoma in situ Assessed by Genomic Copy Number Profiling.

BACKGROUND:Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) of the breast is heterogeneous in terms of the risk of progression to invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC). To treat DCIS appropriately for its progression risk, we classified individual DCIS by its profile of genomic changes into 2 groups and correlated them with clinicopathological progression factors.METHODS:We used surgically resected, formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues of 22 DCIS and 30 IDC lesions. We performed immunohistochemical intrinsic subtyping, array-based comparative genomic hybridization, and unsupervised clustering.RESULTS:The samples were divided into 2 major clusters, A and B. Cluster A showed a greater number of gene and chromosome copy number alterations, a larger IDC/DCIS ratio, a higher frequency of nonluminal subtype, a lower frequency of luminal subtype, and a higher nuclear grade, when compared with cluster B. However, there was no difference in the frequencies of lymph node metastasis between clusters A and B. We identified 9 breast-cancer-related genes, including TP53 and GATA3, that highly contributed to the discrimination of A and B clusters.CONCLUSION:Classification of breast tumors into rapidly progressive cluster A and the other (cluster B) may contributeto select the treatment appropriate for their progression risk

Similarities and differences in metabolites of tongue cancer cells among two- and three-dimensional cultures and xenografts.

Metabolic programming of cancer cells is an essential step in transformation and tumor growth. We established two-dimensional (2D) monolayer and three-dimensional (3D) cultures, the latter called a "tissueoid cell culture system", using four types of tongue cancer cell lines. We also undertook a comprehensive metabolome analysis of three groups that included xenografts created by transplanting the cell lines into nude mice. In addition, we undertook a functional analysis of the mitochondria, which plays a key role in cancer metabolism. Principal component analysis revealed the plots of the four cell lines to be much narrower in 2D culture than in 3D culture and xenograft groups. Moreover, compared to xenografts, the 2D culture had significantly lower levels of most metabolites. These results suggest that the unique characteristics of each cell disappeared in 2D culture, and a type of metabolism unique to monolayer culture took over. Conversely, ATP production, biomass synthesis, and maintenance of redox balance were shown in 3D culture using sufficient nutrients, which closely resembled the metabolic activity in the xenografts. However, there were several differences between the metabolic activity in the 3D culture and xenografts. In vivo, the cancer tissue had blood flow with stromal cells present around the cancer cells. In the xenografts, we detected metabolized and degraded products in the liver and other organs of the host mice. Furthermore, the 3D system did not show impairment of mitochondrial function in the cancer cells, suggesting that cancer cells produce energy simultaneously through mitochondria, as well as aerobic glycolysis