Low fat intake is associated with pathological manifestations and poor recovery in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to clarify whether dietary deviation is associated with pathological manifestations in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. METHODS: Dietary intake was estimated in 35 HCC cases before and after hospitalization by referencing digital camera images of each meal. Pathological conditions were evaluated in nitrogen balance, non-protein respiratory quotient (npRQ), neuropsychiatric testing and recovery speed from HCC treatment. RESULTS: On admission, nitrogen balance and npRQ were negative and less than 0.85, respectively. Five patients were judged to have suffered from minimal hepatic encephalopathy that tended to be associated with a lowered value of npRQ (p = 0.082). The energy from fat intake showed a tendency of positive correlation with npRQ (p = 0.11), and the patients with minimal hepatic encephalopathy took significantly fewer energy from fat (p = 0.024). The energy difference from fat between diets at home versus those in the hospital showed a significant positive correlation with npRQ change after admission (p = 0.014). The recovery speed from invasive treatments for HCC showed a significant negative correlation with npRQ alteration after admission (p = 0.0002, r = −0.73). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest the lower fat intake leads to deterioration of energy state in HCC patients, which associates with poor recovery from invasive treatments and various pathological manifestations

Specific gene expression in unmyelinated dorsal root ganglion neurons in nonhuman primates by intra-nerve injection of AAV 6 vector

霊長類においてウイルスベクターを用いた痛覚神経への遺伝子導入に成功 --神経障害性疼痛治療への応用に期待--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2021-08-12.Adeno-associated virus 6 has been proposed as a potential vector candidate for specific gene expression in pain-related dorsal root ganglion neurons, but this has not been confirmed in nonhuman primates. The aim of our study was to analyze the transduction efficiency and target specificity of this viral vector in the common marmoset by comparing with those in the rat. When green fluorescent protein-expressing serotype-6 vector was injected into the sciatic nerve, the efficiency of gene expression in dorsal root ganglion neurons was comparable in both species. We found that the serotype-6 vector was largely specific to the pain-related ganglion neurons in the marmoset as well as in the rat, whereas the serotype-9 vector resulted in contrasting effects in the two species. Neither AAV6 nor AAV9 resulted in DRG toxicity when administered via the sciatic nerve, suggesting this as a safer route of sensory nerve transduction than the currently used intrathecal or intravenous administrative routes. Furthermore, the adeno-associated virus 6 vector could be an optimal serotype for gene therapy for human chronic pain that has minimal effect on other somatosensory functions of dorsal root ganglion neurons

Vaccination and Infection as Causative Factors in Japanese Patients With Rasmussen Syndrome: Molecular Mimicry and HLA Class I

Rasmussen syndrome is an intractable epilepsy with a putative causal relation with cellular and humoral autoimmunity. Almost half of the patients have some preceding causative factors, with infections found in 38.2%, vaccinations in 5.9% and head trauma in 8.9% of Japanese patients. In a patient with seizure onset after influenza A infections, cross-reaction of the patient's lymphocytes with GluRε2 and influenza vaccine components was demonstrated by lymphocyte stimulation test. Database analyses revealed that influenza A virus hemagglutinin and GluRε2 molecules contain peptides with the patient's HLA class I binding motif (HLA − A*0201). The relative risks of HLA class I genotypes for Rasmussen syndrome are 6.1 (A*2402), 6.4 (A*0201), 6.3 (A*2601) and 11.4 (B*4601). The relative risks of HLA class I-A and B haplotypes are infinity (A*2601+B*5401), 21.1 (A*2402+B*1501), 13.3 (A*2402+B*4801) and 5.1 (A*2402+B*5201). Some alleles and haplotypes of HLA class I may be the risk factors in Japanese patients. Cross-reactivity of cytotoxic T lymphocytes may contribute to the processes leading from infection to the involvement of CNS

A case of fulminant amebic colitis that could be saved

An 80-year-old man was admitted to a neighboring hospital with severe diarrhea and bloody stools. He did not have a remarkable medical history, was not homosexual, and had not traveled outside the country for several years. Colonoscopy was performed on the day of admission and revealed multiple ulcerations with edematous mucosa throughout the colorectum. Histopathological findings of biopsy specimen could not identify the reason for the inflamed colon. On postadmission day 6, the patient developed severe abdominal pain and underwent an emergent surgery for pan-peritonitis due to bowel perforation. The laparotomy revealed glossy fecal pan-peritonitis with perforation of the sigmoid colon; necrosis was observed through the entire length of the colon. The colonic tissue was extremely fragile and exhibited a blotting paper-like appearance. Total colectomy, sigmoid mucous fistula, ileostomy, and intraperitoneal drainage were performed. On postadmission day 12, histopathological findings of resected specimen raised the suspicion of amebic dysentery, and we accordingly treated him with metronidazole (2,250 mg/day) administered orally. Abdominal CT images taken on days 12 and 20 postadmission showed multiple liver abscesses, which improved following metronidazole administration. Metronidazole was discontinued 14 days after initiation as the patient’s general condition improved. His condition remained stable thereafter, and he was transferred two months after admission

Specific Enrichment of miRNAs in Arabidopsis thaliana Infected with Tobacco mosaic virus

RNA silencing is a broadly conserved machinery and is involved in many biological events. Small RNAs are key molecules in RNA silencing pathway that guide sequence-specific gene regulations and chromatin modifications. The silencing machinery works as an anti-viral defense in virus-infected plants. It is generally accepted that virus-specific small interfering (si) RNAs bind to the viral genome and trigger its cleavage. Previously, we have cloned and obtained sequences of small RNAs from Arabidopsis thaliana infected or uninfected with crucifer Tobacco mosaic virus. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) accumulated to a higher percentage of total small RNAs in the virus-infected plants. This was partly because the viral replication protein binds to the miRNA/miRNA* duplexes. In the present study, we mapped the sequences of small RNAs other than virus-derived siRNAs to the Arabidopsis genome and assigned each small RNA. It was demonstrated that only miRNAs increased as a result of viral infection. Furthermore, some newly identified miRNAs and miRNA candidates were found from the virus-infected plants despite a limited number of examined sequences. We propose that it is advantageous to use virus-infected plants as a source for cloning and identifying new miRNAs

Carnitine palmitoyltransferase 2 gene polymorphism is a genetic risk factor for sudden unexpected death in infancy

Rationale: Carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT) II is one of a pivotal enzyme in mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation, which is essential for energy production during simultaneous glucose sparing and a requirement for major energy supply, such as prolonged fasting or exercise. When infants require more energy than provided by the glycolytic system, they rely on the mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation pathway. Mutations of the CPT2 gene have been reported to cause sudden unexpected death in infancy (SUDI). A thermolabile phenotype of a CPT2 polymorphism (F352C) has been recently reported to reduce CPT II enzyme activity. The F352C variant results in energy crisis at high temperature and is suspected as a risk factor for acute encephalopathy. However, a relationship between CPT2 gene polymorphism and SUDI has not been described. Methods: Single nucleotide polymorphisms of the CPT2 gene were investigated among 54 SUDI cases and 200 healthy volunteers. Results: The frequency of the C allele was significantly higher in the SUDI group than in the control group [25.0% vs 16.0%, odds ratio (OR). = 1.75, 95% confidence interval (CI). = 1.05-2.92, p= 0.030). The frequency of the F352C homozygote was significantly higher in the SUDI group than in control group (11.1% vs 3.5%, OR. = 3.45, 95% CI. = 1.11-10.73, p= 0.036). Conclusion: The F352C CPT2 variant might be a genetic risk factor for SUDI