Biological mechanism and clinical effect of protein-bound polysaccharide K (KRESTIN®): review of development and future perspectives

The mechanism of action of protein-bound polysaccharide K (PSK; KRESTIN®) involves the following actions: (1) recovery from immunosuppression induced by humoral factors such as transforming growth factor (TGF)-β or as a result of surgery and chemotherapy; (2) activation of antitumor immune responses including maturation of dendritic cells, correction of Th1/Th2 imbalance, and promotion of interleukin-15 production by monocytes; and (3) enhancement of the antitumor effect of chemotherapy by induction of apoptosis and inhibition of metastasis through direct actions on tumor cells. The clinical effectiveness of PSK has been demonstrated for various cancers. In patients with gastric or colorectal cancer, combined use of PSK with postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy prolongs survival, and this effect has been confirmed in multiple meta-analyses. For small-cell lung carcinoma, PSK in conjunction with chemotherapy prolongs the remission period. In addition, PSK has been shown to be effective against various other cancers, reduce the adverse effects of chemotherapy, and improve quality of life. Future studies should examine the effects of PSK under different host immune conditions and tumor properties, elucidate the mechanism of action exhibited in each situation, and identify biomarkers

Ganglioside GM3 Has an Essential Role in the Pathogenesis and Progression of Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic systemic inflammatory disorder that principally attacks synovial joints, afflicts over 2 million people in the United States. Interleukin (IL)-17 is considered to be a master cytokine in chronic, destructive arthritis. Levels of the ganglioside GM3, one of the most primitive glycosphingolipids containing a sialic acid in the structure, are remarkably decreased in the synovium of patients with RA. Based on the increased cytokine secretions observed in in vitro experiments, GM3 might have an immunologic role. Here, to clarify the association between RA and GM3, we established a collagen-induced arthritis mouse model using the null mutation of the ganglioside GM3 synthase gene. GM3 deficiency exacerbated inflammatory arthritis in the mouse model of RA. In addition, disrupting GM3 induced T cell activation in vivo and promoted overproduction of the cytokines involved in RA. In contrast, the amount of the GM3 synthase gene transcript in the synovium was higher in patients with RA than in those with osteoarthritis. These findings indicate a crucial role for GM3 in the pathogenesis and progression of RA. Control of glycosphingolipids such as GM3 might therefore provide a novel therapeutic strategy for RA

Effect of shelter acclimation on the post-release movement and putative predation mortality of hatchery-reared black-spot tuskfish Choerodon schoenleinii, determined by acoustic telemetry

In this study, the effect of shelter acclimation on the post-release movement and putative predation mortality of hatchery-reared black-spot tuskfish Choerodon schoenleinii was examined using acoustic telemetry. We acclimated four 1-year-old fish to shelters in cages before release and compared their movements with six nonacclimated fish. Since it was not possible to compare the behavioral pattern between the former and the latter fish due to the short periods the latter fish were available to be monitored, we also compared their movements with those of large nonacclimated fish that were less likely to be preyed upon. Sixty-seven percent of the nonacclimated fish showed atypical movements before the signals ceased to be detected, a pattern that suggested a predation event had occurred, whereas none of the acclimated and large nonacclimated fish showed the atypical movements. In addition, the probability of detection cessation was about 13 times lower in the acclimated than nonacclimated fish. The signal detection patterns suggest that the acclimated fish utilized night-time shelters from the first night after release, while the large nonacclimated fish started to utilize shelters several days after release. Therefore, it is likely that the shelter acclimation enhanced the shelter utilization by tuskfish, possibly decreasing post-release predation mortality

Size distributions of dicarboxylic acids, ketoacids, α-dicarbonyls, sugars, WSOC, OC, EC and inorganic ions in atmospheric particles over Northern Japan: implication for long-range transport of Siberian biomass burning and East Asian polluted aerosols

To better understand the size-segregated chemical composition of aged organic aerosols in the western North Pacific rim, day- and night-time aerosol samples were collected in Sapporo, Japan during summer 2005 using an Andersen impactor sampler with 5 size bins: Dp7.0 μm. Samples were analyzed for the molecular composition of dicarboxylic acids, ketoacids, α-dicarbonyls, and sugars, together with water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC) and inorganic ions. Based on the analyses of backward trajectories and chemical tracers, we found that during the campaign, air masses arrived from Siberia (a biomass burning source region) on 8–9 August, from China (an anthropogenic source region) on 9–10 August, and from the East China Sea/Sea of Japan (a mixed source receptor region) on 10–11 August. Most of the diacids, ketoacids, dicarbonyls, levoglucosan, WSOC, and inorganic ions (i.e., SO42−, NH4+ and K+) were enriched in fine particles (PM1.1) whereas Ca2+, Mg2+ and Cl− peaked in coarse sizes (>1.1 μm). Interestingly, OC, most sugar compounds and NO3− showed bimodal distributions in fine and coarse modes. In PM1.1, diacids in biomass burning-influenced aerosols transported from Siberia (mean: 252 ng m−3) were more abundant than those in the aerosols originating from China (209 ng m−3) and ocean (142 ng m−3), whereas SO42− concentrations were highest in the aerosols from China (mean: 3970 ng m−3) followed by marine- (2950 ng m−3) and biomass burning-influenced (1980 ng m−3) aerosols. Higher loadings of WSOC (2430 ng m−3) and OC (4360 ng m−3) were found in the fine mode, where biomass-burning products such as levoglucosan are abundant. This paper presents a case study of long-range transported aerosols illustrating that biomass burning episodes in the Siberian region have a significant influence on the chemical composition of carbonaceous aerosols in the western North Pacific rim

Determination of gaseous and particulate carbonyls (glycolaldehyde, hydroxyacetone, glyoxal, methylglyoxal, nonanal and decanal) in the atmosphere at Mt. Tai

Gaseous and particulate semi-volatile carbonyl compounds were determined every three hours in the atmosphere of Mount Tai (elevation, 1534 m) in the North China Plain during 2-5, 23-24 and 25 June 2006 under clear sky conditions. Using a two-step filter cartridge in a series, particulate carbonyls were first collected on a quartz filter and then gaseous carbonyls were collected on a quartz filter impregnated with O-benzylhydroxylamine (BHA). After the two-step derivatization with BHA and N,O-Bis(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide (BSTFA), carbonyl derivatives were measured using a gas chromatography. The gaseous concentrations were obtained as follow: glycolaldehyde (range 0-826 ng m(-3), average 303 ng m(-3)), hydroxyacetone (0-579 ng m(-3), 126 ng m(-3)), glyoxal (46-1200 ng m(-3), 487 ng m(-3)), methylglyoxal (88-2690 ng m(-3), 967 ng m(-3)), n-nonanal (0-500 ng m(-3), 89 ng m(-3)), and n-decanal (0-230 ng m(-3), 39 ng m(-3)). These concentrations are among the highest ever reported in the urban and forest atmosphere. We found that gaseous alpha-dicarbonyls (glyoxal and methylglyoxal) are more than 20 times more abundant than particulate carbonyls and that glycolaldehyde is one order of magnitude more abundant than in aerosol phase. In contrast, hydroxyacetone and normal aldehydes (nonanal and decanal) are equally present in both phases. Time-resolved variations of carbonyls did not show any a clear diurnal pattern, except for hydroxyacetone. We found that glyoxal, methylglyoxal and glycolaldehyde positively correlated with levoglucosan (a tracer of biomass burning), suggesting that a contribution from field burning of agricultural wastes (wheat crops) is significant for the bifunctional carbonyls in the atmosphere of Mt. Tai. Upward transport of the pollutants to the mountaintop from the low lands in the North China Plain is a major process to control the distributions of carbonyls in the upper atmosphere over Mt. Tai

Diurnal and temporal variations of water-soluble dicarboxylic acids and related compounds in aerosols from the northern vicinity of Beijing: Implication for photochemical aging during atmospheric transport

Aerosol samples were collected in autumn 2007 on day- and nighttime basis in the northern receptor site of Beijing, China. The samples were analyzed for total carbon (TC) and water-soluble dicarboxylic acids (C-2-C-12), oxocarboxylic adds (C-2-C-9), glyoxal and methylglyoxal to better understand the photochemical aging of organic aerosols in the vicinity of Beijing. Concentrations of TC are 50% greater in daytime when winds come from Beijing than in nighttime when winds come from the northern forest areas. Most diacids showed higher concentrations in daytime, suggesting that the organics emitted from the urban Beijing and delivered to the northern vicinity in daytime are subjected to photo-oxidation to result in diacids. However, oxalic acid (C-2), which is the most abundant diacid followed by C-3 or C-4, became on average 30% more abundant in nighttime together with azelaic, omega-oxooctanoic and omega-oxononanoic acids, which are specific oxidation products of biogenic unsaturated fatty acids. Methylglyoxal, an oxidation product of isoprene and a precursor of oxalic acid, also became 29% more abundant in nighttime. Based on a positive correlation between C-2 and glyoxylic acid (omega C-2) in nighttime when relative humidity significantly enhanced, we propose a nighttime aqueous phase production of C-2 via the oxidation of omega C-2. We found an increase in the contribution of diacids to TC by 3 folds during consecutive clear days. This study demonstrates that diacids and related compounds are largely produced in the northern vicinity of Beijing via photochemical processing of organic precursors emitted from urban center and forest areas. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved