Establishment of induced pluripotent stem cells from schizophrenia discordant fraternal twins

Schizophrenia (SCZ) is one of the major psychiatric disorders. The genetic factor is certainly influential in the onset of the disease but is not decisive. There is no identified molecular/cellular marker of the disease, and the pathomechanism is still unknown. In this study, we generated human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from SCZ-discordant fraternal twins, and they could contribute to elucidation of the pathomechanism of SCZ

Impact of surgical adhesion barrier on significant adhesion during a repeat cesarean section

　Background: Post-cesarean adhesions are associated with delayed infant delivery and infertility. In this retrospective study, we analyzed the effects of hyaluronic acid- carboxymethylcellulose (HA/CMC) membranes on postoperative adhesion during cesarean section.　Methods: Sixty-seven patients were divided into the surgical adhesion barrier used (n = 28) and not-used group (n = 39). We compared the severity of adhesion at the repeat cesarean section, as well the following variables: operation and incision delivery time, blood loss, and postoperative infection between both groups. The severity of adhesion was analyzed using the Zühike’s adhesion score between the abdominal wall and uterine corpus, and the Steinleitner’s uterine adhesion score.　Results: We found that the Zühike’s adhesion score between the abdominal wall and corpus of the uterus in the surgical adhesion barrier used group was significantly lower than that of the not-used group (0.46 ± 0.2 and 1.0 ± 0.2, respectively) (p = 0.04). The Steinleitner’s uterine adhesion score of the surgical adhesion barrier used group was lower than that of the not-used group (0.5 ± 0.3 and 1.3 ± 0.3, respectively), but not significantly (p = 0.07).　Discussion: We concluded that the surgical adhesion barrier was effective in preventing postoperative adhesion formation during cesarean sections. However, further investigations are necessary to reveal the usefulness of the surgical adhesion barrier during cesarean section, including its cost-effectiveness

Comparison of uterine artery waveforms during uterine contractions induced by oxytocin and prostaglandin

　Background: Uterine artery waveforms are used as indicators of fetal growth restriction and pregnancy-induced hypertension; however, the findings of most reports were recorded when contractions were absent, leaving the dynamics during labor unclear. This present study aimed to investigate the effects of prostaglandin F2α (PGF2α) and oxytocin administrations on uterine artery resistance and pulsatility.　Methods: This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Kawasaki Medical School (3632) and was conducted in accordance with the ethical guidelines. The duration of the study was five years from the date of Ethics Committee approval.The participants included were 30 perinatal pregnant women who had no maternal or fetal complications admitted for delivery. The method used in inducing labor was randomly chosen (PGF2α and oxytocin were used in 15 cases each). Transabdominal ultrasonography was performed by a single experienced person to measure the uterine artery pulsatility index (PI) and resistance index (RI). The participants were divided into 3 subgroups based on cervical dilation (2-6 cm, 6-10 cm, and 10 cm to delivery). A univariate analysis was performed to evaluate the mean uterine artery PI and RI, and changes in labor stage were analyzed. The relationship between uterine artery RI and umbilical cord arterial pH was evaluated.　Results: Vaginal delivery occurred in 15 and 11 cases in the oxytocin and PGF2α groups, respectively. Four babies with abnormal fetal heart rates were delivered via emergency cesarean section. There were no differences between the two groups concerning the duration of labor, bleeding during labor, placental weight, birth weight, or in cases of fetal asphyxia based on the Apgar score. No significant differences were observed in PI between the oxytocin and PGF2α groups in any of the three stages of labor(p > 0.05). In the oxytocin group, uterine arterial blood flow in terms of both RI and PI tended to be the highest at a cervical dilation of 6-10 cm. However, while a similar trend was observed for PI in the PGF2α group, RI was highest at a cervical dilation of ≥ 10 cm. No orrelations were found between RI and pH at any of the cervical dilation phases(p > 0.05).　Conclusion: The results of our study showed that the type of labor-inducing agent had no effect on maternal circulation. The total infusion volume of PGF2α was larger than that of oxytocin; thus, it may be preferable to use oxytocin as a conventional induction method

Does local infiltration anesthesia on laparoscopic surgical wounds reduce postoperative pain? Randomized control study

Abstract Purpose Recently, endoscopic surgeries are widely performed in the gynecological field. Several studies on the use of local anesthesia for pain control after laparoscopic surgery have been conducted; however, its effects remain controversial. Herein, a randomized control study on gynecological laparoscopic surgeries was conducted to analyze the effectiveness of local anesthesia on postoperative pain. Methods Patients who underwent laparoscopic surgeries due to gynecologic benign diseases or endometrial cancer in the early stage were enrolled, and randomly divided into intervention (injected with levobupivacaine), and control (injected with saline) groups. The primary outcome was the dosage of analgesic consumption within 12 hours postoperatively. Results A total of 147 patients were enrolled in the intervention group and 147 in the control group. The outcome of local anesthesia was not significantly different between the two groups during the whole analysis. We analyzed the effects of local anesthesia in the laparoscopic surgery subgroup. The dosage of analgesic consumption within 12 h after a laparoscopic hysterectomy (TLH) or TLH with pelvic lymph node dissection (TLH+PLD) in the intervention group was significantly smaller than that in the control group. Conclusion Local infiltration anesthesia can effectively reduce postoperative pain in patients who underwent TLH or TLH +PLD

pfaB products determine the molecular species produced in bacterial polyunsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis

When pDHA4, a vector carrying all five pfaA-pfaE genes responsible for docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6) biosynthesis in Moritella marina MP-1, was coexpressed in Escherichia coli with the individual pfaA-pfaD genes for eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20:5) biosynthesis from Shewanella pneumatophori SCRC-2738, both polyunsaturated fatty acids were synthesized only in the recombinant carrying pfaB for EPA synthesis. Escherichia coli coexpressing a deleted construct comprising pfaA, pfaC, pfaD and pfaE for EPA and pfaB for DHA produced EPA and DHA. Both EPA and DHA were detected in bacteria that inherently contained pfa genes for DHA. These results suggest that PfaB is the key enzyme determining the final product in EPA or DHA biosynthesis

Impact of surgical adhesion barrier on significant adhesion during a repeat cesarean section

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