Tumor-to-Tumor Metastasis to Chromophobe Renal Cell Carcinoma: A First Report

Tumor-to-tumor metastasis is a rare phenomenon. From our review of the international literature, around 150 cases have been reported since it was first documented by Campbel in 1868. Renal clear cell carcinoma is well known to be the most common recipient of tumor-to-tumor metastasis in all tumors. However, renal chromophobe cell carcinoma has not been reported to be a recipient. Here, we report a first case of colorectal carcinoma metastatic to chromophobe renal cell carcinoma

Laparoendoscopic Single-Site (LESS) Retroperitoneal Radical Nephrectomy in a Patient with Renal Cell Carcinoma Receiving Hemodialysis

We present here the patient undergoing laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) retroperitoneal radical nephrectomy while receiving hemodialysis. An 81-year-old man under hemodialysis for 6 years was incidentally discovered to have two left renal masses with acquired cystic disease of the kidney (ACDK). A 4-cm flank incision for GelPort was made. Three trocars were inserted into the retroperitoneum through GelPort. After division of the renal vessels and ureter, the kidney was placed into the extraction bag and was retrieved through flank incision without any extra skin incision. There were no intraoperative and postoperative complications. This procedure offers an effective, minimally invasive therapeutic alternative to the standard laparoscopic technique in high-risk end-stage renal disease patients

Influence of Setting Condition on Characteristics of Savonius Hydraulic Turbine with a Shield Plate

The aim of this investigation was to improve power performance of Savonius hydraulic turbine utilizing small stream for electric generation. An attempt was made to increase the power coefficient of runner by the use of flat shield plate placed upstream of the runner. The difference of the power coefficient is discussed in relation to clearance between the runner and the bottom wall and the rotation direction of the runner. The flow field around the runner was also examined visually to clarify influences of setting conditions on the power performance. From this study it was found that the power coefficient is achieved for 0.47 by only using a flat shield plate, the increase is up to 80% over the runner without the plate. Moreover, it is the proper condition that clearance ratio is 0.73 in this study.ArticleJOURNAL OF THERMAL SCIENCE. 20(3):224-228 (2011)journal articl

Laparoendoscopic Single-Site (LESS) Retroperitoneal Radical Nephrectomy in a Patient with Renal Cell Carcinoma Receiving Hemodialysis

We present here the patient undergoing laparoendoscopic single-site (LESS) retroperitoneal radical nephrectomy while receiving hemodialysis. An 81-year-old man under hemodialysis for 6 years was incidentally discovered to have two left renal masses with acquired cystic disease of the kidney (ACDK). A 4-cm flank incision for GelPort was made. Three trocars were inserted into the retroperitoneum through GelPort. After division of the renal vessels and ureter, the kidney was placed into the extraction bag and was retrieved through flank incision without any extra skin incision. There were no intraoperative and postoperative complications. This procedure offers an effective, minimally invasive therapeutic alternative to the standard laparoscopic technique in high-risk end-stage renal disease patients

Neuregulin 1 Type II-ErbB Signaling Promotes Cell Divisions Generating Neurons from Neural Progenitor Cells in the Developing Zebrafish Brain.

Post-mitotic neurons are generated from neural progenitor cells (NPCs) at the expense of their proliferation. Molecular and cellular mechanisms that regulate neuron production temporally and spatially should impact on the size and shape of the brain. While transcription factors such as neurogenin1 (neurog1) and neurod govern progression of neurogenesis as cell-intrinsic mechanisms, recent studies show regulatory roles of several cell-extrinsic or intercellular signaling molecules including Notch, FGF and Wnt in production of neurons/neural progenitor cells from neural stem cells/radial glial cells (NSCs/RGCs) in the ventricular zone (VZ). However, it remains elusive how production of post-mitotic neurons from neural progenitor cells is regulated in the sub-ventricular zone (SVZ). Here we show that newborn neurons accumulate in the basal-to-apical direction in the optic tectum (OT) of zebrafish embryos. While neural progenitor cells are amplified by mitoses in the apical ventricular zone, neurons are exclusively produced through mitoses of neural progenitor cells in the sub-basal zone, later in the sub-ventricular zone, and accumulate apically onto older neurons. This neurogenesis depends on Neuregulin 1 type II (NRG1-II)-ErbB signaling. Treatment with an ErbB inhibitor, AG1478 impairs mitoses in the sub-ventricular zone of the optic tectum. Removal of AG1478 resumes sub-ventricular mitoses without precedent mitoses in the apical ventricular zone prior to basal-to-apical accumulation of neurons, suggesting critical roles of ErbB signaling in mitoses for post-mitotic neuron production. Knockdown of NRG1-II impairs both mitoses in the sub-basal/sub-ventricular zone and the ventricular zone. Injection of soluble human NRG1 into the developing brain ameliorates neurogenesis of NRG1-II-knockdown embryos, suggesting a conserved role of NRG1 as a cell-extrinsic signal. From these results, we propose that NRG1-ErbB signaling stimulates cell divisions generating neurons from neural progenitor cells in the developing vertebrate brain

Use of Procalcitonin in Patients on Chronic Hemodialysis: Procalcitonin Is Not Related with Increased Serum Calcitonin

Objectives. To investigate whether procalcitonin (PCT) could be useful for detecting bacterial infections in patients on hemodialysis (HD) and with increased calcitonin (CT). Methods. This prospective study included 42 males and 34 females on HD. The infection group consisted of 15 patients with proven bacterial infections; the other 61 patients were designated as the noninfection group. Serum C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin (IL)-6, white blood cell (WBC) count, immature and total neutrophil (I/T) ratio, and CT were measured at the beginning of HD, and serum PCT levels at the beginning of HD and after HD. Results. The mean CT level in the both groups was apparently higher than that of nonchronic kidney disease. Significantly higher values between the infection and noninfection groups were seen for CRP, IL-6, WBC, I/T ratio, PCT, and CT. The PCT value of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.921, which was significantly higher than the values for CRP (0.853; P < 0.01), IL-6 (0.739; P < 0.01), WBC (0.692; P < 0.01), and I/T ratio (0.584; P < 0.01). Conclusions. PCT was useful marker of bacterial infection in patients on HD and with increased CT. PCT levels should be determined before HD

Verification of scenario for substorm ignition in the M-I coupling region

第2回極域科学シンポジウム/第35回極域宙空圏シンポジウム 11月16日（水） 統計数理研究所 セミナー室