Preventive Effects of Salacia reticulata on Obesity and Metabolic Disorders in TSOD Mice

The extracts of Salacia reticulata (Salacia extract), a plant that has been used for the treatment of early diabetes, rheumatism and gonorrhea in Ayurveda, have been shown to have an anti-obesity effect and suppress hyperglycemia. In this study, the effects of Salacia extract on various symptoms of metabolic disorder were investigated and compared using these TSOD mice and non-obese TSNO mice. Body weight, food intake, plasma biochemistry, visceral and subcutaneous fat (X-ray and CT), glucose tolerance, blood pressure and pain tolerance were measured, and histopathological examination of the liver was carried out. A significant dose-dependent decline in the gain in body weight, accumulation of visceral and subcutaneous fat and an improvement of abnormal glucose tolerance, hypertension and peripheral neuropathy were noticed in TSOD mice. In addition, hepatocellular swelling, fatty degeneration of hepatocytes, inflammatory cell infiltration and single-cell necrosis were observed on histopathological examination of the liver in TSOD mice. Salacia extract markedly improved these symptoms upon treatment. Based on the above results, it is concluded that Salacia extract has remarkable potential to prevent obesity and associated metabolic disorders including the development of metabolic syndrome

The Inhibitory Effect of Kakkonto, Japanese Traditional (Kampo) Medicine, on Brain Penetration of Oseltamivir Carboxylate in Mice with Reduced Blood-Brain Barrier Function

Oseltamivir phosphate (OP) is used to treat influenza virus infections. However, its use may result in central nervous system (CNS) adverse effects. In Japan, OP is used with Kampo formulations to improve clinical effectiveness. We evaluated the potential for using Kampo formulations to reduce CNS adverse effects by quantifying the CNS distribution of oseltamivir and its active metabolite oseltamivir carboxylate (OC) when administered with maoto and kakkonto. We administered lipopolysaccharide (LPS) by intraperitoneal injection to C57BL/6 mice to reduce blood-brain barrier function. Saline, maoto, and kakkonto were administered orally at the same time as LPS. OP was orally administered 4 hours after the last LPS injection and the migration of oseltamivir and OC was examined. Additionally, we examined the brain distribution of OC following intravenous administration. Changes in OC concentrations in the brain suggest that, in comparison to LPS-treated control mice, both Kampo formulations increased plasma levels of OC, thereby enhancing its therapeutic effect. Additionally, our findings suggest kakkonto may not only improve the therapeutic effect of oseltamivir but also reduce the risk of CNS-based adverse effects. Considering these findings, it should be noted that administration of kakkonto during periods of inflammation has led to increased OAT3 expression

Osteolytic bone lymphoma

Primary non-Hodgkin bone lymphoma (PBL) can involve solitary or multiple destructive bone lesions such as those of the femur or pelvis humerus, and some cases have osteolytic lesions. PBL is a rare disease in adults. Thus, PBL is rarely considered a differential diagnosis of the osteolytic tumor. In addition, PBL can be underdiagnosed because patients do not experience symptoms or show objective abnormalities in the early stage. Here, we reported an elderly patient with PBL in multiple bones, including the cranial and femoral bones that were fractured due to falling

The Japanese Clinical Practice Guideline for acute kidney injury 2016

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a syndrome which has a broad range of etiologic factors depending on different clinical settings. Because AKI has significant impacts on prognosis in any clinical settings, early detection and intervention are necessary to improve the outcomes of AKI patients. This clinical guideline for AKI was developed by a multidisciplinary approach with nephrology, intensive care medicine, blood purification, and pediatrics. Of note, clinical practice for AKI management which was widely performed in Japan was also evaluated with comprehensive literature search

Trends in hepatocellular carcinoma incident cases in Japan between 1996 and 2019

We examined the epidemiological trends, including the distribution of sex, age, and disease etiology, in HCC incident cases, over 24 years. Data of 20,547 HCC patients (1996–2019) were analyzed in this prospective study. We divided the study period into four 6-yearly quarters. HCC etiology was categorized as hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, HBV + hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, HCV infection, and both negative (non-BC). The incident cases of HCC per quarter of the study period were 4311 (21.0%), 5505 (26.8%), 5776 (28.1%), and 4955 (24.1%), sequentially. Overall, 14,020 (68.2%) patients were male. The number of HCC cases in patients < 60 years, 60–69 years, 70–79 years, and ≥ 80 years were 3711 (18.1%), 6652 (32.4%), 7448 (36.2%), and 2736 (13.3%), respectively. The average age of newly-diagnosed patients increased in each quarter. HCC was associated with HBV, HBV + HCV, and HCV infections and non-BC in 2997 (14.6%), 187 (0.9%), and 12,019 (58.5%), and 5344 (26.0%) cases, respectively. The number of HCV-associated cases decreased in each quarter, while that of non-BC-associated cases increased. HCC incident cases tend to increase in the elderly and in non-BC patients; in contrast, HCC incident cases due to HCV tend to decrease

Anti-tumor effects of a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug zaltoprofen on chondrosarcoma via activating peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma and suppressing matrix metalloproteinase-2 expression.

金沢大学医薬保健研究域医学系Surgical resection is the only treatment for chondrosarcomas, because of their resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy; therefore, additional strategies are crucial to treat chondrosarcomas. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) is a ligand-activated transcription factor, which has been reported as a possible therapeutic target in certain malignancies including chondrosarcomas. In this study, we demonstrated that a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, zaltoprofen, could induce PPARγ activation and elicit anti-tumor effects in chondrosarcoma cells. Zaltoprofen was found to induce expressions of PPARγ mRNA and protein in human chondrosarcoma SW1353 and OUMS27 cells, and induce PPARγ-responsible promoter reporter activities. Inhibitory effects of zaltoprofen were observed on cell viability, proliferation, migration, and invasion, and the activity of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP2); these effects were dependent on PPARγ activation and evidenced by silencing PPARγ. Moreover, we showed a case of a patient with cervical chondrosarcoma (grade 2), who was treated with zaltoprofen and has been free from disease progression for more than 2 years. Histopathological findings revealed enhanced expression of PPARγ and reduced expression of MMP2 after administration of zaltoprofen. These findings demonstrate that zaltoprofen could be a promising drug against the malignant phenotypes in chondrosarcomas via activation of PPARγ and inhibition of MMP2 activity. © 2018 The Authors. Cancer Medicine published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.2957320