Advanced moderately differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma of the rectum with favorable prognosis by postoperative chemoradiation

Rectal neuroendocrine carcinoma is rare with poor prognosis. We report herein a case of advanced moderately differentiated neuroendocrine carcinoma of the rectum with relatively favorable prognosis treated by postoperative adjuvant chemoradiation therapy. A 58-year-old Japanese female was referred and colonofiberscopy revealed an easy-bleeding irregular tumor in the lower rectum, which was pathologically diagnosed as a neuroendocrine carcinoma. Surgical treatment consisted of abdominoperineal resection and lymph node dissection. The tumor invaded deeply into perirectal tissues, and 9 of 11 lymph node metastases were observed. Immunohistochemically, chromogranin A showed diffuse and strong staining, and the MIB-1 labeling index was 18.3 ± 5.6, supporting the high proliferation of the tumor. Some nucleus of the tumor showed positive staining for p21/WAF1. A total dose of 46 Gy of radiotherapy was delivered with 800 mg of daily oral doxifluridine. At 5 years post-surgery, the patient demonstrated no clinical evidence of intrapelvic recurrence or distant metastases

Paleogene Lithostratigraphy and Recognition of the Marine Incursion of the Proto-Paratethys Sea in the Fergana Basin, Uzbekistan

Lithostratigraphy and isotopes of Paleogene sequences consisting mainly of terrestrial clastics and limestone were examined in the northern Fergana Basin of Uzbekistan. The studied sections consisted of two facies: the lower sequence coarse-grained terrestrial clastics and the upper sequence limestone clastics characterized by limestone beds. The sulfur isotopic composition of the bivalve obtained from the lower sequence was relatively low, namely, 14.94–16.82‰, which is equivalent to the Early Cretaceous; however, it is possible that the isotopic composition differed from that obtained in open seawater due to the presence of terrestrial clastics and the freshwater effect. In contrast, the sulfur isotopic composition of limestone from the upper sequence was relatively high, namely, 19.37–21.19‰, thereby indicating that they were likely to originate from the Early to Middle Eocene. Furthermore, the strontium isotopic compositions of the lower and upper sequences were 0.707772–0.707875‰ and 0.707812–0.708063‰, respectively. These values are more similar to those of the Paleogene than the Cretaceous. Finally, lithostratigraphy and age determination allowed us to correlate the upper sequence with representative limestone from the fourth transgression of the proto-Paratethys Sea, whilst the limestone beds were deduced to be remnants of the Eocene marine incursion of the proto-Paratethys Sea

Spin–Orbit Coupling Analyses of the Geometrical Effects on Phosphorescence in Ir(<i>ppy</i>)₃ and Its Derivatives

Theoretical investigations were performed for typical iridium complexes, Ir­(<i>C^∧N</i>)₃, Ir­(<i>C^∧N</i>)₂(<i>C’^∧N’</i>), Ir­(<i>C^∧N</i>)₂(<i>N ^∧O</i>) and Ir­(<i>C^∧N</i>)₂(<i>O^∧O</i>), at the MCSCF+SOCI+SOC//B3LYP/SBKJC+p level of theory. For Ir­(<i>dfppy</i>)₂(<i>pic</i>) (so-called FIrpic) and its related complexes, the introduction of a fluoride into <i>ppy</i> ligands provides a blue shift of about 20 nm for emission spectra, while the replacement of a <i>pic</i> ligand by an <i>acac</i> ligand does not seriously affect the emission spectra of these complexes. It is proposed that the homo-<i>cis</i>,hetero-O-<i>cis</i> isomer (HC-<b>5</b>f, see text) of FIrpic should be used as a brighter blue-color material instead of the homo-N-<i>trans</i> isomer (HNT-<b>5</b>f). The energy difference between these isomers is less than 1 kcal/mol, and the energy barrier of the isomerization between these isomers is calculated to be larger than 30 kcal/mol. It was also found that the use of two ancillary ligands, such as Ir­(<i>C^∧N</i>)­(<i>N ^∧O</i>)₂ and Ir­(<i>C^∧N</i>)­(<i>O^∧O</i>)₂, is unfortunately inappropriate to energetically lift the π* orbital