Fish oil-enriched nutrition combined with systemic chemotherapy for gastrointestinal cancer patients with cancer cachexia

Despite recent advances in chemotherapy for gastrointestinal cancer, a crucial factor related to poor prognosis is reduced tolerance to chemotherapy induced by cancer cachexia. Fish oil (FO)-derived eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) modulates inflammation in patients with various malignancies; however, the impact of FO-enriched nutrition as a combined modality therapy on clinical outcomes remains controversial. We systemically analysed chronological changes in biochemical and physiological status using bioelectrical impedance analysis in 128 gastrointestinal cancer patients provided with or without FO-enriched nutrition during chemotherapy. Furthermore, we evaluated the clinical significance of FO-enriched nutrition and clarified appropriate patient groups that receive prognostic benefits from FO-enriched nutrition during treatment of gastrointestinal cancer. The control group showed significant up-regulation of serum CRP) levels and no significant difference in both skeletal muscle mass and lean body mass. In contrast, the FO-enriched nutrition group showed no changes in serum CRP concentration and significantly increased skeletal muscle mass and lean body mass over time. Furthermore, high CRP levels significantly correlated with reduced tolerance to chemotherapy, and FO-enriched nutrition improved chemotherapy tolerance and prognosis, particularly in gastrointestinal cancer patients with a modified Glasgow prognostic score (mGPS) of 1 or 2. We conclude that FO-enriched nutrition may improve the prognosis of patients with cancer cachexia and systemic inflammation (i.e., those with a mGPS of 1 or 2)

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Hemodynamic effects of stent struts versus straightening of vessels in stent-assisted coil embolization for sidewall cerebral aneurysms.

BACKGROUND: Recent clinical studies have shown that recanalization rates are lower in stent-assisted coil embolization than in coiling alone in the treatment of cerebral aneurysms. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to assess and compare the hemodynamic effect of stent struts and straightening of vessels by stent placement on reducing flow velocity in sidewall aneurysms, with the goal of reducing recanalization rates. METHODS: We evaluated 16 sidewall aneurysms treated with Enterprise stents. We performed computational fluid dynamics simulations using patient-specific geometries before and after treatment, with or without stent struts. RESULTS: Stent placement straightened vessels by a mean (±standard deviation) of 12.9° ± 13.1° 6 months after treatment. Placement of stent struts in the initial vessel geometries reduced flow velocity in aneurysms by 23.1% ± 6.3%. Straightening of vessels without stent struts reduced flow velocity by 9.6% ± 12.6%. Stent struts had significantly stronger effects on reducing flow velocity than straightening (P = 0.004, Wilcoxon test). Deviation of the effects was larger by straightening than by stent struts (P = 0.01, F-test). The combination of stent struts and straightening reduced flow velocity by 32.6% ± 12.2%. There was a trend that larger inflow angles produced a larger reduction in flow velocity by straightening of vessels (P = 0.16). CONCLUSION: In sidewall aneurysms, stent struts have stronger effects (approximately 2 times) on reduction in flow velocity than straightening of vessels. Hemodynamic effects by straightening vary in each case and can be predicted by inflow angles of pre-operative vessel geometry. These results may be useful to design a treatment strategy for reducing recanalization rates

Two new species add to the diversity of Eoniphargus in subterranean waters of Japan, with molecular phylogeny of the family Mesogammaridae (Crustacea, Amphipoda)

Amphipod crustaceans are a major group of invertebrates that predominantly occur in groundwater ecosystems. Eoniphargus is a mesogammarid genus with only two known species from the groundwater systems of the Japanese archipelago and Korean Peninsula. However, there is a dearth of taxonomic studies on this genus, and the species diversity within Eoniphargus is unclear. Here, we describe two new species, E. iwataorum sp. nov. and E. toriii sp. nov., collected from the interstitial waters in Tochigi and Shizuoka Prefectures in the Japanese archipelago. These two new species are distinguished from their congeners by the following features: head, urosomite 3, first and second antennae, mandibles, and maxilla 1. Eoniphargus kojimai is redescribed here based on material collected near the type locality. Molecular phylogenetic analyses based on the nuclear 28S rRNA and mitochondrial COI genes revealed that E. kojimai is sister to E. iwataorum sp. nov. In this study, we also briefly discuss the phylogenetic relationships of Mesogammaridae based on the molecular phylogenetic analyses

A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan

Shintani, Aki, Umemura, Shinya, Nakano, Takafumi, Tomikawa, Ko (2023): A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan. Zootaxa 5301 (3): 383-396, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5301.3.4, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5301.3.

FIGURE 4 in A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan

FIGURE 4. Pseudocrangonys asuwaensis sp. nov. holotype female (KUZ Z4464), 5.4 mm, Nanatsuoguchi, Mt. Asuwa, Fukui, Japan. A, pereopod 3, lateral view; B, dactylus of pereopod 3, lateral view; C–F, pereopods 4–7, lateral views.Published as part of Shintani, Aki, Umemura, Shinya, Nakano, Takafumi & Tomikawa, Ko, 2023, A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan, pp. 383-396 in Zootaxa 5301 (3) on page 388, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5301.3.4, http://zenodo.org/record/803054

FIGURE 3 in A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan

FIGURE 3. Pseudocrangonys asuwaensis sp. nov. holotype female (KUZ Z4464), 5.4 mm, Nanatsuoguchi, Mt. Asuwa, Fukui, Japan. A, maxilliped, dorsal view; B, inner plate of maxilliped, dorsal view; C, outer plate of maxilliped, dorsal view; D, gnathopod 1, medial view; E, palmar margin of propodus and dactylus of gnathopod 1, medial view; F, gnathopod 2, medial view; G, palmar margin of propodus and dactylus of gnathopod 2, medial view; H, brood plate of gnathopod 2, lateral view.Published as part of <i>Shintani, Aki, Umemura, Shinya, Nakano, Takafumi & Tomikawa, Ko, 2023, A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan, pp. 383-396 in Zootaxa 5301 (3)</i> on page 387, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5301.3.4, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/8030542">http://zenodo.org/record/8030542</a&gt

FIGURE 1 in A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan

FIGURE 1. Habitat and live specimen of Pseudocrangonys asuwaensis sp. nov. A, entrance of Nanatsuoguchi, Mt. Asuwa, Fukui, Japan; B, female (about 6 mm in body length).Published as part of <i>Shintani, Aki, Umemura, Shinya, Nakano, Takafumi & Tomikawa, Ko, 2023, A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan, pp. 383-396 in Zootaxa 5301 (3)</i> on page 385, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5301.3.4, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/8030542">http://zenodo.org/record/8030542</a&gt

FIGURE 2 in A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan

FIGURE 2. Pseudocrangonys asuwaensis sp. nov. holotype female (KUZ Z4464), 5.4 mm, Nanatsuoguchi, Mt. Asuwa, Fukui, Japan. A–C, dorsal margins of pleonites 1–3, dorsal views; D–F, dorsal margins of urosomites 1–3, dorsal views; G, antenna 1, medial view, some distal articles of main flagellum omitted; H, antenna 2, medial view; I, upper lip, anterior view; J, left mandible, medial view; K, incisor, lacinia mobilis, and molar process of left mandible, medial view; L, incisor, lacinia mobilis, and molar process of right mandible, medial view; M, lower lip, ventral view; N, maxilla 1, dorsal view; O, robust serrate setae on outer plate of maxilla 1, dorsal view; P, maxilla 2, dorsal view.Published as part of <i>Shintani, Aki, Umemura, Shinya, Nakano, Takafumi & Tomikawa, Ko, 2023, A new species of the genus Pseudocrangonyx (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Pseudocrangonyctidae) from subterranean waters of Japan, pp. 383-396 in Zootaxa 5301 (3)</i> on page 386, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5301.3.4, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/8030542">http://zenodo.org/record/8030542</a&gt

Correlations among pre-operative inflow angle, changes in inflow angle, and flow reduction by vessel straightening.

<p>Correlations among pre-operative inflow angle, changes in inflow angle, and flow reduction by vessel straightening.</p