PPAR Ligands for Cancer Chemoprevention

Peroxisome proliferators-activated receptors (PPARs) that are members of the nuclear receptor superfamily have three different isoforms: PPARα, PPARδ, and PPARγ. PPARs are ligand-activated transcription factors, and they are implicated in tumor progression, differentiation, and apoptosis. Activation of PPAR isoforms lead to both anticarcinogenesis and anti-inflammatory effect. It has so far identified many PPAR ligands including chemical composition and natural occurring. PPAR ligands are reported to activate PPAR signaling and exert cancer prevention and treatment in vitro and/or in vivo studies. Although the effects depend on the isoforms and the types of ligands, biological modulatory activities of PPARs in carcinogenesis and disease progression are attracted for control or combat cancer development. This short review summarizes currently available data on the role of PPAR ligands in carcinogenesis

A Case of Dual-pathology Hepatocellular Carcinoma (HCC) and Cholangiolocellular Carcinoma (CoCC) after Eradication of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Infection

A 75-year-old Japanese man visited our hospital for further examination of liver tumors. He had a history of successful hepatitis C virus (HCV) eradication and therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) at another hospital. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed two tumors in the liver. He underwent anterior inferior (S5) and posterior inferior (S6) subsegmentectomy of the liver. Microscopic examination found that one tumor was HCC while the other was cholangiolocellular carcinoma (CoCC). We experienced a rare case of liver cancer with two synchronous pathologies, HCC and CoCC

Individual differences in autistic traits predict the perception of direct gaze for males, but not for females

Despite the emphasis of autism spectrum disorders as a continuum of atypical social behaviors and the sexual heterogeneity of phenotypic manifestations, whether gaze processing constitutes an autistic endophenotype in both sexes remains unclear. Using the Autism-Spectrum Quotient and a psychophysical approach in a normal population (N = 128), here we demonstrated that individual differences in autistic traits predicted direct-gaze perception for males, but not for females. Our findings suggest that direct-gaze perception may not constitute an autistic endophenotype in both sexes, and highlight the importance of sex differences when considering relationships between autistic traits and behaviors

The effects of exogenous ghrelin on dextran sodium sulfate-induced colitis in lean and obese mice

Ghrelin is a peptide hormone possessing a variety of physiological and pharmacological actions. This study aims to investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of exogenous ghrelin on chemically induced colitis in genetically predisposed lean (TSNO) and obese (TSOD) mice after different schedule of administration. To induce colitis, animals were given drinking water containing 2% dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) for 5 days. The TSOD and TSNO mice received daily intraperitoneal injections with saline (100 μl/day) or ghrelin (70 nmol/kg/day) for 5 days simultaneously or after DSS treatment. The severity of colitis was assessed by measuring body weight, colon length, histological analysis, plasma tumor necrosis factorα (TNFα) concentration and expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines in the colonic mucosa. At day 10, ghrelin administered after the DSS treatment slightly enhanced colonic inflammation in TSNO mice. On the other hand, ghrelin administration resulted in the partial improvement of colonic inflammation in TSOD mice. Furthermore, ghrelin administered simultaneously with DSS treatment might have slightly ameliorated some inflammation, as indicated by values compared with the after-treatment mice. Our findings suggested that the effects of ghrelin on chemically induced colitis were different between lean and obese mice, and depend on the timing of ghrelin treatment. Therefore, we should consider these points when using ghrelin as an anti-inflammatory agent in inflammation models

農村女性の土地に関わる諸権利の研究 : タンザニア国キリマンジャロ州を事例にして

学位の種別: 課程博士審査委員会委員 : (主査)東京大学教授 山路 永司, 東京大学教授 大澤 真理, 東京大学教授 戸堂 康之, 東京大学准授 堀田 昌英, 東京大学講師 鈴木 綾University of Tokyo(東京大学