Magnetic resonance imaging as a clue to successful diagnosis of renal tuberculosis: a case report

Computed tomography is considered as the imaging modality of choice in the diagnosis of genitourinary tuberculosis, while magnetic resonance imaging may provide some informative features corresponding to the pathologic stage of the disease. We herein present a case report where magnetic resonance imaging showed the informative features, and a clue to further examinations in focusing on renal tuberculosis

Different responses to two types of 5-fluorouracil prodrugs in combination with interferon-alpha in pulmonary metastases of renal cell carcinoma: a case report

A 66-year-old Japanese man with pulmonary metastases of renal cell carcinoma found 8 months after radical nephrectomy was treated with interferon-alpha and tegafur-uracil. Since it failed to achieve tumor responses resulting in progression, he was given interferon-alpha and capecitabine. After 2 courses of combination therapy with IFN-alpha and capecitabine, significant tumor responses were obtained; two out of four pulmonary metastatic sites disappeared completely, one site showed over 50% decrease in size, and the remaining one site did no change in size. The regimen was well tolerated and toxicity observed was World Health Organization grade 1 anorexia. His disease status was maintained as stable disease by the repeated treatment with interferon-alpha and capecitabine for 17 months after tumor responses were obtained. However, tumor progression was observed thereafter. He is at present under treatment with sorafenib. This is the first case report of metastatic renal cell carcinoma, which showed different responses to two types of 5-fluorouracil prodrugs in combination with interferon-alpha, suggesting the biochemical modulation of capecitabine by interferon-alpha as a possible mechanism underlying the antitumor effect of the combination of interferon-alpha and capecitabine at the clinical setting. Present case also suggests that a combination of tumor-selective capecitabine with interferon-alpha is a potentially useful therapeutic option in metastatic renal cell carcinoma

Safety and Efficacy of the Surgical Management of Hemodialysis Patients with Gastric Cancer

This retrospective study evaluated the short- and long-term outcomes after surgical management for gastric cancer in hemodialysis patients compared to non-dialysis patients. Twelve hemodialysis patients were compared with a propensity score-matched cohort of 39 gastric cancer patients who had not undergone hemodialysis. Short- and long-term outcomes along with scores estimating physiological ability and surgical stress were evaluated in both groups. The incidence of postoperative morbidity according to the Clavien-Dindo classification was higher in the hemodialysis gastric cancer group than in the non-dialysis gastric cancer group. The 5-year overall survival rate in the non-dialysis group was 69.2% after surgical resection for gastric cancer and 22.2% in the hemodialysis group. Patients with preoperative risk scores≥0.48 had significantly poorer survival outcomes compared to those with preoperative risk scores<0.48 (5-year survival rate, 83.3% vs. 39.4%, respectively). Our analyses suggest that hemodialysis patients undergoing surgery for gastric cancer have a significantly poorer postoperative prognosis and an elevated risk of postoperative complications

Spatial Distributions of GABA Receptors and Local Inhibition of Ca2+ Transients Studied with GABA Uncaging in the Dendrites of CA1 Pyramidal Neurons

GABA(γ-amino-butylic acid)-mediated inhibition in the dendrites of CA1 pyramidal neurons was characterized by two-photon uncaging of a caged-GABA compound, BCMACM-GABA, and one-photon uncaging of RuBi-GABA in rat hippocampal slice preparations. Although we found that GABAA-mediated currents were diffusely distributed along the dendrites, currents elicited at the branch points of the apical dendritic trunk were approximately two times larger than those elsewhere in the dendrite. We examined the inhibitory action of the GABA-induced currents on Ca2+ transients evoked with a single back-propagating action potential (bAP) in oblique dendrites. We found that GABA uncaging selectively inhibited the Ca2+ transients in the region adjacent (<20 µm) to the uncaging site, and that GABA uncaging was effective only within a short period after bAP (<20 ms). The strength of inhibition was linearly related to the amplitudes of the GABA currents, suggesting that the currents inhibited a sustained, subthreshold after-depolarization without preventing propagation of bAP. GABA uncaging at the dendritic branch points inhibited Ca2+ transients farther into dendritic branches (>20 µm). Our data indicate that GABA inhibition results in spatially confined inhibition of Ca2+ transients shortly after bAP, and suggest that this effect is particularly potent at the dendritic branch points where GABA receptors cluster

Evidence of mature adipocyte proliferation regulated by proliferin

Despite much research, whether mature adipocytes proliferate remains controversial. Here, we examined 5-bromo-2&#x2032;-deoxyuridine (BrdU)-labelling of mature adipocytes. Although BrdU incorporation into subcutaneous adipocytes was less than that in visceral adipocytes, pioglitazone (Pio) treatment increased BrdU incorporation in subcutaneous, but not visceral, adipocytes in rats. Fully differentiated 3T3-L1 adipocytes exhibited an increase in cell number and BrdU incorporation with time, with this increase enhanced by Pio treatment. We therefore screened for genes that encode growth factors regulated by Pio, and selected proliferin (PLF). Both gene silencing of PLF by small interfering RNA and treatment with anti-PLF antibody suppressed proliferation in 3T3-L1 adipocytes. In adipocytes isolated from Pio-treated rats, the tissue-specific pattern of PLF expression was similar to that of BrdU incorporation. Administration of an anti-PLF antibody to mice reduced BrdU incorporation into adipocytes. Mature adipocytes thus have the ability to replicate, and this proliferation is positively regulated by PLF

Identification and characterization of the RNA helicase activity of Japanese encephalitis virus NS3 protein

AbstractThe NS3 protein of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) contains motifs typical of RNA helicase/NTPase but no RNA helicase activity has been reported for this protein. To identify and characterize the RNA helicase activity of JEV NS3, a truncated form of the protein with a His-tag was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. The purified JEV NS3 protein showed an RNA helicase activity, which was dependent on divalent cations and ATP. An Asp-285-to-Ala substitution in motif II of the JEV NS3 protein abolished the ATPase and RNA helicase activities. These results indicate that the C-terminal 457 residues are sufficient to exhibit the RNA helicase activity of JEV NS3

Association of a single nucleotide polymorphism in titin gene with marbling in Japanese Black beef cattle

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Association of a single nucleotide polymorphism in akirin 2 gene with marbling in Japanese Black beef cattle

Background: Marbling defined by the amount and distribution of intramuscular fat, so-called Shimofuri, is an economically important trait of beef cattle in Japan. The c17-25 expressed sequence tag (EST) has been previously shown to possess expression difference in musculus longissimus muscle between low-marbled and high-marbled steer groups, and to be located within genomic region of a quantitative trait locus for marbling. Thus, the akirin 2 (AKIRIN2) gene containing the c17-25 EST sequence was considered as a positional functional candidate for the gene responsible for marbling. In this study, we explored single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the AKIRIN2 and analyzed association of the SNP with marbling. Findings: A SNP in the 3' untranslated region of the AKIRIN2, referred to as c.*188G>A, was the only difference detected between high- and low-marbled steer groups. The SNP was associated with marbling in 3 experiments using 100 sires (P = 0.041), 753 paternal half-sib progeny steers from 4 sires heterozygous for the c.*188G>A (P = 0.005), and 730 paternal half-sib progeny steers from 3 sires homozygous for the A allele at the c.*188G>A (P = 0.047), in Japanese Black beef cattle. The effect of genotypes of the SNP on subcutaneous fat thickness was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Conclusion: These findings suggest that the AKIRIN2 SNP polymorphism is associated with marbling and may be useful for effective marker-assisted selection to increase the levels of marbling in Japanese Black beef cattle

Significance of adrenomedullin under cardiopulmonary bypass in children during surgery for congenital heart disease.

To elucidate the effect of adrenomedullin (AM) on fluid homeostasis under cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), we investigated the serial changes in plasma AM and other parameters related to fluid homeostasis in 13 children (average age, 28.2 months) with congenital heart disease during cardiac surgery under CPB. Arterial blood and urine samples were collected just after initiation of anesthesia, just before commencement of CPB, 10 min before the end of CPB, 60 min after CPB, and 24 h after operation. Plasma AM levels increased significantly 10 min before the end of CPB and decreased 24 h after operation. Urine volume increased transiently during CPB, which paralleled changes in AM. Simple regression analysis showed that plasma AM level correlated significantly with urinary vasopressin, urine volume, urinary sodium excretion, and plasma osmolarity. Stepwise regression analysis indicated that urine volume was the most significant determinant of plasma AM levels. Percent rise in AM during CPB relative to control period correlated with that of plasma brain natriuretic peptide (r = 0.57, P &#60; 0.01). Our results suggest that AM plays an important role in fluid homeostasis under CPB in cooperation with other hormones involved in fluid homeostasis.</p