Blood Glucose and Insulin Values on Daily Profile, M Value and Meal Tolerance in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM)

Background: Authors and collaborators have continued medical practice in the Heisei Medical Welfare (HMW) group for long years for mainly two areas, extensive care for the elderly and diabetes research. From both of them, the current research was held on the daily profile of glucose and insulin for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Subjects and Methods: Cases were 6 T2DM patients in admission, with ages 67.5 ± 12.7 years, diabetes duration 9.5 years. Methods included a daily profile of glucose and insulin for seven times per day, Morbus (M) value, Meal Tolerance Test (MTT) using breakfast with 70g carbohydrate, insulinogenic index (IGI)-2 hours, various correlations among HbA1c, M value, Area Under the Curve (AUC) of glucose and insulin. Results: Cases showed average values of HbA1c 8.4 ± 0.7%, glucose 197 mg/dL, M value 111. Glucose and IRI levels increased during 0700-0900h with 154-258 mg/dL and 13.8-54.3 μU/ml. There was a significant correlation between Glucose-⊿AUC and M value (p<0.05). Discussion: Daily profile of glucose and insulin showed a similar manner, suggesting post-prandial glucose influence due to carbohydrate intake. When studied cases increase, significant correlations among M value, HbA1c and glucose-AUC seem to be found. This report hopefully becomes a reference for future diabetic research

Effective SGLT2 Inhibitor for Patient with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) and Depression

The case was a 55-year-old female patient with depression for 5 years and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) for 3 years. She has received anti-depressant and anti-hyperglycemic agents (OHAs). Approximately 1 year ago, her diabetic control became exacerbated without specific triggers. She was started to given Ipragliflozin L-Proline as Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) Inhibitor. After that, her glucose variability and depression had been improved. According to the previous reports, SGLT-2 inhibitors seem to have anti-depression efficacy for diabetes. The case has been followed up in detail, and this report is expected to be a useful reference for diabetes care

RiceXPro: a platform for monitoring gene expression in japonica rice grown under natural field conditions

Elucidating the function of all predicted genes in rice remains as the ultimate goal in cereal genomics in order to ensure the development of improved varieties that will sustain an expanding world population. We constructed a gene expression database (RiceXPro, URL: http://ricexpro.dna.affrc.go.jp/) to provide an overview of the transcriptional changes throughout the growth of the rice plant in the field. RiceXPro contains two data sets corresponding to spatiotemporal gene expression profiles of various organs and tissues, and continuous gene expression profiles of leaf from transplanting to harvesting. A user-friendly web interface enables the extraction of specific gene expression profiles by keyword and chromosome search, and basic data analysis, thereby providing useful information as to the organ/tissue and developmental stage specificity of expression of a particular gene. Analysis tools such as t-test, calculation of fold change and degree of correlation facilitate the comparison of expression profiles between two random samples and the prediction of function of uncharacterized genes. As a repository of expression data encompassing growth in the field, this database can provide baseline information of genes that underlie various agronomically important traits in rice

Chimpanzee reservoirs of pandemic and nonpandemic HIV-1

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), the cause of human acquired immunodeficiency syndrome ( AIDS), is a zoonotic infection of staggering proportions and social impact. Yet uncertainty persists regarding its natural reservoir. The virus most closely related to HIV-1 is a simian immunodeficiency virus ( SIV) thus far identified only in captive members of the chimpanzee subspecies Pan troglodytes troglodytes. Here we report the detection of SIVcpz antibodies and nucleic acids in fecal samples from wild-living P.t. troglodytes apes in southern Cameroon, where prevalence rates in some communities reached 29 to 35%. By sequence analysis of endemic SIVcpz strains, we could trace the origins of pandemic ( group M) and nonpandemic ( group N) HIV-1 to distinct, geographically isolated chimpanzee communities. These findings establish P. t. troglodytes as a natural reservoir of HIV-1

Self-assembled monolayer of light-harvesting core complexes of photosynthetic bacteria on an amino-terminated ITO electrode

Light-harvesting antenna core (LH1-RC) complexes isolated from Rhodospirillum rubrum and Rhodopseudomonas palustris were successfully self-assembled on an ITO electrode modified with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane. Near infra-red (NIR) absorption, fluorescence, and IR spectra of these LH1-RC complexes indicated that these LH1-RC complexes on the electrode were stable on the electrode. An efficient energy transfer and photocurrent responses of these LH1-RC complexes on the electrode were observed upon illumination of the LH1 complex at 880 nm

Natural and Synthetic Polymers as Inhibitors of Drug Efflux Pumps

Inhibition of efflux pumps is an emerging approach in cancer therapy and drug delivery. Since it has been discovered that polymeric pharmaceutical excipients such as Tweens® or Pluronics® can inhibit efflux pumps, various other polymers have been investigated regarding their potential efflux pump inhibitory activity. Among them are polysaccharides, polyethylene glycols and derivatives, amphiphilic block copolymers, dendrimers and thiolated polymers. In the current review article, natural and synthetic polymers that are capable of inhibiting efflux pumps as well as their application in cancer therapy and drug delivery are discussed

Conserved determinants of lentiviral genome dimerization

Abstract Background Retroviruses selectively package two copies of their unspliced genomes by what appears to be a dimerization-dependent RNA packaging mechanism. Dimerization of human immunodeficiency virus Type-1 (HIV-1) genomes is initiated by “kissing” interactions between GC-rich palindromic loop residues of a conserved hairpin (DIS), and is indirectly promoted by long-range base pairing between residues overlapping the gag start codon (AUG) and an upstream Unique 5′ element (U5). The DIS and U5:AUG structures are phylogenetically conserved among divergent retroviruses, suggesting conserved functions. However, some studies suggest that the DIS of HIV-2 does not participate in dimerization, and that U5:AUG pairing inhibits, rather than promotes, genome dimerization. We prepared RNAs corresponding to native and mutant forms of the 5′ leaders of HIV-1 (NL4-3 strain), HIV-2 (ROD strain), and two divergent strains of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV; cpz-TAN1 and -US strains), and probed for potential roles of the DIS and U5:AUG base pairing on intrinsic and NC-dependent dimerization by mutagenesis, gel electrophoresis, and NMR spectroscopy. Results Dimeric forms of the native HIV-2 and SIV leaders were only detectable using running buffers that contained Mg2+, indicating that these dimers are more labile than that of the HIV-1 leader. Mutations designed to promote U5:AUG base pairing promoted dimerization of the HIV-2 and SIV RNAs, whereas mutations that prevented U5:AUG pairing inhibited dimerization. Chimeric HIV-2 and SIV leader RNAs containing the dimer-promoting loop of HIV-1 (DIS) exhibited HIV-1 leader-like dimerization properties, whereas an HIV-1NL4-3 mutant containing the SIVcpzTAN1 DIS loop behaved like the SIVcpzTAN1 leader. The cognate NC proteins exhibited varying abilities to promote dimerization of the retroviral leader RNAs, but none were able to convert labile dimers to non-labile dimers. Conclusions The finding that U5:AUG formation promotes dimerization of the full-length HIV-1, HIV-2, SIVcpzUS, and SIVcpzTAN1 5′ leaders suggests that these retroviruses utilize a common RNA structural switch mechanism to modulate function. Differences in native and NC-dependent dimerization propensity and lability are due to variations in the compositions of the DIS loop residues rather than other sequences within the leader RNAs. Although NC is a well-known RNA chaperone, its role in dimerization has the hallmarks of a classical riboswitch.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113284/1/12977_2015_Article_209.pd

Relationship between tongue strength, lip strength, and nutrition-related sarcopenia in older rehabilitation inpatients: a cross-sectional study

Kotomi Sakai,1,2 Enri Nakayama,2 Haruka Tohara,3 Keiji Kodama,4 Takahiro Takehisa,5 Yozo Takehisa,6 Koichiro Ueda2 1Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Setagaya Memorial Hospital, 2Department of Dysphagia Rehabilitation, Nihon University School of Dentistry, 3Gerodontology and Oral Rehabilitation, Department of Gerontology and Gerodontology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, 4Department of Internal Medicine, 5Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Setagaya Memorial Hospital, Tokyo, 6Department of Internal Medicine, Hakuai Memorial Hospital, Tokushima, Japan Objective: The objective of this study was to clarify the relationship between tongue strength, lip strength, and nutrition-related sarcopenia (NRS).Patients and methods: A total of 201 older inpatients aged &ge;65&nbsp;years (70 men, median age: 84&nbsp;years, interquartile range: 79&ndash;89&nbsp;years) consecutively admitted for rehabilitation were included in this cross-sectional study. The main factors evaluated were the presence of NRS diagnosed by malnutrition using the Mini-Nutrition Assessment &ndash; Short Form, sarcopenia based on the criteria of the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia, tongue strength, and lip strength. Other factors such as age, sex, comorbidity, physical function, cognitive function, and oral intake level were also assessed.Results: In all, 78 (38.8%) patients were allocated to the NRS group, and 123 (61.2%)&nbsp;patients were allocated to the non-NRS group. The median tongue strength and lip strength (interquartile range) were significantly lower in the NRS group (tongue: 22.9&nbsp;kPa [17.7&ndash;27.7&nbsp;kPa] and lip: 7.2&nbsp;N [5.6&ndash;9.8&nbsp;N]) compared with the non-NRS group (tongue: 29.7&nbsp;kPa [24.8&ndash;35.1&nbsp;kPa] and lip: 9.9&nbsp;N [8.4&ndash;12.3&nbsp;N], P&lt;0.001 for both). Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that NRS was independently associated with tongue strength (odds ratio [OR] =0.93, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.87&ndash;0.98, P=0.012) and lip strength (OR =0.76, 95% CI 0.66&ndash;0.88, P&lt;0.001), even after adjusting for age, sex, comorbidity, physical function, cognitive function, and oral intake level.Conclusion: The likelihood of occurrence of NRS decreased when tongue strength or lip strength increased. Tongue strength and lip strength may be important factors for preventing and improving NRS, regardless of the presence of low oral intake level in older rehabilitation inpatients. Keywords: sarcopenia, rehabilitation, tongue, lip, malnutritio