A Case of Retroperitoneal Malignant Mesenchymoma

A rare case of malignant mesenchymoma of a retroperitoneal lesion, com-posed of liposarcoma and osteosarcoma, is reported. For complete resection of the tumor, two surgical operations were performed. The first operative material showed a mass measuring 20 x 20 x 10 cm, weighing 1607g, arising from the soft tissue of the left retroperitoneum and the tumor had a smooth surface and elastic-hard consistency. The secondary operative materials exhi-bited a mass measuring 10 x 5 x 3 cm, weighing 268g. The tumor was com-posed of soft gelatinous tissues and adhered to the tail of the pancreas but was separate from the spleen. More than 3 years after the secondary operation, no recurrence has been observed. Immunohistochemical examinations showed that S-100 protein and non-specific enolase were present in the liposarcoma-tous area and that vimentin was positive in the osteosarcomatous area

Vα14 NK T cell–triggered IFN-γ production by Gr-1+CD11b+ cells mediates early graft loss of syngeneic transplanted islets

Pancreatic islet transplantation is a highly promising approach for the treatment of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. However, the procedure remains experimental for several reasons, including its low efficiency caused by the early graft loss of transplanted islets. We demonstrate that Gr-1+CD11b+ cells generated by transplantation and their IFN-γ production triggered by Vα14 NKT cells are an essential component and a major cause of early graft loss of pancreatic islet transplants. Gr-1+CD11b+ cells from Vα14 NKT cell–deficient (Jα281−/−) mice failed to produce IFN-γ, resulting in efficient islet graft acceptance. Early graft loss was successfully prevented through the repeated administration of α-galactosylceramide, a specific ligand for Vα14 NKT cells, resulting in dramatically reduced IFN-γ production by Gr-1+CD11b+ cells, as well as Vα14 NKT cells. Our study elucidates, for the first time, the crucial role of Gr-1+CD11b+ cells and the IFN-γ they produce in islet graft rejection and suggests a novel approach to improving transplantation efficiency through the modulation of Vα14 NKT cell function

Ultrasonographic characteristics of small hepatocellular carcinoma.

The ultrasonographic characteristics of hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC) were investigated. Four typical features of HCCs, "mosaic internal echo pattern", "halo", "lateral shadow" and "posterior echo enhancement", were not recognized in minute HCCs smaller than 2 cm in diameter. These characteristics developed as the tumors grew. Only hypoechoic space-occupying lesions can be considered as small HCCs. In differentiating small HCCs from hypoechoic non-malignant space-occupying lesions in the cirrhotic liver, the ratios of short to long dimensions of the lesions seemed to be important since the ratios of HCCs were significantly larger than those of non-malignant lesions. The fact that 3 hyperechoic small HCCs could not be diagnosed even by celiac arteriography has suggested to us that ultrasonically guided biopsies should be performed in order to differentiate from small hemangiomas. Serum alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) levels of 1/3 of the patients with HCCs were below 100 ng/ml, indicating that it is impossible to detect small HCCs only by measuring serum AFP.</p

Porous Plug Phase Separator and Superfluid Film Flow Suppression System for the Soft X-Ray Spectrometer Onboard Hitomi

When using superfluid helium in low gravity environments, porous plug phase separators are commonly used to vent boiloff gas while confining the bulk liquid to the tank. Invariably, there is a flow of superfluid film from the perimeter of the porous plug down the vent line. For the Soft X-ray Spectrometer onboard ASTRO-H (Hitomi), its approximately 30-liter helium supply has a lifetime requirement of more than 3 years. A nominal vent rate is estimated as ~ 30 ug/s, equivalent to ~ 0.7 mW heat load. It is therefore critical to suppress any film flow whose evaporation would not provide direct cooling of the remaining liquid helium. That is, the porous plug vent system must be designed to both minimize film flow and to ensure maximum extraction of latent heat from the film. The design goal for Hitomi is to reduce the film flow losses to <2 ug/s, corresponding to a loss of cooling capacity of <40 uW. The design adopts the same general design as implemented for Astro-E and E2, using a vent system composed of a porous plug, combined with an orifice, a heat exchanger, and knife-edge devices. In this paper, design, on-ground testing results and in-orbit performance are described