Fertility preservation for boys and adolescents facing sterilizing medical therapy

Improvements in childhood cancer survival have allowed boys and their families to increasingly focus on quality of life after therapy, particularly their future ability to father children. Treatments should maintain comprehensive cancer care goals and consider the long-term quality of life of these children. While semen cryopreservation is a well-established method of fertility preservation for post-pubertal children, the use of cryopreserved pre-treatment testicular tissue represents a promising, yet experimental method of fertility preservation for prepubertal males facing sterilizing therapy. Healthcare providers should counsel families about the fertility risks of therapy, discuss or refer patients for standard fertility preservation options, and consider experimental approaches to fertility preservation while being mindful of the ethical questions these treatments raise.     

Subclinical coronary atherosclerosis in young adults: prevalence,characteristics, predictors with coronary computed tomography angiography

The purpose of this study was to assess the characteristics and predictors of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis in young adults. The study also evaluated predictors of cardiac events. We retrospectively enrolled 914 self-referred asymptomatic subjects under the age of 45 (552 men, 362 women) who had undergone both coronary CT angiography (CCTA) and coronary artery calcium scoring. Two radiologists analyzed plaque composition and degree of stenosis. For all subjects, we evaluated clinical risk factors and investigated cardiac events. Subclinical coronary atherosclerosis was found in 86 subjects (9.4 %). Among them, 64 subjects (74.4 %) had a single coronary artery plaque. On analysis of individual segments, the most common type of plaque was non-calcified plaque (NCP) (58 %), which was found in 63 subjects (6.9 %). Significant coronary artery stenosis was found in 9 subjects (0.1 %). Predictors of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis were age, male gender, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus. Male gender, diabetes mellitus, and amount of smoking were independent predictors of NCP. High low density lipoprotein cholesterol and calcium scores were also significant predictors of stenosis. Myocardial infarction developed in 1 subject, unstable angina in 2, stable angina in 1, and death in 1 (2.45 cardiac events per 1,000 person-years of follow-up). Multivariate analysis revealed hazard ratios of 2.2 for subclinical coronary atherosclerosis, 49.17 for NCP, and 105.58 for significant stenosis. The prevalence of subclinical coronary atherosclerosis in asymptomatic young adults is not negligible. CCTA has the potential to enhance risk stratification and prediction for coronary artery disease in asymptomatic young adults.     

Ameliorating effects of constituents from Cortex Acanthopanacis Radicis on memory impairment in mice induced by scopolamine

OBJECTIVE：To investigate the effects of active con- stituents extracted from Cortex Acanthopanacis Radicison improving the impaired memory in mice models. METHODS： The mice models of memory impair- ment were established using scopolamine. Amelio- rating effects of the fractions and constituents on scopolamine-induced memory impairment in vivo were investigated using passive avoidance and Morris water-maze task tests, and their anti-acetyl- cholinesterase（AChE） and antioxidant activities in vitro examined. The isolation of constituents was performed by chromatographic methods and their structures were identified on the basis of instru- mental analysis. RESULTS： Among the fractions tested, ethylacetate fraction exhibited the anti-AChE activity（25.83%± 0.23%） properly and excellent 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl- hydrazyl（DPPH） radical and superoxide anion scav- enging capacity（87.50% ± 0.83% and 60.22% ± 0.43%, respectively）. However, the methylene chlo- ride fraction was much more active than the ethyl- acetate fraction in the passive avoidance task test（167.5% increase of step-through latency time） and Morris water-maze task test（33.3% decrease of es-cape latency time）. Four constituents, β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, sesamin, and hyperin were isolated from the methylene chloride fraction, among them, hyperin showed anti-acetylcholinesterase and anti-oxidant activities remarkably. Moreover, hyperin exerted a potent effect（146±38） s on mem- ory improvement in terms of passive avoidance task test compared with the reference compound tacrine（162±43） s at a dose of 2.5 mg/kg. CONCLUSION： Hyperin, a flavonoid glucoside iso- lated from Cortex Acanthopanacis Radicis, inhibited AChE activity and potently ameliorated scopol- amine-induced memory impairment, and its action may be partially mediated by the acetylcholine-en- hancing cholinergic nervous system.     

Serum growth arrest-specific protein 6 levels are elevated in adult-onset Still’s disease

We investigated the growth arrest-specific protein 6 in adult-onset Still’s disease. Serums were collected from 52 adult-onset Still’s disease patients with follow-up samples of 21 patients. The growth arrest-specific protein 6 levels in adult-onset Still’s disease were higher compared to those in the normal controls (25.37?±?7.71 vs. 19.86?±?5.01 ng/mL, p?<?0.001). However, growth arrest-specific protein 6 did not correlate with disease activity. Also, growth arrest-specific protein 6 was not decreased after activity was resolved in the follow-up. The growth arrest-specific protein 6 in adult-onset Still’s disease patients were higher than the normal controls. However, growth arrest-specific protein 6 was not correlated with disease activity.     

Discovery of a novel fibrous tissue in the spinal pia mater by polarized light microscopy

It is very well known that spinal meninges are composed of three layers, dura, arachnoid and pia mater, and that the main components of pia mater are collagen and reticular fibers. However, the distribution of those fibers has not been extensively investigated but just described as a mesh of fibers. In this study, we detected novel structures, which are composed of unidirectionally arranged fibers, in a rat spinal pia mater by using a polarized light microscope. They were seen as three parallel lines, one of which ran along a posterior spinal vein and the rest two of which ran along a pair of posterior spinal arteries. Histological analysis including Masson’s trichrome, picrosirius-red staining, Gordon & Sweet’s staining and immunohistochemistry with anti-collagen type 1 and 3 antibodies uncovered that they are mainly composed of collagen fibers and some reticular fibers. In addition, a putative primo vessel was detected in the novel fibrous tissue, which was proven out to be different from a blood vessel. In conclusion, we report a newly detected fibrous structure in the spinal pia mater, which may contribute to provide tensile force to the spinal meninges and to harbor the primo vascular system inside.     

A review of hydrolifting: A new modality for skin rejuvenation

Background: Hydrolifting is a newly developed modality of skin rejuvenation, which enhances overall facial volume augmentation and recovers skin thickness through multi-pass HA injection. Although it is commonly performed, only a few articles have reported on the rejuvenating effects of hydrolifting. Moreover, clear protocols and possible mechanisms of the procedure have not been elucidated. Objective: To define a novel technique for injecting HA and to clarify how to choose an appropriate HA filler based on the procedural purpose. Methods: This article is based on a review of the medical literature and the authors’ clinical experience in investigating and treating skin wrinkles with the hydrolifting method. Results: In hydrolifting, HA filler serves as a hydration source, dermal volumizer, and stimulator of dermal collagen and antioxidants. Hydrolifting is frequently indicated in minor wrinkles, minor volume depletion and rough skin texture. Conclusion: The hydrolifting method is a newly introduced antiaging treatment modality. It effectively covers the blind spots of conventional HA injection, such as infraorbital, perioral and hand dorsal wrinkles. However, further investigations are needed to reach a consensus on the basic concepts of treatment, choice of appropriate fillers and optimal technique in hydrolifting.