Usefulness of ATP-sensitivity-assay of intravesical instillation therapy of anti-cancer agents for superficial bladder cancer

Intravesical instillation of anti-cancer drugs for superficial urinary bladder cancer is generally carried out with the aim of prophylaxis against recurrence and chemotherapy against tumor. But since sensitivity of tumor cells to each anti-cancer drug differs individually, the anti-cancer drug to be used should also be decided individually. We selected a new sensitivity test, ATP-sensitivity-assay, which measures intracellular adenosine triphosphate (ATP) volume by Luciferin-Luciferase reaction, for the decision of the anti-cancer drug. In this paper, we evaluated the direct anti-tumor activity of the drugs that were decided by ATP-sensitivity-assay of intravesical chemotherapy. Six drugs, that are Doxorubicin (ADM), Mitomycin C (MMC), Pirarubicin (THP-ADM), Cytarabine (Ara-C), Bleomycin (BLM) and Cisplatin (CDDP) were tested in this research and size of tumors of six patients reduced to 34-93% after 6 times' installation. A woman got cystitis induced by ADM after 3 times' instillation but instillation was completed. ATP-sensitivity-assay is useful for deciding the anti-cancer drugs for intravesical chemotherapy and prophylaxis for superficial bladder cancer.     

Does H2-receptor antagonist alter the renal function of cyclosporine-treated kidney grafts?

Histamine-type 2 antagonists (H₂-blockers) as represented by cimentidine have been shown to adversely affect renal allograft function, particularly when coadministered with cyclosporine, currently a major immunosuppressant. To determine whether or not a newer and more powerful H₂-blocker, famotidine, would produce similar adverse effects, we assessed seven cyclosporine-treated renal allograft recipients with regard to changes in their renal function on or off the H₂-blocker over a one-week period. Neither the administration nor withdrawal of famotidine (20–40 mg/day) resulted in any significant changes in serum creatine, BUN, urine output or cyclosporine trough levels, suggesting that famotidine can be safely administered as an H₂-blocker to cyclosporine-treated renal allograft recipients.     

Formation of Neurons in the Sexually Dimorphic Anteroventral Periventricular Nucleus of the Preoptic Area of the Rat: Effects of Prenatal Treatment with Testosterone Propionate

An examination was made of neurogenesis in the anteroventral periventricular nucleus (AVPv) of the preoptic area of the rat using bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU), a thymidine analog, and a BrdU-specific antibody. Cells in the AVPv of adult rats were labeled with the antibody when BrdU was injected into pregnant rats once during day 13 to 18 of gestation, but not during day 10 to 12 nor 19 to 20 of gestation nor on postnatal day 1, indicating that neurogenesis of the AVPv occurs during a limited period from day 13 to 18 of gestation. Next, to examine the effects of androgen on neurogenesis, BrdU was injected once on day 15 into pregnant rats that also received injections of testosterone propionate (TP). The number of BrdU-labeled cells in the AVPv was similar in control female and male fetuses and female fetuses from pregnant rats that received daily injections of TP during days 14 to 16, when fetuses were examined on day 17 of gestation. These results suggest that the neurogenesis that was recognized by labeling with BrdU was not affected by the treatment with TP. On day 21 of gestation, BrdU-labeled cells in the AVPv of control male fetuses and female fetuses that received TP during days 14 to 18 were fewer in number than those in female fetuses of the control group, whereas treatments with TP during days 14 to 16 and during days 17 to 18 did not cause any significant decrease in number of BrdU-labeled cells. These findings support the hypothesis that elimination of a population of cells, for example, by cell death as described previously, is enhanced in male fetuses and in female fetuses treated with TP repetitively.     

Malignant fibrous histiocytoma of the temporal bone with endocranial extension.

Cranial malignant fibrous histiocytomas are rare tumors. Most are hypervascular, destructive masses that are similar to other malignant lesions and to malignant fibrous histiocytomas found elsewhere in the body. We describe a myxoid malignant fibrous histiocytoma of the temporal bone, possibly of dural origin, with features that more closely resembled a meningioma at CT, MR imaging, and angiography.     

“Chain-link” combined tissue transfer for the reconstruction of the mandible

We describe a procedure for “chain-link” combined tissue transfer connecting the vascular pedicle of a deep circumflex iliac flap with that of a forearm flap after wide resection of the mandible. Combination of these flaps facilitated the reconstruction of the defect in both intra- and extraoral soft tissue and the mandibular bone. This method is useful when cervical recipient blood vessels are limited due to the wide resection of the primary tumor and radical neck dissection.     

Induction of apoptotic cell death in rat thymus and spleen after a bolus injection of methamphetamine

We examined whether methamphetamine (MAP) induced apoptotic cell death in vivo. Male Wistar rats were injected intraperitoneally with 25 mg MAP/Kg body weight and were sacrificed at 4, 8 and 24 h. As early as 4 h after a single dose of MAP, DNA ladder bands representing DNA fragmentation into multiples of the internucleosomal DNA length of about 180 by were observed by gel electrophoresis in thymic and splenic DNA. DNA from control rats injected with 1 ml physiological saline/Kg body weight showed no ladder band patterns. The proportion of fragmented DNA from the thymus increased in a time-dependent manner up to 8 h and faint ladder band patterns were observed at 24 h, indicating that cell death via apoptosis occurred at an early stage and then apoptotic bodies were scavenged. DNA fragmentation in the thymus and spleen induced with MAP was also confirmed by the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTPbiotin nick end labeling (TUNEL) method in situ. In control thymus samples, stained cells were numerous in the cortex but sparse in the medulla. At the boundary area between the cortex and medulla, stained cells were seen as a layer. In the MAP-treated rats, stained cells were increased and dispersed equally in the cortex and medulla. In control spleen samples, stained cells were numerous in all areas excluding the germinal centers. Cells at the germinal centers were stained intensively in MAP-treated rat spleen. Light microscopical analyses allowed us to identify lymphocytes during the course of apoptotic cell death. Electron microscopic studies showed morphological landmarks for the process of cellular apoptosis in both organs e.g. lymphocytes with chromatin condensed into crescents at the periphery of the nuclei and apoptotic bodies. These results indicate that MAP induced cell death of the thymic and splenic lymphocytes via apoptosis.     

S100 protein-immunoreactive primary sensory neurons in the trigeminal and dorsal root ganglia of the rat

The cell body size (cross-sectional area) of S100-immunoreactive (-ir) primary neurons was measured in the trigeminal (TG) and lumbar dorsal root ganglia (DRG). About a half of neurons exhibited S100-immunoreactivity (-ir) in the DRG (44.0%) and TG (59.0%). DRG neurons with cell bodies >1200 μm² mostly exhibited S100-ir (96.5%), whereas S100-ir DRG neurons <600 μm² were rare (8.0%). 36.6% of DRG neurons in the cell size range 600–1200 μm² showed the ir. TG neurons >800 μm² mostly exhibited S100-ir (93.1%), whereas those <400 μm² were devoid of it (positive cells 10.5%). 58.3% of TG cells in the range 400–800 μm² contained S100-ir. Double-immunofluorescence method revealed the co-expression of S100 and other calcium-binding proteins. Parvalbumin-ir neurons mostly exhibited S100-ir in the DRG (97.4%) and TG (97.0%). The co-expression of S100 and calbindin D-28k was very rare in the DRG, because the DRG contained few calbindin D-28k-ir neurons. Unlike in the DRG, numerous neurons co-expressed S100- and calbindin D-28k-ir in the TG. Most calbindin D-28k-ir TG neurons were also immunoreactive for S100 (90.7%). Sub-populations of calretinin (CR)-ir neurons co-expressed S100-ir in both the DRG (68%) and TG (50.0%). Virtually all CR-ir neurons >1400 μm² co-expressed S100-ir in the DRG (100%) and TG (95.9%). CR-ir neurons <800 μm² were rarely exhibited S100-ir (DRG 18.0%, TG 21.9%). 71.3 and 60.5% of CR-ir neurons in the range 800–1400 μm² co-expressed S100-ir in the DRG and TG, respectively. The present study indicates that S100 is closely correlated to the primary neuronal cell size in the DRG and TG.