A NEWLY DEVELOPED ELECTRONIC 360° RADIAL SCANNING ECHOENDOSCOPE

Background: Development of an electronic radial scanning echoendoscope has been anticipated, because radial scanning images readily demonstrate features of anatomy while electronic scanning provides information about blood flow. Here we present images obtained with a newly developed 360° radial scanning electronic echoendoscope and consider its utility. Methods: Using an electronic radial scanning echoendoscope, developed in 2003, the XGF‐UE240‐AL5, B‐mode images were obtained at 5, 6, 7.5, and 10 MHz, while tissue harmonic images at 3.75 and 5 MHz; color Doppler and power Doppler functions also were used. Images obtained by the new echoendoscope were compared with those obtained by a conventional echoendoscope. We performed contrast‐enhanced endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) with a galactose‐based contrast agent in patients with pancreatobiliary diseases. Results: Images at all frequencies and with the Doppler mode were excellent, being more clear than images obtained with a mechanical radial echoendoscope. Gastric wall structure, cystic areas, and tumor contours were visualized more clearly at 3.5 and 5 MHz by tissue harmonic imaging than by mechanical radial scanning echoendoscope, or by ordinary imaging with the electronic radial scanning echoendoscope. Contrast‐enhanced EUS should be helpful in hemodynamic analysis of gastrointestinal tumors. Conclusions: The electronic radial echoendoscope provides improved images and is highly useful for detailed diagnosis of digestive diseases.     

A case report of complete heart block by metastatic cardiac involvement from lung cancer

A 77-year-old man who developed Adams-Stokes syndrome due to metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the His-bundle was reported. There was a small primary lesion in the left upper lobe (S5) of the lung, and it widely invaded to the chest wall and metastasized to the spleen and the ventricular septum of the heart. The clinical diagnosis of the metastatic cardiac involvement is often elusive. But some literatures suggested that the careful observation of serial ECGs and UCGs were very useful not only to diagnose the metastasis but to indicate the invasive style to the heart.     

Japanese reconstructive microsurgery today

The results of a survey of 310 members of the Japanese Society of Reconstructive Microsurgery on the present status of reconstructive microsurgery in Japan is reported.     

Tumorigenic action of streptozotocin on the pancreas and kidney in male Wistar rats.

Pancreatic islet cell tumors were induced in 38 of 44 male Wistar rats (86%), which survived 9 to 14 months following the various treatment schedules. A single i.v. injection of streptozotocin alone, 30, 40, 50, or 65 mg/kg of body weight produced adenomas of pancreatic islet cells in 8 of 9 (89%), 6 of 7 (86%), 2 of 4 (50%), and 1 of 2 rats (50%), respectively. The neoplasms were seen in all of the 8 rats given a single i.p. injection of picolinamide, 250 mg/kg of body weight, 15 min before a single i.v. injection of streptozotocin, 65 mg/kg of body weight. Among the 14 rats given a single i.p. injection of nicotinamide, 500 mg/kg of body weight, 15 min before a single i.v. injection of streptozotocin, 65 mg/kg of body weight, 13 rats (95%) developed pancreatic islet cell tumors. Renal tumors were seen in only 3 rats treated with streptozotocin and nicotinamide. None of rats used in this study developed hepatic tumors. This study demonstrates that steptozotocin, even in a dose of 30 mg/kg of body weight, has an exceedingly marked tumorigenic action on the rat pancreas, while it has little effect on the kidney and no effect on the liver.     

Neoplastic Alteration of a Membrane-associated Sialidase of Rat Liver

Rat liver participate fraction contains two types of membrane-associated and gangliosides-hydrolyzing sialidase, which have been shown to be identical to two membrane-associated sialidases of rat brain (I and II) chromatographically, immunologically and in substrate specificity. Chromatography on AH-Sepharose 4B of the membrane sialidases of rat primary hepatoma induced by 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene (MeDAB) further revealed that hepatocarcinogenesis induces a marked decrease in sialidase II but no decrease in sialidase I. Using antisera against sialidases I and II of rat brain, immunoprecipitation studies of the solubilized particulate fractions of rat liver and MeDAB-hepatoma gave results similar to those obtained chromatographically. Using the same immunological technique, sialidase II but not sialidase I was found to be decreased in AH109 A hepatoma and in regenerating and fetal liver.     

Isolation of virus-producing transformants from human gastric cancer cell line, HGC-27, infected with human T-cell leukemia virus type I

A human anaplastic gastric cancer cell line, HGC-27, showed marked degeneration with formation of multinucleated syncytia and cell detachment of nearly all cells which began 24 hr after and reached a maximum 2 to 3 days after co-cultivation with X-irradiated MT-2 cells, HTLV-I producing human cord leukocytes. Less severe degeneration without formation of syncytia was also observed in the cultures inoculated with cell-free MT-2 culture media. Morphologically altered cells began to proliferate and formed piled up colonies in some of the cultures co-cultivated with X-irradiated MT-2 cells after a long culture period. The two clones designated HGC/MT2 (Cl-1) and HGC/MT2 (Cl-2) were separated by cell cloning. HGC/MT2 (Cl-1) and HGC/MT2 (Cl-2) cells were positive for HTLV-I gag proteins (p19 and p24) and pX gene products, p40x, as demonstrated by immunohistochemistry and immunoblotting analysis, contained HTLV-I provirus DNA, and consistently produced type C virus particles.     

Central nervous system effect of calcitonin: Stimulation of prolactin release in rats

Effect of [Asu^1,7]eel calcitonin (CT) on prolactin (PRL) release was examined in male rats under urethane anesthesia. Intravenous injection of 4–20 μg [Asu^1,7]eel CT did not modify plasma PRL levels. Injections of 0.5–2.5 μg [Asu^1,7]eel CT into the lateral ventricle produce a significant and dose-related increase of plasma PRL within 10 min of injection. When intraventricularly injected in an equimolar dose (0.74 nmol/10 μl), eel CT^11–32, eel CT^15–32, [Asu^1,7]eel CT^1–16 and [Asu^1,7]eel CT^1–9 showed 44.8, 25.7, 19.9 and 10.1% the potencies of [Asu^1,7]eel CT, respectively, in stimulating activity of PRL release. The rise of plasma PRL after [Asu^1,7]eel CT injection were significantly less or abolished not only in hypothalamic-lesioned rats but also in rats with complete deafferentation. Pretreatment with α-methyl-p-tyrosine (250 mg/kg, 12 h before) but not with p-chlorophenylalanine (300 mg/kg, 72 and 24 h before) resulted in a suppression of [Asu^1,7]eel CT-induced PRL release.These results suggest the following: first, PRL release is stimulated by centrally injected [Asu^1,7]eel CT, the action site of which may exist in the extrahypothalamic area; second, brain catecholamines may be involved in the mechanism of [Asu^1,7]eel CT-evoked PRL release; third, the C-terminal portion of the peptide may play an important role in stimulating PRL release.