USEFUL ENDOSCOPIC ULTRASONOGRAPHY TO ASSESS THE EFFICACY OF NEOADJUVANT THERAPY FOR ADVANCED ESOPHAGEAL CARCINOMA: BASED ON THE RESPONSE EVALUATION CRITERIA IN SOLID TUMORS

Objective: The aim of the present study was to assess the usefulness of endoscopic ultrasonography (EUS) for evaluating the efficacy of neoadjuvant therapy for advanced esophageal carcinoma based on the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST). Patients and Methods: Sixty‐two patients with advanced esophageal carcinoma underwent surgical resection after neoadjuvant therapy. The maximal tumor thickness was measured by EUS before and after neoadjuvant therapy, and the percent reduction was compared with the pathological response. Based on the RECIST, PD‐SD (progressive disease‐stable disease) was defined as < 30% reduction of tumor thickness on EUS, PR (partial response) as ≥ 30% reduction of tumor thickness, and CR (complete response) as no detectable tumor (100%). Results: The percent reduction of the thickness of Grade 0–1, Grade 2 and Grade 3 tumor was 11.5 ± 21.0%, 48.2 ± 17.0% and 74.9 ± 21.1%, respectively. There were significant differences in the extent of reduction among the three groups. Based on the RECIST, 80% of Grade 0–1 cases, 91% of Grade 2 cases and 22% of Grade 3 cases were PD‐SD, PR, and CR according to EUS, respectively. EUS correctly identified 80% of non‐responders and 94% of responders. Conclusions: The percentage reduction of tumor thickness on EUS closely reflected the pathological evaluation. EUS evaluation based on the RECIST seems to be useful for monitoring neoadjuvant therapy in patients with esophageal carcinoma.     

Ultrasound-Guided Resuscitative Endovascular Balloon Occlusion of the Aorta in the Resuscitation Area

Background

In trauma resuscitation with resuscitative endovascular balloon occlusion of the aorta (REBOA), urgent and accurate placement of the catheter in the resuscitation area without fluoroscopy can shorten the time from admission to REBOA, allowing rapid, temporary control of bleeding.

Hemifacial spasm caused by intra-axial brainstem cavernous angioma with venous angiomas

Hemifacial spasms (HFS) are usually caused by vascular compression on the extra-axial facial nerve. In this case, we concluded that an intra-axial brainstem cavernous angioma with a venous angioma diagnosed by MRI must have been responsible for HFS, because no other possible causes were found during intraoperative observations.     

Small open reading frames associated with morphogenesis are hidden in plant genomes

It is likely that many small ORFs (sORFs; 30–100 amino acids) are missed when genomes are annotated. To overcome this limitation, we identified ∼8,000 sORFs with high coding potential in intergenic regions of the Arabidopsis thaliana genome. However, the question remains as to whether these coding sORFs play functional roles. Using a designed array, we generated an expression atlas for 16 organs and 17 environmental conditions among 7,901 identified coding sORFs. A total of 2,099 coding sORFs were highly expressed under at least one experimental condition, and 571 were significantly conserved in other land plants. A total of 473 coding sORFs were overexpressed; ∼10% (49/473) induced visible phenotypic effects, a proportion that is approximately seven times higher than that of randomly chosen known genes. These results indicate that many coding sORFs hidden in plant genomes are associated with morphogenesis. We believe that the expression atlas will contribute to further study of the roles of sORFs in plants.     

Effect of pentylenetetrazol treatment on cholecystokinin mRNA and peptide levels in rat hippocampus and cortex

After treatment with pentylenetetrazol (PTZ), cholecystokinin (CCK) mRNA and CCK-like immunoreactivity (CCK-LI) levels were determined in rat hippocampus and cortex at different time points. In the temporal cortex treatment with 60 mg/kg PTZ, i.p., induced increases of CCK mRNA and CCK-LI levels at 2 days after the injection. In the hippocampus, a similar increase of CCK mRNA level was observed on the second day. By contrast, in the frontal cortex, CCK-LI level was increased at 10 days after the treatment with PTZ. These data show that PTZ increases both CCK mRNA and CCK-LI levels in these rat brain regions at different time.