Effect on the production of soluble endoglin from human choriocarcinoma cells by preeclampsia sera

Citation Aoki Y, Yamamoto T, Fumihisa C, Nakamura A, Asanuma A, Suzuki M. Effect on the production of soluble endoglin from human choriocarcinoma cells by preeclampsia sera. Am J Reprod Immunol 2012; 67: 413–420 Problem The soluble endoglin (sEng) is an antiangiogenic protein that may inhibit TGF‐β1 signaling and endothelial nitric oxide synthase activation in endothelial cells. The levels of sEng increased in sera obtained from preeclampsia. The factors that increase the sEng in preeclampsia have not been known well. To investigate the factors that may increase sEng in preeclampsia, we examined the effect of preeclampsia sera on the production of sEng from human choriocarcinoma (JEG‐3) cells. Methods Serum samples were taken from women with normal pregnancy and from those with preeclampsia. JEG‐3 cells were cultured with serum for 24 hrs, and the sEng levels in supernatants and expression of sEng and Hemo oxygenase‐1 (HO‐1) mRNA in cells were measured. Results The addition of preeclampsia sera into JEG‐3 cells led to increased release of sEng and expression of Eng mRNA. Preeclampsia sera inhibited the expression of HO‐1 mRNA in JEG‐3 cells. Conclusion The results suggest that preeclampsia sera may increase the protein production of sEng and mRNA expression of Eng from JEG‐3 cells like trophoblast without hypoxia and that in addition to hypoxia, preeclampsia sera may play a role of high level of serum sEng in preeclampsia patients. Decreased HO‐1 activity may relate to increased sEng release.     

A case of degloving injury of the colon

The left side of a truck driven by a 71-year-old man was hit by another car at an intersection, and his abdomen was compressed by the steering wheel. On arrival, he complained of severe lower abdominal pain; and physical examination demonstrated involuntary rigidity and rebound tenderness. Enhanced truncal computed tomography exhibited that the descending colon was shifted ventral and medial because of a low-density mass with contrast extravasation. An emergency laparotomy disclosed injuries of the descending colon, which could be mobile because of degloving of the colon, left mesenterium, spleen, and tail of pancreas. During resection of these injured organs, difficulty in controlling the bleeding from the degloving injury site resulted in the requirement of a “second look” operation. The postoperative course was eventful; however, the patient's physiologic condition stabilized, and he was discharged on foot on the 108th hospital day.     

Uncontrolled home blood pressure in the morning is associated with nephropathy in Japanese type 2 diabetes

The purposes of this study were to investigate the state of blood pressure control level and to investigate the relationship between blood pressure control level and nephropathy in Japanese type 2 diabetes. We measured clinic and home blood pressure in 923 type 2 diabetic patients. According to the criteria for hypertension in the Japanese Society of Hypertension Guidelines 2009, patients were classified into four groups by clinic systolic blood pressure (130 mmHg) and morning systolic blood pressure (125 mmHg), as follows: controlled hypertension (CH), white-coat hypertension (WCH), masked hypertension (MH), and sustained hypertension (SH). Of all patients, 13.9, 12.6, 13.3, and 60.2% were identified as having CH, WCH, MH, and SH, respectively. The average number of drugs prescribed was 1.8. We assessed the association between blood pressure control level and nephropathy in diabetic patients. The degree of urinary albumin excretion and the prevalence of nephropathy in diabetic patients were higher in MH and SH groups than those in the CH group. The majority of patients had poor blood pressure control, regardless of ongoing conventional antihypertensive therapy, and diabetic patients with MH and SH were associated with nephropathy. It is suggested that more aggressive antihypertensive treatment is recommended to prevent nephropathy in diabetic patients.