Effect of immersion disinfection of alginate impressions in sodium hypochlorite solution on the dimensional changes of stone models

This study investigated the effect of the immersion of alginate impressions in 0.5% sodium hypochlorite solution for 15 min on the dimensional changes of stone models designed to simulate a sectional form of a residual ridge. Five brands of alginate impression materials, which underwent various dimensional changes in water, were used. A stone model made with an impression that had not been immersed was prepared as a control. The immersion of two brands of alginate impressions that underwent small dimensional changes in water did not lead to serious deformation of the stone models, and the differences in the dimensional changes between the stone models produced with disinfected impressions and those of the control were less than 15 μm. In contrast, the immersions of three brands of alginate impressions that underwent comparatively large dimensional changes in water caused deformation of the stone models.     

Fundamental study of radiogallium-labeled aspartic acid peptides introducing octreotate derivatives

Annals of Nuclear Medicine - Somatostatin receptors are highly expressed in neuroendocrine tumors, and many radiolabeled somatostatin analogs for diagnosis and treatment have been developed. To...     

Introduction of the targeted alpha therapy (with Radium-223) into clinical practice in Japan: learnings and implementation

Annals of Nuclear Medicine - Radium-223 dichloride (Ra-223) is the first targeted alpha therapy approved for the treatment of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) with bone...     

Abdominal transplantation for unresectable tumors in children: the zooming out principle

Purpose

To present our experience in abdominal transplantations to manage unresectable abdominal neoplasms in children and to describe the role of extensive surgeries in such cases.

Methods

This is a retrospective study of 22 abdominal transplantations in 21 patients for abdominal tumors over 16 years. Transplantation techniques included liver transplant (LT), multivisceral transplant (MVTx), and intestinal autotransplant (IA). Follow-up intervals ranged from 0.3 to 168 months (median 20 months).

Results

LT alone was performed in 15 patients for primary malignant (11) and benign (4) liver tumors. Pathological classification included HB hepatoblastoma (6), HCC hepatocellular cancer (3), hepatic epithelioid hemangioendothelioma HEH (1), angiosarcoma (1), benign vascular tumors (3), and adenoma (1). IA was performed in four patients for lesions involving the root of the mesentery; tumors of the head of pancreas (3) and mesenteric hemangioma (1). MVTx was performed in 2 patients for malignancies; pancreaticoblastoma (1), recurrent hepatoblastoma (1), and in one patient as a rescue procedure after IA failure. Four of the eleven patients who underwent LT for malignant liver tumor had metastatic disease at presentation. Six of them died of recurrent neoplasm (3), transplant-related complications (2), and underlying disease (1). All LT patients who had benign tumors are alive with functioning grafts. All IA patients survived and are on an oral diet, with one patient requiring TPN supplementation. One of the three patients who underwent MVTx died of metastatic disease.

Conclusions

Allo/auto transplantation for abdominal tumors is a valuable modality when conventional treatments fail or are not feasible.

     

Simple method for preparing a concentration gradient of serum components by freezing and thawing.

We created a simple method for obtaining a series of successively more-concentrated samples from a serum without changing the ratio of its components. We froze a pooled serum and then allowed it to thaw undisturbed. The serum components formed a gradient of increasing concentration from the top of the sample to the bottom. We found that (a) in test results, each fraction of serum in the gradient showed almost the same relative concentrations of components (i.e., inorganic and organic compounds, proteins, metals, and hormones), irrespective of atomic or molecular mass; (b) the concentration gradient depended on the thawing temperature but not on the freezing temperature; (c) when we thawed the frozen sample with centrifugation, the slope of the concentration gradient increased with increasing centrifugal force; (d) when the thawed sample was fractionated into 10 fractions from the top to the bottom, the original serum concentration was always maintained between the sixth and seventh fractions from the top; and (e) the concentration gradient became steeper with repeated freezing and thawing. By using this method, one can easily prepare serum samples at gradients of concentration useful in the clinical laboratory, although the mechanism of gradient formation is still unclear.     

Changes in fetal plasma adenosine and xanthine concentrations during fetal asphyxia with maternal oxygen administration in ewes

In this study, we measured fetal plasma adenosine and xanthine concentrations during and after severe asphyxia, and investigated the key issues related to oxygen therapy. Asphyxia was induced by occluding the umbilical cord for 5 minutes in 6 fetal sheep with and without the administration of oxygen to the ewe. Plasma adenosine concentration increased significantly during cord occlusion in the all fetuses, and the differences between the values in the fetuses with and without maternal oxygen administration was not significant. By 30 minutes after cord release, plasma adenosine concentration in all fetuses had returned to levels similar to those at the start of the experiment. Plasma xanthine concentration also increased during cord occlusion in all fetuses. However, 30 minutes after cord release, plasma xanthine concentration had decreased significantly in fetuses without additional oxygen, while it did not change significantly in fetuses with maternal oxygen administration. Thus, we speculated that maternal oxygen administration before fetal asphyxia may not contribute to additional ATP stores in fetal organs and may produce oxygen free radicals following asphyxia.     

Castration-resistant prostate cancer without metastasis at presentation may achieve cancer-specific survival in patients who underwent prior radical prostatectomy

International Urology and Nephrology - Radical prostatectomy (RP) is relatively better oncological outcomes in patients with prostate cancer (PCa). However, the incidence of castration-resistant...