Association between sleep disturbance and new-onset subjective knee pain in Great East Japan Earthquake survivors: A prospective cohort study in the Miyagi prefecture

Background

The Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE) and Tsunami devastated the northeastern coast of Japan on March 11, 2011. This study aimed to determine whether sociopsychological factors, such as sleep disturbance and psychological distress, influenced new-onset subjective knee pain in survivors during the post-disaster phase of the GEJE.

Expression of podoplanin in stromal fibroblasts plays a pivotal role in the prognosis of patients with pancreatic cancer

Purpose

To investigate the role of podoplanin (PDPN) expression in invasive ductal carcinoma of the pancreas (IDCP) in humans.

Methods

Tumor samples were obtained from 95 patients with IDCP. Immunohistochemical staining was done to evaluate the expression of PDPN in cancer tissues.

Results

PDPN was detected predominantly in stromal fibroblasts, stained with α-smooth muscle actin. The cutoff value of PDPN-positive areas was calculated according to a histogram. There was no significant difference in clinicopathologic factors between patients with high vs. those with low PDPN expression. The high PDPN group showed significantly poorer disease-free and disease-specific survival rates than the low PDPN group. Among patients from the high PDPN group, those with lymph node metastases and those with a tumor larger than 20 cm in diameter had significantly poorer prognoses than similar patients from the low PDPN group. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards analysis indicated that a high expression of PDPN was an independent risk factor for disease-specific survival.

Conclusions

PDPN expression in cancer-related fibrotic tissues is associated with a poor prognosis, especially in patients with large tumors or lymph node metastases.

     

New findings on the structure-phototoxicity relationship and photostability of fluoroquinolones with various substituents at position 1

The present study examined the phototoxicities of a series of 7-(3-aminopyrrolidinyl) quinolones containing various substituents at position 1 (in which the substituent at R8 is a hydrogen or a halogen) by use of a mouse model. For the 7-(3-aminopyrrolidinyl) quinolones with a halogen atom at position 8, well-known substituent groups such as a cyclopropyl, an ethyl, or a difluorophenyl at position 1 were found to be responsible for severe phototoxicity. However, when an aminodifluorophenyl or an isoxazolyl group was placed at position 1, even 8-halogeno quinolones were found to be mildly phototoxic. This is the first report of 8-halogeno quinolones that are not severely phototoxic. Two structurally similar 8-chloro quinolones (the 1-aminodifluorophenyl 8-chloro quinolone and the 1-difluorophenyl 8-chloro quinolone) were investigated further. The former was mildly phototoxic; the latter was severely phototoxic. We demonstrate that these two 8-chloro quinolones have practically the same areas under the concentration-time curves from 0 to 4 h in auricular tissue, suggesting that the mild phototoxicity is not due to pharmacokinetic instability. The rates of UV photodegradation of these compounds were also measured. We found that these two quinolones photodegrade at similar rates, suggesting that the mild phototoxicity is not attained through increased photostability. In conclusion, the phototoxic potentials of fluoroquinolones are influenced not only by the substituent at position 8 but also by that at position 1 (a new finding from this study). We also discovered a mildly phototoxic 8-chloro quinolone which did not have increased photostability.     

The efferent blood flow of early hepatocellular carcinoma and borderline lesions: Demonstration by color Doppler imaging

We performed waveform analysis of the efferent signal detected within early hepatocellular carcinomas and borderline lesions, in which portal flow was demonstrated. Continuity of this flow with the surrounding vessels was also analyzed. Nine nodules in 7 patients with early hepatocellular carcinomas and borderline lesions were included in this study. Tumor diameter ranged from 1.2 to 3.5 cm; average, 2.1 cm. Waveform of the efferent flow signal from within these nodules was continuous in 5 nodules and biphasic venous in 4 nodules. Outside the nodules, the waveform of the efferent flow signal was that of a biphasic venous wave. All efferent signals were confirmed to continue in the hepatic vein. These findings thus suggest that the draining vessel in early hepatocellular carcinomas and their borderline lesions is the hepatic vein.     

Induction of beta-lactamase by various beta-lactam antibiotics in Enterobacter cloacae

The induction of beta-lactamase in Enterobacter cloacae GN5797 was studied by using 23 beta-lactam antiobiotics, including newly introduced drugs, as inducers. the beta-lactam antibiotics can be classified into three groups on the basis of their inducer activity. Among the tested cephalosporins, cephamycin derivatives such as cefoxitin, cefmetazole, and YM09330 had high inducer activity even at low drug concentrations. On the other hand, cefoperazone, cefsulodin, piperacillin, and apalcillin showed low inducer activity when compared with the other cephalosporins.     

Relationship between liver tissue stiffness and histopathological findings analyzed by shear wave elastography and compression testing in rats with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis

Purpose

The aim of the present study was to investigate two methods of determining liver stiffness in rats with various degrees of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis induced by a methionine- and choline-deficient (MCD) diet by comparing each finding with reference to histopathological liver findings.

Methods

Twenty male Wister rats were fed an MCD diet for up to 32 weeks, and four were fed a normal diet. Ultrasound-based shear wave elastography (SWE) and mechanical compression testing using an Instron Universal Testing machine were performed on each rat at designated time points. After each examination, liver histopathology was analyzed to evaluate the degrees of steatosis, inflammation, and fibrosis based on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) activity score, and each finding was compared with reference to liver histopathologic findings.

Results

Median liver stiffness values measured using SWE showed a stepwise increase with increasing histological inflammation score (P = 0.002), hepatic fibrosis stage (P = 0.029), ballooning score (P = 0.012), and steatosis grade (P = 0.030). Median liver stiffness measured using an Instron machine showed a stepwise increase only with increasing histological fibrosis stage (P = 0.033).

Conclusions

Degree of liver stiffness measured by SWE and the Instron machine differed. SWE reflected mainly inflammation, whereas Instron machine-derived values primarily reflected fibrosis. This is the main source of discrepancies between measurements made with these two modalities.

     

Quinolone resistance in clinical isolates of Serratia marcescens.

The uptakes of norfloxacin by quinolone-resistant and -susceptible strains of Serratia marcescens were almost the same and 50% inhibitory concentrations for DNA gyrase and the MICs of quinolones were correlated, suggesting that DNA gyrase alterations are the basis of quinolone resistance.     

Purification and properties of a beta-lactamase produced by Branhamella catarrhalis.

A beta-lactamase from Branhamella catarrhalis was purified by column chromatography. The purified enzyme hydrolyzed penicillins, such as ampicillin, carbenicillin, and piperacillin, more rapidly than cephalosporins. Furthermore, the enzyme hydrolyzed cefotaxime and cefmenoxime. The molecular weight of the enzyme was 33,000. The pI was 5.4.     

A rare male patient with classic Rett syndrome caused by MeCP2_e1 mutation

Rett syndrome (RTT) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder typically affecting females. It is mainly caused by loss‐of‐function mutations that affect the coding sequence of exon 3 or 4 of methyl‐CpG‐binding protein 2 (MECP2). Severe neonatal encephalopathy resulting in death before the age of 2 years is the most common phenotype observed in males affected by a pathogenic MECP2 variant. Mutations in MECP2 exon 1 affecting the MeCP2_e1 isoform are relatively rare causes of RTT in females, and only one case of a male patient with MECP2‐related severe neonatal encephalopathy caused by a mutation in MECP2 exon 1 has been reported. This is the first reported case of a male with classic RTT caused by a 5‐bp duplication in the open‐reading frame of MECP2 exon 1 (NM_001110792.1:c.23_27dup) that introduced a premature stop codon [p.(Ser10Argfs*36)] in the MeCP2_e1 isoform, which has been reported in one female patient with classic RTT. Therefore, both males and females displaying at least some type of MeCP2_e1 mutation may exhibit the classic RTT phenotype.

     

Simple method to make a supersaturated oxygen fluid

Journal of Artificial Organs - Intravenous oxygenation has demonstrated significant increase in partial pressure of oxygen (PO2) in animal models. A highly dissolved oxygen solution might be able...