Stereotyped behaviors and compulsive complaints of pain improved by fluvoxamine in two cases of frontotemporal dementia]

There have been no systematic efforts to manage and treat patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), but Perry described pharmacologic interventions for some behavioral syndromes in 2001. In Perry's report, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) were recommended as first choice drugs because they were well tolerated and might have an effect on some symptoms such as compulsive symptoms and eating abnormalities. Some reports were presented concerning Japanese FTD patients which showed the effect of SSRI on stereotyped behaviors and eating abnormalities by Nishikawa, et al. (2001), Ikeda, et al. (2004), and others. We describe two FTD patients with compulsive complaints of pain, one mainly on abdomen and the other on lumbar region. Fluvoxamine markedly improved their complaints of pain as well as stereotyped symptoms. Fluvoxamine might be effective for behavioral disturbances due to improvement of serotoninergic dysfunction in frontal medial and cingulated cortices, as previously described. Moreover, it has been reported that an altered response to pain stimuli, either via a loss of awareness of pain or exaggerated reaction to pain, is a specific feature of FTD, but there have been only a few reports on this feature. Fluvoxamine might be effective for compulsive complaints of pain due to improvements of compulsive symptoms and exaggerated reactions to pain in FTD, or due to the analgesic effect of SSRI. SSRI may improve compulsive complaints of pain in FTD patients.     

Suppression of Gl Arrest and Enhancement of G2 Arrest by Inhibitors of Poly(ADP-ribose) Polymerase: Possible Involvement of Poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation in Cell Cycle Arrest Following γ-Irradiation

Low-dose γ-irradiation of mouse embryonic fibroblast C3D2F1 3T3-a cells caused Gl arrest along with G2 arrest and inhibition of replicative DNA synthesis. When the cells were cultured in the presence of inhibitors of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase [EC 2.4.2.30], such as 3-aminobenzamide, benzamide and luminol, Gl arrest of C3D2F1 3T3-a cells was suppressed and enhancement of G2 arrest was observed. In contrast, 3-aminobenzoic acid, a non-inhibitory analog of 3-aminobenzamide, did not suppress Gl arrest following γ-irradiation. These results suggest that the poly(ADP-ribosyDation reaction is critical for the pathway of Gl arrest and is also involved in the pathway of G2 arrest.     

TNF-alpha augments the expression of RhoA in the rat bronchus.

While nonspecific airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) is a central feature of allergic bronchial asthma, the mechanism underlying the development of AHR is not clearly understood. We have previously demonstrated in vitro hyperresponsiveness of bronchial smooth muscle to acetylcholine (ACh) in rats that were actively sensitized and repeatedly challenged with aerosolized antigen. It has also been demonstrated that the ACh-induced, RhoA-mediated Ca(2+) sensitization is markedly augmented concomitantly with an increased expression and activation of RhoA protein in the bronchial smooth muscle of the antigen-treated rats. In the present study, we have investigated whether TNF-alpha, a proinflammatory cytokine which is involved in bronchial asthma, causes upregulation of RhoA mRNA and protein in the rat bronchus. Treatment of rat bronchial smooth muscle preparations with TNF-alpha (300 ng/ml for 24 hr) significantly shifted the concentration-response curve to ACh upwards, but did not alter the response to high K(+), when compared to that of control tissues. Levels of RhoA mRNA and protein in the TNF-alpha-treated bronchus were significantly greater than those in the control group. In conclusion, it is suggested that the augmentation of the ACh-induced contractile response evoked by TNF-alpha might be mediated by an upregulation of RhoA in rat bronchial smooth muscle.     

NPHS1两种新突变蛋白分子的细胞内分布

目的：研究NPHS1两种新突变编码蛋白在细胞内的分布与先天性肾病综合征发病机制的关系。方法：构建野生型和两种突变型NPHS1克隆，并转染至COS7细胞内，应用免疫荧光双标记的方法，分别进行细胞内及细胞表面的荧光标记，通过共聚焦显微镜对裂隙膜分子Nephrin在细胞内的分布进行研究。结果：野生型Nephrin表现为细胞内和细胞膜染色模式；V822M和C265R则主要为细胞内内质网染色模式，细胞膜着色几乎缺失。结论：突变的Nephrin蛋白由于错误折叠，不能由内质网被输送至细胞表面，这可能是先天性肾病综合征发病的机制之一。     

Solitary right ventricle metastasis by renal cell carcinoma.

A 57-year-old man with a history of renal cell carcinoma presented with presyncope. He underwent nephrectomy years earlier followed by HLA-matched allogeneic peripheral-blood stem-cell transplantation. Echocardiographic investigation revealed a solitary right ventricle mass without contiguous vena caval or right atrial involvement. The mass was pathologically confirmed to be metastatic carcinoma in the right ventricular cavity. This case highlights the need to consider an underlying neoplastic syndrome in patients presenting isolated right ventricle mass by echocardiography.     

The infeasibility of using ten-ring irradiated grafts for tracheal allotransplantation even with omentopexy

In our previous study, we demonstrated that high-dose ⁶⁰Co irradiation was able to prevent rejection of canine tracheal allografts. To determine the maximum possible length of these grafts, in the present study we attempted to transplant five-ring and ten-ring tracheal allografts in two groups of five dogs each. Either five or ten rings were excised from donor tracheas and irradiated with 100,000 cGy of ⁶⁰Co. The irradiated tracheal grafts were transplanted to replace either five- or ten-ring sections of the mediastinal tracheas removed from the recipient dogs. The grafts were covered with omental pedicles and no immunosuppressants were used. Graft incorporation was achieved in four of the five dogs in the five-ring group, and three of these dogs survived for more than 700 days. However, four of the five animals in the ten-ring group died from tracheostenosis accompanied by ischemia within 3 weeks. These findings demonstrate the impossibility of performing ten-ring tracheal allotransplantation using irradiated grafts, even with omentopexy.     

The diagnosis and treatment of esophageal perforations resulting from nonmalignant causes

Esophageal perforations are extremely difficult to diagnose and treat. We report herein our results of a review of 26 patients with esophageal perforation which were spontaneous in 11, iatrogenic in 11, and caused by a foreign body in 4. Surgical treatment was performed in 7 of the patients with spontaneous rupture, but the remaining 19 patients were treated conservatively. The abnormality was found by plain radiography (X-ray) in 22 (85%) of the 26 patients, and by computed tomography (CT) in all 13 patients who underwent this procedure. The detection rates by esophagography and esophagoscopy were 100%, or all of 25 patients examined, and 60%, or 9 of 15 patients examined, respectively. Of 12 patients with underlying diseases, 4 (33%) died after the perforation, whereas only 1 (7%) of 14 patients without any underlying disease died. Postoperative empyema developed in all of 3 patients treated by intraoperative unfixed intrathoracic drainage (UID), but in none of the 4 treated by fixed intrathoracic drainage (FID). Conservative treatment achieved satisfactory results for spontaneous esophageal ruptures confined to the mediastinum, and for iatrogenic perforations and esophageal perforations caused by foreign bodies, provided there was no serious underlying disease such as advanced cirrhosis. Moreover, intraoperative FID proved useful in helping to prevent postoperative empyema.     

Idiopathic calcinosis cutis in fingertip treated with occlusive dressing using aluminum foil: a case report.

Calcium deposition in the skin, known as calcinosis cutis, is an uncommon disorder caused by an abnormal deposit of calcium phosphate in the skin. We report a case of idiopathic calcinosis cutis in fingertip treated with surgical excision followed by the occlusive dressing using aluminum foil, and obtained significant pain relief and round-shaped fingertip which looked normal.