The Relationship Between Air Pollution and Lung Cancer in Nonsmokers in Taiwan

Introduction

For never-smokers (smoked <100 lifetime cigarettes), lung cancer (LC) has emerged as an important issue. We aimed to investigate the effects of prevalence changes in tobacco smoking and particulate matter (PM) 2.5 (PM_2.5) levels on LC in Taiwan, in relation to contrasting PM_2.5 levels, between Northern Taiwan (NT) and Southern Taiwan (ST).

Skin problems after a tsunami

BACKGROUND: On December 26, 2004, the biggest earthquake for 40 years, measuring 9.0 on the Richter scale, triggered a tsunami that pounded the coastal areas of South Asia and East Africa. The effects of the tsunami on skin conditions have not been evaluated. OBJECTIVE: To determine the influence of the tsunami on skin conditions by evaluating the skin problems of patients presenting at hospitals after the tsunami. METHODS: Between 5 and 25 January 2005, two dermatologists evaluated patients who complained of skin problems at an outpatient clinic and emergency room of a general hospital in Banda Aceh, Aceh Province, Indonesia. RESULTS: The total number of patients that presented during the study period was 235 (131 males and 104 females), and they had a total of 265 skin problems. In terms of age distribution, most subjects were in their fourth decade (23.0%), followed by the third (22.6%) and fifth decade (16.6%). The most prevalent skin problems were infections-infestations (32.5%), followed by eczemas (29.8%) and traumatic skin disorders (29.4%). In males, traumatic skin disorders were most common. The great majority of infection-infestation cases involved superficial fungal infections. Contact dermatitis accounted for three-quarters of eczema cases, and mainly involved the arms (40.0%) and legs (27.1%). The majority of traumatic skin disorders were lacerations, punctures and penetrations, and the feet (44.7%) and hands (18.8%) were most frequently affected. CONCLUSIONS: Unhygienic conditions, exposure to a hazardous environment and contact with various objects during and after the tsunami probably increased the prevalence of infections-infestations, traumatic skin disorders and contact dermatitis. To prevent these problems and associated secondary bacterial infections, health-related education and early medical management are required.     

Treatment of mandibular prognathism.

Mandibular prognathism (MP) or skeletal Class III malocclusion with a prognathic mandible is one of the most severe maxillofacial deformities. Facial growth modification can be an effective method of resolving skeletal Class III jaw discrepancies in growing children with dentofacial orthopedic appliances including the chincup, face mask, maxillary protraction combined with chincup traction and the Fr?nkel functional regulator III appliance. Orthognathic surgery in conjunction with orthodontic treatment is required for the correction of adult MP. The two most commonly applied surgical procedures to correct MP are sagittal split ramus osteotomy (SSRO) and intraoral vertical ramus osteotomy. Both procedures are suitable for patients in whom a desirable occlusal relationship can be obtained with a setback of the mandible, and each has its own advantages and disadvantages. In bilateral SSRO, the intentional ostectomy of the posterior part of the distal segment can offer long-term positioned stability. This may be attributable to reduction of tension in the pterygomasseteric sling that applies force in the posterior mandible. While various environmental factors have been found to contribute to the development of MP, heredity plays a substantial role. The relative contributions of genetic and environmental components in the etiology of MP are unclear. The recent identification of the genetic susceptibilities to MP constitutes the first step toward understanding the molecular pathogenesis of MP. Further studies in molecular biology are needed to identify the gene-environment interactions associated with the phenotypic diversity of MP and the heterogenic developmental mechanisms thought to be responsible for them.     

The in vitro pharmacological profile of KR31080, a nonpeptide AT1 receptor antagonist

Summary— KR31080 (2-butyl-5-methyl-6-(1-oxopyridin-2-yl)-3-[[2'-(1H-tetrazol-5-yl) biphenyl-4-yl]methyl]-3H-imidazo[4,5-b] pyridine) is a potent inhibitor of angiotensin type 1 (AT₁) receptors in rabbit aorta and human recombinant AT₁ receptors. In the isolated rabbit thoracic aorta, KR31080 caused a nonparallel shift to the right of the concentration-response curves to angiotensin II (All) with decreased maximal response (pD'₂ = 10.1 ± 0.1), but had no effect on the contractile response induced by norepinephrine. KR31080 inhibited specific [¹²⁵I]AII binding to rabbit aortic membranes (AT, receptors) and [¹²⁵I][Sar¹, Ile⁸]AII binding to human recombinant AT₁ receptors in a concentration-dependent manner with IC₅₀ values of 0.84 ± 0.08 nM and 1.92 ± 0.15 nM, respectively, but did not inhibit specific [¹²⁵I)AII binding to bovine cerebellum membranes (ÀT₂ receptors). In the Scatchard analysis, KR31080 interacted with rabbit aortic AT₁ receptors in a competitive manner, similar to losartan. These results demonstrate that KR31080 is a potent and AT₁ selective angiotensin receptor antagonist which exerts a competitive antagonism in the [¹²⁵I]AII binding assay and insurmountable AT₁ receptor antagonism in the functional study.