Giant cell tumor of the rib

We experienced a rare case of giant cell tumor (GCT) arising in the 5^th rib involving the 5^th vertebral body and transverse process. A 57-year-old man presented with a well-defined mass in the left thoracic cavity on chest x ray examination. Chest computed tomography showed a heterogeneous 7cm-diameter mass originating in the posterior segment of the left 5^th rib. The tumor had spread to the 5^th thoracic vertebra destroying the left half of the body and transverse process. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a heterogeneous-intensity mass involving the 4^th to 6^th ribs. A radical excision of the tumor followed by a 50 Gy radiotherapy was performed after embolization of the feeding arteries. The pathological diagnosis was a GCT. The patient remains well without evidence of recurrence for 6 years following surgery. The present case is only the 14^th case of GCT arising in the rib to have been reported in Japan.     

Combined aortic valve replacement and coronary artery bypass grafting with in situ arterial grafts for porcelain aorta.

Patients with porcelain aorta carry a high risk of cerebral as well as systemic embolism during cardiac surgery. Here we describe a case of severe aortic stenosis and coronary artery disease combined with the circumferentially calcified aorta. The patient was a 77-year-old man who successfully received four coronary artery bypass grafts with in situ arterial grafts without clamping the aorta and aortic valve replacement. Aortic valve replacement and two distal coronary artery anastomoses to the left circumflex artery and obtuse marginal branch were performed under cardiac arrest during hypothermic perfusion with endoaortic balloon occlusion, followed by partial endarterectomy and closure of the aorta buttressed with bovine pericardium under deep hypothermic circulatory arrest. While rewarming, the other two distal coronary anastomoses to the left anterior descending artery and diagonal branch were done on the beating heart in order to minimize cardiac arrest time. On-pump beating heart coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) can be useful especially for combined complex cardiac surgery.     

Direct effect of cadmium on citrate uptake by isolated rat renal brush border membrane vesicles

High incidence of multiple kidney stone formation has been observed among workers exposed to cadmium (Cd). Citrate is known to be a protective factor against renal stone formation. To study the direct effect of cadmium on citrate uptake by the renal brush border membrane, we exposed isolated rat renal brush border membrane vesicles (BBMV) to cadmium and determined their citrate uptake characteristics. BBMV were prepared by the divalent cation precipitation method. Citrate uptake was measured by the Millipore rapid membrane filtration technique. Preincubation of BBMV with 2 and 10 mM CdCl₂ for 1 min significantly inhibited citrate uptake compared with that of BBMV without Cd. Analysis of the time course of citrate uptake during 30-min preincubation of BBMV with 0.5 mM Cd also revealed significant reduction of the uptake compared with that of the control BBMV without preincubation. These findings indicate that preincubation of BBMV with cadmium results in time-dependent and concentration-dependent inhibition of citrate uptake.     

Selection of higher molecular weight genomic DNA for molecular diagnosis from formalin-fixed material.

The patterns of DNA degradation in frozen, methanol-fixed, and formalin-fixed tissues were investigated by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The chromatograms all yielded one major peak with or without several extra minor peaks representing molecular weights of preserved genomic DNA. The most characteristic differences were in the retention times of the major peaks, with the earliest major peak occurring in the formalin-fixed tissues, and followed by the methanol-fixed, and frozen tissue samples, in that order. This means that the molecular weight of the DNA from formalin-fixed tissue is much shortened than that recovered from methanol-fixed tissue and frozen tissue. The results also indicated that a small amount of higher molecular weight DNA is still preserved in formalin-fixed tissues. To improve the amplification efficiency of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis of formalin-fixed material, we isolated the higher molecular weight DNA from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue from four different organs and compared the amplification efficiencies with those of the crude DNA extract. We used eight sets of oligonucleotide primers producing 262 to 989 base pair (bp) fragments of beta-globin. The results showed that the PCR amplification analyses were more efficient with the isolated higher molecular weight DNA than with the crude DNA extract. Our study demonstrated that not all the DNA in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue samples is totally degraded but that a small amount of higher molecular weight DNA persists. The feasibility of molecular diagnosis using formalin-fixed material can be improved by isolating the preserved higher molecular weight DNA by HPLC.     

Molecular cloning and expression analysis of a macrophage-colony stimulating factor receptor-like gene from rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss

The M-CSF and its receptor (M-CSFR, CSF-1R or c-fms proto-oncogene) system were initially implicated as essential in mammals for normal monocyte development as well as for pregnancy. To allow a comparison with the M-CSF and M-CSFR system of an oviparous animal, we cloned a M-CSFR-like gene from rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). The gene was cloned from a cDNA library of head kidney. It contained an open reading frame encoding 967 amino acids with a predicted size of 109 kDa. The putative amino acid sequence of rainbow trout M-CSFR showed 54% amino acid identity to fugu (Takifugu rubripes) M-CSFR, 52% to zebrafish (Danio rerio) M-CSFR and 40% to mouse (Mus musculus) and human (Homo sapiens) M-CSFR. The M-CSFR-like gene was constitutively expressed in head kidney, kidney, intestine, spleen and blood. The gene was detected especially in the ovary of immature female rainbow trout. These results suggest that a M-CSFR-like receptor may be involved in female reproductive tracts even in an oviparous animal like fish.     

Nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates and lipopolysaccharide mutually augment inflammation via adenosine triphosphate (ATP)-mediated and interleukin 1β (IL-1β)-mediated production of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs)

Among the bisphosphonates (BPs), nitrogen-containing BPs (N-BPs) have much stronger anti–bone-resorptive actions than non-N–BPs. However, N-BPs have various side effects such as acute influenza-like reactions after their initial administration and osteonecrosis of the jawbones after repeated administration. The mechanisms underlying such effects remain unclear. To overcome these problems, it is important to profile the inflammatory nature of N-BPs. Here, we analyzed the inflammatory reactions induced in mouse ear pinnae by the N-BPs alendronate (Ale) and zoledronate (Zol). We found the following: (i) Ale and Zol each induced two phases of inflammation (early weak and late strong ear swelling); (ii) both phases were augmented by lipopolysaccharides (LPSs; cell-surface constituent of gram-negative bacteria, including oral bacteria), but prevented by inhibitors of the phosphate transporters of solute carrier 20/34 (SLC20/SLC34); (iii) macrophages and neutrophils were involved in both phases of Ale+LPS–induced ear-swelling; (iv) Ale increased or tended to increase various cytokines, and LPS augmented these effects, especially that on interleukin 1β (IL-1β); (v) adenosine triphosphate (ATP) was involved in both phases, and Ale alone or Ale+LPS increased ATP in ear pinnae; (vi) the augmented late-phase swelling induced by Ale+LPS depended on both IL-1 and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs; neutrophil-derived net-like complexes); (vii) neutrophils, together with macrophages and dendritic cells, also functioned as IL-1β–producing cells, and upon stimulation with IL-1β, neutrophils produced NETs; (viii) stimulation of the purinergic 2X7 (P2X7) receptors by ATP induced IL-1β in ear pinnae; (ix) NET formation by Ale+LPS was confirmed in gingiva, too. These results suggest that (i) N-BPs induce both early-phase and late-phase inflammation via ATP-production and P2X7 receptor stimulation; (ii) N-BPs and LPS induce mutually augmenting responses both early and late phases via ATP-mediated IL-1β production by neutrophils, macrophages, and/or dendritic cells; and (iii) NET production by IL-1β–stimulated neutrophils may mediate the late phase, leading to prolonged inflammation. These results are discussed in relation to the side effects seen in patients treated with N-BPs. © 2021 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR).     

Usefulness of gastroesophageal reflux scintigraphy using the knee-chest position for the diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to evaluate the usefulness of gastroesophageal reflux (GER) scintigraphy using the knee-chest (KC) position for the diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). METHODS: The study subjects were 37 patients with GERD and 8 healthy volunteers (control group). Endoscopically observed esophageal mucosal breaks were evaluated with the Los Angeles classification. For GER scintigraphy, the subjects ingested liquid yogurt labeled with 99mTc-diethylene triamine pentaacetic acid (99mTc-DTPA) and water. Imaging was performed in the supine and KC position, and GER was graded as 1-4 according to the extent of GER assessed by scintigraphy. RESULTS: GER scintigraphy revealed no reflux in the control group (specificity: 100%). In the supine position, gastroesophageal reflux was observed in 49% of the patients with GERD, compared to 76% in the KC position. 21 of 23 (91%) patients with erosive esophagitis were shown to have GER with scintigraphy. GER scintigraphy revealed severe reflux (grade 3 or 4) (83%, 10/12) in the patients who had severe mucosal breaks (LA grade C or D). GER scintigraphy detected grade 1 or 2 reflux in 7 of the 14 patients who were endoscopically negative. There was a correlation between the endoscopically determined severity of mucosa and the reflux grade which was determined with GER scintigraphy. CONCLUSION: GER scintigraphy can detect gastroesophageal reflux with a high sensitivity in the KC position and might be a useful method in the screening and assessment of the severity of this disease. This method would be useful for the diagnosis of GERD in endoscopically negative patients.     

Antibody responses in Japanese volunteers after immunization with yellow fever vaccine

To monitor the development of specific and cross-reactive antibody response in twenty Japanese volunteers after vaccination with live yellow fever vaccine. Serum samples were collected on various days after vaccination and examined for hemagglutination inhibition (HI) antibodies against yellow fever virus (YFV), Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) and dengue virus (DV), neutralizing antibodies against YFV and JEV, and IgM antibodies against YFV. None of the volunteers had been previously immunized with this vaccine. Fifteen of 20 had pre-vaccinated with JEV 7 to 40 years before. Ten of the 20 had neutralizing antibodies against JEV before immunization. None of the 20 had detectable antibodies against YFV or DV before vaccination. On day 10th after the vaccination, neutralizing antibodies to YFV were detected in 6 of 19 volunteers and IgM antibodies against YFV were detected in 7 of 19. On day 14th, HI, neutralizing, and IgM antibodies against YFV were detected in all the tested sera. Neutralizing antibodies against JEV were developed in 2 volunteers and HI antibodies against JEV were increased in 3 of 6 volunteers respectively. On day 29th, cross-reactive HI antibodies for JEV and DV were detected in all the tested sera. The results indicate that YF vaccine induces YFV-specific antibodies in all the tested volunteers and that it also induces HI antibodies cross-reactive for JEV and DV. The YF vaccine has a strong immunogenicity because it is a live vaccine, and induces antibody against YFV predominantly. The international certificate of yellow fever vaccination becomes valid 10 days after vaccination. On day 14th after vaccination, we detected neutralizing antibodies against YFV from all tested volunteers, however, only 6 of 19 volunteers had detectable neutralizing antibody on the 10th day after vaccination. Therefore, the vaccine may not be perfectly effective on day 10th after the vaccination.