Features and prognostic impact of distant metastasis in patients with stage IV lung adenocarcinoma harboring EGFR mutations: importance of bone metastasis.

Mutated epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and signaling pathways were associated with multiple brain and intra-pulmonary metastases, oncogenic progression and metastasis. However, features of metastasis to other organs and the independent prognostic influence of metastatic lesions were not elucidated in patients with lung cancer harboring EGFR mutations. Between January 2007 and April 2012, we treated 277 patients diagnosed with stage IV lung adenocarcinoma.

Reference values of lead in blood and related factors among blood donors in the Western Amazon, Brazil.

The aim of this study was to (1) determine the reference value of blood lead levels (BLL) in a sample of blood donors of Rio Branco, the capital city of Acre, in the Western Brazilian Amazon, and (2) explore factors influencing lead (Pb) exposure levels. Between 2010 and 2011, blood samples were collected from universal blood donors attending the Central Hemotherapic Unit in Rio Branco with a total number of 1196. Information on characteristics of 1183 donors was obtained through questionnaires.

Serum cadmium levels in a sample of blood donors in the Western Amazon, Brazil, 2010-2011.

A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the distribution of serum cadmium (Cd) levels in blood donors in Rio Branco, Acre State, Brazil. Blood samples were obtained from 922 volunteer blood donors from 18 to 65 years of age at the Hemoacre blood center in 2010-2011. Mean serum Cd was 0.

Comparison of two transport systems available in Japan (TERUMO kenkiporter II and BBL Port-A-Cul) for maintenance of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria.

The kenkiporter II (KP II) transport system is commonly used in many hospitals in Japan for transporting bacterial specimens to microbiology laboratories. Recently, the BBL Port-A-Cul (PAC) fluid vial became available. However, no reports thus far have compared the effectiveness of these two transport systems.

A Japanese case of vertebral sarcoidosis.

We herein report the first Japanese case of vertebral sarcoidosis diagnosed using multiple imaging modalities and a biopsy. CT, MRI and (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F-FDG PET) detected multiple vertebral lesions, and a vertebral biopsy guided by the PET findings confirmed the diagnosis of vertebral sarcoidosis. Although the disease was refractory to corticosteroids, treatment with methotrexate (MTX) achieved a good response.

Retrocolic roux-en-Y anastomosis for total laparoscopic distal gastrectomy: fix-the-remnant-first technique.

Introduction: Herein we report our retrocolic Roux-en-Y anastomosis for laparoscopic distal gastrectomy and its feasibility.

Materials And Surgical Technique: After laparoscopic distal gastrectomy with lymphadenectomy, the gastric remnant was fixed through the mesentery of the transverse colon. The gastrojejunostomy was performed with linear stapling devices at an angle that allowed for easy application.

Five-year survival of alpha-fetoprotein-producing gastric cancer with synchronous liver metastasis: a case report.

Alpha-fetoprotein-Producing gastric cancer is associated with poor prognosis because of frequent liver and lymph node metastasis. We present a case with synchronous liver metastasis who survived for 5 years. A 69-year-old man with upper abdominal pain was referred to our hospital.

Cytokeratin 19 fragment predicts the efficacy of epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitor in non-small-cell lung cancer harboring EGFR mutation.

Background: EGFR gene mutation is independently associated with a favorable response in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients receiving epidermal growth factor receptor -tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs), regardless of sex or smoking history. Squamous cell carcinoma patients harboring EGFR mutations show a significantly worse response to EGFR-TKIs compared with adenocarcinoma patients. We hypothesized that the serum cytokeratin 19 fragment (CYFRA 21-1) is associated with the efficacy of EGFR-TKIs in EGFR-mutated NSCLC patients.

Preexisting interstitial lung disease is inversely correlated to tumor epidermal growth factor receptor mutation in patients with lung adenocarcinoma.

Introduction: Interstitial lung disease (ILD), especially idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, has been shown to be associated with lung carcinogenesis. However, an association between epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation status and preexisting ILD in patients with lung adenocarcinoma is unknown.

Methods: Between January 2008 and April 2012, we analyzed 602 patients with lung adenocarcinoma.

Natural IgG antibody with anti-β-galactosyl specificity suppressed hepatoma cell invasion in culture.

The effect of natural IgG antibody recognizing β-galactosyl epitope on hepatoma cell invasion was investigated. Anti-β-galactosyl antibody dose-dependently suppressed hepatoma invasion underneath primarily cultured mesothelial cells monolayer without affecting the proliferation, to the same extent as natural IgG antibody with anti-α-galactosyl specificity, which had already been reported to have an anti-metastatic activity. The inhibitory effect of anti-β-galactosyl antibody was completely canceled by adding lactose (galactose-β-1, 4-glucose) to the medium, indicating that this antibody recognized some antigens with β-galactosyl epitope.

The activation of proteinase-activated receptor-1 (PAR1) promotes gastric cancer cell alteration of cellular morphology related to cell motility and invasion.

Cell motility proceeds by cycles of edge protrusion, adhesion and retraction. Whether these functions are coordinated by biochemical or biomechanical processes is unknown. Tumor invasion and metastasis is directly related to cell motility.

Risk factors associated with elevated blood cytomegalovirus pp65 antigen levels in patients with autoimmune diseases.

Objectives: To further assess the relationship between elevated levels of cytomegalovirus (CMV) pp65 antigen in blood, as indicative of viral load, during treatment-free follow-up and CMV diseases in patients with autoimmune diseases and to identify any risk factors associated with elevated viral loads.

Methods: This was a retrospective review of the electronic medical charts of 148 patients with autoimmune diseases who tested positive for CMV pp65 antigen in the blood.

Results: A total of 106 patients were analyzed.

Association between vascular-poor area of primary tumors and epidermal growth factor receptor gene status in advanced lung adenocarcinoma.

Mutation of the epidermal growth factor receptor gene (EGFR mutation) is a very important marker in the treatment for non-small cell lung cancer. Since signaling from this receptor induces tumor-associated angiogenesis, we hypothesized that lung cancers with EGFR mutations tend to develop locally with increased angiogenesis. Thus, the association between vascular-poor area of primary tumors and EGFR status was retrospectively investigated in advanced lung adenocarcinomas.

The activation of Proteinase-Activated Receptor-1 (PAR1) mediates gastric cancer cell proliferation and invasion.

Background: In addition to regulating platelet function, the G protein-coupled sub-family member Proteinase-activated receptor-1 (PAR1) has a proposed role in the development of various cancers, but its exact role and mechanism of action in the invasion, metastasis, and proliferation process in gastric cancer have yet to be completely elucidated. Here, we analyzed the relationship between PAR1 activation, proliferation, invasion, and the signaling pathways downstream of PAR1 activation in gastric cancer.

Methods: We established a PAR1 stably transfected MKN45 human gastric cancer cell line (MKN45/PAR1) and performed cell proliferation and invasion assays employing this cell line and MKN28 cell line exposed to PAR1 agonists (alpha-thrombin and TFLLR-NH2).

Staphylococcus aureus SarA is a regulatory protein responsive to redox and pH that can support bacteriophage lambda integrase-mediated excision/recombination.

Staphylococcus aureus produces a wide array of virulence factors and causes a correspondingly diverse array of infections. Production of these virulence factors is under the control of a complex network of global regulatory elements, one of which is sarA. sarA encodes a DNA binding protein that is considered to function as a transcription factor capable of acting as either a repressor or an activator.

[The current situation and subjects of the intraperitoneal chemotherapy for peritoneal dissemination in gastric cancer].

Many different chemotherapeutic modalities have been done for patients with peritoneal dissemination of gastric cancer. However, no regimen of chemotherapy has become the treatment of choice for the control of peritoneal dissemination. It is thought that intraperitoneal chemotherapy is effective to contact lesions directly and reduce its side effects.

Prognostic value of protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR-1) and matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) in gastric cancer.

Background: Protease-activated receptors (PARs) are proposed to be involved in the invasive and metastatic processes of various types of cancer. Matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1) plays a role in cancer invasion and tissue remodelling. It has been reported that MMP-1 can alter the behavior of cancer cells through PAR-1 to promote cell migration and invasion.

Amount of N(omega)-(Carboxymethyl)arginine generated in collagen and bovine serum albumin during glycation reactions is significantly different.

N(omega)-(Carboxymethyl)arginine (CMA), an advanced glycation end product (AGE), is found in glycated type I collagen. The levels of CMA generated in collagen and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were compared during in vitro glycation reactions. CMA production increased in collagen during incubation with glucose or ribose, attaining a molar quantity approximately the same as that of N(epsilon)-(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML), the dominant AGE.

Mechanism and Scope of Preferential Enrichment, a Symmetry-Breaking Enantiomeric Resolution Phenomenon.

The mechanism of "preferential enrichment", an unusually symmetry-breaking enantiomericresolution phenomenon that is observed upon simple recrystallization of a certain kind of organic racemiccrystal from the usual organic solvents without any external chiral element, has been rationalized in termsof a complexity system involving multistage processes that affect each other. These processes comprise:(1) preferential homochiral molecular association to give one-dimensional (1D) R andS chains in solution; (2) formation of γ-form prenucleationaggregates consisting of the same homochiral 1D chains; (3) nucleation and crystal growth of the metastableγ-form crystal composed of irregular alignment of the homochiral 1D R andS chains; (4) the solvent-assisted solid-to-solid type of polymorphictransition of the incipient γ-form crystal into the more stable polymorphic form, such as the α-,δ-, or ε-form; and (5) partial crystal disintegration in the transformed crystal to releaseexcess R or S moleculesinto solution. Based on this mechanism, both induction and inhibition of preferential enrichment have beenachieved by controlling the mode of polymorphic transition during crystallization with appropriate seedcrystals.

New peptide inhibitors of type IB topoisomerases: similarities and differences vis-a-vis inhibitors of tyrosine recombinases.

Topoisomerases relieve topological tension in DNA by breaking and rejoining DNA phosphodiester bonds. Type IB topoisomerases such as vaccinia topoisomerase (vTopo) and human topoisomerase I are structurally and mechanistically similar to the tyrosine recombinase family of enzymes, which includes bacteriophage lambda Integrase (Int). Previously, our laboratory identified peptide inhibitors of Int from a synthetic peptide combinatorial library.

Induction and inhibition of preferential enrichment by controlling the mode of the polymorphic transition with seed crystals.

Both induction and inhibition of "preferential enrichment", an unusual symmetry-breaking enantiomeric-resolution phenomenon observed upon simple recrystallization of a certain kind of racemic crystals from organic solvents, have been successfully achieved by controlling the mode of the polymorphic transition during crystallization with appropriate seed crystals. Such control of the polymorphic transition can be interpreted in terms of a novel phenomenon consisting of 1) the adsorption of prenucleation aggregates, 2) the heterogeneous nucleation and crystal growth of a metastable crystalline form, and 3) the subsequent polymorphic transition into the more stable form; these three processes occur on the same surface of a seed crystal. We refer to this phenomenon as an "epitaxial transition", which has been confirmed by means of in situ attenuated total reflection (ATR) FTIR spectroscopy in solution and the solid state, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements of the deposited crystals, and X-ray crystallographic analysis of the single crystals or the direct-space approach employing the Monte Carlo method with the Rietveld refinement for the structure solution from the powder X-ray diffraction data.

Preferential enrichment: significant influence of minor molecular modification on the mode of polymorphic transition during crystallization.

The relationship between the molecular structure and the occurrence of Preferential Enrichment, an unusually symmetry-breaking enantiomeric resolution phenomenon observed upon simple recrystallization of a certain kind of racemic crystals from organic solvents, has been investigated with respect to a new series of racemic ammonium sulfonate compounds. Racemic [2-[4-(3-ethoxy-2-hydroxypropoxy)phenylcarbamoyl]ethyl]trimethylammonium p-iodobenzenesulfonate [(+/-)-1a] can show preferential enrichment by simple recrystallization from EtOH, whereas its terminal methoxy and propoxy derivatives [(+/-)-1b and (+/-)-1c] are unable to do so. The influence of such a minor molecular modification on Preferential Enrichment has been rationalized in terms of the change of the mode of polymorphic transition during crystallization, which has been confirmed by in situ ATR-FTIR (ReactIR) spectroscopy in solution and in the solid state and by X-ray crystallographic analysis of their single crystals.

Expression of protease activated receptor-2 (PAR-2) in gastric cancer.

Background And Objectives: Recently, the four-kind cloning of the protease-activated receptor (PAR) had been carried out. PAR-2 is activated by trypsin and it is supposed that PAR-2 participated in proliferation of the endothelial cell or in neovascularization. We considered whether the expression of PAR-2 has relevance to progression in gastric cancer.

Survey of analgesic use for nonmalignant pain in long-term care facilities in southern California.

Objective: Many residents in long-term care facilities experience nonmalignant pain, and analgesic therapy is often inadequate in this setting. We examined the management of chronic nonmalignant pain in elderly nursing home residents.

Design: Retrospective chart review.