The peripheral immune status of granulocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells correlates the survival in advanced gastric cancer patients receiving cisplatin-based chemotherapy.

Background: The prognostic significance of peripheral immune status in patients with advanced gastric cancer (AGC) remains unclear.

Results: From July 2013 through December 2014, 37 patients were enrolled. Among patients with 25 subsets of immune cells, patients in the high group of granulocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells (Gr-MDSCs) showed significantly shorter progression-free survival (PFS) than those in the low group (3.

The Effect of Ethanol on the Hydrolysis of Ester-Type Drugs by Human Serum Albumin.

Human serum albumin (HSA) has two major ligand-binding sites, sites I and II, and hydrolyzes compounds at both sites. Although the hydrolytic interaction of ester-type drugs with other drugs by HSA has been reported, there are only a few studies concerning the effect of pharmaceutical excipients on the hydrolysis of ester-type drugs by HSA. In the present study, we investigated the effect of ethanol (2 vol%; 345 mM) on the hydrolysis of aspirin, p-nitrophenyl acetate, and olmesartan medoxomil, which are ester-type drugs, with 4 different lots of HSA preparations.

Time-series analysis: variation of anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody titer in myasthenia gravis is related to incidence of Mycoplasma pneumoniae and influenza virus infections.

Objectives The exacerbating factors of myasthenia gravis (MG) are unknown. However, it has been speculated that infections may play a role in disease progression. Methods We calculated the adjusted anti-acetylcholine receptor antibody (Adj-AChR-Ab) titers (range, 0-1) in 58 MG patients between 2006 and 2012.

A Prospective, Multicenter Phase II Study of the Efficacy and Feasibility of 15-minute Panitumumab Infusion Plus Irinotecan for Oxaliplatin- and Irinotecan-refractory, KRAS Wild-type Metastatic Colorectal Cancer (Short Infusion of Panitumumab Trial).

Background: In some recently updated clinical guidelines, the fully humanized monoclonal antibody panitumumab, combined with irinotecan, has been recommended as an optional third-line chemotherapy for KRAS wild-type metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). The present prospective, multicenter phase II study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of short 15-minute panitumumab infusions.

Patients And Methods: From January 2011 to December 2011, patients with KRAS wild-type mCRC were enrolled at 8 centers.

Disentangling the prognostic heterogeneity of stage III colorectal cancer through histologic stromal categorization.

Background: Growing evidence suggests the importance of stroma in determining cancer biology and recent studies have identified that genes closely associated with poor prognosis subtypes of colorectal cancer are expressed by the stroma rather than epithelial cancer cells. We aimed to clarify the prognostic value of the novel histologic classification of desmoplastic reaction in stage III colorectal cancer.

Methods: A pathologic review was conducted for 466 stage III colorectal cancer patients in a single Japanese institution (1999-2006).

Patterns of Relapse after Definitive Chemoradiotherapy in Stage II/III (Non-T4) Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the utility of surveillance after definitive chemoradiotherapy (dCRT) in patients with squamous cell carcinoma.

Methods: Patients who underwent dCRT for stage II/III (excluding T4) esophageal squamous cell carcinoma were analyzed. First failures following complete response were classified into luminal relapse (LR), regional relapse (RR), distant metastasis (DM), new cancer diagnosed by esophagogastroduodenoscopy (NC-E), and new cancer other than NC-E (NC-O).

Capecitabine versus S-1 as adjuvant chemotherapy for patients with stage III colorectal cancer (JCOG0910): an open-label, non-inferiority, randomised, phase 3, multicentre trial.

Background: Adjuvant chemotherapy with oral fluoropyrimidine alone after D3/D2 lymph node dissection improves disease-free survival and overall survival in patients with stage III colon cancer. Adjuvant S-1 has been shown to be non-inferior to uracil and tegafur plus leucovorin in terms of disease-free survival. This study aims to confirm the non-inferiority of S-1 compared with capecitabine as adjuvant treatment in patients with stage III colorectal cancer.

increased body weight but not food-incentive motivation in wild-type mice.

Yokukansankachimpihange (YKSCH), a traditional Japanese medicine, is widely used for the amelioration of the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia with digestive dysfunction. Regardless of its successful use for digestive dysfunction, the effect of YKSCH on body weight was unknown. Furthermore, if YKSCH increased body weight, it might increase motivation according to Kampo medicine theory.

A phase II study of combination therapy with oral S-1 and cisplatin in elderly patients with advanced gastric cancer.

Background: A combination of S-1 and cisplatin is recognized as one of the standard first-line chemotherapy regimens for patients with advanced gastric cancer. However, demographic analyses of pivotal phase III studies have showed that only a minority of treated patients were aged 76 years or older. The purpose of this phase II study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of combination therapy with S-1 and cisplatin in elderly patients with chemotherapy-naive advanced gastric cancer.

Clinical Outcomes of Resectable Esophageal Cancer with Supraclavicular Lymph Node Metastases Treated with Curative Intent.

Background: In the seventh edition of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) TNM classification, supraclavicular lymph node (SCLN) in regard to thoracic esophageal cancer (EC) is regarded as a distant organ, therefore, if resectable, SCLN metastasis is considered a candidate for systemic chemotherapy. The purpose of this study was to clarify the survival outcome in patients with resectable thoracic EC with SCLN metastases (M1LYM) treated with curative intent.

Patients And Methods: Clinical outcomes in patients with resectable thoracic EC with SCLN metastases (M1LYM) treated by esophagectomy or definitive chemoradiotherapy (dCRT) were retrospectively analyzed.

Discovery of long-range inhibitory signaling to ensure single axon formation.

A long-standing question in neurodevelopment is how neurons develop a single axon and multiple dendrites from common immature neurites. Long-range inhibitory signaling from the growing axon is hypothesized to prevent outgrowth of other immature neurites and to differentiate them into dendrites, but the existence and nature of this inhibitory signaling remains unknown. Here, we demonstrate that axonal growth triggered by neurotrophin-3 remotely inhibits neurite outgrowth through long-range Ca waves, which are delivered from the growing axon to the cell body.

Esophageal Metastasis from Rectal Cancer Successfully Treated with Fluorouracil-Based Chemotherapy with Bevacizumab: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Esophageal metastasis from colorectal carcinoma is uncommon, and diagnosis of esophageal metastasis is difficult. We report a case of a 54-year-old woman with postoperative recurrence of rectal cancer metastasizing to the esophagus. She underwent rectectomy and adjuvant chemotherapy with fluorouracil, leucovorin plus oxaliplatin for stage IIIB rectal cancer.

Effect of attention bias modification on brain function and anxiety in patients with irritable bowel syndrome: A preliminary electroencephalogram and psycho-behavioral study.

Background: Gastrointestinal symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) show a reciprocal relationship with anxiety. In this intervention-based study, we investigated the utility of attention bias modification (ABM) therapy in patients with IBS. We hypothesized that IBS-related electroencephalographic abnormalities would be normalized after ABM therapy.

pH-Dependent structural diversity of a 2-pyridinemethanol Cu complex and its relatively strong magnetic exchange coupling via hydrogen bonding.

The diversity of the self-assembled structures of a Cu complex via hydrogen bonding, including a square planar unit, is reported. The Cu complex forms two self-assembled structures by hydrogen bonding, depending on the acidity of the recrystallization conditions. A linear chain structure can be produced under acidic conditions, and a three-dimensional network structure is observed under basic conditions.

Crystal structure of bis-(1,10-phenanthroline-κ,')(1,3-thia-zole-2-thiol-ato-κ,)nickel(II) hexa-fluorido-phosphate 1,4-dioxane sesquisolvate.

The title salt, [Ni(CHNS)(CHN)]PF·1.5CHO, was the unexpected product on making an attempt to prepare an [Ni(2-mercapto-thia-zol-ate)(1,10-phenanthroline)] complex by reaction of [NiCl(1,10-phen-an-throline)] with 2-mercapto-thia-zolate. In the resulting complex, the 2-mercapto-thia-zolate anion acts as a chelating ligand, which coordinates to the Ni ion with the thia-zolyl N and thiol-ate S atoms.

Body Mass Index and Incidence of Subarachnoid Hemorrhage in Japanese Community Residents: The Jichi Medical School Cohort Study.

Background: Whereas high body mass index (BMI) is reportedly a risk factor for cardiovascular events in Western countries, low BMI has been reported as a risk factor for cardiovascular death in Asia, including Japan. Although subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a highly fatal disease and common cause of disability, few cohort studies have examined the associations between BMI and SAH in Japan. This study investigated the associations between BMI and incidence of SAH using prospective data from Japanese community residents.

Japanese Society for Cancer of the Colon and Rectum (JSCCR) guidelines 2016 for the treatment of colorectal cancer.

Japanese mortality due to colorectal cancer is on the rise, surpassing 49,000 in 2015. Many new treatment methods have been developed during recent decades. The Japanese Society for Cancer of the Colon and Rectum Guidelines 2016 for the treatment of colorectal cancer (JSCCR Guidelines 2016) were prepared to show standard treatment strategies for colorectal cancer, to eliminate disparities among institutions in terms of treatment, to eliminate unnecessary treatment and insufficient treatment, and to deepen mutual understanding between health-care professionals and patients by making these Guidelines available to the general public.

[Comparison of Response to Chemotherapy between Ovarian and Extraovarian Metastasis of Gastric Cancer].

Background: Ovarian metastasis of gastric cancer is thought to be less sensitive to chemotherapy.

Methods: The subjects of this retrospective study were 15 gastric cancer patients with ovarian metastasis treated with first-line chemotherapy between January 1998 and April 2015. Response to chemotherapy was compared between ovarian metastasis and other measurable lesions; progression free survival(PFS), post progression survival(PPS), and overall survival(OS)were compared among the patients showing disease progression only at the ovary(group A), only at lesions other than the ovary(group B), and at both sites(group C).

NC-6004 Phase I study in combination with gemcitabine for advanced solid tumors and population PK/PD analysis.

Objectives: This study was an open-label phase I study to confirm the safety and tolerability of NC-6004 in combination with gemcitabine in Japanese patients with advanced solid tumors and to assess the PK effects of NC-6004 monotherapy.

Methods: This phase I study used a 3 + 3 design to determine the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) and recommended dose of NC-6004 combined with gemcitabine. Safety and pharmacokinetics were assessed.

Structural transformations of layered structures constructed from Cu(ii)-chloranilate monomer compounds.

Hydrogen-bond supported intercalation compounds constructed from three types of two-dimensional layers and common guests, {(Hha)[Cu(CA)(EtOH)]} (1), {(Hha)[Cu(CA)(EtOH)]} (2), and {(Hha)[Cu(CA)]} (3) (ha = hexylamine), have been synthesized and characterized. The hexylaminium cations are introduced between the anionic layers of the metal-chloranilate by not only electrostatic interactions but also hydrogen bonding interactions. These compounds show reversible EtOH adsorption and desorption accompanied by a structural transformation.

Effect of combined treatment with micelle-incorporated cisplatin (NC-6004) and S-1 on human gastric cancer xenografts.

Combination therapy with S-1 and cisplatin (CDDP) is the standard chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer in Japan; however, its administration requires hospitalization for hydration to prevent nephrotoxicity from CDDP. By contrast, NC-6004 appears to reduce the renal toxicity of CDDP and may be used on an outpatient basis. Thus, the effects of combined treatment with S-1 and NC-6004 were compared with those of S-1 and CDDP in a human gastric cancer model.

Goshajinkigan for Low Back Pain: An Observational Study.

Objectives: Low back pain (LBP) is a chronic condition. Although Western treatments are available, Kampo (traditional Japanese) medicine is widely prescribed and covered by health insurance in Japan. Goshajinkigan (GJG), a Kampo formula, is commonly used to treat LBP.

Granuloma formation in a patient with GNE myopathy: A case report.

We report a patient with GNE myopathy with a homozygous mutation (c.1505-4G>A) in GNE gene. The patient recognized progressive weakness of extremities at age 60.