[A case of ascending colon carcinoma metastasized to an inguinal hernia sac].

While inguinal hernia is one of the most common diseases, metastatic cancer of an inguinal hernia sac is rare. We report a case of ascending colon cancer metastasized to an inguinal hernia sac. A 60-year-old man, who was undergone a right hemicolectomy for an ascending colon cancer, was pointed out a palpable inguinal mass at one year and eight months after the operation.

[A clinical significance of peritoneal carcinomatosis to recurrent colorectal cancer with ileus].

We studied a clinical significance of peritoneal carcinomatosis to metastatic recurrent colorectal cancer with ileus. The subjects were 16 patients with ileus confirmed in 1995-2005. Of the 16 patients, 7 had surgical treatment and the other 9 had conservative treatment.

Non-genomic actions of androgens.

Previous work in the endocrine and neuroendocrine fields has viewed the androgen receptor (AR) as a transcription factor activated by testosterone or one of its many metabolites. The bound AR acts as transcription regulatory element by binding to specific DNA response elements in target gene promoters, causing activation or repression of transcription and subsequently protein synthesis. Over the past two decades evidence at the cellular and organismal level has accumulated to implicate rapid responses to androgens, dependent or independent of the AR.

An alternate pathway for androgen regulation of brain function: activation of estrogen receptor beta by the metabolite of dihydrotestosterone, 5alpha-androstane-3beta,17beta-diol.

The complexity of gonadal steroid hormone actions is reflected in their broad and diverse effects on a host of integrated systems including reproductive physiology, sexual behavior, stress responses, immune function, cognition, and neural protection. Understanding the specific contributions of androgens and estrogens in neurons that mediate these important biological processes is central to the study of neuroendocrinology. Of particular interest in recent years has been the biological role of androgen metabolites.

Prenatal ethanol exposure alters core body temperature and corticosterone rhythms in adult male rats.

Ethanol's effects on the developing brain include alterations in morphology and biochemistry of the hypothalamus. To examine the potential functional consequences of ethanol's interference with hypothalamic differentiation, we studied the long-term effects of prenatal ethanol exposure on basal circadian rhythms of core body temperature (CBT) and heart rate (HR). We also examined the late afternoon surge in corticosterone (CORT).

Independent assessment of a wide-focus, low-pressure electromagnetic lithotripter: absence of renal bioeffects in the pig.

Objective: To assess the renal injury response in a pig model treated with a clinical dose of shock waves (SWs) delivered at a slow rate (27 SW/min) using a novel wide focal zone (18 mm), low acoustic pressure (<20 MPa) electromagnetic lithotripter (Xi Xin-Eisenmenger, XX-ES; Xi Xin Medical Instruments Co. Ltd., Suzhou, PRC).

Influenza A and respiratory syncytial virus hospital burden in young children in East London.

Epidemiological studies have demonstrated high hospitalization rates attributable to influenza and RSV in children aged 6 months and those aged <12 months, respectively (43 and 92.5/10 000 person-months, respectively). In conclusion, these high paediatric RSV and influenza incidence rates can be used to inform UK policy on childhood influenza immunization and subsequent RSV immunization in the future.

Detection and localization of an estrogen receptor beta splice variant protein (ERbeta2) in the adult female rat forebrain and midbrain regions.

Estrogens regulate neural processes such as neuronal development, reproductive behavior, and hormone secretion, and signal through estrogen receptor (ER) alpha and ERbeta (here called ERbeta1). Recent studies have found variations in ERalpha and ERbeta1 mRNA splicing in rodents and humans. Functional reporter gene assays suggest that these splicing variations alter ER-mediated transcriptional regulation.

Gene expression changes associated with altered growth and differentiation in benzo[a]pyrene or arsenic exposed normal human epidermal keratinocytes.

Both arsenic and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) inhibit terminal differentiation and alter growth potential in normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEK) in vitro. To identify molecular alterations that may be involved in these cellular processes, microarray analysis was carried out on NHEK treated with BaP or arsenic. The gene expression microarray results measuring mRNA levels were as follows: (1) in total, the expression of 85 genes was induced and 17 genes was suppressed by 2.

Activation of the androgen receptor alters the intracellular calcium response to glutamate in primary hippocampal neurons and modulates sarco/endoplasmic reticulum calcium ATPase 2 transcription.

Androgens have been shown to have a number of effects on hippocampal function. Although androgen receptors (AR) are found at high levels in hippocampal neurons, the intracellular mechanisms responsible for androgen's actions are unknown. If androgens were capable of altering internal calcium concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)), they could influence a variety of intracellular signaling pathways, maintain neuronal homeostasis and Ca(2+) induced excitotoxicity.

Changes in vasoactive intestinal peptide and arginine vasopressin expression in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the rat brain following footshock stress.

The neuropeptides, arginine vasopressin (AVP) and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) are synthesized by neurons of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus and are important regulators of SCN function. Previous studies have demonstrated that acute exposure to stressors can disrupt circadian activity rhythms, suggesting the possibility of stress-related alterations in the expression of these neuropeptides within SCN neurons. In this study, we examined the effect of intermittent footshock stress on AVP mRNA and heterogeneous nuclear RNA (hnRNA) and VIP mRNA expression in neurons of the SCN.

Peripheral vascular disease in systemic lupus erythematosus.

With increasing longevity of lupus patients, peripheral vascular disease (PVD) has become an important cause of morbidity. With no systematic study of PVD in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), this study was undertaken to define the frequency and spectrum of PVD in SLE and factors affecting such an occurrence. All medium-sized peripheral arteries of bilateral upper and lower extremities were studied in 50 SLE patients using Doppler ultrasonography.

Estrogen receptor beta in the brain: from form to function.

Estrogens have numerous effects on the brain, both in adulthood and during development. These actions of estrogen are mediated by two distinct estrogen receptor (ER) systems, ER alpha (ERalpha) and ER beta (ERbeta). In brain, ERalpha plays a critical role in regulating reproductive neuroendocrine function and behavior, however, a definitive role for ERbeta in any neurobiological function has been slow in forthcoming.

Corticotropin-releasing hormone heterogeneous nuclear RNA (hnRNA) and immunoreactivity are induced in extrahypothalamic brain sites by kainic-acid-induced seizures and are modulated by estrogen.

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) are pivotal mediators of the hormonal response to stressors and are found within neurons of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) and several extrahypothalamic sites where expression is activity-dependent. Previous work has shown increased CRH immunoreactivity in extrahypothalamic sites after kainic-acid (KA)-induced seizures in male rats. This study examined the induction of CRH heterogeneous nuclear RNA (hnRNA), AVP hnRNA and c-fos as a measure of gene transcription and cell activation following kainic-acid (KA)-induced seizures.

Major histocompatibility complex class I and II detection as a diagnostic tool in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies.

Context: Muscle biopsy is at present the gold standard for the diagnosis of idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs), which include dermatomyositis, polymyositis, and inclusion body myositis. Currently, there is no definite diagnostic marker that helps in the discrimination of different subgroups of IIMs and the discrimination of IIMs from other clinical and morphologic mimics. Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I and II antigens are not expressed on normal muscle fibers.

Orphanin FQ: evidence for a role in the control of the reproductive neuroendocrine system.

Orphanin FQ (OFQ), also known as nociceptin, is a member of the endogenous opioid peptide family that has been functionally implicated in the control of pain, anxiety, circadian rhythms, and neuroendocrine function. In the reproductive system, endogenous opioid peptides are involved in the steroid feedback control of GnRH pulses and the induction of the GnRH surge. The distribution of OFQ in the preoptic area and hypothalamus overlaps with GnRH, and in vitro evidence suggests that OFQ can inhibit GnRH secretion from hypothalamic fragments.

Dietary phytoestrogens dampen female sexual behavior in mice with a disrupted aromatase enzyme gene.

Aromatization of testosterone (T) to estradiol (E2) during perinatal development in male rodents plays a significant role in sexual differentiation of the brain and adult behaviors. Exposure to estrogens during development can enhance masculine behaviors in adult females and reduce expression of female-typical behaviors in adult males. Previous studies have shown that, in addition to naturally occurring estrogens, dietary phytoestrogens can affect sexual differentiation.

Estrogen receptor-beta mediates dihydrotestosterone-induced stimulation of the arginine vasopressin promoter in neuronal cells.

Arginine vasopressin (AVP) is a neuropeptide involved in the regulation of fluid balance, stress, circadian rhythms, and social behaviors. In the brain, AVP is tightly regulated by gonadal steroid hormones in discrete regions with gonadectomy abolishing and testosterone replacement restoring normal AVP expression in adult males. Previous studies demonstrated that 17beta-estradiol, a primary metabolite of testosterone, is responsible for restoring most of the AVP expression in the brain after castration.

Assessment of Cu-ETS as a PET radiopharmaceutical for evaluation of regional renal perfusion.

Unlabelled: The copper(II) complex of ethylglyoxal bis(thiosemicarbazone) (Cu-ETS) was evaluated as a positron emission tomography (PET) radiopharmaceutical for assessment of regional renal perfusion.

Methods: The concordance of renal flow estimates obtained with 11- and 15-microm microspheres was confirmed in four immature farm pigs using co-injected (46)Sc- and (57)Co-microspheres administered into the left ventricle. With the use of both immature farm pigs (n=3) and mature Göttingen minipigs (n=6), regional renal radiocopper uptake following intravenous [(64)Cu]Cu-ETS administration was compared to microsphere measurements of renal perfusion.

Dual-head lithotripsy in synchronous mode: acute effect on renal function and morphology in the pig.

Objective: To assess the effect of dual-head lithotripsy on renal function and morphology in a pig model of shockwave (SW) injury, as lithotripters with two shock heads are now available for treating patients, but little information is available with which to judge the safety of treatment with dual pulses.

Materials And Methods: A dual-head electrohydraulic lithotripter (Duet, Direx Corp., Natick, MA, USA) was used to treat the lower renal pole of anaesthetized pigs with a clinical dose of SWs (2400 dual SWs; 10 kidneys) delivered in synchronous mode, i.

Role of anti cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies in erosive disease in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Background & Objectives: Antibodies to cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) are a recently described marker in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which are said to connote aggressive disease. No data on these antibodies are available from India. We undertook this study to evaluate the role of second generation anti CCP antibodies (anti CCP-2) in predicting erosive disease in Indian patients with rheumatoid arthritis and to define their role in seronegative RA.