Serial change in myocardial tissue Doppler imaging from fetus to neonate.

Background: Our goal was to evaluate the serial change in myocardial performance from fetus to neonate using tissue Doppler imaging (TDI).

Method And Results: There were 37 term infants in the present study. The TDI sensor was placed at the level of the lateral mitral annulus (M-TDI), inter-ventricular septum (IVS-TDI) and the lateral tricuspid annulus (T-TDI).

Association of abdominal aortic wall thickness in the newborn with maternal factors.

Purpose: The goal of the present study is to carry out prospective echocardiographic measurements of intima-media thickness (IMT) in the abdominal artery of newborns.

Methods: Study subjects were 96 mothers and their newborns. We measured the adjusted IMT (aIMT, mm/mm) of newborn abdominal arteries by high-resolution ultrasound and evaluated the association of aIMT with various maternal and newborn factors.

[The results of surgical treatment for pseudomyxoma peritonei].

The surgical results of 37 patients with pseudomyxoma pertonei are reported. Twenty eight patients received laparotomy and complete cytoreduction (CC-0) could be done in 6 patients. However, 13 patients received incomplete cytoreduction, and 9 patients underwent drainage of ascites and peritoneal washing.

Morphogenic protein epimorphin protects intestinal epithelial cells from oxidative stress by the activation of EGF receptor and MEK/ERK, PI3 kinase/Akt signals.

Epimorphin is a mesenchymal protein that regulates morphogenesis of epithelial cells. Our preliminary study suggested a novel function of epimorphin in enhancing survival of intestinal epithelial cells (IEC). Oxidative stress leads to cell injury and death and is suggested to be a key contributor to pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease.

Sucralfate prevents the delay of wound repair in intestinal epithelial cells by hydrogen peroxide through NF-kappaB pathway.

Background: Recent studies have shown that sucralfate (SF) has therapeutic effects on colonic inflammation in ulcerative colitis. The aim of this study was to clarify the function of SF for wound repair in intestinal epithelial cells (IEC).

Methods: (1) Activation of signal proteins [ERK1/2 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK), IkappaB-alpha] in IEC-6 cells after stimulation with 10(-4) M potassium sucrose octasulfate (SOS), which is the functional element of SF, was assessed by Western blot.

[Long-term prognosis of the patients of myotonic dystrophy with tube feeding].

We studied the long-term prognosis of the patients of myotonic dystrophy with tube feeding. Subjects were 51 patients (31 male patients and 20 female patients) of typical myotonic dystrophy who were at least once admitted in our hospital. We examined the age of the introduction of tube feeding, the cause of the introduction, respiratory and motor ability at the introduction, the duration of tube feeding, the cause of death and the extension of CTG repeats in the patients.

Novel evidence suggesting Clostridium difficile is present in human gut microbiota more frequently than previously suspected.

Prevalence rate of Clostridium difficile in healthy human adults is believed to be very low. Our RT-PCR system using glass powder, which can eliminate PCR inhibitors, detected C. difficile toxin B mRNA in 16 of 30 fecal samples (53.

Altered expression of epimorphin in ulcerative colitis.

Background And Aim: Epimorphin is suggested to play a key role in the morphogenesis of epithelial cells. We focused on epimorphin and attempted to clarify the relationship between expression of this molecule and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Methods: Colonic specimens were taken from 23 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), 15 with Crohn's disease (CD), six with non-IBD colitis, and 10 normal controls.

Systemic and local evidence of increased Fas-mediated apoptosis in ulcerative colitis.

Background And Aims: Recent studies suggest that Fas-mediated apoptosis is involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This study was conducted to clarify whether soluble forms of Fas (sFas) and Fas ligand (sFasL) are concerned with inflammation in IBD.

Methods And Patients: Concentration of serum sFas and sFasL was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in 10 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), 10 with Crohn's disease (CD) in both active and remission stages, and 20 controls.