External Ear Melanoma Treated with Auricular Reconstruction Using Four Different Tissues in a 16-Year-Old Patient.

The auricular region is a common site of cutaneous malignancies, most of which are nonmelanoma skin cancers, such as basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, in older patients. They are often treated with limited surgery that can be performed under local anesthesia. We report the case of a young patient with external ear melanoma who underwent reconstruction for defects of more than one-half of the helix and concha using four types of tissues: a rib cartilage graft, temporoparietal fascia flap, full-thickness skin graft, and retroauricular flap.

High contribution of picophytoplankton to phytoplankton biomass in a shallow, eutrophic coastal sea.

We explored picophytoplankton in the surface (0 m) and bottom (2.3-8.7 m) layers of a shallow (<10 m) eutrophic coastal system (Isahaya Bay, Japan).

Effects of TiO and ZnO nanoparticles on the growth of phytoplankton assemblages in seawater.

Compounds in sunscreen such as ultraviolet (UV) filters protect human skin from damage caused by UV radiation exposure. However, sunscreen components reach marine ecosystems after their release from human skin during activities such as swimming and washing, and are potentially toxic to marine organisms. TiO and ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) are commonly used as inorganic UV filters.

Lower Eyelid Reconstruction Using a Myotarsocutaneous Flap while Considering the Superior and Inferior Palpebral Sulci.

Various reconstructive procedures have been reported for full-thickness defects of the lower eyelid after tumor excision or trauma. In eyelid reconstruction, not only functionality but also cosmetic results are important; furthermore, making scars inconspicuous is challenging. The purpose of this study is to make the scars less noticeable in lower eyelid reconstruction.

Surgical resection of intraorbital metastasis of a gastrointestinal stromal tumor resistant to chemotherapy.

Purpose: We present a case of a gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) metastasis of the rectal primary resisting chemotherapy to the right orbit 15 years after excision of the primary lesion.

Observations: A 79-year-old man was diagnosed with rectal GIST at the age of 65 years and underwent rectal amputation. He underwent hepatectomy for GIST liver metastases at the age of 69 years and pericardiectomy for GIST pericardial metastases at 72 years of age.

Two-way Revascularization to Manage Celiac Artery Stenosis during Pancreaticoduodenectomy: A Case Report.

Celiac artery (CA) occlusion, or stenosis, is not uncommon, and most cases are asymptomatic. If the CA is occluded, collateral circulation from the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) is maintained through the pancreaticoduodenal arcade. However, the pancreaticoduodenal arcade is removed if pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD) is performed, which results in ischemia of the liver, stomach, and residual pancreas.

Distribution of the Harmful Bloom-Forming Cyanobacterium, Microcystis aeruginosa, in 88 Freshwater Environments across Japan.

Microcystis aeruginosa was quantitatively surveyed in 88 freshwater environments across Japan within 3‍ ‍weeks in 2011. In order to clarify the distribution pattern of M. aeruginosa at the intra-species level, three major genotypes, which were defined by 16S-23S rRNA inter-transcribed-spacer (ITS) regions, were selectively detected using quantitative real-time PCR assays.

A Novel Method of Noninvasive Monitoring of Free Flaps With Near-Infrared Spectroscopy.

Thrombosis of a site of anastomosis in microsurgical free tissue transfer can result in tissue necrosis. To salvage potentially failing free flap, various methods of monitoring the viability of tissue have been described. We report a novel method of monitoring free flaps using near-infrared spectroscopy.

Comparison between primary closure and skin grafts of the free fibula osteocutaneous flap donor site.

Purpose: This study aimed to compare the size of skin paddles, the postoperative course, and donor site complications between primary closure and skin grafts of the free fibula flap donor site.

Methods: Thirty-five consecutive patients were enrolled. Medical records were retrospectively reviewed for risk factors for delayed healing, size of skin paddles, time to resumption of gait with a mobility aid and self-ambulation, early donor site morbidity, and late donor site complaints.

Microbial communities on flower surfaces act as signatures of pollinator visitation.

Microbes are easily dispersed from one place to another, and immigrant microbes might contain information about the environments from which they came. We hypothesized that part of the microbial community on a flower's surface is transferred there from insect body surfaces and that this community can provide information to identify potential pollinator insects of that plant. We collected insect samples from the field, and found that an insect individual harbored an average of 12.

Increase in Alphaproteobacteria in association with a polychaete, Capitella sp. I, in the organically enriched sediment.

We conducted bioremediation experiments on the organically enriched sediment on the sea floor just below a fish farm, introducing artificially mass-cultured colonies of deposit-feeding polychaete, Capitella sp. I. To clarify the association between the Capitella and bacteria on the efficient decomposition of the organic matter in the sediment in the experiments, we tried to identify the bacteria that increased in the microbial community in the sediment with dense patches of the Capitella.

Fluoroquinolone (FQ) contamination does not correlate with occurrence of FQ-resistant bacteria in aquatic environments of Vietnam and Thailand.

Fluoroquinolone antibiotics (FQs) have been used worldwide for chemotherapy, animal husbandry, and aquaculture, and the occurrence of FQ-resistant (FQs(r)) bacteria in natural environments has been reported. Plasmid-mediated transferable quinolone resistance (PMQR) genes are suspected to originate from the chromosomes of water-dwelling bacteria. However, the occurrence of and the potential reservoir of FQs(r) bacteria and PMQR genes in aquatic environments have not been elucidated.

Tetracycline resistance genes persist at aquaculture farms in the absence of selection pressure.

The prophylactic and therapeutic use of tetracyclines in aquaculture has been shown to contribute to the spread of tetracycline resistance in the environment. In this work, the prevalence of four different tetracycline-resistance genes, tetA, tetC, tetH, and tetM, in sediments from four aquaculture farms and their surroundings in the Baltic Sea was monitored by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). The presence of three additional tetracycline-resistance genes (tetE, tetG, and tetW) was studied qualitatively by standard PCR, and the amount of bioavailable tetracyclines and total amounts of tetracycline and oxytetracycline in samples were also measured.

Effect of water-surface discharge on the inactivation of Bacillus subtilis due to protein lysis and DNA damage.

The effect of water-surface discharge on the inactivation of Bacillus subtilis ATCC6633 in water was examined by using a very short high-voltage pulse generator. The surviving number of spore cells at 10(4) CFU/ml in initial concentration exponentially decreased with increasing discharge-treatment time. The input energy into the water-surface discharge under an O(2) gas flow for reduction in the survival number to 10% was lower than that under an air flow because many oxidation agents such as ozone and OH radical were produced under the O(2) gas flow.