A Case of Solitary Peutz-Jeghers Syndrome Leading to Chronic Small Bowel Obstruction Due to Intussusception From a Large Hamartomatous Polyp.

We report a case of a 33-year-old male who presented to the emergency department with a three-day history of severe diffuse abdominal pain associated with anorexia, nausea, and vomiting. Computed tomography (CT) imaging of the abdomen and pelvis revealed a long segment of intussusception in the proximal jejunum and a round lesion along the intussusception with punctate hyperdensities. The patient underwent a diagnostic laparoscopy converted to open small bowel resection and end-to-end anastomosis that demonstrated a pedunculated jejunal mass.

Circadian rhythm disruption linked to skeletal muscle dysfunction in the Mexican Cavefish.

It has become clear that circadian clocks in peripheral tissues play important functions. Disruption of the circadian clock in skeletal muscle, for example, results in insulin resistance, sarcomere disorganization, and muscle weakness. Interestingly, cavefish, which exhibit a disrupted central clock, exhibit similar muscle phenotypes, raising the question of whether they are caused by alterations to central or peripheral clocks.

The Mexican Cavefish Mount a Rapid and Sustained Regenerative Response Following Skeletal Muscle Injury.

Physical injury and tissue damage is prevalent throughout the animal kingdom, with the ability to quickly and efficiently regenerate providing a selective advantage. The skeletal muscle possesses a uniquely large regenerative capacity within most vertebrates, and has thus become an important model for investigating cellular processes underpinning tissue regeneration. Following damage, the skeletal muscle mounts a complex regenerative cascade centered around dedicated muscle stem cells termed satellite cells.

Circadian rhythm disruption is associated with skeletal muscle dysfunction within the blind Mexican Cavefish.

Circadian control of physiology and metabolism is pervasive throughout nature, with circadian disruption contributing to premature aging, neurodegenerative disease, and type 2 diabetes (Musiek et al. 2016; Panda, 2016). It has become increasingly clear that peripheral tissues, such as skeletal muscle, possess cell-autonomous clocks crucial for metabolic homeostasis (Gabriel et al.

Metabolic reprogramming underlies cavefish muscular endurance despite loss of muscle mass and contractility.

Physical inactivity is a scourge to human health, promoting metabolic disease and muscle wasting. Interestingly, multiple ecological niches have relaxed investment into physical activity, providing an evolutionary perspective into the effect of adaptive physical inactivity on tissue homeostasis. One such example, the Mexican cavefish has lost moderate-to-vigorous activity following cave colonization, reaching basal swim speeds ~3.

Liver-derived cell lines from cavefish Astyanax mexicanus as an in vitro model for studying metabolic adaptation.

Cell lines have become an integral resource and tool for conducting biological experiments ever since the Hela cell line was first developed (Scherer et al. in J Exp Med 97:695-710, 1953). They not only allow detailed investigation of molecular pathways but are faster and more cost-effective than most in vivo approaches.

The metabolome of Mexican cavefish shows a convergent signature highlighting sugar, antioxidant, and Ageing-Related metabolites.

Insights from organisms, which have evolved natural strategies for promoting survivability under extreme environmental pressures, may help guide future research into novel approaches for enhancing human longevity. The cave-adapted Mexican tetra, , has attracted interest as a model system for , a term we use to denote the property of maintaining health and longevity under conditions that would be highly deleterious in other organisms (Figure 1). Cave-dwelling populations of Mexican tetra exhibit elevated blood glucose, insulin resistance and hypertrophic visceral adipocytes compared to surface-dwelling counterparts.

Enhanced lipogenesis through Pparγ helps cavefish adapt to food scarcity.

Nutrient availability varies seasonally and spatially in the wild. While many animals, such as hibernating animals or migrating birds, evolved strategies to overcome periods of nutrient scarcity, the cellular mechanisms of these strategies are poorly understood. Cave environments represent an example of nutrient-deprived environments, since the lack of sunlight and therefore primary energy production drastically diminishes the nutrient availability.

Lipid metabolism in adaptation to extreme nutritional challenges.

Food shortages represent a common challenge for most animal species. As a consequence, many have evolved metabolic strategies encompassing extreme starvation-resistance capabilities, going without food for months or even years. One such strategy is to store substantial levels of fat when food is available and release these energy-rich lipids during periods of dearth.

Comparative transcriptome analysis of wild and lab populations of Astyanax mexicanus uncovers differential effects of environment and morphotype on gene expression.

Studying how different genotypes respond to environmental variation is essential to understand the genetic basis of adaptation. The Mexican tetra, Astyanax mexicanus, has cave and surface-dwelling morphotypes that have adapted to entirely different environments in the wild, and are now successfully maintained in lab conditions. While this has enabled the identification of genetic adaptations underlying a variety of physiological processes, few studies have directly compared morphotypes between lab-reared and natural populations.

MAPK, androgen, and glucocorticoid receptor phosphorylation following high-frequency resistance exercise non-functional overreaching.

Purpose: Stressful training with insufficient recovery can impair muscle performance. Expression of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) has been reported at rest following overreaching and overtraining. The acute myocellular exercise response to stressful training with insufficient recovery has not been investigated.

Skeletal muscle signaling responses to resistance exercise of the elbow extensors are not compromised by a preceding bout of aerobic exercise.

The current study examined the effects of a preceding bout of aerobic exercise (AE) on subsequent molecular signaling to resistance exercise (RE) of the elbow extensors. Eleven men performed unilateral elbow-extensor AE (~45 min at 70% peak workload) followed by unilateral RE (4 × 7 maximal repetitions) for both arms. Thus, one arm performed AE+RE interspersed with 15 min recovery, whereas the other arm conducted RE alone.

The skeletal muscle fiber: a mechanically sensitive cell.

The plasticity of skeletal muscle, whether an increase in size, change in metabolism, or alteration in structural properties, is in a continuous state of flux largely dependent upon physical activity. Much of the past research has expounded upon these ever-changing aspects of the muscle fiber following exercise. Specifically, endocrine and paracrine signaling have been heavily investigated lending to much of the past literature comprised of such endocrinological dynamics following muscle activity.