[Relationships between smoking and eating habits or behavior in male students].

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate relationships between smoking and eating habits or behavior in male students.

Methods: We performed a questionnaire regarding smoking, eating habits, eating behavior, and the frequency of food intake for 277 male students. We also measured bone mass by a quantitative ultrasound device, along with height, weight, body fat, and gripping power.

Cytoplasmic RASSF2A is a proapoptotic mediator whose expression is epigenetically silenced in gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer cells often show altered Ras signaling, though the underlying molecular mechanism is not fully understood. We examined the expression profile of eight ras-association domain family (RASSF) genes plus MST1/2 and found that RASSF2A is the most frequently downregulated in gastric cancer. RASSF2A was completely silenced in 6 of 10 gastric cancer cell lines as a result of promoter methylation, and expression was restored by treating the cells with 5-aza-2'-deoxycytidine.

Effect of a long-term treatment with a low-dose granulocyte colony-stimulating factor on post-infarction process in the heart.

Although beneficial effects of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) have been demonstrated on post-myocardia infarction (MI) process, the mechanisms and feasibility are not fully agreed yet. We investigated effects of a long-term treatment with a low-dose G-CSF started 1 day after the onset of MI, on post-infarction process. One day after being made MI by left coronary ligation, mice were given G-CSF (10 microg/kg/day) for 4 weeks.

Feasibility trial of adjuvant chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin after surgical resection in Japanese patients with non-small cell lung cancer: report of the Lung Oncology Group in Kyushu (LOGIK) protocol 0501.

Objectives: The present study was designed to determine whether adjuvant chemotherapy with paclitaxel (TXL) and carboplatin (CBDCA) after surgical resection is feasible in Japanese patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in a multiinstitutional trial.

Methods: From August 2005 to March 2006, 34 patients received the following regimen: TXL (175 mg/m2) and CBDCA (AUC = 5) on day 1, every 3 weeks. The primary endpoint of this trial was the completion rate of four cycles.

Identification of flotillin-2, a major protein on lipid rafts, as a novel target of p53 family members.

p73 and p63 are members of the p53 gene family and have been shown to play an important role in development and homeostasis mainly by regulating the transcription of a variety of genes. A subset of these genes encodes secreted proteins and receptors that may be involved in the communication between adjacent cells. We report here that flotillin-2, a major hydrophobic protein on biomembrane microdomain lipid rafts, is a direct transcriptional target of the p53 family member genes.

Epigenetic inactivation of RASSF2 in oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Genetic and epigenetic alterations in tumor-suppressor genes play important roles in human neoplasia. Ras signaling is often activated in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), although Ras mutations are rarely detected in Japanese OSCC patients, and the mechanisms underlying the gene's activation remain unclear. Here, we examined the expression of Ras association family (RASSF) genes in a panel of OSCC cell lines and found that RASSF2 is often downregulated by DNA methylation in OSCC cells.

Genetic classification of ovarian carcinoma based on microsatellite analysis: relationship to clinicopathological features and patient survival.

Ovarian carcinomas can progress through two pathways of genomic instability: chromosomal instability (CIN) and microsatellite instability (MSI). However, it is unknown whether these two mechanisms could be distinguished from each other in the molecular characteristics in ovarian carcinomas. We hypothesized that these two pathways are not always independent in ovarian carcinomas.

Does intensive management of cerebral hemodynamics and atheromatous aorta reduce stroke after coronary artery surgery?

Background: Atheromatous aorta and carotid artery disease are known predictors for stroke after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). The clinical significance of intracranial cerebral artery disease is not known. This study was designed to determine whether a therapeutic strategy based on perioperative detection of intracranial and extracranial occlusive cerebrovascular disease and atheromatous aorta could reduce perioperative stroke.

High incidence of GalNAc disialosyl lactotetraosylceramide in metastatic renal cell carcinoma.

Background: In renal cell carcinoma (RCC), glycosphingolipids monosialosyl globopentaosylceramide (MSGb5) and GalNAc disialosyl lactotetraosylceramide (GaINAcDSLc4) were shown to be predictors of metastasis. Here we extended the research using a larger cohort of patients with a longer follow-up period, and reevaluate their relationship to malignant potential, metastasis and prognosis in patients with RCC.

Patients And Methods: MSGb5 and GalNAcDSLc4 were examined in 114 primary RCCs by immunohistochemical method on cryostat sections.

Treatment with an adenoviral vector encoding hepatocyte growth factor mitigates established cardiac dysfunction in doxorubicin-induced cardiomyopathy.

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) reportedly exerts beneficial effects on the heart following myocardial infarction and during nonischemic cardiomyopathy, but the precise mechanisms underlying the latter have not been well elucidated. We generated nonischemic cardiomyopathy in mice by injecting them with doxorubicin (15 mg/kg ip). Two weeks later, when cardiac dysfunction was apparent, an adenoviral vector encoding human HGF gene (Ad.

Nutritional effects of gamma-glutamyl carboxylase gene polymorphism on the correlation between the vitamin K status and gamma-carboxylation of osteocalcin in young males.

Vitamin K is a cofactor for gamma-glutamyl carboxylase (GGCX), which is an essential enzyme for the gamma-carboxylation of vitamin K-dependent proteins such as osteocalcin (OC). Associations among dietary vitamin K intake, vitamin K status, and bone metabolism have not been thoroughly investigated. Recently, it has been reported that single nucleotide polymorphisms of GGCX (R325Q, 974G>A) were associated with age-related bone loss and the kinetic affinity for the substrate.

Effects of dietary lactose on long-term high-fat-diet-induced obesity in rats.

Objective: In this study, we examined the effects of lactose on long-term high-fat-diet-induced obesity in rats.

Research Methods And Procedures: A total of 112 Sprague-Dawley strain female rats (6 weeks old) were divided into four groups: a basic control diet group (Cont), 10% lactose diet group (Lac), high-fat diet group (Fat), and high-fat with 10% lactose diet group (Fat+Lac). After 0, 7, 14, and 84 days from starting the experimental diet, the animals were fasted overnight and killed by bleeding from the abdominal aorta under anesthesia (n = 8 or 9/group).

Intrathoracic ganglioneuroma in an elderly patient over 70 years of age.

We herein present an exceedingly rare case of intrathoracic ganglioneuroma that was surgically resected in an elderly patient over 70 years of age. A 74-year-old woman was asymptomatic, but a computed tomography (CT) scan of the thorax indicated the presence of a posterior mediastinal mass paravertebrally. A thoracotomy was thus performed under a strongly suggested diagnosis of a neurogenic tumor because of the appearance and position of the mass on the chest CT and magnetic resonance imaging findings, and measuring 6.

Observation of interactions of human serum components with transferrin by affinity capillary electrophoresis.

Interaction of human transferrin (TF) with human serum components was investigated by affinity capillary electrophoresis. It was found that any peaks of human serum protein fractions did not give migration time change on addition of intact TF to running buffer (50mM phosphate buffer, pH 7.5), whereas two peaks belonging to alpha-globulin fraction showed marked acceleration upon addition of desialylated TF.

A long-term survivor after aggressive treatment for tracheal adenoid cystic carcinoma: a case report.

A 61-year-old male underwent a tracheal resection and reconstruction with omentopexy for the treatment of tracheal adenoid cystic carcinoma. Postoperatively, he received radiotherapy for a microscopic residual tumor of the tracheal margin. It recurred with pulmonary metastasis and para-esophageal lymph nodal metastasis at 7 years and 10 months after the initial operation.

Gene amplification and overexpression of PRDM14 in breast cancers.

Several genes that encode PR (PRDI-BF1 and RIZ) domain proteins (PRDM) have been linked to human cancers. To explore the role of the PR domain family genes in breast carcinogenesis, we examined the expression profiles of 16 members of the PRDM gene family in a panel of breast cancer cell lines and primary breast cancer specimens using semiquantitative real-time PCR. We found that PRDM14 mRNA is overexpressed in about two thirds of breast cancers; moreover, immunohistochemical analysis showed that expression of PRDM14 protein is also up-regulated.

Enhancement effects of vitamin K1 (phylloquinone) or vitamin K2 (menaquinone-4) on intestinal alkaline phosphatase activity in rats.

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) hydrolyzes a variety of monophosphate esters into inorganic phosphoric acid and alcohol at a high optimal pH, and is thought to play an important role in phosphate metabolism. Intestinal ALP, located at the brush border of intestinal epithelial cells, is known to be affected by several kinds of nutrients, but little is known about the physiological function of intestinal ALP Vitamin K is an essential cofactor for the post-translational carboxylation of glutamate residues into gamma-carboxy glutamate (Gla). Recently, novel functions of vitamin K have been clarified, but no data exist on the relation between vitamin K and intestinal ALP.

EGG-3 regulates cell-surface and cortex rearrangements during egg activation in Caenorhabditis elegans.

Fertilization triggers egg activation and converts the egg into a developing embryo. The events of this egg-to-embryo transition typically include the resumption of meiosis, the reorganization of the cortical actin cytoskeleton, and the remodeling of the oocyte surface. The factors that regulate sperm-dependent egg-activation events are not well understood.

Sesquiterpene lactone suppresses vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation and migration via inhibition of cell cycle progression.

Abnormal vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation and migration are involved in restenosis following percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTCA) as well as in the development and progression of atherosclerosis. We investigated the mechanisms underlying the inhibitory effect of the sesquiterpene 3-oxo-5alphaH,8betaH-eudesma-1,4(15),7(11)-trien-8,12-olide (1) on rat VSMC proliferation and migration. VSMCs were isolated from rat aorta, and then the effect of 1 on cell proliferation and migration was examined using methylthiazolyldiphenyl-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) and chemotaxis assays, respectively.

Hepatic lesion of invasive thymoma: possibility of direct invasion.

Thymomas grow slowly but tend to invade the surrounding tissue. We herein report four patients with hepatic lesions of thymomas, which were thought to have directly invaded the liver. These patients had received combined modality treatments throughout the clinical course, and the hepatic lesions appeared a long time after the initial treatment - 11.

PRDM5 identified as a target of epigenetic silencing in colorectal and gastric cancer.

Purpose: PR (PRDI-BF1 and RIZ) domain proteins (PRDM) are a subfamily of the kruppel-like zinc finger gene products that play key roles during cell differentiation and malignant transformation. The aim of the present study was to begin to examine the involvement of epigenetic alteration of PRDM expression in gastric and colorectal cancer.

Experimental Design: We used real-time PCR to assess expression of PRDM1-17.

Frequent epigenetic inactivation of DICKKOPF family genes in human gastrointestinal tumors.

Activation of Wnt signaling has been implicated in tumorigenesis, and epigenetic silencing of Wnt antagonist genes has been detected in various cancers. In the present study, we examined the expression and methylation of DICKKOPF (DKK) family genes in gastrointestinal cancer cell lines. We found that all known DKK genes were frequently silenced in colorectal cancer (CRC) cells (DKK1, 3/9, 33%; DKK2, 8/9, 89%; DKK3, 5/9, 56% and DKK4, 5/9, 56%), but not in normal colon mucosa.

Amlodipine inhibits granulation tissue cell apoptosis through reducing calcineurin activity to attenuate postinfarction cardiac remodeling.

Although amlodipine, a long-acting L-type calcium channel blocker, reportedly prevents left ventricular remodeling and dysfunction after myocardial infarction, the mechanism responsible is not yet well understood. Myocardial infarction was induced in mice by ligating the left coronary artery. Treatment of mice with amlodipine (10 mg x kg(-1) x day(-1)), beginning on the third day postinfarction, significantly improved survival and attenuated left ventricular dilatation and dysfunction 4 wk postinfarction compared with treatment with saline or hydralazine.