Photodynamic therapy for pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma.

Pulmonary mucoepidermoid carcinoma (PMEC) are rare, accounting for 0.1-0.2% of all malignant lung tumors.

Protonation State of a Key Histidine Ligand in the Iron-Quinone Complex of Photosystem II as Revealed by Light-Induced ATR-FTIR Spectroscopy.

The iron-quinone complex in photosystem II (PSII) consists of the two plastoquinone electron acceptors, Q and Q, and a non-heme iron connecting them. It has been suggested that nearby histidine residues play important roles in the electron and proton transfer reactions of the iron-quinone complex in PSII. In this study, we investigated the protonation/deprotonation reaction of D1-H215, which bridges the non-heme iron and Q, using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy.

Clinicopathological characteristics and treatment strategies for young lung cancer patients.

Background: The reported age-specific survival rates of lung cancer patients have been largely inconsistent. Management strategies for younger patients and treatment outcomes are not well characterized.

Methods: Out of the 4,697 lung cancer patients with treatment history at Tokyo Medical University Hospital between January 2000 and December 2014, 266 patients were <49 years of age.

Current Ventilator and Oxygen Management during General Anesthesia: A Multicenter, Cross-sectional Observational Study.

Background: Intraoperative oxygen management is poorly understood. It was hypothesized that potentially preventable hyperoxemia and substantial oxygen exposure would be common during general anesthesia.

Methods: A multicenter, cross-sectional study was conducted to describe current ventilator management, particularly oxygen management, during general anesthesia in Japan.

Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) with Chemotherapy for Advanced Lung Cancer with Airway Stenosis.

Intractable advanced lung cancer can be treated palliatively with photodynamic therapy (PDT) combined with chemotherapy to remove central and peripheral (lobar or segmental bronchi) bronchial stenosis and obstruction. We present data for 12 (eight men, four women) consecutive patients with 13 advanced non-small cell lung carcinomas in whom curative operations were contraindicated, who underwent PDT combined with chemotherapy for local control of the intraluminal lesions. The mean age was 73.

Effectiveness of Polyglycolic Acid Sheet Covering and Platelet-Rich Plasma after Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery for Spontaneous Pneumothorax.

 Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) is widely used for the treatment of spontaneous pneumothorax, and the recurrence rate is high. The goal of the study was to examine the use of polyglycolic acid (PGA) sheets, together with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) from autologous blood for the prevention of postoperative recurrence of spontaneous pneumothorax.  We performed a retrospective study of 65 patients who underwent VATS for spontaneous pneumothorax from March 2008 to November 2011.

Differential effects of propofol and isoflurane on glucose utilization and insulin secretion.

Aims: Volatile anesthetics, such as isoflurane, reverse glucose-induced inhibition of pancreatic adenosine triphosphate-sensitive potassium (K(ATP)) channel activity, resulting in reduced insulin secretion and impaired glucose tolerance. No previous studies have investigated the effects of intravenous anesthetics, such as propofol, on pancreatic K(ATP) channels. We investigated the cellular mechanisms underlying the effects of isoflurane and propofol on pancreatic K(ATP) channels and insulin secretion.

Effects of aging on isoflurane-induced and protein kinase A-mediated activation of ATP-sensitive potassium channels in cultured rat aortic vascular smooth muscle cells.

Isoflurane activates protein kinase A (PKA) in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), which in turn activates ATP-sensitive potassium (K(ATP)) channels and causes vasodilation. The present study was undertaken to examine whether advanced age influences the effect of isoflurane on K(ATP) channel activity in cultured VSMCs. We used VSMCs obtained from 12- to 15-week-old (adult) and 24- to 25-month-old (aged) male Wistar rats.

Bisphosphonate administration prior to tooth extraction delays initial healing of the extraction socket in rats.

Bisphosphonates (BPs) are clinically used for the treatment of bone metabolic abnormalities because they are powerful inhibitors of bone resorption. Osteonecrosis of the jaw has been observed after tooth extraction in a considerable number of BP-treated cancer patients, but the reason for this is not known. We studied the effects of BP on extraction socket healing in rats that were pretreated with BP prior to tooth extraction.

Nitric oxide activates ATP-sensitive potassium channels in mammalian sensory neurons: action by direct S-nitrosylation.

Background: ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels in neurons regulate excitability, neurotransmitter release and mediate protection from cell-death. Furthermore, activation of KATP channels is suppressed in DRG neurons after painful-like nerve injury. NO-dependent mechanisms modulate both KATP channels and participate in the pathophysiology and pharmacology of neuropathic pain.

Distinct roles of left inferior frontal regions that explain individual differences in second language acquisition.

Second language (L2) acquisition is more susceptible to environmental and idiosyncratic factors than first language acquisition. Here, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging for L2 learners of different ages of first exposure (mean: 12.6 and 5.

Bisphosphonate treatment increases the size of the mandibular condyle and normalizes growth of the mandibular ramus in osteoprotegerin-deficient mice.

Osteoprotegerin (OPG) is a novel secreted member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor family which plays a crucial role in negative regulation of osteoclastic bone resorption. OPG-deficient (OPG-/-) mice develop severe osteoporosis caused by significant enhancement of bone resorption by osteoclasts. We investigated the effect of administering bisphosphonate on mandibular growth and development in OPG-/- mice.

Thymolipoma combined with hyperthyroidism discovered by neurological symptoms.

Thymolipomas are rare slow-growing mediastinal thymic neoplasms. Most cases are asymptomatic and are sometimes discovered as a huge mass on chest x-ray films. A few cases have been discovered during examinations for other diseases.

Met-RANTES ameliorates fibrous airway obliteration and decreases ERK expression in a murine model of bronchiolitis obliterans.

Objectives: Bronchiolitis obliterans (BO) is the main cause of late mortality among long-term survivors of lung transplantation. Chemokine-chemokine receptor (CCR) interaction and subsequent recruitment of infiltrating cells to the graft are early events in the development of chronic rejection of transplanted lungs. The present study investigated whether blockade of chemokine receptors CCR1 and CCR5 with Met-regulated-on-activation, normal T cells expressed and secreted (RANTES), an amino-terminal modified derivative of RANTES/CCL5, affects the development of BO in murine model and we sought to determine the expression of RANTES/CCL5 and their relationship with extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK).