Publications by authors named "Masaru Akiyama"

Article Synopsis
  • * Initial treatment with cyclophosphamide and prednisolone failed and resulted in serious infections, prompting a shift to cord blood transplantation (CBT) after preconditioning.
  • * Post-transplantation, testing showed the disappearance of the STAT3 Y640F variant, indicating that CBT is a promising treatment for refractory T-LGLL and that this genetic marker can help monitor disease activity.
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A 64-year-old woman presented with agranulocytosis, anemia, and bacteremia, leading to a diagnosis of T-cell large granular lymphocytic leukemia (T-LGLL). A molecular analysis identified a signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) Y640F variant. Initial treatment with cyclophosphamide and prednisolone did not improve her condition, but serious infections were observed.

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A 75-year-old woman presented with significant muscle weakness after statin use. A muscle biopsy revealed necrotizing myopathy, and the patient tested positive for serum anti-3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase (HMGCR) antibodies, leading to a diagnosis of anti-HMGCR immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy (IMNM). Computed tomography revealed intraperitoneal lymphadenopathy, which was diagnosed as a diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

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Article Synopsis
  • Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) mainly affects diastolic function and is linked to altered energy usage; PPARα is implicated in this condition and pemafibrate is a selective modulator that could have therapeutic effects.
  • In a study with 17 type 2 diabetes patients, pemafibrate was administered for 8-16 weeks, with echocardiography used to evaluate changes in diastolic function metrics like E/A ratio and e'.
  • Results showed that pemafibrate significantly improved diastolic function by increasing early diastolic annular velocities (e') and reducing the E/e' ratio, indicating its potential role in preventing DCM in diabetic patients.
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Aims/introduction: Understanding morning-evening variation in metabolic state is critical for managing metabolic disorders. We aimed to characterize this variation from the viewpoints of insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity, including their relevance to the circadian rhythm.

Materials And Methods: A total of 14 and 10 people without diabetes were enrolled, and underwent a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp study, respectively.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigates the protective effects of adrenomedullin (ADM) in pancreatic β-cells, particularly focusing on how pioglitazone enhances ADM expression and secretion to combat endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-induced cell death.
  • - Research indicates that pioglitazone boosts ADM production through specific receptor mechanisms, and that ER stress can increase both ADM and its receptor expressions in islet cells, suggesting a response to stressors.
  • - Findings highlight that boosting ADM levels may offer protection against cell death caused by ER stress, implying that therapies targeting ADM could provide new treatments for diabetes.
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In Wfs1A/a islets, in association with endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, D-site-binding protein (Dbp) expression decreased and Nuclear Factor IL-3 (Nfil3)/E4 Promoter-binding protein 4 (E4bp4) expression increased, leading to reduced DBP transcriptional activity. Similar alterations were observed with chemically-induced ER stress. Transgenic mice expressing E4BP4 under the control of the mouse insulin I gene promoter (MIP), in which E4BP4 in β-cells is expected to compete with DBP for D-box, displayed remarkable glucose intolerance with severely impaired insulin secretion.

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Wolfram syndrome(WFS: OMIM 222300) is a rare recessive neuro-endocrine degenerative disorder, known as DIDMOAD(Diabetes Insipidus, early-onset Diabetes Mellitus, Optic Atrophy and Deafness) syndrome. Most affected individuals carry recessive mutations in the Wolfram syndrome 1 gene(WFS1). The WFS1 protein is an endoplasmic reticulum(ER) embedded protein, which functions in ER calcium homeostasis and unfolded protein responses.

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Article Synopsis
  • Wolfram syndrome (WFS) is a rare genetic disorder that leads to neurologic and endocrinologic decline, featuring symptoms like early-onset diabetes and optic atrophy, with most cases linked to mutations in the WFS1 gene.
  • A study identified 67 patients in Japan, revealing a prevalence of 1 in 710,000, where nearly half exhibited all symptoms of DIDMOAD; early onset of diabetes was common, but other symptoms varied in sequence.
  • Genetic analysis showed a diverse range of WFS1 mutations among participants, with those having complete loss-of-function mutations experiencing earlier symptom onset compared to those with partial loss, highlighting the complexity of the disorder.
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Patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) often exhibit hyperglucagonemia despite hyperglycemia, implicating defective α-cell function. Although endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress has been suggested to underlie β-cell dysfunction in T2D, its role in α-cell biology remains unclear. X-box binding protein 1 (XBP1) is a transcription factor that plays a crucial role in the unfolded protein response (UPR), and its deficiency in β-cells has been reported to impair insulin secretion, leading to glucose intolerance.

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Our objective was simply to report a sedge species, Carex kobomugi Ohwi that has beneficial bacterial associations under low Fe and P conditions of the Hasaki coast, Japan. C. kobomugi is the dominant species in our study area and grows closest to the sea.

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Article Synopsis
  • Type 2 diabetes is characterized by insulin resistance, decreased β-cell mass, and increased α-cell mass, impacting insulin signaling and cell-cycle control in islet cells.
  • Research using human pancreas samples and a mouse model showed that reduced β-cell mass in diabetes correlates with impaired cell-cycle progression and altered expression of key proteins involved in growth regulation.
  • Enhancing insulin signaling and understanding pathways involving proteins like FoxO1 may offer new therapeutic strategies to promote β-cell regeneration in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes.
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Article Synopsis
  • Wolfram syndrome is an autosomal recessive disorder that mainly features juvenile-onset diabetes and optic atrophy, caused by mutations in the WFS1 gene, which affects insulin secretion in pancreatic β-cells.
  • Recent studies show that the WFS1 protein is localized in both the endoplasmic reticulum and secretory granules of pancreatic β-cells, where its absence leads to impaired granular acidification and proinsulin processing.
  • The findings suggest that reduced granular density and acidification in Wfs1-null β-cells contribute to impaired glucose-induced insulin secretion, highlighting new insights into β-cell dysfunction in Wolfram syndrome.
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Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) is a neurological disease that affects immunodeficient patients. We describe here a case of 64-year-old man with IgD type multiple myeloma (MM) who developed progressive neurological symptoms. T(2)-weighted magnetic resonance imaging of the brain showed a hyperintense non-enhancing lesion in the left frontal lobe, and analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid by polymerase chain reaction revealed the presence of John Cunningham virus (JCV) DNA.

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Many coagulation abnormalities are known to coexist in patients with AL amyloidosis; however, disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is rarely observed. We describe the case of a 61-year-old woman who presented with systemic purpura, macroscopic hematuria, and hepatosplenomegaly as the initial manifestations of systemic AL amyloidosis. A coagulation study revealed severe DIC associated with fibrinolysis.

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Objective: The WFS1 gene encodes an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane-embedded protein. Homozygous WFS1 gene mutations cause Wolfram syndrome, characterized by insulin-deficient diabetes mellitus and optic atropy. Pancreatic beta-cells are selectively lost from the patient's islets.

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