Three Cases of Ampullary Neuroendocrine Tumor Treated by Endoscopic Papillectomy: A Case Report and Literature Review.

We herein report three cases of patients with an ampullary neuroendocrine tumor (NET), who underwent endoscopic papillectomy (EP). No tumor recurrence or metastasis was detected in the patients for more than two years after EP. Generally, surgical resection is recommended for ampullary NETs by the European Neuroendocrine Tumor Society.

Differential sensitivity to detect prosocial effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in different social approach paradigms in mice.

A recreational drug, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), has prosocial effects including increased sociability, enhancement of trust feelings, and empathy. Although several methods, such as the social interaction and three chamber tests, have been used, the neural mechanisms underlying the prosocial effects have not been well understood. In the present study, based on a social approach paradigm using a single-chamber apparatus, we have developed two reproducible and simple social approach tests, SAT1 and SAT2, in ICR mice.

[Rapid Expansion of Distal Aortic Arch Aneurysm with the Short Elephant Trunk;Report of a Case].

A 78-year-old female patient was introduced to our hospital with chief complaint of massive hemoptysis. She had a history of total arch replacement using a short elephant trunk for acute Stanford type A aortic dissection 3 years before. A contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) revealed kinking of the short elephant trunk and distal aortic arch aneurysm which caused aortobronchial fistula.

[Surgical Results for Left Ventricular Thrombus Formation after Myocardial Infarction].

We aimed to review the surgical results of left ventricular restoration for left ventricular thrombus after myocardial infarction. A retrospective study was conducted on 5 patients who underwent thrombus removal and left ventricular restoration for left ventricular thrombus after myocardial infarction. Two patients were in an acute phase of myocardial infarction, and 3 in a chronic phase.

[A Case of Neuroendcrine Carcinoma of the Prostate Diagnosed by Prostate Re-Biopsy during Hormonal Treatment and Effectively Treated by Multidisciplinary Therapy].

A 73-year-old Japanese man visited the urology clinic with the chief complaint of gross hematuria in June 2015. His prostate specific antigen (PSA) level was 146.7 ng/ml and he was diagnosed with prostate adenocarcinoma with a Gleason Score of 5+4.

Dysregulation of Type II Transmembrane Serine Proteases and Ligand-Dependent Activation of MET in Urological Cancers.

Unlike in normal epithelium, dysregulated overactivation of various proteases have been reported in cancers. Degradation of pericancerous extracellular matrix leading to cancer cell invasion by matrix metalloproteases is well known evidence. On the other hand, several cell-surface proteases, including type II transmembrane serine proteases (TTSPs), also induce progression through activation of growth factors, protease activating receptors and other proteases.

Successful Endoscopic Sclerotherapy Using Polidocanol for Small Bowel Hemangioma.

Small-bowel hemangiomas are a possible source of gastrointestinal bleeding for which there is no established treatment approach. In this report, we describe the case of a 58-year-old woman who presented with hematochezia and who was diagnosed with small bowel hemangioma. She was successfully treated using endoscopic sclerotherapy.

Rectal Arteriovenous Malformation Treated by Transcatheter Arterial Embolization.

An 86-year-old man who presented with frequent hematochezia with mild anemia on blood tests was admitted to our hospital. Colonoscopy exhibited a submucosal tumor-like lesion in the lower rectum. CT and MRI showed blood flow into the lesion, but not tumor component.

Synergistic anti-tumor efficacy by combination therapy of a self-assembled nanogel vaccine with an immune checkpoint anti-PD-1 antibody.

Therapeutic strategies for cancer involving immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been gaining widespread attention, but their efficacy remains limited. Thus, combination of ICI therapies with other therapeutic modalities may be required to improve their outcomes. In this study, we examined the improved efficacy of a CHP nanogel-based vaccine delivery system after combination with ICI therapy.

Detection of retinal microvascular changes in von Hippel-Lindau disease using optical coherence tomography angiography.

Purpose: Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease is a hereditary disorder that can lead to ophthalmic manifestations, including retinal capillary hemangioma (RCH). The diagnosis of RCH is often guided by wide-field fluorescein angiography. In some cases, optical coherence tomography angiography (OCT-A) serves as a non-invasive alternative to FA.

Post-annealed graphite carbon nitride nanoplates obtained by sugar-assisted exfoliation with improved visible-light photocatalytic performance.

Two-dimensional (2D) graphitic carbon nitride (g-CN) nanoplates (CNNP) have become a hot research topic in photocatalysis due to their small thickness and large specific surface area that favors charge transport and catalytic surface reactions. However, the wide application of 2D g-CN nanoplates prepared by ordinary methods suffers from increased band gaps with a poor solar harvesting capability caused by the strong quantum confinement effect and reduced conjugation distance. In this paper, a facile approach of exfoliation and the following fast thermal treatment of the bulk g-CN is proposed to obtain a porous few-layered g-CN with nitrogen defects.

Inguinal bladder hernia treated using transabdominal preperitoneal approach: A case report.

Introduction: Inguinal bladder hernia (IBH) is a rare condition that is difficult to diagnose preoperatively based only on physical examination; 16% of IBHs are diagnosed postoperatively due to complications.

Presentation Of Case: We report the case of a 56-year-old man who presented with left inguinal swelling and increased frequency of urination since eight years. Physical examination demonstrated a 6 × 4 cm non-reducible left inguinal bulge with mild tenderness on palpation.

Late-Onset Retinal Findings and Complications in Untreated Retinopathy of Prematurity.

Purpose: To investigate late retinal findings and complications of eyes with a history of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) that did not meet treatment criteria and did not receive treatment during infancy.

Design: Retrospective, nonconsecutive, noncomparative, multicenter case series.

Participants: Three hundred sixty-three eyes of 186 patients.

The impact of PARPs and ADP-ribosylation on inflammation and host-pathogen interactions.

Poly-adenosine diphosphate-ribose polymerases (PARPs) promote ADP-ribosylation, a highly conserved, fundamental posttranslational modification (PTM). PARP catalytic domains transfer the ADP-ribose moiety from NAD to amino acid residues of target proteins, leading to mono- or poly-ADP-ribosylation (MARylation or PARylation). This PTM regulates various key biological and pathological processes.

Expanding the phenotypic spectrum in RDH12-associated retinal disease.

Retinol dehydrogenase 12, RDH12, plays a pivotal role in the visual cycle to ensure the maintenance of normal vision. Alterations in activity of this protein result in photoreceptor death and decreased vision beginning at an early age and progressing to substantial vision loss later in life. Here we describe 11 patients with retinal degeneration that underwent next-generation sequencing (NGS) with a targeted panel of all currently known inherited retinal degeneration (IRD) genes and whole-exome sequencing to identify the genetic causality of their retinal disease.

The 'step-clipping' method: a guide for identifying a previously bleeding colonic diverticulum.

Unsatisfactory detectability of a previously bleeding diverticulum by colonoscopy results from difficulty in precisely locating the target lesion, even with presence of an extravasation on contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT). This study aimed to evaluate the usefulness of the step-clipping method to overcome this limitation.  Step-clipping was indicated for patients with colonic diverticular bleeding and presence of extravasation on CECT, but with absence of active bleeding on subsequent colonoscopy.

PI3Kδ as a Novel Therapeutic Target in Pathological Angiogenesis.

Diabetic retinopathy is the most common microvascular complication of diabetes, and in the advanced diabetic retinopathy appear vitreal fibrovascular membranes that consist of a variety of cells, including vascular endothelial cells (ECs). New therapeutic approaches for this diabetic complication are urgently needed. Here, we report that in cultured human retinal microvascular ECs, high glucose induced expression of p110δ, which was also expressed in ECs of fibrovascular membranes from patients with diabetes.

Antigen Delivery to Antigen-Presenting Cells for Adaptive Immune Response by Self-Assembled Anionic Polysaccharide Nanogel Vaccines.

Although current vaccine technology induces sufficient antibody responses to prophylactically ward off viral infections, an anticancer vaccine that directs the patient's immune system to directly fight extant malignant cells will require inducing Th1 and cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses in addition to antibody-mediated activities. Thus, new mechanisms are necessary to deliver antigen to cells in the lymphatic system that will induce these responses. To this end, we have developed a cholesterol-bearing pullulan (CHP) self-assembly nanogel of less than 100 nm, which we have now further modified to be anionic by carboxyl group substitution.

Synthesis and Comparative Structure-Activity Study of Carbohydrate-Based Phenolic Compounds as α-Glucosidase Inhibitors and Antioxidants.

Twenty-one natural and unnatural phenolic compounds containing a carbohydrate moiety were synthesized and their structure-activity relationship (SAR) was evaluated for α-glucosidase inhibition and antioxidative activity. Varying the position of the galloyl unit on the 1,5-anhydro-d-glucitol (1,5-AG) core resulted in changes in the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity and notably, particularly strong activity was demonstrated when the galloyl unit was present at the C-2 position. Furthermore, increasing the number of the galloyl units significantly affected the α-glucosidase inhibition, and 2,3,4,6-tetra-galloyl-1,5-AG () and 2,3,4,6-tetra-galloyl-d-glucopyranose () exhibited excellent activities, which were more than 13-fold higher than the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of acertannin ().