Autoimmune Gastritis with a Long-term Course of Type B Gastritis: A Report of Two Cases.

Autoimmune gastritis (AIG) typically exhibits the characteristics of type A gastritis and has been classified as a separate disease from type B gastritis that corresponds to Helicobacter pylori gastritis. However, many reports have suggested the involvement of H. pylori infection in the pathogenesis of AIG.

Role of Ras in regulation of intestinal epithelial cell homeostasis and crosstalk with Wnt signaling.

Cross talk between different signaling pathways is thought to be important for regulation of homeostasis of, as well as oncogenesis of, the intestinal epithelium. Expression of an active form of K-Ras specifically in intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) of mice (IEC-RasDA mice) resulted in the development of hyperplasia in the small intestine and colon of mice. IEC-RasDA mice also manifested the increased proliferation of IECs.

Photodynamic therapy for radiation maculopathy: A case report.

Rationale: The best treatment protocol for radiation maculopathy in children has not been determined. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of photodynamic therapy (PDT) on radiation maculopathy.

Patient Concerns: An 11-year-old boy who was originally diagnosed with orbital rhabdomyosarcoma when he was 1 year old, in October 2008.

Regulation of colonic epithelial cell homeostasis by mTORC1.

Cell signaling important for homeostatic regulation of colonic epithelial cells (CECs) remains poorly understood. Mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1), a protein complex that contains the serine-threonine kinase mTOR, mediates signaling that underlies the control of cellular functions such as proliferation and autophagy by various external stimuli. We here show that ablation of tuberous sclerosis complex 2 (Tsc2), a negative regulator of mTORC1, specifically in intestinal epithelial cells of mice resulted in increased activity of mTORC1 of, as well as increased proliferative activity of, CECs.

Effects of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs on the Self-renewal Capacity of Blast Progenitors in Hematological Malignancies.

Background: With our newly established long-term suspension culture, we investigated the effects of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) on the self-renewal capacity of blast progenitors in seven hematological malignant cell lines.

Materials And Methods: Cyclo-oxygenase inhibitors NS-398 (NS) or indomethacin heptyl ester (indomethacin) at 30 μM was added to the cell culture. In U-937 cells, indomethacin was added at 0.

The Relationship between Corvis ST Tonometry Measured Corneal Parameters and Intraocular Pressure, Corneal Thickness and Corneal Curvature.

The purpose of the study was to investigate the correlation between Corneal Visualization Scheimpflug Technology (Corvis ST tonometry: CST) parameters and various other ocular parameters, including intraocular pressure (IOP) with Goldmann applanation tonometry. IOP with Goldmann applanation tonometry (IOP-G), central corneal thickness (CCT), axial length (AL), corneal curvature, and CST parameters were measured in 94 eyes of 94 normal subjects. The relationship between ten CST parameters against age, gender, IOP-G, AL, CST-determined CCT and average corneal curvature was investigated using linear modeling.

Lactate dehydrogenase-linked immunoglobulin Akappa in a patient with nonimmune chronic idiopathic neutropenia.

A 39-year-old patient with cervical cancer, stage Ia, was successfully treated by total hysterectomy. Then, after sustained neutropenia for more than 4 years and coincident with its exacerbation, the serum lactate dehydrogenase (LD) level started to elevate and reached a plateau. A test for antineutrophil antibody was negative and LD-3-linked IgAkappa, which may be responsible for high LD activity, was confirmed.

Serum levels of Thl/Th2 cytokines, angiogenic growth factors, and other prognostic factors in young adult patients with hemophagocytic syndrome.

Serum levels of T helper 1 (Th1)/T helper 2 (Th2) cytokines, angiogenic growth factors, and other prognostic factors were measured in 5 young adult patients with virus-associated hemophagocytic syndrome (HPS). Levels of 2 Th1 cytokines (interleukin [IL]-18 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha), 2 Th2 cytokines (IL-10 and IL-6), and 2 angiogenic growth factors (soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 and hepatocyte growth factor) were high in all of the patients examined, whereas those of Th1 cytokines such as IL-12 and macrophage inflammatory protein-1a were normal or low. Levels of IL-18 and IL-10 were highest in case 2, with a fatal outcome, and were lowest in case 4, with rapid recovery within 1 month.

Relation between chromosomal aberrations and radiation dose during the process of TBI.

Purpose: The purposes of this study were (1) to consider the dose-response relationship in-vivo at high dose range by using the Colcemid method, which begins with predicting the risk of future late complication caused by a fixed dose of chromosomal aberration of peripheral lymphocytes after radiation emission and (2) to compare in-vivo and in-vitro dose-responses for chromosomal aberrations in lymphocytes of cancer patients undergoing total body irradiation (TBI).

Methods: Eight patients diagnosed with hematological malignancies entered this study. TBI planning with a 6 MV linear accelerator consisted of 4 Gy/2 fractions/day, and the total treatment dose was 12 Gy.

Amplification of inhibitory activity of catechin against disease-related enzymes by conjugation on poly(epsilon-lysine).

A new inhibitor against disease-related enzymes, collagenase, hyaluronidase, and xanthine oxidase, has been developed by the laccase-catalyzed conjugation of catechin on poly(epsilon-lysine). The resulting poly(epsilon-lysine)-catechin conjugate showed greatly improved inhibition effects on activity of these enzymes, whereas the catechin monomer showed very low inhibition activity. The kinetic analysis on the inhibition of collagenase exhibited that the conjugate was a mixed-type inhibitor.