Acute and chronic toxicity tests of systemic insecticides, four neonicotinoids and fipronil, using the tadpoles of the western clawed frog Silurana tropicalis.

Extensive use of neonicotinoids and fipronil, which are popular systemic insecticides used in Japanese rice paddies, has raised concerns about their impacts on nontarget aquatic organisms such as amphibians. This study employed premetamorphic tadpoles of Silurana tropicalis and addressed the toxicity of four neonicotinoids (acetamiprid, clothianidin, dinotefuran, and imidacloprid) and fipronil. Acute toxicity tests were conducted under a 96-h semistatic exposure regime and median lethal concentration (LC50) values were calculated at 24-h intervals.

Chronic toxicity of 1,3,5-triazine herbicides in the postembryonic development of the western clawed frog Silurana tropicalis.

Seven 1,3,5- triazine (s-triazine) herbicides (ametryn, prometryn, dimethametryn, simazine, atrazine, propazine, and cyanazine) were tested using an amphibian (Silurana tropicalis) metamorphosis assay focusing on morphometric, gravimetric, and thyroid-histological endpoints. Premetamorphic tadpoles were exposed to each s-triazine at 2 concentrations between 1/1000 and 1/10 of the 96-h acute toxicity values, until all tadpoles in the control group reached either the late prometamorphosic stages or the initial stage of metamorphic climax. All s-triazines tested induced significant retardation in growth and development at the higher concentrations (0.

Prediction of the preoperative chemoradiotherapy response for rectal cancer by peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets.

Background: Although neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT) has become a standard procedure to downstage locally advanced rectal cancer prior to surgery, markers to predict the response to CRT have not been fully identified. The aim of this study was to identify predictive factors of response to CRT, especially focusing on peripheral blood leukocyte subsets.

Methods: A total of 45 consecutive patients diagnosed with primary rectal cancer were prospectively enrolled and received CRT followed by curative resection.

Temsirolimus and chloroquine cooperatively exhibit a potent antitumor effect against colorectal cancer cells.

Purpose: Temsirolimus (TEM) is a novel, water-soluble mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitor that has shown activity against a wide range of cancers in preclinical models, but its efficacy against colorectal cancer (CRC) has not been fully explored.

Methods: We evaluated the antitumor effect of TEM in CRC cell lines (CaR-1, HT-29, Colon26) in vitro and in vivo. In vitro, cell growth inhibition was assessed using a MTS assay.

Tsunami: ocean dynamo generator.

Secondary magnetic fields are induced by the flow of electrically conducting seawater through the Earth's primary magnetic field ('ocean dynamo effect'), and hence it has long been speculated that tsunami flows should produce measurable magnetic field perturbations, although the signal-to-noise ratio would be small because of the influence of the solar magnetic fields. Here, we report on the detection of deep-seafloor electromagnetic perturbations of 10-micron-order induced by a tsunami, which propagated through a seafloor electromagnetometer array network. The observed data extracted tsunami characteristics, including the direction and velocity of propagation as well as sea-level change, first to verify the induction theory.

Changes in the plasma levels of cytokines/chemokines for predicting the response to chemoradiation therapy in rectal cancer patients.

In the present study, we aimed to characterize the predictive value of cytokines/chemokines in rectal cancer (RC) patients receiving chemoradiation therapy (CRT). Blood samples were obtained pre- and post-CRT from 35 patients with advanced RC, who received neoadjuvant CRT followed by surgery, and the correlation between plasma levels of cytokines/chemokines and the response to CRT was analyzed. The pre-CRT levels of soluble CD40-ligand (sCD40L) and the post-CRT levels of chemokine ligand-5 (CCL-5) were significantly associated with the depth of tumor invasion and with venous invasion.

Application of an amphibian (Silurana tropicalis) metamorphosis assay to the testing of the chronic toxicity of three rice paddy herbicides: simetryn, mefenacet, and thiobencarb.

We examined the chronic toxicity of three rice paddy herbicides (simetryn, mefenacet, and thiobencarb) using an amphibian (Silurana tropicalis) metamorphosis assay (a 28-day semistatic test under an individual-separated exposure system). Each herbicide was tested at two concentrations (1/100 and 1/10 of the 96-h LC50 value reported previously) with morphometric, gravimetric, and thyroid-histological endpoints. Simetryn caused significant retardation in growth and development at both test concentrations (0.

Examination of an amphibian metamorphosis assay under an individual-separated exposure system using Silurana tropicalis tadpoles.

We examined the validity of an amphibian (Silurana tropicalis) metamorphosis assay (a 28-day semistatic test) under an individual-separated exposure system, where tadpoles were individually held in small glass beakers. We first conducted a comparative rearing experiment for 28 days between this exposure system and the traditional individual-grouped exposure system, both of which held 30 tadpoles (stages 49 and 50) in dechlorinated tap water (a control solution). The former system served to reduce interindividual variability in regard to three morphological measures (developmental stage, hind limb length, and total body length).

Hypoxia enhances colon cancer migration and invasion through promotion of epithelial-mesenchymal transition.

Background: A hypoxic environment exists in most solid tumors because in rapidly growing tumors, the development of angiogenic vasculature is heterogenous, usually not enough to overcome the necessary oxygen supply. In an ischemic condition, cancer cells develop escape mechanisms to survive and leave the unfavorable environment. That result in the acquisition of increased potential for local invasion and evasion to distant organs.

Orexin 2 receptor as a potential target for immunotoxin and antibody-drug conjugate cancer therapy.

Targeting tumor-specific receptors is a promising approach for cytotoxic agents. The orexin 2 receptor (OX2R) has reportedly been expressed in a few types of cancer, but not in normal, cells. This study aimed to explore and assess the expression levels of OX2R in a wide range of cancer cell lines and clinical samples to identify its localization.

Resistance of colon cancer to 5-fluorouracil may be overcome by combination with chloroquine, an in vivo study.

Autophagy is a complex of adaptive cellular response that enhances cancer cell survival in the face of cellular stresses such as chemotherapy. Recently, chloroquine diphosphate (CQ), a widely used antimalarial drug, has been studied as a potential inhibitor of autophagy. Here, we aimed to investigate the role of CQ in potentiating the effect of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), the chemotherapeutic agent of first choice for the treatment of colorectal cancer, in an animal model of colon cancer.

Elevated neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio predicts poor prognosis in advanced colorectal cancer patients receiving oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess whether the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and other laboratory markers may predict the prognosis of advanced colorectal cancer (CRC) patients receiving palliative chemotherapy.

Methods: The study population included 50 patients with far advanced or recurrent unresectable CRC who received oxaliplatin-based combination chemotherapy as first-line treatment in our hospital between June 2005 and November 2010. Seven clinical variables and 7 laboratory indices before chemotherapy were evaluated retrospectively as the possible prognostic factors of overall and progression-free survival.

SN-38 overcomes chemoresistance of colorectal cancer cells induced by hypoxia, through HIF1alpha.

Background: Cancer cells can acquire resistance to therapy under hypoxic condition. We aimed to investigate the mechanisms regulating chemoresistance induced by hypoxia.

Materials And Methods: Human colorectal cancer cells, HT-29 and SW480, were cultured under hypoxic conditions and the sensitivity to 5-fluorouracil (FU), oxaliplatin, and SN-38 (active metabolite of irinotecan) was tested.

Radiosensitization of human breast cancer cells to ultraviolet light by 5-fluorouracil.

Ultraviolet light B (UVB) phototherapy is widely used to treat dermatological diseases and therefore may be a potential optional strategy in the treatment of a skin lesion infiltrated by a malignant tumor. Currently, little is known regarding the effect of UVB phototherapy on human breast cancer cells. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of UVB phototherapy, as well as the potential effect of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), the first-line anticancer drug for breast cancer, on radiosensitizing MCF-7 human breast cancer cells, in an attempt to develop new therapeutic strategies for the treatment of locoregional recurrence of breast cancer.

The current status of umbilical cord blood collection in Japanese medical centers: survey of obstetricians.

As the first step of UCB banking, UCB collection has an important role in banking procedures. The aim of this study was to reveal the current status of UCB collection and discuss the management of the UCB bank. We conducted a questionnaire survey at medical centers collecting UCB, followed by semi-structured interviews with some respondents.

A single replacement of histidine to arginine in EGFR-lytic hybrid peptide demonstrates the improved anticancer activity.

We previously reported that novel targeted "hybrid peptide" in which epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) binding peptide was conjugated with lytic-type peptide had selective cytotoxic activity to EGFR expressing cancer cell lines, and in vivo analysis revealed that this EGFR-lytic peptide displayed significant antitumor activity in a xenograft model of human breast cancer which was resistant to tyrosine kinase inhibitor drugs. As an attempt to improve the selective anticancer activity of EGFR-lytic peptide, we modified the EGFR-binding peptide through introducing the mutation of amino acid according to biophysical analysis by biomolecular interaction and circular dichroism (CD) spectra. When cytotoxic activity of EGFR-lytic or EGFR(2R)-lytic hybrid peptides was investigated in various human cancer and normal cell lines, it was demonstrated that EGFR(2R)-lytic, in which second histidine (H) of EGFR-binding peptide was replaced to arginine (R) had 1.

Cross-reactivity of a polyclonal antibody against Chinemys reevesii vitellogenin with the vitellogenins of other turtle species: Chelydra serpentina , Macrochelys temminckii , and Pelodiscus sinensis.

Vitellogenin (VTG), a yolk-precursor protein in oviparous vertebrates, is a useful biomarker for reproductive physiology and environmental estrogenic pollution. To examine interspecific applicability of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for quantifying Chinemys reevesii VTG, we observed cross-reactivity between a polyclonal antibody against Chinemys reevesii VTG and the VTGs from other turtle species: Chelydra serpentina (Chelydridae), Macrochelys temminckii (Chelydridae), and Pelodiscus sinensis (Trionychidae), which are phylogenetically distant from Chinemys reevesii (Geoemydidae). The VTGs of the three species were induced by injecting estradiol 17beta into the turtles and purified by using the EDTA-MgCl(2) precipitation method.

Vitellogenin, a biomarker for environmental estrogenic pollution, of Reeves' pond turtles: analysis of similarity for its amino acid sequence and cognate mRNA expression after exposure to estrogen.

Vitellogenin (VTG), a biomarker for environmental estrogenic pollution, can be detected in the bloodstream of oviparous animals before morphological and functional abnormalities appear due to exposure to environmental estrogens. Reports observing VTG in turtles have been limited. We therefore cloned and sequenced a partial cDNA of VTG in Reeves' pond turtle, Chinemys reevesii.

A field study on serum vitellogenin levels in male Reeves' pond turtles (Chinemys reevesii) from estrogen-contaminated sites and a reference site.

To ascertain whether wild male turtles were influenced by environmental estrogens, we examined serum vitellogenin (VTG) levels of male Reeves' pond turtles (Chinemys reevesii) collected from four study sites (A-D) in Kyoto, Japan. Sites A-C, which were impacted by domestic or industrial wastewater and effluents from sewage treatment plants, were chosen as contaminated sites, and site D was intended as a reference site. This contaminated/reference site characterization was confirmed by measuring estrogenic activities of the water samples collected at each site for over a year.