[Daily practice using the guidelines for prevention and treatment of osteoporosis. Anti-diabetic agents and fracture risk].

In the developed countries, three major diseases are diabetes, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. The associations between osteoporosis and the latter two conditions are unclear, however, diabetes has been linked to an increased fracture risk, independent of bone mineral density. Recently, thiazolidinediones (TZD) , a new class of anti-diabetic agent which has promising anti-atherogenic effects, has been linked to an increased fracture risk.

Acarbose treatment increases serum total adiponectin levels in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Adiponectin is an anti-diabetic and anti-atherogenic adipokine that serves as a major determinant of insulin sensitivity. Thiazolidine derivatives increase circulating adiponectin, particularly the high molecular weight isoform, which has been shown to well correlate with amelioration of insulin resistance by thiazolidines in diabetic patients. alpha-glucosidase inhibitors are another class of anti-diabetic agents that specifically reduce postprandial blood glucose elevations, but its effect on adiponectin is largely unknown.

Field-induced quantum critical route to a Fermi liquid in high-temperature superconductors.

In high-transition-temperature (T(c)) superconductivity, charge doping is a natural tuning parameter that takes copper oxides from the antiferromagnet to the superconducting region. In the metallic state above T(c), the standard Landau's Fermi-liquid theory of metals as typified by the temperature squared (T(2)) dependence of resistivity appears to break down. Whether the origin of the non-Fermi-liquid behavior is related to physics specific to the cuprates is a fundamental question still under debate.

[Links between osteoporosis and atherosclerosis; beyond insulin resistance].

Both osteoporosis and atherosclerosis progress with aging. For the progression of atherosclerosis, insulin resistance, often resulted from obesity, is one of the established contributing factors. However, obesity, hence insulin resistance, act protectively for bone.

Vortex redistribution below the first-order transition temperature in the beta-pyrochlore superconductor KOs2O6.

A miniature Hall-sensor array was used to detect magnetic induction locally in the vortex states of the beta-pyrochlore superconductor KOs2O6. Below the first-order transition at T{p} approximately 8 K, which is associated with a change in the rattling motion of K ions, the lower critical field and the remanent magnetization both show a distinct decrease, suggesting that the electron-phonon coupling is weakened below the transition. At high magnetic fields, the local induction shows an unexpectedly large jump at T{p} whose sign changes with position inside the sample.

Flux line lattice melting and the formation of a coherent quasiparticle Bloch state in the ultraclean URu2Si2 superconductor.

We find that in the ultraclean heavy-fermion superconductor URu(2)Si(2) (T_{c0}=1.45 K) a distinct flux line lattice melting transition with outstanding characters occurs well below the mean-field upper critical fields. We show that a very small number of carriers with heavy mass in this system results in exceptionally large thermal fluctuations even at sub-Kelvin temperatures, which are witnessed by a sizable region of the flux line liquid phase.

Link between obstructive sleep apnea and increased bone resorption in men.

Unlabelled: The bone metabolic abnormalities in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) were examined. Severity-dependent increases in the serum/urinary levels of bone resorption markers and their attenuation following continuous positive airway pressure therapy in subjects with OSA provide the first evidence of a link between OSA and abnormal bone metabolism.

Introduction: Hypoxia, microinflammation and oxidative stress, well-known pathophysiological features of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), are also known to affect bone metabolism.

[Parathyroid and bone. Bone metabolism in hypoparathyroidism].

Hypoparathyoidism is classified into two categories: PTH deficient and PTH refractory (i.e. pseudohypoparathyrodism [PHP]).

[A case of tuberculous pleurisy with a rapid decrease in pleural effusion].

We report a rare case of tuberculous pleurisy with a rapid decrease in pleural effusion by levofloxacin. A 73-year-old woman admitted due to dyspnea on exertion of one month duration. She had aortitis syndrome which had been treated with oral prednisolone for 6 months.

[Clinical significance of measuring vitamin D metabolites].

For differential diagnosis of rickets/osteomalacia, it is essential to evaluate the level of circulating vitamin D metabolites. Although many other metabolites are present, it is clinically sufficient to assess 25 (OH) D and 1,25 (OH)(2)D. Low "normal" serum 25 (OH) D level does not cause rickets/osteomalacia, but could harm bone health.

[Differential diagnosis of hypoparathyroidism and the Ellsworth-Howard's test].

Presence of hypocalcemia along with normo- or hyper-phosphatemia in the absence of decreased renal function strongly suggests hypoparathyroidism. The first step of differential diagnosis is the measurement of serum intact-PTH level. Less than 30 pg/mL of serum intact-PTH means decreased secretion of PTH, most often associated with post-surgical or idiopathic hypoparathyroidism, and hypomagnesemia.

Long-term remission of cyclic Cushing's disease that was diagnosed and treated surgically in non-active phase.

Cyclic Cushing's disease is a rare clinical entity that is defined as a periodic excessive production of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol. Only 42 cases with cyclic Cushing's disease have been reported in the literature. The diagnosis is very difficult because of the fluctuating secretion of ACTH and cortisol.

Skull metastasis of thyroid papillary carcinoma.

Skull metastasis of thyroid carcinoma is rare. The majority of skull metastases of thyroid carcinoma are of the follicular subtype, rather than thyroid papillary carcinoma. In this report, a 55-year-old woman with skull metastasis from thyroid papillary carcinoma is presented.

TP53 and TP53-related genes associated with protection from apoptosis in the radioadaptive response.

We investigated the effect of administering priming low-dose radiation prior to high-dose radiation on the level of apoptosis and on the expression of TP53 and TP53-related genes in mouse splenocytes. The percentage of apoptotic cells was significantly lower in TP53(+/+) mice receiving priming radiation 2 to 168 h before the high-dose irradiation, compared to TP53(+/+) mice exposed to 2 Gy alone. In contrast, TP53(+/-) mice exhibited a reduced level of apoptosis only when priming was performed for 2 or 4 h prior to the high-dose irradiation.

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-activated gene-1 over expression in transgenic mice suppresses intestinal neoplasia.

Background & Aims: The nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-activated gene (NAG-1) was identified as a proapoptotic, antitumorigenic protein in vitro, induced by many antitumorigenic and chemopreventive drugs including cyclooxygenase inhibitors. However, its antitumorigenic activity has not been elucidated in vivo.

Methods: Transgenic mice were generated that ubiquitously overexpress human NAG-1 under the control of a chicken beta-actin promoter (CAG).

High-fat diet in low-dose-streptozotocin-treated heminephrectomized rats induces all features of human type 2 diabetic nephropathy: a new rat model of diabetic nephropathy.

Background And Aim: We have developed a new rat model that mimics the natural course of diabetic nephropathy seen in type 2 diabetes.

Methods: Nine days after intravenous injection of streptozotocin (STZ) (40 mg/kg) or vehicle to 8-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats, the animals' right kidneys were surgically removed. Two weeks after surgery, the STZ-injected rats were fed on either a high-fat (ST+HF) or a normal (ST) diet, while the vehicle-injected rats were fed on the high-fat diet (HF).

The delayed manifestation of T-cell receptor (TCR) variants in X-irradiated mice depends on Trp53 status.

The influence of Trp53 on the radiation-induced elevation of T-cell receptor (TCR) variant fractions was examined in splenic T lymphocytes of Trp53-proficient and -deficient mice. Wild-type Trp53+/+, heterozygous Trp53+/- and null Trp53-/- mice were exposed to 3 Gy of X rays at 8 weeks of age. The fraction of TCR-defective variants was measured at various times after irradiation.

Drug-induced expression of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-activated gene/macrophage inhibitory cytokine-1/prostate-derived factor, a putative tumor suppressor, inhibits tumor growth.

A common in vitro response for many chemopreventive and antitumor agents, including some cyclooxygenase inhibitors, is the increased expression of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-activated gene (NAG)-1/macrophage inhibitory cytokine (MIC)-1/prostate-derived factor (PDF). The experimental anticancer drug 2-(4-amino-3-methylphenyl)-5-fluorobenzothiazole (5F203) was a potent inducer of NAG-1 expression, and in MCF-7 cells, it inhibited cell growth and induced apoptosis. NAG-1 small interfering RNA blocked NAG-1 expression and 5F203-induced apoptosis in MCF-7 cells, indicating that NAG-1 may mediate the apoptosis and anticancer activity.

[Promoting daily physical activity by encouraging stair using banners].

Objective: To test the effectiveness of stair-use banners in encouraging the use of stairs instead of escalators.

Design: Observational survey with prompted banners.

Participants: Shoppers and a few employees.

Ionizing radiation enhances the expression of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug-activated gene (NAG1) by increasing the expression of TP53 in human colon cancer cells.

The induction of apoptosis in cells of human colon cancer cell lines after gamma irradiation was investigated to determine whether apoptosis was mediated by TP53 and the subsequent expression of its downstream target, the NSAID-activated gene (NAG1). HCT116 (TP53(+/+)), HCT15 (TP53 mutant) and TP53 null HCT116 (TP53(-/-)) cells were irradiated with gamma rays, and apoptosis was measured at various times after irradiation. In HCT116 TP53(+/+) cells, apoptosis was increased after irradiation; the increase was dependent on the time after treatment and the dose of gamma rays.

High risk of osteopenia and bone derangement in postsurgical patients with craniopharyngiomas, pituitary adenomas and other parasellar lesions.

Hypopituitarism is a well-known cause of secondary osteoporosis. However, patients receiving surgery for pituitary tumors or parasellar lesions have not been well studied for their bone sequel in Japan. We measured bone mineral density (BMD) and urinary type I collagen N-telopeptide (uNTX) in 35 postoperative patients including 25 with pituitary tumor (PT), 6 with craniopharyngioma (CP), and 4 others who had not been on sex hormone replacement, raloxifene, or bisphosphonate therapy.