A real-world pilot study assessing treatment satisfaction with avanafil in patients with erectile dysfunction.

Background: Avanafil is a second-generation phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitor, and offers a rapid onset of action (15 minutes). Its real-world data, including treatment satisfaction, are still lacking.

Aim: The study sought to investigate the treatment outcomes of avanafil and the factors impacting treatment satisfaction in a real-world setting.

Quantitative Analyses and Validation of Phospholipids and Sphingolipids in Ischemic Rat Brains.

Prior MALDI mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI) studies reported significant changes in phosphatidylcholines (PCs), lysophosphatidylcholines (LPCs), and sphingomyelins (SMs) in ischemic rat brains yet overlooked the information on other classes of PLs and SLs and provided very little or no validation on the detected lipid markers. Relative quantitation of four classes of PLs and two classes of SLs in the ischemic and normal temporal cortex (TCX), parietal cortex (PCX), and striatum (ST) of rats was performed with hydrophilic interaction chromatography (HILIC)-tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) analyses, and the marker lipid species was identified by multivariate data analysis and validated with additional tissue cohorts. The acquired lipid information was sufficient in differentiating individual anatomical regions under different pathological states, identifying region-specific ischemic brain lipid markers and revealing additional PL and SL markers not reported previously.

Autophagy: a promising process for the treatment of acetaminophen-induced liver injury.

Toxicity from drugs has become an important cause of acute liver failure. Acetaminophen, a commonly used analgesic, can cause severe acute liver injury that can worsen into acute liver failure. Autophagy, a protective cell programme, has been reported to have protective effects in a variety of diseases such as cancer, immune diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, and inflammatory diseases.

Mutual interaction between endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common metabolic syndrome. Imbalances between liver lipid output and input are the direct causes of NAFLD, and hepatic steatosis is the pathological premise and basis for NAFLD progression. Mutual interaction between endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) and oxidative stress play important roles in NAFLD pathogenesis.

Nondigestible Oligosaccharides with Anti-Obesity Effects.

Obesity has an important influence on health conditions, causing a multitude of complications and comorbidities, and drug therapy is considered to be one of the treatment strategies. Nowadays, there is increasing interest in the study of intestinal microbiota regulation of obesity; also, an increasing number of agricultural and sideline products have been found to have anti-obesity potential. In the present review, we summarize an overview of current known and potential anti-obesity oligosaccharides and their molecular structures.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging of cardiolipins in rat organ sections.

Cardiolipin (CL) is a class of phospholipid tightly associated with the mitochondria functions and a prime target of oxidative stress. Peroxidation of CL dissociates its bound cytochrome C, a phenomenon that reflects oxidative stress sustained by the organ and a trigger for the intrinsic apoptotic pathway. However, CL distribution in normal organ tissues has yet to be documented.

Multidimensional relationships between paternalistic leadership and perceptions of organizational ethical climates.

This study investigated how paternalistic leadership is linked to ethical climates based on a multidimensional construct perspective. This experimental study utilized the partial least squares (PLS) techniques to analyze the data. Participants were 258 civil servants working in various public sectors in Taiwan, who were asked to rate their leaders' paternalistic leadership behaviors and their perception of the ethical climates in their organizations using the Paternalistic Leadership Scale and the Ethical Climate Questionnaire.

Salvia miltiorrhiza causes tonic contraction in rat ileum through Ca²⁺-calmodulin pathway.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Danshen, root of Salvia miltiorrhiza (SM), has been traditionally used in Chinese medicine for the treatment of heart, abdomen, gurgling in the intestines, and relieving fullness. However, the effects of SM on intestine have rarely been done to date.

Aim Of The Study: To investigate the contraction effect of SM on isolated rat ileum and its mechanisms involved.

MALDI-mass spectrometry imaging of desalted rat brain sections reveals ischemia-mediated changes of lipids.

Ischemia-mediated lipidomic changes in rat brains were explored by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) profiling and imaging after in situ desalting which drastically simplified the spectral presentation of tissue lipids. Removal of interference from the massively changed cations in response to tissue damage permitted the revelation of subtle yet important lipidomic changes. The identities of the detected lipids were confirmed by MALDI tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS/MS).

Ureterosciatic hernia causes obstructive uropathy.

Obstructive uropathy can be caused by urolithiasis, fibrotic ureteral stricture, inflammatory ureteritis with polyp formations, ureteral malignancy and various forms of external compression. Ureteral herniation is a relatively rare cause of obstructive uropathy and has been reported with herniation sites including inguinal canal, femoral canal and sciatic foramen. Most ureteral herniations occur in the inguinal area.

Inguinal hernia after radical retropubic prostatectomy--experience of Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital.

Background: Radical retropubic prostatectomy is a potentially curative treatment for localized prostate cancer. This study aimed to examine the incidence of developing inguinal hernia after radical retropubic prostatectomy and its possible factors.

Methods: From November 1990 to April 2002, there were 222 patients in Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital who underwent radical retropubic prostatectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection for localized prostate cancer.