Noninvasive acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) elastography for assessing the severity of fibrosis in the post-operative patients with biliary atresia.

Purpose: Liver biopsy (LB) is still considered the "gold standard" for hepatological evaluation, but recently noninvasive methods have attempted to replace this invasive procedure. Recently, acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging has been developed as a noninvasive modality to evaluate the stiffness of tissues. ARFI imaging theoretically measures liver stiffness of all the segments independently.

The usefulness of laryngotracheal separation in the treatment of severe motor and intellectual disabilities.

Intractable aspiration is a life-threatening medical problem in patients with severe motor and intellectual disabilities (SMID). Laryngotracheal separation (LTS) is a surgical procedure for the treatment of intractable aspiration which separates the upper respiratory tract from the digestive tract. We performed LTS for 14 patients with SMID to prevent intractable aspiration, performing two types of operation.

Identification of novel human neuronal leucine-rich repeat (hNLRR) family genes and inverse association of expression of Nbla10449/hNLRR-1 and Nbla10677/hNLRR-3 with the prognosis of primary neuroblastomas.

To search for novel prognostic indicators, we previously cloned >2,000 novel genes from primary neuroblastoma (NBL) cDNA libraries and screened for differential expression between the subsets with favorable (stage 1 or 2 with a single copy of MYCN) and unfavorable (stage 3 or 4 with amplification of MYCN) prognosis. From them, we have identified 3 genes of human neuronal leucine-rich repeat protein (NLRR) family: Nbla10449/hNLRR-1, Nbla00061/hNLRR-2/GAC1 and Nbla10677/hNLRR-3. An additional family member, hNLRR-5, was also found by homology search against public database.

Neuroblastoma oligo-capping cDNA project: toward the understanding of the genesis and biology of neuroblastoma.

Neuroblastoma (NBL) is a common pediatric cancer originated from the neuronal precursor cells of sympathoadrenal lineage. NBLs show a variety of clinical phenotypes from spontaneous regression to malignant progression with acquirement of resistance to therapy. To understand the molecular mechanism of the genesis, progression, and regression of NBL, we need to identify key molecules determining the neuronal development of sympathoadrenal lineage.