Endogenous reference RNAs for microRNA quantitation in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded lymph node tissue.

Lymph node metastasis is one of the most important factors for tumor dissemination. Quantifying microRNA (miRNA) expression using real-time PCR in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) lymph node can provide valuable information regarding the biological research for cancer metastasis. However, a universal endogenous reference gene has not been identified in FFPE lymph node.

Surface electromyographic evaluation of the neuromuscular activation of the inspiratory muscles during progressively increased inspiratory flow under inspiratory-resistive loading.

This study aimed to evaluate neuromuscular activation in the scalene and sternocleidomastoid muscles using surface electromyography (EMG) during progressively increased inspiratory flow, produced by increasing the respiratory rate under inspiratory-resistive loading using a mask ventilator. Moreover, we attempted to identify the EMG inflection point (EMG) on the graph, at which the root mean square (RMS) of the EMG signal values of the inspiratory muscles against the inspiratory flow velocity acceleration abruptly increases, similarly to the EMG anaerobic threshold (EMG) reported during incremental-resistive loading in other skeletal muscles. We measured neuromuscular activation of healthy male subjects and found that the inspiratory flow velocity increased by approximately 1.

Vanillin production by biotransformation of phenolic compounds in fungus, Aspergillus luchuensis.

Vanillin is valuable and popular flavor used in foods and cosmetics. Many bacteria species have the ability to decarboxylate substituted cinnamic acids in order to form vanillin. However, the phenolic biotransformation including vanillin production in a common fungus, the Aspergillus luchuensis, which is used in distilled beverages, has not yet been clarified.

Ruthenium Tris-bipyridine Single-Molecule Junctions with Multiple Joint Configurations.

Single-molecule junctions are of particular interest in molecular electronics. To realize molecular electronic devices, it is crucial that functional single-molecule junctions are connected to each other by using joint units on the atomic scale. However, good joint units have not been reported because controlling the charge transport directions through the junctions is not trivial.

A pediatric case developing critical abdominal distension caused by a combination of humidified high-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy and nasal airway.

Background: We describe a pediatric patient who suffered from critical abdominal distention caused by a combination of humidified, high-flow nasal cannula (HHFNC) oxygen therapy and nasal airway.

Case Presentation: A 21-month-old boy with a history of chronic lung disease was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). Immediately after admission, his airway was established using a tracheal tube and mechanical ventilation was started.

Symptom management: the utility of regional cooling for hand-foot syndrome induced by pegylated liposomal doxorubicin in ovarian cancer.

Purpose: Hand-foot syndrome (HFS) is a major side effect of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD). Regional cooling during PLD infusion was shown to improve severe HFS. We investigated the utility of frozen gloves and socks (FGS) as a simpler cooling method.

A High-Valent Metal-Oxo Species Produced by Photoinduced One-Electron, Two-Proton Transfer Reactivity.

Described herein is a photochemical approach to the generation of a high-valent metal-oxo species that utilizes a chromophore or "sensitizer", a semiconducting electron acceptor, and a redox buffer that poises a catalyst's initial protonation and oxidation state. The photoexcited sensitizer injects an electron into the semiconductor and then oxidizes the catalyst whose reactivity occurs in kinetic competition with back electron transfer. Core-shell SnO/TiO semiconductor nanocrystallites inhibited charge recombination relative to TiO acceptors.

Impact of aortic plaque on progression rate and prognosis of aortic stenosis.

Backgrounds: Patients with aortic stenosis (AS) have a high prevalence of aortic plaque. However, no data exist regarding the clinical significance and prognostic value of aortic plaque in AS patients. This study examines the impact of aortic plaque on the rate of progression and clinical outcomes of AS.

Present and future roles of FDG-PET/CT imaging in the management of gastrointestinal cancer: an update.

Positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) integrated with 2-[F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) is a useful tool for acquisition of both glucose metabolism and anatomic imaging data, as only a single device and one diagnostic session is required, thus opening a new field in clinical oncologic imaging. FDG-PET/CT has been successfully used for initial staging, restaging, assessment of early treatment response, evaluation of metastatic disease response, and prognostication of intestinal cancer as well as various malignant tumors. We reviewed the current status and role of FDG-PET/CT for management of patients with esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, and colorectal cancer, with focus on both its usefulness and limitations.

Erratum: A high-salt diet enhances leukocyte adhesion in association with kidney injury in young Dahl salt-sensitive rats.

This corrects the article DOI: 10.1038/hr.2017.

Nonfatal air embolism complicating percutaneous CT-guided lung biopsy and VATS marking: Four cases from a single institution.

Systemic air emboli occur as a rare complication of percutaneous needle biopsy of the lung and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) marking. Here we present four cases of systemic air emboli from single institution and the imaging findings and embolism' kinetics using contrast-enhanced media during VATS color marking with indocyanine green. We suggest that early detection using routine whole-lung CT is required for asymptomatic patients with abnormal air.

Compression of the Femoral Vessels by a Pseudotumor after Metal-on-Metal Total Hip Arthroplasty.

Here we present a case of pseudotumor following total hip arthroplasty (THA) that resulted in a circulatory disturbance caused by compression of the femoral vasculature. A 63-year-old man presented with pain, swelling, and redness of the left leg 5 years after primary metal-on-metal THA using the AML-Plus stem, Pinnacle® acetabular cup, and 36 mm diameter Ultamet™ metal head system (DePuy Orthopaedics, Warsaw, IN). Enhanced computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a large cystic lesion extending from the left hip anteriorly to the intrapelvic region and compressing the left femoral vessels.

pTis and pT1a Ipsilateral Breast Tumor Recurrence Is Associated with Good Prognosis after Salvage Surgery.

Objectives: Patients with ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR) after breast-conserving surgery have a poor prognosis. There is little information regarding the prognostic impact of the tumor size in patients with IBTR.

Methods: A total of 143 patients who had histologically confirmed IBTR without distant metastases and who underwent salvage surgery between 1989 and 2013 in our hospital were included.

Endoscopic surgery in Japan: The 12th national survey(2012-2013) by the Japan Society for Endoscopic Surgery.

In Japan, the first endoscopic surgery, a laparoscopic cholecystectomy, was performed in 1990. Since then, operative procedures have been standardized, and the safety and usefulness of endoscopic surgery have been evaluated. With the acceptance of endoscopic surgery as less invasive than open surgery, the number of the endoscopic procedures continues to increase in all surgical domains.

Predictors of Prognosis in Light-Chain Amyloidosis and Chronological Changes in Cardiac Morphology and Function.

Immune light-chain (AL) amyloidosis with cardiac involvement is associated with a high mortality despite improved therapeutic regimens, but there are few reports on prognostic predictors and chronological changes in cardiac morphology and function. Prognosis and its predictors were evaluated in 36 consecutive patients with cardiac AL amyloidosis. Chronological changes in cardiac morphology and function were also evaluated.

Safety for Repeat Lumpectomy Without Radiotherapy for Ipsilateral Breast Tumor Recurrence.

Background: There is little information on the local recurrence risk of patients who undergo repeat lumpectomy without radiotherapy after salvage surgery for ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR).

Patients And Methods: Sixty-five patients who underwent repeat lumpectomy without radiotherapy after IBTR were retrospectively analyzed. The risk factors of second IBTR, including the breast cancer subtype of IBTR defined by the estrogen receptor (ER) and HER2 status, were assessed.

Surface Structures Formed by a Copper(II) Complex of Alkyl-Derivatized Indigo.

Assembled structures of dyes have great influence on their coloring function. For example, metal ions added in the dyeing process are known to prevent fading of color. Thus, we have investigated the influence of an addition of copper(II) ion on the surface structure of alkyl-derivatized indigo.

Kyoto Congestive Heart Failure (KCHF) study: rationale and design.

Aims: Over the last decade, major developments in medicine have led to significant changes in the clinical management of heart failure patients. This study was designed to evaluate the recent trends in clinical characteristics, management, and short-term and long-term prognosis of patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) in Japan.

Methods And Results: The Kyoto Congestive Heart Failure study is a prospective, observational, multicentre cohort study, enrolling consecutive ADHF patients from 19 participating hospitals in Japan from November 2014 to March 2016.

Relationship between left ventricular diastolic dysfunction and very late recurrences after multiple procedures for atrial fibrillation ablation.

Although very late recurrences (VLRs) (first recurrence >12 months after the last catheter ablation) of atrial fibrillation (AF) after multiple catheter ablation procedures are rare, it remains a critical issue. The risk factors for VLRs remain largely unclear. From December 2011 to April 2014, 253 patients underwent an initial catheter ablation.

Chemoradiation therapy with docetaxel in elderly patients with stage II/III esophageal cancer: A phase 2 trial.

Purpose: The most effective treatments in elderly patients with esophageal cancer remain a subject of debate. This multicenter phase 2 study was designed to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of chemoradiation therapy (CRT) with docetaxel (DTX) in elderly patients with stage II/III (non-T4) esophageal cancer.

Methods And Materials: Patients ≥70 years of age with clinical stage II/III esophageal cancer received DTX at a weekly dose of 10 mg/m during 6 consecutive weeks and concurrent radiation therapy (60 Gy in 30 fractions).

Actual management and prognosis of severe isolated tricuspid regurgitation associated with atrial fibrillation without structural heart disease.

Background: Patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) without structural heart diseases can show severe tricuspid regurgitation (TR), especially among aged people. The aim of this study was to clarify the actual management, prognosis, and prognostic factors for severe isolated TR associated with AF without structural heart diseases.

Methods And Results: We retrospectively investigated actual management in 178 consecutive patients with severe isolated TR associated with AF between 1999 and 2011 in our institution.

Distant recurrence risk following early ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence.

At present, the risk factors for distant recurrence among patients with early ipsilateral breast tumor recurrence (IBTR) require further investigation. Early IBTR is defined as occurring within 3 years following the initial surgery. In the current study, 40 patients with early IBTR were examined to determine the risk factors for distant recurrence.

Diagnostic accuracy of the Embolic Risk French Calculator for symptomatic embolism with infective endocarditis among Japanese population.

Background: Recently, the Embolic Risk French Calculator (ER-Calculator) was designed to predict symptomatic embolism (SE) associated with infective endocarditis (IE), but external validation has not been reported. This study aimed to determine predictors of SE and the diagnostic accuracy of the ER-Calculator in left-sided active IE among a Japanese population.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 166 consecutive patients with a definite diagnosis of left-sided IE from 1994 to 2015 in our institution.

Prognostic value of dynamic MRI positive enhancement integral color mapping in osteosynthesis of undisplaced femoral neck fractures.

Aims: The common treatment for an undisplaced femoral neck fracture is osteosynthesis. Two major complications of osteosynthesis are non-union and late collapse of the femoral head. We speculated that femoral head perfusion is one of the most important factors that affect the outcome of osteosynthesis after femoral neck fracture.

Incidence and clinical features of sacral insufficiency fracture in the emergency department.

Introduction: A sacral insufficiency fracture (SIF) often manifests as low back pain or sciatica in the absence of any antecedent trauma. These fractures may be missed because of lack of appropriate imaging. The purpose of this study was to clarify the incidence and clinical features of SIF as well as the characteristic findings on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the lumbar spine.