A tissue-engineered, decellularized, connective tissue membrane for allogeneic arterial patch implantation.

Background: We have previously applied in vivo tissue-engineered vascular grafts constructed in patients' subcutaneous spaces. However, since the formation of these vascular grafts depends on host health, their application is challenging in patients with suppressed regenerative ability. Therefore, the allogeneic implantation of grafts from healthy donors needs to be evaluated.

One-stage surgery for type A aortic dissection and iliac artery aneurysm rupture.

We present a patient with Stanford type A aortic dissection with malperfusion of the left kidney and lower extremity, and rupture of a common iliac artery aneurysm. After establishing lower extremity reperfusion using a percutaneous femorofemoral shunt in the emergency room, simultaneous open aortic arch repair and open abdominal aorta repair were performed. Our approach allowed concomitant repair of proximal dissection, limb ischemia, and iliac artery aneurysm rupture, all of which are critical predictors of mortality.

Auto-antibody evaluation in idiopathic interstitial pneumonia and worse survival of patients with Ro52/TRIM21auto-antibody.

Some patients with interstitial pneumonia (IP) have auto-antibodies, but do not fit the criteria for specific connective tissue diseases. Examination of auto-antibodies is recommended for diagnosis idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. A prospective cohort study was performed in 285 patients with IP.

Evaluation of time courses of agreement between minutely obtained transcutaneous blood gas data and the gold standard arterial data from spontaneously breathing Asian adults, and various subgroup analyses.

Background: Usual clinical practice for arterial blood gas analysis (BGA) in conscious patients involves a one-time arterial puncture to be performed after a resting period of 20-30 min. The aim of this study was to evaluate the use of transcutaneous BGA for estimating this gold standard arterial BGA.

Methods: Spontaneously breathing Asian adults (healthy volunteers and respiratory patients) were enrolled (n = 295).

Histology and Mechanics of In Vivo Tissue-Engineered Vascular Graft for Children.

Purpose: This study sought to evaluate the histologic and mechanical properties of autologous in vivo tissue-engineered vascular grafts (in vivo TEVGs) used for pediatric heart surgery.

Description: Molds of in vivo TEVGs made of silicone drain tubes were embedded into subcutaneous spaces in 2 boys during their first operation and were used as patch materials to treat pulmonary artery stenosis during the second operation. The remaining pieces of the patches were evaluated histologically and mechanically.

Development of xenogeneic decellularized biotubes for off-the-shelf applications.

In earlier studies, we developed in vivo tissue-engineered, autologous, small-caliber vascular grafts, called "biotubes," which withstand systemic blood pressure and exhibit excellent performance as small-caliber vascular prostheses in animal models. However, biotube preparation takes 4 weeks; therefore, biotubes cannot be applied in emergency situations. Moreover, for responses to various types of surgery, grafts should ideally be readily available in advance.

Comparison of inducible nitric oxide synthase mRNA expression in different airway portions and association with nitric oxide parameters from patients with asthma.

Background: Fractional exhaled nitric oxide concentration (FeNO) is widely used to support diagnosis and monitoring of bronchial asthma (BA). Tsoukias and George proposed a two-compartment model (2CM) for assessing the alveolar concentration of NO, referred to as CANO(2CM), while Condorelli et al proposed a model based on the trumpet shape of the airway tree and axial diffusion (TMAD), referred to as CANO(TMAD). In addition, Högman et al proposed non-linear model, referred to as CANO(non-linear).

In Situ Graft Replacement for a Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Infected with Listeria monocytogenes after Endovascular Aneurysm Repair.

Listeria monocytogenes infection and rupture of the aneurysm sac, after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR), are both rare. We report the case of an 82-year-old man who presented with a ruptured aneurysm by infection with L. monocytogenes after EVAR.

Changes of plasmalogen phospholipid levels during differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells 409B2 to endothelial phenotype cells.

Endothelial cells (EC) are involved in regulating several aspects of lipid metabolism, with recent research revealing the clinicopathological significance of interactions between EC and lipids. Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) have various possible medical uses, so understanding the metabolism of these cells is important. In this study, endothelial phenotype cells generated from human iPSC formed cell networks in co-culture with fibroblasts.

Expression of intelectin-1 in bronchial epithelial cells of asthma is correlated with T-helper 2 (Type-2) related parameters and its function.

Background: Intelectin-1 (ITLN-1) is secreted by intestinal goblet cells and detectable in blood. Its expression is increased in IL-13-overexpressing mouse airways. However, its expression and function in human airways is poorly understood.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization imaging mass spectrometry reveals changes of phospholipid distribution in induced pluripotent stem cell colony differentiation.

Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) are opening up new possibilities for medicine. Understanding the regulation of iPSC biology is important when attempting to apply these cells to disease models or therapy. Changes of lipid metabolism in iPSCs were investigated by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight imaging mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-IMS).

First Successful Clinical Application of the In Vivo Tissue-Engineered Autologous Vascular Graft.

Purpose: The ideal material for pediatric pulmonary artery (PA) augmentation is autologous pericardium. However, its utility for multistaged operations is limited. In this study, we applied an in vivo tissue-engineered autologous Biotube graft to a patient with congenital heart disease for the first time.

Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 is highly expressed in bronchial epithelial cells of untreated asthma and it increases cell proliferation along with fibronectin production in airway constitutive cells.

Background: Type 2 helper T-cell cytokines including IL-13 play a central role in the pathogenesis of bronchial asthma (BA). During the course of our research, our attention was drawn to dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) as one of the molecules that were induced from bronchial epithelial cells (BECs) by IL-13 stimulation. DPP4 could become a new biomarker or therapeutic target.

Anatomic variations of hepatic artery and new clinical classification based on abdominal angiographic images of 1200 cases.

Background/aims: There is wide variation in the branches of the hepatic artery. We aimed to classify these variations clinically on the basis of abdominal angiographic images in order to find out the suitable classification.

Methodology: Anatomic variations of the hepatic artery of 1200 patients were analyzed at Tokyo Women's Medical University from 2000 to 2010, and Classified into four categories: "Y", "I-I", "Y plus I", and "I-I plus I".

Layered wrapping technique combined with oxidized cellulose and vascular prosthesis for effective haemostasis in aortic surgery.

Bleeding from anastomotic sites is one of the major complications of aortic surgery. We describe a novel double-layer wrapping technique using a combination of oxidized cellulose and a vascular prosthesis to effectively achieve haemostasis. The anastomotic site is surrounded by a prosthetic graft inlaid with a strip of Nu-Knit.

Chemical profiling of Jatropha tissues under different torrefaction conditions: application to biomass waste recovery.

Gradual depletion of the world petroleum reserves and the impact of environmental pollution highlight the importance of developing alternative energy resources such as plant biomass. To address these issues, intensive research has focused on the plant Jatropha curcas, which serves as a rich source of biodiesel because of its high seed oil content. However, producing biodiesel from Jatropha generates large amounts of biomass waste that are difficult to use.

Prediction of early postoperative cerebral hemorrhage in infective endocarditis patients using magnetic resonance imaging.

Objective: To evaluate the relationship between preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings and the occurrence of postoperative intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) in infective endocarditis (IE) patients.

Methods: Between 2002 and 2012, 30 IE patients required surgical intervention. Four patients developed and 26 patients did not develop postoperative ICH.

Perioperative care with fast-track management in patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy.

Background: It has been considered that allowing patients to return to daily life earlier after surgery helps recovery of physiological function and reduces postoperative complications and hospital stay. We investigated the usefulness of fast-track management in perioperative care of patients undergoing pancreaticoduodenectomy (PD).

Methods: Patients (n = 90) who received conventional perioperative management from 2005 to 2009 were included as the 'conventional group' (historical control group), and patients who received perioperative care with fast-track management (n = 100) from 2010 to March 2013 were included as the 'fast-track group'.

Longitudinal rupturing of a knitted Dacron graft 30 years after its implantation.

A 79-year old man with a pulsatile mass in his left groin was admitted to our institution in 2012. He had undergone an aortobifemoral bypass using a bifurcated Cooley double velour knitted Dacron graft for aortoiliac occlusive disease in 1982. Computed tomography detected a 34 mm para-anastomotic pseudoaneurysm in the left limb of the graft.

Endovascular repair of traumatic aortic injury using a modified, commercially available endograft to preserve aortic arch branches.

A 25-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital after being involved in a high-speed motorcycle accident. Computed tomography angiography revealed a blunt traumatic aortic injury of the lesser curvature of the distal aortic arch accompanied by splintered fractures of the seventh thoracic vertebra and left clavicle. If the pseudoaneurysm had been treated with open surgical repair, then arch replacement under cardiopulmonary bypass, which was considered to be too invasive, would have been necessary.

Implantation study of small-caliber "biotube" vascular grafts in a rat model.

We developed autologous vascular grafts, called "biotubes," by simple and safe in-body tissue architecture technology, which is a practical concept of regenerative medicine, without using special sterile conditions or complicated in vitro cell treatment processes. In this study, biotubes of extremely small caliber were first auto-implanted to rat abdominal aortas. Biotubes were prepared by placing silicone rods (outer diameter 1.

Water-soluble argatroban for antithrombogenic surface coating of tissue-engineered cardiovascular tissues.

Argatroban is a powerful synthetic anticoagulant, but due to its water-insoluble nature, it is unsuitable for use as a coating material to reduce the thrombogenic potential of natural or tissue-engineered blood-contacting cardiovascular tissues. On the other hand, anionic compounds could adsorb firmly onto connective tissues. Therefore, in this study, an anionic form of argatroban was prepared by neutralization from its alkaline solution, dialysis, and freeze-drying.

Long-term animal implantation study of biotube-autologous small-caliber vascular graft fabricated by in-body tissue architecture.

A mold for the preparation of an in-body tissue architecture-induced autologous vascular graft, termed "biotube," was prepared by covering a main silicone rod (outer diameter, 3 mm; length, 30 mm) with two pieces of polyurethane sponge tubes (internal diameter, 3 mm; length, 3 mm) at both ends. The molds were embedded into the dorsal subcutaneous pouch of rabbits (weighing ca. 2 kg) for 2 months.

Development of a completely autologous valved conduit with the sinus of Valsalva using in-body tissue architecture technology: a pilot study in pulmonary valve replacement in a beagle model.

Background: We developed autologous prosthetic implants by simple and safe in-body tissue architecture technology. We present the first report on the development of autologous valved conduit with the sinus of Valsalva (BIOVALVE) by using this unique technology and its subsequent implantation in the pulmonary valves in a beagle model.

Methods And Results: A mold of BIOVALVE organization was assembled using 2 types of specially designed silicone rods with a small aperture in a trileaflet shape between them.