Adiponectin inhibits colorectal cancer cell growth through the AMPK/mTOR pathway.

Adiponectin is a peptide hormone secreted by adipose tissue. It is a key hormone responsible for insulin sensitization, and its circulating level is inversely associated with abdominal obesity. Recent studies have shown that a reduced plasma adiponectin level is significantly correlated with the risk of various cancers.

Water at interfaces.

Electrolyte cations and anions in aqueous solutions are hydrogen bond breaker. We found that most of anions are strong hydrogen bond breaker whereas cations are not. Further, the electro-reduction of Mg(H2O)6(2+) to Mg(OH)2 and the growth of the Mg(OH)2 were observed on Au electrode surface at negative electrode potential.

Penetration of the sigmoid colon to the posterior uterine wall secondary to diverticulitis: a case report.

Introduction: Penetration of the colon to the posterior uterine wall secondary to diverticulitis is unusual, with diagnostic methods not yet established. Non-invasive imaging, such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging may help to establish a proper diagnosis, but confirmation may be reached only after surgical exploration.

Case Presentation: We report the case of a 78-year-old Japanese woman who presented with a low grade fever and mild diarrhea which occurred two or three times a week.

Effects of body positions on gastric emptying with enteral nutrition: a crossover study using a continuous real time 13C breath test (BreathID system).

Background/aims: The aim of this study was to determine whether there was a correlation between body positions and gastric emptying, using a novel non-invasive technique for measuring gastric emptying with a continuous real time 13C breath test (BreathID system).

Methodology: Ten healthy male volunteers participated in this randomized, two-way crossover study. On both occasions, the 13C breath test was performed for 4 hours using the BreathID system with a liquid meal (200 kcal per 200 mL) containing 100 mg 13C-acetic acid.

Gastric surgery is not a risk factor for the development or progression of Barrett's epithelium.

Background/aims: Barrett's epithelium is currently believed to be related to acid gastroesophageal reflux. The aim was to determine the role of pancreatic-biliary reflux in the genesis of Barrett's epithelium.

Methodology: The study population comprised 1055 cases (606 men and 449 women; median age, 67 years) who had undergone an upper endoscopy at the Gastroenterology Division of Yokohama City University Hospital between August 2005 and July 2006.

Effective treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma with portal venous invasion using a combination therapy of intra-arterial 5-fluorouracil and subcutaneous pegylated-interferon-alpha-2b.

Hepatocellular carcinoma with portal venous invasion has a poor prognosis. We report a case treated successfully by intra-arterial 5-fluorouracil with systemic pegylated-interferon-alpha-2b instead of conventional interferon-alpha. A 66-year-old man was admitted to our hospital, and diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma with portal venous invasion.

Anaplastic carcinoma of the pancreas producing granulocyte-colony stimulating factor: a case report.

Introduction: The granulocyte-colony stimulating factor-producing tumor was first reported in 1977, however, anaplastic pleomorphic type carcinoma of the pancreas producing granulocyte-colony stimulating factor is still rare.

Case Presentation: A 63-year-old man was admitted to our hospital with body weight loss (-10 kg during months) and upper abdominal pain from 3 weeks. Abdominal computed tomography demonstrated a pancreatic tumor 10 cm in size and multiple low-density areas in the liver.

Alcohol consumption is associated with an increased risk of erosive esophagitis and Barrett's epithelium in Japanese men.

Background: Evidence regarding the association between alcohol consumption and the gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) spectrum has been conflicting. We examined the association between alcohol consumption and erosive esophagitis and Barrett's epithelium in Japanese men.

Methods: The study population comprised 463 men subjects who had undergone an upper endoscopy at the Gastroenterology Division of Yokohama City University Hospital between August 2005 and July 2006.

Inhibition of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma promotes tumorigenesis through activation of the beta-catenin / T cell factor (TCF) pathway in the mouse intestine.

Although peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) is strongly expressed in the intestinal epithelium, the role of PPARgamma in intestinal tumorigenesis has not yet been elucidated. To address this issue, we investigated the effect of PPARgamma inhibition and its mechanism on intestinal tumorigenesis using a selective antagonist, T0070907. We treated Apc(Min/+) mice and carcinogen-induced colon cancer model C57BL/6 mice with T0070907 and counted the number of spontaneous polyps and aberrant crypt foci and observed cell proliferation and beta-catenin protein in the colon epithelium.

Nod factor/nitrate-induced CLE genes that drive HAR1-mediated systemic regulation of nodulation.

Host legumes control root nodule numbers by sensing external and internal cues. A major external cue is soil nitrate, whereas a feedback regulatory system in which earlier formed nodules suppress further nodulation through shoot-root communication is an important internal cue. The latter is known as autoregulation of nodulation (AUT), and is believed to consist of two long-distance signals: a root-derived signal that is generated in infected roots and transmitted to the shoot; and a shoot-derived signal that systemically inhibits nodulation.

Association of visceral fat accumulation and plasma adiponectin with rectal dysplastic aberrant crypt foci in a clinical population.

The association between obesity and the risk of colorectal cancer (CRC) cannot be easily evaluated because CRC itself is associated with a gradual loss of bodyweight. Aberrant crypt foci (ACF) can be classified as dysplastic ACF or non-dysplastic ACF by magnifying colonoscopy, and dysplastic ACF are thought to be a biomarker of CRC. Ninety-four participants who underwent colonoscopy at Yokohama City University Hospital, Japan, were enrolled in the current study.

Inhibition of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma activity suppresses pancreatic cancer cell motility.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma) is a ligand-activated transcription factor that has been implicated in the carcinogenesis and progression of various solid tumors, including pancreatic carcinomas. We aimed to clarify the role of this receptor in pancreatic cell motility in vitro and in metastasis in vivo. Cell motility was examined by assaying transwell migration and wound filling in Capan-1 and Panc-1 pancreatic cancer cells, with or without the PPARgamma-specific inhibitor T0070907.

Plasma Pentraxin3 is a novel marker for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

Background: The changes in the liver in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) range over a wide spectrum, extending from steatosis to steatohepatitis (NASH). However it has remained difficult to differentiate between NASH and non-progressive NAFLD on the basis of the clinical findings alone.

Aims: In this study we investigated the clinical usefulness of plasma Pentraxin3 (PTX3) levels to predict NASH.

Nitric oxide plays a crucial role in the development/progression of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in the choline-deficient, l-amino acid-defined diet-fed rat model.

Background: The pathogenesis of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is still unclear. Recently, the 2-hit hypothesis was proposed, in which nitric oxide production, representing oxidative stress, was proposed as a very important candidate for the second hit.

Methods: The total study period was 10 weeks.

yellow and ebony are the responsible genes for the larval color mutants of the silkworm Bombyx mori.

Many larval color mutants have been obtained in the silkworm Bombyx mori. Mapping of melanin-synthesis genes on the Bombyx linkage map revealed that yellow and ebony genes were located near the chocolate (ch) and sooty (so) loci, respectively. In the ch mutants, body color of neonate larvae and the body markings of elder instar larvae are reddish brown instead of normal black.

Adenosquamous carcinoma of the pancreas associated with humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM).

We report a rare case of adenosquamous carcinoma of the pancreas associated with humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy (HHM) in which parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTH-rP) was identified as the causative factor of hypercalcemia. A 72-year-old Japanese man was admitted to our institution complaining of fever and abdominal pain. Abdominal computed tomography demonstrated a large tumor in the body of the pancreas, with multiple liver metastases.

Expression pattern of annelid Zic in embryonic development of the oligochaete Tubifex tubifex.

Embryonic expression of a Zic homologue (Ttu-Zic) was examined in the oligochaete annelid Tubifex tubifex. The body plan of T. tubifex is characterized by obvious segmentation in the ectoderm and mesoderm.

Metformin suppresses intestinal polyp growth in ApcMin/+ mice.

Metformin is a biguanide derivative that is widely used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus. One of the pharmacological targets of metformin is adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK). We investigated the effect of metformin on the suppression of intestinal polyp formation in Apc(Min/+) mice.

Risk factors for uncontrolled intraocular pressure after phacoviscocanalostomy.

Purpose: To determine factors affecting the outcome of phacoviscocanalostomy in patients with cataract and primary open-angle glaucoma.

Methods: Factors for controlling intraocular pressure (IOP) were investigated in 180 patients using Cox multivariate proportional hazards survival regression.

Results: The mean preoperative IOP of 20.

Various spatiotemporal expression profiles of anther-expressed genes in rice.

The male gametophyte and tapetum play different roles during anther development although they are differentiated from the same cell lineage, the L2 layer. Until now, it has not been possible to delineate their transcriptomes due to technical difficulties in separating the two cell types. In the present study, we characterized the separated transcriptomes of the rice microspore/pollen and tapetum using laser microdissection (LM)-mediated microarray.

Separated transcriptomes of male gametophyte and tapetum in rice: validity of a laser microdissection (LM) microarray.

In flowering plants, the male gametophyte, the pollen, develops in the anther. Complex patterns of gene expression in both the gametophytic and sporophytic tissues of the anther regulate this process. The gene expression profiles of the microspore/pollen and the sporophytic tapetum are of particular interest.

Abdominal surgery affects small bowel transit time and completeness of capsule endoscopy.

The aim of the study was to evaluate bowel dysmotility in patients with a history of abdominal surgery by measuring both gastric transit time and small bowel transit time during capsule endoscopy and assessing the completeness of the examination. The study included 26 patients who had undergone abdominal surgery (postoperative group) and 52 patients who had not (control group). The capsule reached the cecum in 50.

Hepatitis C virus infection enhances insulin resistance induced by visceral fat accumulation.

Background/aims: To clarify the impact of visceral obesity on hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infected patients, we examined the relationship between insulin resistance development and visceral fat accumulation.

Methods: We analyzed 87 HCV-infected patients with mild fibrosis (stage 1 or 2) in comparison with 125 sex- and age-matched patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The degree of visceral fat area (VFA; cm(2)) at the umbilical level was measured by abdominal computed tomography and divided into two grades: no visceral obesity, VFA<100 and visceral obesity, VFA>/=100.