Systemic sarcoidosis associated with double cancers of the esophagus and stomach.

To discriminate between sarcoidosis and sarcoid reaction in the lymphadenopathy of malignancy is sometimes clinically important. We describe a case of sarcoidosis associated with double cancers of the esophagus and stomach. A patient who six months previously was found to have early gastric cancer, was then found to have esophagus cancer.

Mice with blunted hypoxic ventilatory response are susceptible to respiratory disturbance during hypoxia.

Hypoxia causes a life-threatening situation, and the ventilatory response to hypoxia plays an important role in preventing death. We have hypothesized that persons with a blunted hypoxic ventilatory response may have a weak defense response to hypoxic episodes and be susceptible to fatal respiratory disturbances. However, precise correlations between the hypoxic ventilatory response and respiratory disturbances are not well understood.

Hypoxemia and blunted hypoxic ventilatory responses in mice lacking heme oxygenase-2.

Heme oxygenase (HO) catalyzes physiological heme degradation and consists of two structurally related isozymes, HO-1 and HO-2. Here we show that HO-2-deficient (HO-2(-/-)) mice exhibit hypoxemia and hypertrophy of the pulmonary venous myocardium associated with increased expression of HO-1. The hypertrophied venous myocardium may reflect adaptation to persistent hypoxemia.

Quantitative assessment of protein-bound tyrosine nitration in airway secretions from patients with inflammatory airway disease.

Because reactive nitrogen species (RNS) have potent inflammatory activity, they may be involved in the inflammatory process in pulmonary diseases. We recently reported increased numbers of 3-nitrotyrosine immunopositive cells, which are evidences of RNS production, in the sputum of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and patients with asthma compared with healthy subjects. In the present study, we attempted to quantify this protein nitration in the airways by means of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) used together with an electrochemical detection system that we developed.

Can nasal continuous positive airway pressure decrease clinic blood pressure in patients with obstructive sleep apnea?

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is commonly associated with systemic hypertension and now recognized as an independent risk factor for daytime hypertension. We aimed to study the short- and long-term effect of nasal continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) in hypertensive and normotensive patients with OSA. Forty-six patients with moderated to severe OSA were treated with nasal CPAP and followed after one year of treatment.

Repression of heme oxygenase-1 expression as a defense strategy in humans.

Heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) is an essential enzyme in heme catabolism and is characterized by its inducibility in response to various environmental factors, including its substrate heme. The induction of HO-1 has been established as the defense mechanism against oxidative stress. However, striking interspecies or inter-tissue differences are noted in the regulation of HO-1 expression under hypoxia or heat shock, each of which represses HO-1 expression in many types of human cells but rather induces it in rodent cells.

Bach1 functions as a hypoxia-inducible repressor for the heme oxygenase-1 gene in human cells.

Heme oxygenase 1 (HO-1) catalyzes heme breakdown, eventually releasing iron, carbon monoxide, and bilirubin IXalpha. HO-1 is induced by its substrate heme and various environmental factors, which represents a protective response against oxidative stresses. Here we show that hypoxia represses HO-1 expression in three human cell types but induces it in rat, bovine, and monkey cells, indicating the inter-species difference in the hypoxic regulation of HO-1 expression.

Heme degradation and human disease: diversity is the soul of life.

We all depend on molecular oxygen and heme for our life, as evident from the pigments in blood and daily wastes. About 80% of serum bilirubin is derived from hemoglobin of senescent erythrocytes, which have finished their mission of 120 days and have been phagocytized by macrophages in the reticuloendothelial system. Here we present an overview of the heme degradation processes and relevant disorders by focusing on heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), a key enzyme in heme catabolism.

Three vasoactive peptides, endothelin-1, adrenomedullin and urotensin-II, in human tumour cell lines of different origin: expression and effects on proliferation.

Evidence has accumulated showing that vasoactive peptides, such as endothelin-1, adrenomedullin and urotensin-II, are expressed in various kinds of tumour cells. In the present study, the expression of endothelin-1 and endothelin receptors was studied in eight human tumour cell lines: T98G (glioblastoma), IMR-32 and NB69 (neuroblastoma), BeWo (choriocarcinoma), SW-13 (adrenocortical carcinoma), DLD-1 (colonic carcinoma), HeLa (cervical carcinoma) and VMRC-RCW (renal carcinoma). Reverse transcriptase-PCR showed expression of endothelin-1 mRNA in seven out of the eight cell lines, the exception being BeWo cells.