Effects of liraglutide on intrapancreatic fat deposition in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Background & Aims: Ectopic fat deposition is associated with worsening of glycemic control. This study was conducted to determine whether liraglutide reduces ectopic fat deposition, especially in pancreas, in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D).

Methods: We retrospectively recruited T2D patients who underwent abdominal unenhanced CT scans both before and after administration of liraglutide (N = 13) or glimepiride (N = 29).

Prospective clinical study of R-CMD therapy for indolent B cell lymphoma and mantle cell lymphoma from the Hokuriku Hematology Oncology Study Group.

Standardized treatments for indolent B cell lymphoma primarily consisting of follicular lymphoma (FL) and for mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) have yet to be established. Here the Hokuriku Hematology Oncology Study Group conducted a multicenter prospective study to investigate the efficacy and safety of a combination regimen of rituximab, cladribine, mitoxantrone, and dexamethasone (R-CMD) in indolent B cell lymphoma and MCL. A total of 33 CD20-positive patients who received care between January 2008 and August 2011 were investigated.

[Current concept of insulin therapy intensification, and the role of human regular insulin and rapid-acting insulin analogs in insulin treatment].

The evolution of insulin therapy from animal insulin to recombinant human regular insulin has improved diabetes treatment. Generating of rapid-acting insulin analogs, mimicking physiologic insulin action enables us to provide better control of post-prandial glucose level and lower incidence of hypoglycemia compared with human regular insulin. These rapid-acting insulin analogs show lower susceptibility of insulin precipitation and catheter occlusions, and are suitable for insulin pump therapy of continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion.

Low-dose cytarabine plus aclarubicin for patients with previously untreated acute myeloid leukemia or high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome ineligible for standard-dose cytarabine plus anthracycline.

Background: In order to assess the role of the combination of low-dose cytarabine (Ara-C) plus aclarubicin (CA) in remission induction for patients with untreated acute myeloid leukemia (AML) or high-risk myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), we retrospectively analyzed the efficacy and safety of CA.

Patients And Methods: Data of twenty patients with untreated AML or high-risk MDS who were ineligible for standard-dose Ara-C plus anthracycline and received CA as remission-induction therapy were analyzed. CA consisted of low-dose Ara-C (10 mg/m(2), subcutaneous injection every 12 hours, for 14 days) and aclarubicin (14 mg/m(2) for patients <70 years old and 10 mg/m(2) for patients ≥70 years old in a one-hour infusion for 4 days).

Hepatocyte nuclear factor 1 alpha is a factor responsible for the interindividual variation of OATP1B1 mRNA levels in adult Japanese livers.

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to clarify the factors responsible for interindividual variability of organic anion transporting polypeptide (OATP, gene symbol SLCO) 1B1 mRNA expression level in the human liver.

Materials And Methods: OATP1B1 mRNA expression levels were determined by real-time PCR in 31 human liver samples. The results were analyzed in relation to a single nucleotide polymorphism (-11187G>A) located in the promoter region and levels of hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF) 1alpha mRNA.

Angiotensin-converting enzyme I/D polymorphism and hypertension: the Ohasama study.

Objective: Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) I/D polymorphism in intron 16 of the ACE gene was analyzed in a general Japanese population in relation to self-blood pressure (BP) measurement at home (home BP) and ambulatory BP monitoring (ABPM) to determine the association between genetic variants of this polymorphism and hypertension.

Design: A cross-sectional study.

Methods And Results: We genotyped the ACE I/D polymorphism in 1245 subjects with home BP and 803 subjects with ABPM in Ohasama, a rural community in Japan.

Overexpression of dominant-negative mutant hepatocyte nuclear fctor-1 alpha in pancreatic beta-cells causes abnormal islet architecture with decreased expression of E-cadherin, reduced beta-cell proliferation, and diabetes.

One subtype of maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY)-3 results from mutations in the gene encoding hepatocyte nuclear factor (HNF)-1 alpha. We generated transgenic mice expressing a naturally occurring dominant-negative form of human HNF-1 alpha (P291fsinsC) in pancreatic beta-cells. A progressive hyperglycemia with age was seen in these transgenic mice, and the mice developed diabetes with impaired glucose-stimulated insulin secretion.