A Randomized Prospective Study of Bowel Preparation for Colonoscopy with Low-Dose Sodium Phosphate Tablets versus Polyethylene Glycol Electrolyte Solution.

Optimal bowel preparation is essential for the safety and outcome of colonoscopy. A solution containing polyethylene glycol (PEG) is often used as a bowel cleansing agent, but some patients are intolerant of PEG, and this may lead to discontinuation of colonoscopy. Sodium phosphates (NaP) tablets are designed to improve patient acceptance and compliance.

[Case of computed tomography (CT) gastrography for the detection of multiple gastric submucosal tumors: a case report].

A 66-year-old female underwent esophagogastroduodenoscopy, which revealed a 17-mm gastric submucosal tumor (SMT) located in the posterior wall of the upper area of the stomach. She was referred to our hospital for further investigation because of accumulation of radioactive substance in the gastric wall by PET-CT. CT gastrography (CTG) revealed three gastric SMTs in total.

Histological Distinction between the Granular and Nongranular Types of Laterally Spreading Tumors of the Colorectum.

Colorectal laterally spreading tumors (LSTs), which are classified into granular (LST-G) and nongranular (LST-NG) types, are a good indication for endoscopic treatment. In practice, the nongranular type is more difficult to remove endoscopically than the granular type. It might be assumed that some histological differences exist between these subtypes.

Three different cone opsin gene array mutational mechanisms with genotype-phenotype correlation and functional investigation of cone opsin variants.

Mutations in the OPN1LW (L-) and OPN1MW (M-)cone opsin genes underlie a spectrum of cone photoreceptor defects from stationary loss of color vision to progressive retinal degeneration. Genotypes of 22 families with a range of cone disorders were grouped into three classes: deletions of the locus control region (LCR); missense mutation (p.Cys203Arg) in an L-/M-hybrid gene; and exon 3 single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) interchange haplotypes in an otherwise normal gene array.

Prospective clinical trial of traction device-assisted endoscopic submucosal dissection of large superficial colorectal tumors using the S-O clip.

Background: Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) allows en bloc resection of superficial colorectal tumors regardless of size. However, ESD is technically difficult, hazardous, and time consuming. New devices may help overcome these drawbacks.

Evaluation of nanodispersion of iron oxides using various polymers.

In order to create Fe2O3 and Fe2O3·H2O nanoparticles, various polymers were used as dispersing agents, and the resulting effects on the dispersibility and nanoparticulation of the iron oxides were evaluated. It was revealed that not only the solution viscosity but also the molecular length of the polymers and the surface tension of the particles affected the dispersibility of Fe2O3 and Fe2O3·H2O particles. Using the dispersing agents 7.

Application of a self-controlled case series study to a database study in children.

Introduction: Post-marketing surveillance activities are particularly important for safety issues in children, the elderly, and patients with severe comorbidities since these populations are usually excluded from clinical trials. In addition, using electronic databases for monitoring of safety of marketed products has been of considerable interest.

Objectives: This study aimed to clarify the advantages and difficulties of the self-controlled case series method relative to cohort studies in pharmacoepidemiological studies in children, using an administrative database, and to explore the impact on results of handling the period eligible for analysis and recurrent events in different ways.

A case of neuroendocrine tumor G1 with unique histopathological growth progress.

A gastric neuroendocrine tumor (NET) is generated from deep within the tissue mucosal layers. In many cases, NETs are discovered as submucosal tumor (SMT)-like structures by forming a tumor mass. This case has a clear mucosal demarcation line and developed like a polyp.

Gastric adenocarcinoma of the fundic gland type (chief cell predominant type).

Gastric adenocarcinoma of the fundic gland (chief cell predominant type, GA-FG-CCP) was recently proposed as a new, rare variant of gastric adenocarcinoma. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the endoscopic features of GA-FG-CCP. A total of 10 GA-FG-CCPs were included and evaluated retrospectively.

A white opaque substance-positive gastric hyperplastic polyp with dysplasia.

The endoscopic findings of gastric hyperplastic polyps (HPs) with dysplasia have not been well-defined, and the clinical significance of these lesions, including their malignant potential, is unclear. In this report, we describe a case of a white opaque substance (WOS)-positive gastric HP with dysplasia. A 76-year-old woman was referred to our hospital for endoscopic resection of a gastric HP.

Invasive rectal cancer treated with a combination of endoscopic submucosal dissection and chemoradiation.

A 68-year-old man underwent total colonoscopy because of a positive fecal occult blood test. A polypoid lesion (Is + IIa), 20 mm in size, was detected in the very lower part of the rectum. A large reddish nodule suggesting invasive carcinoma was seen on conventional view.

[Two cases of Duchenne muscular dystrophy over 40 years after onset].

We report two 45 year old men with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Case 1 showed a deleted exon 50 of the dystrophin gene by MLPA analysis, and Case 2 showed deleted exons 46-52. Both patients presented with severe weakness of the skeletal muscles and respiratory dysfunction, while cardiac involvement was mild and cognitive function was almost normal.

Development and clinical usability of a new traction device "medical ring" for endoscopic submucosal dissection of early gastric cancer.

Background: Although various traction devices exist for endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), the effects of the material used in the devices on the human body has not been considered. Moreover, there has been no report on a device that facilitates dissection both on the oral and anal side of the lesion. We made a traction device that has no deleterious effects on the body and is noninvasive, easy to use, and enables a bilateral approach in ESD.

Successful treatment for Cronkhite-Canada syndrome with endoscopic mucosal resection and salazosulfapyridine.

A 79-year-old woman was referred to our hospital because numerous polyps were found in her stomach and large intestine at an ambulatory clinic. Although there were no characteristic symptoms or signs of Cronkhite-Canada syndrome (CCS), endoscopic and pathological findings indicated CCS. Moreover, colonoscopy showed two polypoid lesions (Is type), which appeared neoplastic by magnifying observation with image-enhanced endoscopy (IEE), in the ascending colon.

Unique haplotype in exon 3 of cone opsin mRNA affects splicing of its precursor, leading to congenital color vision defect.

We have analyzed L/M visual pigment gene arrays in 119 Japanese men with protanopia color vision defect and found that five had a normal gene order of L-M. Among the five men, two (identified as A376 and A642) had apparently normal L genes. To clarify their L gene defect, the whole L or M gene from A376 and control subjects was cloned in an expression vector.

Endoscopic full-thickness resection of a lateral spreading rectal tumor after unplanned injection of dilute hyaluronic acid into the subserosal layer (with video).

A 74-year-old woman underwent colonoscopy for investigation of a liver tumor. A lateral spreading tumor of the non-granular type (LST-NG), 25 mm in diameter, was detected at the rectosigmoid junction. As magnifying image-enhanced colonoscopy suggested a tubulovillous adenoma, endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) was chosen for removal of the LST-NG.

[Case of focal convexal subarachnoid hemorrhage presenting as transient ischemic attack mimic].

An 82-year-old man was suspected to have experienced a transient ischemic attack since he developed transient weakness in the right upper limb twice. On admission, neurologic examination yielded normal findings except for mild cognitive impairment. Brain CT and images showed an unexpected finding of acute focal subarachnoid hemorrhage in the left central sulcus, although MR angiography and venography did not show any abnormality.

Autofluorescence imaging endoscopy for identification and assessment of inflammatory ulcerative colitis.

Aim: To validate the clinical relevance of autofluorescence imaging (AFI) endoscopy for the assessment of inflammatory ulcerative colitis (UC).

Methods: A total of 572 endoscopic images were selected from 42 UC patients: 286 taken with white light imaging (WLI) and 286 with AFI from the same sites. WLI images were assessed for overall mucosal inflammation according to Mayo endoscopic subscore (MES), and for seven characteristic endoscopic features.

Geraniol, E-3,7-dimethyl-2,6-octadien-1-ol, as the alarm pheromone of the sycamore lace bug Corythucha ciliata (Say).

Although adult sycamore lace bugs Corythucha ciliata (Say) show no sign of aggregation, nymphs at all developing stages are gregarious. When an individual nymph in the center of a colony was squashed with a needlepoint, proximate nymphs showed evasive behavior. The same evasive reaction was produced by exposing aggregated nymphs to nymph hexane extract.

Crossed aphasia following an infarction in the right corpus callosum.

A 68-year-old right-handed woman with no history of brain damage or familial left-handedness was admitted to our hospital due to the acute onset of speech difficulty; her speech was nonfluent. Literal and phonological paraphasias, agrammatism and paragrammatism were observed. Brain MRI revealed an acute infarction in the right anterior cerebral artery territory, involving the right corpus callosum.

Semaphorin 3A lytic hybrid peptide binding to neuropilin-1 as a novel anti-cancer agent in pancreatic cancer.

We previously reported that novel targeted "hybrid peptide" in which epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) binding peptide was conjugated with lytic-type peptide had selective cytotoxic activity to EGFR expressing cancer cells. In this study, we have generated a novel type hybrid peptide, semaphorin 3A lytic (Sema3A-lytic), which is composed of two functional amino acid domains: a sequence derived from Sema3A that binds to neuropilin-1 (NRP1) and a cytotoxic lytic peptide. We found that this hybrid peptide had cytotoxic activity against NRP1-positive pancreatic cancer cell lines such as BxPC-3 and Panc-1, whereas the peptide did not affect the viability of normal cells in vitro.