Radiofrequency ablation for the treatment of unresectable lung metastases in patients with colorectal cancer: a multicenter study in Japan.

Purpose: Results after lung radiofrequency (RF) ablation were retrospectively evaluated to determine whether lung RF ablation is an effective therapeutic option for the treatment of unresectable lung metastases from colorectal cancer.

Materials And Methods: Seventy-one patients with 155 unresectable colorectal lung metastases underwent computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous RF ablation at four institutions. The maximum tumor size was 3 cm or less in 61 patients and 3.

[Two cases of pancreatic pseudocyst with bleeding].

We encountered 2 patients (No. 1 and 2) with pseudocyst hemorrhage of the pancreas. Patient No.

Etiology of intestinal obstruction in patients without a prior history of laparotomy or a detectable external hernia on physical examination.

We evaluated the preoperative determination of the etiology and effectiveness of the diagnostic modalities, as well as the incidence of various causes of intestinal obstruction (IO) from 1981 through 2001 at a university-affiliated emergency center. Patients with a history of prior laparotomy or evidence of hernia on physical examinations were excluded. Eighty-three patients with surgically or endoscopically proven IO were reviewed.

The involvement of transferrin in the uptake of iron-59 by hepatocytes of carbon tetrachloride-damaged rats.

We have reported that transferrin (Tf)-unbound Gallium-67 ((67)Ga) was taken up into hepatocytes 1 d after carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4))-treatment in rats. It had been reported that the binding affinity of Iron-59 ((59)Fe) to Tf was greater than that of (67)Ga. In the present study, we investigated whether or not Tf was involved in (59)Fe uptake by hepatocytes of CCl(4)-damaged rats.

[A clinical study of liver abscesses at the Critical Care and Emergency Center of Iwate Medical University].

We studied 13 emergency cases of liver abscess. Five cases of septic shock or clouding of consciousness were identified on admission. Six patients had diabetes mellitus.

Microtubule bundle formation and cell death induced by the human CLASP/Orbit N-terminal fragment.

Previously we have identified the Drosophila orbit gene whose hypomorphic mutations cause abnormal chromosome segregation (Inoue et al., 2000). The orbit encodes Orbit/Mast, a 165-kDa microtubule-associated protein (MAP) with GTP-binding motifs.

Solid and cystic tumor of the pancreas with massive hemoperitoneum.

A case of a solid cystic tumor (SCT) of the pancreas with massive hemoperitoneum occurring in a 31-year-old woman is reported. She was admitted with abdominal pain and rebound tenderness. Computed tomography (CT) disclosed a large tumor consisting of both solid and cystic components in the body of the pancreas.

Biphasic effects of geranylgeraniol, teprenone, and phytol on the growth of Staphylococcus aureus.

We examined the antibacterial activities against Staphylococcus aureus of three diterpenes, namely, geranylgeraniol, teprenone, and phytol, by using a broth dilution with shaking method to identify the effects of diterpenes with long aliphatic carbon chains. We also performed time-kill assays and measured the leakage of K(+) ions from bacterial cells in response to these diterpenes. The diterpenes used inhibited the growth of S.

Overexpression of the Runx3 transcription factor increases the proportion of mature thymocytes of the CD8 single-positive lineage.

The Runx family of transcription factors is thought to regulate the differentiation of thymocytes. Runx3 protein is detected mainly in the CD4(-)8(+) subset of T lymphocytes. In the thymus of Runx3-deficient mice, CD4 expression is de-repressed and CD4(-)8(+) thymocytes do not develop.

parva germina, A gene involved in germ cell maintenance during male and female Drosophila gametogenesis.

We report the initial characterization of a gene, parva germina (pag), required for germ cell maintenance in both males and females. pag gonads contain a small number of germline stem cells at the onset of gametogenesis. In contrast, adult mutant gonads are either empty or have a very small number of germ cells that never develop in 16-cell cysts.

The antibacterial effects of terpene alcohols on Staphylococcus aureus and their mode of action.

The study was made of the antibacterial effects of three terpene alcohols on Staphylococcus aureus, focusing on the leakage of K+ ions and toxicity over time. The leakage of K+ ions was monitored continuously with a K+-electrode. Our results suggested that the terpene alcohols, namely, farnesol, nerolidol and plaunotol might act on cell membranes.

Mutations in orbit/mast reveal that the central spindle is comprised of two microtubule populations, those that initiate cleavage and those that propagate furrow ingression.

We address the relative roles of astral and central spindle microtubules (MTs) in cytokinesis of Drosophila melanogaster primary spermatocytes. Time-lapse imaging studies reveal that the central spindle is comprised of two MT populations, "interior" central spindle MTs found within the spindle envelope and "peripheral" astral MTs that probe the cytoplasm and initiate cleavage furrows where they contact the cortex and form overlapping bundles. The MT-associated protein Orbit/Mast/CLASP concentrates on interior rather than peripheral central spindle MTs.

Expression profiling-based identification of CO2-responsive genes regulated by CCM1 controlling a carbon-concentrating mechanism in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.

Photosynthetic acclimation to CO2-limiting stress is associated with control of genetic and physiological responses through a signal transduction pathway, followed by integrated monitoring of the environmental changes. Although several CO2-responsive genes have been previously isolated, genome-wide analysis has not been applied to the isolation of CO2-responsive genes that may function as part of a carbon-concentrating mechanism (CCM) in photosynthetic eukaryotes. By comparing expression profiles of cells grown under CO2-rich conditions with those of cells grown under CO2-limiting conditions using a cDNA membrane array containing 10,368 expressed sequence tags, 51 low-CO2 inducible genes and 32 genes repressed by low CO2 whose mRNA levels were changed more than 2.

Pulmonary involvement in Crohn's disease report of a case and review of the literature.

Crohn's disease (CD) is a granulomatous systemic disorder of unknown etiology. Obvious pulmonary involvement is exceptional in patients with CD. We report a case of a 38-year-old man who suffered from CD for more than 14 years and was treated with oral steroids for more than 10 years.

Genetic link between p53 and genes required for formation of the zonula adherens junction.

Ectopic expression of human p53 in Drosophila eye imaginal disc cells induces apoptosis and results in a rough eye phenotype in the adult flies. We have screened Drosophila stocks to identify mutations that enhance or suppress the p53-induced rough eye phenotype. One of the dominant enhancers of the p53-induced rough eye phenotype corresponds to a loss-of-function mutation of the crumbs gene, which is essential for the biogenesis of the zonula adherens junction and the establishment of apical polarity in epithelial cells.

Intussusception in adults: a 21-year experience in the university-affiliated emergency center and indication for nonoperative reduction.

Background: While intussusception is relatively common in children, it is rare in adults.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the records of all patients older than 18 years with the diagnosis of intussusception between 1981 and 2001.

Results: Eleven patients with surgically or endoscopically proven intussusception were encountered at the University-affiliated emergency center.

Pneumoperitoneum without perforation of the gastrointestinal tract.

Pneumoperitoneum (PP) is usually the result of perforation of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract with associated peritonitis. However, other rare causes, including spontaneous PP incidental to intrathoracic, intra-abdominal, gynecologic, and miscellaneous other origins not associated with a perforated GI tract have been described in the literature. Six cases of PP without any perforated GI tract are reported.

Selective application of laparoscopic intervention in the management of isolated bowel rupture in blunt abdominal trauma.

Background: Recently, laparoscopy has been used as an effective diagnostic and therapeutic modality for traumatic injury and peritonitis. However, its clinical benefits are still under evaluation. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility and safety of this technique, in comparison with traditional laparotomy, in the management of isolated bowel rupture.

Leakage of K+ ions from Staphylococcus aureus in response to tea tree oil.

The leakage of K(+) ions from Staphylococcus aureus in response to tea tree oil (TTO) was investigated with an ion-selective electrode. The amount of leaked K(+) ions and the rate of leakage of K(+) ions induced by TTO were dependent on the concentration of TTO. Measurements of initial rates required less time than measurements of total amounts and provided an index of the interaction between TTO and the cell membrane.

Laparoscopic paracecal hernia repair.

The diagnosis and treatment of internal abdominal hernia usually require laparotomy. We report a case of preoperative diagnosis and laparoscopic repair of paracecal hernia. A 90-year-old woman was referred with features of a well-established small bowel obstruction (SBO).

Matrix metalloproteinase-1 and cytokines in patients with acute pancreatitis.

Introduction: Hypercytokinemia is known to occur in severe acute pancreatitis, suggesting that the production, deposition, and degradation of the extracellular matrix (ECM) occur actively as a result of the actions of the complicated cytokine network.

Aims And Methodology: To examine the influence of cytokines and growth factors on the ECM in acute pancreatitis from the points of view of the severity of the disease, the complication of multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS), and the prognosis, 25 patients with acute pancreatitis were divided into three groups according to the severity of the condition as assessed by the Ranson score. The serum levels of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases (TIMP)-1, the MMP-1.

Orbit/Mast, the CLASP orthologue of Drosophila, is required for asymmetric stem cell and cystocyte divisions and development of the polarised microtubule network that interconnects oocyte and nurse cells during oogenesis.

Drosophila oocyte differentiation is preceded by the formation of a polarised 16-cell cyst from a single progenitor stem cell as a result of four rounds of asymmetric mitosis followed by incomplete cytokinesis. We show that the Orbit/Mast microtubule-associated protein is required at several stages in the formation of such polarised 16-cell cysts. In wild-type cysts, the Orbit/Mast protein not only associates with the mitotic spindle and its poles, but also with the central spindle (spindle remnant), ring canal and fusome, suggesting it participates in interactions between these structures.