Elongation of the developing spinal cord is driven by Oct4-type transcription factor-mediated regulation of retinoic acid signaling in zebrafish embryos.

Background: Elongation of the spinal cord is dependent on neural development from neuromesodermal progenitors in the tail bud. We previously showed the involvement of the Oct4-type gene, pou5f3, in this process in zebrafish mainly by dominant-interference gene induction, but, to compensate for the limitation of this transgene approach, mutant analysis was indispensable. pou5f3 involvement in the signaling pathways was another unsolved question.

High Prevalence of Pantoea spp. in Microbiota Associated with the Sorghum Plant Bug Stenotus rubrovittatus (Heteroptera: Miridae).

The sorghum plant bug, Stenotus rubrovittatus (order Heteroptera: family Miridae), is a notorious insect pest in Japan that causes pecky rice. In the present study, we sampled this insect pest in the northern part of Honshu Island in Japan and investigated its associated microbiota. The results obtained showed that Pantoea dominated the associated microbiota and was the sole genus detected in all samples.

An Autopsy Case of Acute Pancreatitis Caused by Cholesterol Crystal Embolization.

Cholesterol crystal embolization (CCE) shows a poor prognosis and it can cause ischemic organ damage due to a cholesterol embolism from atherosclerotic lesions in large blood vessels. Such an embolism mainly affects the kidneys and skin, although cases involving digestive organs have also been reported. We encountered an autopsy case of CCE with damage mainly to the digestive organs, including the pancreas.

A multilayered sheet-type device capable of sustained drug release and deployment control.

Minimally invasive delivery of a sustained drug release device to the body is a promising approach for treating chronic conditions such as retinal diseases. Herein, we describe a sheet-type device capable of sustained drug release and deployment control after being applied to the body through a small opened hole via a syringe-type injector. Such device consists of a four-layered structure of thin photopolymerized sheets, which are in turn made of different ratios of a mixture of polyethylene glycol dimethacrylate (PEGDM) and triethylene glycol dimethacrylate (TEGDM).

[Dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase deficiency causes severe adverse effects of capecitabine].

We report the case of a 61-year-old man who experienced severe adverse effects of capecitabine because of dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) deficiency. In 2016, he visited our hospital for adenocarcinoma of the gastroesophageal junction and was prescribed neoadjuvant chemotherapy with capecitabine, cisplatin, and trastuzumab. On day 14 of chemotherapy, he developed severe diarrhea, canker sores, enterocolitis, febrile neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia.