The importance of synchronicity in the management of colorectal peritoneal metastases with cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy.

Background: Colorectal peritoneal metastases (CPM) occur in up to 13% of patients with colorectal cancer, presenting either synchronously or metachronously. Cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (CRS and HIPEC) have been increasingly utilised for selected CPM patients with favourable outcomes, though its benefits may differ for synchronous (s-CPM) and metachronous CPM (m-CPM).

Methods: A retrospective analysis of CPM patients treated with CRS and HIPEC at the National Cancer Centre Singapore over 15 years was performed.

Cysteinyl leukotriene 1 receptor influences intestinal polyp incidence in a gender-specific manner in the ApcMin/+ mouse model.

There is emerging literature emphasizing the role of inflammatory eicosanoids, including prostaglandins and leukotrienes, in cancer development. Increased expression of both the cysteinyl leukotriene receptor 1 (CysLTR1) and the enzyme responsible for the production of leukotrienes, 5-lipoxygenase, is associated with poor prognosis in patients with colorectal adenocarcinomas. Apc mutation is an early event in the development of sporadic and hereditary (familial adenomatous polyposis) colorectal cancer.

Colorectal peritoneal carcinomatosis treated with cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy: the experience of a tertiary Asian center.

Introduction: Compared with intravenous chemotherapy, cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) have been shown to improve survival in patients with recurrent colorectal disease confined to the peritoneum. We report our experience with CRS and HIPEC for colorectal cancer patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis, evaluating prognostic factors for disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival (OS), and perioperative morbidity and mortality.

Methods: All patients who underwent CRS and HIPEC were included in our study.

PPARβ/δ attenuates palmitate-induced endoplasmic reticulum stress and induces autophagic markers in human cardiac cells.

Background: Chronic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress contributes to the apoptotic cell death in the myocardium, thereby playing a critical role in the development of cardiomyopathy. ER stress has been reported to be induced after high-fat diet feeding in mice and also after saturated fatty acid treatment in vitro. Therefore, since several studies have shown that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)β/δ inhibits ER stress, the main goal of this study consisted in investigating whether activation of this nuclear receptor was able to prevent lipid-induced ER stress in cardiac cells.

Haemoproteus ilanpapernai n. sp. (Apicomplexa, Haemoproteidae) in Strix seloputo from Singapore: morphological description and reassignment of molecular data.

Haemoproteus ilanpapernai Karadjian and Landau n. sp. from the Spotted Wood Owl, Strix seloputo, in Singapore is described from material from Ilan Paperna's collection of slides.

Role of pelvic exenteration in the management of locally advanced primary and recurrent rectal cancer.

Aim: A review of a single-centre experience of pelvic exenteration as a treatment modality for patients with locally advanced primary and recurrent rectal cancer. The perioperative outcomes, morbidity and long term oncological outcomes are reviewed.

Materials & Methods: Patients undergoing pelvic exenterations for recurrent and locally advanced rectal cancer between 1 January 2006 and 1 August 2012 were identified from a prospective database.

Functional morphometric analysis in cellular behaviors: shape and size matter.

Cellular morphogenesis in response to biophysical and topographical cues provides insights into cytoskeletal status, biointerface communications, and phenotypic adaptations in an incessant signaling feedback that governs cellular fate. Morphometric characterization is an important element in the study of the dynamic cellular behaviors, in their interactive response to environmental influence exerted by culture system. They collectively serve to reflect cellular proliferation, migration, and differentiation, which may serve as prognostic indices for clinical and pathological diagnosis.

Surgical management of colorectal peritoneal metastases: treatment and outcomes compared with hepatic metastases.

Purpose: The liver and peritoneum are common sites of colorectal metastases. Hepatectomy for colorectal liver metastases (CLM) is considered gold standard treatment. We attempt to compare the survival outcomes for CLM patients after hepatectomy to that of patients with colorectal peritoneal metastases (CPM) who underwent cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC).

Differential effect of myocardial matrix and integrins on cardiac differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells.

Dysregulation of matrix synthesis during myocardial fibrosis in post-infarct ventricular remodeling contributes to ventricular dysfunction. Bone marrow stem cell transplantation prevents functional deterioration following myocardial infarction. However, effect of myocardial extracellular matrix (ECM) on stem cell differentiation is poorly understood.

Human bone marrow-derived adult stem cells for post-myocardial infarction cardiac repair: current status and future directions.

Stem cell-based cell therapy has emerged as a potentially therapeutic option for patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and heart failure. With the completion of a number of trials using bone marrow (BM)-derived adult stem cells, critical examination of the overall clinical benefits, limitations and potential side effects of this revolutionary treatment will pave the way for future clinical research. At present, clinical trials have been conducted almost exclusively using BM stem cells.

Identification and characterisation of human dysferlin transcript variants: implications for dysferlin mutational screening and isoforms.

In conducting dysferlin mutational screening using blood mRNA instead of genomic DNA, we identified the occurrence of alternative splicing involving novel dysferlin exons, i.e. exons 5a and 40a, in addition to previously reported alternative splicing of exon 17.