Synephrine inhibits eotaxin-1 expression via the STAT6 signaling pathway.

Citrus contain various flavonoids and alkaloids that have multiple biological activities. It is known that the immature Citrus contains larger amounts of bioactive components, than do the mature plants. Although Citrus flavonoids are well known for their biological activities, Citrus alkaloids have not previously been assessed. In this study, we identified synephrine alkaloids as an active compound from immature Citrus unshiu, and investigated the effect of synephrine on eotaxin-1 expression. Eotaxin-1 is a potent chemoattractant for eosinophils, and a critical mediator, during the development of eosinophilic inflammation. We found that synephrine significantly inhibited IL-4-induced eotaxin-1 expression. This synephrine effect was mediated through the inhibition of STAT6 phosphorylation in JAK/STAT signaling. We also found that eosinophil recruitment induced by eotaxin-1 overexpression was inhibited by synephrine. Taken together, these findings indicate that inhibiting IL-4-induced eotaxin-1 expression by synephrine occurs primarily through the suppression of eosinophil recruitment, which is mediated by inhibiting STAT6 phosphorylation.

Investigation of Strength Properties for Concrete Containing Fine-Rubber Particles Using UPV.

Since the early 1990s, many studies were conducted to utilize waste tires as a replacement for natural coarse and fine aggregates in concrete, known as rubberized concrete or rubber-concrete. In this paper, an experimental study was performed on the strength properties of concrete containing fine-rubber particles as a replacement of fine aggregate, using destructive and non-destructive tests. Ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) tests were used to evaluate the strength property of rubber-concrete as a non-destructive test. Compressive and splitting tensile strengths were determined for four different volume contents of fine-rubber particles and exponential equations were proposed for the relationship between compressive, splitting tensile strength and the UPV of rubber-concrete, respectively. With the limited conditions in this paper, it found that UPV tests could also be used to estimate the compressive and tensile strengths of rubber-concrete, that are used in other types of concrete.

F-18 FDG PET/CT in NK/T-Cell Lymphoma that Progressed from Epstein-Barr Virus-Associated Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis.

Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a syndrome involving an uncontrolled immune response with variable triggers. HLH is rare but highly fatal, even with proper treatment; therefore, early recognition and diagnosis are crucial for management. Although the role of F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) in HLH is poorly defined, it can provide valuable information on disease status and possible triggers. Herein, we report an F-18 FDG PET/CT study on a case of NK/T-cell lymphoma that progressed from Epstein-Barr virus-associated HLH.

Simulating dose reduction for myocardial perfusion SPECT using a Poisson resampling method.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the lowest Tl-201 dose that does not reduce the image quality of myocardial perfusion SPECT (MPS) by Poisson resampling simulation. METHODS: One hundred and twelve consecutive MPS data from patients with suspected or known coronary artery disease were collected retrospectively. Stress and rest MPS data were resampled using the Poisson method with 33%, 50%, 67%, and 100% count settings. Two nuclear medicine physicians assessed the image quality of reconstructed data visually by giving grades from - 2 to + 2. The summed stress score (SSS), summed rest score (SRS), and summed difference score (SDS) were obtained on the workstation. Image quality grades and semi-quantitative scores were then compared among these resampled images. RESULTS: The proportions of "adequate" image quality were 0.48, 0.75, 0.92, and 0.96 for the groups of images with 33%, 50%, 67%, and 100% data, respectively. The quality of the resampled images was significantly degraded at 50% and 33% count settings, while the image quality was not different between 67 and 100% count settings. We also found that high body mass index further decreased image quality at 33% count setting. Among the semi-quantitative parameters, SSS and SRS showed a tendency to increase with a decline in count. CONCLUSION: Based on the simulation results, Tl-201 dose for MPS can be reduced to 74 MBq without significant loss of image quality. However, the SSS and SRS can be changed significantly, and it needs to be further verified under the different conditions.

Hilar Choledochal Cyst Mimicking Biliary Atresia on Hepatobiliary Scintigraphy: a Case Report.

Hepatobiliary scintigraphy has been widely used for the differential diagnosis of neonatal cholestasis. Relatively good hepatic uptake with no evidence of excretion into the bowel for up to 24 h is a representative finding of biliary atresia. Hepatobiliary scintigraphy has very high sensitivity and moderate specificity. Here, we report a false-positive case of hepatobiliary scintigraphy in a child with a choledochal cyst, which mimicked biliary atresia.

An alternative to Western blot analysis using RNA aptamer-functionalized quantum dots.

To make full use both of optical properties of quantum dots (QDs) and of specific interactions between aptamers and their ligands of interest, we employed QD-conjugated RNA aptamer interactions with histidine tag. QDs offer revolutionary fluorescence performance due to their long-term photostability, brilliant colors, fixability, and narrow, symmetrical emission spectra, and aptamers are known to specifically bind to their target molecules, including metal ions, small molecules, and macromolecules. In this study, we have synthesized RNA aptamer-functionalized QDs, and demonstrated their application to specific protein detection, as an alternative to the conventional Western blot analysis. We observed that our RNA aptamer-functionalized QD system dramatically reduced the time and effort required for conventional Western blot analysis, whereas the selectivity was comparable to that of the conventionally available anti-histidine tag antibody and the sensitivity was comparable to that of the Coomassie blue staining method. In principle, owing to the remarkable optical properties of QDs and a wide versatility of aptamers for selection, our system can harness the high brightness, stability and reusability to quantitatively detect aptamer-recognizable proteins. Furthermore, multiplex detection for several proteins on a single blot can be achieved by our new method, which thus may be able to facilitate and simplify the routinely used protein detection procedure, and make a variety of proteomics analysis possible.

Using the Chicken Chorioallantoic Membrane In Vivo Model to Study Gynecological and Urological Cancers.

Mouse models are the benchmark tests for in vivo cancer studies. However, cost, time, and ethical considerations have led to calls for alternative in vivo cancer models. The chicken chorioallantoic membrane (CAM) model provides an inexpensive, rapid alternative that permits direct visualization of tumor development and is suitable for in vivo imaging. As such, we sought to develop an optimized protocol for engrafting gynecological and urological tumors into this model, which we present here. Approximately 7 days postfertilization, the air cell is moved to the vascularized side of the egg, where an opening is created in the shell. Tumors from murine and human cell lines and primary tissues can then be engrafted. These are typically seeded in a mixture of extracellular matrix and medium to avoid cellular dispersal and provide nutrient support until the cells recruit a vascular supply. Tumors may then grow for up to an additional 14 days prior to the eggs hatching. By implanting cells stably transduced with firefly luciferase, bioluminescence imaging can be used for the sensitive detection of tumor growth on the membrane and cancer cell spread throughout the embryo. This model can potentially be used to study tumorigenicity, invasion, metastasis, and therapeutic effectiveness. The chicken CAM model requires significantly less time and financial resources compared to traditional murine models. Because the eggs are immunocompromised and immune tolerant, tissues from any organism can potentially be implanted without costly transgenic animals (e.g., mice) required for implantation of human tissues. However, many of the advantages of this model could potentially also be limitations, including the short tumor generation time and immunocompromised/immune tolerant status. Additionally, although all tumor types presented here engraft in the chicken chorioallantoic membrane model, they do so with varying degrees of tumor growth.

A Case of Radioactive Iodine Uptake Found in Artificial Eye.

Radioactive iodine (RAI) therapy is widely used as an adjunctive treatment in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer. Although I has high avidity in the functioning thyroid, and in differentiated thyroid cancer lesions, physiological and nonspecific uptake of I in healthy or benign tissue may contribute to false-positive findings on an I scan. Here, we present an interesting image of RAI uptake in the eye region post-RAI treatment, which has been identified as tear contamination in the artificial eye.

Anaplastic Oligodendroglioma Found as an Incidental Photopenic Lesion on 18F-FP-CIT PET/CT Image.

F-FP-CIT PET is a useful modality for imaging dopamine transporters. It has excellent resolution compared with I-beta-CIT SPECT and is widely used clinically for the evaluation of Parkinson disease. In general, the main focus of F-FP-CIT PET imaging is the basal ganglia, and it is important to observe whether F-FP-CIT uptake is normal in the putamen and caudate nuclei. However, abnormal findings may be seen in other brain regions besides the basal ganglia. Here, we present a case of anaplastic oligodendroglioma, a high-grade tumor, which was found as an incidental photopenic lesion on F-FP-CIT PET/CT.

Extracting information from free-text electronic patient records to identify practice-based evidence of the performance of coronary stents.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) using drug-eluting stents (DES) is an indispensable treatment for coronary artery disease. However, to evaluate the performance of various types of stents for PCI, numerous resources are required. We extracted clinical information from free-text records and, using practice-based evidence, compared the efficacy of various DES. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We developed a text mining tool based on regular expression and applied it to PCI reports stored in the electronic health records (EHRs) of Ajou University Hospital from 2010-2014. The PCI data were extracted from EHRs with a sensitivity of 0.996, a specificity of 1.000, and an F-measure of 0.995 when compared with a sample of 200 reports. Using these data, we compared the performance of stents by Kaplan-Meier analysis and the Cox hazard proportional regression. RESULTS: In the self-validation analysis comparing the first-generation to the second-generation DES, the second-generation DES was superior to the first-generation DES (hazard ratio [HR]: 0.423, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.284-0.630) in terms of target vessel revascularization (TVR), showing similar findings to the established results of previous studies. Among the second-generation DES, the biodegradable-polymer DES tended to be superior, with a risk of TVR (HR: 0.568, 95% CI: 0.281-1.147) falling below than that for the durable-polymer DES approximately 1 year after the index procedure. The Endeavor stent had the highest TVR risk among the newer generation DES (HR: 2.576, 95% CI: 1.273-5.210). CONCLUSIONS: In this study, we demonstrated how to construct a PCI data warehouse of PCI-related parameters obtained from free-text electronic records with high accuracy for use in the post surveillance of coronary stents in a time- and cost effective manner. Post surveillance of the practice based evidence in the PCI data warehouse indicated that the biodegradable-polymer DES might have a lower risk of TVR than the durable-polymer DES.