Incidence and changes in endometrial-leiomyoma fistula following uterine artery embolization: a single-center retrospective analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate whether the number and size of endometrial-leiomyoma fistulas (ELFs) change following uterine artery embolization (UAE) for leiomyoma and the correlation between ELFs and vaginal discharge (VD). MATERIALS & METHODS: This study was a retrospective analysis of 100 patients who underwent UAE at a single institution between May 2016 and March 2021. They all underwent MRI at baseline, 4 months, and 1 year after UAE. The number and size of the ELFs were compared with the MRI images each time. The ELF tumor characteristics and the correlation between the ELFs and VD were assessed. Additional gynecologic interventions due to VD associated with ELFs were evaluated. RESULTS: No ELF was observed at baseline. Ten ELFs were noted in nine patients at 4 months, and 35 ELFs were noted in 32 patients 1 year after UAE. The ELFs significantly increased over time (p = 0.004, baseline vs. 4 months; p < 0.001, 4 months vs. 1 year). The ELF size did not significantly change over time (p = 0.941). The tumors developing ELFs after UAE were mainly located at the submucosal or intramural area contacting the endometrium at baseline, with a mean size of 7.1 (2.6) cm. Nineteen patients (19%) had VD 1 year after UAE. There was no significant correlation between VD and the number of ELFs (p = 0.80). No patients underwent additional gynecologic interventions due to VD associated with ELFs. CONCLUSION: ELFs increased in number and did not disappear over time after UAE in most tumors. CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: Despite the MR imaging findings, within the limited data of this study, ELFs were not seemingly associated with clinical symptoms, including VD. KEY POINTS: • Endometrial-leiomyoma fistula (ELF) is a complication of uterine artery embolization (UAE). • ELFs increased in number over time after UAE and did not disappear in most tumors. • Most tumors developing ELFs after UAE were located near/contacted the endometrium and were larger.

[Correlation of the Blood Test Results Obtained Between Assays Using Microliter-Scale Fingertip Blood Samples Collected with a Novel Blood Collection Device and Conventional Venous Blood Assays].

In this study, we investigated the correlations of values of biochemical and hematological tests obtained using microliter-scale fingertip blood samples collected with a newly developed blood collection device with those using conventional venous blood. Eighty volunteer subjects were enrolled in the study. Blood sam- ples were drawn from the fingertip of the ring finger by a single puncture and 60 µL of each sample was promptly and accurately aspirated into a blood collection chip. Then the chip was tightly sealed with chip container and was shaken to mix the contents without dispersing. For biochemical tests except of HbAlc, blood was collected without anticoagulant and centrifuged to obtain 15 µL of serum which was then diluted with 190 pL of physiological saline for the assay. For hematological tests and HbAlc, the sample was as- sayed with blood collected using EDTA-2K. As a result, a good correlation of the test values was obtained between the assay with fingertip blood and that with venous blood. The correlation coefficients were found to be 0.97 in TG, T-CHO, HDL-C, LDL-C, GLU, ALT, γ-GTP, UA, BUN and HbAlc and ≥ 0.95 for WBC, RBC, Hgb, and Hct. These results suggest that our microliter-scale blood testing can be comparable to the assay using venous blood and may be useful as a rapid and simple test for determination of basic clinical tests near the reference intervals. [Original].

Transient cerebral vasospasm and global amnesia following post-CT contrast.

We present a unique case of transient global amnesia following intravenous administration of a non-ionic iodinated contrast agent for abdominal CT examination. Follow up MR imaging and MR angiography studies revealed hippocampal microinfarction and transient cerebral vasospasm. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case capturing arterial vasospasm following intravenous use of iodinated contrast. Medical professionals handling contrast agents should note the potential for these rare but serious adverse effects.

Hemoptysis due to a lung metastasis of renal cell carcinoma: A case report.

A 53-year-old man with a history of surgery for renal cancer was referred to our hospital due to massive hemoptysis. Contrast-enhanced CT revealed a well-enhanced pulmonary nodule suggestive of a tumor (diameter of 16 mm), which was considered a causal lesion. Bronchial artery embolization was successfully performed and subsequently hemoptysis disappeared. However, hemoptysis recurred 6 months later, and the tumor was surgically resected. Pathological examination revealed the resected tumor was a lung metastasis of renal cell carcinoma, which directly invaded into pulmonary bronchus. Hemoptysis secondary to lung metastasis of renal cell carcinoma has rarely been reported in the literature.

Plasma myoglobin indicates muscle damage associated with acceleration/deceleration during football.

BACKGROUND: Monitoring muscle damage in athletes assists not only coaches to adjust the training workload but also medical staff to prevent injury. Measuring blood myoglobin concentration can help evaluate muscle damage. The novel portable device utilized in this study allows for easy on-site measurement of myoglobin, providing real-time data on the player's muscle damage. This study investigated the relationship between external load (global positioning system parameters) and internal loads (myoglobin concentration and creatine kinase activity) in 15 male professional football players before and after a match. METHODS: Whole blood samples from participants' fingertips were collected before the match (baseline) and at 2, 16, and 40 h after the match. Myoglobin concentrations were measured using the IA-100 compact immunoassay system. Creatine kinase concentrations were measured in a clinical laboratory, and match loads were monitored using a global positioning system device. RESULTS: The mean myoglobin concentration was significantly higher at 2 h than at the other time points (P<0.05), and decreased to baseline levels within 16 h post-match. The mean creatine kinase concentration increased after the match but did not reach a significant level. Muscle damage monitored by myoglobin after football match-play was strongly associated with acceleration/deceleration metrics rather than the sprint/high-speed running distance. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that myoglobin is a more sensitive marker of muscle damage than creatine kinase after football match-play. Monitoring myoglobin in athletes can aid in determining their recovery status from the previous training load and help practitioners manage the training load.

Sunitinib maleate administration before percutaneous CT-guided cryoablation for large renal cell carcinoma: A case report.

A 60-year-old woman taking anti-platelet drugs was referred to the hospital for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma. CT revealed that the tumor had a diameter of 5 cm and hyper-vascularity. Percutaneous CT-guided cryoablation (CA) was indicated. Since preprocedural arterial embolization failed to provide sufficient embolic effects, sunitinib maleate was administered. It provided good tumor devascularization and volume reduction, which corresponded to downstage. Therefore, the administration contributed to successfully performing subsequent percutaneous CT-guided CA with no serious hemorrhagic complications. Sunitinib maleate may be an alternative to conventional treatments before CA for renal cell carcinoma.

Photon extraction enhancement of praseodymium ions in gallium nitride nanopillars.

Lanthanoid-doped Gallium Nitride (GaN) integrated into nanophotonic technologies is a promising candidate for room-temperature quantum photon sources for quantum technology applications. We manufactured praseodymium (Pr)-doped GaN nanopillars of varying size, and showed significantly enhanced room-temperature photon extraction efficiency compared to unstructured Pr-doped GaN. Implanted Pr ions in GaN show two main emission peaks at 650.3 nm and 651.8 nm which are attributed to 3P0-3F2 transition in the 4f-shell. The maximum observed enhancement ratio was 23.5 for 200 nm diameter circular pillars, which can be divided into the emitted photon extraction enhancement by a factor of 4.5 and the photon collection enhancement by a factor of 5.2. The enhancement mechanism is explained by the eigenmode resonance inside the nanopillar. Our study provides a pathway for Lanthanoid-doped GaN nano/micro-scale photon emitters and quantum technology applications.

Plasma Arginase-1 Level Is Associated with the Mental Status of Outpatients with Chronic Liver Disease.

While plasma arginase-1 has been suggested as a biomarker of mental status in healthy individuals, it has not been evaluated in patients with chronic liver disease. This cross-sectional study investigated the utility of plasma arginase-1 for screening mental status in patients with chronic liver disease. This study included outpatients with chronic liver disease who underwent regular check-ups at Okayama University Hospital between September 2018 and January 2019. In addition to the standard blood tests, the plasma arginase-1 level was analyzed. The patients' mental status was assessed using the Japanese version of the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28). The associations between mental status and various parameters, including plasma arginase-1, were investigated using logistic regression analysis. Among 114 participating patients, 8 were excluded, comprising 6 with insufficient blood samples for plasma arginase-1 measurement and 2 with incomplete questionnaires. Multivariate binomial logistic regression analysis revealed that plasma arginase-1 was significantly and negatively associated with the GHQ-total score, especially somatic symptoms. Therefore, plasma arginase-1 may be a useful biomarker for assessing the mental status of outpatients with chronic liver disease.

Inhibition of Ligand Binding Ability of Three Porphyrins by an Organic Effector.

A stimulus-responsive receptor 1 was designed and prepared to control the ligand-binding ability of three active sites, two zinc tetraphenylporphyrin units (P1) and one zinc diethynyldiphenylporphyrin unit (P2), with one effector molecule 2. Bulky hexarylbenzene units were incorporated as shielding panels in the middle of the flexible side arms of 1. Spectroscopic titrations indicated that a stable supramolecular complex 1⋅2 (K1⋅2 =6.7×106 m-1 ) was produced by the cooperative formation of multiple hydrogen and coordination bonds. As a result, the binding of a ligand to P1 was inhibited by 2 in a competitive manner. Additionally, the formation of 1⋅2 brought about conformational restriction of the side arms to cover both faces of P2 with the shielding panels. The binding constant of 4-phenylpyridine with P2 in 1⋅2 decreased to 8.9 % of that in 1. Namely, the ligand-binding ability of P2 was inhibited according to an allosteric mechanism.

Fully Ion Implanted Normally-Off GaN DMOSFETs with ALD-Al2O3 Gate Dielectrics.

A normally-off GaN double-implanted vertical MOSFET (DMOSFET) with an atomic layer deposition (ALD)-Al2O3 gate dielectric film on a free-standing GaN substrate fabricated by triple ion implantation is presented. The DMOSFET was formed with Si ion implanted source regions in a Mg ion implanted p-type base with N ion implanted termination regions. A maximum drain current of 115 mA/mm, maximum transconductance of 19 mS/mm at a drain voltage of 15 V, and a threshold voltage of 3.6 V were obtained for the fabricated DMOSFET with a gate length of 0.4 µm with an estimated p-type base Mg surface concentration of 5 × 1018 cm-3. The difference between calculated and measured Vths could be due to the activation ratio of ion-implanted Mg as well as Fermi level pinning and the interface state density. On-resistance of 9.3 mΩ·cm² estimated from the linear region was also attained. Blocking voltage at off-state was 213 V. The fully ion implanted GaN DMOSFET is a promising candidate for future high-voltage and high-power applications.

One-step purification of lectins from banana pulp using sugar-immobilized gold nano-particles.

To obtain lectins without tedious purification steps, we developed a convenient method for a one-step purification of lectins using sugar-immobilized gold nano-particles (SGNPs). Proteins in crude extracts from plant materials were precipitated with 60% ammonium sulphate, and the precipitate was re-dissolved in a small volume of phosphate buffer. The resultant solution was then mixed with appropriate SGNPs under an optimized condition. After incubating overnight at 4 degrees C, lectins in the mixture formed aggregate with SGNPs, which was visually detected and easily sedimented by centrifugation. The aggregate was dissolved by adding inhibitory sugars, which were identical to the non-reducing sugar moieties on the SGNPs. According to SDS-PAGE and MS of thus obtained proteins, it was found that SGNPs isolated lectins with a high purity. For example, a protein isolated from banana using Glcalpha-GNP (alpha-glucose-immobilized gold nano-particle) was identified as banana lectin by trypsin-digested peptide-MS finger printing method.

Heparin-II domain of fibronectin is a vascular endothelial growth factor-binding domain: enhancement of VEGF biological activity by a singular growth factor/matrix protein synergism.

We describe extracellular interactions between fibronectin (Fn) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) that influence integrin-growth factor receptor crosstalk and cellular responses. In previous work, we found that VEGF bound specifically to fibronectin (Fn) but not vitronectin or collagens. Herein we report that VEGF binds to the heparin-II domain of Fn and that the cell-binding and VEGF-binding domains of Fn, when physically linked, are necessary and sufficient to promote VEGF-induced endothelial cell proliferation, migration, and Erk activation. Using recombinant Fn domains, the C-terminal heparin-II domain of Fn (type III repeats 13 to 14) was identified as a key VEGF-binding site. Mutation of the heparin-binding residues on FnIII(13-14) abolished VEGF binding, and peptides corresponding to the heparin-binding sequences in FnIII(13-14) inhibited VEGF binding to Fn. Fn fragments containing both the alpha5beta1 integrin-binding domain (III 9 to 10) and the VEGF-binding domain (III 13 to 14) significantly enhanced VEGF-induced EC migration and proliferation and induced strong phosphorylation of the VEGF receptor and Erk. Neither the cell-binding or VEGF-binding fragment of Fn alone had comparable VEGF-promoting effects. These results suggest that the mechanism of VEGF/Fn synergism is mediated extracellularly by the formation of a novel VEGF/Fn complex requiring both the cell-binding and VEGF-binding domains linked in a single molecular unit. These data also highlight a new function for the Fn C-terminal heparin-binding domain that may have important implications for angiogenesis and tumor growth.

Sugar Chips immobilized with synthetic sulfated disaccharides of heparin/heparan sulfate partial structure.

Carbohydrate chip technology has a great potential for the high-throughput evaluation of carbohydrate-protein interactions. Herein, we report syntheses of novel sulfated oligosaccharides possessing heparin and heparan sulfate partial disaccharide structures, their immobilization on gold-coated chips to prepare array-type Sugar Chips, and evaluation of binding potencies of proteins by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) imaging technology. Sulfated oligosaccharides were efficiently synthesized from glucosamine and uronic acid moieties. Synthesized sulfated oligosaccharides were then easily immobilized on gold-coated chips using previously reported methods. The effectiveness of this analytical method was confirmed in binding experiments between the chips and heparin binding proteins, fibronectin and recombinant human von Willebrand factor A1 domain (rh-vWf-A1), where specific partial structures of heparin or heparan sulfate responsible for binding were identified.

Correlation of the Blood Test Results Obtained between Assays Using Microliter-scale Fingertip Blood Samples Collected with a Novel Blood Collection Device and Conventional Venous Blood Assays: a Secondary Publication in English.

In this study, we investigated the correlations between biochemical and hematological test results obtained using microliter-scale fingertip blood samples collected with a newly developed blood collection device and those obtained using conventional venous blood. Eighty volunteer subjects were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were drawn from the fingertip of the ring finger by a single puncture, and 60-µL samples were promptly and accurately aspirated into a blood collection chip. Then the chip was tightly sealed in a chip container and was shaken to mix the contents without dispersion. For biochemical tests other than that for HbA1c, blood was collected without anticoagulant and centrifuged to obtain 15 µL of serum which was then diluted with 190 µL of physiological saline for the assay. For hematological tests and the test for HbA1c, the sample was assayed with blood collected using EDTA-2 K. Good correlations were obtained between the test results of the assay using fingertip blood and that using venous blood. The correlation coefficients were ≥0.97 for TG, T-CHO, HDL-C, LDL-C, GLU, ALT, γ-GTP, UA, BUN, and HbA1c and ≥0.95 for WBC, RBC, Hgb, and Hct. These results suggest that our microliter-scale blood testing system is comparable to assays using venous blood and may be useful as a rapid and simple test to determine basic clinical parameters that are close to the reference intervals.

Heparan sulfate regulates self-renewal and pluripotency of embryonic stem cells.

Embryonic stem (ES) cell self-renewal and pluripotency are maintained by several signaling cascades and by expression of intrinsic factors, such as Oct3/4 and Nanog. The signaling cascades are activated by extrinsic factors, such as leukemia inhibitory factor, bone morphogenic protein, and Wnt. However, the mechanism that regulates extrinsic signaling in ES cells is unknown. Heparan sulfate (HS) chains are ubiquitously present as the cell surface proteoglycans and are known to play crucial roles in regulating several signaling pathways. Here we investigated whether HS chains on ES cells are involved in regulating signaling pathways that are important for the maintenance of ES cells. RNA interference-mediated knockdown of HS chain elongation inhibited mouse ES cell self-renewal and induced spontaneous differentiation of the cells into extraembryonic endoderm. Furthermore, autocrine/paracrine Wnt/beta-catenin signaling through HS chains was found to be required for the regulation of Nanog expression. We propose that HS chains are important for the extrinsic signaling required for mouse ES cell self-renewal and pluripotency.

Immobilization and clustering of structurally defined oligosaccharides for sugar chips: an improved method for surface plasmon resonance analysis of protein-carbohydrate interactions.

Oligosaccharides are increasingly being recognized as important partners in receptor-ligand binding and cellular signaling. Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) is a very powerful tool for the real-time study of the specific interactions between biological molecules. We report here an advanced method for the immobilization of oligosaccharides in clustered structures for SPR and their application to the analysis of heparin-protein interactions. Reductive amination reactions and linker molecules were designed and optimized. Using mono-, tri-, or tetravalent linker compounds, we incorporated synthetic structurally defined disaccharide units of heparin and immobilized them as ligands for SPR. Their binding to an important hemostatic protein, von Willebrand factor (vWf), and its known heparin-binding domain was quantitatively analyzed. These multivalent ligand conjugates exhibited reproducible binding behavior, with consistency of the surface conditions of the SPR chip. This novel technique for oligosaccharide immobilization in SPR studies is accurate, specific, and easily applicable to both synthetic and naturally derived oligosaccharides.

Real-time analysis of ligand-induced cell surface and intracellular reactions of living mast cells using a surface plasmon resonance-based biosensor.

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based sensors have been used to detect the binding between interactive molecules. We applied the SPR technology to the analysis of interactions between living cells and molecules reactive to the cells, using mast cells and mast cell-reactive antigens. The exposure of dinitrophenol-human serum albumin (DNP-HSA), an antigen that stimulates mast cells, to IgE-sensitized mast cells induced a robust and long-lasting SPR signal in a dose-dependent manner. The maximal increase in SPR signal induced by 100 ng/ml DNP-HSA was 0.200 +/- 0.120 angle (mean +/- SD, n = 37), about 1000 times larger than the theoretically expected increase for the simple binding of DNP-HSA to Fc(epsilon)RI, the high-affinity IgE receptor. A small, but similarly prolonged signal was observed when the cells were stimulated by an agonist of the adenosine A3 receptor. The signal induced by DNP-HSA was abolished by genistein, and partially inhibited by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate and wortmannin. Interestingly, the signal induced by DNP-HSA was only weakly inhibited by DNP-lysine, suggesting that DNP-lysine manifests its action not by inhibiting, but by modulating the crosslinking of Fc(epsilon)RI. We concluded that SPR sensors can detect biologically significant signals in a real-time manner from the interactions between cells and molecules reactive to the cells.

Neurite outgrowth-stimulating peptide derived from bovine kappa-casein.

We found a novel peptide that stimulates neurite outgrowth in Neuro-2a mouse neuroblastoma cells, from the pepsin-pancreatin digest of bovine kappa-casein. The amino acid sequence of this peptide is Phe-Leu-Pro-Tyr-Pro-Tyr (FLPYPY), corresponding to peptidic sequence 76-81 of bovine kappa-casein. The neurite outgrowth-stimulating activity of FLPYPY was seen over 10(-9) M. On the other hand, FLPYP and FLPYPYY, which corresponded to sequences 76-80 and 76-82 of bovine kappa-casein respectively, were ineffective.

A pH-dependent conformational transition of Abeta peptide and physicochemical properties of the conformers in the glial cell.

In the present study we identified the epitopes of antibodies against amyloid beta-(1-42)-peptide (Abeta1-42): 4G8 reacted with peptides corresponding to residues 17-21, 6F/3D reacted with peptides corresponding to residues 9-14, and anti 5-10 reacted with peptides corresponding to residues 5-10. The study also yielded some insight into the Abeta1-42 structures resulting from differences in pH. An ELISA study using monoclonal antibodies showed that pH-dependent conformational changes occur in the 6F/3D and 4G8 epitopes modified at pH 4.6, but not in the sequences recognized by anti 1-7 and anti 5-10. This was unique to Abeta1-40 and Abeta1-42 and did not occur with Abeta1-16 or Abeta17-42. The reactivity profile of 4G8 was not affected by blockage of histidine residues of pH-modified Abeta1-40 and Abeta1-42 with diethyl pyrocarbonate; however, the mutant [Gln(11)]Abeta1-40 abrogated the unique pH-dependence towards 4G8 observed with Abeta1-40. These findings suggest that these epitopes are cryptic at pH 4.6, and that Glu(11) is responsible for the changes. We suggest that the abnormal folding of 6F/3D epitope affected by pH masked the 4G8 epitope. A study of the binding of metal ions to Abeta1-42 suggested that Cu(2+) and Zn(2+) induced a conformational transition around the 6F/3D region at pH 7.4, but did not affect the region when it was modified at pH 4.6. However, Fe(2+) had no effect, irrespective of pH. Abeta modified at pH 4.6 appeared to be relatively resistant to proteinase K compared with Abetas modified at pH 7.4, and the former might be preferentially internalized and accumulated in a human glial cell. Our findings suggest the importance of microenvironmental changes, such as pH, in the early stage of formation of Abeta aggregates in the glial cell.