A sodium alginate bilayer coating incorporated with green propolis extract as a powerful tool to extend Colossoma macropomum fillet shelf-life.

Fish deterioration imposes great economic losses and serious human health hazards. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of a sodium alginate bilayer coating incorporated to the green propolis extract in shelf-life, physical-chemical properties, microbiological properties and sensory acceptance of Colossoma macropomum fillets. Additionally, the chemical composition, along with the antioxidant and antibacterial activities of Brazilian green propolis extract (GPE) were investigated. GPE showed promising antioxidant and antibacterial activities. Twenty-seven metabolites were identified by gas chromatography (GC-MS), which mainly comprised terpenoids (52.14%). Cyclolaudenol was the major constituent of the GPE and it is described for the first time in green propolis extracts. C. macropomum fillets treated with the sodium alginate bilayer coating showed high sensory acceptance, reduced microbial deterioration and extended shelf-life (up to 11 days) during cold storage. Taken together, these results show that GPE can be a great alternative of a natural preservative for fish coating.

Sudden onset of sleep caused by hypothalamic infarction: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Hypothalamic lesions, such as tumors and demyelinating diseases, reportedly cause abnormal sleepiness. However, stroke involving the hypothalamus has rarely been described. Here, we report a patient with infarction restricted to the hypothalamus who presented with sudden onset of sleep. CASE PRESENTATION: A 42-year-old woman with a history of migraine without aura presented with irresistible sleepiness and developed several episodes of sudden onset of sleep. Neurological examinations were unremarkable except for partial left Horner syndrome. Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a high-intensity lesion restricted to the left hypothalamus on diffusion-weighted and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery MRI images. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) orexin-A levels obtained on hospital day 3 after her sleepiness had resolved were normal (337 pg/mL; normal > 200 pg/mL). Serum anti-nuclear and anti-aquaporin 4 (AQP4) antibodies and CSF myelin basic protein and oligoclonal band were negative. A small hypothalamic infarction was suspected, and the patient was treated with intravenous edaravone and argatroban, as well as oral clopidogrel. Three months later, there had been no clinical relapse, and the hypothalamic lesion had almost disappeared on follow-up MRI. No new lesion suggestive of demyelinating disease or tumor was observed. CONCLUSION: Hypothalamic stroke should be considered a cause of sudden onset of sleep.

Risk factors for discontinuation of s-1 adjuvant chemotherapy for gastric cancer.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to clarify the risk factors for discontinuing tegafur/gimeracil/oteracil potassium (S-1) adjuvant chemotherapy following gastrectomy in patients with gastric cancer. METHODS: We retrospectively investigated patients with curatively-resected gastric cancer who received S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy. S-1 was administered orally at 80-120 mg/day, depending on body surface area, on days 1-28 every 6 weeks for 1 year. The dose and treatment schedule were modified at the clinicians' discretion, according to toxicity. RESULTS: Seventy-one patients were included in the study, 26 of whom discontinued S-1 therapy. The relapse-free survival rates in the S-1-completed and S-1-discontinuation groups at 5 years post-surgery were 88.1% and 55.8%, respectively. The overall survival rates in the S-1-completed and S-1-discontinuation groups at 5 years post-surgery were 89.4% and 59.8%, respectively. The hazard ratios for relapse and death were significantly lower in the S-1-completed group compared with those in the S-1-discontinuation group (0.18; p<0.001 and 0.19; p=0.002, respectively). Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that S-1 discontinuation was significantly associated with an initial overdose of S-1, having stage I cancer, creatinine clearance <66 mL/min, and a side effect of nausea. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that assessing renal function to avoid initial overdose of S-1, together with the early management of side effects, may support the continuation of S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy in patients with gastric cancer.

Tumor local chemohyperthermia using docetaxel-embedded magnetoliposomes: Interaction of chemotherapy and hyperthermia.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: We have studied and reported the usefulness of tumor local chemohyperthermia at a low-grade temperature below 43°C with docetaxel-embedded magnetoliposome (DML) and an applied alternating current magnetic field. However, the mechanisms of this treatment and the dynamics of the injected docetaxel were not investigated in our previous study. Thus, we investigated the interaction of chemotherapy and hyperthermia in the treated tumor. METHODS: Human MKN45 gastric cancer cells were implanted in the hind limbs of Balb-c/nu/nu mice. DML, magnetite-loaded liposome, and docetaxel were injected into the tumors with or without being exposed to an alternating current magnetic field. Docetaxel and tumor necrosis factor-α concentrations, the cell cycle, and cell death rates in the tumor were examined. RESULTS: Docetaxel concentrations were significantly higher in the DML-injected group than in the docetaxel-injected group 3 days after injection. A G2/M peak was observed 1 day after treatment in the DML-injected and exposed group and the docetaxel-injected group, while it was observed 3 days after treatment in the DML-injected without heating group and the magnetite-loaded liposome group. The tumor cell death rate gradually increased in the DML-injected group, with or without being exposed, while it gradually decreased after its peak in other groups. The tumor necrosis factor-α concentration in the tumor treated with DML with heating remained at a high level on the 7th day after treatment, while it decreased after its peak in other groups. CONCLUSION: The antitumor effect of this treatment derives from a combination of hyperthermia and chemotherapy locally in the tumor.

Development of ti-coated ferromagnetic needle, adaptable for ablation cancer therapy by high-frequency induction heating.

To develop a novel ablation therapy for human solid cancer, the heating properties of a ferromagnetic carbon steel rod and a prototype Ti-coated needle using this carbon steel rod, were investigated in several high-frequency outputs at 300 kHz. In the former, the heating property was drastically different among the three inclination angles (θ = 0°, 45° and 90°) relative to the magnetic flux direction as a result of the shape magnetic anisotropy. However, the effect of the inclination angles was completely eliminated in the latter. It is considered that the complete non-oriented heating property relative to the magnetic flux direction allows the precise control of the ablation temperature during minimally invasive thermotherapy without a lead-wire connected to a fiber-optic thermometer. This newly designed Ti-coated device will be suitable for clinical use combined with its superior biocompatibility for ablation treatments using high-frequency induction heating.

Feasibility of chemohyperthermia with docetaxel-embedded magnetoliposomes as minimally invasive local treatment for cancer.

Hyperthermia is a minimally invasive approach to cancer treatment, but it is difficult to heat only the tumor without damaging surrounding tissue. To solve this problem, we studied the effectiveness of chemohyperthermia with docetaxel-embedded magnetoliposomes (DMLs) and an applied alternating current (AC) magnetic field. Human MKN45 gastric cancer cells were implanted in the hind limb of Balb-c/nu/nu mice. Various concentrations of docetaxel-embedded DMLs were injected into the tumors and exposed to an AC magnetic field (n = 6, each). For comparison with hyperthermia alone, magnetite-loaded liposome (ML)-injected tumors were exposed to an AC magnetic field. Furthermore, the results of DML without AC treatment and docetaxel diluted into PBS with AC treatment were also compared (n = 10, each). Tumor surface temperature was maintained between 42 and 43 degrees C. Tumor volume was reduced in the DML group with a docetaxel concentration > 56.8 microg/ml, while a docetaxel concentration > 568.5 microg/ml was required for tumor reduction without hyperthermia. Statistically significant differences in tumor volume and survival rate were observed between the DML group exposed to the magnetic field and the other groups. The tumor disappeared in 3 mice in the DML group exposed to the magnetic field; 2 mice survived over 6 months after treatment, whereas all mice of the other groups died by 15 weeks. Histologically, hyperthermia with DML damaged tumor cells and DML diffused homogeneously. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report to show that hyperthermia using chemotherapeutic agent-embedded magnetoliposomes has an anticancer effect.

Repeated inductive heating using a sintered MgFe2O4 needle for minimally invasive local control in breast cancer therapy.

PURPOSE: This study investigated the efficacy of repeated thermotherapy for breast cancer utilising a novel sintered MgFe(2)O(4) needle and alternating current (AC) magnetic field in xenograft animal models mimicking human breast cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A sintered MgFe(2)O(4) needle and an apparatus to apply an AC magnetic field were prepared for this study. Animals bearing BT-474 tumours (mean (+/-standard deviation) volume, 471 +/- 153 mm(3)) were divided into four groups. A sintered MgFe(2)O(4) needle (length, 5 mm) was placed in the centre of each tumour. An AC magnetic field (amplitude, 4 kA/m; 2 kW; 540 kHz) was applied for 10 min once, twice or three times for the first, second and third groups, respectively, and was not applied for the control group. Temperature during treatment and tumour volume 8 weeks after first treatment were assessed. RESULTS: Maximum tumour temperature tended to increase in repeated-application groups: group 1, 59.2 +/- 4 degrees C; group 2, 58.9 +/- 3.3 degrees C and 61.2 +/- 8.9 degrees C for the first and second applications; and group 3, 60.4 +/- 4.6 degrees C, 62.1 +/- 7.8 degrees C and 71.1 +/- 6.1 degrees C for the first, second and third applications. Tumour volumes in control, groups 1, 2 and 3 at 8 weeks after treatment were 3633 +/- 2478 mm(3), 3240 +/- 1031 mm(3), 1252 +/- 1289 mm(3) and 0 mm(3), respectively. Tumours were significantly smaller in group 3 than in the control and group 1 at 8 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: The efficacy of repeated inductive heating utilising a sintered MgFe(2)O(4) needle was demonstrated. Thermotherapy using the present method may offer an effective non-surgical treatment for human breast cancer.

Novel tumor-ablation device for liver tumors utilizing heat energy generated under an alternating magnetic field.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: We have developed a novel tumor-ablation device for liver tumors utilizing heat energy induced by magnesium ferrite (MgFe(2)O(4)) particles under an alternating magnetic field (AMF) produced by electric currents. This novel device can repeatedly heat liver tumors at lower temperature than usual heating devices, such as radiofrequency ablation therapy, with slight infliction of pain. This study assesses its heating effect on rat liver tumors as local therapy. METHOD: The small needle was manufactured from MgFe(2)O(4) particles by sintering at 1100 degrees C. After a MgFe(2)O(4) needle was inserted into liver tumors comprising of dRLh-84 cells, the tumors were heated for 30 min under an AMF. We examined cellular activity by using nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) diaphorase staining and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated digoxigenin-dUTP nick-end labeling (TUNEL) staining, and evaluated the effect of suppressing tumor growth by sequentially comparing the tumor diameter with that of the control group. RESULTS: The mean temperature of the heated tumors was 60.2 +/- 1.8 degrees C. The tumor cells were constricted, and chromatin of nuclei had shrunk immediately after heating. The heat-injury area that contained the tumors was negative for NADH diaphorase activity. After 3 days, the tumor cells in the heat-injury area became positive for TUNEL staining, which detects cell death. At 7 days, the mean tumor diameters were significantly smaller in the heating group than in the control group (6.15 +/- 0.47 mm vs 16.89 +/- 2.69 mm; P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: This device, utilizing heat energy induced by ferromagnetic metal under an AMF, appears useful as local thermotherapy for human liver cancer.

Feasibility of induction heating using a sintered MgFe2O4 needle for minimally invasive breast cancer therapy.

BACKGROUND: This study investigated a novel approach for tumor ablation therapy using an alternating magnetic field combined with a sintered MgFe2O4 needle. This method differs from radiofrequency ablation (RFA) by dielectric heating with regard to the heating mechanism and improves some weak points of these conventional thermotherapies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Nude mice mimicking human breast cancer BT474 were treated using this method. The extent of tumor death was assessed after ablation. RESULTS: Staining with hematoxylin and eosin showed gradual expansion of the pyknotic area until 48 h after ablation. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide diaphorase staining also showed complete tumor death by 48 h after treatment. The ablation area was well controlled and reablation was not necessary. The tumor could be completely controlled using this method without any risk of skin burn. CONCLUSION: This novel ablation therapy appeared to be more effective and less invasive for treatment of breast cancer treatment than RFA.

Feasibility of new heating method of hepatic parenchyma using a sintered MgFe2O4 needle under an alternating magnetic field.

BACKGROUND: Magnetic metal particles such as magnesium ferrite (MgFe2O4) induce heat energy under an alternating magnetic field that was produced by electric current. We have developed a new heating device using a sintered MgFe2O4 needle under an alternating magnetic field. This device can repeatedly heat target tissue at lower temperatures than that for radiofrequency ablation therapy. This study aims to assess whether the new heating device has the ability to heat rat liver tissue. METHOD: A small needle made from MgFe2O4 particles was prepared by sintering at 1100 degrees C and inserted into rat liver tissue. The rat liver was then heated under an alternating magnetic field, 4 kA/m, for 30 min. We measured the temperature of rat tissue during the heat treatment, and sequentially evaluated histological changes and hepatocyte cellular activity after heat stimulus by using nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide diaphorase staining and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling staining. RESULTS: The mean temperature of the liver tissue during heating was 60.7 +/- 1.1 degrees C. Immediately after heating, nuclei of the hepatocytes were hyper-chromatin, with hepatocytes negative for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide diaphorase activity in the heat-injury area. The injury area spread progressively until 3 d after heating, when the area was surrounded by fibroblasts, with hepatocytes positive for terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling staining. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first time that a ferromagnetic metal heating device under an alternating magnetic field has achieved a temperature beyond 60 degrees C and led hepatocytes to complete cell death. This device would be of future use as a local heat-treatment for human liver cancer.