Anomalous inferior mesenteric artery supplying the ascending, transverse, descending, and sigmoid colons.

We have encountered in our anatomical practice the first case and an extremely rare second case in which the ascending, transverse, descending, and sigmoid colons were supplied by the inferior mesenteric artery. The causes of colic artery anomalies are generally explained in conjunction with the development of the superior mesenteric artery, which is intimately related to embryonic elongation and midgut rotation. However, this embryological model was inapplicable to both cases. This difficulty motivated us to seek possible relationships with reported anomalous inferior mesenteric arteries in adults as well as their embryological causes. We consider that the aberrant right colic artery found in 2009 is an "intermesenteric artery" which anastomoses the superior (or its middle colic branch) and inferior mesenteric artery, but secondarily lost its origin from the superior mesenteric artery. The aberrant colic artery found in 2010 is a "middle-inferior mesenteric artery" in which the inferior mesenteric artery formed a common trunk with remnant middle mesenteric artery.

Effect of brefelamide on HGF-induced survival of 1321N1 human astrocytoma cells.

Malignant gliomas are characterized by their high level of resistance to chemo- and radiotherapy and new treatment options are urgently required. We previously demonstrated that brefelamide, an aromatic amide isolated from methanol extracts of cellular slime molds Dictyostelium brefeldianum and D. giganteum, had antiproliferative effects on 1321N1 human astrocytoma cells, a model of glioma. In this study, we investigated the mechanisms by which brefelamide inhibited 1321N1 and PC12 rat pheochromocytoma cell proliferation. When cells were cultured in serum-free medium, hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) increased survival of 1321N1 cells but not PC12 cells. HGF receptor, c-MET, was strongly expressed in 1321N1 cells, but not in PC12 cells. Pretreatment of 1321N1 cells with brefelamide inhibited both HGF-induced cell survival and expression of c-MET. Phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and AKT was increased by HGF, but these changes were inhibited by brefelamide pretreatment. Moreover, HGF mRNA levels and secretion were reduced by brefelamide. These results suggest that brefelamide reduces survival of 1321N1 cells via multiple effects including suppression of HGF receptor expression and HGF secretion and inhibition of ERK and AKT phosphorylation.

[Quick simultaneous determination of residual veterinary drugs in processed food].

Development of rapid and high accuracy analysis, and tightening of regulations for veterinary drugs are required because many examples of detection of veterinary drugs in many kinds of processed food have been reported. In this study, we constructed an improved method for simultaneous determination of veterinary drugs, based on the glass bead homogenization method with EDTA-2Na and batch purification for QuEChERS analysis. Our extraction procedure is suitable for handling multiple samples quickly and easily. Furthermore, our improved extraction solvent allowed simultaneous determination of tetracyclines in processed food. In a test of 69 veterinary drugs, recovery of over 60 ranged from 70 to 120%, with a coefficient of variation of less than 25% and with quantification limits of 0.01 µg/g (S/N≥10 ). This improved method is expected to be useful for quick simultaneous determination of multiple residues.

[Study of simultaneous determination of residual veterinary drugs including tetracycline antibiotics in milk and dairy products].

It is considered to be difficult to detect tetracycline antibiotics in all-at-once simultaneous analysis with other drugs by liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry, because tetracycline antibiotics chelate with bivalent metal ions such as calcium in samples. Therefore, we studied simultaneous determination of tetracycline antibiotics after removal of calcium with disodium ethylenediaminotetraacetate (EDTA-2Na). Tetracycline antibiotics could be assayed in all-at-once analysis by adding EDTA-2Na during the extraction procedure. It was possible to determine 65 veterinary drugs in milk, 70 in yogurt, 59 in whipped cream, 67 in cheese and 60 in ice cream. Recovery ranged from 70 to 120%, with a coefficient of variation of less than 25% and with a quantification limit of 0.01 microg/g (S/N>or=10).