Bone-forming osteoblasts are differentiated from mesenchymal stem cells and dysregulation of this differentiation can lead to osteoporosis. Meanwhile, bone-resorbing osteoclasts are both ...differentiated and multinucleated from hematopoietic precursor cells of monocyte and/or macrophage lineage. Bone resorption inhibitors such as bisphosphonates and estrogen are used to treat osteoporosis. However, the adverse effects of the long-term use of these medicines are of concern, and so the development of new therapies to ameliorate osteoporosis is desirable. Therefore, in the present study, we screened 22 plant extracts and found that nine methanolic extracts of plants promote the differentiation of MC3T3-E1 cells to osteoblasts. These nine extracts were then evaluated for their inhibitory activity on osteoclast differentiation in RAW264.7 mouse macrophage cells. Of the nine extracts,
Daucus carota
,
Vitis
spp.,
Sasa veitchii, Euptelea polyandra
, and
Sesamum indicum
exhibited pro-osteoblastic and anti-osteoclastic activity with low cytotoxicity, suggesting their potential effectiveness against osteoporosis.
We recently reported that (23
R
, 24
E
)-23-acetoxymangiferonic acid (23
R
-AMA), a cycloartane triterpenoid isolated by activity-guided separation from a methanol extract of
Garcinia
sp. bark, ...inhibited melanin production via inhibition of tyrosinase (TYR) expression in the B16-F10 melanoma cell line. Since 23
R
-AMA also inhibited microphthalmia-associated transcription factor (MITF) expression, an upstream factor of TYR, these features of 23
R
-AMA were thought to be appropriate for development of whitening cosmetics. However, 23
R
-AMA exhibited growth inhibition other than inhibition of melanin production in B16-F10 cells. Therefore, we investigated biological activities of 23
R
-AMA in detail, focused on its application as an anti-melanoma compound. In this study, we demonstrated that 23
R
-AMA inhibited cell proliferation and basic FGF (bFGF)-induced migration in B16-F10 cells. Furthermore, 23
R
-AMA promoted ser45/thr41 phosphorylation of β-catenin and suppressed its intranuclear accumulation, which was suggested to be related to inhibition of MITF expression. The transcriptional activity of MITF is known to be regulated by phosphorylation via activated ERK. Further investigation revealed that 23
R
-AMA inhibited phosphorylation of c-Raf, MEK-1, and ERK, and also that of upstream molecules including FAK and c-Src. These results suggested that 23
R
-AMA inhibited growth and migration of B16-F10 melanoma by regulating both MITF expression and its activity. The activities of 23
R
-AMA reported in this study are new aspects of cycloartane triterpenoids.
The article Cycloartane triterpenoid (23
R
, 24
E
)-23-acetoxymangiferonic acid inhibited proliferation and migration in B16-F10 melanoma via MITF downregulation caused by inhibition of both ...β-catenin.
Ecotourism is becoming an increasingly popular around the world, but negative consequences may result from inappropriate stakeholder behaviors with respect to it. Therefore, it is essential to manage ...ecotourism activities to ensure environmental conservation and future sustainable development. Codes of conduct are highly important voluntary means of managing ecotourism in Japan. This study explores the content of codes of conduct for ecotourism in Japan using quantitative content analysis. The means-end chain theory is adopted to investigate the attributes, the potential benefits, and the underlying values of ecotourism codes of conduct. The findings indicated that ecotourism codes of conduct in Japan sufficiently focus on the natural environment but ignore the economic aspects of ecotourism. Furthermore, the codes are mainly oriented toward tour guides and tourists while incompletely incorporate other key stakeholders, including local residents and tourism businesses. It is recommended that the design of codes of conduct can follow the pattern from “end” to “means”. These findings may provide guidance to support the modification and improvement of content of ecotourism codes of conduct in Japan and thereby promote ecotourism management.
Abstract Two cases of orbital tumor are presented, and the surgical technique by means of an endoscopic transnasal approach is discussed. In Case 1, a non-vascular, benign tumor was located inside ...the orbit, and it was able to be completely removed, without any complications. The tumor in Case 2 was also located inside the orbit, but it was determined to be a hemangioma based on the intraoperative pathology. To avoid eye complications arising from performance of the surgery in the presence of bleeding, it was decided to widely open the orbital lamina papyracea and periosteum, and perform only orbital decompression. The eye symptoms disappeared in both patients. Endoscopic transnasal surgery is indicated for benign orbital tumors that are medially located in the orbit. It can be thought that the eye symptoms can be alleviated by avoiding orbital pressure, regardless of whether-based on the intraoperative pathology-the tumor is completely removed or not.
Abstract Objective Long-term retrospective evaluation was performed of computed tomography (CT) images and endoscopic findings after endoscopic sinus surgery for 88 cases of chronic pediatric ...sinusitis with nasal polyps. The objective was to determine the appropriate duration of such postoperative evaluation for children. Methods Fifty-one patients had both sinusitis and nasal polyps (BSP group), and the surgical procedure was decided in consideration of each patient's age (for less than 10 years of age, polypectomy ( n = 12); for 10–13 years old, anterior ethmoidectomy plus opening of the fontanelle and nasofrontal duct ( n = 20); and for serious cases older than 13 years, total sinusectomy ( n = 19)). On the other hand, for cases of unilateral sinusitis with antrochoanal polyps (USP group), anterior ethmoidectomy plus opening of the fontanelle was performed regardless of the patient's age ( n = 37, 5–15 years old). Results The postoperative endoscopic findings indicated that the polyps had been eliminated in approximately 91% of total patients. Good postoperative findings of CT images in most patients of USP group are observed at one year after the operation like the same of the postoperative course of adult chronic sinusitis. On the other hand CT images in BSP group evaluated one year after the operation were rated as unchanged or worsened in approximately half of the patients. However, at 4 years after the operation nearly all the patients were rated as improved or better. In addition, comparison of the age at final observation and the postoperative course found a striking decrease in the proportion of unchanged and worsened patients aged 12 and above. Conclusion Accordingly, it was concluded that there is difference of healing process after the operation between USP and BSP group. Postoperative evaluation of BSP group should be performed for 4 years and up to an age of at least 12 years although post-ESS following of USP group is similar to that of adult sinusitis.
PDF
