This study investigated the efficacy and toxicity associated with consolidation chemotherapy using paclitaxel and carboplatin after concurrent chemoradiation (CCR) in cervical cancer patients.
From a ...total of 37 patients, 19 with International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage IB1-IIA cervical cancer (group 1) underwent surgery followed by consolidation chemotherapy after CCR, and 18 with stage IIB-IVA disease (group 2) received consolidation chemotherapy after primary CCR. Three cycles of chemotherapy using paclitaxel (135 mg/m(2)) and carboplatin (AUC 5.0) were administered every 3 weeks for CCR therapy, and three cycles of consolidation chemotherapy using paclitaxel (175 mg/m(2)) and carboplatin (AUC 5.0) were used every 3 weeks after CCR.
The complete and partial response rates were 77.8% and 22.2% in group 2. Moreover, the 3-year progression-free and overall survival rates were 62.7% and 90.9% in group 1, and 51.9% and 60% in group 2, respectively. The most common grade 3 or 4 hematologic toxicities observed were leukopenia (group 1, 10.5%; group 2, 13.0%) and neutropenia (group 1, 7.0%; group 2, 14.8%), and grade 3 or 4 diarrhea (group 1, 1.8%) and febrile illness (group 2, 1.9%) were the most frequently observed non-hematologic toxicities. When we compared these results with previous reports, consolidation chemotherapy after CCR using paclitaxel and carboplatin revealed a relatively lower complete response rate (77.8% vs. 87-100%, respectively) and shorter progression-free survival (51.9-62.7% vs. 81-86%, respectively) and overall survival (60-90.9% vs. 81-95%, respectively) in spite of similar toxicity findings.
Due to low efficacy results, consolidation chemotherapy using paclitaxel and carboplatin after CCR is not a feasible treatment regimen for high-risk early-stage or locally advanced cervical cancer.
Radiation esophagitis, the most common acute adverse effect of radiation therapy, leads to unwanted consequences including discomfort, pain, an even death. However, no direct cure exists for patients ...suffering from this condition, with the harmful effect of ingestion and acid reflux on the damaged esophageal mucosa remaining an unresolved problem. Through the delivery of the hydrogel with stent platform, we aimed to evaluate the regenerative capacity of a tissue-specific decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) hydrogel on damaged tissues. For this, an esophagus-derived dECM (EdECM) was developed and shown to have superior biofunctionality and rheological properties, as well as physical stability, potentially providing a better microenvironment for tissue development. An EdECM hydrogel-loaded stent was sequentially fabricated using a rotating rod combined 3D printing system that showed structural stability and protected a loaded hydrogel during delivery. Finally, following stent implantation, the therapeutic effect of EdECM was examined in a radiation esophagitis rat model. Our findings demonstrate that EdECM hydrogel delivery via a stent platform can rapidly resolve an inflammatory response, thus promoting a pro-regenerative microenvironment. The results suggest a promising therapeutic strategy for the treatment of radiation esophagitis.
A new triterpene glycoside was isolated from the fruits of
Acanthopanax chiisanensis
and identified as 3-
O
-β-
d
-(6-carboxymethyl)-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 3)-β-
d
-glucuronopyranosyl-olean-12-en-28-oic ...acid by spectral analyses. This compound was isolated for the first time from nature, and named chiisanenside.
This study reports the first case of Capillaria hepatica infection in a nutria in Korea. Ten nutrias, captured near the Nakdong River, were submitted to our laboratory for necropsy. White-yellowish ...nodules were found in the liver of 1 of the nutrias at necropsy. Histologically, the lesions were granulomatous, and infiltrations of lipid-laden macrophages, eosinophils, and several multinucleated giant cells were observed. The lesions consisted of numerous eggs and necrotic hepatocytes. The eggs were lemon-shaped and had polar plugs at the ends of both long sides. The eggs were morphologically identified as those of C. hepatica. Worldwide, C. hepatica infection in nutrias is very rare. Nutrias are a kind of livestock, as well as wildlife; therefore, an epidemiological study for parasitic infections needs to be conducted.
A phenyl lipid alkaloid and seven phenolic compounds were isolated from the aerial part of
Spergularia marina
, a halophyte that grows on salt marshes and tidal flat. These compounds were identified ...as 2,4-di-
tert
-butylphenol,
N
-hexacosanoylanthranilic acid, tryptophan, 4-hydroxybenzyol glucopyranoside, luteolin 6-
C
-β-
D
-glucopyranoside 8-
C
-β-
D
-(2-
O
-feruloyl)glucopyranoside, luteolin 6-
C
-β-
D
-(2-
O
-feruloyl)glucopyranoside 8-
C
-β-
D
-glucopyranoside, apigenin 6-
C
-β-
D
-glucopyranoside 8-
C
-β-
D
-(2-
O
-feruloyl)glucopyranoside, and apigenin 6-
C
-β-
D
-(2-
O
-feruloyl)glucopyranoside 8-
C
-β-
D
-glucopyranoside. The structures were determined by nuclear magnetic resonance and electrospray ionization-mass spectroscopy.
Increasing evidence supports the contribution of the pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokine balance and genetic factors to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Here, we investigated whether genetic interferon ...gamma polymorphisms were associated with HCC in Korean patients with chronic hepatitis B.
We genotyped a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP, rs2430561, +874A/T) and a microsatellite (rs3138557, (CA) (n) repeat), located in the first intron of the interferon gamma gene, by direct sequencing and the gene scan method. A population-based case-control study of HCC was conducted and included 170 patients with chronic hepatitis and HCC, and 171 with chronic hepatitis B patients without hepatocellular carcinoma in a Korean population.
Genotype and allele distributions of the interferon gamma gene SNP were associated with HCC. The frequencies of the AA genotype and the A allele were significantly increased in hepatocellular carcinoma subjects (p < 0.05). Combined analysis using the genotype of rs2430561 and the number of microsatellites revealed that the frequencies of AT-CA12, and TT-CA12 increased significantly in hepatocellular carcinoma subjects (p < 0.0001).
Our results suggest that the interferon gamma gene may be a susceptibility gene and a risk factor for HCC in the Korean population.
Deep circulation in the southwestern East/Japan Sea through the Ulleung Interplain Gap (UIG), a possible pathway for deep-water exchange, was directly measured for the first time. Five concurrent ...current meter moorings were positioned to effectively span the UIG between the islands of Ulleungdo to the west and Dokdo to the east. They provided a 495-day time series of deep currents below 1800
m depth spanning the full breadth of the East Sea Deep and Bottom Water flowing from the Japan Basin into the Ulleung Basin. The UIG circulation is found to be mainly a two-way flow with relatively weak southward flows directed into the Ulleung Basin over about two-thirds of the western UIG. A strong, persistent, and narrow compensating northward outflow occurs in the eastern UIG near Dokdo and is first referred to here as the Dokdo Abyssal Current. The width of the abyssal current is about 20
km below 1800
m depth. The low-frequency variability of the transports is dominated by fluctuations with a period of about 40 days for inflow and outflow transports. The 40-day fluctuations of both transports are statistically coherent, and occur almost concurrently. The overall mean transport of the deep water below 1800
m into the Ulleung Basin over the 16.5 months is about 0.005
Sv (1
Sv=10
6
m
3
s
−1), with an uncertainty of 0.025
Sv indicating net transport is negligible below 1800
m through the UIG.
To conduct a kinetic study of paraquat (PQ), we investigated 9 patients with acute PQ intoxication. All of them ingested more than 20 ml of undiluted PQ herbicide to commit suicide and arrived at our ...hospital early, not later than 7 h after PQ ingestion. The urine dithionite test for PQ in all of the nine patients was strongly positive at emergency room. Blood samples were obtained every 30 min for the first 2~3 h and then every 1 or 2 h, as long as the clinical progression was stable among the patients for 30 h after PQ ingestion. The area under the plasma concentration-time curve (AUCinf), which was extrapolated to infinity, was calculated using the trapezoidal rule. Toxicokinetic parameters, such as the terminal elimination half-life, apparent oral clearance, and apparent volume of distribution (Vd/F) were calculated. The maximum PQ concentration (Cmax) and the time to reach maximum PQ concentration (Tmax) were also obtained. Plasma PQ concentrations in nine patients were well described by a bi-exponential curve with a mean terminal elimination half-life of 13.1±6.8 h. Cmax and AUCinf were 20.8±25.7 mg/l and 172.5±160.3 h·mg/l, respectively. Apparent volume of distribution and apparent oral clearance were 50.9±61.3 l/kg and 173.4±111.2 l/h, respectively. There were a significant correlation (r =0.84; p<0.05) between the PQ amount ingested and Cmax. AUCinf also showed a significant correlation (r =0.83; p<0.05) with the PQ amount ingested. These correlations provide evidence that PQ has dose-linear toxicokinetic characteristics.
3,3′,4,4′,5-Pentachlorinated biphenyls 126 (PCB126) is a global environmental contaminant that can induce cellular oxidative stress. We investigated whether vitamin E can protect against toxicity ...from PCB126 during zebrafish (
Danio rerio) development. Zebrafish embryos were exposed to 100
nM PCB126 and compared with a second group that was co-exposed with 100
μM vitamin E until 5 days post fertilization. PCB126 induced pericardial sac edema, yolk sac edema, and growth retardation in zebrafish embyos. In contrast, vitamin E co-exposure group did not show any gross changes. Real-time PCR results showed that vitamin E co-exposure group were restored to control group for the expression levels of heat shock protein 70 Cognate, aryl hydrocarbon receptor type-2, cytochrome P450 1A, and superoxide dismutase-1. These data give insights into the use of vitamin E to reduce PCB126-mediated toxicity and into the use of zebrafish embryos for exploring mechanisms underlying the oxidative potential of AHR agonists.
PDF
