The present work evaluated the anxiolytic activity of an aqueous extract of
Apocynum venetum L. (Apocynaceae) and bioguided its fractionation using the elevated plus maze (EPM) in mice as a model of ...anxiety. A single treatment of AV extract markedly increased the percentage time spent on the open arms of the EPM in two distinct concentration ranges of 22.5–30 and 100–125
mg/kg p.o., respectively, indicating a putative anxiolytic-like activity. Fractions showing anxiolytic effects in concentrations equal to 30 or 125
mg/kg of whole extract were antagonized using the benzodiazepine antagonist flumazenil (3
mg/kg i.p.) or the 5-HT
1A receptor antagonist WAY-100635 (0.5
mg/kg i.p.). All active fractions in a concentration equal to 125
mg/kg were effectively blocked by the benzodiazepine antagonist flumazenil, while the anxiolytic activities of fractions in the lower dose equivalent to 30
mg/kg of whole extract were inhibited by the 5-HT
1A receptor antagonist WAY-100635. Through further separation of AV fractions it was possible to isolate and characterize the flavonol kaempferol which showed an anxiolytic-like activity in concentrations from 0.02 to 1.0
mg/kg p.o. The anxiolytic activity of kaempferol was partially antagonized by concomitant administration of flumazenil, but not by WAY-100635. In conclusion, our study clearly demonstrates that AV extract possesses anxiolytic-like activity and that at least one of its flavonoids, kaempferol, can elicit the same kind of neuropharmacological activity.
This review describes biochemistry, molecular biology and regulation of anthocyanin biosynthesis, with particular emphasis on mechanistic features and late steps of anthocyanin biosynthesis including ...glycosylation and vacuolar sequestration. The literature from 1997 to the beginning of 2002 is reviewed, and 163 references are cited.
Bitterling fish species (subfamily: Acheilognathinae) are endangered in Japan due to habitat loss. The decline of freshwater mussels also enhances the decrease of bitterlings because bitterlings lay ...eggs in the gills of freshwater mussels. Furthermore, loss of unionid mussels causes hybridization between bitterling species. This study aims to analyze the frequency of hybridization between congeneric species of bitterlings—Tanakia lanceolata and Tanakia limbata—at a well‐preserved site, where both species occur naturally and compare this with other regions more severely impacted by human intervention. One part of the irrigation streams of the Asahi River System, Okayama, is inhabited by a natural monument species of Japan, a benthic cobitid, Parabotia curtus, and therefore, the natural substratum and the structurally heterogeneous stream banks are maintained. We collected Tanakia individuals and surveyed mussel density at this well‐preserved site. We also developed six nuclear single‐nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers on different chromosomes to distinguish T. lanceolata and T. limbata. These SNP markers effectively determined individuals as being either one of these species or a hybrid. Based on genotyping, eight individuals were determined to be hybrids, whereas 90 and 173 individuals were determined as purebreds of T. lanceolata and T. limbata, respectively. The proportion of hybrid individuals was 3.0% and was relatively low compared to other regions. In addition, five species of unionids were densely distributed in this stream. Prezygotic isolation between sympatric T. lanceolata and T. limbata was established at this well‐preserved site, where unionid mussels are densely populated and provide enough breeding substrate for both species.
We developed six species‐specific single‐nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers to distinguish two congeneric bitterling fish species and detected a lower rate of hybridization between them at our study site, Gion creek, Okayama. In addition, five species of freshwater mussels were densely distributed to provide breeding substrate for these bitterlings. Our study streams were in a conservation area of a natural monument species of Japan, the benthic cobitid fish, Parabotia curtus, and our results suggest that P. curtus works as an umbrella species to maintain habitat for local freshwater biodiversity.
Abstract Objective Although the treatment options for pulmonary arteriovenous malformation are surgery and percutaneous transcatheter embolization, no study has compared the outcomes between these 2 ...treatments. Methods From the Japanese Diagnosis Procedure Combination database, the medical records of 996 patients who received treatment for pulmonary arteriovenous malformation between 2010 and 2015 were retrospectively reviewed. We created balanced groups for surgery or percutaneous transcatheter embolization using propensity scoring. The primary outcome was the rate of reintervention for pulmonary arteriovenous malformation, and the secondary outcomes were composite complications and postoperative length of stay. Patients who had any 1 of the complications during hospitalization were considered to have experienced a composite complication. Results Of the total sample, 211 patients underwent surgery and 785 patients underwent percutaneous transcatheter embolization. By using 1-to-1 propensity score matching, 202 pairs were selected. Compared with percutaneous transcatheter embolization, surgery was associated with a significantly higher proportion of composite complications (6.9% vs 2.0%, P = .027) and longer postoperative length of hospital stay (median, 6 vs 2 days, P < .01). However, surgery resulted in a significantly lower rate of reintervention for pulmonary arteriovenous malformation (2.1% vs 8.3% at 2 years; P < .01). Conclusions Percutaneous transcatheter embolization had the advantage in composite complications and shorter postoperative length of stay compared with surgery, but surgery had higher curability than percutaneous transcatheter embolization. Surgery may be considered as a therapeutic option for patients with lesions that can be completely resected and are difficult to treat with percutaneous transcatheter embolization.
Flavonol glycosides constitute one of the most prominent plant natural product classes that accumulate in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. To date there are no reports of functionally ...characterized flavonoid glycosyltransferases in Arabidopsis, despite intensive research efforts aimed at both flavonoids and Arabidopsis. In this study, flavonol glycosyltransferases were considered in a functional genomics approach aimed at revealing genes involved in determining the flavonol-glycoside profile. Candidate glycosyltransferase-encoding genes were selected based on homology to other known flavonoid glycosyltransferases and two T-DNA knockout lines lacking flavonol-3-O-rhamnoside-7-O-rhamnosides (ugt78D1) and quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside-7-O-glucoside (ugt73C6 and ugt78D1) were identified. To confirm the in planta results, cDNAs encoding both UGT78D1 and UGT73C6 were expressed in vitro and analyzed for their qualitative substrate specificity. UGT78D1 catalyzed the transfer of rhamnose from UDP-rhamnose to the 3-OH position of quercetin and kaempferol, whereas UGT73C6 catalyzed the transfer of glucose from UDP-glucose to the 7-OH position of kaempferol-3-O-rhamnoside and quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside, respectively. The present results suggest that UGT78D1 and UGT73C6 should be classified as UDP-rhamnose:flavonol-3-Orhamnosyltransferase and UDP-glucose:flavonol-3-O-glycoside-7-O-glucosyltransferase, respectively.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES
The number of octogenarian lung cancer patients undergoing radical surgery has been increasing recently. However, knowledge regarding the risk factors for postoperative ...complications and reliable predictive factors for long-term survival is limited. This study aimed to investigate the risk factors of postoperative complications, and reliable prognostic factors, in lung cancer patients older than 80 years.
METHODS
Lung cancer patients aged 80 years or older who underwent radical surgery were retrospectively studied; a multi-institutional analysis was conducted from January 1998 to December 2015. Preoperative and postoperative clinical data, including age, gender, smoking history, body mass index, respiratory function, Charlson Comorbidity Index, Glasgow Prognostic Score, surgical procedure, cancer histology, clinical and pathological stage, surgical result and survival time, were collected.
RESULTS
A total of 337 patients, comprising 216 (64.1%) men and 121 (35.9%) women were enrolled. The median age was 82 (range 80–92) years. Of the 337 patients, 205 (60.8%) had preoperative comorbidities. Postoperative complications were observed in 119 (35.3%) patients; postoperative mortalities occurred in 6 (1.8%) patients. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that male gender (P = 0.01) and operation time (P = 0.047) were associated with postoperative complications; in contrast, pathological Stage III (P < 0.001), male gender (P = 0.01), Charlson Comorbidity Index ≥2 (P = 0.03) and Glasgow Prognostic Score = 1/2 (P = 0.04) were independent prognostic factors for overall survival.
CONCLUSIONS
The risk factors for postoperative complications (male gender and operation time) and the predictive factors affecting long-term survival (male gender, Charlson Comorbidity Index, Glasgow Prognostic Score and P-stage) should be taken into account for the effective management of patients older than 80 years with lung cancer, undergoing surgery.
We report a case with a rare combination of synchronous lung adenocarcinoma and bilateral malignant pleural mesotheliomas in a 70‐year‐old male without asbestos exposure. He metachronously developed ...peritoneal malignant mesothelioma, intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, urothelial carcinoma of the bladder and prostatic adenocarcinoma. Immunohistochemistry revealed complete loss of BAP1 expression in all seven lesions. Targeted next generation sequencing using Todai OncoPanel identified a novel germline variant (c.1565_1566del, p.P522Rfs*14) of BAP1. Additionally, different nonsynonymous somatic mutations of BAP1 were identified in four lesions including lung adenocarcinoma, malignant pleural and peritoneal mesotheliomas, and bladder cancer. The remaining two lesions had different somatic mutations in genes other than BAP1. Multiple BAP1‐deficient cancers that developed in a single patient suggest the newly identified germline variant of BAP1 gene to be pathogenic and this case expands the clinical spectrum of BAP1‐tumor predisposition syndrome. Screening for BAP1 status is highly recommended in cases with a similar combination of cancers.
Thoracoscopic segmentectomy for the posterior basal segment (S10) and its variant (e.g., S9+10 and S10b+c combined subsegmentectomy) is one of the most challenging anatomical segmentectomies. ...Stapler-based segmentectomy is attractive to simplify the operation and to prevent post-operative air leakage. However, this approach makes thoracoscopic S10 segmentectomy even more tricky. The challenges are caused mostly from the following three reasons: first, similar to other basal segments, "three-dimensional" stapling is needed to fold a cuboidal segment; second, the belonging pulmonary artery is not directly facing the interlobar fissure or the hilum, making identification of target artery difficult; third, the anatomy of S10 and adjacent segments such as superior (S6) and medial basal (S7) is variable. To overcome these challenges, this article summarizes the "bidirectional approach" that allows for solid confirmation of anatomy while avoiding separation of S6 and the basal segment. To assist this approach under limited thoracoscopic view, we also show stapling techniques to fold the cuboidal segment with the aid of "standing stiches". Attention should also be paid to the anatomy of adjacent segments particularly that of S7, which tends to be congested after stapling. The use of virtual-assisted lung mapping (VAL-MAP) is also recommended to demark resection lines because it flexibly allows for complex procedures such as combined subsegmentectomy such as S10b+c, extended segmentectomy such as S10+S9b, and non-anatomically extended segmentectomy.
An innovative ecosystem services-based sustainability assessment was conducted in the important urban agglomeration of the Lake Biwa region, Japan, covering the time period from 1950 to 2014. A ...22-indicator system was established that was based on the major ecosystem services of Lake Biwa and its water courses, i.e., provisioning services regarding aquatic products and water; regulating services regarding floods and water quality; cultural services regarding recreation and tourism, scientific research, and environmental education; and supporting services regarding biodiversity. First, changes in the eight ecosystem services were discussed together with the considerable experience and difficult lessons that can be drawn from the development trajectory. Next, with the indicators rearranged according to sustainability principles, the regional sustainability over the past six-plus decades was assessed. In general, this urban agglomeration has been progressing in terms of its sustainability, although economic and social development was achieved at the cost of environmental degradation in the past, and the current economic downturn is hurting the balanced development and integrated benefits. The results lead directly to recommendations for regional development, especially in terms of economic rejuvenation, from the perspective of improving management of Lake Biwa's water resources. Moreover, the relevant knowledge is educational and inspirational for other places in the world that are facing similar development issues. For example, the effective and even pioneering countermeasures that have been taken against environmental degradation, as well as the participation and collaboration of multiple stakeholders, could be useful as a model. Moreover, the study invites increased understanding of ecosystem vulnerability to anthropogenic devastation and emphasizes the priority of precautionary measures over countermeasures in the context of holistic urban planning and sustainable urban development.
Display omitted
•An innovative ecosystem services-based sustainability assessment was conducted.•Changes in ecosystem services of Lake Biwa, and experience and lessons, were shown.•Sustainability of the urban agglomeration nearby Lake Biwa was assessed.•Economic rejuvenation could be achieved by improving water resources management.•The study is educational and inspirational for other places facing similar issues.
Highlights • Using mean0 u and entropy6 u in combination, HTET can be differentiated from LTET. • Using mean0c, HTET can be differentiated from LTET. • Quantitative texture analysis outperforms ...subjective visual heterogeneity analysis.
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