Purine contents of soybean-derived foods and selected Japanese vegetables and mushrooms

Purine contents of soybean-derived food and various other Japanese foods were quantitatively determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Purine contents were as follows: soybean-derived foods, 21.9-172.5 mg/100 g or 100 mL; Japanese vegetables, 2.3-171.8 mg/100 g; Japanese mushrooms, 9.5-142.3 mg/100 g. Since purine levels in these foods did not exceed 200 mg/100 g, we recommend that eating of them should be adopted and good dietary habits followed.

Observer performance in diagnosing osteoporosis by dental panoramic radiographs: results from the osteoporosis screening project in dentistry (OSPD)

Mandibular cortical erosion detected on dental panoramic radiographs (DPRs) may be useful for identifying women with osteoporosis, but little is known about the variation in diagnostic efficacy of observers worldwide. The purpose of this study was to measure the accuracy in identifying women at risk for osteoporosis in a worldwide group of observers using DPRs. We constructed a website that included background information about osteoporosis screening and instructions regarding the interpretation of mandibular cortical erosion. DPRs of 100 Japanese postmenopausal women aged 50 years or older who had completed skeletal bone mineral measurements by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry were digitized at 300 dpi. These were displayed on the website and used for the evaluation of diagnostic efficacy. Sixty observers aged 25 to 66 years recruited from 16 countries participated in this study. These observers classified cortical erosion into one of three groups (none, mild to moderate, and severe) on the website via the Internet, twice with an approximately 2-week interval. The diagnostic efficacy of the Osteoporosis Self-Assessment Tool (OST), a simple clinical decision rule based on age and weight, was also calculated and compared with that of cortical erosion. The overall mean sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of the 60 observers in identifying women with osteoporosis by cortical erosion on DPRs were 82.5, 46.2, 46.7, and 84.0%, respectively. Those same values by the OST index were 82.9, 43.1, 43.9, and 82.4%, respectively. The intra-observer agreement in classifying cortical erosion on DPRs was sufficient (weighted kappa values>0.6) in 36 (60%) observers. This was significantly increased in observers who specialized in oral radiology (P<0.05). In the 36 observers with sufficient intra-observer agreement, the overall mean sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV in identifying women with osteoporosis by any cortical erosion were 83.5, 48.7, 48.3, and 85.7%, respectively. The mean PPV and NPV were significantly higher in the 36 observers with sufficient intra-observer agreement than in the 24 observers with insufficient intra-observer agreement. Our results reconfirm the efficacy of cortical erosion findings in identifying postmenopausal women at risk for osteoporosis, among observers with sufficient intra-observer agreement. Information gathered from radiographic examination is at least as useful as that gathered from the OST index.

Aberrant beta-catenin expression and adenomatous polyposis coli gene mutation in ameloblastoma and odontogenic carcinoma

The Wnt pathway is involved in carcinogenesis and three regulatory genes of the Wnt pathway, APC (adenomatous polyposis coli), beta-catenin and Axin are frequently mutated in some primary human cancers. This study was conducted to clarify the relation of beta-catenin accumulation and the mutation of the CTNNB1 (beta-catenin) gene with the mutation of APC gene in the process of development of odontogenic tumors including ameloblastoma and odontogenic carcinoma (OC). beta-Catenin accumulation was examined by immunohistochemistry in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples of six ameloblastomas and eight OCs. We also performed a mutation analysis of CTNNB1 and APC to examine the cause of beta-catenin accumulation. All ameloblastoma cases and six out of eight (75%) OC cases exhibited beta-catenin accumulation in the nucleus. CTNNB1 mutation was only found in one OC case, whereas three of six (50%) ameloblastoma cases and two out of eight (25%) OC cases had APC mutations within the mutational cluster region. Our findings suggest that aberrant beta-catenin expression and APC missense mutation may play an important role for the pathogenesis of epithelial odontogenic tumors.

VEGF-C is associated with lymphatic status and invasion in oral cancer

BACKGROUND

Nodal metastasis is a major prognostic indicator for oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) progression. Recently, it has been revealed that lymphangiogenic growth factor VEGF-C and its receptor Flt-4 play an important role for invasion and metastasis in cancer cells.

AIM

To examine VEGF-C expression and its correlation with lymphatic status, including the number of lymph vessels and lymphatic invasion, tumour invasion and metastasis in OSCC.

METHODS

Intratumoural and peritumoural lymphatic vessels were examined using D2-40 in 54 OSCC cases and correlated with VEGF-C expression and clinicopathological findings. The histological pattern of invasion and pathological findings were compared.

RESULTS

High expression of VEGF-C was frequently observed in OSCC and was associated with increased number of lymph vessels and lymphatic invasion. VEGF-C was well correlated with invasion pattern and metastasis.

CONCLUSIONS

Results suggest that VEGF-C may play an important role for lymphangiogenesis and invasion in the metastatic process and can be a strong predicting factor for metastasis of OSCC.

Runx3 interacts with DNA repair protein Ku70

Recent studies have suggested that Runt-related transcription factor 3 (Runx3) is associated with genesis and progression of gastric carcinoma. A proteomic approach was used to search for Runx3-interacting proteins to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of gastric carcinogenesis. Runx3 bound with myc and flag tags (MEF tags) is expressed in HEK293T cells, and the protein complex formed with Runx3 was purified and identified by mass spectrometry. Ku70 and Ku80, members of the DNA repair protein complex, were identified as Runx3-interacting proteins. Runx3, Ku70, and Ku80 associate in vivo, and in vitro interaction between Runx3 and Ku70 was confirmed via His-tag pull-down assay. The amino acids 241-322 of Runx3, which correspond to the transcriptional activation domain, and the amino acids 1-116 of Ku70 were necessary for binding with each other, and immunocytochemistry under confocal laser microscopy demonstrated that Runx3 and Ku70 localized throughout the nucleus excluding the nucleoli. Furthermore, Runx3 highly activated the transcription of p21, the target gene of Runx3, in Ku70 knockdown cells. These results suggest a possible link between a tumor suppressor function and DNA repair.

Periostin: novel diagnostic and therapeutic target for cancer

Periostin is a secreted protein that shares a structural homology to the axon guidance protein fasciclin I (FAS1) in insects and was originally named as osteoblast-specific factor-2 (Osf2). Periostin is particularly highly homologus to Betaig-h3, which promotes cell adhesion and spreading of fibroblasts. It has recently been reported that Periostin was frequently overexpressed in various types of human cancers. Although the detailed function of Periostin is still unclear, Periostin-integrin interaction through FAS1 domain is thought to be involved in tumor development. In addition, Periostin stimulates metastatic growth by promoting cancer cell survival, invasion and angiogenesis. Therefore, Periostin can be a useful marker to predict the behavior of cancer. This review summarizes the recent understanding of Periostin roles in tumor development and speculates on the usefulness of Periostin as a therapeutic and diagnostic target for cancer.

Risk of vertebral osteoporosis in post-menopausal women with alterations of the mandible

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have suggested that a thin or eroded cortex of the mandible detected on dental panoramic radiographs is associated with low vertebral bone mineral density (BMD) or osteoporosis. However, those studies did not estimate the multivariate-adjusted risk for low vertebral BMD or osteoporosis associated with alterations of the mandible.

METHODS

BMD of the lumbar vertebrae (L2-L4) was compared among quartiles of cortical width and among three cortical shape categories in 450 post-menopausal women (mean age, 57.2 years), adjusted for potential confounders. The odds ratios for low BMD or osteoporosis according to cortical width and shape were also calculated.

RESULTS

Significant associations were found between cortical width and shape, and vertebral BMD. The odds ratios for low vertebral BMD associated with the second, third and lowermost quartiles of cortical width were 1.71 (95% confidence interval (CI), 0.96-3.05), 2.30 (95% CI, 1.29-4.11) and 5.43 (95% CI, 2.16-10.71), respectively, compared with the uppermost quartile. The odds ratios for osteoporosis according to cortical width category were similar to those for low BMD. The odds ratios for low BMD associated with mildly to moderately and severely eroded cortices were 3.85 (95% CI, 2.37-6.25) and 7.84 (95% CI, 2.57-23.90), respectively, compared with normal cortex. The odds ratios for osteoporosis associated with mildly to moderately and severely eroded cortices were 4.73 (95% CI, 2.54-8.80) and 14.73 (95% CI, 6.14-35.47), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Post-menopausal women with alterations of the mandible may have an increased risk for low vertebral BMD or osteoporosis.

Identification of post-menopausal women at risk of osteoporosis by trained general dental practitioners using panoramic radiographs

BACKGROUND

An eroded inferior cortex of the mandible on panoramic radiographs may be useful for identifying post-menopausal women with low bone mineral density (BMD), or osteoporosis. The purpose of this study was to assess whether trained general dental practitioners (GDPs) can identify post-menopausal women with undetected low skeletal BMD as well as spinal fractures by panoramic radiographs in their clinics.

METHODS

Out of 455 women aged 50 years and older who visited the dental clinics of 22 trained GDPs and had panoramic radiographic assessment for the examination of dental diseases between June and December 2004, 168 post-menopausal women were diagnosed as having low skeletal BMD based on cortical erosion findings. Of these women, 39 women aged 50-84 years (mean age (SD, standard deviation), 64.8 (7.4) years) with no previous diagnosis of osteoporosis participated in this study. BMD at the lumbar spine and femoral neck was measured using dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). Spine fractures were assessed on lateral radiographs obtained at the time of the DXA assessment.

RESULTS

Two women (5.1%) had normal BMD (BMD T-score>-1.0), 21 women (53.9%) had osteopenia (BMD T-score of -2.5 to -1.0) and 16 women (41.0%) had osteoporosis (BMD T-score<-2.5). Eight women (20.5%) had fractures at the thoracic spine, lumbar spine, or both.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results suggest that a high percentage of post-menopausal women with undetected low skeletal BMD as well as spinal fractures may be identified based on trained GDPs' analyses of their panoramic radiographs.

Stromal reaction of adenomyosis protects from uterine endometrial cancer invasion to myometrium

16064

Background: It is unclear that stromal reaction plays role in endometrial cancer (Em Ca) invasion to uterine muscle with adenomyosis. Methods: One hundred and five patients with Em Ca (stage 0=38, 1a=18, 1b=26, 1c=10, 2b=3, 3a=4, 3c=5, 4a=1) received operative therapy with hysterectomy. Evaluation of stromal reaction using immunohistochemical method with alpha-smooth muscle actin and h-caldesmon antibody. In case of alpha-smooth muscle actin had immunoreactivity and h-caldesmon had not immunoreactivity, there was stromal reaction with myofibroblast. Evaluation of cell proliferation, using immunohistochemical method with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) by global score with six degrees and MIB-1 by labeling Index (LI). Results: All cases had stromal reaction with myofibloblast in myometrial invasion area in forty nine cases with myometrial invasion equal or more than stage 1b. Em Ca invaded near to and in adenomyosis lesion in eleven cases. In stroma of adenomyosis without cancer invasion, EGFR was positive in one case (9%) and global score was two (average 0.18). In contrast, EGFR was positive in eight cases (73%) with Em Ca invasion to adenomyosis stroma and global score was from two to three (average 1.6). LI of MIB-1 was from 0 to 0.2 (average 0.05) in adenomyosis stroma without Em Ca invasion and 0.2 to 0.75 (average 0.41) with Em Ca invasion. Conclusions: When Em Ca invades to adenomyosis, myofibloblast cell proliferation in stromal reaction increases more than in adenomyosis without Em Ca invasion. Stromal reaction of adenomyosis plays role in protecting from Em Ca invasion to uterine muscle and it may contribute to being good prognosis compared with Em Ca without adenomyosis.

No significant financial relationships to disclose.

Diagnostic efficacy of alveolar bone loss of the mandible for identifying postmenopausal women with femoral osteoporosis

OBJECTIVES

Mandibular cortical width (MCW) detected on panoramic radiographs may be useful for identifying postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. There is little known regarding whether alveolar bone loss (ABL) of the mandible detected on panoramic radiographs is a potentially accurate screening tool for osteoporosis in comparison with MCW. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether ABL of the mandible on panoramic radiographs is useful for identifying femoral osteoporosis in postmenopausal women in comparison with MCW.

METHODS

Three hundred and fifty-four Japanese postmenopausal women (mean age+/-SD, 56.8+/-7.7 years) were recruited for this study. Femoral BMD was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry. Panoramic radiographs were obtained to estimate ABL of the mandible and MCW.

RESULTS

A multiple regression analysis revealed that femoral BMD was significantly associated with MCW (P<0.001), weight (P<0.001), age (P<0.001) and ABL of the mandible (P=0.029; adjusted r(2)=0.380). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) for identifying femoral osteoporosis was 0.609 [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.523-0.696] for ABL of the mandible and 0.779 (95% CI, 0.713-0.844) for MCW, respectively. AUC for ABL of the mandible indicated less accuracy.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results suggest that ABL of the mandible on panoramic radiographs may not be useful for identifying postmenopausal women with femoral osteoporosis in comparison with MCW.

Multiple inhibitory pathways for lipopolysaccharide- and pro-inflammatory cytokine-induced nitric oxide production in cultured astrocytes

We previously showed that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and pro-inflammatory cytokines utilized different mechanisms for the production of nitric oxide (NO) by inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in cultured rat astrocytes. To further characterize these regulatory pathways, we tested the effects of inhibitory factors (anti-inflammatory cytokines, cellular cAMP, and glucocorticoid) on aspects of iNOS expression (from transcription to enzyme activity) during LPS- and cytokine-induced astrocyte NO production. Anti-inflammatory cytokines (transforming growth factor-beta and interleukin-4) suppressed both LPS- and cytokine-induced NO production by reducing iNOS protein expression without affecting mRNA levels. Increased cellular cAMP levels, induced by noradrenaline or forskolin, suppressed LPS-induced, but not cytokine-induced, NO production without affecting iNOS protein expression. The glucocorticoid analog, dexamethasone, suppressed LPS-induced, but not cytokine-induced, NO production by reducing iNOS promoter activity. These different mechanisms would allow the fine control of NO concentration in the brain, as well as accounting for the multiple roles of NO in brain physiology and pathology. Moreover, these mechanisms provide useful therapeutic targets for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.

Periostin is frequently overexpressed and enhances invasion and angiogenesis in oral cancer

Oral squamous-cell carcinoma (OSCC) is one of the most common types of human cancer. Typically OSCC cells show persistent invasion that frequently leads to local recurrence and distant lymphatic metastasis. We previously identified Periostin as the gene demonstrating the highest fold change expression in the invasive clone by comparing the transcriptional profile of parent OSCC cell line and a highly invasive clone. Here, we demonstrated that Periostin overexpression enhanced invasiveness in oral cancer cell lines. To know the role of Periostin in invasion, angiogenesis and metastasis in OSCC cases, we first examined the expression of Periostin mRNA in 31 OSCC cases by RT-PCR and Periostin protein in 74 OSCC cases by immunohistochemistry. Then, we compared the Periostin expression with invasion pattern, metastasis and blood vessel density. Periostin mRNA and protein overexpression were frequently found in OSCC cases and Periostin expression was well correlated with the invasion pattern and metastasis. Moreover, blood vessel density of Periostin-positive cases was higher than those of Periostin-negative cases. Interestingly, recombinant Periostin enhanced capillary formation in vitro in a concentration-dependant manner. In summary, these findings suggest that Periostin may promote invasion and angiogenesis in OSCC, and that Periostin can be a strong marker for prediction of metastasis in oral cancer patients.

Diagnostic performance of general dental practitioners after lecture in identifying post-menopausal women with low bone mineral density by panoramic radiographs

OBJECTIVES

Mandibular cortical erosion detected on panoramic radiographs may be useful for identifying post-menopausal women with low skeletal bone mineral density (BMD). The purposes of this study were to calculate the diagnostic performance of general dental practitioners (GDPs) who attended a lecture on identifying post-menopausal women with low BMD from findings on panoramic radiographs and to evaluate the influence of GDPs' age on diagnostic performance.

METHODS

After a 1 h lecture, 111 GDPs were asked to classify the mandibular cortex (normal or eroded) on panoramic radiographs obtained from 100 post-menopausal women who have had skeletal BMD assessment. Low BMD was defined as a BMD T score of -1.0 or less. Diagnostic performance was analysed by comparing two groups classified by mandibular cortex (women with normal cortex and women with any eroded cortex) with those classified by BMD (women with normal BMD and women with low BMD).

RESULTS

The mean sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, accuracy and likelihood ratio for a positive risk result were 73.0% (95% confidence interval [CI]; 71.3 to 74.7%), 49.0% (95% CI; 46.4 to 51.5%), 66.9% (95% CI; 66.0 to 67.8%), 57.0% (95% CI; 55.8 to 58.2%), 62.9% (95% CI; 62.1 to 63.7%) and 1.51 (95% CI; 1.44 to 1.58), respectively. GDPs' age did not influence diagnostic performance.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results suggest that 73.0% of women who had low skeletal BMD can be identified by GDPs after a lecture on the use of panoramic radiographs as an aid in diagnosing low BMD; however, the diagnostic performance may not be influenced by GDPs' age.

A novel neuroprotective compound FR901459 with dual inhibition of calcineurin and cyclophilins

Brain ischemia leads to severe damage in the form of delayed neuronal cell death. In our study, we show that the marked neuroprotection of the new immunosuppressant FR901495 in forebrain ischemia is due not only to inhibition of calcineurin, but also to protection against mitochondrial damage caused by mitochondrial permeability transition pore formation through cyclophilin D, one of the prolyl cis/trans isomerase family members. These findings shed light on the clinical application and development of new drugs for the treatment of ischemic damage in the brain as well as in the heart and liver.

Computer-aided system for measuring the mandibular cortical width on dental panoramic radiographs in identifying postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density

INTRODUCTION

Mandibular inferior cortical width manually measured on dental panoramic radiographs may be useful for identifying postmenopausal women with low skeletal bone mineral density (BMD). Automatic measurement of cortical width may enable us to identify a large number of postmenopausal women with suspected low skeletal BMD. The purposes of this study were to develop a computer-aided system for measuring mandibular cortical width on dental panoramic radiographs and clarify the diagnostic efficacy of this system.

METHODS

Panoramic radiographs of 100 postmenopausal women who had had BMD assessments of the lumbar spine and the femoral neck were used in this study. Experienced oral radiologist determined the position of the mental foramen on 100 digitized dental panoramic radiographs. After determination of the mental foramen, mandibular cortical width below the mental foramen was measured automatically with a computer-aided system by identifying the area of interest, enhancing the original image, determining inner and outer margins of the cortex, and selecting an appropriate point. Cortical width measured by this system was compared with BMD of the lumbar spine and the femoral neck.

RESULTS

There were statistically significant correlation between cortical width measured by the computer-aided system and spinal BMD (r=0.50) and femoral neck BMD (r=0.54). These correlations were similar with those between cortical width by manual measurement and skeletal BMD. Sensitivity and specificity for identifying postmenopausal women with low spinal BMD by the computer-aided system were about 88.0% and about 58.7%, respectively. Those for identifying postmenopausal women with low femoral neck BMD by this system were about 87.5% and about 56.3%, respectively.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that our computer-aided system may be useful for identifying postmenopausal women with low skeletal BMD.

Use of the exogenous Drosophila octopamine receptor gene to study Gq-coupled receptor-mediated responses in mammalian neurons

Diverse excitatory and inhibitory neuronal responses are mediated via Gq-coupled receptors, but the lack of a systematic comparison of different receptors or neurons has hindered a better understanding of these responses. Such a comparison may be provided by an exogenous receptor that is activated by compounds that have no effect on endogenous receptors. We therefore expressed an invertebrate biogenic amine receptor, the Drosophila octopamine receptor, in rat cortical neurons and compared octopamine receptor-mediated responses with those mediated by the group I metabotropic glutamate receptor, the endogenous Gq-coupled receptor in rat cortical neurons. Stimulation of either receptor did not result in a calcium response in octopamine receptor-expressing neurons, although octopamine preferentially elicited a calcium increase in octopamine receptor-expressing PC12h cells, while enhancing the neuronal depolarization-induced calcium increase and the electrical excitability. The increased excitability was caused by inward currents resulting from a reduction in the leak current, which was voltage-independent and blocked by genistein, a non-selective tyrosine kinase inhibitor. These results show that, in cortical neurons, exogenous octopamine receptor in mushroom bodies activated the same cell signaling pathway as endogenous metabotropic glutamate receptor, suggesting that the diverse neuronal responses mediated by Gq-coupled receptors are due to the properties of different neurons, rather than to the properties of the receptors.