Lifestyle change influences on GERD in Japan: a study of participants in a health examination program.

BACKGROUND: Though gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has been a prevalent disease in Western countries, the incidence of GERD has only just started to increase in Japan. AIM: The aim of this study was to determine which lifestyle factors may be associated with GERD in Japan. METHODS: A total of 2,853 participants who took part in a health examination program between July 2004 and March 2005 were enrolled. GERD symptoms were assessed using the Japanese version of the Carlsson-Dent self-administered questionnaire (QUEST). The GERD group consisted of participants with a QUEST score ≥6 and/or endoscopic findings. The GERD group was divided into asymptomatic ERD (erosive reflux disease with no symptoms), symptomatic ERD (erosive reflux disease with symptoms) and NERD (non-erosive reflux disease) groups. Associated factors for these diseases were analyzed by logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: GERD was diagnosed in 667 (23.4%) participants. Among the subjects placed in the GERD group, asymptomatic ERD, symptomatic ERD and NERD were diagnosed in 232 (8.1%), 91 (3.2%) and 344 (12.1%) participants, respectively. Factors associated with GERD included a high BMI (body mass index), hiatus hernia, fewer hours of sleep, lack of exercise, and drinking green tea. CONCLUSIONS: Relationships between lifestyle, gender and GERD were investigated in the present study. Both lifestyle improvements and consideration of gender differences can be used to help prevent GERD development.

Association between combinations of glutathione-S-transferase M1, T1 and P1 genotypes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Glutathione-S-transferases (GSTs) play a crucial role in antioxidant defence mechanisms, by detoxifying xenobiotics and by inactivating endogenous byproducts of oxidative stress. Functional failure, as a sequel of an altered GST genotype, may thus aggravate non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This study investigated whether the GSTs genotypes could affect the risk for NAFLD. METHODS: A cross-sectional case-control analysis included 253 Japanese participants in a health screening programme. The GSTM1 null, GSTT1 null and GSTP1 Ile105Val variant genotypes were determined as putative high-risk genotypes. RESULTS: The incidence of NAFLD was 27.3%. The frequency of the GSTM1 null genotype was higher in NAFLD than in the control [adjusted odds ratio (OR), 2.00; 95% confidence intervals (CI), 1.01-3.95]. Moreover, any combination of two putative high-risk genotypes exhibited a higher risk for NAFLD with an adjusted OR from 3.52 (95% CI, 1.08-11.43)-4.01 (95% CI, 1.28-12.56). However, the significance for the combination of GSTM1 null and GSTT1 null genotypes only remained after Bonferroni's correction. In addition, the risk for NAFLD increased as the number of high-risk genotypes, and the OR among three high-risk genotypes carriers was 9.67 (95% CI: 1.61-58.26). CONCLUSION: This is the first report to show the impact of the GSTs genotypes on the development of NAFLD. This finding, which should be confirmed in further studies in larger populations, may help to develop a more targeted prevention programme at an early stage for subjects with an increased risk for NAFLD.

A preliminary investigation of the association between haptoglobin polymorphism, serum ferritin concentration and fatty liver disease.

BACKGROUND: The genetic polymorphism of haptoglobin (HP) has been associated with cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. We hypothesized that the HP polymorphism could affect the incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). METHODS: This cross sectional case-control analysis included 337 Japanese participants in a health screening program. Fatty liver disease (FLD) was diagnosed by ultrasonography scanning and was classified into NAFLD based on the daily alcohol intake. The HP1 and HP2 alleles were determined using the PCR, and serum ferretin concentrations were measured. RESULTS: FLD and NAFLD were diagnosed in 91 and 69 subjects, respectively. The adjusted odd ratio (OR) of HP2 carriers vs. non-carriers was 11.8 [95% confidence intervals (CI), 1.3-104.0] for FLD, and 11.7 (95% CI, 1.3-107.9) for NAFLD. Male FLD cases with the HP2/HP2genotype had significantly higher ferretin concentrations than those without (P=0.003). The ferritin concentrations were correlated with the alanine-aminotransferase activities (r=0.48, P<0.001 in FLD cases with the HP2/HP2 genotype). Ferritin was an independent risk factor for FLD, and the incidence of FLD significantly increased in association with ferritin. CONCLUSIONS: This is a preliminary but the first report suggesting the HP2 allele to be a candidate risk factor for NAFLD.

Glutathione S-transferase A1 polymorphism as a risk factor for smoking-related type 2 diabetes among Japanese.

Glutathione S-transferases protect cells against exogenous and endogenous oxidative stress. Type 2 diabetes is associated with an increased production of reactive oxygen species and a reduction in antioxidant defenses. This study investigated whether GSTA1*A/*B and GSTP1Ile105Val polymorphisms could affect the risk for type 2 diabetes. A cross-sectional case-control analysis included 468 (326 men and 142 women) Japanese participants in a health screening program. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes was 11.3% (63 subjects: 52 male and 11 female). The frequency of GSTA1*B allele carriers was higher in diabetes than in non-diabetes, though the difference was not statistically significant (adjusted OR, 1.8; 95% CI, 0.9-3.4). The risk among the GSTA1*B allele carriers was significantly increased by current-smoking status (adjusted OR, 3.7; 95% CI, 1.1-12.7; vs. never-smoking non-carriers), whereas the smoking status was not an independent risk factor. The GSTP1 genotype alone or in combination with the smoking status did not affect the risk for diabetes. This is the first report to show that the GSTA1*B allele is a potential risk factor for smoking-related type 2 diabetes.

Association between glutathione S-transferase A1, M1 and T1 polymorphisms and hypertension.

The importance of oxidative stress in hypertension has recently received increasing attention. The association between the incidence of hypertension and a super family of antioxidant enzymes, glutathione S-transferase (GST)A1, GSTM1 and GSTT1, polymorphisms was investigated in 468 Japanese participants in a health screening program. The frequency of the GSTA1*B allele carriers was significantly higher in hypertensive patients than normotensive participants [adjusted odds ratio (OR): 1.8; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.1-2.9]. The risk of hypertension was significantly increased in the GSTA1*B allele carriers having also the GSTM1 null genotype or both the GSTM1 and GSTT1 null genotypes (adjusted OR: 2.4; 95% CI: 1.2-4.9; adjusted OR: 3.1; 95% CI: 1.0-9.5, respectively). This is the first report identifying the GSTA1*B allele as a genetic risk factor for hypertension. The determination of the GST genotypes may help in identifying individuals at high-risk for hypertension.

Combined glutathione S-transferase T1 and M1 positive genotypes afford protection against type 2 diabetes in Japanese.

INTRODUCTION: Diabetes mellitus is associated with an increased production of reactive oxygen species and a reduction in antioxidant defenses. The aim of this study is to determine the association between the incidence of Type 2 diabetes and gene polymorphisms of glutathione S-transferase (GST), which modulates oxidative stress. MATERIALS & METHODS: The associations between the incidence of Type 2 diabetes and the GSTT1 and GSTM1 genotypes were analyzed in 469 Japanese participants in a health-screening program. RESULTS: The clinical characteristics and smoking status were obtained from the health screening record. The incidence of diabetes was 1.5-fold higher in the GSTT1 and GSTM1 null (-) genotype than the GSTT1 and GSTM1 present (+) genotype, respectively. Although the effect of each null genotype was not significant, the combined GSTT1+/GSTM1+ genotypes conferred a significant reduction in risk of diabetes in comparison with the other combinations of genotypes (adjusted odds ratio [OR]: 0.30; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.12-0.71). In stratified analyses by smoking status, the incidence of diabetes was significantly higher in never-smokers with the GSTT1- genotype than those with the GSTT1+ genotype (OR: 2.85; 95% CI: 1.17-6.94) and increased significantly in current smokers (OR: 5.91; 95% CI: 1.96-17.88). The effect of the GSTM1- genotype was significant only in current smokers. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that the GSTT1- and GSTT1-/GSTM1- genotypes are independent risk factors for development of Type 2 diabetes regardless of the smoking status of the patient, and that these genotypes and current smoking were interactively associated with the incidence of Type 2 diabetes.

Impact of CYP2D6*10 on H1-antihistamine-induced hypersomnia.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the relevance of the cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2D6 genotype to the adverse drug reactions (ADRs) of H1-antihistamines and the level of sedation. METHODS: Japanese participants in a health screening program were asked to describe any past history of ADRs. Any subjects reporting ADRs induced by H1-antihistamines were then individually interviewed and defined as cases. Excessive daytime sleepiness, which had occurred in the cases as an H1-antihistamine-induced ADR, was assessed by the Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS), and an ESS score >or=12 was considered hypersomnia. CYP2D6*4, *5, *14, and *10 were genotyped by a panel of polymerase chain reaction techniques. RESULTS: Out of 2,074 participants, 100 cases (M:F = 37:63, mean age 51.9 +/- 9.2 years) were eligible for analysis. The most common etiological drug was chlorpheniramine, which is the most frequently used H1-antihistamine in Japan. CYP2D6*10 allele and genotypes were more frequently found in the cases than in the healthy Japanese population in a large study (P < 0.005 and P = 0.039, respectively), but no difference was observed in the null alleles and genotypes. The ESS scores in 75 cases (M:F=25:50) who had experienced excessive daytime sleepiness were 9.5 +/- 5.5 in men and 12.9 +/- 6.1 in women (P < 0.001, cases vs. 34 subjects without symptoms; P = 0.001 men vs. women). The occurrence of hypersomnia increased as the number of CYP2D6 mutant alleles increased (P = 0.045). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that the presence of the CYP2D6*10 allele is a risk factor for development of H1-antihistamine-induced ADRs in Japanese.

Phenotype-genotype analysis of CYP1A2 in Japanese patients receiving oral theophylline therapy.

OBJECTIVE: To clarify the association between the cytochrome P450 (CYP) 1A2 genotype with the CYP1A2 phenotype and to search for the CYP1A2*1K haplotype, which has been shown to decrease CYP1A2 inducibility and/or other functional polymorphisms in Japanese. METHODS: Two polymorphisms, CYP1A2*1C and CYP1A2*1F, were genotyped in 126 patients receiving oral slow-release theophylline (TP) therapy and in 224 healthy volunteers. The CYP1A2 phenotype was assessed by the plasma [1-methyluric acid (1U)+3-methylxanthine (3X)]/TP ratio in the patients. The volunteers were given 150 mg caffeine, and the urine [1X+1U+5-acetylamino-6-amino-3-methyluracil (AAMU)]/17U ratio was used for CYP1A2 phenotyping. CYP1A2 intron 1 and six exons (exon 2-exon 7) were sequenced in the patients whose (1U+3X)/TP ratios were below the mean-2SD of those of all patients, and intron 1 was also sequenced in an additional 20 healthy volunteers exhibiting putative low CYP1A2 activities. RESULTS: The individual (1U+3X)/TP ratios ranged from 0.007 to 0.21 (a 30-fold difference) in the patients, and the (1X+1U+AAMU)/17U ratios ranged from 1.6 to 112 (a 70-fold difference) in the healthy volunteers. The CYP1A2 activities were not significantly influenced by CYP1A2*1C or CYP1A2*1F. We found no functional polymorphisms by a sequencing analysis. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that the CYP1A2*1C and CYP1A2*1F genotypes are not crucial factors for the variability of CYP1A2 activity and that the CYP1A2*1K haplotype is either nil or only shows a very low frequency in Japanese.

Successful treatment of intracranial nongerminomatous malignant germ cell tumors by administering neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy before excision of residual tumors.

OBJECT: The goal of this study was to confirm the effectiveness of our novel treatment strategy, neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) consisting of combined chemo- and radiotherapy, which are performed before complete excision of residual tumor in patients with intracranial nongerminomatous malignant germ cell tumors (NGMGCTs). METHODS: The authors treated 11 consecutive patients with NGMGCTs by applying NAT consisting of combined platinum-based chemotherapy and radiotherapy, followed by complete excision of residual tumors. The pretreatment diagnosis, based on tumor markers with or without biopsy, was yolk sac tumor in five patients, embryonal carcinoma in one patient, immature teratoma in one patient, and mixed germ cell tumor containing malignant tumor components in four patients. Among the 11 patients, NAT achieved a complete response in two and a partial response in six patients; two patients manifested no change and one suffered disease progression. Residual tumors that occurred post-NAT were surgically removed in nine patients. Of the 11 patients, 10 are currently alive without recurrence of their disease, 30 to 177 months (mean 96 months) after diagnosis. In one patient a leptomeningeal tumor recurred and he died of the disease 21 months after diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: Neoadjuvant therapy, consisting of combined chemo- and radiotherapy, followed by complete excision of residual tumors is highly effective in patients with intracranial NGMGCTs.