The reduced/oxidized state of plasma albumin is modulated by dietary protein intake partly via albumin synthesis rate in rats.

The reduced/oxidized state of plasma albumin is influenced by many factors, including chronic diseases and strenuous training. Recently, the reduced/oxidized state has also been shown to be associated with dietary protein and energy intakes in rats. We hypothesized that dietary protein intake may modulate the reduced/oxidized state of plasma albumin by altering the rate of albumin synthesis and that the reduced/oxidized state could therefore serve as a novel marker of protein undernutrition. We tested this hypothesis by examining male growing rats placed on a low-protein or energy-restriction diet. In the 4-week experiment, animals fed a low-protein diet (3% casein), whose dietary intakes were lower than those fed control diet (20% casein), showed significant decreases in plasma albumin level and the ratio of the reduced form of albumin to total albumin. Animals given the same amount of control diet as the low-protein diet group (approximately 30% energy restriction) also showed the above decreases, albeit to much more limited extents. The ratio of reduced to total plasma albumin correlated significantly with plasma albumin fractional synthesis rate. When animals were maintained on the low-protein diet for as long as 12 weeks and then fed the control diet for 1 week, the decreased ratio of reduced to total plasma albumin, but not plasma albumin level, resolved rapidly. The reduced/oxidized state of plasma albumin would thus reflect dietary protein status via plasma albumin turnover including the fractional synthesis rate and could prove useful as a sensitive marker of protein undernutrition.

Composite paraganglioma-ganglioneuroma concomitant with adrenal metastasis of medullary thyroid carcinoma in a patient with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2B: A case report.

Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN2) is an autosomal-dominant cancer syndrome with major components of medullary thyroid carcinoma, pheochromocytoma, and hyperparathyroidism. MEN2B is the most aggressive and rarest of the MEN2 variants. Pheochromocytoma in MEN2 is virtually always located in the adrenal medulla, but MEN2-associated extra-adrenal pheochromocytomas (paraganglioma) are rare. A 59-year-old man who has been diagnosed with MEN2B consulted our hospital for surgical treatment of a 10-mm left adrenal mass and a 30-mm retroperitoneal mass. He had paroxysmal elevations in blood pressure and in urinary metanephrine and vanillylmandelic acid values. Laparoscopic excision of the left adrenal gland and retroperitoneal mass was performed. We experienced an extremely rare case of composite paraganglioma-ganglioneuroma concomitant with adrenal metastasis of medullary thyroid carcinoma in a patient with MEN2B.

[MASSIVE HEMORRHAGE FROM THE FISTULA FORMATION BETWEEN CUTANEOUS URETEROSTOMY AND INFERIOR EPIGASTRIC ARTERY: A CASE REPORT].

A 87-year-old man received radical nephroureterectomy for right renal pelvic cancer in 2009 and left cutaneous ureterostomy after radical cystectomy for bladder cancer in 2013. He visited the hospital for exchanging a 7 or 8 Fr single-J catheter every 2 to 4 weeks. Eleven months after the 2nd operation, massive bleeding from the stoma occurred when ureteral catheter was exchanged. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography showed that left inferior epigastric artery was located close to left ureter. Angiography of the left inferior epigastric artery didn't show an obvious fistula, but revealed the stoma was surrounded by ramified new blood vessels from left inferior epigastric artery. We suspected a rupture of the vessels and performed embolization for the branch of inferior epigastric artery to left ureter. This embolization made it possible for the bleeding to be controlled. Massive bleeding from the branch of inferior epigastric artery is very rare, and we report the case and review the literature.

Model of the electronic structure of electron-doped iron-based superconductors: evidence for enhanced spin fluctuations by diagonal electron hopping.

We present a theoretical understanding of the superconducting phase diagram of the electron-doped iron pnictides. We show that, besides the Fermi surface nesting, a peculiar motion of electrons, where the next nearest neighbor (diagonal) hoppings between iron sites dominate over the nearest neighbor ones, plays an important role in the enhancement of the spin fluctuation and thus superconductivity. In the highest T(c) materials, the crossover between the Fermi surface nesting and this "prioritized diagonal motion" regime occurs smoothly with doping, while in relatively low T(c) materials, the two regimes are separated and therefore results in a double dome T(c) phase diagram.

Effect of odhA overexpression and odhA antisense RNA expression on Tween-40-triggered glutamate production by Corynebacterium glutamicum.

Recent studies have suggested that a decrease in the specific activity of the 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase complex (ODHC) is important for glutamate overproduction by Corynebacterium glutamicum. To further investigate the role of the odhA gene and its product in this process, we constructed the recombinant strains of C. glutamicum in which the expression of the odhA and its product could be controlled by odhA overexpression and odhA antisense RNA expression. We examined changes in glutamate production and ODHC specific activity of the constructed strains during glutamate production triggered by Tween 40 addition. The ODHC specific activity increased with odhA overexpression, resulting in dramatically reduced glutamate production despite Tween 40 addition, indicating that a decrease in the specific activity of ODHC is required for glutamate production induced by Tween 40 addition. However, odhA antisense RNA expression alone did not result in glutamate overproduction in spite of the decrease in ODHC specific activity. Rather, it enhanced glutamate production triggered by Tween 40 addition due to the additional decrease in ODHC specific activity, suggesting that odhA antisense RNA expression is effective in enhancing Tween-40-triggered glutamate overproduction. Our results suggest that a change in ODHC specific activity is critical but is not the only factor responsible for glutamate overproduction by C. glutamicum.