Low placental weight may be involved in the etiology of congenital cryptorchidism in neonatal boys.

INTRODUCTION: Several factors have been reported to be associated with the etiology of cryptorchidism; however, clear evidence regarding the risk factors for cryptorchidism is elusive. In the present study, we evaluated the clinical characteristics of cryptorchidism using the common neonatal intensive-care unit (NICU) database of the National Hospital Organization and explored one of possible factors associated with the development of cryptorchidism. METHODS: A total of 7882 male neonates were included in this study. We separated them into two groups: those without cryptorchidism (n = 7852) and those with cryptorchidism (n = 30) at the time of discharge from the NICU. Cryptorchidism was defined as a condition in which the testis was located out of the scrotum on the route of descent at the time of NICU discharge. The associations between cryptorchidism and the maternal, placental, and neonatal information were analyzed. Analyses were performed statistically to compare nominal variables between the groups using Fisher's direct establishment calculation method and logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: Univariate analyses showed the placental weight <10% tile (odds ratio 3.31, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.18-8.64), birth height <-2 standard deviations (SD) (odds ratio 3.65, 95% CI 0.92-10.6), birth weight <-2SD (odds ratio 4.06, 95% CI 1.55-9.51), and small for gestational age (odds ratio 3.82, 95% CI 1.46-8.97) were significantly associated with the development of cryptorchidism. Multivariate analyses showed that placental weight <10th percentile (odds ratio 2.86, 95% CI 1.11-7.44) was significantly associated with the development of cryptorchidism. DISCUSSION: Although, this study population was limited to infants admitted to the ICU, the data indicated a possible association between low placental weight and the development of cryptorchidism in neonatal boys.

Synthesis of a perylene diimide derivative having two ferrocene moieties as an electrochemical indicator for human telomeric DNA tetraplex.

A water-soluble perylene diimide derivative carrying two ferrocene moieties, FPD, was synthesized in two steps as an electrochemical indicator for human telomeric DNA tetraplex. Spectrophotometric binding studies of FPD with AG(3)(T(2)AG(3))(3) revealed its specific binding to tetraplex DNA in 10 mM MES and 1 mM EDTA (pH 6.25) containing 0.10 M KCl. Cyclic voltammograms of AAT CCG TCG AGC AGA G(T(2)AG(3))(4) in an electrolyte containing 20 mM FPN showed single oxidation and reduction peaks based on the ferrocene moieties. The peak current for the oxidation process increased linearly with the scan rate, suggesting the effective concentration of FPN on this electrode.