Helicobacter pylori seropositivity among 963 Japanese Brazilians according to sex, age, generation, and lifestyle factors.

Seropositivity of anti-Helicobacter pylori antibody (HP + ) was examined among Japanese Brazilians. The study was announced through 18 Japanese community culture associations in São Paulo, Curitiba, Mogi das Cruzes, and Mirandopolis in 2001. Among 969 participants, 963 individuals aged 33 - 69 years were analyzed. The overall HP + % was 48.1% (95% confidence interval, 44.9 - 51.3%). There was no difference in HP + % between 399 males and 564 females (49.6% and 47.0%, respectively). The HP + % increased with age; 35.3% for those aged 33 - 39 years, 46.2% for those aged 40 - 49 years, 46.5% for those aged 50 - 59 years, and 56.9% for those aged 60 - 69 years, but no differences were observed among the generations (Issei, Nisei, and Sansei) for each 10-year age group. Mogi das Cruzes, a rural area, showed a higher HP + %. Length of education was inversely associated with the positivity; the odds ratio (OR) relative to those with eight years or less of schooling was 0.61 (0.42 - 0.89) for those with 12 years or more. The associations with smoking and alcohol drinking were not significant. Fruit intake was associated with the HP + %; the OR relative to everyday intake was 1.38 (1.05 - 1.83) for less frequent intake, while intake frequencies of green tea, miso soup, and pickled vegetables (tsukemono) were not. Multivariate analysis including sex, 10-year age group, residence, education, and fruit intake showed that all factors except sex were significant. This is the largest study of HP infection among Japanese Brazilians, and the results indicated a similar pattern of age-specific infection rate to that for Japanese in Japan.

Galactosaminoglycans from normal myometrium and leiomyoma

In many tumors, the amount of chondroitin sulfate in the extracellular matrix has been shown to be elevated when compared to the corresponding normal tissue. Nevertheless, the degree of chondroitin sulfate increase varies widely. In order to investigate a possible correlation between the amount of chondroitin sulfate and tumor size, several individual specimens of human leiomyoma, a benign uterine tumor, were analyzed. The glycosaminoglycans from eight tumors were extracted and compared with those from the respective adjacent normal myometrium. The main glycosaminoglycan found in normal myometrium was dermatan sulfate, with small amounts of chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate. In leiomyoma, both dermatan sulfate and chondroitin sulfate were detected and the total amounts of the two galactosaminoglycans was increased in all tumors when compared to normal tissue. In contrast, the heparan sulfate concentration decreased in the tumor. To assess the disaccharide composition of galactosaminoglycans, these compounds were incubated with bacterial chondroitinases AC and ABC. The amounts of L-iduronic acid-containing disaccharides remained constant, whereas the concentration of D-glucuronic acid-containing disaccharides increased from 2 to 10 times in the tumor, indicating that D-glucuronic acid-containing disaccharides are responsible for the elevation in galactosaminoglycan concentration. This increase is positively correlated with tumor size

Galactosaminoglycans from normal myometrium and leiomyoma.

In many tumors, the amount of chondroitin sulfate in the extracellular matrix has been shown to be elevated when compared to the corresponding normal tissue. Nevertheless, the degree of chondroitin sulfate increase varies widely. In order to investigate a possible correlation between the amount of chondroitin sulfate and tumor size, several individual specimens of human leiomyoma, a benign uterine tumor, were analyzed. The glycosaminoglycans from eight tumors were extracted and compared with those from the respective adjacent normal myometrium. The main glycosaminoglycan found in normal myometrium was dermatan sulfate, with small amounts of chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate. In leiomyoma, both dermatan sulfate and chondroitin sulfate were detected and the total amounts of the two galactosaminoglycans was increased in all tumors when compared to normal tissue. In contrast, the heparan sulfate concentration decreased in the tumor. To assess the disaccharide composition of galactosaminoglycans, these compounds were incubated with bacterial chondroitinases AC and ABC. The amounts of L-iduronic acid-containing disaccharides remained constant, whereas the concentration of D-glucuronic acid-containing disaccharides increased from 2 to 10 times in the tumor, indicating that D-glucuronic acid-containing disaccharides are responsible for the elevation in galactosaminoglycan concentration. This increase is positively correlated with tumor size.

Genomic structure of human alpha-pix, and variable deletions in a poly (T) tract in gastric cancer tissue.

PAK-interacting exchange factor (PIX) has been reported to mediate the recruitment of PAK into focal adhesions and activate Rac, thus creating a feedback loop that stimulate PAK and other targets. This pathway is thought to be related to cellular changes, such as transformation and migration, that are often encountered in cancer cells. Here, we report the genomic structure of alpha-PIX, one of the PAK- interacting exchange factors, including the identification of the promoter region, which consisted 772 amino acids in 22 exons, spanning about 100 kb on genome of X chromosome. All splice sites conformed to the GT-AT rule. To investigate the role of alpha-PIX in carcinogenesis, we screened 60 cases of gastric cancer for mutations and polymorphisms using an intron-primer that covered all the exons, but no mutations or polymorphisms were found in the coding region. However an 18 bp repeat of thymidine tract was present in 50 bp downstream from exon 12 and the deletion of variable numbers of mononucleotide repeats was observed in seven out of the 60 gastric cancer tissue specimens that were examined. These seven cases all exhibited a mutator phenotype, suggesting that the deletions are passenger mutations. Thus our results revealed that alpha-PIX probably does not play any primary role in human gastric carcinogenesis.

Genomic structure and loss of heterozygosity of EPHB2 in colorectal cancer.

EphB2, a member of the Eph receptor protein-tyrosine kinase family, is overexpressed in several human gastrointestinal tumors. Furthermore, the EphB2 gene is localized at 1p35-p36.1, a frequently deleted region in colon and other cancers. So, despite its overexpression in some kind of tumors, we decided to study the possibility of involvement in the EphB2 gene (EPHB2) mutation in colon cancers, because some of the well known tumor suppressor genes (e.g. p53) is overexpressed (really accumulated) in tumors. Fifty colon tumor samples of matched with their respective normal tissues, were studied for mutation of the EPHB2. Analysis of the genomic structure of EphB2 and survey of all 16 exons revealed an infrequent polymorphism (intron 2) and mutation (intron 8). Another polymorphism in exon 6, localized at nucleotide 1359 (A-->G) was found to be rather frequent in Japanese and Chinese subjects, but very rare in Caucasians. Taking advantage of this polymorphism within EPHB2, we surveyed the loss of heterozygosity (LOH) status of this gene in Japanese colorectal tumors. Among the 50 samples analyzed, 24 were informative, and LOH was found in five of the15 (33.3%) informative rectal cancer cases. Mutation analysis covering all 16 exons in the remaining allele did not reveal any mutations. Thus, EPHB2 is not a classical tumor suppressor gene.

Distribution and composition of glycosaminoglycans in the left human coronary arterial branches under myocardial bridge.

The distribution and composition of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are reported in the anterior interventricular branch under the intermyocardial bridge (MB) and the ventricular branch without bridge, both from the left human coronary artery. Chondroitin sulfate (CS), dermatan sulfate (DS) and heparan sulfate (HS) were purified and quantified by a combination of electrophoretic migration and enzymatic degradation. The absolute amounts of GAGs in the intermyocardial bridge segment (MB) increased by 47%, when compared to the pre (PreMB) and post (PostMB) segments and the ventricular arterial branch (VB). Furthermore, the relative distribution of GAGs in the intermyocardial bridge segment differs when compared to the pre and post segments as well as in the ventricular arterial branch, due to a change in the proportion of DS and CS of 41.9 and 32.4%, compared to 36.4 and 39.7%, respectively. These findings give support to the possible involvement of GAGs in the intermyocardial bridge segment, avoiding local thrombus deposition, reducing atherosclerotic development and moreover giving protection against vessel deformation caused by the systolic pressure.