Pregnancy after neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by abdominal radical trachelectomy in stage IB2 cervical cancer: A case report.

► Huge cervical cancer was treated by intra-arterial chemotherapy followed by radical trachelectomy. ► The patient conceived after abdominal radical trachelectomy and had a baby by Cesarean section.

Photoisomerization of 2-[3-(2-thioxopyrrolidin-3-ylidene)methyl]-tryptophan, a yellow pigment in salted radish roots.

The photostability of (E)-2-[3-(2-thioxopyrrolidin-3-ylidene)methyl]-tryptophan ((E)-TPMT), the main yellow pigment in salted radish, was studied. First we analyzed the photoproduct generated from (E)-TPMT under longwave UV irradiation. On the basis of NMR spectroscopy, the photoproduct was identified as Z-configurated TPMT, and isomerization from the Z- to the E-form was reversibly induced by Vis-light irradiation. The optimum wavelength for isomerization from the E- to the Z-form was 360-380 nm, and that for isomerization from the Z- to the E-form was 440-460 nm. The E/Z-ratios in the photostationary state under UV- and Vis-light irradiation conditions were approximately 0.95:1 and 26:1 respectively. The (Z)-isomer was more sensitive to light irradiation than the (E)-isomer in the quantum yield measurement. Yellowing was dependent on the ratio of the (Z)-isomer, because the b(*) and chroma value rose with increases in the (Z)-isomer by the colorimeters. Hence, it is possible that the formation of the (Z)-isomer contribute to the yellow color of takuan-zuke during long salting and fermentation.

Characteristics of Streptococcus suis isolated from patients in Japan.

Seven cases of Streptococcus suis infection in Japan during 1994 and 2006 were summarized. All cases had porcine exposure and five of them had hand skin injury during the exposure. Five cases presented symptoms of meningitis, three presented symptoms of sepsis, and one resulted in sudden death. All of the isolated S. suis belonged to Lancefield's group D and to serotype 2. They were susceptible to penicillin G, ampicillin, cefotaxime, and ciprofloxacin. However, six of them were resistant to both erythromycin and clindamycin, and four were also resistant to minocycline. Multilocus sequence typing of six isolates showed that they belonged to sequence type (ST) 1, and their pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns were similar. The remaining isolate was ST28 and its PFGE pattern was distinct from those of the others.

Laboratory-confirmed Mediterranean spotted fever in a Japanese traveler to Kenya.

A Japanese traveler returning from Kenya became ill, presenting with fever and a prominent, generalized rash without an eschar. Results of the immunofluorescence antibody assay of the patient's sera performed in Japan were compatible with illness due to a spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsia, and a presumptive diagnosis of African SFG rickettsiosis, probably either Mediterranean spotted fever (MSF) or African tick-bite fever (ATBF), was rendered. To further define the disease diagnosis, sera were examined in France by Western immunoblotting combined with cross-adsorption, which confirmed the diagnosis of MSF but not of ATBF. Because of the need to further characterize the epidemiologic and clinical features of the two African SFG rickettsioses, clinicians are encouraged to contact a specialized laboratory when encountering such cases.

Cerebral infarctions and brain abscess due to Lemierre syndrome.

Lemierre syndrome is characterized by anaerobic bacterial infection in the head and neck, causing thrombophlebitis of the jugular vein and septic metastasis to various distant organs, most often the lungs. Here we describe previously unreported clinical features of cerebral infarctions and brain abscess due to metastatic septic embolism of this uncommon but lethal syndrome, and the successful course of treatment with ampicillin, cefotaxime and metronidazole.