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The lack of published information about the minor salivary glands is due in part to the difficulties experienced in collecting and quantifying their secretions. In fact, no method exists for measuring their secretions that is both simple and accurate. This investigation examined the accuracy of our newly developed method (which simply employs the iodine–starch reaction) in 10 healthy non-medicated adults. A strip painted with a solution of iodine in absolute alcohol then with a fine starch powder mixed with castor oil was placed at a designated location on the lower-lip mucosa for 2 min to collect saliva. Black-stained spots of various sizes corresponding to the individual glands could be accurately visualized. After removal of the strip, the total stained area (mm2) was calculated by digitizing the spot areas using a computer system. The correlation coefficient (r) between known volumes of saliva and stain size was 0.995, indicating a close correlation. The correlation coefficient (r) between area values obtained in the first trial in each subject (Y) and the second (X; 10 min later) was 0.963, and the simple regression equation was close to Y=X, indicating good reproducibility. The mean flow rate (μl/cm2 per min) obtained by converting mean total area to volume and thence to flow rate was 0.49±0.26, in good agreement with published values obtained by others. These results suggest that our newly developed method allows both the distribution and secretion rate of the minor salivary glands to be observed, and that it should be of practical value due to its simplicity, accuracy, and reproducibility. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

It has been shown earlier that electrical stimulation of the distal cut end of the inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) in the cat evokes three different patterns of pulpal blood-flow (PBF) response in the ipsilateral mandibular canine tooth (a decrease, a biphasic response, or an increase). The response to a given stimulus sometimes changed to another pattern even in one and the same experimental animal during the course of the experiment. It is known that the evoked decrease is due to activation of the sympathetics and that the increase is due to antidromic activation of sensory fibres; but, it is unknown why the response varies so much. It is hypothesised that the baseline blood-flow (BBF) modulates vasomotor responses in the dental pulp. To test this hypothesis, the effects of BBF on PBF responses elicited by the IAN stimulation mentioned above were investigated. Dynamic changes in PBF in cat mandibular canine teeth were elicited by electrical stimulation of the distal cut end of the IAN, at various BBF, with blood-flow monitored by laser Doppler flowmetry. The amplitude of the PBF vasodilator response increased as BBF was adjusted downwards (by cooling the tooth). In contrast, the amplitude of the PBF vasoconstrictor response increased as the BBF rose. Vasodilator responses could be transformed into vasoconstrictor responses, and vice versa, by alterations in the BBF. No systemic blood-pressure changes were elicited throughout the experiment. These results indicate that a consideration of baseline vascular tone is important, whenever the size of PBF responses to various stimuli is discussed or calculated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Using laser-Doppler flowmetry we investigated whether reflex vasodilator responses would be evoked by the painful stimulation of the trigeminal region in human gingiva. GBF increases were elicited by the painful electrical stimulation to the tooth-pulp or gingiva, in addition to application by capsaicin onto the tongue, without an increase in systemic blood pressure. Thus, the pain of various oral tissues would cause the reflex vasodilatation in human gingiva. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Ohba M, Shibazaki M, Sasano T, Inoue M, Takada H, Endo Y. Platelet responses and anaphylaxis-like shock induced in mice by intravenous injection of whole cells of oral streptococci. Oral Microbiol Immunol 2004: 19: 26–30.© Blackwell Munksgaard, 2004. Intravenous injection of lyophilized whole cells of various oral streptococcal strains into muramyldipeptide (MDP)-primed C3H/HeN mice induces rapid anaphylactoid shock. Here we examined the mechanism underlying this shock. In non-primed mice, Streptococcus intermedius K-213K (SiK213) and Streptococcus constellatus T21 (ScT21) produced little or no sign of shock. In MDP-primed mice, SiK213 caused lethal shock, while ScT21 only had a weak effect. SiK213 induced decreases in blood platelets and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5HT) preceding the shock, while the effects of ScT21 were weak. The SiK213-induced 5HT decrease and shock were reduced by a complement-C5 inhibitor. These results suggest that (i) streptococcal bacterial cells can induce rapid platelet responses, (ii) complement-dependent degradation of platelets may be involved in streptococcus-induced shock, (iii) the streptococcus-induced platelet degradation or degranulation may occur largely in the systemic circulation, and (iv) platelets may play a role not only in infectious diseases caused by gram-negative bacteria, but also in diseases caused by gram-positive bacteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic impact of a preoperative leukocyte alteration in patients with surgically-treated early-stage cervical cancer. Materials and Methods: The baseline characteristics and outcome data of early-stage cervical cancer patients who were treated with radical hysterectomy between 1996 and 2011 were collected and retrospectively reviewed. The patients were separated into three risk groups (low-risk, intermediate-risk, and high-risk) according to the pathological risk factors exhibited by their tumors. A Cox proportional hazards regression model was used to investigate the prognostic significance of a preoperative leukocytosis (≥ 10,000 µ/l). Results: A preoperative leukocytosis was observed in 0.9%, 6.6%, and 8.6% of the patients in the low-risk, intermediate-risk, and high-risk groups, respectively. In multivariate analysis, a preoperative leukocytosis was found to be an independent prognostic factor in intermediate-risk or high-risk groups. Conclusion: The preoperative leukocytosis is an independent predicator of shorter progression-free survival (PFS) in surgically-treated early-stage cervical cancer patients, especially those with intermediate-risk or high-risk factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose of investigation. To investigate the prognosis of high-risk early-stage cervical cancer patients who did not receive postoperative concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT). Materials and Methods. The characteristics and outcomes of high-risk early-stage cervical cancer patients who did not receive postoperative CCRT were collected. They were separated into two groups according to the type of adjuvant treatment: no further therapy (NFT group) or chemotherapy (chemotherapy group), and the clinico-pathological characteristics, recurrence rate, progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were investigated. Results.A total of 23 patients were included. After a median follow-up period of 115 months, 19 had developed recurrent disease, and 17 had died of disease progression. The median PFS and OS of all patients were ten and 29 months, respectively. The recurrence rate of the NFT group (n=10) was similar to that of the chemotherapy group (n=13) (80% vs. 85%, p > 0.05). Although the PFS and OS of the chemotherapy group were slightly longer than those of the NFT group, the differences were not statistically significant (PFS, 10 vs. 36 months, p > 0.05; OS, 28 vs. 59 months p > 0.05). Conclusion. High-risk early-stage cervical cancer patients who did not receive postoperative CCRT have dismal prognosis irrespective of the type of adjuvant treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Radiotherapy using energetic carbon beams from the Heavy Ion Medical Accelerator in Chiba (HIMAC) has been carried out at the National Institutes of Quantum Science and Technology (QST) since June 1994. Based on positive clinical results, carbon-ion radiotherapy was authorized as an Advanced Medical Technology by Japanese government from 2003 and it was subsequently approved for inclusion in the Japanese National Health Insurance system from 2016. For the widespread use of carbon-ion radiotherapy, design studies as well as related research and development projects were conducted to develop a compact accelerator facility from 2004. Based on these studies, five compact facilities were constructed in Japan. However, since the accelerators are large in size, construction of these facilities is currently limited to university hospitals or large medical centers, and hence development of a more compact accelerator is desired. To further promote widespread proliferation of heavy-ion facilities and concurrently to maximize the potential of heavy-ion therapy, a project to develop a compact superconducting accelerator, the Quantum Scalpel project, was proposed. The compact accelerator employs superconducting technology to reduce the footprint of the entire accelerator system and the accelerator can provide various therapeutic beams of helium, carbon, oxygen, and neon ions having the energy of 56-430 MeV/ u to advanced heavy-ion therapy. In this article, we report the design of the compact superconducting accelerator for the advanced heavy-ion therapy and describe the progress of related research and development projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective We analyzed the diagnostic performance of the MR imaging findings of the parotid, submandibular, and sublingual glands to discriminate between patients with and without Sjögren's syndrome. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the correlation between the MR imaging and histopathological findings obtained from 69 patients with clinically suspected Sjögren's syndrome. We evaluated the heterogeneous signal intensity distribution on T1- and T2-weighted images, the multiple high-signal-intensity spots on MR sialograms, and the volume of the parotid, submandibular, and sublingual salivary glands. Results The multiple high-signal-intensity spots in the parotid gland showed the highest sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy (82% and 83%, respectively). In addition, the multiple high-signal-intensity spots and the heterogeneous signal intensity distribution in the submandibular gland showed high specificity (100% and 88%, respectively). The volume of the submandibular gland, but not that of the parotid or sublingual gland, was smaller in patients with Sjögren's syndrome. Conclusions The presence of multiple high-signal-intensity spots on an MR sialogram in the parotid gland should be considered the best diagnostic indicator for Sjögren's syndrome. The presence of spots, heterogeneity, and the change to smaller volumes in the submandibular gland were also helpful because of their high specificity, particularly in advanced cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Expression of taste-related genes in the tongue was analysed to develop a technique for genetic diagnosis of umami taste disorders. Materials and methods Tissue samples were collected from healthy volunteers by scraping the foliate papillae of the tongue. Immunocytochemistry staining of gustducin, a taste-cell-specific G protein, and gene expression analysis by real-time polymerase chain reaction of β-actin, gustducin ( GNAT3) and umami receptors ( T1R1, T1R3 and mGluR1) were performed. Changes in umami receptor expression following application of umami substances onto the tongue were analysed. Results Gustducin-positive cells were observed in the samples, indicating the presence of taste cells. Gene expression of β-actin, GNAT3, T1R1 and T1R3 was detected in all seven samples tested, while that of mGluR1 was detected in four samples. Sequence analysis by NCBI Blast showed that each polymerase chain reaction product had a 99% rate of identification of its target sequence. Stimulation of the tongue with monosodium glutamate significantly upregulated the gene expression levels of T1R1 and T1R3, indicating that this method can detect alterations in umami-related gene expression. Conclusion Evaluation of the expression of the umami receptor genes, T1R1 and T1R3, in the tongue may be clinically useful for objective genetic diagnosis of umami taste disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a desire that a carbon-ion radiotherapy facility will produce various ion species for fundamental research. Although the present Kei2-type ion sources are dedicated for the carbon-ion production, a future ion source is expected that could provide: (1) carbon-ion production for medical use, (2) various ions with a charge-to-mass ratio of 1/3 for the existing Linac injector, and (3) low cost for modification. A prototype compact electron cyclotron resonance (ECR) ion source, named Kei3, based on the Kei series has been developed to correspond to the Kei2 type and to produce these various ions at the National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS). The Kei3 has an outer diameter of 280 mm and a length of 1120 mm. The magnetic field is formed by the same permanent magnet as Kei2. The movable extraction electrode has been installed in order to optimize the beam extraction with various current densities. The gas-injection side of the vacuum chamber has enough space for an oven system. We measured dependence of microwave frequency, extraction voltage, and puller position. Charge state distributions of helium, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and neon were also measured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report here a case of masticatory disturbance evoked by trigeminal schwannoma, in which we have evaluated the changes in occlusal force and masticatory sensation before and after treatment for the tumour. The patient was a 43-year-old woman and her chief complaint was a loss of masticatory sensation on her left side. MR imaging revealed an enhanced tumour in the left cavernous sinus/Meckel's cave. The left masseter muscle function and occlusal force showed remarkable decreases before treatment; however, the sensory thresholds of her facial skin and dental pulp were not significantly different from the control side, indicating that her loss of masticatory sensation was not due to sensory disturbance but to occlusal force weakness. Gamma-knife radiosurgery resulted in a significant improvement in masticatory sensation following an increase in occlusal force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGRPs), a novel family of pattern recognition molecules (PRMs) in innate immunity conserved from insects to mammals, recognize bacterial cell wall peptidoglycan (PGN) and are suggested to act as anti-bacterial factors. In humans, four kinds of PGRPs (PGRP-L, -Iα, -Iβ and -S) have been cloned and all four human PGRPs bind PGN. In this study, we examined the possible regulation of the expression of PGRPs in oral epithelial cells upon stimulation with chemically synthesized pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) in bacterial cell surface components:Escherichia coli-type tryacyl lipopeptide (Pam3CSSNA),E. coli-type lipid A (LA-15-PP), diaminopimelic acid containing desmuramyl peptide (γ-d-glutamyl-meso-DAP; iE-DAP), and muramyldipeptide (MDP). These synthetic PAMPs markedly upregulated the mRNA expression of the four PGRPs and cell surface expression of PGRP-Iα and -Iβ, but did not induce either mRNA expression or secretion of inflammatory cytokines, in oral epithelial cells. Suppression of the expression of Toll-like receptor (TLR)2, TLR4, nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain (NOD)1 and NOD2 by RNA interference specifically inhibited the upregulation of PGRP mRNA expression induced by Pam3CSSNA, LA-15-PP, iE-DAP and MDP respectively. These PAMPs definitely activated nuclear factor (NF)-κB in the epithelial cells, and suppression of NF-κB activation clearly prevented the induction of PGRP mRNA expression induced by these PAMPs in the cells. These findings suggested that bacterial PAMPs induced the expression of PGRPs, but not proinflammatory cytokines, in oral epithelial cells, and the PGRPs might be involved in host defence against bacterial invasion without accompanying inflammatory responses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective Seizure duration has been reported to decrease across a course of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) (anticonvulsant effect). Because dynamic autonomic activity changes have been described during ECT, and are affected by seizure generalization, we examined the relationship between longitudinal autonomic nervous activity changes on a course of ECT and seizure duration. Methods Electroencephalograms (EEG) and electrocardiograms (ECG) of twelve depressive patients were recorded during ECT procedures. The mean heart rate (HR) in 30 s prior to stimulus onset was defined as baseline HR. The T Max peak was designated as the data point with the maximum HR after stimulus onset. T 1/2 points were determined as the time point when HR was reduced midway between baseline HR and T Max HR. The changes of EEG seizure duration, T Max , and T 1/2 throughout the course of ECT, and their correlations, were examined. Results T 1/2 significantly decreased with repetition of ECT. T 1/2 was positively correlated to EEG seizure duration. Conclusions The time to return to the baseline from sympathetic nervous activation caused by ECT stimulation is shortened during a course of ECT. Key message Sympathetic nervous activity suppression and an anticonvulsant effect may contribute to the clinical action of ECT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The activities of the histamine-forming enzyme, histidine decarboxylase (HDC), were measured in the dental pulp, gingiva, ear skin and liver in mice, following an intravenous injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). LPS induced a remarkable increase in the HDC activity in the dental pulp and the gingiva. These results suggest that the newly formed histamine produced by the induced HDC could be involved in formation of pulpitis or gingivitis (periodontits). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]