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We report two cases of taeniasis caused by tapeworm infection. The first was a Japanese female, 23 years old, who had a history of eating raw meat during a visit to Thailand. She was referred to our hospital with a history of passing proglottids in feces. Taenia saginata or T. asiatica was suspected based on the proglottid morphologic features in addition to supportive information regarding her travel and dietary history. The patient was given praziquantel and the tapeworm was excreted. The second was a 35-year-old Thai male who had lived in Japan since 2000 and not left the country since that time. He had consumed beef cooked in the so-called yakiniku style and also sometimes raw, because of nostalgia for that Thai custom. The patient passed proglottids several times and then came to us. The proglottids were compatible with those of T. saginata. Praziquantel was prescribed and the tapeworm was excreted. In both cases, mitochondrial DNA analysis identified the worm species as T. saginata. Since morphological discrimination of three human-infecting Taenia species, T. saginata, T. solium, and T. asiatica, is not always possible, it is necessary to employ DNA analysis for diagnosis of taeniasis to confirm the worm species.

Background. Air leakage is a common postoperative complication in pulmonary surgery, and surgical sealants have been developed to prevent or reduce the incidence of air leaks. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of cross-linked gelatin glue (gelatin plus glutaraldehyde) in canine lung surgery models. Methods. Pulmonary fistulas and injuries were created in dogs and sealed with gelatin glue, fibrin glue, or fibrin glue with a polyglycolic acid (PGA) sheet. Seal-breaking pressures were measured in the fistula model, and pleural adhesions were assessed 28 days postoperatively in the lung injury model. Results. The seal-breaking pressures for canine cadaver and living lung surgeries (; the maximum pressures were 80 and 40 cm H₂O) were respectively: gelatin glue, 77 ± 6 and 32.3 ± 8.9cm H₂O; fibrin glue using spray, 39.2 ± 9.3 and 32 ± 6cm H₂O; fibrin glue using the rub-and-soak method, 35 ± 13.4 and 40 ± 0 cm H₂O; and fibrin glue with a PGA sheet, 55.5 ± 18.2 and 39 ± 2cm H₂O. In the lung injury model, there were no chest wall adhesions in the gelatin and fibrin glue alone groups, while strong adhesions were observed when treated with fibrin glue with a PGA sheet. Conclusions. Gelatin glue's sealing effect was superior to that of fibrin glue while preventing postoperative pleural adhesions. These findings suggest that gelatin glue may be effective as a surgical sealant or anti-adhesion materialin lung surgery.

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a highly aggressive brain tumor for which novel therapeutic approaches, such as immunotherapy, are urgently needed. Zoledronate (ZOL), an inhibitor of osteoclastic activity, is known to stimulate peripheral blood-derived γδT cells and sensitize tumors to γδT cell-mediated killing. To investigate the feasibility of γδT cell-based immunotherapy for patients with GBM, we focused on the killing of GBM cell lines by γδT cells and the molecular mechanisms involved in these cell–cell interactions. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were expanded in ZOL and interleukin (IL)-2 for 14 days, and γδT cells were enriched in the expanded cells by the immunomagnetic depletion of αβT cells. Gliomas are resistant to NK cells but susceptible to lymphokine-activated killer cells and some cytotoxic T lymphocytes. When the γδT cell-mediated killing of three GBM cell lines (U87MG, U138MG and A172 cells) and an NK-sensitive leukemia cell line (K562 cells) were tested, 32 % U87MG, 15 % U138MG, 1 % A172, and 50 % K562 cells were killed at an effector:target ratio of 5:1. The γδT cell-mediated killing of all three GBM cell lines was significantly enhanced by ZOL and this ZOL-enhanced killing was blocked by an anti-T cell receptor (TcR) antibody. These results indicated that TcR γδ is crucial for the recognition of ZOL-treated GBM cells by γδT cells. Since the low level killing of GBM cells by the γδT cells was enhanced by ZOL, γδT cell-targeting therapy in combination with ZOL treatment could be effective for patients with GBM., 博士（医学）・甲第635号・平成27年5月28日, © Springer Verlag. The definitive version is available at " http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11060-013-1258-4 "

We report a case of acute hepatitis A that developed following an occurrence of dengue fever during a stay in India. The patient was a 52-year-old Japanese man who visited Delhi, India, from September 29 to October 20, 2010. During that stay, he developed a high fever and rash, with thrombocytopenia and slight liver dysfunction (platelet count 7.0×10＾4/μl, AST 94 IU/ml, ALT 63 IU/ml), then was diagnosed with dengue fever on October 14. Soon after returning to Japan, the patient was well, with anti-HA IgM, hepatitis B surface antigen, and anti-hepatitis C all negative, though liver dysfunction transiently worsened. The DENV genome-sequence was not amplified, while IgM and IgG antibodies were detected. In mid-December 2010, one month after returning from India, he noted fatigue and appetite loss. When the patient came to us on January 12, 2011, jaundice was apparent. A laboratory examination revealed highly elevated aminotransferase levels (AST 4002 IU/ml ALT 4715 IU/ml) and positivity for anti-HA IgM, and we made a diagnosis of acute hepatitis A. The clinical course of acute hepatitis A showed smooth improvement without adverse symptoms. By the end of March 2012, the total bilirubin and aminotrasferase levels were completely normalized. We recommend that non-immune individuals be pre-immunized with HA-vaccine and be fully aware of potential health risks at their intended destinations before traveling to endemic countries.

Carnitine is essential for lipid metabolism in cells and is known to possess antioxidant properties. Previous reports have suggested that antioxidants are able to induce senescence in glioblastoma cells, consequently, in the present study, we investigated the effect of carnitine on glioblastoma cells. Under conditions of hyponutrition (undernutrition), the proliferation of glioblastoma cells was attenuated and the level of intracellular carnitine was increased. Glioblastoma cell proliferation was also attenuated in cultures that were supplemented with exogenous carnitine, where the induction of senescence was detected by senescence-associated β-gal (SA-β-gal) staining. However, there was no evidence of the induction of apoptosis. These effects were not detected when cells were cultured with carnitine plus an inhibitor of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). It, therefore, appears that carnitine has antioxidant actions in normal cells but induces senescence, which may be regarded as an opposite phenomenon, in glioblastoma cells. Senescence has been reported in cells exposed to temozolomide, which is a standard drug used for the treatment of glioblastoma. Carnitine could, therefore, represent an attractive alternative therapy for glioblastoma., 博士（医学）・乙第1302号・平成24年11月27日, Copyright © Spandidos Publications 2012

We report five cases of ascariasis encountered from 1991 to 2000. Case 1 was a 2-year-old boy with 13 worms found in the gastrointestinal tract; Case 2 was a 49- year-old man who had one worm in the gall bladder and 12 in the gastrointestinal tract; Case 3 was a 50-year-old man from whom a worm was successfully removed using a gastrointestinal fiberscope; Case 4 was a 77-year-old man who spontaneously passed a worm; and Case 5 was a 50-year-old man who vomited a worm. Cases 3, 4, and 5 were infected with only a single worm of Ascaris lumbricoides. Although ascariasis is now considered to be a very rare disease in Japan, it is still occasionally encountered. In the process of ascariasis diagnosis, a means other than the detection of eggs in feces may be required, because patients bearing only a single worm are not always positive for ascaris eggs in feces.