Kyushu University

About: Kyushu University is a education organization based out in Fukuoka, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Catalysis. The organization has 68284 authors who have published 135190 publications receiving 3055928 citations. The organization is also known as: Kyūshū Daigaku.

Bile Leakage After Hepatic Resection

Abstract: Because of recent advances in liver surgery, hepatic resections are being performed with increasing frequency, and the surgical death rate for such resections is decreasing. 1–7 Bile leakage, of course, is the primary complication occurring after liver surgery, and it can not only debase the quality of the postoperative course of patients, but also can lead to hospital death. Despite a significant decrease in the overall surgical complication rate in hepatic resections, the rate of bile leakage has not changed, with an incidence of 4.8% to 7.6% reported in recent large series. 2–8 The presence of bile, blood, and devitalized tissues in the dead space after hepatectomy may provide the ideal environment for bacterial growth and impair the normal host defense mechanisms. 9, 10 The combination of sudden reduction in the liver volume and development of an intraperitoneal septic complication after hepatectomy (IPSCH) frequently results in liver failure, leading to a grave prognosis. 11 The aims of this study were, therefore, to clarify the perioperative risk factors for postoperative bile leakage after hepatic resection, to evaluate the intraoperative bile leakage test as a preventive measure, and to propose a treatment strategy for postoperative bile leakage according to the outcome of these patients.

Five-year survival analysis of surgically resected gastric cancer cases in Japan: a retrospective analysis of more than 100,000 patients from the nationwide registry of the Japanese Gastric Cancer Association (2001–2007)

Abstract: The aim of this retrospective study was to investigate the tumor characteristics, surgical details, and survival distribution of surgically resected cases of gastric cancer from the nationwide registry of the Japanese Gastric Cancer Association. Data from 118,367 patients with primary gastric carcinoma who underwent resection between 2001 and 2007 were included in the survival analyses. The 5-year survival rates were calculated for various subsets of prognostic factors. The median age of the patients was 67 years. The proportions of patients with pathological stage (Japanese Gastric Cancer Association) IA, IB, II, IIIA, IIIB, and IV disease were 44.0%, 14.7%, 11.7%, 9.5%, 5.0%, and 12.4% respectively. The death rate within 30 days of operation was 0.5%. The 5-year overall survival rate in the 118,367 patients who were treated by resection was 71.1%. The 5-year overall survival rates of patients with pathological stage IA, IB, II, IIIA, IIIB, and IV disease were 91.5%, 83.6%, 70.6%, 53.6%, 34.8%, and 16.4% respectively. The 5-year disease-specific survival rates in the patients with pT1 (mucosa) disease after D1+ dissection of lymph node station no. 7 (D1 + α), D1+ dissection of lymph node station nos. 7, 8, and 9 (D1+ β), and D2 lymphadenectomy were 99.4%, 99.6%, and 99.1% respectively. The 5-year disease-specific survival rates in the patients with pT1 (submucosa) disease after D1 + α, D1 + β, and D2 lymphadenectomy were 97.3%, 98.1%, and 96.9% respectively. Detailed analyses of the data from more than 100,000 patients show the recent trends of the outcomes of gastric cancer treatment in Japan and provide baseline information for use by medical communities around world.

Two P-Type ATPases Are Required for Copper Delivery in Arabidopsis thaliana Chloroplasts

Abstract: Copper delivery to the thylakoid lumen protein plastocyanin and the stromal enzyme Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase in chloroplasts is required for photosynthesis and oxidative stress protection. The copper delivery system in chloroplasts was characterized by analyzing the function of copper transporter genes in Arabidopsis thaliana. Two mutant alleles were identified of a previously uncharacterized gene, PAA2 (for P-type ATPase of Arabidopsis), which is required for efficient photosynthetic electron transport. PAA2 encodes a copper-transporting P-type ATPase with sequence similarity to PAA1, which functions in copper transport in chloroplasts. Both proteins localized to the chloroplast, as indicated by fusions to green fluorescent protein. The PAA1 fusions were found in the chloroplast periphery, whereas PAA2 fusions were localized in thylakoid membranes. The phenotypes of paa1 and paa2 mutants indicated that the two transporters have distinct functions: whereas both transporters are required for copper delivery to plastocyanin, copper delivery to the stroma is inhibited only in paa1 but not in paa2. The effects of paa1 and paa2 on superoxide dismutase isoform expression levels suggest that stromal copper levels regulate expression of the nuclear genes IRON SUPEROXIDE DISMUTASE1 and COPPER/ZINC SUPEROXIDE DISMUTASE2. A paa1 paa2 double mutant was seedling-lethal, underscoring the importance of copper to photosynthesis. We propose that PAA1 and PAA2 function sequentially in copper transport over the envelope and thylakoid membrane, respectively.