Excess of cancer in patients receiving renal transplantation is well-known in Western countries, but information in Japan remains limited. Our study examined whether excess risk is found in patients receiving renal transplantation in Japan. Between 1970 and 1995, 1155 males and 589 females underwent renal transplantation in 6 hospitals, and a total of 12,982 person-years of observation was accumulated. Malignancies developed in 2.6% of patients; O/E ratio was 2.78. Median interval from renal transplantation to tumor development was 58 months. The interval in the patients receiving medication with cyclosporine-A (CyA) (median, 42.5 months) was significantly shorter than that with non-CyA (median, 95.5 months). Median age at the diagnosis of malignancy was 40 years, which is much younger than that in the general population. Relative risk was highest in renal cancer, followed by thyroid cancer, malignant lymphoma and uterine cancer. A distribution of malignancies was different from that reported from Western countries. These findings showed the excess risk of malignancies in Japan with renal transplants, especially in male patients, similar to that observed in Western countries, though the types of malignancy were different.
Chalcones are the starting materials for the biosynthesis of flavonoids. Flavonoids are strong antioxidants, which contain many phenolic hydroxyl group(s). However, the antioxidant activities of chalcones have been little studied. In this study, chalcones with chemical structures resembling natural chalcones were synthesized, and the effects of the hydroxyl group(s) on the A and B rings and the C3 chain connecting the A and B rings were investigated in detail. Hydroxyl group(s) on the B ring inherited the characteristics of p-coumaric acid as a precursor of chalcone, if the groups were located on 2-and/or 4-positions to the C3 chain, and showed strong antioxidant activities. The 2'-hydroxy group of the A ring cooperated with the carbonyl group on the 1'-position to provide ultraviolet rays absorbing (photo-antioxidant) activity. The carbon _ carbon double bond in the C3 chain, connecting the A ring with the B ring in a conjugated system, enhanced both antioxidant and photo-antioxidant activities. The obtained information was used in the molecular design of new polymer additives.
Atrophic kidney at the end-stage of renal failure and under dialysis have lesions of ACDK that might predispose to RCC in dialysis and transplant patients.
An essential process for resolution of viral infections is the efficient recognition and elimination of intracellular virus. Recognition of viral antigens in the form of short peptides associated with HLA class I molecule is a major task of CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes. In this study, we have evaluated the frequency of the HLA class I alleles in patients with chronic hepatitis C. HLA-B51, -B52, -B55, -B56, -B61, B70, -Cw1, -Cw3, and -Cw4 are less frequent in patients with chronic hepatitis C than in Japanese individuals. The frequency of HLA-A2 is slightly lower in the patients but tends to be higher in patients with normal alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level than in those with elevated ALT level (p = 0.07). Other HLA alleles are not significantly different between two groups. Comparison of HLA homozygosity at HLA-A and -B or -C or at two or three loci did not show a significant association with levels of serum ALT or with the clinical outcome of interferon therapy in patients with hepatitis C. These results suggest a possibility that the alterations of host response, which depends on genetic background, influence disease activities of HCV infection.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.