Student Learning: Process vs. Product

Traditionally, students learn in a teacher-centered classroom, where the focus is solely on the teacher as opposed to a student-centered classroom where students and teachers share the focus. Recently, the debate of teacher-centered versus student-centered has come to the forefront of education. Teachers are always looking for ways to engage students in the learning process and several studies designed around student-centered teaching have indicated that student engagement and achievement increases when students and teachers share the focus in the classroom. During my student teaching experience in a fifth-grade classroom, I observed that many students were not actively engaged in the learning process. Majority of my students completed tasks with minimal effort when asked to demonstrate a specific skill, especially in mathematics. I implemented student-centered lessons in hopes of increasing student engagement. With these lessons, it is expected that students demonstrate responsibility for their learning as they work with peers and teachers to actively engage in the learning process

Development of a handy oil-skimmer

金沢大学大学院自然科学研究科環境創成金沢大学工学部Recently marine-pollution by high-viscous oil leaked from wrecked ships has been becoming a remarkable problem in the world. Japan government is renewing old oil recovery vessels with new concept. The oil recovery vessels are available on the open sea, but unworkable in a narrow space. We have developed a handy oil recovery system which is portable and used for supplementing the weak point of the oil recovery vessel. The system consists of a water jet oil-skimmer and a gravity oil/water separator. The oil skimmer has a high-pressure water jet pump inside the suction mouth and a long shaft which is used as a conduit of the recovered fluid as well as a spring-hanging device which enables an operator to easily manipulate it from the deck of the ship. After 3-year research and experiments, we have completed the system successfully. The system will be soon installed on our oil recovery vessels. © 2004 IEEE

Acetylation of Myocardin Is Required for the Activation of Cardiac and Smooth Muscle Genes

Myocardin belongs to the SAF-A/B, Acinus, PIAS (SAP) domain family of transcription factors and is specifically expressed in cardiac and smooth muscle. Myocardin functions as a transcriptional coactivator of SRF and is sufficient and necessary for smooth muscle gene expression. We have previously found that myocardin induces the acetylation of nucleosomal histones surrounding SRF-binding sites in the control regions of cardiac and smooth muscle genes through recruiting chromatin-modifying enzyme p300, yet no studies have determined whether myocardin itself is similarly modified. In this study, we show that myocardin is a direct target for p300-mediated acetylation. p300 acetylates lysine residues at the N terminus of the myocardin protein. Interestingly, a direct interaction between p300 and myocardin, which is mediated by the C terminus of myocardin, is required for the acetylation event. Acetylation of myocardin by p300 enhances the association of myocardin and SRF as well as the formation of the myocardin-SRF-CArG box ternary complex. Conversely, acetylation of myocardin decreases the binding of histone deacetylase 5 (HDAC5) to myocardin. Acetylation of myocardin is required for myocardin to activate smooth muscle genes. Our study demonstrates that acetylation plays a key role in modulating myocardin function in controlling cardiac and smooth muscle gene expression

miR-155 Inhibits Expression of the MEF2A Protein to Repress Skeletal Muscle Differentiation

microRNAs (miRNAs) are 21–23-nucleotide non-coding RNAs. It has become more and more evident that this class of small RNAs plays critical roles in the regulation of gene expression at the post-transcriptional level. MEF2A is a member of the MEF2 (myogenic enhancer factor 2) family of transcription factors. Prior report showed that the 3′-untranslated region (3′-UTR) of the Mef2A gene mediated its repression; however, the molecular mechanism underlying this intriguing observation was unknown. Here, we report that MEF2A is repressed by miRNAs. We identify miR-155 as one of the primary miRNAs that significantly represses the expression of MEF2A. We show that knockdown of the Mef2A gene by siRNA impairs myoblast differentiation. Similarly, overexpression of miR-155 leads to the repression of endogenous MEF2A expression and the inhibition of myoblast differentiation. Most importantly, reintroduction of MEF2A in miR-155 overexpressed myoblasts was able to partially rescue the miR-155-induced myoblast differentiation defect. Our data therefore establish miR-155 as an important regulator of MEF2A expression and uncover its function in muscle gene expression and myogenic differentiation

Micropapillary Pattern at the Invasive Front and Its Association with Unresectable Colorectal Carcinomas

Unresectable colorectal carcinomas (CRCs) as considered incurable even if the primary tumors and the metastatic ones can undergo resection are correlated with poor prognosis. We evaluated the association between micropapillary pattern at the invasive front and unresectable CRCs. Thirty-four out of 264 (12.9%) CRC patients with stages III and IV were unresectable cases. The patients with unresectable CRCs had significantly worse survival than those with resectable CRCs (). Micropapillary pattern was evident in 12 (4.5%) out of 264 cases. This pattern was observed in 6 of 34 (17.6%) unresectable CRCs and in 6 of 230 (2.6%) resectable cases (). Unresectable CRCs revealed more frequently deeper invasion (odds ratio (OR), 1.175; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.113–1.241), lymph node metastasis (OR, 2.356; 95% CI, 1.132–4.905), and presence of micropapillary pattern at the invasive front (OR, 8.000; 95% CI, 2.415–26.504) as compared to resectable cases. By multivariable logistic regression analysis, only micropapillary pattern was shown to be an independent predictor of unresectable CRCs (OR, 9.451; 95% CI, 2.468–36.196; ). In conclusion, micropapillary pattern at the invasive front is associated with unresectable CRCs, and detection of it could help identify unresectable CRC cases.</jats:p

Inhibition of Colorectal Cancer Tumorigenesis by Ursolic Acid and Doxorubicin Is Mediated by Targeting the Akt Signaling Pathway and Activating the Hippo Signaling Pathway

Primary liver cancer is a heterogeneous disease in terms of its etiology, histology, and therapeutic response. Concurrent proteomic and genomic characterization of a large set of clinical liver cancer samples can help elucidate the molecular basis of heterogeneity and thus serve as a valuable resource for personalized liver cancer treatment. In this study, we perform proteomic profiling of ~300 proteins on 259 primary liver cancer tissues with reverse-phase protein arrays, mutational analysis using whole genome sequencing and transcriptional analysis with RNA-Seq. Patients are of Japanese ethnic background and mainly HBV or HCV positive, providing insight into this important liver cancer subtype. Unsupervised classification of tumors based on protein expression profiles reveal three proteomic subclasses R1, R2, and R3. The R1 subclass is immunologically hot and demonstrated a good prognosis. R2 contains advanced proliferative tumor with TP53 mutations, high expression of VEGF receptor 2 and the worst prognosis. R3 is enriched with CTNNB1 mutations and elevated mTOR signaling pathway activity. Twenty-two proteins, including CDK1 and CDKN2A, are identified as potential prognostic markers. The proteomic classification presented in this study can help guide therapeutic decision making for liver cancer treatment

Outcomes of Resected Cases of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma Patients With Unexpected Postoperative Uncovering Noncurative Factors: A Multicenter Retrospective Study

Aim We aimed to refine treatment strategies for resected cases of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma in patients with unexpectedly uncovered postoperative noncurative factors while also evaluating the effectiveness of neoadjuvant and adjuvant chemotherapy. Methods We retrospectively analyzed clinicopathological and follow-up data from 1068 PDAC patients who underwent surgical resection at 13 Kyushu Study Group institutions (January 2016–December 2020). Patients were categorized into two groups: without (Group A) or with (Group B) unexpected postoperative noncurative factors. Kaplan–Meier analysis assessed disease-free and overall survival, while univariate and multivariate analyses using the Cox proportional hazards model identified prognostic factors. Results Group B (n = 44) had poorer survival than Group A (n = 981) (16.8 vs. 38.6 months; p < 0.001). The noncurative factors were associated with poor disease-free survival (hazard ratio, 1.544; 95% confidence interval, 1.067–2.179; p = 0.022) but not overall survival (hazard ratio, 1.332; 95% confidence interval, 0.910–1.950; p = 0.140). In Group B, patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy had better disease-free survival (6.8 months vs. 3.4 months; p = 0.092), However, no significant difference was observed in overall survival. Furthermore, patients in Group B who received adjuvant chemotherapy had a worse prognosis compared to both Group A patients who received chemotherapy and those who did not. Preoperative therapy did not improve disease-free survival or overall survival in cases with postoperative noncurative factors. Conclusion Cases with noncurative factors had significantly poorer prognoses than those without. In the present study, effective adjuvant chemotherapy for these patients could not be demonstrated. Therefore, thorough preoperative and intraoperative evaluation of noncurative factors is crucial to prevent futile surgery

Prognostic significance of lymph node metastasis in pancreatic tail cancer: A multicenter retrospective study

Background: Distal pancreatectomy (DP) with lymph node (LN) dissection is the standard procedure for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma of the tail (Pt-PDAC). However, the optimal surgery including extent of LN dissection is still being debated. The present study investigated the incidence and prognostic impact of LN metastasis on patients suffering from Pt-PDAC. Patients and method: This multicenter, retrospective study involved 163 patients who underwent DP for resectable Pt-PDAC at 12 institutions between 2013 and 2017. The frequency of LN metastasis and the effect of LN dissection on Pt-PDAC prognosis were investigated. Results: There were high incidences of metastases to the LNs along the splenic artery in the patients with Pt-PDAC (39%). The rate of metastases in the LNs along the common hepatic, left gastric, and celiac arteries were low, and the therapeutic index for these LNs was zero. In pancreatic tail cancer located more distally, there were no metastases to the LNs along the common hepatic artery. Multivariate analysis revealed that tumor size was the only independent factor related to recurrence-free survival (HR = 2.01, 95% CI = 1.33-3.05, p = 0.001). The level of pancreas division and LN dissection along the common hepatic artery did not affect the site of tumor recurrence or recurrence-free survival. Conclusions: LN dissection along the hepatic artery for Pt-PDAC has little significance. Distal pancreatic transection may be acceptable in terms of oncological safety, but further examination of short-term outcomes and preservation of pancreatic function is required.Citation: Hirashita T, Ikenaga N, Nakata K, Nakamura M, Kurahara H, Ohtsuka T, et al. Prognostic significance of lymph node metastasis in pancreatic tail cancer: A multicenter retrospective study. Ann Gastroenterol Surg. 2024; 8: 681–690. https://doi.org/10.1002/ags3.1277

Effect of Pertussis Toxin and Herbimycin A on Proteinase-Activated Receptor 2-Mediated Cyclooxygenase 2 Expression in Helicobacter pylori-Infected Gastric Epithelial AGS Cells

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is an important risk factor for chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer, and gastric cancer. Proteinase-activated receptor 2 (PAR2), subgroup of G-protein coupled receptor family, is highly expressed in gastric cancer, and chronic expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) plays an important role in H. pylori-associated gastric carcinogenesis and inflammation. We previously demonstrated that H. pylori induced the expression of PAR2 and COX-2 in gastric epithelial cells. Present study aims to investigate whether COX-2 expression induced by H. pylori in Korean isolates is mediated by PAR2 via activation of Gi protein and Src kinase in gastric epithelial AGS cells. Results showed that H. pylori-induced COX-2 expression was inhibited in the cells transfected with antisense oligonucleotide for PAR2 or treated with Gi protein blocker pertussis toxin, Src kinase inhibitor herbimycin A and soybean trypsin inbitor, indicating that COX-2 expression is mediated by PAR2 through activation of Gi protein and Src kinase in gastric epithelial cells infected with H. pylori in Korean isolates. Thus, targeting the activation of PAR2 may be beneficial for prevention or treatment of gastric inflammation and carcinogenesis associated with H. pylori infection

Expression of microRNAs is dynamically regulated during cardiomyocyte hypertrophy

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a recently discovered class of ∼22-nucleotide regulatory RNAs that post-transcriptionally regulate gene expression. We have recently demonstrated that muscle-specific miRNAs miR-1 and -133 play an important role in modulating muscle proliferation and differentiation. Here, we investigate the involvement of miRNAs in cardiac hypertrophy. We analyzed the global expression of miRNAs in agonist-induced hypertrophic cardiomyocytes as well as in pressure overload-induced hypertrophic hearts and found the miRNA expression profile altered in those hypertrophic conditions. We further show that inhibition of endogenous miR-21 or -18b augments hypertrophic growth. Conversely, introduction of functional miR-21 or -18b into cardiomyocytes represses myocyte hypertrophy. Together, our studies point to miRNAs as critical regulators of cardiac hypertrophy