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Background Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a fatal lung disease characterized by worsening dyspnea and progressive loss of lung function. Acute exacerbation of IPF is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Several studies have provided evidence of an association between lung cancer and IPF, with a prevalence of lung cancer in IPF patients ranging from 9.8% to 38%. Although the efficacy of nintedanib for IPF has been demonstrated, it has remained unknown whether this agent also reduces the risk of chemotherapy-induced acute exacerbation of IPF. Patients with interstitial pneumonia have been excluded from most prospective clinical trials for NSCLC because of the risk of acute exacerbation, with a few prospective single-arm phase II studies having been reported. In addition, it has been difficult to perform a randomized prospective clinical trial for patients with advanced NSCLC and IPF because of their rarity. Therefore, the optimal chemotherapy regimen for advanced NSCLC with IPF has thus remained unclear. Trial design Chemotherapy-naïve patients with advanced NSCLC associated with IPF (enrolment target of n = 240) are randomized at a 1:1 ratio to receive four cycles of carboplatin (AUC 6 on day 1) plus nab-paclitaxel (100 mg/m2 on days 1, 8, and 15) administered every 3 weeks either without (arm A) or with (arm B) nintedanib (150 mg b.i.d. daily), to be followed in arm B by single-agent administration of nintedanib (150 mg b.i.d. daily). The primary end point of the study is time to acute exacerbation of IPF. Study enrolment began in May 2017 and is to continue for 3 years. Legal entity responsible for the study Isamu Okamoto. Funding Nippon Boehringer Ingelheim and Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to control the material circulation in the Closed Ecology Experiment Facilities (CEEF), it is necessary to clarify material flow in the Closed Plant Experiment Facility (CPEF) of CEEF. We tried to grow rice plants and measure the nitrogen contents in rice plant and nutrient solution in plant cultivation bed to trace the material balance in CPEF. The measurements were carried out under the condition of 750 ppm (v/v) CO2 at SHAPE="SOL" ALIGN="C" STYLE="S">2619°C in the plant cultivation room. The measurements showed the absorbed nitrogen amount in plant was less than the outflow nitrogen amount from nutrient solution. This difference between absorbed and outflow quantity reached to 17%. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A column-switching high-performance liquid chromatographic analysis was established to monitor the serum concentration of mycophenolic acid, the active metabolite from mycophenolate mofetil administered for the prophylaxis of acute organ rejection in renal transplantation. The system consisted of two pumps for solvent delivery, a column-switching valve, a precolumn, and a reversed-phase analytical column. The present method enabled us to determine MPA by injecting serum samples directly into HPLC without any pretreatment. The mobile phases with different amounts of organic solvent were delivered to the precolumn and analytical column by separate lines, and samples were applied to the precolumn. The column switching valves were switched automatically following the processes for the elimination of protein and the drug analysis. The peak heights of MPA were linearly related to the concentrations (r=0.999) in the range of 0.1–20 μg/ml, and the limit of quantification was 0.1 μg/ml (S/N ratio=3). This method was accurate and reproducible on the basis of the results of recovery (94.0–98.0%) and small coefficient of variations of intra and inter-assay (less than 8.3%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients increase erythrocyte susceptibility to hemolysis and impair cell survival. We explored whether electrolyte-reduced water (ERW) could palliate HD-evoked erythrocyte impairment and anemia. Forty-three patients undergoing chronic HD were enrolled and received ERW administration for 6 month. We evaluated oxidative stress in blood and plasma, erythrocyte methemoglobin (metHb)/ferricyanide reductase activity, plasma metHb, and proinflammatory cytokines in the chronic HD patients without treatment (n=15) or with vitamin C (VC)- (n=15), vitamin E (VE)-coated dialyzer (n=15), or ERW treatment (n=15) during an HD course. The patients showed marked increases (15-fold) in blood reactive oxygen species, mostly H2O2, after HD without any treatment. HD resulted in decreased plasma VC, total antioxidant status, and erythrocyte metHb/ferricyanide reductase activity and increased erythrocyte levels of phosphatidylcholine hydroperoxide (PCOOH) and plasma metHb. Antioxidants treatment significantly palliated single HD course-induced oxidative stress, plasma and RBC PCOOH, and plasma metHb levels, and preserved erythrocyte metHb /ferricyanide reductase activity in an order VC>ERW>VE-coated dialyzer. However, ERW had no side effects of oxalate accumulation easily induced by VC. Six-month ERW treatment increased hematocrit and attenuated proinflammatory cytokines profile in the HD patients. In conclusion, ERW treatment administration is effective in palliating HD-evoked oxidative stress, as indicated by lipid peroxidation, hemolysis, and overexpression of proinflammatory cytokines in HD patients.Kidney International (2006) 70, 391–398. doi:10.1038/sj.ki.5001576; published online 7 June 2006 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]