Whole pancreas or β-cell transplantation has opened the way for the treatment of advanced stage of diabetes mellitus. However, it is always limited by the scarcity of transplantation materials. The amniotic membrane is part of the fetal membrane and is composed of amniotic epithelium (HAE) and mesenchymal (HAM) cells that are derived from the inner cell mass in the blastocyst. Thus, HAE and HAM cells may have the potential to differentiate into various organs. The aim of our study was to assess the possibility of HAE cells differentiating into insulin-producing cells. In vitro, HAE cells stimulated with nicotinamide induced insulin mRNA in the culture cells. In vivo, HAE cells were capable of normalizing the blood glucose level of diabetic mice after several weeks of implantation into streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. The distribution of human cells and human insulin secretion in mouse tissue studied by immunohistochemistry for antihuman-specific β-2-microglobulin and anti-human-specific insulin shows the same location in mouse tissue. These studies suggest that HAE cells have the potential to differentiate into β-cells in vivo, and hence that HAE cells have therapeutic potential for the treatment of type I diabetes mellitus.

A case‐control study of biliary tract cancer was conducted in Niigata prefecture where the mortality of the cancer is the highest in Japan. The cases were 109 patients with gallbladder cancer and 84 with bile duct cancer, and the controls were 386 sex‐ and age‐matched neighborhood controls. For gallbladder cancer, a past history of biliary tract disease, a positive family history of cholelithiasis and a taste for oily foods were high risk factors. Intakes of animal proteins and fats such as fish, eggs, meat, etc., ingestion of vegetables and fruits, and taking snacks were low risk factors for gallbladder cancer. For bile duct cancer, a past history of biliary tract disease, a family history of cerebral vascular accident, a thin constitution and taking a small amount of foods were high risk factors, and a family history of heart disease, obesity, intakes of alcohol, animal proteins and fats, or frequent intakes of vegetables and fruits were low risk factors.

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