We examined the effect of aspirin as a substitute for exercise in inducing urticaria/anaphylaxis in three patients with food-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis (FDEIA). Two of the patients had specific IgE antibodies to wheat and the other had antibodies to shrimp. Administration of aspirin before ingestion of food allergens induced urticaria in one patient and urticaria and hypotension in another, while aspirin alone or food alone elicited no response. The third patient developed urticaria only when he took all three items, i.e. aspirin, food and additional exercise, whereas provocation with any one or or two of these did not induce any symptoms. These findings suggest that aspirin upregulates type I allergic responses to food in patients with FDEIA, and further shows that aspirin synergizes with exercise to provoke symptoms of FDEIA. This is the first report of a synergistic effect of aspirin in inducing urticaria/anaphylaxis, which was confirmed using challenge tests in patients with FDEIA.

BACKGROUND.Effective treatment options are limited for patients with cutaneous angiosarcoma (AS). Docetaxel, a member of the taxane family of drugs, reportedly has been effective in the treatment of lung, head and neck, and breast cancers. Another taxane drug, paclitaxel, reportedly had unique activity in the treatment of AS of the scalp and neck and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome‐related Kaposi sarcoma. Therefore, the authors hypothesized that docetaxel may be of value in the treatment of cutaneous AS that is resistant to conventional therapy. However, there were only 3 case reports of the successful treatment of AS in elderly patients using docetaxel in combination with surgery and radiotherapy.METHODS.This was a retrospective trial. After written informed consent was obtained, docetaxel was administered intravenously at a dose of 25 mg/m2 for 1 hour weekly over a period of 8 weeks on the basis of previous reports. This treatment regimen was received by 9 patients with cutaneous AS who were treated at Kobe University Hospital between January 2003 and October 2006.RESULTS.Six of the 9 patients who received treatment achieved major responses, including 2 complete responses and 4 partial responses. Neutropenia and peripheral neuropathy were not prominent, although severe radiation dermatitis enhanced by the docetaxel was observed in 3 patients. There were no deaths attributable to this therapy.CONCLUSIONS.The current study demonstrated that docetaxel was effective in patients with cutaneous AS. Cancer 2007. © 2007 American Cancer Society.

Ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis plays a pivotal role in stress responses. To investigate the mechanisms of these cellular processes, we have been studying Schizosaccharomyces pombe mutants that have altered sensitivities to various stress conditions. Here, we showed that Lub1, a homologue of Ufd3p/Zzz4p/Doa1p in budding yeast, is involved in the regulation of ubiquitin contents. Disruption of the lub1 ؉ gene resulted in monoubiquitin as well as multiubiquitin depletion without change in mRNA level and in hypersensitivity to various stress conditions. Consistently, overexpression of genes encoding ubiquitin suppressed the defects associated with lub1 mutation, indicating that the phenotypes of the lub1 mutants under stress conditions were due to cellular ubiquitin shortage at the posttranscriptional level. In addition, the lub1-deleted cells showed aberrant functions in ubiquitin/proteasome-dependent proteolysis, with accelerated degradation of ubiquitin. Also Cdc48, a stress-induced chaperon-like essential ATPase, was found to interact with Lub1, and this association might contribute to the stabilization of Lub1. Our results indicated that Lub1 is responsible for ubiquitin homeostasis at the protein level through a negative regulation of ubiquitin degradation.

We present herein a Japanese case of Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD) in which cutaneous manifestations completely remitted after treatment with low-dose oral corticosteroid. A 69-year-old Japanese man presented with a 1-year history of enlarged submandibular lymph nodes and subsequent nasal and pharyngeal bleeding. RDD was diagnosed based on biopsy results from a lymph node in the left parotid region. The patient had also noted several skin eruptions that repeatedly appeared and disappeared on the face and arms. Biopsies were taken from skin eruptions on the face and cuboidal fossa. Both biopsy specimens showed dense, well-demarcated infiltration of histiocytes, lymphocytes and multinucleated giant cells from just under the epidermis to the subcutaneous tissue. These histiocytes were positive for CD68 and S-100, but negative for CD1a, and some displayed emperipolesis. Given the histopathological findings and the fact that the patient was suffering from RDD, skin lesions were diagnosed as cutaneous manifestations of RDD. Cutaneous lesions gradually began to persist concomitant with enlargement of extranodal lymphadenopathy in the nasopharyngeal area. Increasing respiratory obstruction prompted a trial with oral prednisolone commencing at 0.4 mg/kg per day. Both the lymphadenopathy and skin lesions responded quickly. Within 3 months, all his skin lesions disappeared completely with almost complete resolution of lymphadenopathy. Twelve months after the beginning of oral prednisolone therapy, slight recurrence of mucosal and cutaneous lesions appeared, but disappeared quickly with an increase in prednisolone to 0.3 mg/kg per day. Low-dose prednisolone appeared very effective in the case of RDD.

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