Recently, clinicians and scientists have focused on tissue engineering for regenerative medical therapy. This approach promises to provide remarkable clinical breakthroughs for the future. In oral and craniofacial medicine, most scientific approaches to tissue engineering currently involve tooth and bone, while little progress has been made toward regenerating organs such as salivary gland. To develop strategies for salivary gland regeneration, it will be important to understand the molecular mechanisms of normal salivary development. This mini-review describes a recently developed and tested set of approaches for identifying and characterizing molecules essential for branching morphogenesis and other developmental processes. It shows the value of using laser microdissection and the new process of T7-SAGE for gene discovery of putative candidate molecules that may be crucial regulators or mediators. We describe a stepwise series of associated strategies for reliable identification and functional testing of a candidate molecule, as well as its successful application to a specific candidate molecule originally identified by T7-SAGE.

Rapidly increasing numbers of acupuncturists in Japan has caused our places of activity to become increasingly important.
A symposium was held by acupuncturists who play an active role in various areas of acupuncture. We all came together with the purpose of examining our clinical conditions and to make recommendations for the future. The necessity of how to expand the capacity and locations of acupuncture practice cannot be overestimated.
The chairperson of the symposium reported that due to the increasing number of acupuncturists, it is hard to find employment for graduates, and reported the results of a questionnaire (initiated by The Japanese Journal of Acupuncture & Manual Therapies (IDO NO NIPPON-SHI) demonstrating that some practitioners are changing the conditions of their professions.
The first panelist, who had experienced practicing acupuncture in a hospital, reported on the role and characteristics of acupuncture practice and ways to maintain relationships with doctors, nurses and other medical care staff members. Also he addressed the issue of prospects for the future among other topics.
The second panelist, who had not been able to find a useful place for on-the-job training following graduation, told of her experience making home-visits and practicing at a clinic. At first, she had found attracting patients to her home-visits quite difficult, so she advertised herself with a local TV station to increase her name recognition, and then she succeed to practice her own clinic. Now she thinks it is necessary to acquire clinical and academic knowledge as well as technical skills.
The third panelist, who specialized in acupuncture in the field of sports disorders, was eager to improve and expand the methods and techniques in this field to better demonstrate the merits of acupuncture treatment for sports disorders. Moreover, he insisted on the importance of acquiring knowledge concerning athletic rehabilitation and technical skills. Also, clinical practice is imperative.
The last panelist, a university teacher, suggested that it is necessary to set up high educational standards and faculty development activities supported by the school. Accordingly, improved standards at schools as well as more research justifying acupuncture efficacy would facilitate greater social demand for acupuncture and thereby setting reasonable expectations for patients and other medical professionals.
In addition, two other acupuncturists and a student from an acupuncture school made speechesabout theirmisgivings regarding their future prospects. One has been working in a hospital for two years since his graduation; the other is a student at a teacher training institution. The student entering her second-year of acupuncture school became a mother. These acupuncturists and a student all expressed their concerns and hopes for the future of their profession.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case series. PURPOSE: To clarify the influence of cervical spinal canal stenosis (CSCS) on neurological functional recovery after traumatic cervical spinal cord injury (CSCI) without major fracture or dislocation. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: The biomechanical etiology of traumatic CSCI remains under discussion and its relationship with CSCS is one of the most controversial issues in the clinical management of traumatic CSCI. METHODS: To obtain a relatively uniform background, patients non-surgically treated for an acute C3-4 level CSCI without major fracture or dislocation were selected. We analyzed 58 subjects with traumatic CSCI using T2-weighted mid-sagittal magnetic resonance imaging. The sagittal diameter of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) column, degree of canal stenosis, and neurologic outcomes in motor function, including improvement rate, were assessed. RESULTS: There were no significant relationships between sagittal diameter of the CSF column at the C3-4 segment and their American Spinal Injury Association motor scores at both admission and discharge. Moreover, no significant relationships were observed between the sagittal diameter of the CSF column at the C3-4 segment and their neurological recovery during the following period. CONCLUSIONS: No relationships between pre-existing CSCS and neurological outcomes were evident after traumatic CSCI. These results suggest that decompression surgery might not be recommended for traumatic CSCI without major fracture or dislocation despite pre-existing CSCS.
Cerebrospinal Fluid ; Cervical Cord* ; Constriction, Pathologic* ; Decompression ; Dislocations* ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Retrospective Studies ; Spinal Canal* ; Spinal Injuries