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Atom-vacancy-defects present in various materials yield numerous interesting physical phenomena, even obstructing high performance in some cases. On the other hand, their valuable applications to novel devices, such as nitrogen vacancy centers in diamond for quantum bits, have gathered significant attention. In particular, these tendencies become more substantial in two-dimensional (2D) (atomically) thin van der Waals layers. However, correlations with various kinds of atom defects are still under exploration. Herein, we find the stochastic behaviors of large hysteresis loops with strong photoresponse in the static electrical properties in few-atom layer semiconductors, molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ). The temperature dependence and transmission electron microscopy reveal that they arise from pairs of two neighboring in-plane S-vacancy defects, which predominantly present only around the interface at the MoS 2 flake/substrate, with activation energies ∼0.35 eV. The low-frequency ( f ) (LF) noise measurements clarify a high f shift in the two 1/ f 2 -dependent regimes, implying stochastic behaviors of electric charges through the S-vacancy pairs with high-speed charge(spin) transitions across low kinetic energy barriers between narrow discrete states. The shallow energy sates are formed from the highly uniform S-vacancy pairs interacting with Mo atoms, which act like quantum dots. The observed stochastic operation holds promise for various application, particularly for probabilistic neuromorphic computation in artificial intelligence.

The growth of two-dimensional van der Waals magnetic materials presents attractive opportunities for exploring new physical phenomena and valuable applications. Among these materials, Fe 3 GeTe 2 (FGT) exhibits a variety of remarkable properties and has garnered significant attention. Herein, we have for the first time created a nanomesh structure-a honeycomb-like array of hexagonal nanopores-with the zigzag pore-edge atomic structure on thin FGT flakes with and without oxidation of the pore edges. It is revealed that the magnitude of ferromagnetism (FM) significantly increases in both samples compared with bulk flakes without nanomeshes. Critical temperature annealing results in the formation of zigzag pore edges and interpore zigzag-edge nanoribbons. We unveil that the non-oxide (O) termination of the Fe dangling bonds on these zigzag edges enhances FM behavior, while O-termination suppresses this FM by introducing antiferromagnetic behavior through edge O-Fe coupling. FGT nanomeshes hold promise for the creation of strong FM and their effective application in magnetic and spintronic systems., (© 2024 IOP Publishing Ltd. All rights, including for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies, are reserved.)

Thermoelectric effects refer to the voltage generation from temperature gradients in condensed matter. Although various power generators are made from them, all the known effects, such as Seebeck effect, require macroscopic temperature gradients; since the sign of the generated voltage is reversed by reversing the temperature gradient, the net voltage disappears when the temperature distribution fluctuates temporarily or spatially with a macroscopic temperature gradient of zero. It is impossible to utilize such temperature fluctuations in the conventional thermoelectric effects, a situation which limits their application. Here we report the observation of a second-order nonlinear thermoelectric effect; we develop a method to measure nonlinear thermoelectricity and observe that a superconducting MoGe film on Y 3 Fe 5 O 12 generates a voltage proportional to the square of the applied temperature gradient. The nonlinear thermoelectric generation demonstrated here provides a way for making power generators that produce electric power from temperature fluctuations., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: The supplementary immunization activity (SIA) for the rubella vaccination of adult men born between 1962 and 1978 began in 2019 in Japan because of a vaccine gap in the cohort, as vaccination was not mandatory for those born in that period. However, SIA coverage remains low, despite an active campaign and financial support., Methods: We conducted a randomized controlled study based on a 2 (scenario: self-vaccination, child vaccination) × 2 (message: self-interest, group-interest) factorial design, using a Japanese online panel. Participants with children were assigned to the child vaccination scenario in Intervention 1, whereas others were assigned to the self-vaccination scenario. After Intervention 1, all participants were given the same information about rubella. In Intervention 2, participants assigned to self-interest messages received a message emphasizing the risk of rubella, and those assigned to group-interest messages received a message emphasizing herd immunity. After Intervention 2, we evaluated the effects using a questionnaire., Results: Among the 2,206 participants, information regarding rubella was evaluated as more reliable in the group-than in the self-interest message condition, especially among women. Women evaluated the necessity of rubella vaccination for adult men and women to be higher in the child-vaccination scenario and group-interest messages. However, no differences were found among men. By contrast, men exposed to the self-interest message positively evaluated the reliability of the rubella explanation., Conclusion: The findings indicate that emphasizing self-interest messages is more effective for men in promoting herd immunity against rubella., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Okuno, Satoh, Arai, Suzuki and Kikkawa.)

Sex bias is known in the prevalence/pathology of neurodevelopmental disorders. Sex-dependent differences of the certain brain areas are known to emerge perinatally through the exposure to sex hormones, while gene expression patterns in the rodent embryonic brain does not seem to be completely the same between male and female. To investigate potential sex differences in gene expression and cortical organization during the embryonic period in mice, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of gene expression for the telencephalon at embryonic day (E) 11.5 (a peak of neural stem cell expansion) and E14.5 (a peak of neurogenesis) using bulk RNA-seq data. As a result, our data showed the existence of notable sex differences in gene expression patterns not obviously at E11.5, but clearly at E14.5 when neurogenesis has become its peak. These data can be useful for exploring potential contribution of genes exhibiting sex differences to the divergence in brain development. Additionally, our data underscore the significance of studying the embryonic period to gain a deeper understanding of sex differences in brain development., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Recent studies have shown that prenatal BPA exposure altered the transcriptome profiles of autism-related genes in the offspring's hippocampus, disrupting hippocampal neuritogenesis and causing male-specific deficits in learning. However, the sex differences in the effects of prenatal BPA exposure on the developing prefrontal cortex, which is another brain region highly implicated in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), have not been investigated., Methods: We obtained transcriptome data from RNA sequencing analysis of the prefrontal cortex of male and female rat pups prenatally exposed to BPA or control and reanalyzed. BPA-responsive genes associated with cortical development and social behaviors were selected for confirmation by qRT-PCR analysis. Neuritogenesis of primary cells from the prefrontal cortex of pups prenatally exposed to BPA or control was examined. The social behaviors of the pups were assessed using the two-trial and three-chamber tests. The male-specific impact of the downregulation of a selected BPA-responsive gene (i.e., Sema5a) on cortical development in vivo was interrogated using siRNA-mediated knockdown by an in utero electroporation technique., Results: Genes disrupted by prenatal BPA exposure were associated with ASD and showed sex-specific dysregulation. Sema5a and Slc9a9, which were involved in neuritogenesis and social behaviors, were downregulated only in males, while Anxa2 and Junb, which were also linked to neuritogenesis and social behaviors, were suppressed only in females. Neuritogenesis was increased in males and showed a strong inverse correlation with Sema5a and Slc9a9 expression levels, whereas, in the females, neuritogenesis was decreased and correlated with Anxa2 and Junb levels. The siRNA-mediated knockdown of Sema5a in males also impaired cortical development in utero. Consistent with Anxa2 and Junb downregulations, deficits in social novelty were observed only in female offspring but not in males., Conclusion: This is the first study to show that prenatal BPA exposure dysregulated the expression of ASD-related genes and functions, including cortical neuritogenesis and development and social behaviors, in a sex-dependent manner. Our findings suggest that, besides the hippocampus, BPA could also exert its adverse effects through sex-specific molecular mechanisms in the offspring's prefrontal cortex, which in turn would lead to sex differences in ASD-related neuropathology and clinical manifestations, which deserves further investigation., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Object: The purpose of this study is to develop an image artifact removal method for radar-based microwave breast imaging and demonstrates the detectability on excised breast tissues of total mastectomy., Methods: A cross-correlation method was proposed and measurements were conducted. A hand-held radar-based breast cancer detector was utilized to measure a breast at different orientations. Images were generated by multiplying the confocal image data from two scans after cross-correlation. The optimum reconstruction permittivity values were extracted by the local maxima of the confocal image intensity as a function of reconstruction permittivity., Results: With the proposed cross-correlation method, the contrast of the imaging result was enhanced and the clutters were removed. The proposed method was applied to 50 cases of excised breast tissues and the detection sensitivity of 72% was achieved. With the limited number of samples, the dependency of detection sensitivity on the breast size, breast density, and tumor size were examined., Conclusion and Significance: The detection sensitivity was strongly influenced by the breast density. The sensitivity was high for fatty breasts, whereas the sensitivity was low for heterogeneously dense breasts. In addition, it was observed that the sensitivity was high for extremely dense breast. This is the first detailed report on the excised breast tissues.

SrTiO 3 (STO) substrate, a perovskite oxide material known for its high dielectric constant (ɛ), facilitates the observation of various (high-temperature) quantum phenomena. A quantum Hall topological insulating (QHTI) state, comprising two copies of QH states with antiparallel two ferromagnetic edge-spin overlap protected by the U(1) axial rotation symmetry of spin polarization, has recently been achieved in low magnetic field (B) even as high as ≈100 K in a monolayer graphene/thin hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) spacer placed on an STO substrate, thanks to the high ɛ of STO. Despite the use of the heavy STO substrate, however, proximity-induced quantum spin Hall (QSH) states in 2D TI phases, featuring a topologically protected helical edge spin phase within time-reversal-symmetry, is not confirmed. Here, with the use of a monolayer hBN spacer, it is revealed the coexistence of QSH (at B = 0T) and QHTI (at B ≠ 0) states in the same single graphene sample placed on an STO, with a crossover regime between the two at low B. It is also classified that the different symmetries of the two nontrivial helical edge spin phases in the two states lead to different interaction with electron-puddle quantum dots, caused by a local surface pocket of the STO, in the crossover regime, resulting in a spin dephasing only for the QHTI state. The results obtained using STO substrates open the doors to investigations of novel QH spin states with different symmetries and their correlations with quantum phenomena. This exploration holds value for potential applications in spintronic devices., (© 2024 Wiley‐VCH GmbH.)

Background: Congenital esophageal stenosis (CES) is a rare condition. We encountered a case of esophageal cancer that developed in an adult with persistent CES. Although many studies have investigated the therapeutic outcomes and performed surveillance for symptoms after treatment for CES, few have performed long-term surveillance or reported on the development of esophageal cancer. We report this case because it is extremely rare and has important implications., Case Presentation: A 45-year-old woman with worsening dysphagia was transferred to our hospital. The patient was diagnosed with CES at 5 years of age and underwent surgery at another hospital. The patient underwent esophageal dilatation for stenosis at 36 years of age. Esophagoscopy performed at our hospital revealed a circumferential ulcerated lesion and stenosis 15-29 cm from the incisors. Histological examination of the biopsy specimen revealed squamous cell carcinoma. Computed tomography (CT) revealed abnormal circumferential wall thickening in parts of the cervical and almost the entire thoracic esophagus. 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography-CT revealed increased uptake in the cervical and upper esophagus. No uptake was observed in the muscular layers of the middle or lower esophagus. Based on these findings, the patient was diagnosed with clinical stage IVB cervical and upper esophageal cancer (T3N1M1 [supraclavicular lymph nodes]). The patient underwent a total esophagectomy after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The esophagus was markedly thickened and tightly adhered to the adjacent organs. Severe fibrosis was observed around the trachea. Marked thickening of the muscular layer was observed throughout the esophagus; histopathological examination revealed that this thickening was due to increased smooth muscle mass. No cartilage, bronchial epithelium, or glands were observed. The carcinoma extended from the cervical to the middle esophagus, oral to the stenotic region. Finally, we diagnosed the patient with esophageal cancer developing on CES of the fibromuscular thickening type., Conclusions: Chronic mechanical and chemical irritations are believed to cause cancer of the upper esophagus oral to a persistent CES, suggesting the need for long-term surveillance that focuses on residual stenosis and cancer development in patients with CES., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Paternal aging has consistently been linked to an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), in offspring. Recent evidence has highlighted the involvement of epigenetic factors. In this study, we aimed to investigate age-related alterations in microRNA (miRNA) profiles of mouse sperm and analyze target genes regulated by differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs). Microarray analyses were conducted on sperm samples from mice at different ages: 3 months (3 M), over 12 M, and beyond 20 M. We identified 26 miRNAs with differential expression between the 3 and 20 M mice, 34 miRNAs between the 12 and 20 M mice, and 2 miRNAs between the 3 and 12 M mice. The target genes regulated by these miRNAs were significantly associated with apoptosis/ferroptosis pathways and the nervous system. We revealed alterations in sperm miRNA profiles due to aging and suggest that the target genes regulated by these DEmiRNAs are associated with apoptosis and the nervous system, implying a potential link between paternal aging and an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders such as ASD. The observed age-related changes in sperm miRNA profiles have the potential to impact sperm quality and subsequently affect offspring development., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Antiferromagnetic materials have been proposed as new types of narrowband THz spintronic devices owing to their ultrafast spin dynamics. Manipulating coherently their spin dynamics, however, remains a key challenge that is envisioned to be accomplished by spin-orbit torques or direct optical excitations. Here, we demonstrate the combined generation of broadband THz (incoherent) magnons and narrowband (coherent) magnons at 1 THz in low damping thin films of NiO/Pt. We evidence, experimentally and through modeling, two excitation processes of spin dynamics in NiO: an off-resonant instantaneous optical spin torque in (111) oriented films and a strain-wave-induced THz torque induced by ultrafast Pt excitation in (001) oriented films. Both phenomena lead to the emission of a THz signal through the inverse spin Hall effect in the adjacent heavy metal layer. We unravel the characteristic timescales of the two excitation processes found to be < 50 fs and > 300 fs, respectively, and thus open new routes towards the development of fast opto-spintronic devices based on antiferromagnetic materials., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

We experimentally and theoretically demonstrate that nonlinear spin-wave interactions suppress the hybrid magnon-photon quasiparticle or "magnon polariton" in microwave spectra of a yttrium iron garnet film detected by an on-chip split-ring resonator. We observe a strong coupling between the Kittel and microwave cavity modes in terms of an avoided crossing as a function of magnetic fields at low microwave input powers, but a complete closing of the gap at high powers. The experimental results are well explained by a theoretical model including the three-magnon decay of the Kittel magnon into spin waves. The gap closure originates from the saturation of the ferromagnetic resonance above the Suhl instability threshold by a coherent backreaction from the spin waves.

Background: An important factor in proceeding the efforts to reduce coercion in psychiatry is the attitudes of clinical staff toward its use. We aimed to develop the Japanese version of the Staff Attitude to Coercion Scale (SACS) and clarify its psychometric properties., Methods: After the translation and back-translation of the SACS, which includes 15 items consisting of three subscales, we conducted an anonymous self-administered questionnaire survey of clinical staffs working in 17 wards in two psychiatric hospitals. We administered the second survey to some of the participants to confirm the test-retest reliability. Additionally, we obtained information regarding the 17 wards from the institutions. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach's alpha coefficients. Test-retest reliability was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC). Structural validity was examined using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). For construct validity, the correlation of the SACS score within wards and its association with the actual use of seclusion/restraints were explored using multilevel multivariate linear regression analyses., Results: We used 261 (67.1%) responses, 35 responses of which were also used to examine test-retest reliability. Cronbach's alpha coefficients (0.761) and ICC (0.738) indicated good reliability. The results of CFA based on the original three-dimensional structure did not indicate a good fit (CFA = 0.830, RMSEA = 0.088). EFA suggested a four-factor structure, two of which were almost consistent with the original two subscales. The correlation of the SACS score within wards was confirmed while a positive association with the actual use of seclusion/restraints was not identified., Conclusion: While the original three-dimensional structure was not replicated, construct validity was partially confirmed. Reliability of the total scale was good. In Japan, although using the subscales was not recommended, using the total scale of SACS seemed acceptable., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Fukasawa, Miyake, Kikkawa and Sueyasu.)

A small number of offspring are born from the numerous sperm generated from spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs). However, little is known regarding the rules and molecular mechanisms that govern germline transmission patterns. Here we report that the Trp53 tumor suppressor gene limits germline genetic diversity via Cdkn1a. Trp53-deficient SSCs outcompeted wild-type (WT) SSCs and produced significantly more progeny after co-transplantation into infertile mice. Lentivirus-mediated transgenerational lineage analysis showed that offspring bearing the same virus integration were repeatedly born in a non-random pattern from WT SSCs. However, SSCs lacking Trp53 or Cdkn1a sired transgenic offspring in random patterns with increased genetic diversity. Apoptosis of KIT + differentiating germ cells was reduced in Trp53- or Cdkn1a-deficient mice. Reduced CDKN1A expression in Trp53-deficient spermatogonia suggested that Cdkn1a limits genetic diversity by supporting apoptosis of syncytial spermatogonial clones. Therefore, the TRP53-CDKN1A pathway regulates tumorigenesis and the germline transmission pattern., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The subcommissural organ (SCO) is a part of the circumventricular organs located in the dorsocaudal region of the third ventricle at the entrance of the aqueduct of Sylvius. The SCO comprises epithelial cells and produces high molecular weight glycoproteins, which are secreted into the third ventricle and become part of Reissner's fibre in the cerebrospinal fluid. Abnormal development of the SCO has been linked with congenital hydrocephalus, a condition characterized by excessive accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain. In the present study, we characterized the SCO cells in the adult mouse brain to gain insights into the possible role of this brain region. Immunohistochemical analyses revealed that expression of Pax6, a transcription factor essential for SCO differentiation during embryogenesis, is maintained in the SCO at postnatal stages from P0 to P84. SCO cells in the adult brain expressed known neural stem/progenitor cell (NSPC) markers, Sox2 and vimentin. The adult SCO cells also expressed proliferating marker PCNA, although expression of another proliferation marker Ki67, indicating a G 2 /M phase, was not detected. The SCO cells did not incorporate BrdU, a marker for DNA synthesis in the S phase. Therefore, the SCO cells have a potential for proliferation but are quiescent for cell division in the adult. The SCO cells also expressed GFAP, a marker for astrocytes or NSPCs, but not NeuN (for neurons). A few cells positive for Iba1 (microglia), Olig2 (for oligodendrocytes) and PDGFRα (oligodendrocyte progenitors) existed within or on the periphery of the SCO. These findings revealed that the SCO cells have a unique feature as secretory yet immature neuroepithelial cells in the adult mouse brain., (© 2022 The Authors. Journal of Anatomy published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Anatomical Society.)

CHAMP1 is a gene associated with intellectual disability, which was originally identified as being involved in the maintenance of kinetochore-microtubule attachment. To explore the neuronal defects caused by CHAMP1 deficiency, we established mice that lack CHAMP1 . Mice that are homozygous knockout for CHAMP1 were slightly smaller than wild-type mice and died soon after birth on pure C57BL/6J background. Although gross anatomical defects were not found in CHAMP1 -/- mouse brains, mitotic cells were increased in the cerebral cortex. Neuronal differentiation was delayed in CHAMP1 -/- neural stem cells in vitro , which was also suggested in vivo by CHAMP1 knockdown. In a behavioural test battery, adult CHAMP1 heterozygous knockout mice showed mild memory defects, altered social interaction, and depression-like behaviours. In transcriptomic analysis, genes related to neurotransmitter transport and neurodevelopmental disorder were downregulated in embryonic CHAMP1 -/- brains. These results suggest that CHAMP1 plays a role in neuronal development, and CHAMP1 -deficient mice resemble some aspects of individuals with CHAMP1 mutations., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Guarantors of Brain.)

When the electric conductance of a nano-sized metal is measured at low temperatures, it often exhibits complex but reproducible patterns as a function of external magnetic fields called quantum fingerprints in electric conductance. Such complex patterns are due to quantum-mechanical interference of conduction electrons; when thermal disturbance is feeble and coherence of the electrons extends all over the sample, the quantum interference pattern reflects microscopic structures, such as crystalline defects and the shape of the sample, giving rise to complicated interference. Although the interference pattern carries such microscopic information, it looks so random that it has not been analysed. Here we show that machine learning allows us to decipher quantum fingerprints; fingerprint patterns in magneto-conductance are shown to be transcribed into spatial images of electron wave function intensities (WIs) in a sample by using generative machine learning. The output WIs reveal quantum interference states of conduction electrons, as well as sample shapes. The present result augments the human ability to identify quantum states, and it should allow microscopy of quantum nanostructures in materials by making use of quantum fingerprints., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Pax6 is a sequence-specific DNA binding transcription factor that positively and negatively regulates transcription and is expressed in multiple cell types in the developing and adult central nervous system (CNS). As indicated by the morphological and functional abnormalities in spontaneous Pax6 mutant rodents, Pax6 plays pivotal roles in various biological processes in the CNS. At the initial stage of CNS development, Pax6 is responsible for brain patterning along the anteroposterior and dorsoventral axes of the telencephalon. Regarding the anteroposterior axis, Pax6 is expressed inversely to Emx2 and Coup-TF1, and Pax6 mutant mice exhibit a rostral shift, resulting in an alteration of the size of certain cortical areas. Pax6 and its downstream genes play important roles in balancing the proliferation and differentiation of neural stem cells. The Pax6 gene was originally identified in mice and humans 30 years ago via genetic analyses of the eye phenotypes. The human PAX6 gene was discovered in patients who suffer from WAGR syndrome (i.e., Wilms tumor, aniridia, genital ridge defects, mental retardation). Mutations of the human PAX6 gene have also been reported to be associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability. Rodents that lack the Pax6 gene exhibit diverse neural phenotypes, which might lead to a better understanding of human pathology and neurodevelopmental disorders. This review describes the expression and function of Pax6 during brain development, and their implications for neuropathology.

The interplay among magnetization and deformation of solids has long been an important issue in magnetism, the elucidation of which has made great progress in material physics. Controlling volume and shapes of matter is now indispensable to realizing various actuators for precision machinery and nanotechnology. Here, we show that the volume of a solid can be manipulated by injecting a spin current: a spin current volume effect (SVE). By using a magnet Tb 0.3 Dy 0.7 Fe 2 exhibiting strong spin-lattice coupling, we demonstrate that the sample volume changes in response to a spin current injected by spin Hall effects. Theoretical calculation reflecting spin-current induced modulation of magnetization fluctuation well reproduces the experimental results. The SVE expands the scope of spintronics into making mechanical drivers., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: Repressor element 1-silencing transcription factor (REST) is a master regulator that is highly expressed in multipotent stem cells to repress gene networks involving a wide range of biological processes. A recent study has suggested that REST might be involved in a misregulation of its target genes in the embryonic brain of offspring derived from aged fathers. However, detailed analyses of the REST function in spermatogenesis are lacking due to difficulty in the detection of REST protein in specific cell types., Results: To determine localization of REST, we generated an epitope tag knock-in (KI) mouse line with the C-terminus insertion of a podoplanin (PA)-tag at an endogenous Rest locus by the CRISPR/Cas9 system. Localization of the PA-tag was confirmed in neural stem cells marked with Pax6 in the embryonic brain. Moreover, PA-tagged REST was detected in undifferentiated and differentiating spermatogonia as well as Sertoli cells in both neonatal and adult testes., Conclusions: We demonstrate that REST is expressed at the early step of spermatogenesis and suggest a possibility that REST may modulate the epigenetic state of male germline cells. Our KI mice may be useful for studying REST-associated molecular mechanisms of neurodevelopmental and age-related disorders., (© 2021 American Association for Anatomy.)

Two-sided messages that include two perspectives (i.e., risks and benefits) are more effective than one-sided messages that convey only one perspective (usually only the benefits). Refutational two-sided messages are effective for communicating risks regarding vaccines. To examine the effectiveness of refutational two-sided messages in risk communication regarding novel vaccines against emerging infectious diseases, we conducted the randomized controlled study based on a 3 × 3 × 2 mixed design (Intervention 1: vaccines against subcutaneous influenza, "novel severe infectious disease," or intranasal influenza; intervention 2: one-sided, non-refutational two-sided, or refutational two-sided messages; two questionnaires) using a Japanese online panel. Participants completed questionnaires before and after receiving an attack message (negative information). We evaluated the impact of attack messages on the willingness to be vaccinated, and the anticipated regret of inaction (ARI). Among 1,184 participants, there was a significant difference in the willingness to be vaccinated among the message groups ( p < 0.01). After receiving the attack message, willingness to be vaccinated decreased in the one-sided message group and increased in the non-refutational two-sided and refutational two-sided message groups. Additionally, ARI in the refutational two-sided message groups was significantly higher than in the one-sided groups ( p = 0.03). In conclusion, two-sided messages are more effective than one-sided messages in terms of willingness to be vaccinated. Furthermore, the high ARI in the refutational two-sided message group indicated that refutational two-sided messages were more effective than one-sided messages for communicating the risks of vaccines, especially those against emerging infectious diseases., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Okuno, Arai, Suzuki and Kikkawa.)

Purpose: Microwave radar-based breast imaging technology utilizes the principle of radar, in which radio waves reflect at the interface between target and normal tissues, which have different permittivities. This study aims to investigate the feasibility and safety of a portable microwave breast imaging device in clinical practice., Materials and Methods: We retrospectively collected the imaging data of ten breast cancers in nine women (median age: 66.0 years; range: 37-78 years) who had undergone microwave imaging examination before surgery. All were Japanese and the tumor sizes were from 4 to 10 cm. Using a five-point scale (1 = very poor; 2 = poor; 3 = fair; 4 = good; and 5 = excellent), a radiologist specialized in breast imaging evaluated the ability of microwave imaging to detect breast cancer and delineate its location and size in comparison with conventional mammography and the pathological findings., Results: Microwave imaging detected 10/10 pathologically proven breast cancers, including non-invasive ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and micro-invasive carcinoma, whereas mammography failed to detect 2/10 breast cancers due to dense breast tissue. In the five-point evaluation, median score of location and size were 4.5 and 4.0, respectively., Conclusion: The results of the evaluation suggest that the microwave imaging device is a safe examination that can be used repeatedly and has the potential to be useful in detecting breast cancer.

The Dmrt genes encode the transcription factor containing the DM (doublesex and mab-3) domain, an intertwined zinc finger-like DNA binding module. While Dmrt genes are mainly involved in the sexual development of various species, recent studies have revealed that Dmrt genes, which belong to the DmrtA subfamily, are differentially expressed in the embryonic brain and spinal cord and are essential for the development of the central nervous system. Herein, we summarize recent studies that reveal the multiple functions of the Dmrt genes in various aspects of vertebrate neural development, including brain patterning, neurogenesis, and the specification of neurons., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2021 Kikkawa and Osumi.)

Bisphenol A (BPA) is an environmental risk factor for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). BPA exposure dysregulates ASD-related genes in the hippocampus and neurological functions of offspring. However, whether prenatal BPA exposure has an impact on genes in the prefrontal cortex, another brain region highly implicated in ASD, and through what mechanisms have not been investigated. Here, we demonstrated that prenatal BPA exposure disrupts the transcriptome-interactome profiles of the prefrontal cortex of neonatal rats. Interestingly, the list of BPA-responsive genes was significantly enriched with known ASD candidate genes, as well as genes that were dysregulated in the postmortem brain tissues of ASD cases from multiple independent studies. Moreover, several differentially expressed genes in the offspring's prefrontal cortex were the targets of ASD-related transcription factors, including AR, ESR1, and RORA. The hypergeometric distribution analysis revealed that BPA may regulate the expression of such genes through these transcription factors in a sex-dependent manner. The molecular docking analysis of BPA and ASD-related transcription factors revealed novel potential targets of BPA, including RORA, SOX5, TCF4, and YY1. Our findings indicated that prenatal BPA exposure disrupts ASD-related genes in the offspring's prefrontal cortex and may increase the risk of ASD through sex-dependent molecular mechanisms, which should be investigated further.

Background: "Message order" and "active participation" could be effective as risk communication methods. "Anticipated regret" (AR) has also been recognized as affecting risk perception and vaccine uptake in vaccination risk communication. We aimed to evaluate the effects of message order and active participation and the interactions between these two interventions on AR for vaccination., Methods: We conducted a 2 (message order: positive-negative or negative-positive) × 2 (message calendar: with or without planning) factorial design study among 81 study participants. The effects of message order and active participation of mothers, using a message calendar, were evaluated on mothers' decision-making regarding vaccination with Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine and pneumococcal conjugate vaccine for their children. Participants completed questionnaires to evaluate the AR of infection if unvaccinated (anticipated regret of inaction) and of side effects if vaccinated (anticipated regret of action, ARA) twice: immediately after interventions and 1 month later., Results: An interaction between message order and active participation was significant with regard to anticipated regret of inaction immediately after interventions (P = 0.01), but this effect disappeared 1 month after interventions. The message order showed no main effect with regard to ARA. However, the main effect of active participation was marginally significant with regard to ARA 1 month after intervention (P = 0.09); AR over vaccine side effects was lower when vaccination was planned than in the condition without planning., Conclusions: The effect of message order was hardly detectable in a clinical setting. However, active participation induced by planning may affect AR. Further studies are needed to evaluate the effect of active participation in decision-making for vaccination., (© 2021 Japan Pediatric Society.)

A recent study found that magnetization curves for Y 3 Fe 5 O 12 (YIG) slab and thick films (>20 μm thick) differed from bulk system curves by their longitudinal spin Seebeck effect in a Pt/YIG bilayer system. The deviation was due to intrinsic YIG surface magnetic anisotropy, which is difficult to adopt extrinsic surface magnetic anisotropy even when in contact with other materials on the YIG surface. This study experimentally demonstrates evidence for extrinsic YIG surface magnetic anisotropy when in contact with a diamagnetic graphene interlayer by observing the spin Seebeck effect, directly proving intrinsic YIG surface magnetic anisotropy interruption. We show the Pt/YIG bilayer system graphene interlayer role using large area single and multilayered graphenes using the longitudinal spin Seebeck effect at room temperature, and address the presence of surface magnetic anisotropy due to magnetic proximity between graphene and YIG layer. These findings suggest a promising route to understand new physics of spin Seebeck effect in spin transport.

Thermoelectric effects have been applied to power generators and temperature sensors that convert waste heat into electricity. The effects, however, have been limited to electrons to occur, and inevitably disappear at low temperatures due to electronic entropy quenching. Here, we report thermoelectric generation caused by nuclear spins in a solid: nuclear-spin Seebeck effect. The sample is a magnetically ordered material MnCO 3 having a large nuclear spin (I = 5/2) of 55 Mn nuclei and strong hyperfine coupling, with a Pt contact. In the system, we observe low-temperature thermoelectric signals down to 100 mK due to nuclear-spin excitation. Our theoretical calculation in which interfacial Korringa process is taken into consideration quantitatively reproduces the results. The nuclear thermoelectric effect demonstrated here offers a way for exploring thermoelectric science and technologies at ultralow temperatures., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Objectives: The prognosis for highly advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) remains poor, and there is currently no standard treatment. The purpose of this study was to examine the benefits of trimodality therapy [chemoradiation plus surgery, (CRT + S)] by evaluating the surgical outcomes of patients with ESCC in Keiyukai Sapporo Hospital, Japan. We assessed the preoperative and postoperative adverse events, treatment effects of preoperative CRT, metastatic diagnosis of the dissected lymph nodes, and survival., Patients and Methods: Between 2012 and 2018, 148 patients with highly advanced ESCC who underwent preoperative CRT + S were analyzed for diagnosis and staging, preoperative complications, clinical and histopathological effects of CRT in the resected specimens, survival rates, and recurrences., Results: The grade 3 and higher complications of preoperative CRT were neutropenia in 3 cases and thrombocytopenia in 1 case. Among the postoperative complications, there were 2 cases (1.4%) of direct surgical death, only tracheobronchial bleeding and liver failure. Using the 11 th edition of the classification of esophageal cancer by the Japanese Esophageal Society, 60 patients (40.5%) were classified as grade 3 (negative for cancer cells, pathological complete response). However, 20 of them (33.3%) had metastatic tumor cells in the lymph nodes. The overall 5-year survival rate was 58.5%. Including references to the pathological findings and recurrence patterns, there is no effective diagnostic method for selecting the subsequent approach based on the effectiveness of CRT., Conclusion: Planned surgery following CRT was the only solution for achieving better treatment results. CRT + S is a promising treatment with low direct surgical mortality.

The accurate detection of early breast cancer is of great significance to each patient. In recent years, breast cancer non-invasive detection technology based on Ultra-Wideband (UWB) microwave has been proposed and developed extensively, which is complementary to the existing methods. In this paper, a novel approach is proposed for tumor existence detection based on feature extraction algorithm. Firstly, the breast features are obtained by Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition (EEMD) and valid correlation Intrinsic Mode Function (IMF) selection. Secondly, raw feature datasets are constructed and then simplified by Principal Component Analysis (PCA) or Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE). Finally, the detection is realized by Support Vector Machines (SVM). The influence of different kernel functions and feature selection methods on detection results is compared. In this study, 11,232 sets of backscatter signals from simulation results of four different categories' breast models are utilized. And feature dataset is constructed by 24 specific features from each signal's four valid components. The results demonstrate that the proposed method can extract representative features and detect the early breast cancer effectively with the accuracy of 84.8%.

The realistic numerical breast model is an important tool for verifying algorithms, improving design concepts, and exploring new technologies related to microwave breast cancer detection. Recently, several numerical breast models have been developed. However, these models do not include the real breast boundary and the chest region, which causes the electromagnetic wave propagation in the breast models to deviate from the actual situation. The proposed breast models in this paper overcome the significant deficiencies of the recent breast models in terms of structure completeness and authenticity. The model construction based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans is a multistep approach. Firstly, intensity inhomogeneity in MRI images is corrected by an improved nonparametric nonuniform intensity normalization (N4) algorithm. Then, a dual threshold and morphological transformation (DTMT) method is developed to segment the real breast region. Subsequently, a modified maximum inter-class variance (MICV) method is employed to automatically divide the breast region into the fat and the fibroglandular clusters with desired complexity. Finally, the dielectric properties of breast tissues are calculated by a piecewise weighted mapping method. The applicability and effectiveness of the proposed method are verified by constructing four breast models with varying tissue density, shape, and size. The constructed models in this study are significant to achieve reliable and precise effects for microwave breast cancer detection due to the accurate expression of the breast anatomical information and electromagnetic characteristics., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Advanced paternal age can have deleterious effects on various traits in the next generation. Here, we establish a paternal-aging model in mice to understand the molecular mechanisms of transgenerational epigenetics. Whole-genome target DNA methylome analyses of sperm from aged mice reveal more hypo-methylated genomic regions enriched in REST/NRSF binding motifs. Gene set enrichment analyses also reveal the upregulation of REST/NRSF target genes in the forebrain of embryos from aged fathers. Offspring derived from young mice administrated with a DNA de-methylation drug phenocopy the abnormal vocal communication of pups derived from aged fathers. In conclusion, hypo-methylation of sperm DNA can be a key molecular feature modulating neurodevelopmental programs in offspring by causing fluctuations in the expression of REST/NRSF target genes., (© 2021 The Authors. Published under the terms of the CC BY NC ND 4.0 license.)

Our recent study has shown that prenatal exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) altered the expression of genes associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In this study, we further investigated the effects of prenatal BPA exposure on ASD-related genes known to regulate neuronal viability, neuritogenesis, and learning/memory, and assessed these functions in the offspring of exposed pregnant rats. We found that prenatal BPA exposure increased neurite length, the number of primary neurites, and the number of neurite branches, but reduced the size of the hippocampal cell body in both sexes of the offspring. However, in utero exposure to BPA decreased the neuronal viability and the neuronal density in the hippocampus and impaired learning/memory only in the male offspring while the females were not affected. Interestingly, the expression of several ASD-related genes (e.g. Mief2, Eif3h, Cux1, and Atp8a1) in the hippocampus were dysregulated and showed a sex-specific correlation with neuronal viability, neuritogenesis, and/or learning/memory. The findings from this study suggest that prenatal BPA exposure disrupts ASD-related genes involved in neuronal viability, neuritogenesis, and learning/memory in a sex-dependent manner, and these genes may play an important role in the risk and the higher prevalence of ASD in males subjected to prenatal BPA exposure.

Corticogenesis is one of the most critical and complicated processes during embryonic brain development. Any slight impairment in corticogenesis could cause neurodevelopmental disorders such as Fragile X syndrome (FXS), of which symptoms contain intellectual disability (ID) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), an RNA-binding protein responsible for FXS, shows strong expression in neural stem/precursor cells (NPCs) during corticogenesis, although its function during brain development remains largely unknown. In this study, we attempted to identify the FMRP target mRNAs in the cortical primordium using RNA immunoprecipitation sequencing analysis in the mouse embryonic brain. We identified 865 candidate genes as targets of FMRP involving 126 and 118 genes overlapped with ID and ASD-associated genes, respectively. These overlapped genes were enriched with those related to chromatin/chromosome organization and histone modifications, suggesting the involvement of FMRP in epigenetic regulation. We further identified a common set of 17 FMRP "core" target genes involved in neurogenesis/FXS/ID/ASD, containing factors associated with Ras/mitogen-activated protein kinase, Wnt/β-catenin, and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathways. We indeed showed overactivation of mTOR signaling via an increase in mTOR phosphorylation in the Fmr1 knockout (Fmr1 KO) neocortex. Our results provide further insight into the critical roles of FMRP in the developing brain, where dysfunction of FMRP may influence the regulation of its mRNA targets affecting signaling pathways and epigenetic modifications.

Larynx preserving hybrid surgery with endoscopic laryngopharyngeal surgery and open surgery (HELPS) was created for resectable cervical esophageal cancer (CEC) invading the hypopharynx. This study aimed to verify the effectiveness and to evaluate the feasibility of the new HELPS treatment method. Between 2014 and 2018, 19 patients with CEC invading the hypopharynx were treated with HELPS. The postoperative complications and survival rates were reviewed. Postoperative recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis occurred in four patients. All patients consumed food orally without a feeding tube at the time of the discharge. The median follow-up period was 27 months. The 2- and 3-year overall survival rates were 94.7 and 71.5%, respectively. HELPS, a new surgical treatment method that utilizes endoscopic surgery, is effective, feasible and beneficial for preserving the larynx in patients with CEC even if the tumor invaded the pharynx., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of International Society for Diseases of the Esophagus. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

A single-chip Gaussian monocycle pulse (GMP) transceiver was developed for radar-based microwave imaging by the use of 65-nm complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technology. A transmitter (TX) generates GMP signals, whose pulse widths and -3 dB bandwidths are 192 ps and 5.9 GHz, respectively. A 102.4 GS/s equivalent time sampling receiver (RX) performs the minimum jitter, input referred noise, signal-to-nose-ratio (SNR), signal-to-noise and distortion ratio (SNDR) effective number of bits (ENOB) of 0.58 ps, 0.24 mVrms, 28.4 dB, 26.6 dB and 4.1 bits, respectively. The SNR for the bandwidth of 3.6 GHz is 36.3 dB. The power dissipations of transmitter and receiver circuits are 19.79 mW and 48.87 mW, respectively. The GMP transceiver module can differentiate two phantom targets with the size of 1 cm and the spacing of 1 cm by confocal imaging.

Background: Mammography is the standard examination for breast cancer screening; however, it is associated with pain and exposure to ionizing radiation. Microwave breast imaging is a less invasive method for breast cancer surveillance. A bistatic impulse radar-based breast cancer detector has recently been developed., Objective: This study aims to present a protocol for evaluating the diagnostic accuracy of the novel microwave breast imaging device., Methods: This is a prospective diagnostic study. A total of 120 participants were recruited before treatment administration and divided into 2 cohorts: 100 patients diagnosed with breast cancer and 20 participants with benign breast tumors. The detector will be directly placed on each breast, while the participant is in supine position, without a coupling medium. Confocal images will be created based on the analyzed data, and the presence of breast tumors will be assessed. The primary endpoint will be the diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of the detector for breast cancer and benign tumors. The secondary endpoint will be the safety and detectability of each molecular subtype of breast cancer. For an exploratory endpoint, the influence of breast density and tumor size on tumor detection will be investigated., Results: Recruitment began in November 2018 and was completed by March 2020. We anticipate the preliminary results to be available by summer 2021., Conclusions: This study will provide insights on the diagnostic accuracy of microwave breast imaging using a rotational bistatic impulse radar. The collected data will improve the diagnostic algorithm of microwave imaging and lead to enhanced device performance., Trial Registration: Japan Registry of Clinical Trials jRCTs062180005; https://jrct.niph.go.jp/en-latest-detail/jRCTs062180005., International Registered Report Identifier (irrid): DERR1-10.2196/17524., (©Shinsuke Sasada, Norio Masumoto, Hang Song, Akiko Emi, Takayuki Kadoya, Koji Arihiro, Takamaro Kikkawa, Morihito Okada. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 19.10.2020.)

Multiple thymic carcinoids are rare, and giant cell arteritis (GCA) is one of the less recognized paraneoplastic diseases. The co-occurrence of these two diseases is therefore extremely rare. We report herein a patient with multiple atypical thymic carcinoids and asymptomatic paraneoplastic GCA. All the thymic carcinoids were diagnosed histopathologically as atypical thymic carcinoids with an intrathymic metastasis. Treatment consisted of a complete tumor resection followed by observation of the GCA without any adjuvant therapy. Subsequent positron emission tomography revealed a decrease in F-fludeoxyglucose accumulation in the systemic arteries. Based on these findings, paraneoplastic GCA was diagnosed. Thymic carcinoids rarely involve intrathymic metastasis or cause neopleonastic GCA. However, when they do, a complete tumor resection is the best option for management.

Background: A clear understanding of the anatomical characteristics of the pulmonary veins (PVs) is essential for the successful performance of segmentectomy and important to avoid intraoperative pulmonary vessels injury. However, there is no report showing the relations between the branching patterns of PVs and pulmonary arteries (PAs). Moreover, internationally accepted symbols for describing PVs remain unavailable. For anatomically assessing the branches and courses of the subsegmental veins in the left upper lobe (LUL), the diverse branching patterns of blood vessels and bronchi should be investigated., Methods: The branching patterns and intersegmental courses of PVs were assessed by performing three-dimensional image analysis of the bronchi, and PAs and PVs in the LUL in 103 patients who were scheduled to receive segmentectomy in LUL from January 2008 through August 2012., Results: Branching types of the bronchi and pulmonary vessels failed to be independent each other. Although the combinations of anterior extension type of bronchus with the inter-lobar type (IL-type) of arterial branching pattern were often observed, but those with the mediastinal type (M-type) were rarely observed. The combinations of apical vein dominant type with the IL-type of arteries, and intermediate and central vein types with the M-type were often observed. Since LUL was adjoined by various subsegments, and the intersegmental pulmonary veins showed diverse patterns., Conclusions: This study found the relationship among PA, PV, and bronchus patterns, in the subsegment where the branching patterns were fixed in 103 cases. This study discovered PVs that was difficult to be named by the conventional naming systems because of the diversity of the locations in the subsegment.

Histamine acts as a neurotransmitter to regulate various physiological processes. Brain histamine is synthesized from an essential amino acid histidine in a reaction catalysed by histidine decarboxylase (Hdc). Hdc-positive neurons exist mainly in the tuberomammillary nucleus (TMN) of the posterior hypothalamus and project their axons to the entire brain. Recent studies have reported that a chronic decrease in histamine levels in the adult human brain was observed in several neurological disorders. However, it is poorly understood whether lower histamine levels play a causative role in those disorders. In the present study, we induced chronic histamine deficiency in the brains of adult mice to allow direct interpretation of the relationship between an impaired histaminergic nervous system and the resultant phenotype. To induce chronic brain histamine deficiency starting in adulthood, adeno-associated virus expressing Cre recombinase was microinjected into the TMN of Hdc flox mice (cKO mice) at the age of 8 weeks. Immunohistochemical analysis showed expression of Cre recombinase in the TMN of cKO mice. The reduction of histamine contents with the decreased Hdc expression in cKO brain was also confirmed. Behavioural studies revealed that chronic histamine depletion in cKO mice induced depression-like behaviour, decreased locomotor activity in the home cage, and impaired aversive memory. Sleep analysis showed that cKO mice exhibited a decrease in wakefulness and increase in non-rapid eye movement sleep throughout the day. Taken together, this study clearly demonstrates that chronic histamine depletion in the adult mouse brain plays a causative role in brain dysfunction., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

We measure the mode-resolved direction of the precessional motion of the magnetic order, i.e., magnon polarization, via the chiral term of inelastic polarized neutron scattering spectra. The magnon polarization is a unique and unambiguous signature of magnets and is important in spintronics, affecting thermodynamic properties such as the magnitude and sign of the spin Seebeck effect. However, it has never been directly measured in any material until this work. The observation of both signs of magnon polarization in Y&#95;{3}Fe&#95;{5}O&#95;{12} also gives direct proof of its ferrimagnetic nature. The experiments agree very well with atomistic simulations of the scattering cross section.

Background: During development, Cajal-Retzius (CR) cells are the first generated and essential pioneering neurons that control neuronal migration and arealization in the mammalian cortex. CR cells are derived from specific regions within the telencephalon, that is, the pallial septum in the rostromedial cortex, the pallial-subpallial boundary, and the cortical hem (CH) in the caudomedial cortex. However, the molecular mechanism underlying the generation of CR cell subtypes in distinct regions of origin is poorly understood., Results: We found that double-sex and mab-3 related transcription factor (Dmrt) genes, that is, Dmrta1 and Dmrt3, were expressed in the progenitor domains that produce CR cells. The number of CH-derived CR cells was severely decreased in Dmrt3 mutants, especially in Dmrta1 and Dmrt3 double mutants. The reduced production of the CR cells was consistent with the developmental impairment of the CH structures in the medial telencephalon from which the CR cells are produced., Conclusion: Dmrta1 and Dmrt3 cooperatively regulate patterning of the CH structure and production of the CR cells from the CH during cortical development., (© 2020 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

A 71-year-old woman presented to our hospital with fever and dyspnea. Computed tomography showed shadows of bilateral pneumonia and anterior vertebral mass. She was admitted to our hospital for respiratory failure. Despite treatment with antibiotics, she developed right thoracic empyema. A high level of inflammation and fever persisted, despite chest tube drainage and continued treatment with antibiotics. Therefore, thoracoscopic curettage was conducted. The histopathological findings of the curetted anterior vertebral body lesion revealed the diagnosis of chordoma. After confirming that all the culture results and inflammation findings had turned negative, the patient was discharged from the hospital. Thoracic vertebral chordoma is being treated at the department of orthopedics.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1155/2018/2380179.]., (Copyright © 2019 Yosuke Fujii et al.)

Resonant enhancement of spin Seebeck effect (SSE) due to phonons was recently discovered in Y[Formula: see text]Fe[Formula: see text]O[Formula: see text] (YIG). This effect is explained by hybridization between the magnon and phonon dispersions. However, this effect was observed at low temperatures and high magnetic fields, limiting the scope for applications. Here we report observation of phonon-resonant enhancement of SSE at room temperature and low magnetic field. We observe in Lu[Formula: see text]BiFe[Formula: see text]GaO[Formula: see text] an enhancement 700% greater than that in a YIG film and at very low magnetic fields around 10[Formula: see text] T, almost one order of magnitude lower than that of YIG. The result can be explained by the change in the magnon dispersion induced by magnetic compensation due to the presence of non-magnetic ion substitutions. Our study provides a way to tune the magnon response in a crystal by chemical doping, with potential applications for spintronic devices.

The discovery of new materials that efficiently transmit spin currents has been important for spintronics and material science. The electric insulator Gd 3 Ga 5 O 12 (GGG), a standard substrate for growing magnetic films, can be a spin current generator, but has never been considered as a superior conduit for spin currents. Here we report spin current propagation in paramagnetic GGG over several microns. Surprisingly, spin transport persists up to temperatures of 100 K [Formula: see text] T g  = 180 mK, the magnetic glass-like transition temperature of GGG. At 5 K and 3.5 T, we find a spin diffusion length λ GGG  = 1.8 ± 0.2 μm and a spin conductivity σ GGG  = (7.3 ± 0.3) × 10 4 Sm -1 that is larger than that of the record quality magnet Y 3 Fe 5 O 12 (YIG). We conclude that exchange stiffness is not required for efficient spin transport, which challenges conventional models and provides new material-design strategies for spintronic devices.

The objective of this paper is to investigate the detectability of breast tumors having various histological types in excised breast tissues of total mastectomy. The tumor images measured by a portable impulse-radio-ultra-wideband (IR-UWB)-radar-based breast cancer detector are compared with both pathological images and images of dedicated breast positron emission tomography. It is found that the detector can detect invasive-ductal-carcinomas and extensive intraductal component in the dense breast. The density of the breast has a correlation to the effective permittivity derived from the reconstructed confocal images. The results show that the IR-UWB-radar-based breast cancer detector has a potential as a portable modality for early-stage breast cancer screening.

Background: Esophageal spindle cell carcinoma (ESpCC) is a malignant tumor composed of sarcomatous components. ESpCC is treated as a squamous cell carcinoma. However, because ESpCC is a rare tumor, little is known regarding its prognosis. This study aimed to analyze patients with ESpCC who were surgically treated at our hospital, determine the validity of surgery, and identify factors that indicate a prognosis., Methods: Treatment characteristics, overall survival (OS), and recurrence-free survival (RFS) of 28 patients with ESpCC who underwent surgery at our hospital between 1990 and 2016 were assessed. Furthermore, factors associated with OS and RFS were analyzed., Results: Subtotal esophagectomy with 3-field lymph node dissection and lower esophagectomy with 2-field lymph node dissection were performed in 25 and 3 patients, respectively. Chemotherapy was administered as preoperative therapy to two patients. Postoperative therapy, comprising radiotherapy and chemotherapy, was administered to three and nine patients, respectively. The 3- and 5-year RFS were 66.4% and 61.6% and the 3- and 5-year OS were 73% and 61.9%, respectively. Macroscopic type was identified as a prognostic factor. In terms of OS, prognosis was significantly worse in ulcerative-type ESpCC than in the polypoid type., Conclusion: The 5-year OS of ESpCC mainly treated with surgical therapy was 61.9%. However, prognosis was poor in some patients with ulcerative-type ESpCC according to macroscopic type. In the future, it will be necessary to accumulate more cases and investigate therapeutic strategies added to surgery to improve prognosis.

Pax6 transcription factor is a key player in several aspects of brain development and function. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder in which several loci and/or genes have been suggested as causative candidate factors. Based on data obtained from meta-analyses of the transcriptome and ChIP analyses, we hypothesized that the neurodevelopmental gene PAX6 regulates and/or binds to a large number of genes (including many ASD-related ones) that modulate the fate of neural stem/progenitor cells and functions of neuronal cells, subsequently affecting animal behavior. Network analyses of PAX6/ASD-related molecules revealed significant clusters of molecular interactions involving regulation of cell-cell adhesion, ion transport, and transcriptional regulation. We discuss a novel function of Pax6 as a chromatin modulator that alters the chromatin status of ASD genes, thereby inducing diverse phenotypes of ASD and related neurodevelopmental diseases., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Postoperative empyema following lung cancer surgery is a serious complication. Occurrence rate of postoperative empyema following lung cancer surgery, patient background, surgical procedures, date of empyema onset, treatment, and prognosis of 4772 patients who underwent lung cancer surgery between 2008 and 2012 were investigated. Postoperative empyema following lung cancer surgery was found in 43 patients (0.9%). The occurrence rate of postoperative empyema was significantly higher in patients with the following factors: male gender, extended surgery such as pneumonectomy, bi-lobectomy and thoracotomy, squamous cell carcinoma, and an advanced pathologic stage of II and above. Chest drainage, video-assisted thoracic surgery debridement, fenestration, and thoracoplasy were performed, where 29 patients were cured (67.5%) and 5 patients (11.6%) died from thoracic empyema-related complications. Nine patients were not cured and died due to cancer or other diseases during treatment. When comparing cured and non-cured patients, it is indicated that squamous cell carcinoma, administration of steroids, history of interstitial pneumonia, presence of bronchial stump fistula, exacerbation of interstitial pneumonia and presence of non-fermenting Gram-negative bacilli led to a significantly low prognosis. The five-year overall survival rate was 34.9%., Competing Interests: CONFLICTS OF INTEREST All authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.