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Abstract Background Postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS), a subset of orthostatic dysregulation, has been reported to be associated with anxiety. POTS can be classified into two forms based on the degree of tachycardia during orthostasis. Reportedly, POTS with decreased orthostatic heart rate increase is associated with suppressed cardiac parasympathetic activity and increased sympathetic activity in the supine position. In this study, the relationship between the two types of POTS and anxiety was evaluated in terms of autonomic function. Methods Fifty-two patients (23 male, age 10–15 years) who were diagnosed with POTS at the Department of Pediatrics, Osaka Medical and Pharmaceutical University from 2019 to 2021, completed a standing test and were accordingly classified into a Su group, with tachycardia from the supine position and a low heart rate increase on standing, a SI group, with a high heart rate increase during standing. They then completed the State-Trait Anxiety Scale for Children (STAIC) questionnaire. Autonomic function was assessed by frequency analysis (MemCalc method) based on heart rate, blood pressure changes, heart rate and blood pressure variability during the orthostatic test. Results Patients in the Su group had higher trait anxiety and state anxiety, lower cardiac parasympathetic activity (RR-HF) in the supine position, and greater variability in cardiac parasympathetic activity during orthostasis than were found for patients in the SI group. The Su group had a greater decrease in cardiac index on standing than that of the SI group. Conclusions The Su group results may be partly attributed to chronically low venous return. We also found that patients in the Su group had low parasympathetic activity in the supine position, which may interact with the anxiety-prone characteristics of these patients. Therefore, it seems necessary to consider both physical and psychosomatic treatment approaches for patients with POTS.

To improve the turn-down ratio of a lean combustor, which has the greatest potential for reducing NOx emissions from jet engines, fuel staging is commonly employed. To further extend the stable operation range, air staging with a fluidic element is also considered. The influence of fluidic control on combustion was analyzed to better understand fluidic element-burner interactions. The pressure loss of each fluidic element was determined by measuring the pressure at the element exits. The effect of fluidic control on the atomization, fuel distribution, and flow field was investigated using optical, noninvasive techniques. The combustion performance of the burner with the fluidic element was evaluated using exhaust gas analyses. The pressure losses of the swirlers and fuel mixers were varied depending on the bleed air from the fluidic element. Under the idle condition, the reduction of pressure loss in the pilot fuel mixer resulted in inferior atomization due to the reduced gas velocity around the fuel film, which had a positive effect on lean blowout. Under the cruise condition and the staged mode, the reduction of the pilot air flow increased the equivalence ratio of the lean pilot stage and resulted in higher combustion efficiency.

An NMR-based metabolomic approach in aquatic ecosystems is valuable for studying the environmental effects of pharmaceuticals and other chemicals on fish. This technique has also contributed to new information in numerous research areas, such as basic physiology and development, disease, and water pollution. We evaluated the microbial diversity in various fish species collected from Japan’s coastal waters using next-generation sequencing, followed by evaluation of the effects of feed type on co-metabolic modulations in fish-microbial symbiotic ecosystems in laboratory-scale experiments. Intestinal bacteria of fish in their natural environment were characterized (using 16S rRNA genes) for trophic level using pyrosequencing and noninvasive sampling procedures developed to study the metabolism of intestinal symbiotic ecosystems in fish reared in their environment. Metabolites in feces were compared, and intestinal contents and feed were annotated based on HSQC and TOCSY using SpinAssign and network analysis. Feces were characterized by species and varied greatly depending on the feeding types. In addition, feces samples demonstrated a response to changes in the time series of feeding. The potential of this approach as a non-invasive inspection technique in aquaculture is suggested.

We conduct an experimental study using time series analysis based on symbolic dynamics to detect a precursor of frequency-mode-shift during thermoacoustic combustion oscillations in a staged aircraft engine model combustor. With increasing amount of the main fuel, a significant shift in the dominant frequency-mode occurs in noisy periodic dynamics, leading to a notable increase in oscillation amplitudes. The sustainment of noisy periodic dynamics during thermoacoustic combustion oscillations is clearly shown by the multiscale complexity-entropy causality plane in terms of statistical complexity. A modified version of the permutation entropy allows us to detect a precursor of the frequency-mode-shift before the amplification of pressure fluctuations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of early medical intervention for psychosocial problems detected in adolescents in a school health checkup, with the broader goal of prevention of these problems in adolescents. Methods: The Questionnaire for Triage and Assessment with 30 items score and scores for five subscales (physical symptoms, depression symptoms, anxiety symptoms, self-efficacy, and family function), and an investigation of lifestyle were determined in a school health checkup for 5th grade elementary to 3rd grade junior high school students. Forty-three children were found to be at high risk for psychosomatic disorder, of whom 18 then received a medical intervention (early intervention group) and 25 did not (non-intervention group). Fifty-seven children (outpatient group) treated for psychosomatic disorder for ≤3 months were also included in the study. The Questionnaire for Triage and Assessment with 30 items (QTA30) was completed by all participants every 3 months for 1 year and scores were compared among the groups. Results: In the early intervention group, total Questionnaire for Triage and Assessment with 30 items scores; physical, depression, and anxiety symptoms; and unstable relationships with friends and teachers at school all significantly improved after 1 year compared to the first survey. None of these items improved in the non-intervention group, while the outpatient group had gradual improvement in all scores. Family function scores in the early intervention group improved over time, whereas those in the non-intervention group worsened. Conclusions: Early detection of children at high risk for psychosomatic disorder at a school health checkup and early medical intervention were useful for prevention of psychosomatic disorder in adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study investigated the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic school closures on the mental health of school students with chronic diseases. Methods: Questionnaires were distributed to students from 4th–9th grade diagnosed with chronic diseases at Osaka Medical College Hospital and their parents or caregivers. Questionnaires from 286 families were returned by mail after the schools reopened. The students were divided into the “psychosomatic disorder” group (group P, n = 42), the “developmental disorder” group (group D, n = 89), and the “other disease” group (group O, n = 155). Using students’ self-reports on the Questionnaire for Triage and Assessment with 30 items, we assessed the proportion of students with a high risk of psychosomatic disorder in three groups. We investigated how the students requiring the support of somatic symptom (SS) felt about school during school closure. Further, using parents’ and caregivers’ answers, SS scores were calculated before and during school closure and after school reopening. Results: The proportion of students with a high risk of developing psychosomatic disorder increased in all groups. For the students in Group P, the response “I did not want to think about school” indicated an increase in SS scores, and for the students in Group O, “I wanted to get back to school soon” indicated a decrease. Furthermore, especially in Group P students, SS scores decreased transiently during school closure and increased after school reopening. Conclusions: The impact of school closure on mental health differed depending on students’ diagnoses and feelings about school during school closures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ozone produces reactive oxygen species and induces the synthesis of phytohormones, including ethylene and salicylic acid. These phytohormones act as signal molecules that enhance cell death in response to ozone exposure. However, some studies have shown that ethylene and salicylic acid can instead decrease the magnitude of ozone-induced cell death. Therefore, we studied the defensive roles of ethylene and salicylic acid against ozone. Unlike the wild-type, Col-0, Arabidopsis mutants deficient in ethylene signaling ( ein2) or salicylic acid biosynthesis ( sid2) generated high levels of superoxide and exhibited visible leaf injury, indicating that ethylene and salicylic acid can reduce ozone damage. Macroarray analysis suggested that the ethylene and salicylic acid defects influenced glutathione (GSH) metabolism. Increases in the reduced form of GSH occurred in Col-0 6 h after ozone exposure, but little GSH was detected in ein2 and sid2 mutants, suggesting that GSH levels were affected by ethylene or salicylic acid signaling. We performed gene expression analysis by real-time polymerase chain reaction using genes involved in GSH metabolism. Induction of γ- glutamylcysteine synthetase ( GSH1), glutathione synthetase ( GSH2), and glutathione reductase 1 ( GR1) expression occurred normally in Col-0, but at much lower levels in ein2 and sid2. Enzymatic activities of GSH1 and GSH2 in ein2 and sid2 were significantly lower than in Col-0. Moreover, ozone-induced leaf damage observed in ein2 and sid2 was mitigated by artificial elevation of GSH content. Our results suggest that ethylene and salicylic acid protect against ozone-induced leaf injury by increasing de novo biosynthesis of GSH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

abstract we treated 15 patients with malignant bone and soft-tissue tumours of the shoulder girdle using limb salvage operations involving resection of the proximal humerus, scapula and clavicle. the oncological and functional outcomes were evaluated in all patients after an average of 5 (1-13) years. oncological evaluation revealed that in 11 patients with adequate surgical margins six were continuously disease free and two had no evidence of disease. three patients with marginal surgical margins had all died. we suggest that only where adequate surgical margins can be obtained should operations be performed. forequarter amputation is still indicated in patients with complicated neurovascular involvement. functional evaluation showed that scapular resections, especially glenoid resections, provided poor results (mean score 54%) in comparison with patients without such resection (mean score 82%). résumé nous avons traité 15 malades atteints de tumeurs malignes osseuses ou des parties molles de la ceinture scapulaire en utilisant des opérations du sauvetage du membre qui impliquent une résection de l''humérus proximal, de l''omoplate et de la clavicule. les résultats oncologiques et fonctionnels ont été évalués pour tous les malades après une moyenne de 5 (1-13) années. l''évaluation oncologique a montré que chez 11 malades avec des marges chirurgicales adéquates six étaient libre de maladie et deux sans évidences de maladie. trois malades avec une chirurgie marginale sont décédés. nous pensons que seules les opérations ou une chirurgie à marge adéquate peut être réalisée doivent être faites. l''amputation du membre supérieur est encore indiquée chez les malades avec atteinte neurovasculaire compliquée. l''évaluation fonctionnelle a montré que les résections scapulaires, surtout résections de la glène, donnaient de mauvais résultats (score moyen 54%) en comparaison de malades sans telle résection (score moyen 82%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This experimental study explored the influence of global/local flame behaviors on direct combustion noise produced by a lean-premixed gaseous H2/air low-swirl turbulent jet flame, with a focus on the mechanism resulting in characteristic peaks in combustion noise spectra. Ten kilohertz OH∗ chemiluminescence and OH planar laser-induced fluorescence (OH-PLIF) imaging were used to study the spatiotemporal evolution of heat release and flame structure fluctuations, respectively, whereas 2-D particle image velocimetry (2-D PIV) measurements at 4 Hz were applied to study the mean-based relation between the velocity/vorticity fields and flame structures. Pressure and global heat release fluctuation measurements carried out alongside these optical diagnostics revealed pronounced double peaks in both combustion noise and global heat release fluctuation spectra at global equivalence ratios of ϕ≥0.45. Spectral proper orthogonal decomposition of the OH∗ chemiluminescence and OH-PLIF images revealed that the first peak in the noise spectra to be caused by flame oscillations over nearly the entire flame region, whereas the secondary peak was attributed to periodically generated vortical flame structures near the downstream side of the flame boundary. The 2-D PIV results suggest that vortical flame structures are likely generated by the interaction between the flame and the inner/outer shear layers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]