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The β decay of 75192Re117, which lies near the boundary between the regions of predicted prolate and oblate deformations, has been investigated using the KEK Isotope Separation System (KISS) in RIKEN Nishina Center. This is the first case in which a low-energy beam of rhenium isotope has been successfully extracted from an argon gas-stopping cell using a laser-ionization technique, following production via multi-nucleon transfer between heavy ions. The ground state of 192Re has been assigned Jπ=(0−) based on the observed β feedings and deduced logft values towards the 0+ and 2+ states in 192Os, which is known as a typical γ-soft nucleus. The shape transition from axial symmetry to axial asymmetry in the Re isotopes is discussed from the viewpoint of single-particle structure using the nuclear Skyrme-Hartree-Fock model.

We experimentally investigated the nitrogenation process of heavy rare earth (Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho and Er) hydrides dynamically by thermal analysis. The onset temperature of nitrogenation and the absolute value of nitrogenation enthalpy increased as the atomic number of the heavy rare earth elements increased and the onset temperature of nitrogenation with a sharp exothermic peak exhibited a large gap between Tb (406 °C) and Dy (806 °C). The reaction route R→RHx→RN has been done at a relatively low temperature and atmospheric pressure, indicating that the diffusion coefficient of nitrogen into the rare earth hydride is much higher than that of nitrogen into the rare earth metal and/or the activation energy of RHx→RN is lower than that of R→RN. For complete nitriding, ErN requires the highest nitrogenation temperature of at most 1000 °C in N2 flow from ErHx. We obtained the magnetic entropy change ΔS of -14 J/kg K (144 kJ/m3 K, calculated by using the theoretical density of 10.3 g/cm3) at ΔH = 2 T for HoN prepared at the nitrogenation temperature of 1000 °C. This value reached the reported value, indicates that this simple synthesis route without any toxic compounds as a precursor and with normal equipment of an atmospheric furnace without high temperature and pressure can adequately exploit the ability of the rare earth nitride as a magnetic refrigerant for magnetic refrigeration.

The integer quantum Hall (QH) effects characterized by topologically quantized and nondissipative transport are caused by an electrically insulating incompressible phase that prevents backscattering between chiral metallic channels. We probed the incompressible area susceptible to the breakdown of topological protection using a scanning-gate technique incorporating nonequilibrium transport. The obtained pattern revealed the filling-factor- (ν-) dependent evolution of the microscopic incompressible structures located along the edge and in the bulk region. We found that these specific structures, respectively, attributed to the incompressible edge strip and bulk localization, show good agreement in terms of ν-dependent evolution with a calculation of the equilibrium QH incompressible phases, indicating the robustness of the QH incompressible phases under the nonequilibrium condition. Further, we found that the ν dependency of the incompressible patterns is, in turn, destroyed by a large imposed current during the deep QH effect breakdown. These results demonstrate the ability of our method to image the microscopic transport properties of a topological two-dimensional system.

The nuclear spin-lattice relaxation time T _1 of the ν = 2 quantum Hall ferromagnet (QHF) formed in a gate-controlled InSb two-dimensional electron gas has been characterized using a pump-probe technique. In contrast to a long T _1 of quantum Hall states around ν = 1 that possesses a Korringa-type temperature dependence, the temperature-independent short T _1 of the ν = 2 QHF suggests the presence of low energy collective spin excitations in a domain wall. Furthermore, T _1 of this ferromagnetic state is also found to be filling- and current-independent. The interpretation of these results as compared to the T _1 properties of other QHFs is discussed in terms of the domain wall skyrmion, which will lead to a better understanding of the QHF.

In GaAs quantum Hall (QH) systems, electrons are coupled with nuclear spins through the hyperfine interaction, which is normally not strong enough to change the dynamics of electrons and nuclear spins. The dynamics of the QH systems, however, may drastically change when the nuclear spins interact with low-energy collective excitation modes of the electron spins. We theoretically investigate the nuclear-electron spin interaction in the QH systems as hybrid quantum systems driven by the hyperfine interaction. In particular, we study the interaction between the nuclear spins and the Nambu–Goldstone (NG) mode with the linear dispersion relation associated with the U(1) spin rotational symmetry breaking. We show that such an interaction is described as nuclear spins collectively coupled to the NG mode, and can be effectively described by the Dicke model. Based on the model we suggest that various collective spin phenomena realized in quantum optical systems can also emerge in the QH systems.

A lipid transfer particle (LTP) from the hemolymph of adult male locusts, Locusta migratoria, was isolated and purified. The locust LTP exhibited its capacity to catalyze the exchange of diacylglycerol between low density lipophorin (LDLp) and high density lipophorin (HDLp). Contrary to the LTP reported for the tobacco hornworm, M. sexta, the locust LTP appeared to lack the capacity to promote net transfer of diacylglycerol to form an intermediate density lipophorin, although it seems premature to conclude the complete lack of such a capacity in locust LTP. The original concentration of LTP in hemolymph is assumed to be extremely low compared to that of lipophorin; only a catalytic amount of LTP may be present in the hemolymph (e.g., only 160 micrograms of LTP was obtained from the original hemolymph containing 400 mg protein). The molecular weight of intact LTP was estimated to be about 600,000 and the LTP was comprised of three glycosylated apoproteins, apoLTP-I (mol wt 310K), apoLTP-II (mol wt 89K), and apoLTP-III (mol wt 68K). The locust LTP contained significant amounts of lipids; the total lipid content amounted to 14.4% and the lipids were comprised of 17% hydrocarbons, 44% diacylglycerol, 8% cholesterol, 13% free fatty acid, and 18% phospholipids. The above molecular properties of locust LTP are essentially similar to those reported for M. sexta LTP.

A novel beam-bunching technique has been implemented at a heavy-ion linear accelerator facility by installing a compact two-gap prebuncher and a multilayer beam chopper. A pulsed beam of 2 to 4 MHz, having kinetic energy up to 1.1 MeV/u, is realized by bunching a 2 keV/u continuous beam just upstream of the linac. Around 40% of the continuous beam particles are successively gathered in a single microbunch with a time width of around 15 ns in full width at one-tenth maximum. The number of background beam particles over 250 ns just before the bunched beam is well suppressed to less than 10^{-4} of the number of bunched particles. This technique has been adopted to generate intense α-particle beams for nuclear astrophysics experiments.

The fundamental properties of valleys are recently attracting growing attention due to electrons in new and topical materials possessing this degree-of-freedom and recent proposals for valleytronics devices. In silicon MOSFETs, the interest has a longer history since the valley degree of freedom had been identified as a key parameter in the observation of the controversial "metallic behaviour" in two dimensions. However, while it has been recently demonstrated that lifting valley degeneracy can destroy the metallic behaviour, little is known about the role of intervalley scattering. Here, we show that the metallic behaviour can be observed in the presence of strong intervalley scattering in silicon on insulator (SOI) quantum wells. Analysis of the conductivity in terms of quantum corrections reveals that interactions are much stronger in SOI than in conventional MOSFETs, leading to the metallic behaviour despite the strong intervalley scattering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract.

Rat stomach carcinomas induced by N-methyl-N′-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) are widely used as a model for differentiated-type human stomach carcinomas. Here, we analyzed expression profiles in five MNNG-induced rat stomach carcinomas by the high-density oligonucleotide microarray containing ∼8000 probe sets. 244 and 208 genes were up- and down-regulated, respectively, by 3-fold and over in four or five carcinomas. Up-regulated genes included those involved in the extracellular matrix remodeling (i.e. Collagen types I, III, V, MMP3), immune response (i.e. lysozyme, complements) and in ossification (i.e. Osteoblast-specific factor). Genes down-regulated included those related to hydrocarbon metabolism (i.e. aldose A, aldehyde dehydrogenase), gastric juice (ion transporter genes) and mucous production (Mucin 5) and gastric hormones (gastrin and somatostatin). The expression profile of the MNNG-induced rat stomach carcinomas shared many features with human stomach carcinomas while cyclin D1 was down-regulated in rat stomach carcinomas but up-regulated in human stomach carcinomas. When the expression profile of the MNNG-induced rat stomach carcinomas was compared with those of two kinds of rat mammary carcinomas, only 13 genes were commonly altered. These results showed that MNNG-induced stomach carcinomas possessed infiltrating capacity and had lost differentiated phenotypes of the stomach, in the same way as human stomach carcinomas, and could be used as a good model for them from the viewpoint of molecular expression profile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently piglets have been produced from morulae and early blastocysts vitrified by using methods such as open pulled straw and microdroplet. However, a problem of pollution, such as contamination of embryos with pathological microorganisms from the liquid nitrogen (LN), to the embryos is possible, because embryos must be exposed directly to LN in these methods. Therefore, we designed a new device in which the embryo is vitrified on the stainless steel chip inserted into a 0.25-mL straw without direct contact with LN. To serve as a stainless steel chip, a part of the body of a 19 G needle was cut to reveal its inner surface as the loading site for embryos, and 2 to 15 embryos in a small amount of a vitrification solution were placed on the inner surface of the needle. Then the needle with the embryos was inserted into the 0.25-mL straw which was pre-cooled in LN. This study was conducted to determine the efficiency of vitrification using the new device for porcine embryos at early developmental stages. In Experiment 1, embryos at the compact morula to early blastocyst stages were collected from 7 gilts. The embryos were equilibrated in 20 mM HEPES-buffered PZM (Yoshioka et al. 2003 Biol. Reprod. 69, 2092–2099) (H-PZM) supplemented with 1.8 M ethylene glycol (EG), and then in 1.8 M EG, 0.3 M sucrose, and 2% (w/v) bovine serum albumin (BSA) for 5 min. After equilibration, the embryos were vitrified using H-PZM supplemented with 0.6 M sucrose, 2% (w/v) BSA, and 4 M, 5 M, 6 M, or 7 M EG (ESB). The vitrified embryos were thawed, diluted by directly plunging the needle of the device into H-PZM supplemented with 1.8 M EG and 0.6 M sucrose for 5 min at 38C, and subsequently cultured in PZM supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum for 48 h; fresh embryos were cultured as a control group. In Experiment 2, embryos were vitrified using 5 M EG ESB, and then 56 vitrified embryos (collected from 4 gilts) were transferred to 4 recipient gilts (12 to 15 embryos per recipient). In Experiment 1, the survival rates of vitrified embryos after 48 h of culture in 4 M, 5 M, 6 M, 7 M, and control groups were 72.7, 86.4, 90.0, 87.0, and 100% (n = 20 to 23), respectively. The 4 M group showed a significantly lower survival rate than the control group (P < 0.05; chi-square test). The expanding and hatching rates of the vitrified embryos in these groups after 48 h of culture were 68.2, 77.3, 70.0, 65.2, and 95.0%, respectively. The 7 M group had a significantly lower expanding and hatching rate than the control group (P < 0.05). In Experiment 2, 3 recipients showed estrus at 19, 29, and 44 days after their previous estrus. One recipient became pregnant and 6 normal live piglets were born. These results indicated that porcine embryos at the compact morula to early blastocyst stages can survive after vitrification using our new device, which can prevent embryos from direct exposure to LN, and that piglets can be obtained from vitrified embryos without fear of pollution from LN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective. Auto-antibodies to signal recognition particle (SRP) are known to be specific to PM among rheumatic disorders, but the specificity in myopathic diseases remains unclear. The clinical utility of anti-SRP antibody in the differential diagnosis of myopathies has not been studied. The aim of the present study was to elucidate whether detection of anti-SRP antibody can discriminate of PM from muscular dystrophy (MD). Methods. We report a patient with a childhood onset myopathy, in whom it was clinically difficult to make a differential diagnosis of PM or MD for 21 yrs, despite repeated muscle biopsies. Myositis-specific auto-antibodies to RNA-associated antigens were screened in this particular case as well as in 105 serum samples from various types of MD and 84 from PM patients using RNA immunoprecipitation. The MD and PM serum samples were obtained from different institutions. The presence of anti-SRP antibody was confirmed by RNA immunoprecipitation combined with immunodepletion of SRP from the antigen. Results. Anti-SRP antibody was positive in the present patient, supporting the diagnosis of PM. Anti-SRP antibody was detected in seven (8.3%) patients with PM, but in none of the patients with MD. Myositis-specific auto-antibodies were not detected in any of the patients with MD. Conclusion. Anti-SRP antibody is useful for discriminating PM from MD among patients with myopathies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to assess the viability of vitrified-warmed in vivo-derived pig embryos after measuring the oxygen consumption rate. Six days after artificial insemination, blastocysts were collected from gilts and vitrified by the micro volume air cooling method. The oxygen consumption rate was measured in 60 vitrified-warmed embryos, which were then cultured for 48 h to assess the viability. The survival (re-expansion) rate of embryos after warming was 85.0%. The average oxygen consumption rate of embryos immediately after warming was greater in embryos which could re-expand during subsequent culture (F = 0.75 ± 0.04) than that in those which failed to re-expand (F = 0.33 ± 0.05). Moreover, the oxygen consumption rate of vitrified-warmed embryos was greater in the hatched (F = 0.88 ± 0.06) than that in the not-hatched group (F = 0.53 ± 0.04). When the oxygen consumption rate of the vitrified-warmed embryos and the numbers of viable and dead cells in embryos were determined, there was a positive correlation between the oxygen consumption rate and the number of live cells (P < 0.01, r = 0.538). A total of 29 vitrified embryos after warming and measuring the oxygen consumption rate were surgically transferred into uterine horns of two recipients. Both of the recipients become pregnant and farrowed 12 healthy piglets. These results demonstrate that the oxygen consumption rate of vitrified-warmed pig embryos can be related to the number of live cells and that the measurement of oxygen consumption of embryos after cryopreservation may be useful for estimating embryo survivability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bayesian deep learning is one of the key frameworks employed in handling predictive uncertainty. Variational inference (VI), an extensively used inference method, derives the predictive distributions by Monte Carlo (MC) sampling. The drawback of MC sampling is its extremely high computational cost compared to that of ordinary deep learning. In contrast, the moment propagation (MP)-based approach propagates the output moments of each layer to derive predictive distributions instead of MC sampling. Because of this computational property, it is expected to realize faster inference than MC-based approaches. However, the applicability of the MP-based method in deep models has not been explored sufficiently, even though some studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of MP only in small toy models. One of the reasons is that it is difficult to train deep models by MP because of the large variance in activations. To realize MP in deep models, some normalization layers are required but have not yet been studied. In addition, it is still difficult to design well-calibrated MP-based models, because the effectiveness of MP-based methods under various variational distributions has also not been investigated. In this study, we propose a fast and reliable MP-based Bayesian deep-learning method. First, to train deep-learning models using MP, we introduce a batch normalization layer extended to random variables to prevent increases in the variance of activations. Second, to identify the appropriate variational distribution in MP, we investigate the treatment of moments of several variational distributions and evaluate their uncertainty quality of predictions. Experiments with regression tasks demonstrate that the MP-based method provides qualitatively and quantitatively equivalent predictive performance to MC-based methods regardless of variational distributions. In the classification tasks, we show that we can train MP-based deep models by extended batch normalization. We also show that the MP-based approach realizes 2.0-2.8 times faster inference than the MC-based approach while maintaining the predictive performance. The results of this study can help realize a fast and well-calibrated uncertainty estimation method that can be deployed in a wider range of reliability-aware applications.

Background: JCOG1212 is a dose-finding and efficacy confirmatory study of concurrent superselective intra-arterial infusion of cisplatin and radiotherapy (RADPLAT) for locally advanced primary squamous cell carcinoma of the maxillary sinus (cT4a,bN0M0). In this study, we report the results of the final analysis of the efficacy confirmation phase for the T4a cohort with 5-year follow-up data to evaluate the late adverse events and long-term efficacy., Methods: Based on the results of the dose-finding phase, the efficacy confirmation phase consisted of seven weekly intra-arterial infusions of cisplatin 100 mg/m 2 combined with radiotherapy (70 Gy). The 5-year prognosis and late adverse events were evaluated., Results: Between April 2014 and August 2018, 64 patients were included in the analysis (one ineligible patient was excluded); 31 patients were treated with three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) and 33 with intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). The 5-year overall survival, event-free survival, and local event-free survival was 71.9, 54.7, and 57.5%, respectively. In terms of late adverse events, grade 3 or higher non-hematologic toxicity was observed in 42.9% of 63 patients (retinopathy: 12, cataract: 10, osteonecrosis of mandible: 4, etc.). Grade 3 and 4 cataracts of affected side appeared in 22.6% (7/31) of the 3D-CRT group compared to 3.1% (1/32) in the IMRT group. Twenty-one patients had died, with 15 from the primary disease, 5 from other causes, and 1 from treatment-related cause., Conclusion: The prognosis of RADPLAT was favorable after 5-year follow-up with acceptable late adverse events and low proportion of treatment related death., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: A.H. reports grants and nonfinancial support from Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) and the National Cancer Center Research and Development Fund during the conduct of the study. Y.S. reports personal fee from MSD.K.K. Ethics approval: This study was registered with the UMIN Clinical Trials Registry under trial number UMIN000013706 and the Japan Registry of Clinical Trials (Number: jRCTs031180004), and approved by the institutional review board from each participating institution and National Cancer Center Hospital Certified Review Board (CRB3180008). Consent to participate: Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study., (© 2025. The Author(s).)

In the 2019 Guidelines for the Management of Hypertension by the Japanese Society for Hypertension, lifestyle modification is recommended for all individuals except those with normal blood pressure. However, no detailed methods have been established to achieve the target blood pressure and resolve clinical inertia. CureApp HT, a digital therapeutic for hypertension that contributes to blood pressure reduction through lifestyle modification, was approved as software as a medical device for reimbursement by Japanese national health insurance in September 2022. This study aimed to survey physicians who implemented CureApp HT to assess how it changes physician-patient communication and contributes to clinical inertia resolution. A questionnaire survey was conducted at three time points: before the first prescription (first survey), 3 months (second survey), and 6 months (third survey) after the first prescription for physicians who had implemented CureApp HT. The primary outcome was the total score of five items on a Likert scale related to physician-patient communication, and it was analyzed based on the 47 physicians who responded to all three questionnaires. The total score of physician-patient communication significantly improved after 6 months of the introduction of CureApp HT, reflecting that physicians observed positive changes in patients' knowledge and attitudes regarding hypertension treatment. Furthermore, the number of physicians who set a target home blood pressure of 125/75 mmHg for their patients significantly increased. CureApp HT allows physicians to recognize changes in patients' disease knowledge and treatment attitudes, enabling them to set more stringent blood pressure targets and addressing clinical inertia. Physicians who implemented CureApp HT recognized changes in the patients' stages of behavioral change through improvements in patients' knowledge of the disease and their attitudes towards treatment, and by experiencing more effective communication, they set stricter blood pressure targets., Competing Interests: Compliance with ethical standards. Conflict of interest: Author TK received honoraria from CureApp, Inc. FH, MA, YH, YT, YI, and TT are employees of CureApp, Inc., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background/Objectives : Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is used to treat patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and has proven clinical efficacy for this condition. However, the objective method to determine the appropriate CPAP level for treatment is still unclear. Patients with OSA typically exhibit irregular respiratory efforts due to obstruction or narrowing of the upper airway during sleep. Treatment with an adequate CPAP level alleviates airway obstruction or narrowing, leading to more regular respiratory patterns. We aimed to develop an objective CPAP titration method using the respiratory regularity index (RRI) derived from respiratory movements. Methods : We conducted daytime CPAP titration in 10 patients with OSA. Respiratory movements were recorded by inductance plethysmography in three conditions: wake, apnea, and during CPAP therapy. The RRI of respiratory movements was calculated in each condition, and the CPAP level with the lowest RRI was identified as the appropriate air pressure level in each patient. CPAP therapy at the appropriate level determined by the study method was conducted for 2 months, after which efficacy was assessed by night polysomnography in the hospital. Results : The fixed air pressure level for the CPAP device was determined as 7.8 ± 0.7 cmH 2 O based on our daytime CPAP titration method using the RRI. The apnea-hypopnea index improved significantly from before CPAP therapy (43.1 ± 15.3 h -1 ) to during CPAP therapy (3.0 ± 2.1 h -1 ) ( p < 0.006). The Epworth Sleepiness Scale score decreased significantly during CPAP therapy. The lowest percutaneous arterial oxygen saturation values in each sleep stage also improved significantly with the CPAP determined by our daytime CPAP titration method. Conclusions : The study findings showed that our daytime CPAP titration method based on the RRI is an effective method for determining individualized appropriate CPAP levels in patients with OSA. The RRI-based daytime CPAP titration method offers a simplified approach to determining the adequate CPAP level for patients with OSA.

Here, we report a smart genome editing system for soybean (Glycine max) using the in planta bombardment-ribonucleoprotein (iPB-RNP) method without introducing foreign DNA or requiring traditional tissue culture processes such as embryogenesis and organogenesis. Shoot apical meristem (SAM) of embryonic axes was used as the target tissue for genome editing because the SAM in soybean mature seeds has stem cells and specific cell layers that develop germ cells during the reproductive growth stage. In the iPB-RNP method, the RNP complex of the CRISPR/Cas9 system was directly delivered into SAM stem cells via particle bombardment, and genome-edited plants were generated from these SAMs. Soybean allergenic gene Gly m Bd 30K was targeted in this study. Many E0 (the first generation of genome-edited) plants in this experiment harbored mutant alleles at the targeted locus. Editing frequency of inducing mutations transmissible to the E1 generation was approximately 0.4% to 4.6% of all E0 plants utilized in various soybean varieties. Furthermore, simultaneous mutagenesis by iPB-RNP method was also successfully performed at other loci. Our results offer a practical approach for both plant regeneration and DNA-free genome editing achieved by delivering RNP into the SAM of dicotyledonous plants., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest statement. R.M., H.H., Y.N., and N.T. were employed by Kaneka Corporation. T.Y. receives research support from Kaneka Corporation. The remaining 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., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of American Society of Plant Biologists. All rights reserved. For commercial re-use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.)

The inhibitory activities of phaeosphaeride A (PPA), phaeosphaeride B, and four synthetic derivatives against phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) and cell proliferation in cervical (HeLa) and breast (MDA-MB-231) cancer cells were evaluated. PPA inhibited IL-6-induced STAT3 phosphorylation and cell proliferation at similar concentrations. The structure-activity relationship studies revealed that the enantiomer of PPA was the most potent of the evaluated phaeosphaerides in both inhibiting STAT3 phosphorylation and cell growth. PPA clearly inhibited the IL-6-activated STAT3 signaling pathway. However, the presence or absence of activation of the STAT3 signaling pathway in cells showed no relationship to the antiproliferative activity. Notably, the possible covalent bond-forming ability of PPA was critical for its biological activities., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Thoracoscopic sympathectomy is an effective treatment for palmar hyperhidrosis. However, compensatory hyperhidrosis occurs frequently as a postoperative complication of the procedure. The goal of this study was to elucidate the clinical significance of thoracoscopic sympathectomy using our surgical procedure., Methods: Consecutive 151 patients who underwent thoracoscopic sympathectomy for palmar hyperhidrosis were studied. In addition, to investigate patients' satisfaction and long-term quality of life, 111 patients were asked to complete a mailing questionnaire survey, and 84 responded (response rate of 75.7%)., Results: All of the 151 patients reported a reduction in palmar sweating during the immediate postoperative period. None of the patients had pneumothorax, hemothorax, Horner's syndrome, or worsening of bradycardia. Based on the questionnaire, the surgical success rate was 98.8%. None of the patients had a recurrence of palmar hyperhidrosis during the long-term postoperative period. However, compensatory hyperhidrosis was reported in 82 patients (97.6%). In total, 94.0% of patients had high levels of postoperative satisfaction., Conclusions: Thoracoscopic sympathectomy is an effective surgical treatment for palmar hyperhidrosis. By contrast, the careful preoperative explanation of compensatory hyperhidrosis is considered to be very important., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

We developed a novel supramolecular hydrogelator possessing a benzo-15-crown-5 (B15C5) moiety. The hydrogelator can detect colourless potassium cations (K + ) via easily readable gelation and colour change arising from a change in the molecular assembling ability through host-guest interactions between B15C5 and K + , which afford a B15C5/K + /B15C5 sandwich complex.

Introduction: Globally, resident doctors face challenges like long work hours, critical decision-making stress, and exposure to death and distress, prompting concern for their wellbeing. This study addresses the need for interventions to improve their working conditions, vital for enhancing quality of life, patient care and retaining a skilled workforce., Methods: Following PRISMA guidelines, a systematic literature review until 3 January 2024 explored interventions for resident Ddoctors pre- and post-COVID-19. It evaluated intervention effectiveness, metrics and feasibility, excluding studies with high bias risk., Results: The review identified diverse interventions, from mentoring to wellness resources, showing significant improvements in job satisfaction, mental health and professional growth among resident doctors. Due to methodological variations, a narrative synthesis was conducted., Conclusion: Effective interventions addressing resident doctors' challenges can notably enhance their wellbeing and job satisfaction. Scaling such interventions is vital for fostering supportive work environments, sustaining the healthcare workforce and improving patient care quality., Competing Interests: The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: All authors are employees of UHB NHS FT. JM is an Educational Supervisor of doctors in training. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Author(s).)

Background and Purpose: Hypothyroidism is a recognized late adverse event following radiotherapy for head and neck cancer (HNC). In the JCOG1008 trial, we treated patients with high-risk HNC with postoperative chemoradiotherapy. We aimed to elucidate factors associated with hypothyroidism by analyzing the JCOG1008 data., Materials and Methods: In 2012-2018, 261 patients from 28 institutions were enrolled in JCOG1008. Thyroid function tests were conducted to assess hypothyroidism, including free thyroxine (FT4) and thyroid-stimulating hormone assays. Hypothyroidism was defined as Grade 2 or higher in CTCAE v4.0. Various clinical and dosimetric parameters were analyzed. In radiotherapy, there were no dose constraints for the thyroid. Multivariable analysis was conducted on these variables to identify predictive factors for hypothyroidism., Results: The analysis included 162 patients (57 with 3D-CRT and 105 with IMRT), with a median follow-up of 4.7 years (0.3-9.3 years). Among these, 27 (16.7 %) developed hypothyroidism within 2 years after radiotherapy. In a multivariable analysis, the weekly cisplatin [OR=7.700 (CI: 1.632-36.343, p = 0.010)] and baseline FT4 [OR=0.009 (CI: <0.001-0.313, p = 0.010)] were significantly associated with hypothyroidism in the IMRT group. Regarding dosimetric characteristics, V 60Gy [OR=1.069 (CI: 0.999-1.143, p = 0.054)] was potentially associated with the development of hypothyroidism., Conclusion: The study revealed that the incidence of hypothyroidism within 2 years after postoperative chemoradiotherapy for high-risk HNC was 16.7 % based on analytical results from prospective clinical trials., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) is a progressive neurological condition, characterized by spinal cord injury secondary to degenerative changes in the spine. Misdiagnosis in primary care forms part of a complex picture leading to an average diagnostic delay of 2 years. This leads to potentially preventable and permanent disability. A lack of awareness secondary to deficits in postgraduate education may contribute to these delays., Objective: This study aims to assess the awareness of DCM in the setting of general practice., Methods: General practitioners completed a quantitative web-based cross-sectional questionnaire. The 17-item questionnaire captured data regarding demographics, subjective awareness, and objective knowledge. The questionnaire was disseminated via professional networks, including via practice managers and senior practice partners. Incentivization was provided via a bespoke DCM fact sheet for those that completed the survey., Results: A total of 54 general practitioners representing all 4 UK nations responded to the survey. General practitioners most commonly self-assessed that they had "limited awareness" of DCM (n=24, 51%). General practitioners felt most commonly "moderately able" to recognize a case of DCM (n=21, 46%). In total, 13% (n=6) of respondents reported that they would not be at all able to recognize a patient with DCM. Respondents most commonly reported that they were "moderately confident" in their ability to triage a patient with DCM (n=19, 41%). A quarter of respondents reported no prior introduction to DCM throughout their medical training (n=13, 25%). The mean score for knowledge-based questions was 42.6% (SD 3.96%) with the lowest performance observed in patient demographic and clinical recognition items., Conclusions: General practitioners lack confidence in the recognition and management of DCM. These findings are consistent with the diagnostic delays previously described in the literature at the primary care level. Further work to develop and implement educational interventions to general practitioner practices is a crucial step to improving patient outcomes in DCM., (©Remi M Rufus-Toye, Amir Rafati Fard, Oliver D Mowforth, Luke V McCarron, Kayen Chan, Yuri Hirayama, Emma K Smith, Munashe Veremu, Benjamin M Davies, Jamie F M Brannigan. Originally published in JMIR Formative Research (https://formative.jmir.org), 19.08.2024.)

Isomer spectroscopy of heavy neutron-rich nuclei beyond the N=126 closed shell has been performed for the first time at the Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory of the RIKEN Nishina Center. New millisecond isomers have been identified at low excitation energies, 985.3(19) keV in ^{213}Tl and 874(5) keV in ^{215}Tl. The measured half-lives of 1.34(5) ms in ^{213}Tl and 3.0(3) ms in ^{215}Tl suggest spins and parities 11/2^{-} with the single proton-hole configuration πh&#95;{11/2} as leading component. They are populated via E1 transitions by the decay of higher-lying isomeric states with proposed spin and parity 17/2^{+}, interpreted as arising from a single πs&#95;{1/2} proton hole coupled to the 8^{+} seniority isomer in the ^{A+1}Pb cores. The lowering of the 11/2^{-} states is ascribed to an increase of the πh&#95;{11/2} proton effective single-particle energy as the second νg&#95;{9/2} orbital is filled by neutrons, owing to a significant reduction of the proton-neutron monopole interaction between the πh&#95;{11/2} and νg&#95;{9/2} orbitals. The new ms isomers provide the first experimental observation of shell evolution in the almost unexplored N>126 nuclear region below doubly magic ^{208}Pb.

[ 123 I]β-methyl-p-iodophenyl-pentadecanoic acid ([ 123 I]BMIPP), which is used for nuclear medicine imaging of myocardial fatty acid metabolism, accumulates in cancer cells. However, the mechanism of accumulation remains unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to elucidate the accumulation and accumulation mechanism of [ 123 I]BMIPP in cancer cells. We compared the accumulation of [ 123 I]BMIPP in cancer cells with that of [ 18 F]FDG and found that [ 123 I]BMIPP was a much higher accumulation than [ 18 F]FDG. The accumulation of [ 123 I]BMIPP was evaluated in the presence of sulfosuccinimidyl oleate (SSO), a CD36 inhibitor, and lipofermata, a fatty acid transport protein (FATP) inhibitor, under low-temperature conditions and in the presence of etomoxir, a carnitine palmitoyl transferase I (CPT1) inhibitor. The results showed that [ 123 I]BMIPP accumulation was decreased in the presence of SSO and lipofermata in H441, LS180, and DLD-1 cells, suggesting that FATPs and CD36 are involved in [ 123 I]BMIPP uptake in cancer cells. [ 123 I]BMIPP accumulation in all cancer cell lines was significantly decreased at 4 °C compared to that at 37 °C and increased in the presence of etomoxir in all cancer cell lines, suggesting that the accumulation of [ 123 I]BMIPP in cancer cells is metabolically dependent. In a biological distribution study conducted using tumor-bearing mice transplanted with LS180 cells, [ 123 I]BMIPP highly accumulated in not only LS180 cells but also normal tissues and organs (including blood and muscle). The tumor-to-intestine or large intestine ratios of [ 123 I]BMIPP were similar to those of [ 18 F]FDG, and the tumor-to-large-intestine ratios exceeded 1.0 during 30 min after [ 123 I]BMIPP administration in the in vivo study. [ 123 I]BMIPP is taken up by cancer cells via CD36 and FATP and incorporated into mitochondria via CPT1. Therefore, [ 123 I]BMIPP may be useful for imaging cancers with activated fatty acid metabolism, such as colon cancer. However, the development of novel imaging radiotracers based on the chemical structure analog of [ 123 I]BMIPP is needed.

Dust generated in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals and cosmetics affects worker health and safety and may contaminate the work environment. However, production efficiency is declining due to longer feeding times, and new dust control measures are necessary to ensure worker safety and improve production efficiency. In this paper, we propose a dust collection system that uses a bladeless fan to generate an air current, which promotes the adsorption of powders and particles onto the liquid surface while effectively collecting scattered dust. The effectiveness of the proposed system is demonstrated through powder feeding experiments.

Hemolysis-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) is attributed to heme-mediated proximal tubule epithelial cell (PTEC) injury and tubular cast formation due to intratubular protein condensation. Megalin is a multiligand endocytic receptor for proteins, peptides, and drugs in PTECs and mediates the uptake of free hemoglobin and the heme-scavenging protein α 1 -microglobulin. However, understanding of how megalin is involved in the development of hemolysis-induced AKI remains elusive. Here, we investigated the megalin-related pathogenesis of hemolysis-induced AKI and a therapeutic strategy using cilastatin, a megalin blocker. A phenylhydrazine-induced hemolysis model developed in kidney-specific mosaic megalin knockout (MegKO) mice confirmed megalin-dependent PTEC injury revealed by the co-expression of kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1). In the hemolysis model in kidney-specific conditional MegKO mice, the uptake of hemoglobin and α 1 -microglobulin as well as KIM-1 expression in PTECs was suppressed, but tubular cast formation was augmented, likely due to the nonselective inhibition of protein reabsorption in PTECs. Quartz crystal microbalance analysis revealed that cilastatin suppressed the binding of megalin with hemoglobin and α 1 -microglobulin. Cilastatin also inhibited the specific uptake of fluorescent hemoglobin by megalin-expressing rat yolk sac tumor-derived L2 cells. In a mouse model of hemolysis-induced AKI, repeated cilastatin administration suppressed PTEC injury by inhibiting the uptake of hemoglobin and α 1 -microglobulin and also prevented cast formation. Hemopexin, another heme-scavenging protein, was also found to be a novel ligand of megalin, and its binding to megalin and uptake by PTECs in the hemolysis model were suppressed by cilastatin. Mass spectrometry-based semiquantitative analysis of urinary proteins in cilastatin-treated C57BL/6J mice indicated that cilastatin suppressed the reabsorption of a limited number of megalin ligands in PTECs, including α 1 -microglobulin and hemopexin. Collectively, cilastatin-mediated selective megalin blockade is an effective therapeutic strategy to prevent both heme-mediated PTEC injury and cast formation in hemolysis-induced AKI. © 2024 The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland., (© 2024 The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland.)

L-type amino acid transporter 1 (LAT1) is specifically expressed in many malignancies, contributes to the transport of essential amino acids, such as leucine, and regulates the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway. We investigated the expression profile and functional role of LAT1 in prostate cancer using JPH203, a specific inhibitor of LAT1. LAT1 was highly expressed in castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) cells, including C4-2 and PC-3 cells, but its expression level was low in castration-sensitive LNCaP cells. JPH203 significantly inhibited [ 14 C] leucine uptake in CRPC cells but had no effect in LNCaP cells. JPH203 inhibited the proliferation, migration, and invasion of CRPC cells but not of LNCaP cells. In C4-2 cells, Cluster of differentiation (CD) 24 was identified by RNA sequencing as a novel downstream target of JPH203. CD24 was downregulated in a JPH203 concentration-dependent manner and suppressed activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Furthermore, an in vivo study showed that JPH203 inhibited the proliferation of C4-2 cells in a castration environment. The results of this study indicate that JPH203 may exert its antitumor effect in CRPC cells via mTOR and CD24., (© 2024 The Authors. Cancer Science published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Japanese Cancer Association.)

This study aimed to investigate the effects of focal brain cooling (FBC) on spreading depolarization (SD), which is associated with several neurological disorders. Although it has been studied from various aspects, no medication has been developed that can effectively control SD. As FBC can reduce neuronal damage and promote functional recovery in pathological conditions such as epilepsy, cerebral ischemia, and traumatic brain injury, it may also potentially suppress the onset and progression of SD. We created an experimental rat model of SD by administering 1 M potassium chloride (KCl) to the cortical surface. Changes in neuronal and vascular modalities were evaluated using multimodal recording, which simultaneously recorded brain temperature (BrT), wide range electrocorticogram, and two-dimensional cerebral blood flow. The rats were divided into two groups (cooling [CL] and non-cooling [NC]). Warm or cold saline was perfused on the surface of one hemisphere to maintain BrT at 37°C or 15°C in the NC and CL groups, respectively. Western blot analysis was performed to determine the effects of FBC on endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expression. In the NC group, KCl administration triggered repetitive SDs (mean frequency = 11.57/h). In the CL group, FBC increased the duration of all KCl-induced events and gradually reduced their frequency. Additionally, eNOS expression decreased in the cooled brain regions compared to the non-cooled contralateral hemisphere. The results obtained by multimodal recording suggest that FBC suppresses SD and decreases eNOS expression. This study may contribute to developing new treatments for SD and related neurological disorders., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest., (© 2024 The Authors.)

A sublethal ischemic episode [termed preconditioning (PC)] protects neurons in the brain against a subsequent severe ischemic injury. This phenomenon is known as brain ischemic tolerance and has received much attention from researchers because of its robust neuroprotective effects. We have previously reported that PC activates astrocytes and subsequently upregulates P2X7 receptors, thereby leading to ischemic tolerance. However, the downstream signals of P2X7 receptors that are responsible for PC-induced ischemic tolerance remain unknown. Here, we show that PC-induced P2X7 receptor-mediated lactate release from astrocytes has an indispensable role in this event. Using a transient focal cerebral ischemia model caused by middle cerebral artery occlusion, extracellular lactate levels during severe ischemia were significantly increased in mice who experienced PC; this increase was dependent on P2X7 receptors. In addition, the intracerebroventricular injection of lactate protected against cerebral ischemic injury. In in vitro experiments, although stimulation of astrocytes with the P2X7 receptor agonist BzATP had no effect on the protein levels of monocarboxylate transporter (MCT) 1 and MCT4 (which are responsible for lactate release from astrocytes), BzATP induced the plasma membrane translocation of these MCTs via their chaperone CD147. Importantly, CD147 was increased in activated astrocytes after PC, and CD147-blocking antibody abolished the PC-induced facilitation of astrocytic lactate release and ischemic tolerance. Taken together, our findings suggest that astrocytes induce ischemic tolerance via P2X7 receptor-mediated lactate release., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interests., (Copyright © 2024 Hirayama et al.)

Long-term phosphorus (P) fertilization results in P accumulation in agricultural soil and increases the risk of P leaching into water bodies. However, evaluating P leaching into groundwater is challenging, especially in clay soil with a high P sorption capacity. This study examined whether the combination of PO 4 oxygen isotope (δ 18 O PO4 ) analysis and the P saturation ratio (PSR) was useful to identify P enrichment mechanisms in groundwater. We investigated the groundwater and possible P sources in Kubi, western Japan, with intensive citrus cultivation. Shallow groundwater had oxic conditions with high PO 4 concentrations, and orchard soil P accumulation was high compared with forest soil. Although the soil had a high P sorption capacity, the PSR was above the threshold, indicating a high risk of P leaching from the surface orchard soil. The shallow groundwater δ 18 O PO4 values were higher than the expected isotopic equilibrium with pyrophosphatase. The high PSR and δ 18 O PO4 orchard soil values indicated that P leaching from orchard soil was the major P enrichment mechanism. The Bayesian mixing model estimated that 76.6% of the P supplied from the orchard soil was recycled by microorganisms. This demonstrates the utility of δ 18 O PO4 and the PSR to evaluate the P source and biological recycling in groundwater.

Objectives: Several animal disease models have been used to understand the mechanisms of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); however, the translation of findings from animals to humans has not been sufficiently examined in drug development. To confirm the validity of New Zealand black x New Zealand white (NZB/W) F1 mice as an SLE model, we extensively characterized SLE patients and NZB/W F1 mice by omics analysis., Methods: Peripheral blood from patients and mice and spleen and lymph node tissue from mice were analysed using cell subset analysis, cytokine panel assays, and transcriptome analysis., Results: CD4+ effector memory T cells, plasmablasts, and plasma cells were increased in both SLE patients and NZB/W F1 mice. Levels of tumor necrosis factor-α, interferon gamma induced protein-10, and B cell activating factor in plasma were significantly higher in SLE patients and NZB/W F1 mice than in their corresponding controls. Transcriptome analysis revealed an upregulation of genes involved in the interferon signalling pathway and T-cell exhaustion signalling pathway in both SLE patients and the mouse model. In contrast, death receptor signalling genes showed changes in the opposite direction between patients and mice., Conclusion: NZB/W F1 mice are a generally suitable model of SLE for analysing the pathophysiology and treatment response of T/B cells and monocytes/macrophages and their secreted cytokines., (© Japan College of Rheumatology 2023. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Purpose: To compared the vessel density (VD) around the optic nerve head (ONH) in eyes with cone-rod dystrophy (CORD) and healthy control eyes in a sector-wise manner and to investigate the relationship between VD around the ONH and visual function in CORD eyes., Methods: Twenty-six eyes in 14 CORD patients and 25 eyes in 25 healthy control subjects were examined. Using OCT angiography images, the VDs in the superficial and deep capillary plexus at the macula (sVDm and dVDm) and those around the ONH in the superior, temporal, inferior and nasal region (VDnh&#95;s, VDnh&#95;t, VDnh&#95;i, and VDnh&#95;n, respectively) were measured for each eye. Patient age, visual acuity (VA) and VDs were then compared between two groups. Moreover, the relationships between VA and the VDs were analyzed using a linear mixed model and AICc model selection., Results: No significant difference in age was seen between the CORD and control groups (p = 0.87, Wilcoxon rank sum test), but the VA was significantly lower in the CORD group (p<0.0001). Both sVDm and dVDm were significantly lower in the CORD eyes than in the control eyes (both p<0.0001). Among VDnh&#95;s, VDnh&#95;t, VDnh&#95;i, and VDnh&#95;n, however, only VDnh&#95;t differed significantly between the CORD and control groups (p = 0.035). Among age, VDnh&#95;t, dVDm, and sVDm, the optimal model for VA included only VDnh&#95;t and dVDm., Conclusions: In addition to the VD in the deep capillary plexus at the macula, the measurement of temporal VD around the ONH might be useful for predicting visual function in eyes with CORD., Competing Interests: The authors have no competing interests., (Copyright: © 2024 Shinozuka et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (IMT) is a rare tumor composed of myofibroblasts with inflammatory blood cell infiltration. It commonly occurs in the lungs and rarely in the esophagus. We herein report a valuable case of IMT originating in the esophagus. A 60-year-old Japanese woman with dysphagia had a large subepithelial lesion in the cervical esophagus, which was 15 cm in length. Surgical resection was performed to confirm the pathological diagnosis and improve the symptoms. The postoperative diagnosis was IMT composed of multiple nodules. There was no recurrence or metastasis within one year after surgery.