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AbstractObjectivePrevention and improvement of hypertension is one of the most important health issues worldwide. The traditional Japanese diet contributes to the prevention of some non-communicable diseases associated with hypertension. However, whether traditional Japanese dietary patterns are associated with hypertension prevalence and systolic blood pressure (SBP) worldwide remains unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether the traditional Japanese diet score (TJDS) is associated with hypertension prevalence and SBP.MethodsThis cross-sectional and longitudinal ecological study from 2009 to 2019 included 141 countries with a population of at least 1 million. All data used for analysis were obtained from internationally available databases. The TJDS was calculated using country-specific supplies of five foods commonly eaten in the traditional Japanese diet (rice, fish, soybean, vegetables, and egg) and three less commonly eaten foods (wheat, milk, and red meat). Hypertension was defined by SBP ≥140 mmHg, diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mmHg, or use of antihypertensive medications. The mean SBP was >25 age-standardized data. A general linear model was used for the cross-sectional model in 2009, and a linear mixed model was used for the longitudinal analysis from 2009 to 2019. The covariates included gross domestic product, percentage of population aged >65 years, years of education, smoking rate, average body mass index, physical activity, and energy supply.ResultsThe TJDS was negatively associated with hypertension prevalence (β ± standard error: −0.861 ± 0.202, p < 0.001) and SBP (β ± standard error: −0.364 ± 0.154, p < 0.05) in the cross-sectional analysis. The TJDS was significantly negatively associated with hypertension prevalence (β ± standard error: −0.845 ± 0.200, p < 0.001) and SBP (β ± standard error: −0.312 ± 0.149, p < 0.05) in the 10-year longitudinal analysis controlled for full covariables.ConclusionsTraditional Japanese dietary patterns are associated with lower hypertension prevalence and SBP worldwide.

Background This study’s aim was to show the feasibility and safety of robotic liver resection (RLR) even without extensive experience in major laparoscopic liver resection (LLR).Methods A single center, retrospective analysis was performed for consecutive liver resections for solid liver tumors from 2014 to 2022.Results The analysis included 226 liver resections, comprising 127 (56.2%) open surgeries, 28 (12.4%) LLR, and 71 (31.4%) RLR. The rate of RLR increased and that of LLR decreased over time. In a comparison between propensity score matching-selected open liver resection and RLR (41:41), RLR had significantly less blood loss (384 ± 413 vs 649 ± 646 mL, P= .030) and shorter hospital stay (4.4 ± 3.0 vs 6.4 ± 3.7 days, P= .010), as well as comparable operative time (289 ± 123 vs 290 ± 132 mins, P= .954). A comparison between LLR and RLR showed comparable perioperative outcomes, even with more surgeries with higher difficulty score included in RLR (5.2 ± 2.7 vs 4.3 ± 2.5, P= .147). The analysis of the learning curve in RLR demonstrated that blood loss, conversion rate, and complication rate consistently improved over time, with the case number required to achieve the learning curve appearing to be 60 cases.Conclusions The findings suggest that RLR is a feasible, safe, and acceptable platform for liver resection, and that the safe implementation and dissemination of RLR can be achieved without solid experience of LLR.

The Ion Endoluminal Platform (ION) (IEPI Intuitive, Sunnyvale, CA), a minimally invasive robotic-assisted bronchoscopy platform, was recently US Food and Drug Administration approved for the performance of fine needle aspirations (FNAs) and biopsies of peripheral lung lesions. Rapid on-site intraoperative diagnosis (IOD) of FNAs and/or frozen section of biopsies help surgeons confirm adequate sampling of the targeted lesion and allow definitive treatment in selected cases.

To avoid complete elimination of hen eggs (HE) from diet, we introduced a very-low-dose (VLD) oral food challenge (OFC) in patients with severe HE allergy in 2019. Herein, we investigated the efficacy of VLD HE OFC for achieving the full dose OFC.

Introduction:Focal autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) without elevated serum IgG4 levels presents a diagnostic challenge compared to pancreatic tumors, often leading to surgical intervention. Case Presentation:We report a case of serum IgG4-negative focal AIP type 1 in a 52-year-old male. Despite repeated endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration (EUS-FNA) and fine-needle biopsy (FNB), preoperative diagnosis was elusive. Initially, a 30-mm hypoechoic mass in the pancreatic head was detected by ultrasonography, with dynamic computed tomography revealing well-defined borders and homogeneous delayed enhancement. Serum IgG4 levels were within the normal range (115 mg/dL). Two EUS-FNAs and one EUS-FNB failed to provide a definitive diagnosis, leading to suspicion of a solid pseudopapillary neoplasm and subsequent pancreaticoduodenectomy. Postoperative histopathology confirmed focal AIP type 1 with IgG4-positive plasma cells. After 38 months, there is no recurrence, and serum IgG4 levels remain normal. Conclusion:Diagnosis of focal AIP, particularly when serum IgG4 is negative, warrants consideration despite its difficulty. Imaging findings, such as a well-defined mass with homogeneous delayed enhancement, should prompt evaluation for characteristic features like capsule-like rim, pancreatic duct penetration, and biliary tract wall thickening.

This paper evaluates the harmonic current caused by a pulse width modulation (PWM) inverter and how it affects the efficiency of a novel axial-flux permanent-magnet machine using a ferrite permanent magnet (AF-FePM) in traction applications. First, differences between the finite element analysis (FEA) and experimental results are discussed using a prototype of the proposed AF-FePM. Second, the AF-FePM is compared with a commercially available radial-flux permanent-magnet machine using a Nd-sintered magnet (RF-NdPM). For both machines, the efficiency and loss are calculated using FEA when applying the sinusoidal and harmonic currents. Additionally, we present the superior efficiency of the AF-FePM under the PWM harmonic current during a WLTC driving cycle because the designed model employs the ferrite magnet and a round copper wire, unlike the RF-NdPM. Finally, motor and inverter losses at different switching frequencies are also evaluated. This paper eventually shows that the proposed AF-FePM would be one of the suitable candidates to enhance high efficiency under PWM harmonic current condition based on comprehensive discussion.

We present long-range strain measurements using phase-noise-compensated optical frequency domain reflectometry (PNC-OFDR) over 1.5 km with a strain range of 1000 μϵ. In conventional OFDR, the observed Rayleigh scattering spectral correlation cannot be maintained over the coherence length of the laser. The use of PNC-OFDR extends this correlation distance by a factor of 100 or more, confirming high Rayleigh correlation over the entire 1.5 km section. As a result, we achieved strain measurements of up to 1000 μϵ at the end of the fiber under test (FUT), with a spatial resolution of 10 cm. In addition, we develop a scheme to observe fast dynamic strain by decomposing the Rayleigh scattering spectrum into sub-bands. Thanks to a newly proposed statistical processing technique, such a scheme eliminates the need for prior measurement of the reference spectrum in a stationary state. With our scheme, we observed dynamic strain up to 200 Hz at a measurement distance over 200 m. Such a result greatly surpasses the conventional dynamic strain measurement by OFDR.

Domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) are commonly kept as pets or bred for laboratory investigation, meat, fur production, or a combination of these purposes. We conducted a retrospective study to assess the prevalence of diseases in domestic rabbits according to purpose. We retrieved results of autopsies, biopsies, and cytologies from 2,583 cases received at 4 diagnostic laboratories in California from 2013–2022. Rabbits were classified as pets (2,241; 86.8%), laboratory animals (92; 3.6%), meat-production animals (60; 2.3%), or multipurpose animals (190; 7.4%). A final diagnosis was reached in 2,360 (91.4%) cases and was classified by system, etiology, and type of process. Pet rabbits had the highest median age (5.9 y; vs. 3 y, 0.67 y, and 0.25 y in meat, multipurpose, and laboratory rabbits, respectively), and most of the neoplasms were diagnosed in this group (872 of the total 896 neoplasms in the study; 97.3%), with tumors of the skin, female reproductive tract, and hematolymphoid system being the most common. Laboratory rabbits had a high prevalence of infectious enterotyphlocolitis (40 of 92; 43.4%), and ~45% of those cases were due to opportunistic colibacillosis. Infectious and parasitic pneumonias were common in meat rabbits (18 of 60; 30%); pneumonic pasteurellosis accounted for >60% of those cases. Infectious cholangiohepatitides were common in multipurpose rabbits (61 of 110; 55.5%), with rabbit hemorrhagic disease representing the most common etiology (82.4% of those cases). Our results demonstrate that purpose of use can predict prevalence of disease in rabbits submitted to diagnostic laboratories.

Clostridium spiroformehas been associated with spontaneous and antibiotic-associated enteric disease (C. spiroforme–associated enteric disease, CSAED) in rabbits, which is clinically characterized by anorexia, diarrhea, or sudden death. Diagnosis is usually based on gross and microscopic lesions, coupled with finding the characteristic coiled bacteria in intestinal smears. Isolation of C. spiroformeis often challenging, and a PCR protocol has been developed. We reviewed 32 cases of CSAED submitted for autopsy to the Davis, Tulare, and Turlock laboratories of CAHFS between 1992 and 2019. The reported gross findings were soiling of the perineum, tail, and/or hind legs with diarrhea (16 of 32); gastric (16 of 32), small intestinal (6 of 32), cecal (15 of 32), and/or colonic (4 of 32) distention with brown-to-green, watery content; and serosal hemorrhages in the cecum (15 of 32). The most common microscopic finding was necrotizing enteritis (19 of 32), followed by cecal mucosal or submucosal edema (8 of 32), necrotizing or pleocellular typhlitis (6 of 32), necrotizing or heterophilic typhlocolitis (6 of 32), and cecal transmural hemorrhages (5 of 32). In all 32 rabbits, typical helically coiled, gram-positive bacilli were observed in fecal or intestinal smears. C. spiroformewas isolated from the intestinal content of 2 of 24 rabbits and detected by PCR assay in 8 of 8 rabbits.

Quasi-Monte Carlo (QMC) methods have been gaining popularity in computational finance as they are competitive alternatives to Monte Carlo methods that can accelerate numerical accuracy. This paper develops a new approach for reducing the effective dimension combined with a randomized QMC method. A distinctive feature of the proposed approach is its sample-based transformation that enables us to choose a flexible manipulation via regression. In the proposed approach, the first step is to perform a regression using the samples to estimate the parameters of the regression model. An optimal transformation is proposed based on the regression result to minimize the effective dimension. An advantage of this approach is that adopting a statistical approach allows greater flexibility in selecting the regression model. In addition to a linear model, this paper proposes a dimension reduction method based on a linear-quadratic model for regression. In numerical experiments, we focus on pricing different types of exotic options to test the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The numerical results show that different regression models are chosen depending on the underlying risk process and the type of derivative securities. In particular, we show several examples where the proposed method works while existing dimension reductions are ineffective. • We propose a sample-based transformation algorithm based on a regression. • The proposed scheme approximates the payoff of a financial option as a linear-quadratic function. • It can reduce the estimator's variance with a randomized QMC via dimension reduction. • The proposed scheme is particularly effective in pricing complex options. • We also show the effectiveness of ridge regression in the scheme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Addressing gender inequities could be key to the elimination of vertical transmission of HIV. Women experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) might be at an increased risk of vertical transmission due to their vulnerability to HIV acquisition and barriers to access to and retention in care. Sub-Saharan Africa, where IPV burden is among the highest globally, accounts for most new paediatric HIV infections. We aimed to examine the proportion of excess vertical transmission attributable to IPV in this region.

The spatial distribution and electronic properties of the frontier molecular orbitals (FMOs) in a thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) molecule contribute significantly to the TADF properties, and thus, a detailed understanding and sophisticated control of the FMOs are fundamental to the design of TADF molecules. However, for multiple-resonance (MR)-TADF molecules that achieve spatial separation of FMOs by the MR effect, the distinctive distribution of these molecular orbitals poses significant challenges for conventional computational analysis and ensemble averaging methods to elucidate the FMOs’ separation and the precise mechanism of luminescence. Therefore, the visualization and analysis of electronic states with the specific energy level of a single MR-TADF molecule will provide a deeper understanding of the TADF mechanism. Here, scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS) was used to investigate the electronic states of the DABNA-1 molecule at the atomic scale. FMOs’ visualization and local density of states analysis of the DABNA-1 molecule clearly show that MR-TADF molecules also have well-separated FMOs according to the internal heteroatom arrangement, providing insights that complement existing theoretical prediction methods.

Recent trials show 5-year survival rates >95% for ETV6::RUNX1Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). Since treatment has many side effects, an overview of cumulative drug doses and intensities between eight international trials is presented to characterize therapy needed for cure. A meta-analysis was performed as a comprehensive summary of survival outcomes at 5 and 10 years. For drug dose comparison in non-high risk trial arms, risk group distribution was applied to split the trials into two groups: trial group A with ~70% (range: 63.5–75%) of patients in low risk (LR) (CCLSG ALL2004, CoALL 07-03, NOPHO ALL2008, UKALL2003) and trial group B with ~45% (range: 38.7–52.7%) in LR (AIEOP-BFM ALL 2000, ALL-IC BFM ALL 2002, DCOG ALL10, JACLS ALL-02). Meta-analysis did not show evidence of heterogeneity between studies in trial group A LR and medium risk (MR) despite differences in treatment intensity. Statistical heterogeneity was present in trial group B LR and MR. Trials using higher cumulative dose and intensity of asparaginase and pulses of glucocorticoids and vincristine showed better 5-year event-free survival but similar overall survival. Based on similar outcomes between trials despite differences in therapy intensity, future trials should investigate, to what extent de-escalation is feasible for ETV6::RUNX1ALL.

In the face of the dominant constructivist approach in contemporary learning theories, the naturalization of learning should be identified at a more fundamental level than its mere reduction to a biological phenomenon. It should be identified in the pervasive tendency to dispense with the experience the learners make about their own knowing. The trouble in the naturalization of learning can more clearly be realized by the concept of “space of nature/ reason.” The learning process includes bridging between both spaces; such bridging remains disregarded by reducing the learning to the event solely played in the space of nature. Following Buck’s argumentation, we can recognize an experience of a twofold leap from “nature” to “reason” in the procedural structure of learning. The limits of naturalization of learning are demarcated by the genuine condition of learning as experience.

We succeeded in developing an IGZO process with extremely high tolerance to hot carrier degradation. We verified the tolerance to hot carrier degradation by device evaluation using extremely severe DC stress. And we actually fabricated displays and confirmed that they can be displayed successfully. This high tolerance to hot carrier deterioration not only makes it possible to meet the needs for higher resolution and higher speed driving of liquid crystal displays, but also allows for higher speed rewriting of e‐Papers.

We are developing transflective LCD displays for signage that have good outdoor visibility and super‐low power consumption. This panel adopts a design that incorporates our technologies such as TFT, twisted‐VA technology, and MRS structure that can be driven at super‐low frequencies using IGZO technology. We would like to report that we have developed a 54.5‐inch transflective LCD.

Accurate blood pressure measurement is the key procedure for the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. In-office and out-of-office blood pressure measurements both have advantages and weak points, and multifaceted blood pressure information in individuals should be appropriately obtained and assessed. Validation of blood pressure measurement devices has long been an important issue, and several consortiums have emerged to try address it. Clinical guidelines should meet the demands of the region in which they are applied, and out-of-office measurements have been widely stated and recommended in the recently published guidelines worldwide. Appropriate assessment of blood pressure should be performed routinely in order to provide timely and accurate evidence regarding hypertension under any situation, including an unexpected pandemic.

Anaerobic digestion (AD) technology is a viable solution to the challenges attributed to sewage sludge, but its specific impact on biogas production and the dynamics of methanogenic bacteria has not been widely understood. This research investigated the effects of shifts in AD operational temperatures on microbial communities and biogas production. This was achieved by incrementally raising the temperature from 37 °C to 45 °C in 2 °C increments. Within the temperature range of 37 – 41 °C, there was a notable disturbance in the abundance of acetogenic bacteria and methanogens, leading to a considerable reduction in methane production. However, with further elevation of temperature, the increasing activity of acetogens and methanogens was discerned following the increase in methane production. Methanothrixwas identified as the predominant methanogen in the present study, marking the domination of the acetoclastic pathway. In functional analysis, the acetate decarboxylation enzymes demonstrated resilience at 43 °C and 45 °C, in contrast to hydrogenotrophic pathway enzymes. The acetoclastic pathway played a primary role in methane production under temperature shift conditions while the hydrogenotrophic pathway was more susceptible to temperature fluctuations. The findings highlight the potential adaptation of microbial communities when subjected to changing temperatures which led to robustness of digestion in AD processes.

5,5′,6,6′,7,7′,8,8′-Octahydro-1,1′-bi-2-naphthol (hbNaph) is an axially chiral molecule consisting of a smaller π-electronic system than that for 1,1′-bi-2-naphthol (BINOL). The absorption and circular dichroism (CD) bands of hbNaph appear in a shorter wavelength region below 310 nm, compared to those of BINOL, and its fluorescence is in the invisible UV region. However, increasing the concentration of hbNaph in solution up to 0.1 M results in its absorption edge gradually extending to longer wavelength, with a shoulder around 330 nm, and finally increasing to about 450 nm. At the same time, blue fluorescence is clearly observed, as well as a new CD band with the sign of the Cotton signals reversed from those obtained for dilute solutions. These results suggest that, at high concentrations, hbNaph forms chiral aggregates, in which π-electrons are delocalized over multiple molecules. To further understand how molecular axial chirality is transformed to supramolecular chirality, we attempted to construct aggregate models by simulating CD spectra using a time-dependent density functional theory. The only reasonable model obtained was that involving the counterclockwise R-enantiomer forming a clockwise helix, while the clockwise S-enantiomer forms a counterclockwise helix. We conclude, however, that, for such helixes, the most plausible model is densely packed and forms when the dihedral angle between the two phenol rings of hbNaph is acute, at around 75°, which reproduces the aggregate-induced CD sign inversion.

AbstractIn the study of safety enhancements on advanced sodium-cooled fast reactors (SFRs) by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), it has been essential to clarify the thermal hydraulics under various operating conditions at high and low flow rate conditions in a fuel assembly (FA) with wire-wrapped fuel pins to assess the structural integrity of the fuel pin that achieves a high-performance core with high burnup ratio and high power density. A finite element thermal-hydraulic analysis code named SPIRAL has been developed by JAEA to analyze the detailed thermal-hydraulic phenomena in the FA of a SFR.In this study, numerical simulations of 37-pin bundle sodium experiments at different Reynolds (Re) number conditions, including a transitional condition between laminar and turbulent flows and turbulent flow conditions, were performed to validate the developed hybrid k-ε/kθ-εθturbulence model equipped in SPIRAL to consider the low Re number effect near the wall in the flow and temperature fields. The temperature distributions predicted by SPIRAL were consistent with those measured in the sodium experiments at the Re number conditions. Through the validation study, the applicability of the hybrid turbulence model in SPIRAL to the thermal-hydraulic evaluation of sodium-cooled FAs in a wide range of Re numbers was confirmed.

ABSTRACTLeaf herbivory potentially affects carbon (C) and nutrient cycling in forest ecosystems. It is especially critical to study the leaf herbivory rates in mangroves to understand the pattern of resource changes from the detrital pathway to the grazing pathway. However, determinants of leaf herbivory rates in mangroves are poorly understood. We examined the differences in leaf herbivory rates among leaf phenotypes (sun or shade leaves), leaf ages (young or old leaves), and season (summer or winter) and investigated the relationships between the leaf herbivory rates and 12 leaf traits (including chemical, physiological, and physical/mechanical traits) in each of six communities from the seaward fringe to the inland of subtropical mangroves on Iriomote Island, southern Japan. The herbivory rates decreased from seaward to landward mangrove species, excluding one species in the landward mangroves. The herbivory rates also decreased as the concentration of condensed tannins or the tannins:nitrogen ratio increased but did not correlate with the other leaf traits. Overall, season, leaf phenotype, and leaf age had no effect on the herbivory rate. However, in the two seaward and one rhizophoraceous species, the herbivory rates were higher in summer than in winter and were affected by the leaf phenotypes. The concentration of leaf condensed tannins moderately influenced leaf herbivory, fluctuating from seaward to landward; therefore, it was one of the factors driving the grazing pathway in mangroves. Understanding these mechanisms is critical for a comprehensive appreciation of the high productivity of and nutrient cycling in mangrove forest ecosystems.

The Barndorff–Nielsen and Shephard (BNS) model is a representative jump-type stochastic volatility model. Still, no method exists to compute option prices numerically for the non-martingale case with infinite active jumps. In this paper, selecting the minimal martingale measure (MMM) as a representative martingale measure, we develop two simulation methods for the BNS model under the MMM. The first method simulates the asset price at maturity and the Radon–Nikodym density of the MMM separately. On the other hand, the second method directly computes the asset price distribution under the MMM. In addition, we implement some numerical experiments to evaluate the performance of our simulation methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We successfully measured the trigonometric parallax of Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) to be 117 ± 17 micro-arcseconds ($\, \mu \mbox{as}$) using the VLBI Exploration of Radio Astrometry (VERA) with the newly developed broad-band signal-processing system named “OCTAVE-DAS.” The measured parallax corresponds to a Galactocentric distance at the Sun of $R_0 = 8.5^{+1.5}_{-1.1}\:$kpc. By combining the astrometric results with VERA and the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) over a monitoring period of 25 yr, the proper motion of Sgr A* is obtained to be (μα, μδ) = (−3.133 ± 0.003, −5.575 ± 0.005) mas yr−1in equatorial coordinates, corresponding to (μl, μb) = (−6.391 ± 0.005, −0.230 ± 0.004) mas yr−1in Galactic coordinates. This gives an angular orbital velocity of the Sun of Ω⊙= 30.30 ± 0.02 km s−1kpc−1. We find upper limits to the core wander, Δθ < 0.20 mas (1.6 au), peculiar motion, Δμ < 0.10 mas yr−1(3.7 km s−1), and acceleration, a< 2.6 $\, \mu \mbox{as} \:$yr−2(0.10 km s−1yr−1) for Sgr A*. Thus, we obtained upper mass limits of $\approx 3 \times 10^{4}\, M_{\odot }$and $\approx 3 \times 10^{3}\, M_{\odot }$for the supposed intermediate-mass black holes at 0.1 and 0.01 pc from the Galactic center, respectively.

The precise details of atrial activation around the triangle of Koch (ToK) remain unknown. We evaluated the relationship between the atrial‐activation pattern around the ToK and success sites for slow‐pathway (SP) modification ablation in slow‐fast atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT). Thirty patients with slow‐fast AVNRT who underwent successful ablation were enrolled. Atrial activation around the ToK during sinus rhythm was investigated using ultra‐high‐density mapping pre‐ablation. The relationships among features of atrial‐activation pattern and success sites were examined. Of 30 patients (22 cryoablation; 8 radiofrequency ablation), 26 patients had a collision site of two wavefronts of delayed atrial activation within ToK, indicating a success site. The activation‐search function of Lumipoint software, which highlights only atrial activation with a spatiotemporal consistency, showed non‐highlighted area on the tricuspid‐annulus side of ToK. In 23 of the patients, a spiky potential was recorded at that collision site outside the Lumipoint‐highlighted area. Fifteen cryoablation patients with a success site coincident with a collision site outside the Lumipoint‐highlighted area had significantly more frequent disappearances of SP after initial cryoablation (46.7% vs. 0%, p= .029), fewer cryoablations (3.7 ± 1.8 vs. 5.3 ± 1.3, p= .045), and shorter procedure times (170 ± 57 vs. 228 ± 91 min, p= .082) compared to the seven cryoablation patients without such sites. Four patients had transient AV block by ablation inside the Lumipoint‐highlighted area with fractionated signals, but no patient developed permanent AV block or recurrence post‐procedure (median follow‐up: 375 days). SP modification ablation at the collision site of atrial activation of the tricuspid‐annulus side along with a spiky potential could provide a better outcome. Slow pathway modification ablation at the collision site of atrial‐activation pattern around the triangle of Koch along with a spiky potential could provide a better outcome in slow‐fast AVNRT.

Purpose: Goal setting is a crucial aspect of client-centered practice in occupational therapy (OT) for mental health conditions. However, it remains to be seen how goal-setting has been delivered in mental health, particularly the OT process. The purpose of this scoping review was to explore the nature and extent of goal setting delivered in mental health and informed OT practice. Design/methodology/approach: The authors followed the guidelines of Arksey and O’Malley (2005) and searched three databases using key search terms: “mental disorder,” “goal setting,” and “occupational therapy” and their synonyms. Findings: After excluding duplicate records, the authors initially screened 883 records and resulted in 20 records in total after the screening process. Most of the identified articles used goal-setting delivered by both a health professional and a client (n= 14), and focused on people with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (n= 13), but three interventions were delivered by occupational therapists. Further research needs on goal-setting in mental health OT, exploring the reliability and validity of different goal-setting strategies and investigating the effectiveness of goal-setting for promoting behavior change and client engagement across various mental health conditions and settings. Research limitations/implications: The scoping review has some limitations, such as not investigating the validity and reliability of goal-setting strategies identified, and excluding conference papers and non-English articles. Originality/value: This scoping review presents a mapping of how goal-setting has been delivered in mental health and informed OT practice. The findings suggest limited research in OT and highlight the need for more studies to address the evidence gap in individualized client-centered OT.

Background: Approximately a decade has passed since the addition of venous thromboembolism to the list of significant adverse reactions of antipsychotic drugs. However, only a few studies have investigated the relationship between antipsychotic use and venous thromboembolism in the Japanese population. Purpose: We aimed to evaluate the risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism in users of antipsychotic drugs and update the evidence on venous thromboembolism in the Japanese population. Methods: A cross-sectional retrospective analysis of data from a large Japanese claims database, managed by Medical Data Vision Co. Ltd., was conducted. Adult patients who experienced venous thromboembolism between October 2014 and September 2018 in acute care hospitals were identified. The risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism was evaluated with logistic regression using demographic variables. The data of patients using antipsychotic drugs within specific therapeutic classes were also evaluated. Results: We included 8960 patients (mean age, 69 years; 59.2% female). Recurrent venous thromboembolism was observed in 686 patients (7.7%). The risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism was significantly higher in younger patients [&lt; 65 years: reference; 65–74 years: odds ratio (OR) 0.81, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.66–0.99, p= 0.04; ≥ 75 years: OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.64–0.94, p= 0.01], those with history of surgery (OR 1.39, 95% CI 1.18–1.65, p= 0.01), and anticoagulant users (OR 2.25, 95% CI 1.46–3.48, p= 0.01) and was significantly lower in the presence of comorbidities (OR 0.68, 95% CI 0.58–0.81, p&lt; 0.01) and fractures (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.26–0.94, p= 0.03). Long-term antipsychotic drug prescriptions (> 14 days) were associated with a higher risk of venous thromboembolism than short-term prescriptions (≤ 14 days) (OR 1.56, 95% CI 1.04–2.34, p= 0.03). Conclusions: In patients with a history of venous thromboembolism, particular attention should be paid to recurrence in younger patients. If antipsychotic drugs are prescribed for > 14 days to patients with a history of venous thromboembolism, they should be administered carefully, guided by reported findings. Further evaluations using different databases or populations are required to generalize the findings of this study.

Noonan syndrome–related myeloproliferative disorder (NS/MPD) and juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia (JMML) are rare MPDs that occur in young children. We herein report a case of NS/MPD with neonatal onset. The patient had a characteristic appearance and high monocyte count in the peripheral blood and bone marrow. Genetic testing showed the E139D mutation in PTPN11; however, the patient did not meet all the diagnostic criteria for JMML, and we thus diagnosed him with NS/MPD. Eight other cases of NS/MPD with neonatal onset are also summarized. The initial presentation varied, and the prognosis was considered poor compared with previous reports of NS/MPD.

The Microbiome of the Built Environment (MoBE) is profoundly implicated in various sectors, including food science. The balance between beneficial and pathogenic microbes in these facilities directly influences product quality and public health. Maintaining a careful check on MoBE and external microbes is vital to the food industry to ensure quality control. There is also a risk of contamination in the meat processing facility as well. However, over-sanitization can increase drug-resistant microbes, highlighting the importance of balanced microbial management. Additionally, facility design, influenced by understanding MoBE, can optimize the growth of beneficial microbes and inhibit pathogenic microbes. Microbial mapping, an emerging practice, offers insights into microbial hotspots within facilities, resulting in targeted interventions. As the food industry evolves, the intricate understanding and management of MoBE will be pivotal to ensuring optimal food quality, safety, and innovation.Graphical AbstractDuring manufacturing, foods interact with The Microbiome of the Built Environment in the food-processing facility in multiple aspects.

The oncological relevance of proximal gastrectomy in advanced gastric cancer remains unclear. We aimed to examine the frequency of lymph node metastasis in advanced gastric cancer to determine the oncological validity of proximal gastrectomy selection.

Krüppel-like factor (KLF)5, which is overexpressed in carcinomas such as oral cancer, inhibits epidermal differentiation. KLF5 induces dedifferentiation of carcinoma cells, which effectuates carcinoma progression; nevertheless, the regulatory mechanism affecting the transcription of the KLF5gene remains ambiguous.

AbstractQu, Dassios, and Zhao (2021) suggested an exact simulation method for tempered stable Ornstein–Uhlenbeck processes, but their algorithms contain some errors. This short note aims to correct their algorithms and conduct some numerical experiments.

Since the membrane fluidity controls the cellular functions, it is important to identify the factors that determine the cell membrane viscosity. Cell membranes are composed of not only lipids and proteins but also polysaccharide chain-anchored molecules, such as glycolipids. To reveal the effects of grafted polymers on the membrane fluidity, in this study, we measured the membrane viscosity of polymer-grafted giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs), which were prepared by introducing the poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG)-anchored lipids to the ternary GUVs composed of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC), 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC), and cholesterol. The membrane viscosity was obtained from the velocity field on the GUV generated by applying a point force, based on the hydrodynamic model proposed by Henle and Levine. The velocity field was visualized by a motion of the circular liquid ordered (Lo) domains formed by a phase separation. With increasing PEG density, the membrane viscosity of PEG-grafted GUVs increased gradually in the mushroom region and significantly in the brush region. We propose a hydrodynamic model that includes the excluded volume effect of PEG chains to explain the increase in membrane viscosity in the mushroom region. This work provides a basic understanding of how grafted polymers affect the membrane fluidity.

Introduction:The impact of etiology on response to immunotherapy in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is being debated, with contrasting findings between early and recent post hoc analyses of IMbrave-150 and metanalyses of clinical trials of PD-1/PD-L1 blockers. As a results, it is not clear whether the first-line systemic treatment atezolizumab plus bevacizumab (A + B) is equally effective in viral and nonviral patients. Methods:We retrospectively analyzed 885 HCC patients treated with the first-line A + B from multiple centers from Eastern and Western countries, 53.9% having viral and 46.1% nonviral etiology. Baseline clinical and laboratory characteristics were analyzed with uni- and multivariate models to explore potential differences on overall survival (OS), time-to-progression (TTP), disease control rates (DCRs) based on etiology and to identify putative prognostic factors in etiology subgroups. Treatment toxicities and access to the second-line treatments and outcomes were also reported and compared between etiologies. Results:Overall, no statistically significant differences were found in median OS (mOS: viral 15.9 months; nonviral 16.3 months), TTP (mTTP: viral 8.3 months; nonviral 7.2 months), and DCRs (viral 78.1%; nonviral 80.8%) based on etiology. Prognostic factors of survival and progression were mainly shared between viral and nonviral etiologies, including alpha-fetoprotein, aspartate transaminase, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and ALBI score. Exploratory analyses highlighted a possible stronger association of immunological factors, i.e., NLR and eosinophil count, to treatment outcomes in viral patients. The toxicity profile, the access to and type of the second-line treatments and their outcome in terms of OS almost overlap in the two etiology subgroups. Conclusion:Atezolizumab plus bevacizumab efficacy does not vary according to underlying etiology of HCC in a multicenter, real-world population, matching recent post hoc findings from the IMbrave-150 trial. Preliminary analyses suggest that some prognostic factors differ between viral and nonviral patients, potentially due to biological and immunological differences. Prospective and comparative trials stratifying by etiology are warranted to validate these findings and guide clinical practice.

The literature suggests that expressed gratitude improves the interpersonal relationship between a beneficiary and a benefactor. However, there is little research that has explored why thanking provides these positive effects, so this study investigated thanking mechanisms to explain reasons why people feel close to a beneficiary who expresses gratitude. This study also examines the effects of apologies, which are sometimes used to show gratitude in Japan. In this experimental study, 671 Japanese participants reported their perceived closeness, warmth, conscientiousness, and agreeableness to a hypothetical beneficiary who expressed gratitude, apologies, or both after a benefit was provided. The results revealed that benefactors who received a message indicating gratitude and both gratitude and apologies reported higher levels of closeness toward a beneficiary than those who received a message with only apologies and a message without either gratitude or apologies. A structural equation model further indicated that warmth and conscientiousness mediated the link between expressed gratitude/apologies and perceived closeness.

Trees structure the Earth’s most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response to environmental change, as very little is known about most tropical tree species. A focus on the common species may circumvent this challenge. Here we investigate abundance patterns of common tree species using inventory data on 1,003,805 trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm across 1,568 locations1–6in closed-canopy, structurally intact old-growth tropical forests in Africa, Amazonia and Southeast Asia. We estimate that 2.2%, 2.2% and 2.3% of species comprise 50% of the tropical trees in these regions, respectively. Extrapolating across all closed-canopy tropical forests, we estimate that just 1,053 species comprise half of Earth’s 800 billion tropical trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm. Despite differing biogeographic, climatic and anthropogenic histories7, we find notably consistent patterns of common species and species abundance distributions across the continents. This suggests that fundamental mechanisms of tree community assembly may apply to all tropical forests. Resampling analyses show that the most common species are likely to belong to a manageable list of known species, enabling targeted efforts to understand their ecology. Although they do not detract from the importance of rare species, our results open new opportunities to understand the world’s most diverse forests, including modelling their response to environmental change, by focusing on the common species that constitute the majority of their trees.

AbstractThis paper reviews the history of Unoist value-form analysis and explore how it is currently being redeveloped in the Japanese studies. It was more than 70 years ago that Kozo Uno, who was the most influential Japanese Marxian economist, published his value theory: some of the arguments are naturally outdated now. It was not only Uno’s opponents but also Uno’s followers who criticise Uno’s notions and try to shape the better understanding of today’s capitalism. In Section 1, we shall first give a brief overview of Uno’s theory of value and consider why it could be accepted as the foundation of Marxian economics in Japan. Uno’s drastic reformulation could not help encountering oppositions. The most important debate was the one between Uno and Samezo Kuruma. Though the Kuruma-Uno debate is not easy to understand, it is a good reference point to grasp how important it has been for Japanese Marxists to establish the value-form analysis as a subject of economics. Section 2 will focus on the development of Unoist valueform analysis. We see rising trends of reinvestigating it among Japanese Marxist scholars against the background of the changes in modern capitalism. Michiaki Obata launched a radical critique of Uno’s methodology and has led the developments in the 21st century. We shall pick out some of the recent arguments and evaluate its progress.

ObjectiveThis study aimed to compare the 2022 American College of Rheumatology (ACR)/European Alliance of Associations for Rheumatology (EULAR) classification criteria with the European Medicines Agency (EMA) algorithm for antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV).MethodsAll consecutive, newly diagnosed patients with AAV according to the 2012 Chapel Hill Consensus Conference who visited Keio University Hospital between March 2012 and May 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients were reclassified according to the EMA algorithm and the 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria, and their clinical characteristics were statistically analyzed.ResultsA total of 114 patients with AAV were included in the analyses. Using the EMA algorithm as a reference, reclassification of the patients revealed sensitivity and specificity of the 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria of 100% and 96% for eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis, 40% and 97% for granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), and 90% and 49% for microscopic polyangiitis (MPA), respectively. Approximately half of patients classified as EMA-GPA or EMA-unclassifiable were reclassified as 2022-MPA; these patients were older, were more disposed to be positive for myeloperoxidase (MPO)-ANCA, and had interstitial lung disease (ILD) more frequently than patients with 2022-GPA or non–2022-MPA. Further, some patients positive for MPO-ANCA with biopsy-proven granulomatous inflammation were also reclassified from EMA-GPA to 2022-MPA. Over the mean observation period of 4.0 years, 16 patients died. Overall survival for each classification group differed significantly from the 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria (P= 0.02), but not with the EMA algorithm (P= 0.21).ConclusionAmong the patients classified as EMA-GPA or EMA-unclassifiable, older patients with MPO-ANCA and ILD tended to be reclassified as 2022-MPA. The 2022 ACR/EULAR criteria were more useful in prognostic prediction than the EMA algorithm.

Background: Some aspects regarding the use of antiplatelet agents after coil embolization for subarachnoid hemorrhage during admission remain unclear. This study used diagnostic procedure combination (DPC) data to investigate the safety and prognostic effects of aspirin monotherapy and aspirin and P2Y12 inhibitor combination therapy on bleeding events. Methods: This cross-sectional study used Japanese DPC data to assess patients who were hospitalized with subarachnoid hemorrhage and received aspirin monotherapy and aspirin and P2Y12 inhibitor combination therapy between April 2016 and March 2020 (n= 4421). The aspirin monotherapy (A group, n= 2848) and aspirin and P2Y12 inhibitor combination therapy (AP group, n= 1573) groups were compared. The primary and secondary endpoints were the incidence of bleeding events and proportion of patients with a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score ≤ 2 at discharge, respectively. Data was analyzed using multivariable adjusted logistic regression (significance level, 5%). Results: The adjusted odds ratio in AP group, with A group as the reference, for bleeding events and the proportion of patients with mRS score ≤ 2 at discharge were 0.97 (95% confidence interval [95% CI]: 0.75–1.26, p= 0.839) and 1.09 (95% CI: 0.92–1.29, p= 0.302), respectively. Conclusions: There are no differences in the incidence of bleeding events or good clinical outcomes (mRS score ≤ 2 at discharge) between aspirin monotherapy and aspirin and P2Y12 inhibitor combination therapy.