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Summary: Fractures are medical conditions that compromise the athletic potential of horses and/or the safety of jockeys. Therefore, the reduction of fracture risk is an important horse and human welfare issue. The present study used molecular genetic approaches to determine the effect of genetic risk for fracture at four candidate SNPs spanning the myostatin (MSTN) gene on horse chromosome 18. Among the 3706 Japanese Thoroughbred racehorses, 1089 (29.4%) had experienced fractures in their athletic life, indicating the common occurrence of this injury in Thoroughbreds. In the case/control association study, fractures of the carpus (carpal bones and distal radius) were statistically associated with g.65809482T/C (P = 1.17 x 10‐8), g.65868604G/T (P = 2.66 x 10‐9), and g.66493737C/T (P = 6.41 x 10‐8). In the retrospective cohort study using 1710 racehorses born in 2000, the relative risk (RR) was highest for male horses at g.65868604G/T, based on the dominant allele risk model (RR = 2.251, 95% confidence interval 1.407–3.604, P = 0.00041), and for female horses at g.65868604G/T, based on the recessive allele risk model (RR = 2.313, 95% confidence interval 1.380–3.877, P = 0.00163). Considering the association of these SNPs with racing performance traits such as speed, these genotypes may affect the occurrence of carpus fractures in Japanese Thoroughbred racehorses as a consequence of the non‐genetic influence of the genotype on the distance and/or intensity of racing and training. The genetic information presented here may contribute to the development of strategic training programs and racing plans for racehorses that improve their health and welfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the latest advances in color and power Doppler ultrasound, such as superb microvascular imaging (SMI), it is possible to visualize clearly the small fetal peripheral blood vessels, fetal organ microvasculature and placental microvasculature. We present our experience with Slow I flow i HD to depict fetal intra-abdominal blood vessels and organ microvasculature. [Extracted from the article]

However, only two cases of skin involvement have been reported, both of which manifested as local skin necrosis at injection sites.5,6 To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of extensive skin necrosis after COVID-19 vaccination that developed outside the injection site. Thrombosis is a rare complication of COVID-19 vaccines that typically affects cerebral and visceral vessels.1-4 However, skin involvement is largely unknown.5,6 Here, we describe a case of genital necrosis associated with cutaneous thrombosis following COVID-19 vaccination. Although rare, skin necrosis should be recognized as a possible manifestation of thrombosis associated with COVID-19 vaccination. [Extracted from the article]

Collagen was identified as a fish allergen in early 2000s. Although its allergenic potential has been suggested to be low, risks associated with collagen as a fish allergen have not been evaluated to a greater extent. In this study, we aimed to clarify the importance of collagen as a fish allergen. Our results showed that 50% of Japanese patients with fish allergy had immunoglobulin E (IgE) against mackerel collagen, whereas 44% had IgE against mackerel parvalbumin. IgE inhibition assay revealed high cross-reactivity of mackerel collagen to 22 fish species (inhibition rates: 87-98%). Furthermore, a recently developed allergy test demonstrated that collagen triggered IgE cross-linking on mast cells. These data indicate that fish collagen is an important and very common panallergen in fish consumed in Japan. The high rate of individuals' collagen allergy may be attributable to the traditional Japanese custom of raw fish consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the differences between linear and non-linear modelled heritability estimates of racing performance based on lifetime earnings (LE) and lifetime ranking (LR) in Japanese Thoroughbred racehorses. The heritability estimate ( h2 = 0.25) obtained from a non-linear model based on formal Japan Racing Association ranking was much higher than that obtained from a linear model based on the original trait phenotype ( h2 = 0.11). The linear models showed slightly higher heritability estimates under the trait categorizations than under the original phenotypes, while the non-linear categorical trait models showed much higher heritability estimates than the linear models, especially for binary trait categorizations ( h2 = 0.34) with non-winning and winning horses. The binary trait categorizations were consistent with the case and control classifications in the previous genome-wide association study (GWAS), which identified possible sequence variants on ECA18 that affect racing performance in Japanese Thoroughbred racehorses. Those findings suggested that the different heritability estimates obtained from several trait categorizations would reflect the possible presence of susceptibility gene segregations in the analyzed population, indicating that heritability estimates from non-linear models are useful for the selection of case and control populations in GWAS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Using 1710 Thoroughbred racehorses in Japan, a cohort study was performed to evaluate the influence of genotypes at four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on equine chromosome 18 (ECA18), which were associated in a previous genome-wide association study for racing performance with lifetime earnings and performance rank. In males, both g.65809482T>C and g.65868604G>T were related to performance rank ( P = 0.005). In females, g.65809482T>C ( P = 1.76E-6), g.65868604G>T ( P = 6.81E-6) and g.66493737C>T ( P = 4.42E-5) were strongly related to performance rank and also to lifetime earnings ( P < 0.05). When win-race distance (WRD) among all winning racehorses and best race distance (BRD) among elite racehorses were considered as the phenotypes, significant associations ( P < 0.001) were observed for all four SNPs. The favourable race distance of both elite (BRD) and novice racehorses (WRD) was also associated with genotypes in the ECA18 region, indicating the presence of a gene in this region influencing optimum race distance in Thoroughbred racehorses. Therefore, the association with performance rank is likely due to the bias in the race distances. The location of the SNPs within and proximal to the gene encoding myostatin ( MSTN) strongly suggests that regulation of the MSTN gene affects racing performance. In particular, the g.65809482T>C, g.65868604G>T and g.66493737C>T SNPs, or their combinations, may be genetic diagnostic markers for racing performance indicators such as WRD and BRD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using 1400 microsatellites, a genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed to identify genomic regions associated with lifetime earnings and performance ranks, as determined by the Japan Racing Association (JRA). The minimum heritability ( h) was estimated at 7-8% based on the quantitative trait model, suggesting that the racing performance is heritable. Following GWAS with microsatellites, fine mapping led to identification of three SNPs on ECA18, namely, g.65809482T>C ( P = 1.05E-18), g.65868604G>T ( P = 6.47E-17), and g.66539967A>G ( P = 3.35E-14) associated with these performance measures. The haplotype of these SNPs, together with a recently published nearby SNP, g.66493737C>T ( P = 9.06E-16) in strong linkage disequilibrium, also showed a very clear association with the performance ( P < 1E-05). The candidate genomic region contained eight genes annotated by ENSEMBL, including the myostatin gene ( MSTN). These findings suggest the presence of a gene affecting the racing performance in Thoroughbred racehorses in this region on ECA18. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tying-up syndrome, also known as recurrent exertional rhabdomyolysis in Thoroughbreds, is a common muscle disorder for racehorses. In this study, we performed a multipoint linkage analysis using LOKI based on the Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo method using 5 half-sib families (51 affected and 277 nonaffected horses in total), and a genome-wide association study (GWAS) using microsatellites (144 affected and 144 nonaffected horses) to map candidate regions for tying-up syndrome in Japanese Thoroughbreds. The linkage analysis identified one strong L-score (82.45) between the loci UCDEQ411 and COR058 (24.9-27.9 Mb) on ECA12. The GWAS identified two suggestive genomic regions on ECA12 (24.9-27.8 Mb) and ECA20 (29.3-33.5 Mb). Based on both results, the genomic region between UCDEQ411 and TKY499 (24.9-27.8 Mb) on ECA12 was the most significant and was considered as a candidate region for tying-up syndrome in Japanese Thoroughbreds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marbling defined by the amount and distribution of intramuscular fat, so-called Shimofuri, is an economically important trait of beef cattle in Japan. The endothelial differentiation sphingolipid G-protein-coupled receptor 1 ( EDG1) gene, involved in blood vessel formation, has been previously shown to be expressed at different levels in musculus longissimus muscle between low-marbled and high-marbled steer groups. It is located within the genomic region of a quantitative trait locus for marbling, and thus was considered as a positionally functional candidate for the gene responsible for marbling. In this study, two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the 5′ untranslated region (UTR) and the 3′ UTR of EDG1, referred to as c.- 312A>G and c.*446G>A, respectively, were detected between the two steer groups. The two SNPs were associated with the predicted breeding value for beef marbling standard number by analyses using a population of Japanese Black beef cattle. The effect of genotypes at each of the SNPs on the predicted breeding value for subcutaneous fat thickness was not statistically significant ( P > 0.05). Reporter gene assays revealed no significant differences in gene expression between alleles at each of the SNPs. These findings suggest that EDG1 SNPs, although they may not be regarded as a causal mutation, may be useful for effective marker-assisted selection to increase the levels of marbling in Japanese Black beef cattle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The superficial digital flexor tendon (SDFT) injury causes considerable wastage of racing Thoroughbreds. In this study, the heritability of SDFT injury of the forelimbs was estimated in the Thoroughbred racehorses based on the Bayesian analysis with Gibbs sampling using threshold animal models. New horse patients of SDFT injury at the age of 2–5 years accommodated in the training centers in 2005 were used for the analyses. Based on clinical data of 8198 horses, heritability of SDFT was estimated to be the order of 0.17 (posterior mode) to 0.19 ± 0.05 (posterior mean ± posterior SD). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic variation of the behaviour of racehorses is one of the major concerns for racehorse breeders. In this study, the heritabilities of behavioural responses to the inspections of conjunctiva, auscultation and blood sampling and the genetic correlations among them were estimated in the Thoroughbred racehorse. The estimation was done with Bayesian analysis with Gibbs sampling based on the univariate or bivariate threshold animal models. The behavioural responses were scored with four categories at the first entrance quarantine in Miho Training Center of Japan Racing Association from 1993 to 1995. The behavioural responses were treated as categorical or binary traits, with both showing similar results. The estimated heritabilities were in the range of 0.23–0.28, suggesting a genetic component in the variation on these traits. The estimated genetic correlations among the traits were very high (approximately 0.9), suggesting that these behavioural responses may be measures of the same trait. Because of the high genetic correlations, repeatability threshold model was applied assuming the responses to be a genetically identical trait measured with three different tests. The estimated heritabilities (approximately 0.23) were at the lower bound of the former estimates. The revealed high repeatabilities (0.97–0.98) suggest a strong contribution of the individual temperament on the behaviour of racehorses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microstructures of brittle mineral grains embedded in a ductile matrix provide information on the influence of stress concentration on reaction progress during metamorphism. Under non-hydrostatic conditions, contrasts of mechanical properties between minerals possibly cause stress concentrations at specific grain boundaries, which may result in a localization of subsequent reactions. In an impure marble from Syros, Greece, glaucophane grains occurring in a calcite matrix commonly impinge on other glaucophane grains to form concavo-convex boundary contacts. The geometrical relationship between grain boundary and growth zoning within glaucophane grains indicates that indentation and dissolution occurred preferentially at the glaucophane/glaucophane contacts in response to compression normal to the foliation. In contrast, idioblastic surfaces of glaucophane were preserved at glaucophane/calcite boundaries, indicating that stress concentrated at glaucophane/glaucophane contacts. The retrograde minerals (winchite, albite and biotite) that were formed by consuming glaucophane are observed not only at the extensive site, but also at the ‘compressive’ site where indentation occurred. The precipitation of retrograde minerals at the extensive sites was accompanied by glaucophane dissolution at the indentation stage. In contrast, the formation of retrograde minerals at the ‘compressive’ site indicates that retrograde replacement preferentially proceeded at the indented sites even after stress relaxation. Such a localization of the replacement suggests that the formation of damaged zones around glaucophane/glaucophane contacts induced by stress concentration would have provided the preferential sites for glaucophane breakdown at the later stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 43-year-old woman with severe aplastic anemia (SAA) received anti-thymocyte globulin and cyclosporin A (CyA) and achieved hematological remission. Although she had maintained hematological remission, the disease relapsed 10 months after arbitrary discontinuance of maintenance therapy with CyA. Resumption of CyA therapy was not effective, and her condition became complicated with progressive sinusitis with bone destruction, which was refractory to antibiotics, antifungal agents, granulocyte colony-stimulating factor, and surgical drainage. Because of the necessity for early neutrophil recovery (to resolve the infection), we proceeded with a combination therapy using allogeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT) promptly followed by granulocyte transfusion (GTX) from the same human leukocyte antigen-identical donor rather than carrying out a second immunosuppressive therapy. The patient showed temporal resolution of infection on the second day after a single GTX. Although the patient had pneumonia on day 11, it was resolved promptly after engraftment on day 16. This report suggests the clinical utility of a salvage therapy with allogeneic PBSCT followed by GTX in a particular case of recurrent SAA with refractory infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marbling, as defined by the amount of intramuscular fat, is an economically important trait in beef cattle. Intramuscular fat deposition is postulated to arise mainly from a series of adipogenic events in intramuscular adipocyte-lineage cells and in the physiological or anatomical milieux surrounding them. This study was designed to investigate gene-expression patterns associated with fat deposition in musculus longissimus muscle, including adipocyte-lineage cells and part of the milieux. Differential-display PCR (ddPCR) was used to examine expression differences between low-marbled and high-marbled steer groups at 8, 10, 12 and 14 months of age, encompassing the time that marbling starts to appear. Seventy-four of 2114 total bands on ddPCR gel-bands were significant ( P < 0.05) for the group effect, the interaction effect between group and age, or both the group and the interaction effects. Sequence analysis of 72 of these bands revealed 77 genes, including 35 annotated genes and 42 novel sequences. Among the 35 annotated genes, 6 ( BTG2, PDHB, SORBS1, TRDN, TTN and MGP) have been related to changes in intramuscular fat deposition, possibly by exerting effects on adipocyte-lineage cells or on the milieux surrounding them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tying-up is a condition that primarily affects the muscles of horses. In this study, the heritability of the Tying-up syndrome in the Thoroughbred racehorse was estimated by Bayesian analysis with Gibbs sampling based on the threshold model for binary traits. The data used were the clinical data in racehorses diagnosed by veterinarians of the Racehorse Clinics of Japan Racing Association from 2000 to 2003. The health status of the Tying-up was treated as a binary trait. In the genetic analysis, the effect of changing the amount of the pedigree or inbreeding information on the estimation of heritability was investigated, too. The heritability estimates with non-zero probability in the posterior densities were approximately 0.16–0.18 in minimum, suggesting that the heritability of the Tying-up is not zero at least. The posterior density distributions of the heritability estimates were generally more pointed and sharp with using inbreeding coefficients than without using it, suggesting that more stable estimations were obtained when inbreeding coefficients were used. Among the different amounts of pedigree and inbreeding information, the heritabilities obtained with three or four generations of pedigree using inbreeding coefficients seems to be preferable, i.e. heritability of 0.42 or 0.43 for Tying-up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

: Cyclo-oxygenase-2 expression has been reported to play an important role in the metaplasia-dysplasia-carcinoma sequence in Barrett's oesophagus. However, the existence of cyclo-oxygenase-2 expressing cells in Barrett's epithelium is still uncertain.: To identify the cells that express cyclo-oxygenase-2 protein and to investigate the relationship between cyclo-oxygenase-2 expression and mucin-phenotype of Barrett's epithelium.: Sections from 466 biopsy samples of Barrett's epithelium from 358 non-medicated patients were immunohistochemically examined for the cyclo-oxygenase-2 expression, mucin-phenotype, cell proliferation and apoptosis.: Cyclo-oxygenase-2 expression was detected in 71.0% of Barrett's epithelium biopsy samples. In Barrett's epithelium with the gastric predominant mucin-phenotype, cyclo-oxygenase-2 expression was mainly found in stromal and deep epithelial cells, whereas in intestinal predominant mucin-phenotype, it was mostly in superficial epithelial cell. A significant elevation of proliferating cell nuclear antigen index and suppression of apoptotic index was observed in Barrett's epithelium with superficial epithelial cyclo-oxygenase-2 expression. Neither such elevation of proliferating cell nuclear antigen index nor the suppression of apoptotic index could be found in chronic non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs users.: Barrett's epithelium with intestinal mucin and superficial epithelial cyclo-oxygenase-2 expression possess a higher proliferation potential, but this risk may be thwarted by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs administration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence is presented of a lateral variation in differential stress during metamorphism along a regional metamorphic belt on the basis of the proportion of microboudinaged piemontite grains ( p) in a quartz matrix in metacherts. It is proposed that p is a practical indicator of relative differential stress. Analysis of 123 metacherts from the 800 km long Sambagawa metamorphic belt, Japan, reveals that p-values range from < 0.01 to 0.7 in this region. Most samples from Wakayama in the mid-belt area have p-values of 0.4–0.6, whereas those from western Shikoku have p-values of < 0.1. This difference cannot be explained by variations in metamorphic temperature, and is instead attributed to a regional, lateral variation in differential stress during metamorphism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives The aims of this study were to elucidate the clinical course of fetal bradycardia with 1:1 atrioventricular conduction, and to discuss the optimal management of affected fetuses in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. Methods The hospital records of five fetuses with the diagnosis of bradycardia (100 bpm) with 1:1 atrioventricular conduction between 1981 and 2000 in our institution were reviewed. Atrioventricular conduction was evaluated by simultaneous M-mode echocardiographic tracing of the atria and the ventricles. Results The gestational ages at referral ranged from 19 to 36 (median, 25) weeks, and fetal heart rates ranged from 60 to 80 (median, 80) bpm. Postnatal electrocardiography revealed sinus bradycardia in four (two of which were siblings) of the five cases, and junctional rhythm in the remaining case. Two fetuses with congenital heart defects (CHDs) were delivered by Cesarean section but died postnatally. The three fetuses without CHDs were delivered vaginally and have survived to date for 6, 8 and 15 years. Conclusions Fetal bradycardia with 1:1 atrioventricular conduction caused by sustained sinus bradycardia or wandering pacemaker is an important type of fetal arrhythmia. Further investigations with a larger number of cases are required to determine the risk factors for predicting the outcome of affected fetuses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a synopsis of the condensation process in the development of skeletal and other mesenchymal tissues. Primary phases of skeletogenesis; Initiation of condensations; Role of tenascin and syndecan in setting limits to condensation size; Role of transcription factors in condensation formation; Conclusions.

This article discusses the use of transvaginal SlowflowHD imaging technology to examine the development of embryonic and fetal hearts in the first trimester of pregnancy. The study found that by the 11th week of gestation, all major structures of the heart had developed. The article also mentions previous studies that used older technology to visualize cardiac structures, but the quality of the images was poor. The authors conclude that transvaginal SlowflowHD imaging provides a high-resolution and sensitive method for assessing cardiac structures in early pregnancy. The use of SlowflowHD has the potential to diagnose congenital heart anomalies and provide valuable diagnostic information on various heart conditions. However, it cannot determine flow direction and velocity, and further research is needed to explore its potential role in early fetal cardiac diagnosis. [Extracted from the article]

Introduction: Recently, the mixed inheritance model with Gibbs sampling (GEMAN and GEMAN 1984; GELFAND and SMITH 1990; GUO and THOMPSON 1992; WANG et al. 1994; SORENSEN 1997) was introduced by JANSS et al. (1995), and the method has been given attention as a method by which the segregation of genotypes of a single major gene in a population can be detected only from the phenotypic values of quantitative traits. Usually, any estimates obtained by any inference methodologies are expected not to be affected by the initial values used for the inference. LEJUKOLE et al. (1995) showed that in REML estimation with polygenic model, the global maximum estimates were finally obtained by repeating 'cold restarts'. However, the influence of initial values on the estimates obtained by mixed inheritance model and the property of the model have not been investigated in detail. In this study, the influence of initial values on estimates by mixed inheritance model with Gibbs sampling was investigated by simulation for some special cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the competition through knowledge management in liquid crystal display (LCD) industry in Japan. Elements of Japanese industrial competitiveness; Overview on the flat panel industry; Display industry characteristics; Knowledge management perspectives.

In this study, longitudinal changes of the occlusal force distribution ratio were examined in lower distal extension removable partial dentures with cast circumferential clasps. Occlusal force applied to the denture base and forces transmitted to the retainers were measured on several separate occasions from the insertion of new dentures to about 4 months after. Two rates of loading were chosen. One was simulated mastication (fast loading rate) and the other was 10 Ns-1 (slow loading rate). Location of the loading points were first premolar (P1), second premolar (P2) and first molar (P3) of the denture. The occlusal force distribution ratio to the retainers was calculated when a load of 20N was applied to the loading point. The results are summarized as follows: (1) The occlusal force distribution ratio at fast loading rate on P1 and P2 was changed until 1 or 1 1/2 months after the insertion of the new dentures, and then became constant. This constant value was 30% on P1, 20% on P2 and 10% on P3. (2) Slow loading rate produced a greater ratio than the fast loading rate on P2 and P3 while there were no remarkable differences in the ratio between both loading rates on P1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to perform longitudinal measurement of forces transmitted from the denture base to retainers of lower distal-extension removable partial dentures with a conus crown telescopic system. The experimental denture was embedded with a force-detecting unit which could detect a change in lateral and vertical forces transmitted from denture base to retainers at the same time. Forces were measured during chewing of food on several separate occasions from the insertion of new dentures to about 3 months after. Max.ver (maximal mean value of vertical force) and Max.lat (maximal mean value of lateral force) were calculated from the peak level of all strokes of chewing of food at the minimum of the interocclusal distance. The results are summarized as follows: (i) There were no significant changes of Max.ver and Max.lat; (ii) There were no significant differences of Max.ver between subjects the value of which was about 20 N; (iii) There were significant differences of Max.lat between subjects the value of which was less than 15 N. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a case study of a 67-year-old woman presented with a fever, before presentation She had undergone cholecystectomy for 2 years. It mentions the blood tests revealed mild elevation of total bilirubin as well as increased alkaline phosphatase; and also mentions that Computed tomography (CT) revealed a 30-mm hypovascular, irregular, tumorous lesion in the caudal lobe of the liver invading the hilus.