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The first prophylactic vaccine against human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 and HPV18 was licensed in Japan in 2009. HPV vaccine effectiveness against high‐grade cervical lesions has been demonstrated among young Japanese women, but evidence of its effects on invasive cervical cancer (ICC) is lacking. Using data from two different cancer registries, we compared recent trends of new ICC cases by age group using Poisson regression analysis. We also analyzed time trends in HPV16/18 prevalence among 1414 Japanese women aged <40 years newly diagnosed with ICC in the past decade. Based on the population‐based cancer registry, the incidence of ICC among young women aged 20–29 years showed a significant decline from 3.6 to 2.8 per 100 000 women‐years during 2016–2019, but no similar decline was observed for older age groups (p < 0.01). Similarly, using data from the gynecological cancer registry of the Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology, the annual number of ICCs among women aged 20–29 years also decreased from 256 cases to 135 cases during 2011–2020 (p < 0.0001). Furthermore, a declining trend in HPV16/18 prevalence in ICC was observed only among women aged 20–29 years during 2017–2022 (90.5%–64.7%, p = 0.05; Cochran–Armitage trend test). This is the first report to suggest population‐level effects of HPV vaccination on ICC in Japan. Although the declining trend in HPV16/18 prevalence among young women with ICC supports a causal linkage between vaccination and results from cancer registries, further studies are warranted to confirm that our findings are attributable to vaccination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prognosis of gallbladder cancer (GBC) remains poor, and a better understanding of GBC molecular mechanisms is important. Genome sequencing of human GBC has demonstrated that loss‐of‐function mutations of E74‐like ETS transcription factor 3 (ELF3) are frequently observed, with ELF3 considered to be a tumour suppressor in GBC. To clarify the underlying molecular mechanisms by which ELF3 suppresses GBC development, we performed in vivo analysis using a combination of autochthonous and allograft mouse models. We first evaluated the clinical significance of ELF3 expression in human GBC tissues and found that low ELF3 expression was associated with advanced clinical stage and deep tumour invasion. For in vivo analysis, we generated Pdx1‐Cre; KrasG12D; Trp53R172H; Elf3f/f (KPCE) mice and Pdx1‐Cre; KrasG12D; Trp53R172H; Elf3wt/wt (KPC) mice as a control and analysed their gallbladders histologically. KPCE mice developed larger papillary lesions in the gallbladder than those developed by KPC mice. Organoids established from the gallbladders of KPCE and KPC mice were analysed in vitro. RNA sequencing showed upregulated expression of epiregulin (Ereg) in KPCE organoids, and western blotting revealed that EGFR/mechanical targets of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) were upregulated in KPCE organoids. In addition, ChIP assays on Elf3‐overexpressing KPCE organoids showed that ELF3 directly regulated Ereg. Ereg deletion in KPCE organoids (using CRISPR/Cas9) induced EGFR/mTORC1 downregulation, indicating that ELF3 controlled EGFR/mTORC1 activity through regulation of Ereg expression. We also generated allograft mouse models using KPCE and KPC organoids and found that KPCE organoid allograft tumours exhibited poorly differentiated structures with mTORC1 upregulation and mesenchymal phenotype, which were suppressed by Ereg deletion. Furthermore, EGFR/mTORC1 inhibition suppressed cell proliferation and epithelial–mesenchymal transition in KPCE organoids. Our results suggest that ELF3 suppresses GBC development via downregulation of EREG/EGFR/mTORC1 signalling. EGFR/mTORC1 inhibition is a potential therapeutic option for GBC with ELF3 mutation. © 2023 The Authors. The Journal of Pathology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of The Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Redness of the facial skin is an important cosmetic concern. Although qualitative and quantitative modifications of sebum on the skin surface are major pathogenic factors of chronic inflammatory skin conditions, the relationship between skin redness, sebum, and mild inflammation on the cheeks of healthy subjects remains elusive. Aims: We aimed to explore the correlation between cheek redness and sebum and inflammatory cytokines in the stratum corneum (SC) of healthy subjects. We also examined the effects of representative sebum lipids on the gene expression of inflammatory cytokines in cultured keratinocytes. Patients/Methods: This study included 198 healthy participants. Skin sebum was analyzed using flow injection analysis, and skin redness was assessed using a spectrophotometer. Inflammatory cytokines in tape‐stripped SC were measured using enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay. Results: Cheek redness parameters positively correlated with the amount of skin sebum and the proportion of monounsaturated free fatty acids (C16:1 and C18:1) in the sebum. They also positively correlated with the interleukin (IL)‐36γ/IL‐37 ratio in the SC. Among the representative sebum lipids examined, oleic acid (C18:1, cis‐9) dose‐ and time‐dependently regulated the mRNA expression of IL‐36γ and IL‐37 in cultured keratinocytes, and this effect was attenuated by the N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA)‐type glutamate receptor antagonist, MK801. Conclusions: Skin surface sebum may be related to cheek redness in healthy subjects, and oleic acid‐induced IL‐36γ through NMDA‐type glutamate receptors may be a link between them. Our study provides a possible skincare strategy for mitigating unfavorable increase in skin redness by targeting the facial skin sebum, particularly oleic acid. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD), an anthracycline agent, is widely used as a treatment option for platinum‐refractory/resistant epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC). Although only a subset of patients with platinum‐refractory/resistant EOC derive benefit from PLD, predictive biomarkers for patients who will respond to the drug have not yet been established. Here, we evaluated the relationship between adipose tissue status and PLD efficacy in patients with platinum‐refractory/resistant EOC. Methods: Patients with platinum‐refractory/resistant EOC who were treated with single‐agent PLD were included in this retrospective cohort study. Adipose tissue areas including visceral adipose tissue area (VATA), subcutaneous adipose tissue area (SATA), and visceral to subcutaneous adipose tissue area ratio (VSR) were calculated prior to the initiation of PLD using computed tomography images. The associations of adipose tissue areas with objective response rate (ORR) and patient survival were evaluated. Results: Forty‐four patients with platinum‐refractory/resistant EOC who received single‐agent PLD were included. Subjects were categorized into high and low groups according to the median VATA, SATA, and VSR values, and body mass index (BMI). The ORR of PLD was significantly lower in the VSR‐high group than in the VSR‐low group (p = 0.0089). Patients in the high VSR group showed significantly shorter progression‐free survival (PFS) compared with patients in the low VSR group (median, 4.0 vs. 8.5 months; p = 0.020). In the multivariable analysis, high VSR was a significant prognostic factor for shorter PFS (hazard ratio, 2.07; 95% confidence interval, 1.05–4.19; p = 0.035). VATA, SATA, and BMI showed no significant association with ORR and survival of patients who received PLD. Conclusions: High VSR is associated with lower ORR and shorter PFS in patients with platinum‐refractory/resistant EOC who received single‐agent PLD. VSR is a robust predictive biomarker for the efficacy of PLD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As people have regularly worn facial masks due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic, mask‐wear‐related adverse effects on the skin have been recognized. The aim of this study was to explore skin changes, their seasonal variations in the general population caused by commonly used masks and a possible mechanism underlying negative effects of mask‐wearing. Materials and methods: Eighteen Japanese females participated in the study during summer and winter in Japan. Skin characteristics were measured in the non‐mask‐wearing preauricular area and the mask‐wearing cheek and perioral areas. Results: Trans‐epidermal water loss (TEWL) on the cheek area tended to be increased in winter, which was positively correlated with skin scaliness on the same area. Ceramide (CER) content and composition in the mask‐covered stratum corneum (SC) were slightly changed between summer and winter, and CER [NP]/[NS] ratio was negatively correlated with the TEWL on the perioral skin in winter. Skin hydration and sebum secretion were higher on the cheek compared to the perioral area in summer. Skin redness was particularly high on the cheek in winter. Conclusion: Mask‐wear‐related skin changes were season‐ and facial site‐specific, and alterations in SC CER may play a role in barrier‐related skin problems caused by mask use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Japan, the National Immunization Program against human papillomavirus (HPV) targets girls aged 12‐16 years, and catch‐up vaccination is recommended for young women up to age 26 years. Because HPV infection rates increase soon after sexual debut, we evaluated HPV vaccine effectiveness by age at first vaccination. Along with vaccination history, HPV genotyping results from 5795 women younger than 40 years diagnosed with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2‐3 (CIN2‐3), adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS), or invasive cervical cancer were analyzed. The attribution of vaccine‐targeted types HPV16 or HPV18 to CIN2‐3/AIS was 47.0% for unvaccinated women (n = 4297), but 0.0%, 13.0%, 35.7%, and 39.6% for women vaccinated at ages 12‐15 years (n = 36), 16‐18 years (n = 23), 19–22 years (n = 14), and older than 22 years (n = 91), respectively, indicating the greater effectiveness of HPV vaccination among those initiating vaccination at age 18 years or younger (P <.001). This finding was supported by age at first sexual intercourse; among women with CIN2‐3/AIS, only 9.2% were sexually active by age 14 years, but the percentage quickly increased to 47.2% by age 16 and 77.1% by age 18. Additionally, the HPV16/18 prevalence in CIN2‐3/AIS was 0.0%, 12.5%, and 40.0% for women vaccinated before (n = 16), within 3 years (n = 8), and more than 3 years after (n = 15) first intercourse, respectively (P =.004). In conclusion, our data appear to support routine HPV vaccination for girls aged 12‐14 years and catch‐up vaccination for adolescents aged 18 years and younger in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hyaluronan (HA) has a unique hydration capacity that contributes to firmness and bounciness of the skin. Epidermal HA declines with skin aging, which may lead to clinical signs of aging including skin wrinkles and loss of hydration and elasticity. Recently, we developed a new cosmetic agent 1‐ethyl‐β‐N‐acetylglucosaminide (β‐NAG2), which enhances HA production in cultured human keratinocytes. The aim of this study was to explore antiaging potential of β‐NAG2 in reconstructed human epidermal models and human clinical trial. Materials and methods: The amount of HA in β‐NAG2‐treated epidermal models by topical application was analyzed by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)‐like assay. A randomized, double‐blind and placebo‐controlled study was conducted in Japanese females (n = 33) by topically treating each side of the face with a lotion formulated with β‐NAG2 or placebo for 8 weeks. Results: Topically applied β‐NAG2 dose dependently increased HA production in epidermal models. Treatment with β‐NAG2‐formulated lotion significantly improved skin hydration and elasticity and reduced skin wrinkling in crow's foot areas when compared to the placebo formulation. Conclusion: Topically applied β‐NAG2 promoted epidermal HA production in vitro and showed antiwrinkle activity in vivo accompanying the improvement in skin hydration and elasticity. Our study provides a novel strategy for antiwrinkle care through β‐NAG2‐induced epidermal HA production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Photonic crystal lasers possessing tailored lasing characteristics have attracted significant attention for various applications such as holography, optical communications, and LiDARs. Liquid‐crystal‐based photonic crystals are actively investigated to realize tunable lasers capable of controlling the emission wavelength, but it is a challenge to realize lasers with the capability to tune the emission direction. Here, a photonic band‐edge laser with tunable output direction is reported based on an engineered cholesteric liquid crystal with a slanted helical structure. In addition to the modulation of the director along the helical axis of the liquid crystal, a fine‐pitch modulation is introduced in the direction perpendicular to the helical axis, so that the photonic band‐edge is shifted away from the helical axis. By doping a dye in the liquid crystal, a microlaser that emits at an angle of ≈30° to the surface normal is realized. Further, control of the emission angle is achieved by modulating the periodicity of the photonic structure by an external stimulus. This work shows that organic microlasers with inexpensive fabrication methods can be engineered to possess advanced functionality such as beam‐scanning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Use of organic molecules as lasing media has much potential to develop next‐generation optical devices as soft‐matter photonics with wideband tunability and large coherence area. Although mirrorless lasing was theoretically predicted and practically demonstrated in helical cholesteric liquid crystalline (LC) phases of organic compounds, recent studies on optical confinement have been much focused into hard‐crystalline phases of the molecules. Aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) and enhancement (AIEE) provides one of the optimal molecular systems for light amplification in condensed phases, and herein AIEE activity and excited‐state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) are successfully coupled in a room temperature (RT) nematic LC. Suppressing the effect of concentration quenching/self‐absorption and attaining four‐level system for population inversion by the combination of AIEE and ESIPT in LC phases, lead to the amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) from a newly designed molecule: C5Ph‐HBT dispersed in RT LC matrix with the pumping energy threshold of 20 mJ cm–2. Moreover, the nematic LC allows the orientation of the molecular dipoles in response to external electric fields. Hence, the fluorescence as well as the ASE switching is attained at RT, demonstrating the potential of these composite materials as "switchable" ASE media for technological progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To obtain baseline data for cervical cancer prevention in Japan, we analyzed human papillomavirus (HPV) data from 5045 Japanese women aged less than 40 years and diagnosed with cervical abnormalities at 21 hospitals during 2012‐2017. These included cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 1 (CIN1, n = 573), CIN2‐3 (n = 3219), adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS, n = 123), and invasive cervical cancer (ICC, n = 1130). The Roche Linear Array was used for HPV genotyping. The HPV type‐specific relative contributions (RCs) were estimated by adding multiple infections to single types in accordance with proportional weighting attributions. Based on the comparison of type‐specific RCs between CIN1 and CIN2‐3/AIS/ICC (CIN2+), RC ratios were calculated to estimate type‐specific risks for progression to CIN2+. Human papillomavirus DNA was detected in 85.5% of CIN1, 95.7% of CIN2‐3/AIS, and 91.2% of ICC. Multiple infections decreased with disease severity: 42.9% in CIN1, 40.4% in CIN2‐3/AIS, and 23.7% in ICC (P <.0001). The relative risk for progression to CIN2+ was highest for HPV16 (RC ratio 3.78, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.01‐4.98), followed by HPV31 (2.51, 1.54‐5.24), HPV18 (2.43, 1.59‐4.32), HPV35 (1.56, 0.43‐8.36), HPV33 (1.01, 0.49‐3.31), HPV52 (0.99, 0.76‐1.33), and HPV58 (0.97, 0.75‐1.32). The relative risk of disease progression was 1.87 (95% CI, 1.71‐2.05) for HPV16/18/31/33/35/45/52/58, but only 0.17 (95% CI, 0.14‐0.22) for HPV39/51/56/59/66/68. Human papillomavirus 16/18/31/33/45/52/58/6/11 included in a 9‐valent vaccine contributed to 89.7% (95% CI, 88.7‐90.7) of CIN2‐3/AIS and 93.8% (95% CI, 92.4‐95.3) of ICC. In conclusion, our data support the Japanese guidelines that recommend discriminating HPV16/18/31/33/35/45/52/58 genotypes for CIN management. The 9‐valent vaccine is estimated to provide over 90% protection against ICC in young Japanese women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Controlling the energetics and backbone order of semiconducting polymers is essential for the performance improvement of polymer‐based solar cells. The use of fluorine as the substituent for the backbone is known to effectively deepen the molecular orbital energy levels and coplanarize the backbone by noncovalent interactions with sulfur of the thiophene ring. In this work, novel semiconducting polymers are designed and synthesized based on difluoronaphthobisthiadiazole (FNTz) as a new family of naphthobisthiadiazole (NTz)–quaterthiophene copolymer systems, which are one of the highest performing polymers in solar cells. The effect of the fluorination position on the energetics and backbone order is systematically studied. It is found that the dependence of the solar cell fill factor on the active layer thickness is very sensitive to the fluorination position. It is thus further investigated and discussed how the structural features of the polymers influence the photovoltaic parameters as well as the diode characteristics and bimolecular recombination. Further, the polymer with fluorine on both the naphthobisthiadiazole and quaterthiophene moieties exhibits a quite high power conversion efficiency of 10.8% in solar cells in combination with a fullerene. It is believed that the results would offer new insights into the development of semiconducting polymers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Japanese government began a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination program for girls aged 12‐16 years in 2010 but withdrew its recommendation in 2013 because of potential adverse effects, leading to drastically reduced vaccination uptake. To evaluate population‐level effects of HPV vaccination, women younger than 40 years of age newly diagnosed with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 1‐3 (CIN1‐3), adenocarcinoma in situ (AIS), or invasive cervical cancer (ICC) have been registered at 21 participating institutes each year since 2012. A total of 7709 women were registered during 2012‐2017, of which 5045 were HPV genotyped. Declining trends in prevalence of vaccine types HPV16 and HPV18 during a 6‐year period were observed in CIN1 (50.0% to 0.0%, Ptrend < .0001) and CIN2‐3/AIS (83.3% to 45.0%, Ptrend = .07) only among women younger than 25 years of age. Overall, HPV vaccination reduced the proportion of HPV16/18‐attributable CIN2‐3/AIS from 47.7% to 33.0% (P = .003): from 43.5% to 12.5% as routine vaccination (P = .08) and from 47.8% to 36.7% as catch‐up vaccination (P = .04). The HPV16/18 prevalence in CIN2‐3/AIS cases was significantly reduced among female individuals who received their first vaccination at age 20 years or younger (P = .02). We could not evaluate vaccination effects on ICC owing to low incidence of ICC among women aged less than 25 years. We found HPV vaccination to be effective in protecting against HPV16/18‐positive CIN/AIS in Japan; however, our data did not support catch‐up vaccination for women older than 20 years. Older adolescents who skipped routine vaccination due to the government's suspension of its vaccine recommendation could benefit from receiving catch‐up vaccination before age 20 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LiNi0.5Co0.2Mn0.3O2 (NCM) particles coated with lithium boron oxide were prepared by an antisolvent precipitation method. In the antisolvent precipitation method, ethanol was used to strip off the hydrated water coordinated with lithium ions and borate ions. By the antisolvent precipitation method, the NCM particles were coated with a uniform layer of LiBO2. The capacity fading on cycling was successfully suppressed for the lithium boron oxide‐coated samples. In addition, the rate capability was also improved by the coating. The lithium boron oxide coating effectively suppressed the increase of the electrode impedance associated with the electrolyte decomposition. Crack formation in the secondary particles after charge‐discharge cycling was greatly inhibited for lithium boron oxide‐coated NCM. It was demonstrated that the lithium boron oxide coating layer suppressed the side reactions not only on the particle surface, but also in the intergranular cracks by inhibiting the penetration of the electrolyte solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Hyaluronan (HA) is an essential constituent of extracellular matrix in the skin. HA reduction in the dermis and overexpression of HYBID (KIAA1199), a key molecule for HA degradation in skin fibroblasts, are implicated in facial skin wrinkling. Aims: We aimed to obtain anti‐wrinkle agent(s) by screening for inhibition of HYBID‐mediated HA degradation. Methods: Various plant extracts were screened for inhibition of HA degradation in HYBID‐stable transfectants in HEK293 (HYBID/HEK293). Inhibition of HA‐degrading activity and HYBID mRNA and protein expression by Geranium thunbergii extract was studied in skin fibroblasts and HYBID/HEK293 cells. Size distribution of newly produced HA was evaluated by preparing metabolically radiolabeled HA in skin fibroblasts. A double‐blind, randomized, and placebo‐controlled study was performed in healthy Japanese women (n = 21) by topically treating each side of the face with a lotion formulated with G. thunbergii extract or placebo for 8 weeks. Results: Among the plant extracts tested, only G. thunbergii extract abolished HA depolymerization in skin fibroblasts and HYBID/HEK293 cells by down‐regulating HYBID mRNA and protein expression and by inhibiting HYBID‐mediated HA‐degrading activity. Although untreated skin fibroblasts produced polydispersed HA, G. thunbergii extract‐treated cells produced high‐molecular‐weight HA. Treatment with G. thunbergii extract‐formulated lotion significantly improved skin elasticity and reduced skin wrinkling scores at the outer eye corner compared with the placebo formulation. Conclusions: Geranium thunbergii extract inhibited HYBID‐mediated HA degradation in vitro and showed anti‐wrinkle activity in vivo accompanying the improvement in skin elasticity. Our study provides a possible strategy for anti‐wrinkle care through inhibition of HYBID‐mediated HA degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Veliparib ( ABT-888) is a potent, orally bioavailable poly( ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 and -2 inhibitor. This phase 1 study evaluated the tolerability, pharmacokinetic profile, safety, and preliminary antitumor activity of single-agent veliparib in Japanese patients with advanced solid tumors. Eligible patients were assigned to treatment with veliparib at 200 or 400 mg dose; veliparib was self-administered orally twice daily on days 1-28 of 28-day cycles. Dose escalation, following a 3 + 3 design, defined dose-limiting toxicities, the maximum tolerated dose, and the recommended phase 2 dose. Sixteen patients were enrolled (median age, 59 years). Fourteen patients had high-grade serous ovarian cancer, one had primary peritoneal cancer, and one had BRCA-mutated breast cancer. The most frequent treatment-emergent adverse events were nausea and vomiting (93.8% each), decreased appetite (62.5%), abdominal pain, diarrhea, and malaise (31.3% each). A grade ≥3 toxicity was observed in 50% of patients; one patient each in the 200 mg ( n = 4) and 400 mg ( n = 12) cohorts experienced serious adverse events. Dose-limiting toxicities were observed for one patient at the 400 mg dose. No toxicities leading to death were reported. The recommended phase 2 dose was defined as 400 mg twice daily. The veliparib pharmacokinetic profile was consistent with that reported for the Western population. Two patients, both with ovarian cancer, had a RECIST partial response. Veliparib monotherapy showed manageable tolerability and safety profiles and a predictable pharmacokinetic profile at a 400 mg twice-daily dose, and supports the inclusion of Japanese patients in the multinational phase 3 study ( NCT02470585). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Expression of full-length KIAA1199 is essential for HA depolymerizing activity. [•] The cleavage of N-terminal 30 amino acids occurs in functionally matured KIAA1199. [•] The deletion of the N-terminal portion results in altered localization of KIAA1199. [•] The N-terminal 30 amino acids of KIAA1199 are indeed the cleavable signal sequence. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Recently, we have disclosed that human KIAA1199 (hKIAA1199) is a hyaluronan (HA) binding protein implicated in HA depolymerization. Although a murine homologue (mKiaa1199) was previously cloned, no information about the function of the molecule was available. Here, we show that cells transfected with mKiaa1199 cDNA selectively catabolized HA via the clathrin-coated pit pathway. A glycosaminoglycan-binding assay demonstrated the specific binding of mKiaa1199 to HA. These results were similar to our observations with hKIAA1199, although slight differences were found in the peak sizes of the minimum degradates of HA. We conclude that like hKIAA1199, mKiaa1199 is a hyaladherin, leading to HA depolymerization. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Computer-aided detection and diagnosis (CAD) systems are increasingly being used as an aid by clinicians for detection and interpretation of diseases. Computer-aided detection systems mark regions of an image that may reveal specific abnormalities and are used to alert clinicians to these regions during image interpretation. Computer-aided diagnosis systems provide an assessment of a disease using image-based information alone or in combination with other relevant diagnostic data and are used by clinicians as a decision support in developing their diagnoses. While CAD systems are commercially available, standardized approaches for evaluating and reporting their performance have not yet been fully formalized in the literature or in a standardization effort. This deficiency has led to difficulty in the comparison of CAD devices and in understanding how the reported performance might translate into clinical practice. To address these important issues, the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) formed the Computer Aided Detection in Diagnostic Imaging Subcommittee (CADSC), in part, to develop recommendations on approaches for assessing CAD system performance. The purpose of this paper is to convey the opinions of the AAPM CADSC members and to stimulate the development of consensus approaches and 'best practices' for evaluating CAD systems. Both the assessment of a standalone CAD system and the evaluation of the impact of CAD on end-users are discussed. It is hoped that awareness of these important evaluation elements and the CADSC recommendations will lead to further development of structured guidelines for CAD performance assessment. Proper assessment of CAD system performance is expected to increase the understanding of a CAD system's effectiveness and limitations, which is expected to stimulate further research and development efforts on CAD technologies, reduce problems due to improper use, and eventually improve the utility and efficacy of CAD in clinical practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fast (∼10 μs) and deformation‐free electro‐optic tuning of a liquid crystal is reported, achieved by macroscopic alignment and switching of nanosized, pseudo‐nematic domains. The tuning mode can be achieved by photopolymerizing a mesogenic monomer–liquid crystal mixture in the liquid crystal phase, and forming nanosized pores in the polymer matrix. This concept is particularly effective in liquid crystals with spontaneous structure‐forming capabilities: here this concept is applied to a cholesteric liquid crystal and demonstrate scatter‐free tuning of the Bragg reflection band. It can also lead to new device applications such as thin‐film optical amplitude modulators and linear polarization rotators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polarization-dependent Raman microscopy is a powerful technique to perform both structural and chemical analyses with submicron spatial resolution. In conventional Raman microscopy, the polarization measurements are limited only in the direction parallel to the sample plane. In this work, we overcome the limit of conventional measurements by controlling the incident polarization by a spatially modulated waveplate. In this method, the polarization perpendicular to the sample surface ( z-polarization) can be detected together with the parallel polarization ( xy-polarization). Because of this unique polarization control, our Raman microscope has the ability to image the molecular orientation, together with the molecular analysis. Here, we have investigated thin films of pentacene molecules that are widely studied as an organic semiconductor material. The orientations of pentacene molecules are imaged with a spatial resolution of 300 nm. Our results clearly indicate that the lamellar grains show the lower tilt angles compared to the neighboring islands, which has not been proved in conventional methods. The substrate effects and the thickness dependence of the film are also studied. These results provide knowledge about the relationship between the devise performance and the film structures, which is indispensable for future device exploitations. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new polymorph of volborthite [tricopper(II) divanadium(V) heptaoxide dihydroxide dihydrate], Cu3V2O7(OH)2·2H2O, has been discovered in a single crystal prepared by hydrothermal synthesis. X-ray analysis reveals that the monoclinic structure has the space group C2/ c at room temperature, which is different from that of the previously reported C2/ m structure. Both structures have Cu3O6(OH)2 layers composed of edge-sharing CuO4(OH)2 octahedra, with V2O7 pillars and water molecules between the layers. The Cu atoms occupy two and three independent crystallographic sites in the C2/ m and C2/ c structures, respectively, likely giving rise to different magnetic interactions between CuII spins in the kagome lattices embedded in the Cu3O6(OH)2 layers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work represents the extraction of cottonseed oil using subcritical water. The extraction efficiencies of different range temperatures (180-280°C), having mean particle size range from 3 mm to less than 0.5 mm, water:seed ratios of 0.5:1, 1:1, and 2:1, and extraction times in the range of 5-60 min were all investigated. The composition of the extracted oil, using the subcritical water, was analyzed by gas-liquid chromatography and compared with that extracted using traditional hexane extraction. The results showed that the optimum temperature, mean particle size, water:seed ratio, and extraction time were 270°C, <0.5 mm, 2:1, and 30 min, respectively. In addition the extracted oil was identical to that extracted using the traditional hexane method. © 2010 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2011 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In CT colonography (CTC), orally administered positive-contrast tagging agents are often used for differentiating residual bowel contents from native colonic structures. However, tagged materials can sometimes hyperattenuate observed CT numbers of their adjacent untagged materials. Such pseudoenhancement complicates the differentiation of colonic soft-tissue structures from tagged materials, because pseudoenhanced colonic structures may have CT numbers that are similar to those of tagged materials. The authors developed a nonlinear regression-based (NLRB) method for performing a local image-based pseudoenhancement correction of CTC data. To calibrate the correction parameters, the CT data of an anthropomorphic reference phantom were correlated with those of partially tagged phantoms. The CTC data were registered spatially by use of an adaptive multiresolution method, and untagged and tagged partial-volume soft-tissue surfaces were correlated by use of a virtual tagging scheme. The NLRB method was then optimized to minimize the difference in the CT numbers of soft-tissue regions between the untagged and tagged phantom CTC data by use of the Nelder-Mead downhill simplex method. To validate the method, the CT numbers of untagged regions were compared with those of registered pseudoenhanced phantom regions before and after the correction. The CT numbers were significantly different before performing the correction (p<0.01), whereas, after the correction, the difference between the CT numbers was not significant. The effect of the correction was also tested on the size measurement of polyps that were covered by tagging in phantoms and in clinical cases. In phantom cases, before the correction, the diameters of 12 simulated polyps submerged in tagged fluids that were measured in a soft-tissue CT display were significantly different from those measured in an untagged phantom (p<0.01), whereas after the correction the difference was not significant. In clinical cases, before the correction, the diameters of 29 colonoscopy-confirmed 3–14 mm polyps affected by tagging that were measured in a soft-tissue CT display were significantly different from those measured in a lung CT display (p<0.0001) or in colonoscopy (p<0.05), whereas after the correction the difference was not significant. Finally, the effect of the correction was tested on automated detection of 25 polyps ≥6 mm affected by tagging in 56 clinical CTC cases. The application of the correction increased the detection accuracy from 60% with 5.0 FP detections per patient without correction to 96% with 2.9 FP detections with correction. This improvement in detection accuracy was statistically significant (p<0.05). The results indicate that the proposed NLRB method can yield an accurate pseudoenhancement correction with potentially significant benefits in clinical CTC examinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The type I interferon (IFN) response to DNA/cationic liposome complex, or lipoplex, has been reported in cultured cells, but little is known about the response in vivo. Studies of the pro-inflammatory cytokine response to lipoplex have shown the importance of the unmethylated CpG dinucleotide (CpG motif) and its receptor, Toll-like receptor (TLR)-9. Methods CpG- and non-CpG lipoplex consisting of CpG- or non-CpG plasmid DNA, respectively, and N-[1-(2,3-dioleyloxy)propyl]- N, N, N-trimethylammonium chloride/cholesterol liposomes were intravenously injected into mice. IFN-β and interleukin (IL)-6 in the serum and organs were measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The involvement of TLR9, phagocytic cells and the spleen in the responses was evaluated using TLR9−/−, clodronate liposome-treated-, and splenectomized mice, respectively. Accumulation of blood cells in the lung was evaluated histologically. Results CpG lipoplex induced a large increase in the levels of IFN-β and IL-6 in the serum, liver, spleen, lung and kidney, whereas non-CpG lipoplex scarcely had any effect. Neither formulation led to significant cytokine production in TLR9−/− mice. Clodronate liposome-treated mice showed a large reduction in both IFN-β and IL-6 levels. Splenectomized mice receiving CpG lipoplex also showed a significantly low production of IL-6 but a similar level of IFN-β production to that of unsplenectomized mice. A large number of monocytes were found in the capillary vessels around the pulmonary alveoli of mice receiving lipoplex. Conclusions These findings indicate that, in contrast to the production of IL-6 from splenic macrophages, IFN-β is produced from phagocytic cells other than splenic macrophages after the injection of CpG lipoplex through the TLR9-dependent pathway. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laxative-free computed tomographic colonography (lfCTC) could significantly improve patient adherence to colorectal screening. However, the interpretation of lfCTC data is complicated by the presence of poorly tagged feces and partial-volume artifacts that imitate colorectal lesions. The authors developed a method for virtual tagging of such artifacts. A probabilistic model of colonic wall was developed, and virtual tagging was performed on artifacts that were identified by the model. The method was evaluated with 46 clinical lfCTC cases that were prepared with dietary fecal tagging only. Visual examples show that the method can label partial-volume artifacts, poorly tagged feces, nonadhering completely untagged feces, and artifacts such as rectal tubes. The effect of virtual tagging was evaluated by comparing the detection accuracy of a fully automated polyp detection scheme without and with the method. With virtual tagging, the per-lesion detection sensitivity was 100% for lesions >=10 mm (n=4) with 3.8 false positives per patient (per two CT scan volumes) and 90% for lesions >=6 mm (n=10) with 5.4 false positives per patient on average. The improvement in detection performance by virtual tagging was statistically significant (p=0.03; JAFROC and JAFROC-1). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electronic cleansing (EC) is an emerging method for segmentation of fecal material in CT colonography (CTC) that is used for reducing or eliminating the requirement for cathartic bowel preparation and hence for improving patients’ adherence to recommendations for colon cancer screening. In EC, feces tagged by an x-ray-opaque oral contrast agent are removed from the CTC images, effectively cleansing the colon after image acquisition. Existing EC approaches tend to suffer from the following cleansing artifacts: degradation of soft-tissue structures because of pseudo-enhancement caused by the surrounding tagged fecal materials, and pseudo soft-tissue structures and false fistulas caused by partial volume effects at the boundary between the air lumen and the tagged regions, called the air-tagging boundary (AT boundary). In this study, we developed a novel EC method, called structure-analysis cleansing, which effectively avoids these cleansing artifacts. In our method, submerged soft-tissue structures are recognized by their local morphologic signatures that are characterized based on the eigenvalues of a three-dimensional Hessian matrix. A structure-enhancement function is formulated for enhancing of the soft-tissue structures. In addition, thin folds sandwiched between the air lumen and tagged regions are enhanced by analysis of the local roughness based on multi-scale volumetric curvedness. Both values of the structure-enhancement function and the local roughness are integrated into the speed function of a level set method for delineating the tagged fecal materials. Thus, submerged soft-tissue structures as well as soft-tissue structures adhering to the tagged regions are preserved, whereas the tagged regions are removed along with the associated AT boundaries from CTC images. Evaluation of the quality of the cleansing based on polyps and folds in a colon phantom, as well as on polyps in clinical cathartic and noncathartic CTC cases with fluid and stool tagging, showed that our structure-analysis cleansing method is significantly superior to that of our previous thresholding-based EC method. It provides a cleansed colon with substantially reduced subtraction artifacts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study on the network-formation process of solid oxide fuel cell anode from nickel oxide (NiO)-samaria-doped ceria (SDC) composite particles by spray pyrolysis technique. The factors involved in obtaining high-performance anode from the composite particles with each internal structure are offered. The study concluded that network-formation processes of core-shell type and dispersed type particles vary.

The article presents a study which evaluated the residual stress profiles of practical size lanthanum gallate-based cells in radial direction. Employing an x-ray diffraction technique with synchrotron radiation, the study measured the residual stress profiles of cells with lanthanum electrolyte. An elaboration of the decrease in residual stress profiles of cells after an electric power generation is offered.

One of the major challenges in computer-aided detection (CAD) of polyps in CT colonography (CTC) is the reduction of false-positive detections (FPs) without a concomitant reduction in sensitivity. A large number of FPs is likely to confound the radiologist’s task of image interpretation, lower the radiologist’s efficiency, and cause radiologists to lose their confidence in CAD as a useful tool. Major sources of FPs generated by CAD schemes include haustral folds, residual stool, rectal tubes, the ileocecal valve, and extra-colonic structures such as the small bowel and stomach. Our purpose in this study was to develop a method for the removal of various types of FPs in CAD of polyps while maintaining a high sensitivity. To achieve this, we developed a “mixture of expert” three-dimensional (3D) massive-training artificial neural networks (MTANNs) consisting of four 3D MTANNs that were designed to differentiate between polyps and four categories of FPs: (1) rectal tubes, (2) stool with bubbles, (3) colonic walls with haustral folds, and (4) solid stool. Each expert 3D MTANN was trained with examples from a specific non-polyp category along with typical polyps. The four expert 3D MTANNs were combined with a mixing artificial neural network (ANN) such that different types of FPs could be removed. Our database consisted of 146 CTC datasets obtained from 73 patients whose colons were prepared by standard pre-colonoscopy cleansing. Each patient was scanned in both supine and prone positions. Radiologists established the locations of polyps through the use of optical-colonoscopy reports. Fifteen patients had 28 polyps, 15 of which were 5–9 mm and 13 were 10–25 mm in size. The CTC cases were subjected to our previously reported CAD method consisting of centerline-based extraction of the colon, shape-based detection of polyp candidates, and a Bayesian-ANN-based classification of polyps. The original CAD method yielded 96.4% (27/28) by-polyp sensitivity with an average of 3.1 (224/73) FPs per patient. The mixture of expert 3D MTANNs removed 63% (142/224) of the FPs without the loss of any true positive; thus, the FP rate of our CAD scheme was improved to 1.1 (82/73) FPs per patient while the original sensitivity was maintained. By use of the mixture of expert 3D MTANNs, the specificity of a CAD scheme for detection of polyps in CTC was substantially improved while a high sensitivity was maintained. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Matrix-type nickel oxide (NiO)/samarium-doped ceria (SDC) composite particles, in which NiO and SDC nano-particles were homogeneously dispersed, were synthesized by spray pyrolysis (SP) for an anode precursor of intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs). SP of an aqueous solution containing Ni, Ce, and Sm salts resulted in capsule-type composite particles that had NiO enveloped with SDC. The capsule-type composite particles actually prevent Ni aggregation between particles, but they cannot have a large contact area between nickel (Ni) and SDC. A matrix-type composite particle is expected to have a large contact area because the matrix-type composite is comprised of nanometer-sized Ni and SDC particles. An adequate addition of ethylene glycol successfully resulted in matrix-type NiO/SDC composite particles. The matrix-type composite particles also showed higher anode performance than the capsule-type composite particles in these experiments and they were effective as precursors of high-performance IT-SOFC anodes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study the temperature profiles inside a tube batch reactor under the sub-critical water condition were investigated under different operating conditions. The most important that may affect the temperature profile, including salt bath mixing speed, reactor shaking, reactant viscosity, and reactor contents, were investigated both experimentally and theoretically. The results showed that both salt bath mixing and reactor shaking had a great effect in the rate of heating up. The study of the effect of reactant viscosity on the temperature profile revealed that the thermal conductivity rather than viscosity was found to affect the temperature profile in the case of comparing reactant with different viscosities. The reactant contents had the lowest pronounced effect on both heating up and cooling down rates among all tested parameters. Two different empirical equations were developed to describe the temperature profiles during both heating up and cooling down periods. Using these equations we developed a new mathematical model for describing the kinetic behavior of fast reactions that take place under the sub-critical water condition. We assumed that the reaction was taking place under unsteady state conditions and following first order kinetics. Based on the simulation results, we developed a new strategy for finding out the correct values of activation energy and frequency factor involved in such fast reactions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the synthesis and characterization of a novel biodegradable plastic synthesized from the serum albumin of bovine blood (BSA) by using the sub-critical water technology in batch reactors. The optimum synthesis conditions were found to be in the range of 250-275°C for a reaction time of 1 min using 160 g/L BSA as an initial concentration. After a reaction time of only 0.5 min, all water-soluble BSA molecules were completely transformed into water-insoluble solids without hydrolysis or decomposition. A variety of techniques have been used to study the nature of the formed solids. The obtained results reveled that such solids showed many plastic properties and could be processed to produce a biodegradable plastic. The produced solids were recovered, dried, and thermally processed to produce a plastic BSA (PBSA). In this way, it was possible to obtain a material with a variety of mechanical properties that might allow for its application in both the biomedical as well as the traditional biodegradable plastic fields. The average values of the yield strength and modulus of elasticity of the processed samples synthesized at 250°C for 1-min reaction time were 31.2 and 780 MPa, respectively. The biodegradability was confirmed by measuring the methane gas production and weight losses during an anaerobic fermentation of the processed plastic samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intraparticle diffusions of H3PO4, H2PO4,- HPO42-, and PO43- ions in an OH-type strongly basic ion exchanger, DIAION SAIOA, were investigated by measuring the uptake curves for adsorption of phosphates by using the shallow-bed method. The experimental uptake data were correlated by applying the homogeneous Fickian diffusion model and the parallel diffusion model for surface and pore diffusions. In all phosphate systems, the values of intraparticle effective diffusivity (Deff) obtained from the homogeneous model increased with the increase in the bulk-phase concentration, and suggested the existence of a parallel transport of phosphates in the particle by the surface and pore diffusions. The surface diffusivities (Ds) for the parallel diffusion model were determined from the intercepts of the plots of Deff[1 + (εpCo/qo)] vs. εpCo/qo. The accurate pore diffusivities (Dp) were obtained by matching the theoretical uptake curves for the parallel diffusion model with the experimental uptake data. The parallel diffusion model agrees reasonably well with the experimental uptake data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes an architecture of intelligent learning environments that aims at assisting students in acquiring the ability to apply physical laws to complex systems. This paper also presents its application to a spring-system learning environment. The learning process in the architecture consists of three steps: to interpret data collected by experiment, to predict results of experiment, and to verify the prediction by experiment. If a student encounters difficulties, the intelligent learning environment provides assistance such as prompting to collect additional data that are useful for interpretation, or providing a new physical system that is suitable for the student's state of understanding. To realize such tailored assistance for each individual student, we need a method to model a student's ability to apply rules. This paper proposes a new student model represented by a multidimensional space. Axes of the space correspond to measures of generality of a subject domain. We implemented an intelligent learning environment called “SpringMaster” to validate the proposed architecture. The result of its evaluation shows that students who learned by SpringMaster had better understanding than students who learned by real instruments. © 2001 Scripta Technica, Syst Comp Jpn, 32(8): 1–9, 2001 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]