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Abstract Background Chest computed tomography findings are helpful for understanding the pathophysiology of severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). However, there is no large, multicenter, chest computed tomography registry for patients requiring veno-venous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V-V ECMO). The aim of this study was to describe chest computed tomography findings at V-V ECMO initiation and to evaluate the association between the findings and outcomes in severe ARDS. Methods This multicenter, retrospective cohort study enrolled patients with severe ARDS on V-V ECMO, who were admitted to the intensive care units of 24 hospitals in Japan between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2022. Results The primary outcome was 90-day in-hospital mortality. The secondary outcomes were the successful liberation from V-V ECMO and the values of static lung compliance. Among the 697 registry patients, of the 582 patients who underwent chest computed tomography at V-V ECMO initiation, 394 survived and 188 died. Multivariate Cox regression showed that traction bronchiectasis and subcutaneous emphysema increased the risk of 90-day in-hospital mortality (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval] 1.77 [1.19–2.63], p = 0.005 and 1.97 [1.02–3.79], p = 0.044, respectively). The presence of traction bronchiectasis was also associated with decreased successful liberation from V-V ECMO (odds ratio: 0.27 [0.14–0.52], p

The phenomenon of one’s walking speed being affected by that of other pedestrians on the street is often observed in real-world scenarios. However, the effects of the motion and familiarity of avatars on a user in virtual reality have not been thoroughly investigated. Therefore, this study explored how alterations in human avatars affect the walking speed and sensation of users. Furthermore, walking speed has been shown to be influenced not only by visual perception but also by cognition. However, few studies have investigated the relationships between visual perception, cognition, and behavior. Therefore, we examined the relationships between stereotypical words for older people, a representative example of cognition-induced changes in walking speed, and visual perception stimuli of avatars. The results revealed a significant interaction between the stereotype and avatar walking motion. In particular, in the absence of the stereotype, participants were strongly affected by the older walking motion of the avatar, and their walking speed decreased. We also found that the walking motion of avatars significantly affects participants walking speed and sensation. These findings provide pioneering insights into the psychological factors that regulate human walking speed and propose a new method for manipulating the user’s walking speed and sensation in VR space.

Contact sports such as Aikido are preferred to be trained in person with an experienced trainer, as the attempts of remote training before and during the COVID-19 pandemic failed to reproduce the quality of the in-person training benefiting from the trainer’s physically present body. To address this issue of replicating in-person experience remotely, we proposed “Sensei possession,” an xReality-based training method for contact sports in which the trainer remotely guides a person who performs the physical interaction with the trainee on behalf of the real trainer in real-time. In this study, to test the effectiveness of “Sensei possession” on training performance and examine the concerns about its possible side effects on motivation, we conducted a between-participants experiment with an Aikido training task [N = 10 pairs (20 people)]. We compared the groups with or without live feedback on the proxy trainers under our hypothesis that live feedback would enhance trainees’ performance gain. As a result, the trainees in the group with live feedback on proxy trainers had more performance gain than those without live feedback, and no indication of negative effects on motivation was shown. We discussed our results concerning the previous research on micro-adaptive training and reported technical insights to improve the design of Sensei possession further.

IntroductionWhile informal communication is essential for employee performance and wellbeing, it is difficult to maintain in telework settings. This issue has recently been becoming more prominent worldwide, especially because of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Nevertheless, how employees managed their informal communication in the sudden shift to teleworking is still understudied. This study fills this research gap by clarifying how an organization's employees improvised informal communication during the urgent shift to teleworking.MethodsAn exploratory case study of a large construction firm in Japan was conducted, focusing on how employees improvised informal communication during teleworking in response to COVID-19. The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with 24 employees and applied a qualitative thematic analysis to the collected data.ResultsFour informal communication strategies (structured informality, casual tech, implicit communication, and face-to-face opportunity seeking) that were improvised amid the sudden shift to teleworking caused by COVID-19 were identified.DiscussionThe findings can inform concrete means for the effective and dynamic transition of informal communication to teleworking settings during emergencies, thus contributing to informal communication studies as well as the promotion of resilient business operations and employee wellbeing in response to future crises.

Spintronics-based studies have produced significant attention in the last decade while claiming the observation of room temperature ferromagnetism (RTFM). Nevertheless, there is a lack of consensus on a mechanism responsible for this phenomenon. In this study, we focus on Cu-doped ZnO (ZCO) to understand the microscopic origin of RTFM and the role of different oxidation states of Cu in RTFM. We have performed different spectroscopic techniques using synchrotron facilities. The values of spin-moment obtained from x-ray magnetic circular dichroism sum-rule truly exhibit a ferromagnetic interaction in the nanocrystalline powder of ZCO with ∼0.58 μB for 5% of Cu concentration in the total fluorescence yield mode. Such an enhanced magnetization is attributed to the presence of Cu2+, which is mainly localized in the bulk region. Cu in ZCO is mostly dominated by the presence of Cu2+. This is clearly reflected by the profiles of x-ray photoemission spectroscopy. Consequently, the weakly magnetized total electron yield mode is attributed to a state of magnetic frustration as the majority of Cu3+ is found on the surface. Some of these Cu3+ when come in the vicinity of Cu2+ ions result in a highly correlated state of double exchange mechanism, which is the microscopic origin of RTFM in ZCO. The coupling between Cu2+-Cu3+ is mediated via oxygen vacancies (VO), the presence of which is confirmed through the features of electron energy loss spectroscopy over different edges. The confirmation of VO is also supported by the deconvolution of E2high-phonon in the Raman spectra. Moreover, the defects in the local electronic structures of ZCO are demonstrated by the deconvoluted spectra of Cu L3 x-ray absorption spectroscopy. The images obtained from high-resolution transmission electron microscopy confirm the incorporation of Cu into the wurtzite crystal of ZnO. A clear enhancement in magnetization upon an increase in carriers of Cu in ZCO indicates carrier-induced ferromagnetism. Cu2+ and VO are the two attributes of RTFM in ZCO.

Abstract Background Disaster-related relocation is associated with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, especially in older adults. Disaster-related relocation often deprives survivors of opportunities for social group participation, potentially deteriorating their mental health. On the contrary, the relocation could also be an opportunity for optimizing social relationships, ending/reducing unwanted participation. This study examined the potential mediation effects of changing participation for the link of disaster-related relocation to mental health. Methods We analyzed a pre-post disaster dataset of functionally independent older adults from the Japan Gerontological Evaluation Study. Following the 2013 survey, a follow-up survey was conducted seven months after the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake (n = 828). Results The causal mediation analyses indicated that compared to no relocation, the relative risk for experiencing major depressive episodes among those relocating to temporary housing was 3.79 [95% confidence interval: 1.70–6.64] (natural direct effect). By contrast, the relative risk for those renewing (either ceased or started) group participation was 0.60 [95% CI: 0.34–0.94] (natural indirect effect). Conclusions Optimization of social ties according to a renewal of group participation status might have protected older adults in temporary housing against depression.

Abstract Background Pulmonary sequestration is a rare pulmonary malformation, with intralobar pulmonary sequestration being the most common subtype. Lobectomy has generally been performed for its treatment, owing to unclear boundaries of the lesion. However, recent reports have introduced lung resection using intravenous indocyanine green (ICG) as a treatment for pulmonary sequestrations. Case description A 34-year-old woman presented with chest pain, and enhanced chest computed tomography (CT) displayed a solid mass of 4.5 × 3.1 cm in the right S10 area. An aberrant artery was found running from the celiac artery through the diaphragm to the thoracic cavity. The patient was diagnosed as having pulmonary sequestration Pryce type III, and surgical resection was performed. Intrathoracic findings demonstrated that the precise area of the pulmonary sequestration could not be clearly identified, and a 5-mm aberrant artery was present in the pulmonary ligament. Following the separation of the aberrant artery, intravenous injection of ICG clearly delineated the border between the normal lung tissue and the pulmonary sequestration. Wedge resection was then performed without any postoperative events, and the pathological diagnosis was also pulmonary sequestration. Conclusions We herein reported a case of a patient who underwent sublobar resection for intrapulmonary sequestration using intravenous ICG injection, together with a literature review. Our case suggests that a comprehensive understanding of abnormal vessels and pulmonary vasculature in pulmonary resection for intrapulmonary sequestrations, complemented with the use of ICG, might potentially avoid unnecessary pulmonary resection and enable sublobar surgical resection.

Abstract Illusory self-motion (“vection”) has been used to present a sense of movement in virtual reality (VR) and other similar applications. It is crucial in vection research to present a stronger sense of movement. Bone-conducted vibration (BCV) is a small and generally acceptable method for enhancing the sense of movement in VR. However, its effects on vection have not been extensively studied. Here, we conducted two experiments to investigate the effect of BCV on the vection, which generates an upward sensation under the hypothesis that BCV stimulation to the mastoid processes causes noise in the vestibular system and enhances visually-induced self-motion perception. The experiments focused on the effects of BCV stimuli of different frequencies on the vection experience. The results suggested that 500 Hz BCV was more effective as noise to the vestibular system than other frequency BCVs and improved self-motion sensation. This study examines the effects of BCV with different frequencies on the vection experience and designs a theory for using BCV in VR.

Abstract In this study, we investigated the association between PD‐L1 expression in tumor cells and underlying genetic mutations, which was analyzed in detail using laser microdissection and next‐generation sequencing analysis. To investigate whether driver mutations are involved in the background of PD‐L1 expression, the EGFR major activating mutation was selected as the most frequent driver mutation. Surgical resection specimens were used to extract sufficient amounts of nucleic acids for analysis, and the high tumor proportion score (TPS:100%) and low (TPS: 0%) PD‐L1‐expressing parts of the tumor were each laser microdissected to examine the association between PD‐L1 expression heterogeneity and genetic mutations within the same tumor. The association between PD‐L1 heterogeneity and gene mutations within the same tumor was investigated. Analysis showed no association between PD‐L1 expression heterogeneity and genetic variants, which were found to be almost identical. However, PD‐L1 expression was found to be associated with the number of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) present in the tumor, which may be related to whether or not lymphocytes can infiltrate into the tumor depending on the tumor histological type (solid pattern, lepidic pattern, etc.) and other factors.

Traditional expectancy disconfirmation theories have focused on the discrepancy between expectations and perceptions. Here, we propose a new Bayesian framework model that takes into account human responses triggered by disconfirmation. It aims to explain, for example, the differences of responses to waiting time at a hospital reception, where the wait time discrepancy is ideally expected to be zero, by introducing the sensitivity of individuals which corresponds to the decision threshold for responses when coping with disconfirmation. The model was applied to a real-world clinical appointment dataset. The dataset contains multiple appointments with expected and actual times and individual response patterns depending on the disconfirmation. Individual sensitivity was estimated from the dataset. The sensitivity was correlated with the response patterns such as sticking to expectation. In addition, with agent-based simulations, results suggest that the introduction of sensitivity contributes to identifying different groups of responses and predicting negative responses such as "No-Show".

Research has documented children’s understanding that a choice made when constrained to a single option is a poor indicator of another person’s preference. However, when constraints are constant over time—as they often are in social contexts—they may lose their salience. We examined whether children (N = 133, 5- to 12-year-olds) were more likely to refrain from inferring that a constrained actor prefers their choice if they first observe unconstrained actors (Alternatives condition) compared to if they only observe constrained actors (Constant condition). Presence of alternatives was crossed with constraint type: either the second option was hard to access or there was no other option. In line with our predictions, results indicated that observing alternative situations with greater choice increased children’s subsequent attention to constraints. Effects were stronger for the hard to access constraint and for older children.

To figure out what happened in the past, we often rely on others’ testimony. One challenge is that people can disagree in their interpretations of what happened. We will investigate children’s use of disagreement as evidence for what happened, specifically, inferring that the event itself was ambiguous and could generate multiple interpretations. Children (N = 50; 7 to 11 years) will hear two observers’ testimony, in which the observers either agreed about another speaker’s desires (e.g., both observers agreed that the speaker wanted an intervention) or disagreed (one observer was sure the speaker wanted the intervention, while the other observer was sure the speaker did not want it). Children will then be asked to infer which of three events happened: the speaker uttered an unambiguous request (should be inferred more in agreement trials), an ambiguous request (should be inferred more in disagreement trials), or a random statement (neither trial type).

Heterochromatin is most often associated with eukaryotic organisms. Yet, bacteria also contain areas with densely protein-occupied chromatin that appear to silence gene expression. One nucleoid-associated silencing factor is the conserved protein Hfq. Although seemingly nonspecific in its DNA binding properties, Hfq is strongly enriched at AT-rich DNA regions, characteristic of prophages and mobile genetic elements. Here, we demonstrate that polyphosphate (polyP), an ancient and highly conserved polyanion, is essential for the site-specific DNA binding properties of Hfq in bacteria. Absence of polyP markedly alters the DNA binding profile of Hfq, causes unsolicited prophage and transposon mobilization, and increases mutagenesis rates and DNA damage–induced cell death. In vitro reconstitution of the system revealed that Hfq and polyP interact with AT-rich DNA sequences and form phase-separated condensates, a process that is mediated by the intrinsically disordered C-terminal extensions of Hfq. We propose that polyP serves as a newly identified driver of heterochromatin formation in bacteria.

Introduction: Ectopic foreign bodies in the maxillary sinus occur rarely. Ectopic tooth eruption rarely occurs in the orbit, nasal cavity, maxillary sinus, and elsewhere. Ectopic eruption of teeth in the maxillary sinus is most commonly associated with wisdom teeth and is rarely associated with supernumerary teeth. This rare phenomenon may be accompanied by chronic recurrent sinusitis with headaches and facial pain. However, fibro-osseous lesions in the paranasal sinuses are discovered incidentally on X-ray images and are often asymptomatic. Osteoma is the most common fibro-osseous lesion that develops in the paranasal and nasal sinuses. Osteomas rarely cause serious symptoms such as orbital lesions and intracranial invasion. Case Presentation: We report a rare case of exostosis containing supernumerary teeth within the maxillary sinus. A characteristic pedicled bone lesion with a clear border on computed tomography was the undefined orthopantomogram radiopacity in the maxillary sinus, and the lesion contained supernumerary teeth. As the patient had chronic nasal congestion, the tumor was surgically removed. Pathologically, the surgical specimen revealed an osteoma. The patient’s symptoms of chronic sinusitis disappeared. Because the patient had no history of midface trauma or surgery, the supernumerary teeth were speculated to have migrated during a reactive osteogenic process caused by chronic sinusitis. Conclusions: A foreign body in the maxillary sinus can be easily diagnosed by computed tomography. Surgical removal is recommended if the foreign body is symptomatic or occupies more than half of the maxillary sinus. This can help resolve chronic sinusitis symptoms and prevent serious complications in the future.