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A Japanese female in her 20 s with a history of self-induced vomiting was diagnosed with severe renal failure and referred to our department. She was extremely lean, with a body mass index of 9.6 kg/m2. Computed tomography showed increased brightness of the entire renal parenchyma; renal biopsy demonstrated prominent calcium deposition in the Bowman’s capsule and tubulointerstitial areas accompanied by collapsed glomeruli, severe interstitial fibrosis and tubular atrophy. Although the diagnosis was nephrocalcinosis, no underlying conditions were found. Despite the management of chronic kidney disease-mineral bone disorder and nutritional therapy, the patient developed uremia and initiated maintenance hemodialysis approximately two years after the first visit. Kidney disorders are commonly observed in patients with eating disorders and may occasionally lead to end-stage kidney disease. However, detailed investigations are few, especially regarding the histopathological conditions of these patients, and the precise mechanisms remain unclear. Nephrocalcinosis can cause end-stage kidney disease if extensive, as observed in the present case.

For isotropic dissimilar materials, it is well known that the stress state can be expressed by two independent material composite parameters named Dundurs parameters αiso, βiso. Similar composite parameters were also derived for orthotropic dissimilar materials as α , β , ΓA , ΓB , ρA , ρB . Compared to two parameters in isotropic dissimilar materials, anisotropic dissimilar materials have such six independent material parameters, making it much more difficult to use previous analysis results and requiring the new analysis each time. In this study, first, the interface crack in orthotropic dissimilar materials is analyzed by applying the proportional method. Second, the singular stress field in orthotropic materials is compared with that in the isotropic dissimilar material under the condition α = αiso，β = βiso. The results show that the singular stress field in orthotropic dissimilar material can be evaluated within a few percent error in most cases from that in isotropic dissimilar material when α = αiso，β = βiso. In this isotropic replacement by applying α = αiso，β = βiso, the singular interface stress distributions in orthotropic dissimilar plates can be estimated within the 10% error even when the material anisotropy is widely changed.

The increasing global demand for a more sustainable economy is propelling the exploration of alternatives to conventional practices. The adoption of a hydrogen production and distribution system is gaining global consensus, driven by its lower environmental impact compared to fossil fuels. This study delves into the feasibility of renewable hydrogen, sourced from avenues like solar and wind power, particularly in the realm of sustainable urban transportation. The urgency for innovative technologies, underscored by emissions targets and sustainable development goals, positions hydrogen as a promising solution with superior calorific value and reduced emissions. Nonetheless, formidable challenges, including limited infrastructure and the requirement for substantial investment, pose significant hurdles to its widespread adoption. The pertinence of this study is further emphasized by the necessity to continually update the literature, ensuring alignment with the dynamic developments in this field.

Abstract In this study, plasma belimumab concentrations were measured over the course of treatment in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients on belimumab therapy, and intra‐ and interindividual variations in plasma belimumab concentration were evaluated. A single‐center prospective study was conducted at Oita University Hospital to evaluate trough plasma concentrations over the course of treatment in 13 SLE patients treated with intravenous belimumab. Plasma belimumab concentrations were measured by a validated ultra‐high performance liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry method. The median age of the patients was 40 (interquartile range: 35–51) years and the median weight was 51.8 (47.0–58.1) kg. A mean of 9.4 (range: 1–13) blood samples was collected per patient at routine visits. The mean (± SD) plasma belimumab concentration was 33.4 ± 11.9 μg/mL in the patient with the lowest concentration and 170.0 ± 16.6 μg/mL in the patient with the highest concentration, indicating a 5‐fold difference between patients. On the other hand, the within‐patient coefficient of variation ranged from 7.1% to 35.7%, showing no large variations. No significant correlation was observed between plasma belimumab concentration and belimumab dose (mg/kg) (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient = 0.22, p = .54). Examinations of trough plasma belimumab concentrations over the course of treatment in patients with SLE showed small intraindividual variation but large interindividual variation. Plasma belimumab trough concentration varied widely among patients administered the approved dose.

ABSTRACT Purpose: Amid rising health awareness, natural products which has milder effects than medical drugs are becoming popular. However, only few systems can quantitatively assess their impact on living organisms. Therefore, we developed a deep-learning system to automate the counting of cells in a gerbil model, aiming to assess a natural product’s effectiveness against ischemia. Methods: The image acquired from paraffin blocks containing gerbil brains was analyzed by a deep-learning model (fine-tuned Detectron2). Results: The counting system achieved a 79%-positive predictive value and 85%-sensitivity when visual judgment by an expert was used as ground truth. Conclusions: Our system evaluated hydrogen water’s potential against ischemia and found it potentially useful, which is consistent with expert assessment. Due to natural product’s milder effects, large data sets are needed for evaluation, making manual measurement labor-intensive. Hence, our system offers a promising new approach for evaluating natural products.

BackgroundThe mortality rate of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) remains high. Therefore, patients with ACS should undergo early risk stratification, for which various risk calculation tools are available. However, it remains uncertain whether the predictive performance varies over time between risk calculation tools for different target periods. This study aimed to compare the predictive performance of risk calculation tools in estimating short- and long-term mortality risks in patients with ACS, while considering different observation periods using time-dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.MethodsThis study included 404 consecutive patients with ACS who underwent coronary angiography at our hospital from March 2017 to January 2021. The ACTION and GRACE scores for short-term risk stratification purposes and CRUSADE scores for long-term risk stratification purposes were calculated for all participants. The participants were followed up for 36 months to assess mortality. Using time-dependent ROC analysis, we evaluated the area under the curve (AUC) of the ACTION, CRUSADE, and GRACE scores at 1, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months.ResultsSixty-six patients died during the observation periods. The AUCs at 1, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months of the ACTION score were 0.942, 0.925, 0.889, 0.856, and 0.832; those of the CRUSADE score were 0.881, 0.883, 0.862, 0.876, and 0.862; and those of the GRACE score 0.949, 0.928, 0.888, 0.875, and 0.860, respectively.ConclusionsThe ACTION and GRACE scores were excellent risk stratification tools for mortality in the short term. The prognostic performance of each risk score was almost similar in the long term, but the CRUSADE score might be a superior risk stratification tool in the longer term than 3 years.