Search

Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with gut dysbiosis. However, whether gut dysbiosis can cause motor complications is unclear.Subjects were enrolled from four independent movement disorder centers in Japan. We performed 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequence analysis of gut microbiota. Relative abundance of gut microbiota and relationships between them and clinical characteristics were statistically analyzed. Analysis of co-variance (ANCOVA) was used to assess altered gut microbiota associated with wearing-off or dyskinesia.We enrolled 223 patients with PD. Wearing-off was noted in 47.5% of patients and dyskinesia in 21.9%. We detected 98 genera of bacteria. Some changes in the gut microbiota were observed in patients with PD and motor complications. After Bonferroni correction, patients with wearing-off showed decreased relative abundance of Lachnospiraceae Blautia (p 0.0001) and increased relative abundance of Lactobacillaceae Lactobacillus (p 0.0001), but patients with dyskinesia no longer showed significant changes in the gut microbiota. Adjustment with two models of confounding factors followed by ANCOVA revealed that age (p 0.0001), disease duration (p = 0.01), and wearing-off (p = 0.0004) were independent risks for the decreased relative abundance of Lachnospiraceae Blautia, and wearing-off (p = 0.009) was the only independent risk factor for the increased relative abundance of Lachnospiraceae Lactobacillus.Relative abundance of Lachnospiraceae Blautia and Lactobacillaceae Lactobacillus was significantly decreased and increased, respectively, in the gut microbiota of PD patients with motor complications. This indicates that an altered gut microbiota is associated with the development of motor complications in patients with advanced PD.

Takayasu's arteritis is an inflammatory disease of unknown etiology that causes stenosis, occlusion, or dilatation of the aorta and its major branches, the pulmonary arteries, and the coronary arteries. The incidence of extracranial carotid artery aneurysm in patients with Takayasu's arteritis is reportedly 1.8%-3.9%. We herein report a patient with Takayasu's arteritis who presented with transient left hemiplegia immediately after neck massage. Carotid ultrasonography revealed a thrombus within the fusiform aneurysm on the right common carotid artery. We speculated that fragmentation from the intra-aneurysmal thrombus was caused by neck massage.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by motor and non-motor symptoms. Because no curative therapy is available for PD, elucidation of its pathophysiology is important to establish more effective treatments. Oxidative stress (OS) has gained attention and been investigated as one of the candidates involved in the pathogenesis of PD. This study aimed to evaluate OS in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with PD and progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) using diacron-reactive oxygen metabolites (d-ROMs) and biological antioxidant potential (BAP) tests, which can easily assess OS in liquid samples. Results were compared to the clinical background of patients and with those of the normal control (NC) group. CSF samples were obtained from 69 patients with PD, 14 patients with PSP, and 22 individuals in the NC group. OS levels and antioxidant capacity were measured using d-ROMs and BAP tests, respectively. CSF d-ROM levels were extremely low (

The effect of different air-blowing strategies using a prototype of a newly developed clinically applicable warm air-blowing device on the microtensile bond strength (μTBS) of one-step self-etch adhesives (1-SEAs) to human root-canal dentin was evaluated. Post cavities (8 mm depth, 1.5 mm diameter) were prepared and bonded with four 1-SEAs. Air-blowing was performed using normal air (23±1°C) for 10 or 20 s; warm air (60±1°C) for 10 or 20 s; or their combination for 10 s (5 s normal, 5 s warm) or 20 s (10 s normal, 10 s warm). After filling with corresponding core materials and 24-h water storage, μTBS test was performed. For three of the 1-SEAs, combined air-blowing for 20 s significantly increased μTBS compared to other air-blowing strategies (p

Purpose The use of warm air-blowing to evaporate solvents of one-step self-etch adhesive systems (1-SEAs) has been reported to be a useful method. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of warm air-blowing on root canal dentin. Methods Four 1-SEAs (Clearfil Bond SE ONE, Unifil Core EM self-etch bond, Estelink, BeautiDualbond EX) were used. Each 1-SEA was applied to root canal dentin according to the manufacturers' instructions. After the adhesives were applied, solvent was evaporated using either normal air (23±1°C) or warm air (80±1°C) for 20s, and resin composite was placed in the post spaces. The air from the dryer, which could be used in normal- or hot-air-mode, was applied at a distance of 5cm above the root canal cavity in the direction of tooth axis. The temperature of the stream of air from the dryer in the hot-air-mode was 80±1°C, and in the normal mode, 23±1°C. After water storage of the specimens for 24h, the μTBS were evaluated at the coronal and apical regions. The μTBSs were statistically analyzed using three-way ANOVA and Student's t-test with Bonferroni correction ( α =0.05). Results The warm air-blowing significantly increased the μTBS of all 1-SEAs at the apical regions, and also significantly increased the μTBS of two adhesives (Estelink and BeautiDualBond EX) at coronal regions. Conclusions The μTBS of 1-SEAs to root canal dentin was improved by using warm air-blowing.

Some molecular probes, whose fluorescence spectra were responsive to the polarity, were tested for monitoring the formation of admicelles. N -Phenyl-1-naphthylamine (PN) was the best choice for evaluating the hydrophobicity of sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS)/γ-alumina admicelles. The fluorescence intensity of PN in the aqueous suspension of the admicelles enhanced in the SDS concentration far below its critical micelle concentration. The intensity was greater than that in the normal SDS micellar system. Additionally, the wavelength at the maximum intensity of the fluorescence in the admicellar system was shorter than that in the micellar solution. These facts strongly suggest that the admicelles provide more hydrophobic environment than conventional micellar media. Comparison of the wavelength with those in several solvents indicated that the admicelles have hydrophobic properties corresponding to 1-octanol or ethyl acetate.

Laser-driven molecular dissociation dynamics is investigated by conducting a simulation based on time-dependent density functional theory combined with molecular dynamics (TDDFT-MD). The conditions of the applied laser field (strength and frequency) required to dissociate a H 2 molecule are clarified. The photoabsorption spectra obtained have major peaks at the dissociation frequencies at which bonding (B) to antibonding (AB) electronic transitions occur. When a CH 4 molecule is irradiated by a laser field, only the CH bond parallel to the electric field is broken. We also found that laser-assisted hydrogen desorption crucially depends on the direction of the field relative to the CH 4 molecule as an adsorbate on the surface. The molecular processes of dissociation and desorption are clarified with the aid of the excited-state potential energy curves determined by TDDFT.