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Compost application can enhance soil fertility and is consequently presumed to increase crop production in Japan's paddy-upland rotation fields. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of rice straw compost (RSC) application on available soil nitrogen (Av-N) levels and rice and soybean plants in a paddy-upland rotation field using data obtained from a long-term field experiment. Data collected between 2005 and 2020 were analyzed from a long-term paddy rice – upland soybean rotation field. The experimental design employed a split-plot arrangement, with RSC application (with and without RSC) representing the whole plot, N fertilizer application (no nitrogen vs. standard fertilizer) representing the split-plot, and years representing the replication factor. The datasets included eight years of rice and soybean cultivation, and the chemical properties of postharvest soil spanned 16 years. The data was analyzed via analysis of variance. Applying RSC increased the Av-N concentration significantly by 63%–67%. The RSC application significantly increased the N concentration in rice shoots at the mature stage by 8%–12% but decreased it in soybean shoots after the seed emergence stage by 4%–8%. Consequently, the rice yield displayed clear responses to RSC application, whereas the soybean yield did not. The lack of soybean yield response might be due to an inhibitory effect of the Av-N gain attributable to the RSC application on biological nitrogen fixation. While applying compost can enhance Av-N content as well as rice productivity in paddy-upland rotation fields, its impact on soybean productivity requires careful evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Masses on the tongue base are rare and include malignant tumors, benign tumors, cysts, ectopic thyroid glands, and hamartomas. If the masses are enlarged, upper airway obstruction may occur. Hamartomas of the base of the tongue have been rarely reported, and there have been no reports of hamartomas associated with dyspnea beginning in the neonatal period. We present the case of a 14-year-old boy who had a tongue base mass since birth and was managed with a tracheal cannula. An absence of the lingual frenulum and impaired tongue movement were also observed. The mass was behind the base of the tongue and could not be observed intraorally but only on endoscopy. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging showed a 24 × 21 × 32 mm lesion extending from the base of the tongue to the pharynx. Under the diagnosis of a benign tumor at the tongue base, a mass reduction surgery with biopsy was performed at the tongue base under general anesthesia using an intraoral approach. The result of the pathological examination was tongue hamartoma. The postoperative course was uneventful, and the tracheal cannula was removed 4 months after the operation under hospitalization. We also review previous cases of hamartomas of the tongue base with and without complications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When cetuximab is used, diagnosing finger metastasis can be difficult due to the side effects of paronychia and color changes of nails. Finger metastasis may be a marker of multiple metastasis; therefore, it can lead to a poor prognosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Water stress reduces soybean (Glycine max) yield in fields converted from clayey-soil rice (Oryza sativa) paddies to uplands (upland converted paddies [UCPs]). Subirrigation and/or allowing roots to penetrate to a deeper soil layer were expected to effectively mitigate water stress. Therefore, we examined the effects of subirrigation and slit tillage on mitigating water stress in clayey soils (52% clay) in UCPs. Four treatment experiments (subirrigation, slit tillage, subirrigation control, and slit tillage control) were conducted in each of three growing seasons, with sampling for yield analysis conducted in triplicate. Following conventional tillage, a slit tillage blade was used to cut 15-mm-wide vertical slits in the surface of the soil (cutting depth = 15-20 cm) and seeds were sown 15 mm from the cut lines. Subirrigation then occurred for approximately 21-47 days, from the end of the rainy season, when water table elevation was at 35 cm below ground. We found that subirrigation only resulted in improved soybean yield in 2012, when precipitation after the flowering stage was low, whereas slit tillage significantly increased yield in all three growing seasons, including a particularly wet growing season. Overall, subirrigation and slit tillage increased soybean yield by 2% and 13%, respectively. Slit tillage also resulted in a significantly greater taproot length and root density. Stomatal conductance at midday in about the R5-6 stages was higher in slit-tilled plots than in control plots, but only in the subirrigated field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]