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Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiology of post-COVID conditions beyond 12 months and identify factors associated with the persistence of each condition. Study design: This was a cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey. Methods: We conducted the survey among patients who had recovered from COVID-19 and visited our institute between February 2020 and November 2021. Demographic and clinical data and data regarding the presence and duration of post-COVID conditions were obtained. We identified factors associated with the persistence of post-COVID conditions using multivariable linear regression analyses. Results: Of 1148 surveyed patients, 502 completed the survey (response rate, 43.7%). Of these, 393 pa-tients (86.4%) had mild disease in the acute phase. The proportion of participants with at least one symptom at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after symptom onset or COVID-19 diagnosis was 32.3% (124/384), 30.5% (71/233), 25.8% (24/93), and 33.3% (2/6), respectively. The observed associations were as follows: fatigue persistence with moderate or severe COVID-19 (5 = 0.53, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.06-0.99); shortness of breath with moderate or severe COVID-19 (5 = 1.39, 95% CI = 0.91-1.87); cough with moderate or severe COVID-19 (5 = 0.84, 95% CI = 0.40-1.29); dysosmia with being female (5 =-0.57, 95% CI =-0.97 to-0.18) and absence of underlying medical conditions (5 =-0.43, 95% CI =-0.82 to -0.05); hair loss with being female (5 =-0.61, 95% CI =-1.00 to -0.22), absence of underlying medical conditions (5 =-0.42, 95% CI =-0.80 to 0.04), and moderate or severe COVID-19 (5 = 0.97, 95% CI = 0.41-1.54); depressed mood with younger age (5=-0.02, 95% CI =-0.04 to-0.004); and loss of concentration with being female (5 =-0.51, 95% CI =-0.94 to -0.09). Conclusions: More than one-fourth of patients after recovery from COVID-19, most of whom had had mild disease in the acute phase, had at least one symptom at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months after onset of COVID-19, indicating that not a few patients with COVID-19 suffer from long-term residual symptoms, even in mild cases. (c) 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The Royal Society for Public Health. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4. 0/).

Headache is a common manifestation of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and the pathology of headache in SLE is multifactorial (1). We report our experience with an SLE patient with a persistent ...

Orbital apex syndrome on initial presentation of giant cell arteritis: a case report and review of the literature

Background:IgG4-RD is a systemic fibro-inflammatory condition with incompletely understood that is capable of affecting multiple organs.Objectives:We aimed to investigate clinical and laboratory findings in Japanese patients with IgG4-RD.Methods:Dates on clinical characteristics, laboratory features, and treatment response from patients with IgG4-RD in our hospital were reviewed retrospectively from January 2004 to September 2019.Results:Among 105 patients were diagnosed and treated in our hospital, 48% were female and 88% were biopsy-proven. The median age of the patients was 66 years, and female were younger at their diagnosed age (p=0.04). Their medina duration of follow-up was 45 months. 48% of the patients had allergic history (including sinusitis, asthma, hay fever), younger patients tended to have allergy history. Mean serum IgE was 303 IU/dL (2-4965 IU/dL). Salivary and lacrimal grand involvement (63%) and dacryoadenitis and ocular and orbital inflammatory disease (56%), autoimmune pancratitis type 1 pancreatitis (18%), retroperitoneal fibrosis (16%), aortitis (15%) predominantly occurred. 84% of the patients had serum IgG4 higher than 135mg/dL, and high IgG and IgG4 concentration was associated with lower complements (CH50, C4) levels. Mean serum IgG was 1860 mg/dL (861-8432 mg/dL), and IgG4 was 449mg/dL (28-3210mg/dL). Male patients show higher serum IgG and IgG4 concentrations at baseline (pConclusion:Our study revealed that IgG4-RD occurred in middle age with allergic disease in Japanese patients. The pattern of head and neck was predominance. For the most part of the patient serum IgG and IgG4 concentrations was high. Serum low complement level could be associated with its diagnosis and necessity of treatment with steroid. Younger patients tend to treat with steroid and they responded well.References:[1]Clin Exp Allergy. 2009;39(4):469.[2]Allergy. 2014 Feb;69(3):399-402. Epub 2013 Dec 31[3]Rheumatology (Oxford). 2019 May 1;58(5):820-830.[4]Am J Surg Pathol 2010 Dec;34(12):1812-9[5]Ann Rheum Dis. 2020 Jan;79(1):77-87.[6]Arthritis Res Ther 2018 Apr 10;20(1):65.[7]Intern Med. 2014;53(3):171-6.Disclosure of Interests:None declared

Background DAS28 (Disease Activity Score based on 28 joints) is widely used to determine remission in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The problems with DAS28 due to omission of the lower extremity joints have long been discussed. There are reports demonstrating that some patients meeting DAS28 remission criteria still have synovitis in their feet.1 It is suggested that patients with remaining foot synovitis can experience up to a 2-fold increase in relapse rates.2 Evidence supporting this hypothesis is still scarce. Objectives We hypothesised that RA patients in remission according to the DAS28 remission criterion with remaining foot synovitis are less likely to stay in remission. We aimed to test this hypothesis among Japanese patients with RA. Methods In 2015, 15,071 RA patients were registered in a large nationwide database in Japan (NinJa). Among those patients, those who were in remission based on DAS28-CRP were included. We used DAS28-CRP Results We included 706 RA patients in remission based on DAS28-CRP with foot synovitis in 2015 and 5182 without foot synovitis. Among patients with foot synovitis in 2015, 225 (31.9%) were not in remission in 2016 while among those without foot synovitis, 985 (19.0%) were not in remission. (X-squared=62.953, df=1, p=2.117 × 10–15) Conclusions In our study, RA patients in remission according to the DAS28 remission criterion with remaining foot synovitis had more relapses than those without it. Remission defined by DAS28-CRP does not take remaining foot synovitis into account. But a thorough foot examination may still be useful in RA patients with DAS28-CRP remission as they may be more at risk for relapse. References [1] van der Leeden, et al. Arthritis Res Ther. 2010;12,1:R3. [2] Wechalekar MD, et al. Arthritis Care Res. 2016;68,11:1616–1623. Disclosure of Interest None declared

Background Early menopause may be a risk of developing RA1. Although there are many reports about menopause and the onset of RA, it is not yet clear how the disease activity of RA differs for each generation including menopause. Objectives To clarify how disease activity differs for each generation, especially in menopausal period. Methods Using the Japanese large RA cohort database (NinJa:National database of Rheumatic Diseases in Japan) of 2016, we divided 12257 RA females into three groups of age (under 44 years old=1, 45 to 55 years old=2, defined as a menopausal group, over 56 years old=3) and analysed them cross-sectionally. We conducted a one-way ANOVA on disease activity indexes such as Tender joint count (TJC), Swollen joint count (SJC), DAS28, HAQ-DI. Results Table 1 shows the number of people per group, the duration of disease, the titer of RF/ACPA, and the proportion of drugs used. The average usage of prednisone and the use of biologics was the most common in group 1. In table 2, TJC was the largest in group 2 (p Conclusions This study shows that TJC may increase during menopause, unlike other disease activity indicators. Especially in group 2, it is possible that the joints which can’t be evaluated at TJC 28 are affecting the results because in TJC, compared with TJC 28, there is a larger group difference. Although further studies are needed, an increase in TJC may reflect menopausal joint symptoms. Reference [1] Pikwer M, et al. Ann Rheum Dis. 2012Mar;71(3):378–81. Disclosure of Interest None declared

A novel co-polymer, P-PBTx, is a promising emitting material for white OLED. Appearance of unexpected yellow emission in EL is a key point, but its origin has not been clarified yet. Photo-luminescence properties of the copolymer were investigated in comparison with those of its monomer as well as two component molecules. An PL yellow band was also observed even in a film of a chromophore molecule at low temperature, depending on the position of an inhomogeneous film. Then, modified molecule center such as a dimer or an excimer of neighboring chromophores is a possible origin of the PL yellow emission. PACS: 33.50.Dq; 33.70.-w; 78.60.Fi

This paper describes a novel filter rating method beyond the current 30-nm limit by combining dynamic light scattering and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer technique and proposes the use of gold nanoparticle as the standard challenge particle. Furthermore, the effect of protective ligand addition is investigated in order to decrease the adsorbing effect between gold nanoparticle and membrane surface.

To elucidate the putative role of human papillomavirus (HPV) infection in pterygium and conjunctival papilloma.Hybrid capture II (HC-II) and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays were performed to detect HPV in pterygium (42 samples obtained from 40 patients) and conjunctival papilloma (8 samples from 6 patients). The amount of HPV DNA was evaluated by measurement of relative light units (RLUs) on a luminometer.All papilloma samples were positive for HPV DNA by PCR and HC-II. The RLU values for specimens of recurrent and re-recurrent papilloma were markedly higher than those for specimens of primary lesions. HPV was detected by PCR in 2 of 42 (4.8%) beta-globin-positive pterygium specimens, whereas HC-II showed that HPV was negative in all pterygium samples.Our results support the hypothesis that HPV DNA is associated with the pathogenesis of conjunctival papilloma, but not pterygium. RLU measurement by HC-II may serve as a marker for evaluating the activity of HPV in conjunctival tumours.

In order to clarify the mechanisms of proton transport in alcohol-penetrated perfluorosulfonated ionomer (PFSI) membranes for fuel cells, six membranes having different equivalent weight (EW) values were examined. Water, water/methanol mixture (molar ratio: 1/1), methanol, ethanol and 2-propanol were penetrated to each membrane, and membrane swelling, methanol permeability, proton conductivity and mass (alcohol and proton) diffusion coefficients were measured systematically. The methanol permeability PM and the membrane expansion fraction θ showed that the PFSI membranes with smaller EW values were swelled larger by methanol and the permeation rates were also larger. The proton conductivity was reduced by methanol penetration into the membranes especially for the smaller EW value ones. To investigate the roles of CH3 group of methanol, self-diffusion coefficients of the alkyl group DCH3 and of OH (including protons) DOH of alcohols (methanol, ethanol and 2-propanol) were measured separately by the pulsed-gradient spin-echo (PGSE) 1H NMR method. Both D values increased with decreasing the EW value, and the DOH was always larger than the DCH3. In addition, the differences between the DOH and DCH3 increased with the decrease of the size of alkyl groups. These results indicate that protons transport faster than the alcohols by the Grotthuss (hopping) mechanism, and the faster proton transport was promoted more when the membrane was penetrated by smaller alcohol. The lipophilic nature of alcohols was found to be one of the factors that influence the mechanisms of proton transport in the membranes.

Parasitization by the wasp, Cotesia kariyai, elevates the concentration of an insect cytokine, growth-blocking peptide (GBP), in hemolymph of last instar Pseudaletis separata larvae. The increase of epidermal and hemolymph dopamine level is associated with the GBP increase. Both GBP and dopamine disturb host development and metamorphosis (Hayakawa, 1995). Dopa decarboxylase (DDC) converts Dopa to dopamine, and its cDNA was isolated from P. separata, and the deduced amino acid sequence showed that it was highly homologous to other lepidopteran DDCs, showing 96, 90 and 86% identity with those of Mamestra brassicae, Bombyx mori, and Manduca sexta, respectively. A 3.2 kb DDC mRNA transcript was constitutively expressed at low levels in the epidermis, brain-nerve cord and hemocytes, and the expression was enhanced by injection of GBP in these tissues. Detailed characterization of the DDC mRNA expression in the epidermis showed that its expression reached a plateau 3 hr after the injection. DDC activity and DDC protein (55 kDa) level mirrored the mRNA expression. Immunocytochemistry with anti-DDC antibody confirmed that the enhanced DDC expression was localized in the epidermal cells. Dopamine concentration in the epidermis gradually increased and reached maximum 6 hr after the injection. When the epidermis of Day 1 last instar larvae was cultured in vitro in the presence of GBP, DDC mRNA increased, indicating that GBP acted on the epidermal cells directly to induce expression of the DDC gene.

The lamina propria of the digestive tract is the space containing vessels, myofibroblasts, and other interstitial components. The present study was undertaken to elucidate the relationships between the proliferation of myofibroblasts within this space and other histological features such as inflammatory cell infiltration and proliferation of blood vessels.Thirty-eight cases in total-comprising 19 cases of early and 19 cases of advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma with intraepithelial extension (the former including 10 lesions of carcinoma in situ and 15 lesions of carcinoma with invasion only into the lamina propria)-were examined using HE staining, Azan Mallory staining, and immunostaining for the characterization of mesenchymal cells in the lamina propria against alpha-smooth muscle actin (alphaSMA), desmin, vimentin, factor VIII, collagen type IV, laminin, or inflammatory cells (L26, UCHL1, Kp1, and c-kit). The proliferative potential of myofibroblasts was evaluated by measuring the total length of the bundles of myofibroblasts per case.Proliferation of alphaSMA-containing stromal cells: i) occurred in the lamina propria subjacent either to intraepithelial carcinomas (64%) or to the intraepithelial extension of carcinoma tissue (47%), and ii) showed a significant correlation with both the degree of mononuclear cell infiltration (mostly UCHL1-positive T cells) and the total length of the carcinoma tissue in each case.Proliferation of alphaSMA-containing stromal cells in the lamina propria may be involved in altering the endoscopic features of the esophagus in cases with intraepithelial carcinoma or an intraepithelial extension of carcinoma tissue.

The compounds 2-amino-5-nitropyridine, 2-amino-5-nitro-1,3-pyrimidine, and N-nitro-4-amino-1-hydropyridinium nitrate have two-dimensional layer structures with the molecules in each layer held toge...

Using fluorescence in situ hybridization, we determined the regional localization of the 3 rat genes encoding angiotensin II receptors at 17q12 (Agtr1a), 2q24 (Agtr1b) and Xq34 (Agtr2). In parallel, we showed that the type 2 human gene, AGTR2, also maps on the X chromosome, at band Xq22.

FMS-related tyrosine kinase 3 (FLT3) is a class III receptor tyrosine kinase that plays important roles in hematopoiesis, including early progenitors and dendritic cell development. FLT3 is expressed at high levels in 70–100% of cases of AML and in virtually all cases of B-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia. FLT3 is regarded as a molecular target in the development of novel therapies for acute leukemia patients. Currently, many small-molecule FLT3 inhibitors have been developed, but clinical trials have resulted in limited antileukemia effects because of off-target toxicities and drug resistance. The development of anti-FLT3 Abs might overcome these difficulties and enhance the antileukemia efficacy of FLT3 inhibitors. In the present study, we demonstrate the isolation of novel human mAbs against FLT3 with antagonistic or agonistic activities. An antagonistic Ab, designated A2, continuously inhibits FLT3 ligand (FL)-induced phosphorylation of FLT3 and MAPK. A2 cooperatively induces apoptosis with daunorubicin, even in the presence of FL. An agonistic Ab, designated 3E6, surprisingly induces the phosphorylation of FLT3 and MAPK, and supports the growth of a factor-dependent cell line independently of FL addition. In addition, A2 showed complement-dependent cytotoxicity activity, but was devoid of Ab-dependent cell mediated cytotoxicity. Finally, we evaluated Ab internalization in a cell line. Immunofluorescence and flow cytometry analyses revealed that A2 is efficiently internalized. Collectively, these data demonstrate that A2 is a potent human Ab that might be capable of delivering cytotoxic reagents and that has antagonistic effects on FLT3 signaling. In addition, 3E6 might be a potential scaffold for novel dendritic cell-based immunotherapies. (Cancer Sci 2012; 103: 350–359)

An efficient method for small-signal stability assessment in real-size power systems is presented. Eigenvalue-analysis-based approaches have been studied to evaluate the stability problem. The conventional methods require calculating all the eigenvalues in evaluating small-signal stability. Among them, the QR method is widely used due to its robustness and high accuracy. However, the method is not applicable to real-life systems with respect to computational time and storage. Recently, the S-matrix method has been developed to overcome the problem. The method is based on mapping the most critical eigenvalue from the s-plane to the z-plane. As a result, it requires calculating only the most critical eigenvalue rather than all the eigenvalues. Although the method is theoretically elegant, it generates unnecessary fill-in elements which result in increasing computational time since the direct method is used in solving a set of linear equations. That becomes more significant with system size. An efficient indirect method is developed using a precondition technique. The proposed method has been successfully applied to several systems. The simulation results indicated that the proposed method is 30 times and five times faster than the QR and the S-matrix methods, respectively, for a 46-unit, 191-bus system. >

Abstract 1703 The majority of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) cases are characterized by the presence of a PML-RARA fusion gene. In a small subset, RARA is fused to a different partner including PLZF, NPM1, NuMA, STAT5b, PRKAR1A and FIP1L1. Here we identified a novel RARA fusion transcript, BCOR-RARA in a t(X;17)(p11;q12) variant of APL. The patient was a 45-year-old man. Although the patient was clinically responsive to ATRA, repeated standard chemotherapy with ATRA did not effect a cure. The bone marrow promyelocytes had unique morphologic features, including rectangular and round cytoplasmic inclusion bodies. They were more granular than those of AML M2 but less granular than the classical t(15;17) APL. Flow cytometric analysis revealed strong expression of CD13, CD33, CD56, weak expression of CD11c and lack of HLA-DR and CD7. The karyotype analysis detected a novel chromosomal translocation described as 45,-Y, t(X;17)(p11.2;q12)[19]/ 46,XY[1]. FISH analysis indicated one intact and two split signals of RARA and two intact signals of PML. To amplify unknown chimeric fusion transcripts, we performed 5'-RACE. The sequence revealed that BCL6 co-repressor, BCOR cDNA from exons 9 to 12 to be fused to RARA exon 3. By RT-PCR, we confirmed full length chimeric fusion transcripts spanning from the start codon to 4,948 nt of BCOR cDNA (NM_001123384) fused to RARA cDNA from exon 3 to the stop codon. The chimeric cDNA had an in-frame codon from BCOR through RARA, creating a 1,931 amino acid fusion protein. One of the consistent features in all known RARA fusion partners is self-association. To determine whether BCOR-RARA self-associate, we performed co-immunoprecipitation assays. These results showed that BCOR-RARA is able to self-associate both through the region of BCOR-S and the ankyrin repeat domain of BCOR. In addition, BCOR-RARA associated with BCL6. RXR recruitment is a critical determinant of transforming potential of oligomeric RARA fusion proteins. To investigate how BCOR-RARA associates with RARE in vitro, we performed EMSA. These results showed that BCOR-RARA/RXRA complex associates with RARE in an alternative manner compared to RARA and PML-RARA. Deregulation of RARA transcriptional activations has a central role in pathogenesis of APL. Therefore, we evaluated ATRA-induced transcriptional activation of 4× RAREs with a reporter assay in HepG2 cells. Without ATRA, BCOR-RARA repressed the reporter activity. With addition of ATRA, BCOR-RARA induced transcriptional activation very weakly. Subsequently, we evaluated dominant-negative effects of the samples in the RARA/RXRA pathway. In contrast to BCOR, BCOR-RARA clearly inhibited ATRA-induced RARA transcriptional activation as well as PML-RARA. Furthermore, we asked which domains are sufficient for the dominant-negative effects with the deletion mutants. The results indicated that the region spanning from 999 to 1,409 aa of BCOR-RARA has pivotal roles in the dominant-negative effects. Correct protein function is highly dependent on intracellular localization. To investigate subcellular localization of BCOR-RARA, we performed immunofluorescence analysis in 293T cells. In BCOR-RARA-expressing cells, BCOR-RARA localized as two patterns; (I) diffusely in the nucleus as well as PML-RARA in 82% of the cells, (II) diffusely in the nucleus and aggregately in the cytoplasm in 18% of the cells. The subcellular localization of BCOR-RARA was clearly distinguishable from the punctuate pattern as shown in the nucleus of BCOR-expressing cells. Moreover, co-immunofluorescence analysis between BCOR-RARA and BCL6 indicated that the subcellular localization of BCOR-RARA/BCL6 is distinct from BCOR/BCL6. BCOR-RARA was found to possess common features with other RARA fusion proteins. These included: (I) the same break point in RARA cDNA; (II) self-association; (III) RXRA is necessary for BCOR-RARA to associate with the RARA responsive element; (IV) action in a dominant-negative manner on RARA transcriptional activation; (V) aberrant subcellular relocalization. It should be noted that there was no intact BCOR found in the 45,-Y,t(X;17)(p11;q12) APL cells because they featured only a rearranged × chromosome. These results highlight essential features of pathogenesis in APL in more detail. BCOR appears to be involved not only in human congenital diseases but also in a human cancer. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.

An artificial neural network-based method for evaluating online power system dynamic stability is presented. Using the matrix transformation of the S-matrix method, the absolute value of the most critical eigenvalue in the z-plane may be regarded as a power system dynamic stability index. The artificial neural net of Kohonen is used to estimate the index so that computational efforts are reduced and numerical instability problems are avoided. The Kohonen model is based on the self-organization feature mapping (SOFM) technique that transforms input patterns into neurons on the two-dimensional grid. The algorithm used does not require the teacher's signals and is not too complicated, and the resulting mapping makes it visually easy to understand the input pattern. Power system conditions are assigned to the output neurons on the two-dimensional grid with the SOFM technique. Two methods are presented to calculate the estimate index so that an output neuron calls the index corresponding to an input pattern. The linear and nonlinear decreasing function employed at the learning process are compared. The effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated. >

A novel method for predicting power system voltage harmonics with an artificial neural network is presented. The method is based on the backpropagation learning technique for feedforward neural networks. The promise of the proposed method in harmonics prediction is shown. In order to demonstrate its effectiveness, the proposed method is applied to voltage harmonics observed through a personal computer based measurement system and the performance is compared with that of conventional methods. >

A new unified method is presented for dealing with the problems of topological observability in power system state estimation: identification of network topological observability, and branches or nodes where pseudo-measurements are necessary to recover the whole network topological observability. The method is based on evaluating the minimum spanning tree in graph theory. The proposed method has been successfully applied to several sample systems and its applicability to real-sized power systems is demonstrated. >

In the present study we evaluated the cell density of lens epithelium and its relation to the degree of erythrocyte aldose reductase (AR) in patients with type 2 diabetes. This prospective clinical study included 46 eyes of patients with type 2 diabetes and 48 eyes of patients without diabetes mellitus (DM). Flat preparations of lens epithelial cells (LECs) attached to the anterior capsule were studied. Multiple regression analysis was performed to evaluate the association between lens cell density and age, gender, type of cataract, duration of diabetes, diabetic retinopathy (DR), the levels of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and erythrocyte AR. The mean density of LECs of patients with type 2 diabetes was 4,141+/-508cells/mm(2), which was significantly lower than that of patients without DM (4,560+/-458cells/mm(2); p0.0001). Multiple regression analysis revealed that the level of erythrocyte AR was correlated with the reduction of LECs in the eyes of patients with type 2 diabetes. The correlation between the density of LECs and the amount of erythrocyte AR was significant in the diabetic group with a high value of HbA1c (6.5%) or with DR. These results suggest that the polyol pathway via AR may be associated with the reduction of epithelial cell density in the eyes of patients with DM.

A new design concept for improvement of balance performance of SAW filters has been investigated. The balance performance is degraded by common-mode signals in the balance terminals. The concept employed is the suppression of the common-mode signals using a common-mode signal suppression circuit, connected to the balanced terminals. In the circuit, the impedance of balance terminals for the differential-mode signals becomes open to the ground level by the resonance circuit. And, the impedance of balance terminals for the common-mode signals becomes short to the ground level. And, the circuit has an impedance matching scheme. The improvement in balance performance was confirmed. This design concept could be applied to the circuit design for balanced-type SAW filter circuit designs

A design technique for balanced longitudinal coupled mode SAW filters, in which the matching impedance can be easily controlled, has been developed. This is achieved by adoption of a divided IDT structure for the center IDT of the filter, which has three IDTs. The center IDT is connected to the balanced terminal. The IDTs on the both sides are connected to the unbalanced terminal. The center IDT is divided into three divided IDT portions, which are connected in series/parallel. It can make the impedance higher than that of the original filter. The finger number ratio for the divided IDTs can control the impedance. Applying this technique to a center IDT of 50ohm design, the matching impedance in the range approximately from 50ohm to 200ohm can be realized.

The degradation mechanism of balance performance for balanced-type SAW filters was analyzed. The authors have confirmed that the parasitic coupling between input and output IDTs makes the balance characteristics degrade. The measurement results show good agreement with simulations by assuming the parasitic capacitances. The balance characteristics can be improved by decreasing the parasitic capacitances. Further, the much better performance can be obtained by connecting inductors between input and output IDTs. Parallel resonance circuit with additional inductor and the parasitic capacitance can solve the problem successfully. The experimental balanced-type SAW filter shows an excellent performance. These values satisfy the system requirements.

The parasitic wasp Cotesia kariyai carries polydnavirus (CkPDV) which is an indispensable factor for the successful parasitization by the wasp. One of its surface proteins has been identified as an immunoevasive mediator from the cellular defense reactions of the host armyworm Pseudaletia separata, thereby it was named immunoevasive protein (IEP). In the present study, we demonstrated that anti-IEP antibody did not suppress the CkPDV infection of Sf9 cells but decreased its infection of P.separata hemocytes, thus indicating that IEP is not essential for CkPDV to enter into the target cells but is important for evading from the attack of the hemocytes. Three genes of CkPDV expressed in Sf9 cells were isolated and characterized. Two of them (CkV0.8, CkV0.9) are novel genes but another one (CkV2.0) is the same gene with the one we previously identified in the parasitized armyworm larvae. Although these genes reside in different DNA segments of CkPDV genome, all of them are expressed in the hemocytes of the parasitized armyworm larvae. These gene transcripts are first detected at 2 h after parasitization, and the expressions of CkV0.8 and CkV0.9 were gradually decreased after reaching the maximum level at 4 h after parasitization. However, the expression of CkV2.0 continues to be increased at least for 10 h after parasitization.

A technique is presented for estimating the security margin for voltage instability in electric power systems. The margin is represented as an index of closeness of a pair of multiple load flow solutions. This approach is based on the fact that the number of multiple load flow solutions becomes two as power systems get heavily loaded. The objective of this study is to reduce computational effort by avoiding the exhaustive search in evaluating the closest solution to a feasible solution. An efficient method for selecting the initial value in evaluating the closest solution is presented. The proposed method allows implementation of the index as an online tracking measure for voltage instability. >

Transcription factor GATA-2 has emerged as a key regulator of the developmental fate of haematopoietic progenitor cells. Here we review experiments from our own laboratory which explore the functional biology of GATA-2 in normal and leukaemic haematopoietic settings.

A method for determining power system topological observability using a stochastic neural network is presented. The method is based on the Boltzmann machine that considers the stochastic characteristics of neurons. The Boltzmann machine is very useful for solving combinatorial problems, since it can avoid a local minimum in evaluating a global minimum of the cost function to be minimized. The problem of power system topological observability is formulated as an integer programming problem. The Boltzmann machine is then applied to the integer programming problem to obtain a global minimum. The method was successfully applied to a sample system. >

Two multilayered-network-based methods are presented for predicting voltage harmonics in power systems. One method is the backpropagation technique, and the other is revised group method data handling (RGMDH). In order to investigate their effectiveness, the two methods are applied to observed data of voltage harmonics that seem to be randomly varying. A comparison is made between two models in terms of model accuracy. The results show that the backpropagation algorithm gives much better results due to the adaptive model structure. >

A SAW reflector filter for IF stage of CDMA cellular phone applications has been developed. Because the CDMA systems use the spread spectrum technique, a bandwidth of the modulated signal becomes wide. It is about 1.25 MHz or wider. In addition, an excellent passband flatness and a very steep cutoff characteristic are required for the IF stage filter. The SAW reflector filter consists of two pairs of input IDTs, output IDTs and reflectors. This filter is miniaturized by folding the SAW propagation path using the reflectors. The reflectors are weighted for filter characteristics. Although the concept of this filter was already reported, we have studied improved design technique for reflector weighting and transducer structures. The EWC-SPUDT is introduced to the input IDTs for low insertion loss, and the double split finger structures are introduced to the output IDTs for suppressing acoustic reflection. The filter samples show excellent performances. The size of the filters are 13.5 mm ×6.5 mm ×1.8 mm, which is 30% smaller than a conventional transversal filter.

Apolipoprotein E (apoE), which is reported to recognize the low density lipoprotein receptor and remnant receptor, mediates the delivery of cholesterol and other lipids to the cells all over the body. There are several phenotypes such as apoE2, apoE3 and apoE4. Recently, it is reported that apoE plays an important role in neurite outgrowth. To determine whether apoE phenotype is concerned in diabetic peripheral neuropathy, we investigated the incidence of apoE phenotypes in diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy. The occurrence of retinopathy and nephropathy were not different in apoE2, apoE3 and apoE4. However, the frequency of diabetic neuropathy was higher in apoE4 than apoE2 and apoE3 (p0.05). Furthermore, as the stage of diabetic neuropathy advanced, the incidence of apoE4 increased. From these results we conclude that apoE phenotype influences the progress of diabetic peripheral neuropathy and that apoE4 contributes to the deterioration of diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

A comparative cytomegalovirus (CMV) diagnostic study was carried out on 30 bone marrow transplant patients. Forty-three bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples from these patients were examined for CMV by viral culture, polymerase chain reaction (PCR), shell vial and cytology. In parallel, peripheral blood samples were subjected to CMV antigenemia assay. CMV was detected in 12 (27.9%) of the 43 BALF samples (10 samples in viral culture, 10 samples in PCR, eight samples in shell vial and three samples in cytology). The CMV antigenemia assay yielded a positive result for six samples. The rates of agreement between results of the CMV antigenemia assay and results of each of the BALF tests were as follows: 81.4% with viral culture, 76.7% with PCR, 86.0% with shell vial, and 88.4% with cytology. Although the sensitivity of the CMV antigenemia assay was inferior to the sensitive tests of BALF samples, statistically significant correlations were demonstrated between the CMV antigenemia assay, viral culture, shell vial and cytology. Although the CMV antigenemia assay was shown to be useful for detection of CMV, it may be necessary to confirm not only the sensitivity but also the specificity of this method for prevention of CMV disease after BMT.

Genetic analysis revealed two distinct novel splice site mutations in a compound heterozygous patient with protein S deficiency. The paternal mutation was a G-to-T transition at position-1 of the acceptor splice site of intron N (Mutation I), and the maternal mutation was a G-to-C transversion at position-1 of the donor splice site of intron C (Mutation II). Both splice site mutations decreased the mutated mRNA accumulation to the same extent, approximately 40% of the normal mRNA. However, the mutations were associated with different phenotypical expressions: the paternal mutant protein S was not detected in vivo, while the maternal mutant protein S was present in the plasma in reduced quantity. Because Mutation I caused a cryptic splicing in the mutated mRNA, resulting in a reading frameshift and premature termination, the predicted mutant protein S might be highly unstable. In contrast. Mutation II led to the substitution of Va146 by Leu, which might be much less deleterious for the synthesis, secretion and stability of the predicted mutant protein S. It was supposed that the different post-translational metabolisms produced the distinct phenotypical expressions of the mutations.

The cell kinetics of rat lens epithelium was assessed by measuring the changes in the nuclear DNA contents during sugar cataract formation. Six-and-12-week-old Sprague-Dawley male rats were used and divided into the following groups: fed on normal chow, fed on 25% galactose diet, and fed on normal chow after 5 days on the 25% galactose diet. Every second day following the beginning of each chow feeding, lenses were extracted, and lens capsules with epithelial cells were obtained. After a few day's fixation in 4% paraformaldehyde dissolved in 0.1M phosphate buffer (pH 7.4), DAPI (4'6-diamidino-2-phenylindole)-stained lens epithelial cells were measured by fluorescence cytophotometry. The epithelia in the normal chow-fed rats contained many 2C and a few 4C nuclei. In the 25% galactose-fed rats, 4C nuclei increased gradually in number until the fifth day, and then decreases slowly day by day. Abnormal polyploid nuclei (8C) were observed in the 25% galactose-fed rats. 4C nuclei decreased rapidly after the diet reversal. These results indicate that galactose feeding caused higher DNA synthesis of rat lens epithelial cells and a higher possibility of abnormal cell division.

A 45-year-old male with chronic myelogenous leukemia received cryopreserved allogeneic bone marrow from his HLA-identical sister. Bone marrow was harvested and cryopreserved prior to chemoradiotherapy since the donor had neurotic tendencies. The preconditioning regimen consisted of standard dosage of busulfan plus cyclophosphamide and total lymphoid irradiation (5Gy). A total of 3.1 x 10(7)/kg marrow mononuclear cells, containing 4.7 x 10(5) CD34+ cells/kg, and 8.0 x 10(6)/kg buffy coat cells collected from the donor at day 0 was infused. Marrow engraftment occurred by day 38 although hematological recovery was delayed and subsequent administration of GM-CSF, methylprednisolone and donor buffy coat cells were required. Mononuclear cells obtained from the patient's blood at day 28 had an inhibitory effect on CFU-GM formation of the donor's bone marrow mononuclear cells. We considered that this case suffered from a transient myelosuppression due to residual host cells after bone marrow transplantation.

The incidence of chronic GVHD, involved organs, and outcome were evaluated in 59 patients aged 15 years or more who survived for 2 months or more after HLA-matched bone marrow transplantation. The incidence of chronic GVHD was 65.3%. The incidence was not correlated with the age at the time of transplantation, underlying disease, or the method to prevent GVHD (group treated with MTX alone and CSP-treated group). Concerning the degree of organ involvement, the CSP-treated group more frequently showed slight involvement and, especially a significantly lower incidence of dryness of the eyeballs. According to organs, the oral cavity was most frequently involved (87%), followed in order by the liver (74%), skin (52%), and the eyes (30%). The oral cavity alone was involved in 6 patients, and the outcome was generally good. The outcome of multi-organ involvement of chronic GVHD was poor, and the major causes of death were interstitial pneumonia and sepsis. Even of patients who did not develop chronic GVHD, 25% showed dryness of the eyeballs and oral cavity. Biopsy and careful observation of the clinical course are needed for diagnosing GVHD.

There are two major isoforms of the angiotensin II receptor, type 1 (AT1) and type 2 (AT2). AT2 is distinguished from AT1 with respect to its ligand selectivity, its insensitivity to non-hydrolyzable GTP analogues, and its as yet unidentified biological functions. In the present study we have expression-cloned AT2 cDNA from a cDNA library of a rat pheochromocytoma cell line (PC12w). Rat AT2 cDNA encodes a 363-amino acid protein that has seven transmembrane domains. AT1 is the closest in homology to AT2 but with only a 32% identity of amino acid sequence. Stably expressed in COS-7 cells, the receptor showed selective binding to AT2-specific ligands PD123319 and CGP42112A but not to the AT1-specific ligand, losartan. Northern blot analysis revealed that the mRNA of rat AT2 was expressed not only in PC12w cells but also in the adrenal glands and in the inferior olive of the brain, both of which are known to contain AT2 type binding sites. The expressed AT2 receptor mediated angiotensin II-induced inhibition of protein tyrosine phosphatase, an action that was dependent on a pertussis toxin-sensitive G-protein-coupled mechanism in COS-7 cells. The AT2-specific ligand CGP42112A was an agonist rather than antagonist in the inhibition of phosphotyrosine phosphatase. AT2 did not cause a decrease in cGMP in PC12w or COS-7 cells expressing AT2 stably. These results indicate that the AT2 receptor is structurally and functionally different from AT1 and suggest novel functional roles of the renin-angiotensin system in cross-talk with phosphotyrosine signaling by modulating protein phosphotyrosine levels.

The authors report an 18-year-old female who developed severe hemolytic reaction and delayed neutrophil recovery after bone marrow transplantation (BMT) for aplastic anemia from her HLA-identical sibling. She had received much transfusion (61 units of red blood cells including 4 units of fresh whole blood from her parents and 350 units of platelets) for 12 years before BMT. To prevent graft rejection, she received an intensified preparative regimen consisted of cyclophosphamide 200 mg/kg followed by 5 Gy total body irradiation and 5 Gy total lymphoid irradiation. Prophylaxis for GVHD was short term methotrexate and cyclosporin-A. Despite of the removal of the red cells from the marrow, marked hemolytic reaction caused by antibodies directed to rh" (E) and hr' (c) red cell antigens was observed when rh" (E) and hr' (c) positive donor erythroid began to recover. The recovery of neutrophils, especially the fraction of segmented cells was also delayed. Flow cytometry showed that the serially collected patient's sera reacted to neutrophils derived from both patient's blood on the 64th post-transplant day and the donor's blood. The reactivity was strongest in pre-BMT sera. We conclude that residual antibodies sensitized before BMT are a major cause of these hematological problems.

In 6 of 27 patients in whom major ABO incompatible marrow was transplanted, the recovery of red blood cells (reticulocyte count greater than or equal to 1%) required more than 50 days after the transplantation. In 3 of them, more than 100 days were required. High titers of pre-transplant anti-A or anti-B agglutinin correlated with the delay in red blood cell recovery (IgM: p less than 0.01, IgG: p less than 0.05). In all of the patients whose pre-transplant IgM titers were 4 or less, and whose IgG titers were 32 or less, the red blood cells recovered within 50 days. Administration of cyclosporine did not correlate with the delay in red blood cell recovery. All the patients finally developed red cell production within 8 months without any treatment.

PURPOSE. The selective degeneration of pericytes and the proliferation of endothelial cells (ECs) appear to be associated with microaneurysm formation, an initial deficit in the early stage of diabetic retinopathy. The preventive effect of aldose reductase (AR) inhibitor (ARI) for high glucose‐induced pericyte loss and EC growth was investigated. METHODS. The effect of high glucose (30 mM) exposure in the presence or absence of ARI for the cell growth of porcine pericytes and ECs was examined with the use of an in vitro coculture system to mimic the interaction between pericytes and ECs. To determine the role of transforming growth factor (TGF)-, its amount in culture media was measured, and the effects of the treatment of TGF- or neutralizing antibody on EC growth were examined. RESULTS. Abundant expression of AR and increased levels of polyol and apoptosis induced by high glucose were observed in pericytes, but not in ECs. ECs overexpressing AR cultured in high-glucose medium showed decreased cell viability. The growth-inhibitory effect of ECs on coculture with pericytes was attenuated by exposure to a high glucose concentration. Biochemical assays disclosed that the levels of active TGF- in media were linked to EC growth. Supply of active TGF- to coculture medium containing 30 mM D-glucose restored the inhibitory activity on EC growth. CONCLUSIONS. ARI rescued pericytes from high glucose‐induced apoptosis and maintained the levels of TGF-, resulting in the prevention of cocultured EC growth. (Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2008;49:3216‐3223) DOI:10.1167/iovs.07-1643