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Monitoring and conserving bird biodiversity in rice landscapes is a global challenge. Although environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding can potentially provide a sensitive and comprehensive assessment of bird biodiversity in farmlands, there is a lack of research on the usefulness of eDNA samples from paddy water as sources of information on the species richness and abundance of birds. Hence, in this study, we conducted eDNA metabarcoding during the breeding seasons of birds in 2021 and 2022 in central Japan and evaluated its accuracy and comprehensiveness by comparing its performance with that of the conventional line-transect survey. More bird species (18) were detected by conducting the line-transect survey than by performing eDNA metabarcoding (8 bird species). Twelve bird species were detected only by the line-transect survey; meanwhile, two aquatic bird species, including nocturnal species, were detected by performing eDNA metabarcoding alone. The frequency of occurrence of each species among the water sample replicates was positively associated with species biomass. In addition, the frequency of occurrence was higher in aquatic birds than in terrestrial birds probably because aquatic birds intensively breed and forage in flooded rice fields, resulting in higher amounts of DNA deposition. Overall, our results suggest that although conventional bird surveys are superior to eDNA metabarcoding using paddy water samples for monitoring terrestrial bird diversity, eDNA metabarcoding plays a complementary role in assessing aquatic bird diversity.

Anionic boron clusters, such as [B12X12]2− (X = Cl, Br, I), have attracted attention in pharmaceuticals due to their unique superchaotropic properties. In particular, [B12Br12]2− (1) has demonstrated strong interactions with biomolecules, facilitating cargo translocation across plasma membranes. In this study, we investigated the effect of covalently attaching chlorinated dodecaborate moiety [B12Cl11O-]2− to 6-carboxyfluorescein (6-FAM) (3) via a PEG3 linker to form conjugate (4). We compared the membrane permeability of this covalent conjugate with that of non-covalent interactions between 6-FAM (3) and [B12Cl12]2− (2). Live-cell fluorescence imaging revealed that the covalent conjugate exhibited enhanced membrane permeability and water solubility while maintaining low cytotoxicity. These results highlight the potential of covalent conjugation with boron clusters for improving the cellular uptake of hydrophilic cargos.

Increased levels of lactate, an end-product of glycolysis, have been proposed as a potential surrogate marker for metabolic changes during neuronal excitation. These changes in lactate levels can result in decreased brain pH, which has been implicated in patients with various neuropsychiatric disorders. We previously demonstrated that such alterations are commonly observed in five mouse models of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and autism, suggesting a shared endophenotype among these disorders rather than mere artifacts due to medications or agonal state. However, there is still limited research on this phenomenon in animal models, leaving its generality across other disease animal models uncertain. Moreover, the association between changes in brain lactate levels and specific behavioral abnormalities remains unclear. To address these gaps, the International Brain pH Project Consortium investigated brain pH and lactate levels in 109 strains/conditions of 2294 animals with genetic and other experimental manipulations relevant to neuropsychiatric disorders. Systematic analysis revealed that decreased brain pH and increased lactate levels were common features observed in multiple models of depression, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, and some additional schizophrenia models. While certain autism models also exhibited decreased pH and increased lactate levels, others showed the opposite pattern, potentially reflecting subpopulations within the autism spectrum. Furthermore, utilizing large-scale behavioral test battery, a multivariate cross-validated prediction analysis demonstrated that poor working memory performance was predominantly associated with increased brain lactate levels. Importantly, this association was confirmed in an independent cohort of animal models. Collectively, these findings suggest that altered brain pH and lactate levels, which could be attributed to dysregulated excitation/inhibition balance, may serve as transdiagnostic endophenotypes of debilitating neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by cognitive impairment, irrespective of their beneficial or detrimental nature.

Pre-messenger RNA (pre-mRNA) splicing modulation is an attractive approach for investigating the mechanisms of genetic disorders caused by mis-splicing. Previous reports have indicated that a modified U7 small nuclear RNA (U7 snRNA) is a prospective tool for modulating splicing both in vitro and in vivo. To date, very few studies have investigated the role of antisense sequence length in modified U7 snRNA. In this study, we designed a series of antisense sequences with various lengths and evaluated their efficiency in inducing splicing modulation. To express modified U7 snRNAs, we constructed a series of plasmid DNA sequences which codes cytomegalovirus (CMV) enhancer, human U1 promoter, and modified mouse U7 snRNAs with antisense sequences of different lengths. We evaluated in vitro splicing modulation efficiency using a luciferase reporter system for simple and precise evaluation as well as reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction to monitor splicing patterns. Our in vitro assay findings suggest that antisense sequences of modified mouse U7 snRNAs have an optimal length for efficient splicing modulation, which depends on the target exon. In addition, antisense sequences that were either too long or too short decreased splicing modulation efficiency. To confirm reproducibility, we performed an in vitro assay using two target genes, mouse Fas and mouse Dmd. Together, our data suggests that the antisense sequence length should be optimized for modified mouse U7 snRNAs to induce efficient splicing modulation.

Objectives: We aimed to determine when a coexisting pseudocyst was likely to complicate the nonsurgical treatment of pancreatolithiasis. Methods: We treated 165 patients with pancreatolithiasis nonsurgically between 1992 and 2020, including 21 with pseudocysts. Twelve patients had a single pseudocyst less than 60 mm in diameter. Pseudocysts in the other nine patients had diameters of at least 60 mm or were multiple. The locations of pseudocysts along the length of the pancreas varied from the area with stone involvement to the pancreatic tail. We compared the outcomes in these groups. Results: We found no significant differences in pain relief, stone clearance, stone recurrence, or the likelihood of adverse events between pseudocyst groups or between patients with vs without pseudocysts. However, 4 of 9 patients with large or multiple pseudocysts required transition to surgical treatment (44%) compared with 13 of 144 patients with pancreatolithiasis and no pseudocyst (9.0%) (P=0.006). Conclusions: Patients with smaller pseudocysts typically underwent nonsurgical stone clearance successfully with few adverse events, similar to findings in patients with pancreatolithiasis and no pseudocysts. Pancreatolithiasis complicated by large or multiple pseudocysts did not cause more adverse events but was more likely to require transition to surgery compared with pancreatolithiasis without pseudocysts. In patients with large or multiple pseudocysts, early transition to surgery should be considered when nonsurgical treatment is ineffective.

A 69-year-old woman suspected to have IgG4-related sclerosing cholangitis causing bile duct stenosis was transferred from another hospital after diarrhea, eosinophilia, and eosinophilic infiltration were detected and prednisolone was prescribed. Additional biliary imaging suggested primary sclerosing cholangitis, but the IgG4 level and inferior bile duct stenosis were alleviated by steroid therapy, suggesting IgG4-related sclerosing cholangitis. Therefore, prednisolone was continued. Bile duct biopsy findings suggesting adenocarcinoma led to a diagnosis of pancreatoduodenectomy. The latter specimen only displayed evidence of primary sclerosing cholangitis, and prednisolone was discontinued. Intractable cholangitis necessitated left hepatectomy, after which serum alkaline phosphatase levels increased and eosinophilic colitis recurred. The reintroduction of prednisolone effectively managed the diarrhea but only temporarily reversed the alkaline phosphatase elevation. When histologic sections from resection specimens were compared, the hepatectomy specimen exhibited greater eosinophil infiltration than the earlier pancreatoduodenectomy specimen, suggesting eosinophilic cholangiopathy superimposed on primary sclerosing cholangitis.

The Miyako Islands (with a population of approximately 50,000) are located in southwestern Japan, with a subtropical oceanic climate. This isolated location permitted a retrospective population-based epidemiological study of subarachnoid hemorrhage. We retrospectively enrolled 110 consecutive patients from 2010 to 2019 using the subarachnoid hemorrhage database at Okinawa Miyako Hospital, which is the only local facility with neurosurgeons. We calculated the incidence of subarachnoid hemorrhage standardized to the entire Japanese population. The seasonal distribution of subarachnoid hemorrhage onset and patients' epidemiological characteristics were also investigated. The standardized annual incidence of subarachnoid hemorrhage was 21.4 per 100,000 population, as reported previously in Japan. The patients' mean age was 62.1 ± 15.4 years, and women constituted 60.9%. Anterior communicating artery aneurysms were most common. The endovascular treatment for ruptured aneurysms was increasing as standard levels in Japan. The rates of symptomatic vasospasm and secondary hydrocephalus requiring additional neurosurgical treatment were 2.7% and 19.1%, respectively. The mortality rate was 23.6%. The percentage of patients with a modified Rankin scale score of 0-2 at discharge was 55.5%. There were no differences in the frequency of subarachnoid hemorrhage associated with seasonal distribution or climatic factors. The incidence, baseline characteristics, and clinical outcomes of subarachnoid hemorrhage in the Miyako Islands were similar to those in other regions of Japan. There are preferable epidemiological backgrounds for further practical clinical research.

Mirror movements (MMs) are involuntary synchronous movements of one limb during voluntary movements of the contralateral limb. Generally, MMs after stroke are observed in the unaffected hand during voluntary movements of the affected hand; MMs in the affected hand are comparatively rare. In previous studies, evaluation of MMs in the affected hand was performed using simple unilateral movement tasks, such as tapping or forceful repeated hand closure. However, the impact of MMs of the affected hand on functional tasks, such as activities of daily living (ADLs), has not been reported. We report the rare case of a patient with MMs of the affected hand due to atherothrombotic cerebral infarction of the right postcentral and precentral gyri. An 85-year-old Japanese man presented with left-sided hemiplegia and sensory impairment. MMs were observed in the left (affected) hand during many ADLs and could not be suppressed by the patient’s will even when the examiner verbally instructed the patient to move only the unaffected hand. The patient was aware that his hand moved on its own, but he could not control it. The patient was trained on various types of bilateral coordinated motor exercises for 114 days after the MMs were first identified. However, this did not affect MM occurrence, and the MMs remained at the time of discharge. Future research is necessary to plan long-term interventions for MMs of the affected hand.

Deuterium fractionation in the closest vicinity of a protostar is important in understanding its potential heritage to a planetary system. Here, we have detected the spectral line emission of CH _3 OH and its three deuterated species, CH _2 DOH, CHD _2 OH, and CH _3 OD, toward the low-mass protostellar source B335 at a resolution of 0.″03 (5 au) with Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. They have a ring distribution within the radius of 24 au with the intensity depression at the continuum peak. We derive the column densities and abundance ratios of the above species at six positions in the disk/envelope system as well as the continuum peak. The D/H ratio of CH _3 OH is ∼[0.03–0.13], which is derived by correcting the statistical weight of 3 for CH _2 DOH. The [CHD _2 OH]/[CH _2 DOH] ratio is derived to be higher ([0.14–0.29]). On the other hand, the [CH _2 DOH]/[CH _3 OD] ratio ([4.9–15]) is higher than the statistical ratio of 3 and is comparable to those reported for other low-mass sources. We study the physical structure on a few astronomical unit scales in B335 by analyzing the CH _3 OH (18 _3,15 − 18 _2,16 , A) and HCOOH (12 _0,12 − 11 _0,11 ) line emission. Velocity structures of these lines are reasonably explained as the infalling-rotating motion. The protostellar mass and the upper limit to the centrifugal barrier are thus derived to be 0.03–0.07 M _⊙ and

IRAS04368+2557 in L1527 is a Class 0/I protostar with a clear disk-envelope system revealed by previous Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations. In this paper, we discuss the flared structure of this source with observed sulfur-bearing molecules included in the FAUST ALMA large program. The analyses of molecular distributions and kinematics have shown that CS, SO, and OCS trace different regions of the disk-envelope system. To evaluate the temperature across the disk, we derive rotation temperature with the two observed SO lines. The temperature profile shows a clear, flared “butterfly” structure with the higher temperature being ∼50 K and the central lower temperature region (

We performed synthetic observations of the Ulrich, Cassen, and Moosman (UCM) model to understand the relation between the physical structures of the infalling envelope around a protostar and their observational features in molecular lines, adopting L1527 as an example. We also compared the physical structure and synthetic position–velocity ( P–V ) diagrams of the UCM model and a simple ballistic (SB) model. There are multiple ways to compare synthetic data with observational data. We first calculated the correlation coefficient. The UCM model and the SB model show similarly good correlation with the observational data. While the correlation reflects the overall similarity between the cube datasets, we can alternatively compare specific local features, such as the centrifugal barrier in the SB model or the centrifugal radius in the UCM model. We evaluated systematic uncertainties in these methods. In the case of L1527, the stellar mass values estimated using these methods are all lower than the value derived from previous Keplerian analysis of the disk. This may indicate that the gas infall motion in the envelope is retarded by, e.g., magnetic fields. We also showed analytically that, in the UCM model, the spin-up feature of the P–V diagram is due to the infall velocity rather than the rotation. The line-of-sight velocity V is thus ∝ x ^−0.5 , where x is the offset. If the infall is retarded, rotational velocity should dominate so that V is proportional to x ^−1 , as is often observed in the protostellar envelope.

After equinus corrective surgery, repetitive exercises for ankle dorsiflexion and plantar flexion are crucial during rehabilitation. The single-joint Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL-SJ) is an advanced exoskeletal robotic device with a control system that uses bioelectrical signals to assist joint motion in real time and demonstrates joint torque assistance with the wearer’s voluntary movement. We present two cases of robot-assisted ankle rehabilitation after equinus surgery using the HAL-SJ in children. Case 1 was an 8-year-old boy, whereas case 2 was a 6-year-old boy. When they were allowed to walk without braces, training with the HAL-SJ was performed postoperatively for 20 min per session a total of eight times (2–4 sessions per week). Assessments were performed before and after HAL-SJ training. During gait analysis, case 1 had improved joint angles during the stance phase on the operated side; however, case 2 had improved joint angles during the stance and swing phases. The co-activation index values of the medial gastrocnemius and tibialis anterior muscles, which were high before training, decreased after training and approached the standard value. The HAL-SJ may provide systematic feedback regarding voluntary ankle dorsiflexion and plantar flexion and is considered to have motor learning effects.

Objectives To examine the national, 6-year trends in in-hospital clinical outcomes of patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) who underwent clipping or coiling and the prognostic influence of temporal trends in the Comprehensive Stroke Center (CSC) capabilities on patient outcomes in Japan.Design Retrospective study.Setting Six hundred and thirty-one primary care institutions in Japan.Participants Forty-five thousand and eleven patients with SAH who were urgently hospitalised, identified using the J-ASPECT Diagnosis Procedure Combination database.Primary and secondary outcome measures Annual number of patients with SAH who remained untreated, or who received clipping or coiling, in-hospital mortality and poor functional outcomes (modified Rankin Scale: 3–6) at discharge. Each CSC was assessed using a validated scoring system (CSC score: 1–25 points).Results In the overall cohort, in-hospital mortality decreased (year for trend, OR (95% CI): 0.97 (0.96 to 0.99)), while the proportion of poor functional outcomes remained unchanged (1.00 (0.98 to 1.02)). The proportion of patients who underwent clipping gradually decreased from 46.6% to 38.5%, while that of those who received coiling and those left untreated gradually increased from 16.9% to 22.6% and 35.4% to 38%, respectively. In-hospital mortality of coiled (0.94 (0.89 to 0.98)) and untreated (0.93 (0.90 to 0.96)) patients decreased, whereas that of clipped patients remained stable. CSC score improvement was associated with increased use of coiling (per 1-point increase, 1.14 (1.08 to 1.20)) but not with short-term patient outcomes regardless of treatment modality.Conclusions The 6-year trends indicated lower in-hospital mortality for patients with SAH (attributable to better outcomes), increased use of coiling and multidisciplinary care for untreated patients. Further increasing CSC capabilities may improve overall outcomes, mainly by increasing the use of coiling. Additional studies are necessary to determine the effect of confounders such as aneurysm complexity on outcomes of clipped patients in the modern endovascular era.

Abstract Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients older than 65 years have a poor prognosis. Recently, CAR (C-reactive-protein/albumin ratio) has been actively reported as a prognostic index reflecting the nutritional and inflammatory status of elderly patients with solid tumors, but the usefulness of this index as a prognostic indicator in transplant-ineligible elderly AML patients has not been investigated. We studied genetic alterations and CARs in 188 newly diagnosed AML patients aged 65 years or older who were treated in a multicenter setting and had treated without HSCT. Both NCCN 2017 risk group, reflecting the genetic component of the tumor, and CAR, reflecting the inflammatory and nutritional status of the patient, successfully stratified the overall survival (OS) of the patients (2-year OS; CAR low vs high, 42.3% vs 17.8%, P

Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have been developed for canine tumour treatment, and pilot clinical studies have demonstrated their antitumour efficacy in dogs with oral malignant melanoma (OMM). Although ICIs have been approved for various human malignancies, their clinical benefits in other tumour types remain to be elucidated in dogs. Here, we conducted a clinical study of c4G12, a canine chimeric anti-PD-L1 antibody, to assess its safety and efficacy in dogs with various advanced malignant tumours (n = 12) at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of Hokkaido University from 2018 to 2023. Dogs with digit or foot pad malignant melanoma (n = 4), osteosarcoma (n = 2), hemangiosarcoma (n = 1), transitional cell carcinoma (n = 1), nasal adenocarcinoma (n = 1), B-cell lymphoma (n = 1), or undifferentiated sarcoma (n = 2) were treated with 2 or 5 mg/kg c4G12 every 2 weeks. Treatment-related adverse events of any grade were observed in eight dogs (66.7%), including elevated aspartate aminotransferase (grade 3) in one dog (8.3%) and thrombocytopenia (grade 4) in another dog (8.3%). Among dogs with target disease at baseline (n = 8), as defined by the response evaluation criteria for solid tumours in dogs (cRECIST), one dog with nasal adenocarcinoma and another with osteosarcoma experienced a partial response (PR), with an objective response rate of 25.0% (2 PR out of 8 dogs; 95% confidence interval: 3.2-65.1%). These results suggest that c4G12 is safe and tolerable and shows antitumor effects in dogs with malignant tumours other than OMM. Further clinical studies are warranted to identify the tumour types that are most likely to benefit from c4G12 treatment.

Biliary strictures caused by inflammation or fibrosis lead to jaundice and cholangitis which often make it difficult to distinguish malignant strictures. In cases when malignancy cannot be excluded, surgery is often performed. The concept of immunoglobulin G4 (IgG4)–related sclerosing cholangitis (SC) as a benign biliary stricture was recently proposed. The high prevalence of the disease in Asian countries has resulted in multiple diagnostic and treatment guidelines; however, there is need to formulate a standardized diagnostic strategy among various countries considering the utility, invasiveness, and cost-effectiveness. We evaluated accuracies of various diagnostic modalities for biliary strictures comparing pathology in the Delphi meetings which were held in Rochester, MN. The diagnostic utility for each modality was graded according to the experts, including gastroenterologists, endoscopists, radiologists, and pathologists from the United States and Japan. Diagnostic utility of 10 modalities, including serum IgG4 level, noninvasive imaging, endoscopic ultrasound, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography–related diagnostic procedures were advocated and the reasons were specified. Serum IgG4 level, noninvasive imaging, diagnostic endoscopic ultrasound and intraductal ultrasonography under endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography were recognized as useful modalities for the diagnosis. The information in this article will aid in the diagnosis of biliary strictures particularly for distinguishing IgG4–SC from cholangiocarcinoma and/or primary SC.

In daily life, we perform a variety of sequential tasks while making cognitive decisions to achieve behavioral goals. If transcranial direct current electrical stimulation (tDCS) can be used to modulate cognitive functions involved in motor execution, it may provide a new rehabilitation method. In the present study, we constructed a new task in which cognitive decisions are reflected in motor actions and investigated whether the performance of the task can be improved by tDCS of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Forty healthy participants were randomly assigned to a real or sham tDCS group. The anode electrode was placed at F3 (left DLPFC), and the cathode electrode was positioned in the contralateral supraorbital area. Participants underwent one session of tDCS (1.5 mA, 20 min) and a sequential non-dominant hand task was performed for nine trials before and after tDCS. The task consisted of S1 (a manual dexterity task) and S2 (a manual dexterity task requiring a decision). The results showed the S2 trajectory length was significantly shorter after real tDCS than after sham tDCS (p = 0.017), though the S1 trajectory length was not significant. These results suggest that a single tDCS session of the left DLPFC can improve the performance of cognitive tasks complementary to motor execution, but not on dexterity tasks. By elucidating the modulating effect of tDCS on cognitive functions related to motor execution, these results may be used to improve the performance of rehabilitation patients in the future.

Abstract Oral fluids (OFs) contain small extracellular vesicles (sEVs or exosomes) that carry disease-associated diagnostic molecules. However, cells generate extracellular vesicles (EVs) other than sEVs, so the EV population is quite heterogeneous. Furthermore, molecules not packaged in EVs can also serve as diagnostic markers. For these reasons, developing a complete picture of particulate matter in the oral cavity is important before focusing on specific subtypes of EVs. Here, we used differential centrifugation to fractionate human OFs from healthy volunteers and patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma into 5 fractions, and we characterized the particles, nucleic acids, and proteins in each fraction. Canonical exosome markers, including CD63, CD9, CD133, and HSP70, were found in all fractions, whereas CD81 and AQP5 were enriched in the 160K fraction, with non-negligible amounts in the 2K fraction. The 2K fraction also contained its characteristic markers that included short derivatives of EGFR and E-cadherin, as well as an autophagosome marker, LC3, and large multi-layered vesicles were observed by electronic microscopy. Most of the DNA and RNA was recovered from the 0.3K and 2K fractions, with some in the 160K fraction. These results can provide guideline information for development of purpose-designed OF-based diagnostic systems.

Abstract Immunotherapy targeting programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and PD-ligand 1 (PD-L1) represents promising treatments for human cancers. Our previous studies demonstrated PD-L1 overexpression in some canine cancers, and suggested the therapeutic potential of a canine chimeric anti-PD-L1 monoclonal antibody (c4G12). However, such evidence is scarce, limiting the clinical application in dogs. In the present report, canine PD-L1 expression was assessed in various cancer types, using a new anti-PD-L1 mAb, 6C11-3A11, and the safety and efficacy of c4G12 were explored in 29 dogs with pulmonary metastatic oral malignant melanoma (OMM). PD-L1 expression was detected in most canine malignant cancers including OMM, and survival was significantly longer in the c4G12 treatment group (median 143 days) when compared to a historical control group (n = 15, median 54 days). In dogs with measurable disease (n = 13), one dog (7.7%) experienced a complete response. Treatment-related adverse events of any grade were observed in 15 dogs (51.7%). Here we show that PD-L1 is a promising target for cancer immunotherapy in dogs, and dogs could be a useful large animal model for human cancer research.

Abstract Environmental DNA (eDNA)‐based assessments of macro‐organisms have now become an essential approach for biomonitoring. eDNA survey methods have a number of advantages over conventional survey methods. However, the value of the data that will accumulate would be greatly enhanced by standardizing the analysis methods, which would allow us to compare data from multiple monitoring sites at different points in time. The eDNA Society (http://ednasociety.org/en/about), whose founding members consist of Japanese researchers conducting eDNA studies on macro‐organisms, was established in 2018, with the aim of expanding eDNA technology and science. Here, we introduce our key publication, “Environmental DNA Sampling and Experiment Manual” (http://ednasociety.org/en/manual), which was published under the initiative of the eDNA Society. Detailed methods for the surveys and experiments are described in the manual, including the selection of sampling sites, sampling methods, filtration methods, DNA extraction, species‐specific detection by real‐time polymerase chain reaction, and fish eDNA metabarcoding. The manual assists users in conducting standardized surveys and quality experiments, and provides a basis for collecting comparable data. Given that the efficacy of methods can be context dependent and variable, and that procedures may sometimes conflict with standardization, it is difficult to ensure that all processes are equally effective. However, even in such cases, it is important to maintain sufficiently high data quality by setting the minimum standards to be followed. Implementation of such standardized methodologies will enable the systematic and frequent collection of flawless, comparable eDNA data from around the world; this will provide important fundamental information for biodiversity conservation, as well as the sustainable use of fisheries resources.

Abstract Transparent low-melting inorganic glass is an attractive industrial material based on its high thermal and light resistance compared with conventional engineering plastics. If the melting temperature of inorganic glass could be decreased, the doping of guest materials or compression moulding on the glass surface would be easier. Although phosphate glass is considered as a potential candidate because of its transparency in the visible region and low-melting behaviour, water durability often becomes a problem for implementation. Here, we prepared inorganic low-melting phosphate glass at a temperature of 500 °C via a melting and quenching methodology. It was found that tin-doped phosphate glasses exhibited higher thermal and light resistance properties than polycarbonates. Colourless transparent oxide glasses without organic components are capable of bringing about new possibilities for the application of inorganic glasses.

Abstract Many techniques have been developed to investigate the interactions between plants and herbivorous insects in natural environments and are generally used to determine either (a) which plant species are eaten by a specific herbivorous insect or (b) which herbivorous insect species are herbivores of a specific plant. The former problem is usually addressed by the direct observation of feeding and microscopic observation of gut contents and excrements, as well as the application of DNA‐barcoding techniques. However, the latter problem has typically been addressed using time‐consuming methods, such as direct observation and rearing. Therefore, more efficient techniques are needed for identifying and quantifying the interactions of plants with herbivorous insects. The present study demonstrates that the environmental DNA (eDNA) of herbivorous insects can be recovered from leaves with external foliage feeding marks. Mitochondrial DNA fragments of herbivorous insects were detected from insect‐exposed leaves using primer sets that amplified the DNA of target species. The amplification rate of the herbivorous insect DNA was positively associated with the rim length of feeding marks, which suggests that most of the insect DNA came from the feeding marks. Additionally, we showed that this method has the potential to detect eDNA from field‐collected leaves. This time‐efficient approach will contribute to the detection of plant–insect herbivore interactions.

Abstract Aqueous environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis has been applied to the monitoring of various ecosystems and taxa, and the characteristics of aqueous eDNA have been previously studied. In contrast, although sedimentary eDNA has been used to restore past information, the characteristics of sedimentary eDNA are not well understood. In this study, we compared the properties of sedimentary and aqueous eDNA of macro‐organisms. First, to clarify the preservation ability of sediments, we compared the difference in decay rates between aqueous and sedimentary eDNA using samples collected from a biotope (an artificial pond prepared with concrete). Next, to clarify the biological information retained in sedimentary eDNA both qualitatively and quantitatively, we compared eDNA concentrations between sediment and water samples collected simultaneously from a lake, and the fish species detected by eDNA metabarcoding were also compared. The results demonstrated the following: (a) the decay rate (decreased eDNA copy number divided by the initial eDNA copy number per unit time) of sedimentary eDNA (0.00033 ± 0.000049 [mean ± SE]/hr) was lower than that of aqueous eDNA (0.01863 ± 0.0011/hr); (b) sedimentary eDNA concentration of the mitochondrial marker of three fish species was higher than aqueous eDNA concentration for the same sample weight (12.5–1,456.9 times); and (c) the species composition obtained by metabarcoding was not significantly different between sediment and water; however, considering the lower decay rate of sedimentary eDNA, using both sample types may provide more comprehensive information of species distribution. Thus, sedimentary eDNA analysis will expand future biomonitoring and ecological studies by providing a difference in timescale.

Rehabilitation interventions are crucial in promoting neuroplasticity after spinal cord injury (SCI). We provided rehabilitation with a single-joint hybrid assistive limb (HAL-SJ) ankle joint unit (HAL-T) in a patient with incomplete SCI. The patient had incomplete paraplegia and SCI (neurological injury height: L1, ASIA Impairment Scale: C, ASIA motor score (R/L) L4:0/0, S1:1/0) following a rupture fracture of the first lumbar vertebra. The HAL-T consisted of a combination of ankle plantar dorsiflexion exercises in the sitting position, knee flexion, and extension exercises in the standing position, and stepping exercises in the standing position with HAL assistance. The plantar dorsiflexion angles of the left and right ankle joints and electromyograms of the tibialis anterior and gastrocnemius muscles were measured and compared using a three-dimensional motion analyzer and surface electromyography before and after HAL-T intervention. Phasic electromyographic activity was developed in the left tibialis anterior muscle during plantar dorsiflexion of the ankle joint after the intervention. No changes were observed in the left and right ankle joint angles. We experienced a case in which intervention using HAL-SJ induced muscle potentials in a patient with a spinal cord injury who was unable to perform voluntary ankle movements due to severe motor–sensory dysfunction.

Deuterium fractionation in molecules is known as one of the most powerful tools to study chemical processes during star and planet formation. Among various interstellar molecules, methanol often shows very high deuterium fractionation. It is the most abundant saturated organic molecule and is known as a parent species to form more complex organic molecules. However, deriving the abundance of deuterated methanol suffers from the uncertainty in the intrinsic line intensities ( S μ ^2 ) of CH _3 OH isotopologues. Due to their floppy nature, theoretical evaluation of the S μ ^2 values is not straightforward, particularly for asymmetric-top asymmetric-frame isotopologues such as CH _2 DOH. In this study, we have measured the line frequencies and their intensities for CH _2 DOH in the millimeter-wave region from 216 to 264 GHz by using an emission-type millimeter and submillimeter-wave spectrometer. For the a -type J = 5 − 4 transition, the derived S μ ^2 values are 13%–27% larger than those theoretically calculated, except for the transitions of K _a = 2 for e _0 and K _a = 1 for e _1 affected by avoided level crossing. For b -type transitions, significant systematic differences are found between theoretical and experimental S μ ^2 values. The results of the present study enable us to accurately derive from observations the CH _2 DOH abundances, which are essential for understanding deuterium fractionation in various sources.

We have observed the low-mass protostellar source IRAS 15398−3359 at a resolution of 0.″2–0.″3, as part of the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array Large Program FAUST, to examine the presence of a hot corino in the vicinity of the protostar. We detect nine CH _3 OH lines including the high-excitation lines with upper-state energies up to 500 K. The CH _3 OH rotational temperature and the column density are derived to be ${119}_{-26}^{+20}$ K and ${3.2}_{-1.0}^{+2.5}\times {10}^{18}$ cm ^−2 , respectively. The beam filling factor is derived to be ${0.018}_{-0.003}^{+0.005}$ , indicating that the emitting region of CH _3 OH is much smaller than the synthesized beam size and is not resolved. The emitting region of three high-excitation lines, 18 _3,15 –18 _2,16 , A ( E _u = 447 K), 19 _3,16 –19 _2,17 , A ( E _u = 491 K), and 20 _3,17 –20 _2,18 , A ( E _u = 537 K), is located within the 50 au area around the protostar and seems to have a slight extension toward the northwest. Toward the continuum peak, we also detect one emission line from CH _2 DOH and two features of multiple CH _3 OCHO lines. These results, in combination with previous reports, indicate that IRAS 15398−3359 is a source with hybrid properties showing both hot corino chemistry rich in complex organic molecules on small scales (∼10 au) and warm carbon-chain chemistry rich in carbon-chain species on large scales (∼100–1000 au). A possible implication of the small emitting region is further discussed in relation to the origin of the hot corino activity.

Neural plasticity compensates for the loss of motor function after stroke. However, whether neural plasticity occurs in the somatosensory pathways after stroke is unknown. We investigated the left–right somatosensory interaction in two hemorrhagic patients using a paired somatosensory evoked potentials (p-SEPs) recorded at CP3 and CP4, which was defined as an amplitude difference between the SEPs of paired median nerve stimulations to both sides and that of single stimulation to the affected side. Patient 1 (61-year-old, left thalamic hemorrhage) has a moderate motor impairment, severe sensory deficit, and complained of pain in the affected right upper limb. Patient 2 (72-year-old, right thalamic hemorrhage) had slight motor and sensory impairments with no complaints of pain. Single SEPs (s-SEPs) were obtained by stimulation of the right and left median nerves, respectively. For paired stimulations, 1 ms after the first stimulation to the non-affected side, followed by a second stimulation to the affected side. In patient 1, a s-SEP with stimulation to the non-affected side and a p-SEP were observed in CP4. However, a s-SEP was not observed in either hemisphere with stimulation to the affected side. On the other hand, in patient 2, a s-SEP in CP3 with stimulation to the non-affected side and in CP4 with stimulation to the affected side were observed; however, a p-SEP was not observed. In addition, to investigate the mechanism by which ipsilateral median nerve stimulation enhances contralateral p-SEP in patient 1, we compared the SEP averaged over the first 250 epochs with the SEP averaged over the second 250 epochs (total number of epochs recorded: 500). The results showed that in the patient 1, when the bilateral median nerve was stimulated continuously, the habituation did not occur and the response was larger than that of the s-SEP with unilateral median nerve stimulation. In the current case report, the damage to the thalamus may cause neuroplasticity in terms of the left–right interaction (e.g., left and right S1). The somatosensory input from the affected side may interfere with the habituation of the contralateral somatosensory system and conversely increase the response.

We report a patient with bilateral medial medullary infarctions, which is a rare type of ischemic stroke. A 64-year-old Japanese man demonstrated bilateral hemiplegia, sensory dysfunction, ataxia, and dysphagia. The left-dominant but bilateral medial medulla lesions indicated hyperintensity on the T2-weighted image at 1.5 months after the onset. On the time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography (TOF-MRA) performed at the onset, the right vertebral artery was partially narrowed and the left vertebral artery was not confirmed. Basi-parallel anatomical scanning-magnetic resonance imaging (BPAS-MRI) revealed that both sides of the vertebral arteries had a uniform diameter, which means there was no arterial hypoplasia nor arterial dissection. These results suggest that atherosclerosis in the bilateral vertebral artery caused occlusion of the perforator artery, resulting in the bilateral medial medullary infarctions. The combined use of TOF-MRA and BPAS-MRI could help improve the accuracy of diagnosis and be helpful for post-stroke management.

Hyper-adaptability, the ability to adapt to changes in the internal environment caused by neurological disorders, is necessary to recover from various disabilities, such as motor paralysis and sensory impairment. In the recovery from motor paralysis, the pre-existing neural pathway of the ipsilateral descending pathway, which is normally suppressed and preserved in the course of development, is activated to contribute to the motor control of the paretic limb. Conversely, in sensory pathways, it remains unclear whether there are compensatory pathways which are beneficial for the recovery of sensory impairment due to damaged unilateral somatosensory pathways, such as thalamic hemorrhage. Here, we investigated the interaction between the left and right somatosensory pathways in healthy humans using paired median nerve somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs). Paired median nerve SEPs were recorded at CP3 and CP4 with a reference of Fz in the International 10–20 System. The paired median nerve stimulation with different interstimulus intervals (ISIs; 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, and 100 ms) was performed to test the influence of the first stimulus (to the right median nerve) on the P14, P14/N20, and N20/P25 components induced by the second stimulus (left side). Results showed that the first stimulation had no effect on SEP amplitudes (P14, P14/N20, and N20/P25) evoked by the second stimulation in all ISI conditions, suggesting that there might not be a neural connectivity formed by a small number of synapses in the left–right interaction of the somatosensory pathway. Additionally, the somatosensory pathway may be less diverse in healthy participants.

Osteoporosis is a common disease characterized by a systemic impairment of bone mass and microarchitecture that results in fragility fractures. Severe bone loss due to osteoporosis triggers pathological fractures and consequently decreases the daily life activity and quality of life. Therefore, prevention of osteoporosis has become an important issue to be addressed. We have reported that the fungal secondary metabolite (+)-terrein (TER), a natural compound derived from Aspergillus terreus, has shown receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL)–induced osteoclast differentiation by suppressing nuclear factor of activated T-cell 1 (NFATc1) expression, a master regulator of osteoclastogenesis. TER has been shown to possess extensive biological and pharmacological benefits; however, its effects on bone metabolism remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of TER on the femoral bone metabolism using a mouse-ovariectomized osteoporosis model (OVX mice) and then on RANKL signal transduction using mouse bone marrow macrophages (mBMMs). In vivo administration of TER significantly improved bone density, bone mass, and trabecular number in OVX mice (p < 0.01). In addition, TER suppressed TRAP and cathepsin-K expression in the tissue sections of OVX mice (p < 0.01). In an in vitro study, TER suppressed RANKL-induced phosphorylation of PKCα/βII, which is involved in the expression of NFATc1 (p < 0.05). The PKC inhibitor, GF109203X, also inhibited RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis in mBMMs as well as TER. In addition, TER suppressed the expression of osteoclastogenesis-related genes, such as Ocstamp, Dcstamp, Calcr, Atp6v0d2, Oscar, and Itgb3 (p < 0.01). These results provide promising evidence for the potential therapeutic application of TER as a novel treatment compound against osteoporosis.

Abstract Environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis has successfully detected organisms in various aquatic environments. However, there is little basic information on eDNA, including the eDNA shedding and degradation processes. This study focused on water temperature and fish biomass and showed that eDNA shedding, degradation, and size distribution varied depending on water temperature and fish biomass. The tank experiments consisted of four temperature levels and three fish biomass levels. The total eDNA and size‐fractioned eDNA from Japanese Jack Mackerels (Trachurus japonicus) were quantified before and after removing the fish. The results showed that the eDNA shedding rate increased at higher water temperature and larger fish biomass, and the eDNA decay rate also increased at higher temperature and fish biomass. In addition, the small‐sized eDNA fractions were proportionally larger at higher temperatures, and these proportions varied among fish biomass. After removing the fish from the tanks, the percentage of eDNA temporally decreased when the eDNA size fraction was >10 µm, while the smaller size fractions increased. These results have the potential to make the use of eDNA analysis more widespread in the future.

Classification, segmentation, and recognition techniques based on deep-learning algorithms are used for smart farming. It is an important and challenging task to reduce the time, burden, and cost of annotation procedures for collected datasets from fields and crops that are changing in a wide variety of ways according to growing, weather patterns, and seasons. This study was conducted to generate crop image datasets for semantic segmentation based on an image style transfer using generative adversarial networks (GANs). To assess data-augmented performance and calculation burdens, our proposed framework comprises contrastive unpaired translation (CUT) for a conditional GAN, pix2pixHD for an unconditional GAN, and DeepLabV3+ for semantic segmentation. Using these networks, the proposed framework provides not only image generation for data augmentation, but also automatic labeling based on distinctive feature learning among domains. The Fréchet inception distance (FID) and mean intersection over union (mIoU) were used, respectively, as evaluation metrics for GANs and semantic segmentation. We used a public benchmark dataset and two original benchmark datasets to evaluate our framework of four image-augmentation types compared with the baseline without using GANs. The experimentally obtained results showed the efficacy of using augmented images, which we evaluated using FID and mIoU. The mIoU scores for the public benchmark dataset improved by 0.03 for the training subset, while remaining similar on the test subset. For the first original benchmark dataset, the mIoU scores improved by 0.01 for the test subset, while they dropped by 0.03 for the training subset. Finally, the mIoU scores for the second original benchmark dataset improved by 0.18 for the training subset and 0.03 for the test subset.

Motor learning is the process of updating motor commands in response to a trajectory error induced by a perturbation to the body or vision. The brain has a great capability to accelerate learning by increasing the sensitivity of the memory update to the perceived trajectory errors. Conventional theory suggests that the statistics of perturbations or the statistics of the experienced errors induced by the external perturbations determine the learning speeds. However, the potential effect of another type of error perception, a self-generated error as a result of motor command updates (i.e., an aftereffect), on the learning speeds has not been examined yet. In this study, we dissociated the two kinds of errors by controlling the perception of the aftereffect using a channel-force environment. One group experienced errors due to the aftereffect of the learning process, while the other did not. We found that the participants who perceived the aftereffect of the memory updates exhibited a significant decrease in error-sensitivity, whereas the participants who did not perceive the aftereffect did not show an increase or decrease in error-sensitivity. This suggests that the perception of the aftereffect of learning attenuated updating the motor commands from the perceived errors. Thus, both self-generated and externally induced errors may modulate learning speeds.

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) in body fluids constitute heterogenous populations, which mirror their diverse parental cells as well as distinct EV-generation pathways. Various methodologies have been proposed to differentiate EVs in order to deepen the current understanding of EV biology. Equilibrium density-gradient centrifugation has often been used to separate EVs based on their buoyant densities; however, the standard conditions used for the method do not necessarily allow all EVs to move to their equilibrium density positions, which complicates the categorization of EVs. Here, by prolonging ultracentrifugation time to 96 h and fractionating EVs both by floating up or spinning down directions, we allowed 111 EV-associated protein markers from the whole saliva of three healthy volunteers to attain equilibrium. Interestingly, the determined buoyant densities of the markers drifted in a specimen-specific manner, and drift patterns differentiated EVs into at least two subclasses. One class carried classical exosomal markers, such as CD63 and CD81, and the other was characterized by the molecules involved in membrane remodeling or vesicle trafficking. Distinct patterns of density drift may represent the differences in generation pathways of EVs.

The Elbe is one of the longest European rivers and features a large, turbid and well-mixed estuary, which runs through the inner city of Hamburg. The Elbe has been closely monitored using classical catch techniques in the past. Here we tested a COI-based eDNA approach for assessing the biodiversity within the Elbe. We sampled three stations in the Elbe, included low and high tide events, as well as two adjoining lakes to compare the recovered faunas. To analyze the data, we employed two different pipelines: the automated mBRAVE pipeline utilizing the BOLD database and one including NCBI BLAST. The number of OTUs with species or higher-level identifications were similar between both approaches with 352 OTUs and 355 OTUs for BLAST and mBRAVE, respectively, however, BLAST searches recovered another 942 unidentified metazoan OTUs. Many taxa were well represented; however, fish species were poorly represented, especially in the Elbe estuary samples. This could be a result of the universal COI primers, which also yielded high read numbers for non-metazoan OTUs, and small-bodies taxa like Rotifera, which might have been sampled together with the eDNA. Our results show a strong tidal influence on the recovered taxa. During low tide, downstream stations resembled sites further upstream, but the former showed a very different OTU composition during high tide and early tide. Such differences might be due to varying impacts of upstream-originating eDNA during tide cycles. Such factors need to be considered when routinely employing eDNA for monitoring programs.

A 65-year-old male received coil embolization for a large internal carotid-posterior communicating artery aneurysm. Pre- and postoperative angiography at surgery demonstrated that the ipsilateral anterior choroidal artery branched from the internal carotid artery near the distal side of the aneurysm, and elevated and expanded on the aneurysmal dome, but was clearly visualized. Three days following endovascular treatment, the patient presented hemiparesis on the left side, with brain infarction in the territory of the right anterior choroidal artery despite antithrombotic therapy. The delayed brain infarction was likely caused by a reduction in anterior choroidal artery perfusion caused by mechanical compression following a postoperative increase in internal carotid-posterior communicating artery aneurysmal volume during intra-aneurysmal thrombosis. Transient volume expansion after coil embolization for intracranial aneurysms is rarely reported as a cause of brain infarction. It is important to recognize these arteries as potential postoperative complication risks, and consider the use of open surgery to avoid this risk.

Abstract Background Below-ground linkage between plant and fungal communities is one of the major drivers of terrestrial ecosystem dynamics. However, we still have limited knowledge of how such plant–fungus associations vary in their community-scale properties depending on fungal functional groups and geographic locations. Methods By compiling a high-throughput sequencing dataset of root-associated fungi in eight forests along the Japanese Archipelago, we performed a comparative analysis of arbuscular mycorrhizal, ectomycorrhizal, and saprotrophic/endophytic associations across a latitudinal gradient from cool-temperate to subtropical regions. Results In most of the plant–fungus networks analyzed, host–symbiont associations were significantly specialized but lacked “nested” architecture, which has been commonly reported in plant–pollinator and plant–seed disperser networks. In particular, the entire networks involving all functional groups of plants and fungi and partial networks consisting of ectomycorrhizal plant and fungal species/taxa displayed “anti-nested” architecture (i.e., negative nestedness scores) in many of the forests examined. Our data also suggested that geographic factors affected the organization of plant–fungus network structure. For example, the southernmost subtropical site analyzed in this study displayed lower network-level specificity of host–symbiont associations and higher (but still low) nestedness than northern localities. Conclusions Our comparative analyses suggest that arbuscular mycorrhizal, ectomycorrhizal, and saprotrophic/endophytic plant–fungus associations often lack nested network architecture, while those associations can vary, to some extent, in their community-scale properties along a latitudinal gradient. Overall, this study provides a basis for future studies that will examine how different types of plant–fungus associations collectively structure terrestrial ecosystems.

This paper presents an estimation method for a sound source of pre-recorded mallard calls from acoustic information using two microphone arrays combined with delay-and-sum beamforming. Rice farming using mallards saves labor because mallards work instead of farmers. Nevertheless, the number of mallards declines when they are preyed upon by natural enemies such as crows, kites, and weasels. We consider that efficient management can be achieved by locating and identifying the locations of mallards and their natural enemies using acoustic information that can be widely sensed in a paddy field. For this study, we developed a prototype system that comprises two sets of microphone arrays. We used 64 microphones in all installed on our originally designed and assembled sensor mounts. We obtained three acoustic datasets in an outdoor environment for our benchmark evaluation. The experimentally obtained results demonstrated that the proposed system provides adequate accuracy for application to rice–duck farming.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Drones equipped with a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver for absolute localization provide high-precision autonomous flight and hovering. However, the GNSS signal reception sensitivity is considerably lower in areas such as those between high-rise buildings, under bridges, and in tunnels. This paper presents a drone localization method based on acoustic information using a microphone array in GNSS-denied areas. Our originally developed microphone array system comprised 32 microphones installed in a cross-shaped configuration. Using drones of two different sizes and weights, we obtained an original acoustic outdoor benchmark dataset at 24 points. The experimentally obtained results revealed that the localization error values were lower for 0∘ and ±45∘ than for ±90∘. Moreover, we demonstrated the relative accuracy for acceptable ranges of tolerance for the obtained localization error values.

Since impaired mitochondrial ATP production in cardiomyocytes is thought to lead to heart failure, a drug that protects mitochondria and improves ATP production under disease conditions would be an attractive treatment option. In this study, we identified small-molecule drugs, including the anti-parasitic agent, ivermectin, that maintain mitochondrial ATP levels under hypoxia in cardiomyocytes. Mechanistically, transcriptomic analysis and gene silencing experiments revealed that ivermectin increased mitochondrial ATP production by inducing Cox6a2, a subunit of the mitochondrial respiratory chain. Furthermore, ivermectin inhibited the hypertrophic response of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes. Pharmacological inhibition of importin β, one of the targets of ivermectin, exhibited protection against mitochondrial ATP decline and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. These findings indicate that maintaining mitochondrial ATP under hypoxia may prevent hypertrophy and improve cardiac function, providing therapeutic options for mitochondrial dysfunction.

The integration of multiple sensory modalities allows us to adapt to the environment of the outside world. It is widely known that visual stimuli interfere with the processing of auditory information, which is involved in the ability to pay attention. Additionally, visuospatial attention has the characteristic of laterality. It is unclear whether this laterality of visuospatial attention affects the processing of auditory stimuli. The sensorimotor gating system is a neurological process, which filters out unnecessary stimuli from environmental stimuli in the brain. Prepulse inhibition (PPI) is an operational measure of the sensorimotor gating system, which a weaker prestimulus (prepulse), such as a visual stimulus, inhibits the startle reflex elicited by a subsequent robust startling stimulus (pulse) such as a tone. Therefore, we investigated whether the visual stimulus from the left or right visual space affects the sensorimotor gating system in a “rest” task (low attentional condition) and a “selective attention” task (high attentional condition). In the selective attention task, we found that the target prepulse presented in the left and bilateral visual fields suppressed the startle reflex more than that presented in the right visual field. By contrast, there was no laterality of PPI in the no-target prepulse condition, and there was no laterality of PPI in the rest task. These results suggest that the laterality of visuospatial attention affects the sensorimotor gating system depending on the attentional condition. Moreover, the process of visual information processing may differ between the left and right brain.

In this study, we investigated the photoluminous spectroscopic behavior of hybrid powder incorporating both anionic fluorescein dye (AFD) and 1-butanesulfonate (C4S) with layered double hydroxide (LDH) in the presence of NH3 or NO2 gas under various relative humidity conditions. In the presence of NH3 gas, drastic photoluminescence enhancement from the LDH/AFD/C4S hybrid was observed at relative humidity (RH) ≥ 40% when the NH3 reached a certain concentration. Meanwhile, the LDH/AFD/C4S hybrid was exposed to NO2 gas at various relative humidity conditions, and the following behavior was observed: At RH ≥ 60%, the photoluminescence (PL) intensity from the hybrid gradually decreased as NO2 concentration increased. Therefore, the LDH/AFD/C4S hybrid investigated in this study is inferred to be suitable for optical NH3/NO2 sensor devices, which can be used in humid air.

This study was conducted to develop robot prototypes of three models that navigate mallards to achieve high-efficiency rice-duck farming. We examined two robotics navigation approaches based on imprinting and feeding. As the first approach, we used imprinting applied to baby mallards. They exhibited follow behavior to our first prototype after imprinting. Experimentally obtained observation results revealed the importance of providing imprinting immediately up to one week after hatching. As another approach, we used feed placed on the top of our second prototype. Experimentally obtained results showed that adult mallards exhibited wariness not only against the robot, but also against the feeder. After relieving wariness with provision of more than one week time to become accustomed, adult mallards ate feed in the box on the robot. However, they ran away immediately at a slight movement. Based on this confirmation, we developed the third prototype as an autonomous mobile robot aimed for mallard navigation in a paddy field. The body width is less than the length between rice stalks. After checking the waterproof capability of a body waterproof box, we conducted an indoor driving test for manual operation. Moreover, we conducted outdoor evaluation tests to assess running on an actual paddy field. We developed indoor and outdoor image datasets using an onboard monocular camera. For the outdoor image datasets, our segmentation method based on SegNet achieved semantic segmentation for three semantic categories. For the indoor image datasets, our prediction method based on CNN and LSTM achieved visual prediction for three motion categories.

Control of bacterial infection-induced inflammatory responses is one of the effective therapeutic approaches of periodontal diseases. Natural products such as lipid mediators and metabolites from microorganisms have been used for decreasing inflammation. We previously reported that (+)-terrein inhibited activation of STAT3 and ERK1/2 in interleukin-6 (IL-6) signaling cascade, leading to prevent vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) secretion in human gingival fibroblasts (HGFs). However, little is still known about the role of (+)-terrein on inflammatory responses. In this study, we provided the possibility of novel action that (+)-terrein inhibits activation of Janus-activated kinase 1 (JAK1), which has a central function in IL-6 signaling cascade, and alters expression of mRNAs and proteins induced by IL-6/soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R) stimulation in HGFs. First, we performed PCR array to examine IL-6/sIL-6R-induced mRNA expression, and then expression of mRNA and protein of colony stimulating factor-1 (CSF1) and VEGF were clearly determined by quantitative RT-PCR and ELISA, respectively. Treatment with (+)-terrein suppressed expression of mRNA and protein of CSF1 and VEGF by IL-6/sIL-6R stimulation. Next, to test the effect of (+)-terrein on IL-6/sIL-6R signaling cascade, we demonstrated whether (+)-terrein affects phosphorylation of JAK1 and its downstream proteins, Akt and SHP-2. Western blotting revealed that (+)-terrein inhibited IL-6/sIL-6R-induced phosphorylation of JAK1, Akt, and SHP-2. Therefore, (+)-terrein suppresses IL-6/sIL-6R-induced expression of CSF1 and VEGF via inhibition of JAK1, Akt, and SHP-2. Based on our results, we suggest that (+)-terrein is a candidate compound for anti-inflammatory effect associated with IL-6 signaling.

Study DesignRetrospective cross-sectional study.PurposeTo determine the prevalence of idiopathic scoliosis, define the distribution of the curve magnitude, evaluate the accuracy of Moiré topography as a screening tool, and investigate the cost-effectiveness of our screening system.Overview of LiteratureEarly detection of idiopathic scoliosis provides the opportunity for conservative treatment before the deformity is noticeable. We believe that scoliosis screening in schools is useful for detection; however, screening programs are controversial owing to over referral of students who do not require further testing or follow-up. In Japan, school scoliosis screening programs are mandated by law with individual policies determined by local educational committees. We selected Moiré topography as the scoliosis screening tool for schools in Nara City.MethodsWe selected Moiré topography as the scoliosis screening tool for schools in Nara City. We screened boys and girls aged 11-14 years and reviewed the school scoliosis screening results from 1990 to 2012.ResultsA total of 195,149 children aged 11-14 years were screened. The prevalence of scoliosis (defined as ≥10° curvature) was 0.057%, 0.010%, and 0.059% in fifth, sixth, and seventh grade boys and 0.337%, 0.369%, and 0.727% in fifth, sixth, and seventh grade girls, respectively. The false-positive rate of our Moiré topography was 66.7%. The minimum cost incurred for scoliosis detection in one student was 2,000 USD.ConclusionsThe overall prevalence of scoliosis was low in the students of Nara City schools. Over 23 years, the prevalence of scoliosis in girls increased compared to that in the first decade of the study.

Recent development of environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis allows us to survey underwater macro-organisms easily and cost effectively; however, there have been no reports on eDNA detection or quantification for jellyfish. Here we present the first report on an eDNA analysis of marine jellyfish using Japanese sea nettle (Chrysaora pacifica) as a model species by combining a tank experiment with spatial and temporal distribution surveys. We performed a tank experiment monitoring eDNA concentrations over a range of time intervals after the introduction of jellyfish, and quantified the eDNA concentrations by quantitative real-time PCR. The eDNA concentrations peaked twice, at 1 and 8 h after the beginning of the experiment, and became stable within 48 h. The estimated release rates of the eDNA in jellyfish were higher than the rates previously reported in fishes. A spatial survey was conducted in June 2014 in Maizuru Bay, Kyoto, in which eDNA was collected from surface water and sea floor water samples at 47 sites while jellyfish near surface water were counted on board by eye. The distribution of eDNA in the bay corresponded with the distribution of jellyfish inferred by visual observation, and the eDNA concentration in the bay was ~13 times higher on the sea floor than on the surface. The temporal survey was conducted from March to November 2014, in which jellyfish were counted by eye every morning while eDNA was collected from surface and sea floor water at three sampling points along a pier once a month. The temporal fluctuation pattern of the eDNA concentrations and the numbers of observed individuals were well correlated. We conclude that an eDNA approach is applicable for jellyfish species in the ocean.

Limited evidence is available on optimal patient effort and degree of assistance to achieve preferable changes during robot-assisted training (RAT) for spinal cord injury (SCI) patients with spasticity. To investigate the relationship between patient effort and robotic assistance, we performed training using an electromyography-based robotic assistance device (HAL-SJ) in an SCI patient at multiple settings adjusted to patient effort. In this exploratory study, we report immediate change in muscle contraction patterns, patient effort, and spasticity in a 64-year-old man, diagnosed with cervical SCI and with American Spinal Injury Association Impairment Scale C level and C4 neurological level, who underwent RAT using HAL-SJ from post-injury day 403. Three patient effort conditions (comfortable, somewhat hard, and no-effort) by adjusting HAL-SJ’s assists were set for each training session. Degree of effort during flexion and extension exercise was assessed by visual analog scale, muscle contraction pattern by electromyography, modified Ashworth scale, and maximum elbow extension and flexion torques, immediately before and after each training session, without HAL-SJ. The amount of effort during training with the HAL-SJ at each session was evaluated. The degree of effort during training can be set to three effort conditions as we intended by adjusting HAL-SJ. In sessions other than the no-effort setting, spasticity improved, and the level of effort was reduced immediately after training. Spasticity did not decrease in the training session using HAL-SJ with the no-effort setting, but co-contraction further increased during extension after training. Extension torque was unchanged in all sessions, and flexion torque decreased in all sessions. When performing upper-limb training with HAL-SJ in this SCI patient, the level of assistance with some effort may reduce spasticity and too strong assistance may increase co-contraction. Sometimes, a patient’s effort may be seemingly unmeasurable; hence, the degree of patient effort should be further measured.

Recent studies in streams and ponds have demonstrated that the distribution and biomass of aquatic organisms can be estimated by detection and quantification of environmental DNA (eDNA). In more open systems such as seas, it is not evident whether eDNA can represent the distribution and biomass of aquatic organisms because various environmental factors (e.g., water flow) are expected to affect eDNA distribution and concentration. To test the relationships between the distribution of fish and eDNA, we conducted a grid survey in Maizuru Bay, Sea of Japan, and sampled surface and bottom waters while monitoring biomass of the Japanese jack mackerel (Trachurus japonicus) using echo sounder technology. A linear model showed a high R(2) value (0.665) without outlier data points, and the association between estimated eDNA concentrations from the surface water samples and echo intensity was significantly positive, suggesting that the estimated spatial variation in eDNA concentration can reflect the local biomass of the jack mackerel. We also found that a best-fit model included echo intensity obtained within 10-150 m from water sampling sites, indicating that the estimated eDNA concentration most likely reflects fish biomass within 150 m in the bay. Although eDNA from a wholesale fish market partially affected eDNA concentration, we conclude that eDNA generally provides a 'snapshot' of fish distribution and biomass in a large area. Further studies in which dynamics of eDNA under field conditions (e.g., patterns of release, degradation, and diffusion of eDNA) are taken into account will provide a better estimate of fish distribution and biomass based on eDNA.