Quantum entanglement in photosynthetic light harvesting complexes

Light harvesting components of photosynthetic organisms are complex, coupled, many-body quantum systems, in which electronic coherence has recently been shown to survive for relatively long time scales despite the decohering effects of their environments. Within this context, we analyze entanglement in multi-chromophoric light harvesting complexes, and establish methods for quantification of entanglement by presenting necessary and sufficient conditions for entanglement and by deriving a measure of global entanglement. These methods are then applied to the Fenna-Matthews-Olson (FMO) protein to extract the initial state and temperature dependencies of entanglement. We show that while FMO in natural conditions largely contains bipartite entanglement between dimerized chromophores, a small amount of long-range and multipartite entanglement exists even at physiological temperatures. This constitutes the first rigorous quantification of entanglement in a biological system. Finally, we discuss the practical utilization of entanglement in densely packed molecular aggregates such as light harvesting complexes.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures. Improved presentation, published versio

Bortezomib-cyclophosphamide-dexamethasone induction/consolidation and bortezomib maintenance for transplant-eligible newly diagnosed multiple myeloma: phase 2 multicenter trial

[Objectives:] We conducted a phase II trial to prospectively evaluate the efficacy and safety of bortezomib-cyclophosphamide-dexamethasone (VCD) induction, autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT), VCD consolidation, and bortezomib maintenance in transplant-eligible newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) patients in Japan (UMIN000010542). [Methods:] From 2013 to 2016, 42 patients with a median age of 58 (range 42–65) years with NDMM were enrolled in 15 centers. The primary endpoint was the complete response (CR) /stringent CR (sCR) rate after transplantation, and overall/progression-free survival rates were also evaluated. [Results:] Following induction therapy, the overall response rate was obtained in 71% of patients, including a CR/sCR of 10% and a very good partial response (VGPR) of 26%. Twenty-six of the 42 patients completed ASCT following the protocol and CR/sCR and VGPR rate 100 days after ASCT was 26% and 17%, respectively. During consolidation therapy, 3 of the 24 patients achieved deeper responses. Eight of the 18 patients completed 2-year bortezomib maintenance without disease progression and grade 3/4 toxicities. Five patients were VGPR or partial response after ASCT but maintained response with 2-year bortezomib maintenance. Two-year overall and progression-free survival rates were 92.5% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 78.5%−97.5%) and 62.6% (95% CI: 45.8%−75.5%), respectively. Grade 3/4 toxicities (≥ 10%) included neutropenia (19%) and anemia (17%) in induction, and thrombocytopenia (29%) in consolidation. [Conclusion:] VCD induction/consolidation and bortezomib maintenance with ASCT for NDMM resulted in a high CR/sCR rate and provided good overall/progression-free survival in Japan

Factors associated with the occurrence of injuries requiring hospital transfer among older and working-age pedestrians in Kurume, Japan

Abstract Background Pedestrian injuries among older people tend to occur near their residence. However, knowledge regarding whether distance travelled from home to the injury site or road environmental/socioeconomic factors affect injury severity remains limited. Methods A cross-sectional study was performed using injury registry data from the Kurume City Fire Department, Japan. Distance travelled from home was determined with geographic information system (GIS) software. Data were analyzed for potential association with injury occurrence and severity, with stratification by age. Signal detection analysis using 10 variables was applied to identify factors associated with the occurrence of severe pedestrian injuries. Results Among the 545 adult pedestrian injuries reviewed, the factors associated with the occurrence of severe pedestrian injuries for older people and working-age people were evaluated, focusing on the effect of the network distance travelled from home to injury site. Network distance travelled from home to injury site was not associated with the occurrence of severe pedestrian injuries among older people. By applying signal detection analysis, for older people, higher socioeconomic status, wider road width per lane, and higher aging rate in the residential area were significant factors, and for working-age pedestrians, longer network distance travelled between injury place and their residential area and a higher aging rate in the residential area were significantly associated. Conclusions To reduce severe pedestrian injuries among older people, improvement of road infrastructure in areas with wider roads, higher socioeconomic status and higher aging rates is required

Physician Presence in an Ambulance Car Is Associated with Increased Survival in Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest: A Prospective Cohort Analysis

<div><p>The presence of a physician seems to be beneficial for pre-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) of patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. However, the effectiveness of a physician's presence during CPR before hospital arrival has not been established. We conducted a prospective, non-randomized, observational study using national data from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests between 2005 and 2010 in Japan. We performed a propensity analysis and examined the association between a physician's presence during an ambulance car ride and short- and long-term survival from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Specifically, a full non-parsimonious logistic regression model was fitted with the physician presence in the ambulance as the dependent variable; the independent variables included all study variables except for endpoint variables plus dummy variables for the 47 prefectures in Japan (<i>i.e.</i>, 46 variables). In total, 619,928 out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases that met the inclusion criteria were analyzed. Among propensity-matched patients, a positive association was observed between a physician's presence during an ambulance car ride and return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) before hospital arrival, 1-month survival, and 1-month survival with minimal neurological or physical impairment (ROSC: OR = 1.84, 95% CI 1.63–2.07, <i>p</i> = 0.00 in adjusted for propensity and all covariates); 1-month survival: OR = 1.29, 95% CI 1.04–1.61, <i>p</i> = 0.02 in adjusted for propensity and all covariates); cerebral performance category (1 or 2): OR = 1.54, 95% CI 1.03–2.29, <i>p</i> = 0.04 in adjusted for propensity and all covariates); and overall performance category (1 or 2): OR = 1.50, 95% CI 1.01–2.24, <i>p</i> = 0.05 in adjusted for propensity and all covariates). A prospective observational study using national data from out-of-hospital cardiac arrests shows that a physician's presence during an ambulance car ride was independently associated with increased short- and long-term survival.</p></div