Thermal pure matrix product state in two dimensions: tracking thermal equilibrium from paramagnet down to the Kitaev honeycomb spin liquid state

We show that the matrix product state (MPS) provides a thermal quantum pure state (TPQ) representation in equilibrium in two spatial dimensions over the whole temperature range. We use the Kitaev honeycomb model as a prominent example hosting a quantum spin liquid (QSL) ground state to target the two specific-heat peaks previously solved nearly exactly using the free Majorana fermionic description. Starting from the high-temperature random state, our TPQ-MPS wrapping the cylinder precisely reproduces these peaks, showing that the quantum many-body description based on spins can still capture the emergent itinerant Majorana fermions in a ${\mathbb Z}_2$ gauge field. The truncation process efficiently discards the high-energy states, eventually reaching the long-range entangled topological state.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures, submission to SciPos

Recent Progress in Gas Barrier Thin Film Coatings on PET Bottles in Food and Beverage Applications

This article presents a short history and the recent advancement of the development of chemical vapor deposition technologies to form thin film gas barrier coatings on PET bottles and other plastic containers in food and beverage containers. Among different gas barrier enhancement technologies, coating can show unique performance where relatively high gas barrier enhancement is possible to various gas permeants. In this article, technologically common and different points of the current thin film coating methods in this field are summarized. This article also refers to recent market situations and technological challenges in the Japanese market

A new N∗(1675)N^*(1675) resonance in the γN→ηN\gamma N\to\eta N reaction

We study the $\eta$-photoproduction focusing on the new nucleon resonance which was observed at $\sqrt{s}=1675$ MeV with a narrow decay width ($\sim 10$ MeV) in the recent GRAAL experiment. Using an effective Lagrangian approach, we compute differential cross sections for the $\eta$-photoproduction. In addition to $N^*(1675)$, we employ three other nucleon resonances, i.e. $N^*(1535)$, $N^*(1650)$ and $N^*(1710)$, and vector meson exchanges which are the most relevant ones to this reaction process. As a result, we can reproduce the GRAAL data qualitatively well and observe obvious isospin asymmetry between the transition magnetic moments of $N^*(1675)$: $\mu_{\gamma nn^*}\gg\mu_{\gamma pp^*}$.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures. Accepted for publication in Phys. Lett.

Identification of an antiviral component from the venom of the scorpion Liocheles australasiae using transcriptomic and mass spectrometric analyses

Scorpion venom contains a variety of biologically active peptides. Among them, neurotoxins are major components in the venom, but it also contains peptides that show antimicrobial activity. Previously, we identified three insecticidal peptides from the venom of the Liocheles australasiae scorpion, but activities and structures of other venom components remained unknown. In this study, we performed a transcriptome analysis of the venom gland of the scorpion L. australasiae to gain a comprehensive understanding of its venom components. The result shows that potassium channel toxin-like peptides were the most diverse, whereas only a limited number of sodium channel toxin-like peptides were observed. In addition to these neurotoxin-like peptides, many non-disulfide-bridged peptides were identified, suggesting that these components have some critical roles in the L. australasiae venom. In this study, we also isolated a component with antiviral activity against hepatitis C virus using a bioassay-guided fractionation approach. By integrating mass spectrometric and transcriptomic data, we successfully identified LaPLA₂-1 as an anti-HCV component. LaPLA₂-1 is a phospholipase A₂ having a heterodimeric structure that is N-glycosylated at the N-terminal region. Since the antiviral activity of LaPLA₂-1 was inhibited by a PLA₂ inhibitor, the enzymatic activity of LaPLA₂-1 is likely to be involved in its antiviral activity

Successful and Prompt Treatment with Tepotinib for Lung Adenocarcinoma Harboring MET Exon 14 Skipping Mutation Combined with Lung Abscess Formation: A Case Report

Tepotinib, the novel MET-tyrosine kinase inhibitor, shows an antitumor effect for patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring MET exon 14 skipping mutation. In January 2022, the AmoyDx (R) Pan Lung Cancer polymerase chain reaction Panel (AmoyDx (R) panel), which had a shorter turnaround time than the conventional test, was launched in Japan as a tepotinib companion test. We report a patient with an advanced MET-mutant NSCLC promptly diagnosed using the AmoyDx (R) panel and successfully treated with tepotinib. Although the patient's performance status (PS) worsened due to the rapid tumor progression and lung abscess formation, the tumor shrank immediately after tepotinib treatment with marked PS improvement

Impact of CRAB symptoms in survival of patients with symptomatic myeloma in novel agent era

The acronym CRAB summarizes the most typical clinical manifestations of multiple myeloma, these being hypercalcemia, renal failure, anemia, and bone disease. CRAB can be used to distinguish between active, symptomatic multiple myeloma and monoclonal gammopathy of undermined significance or smoldering myeloma. The distinction is relevant not only for classification and diagnosis but also for therapy. CRAB factors influence the prognosis of multiple myeloma. However, it is unclear whether the presence of CRAB factors has an influence on the prognosis of myeloma treated with novel agents. In the current study, patients with hypercalcemia and bone disease showed a significantly worse prognosis, whereas anemia and renal failure showed no difference in survival. Novel agents used for treatment of patients with renal failure suggested a favorable outcome compared with conventional therapy. Bone disease was the most common factor and may have the strongest prognostic value in symptomatic myeloma patients using novel agents

Clinical significance of dasatinib-induced pleural effusion in patients with de novo chronic myeloid leukemia

Dasatinib is currently approved for clinical use as a first-line treatment agent for newly diagnosed chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). However, only a few clinical trials have been performed to evaluate dasatinibinduced PE following first-line therapy. We investigated the incidence and clinical features of dasatinib-induced PE following first-line therapy in Japanese CML patients of real world clinical practice settings. Among 22 patients, the median age of PEpositive patients was higher than that of PEnegative patients. Major molecular response was achieved in 75% of PE-positive patients and 50% of PE-negative patients. Most patients developed PE more than 1 year after treatment. Appearance of PE is associated with better clinical response during dasatinib treatment, however it is developed at any time. Elderly and high-risk patients tend to develop PE. The clinical features of dasatinib-induced PE following first-line therapy might be late onset and might not immediately follow the increasing of large granular lymphocyte

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国際教育部門 日本語研修コース / 深見兼孝 21 日本語・日本事情 (2018年4月～2019年3月) / 田村泰男 25 留学生関係科目 (2018年4月～2019年3月) / 田村泰男 40 第33期(2017－2018) 日本語・日本文化研修プログラム / 石原淳也 55 第19期平成30年度（2018年度）日韓共同理工系学部留学生事業 入学前予備教育 / 石原淳也 58 広島大学短期交換留学（HUSA）プログラム / 恒松直美・堀田泰司 61 特別研修プログラム / 荒見泰史・小宮山道夫 71 2018年度PEACE学生交流プログラム / 永井敦 74 海外日本語教員ブラッシュアップセミナー / 柳本大地 77 平成30年度 ダルマプルサダ大学（インドネシア）における日本語教員研修の報告 / 山中康子 79 研究・その他の活動 8