Effects of a job crafting intervention program on work engagement among Japanese employees: a pretest-posttest study

Abstract Background Job crafting, an employee-initiated job design/redesign, has become important for employees’ well-being such as work engagement. This study examined the effectiveness of a newly developed job crafting intervention program on work engagement (as primary outcome), as well as job crafting and psychological distress (as secondary outcomes), using a pretest-posttest study design among Japanese employees. Methods Participants were managers of a private company and a private psychiatric hospital in Japan. The job crafting intervention program consisted of two 120-min sessions with a two-week interval between them. Outcomes were assessed at baseline (Time 1), post-intervention (Time 2), and a one-month follow-up (Time 3). The mixed growth model analyses were conducted using time (Time 1, Time 2, and Time 3) as an indicator of intervention effect. Effect sizes were calculated using Cohen’s d. Results The program showed a significant positive effect on work engagement (t = 2.20, p = 0.03) in the mixed growth model analyses, but with only small effect sizes (Cohen’s d = 0.33 at Time 2 and 0.26 at Time 3). The program also significantly improved job crafting (t = 2.36, p = 0.02: Cohen’s d = 0.36 at Time 2 and 0.47 at Time 3) and reduced psychological distress (t = −2.06, p = 0.04: Cohen’s d = −0.15 at Time 2 and −0.31 at Time 3). Conclusions The study indicated that the newly developed job crafting intervention program was effective in increasing work engagement, as well as in improving job crafting and decreasing psychological distress, among Japanese managers. Trial registration UMIN Clinical Trials Registry UMIN000024062 . Retrospectively registered 15 September 2016

Clinical and genetic aspects of mild hypophosphatasia in Japanese patients

Background: Hypophosphatasia (HPP) is a rare inborn error of metabolism that results from a dysfunctional tissue non-specific alkaline phosphatase enzyme (TNSALP). Although genotype-phenotype correlations have been described in HPP patients, only sparse information is currently available on the genetics of mild type HPP. Methods: We investigated 5 Japanese patients from 3 families with mild HPP (patients 1 and 2 are siblings; patient 4 is a daughter of patient 5) who were referred to Fujita Health University due to the premature loss of deciduous teeth. Physical and dental examinations, and blood, urine and bone density tests were conducted. Genetic analysis of the ALPL gene was performed in all patients with their informed consent. Results: After a detailed interview and examination, we found characteristic symptoms of HPP in some of the study cases. Mobile teeth or the loss of permanent teeth were observed in 2 patients, and 3 out of 5 patients had a history of asthma. The serum ALP levels of all patients were 30% below the lower limit of the age equivalent normal range. ALPL gene analysis revealed compound heterozygous mutations, including Ile395Val and Leu520Argfs in family 1, Val95Met and Gly491Arg in family 2, and a dominant missense mutation (Gly456Arg) in family 3. The 3D-modeling of human TNSALP revealed three mutations (Val95Met, Ile395Val and Gly456Arg) at the homodimer interface. Severe collisions between the side chains were predicted for the Gly456Arg variant. Discussion: One of the characteristic findings of this present study was a high prevalence of coexisting asthma and a high level serum IgE level. These characteristics may account for the fragility of tracheal tissues and a predisposition to asthma in patients with mild HPP. The genotypes of the five mild HPP patients in our present study series included 1) compound heterozygous for severe and hypomorphic mutations, and 2) dominant-negative mutations. All of these mutations were at the homodimer interface, but only the dominant-negative mutation was predicted to cause a severe collision effect between the side chains. This may account for varying mechanisms leading to different effects on TNSALP function

Tsunami field survey of the 1992 Nicaragua earthquake

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/95368/1/eost9614.pd

Vaccination and Infection as Causative Factors in Japanese Patients With Rasmussen Syndrome: Molecular Mimicry and HLA Class I

Rasmussen syndrome is an intractable epilepsy with a putative causal relation with cellular and humoral autoimmunity. Almost half of the patients have some preceding causative factors, with infections found in 38.2%, vaccinations in 5.9% and head trauma in 8.9% of Japanese patients. In a patient with seizure onset after influenza A infections, cross-reaction of the patient's lymphocytes with GluRε2 and influenza vaccine components was demonstrated by lymphocyte stimulation test. Database analyses revealed that influenza A virus hemagglutinin and GluRε2 molecules contain peptides with the patient's HLA class I binding motif (HLA − A*0201). The relative risks of HLA class I genotypes for Rasmussen syndrome are 6.1 (A*2402), 6.4 (A*0201), 6.3 (A*2601) and 11.4 (B*4601). The relative risks of HLA class I-A and B haplotypes are infinity (A*2601+B*5401), 21.1 (A*2402+B*1501), 13.3 (A*2402+B*4801) and 5.1 (A*2402+B*5201). Some alleles and haplotypes of HLA class I may be the risk factors in Japanese patients. Cross-reactivity of cytotoxic T lymphocytes may contribute to the processes leading from infection to the involvement of CNS

Effect of a Domain Wall on the Conductance Quantization in a Ferromagnetic Nanowire

The effect of the domain wall (DW) on the conductance in a ballistic ferromagnetic nanowire (FMNW) is revisited by exploiting a specific perturbation theory which is effective for a thin DW; the thinness is often the case in currently interested conductance measurements on FMNWs. Including the Hund coupling between carrier spins and local spins in a DW, the conductance of a FMNW in the presence of a very thin DW is calculated within the Landauer-B\"{u}ttiker formalism. It is revealed that the conductance plateaus are modified significantly, and the switching of the quantization unit from $e^2/h$ to ``about $2e^2/h$'' is produced in a FMNW by the introduction of a thin DW. This accounts well for recent observations in a FMNW.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, Corrected typos and added reference

Re-biopsy status among non-small cell lung cancer patients in Japan: A retrospective study

AbstractObjectiveDisease progression because of acquired resistance is common in advanced or metastatic epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mutation positive non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), despite initial response to EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). In Japan, transbronchial tissue biopsy is the most common sampling method used for re-biopsy to identify patients eligible for treatment. We aimed to investigate the success rate of re-biopsy and re-biopsy status of patients with advanced or metastatic NSCLC completing first-line EGFR-TKI therapy.Patients and methodsThis was a retrospective, multi-center, Japanese study. The target patients in the study were EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC patients. The primary endpoint was the success rate (number of cases in which tumor cells were detected/total number of re-biopsies performed×100). Secondary endpoints included differences between the status of the first biopsy and that of the re-biopsy in the same patient population, and the details of cases in which re-biopsy could not be carried out. Re-biopsy-associated complications were also assessed.ResultsOverall, 395 patients were evaluated (median age 63 years), with adenocarcinoma being the most common tumor type. Re-biopsy was successful in 314 patients (79.5%). Compared with the sampling method at first biopsy, at re-biopsy, the surgical resection rate increased from 1.8% to 7.8%, and percutaneous tissue biopsy increased from 7.6% to 29.1%, suggesting the difficulty of performing re-biopsy. Approximately half of the patients had T790M mutations, which involved a Del19 mutation in 55.6% of patients and an L858R mutation in 43.0%. Twenty-three patients (5.8%) had re-biopsy- associated complications, most commonly pneumothorax.ConclusionsSuccess rate for re-biopsy in this study was approximately 80%. Our study sheds light on the re-biopsy status after disease progression in patients with advanced or metastatic NSCLC. This information is important to improve the selection of patients who may benefit from third-generation TKIs

Association of angiopoietin-like protein 3 with hepatic triglyceride lipase and lipoprotein lipase activities in human plasma

金沢大学医学系研究科Background: The relationship between plasma angiopoietin-like protein 3 (ANGPTL3), and lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activity and hepatic triglyceride lipase (HTGL) activity has not been investigated in the metabolism of remnant lipoproteins (RLPs) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) in human plasma. Methods: ANGPTL3, LPL activity, HTGL activity, RLP-C and RLP-TG and small, dense LDL-cholesterol (sd LDL-C) were measured in 20 overweight and obese subjects in the fasting and postprandial states. Results: Plasma TG, RLP-C, RLP-TG and sd LDL-C were inversely correlated with LPL activity both in the fasting and postprandial states, but not correlated with HTGL activity and ANGPTL3. However, plasma HDL-C was positively correlated with LPL activity both in the fasting and postprandial states, while inversely correlated with HTGL activity. ANGPTL3 was inversely correlated with HTGL activity both in the fasting and postprandial states, but not correlated with LPL activity. Conclusion: HTGL plays a major role in HDL metabolism, but not RLP metabolism. These findings suggest that ANGPTL3 is strongly associated with the inhibition of HTGL activity and regulates HDL metabolism, but not associated with the inhibition of LPL activity for the metabolism of RLPs in human plasma

Japanese Lung Cancer Society Guidelines for Stage IV NSCLC With EGFR Mutations

Patients with NSCLC in East Asia, including Japan, frequently contain EGFR mutations. In 2018, we published the latest full clinical practice guidelines on the basis of those provided by the Japanese Lung Cancer Society Guidelines Committee. The purpose of this study was to update those recommendations, especially for the treatment of metastatic or recurrent EGFR-mutated NSCLC. We conducted a literature search of systematic reviews of randomized controlled and nonrandomized trials published between 2018 and 2019 that multiple physicians had reviewed independently. On the basis of those studies and the advice from the Japanese Society of Lung Cancer Expert Panel, we developed updated guidelines according to the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation system. We also evaluated the benefits of overall and progression-free survival, end points, toxicities, and patients’ reported outcomes. For patients with NSCLC harboring EGFR-activating mutations, the use of EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR TKIs), especially osimertinib, had the best recommendation as to first-line treatment. We also recommended the combination of EGFR TKI with other agents (platinum-based chemotherapy or antiangiogenic agents); however, it can lead to toxicity. In the presence of EGFR uncommon mutations, except for an exon 20 insertion, we also recommended the EGFR TKI treatment. However, we could not provide recommendations for the treatment of EGFR mutations with immune checkpoint inhibitors, including monotherapy, and its combination with cytotoxic chemotherapy, because of the limited evidence present in the literature. The 2020 Japanese Lung Cancer Society Guidelines can help community-based physicians to determine the most appropriate treatments and adequately provide medical care to their patients

Stereotactic body radiation therapy for primary liver tumors with adverse factors

Aim: To test the efficacy and safety of liver stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) in patients who harbor adverse factors.Methods: We retrospectively evaluated the outcomes of liver SBRT in a single cancer center. We invented criteria consisting of two physical factors and two tumor factors to measure the treatment difficulty in each case. The clinical outcomes and toxicity were evaluated by stratification of the harboring factors.Results: A total of 24 (23 hepatocellular carcinoma and 1 intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma) patients were eligible for this study, with a median follow-up duration of 18 months. Of all eligible patients, 21 patients (88%) had one or more factors. The local control, progression-free survival, and overall survival rates for all patients at 2 years were 89%, 42%, and 76% respectively. In the patients with physical and tumor adverse factors, local control/progression-free survival/overall survival rates at 2 years were 100%/42%/69% and 80%/23%/78%, respectively. The subgroup of 11 patients with 2 or more factors showed comparable local control rate at 2 years to the subgroup of 13 patients with 0 to 1 factors (100% vs. 86%, P = 0.59). One patient (4.2%) experienced a decline in the Child-Pugh score by 2 points at 3 months after the treatment. Grade 2 to 3 gastrointestinal toxicity was observed in three patients.Conclusion: SBRT showed a high local control rate with acceptable toxicity for the group of liver cancer patients harboring both physical and tumor adverse factors as long as conducted following patient selection and dose constraints that were used in this study