Does Caregiver’s Social Bonding Enhance the Health of their Children?:The Association between Social Capital and Child Behaviors

Little is known about the association between social capital and child behaviors. This study aims to investigate that association. A complete population-based, cross-sectional survey was conducted for all the caregivers with preschool children in a rural town in Okayama prefecture in Japan. Two dimensions of individual-level social capital and unhealthy child behaviors were reported by parent-administered questionnaire. We analyzed 354 preschool children (57.6% of all children for whom questionnaires were completed). Children whose main caregiver had high cognitive social capital were 89% less likely to miss breakfast (odds ratio [OR]＝0.11;95% confidence interval [CI]:0.01-1.03). Children whose caregiver had high structural social capital were 71% less likely to wake up late (OR＝0.29;95% CI:0.12-0.71) and 78% less likely to skip tooth brushing more than once per day (OR＝0.22;95% CI:0.05-0.93). Both cognitive and structural social capital were negatively associated with unhealthy child behaviors. A further intervention study is needed to confirm the impact of social capital on child behavior

Timber industries and licensing system in Malaysia

This paper discusses the licensing system of Malaysia's sawmilling and plywood industries which has grown in tandem with the massive land development program begun in the 1960s. Since then, the industry has contributed a significant amount of government revenue, employment opportunities and foreign exchange. Progressive development of the sector has been underpinned by various governmental policies and regulations to nurture legal timber supplies for down-stream processing as well as developing secondary and tertiary processing industries. Policies provide various incentives to modernize the industries in order to upgrade processing efficiency, diversification into value-added and quality products and reduction of processing residues. This includes wider use of the under-utilized timber species as part of an effort to attain a rational balance between national processing capacity and resource availability. Various strategies have been targeted to enhance efficient utilization of all forms of forest products from legal sources. In addition, timber production and licensing are now closely monitored and regulated throughout the supply chain management

膜蛋白のプロテオーム解析による神経膠芽腫浸潤関連分子の同定と機能解析

金沢大学医薬保健研究域医学系1, 神経膠芽腫細胞初代培養細胞と神経膠芽腫細胞株から高浸潤細胞と低浸潤細胞の分離抽出神経膠芽腫10例の手術材料から初代培養細胞を確立した。当教室で確立されているin vitro細胞遊走assayを用いて、上記の初代培養細胞と世界的に広く使用されている7種類の神経膠芽腫細胞株(U87, U251, T98G, SNB19, U118, SF 767, G112)からそれぞれ高遊走細胞と非遊走細胞を収集した。2, 細胞膜蛋白の分離とプロテオミクス解析による浸潤細胞特異的膜蛋白の同定過去の報告(Nunomura K, et al, Mol Cell Proteomics 2005)に倣い、細胞膜蛋白の抽出を行う。すなわち、上記で回収した細胞の細胞膜を細胞膜不透過性型ピチオンでラベリングし、細胞を溶解、アビジンカラムを用いて細胞膜のみ分離抽出した。得られた細胞膜蛋白はmass fingerprintingとMALDI(Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization,マトリックス支援レーザ脱離イオン化)-TOF(Time-of-flight/飛行時間型)analysisにより網羅的なアミノ酸解析から蛋白プロファイルを作成した。高遊走細胞と非遊走細胞で発現に差がある膜蛋白の同定中であり、浸潤細胞で機能している候補膜蛋白を特定中である。神経膠芽腫初代培養細胞と神経膠芽腫細胞株で共通し、新規性の高い10個の候補分子を優先分子とした。また、非遊走細胞と比較し、高遊走細胞で高い発現を示す膜蛋白と低い発現を示す膜蛋白を同定した。研究課題/領域番号:18659416, 研究期間(年度):2006 – 2008出典：「膜蛋白のプロテオーム解析による神経膠芽腫浸潤関連分子の同定と機能解析」研究成果報告書　課題番号18659416（KAKEN：科学研究費助成事業データベース（国立情報学研究所））（https://kaken.nii.ac.jp/ja/grant/KAKENHI-PROJECT-18659416/)を加工して作

Orbital Cystic Schwannoma Originating from the Frontal Nerve

Schwannomas of the orbit are very rare benign neoplasms. Intraorbital cystic schwannomas originating from the frontal nerve are even rarer, with only 1 case reported to date. This is most likely due to the fact that, in most cases, the origin of the orbital schwannoma cannot be identified intraoperatively. The nerve origin is usually speculated from histological examination of the specimen and the postoperative neurological deficits of the patient. Here, we present the case of a 65-year-old woman with a one-month history of exophthalmos, whose orbital cystic lesion was completely removed by microsurgical transcranial operation. Intraoperatively, the continuity between the tumor and frontal nerve was seen macroscopically, leading us to confirm the frontal nerve as an origin of the tumor, which was consistent with the postoperative neurological findings. The diagnosis of the tumor was established as schwannoma from the histological examination. As a differential diagnosis of the orbital cystic lesions, the possibility of schwannomas should be kept in mind

MGMT promoter methylation and temozolomide response in choroid plexus carcinoma

Choroid plexus carcinoma (CPC) is a malignant tumor with a strong tendency to spread along the cerebrospinal fluid pathway. There is no standardized chemotherapy protocol for this rare tumor. We report a 38-year-old man with CPC in the lateral ventricle with obstructive hydrocephalus. Because of the poor demarcation between thalamus and fornix, subtotal tumor resection was performed. Postoperative spine magnetic resonance (MR) image revealed whole spinal axis dissemination. After diagnosis of CPC, the patient was treated with whole ventricular and spine radiation concomitant with temozolomide chemotherapy, although the O 6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter was found to be unmethylated. Although MR images revealed transient stable disease during adjuvant therapy, tumor progression was depicted after four cycles of temozolomide therapy. We discuss the ineffectiveness of adjuvant temozolomide therapy for CPC in connection with O 6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase promoter methylation. © 2011 The Japan Society of Brain Tumor Pathology

Endoscopic removal of subgaleal hematoma in a 7-year-old patient treated with anticoagulant and antiplatelet agents

Background: Subgaleal hematomas frequently occur in children after head trauma and extend over the cranial sutures. Although conservative treatment suffices in most cases, surgical removal of a subgaleal hematoma is indicated when the patient presents with anemia and headache associated with its progressive enlargement. Copyright:Case Description: We present the case of a 7-year-old boy who was medicated with warfarin and aspirin due to a hypoplastic left ventricle and fell from a rock wherein he hit his head in the frontal region. Although a computed tomography scan of the head revealed no intracranial lesion, an extracranial hematoma was found to extend over the cranial sutures, leading to the diagnosis of subgaleal hematoma. The hematoma continued to grow gradually despite the cessation of warfarin and aspirin therapy immediately after the head trauma. Since the patient\u27s headache and anemia were progressing as the hematoma enlarged, removal of the hematoma was performed 3 days after admission. Endoscopic hematoma removal was planned to enable accurate coagulation of the sites of bleeding and removal of the maximal amount of hematoma through minimal incision. The hematoma was completely removed, and the patient\u27s postoperative course was excellent with alleviation of both the anemia and the headache. No sign of hematoma recurrence could be detected during 2 years follow-up.Conclusion: An angled endoscope can allow visualization of the deep subgaleal space, and this technique enabled direct visualization of the bleeding sites and accurate coagulation to prevent recurrence of hematoma. Endoscopic techniques, such as minimally invasive techniques, can allow sufficient removal of subgaleal hematoma with minimal morbidity, especially in patients such as ours

Symptomatic foramen of Magendie arachnoid cyst in an elderly patient

Background: Arachnoid cysts (ACs) are congenital anomalies of the central nervous system and arise in virtually all locations where the arachnoid membrane exists. Posterior fossa ACs are considered to develop in the posterior aspect of the rhombencephalic roof plate and do not communicate freely with the fourth ventricle or perimedullary subarachnoid space. Although posterior fossa ACs have been reported a number of times, ACs arising from the foramen of Magendie are very rare. Case Description: We report here on a 76-year-old female who presented with progressive gait disturbance. Magnetic resonance imaging of the head showed a large AC in the foramen of Magendie that was compressing the inferior vermis and medial aspects of the cerebellar hemisphere without causing hydrocephalus. Neurological examination revealed cerebellar ataxia without Romberg\u27s sign. A nearly total excision of the cyst was safely performed via a median suboccipital approach. The patient\u27s postoperative course was excellent and her neurological recovery was remarkable. Conclusion: Most cases of ACs located in the foramen of Magendie are reported in children, and it is extremely rare to observe such ACs in the elderly. In fact, to our knowledge, a symptomatic foramen Magendie AC has never been reported previously in an elderly person. Our results indicate that proper surgical intervention can yield highly positive outcomes in such cases

Force-detecting gripper and force feedback system for neurosurgery applications

Purpose For the application of less invasive robotic neurosurgery to the resection of deep-seated tumors, a prototype system of a force-detecting gripper with a flexible micromanipulator and force feedback to the operating unit will be developed. Methods Gripping force applied on the gripper is detected by strain gauges attached to the gripper clip. The signal is transmitted to the amplifier by wires running through the inner tube of the manipulator. Proportional force is applied on the finger lever of the operating unit by the surgeon using a bilateral control program. A pulling force experienced by the gripper is also detected at the gripper clip. The signal for the pulling force is transmitted in a manner identical to that mentioned previously, and the proportional torque is applied on the touching roller of the finger lever of the operating unit. The surgeon can feel the gripping force as the resistance of the operating force of the finger and can feel the pulling force as the friction at the finger surface. Results A basic operation test showed that both the gripping force and pulling force were clearly detected in the gripping of soft material and that the operator could feel the gripping force and pulling force at the finger lever of the operating unit. Conclusions A prototype of the force feedback in the microgripping manipulator system has been developed. The system will be useful for removing deep-seated brain tumors in future master-slave-type robotic neurosurgery. © 2013 CARS