Velocities of acoustic streaming in a solid–liquid mixture generated by an ultrasonic wave (Particles and particle concentration)

Progressive ultrasonic waves cause acoustic streaming in a liquid. Although theoretical and experimental studies on acoustic streaming for liquid phase have been carried out, acoustic streaming for a solid–liquid mixture does not seem to have been investigated. The purpose of this study is to clarify the velocity distribution of acoustic streaming in a solid–liquid mixture. An ultrasonic wave with a frequency of 485 kHz was horizontally irradiated on tap water with aluminum particles in a cylindrical tube with a diameter of 120 mm whose orientation was kept horizontal; the acoustic streaming velocities were measured with the irradiation time of the ultrasonic wave, initial particle concentration, and particle shape as the parameters. The following results were obtained: (a) The higher the initial particle concentration is, the faster the acoustic streaming velocity of a solid–liquid mixture becomes; (b) When ultrasonic waves are irradiated on a liquid with heavier solid particles, the acoustic streaming velocity of the solid–liquid mixture decreases with irradiation time to a certain exte

Superlattice formation lifting degeneracy protected by non-symmorphic symmetry through a metal-insulator transition in RuAs

The single crystal of RuAs obtained by Bi-flux method shows obvious successive metal-insulator transitions at T_MI1~255 K and T_MI2~195$ K. The X-ray diffraction measurement reveals a formation of superlattice of 3x3x3 of the original unit cell below T_MI2, accompanied by a change of the crystal system from the orthorhombic structure to the monoclinic one. Simple dimerization of the Ru ions is nor seen in the ground state. The multiple As sites observed in nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) spectrum also demonstrate the formation of the superlattice in the ground state, which is clarified to be nonmagnetic. The divergence in 1/T_1 at T_MI1 shows that a symmetry lowering by the metal-insulator transition is accompanied by strong critical fluctuations of some degrees of freedom. Using the structural parameters in the insulating state, the first principle calculation reproduces successfully the reasonable size of nuclear quadrupole frequencies for the multiple As sites, ensuring the high validity of the structural parameters. The calculation also gives a remarkable suppression in the density of states (DOS) near the Fermi level, although the gap opening is insufficient. A coupled modulation of the calculated Ru d electron numbers and the crystal structure proposes a formation of charge density wave (CDW) in RuAs. Some lacking factors remain, but it shows that a lifting of degeneracy protected by the non-symmorphic symmetry through the superlattice formation is a key ingredient for the metal-insulator transition in RuAs.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figure

Analysis of Clinical Outcome of Patients with Poorly Differentiated Thyroid Carcinoma

Background. We retrospectively analyzed whether poor differentiation is the independent prognostic factor for thyroid carcinoma or not. Methods. The subjects were 29 patients with PDTC who were treated between April 1996 and March 2006 to compare with those of well-differentiated papillary carcinoma patients (n = 227). Results. The relapse free (RFS), distant relapse-free survival and cause-specific survival, rates were significantly lower in patients with PDTC (P < .0001, P < .001, and P < .05). After classification into focal (<10%) and diffuse type (over 10%) of PDTC, there were no significant differences in RFS and cause-specific survival due to component type or proportion of poorly differentiated component. On multivariate analysis, poor differentiation (P < .0005, RR = 4.456, 95% CI; 1.953–10.167) and extrathyroidal infiltration (P < .05, RR = 2.898, 95% CI; 1.278–6.572) showed a significant impact on DFS, and poor differentiation (P < .05, RR = 9.343, 1.314–66.453) and age (P < .005, RR = 1.306, 1.103–1.547) significantly impacted cause-specific survival. Conclusion. Poor differentiation was an independent factor for survival. Distant relapse was significantly more common among PDTC patients, and systemic therapy might be warranted

Yoga-plus exercise mix promotes cognitive, affective, and physical functions in elderly people

Objectives: Increased attention is being paid to Asian medicine in balanced total health care. We investigated the effects of mixed exercise including yoga ('Yoga-plus') among elderly individuals. Methods: A total of 385 subjects (72 males and 313 females, 75.5 ± 8.7 years old) participated in a 12-month (M) exercise program at a health and welfare center, a day service center, and a nursing home. Cognitive, affective, and physical functions, and activities of daily living (ADL), were compared at baseline (0M), 6M and 12M of exercise intervention. Results: Mean scores on the frontal assessment battery, clock drawing test, cube copying test, letter fluency, and category fluency significantly improved after the Yoga-plus intervention, while mini-mental state examination, Hasegawa dementia score-revised, and trail-making test performance were relatively stable. Affective scores on the geriatric depression scale (GDS), apathy scale (AS) and Abe's behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia were not significantly affected by exercise therapy, but subgroups with higher baseline GDS (GDS ≥ 5) and AS (AS ≥ 16) scores showed a significant improvement after intervention. One-leg standing time and 3-m timed up and go test performance significantly improved after 12M intervention. Discussion: Yoga-plus improved cognitive, affective, ADL, and physical functions in a local elderly population, particularly among below-baseline individuals, indicating the benefits of dementia prevention among elderly individuals

The Japan Monkey Centre Primates Brain Imaging Repository for comparative neuroscience: an archive of digital records including records for endangered species

Advances in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computational analysis technology have enabled comparisons among various primate brains in a three-dimensional electronic format. Results from comparative studies provide information about common features across primates and species-specific features of neuroanatomy. Investigation of various species of non-human primates is important for understanding such features, but the majority of comparative MRI studies have been based on experimental primates, such as common marmoset, macaques, and chimpanzee. A major obstacle has been the lack of a database that includes non-experimental primates’ brain MRIs. To facilitate scientific discoveries in the field of comparative neuroanatomy and brain evolution, we launched a collaborative project to develop an open-resource repository of non-human primate brain images obtained using ex vivo MRI. As an initial open resource, here we release a collection of structural MRI and diffusion tensor images obtained from 12 species: pygmy marmoset, owl monkey, white-fronted capuchin, crab-eating macaque, Japanese macaque, bonnet macaque, toque macaque, Sykes’ monkey, red-tailed monkey, Schmidt’s guenon, de Brazza’s guenon, and lar gibbon. Sixteen postmortem brain samples from the 12 species, stored in the Japan Monkey Centre (JMC), were scanned using a 9.4-T MRI scanner and made available through the JMC collaborative research program (http://www.j-monkey.jp/BIR/index_e.html). The expected significant contributions of the JMC Primates Brain Imaging Repository include (1) resources for comparative neuroscience research, (2) preservation of various primate brains, including those of endangered species, in a permanent digital form, (3) resources with higher resolution for identifying neuroanatomical features, compared to previous MRI atlases, (4) resources for optimizing methods of scanning large fixed brains, and (5) references for veterinary neuroradiology. User-initiated research projects beyond these contributions are also anticipated

Anti-cancer stem cell activity of the Src inhibitor dasatinib in thyroid cancer cells

Although the prognosis of differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) is good, those of poorly-differentiated and undifferentiated thyroid cancers (PDTC and UDTC) are poor. Recent preclinical studies have suggested that the Src inhibitor dasatinib is active in thyroid cancer cell lines. We conducted the present study in an attempt to clarify the antitumor activity of dasatinib in PDTC and UDTC. The expression levels of c-Src, phosphorylated Srcs (p-SrcY416 and p-SrcY527), focal adhesion kinase (FAK), and phosphorylated FAK (p-FAKY861) were immunohistochemically investigated in a case-control series (15 cases of PDTC or UDTC vs. 29 control cases of DTC). The PDTC cell line KTC-1 and UDTC cell line KTC-2 were used to investigate the anticell growth and anti-cancer stem cell (CSC) activities of dasatinib. The combined effects of dasatinib and the taxane paclitaxel on anti-cell growth and anti-CSC activities were also tested. c-Src and p-FAKY861 expression levels were significantly higher, while those of p-SrcY416 were slightly higher in PDTC and UDTC than in DTC. Dasatinib inhibited cell growth in association with G1-S cell cycle retardation and increased apoptosis in both cell lines. Dasatinib significantly decreased the proportion of CSCs and more than additively enhanced the anti-cell growth activity of paclitaxel. The results of this study suggest that the Src signaling pathway is activated more in PDTC and UDTC than in DTC. The Src inhibitor dasatinib exhibited anti-cell growth and anti-CSC activities. Furthermore, it more than additively enhanced the anti-cell growth activity of paclitaxel

The Japan Monkey Centre Primates Brain Imaging Repository of high-resolution postmortem magnetic resonance imaging: the second phase of the archive of digital records

超高磁場MRIで見る霊長類「全脳」神経回路の多様性 --分野横断型の霊長類脳標本画像リポジトリ：ヒト脳と精神・神経疾患の理解を加速する国際研究基盤--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-05-22.A comparison of neuroanatomical features of the brain between humans and our evolutionary relatives, nonhuman primates, is key to understanding the human brain system and the neural basis of mental and neurological disorders. Although most comparative MRI studies of human and nonhuman primate brains have been based on brains of primates that had been used as subjects in experiments, it is essential to investigate various species of nonhuman primates in order to elucidate and interpret the diversity of neuroanatomy features among humans and nonhuman primates. To develop a research platform for this purpose, it is necessary to harmonize the scientific contributions of studies with the standards of animal ethics, animal welfare, and the conservation of brain information for long-term continuation of the field. In previous research, we first developed a gated data-repository of anatomical images obtained using 9.4-T ex vivo MRI of postmortem brain samples from 12 nonhuman primate species, and which are stored at the Japan Monkey Centre. In the present study, as a second phase, we released a collection of T2-weighted images and diffusion tensor images obtained in nine species: white-throated capuchin, Bolivian squirrel monkey, stump-tailed macaque, Tibet monkey, Sykes’ monkey, Assamese macaque, pig-tailed macaque, crested macaque, and chimpanzee. Our image repository should facilitate scientific discoveries in the field of comparative neuroscience. This repository can also promote animal ethics and animal welfare in experiments with nonhuman primate models by optimizing methods for in vivo and ex vivo MRI scanning of brains and supporting veterinary neuroradiological education. In addition, the repository is expected to contribute to conservation, preserving information about the brains of various primates, including endangered species, in a permanent digital form

Impact of Statin Therapy on Plaque Characteristics as Assessed by Serial OCT, Grayscale and Integrated Backscatter–IVUS

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of statin treatment on coronary plaque composition and morphology by optical coherence tomography (OCT), grayscale and integrated backscatter (IB) intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) imaging.BackgroundAlthough previous studies have demonstrated that statins substantially improve cardiac mortality, their precise effect on the lipid content and fibrous cap thickness of atherosclerotic coronary lesions is less clear. While IVUS lacks the spatial resolution to accurately assess fibrous cap thickness, OCT lacks the penetration of IVUS. We used a combination of OCT, grayscale and IB-IVUS to comprehensively assess the impact of pitavastatin on plaque characteristics.MethodsProspective serial OCT, grayscale and IB-IVUS of nontarget lesions was performed in 42 stable angina patients undergoing elective coronary intervention. Of these, 26 received 4 mg pitavastatin after the baseline study; 16 subjects who refused statin treatment were followed with dietary modification alone. Follow-up imaging was performed after a median interval of 9 months.ResultsGrayscale IVUS revealed that in the statin-treated patients, percent plaque volume index was significantly reduced over time (48.5 ± 10.4%, 42.0 ± 11.1%; p = 0.033), whereas no change was observed in the diet-only patients (48.7 ± 10.4%, 50.4 ± 11.8%; p = NS). IB-IVUS identified significant reductions in the percentage lipid volume index over time (34.9 ± 12.2%, 28.2 ± 7.5%; p = 0.020); no change was observed in the diet-treated group (31.0 ± 10.7%, 33.8 ± 12.4%; p = NS). While OCT demonstrated a significant increase in fibrous cap thickness (140 ± 42 μm, 189 ± 46 μm; p = 0.001), such changes were not observed in the diet-only group (140 ± 35 μm, 142 ± 36 μm; p = NS). Differences in the changes in the percentage lipid volume index (−6.8 ± 8.0% vs. 2.8 ± 9.9%, p = 0.031) and fibrous cap thickness (52 ± 32 μm vs. 2 ± 22 μm, p < 0.001) over time between the pitavastatin and diet groups were highly significant.ConclusionsStatin treatment induces favorable plaque morphologic changes with an increase in fibrous cap thickness, and decreases in both percentage plaque and lipid volume indexes