Age-specific characterization of spinal cord injuries over a 19-year period at a Japanese rehabilitation center

<div><p>Regional demographics of spinal cord injuries (SCIs) are fundamental to identifying and implementing appropriate preventive measures. The current study was conducted as a longitudinal analysis of all patients with SCIs admitted to the Hyogo Rehabilitation Center over a 19-year period. The sex and age of the patient, time and nature of injury (i.e., cause, level, and extent), and period from injury to admission were evaluated retrospectively. Pertinent tests, including Poisson regression analysis, and the Cochran–Armitage, Kruskal–Wallis, and chi-square tests, were applied to assess demographic variables, with statistical significance set at <i>p</i> < 0.05. Between 1995 and 2013, a total of 632 patients with SCIs (predominantly male and largely < 60 years old) were admitted to our center for rehabilitation. Although the male: female ratio remained unchanged throughout the study period, the ratio of older adults increased over time. In assessing the cause of injury, the majority of the patients involved in road traffic accidents were aged ≤ 44 years, whereas patients aged ≥ 45 years accounted for the majority of low-distance falls and disease-related SCIs, the proportions of which gradually increased. Complete paralysis and paraplegia primarily occurred in patients aged ≤ 44 years, whereas the majority of incomplete injuries and tetraplegia were limited to those aged ≥ 45 years. The patient age at the time of SCI and the nature of the injury sustained were interrelated. Age-specific strategies thus offered the best means of preventing/reducing the incidence of SCIs in Hyogo prefecture.</p></div

Age-specific characterization of spinal cord injuries over a 19-year period at a Japanese rehabilitation center

<div><p>Regional demographics of spinal cord injuries (SCIs) are fundamental to identifying and implementing appropriate preventive measures. The current study was conducted as a longitudinal analysis of all patients with SCIs admitted to the Hyogo Rehabilitation Center over a 19-year period. The sex and age of the patient, time and nature of injury (i.e., cause, level, and extent), and period from injury to admission were evaluated retrospectively. Pertinent tests, including Poisson regression analysis, and the Cochran–Armitage, Kruskal–Wallis, and chi-square tests, were applied to assess demographic variables, with statistical significance set at <i>p</i> < 0.05. Between 1995 and 2013, a total of 632 patients with SCIs (predominantly male and largely < 60 years old) were admitted to our center for rehabilitation. Although the male: female ratio remained unchanged throughout the study period, the ratio of older adults increased over time. In assessing the cause of injury, the majority of the patients involved in road traffic accidents were aged ≤ 44 years, whereas patients aged ≥ 45 years accounted for the majority of low-distance falls and disease-related SCIs, the proportions of which gradually increased. Complete paralysis and paraplegia primarily occurred in patients aged ≤ 44 years, whereas the majority of incomplete injuries and tetraplegia were limited to those aged ≥ 45 years. The patient age at the time of SCI and the nature of the injury sustained were interrelated. Age-specific strategies thus offered the best means of preventing/reducing the incidence of SCIs in Hyogo prefecture.</p></div

Age (years) at injury (distributions at set intervals).

<p>Age (years) at injury (distributions at set intervals).</p

Cause of injury (distributions at set intervals).

<p>Cause of injury (distributions at set intervals).</p

ASIA impairment scale (distributions at set intervals).

<p>ASIA impairment scale (distributions at set intervals).</p

Time (month) from injury to admission (distributions at set intervals).

<p>Time (month) from injury to admission (distributions at set intervals).</p

Stoichiometric Analysis of Oligomerization of Membrane Proteins on Living Cells Using Coiled-Coil Labeling and Spectral Imaging

Many membrane proteins are proposed to work as oligomers; however, the conclusion is sometimes controversial, as for β₂-adorenergic receptor (β₂AR), which is one of the best-studied family A G-protein-coupled receptors. This is due to the lack of methods for easy and precise detection of the oligomeric state of membrane proteins on living cells. Here, we show that a combination of the coiled-coil tag–probe labeling method and spectral imaging enable a stoichiometric analysis of the oligomeric state of membrane proteins on living cells using monomeric, dimeric, and tetrameric standard membrane proteins. Using this method, we found that β₂ARs do not form constitutive homooligomers, while they exhibit their functions such as the cyclic adenosine 5'-monophosphate (cAMP) signaling and internalization upon agonist stimulation

Patient comparison by extent of spinal cord injury.

<p>Patient comparison by extent of spinal cord injury.</p