Accuracy of Endoscopic Diagnosis for Mild Atrophic Gastritis Infected with

Background/Aims This study examined the accuracy of endoscopic evaluation for determining the Helicobacter pylori infection status in patients with mild atrophy who might not exhibit characteristic endoscopic findings. Methods Forty endoscopists determined the H. pylori infection status of 50 randomly presented H. pylori-positive and H. pylori-negative cases on the basis of a list of established findings. Results The median clinical endoscopy experience was 7 years (range, 1–35 years), including 22 board-certified endoscopists (55%) of the Japan Gastroenterological Endoscopy Society. The mean accuracy rate of endoscopic diagnosis was 67% and was unrelated to experience status (experienced vs. trainee: 69% vs. 65%, p=0.089) and total years of experience (R2 =0.022). The most frequently selected endoscopic findings were regular arrangement of collecting venules (59%), atrophy (45%), and red streak (22%), which had fair accuracy rates of 67%, 65%, and 73%, respectively. By contrast, the accuracy rates of nodularity (89%) and mucosal swelling (77%) were highest. The 20 endoscopists who more frequently identified these findings diagnosed H. pylori infection significantly more accurately than did the other endoscopists (71% vs. 64%, p=0.008). Conclusions Careful attention to nodularity and mucosal swelling in patients with mild atrophy may enhance diagnosis, enable prompt treatment, and avoid possible long-term carcinogenesis

The Effect of Cranial Change on Oropharyngeal Airway and Breathing During Sleep

Mandibular micrognathia is one of the characteristics of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of bimaxillary surgery without maxillary advancement on the upper airway using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) results of comparing pre- and post-operative finite element model. Seven female patients with jaw deformity, who underwent two-jaw surgery (Le Fort1 osteotomy and bilateral sagittal split ramus osteotomy; BSSRO) were enrolled. Maxillary was moved for correcting occlusal plane and mandibular was moved to advancement. Pharyngeal airway space and breathing during sleep were evaluated, comparing the periods of 2 days before and 6 months after the operation. The cross-sectional area of the level of the hard palate (HP) and the level of the tip of the uvula (TU), and airway volume of total, HP-TU, and TP- the level of the base of the epiglottis (BE) were increased. AI and AHI in 2 days before and 6 months after were decreased. As the result of nasal ventilation condition, velocity of HP and TU in 2 days before and 6 months after were decreased. We think that it was revealed that movement of the maxilla without advancement did not affect to the morphology and function of airway

Elucidation of droplet detachment mechanism in metal-cored arc welding

Tashiro S., Trinh Q.N., Le D.K., et al. Elucidation of droplet detachment mechanism in metal-cored arc welding. Journal of Manufacturing Processes 124, 1583 (2024); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmapro.2024.07.040.It has been demonstrated experimentally that a globular transfer mode tends to occur in argon gas metal arc welding using a metal-cored wire (called metal-red arc welding (MCAW)) even under conditions where a spray transfer mode occurs when a solid wire is used. This study aimed to elucidate the droplet detachment mechanism in MCAW using numerical simulations. It was observed that in the initial stage of droplet growth, the argon arc attachment (which carried a large portion of the current) was located on the metal sheath surrounding the unmelted flux. Moreover, an eddy containing an upward flow at the wire axis was formed inside the droplet. When this eddy was formed, the droplet volume increased owing to wire melting. However, neck formation did not occur. This is considered to be because only a small portion of the current is conducted through the droplet, and the Lorentz force acting on the droplet is significantly weak. Thereafter, when the droplet grew to a certain extent and the arc attachment moved below the unmelted flux position, the Lorentz force acted strongly and almost uniformly on the droplet. Accordingly, this eddy disappeared, and the flow abruptly transitioned to a downward unidirectional high-speed flow. Consequently, the droplet began to extend downward to form a neck, which caused it to detach. For these reasons, the time required for droplet detachment increased, and the metal transfer frequency decreased compared with the case of the solid wire. This explains the observation that globular transfer persists in metal-cored wires at currents higher than those for which the transition to spray transfer has occurred for solid wires

Eligible CO₂ content in Ar-CO₂ mixture shielding gas for improving metal transfer in metal-cored arc welding

Trinh N.Q., Tashiro S., Le K.D., et al. Eligible CO₂ content in Ar-CO₂ mixture shielding gas for improving metal transfer in metal-cored arc welding. International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer 231, 125803 (2024); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2024.125803.Metal transfer frequencies in a gas metal arc welding process with a metal-cored wire were quantitatively measured for the first time as a function of the CO₂ content (i.e., 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 50, and 100%) in argon-CO₂ shielding gas mixtures at welding currents of 220, 250, and 280 A, and the results were compared with those of a solid wire. As a result, the metal transfer frequency of solid wire was monotonically decreased with the CO₂ content owing to an increase in the arc pressure, which prevented droplet detachment. However, the metal transfer frequency of the metal-cored wire presented a maximum value at 15% CO₂ under all the current levels. The transfer behavior was supposed to depend on the relation between the arc attachment position and the tip of the unmelted flux position inside the cored wire. When the CO₂ concentration was low, the arc was attached higher than the unmelted flux, causing the electromagnetic force to be ineffective in droplet separation. When the CO₂ concentration increased slightly, the arc was moved downward to the tip of the unmelted flux. That tendency temporarily facilitated the neck formation at the wire tip due to enhanced electromagnetic force flowing through the molten metal on the wire tip. Nevertheless, when the CO₂ content increased over a critical value, the arc pressure became a dominant factor to hinder the droplet detachment, which caused a decrease in transfer frequency. Consequently, the metal transfer frequency of metal-cored wire became maximum at 15% CO₂

A novel variant of NR5A1, p.R350W implicates potential interactions with unknown co-factors or ligands

IntroductionNR5A1 and NR5A2 belong to an orphan nuclear receptor group, and approximately 60% of their amino acid sequences are conserved. Transcriptional regulation of NR5A receptors depends on interactions with co-factors or unidentified ligands.Purpose and methodsWe employed in vitro and in silico analysis for elucidating the pathophysiology of a novel variant in the ligand-binding domain of NR5A1, p.R350W which was identified from a 46,XY patient with atypical genitalia.ResultsIn the study, [1] reporter assays demonstrated that R350 is essential for NR5A1; [2] 3D model analysis predicted that R350 interacted with endogenous ligands or unknown cofactors rather than stabilizing the structure; [3] R350 is not conserved in NR5A2 but is specifically required for NR5A1; and [4] none of the 22 known missense variants of the ligand binding domain satisfied all the previous conditions [1]-[3], suggesting the unique role of R350 in NR5A1.ConclusionOur data suggest that NR5A1 has unidentified endogenous ligands or co-activators that selectively potentiate the transcriptional function of NR5A1 in vivo

Cytoplasmic control of Rab family small GTPases through BAG6

Rab family small GTPases are master regulators of distinct steps of intracellular vesicle trafficking in eukaryotic cells. GDP‐bound cytoplasmic forms of Rab proteins are prone to aggregation due to the exposure of hydrophobic groups but the machinery that determines the fate of Rab species in the cytosol has not been elucidated in detail. In this study, we find that BAG6 (BAT3/Scythe) predominantly recognizes a cryptic portion of GDP‐associated Rab8a, while its major GTP‐bound active form is not recognized. The hydrophobic residues of the Switch I region of Rab8a are essential for its interaction with BAG6 and the degradation of GDP‐Rab8a via the ubiquitin‐proteasome system. BAG6 prevents the excess accumulation of inactive Rab8a, whose accumulation impairs intracellular membrane trafficking. BAG6 binds not only Rab8a but also a functionally distinct set of Rab family proteins, and is also required for the correct distribution of Golgi and endosomal markers. From these observations, we suggest that Rab proteins represent a novel set of substrates for BAG6, and the BAG6‐mediated pathway is associated with the regulation of membrane vesicle trafficking events in mammalian cells

Regioselective glucosidation of trans-resveratrol in Escherichia coli expressing glucosyltransferase from Phytolacca americana

A glucosyltransferase (GT) of Phytolacca americana (PaGT3) was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified for the synthesis of two O-β-glucoside products of trans-resveratrol. The reaction was moderately regioselective with a ratio of 4′-O-β-glucoside: 3-O-β-glucoside at 10:3. We used not only the purified enzyme but also the E. coli cells containing the PaGT3 gene for the synthesis of glycoconjugates. E. coli cell cultures also have other advantages, such as a shorter incubation time compared with cultured plant cells, no need for the addition of exogenous glucosyl donor compounds such as UDP-glucose, and almost complete conversion of the aglycone to the glucoside products. Furthermore, a homology model of PaGT3 and mutagenesis studies suggested that His-20 would be a catalytically important residue

Nationwide surveillance of bacterial respiratory pathogens conducted by the surveillance committee of Japanese Society of Chemotherapy, the Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases, and the Japanese Society for Clinical Microbiology in 2010: General view of the pathogens\u27 antibacterial susceptibility

The nationwide surveillance on antimicrobial susceptibility of bacterial respiratory pathogens from patients in Japan, was conducted by Japanese Society of Chemotherapy, Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases and Japanese Society for Clinical Microbiology in 2010.The isolates were collected from clinical specimens obtained from well-diagnosed adult patients with respiratory tract infections during the period from January and April 2010 by three societies. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was conducted at the central reference laboratory according to the method recommended by Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institutes using maximum 45 antibacterial agents.Susceptibility testing was evaluable with 954 strains (206 Staphylococcus aureus, 189 Streptococcus pneumoniae, 4 Streptococcus pyogenes, 182 Haemophilus influenzae, 74 Moraxella catarrhalis, 139 Klebsiella pneumoniae and 160 Pseudomonas aeruginosa). Ratio of methicillin-resistant S.aureus was as high as 50.5%, and those of penicillin-intermediate and -resistant S.pneumoniae were 1.1% and 0.0%, respectively. Among H.influenzae, 17.6% of them were found to be β-lactamase-non-producing ampicillin (ABPC)-intermediately resistant, 33.5% to be β-lactamase-non-producing ABPC-resistant and 11.0% to be β-lactamase-producing ABPC-resistant strains. Extended spectrum β-lactamase-producing K.pneumoniae and multi-drug resistant P.aeruginosa with metallo β-lactamase were 2.9% and 0.6%, respectively.Continuous national surveillance of antimicrobial susceptibility of respiratory pathogens is crucial in order to monitor changing patterns of susceptibility and to be able to update treatment recommendations on a regular basis

Studies on calcium signaling mechanisims at fertilization and activation of mouse eggs

報告番号: 甲13636 ; 学位授与年月日: 1998-03-30 ; 学位の種別: 課程博士 ; 学位の種類: 博士(医学) ; 学位記番号: 博医第1297号 ; 研究科・専攻: 医学系研究科脳神経医学専