251 research outputs found

    Brugada ショウコウグン ト ソノ トリアツカイ

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    In 1992, Brugada brothers reported 8 patients with aborted sudden death withoutorganic heart disease and exhibiting a characteristic ECG pattern of right bundle branch block(RBBB) and ST-segment elevation in right precordial leads (V1-V3). The syndrome is afamilial disease and most frequently diagnosed in middle-aged men of Asian origin. Thearrhythmic events such as polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT) or ventricular fibrillation(VF) are frequently generated during sleep. The Brugada syndrome has been linked tomutations in SCN5A, the gene encording for the -subunit of the sodium channel. Sodiumchannel blockers (class IA and IC) identify the risk of sudden death in patients with thesyndrome. Implantation of ICD is the only effective treatment of the VF for Brugadasyndrome. The Brugada-type ECG in annual health examinations for adult citizens is not avery rare condition in Japan. Although it is reported that the mortality of subjects with theBrugada-type ECG in a community-based population is low compared with the mortalityseen in a hospital-based study, there is also a report of the example of death in asymptomaticcases and the further study about a prognosis of Brugada syndrome is required

    Single-experiment-detectable multipartite entanglement witness for ensemble quantum computing

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    In this paper we provide an operational method to detect multipartite entanglement in ensemble-based quantum computing. This method is based on the concept of entanglement witness. We decompose the entanglement witness for each class of multipartite entanglement into nonlocal operations in addition to local measurements. Individual single qubit measurements are performed simultaneously, hence complete detection of entanglement is performed in a single run experiment. This approach is particularly important for experiments where it is operationally difficult to prepare several copies of an unknown quantum state and in this sense the introduced scheme in this work is superior to the generally used entanglement witnesses that require a number of experiments and preparation of copies of quantum state.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, minor changes have been mad

    Numerical Analysis of Boosting Scheme for Scalable NMR Quantum Computation

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    Among initialization schemes for ensemble quantum computation beginning at thermal equilibrium, the scheme proposed by Schulman and Vazirani [L. J. Schulman and U. V. Vazirani, in Proceedings of the 31st ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing (STOC'99) (ACM Press, New York, 1999), pp. 322-329] is known for the simple quantum circuit to redistribute the biases (polarizations) of qubits and small time complexity. However, our numerical simulation shows that the number of qubits initialized by the scheme is rather smaller than expected from the von Neumann entropy because of an increase in the sum of the binary entropies of individual qubits, which indicates a growth in the total classical correlation. This result--namely, that there is such a significant growth in the total binary entropy--disagrees with that of their analysis.Comment: 14 pages, 18 figures, RevTeX4, v2,v3: typos corrected, v4: minor changes in PROGRAM 1, conforming it to the actual programs used in the simulation, v5: correction of a typographical error in the inequality sign in PROGRAM 1, v6: this version contains a new section on classical correlations, v7: correction of a wrong use of terminology, v8: Appendix A has been added, v9: published in PR

    Recent Advance in Genome Editing-Based Gene Modification in Pigs

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    Recently, a series of genome editing technologies including ZFNs, TALENs, and CRISPR/Cas9 systems have enabled gene modification in the endogenous target genes of various organisms including pigs, which are important for agricultural and biomedical research. Owing to its simple application for gene knockout and ease of use, the CRISPR/Cas9 is now in common use worldwide. The most important aspect of this process is the selection of the method used to deliver genome editing components to embryos. In earlier stages, zygote microinjection of these components [single guide RNA (sgRNA) + DNA/mRNA for Cas9] into the cytoplasm and/or nuclei of a zygote has been frequently employed. However, this method is always associated with the generation of mosaic embryos in which genome-edited and unedited cells are mixed together. To avoid this mosaic issue, in vitro electroporation of zygotes in the presence of sgRNA mixed with Cas9 protein, referred to as a ribonucleoprotein (RNP), is now in frequent use. This review provides a historical background of the production of genome-edited pigs and also presents current research concerning how genome editing is induced in somatic cell nuclear transfer-derived embryos that have been reconstituted with normal nuclei

    Purification and complete amino acid sequence of canine pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor

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    AbstractPancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor (PSTI) was purified from canine pancreatic juice by HPLC. Canine PSTI inhibited bovine trypsin activity stoichiometrically and strongly with a dissociation constant of below 10−9 M. The amino acid sequence of canine PSTI was determined by conventional methods. It had one more amino acid residue at the amino-terminus than other mammalian PSTIs, i.e. human, porcine, bovine and ovine

    Use of FDG-PET in Radiation Treatment Planning for Thoracic Cancers

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    Radiotherapy plays an important role in the treatment for thoracic cancers. Accurate diagnosis is essential to correctly perform curative radiotherapy. Tumor delineation is also important to prevent geographic misses in radiotherapy planning. Currently, planning is based on computed tomography (CT) imaging when radiation oncologists manually contour the tumor, and this practice often induces interobserver variability. F-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) has been reported to enable accurate staging and detect tumor extension in several thoracic cancers, such as lung cancer and esophageal cancer. FDG-PET imaging has many potential advantages in radiotherapy planning for these cancers, because it can add biological information to conventional anatomical images and decrease the inter-observer variability. FDG-PET improves radiotherapy volume and enables dose escalation without causing severe side effects, especially in lung cancer patients. The main advantage of FDG-PET for esophageal cancer patients is the detection of unrecognized lymph node or distal metastases. However, automatic delineation by FDG-PET is still controversial in these tumors, despite the initial expectations. We will review the role of FDG-PET in radiotherapy for thoracic cancers, including lung cancer and esophageal cancer

    Association between reduced serum BDNF levels and insomnia with short sleep duration among female hospital nurses

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    Objective: Previous studies have suggested that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is associated with sleep regulation in humans. However, its relationship with self-reported sleep problems has not been clarified. The aim of the present study was to examine the association between serum BDNF levels and sleep problems among hospital nurses. Methods: Participants were enrolled from among nurses working at a general hospital in Tokyo, Japan. Data from 577 women (age: 35.45 ± 10.90 years) were analyzed. This cross-sectional survey was conducted from November to December 2015. Serum BDNF concentrations were evaluated. Participants completed a self-reported questionnaire on sleep including the presence or absence of insomnia symptoms (ie, difficulty initiating sleep (DIS), difficulty maintaining sleep (DMS), and early morning awakening [EMA]), and sleep duration. Insomnia with short sleep duration (ISS) was defined as: DIS, or DMS, or EMA; and <6 h sleep duration. Results: Among 577 participants, 21.3% reported insomnia, 41.4% slept less than 6 h, and finally 12.5% suffered from ISS. Serum BDNF levels were significantly lower in subjects with ISS than in those without ISS. The serum BDNF levels in insomniacs were significantly lower than in non-insomniacs for short sleep duration (<6 h), while serum BDNF levels did not differ between insomniacs and non-insomniacs for normal sleep duration (≥6 h). Conclusion: This is the first documented study to indicate that ISS is associated with reduced serum BDNF levels. These results may lead to clarification of the underlying pathophysiological relationship between BDNF and poor sleep

    p62 Plays a Specific Role in Interferon-γ-Induced Presentation of a Toxoplasma Vacuolar Antigen

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    Also known as Sqstm1, p62 is a selective autophagy adaptor with a ubiquitin-binding domain. However, the role of p62 in the host defense against Toxoplasma gondii infection is unclear. Here, we show that interferon γ (IFN-γ) stimulates ubiquitin and p62 recruitment to T. gondii parasitophorous vacuoles (PVs). Some essential autophagy-related proteins, but not all, are required for this recruitment. Regardless of normal IFN-γ-induced T. gondii clearance activity and ubiquitination, p62 deficiency in antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and mice diminishes the robust IFN-γ-primed activation of CD8+ T cells that recognize the T. gondii-derived antigen secreted into PVs. Because the expression of Atg3 and Irgm1/m3 in APCs is essential for PV disruption, ubiquitin and p62 recruitment, and vacuolar-antigen-specific CD8+ T cell activation, IFN-γ-mediated ubiquitination and the subsequent recruitment of p62 to T. gondii are specifically required for the acquired immune response after PV disruption by IFN-γ-inducible GTPases

    Timing of CRISPR/Cas9-related mRNA microinjection after activation as an important factor affecting genome editing efficiency in porcine oocytes

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    Recently, successful one-step genome editing by microinjection of CRISPR/Cas9-related mRNA components into the porcine zygote has been described. Given the relatively long gestational period and the high cost of housing swine, the establishment of an effective microinjection-based porcine genome editing method is urgently required. Previously, we have attempted to disrupt a gene encoding alpha-1,3-galactosyltransferase (GGTA1), which synthesizes the alpha-Gal epitope, by microinjecting CRISPR/Cas9-related nucleic acids and enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) mRNA into porcine oocytes immediately after electrical activation. We found that genome editing was indeed induced, although the resulting blastocysts were mosaic and the frequency of modified cells appeared to be low (50%). To improve genome editing efficiency in porcine oocytes, cytoplasmic injection was performed 6 h after electrical activation, a stage wherein the pronucleus is formed. The developing blastocysts exhibited higher levels of EGFP. Furthermore, the T7 endonuclease 1 assay and subsequent sequencing demonstrated that these embryos exhibited increased genome editing efficiencies (69%), although a high degree of mosaicism for the induced mutation was still observed. Single blastocyst-based cytochemical staining with fluorescently labeled isolectin BS-I-B-4 also confirmed this mosaicism. Thus, the development of a technique that avoids or reduces such mosaicism would be a key factor for efficient knock out piglet production via microinjection. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.ArticleTHERIOGENOLOGY.108:29-38(2018)journal articl
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