Association between Dental Caries and Influenza Infection in Children: A Japanese Nationwide Population-Based Study

Dental caries is the most common chronic childhood disease. Recent studies have suggested that dental caries harbor respiratory infections in adults. We investigated the association between dental caries and influenza in children. In this study, 42,812 children aged 2.5 years, 38,540 children aged 5.5 years, and 34,124 children aged 10 years were included in the analysis from the Longitudinal Survey of Newborns in the 21st Century in Japan, which targeted all children born during a certain period in 2001. We used information on dental caries treated at hospitals and clinics in the past year as exposure and influenza as outcome during the observation periods (1.5-2.5, 4.5-5.5, and 9-10 years of age). We performed a log-binomial regression analysis, adjusting for potential confounders, and stratified analysis according to previous dental caries status. The presence of dental caries increased the incidence of influenza in all three target ages compared with the absence of dental caries. The incidence of influenza increased with the presence of current dental caries, regardless of the presence of past dental caries. These associations were observed irrespective of household income. Early detection and treatment of dental caries may reduce the risk of influenza in children

Current Insights into Atopic March

The incidence of allergic diseases is increasing, and research on their epidemiology, pathophysiology, and the prevention of onset is urgently needed. The onset of allergic disease begins in infancy with atopic dermatitis and food allergy and develops into allergic asthma and allergic rhinitis in childhood; the process is defined as "atopic march ". Atopic march is caused by multiple immunological pathways, including allergen exposure, environmental pollutants, skin barrier dysfunction, type 2 inflammation, and oxidative stress, which promote the progression of atopic march. Using recent evidence, herein, we explain the involvement of allergic inflammatory conditions and oxidative stress in the process of atopic march, its epidemiology, and methods for prevention of onset

Exploratory Work on the Spinning Condition of the Structure of Staple-core Twin-spun Yarns

In order to design and develop novel-spun yarns with good functionality, we investigated how to construct a core-sheath structure adapted from a multilayered structure of triplet-spun yarn and/or made from a twin-spun yarn with core-staple fibers using an experimental ring-spinning frame. The results were follows: (1) staple-core twin-spun yarn, a new yarn, could be made by applying the production method of triplet-spun yarn and/or combining the production methods of core-spun yarn and twin-spun yarn into one twisting process; (2) by adopting three rovings made from fibers of differing length and fineness, the resulting triplet-spun yarn had the core-sheath structure within an adequate spinning condition; (3) for the construction of core-sheath structure, it is important that there be a difference between spinning tensions at the center and the two sides of the drafted fiber strands or drafted strand lengths from the front roller nip to the point of yarn formation by controlling the distance of the supply rovings and the yarn's twist factor.ArticleTEXTILE RESEARCH JOURNAL. 80(11):1056-1064 (2010)journal articl

Characteristics of Novel Triplet Spun Yarns Made from Fibers of Differing Fineness

In order to reduce the hairiness of ring spun yarns and to develop novel multilayered spun yarns, we investigated the properties of triplet spun yams made from the same size of three rovings with different fiber fineness using an experimental ring spinning frame. The results were: (1) different fiber fineness triplet spun yarn, a new yarn made by combination staple fibers of three different fineness into one twisting process; (2) although triplet spun yarn had a side-by-side structure in the cross-section, the central angle made by the assembly of finer fibers was smaller than that of coarser fibers; and (3) in comparison with single yam, triplet spun yarn had less hairiness and greater strength because of the lower spinning tension of each strand and the twist propagation in each strand.ArticleTEXTILE RESEARCH JOURNAL. 79(10):947-952 (2009)journal articl

Roles of Oxidative Injury and Nitric Oxide System Derangements in Kawasaki Disease Pathogenesis: A Systematic Review

Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute febrile vasculitis that occurs mostly in children younger than five years. KD involves multiple intricately connected inflammatory reactions activated by a cytokine cascade. Despite therapeutic advances, coronary artery damage may develop in some patients, who will be at risk of clinical cardiovascular events and even sudden death. The etiology of KD remains unclear; however, it may involve both genetic and environmental factors leading to aberrant inflammatory responses. Given the young age of onset, prenatal or perinatal exposure may be etiologically relevant. Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, a post-infectious hyper-inflammatory disorder associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, has features that overlap with those of KD. Available evidence indicates that vascular endothelial dysfunction is a critical step in the sequence of events leading to the development of cardiovascular lesions in KD. Oxidative stress and the dysregulation of the nitric oxide (NO) system contribute to the pathogenesis of inflammatory responses related to this disease. This review provides current evidence and concepts highlighting the adverse effects of oxidative injury and NO system derangements on the initiation and progression of KD and potential therapeutic strategies for cardiovascular pathologies in affected children

Gene Expression Profiles of the Small Intestinal Mucosa of Dogs Repeatedly Infected with the Cestode \u3ci\u3eEchinococcus multilocularis\u3c/i\u3e

The data set presented in this article is related to a previous research article entitled, The timing of worm exclusion in dogs repeatedly infected with the cestode Echinococcus multilocularis (Kouguchi et al., 2016). This article describes the genes \u3e2 fold up- or down-regulated in the first- and repeated-infection groups compared to the healthy controls group. The gene expression profiles were generated using the Agilent-021193 Canine (V2) Gene Expression Microarray (GPL15379). The raw and normalized microarray data have been deposited with the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database under accession number GSE105098

Trajectory of body mass index and height changes from childhood to adolescence: a nationwide birth cohort in Japan

To investigate the dynamics of body mass index (BMI) and height changes in childhood leading to obesity in adolescents. BMI Z-scores were calculated using the LMS (lambda-mu-sigma) method based on yearly height and weight information (age 1.5-15 years) from a nationwide Japanese birth cohort that started in 2001 (n = 26,711). We delineated the trajectories of BMI and height changes leading to obesity at age 15 years using mixed effect models. Children who became obese at the age of 15 years kept relatively high BMI z-scores through childhood for both genders, and had an increasing trend over time as opposed to the normal weight group, with an increasing slope during puberty. Early adiposity rebound was associated with overweight or obesity at the age of 15 years. Age at peak height velocity (APHV) occurred earlier in the obese/overweight group at age 15 years than in the normal weight group, and occurred later in the underweight group. Obese adolescents experienced early adiposity rebound timing and maintained a serial BMI z-score increase throughout childhood, with a greater slope at puberty. An earlier peak in height gain during puberty may have contributed to the observed patterns of BMI change

Absolute Measurement of Baselines up to 403 m Using Heterodyne Temporal Coherence Interferometer with Optical Frequency

A heterodyne interference system is developed for baseline measurement by using an acoustic optical modulator and an optical frequency comb stabilized by a rubidium atomic clock. Temporal coherence interference occurs at discrete spatial positions, when two pulse trains overlap. An optical delay of the interferometer with a piezoelectric transducer is created to determine the peak positions of the interference fringe patterns, and the absolute distance is obtained at a high resolution of several tens of nanometers. The experimental results at baseline distances up to 403.2 m show a high reproducibility of about 6 m. # 2012 The Japan Society of Applied Physics L ong-distance absolute measurements with high accuracy are required when constructing huge industrial and scientific facilities. In particular, the quality and safety of such facilities must be evaluated through measurements of hundreds of meters with accuracy better than 10 m. Recently; an optical frequency comb has been considered a useful tool for realizing such measurement systems, because of its precise pulse-repetition frequency, which is an accuracy of 10 À11 . Therefore, an optical frequency comb can be directly used for absolute measurement not only of frequency levels 1-3) but also of various distances. We have developed a new heterodyne temporal-coherence interferometer in order to reduce the effects of air turbulence and mechanical vibration. The interference fringes along optical paths between the zero and target positions are generated by changing the optical delay of the interferometer to be within 250 m. Experimental results show a high accuracy of several tens of nanometers for relatively short distance measurements. Furthermore, in situ measurements of distances up to 403.2 m under typical conditions have high accuracies of about 6 m. All modes within an optical frequency comb can be expressed using two parameters -the carrier envelope-offset frequency ( f ceo ) and the pulse-repetition frequency ( f r ). For integer N, the frequency of the Nth mode is described as f ¼ Nf r þ f ceo . For in situ long-distance measurements, conventional interferometers are affected by air turbulence and mechanical vibration, and therefore, are not easy to apply. In such cases, heterodyne interferometry is highly valuable, since this method is less influenced by the surrounding conditions. Optical frequency combs have a strong potential for use in heterodyne interferometry, because they are characterized by pulse-repetition frequencies that are traceable to the definition of second with a high accuracy of 10 À11 . For example, the frequency of an optical frequency comb is easily stabilized to the standard frequencies of a rubidium (Rb) optical atomic clock or a global positioning system