Usefulness of F-18 FDG PET/CT in a Case of Relapsing Polychondritis

Article信州医学雑誌 64(6): 349-355(2016)journal articl

Two-stage sinus floor augmentation using carbonate apatite

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to elucidate the efficacy and safety of carbonate apatite (CO3Ap) granules in 2-stage sinus floor augmentation through the radiographic and histomorphometric assessment of bone biopsy specimens. Methods: Two-stage sinus floor augmentation was performed on 13 patients with a total of 17 implants. Radiographic assessment using panoramic radiographs was performed immediately after augmentation and was also performed 2 additional times, at 7±2 months and 18±2 months post-augmentation, respectively. Bone biopsy specimens taken from planned implant placement sites underwent micro-computed tomography, after which histological sections were prepared. Results: Postoperative healing of the sinus floor augmentation was uneventful in all cases. The mean preoperative residual bone height was 3.5±1.3 mm, and this was increased to 13.3±1.7 mm by augmentation with the CO3Ap granules. The mean height of the augmented site had decreased to 10.7±1.9 mm by 7±2 months after augmentation; however, implants with lengths in the range of 6.5 to 11.5 mm could still be placed. The mean height of the augmented site had decreased to 9.6±1.4 mm by 18±2 months post-augmentation. No implant failure or complications were observed. Few inflammatory cells or foreign body giant cells were observed in the bone biopsy specimens. Although there were individual differences in the amount of new bone detected, new bone was observed to be in direct contact with the CO3Ap granules in all cases, without an intermediate layer of fibrous tissue. The amounts of bone and residual CO3Ap were 33.8%±15.1% and 15.3%±11.9%, respectively. Conclusions: In this first demonstration, low-crystalline CO3Ap granules showed excellent biocompatibility, and bone biopsy showed them to be replaced with bone in humans. CO3Ap granules are a useful and safe bone substitute for two-stage sinus floor augmentation

Single-component reflecting objective for low-temperature spectroscopy in the entire visible region

A single-component reflecting objective was constructed for low-temperature spectroscopy with optimal imaging and transmission properties at all visible wavelengths. The performance of the objective immersed in superfluid helium at a temperature of 1.5 K was tested by comparing dark-field images of uncolored polymer beads taken at wavelengths of 400 and 800 nm. Under conditions optimized for imaging at both wavelengths, the size of the image i

Localized Brain Activation Related to the Strength of Auditory Learning in a Parrot

Parrots and songbirds learn their vocalizations from a conspecific tutor, much like human infants acquire spoken language. Parrots can learn human words and it has been suggested that they can use them to communicate with humans. The caudomedial pallium in the parrot brain is homologous with that of songbirds, and analogous to the human auditory association cortex, involved in speech processing. Here we investigated neuronal activation, measured as expression of the protein product of the immediate early gene ZENK, in relation to auditory learning in the budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus), a parrot. Budgerigar males successfully learned to discriminate two Japanese words spoken by another male conspecific. Re-exposure to the two discriminanda led to increased neuronal activation in the caudomedial pallium, but not in the hippocampus, compared to untrained birds that were exposed to the same words, or were not exposed to words. Neuronal activation in the caudomedial pallium of the experimental birds was correlated significantly and positively with the percentage of correct responses in the discrimination task. These results suggest that in a parrot, the caudomedial pallium is involved in auditory learning. Thus, in parrots, songbirds and humans, analogous brain regions may contain the neural substrate for auditory learning and memory

Regulatory T Cells in Type 1 Autoimmune Pancreatitis

Autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) is a newly recognized pancreatic disorder. Recently, International Consensus Diagnostic Criteria for AIP (ICDC) was published. In this ICDC, AIP was classified into Type 1 and Type 2. Patients with Type 1 AIP have several immunologic and histologic abnormalities specific to the disease, including increased levels of serum IgG4 and storiform fibrosis with infiltration of lymphocytes and IgG4-positive plasmacytes in the involved organs. Among the involved organs showing extrapancreatic lesions, the bile duct is the most common, exhibiting sclerosing cholangitis (IgG4-SC). However, the role of IgG4 is unclear. Recently, it has been reported that regulatory T cells (Tregs) are involved in both the development of various autoimmune diseases and the shift of B cells toward IgG4, producing plasmacytes. Our study showed that Tregs were increased in the pancreas with Type 1 AIP and IgG4-SC compared with control. In the patients with Type 1 AIP and IgG4-SC, the numbers of infiltrated Tregs were significantly positively correlated with IgG4-positive plasma cells. In Type 1 AIP, inducible costimulatory molecule (ICOS)+ and IL-10+ Tregs significantly increased compared with control groups. Our data suggest that increased quantities of ICOS+ Tregs may influence IgG4 production via IL-10 in Type 1 AIP

Conceptual design of a wide-field near UV transient survey in a 6U CubeSat

A conceptual design of a wide-field near UV transient survey in a 6U CubeSat is presented. Ultraviolet is one of the frontier in the transient astronomy. To open up the discovery region, we are developing a 6U CubeSat for transient exploration. The possible targets will be supernova shock-breakouts, tidal disruption events, and the blue emission from NS-NS mergers in very early phase. If we only focused on nearby/bright sources, the required detection limit is around 20 mag (AB). To avoid the background and optical light, we chose a waveband of 230-280 nm. As an imaging detector, we employ a delta-doped back-illuminated CMOS. In addition to delta doping, the multi-layer coating directly deposited on the detector enables both a high in-band UV QE and the ultra-low optical rejection ratio. Taking into account these specifications, even an 8 cm telescope can achieve the detection limit of 20 magAB. The expected FoV is larger than 60 deg^2

ALMA Observations of the Terahertz Spectrum of Sagittarius A*

We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations at 233, 678, and 870 GHz of the Galactic Center black hole, Sagittarius A*. These observations reveal a flat spectrum over this frequency range with spectral index α ≈ −0.3, where the flux density S ∝ ν α . We model the submillimeter and far-infrared spectrum with a one-zone synchrotron model of thermal electrons. We infer electron densities n = (2–5) × 106 cm−3, electron temperatures T e = (1–3) × 1011 K, and magnetic field strength B = 10–50 G. The parameter range can be further constrained using the observed quiescent X-ray luminosity. The flat submillimeter spectrum results in a high electron temperature and implies that the emitting electrons are efficiently heated. We also find that the emission is most likely optically thin at 233 GHz. These results indicate that millimeter and submillimeter wavelength very long baseline interferometry of Sgr A* including those of the Event Horizon Telescope should see a transparent emission region down to event horizon scales.Alexander von Humboldt foundation; NWO VICI grant [639.043.513]This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]