Immunological Changes in Mesothelioma Patients and Their Experimental Detection

It is common knowledge that asbestos exposure causes asbestos-related diseases such as asbestosis, lung cancer and malignant mesothelioma (MM) not only in people who have handled asbestos in the work environment, but also in residents living near factories that handle asbestos. These facts have been an enormous medical and social problem in Japan since the summer of 2005. We focused on the immunological effects of asbestos and silica on the human immune system. In this brief review, we present immunological changes in patients with MM and outline their experimental detection. For example, there is over-expression of bcl-2 in CD4+ peripheral T-cells, high plasma concentrations of interleukin (IL)-10 and transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß, and multiple over-representation of T cell receptor (TcR)-Vß in peripheral CD3+ T-cells found in MM patients. We also detail an experimental long-term exposure T-cell model. Analysis of the immunological effects of asbestos may help our understanding of the biological effects of asbestos

輝尽性蛍光体検出器によるレーザー駆動イオンビーム診断系の開発 - 機械学習アルゴリズムによるイオン推定を目指して -

修士（工学

慢性関節リウマチ患者におけるWHO／QOLとその関連要因

慢性関節リウマチ患者58名を対象に世界保健機構開発のQOL調査票（WHO／QOL-26）を用いて，QOLとその関連要因について検討し，以下の結果を得た．　（1）今回の対象者の属性は，日本における慢性関節リウマチ患者のそれに類似するものであった．　（2）WHO／QOL-26はその下位次元の一つである社会関係と関連を示さなかった．　（3）WHO／QOL-26と有意に関連を示したのは，身体機能，痛み，手術経験の有無，同居者の有無の4要因であった．　以上より，社会関係は他の下位次元との交互作用を介してWHO／QOL-26に関連していると考えられる．また，身体面で痛みの軽減・寛解によって機能改善を図ること，及び生活面で同居者への気兼ねからむしろ同居者無しの方がQOLを高めることが示唆された．Rheumatoid arthritis has total or partial influence on the life situation of patients. A variety of outcome measures are used in evaluating disease activity, therapeutic efficacy, and the quality of life (QOL) in rheumatoid arthritis studies. This study was designed to explore QOL in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in Japan. Fifty-eight rheumatoid arthritis patients (9 male and 49 female, mean age 57.2±14.1) participated as subjects in this study and were interviewed using the World Health Organization\u27s QOL assessment instrument (WHO/QOL-26) by a single interviewer. In addition, simultaneous surveys were made using the Modified Health Assessment Questionnaire (MHAQ) for functional disability, the Visual Analogue Scale for pain (VAS), assessment of patients\u27 understanding of rheumatic disease, and appropriate questionnaires concerning social activities, social support, suffering in life, and demographic characteristics (i.e., age, sex, duration from onset, marital status, presence of other person(s)in household, other illness, having undergone arthritis-related operation(s), holding of physically disabled person\u27s certificate, having hobby(ies), engaged in occupation). Social relationship was the only dimension found not to be correlated with the WHO/QOL-26. Predictors of the overall WHO/QOL-26 were studied by means of multiple regression analysis, with 17 explanatory variables. The factors that had a direct impact on WHO/QOL-26 were MHAQ, VAS, presence of other person(s) in household, and having undergone arthritis-related operation(s). These four factors explained 29.3% of the total variance in WHO/QOL-26 scores. It was suggested by the results that the QOL in rheumatoid arthritis patients is affected especially by pain and by the presence of other person(s) in the household

Ion species discrimination method by linear energy transfer measurement in Fujifilm BAS-SR Imaging Plate

We have developed a novel discrimination methodology to identify ions in multispecies beams with similar charge to mass ratios but different atomic numbers. After an initial separation by charge-to-mass ratio using co-linear electric and magnetic fields, individual ions can be discriminated by considering the Linear Energy Transfer and non-linear detector response of ions irradiating stimulable phosphor plate (Fujifilm imaging plate), by comparison with Monte-Carlo calculation. We apply the method to energetic multispecies laser-driven ion beams and use it to identify silver ions produced by the interaction between a high contrast, high intensity laser pulse and a sub-m silver foil target. We also show that this method can be used to calibrate imaging plate for arbitrary ion species without requiring individual calibration

Vieraea. Vol. 35

State-of-the-art high power laser facilities present numerous potential applications, including the generation of ultra-short and low emittance ion beams. Understanding the underlying laser-plasma interaction physics and resulting scaling to ultra-high intensities is of great importance for optimising such sources. We therefore present experimental data of proton acceleration in a sheath field using the ultra-high intensity J-KAREN-P laser (10 J, 40 fs, 5x1021 W/cm2), allowing investigation at the high-intensity frontier.A repetitive tape target was used to generate proton beams at a 0.1 Hz repetition rate limited only by the laser, allowing a systematic and comprehensive scan over laser parameters. Our laser-target system is able to regularly produce protons in excess of 40 MeV at the full repetition rate. We will demonstrate a slower than expected increase in proton energy with decreasing focal spot size, show that this is due to a reduced sheath lifetime for tight focal spots, and propose a new model which successfully predicts proton energies over a large range of focal spot sizes.We demonstrate that the laser accelerated electron temperature depends not only on laser intensity but also on focal-spot size, in which the restriction of the transverse acceleration distance causes saturation of the electron temperature at increasingly small foci. However, the accelerated electron beam profile becomes more collimated and asymmetric with small focal spots. Measurements of the proton beam show only limited benefit to using increasingly small focal spot sizes, and the best scaling for achieving higher maximum proton energies from sheath acceleration is achieved with increasing the pulse energy, rather than reducing the spot size or pulse length.Optics & Photonics International Congress 2019 (HEDS2019

Electron heating and ion acceleration in sheaths from ultra-high intensity laser-solid interactions

The behaviour of high power laser-plasma interaction from solid targets, and the resultant ion generation, at the extreme intensities available at state-of-the-art laser facilities is an important topic for realising potential applications. We will present experimental data investigating electron heating and proton acceleration in a sheath field using the ultra-high intensity, high contrast J- KAREN-P laser. Using a 10 J, 40 fs pulse focused to an intensity ~5x1021 Wcm-2 resulted in generation of protons up to 40 MeV at 0.1 Hz from a 5 μm steel tape target. The high repetition rate of the tape target allowed large statistically relevant investigations into the scaling of the electron and proton beam with laser energy, pulse length and spot size.We demonstrate that the laser accelerated electron temperature depends not only on laser intensity but also on focal-spot size, in which the restriction of the transverse acceleration distance causes saturation of the electron temperature at increasingly small foci. However, the accelerated electron beam profile becomes more collimated and asymmetric with small focal spots. Measurements of the proton beam show only limited benefit to using increasingly small focal spot sizes, and the best scaling for achieving higher maximum proton energies from sheath acceleration is achieved with increasing the pulse energy, rather than reducing the spot size or pulse length.Imperial College London Plasma Physics Group Semina