701 research outputs found
The decline of leprosy in Japan: patterns and trends 1964-2008.
OBJECTIVE: Our purpose was to elucidate the patterns and trends of autochthonous leprosy in Japan from 1964 to 2008, to compare them with the findings from other studies of leprosy in decline, and to determine whether M. leprae transmission persists in Japan. DESIGN: Data on registered leprosy cases in Japan in the period 1964-2008 were analysed with reference to trends in case detection, geographical distribution, age at diagnosis, sex, classification, family history and broad correlation with socioeconomic conditions. RESULTS: A consistent decline in leprosy case detection was observed in all areas of the country over the period 1964-2008. Highest incidence was consistently in Okinawa, the southernmost part of Japan. Autochthonous leprosy has not been reported in anyone born in Japan since 1980. Increasing average age and a shift towards lower latitudes were demonstrated throughout the period. There was an inverse association between regional measures of wealth and leprosy incidence. CONCLUSIONS: Leprosy has declined throughout the past century in Japan. Autochthonous transmission has probably stopped in mainland Japan, but may still occur at a low level in Okinawa, the country's southernmost region. Analyses of data on autochthonous cases revealed patterns similar to those reported in other countries with declining leprosy. Detailed comparisons between countries with very low leprosy incidence may help us to better understand the epidemiology of leprosy
Lightning activities over the western coastal area of Sumatra, Indonesia during the Pre-YMC campaign observation period
In this study, we examined the diurnal and intra-seasonal variations of lightning activities over the western coastal area of Sumatra, Indonesia by the World Wide Lightning Location Network data during a pilot field campaign of the Years of the Maritime Continent project observation period (November–December, 2015). Regarding the diurnal changes, the land-sea contrast of the peak time of the day and the offshore propagation of the active lightning area predominated. The land had higher lightning activity during the day (0700–1900 LT), whereas the nearby seas experienced more lightning activity during the night (1900–0700 LT). As for the intra-seasonal variations, the lightning frequency was related to the lower-tropospheric wind variations by the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) phase. When the MJO convection was convectively repressed over the area, lighting activities were more active and the offshore diurnal land-sea migration was prominent in weak or easterly wind circumstances. After the MJO convection passed over Sumatra, lightning was suppressed under the strong westerly wind conditions. The location and nocturnal fluctuations of lightning appeared to change as the center of MJO convection traveled over the area. In particular, the location of lightning changes to the east, and the timing of the initial occurrence tended to be delayed
Repair of double-chambered right ventricle using right ventricular outflow chamber ventriculotomy via left intercostal thoracotomy under beating heart in two dogs
Double-chambered right ventricle was diagnosed in two dogs, one of them a pup and the other full grown. Both dogs underwent surgery using the novel approach of right ventricular outflow chamber ventriculotomy via left intercostal thoracotomy with moderate hypothermia and moderate pump flow cardiopulmonary bypass under beating heart. No major complication occurred during and after the operation. On continuous wave Doppler echocardiography, the pressure gradient across the stenosis in the right ventricle decreased from 130 mmHg pre-operatively to 40 mmHg post-operatively at 1 year 5 months in the adult dog, and from 209 mmHg pre-operatively to 47 mmHg post-operatively at 1 year in the pup. Both dogs are active without clinical signs
Neural-network based high-speed volumetric dynamic optical coherence tomography
We demonstrate deep-learning neural network (NN)-based dynamic optical
coherence tomography (DOCT), which generates high-quality
logarithmic-intensity-variance (LIV) DOCT images from only four OCT frames. The
NN model is trained for tumor spheroid samples using a customized loss
function: the weighted mean absolute error. This loss function enables highly
accurate LIV image generation. The fidelity of the generated LIV images to the
ground truth LIV images generated using 32 OCT frames is examined via
subjective image observation and statistical analysis of image-based metrics.
Fast volumetric DOCT imaging with an acquisition time of 6.55 s/volume is
demonstrated using this NN-based method
Lack of effect of bone marrow transplantation on airway hyperresponsiveness in an asthmatic
ABSTRACTBronchial asthma has been recognized as an inflammatory disorder in this past decade. This leads to an assumption that perfect control of inflammatory cells may cure this disease. However, herein we report on an asthmatic whose airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) did not change after bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The concentrations of acetylcholine to produce a 20% fall in forced expiratory volume in 1 s 15 days before and 98 days after BMT were 900 and 480 μg/mL, respectively. Asthma treatment with beclo-methasone dipropionate and theophylline was continued before and after BMT and a conventional supporting therapy for BMT with cyclosporine A and methylprednisolone, followed by oral administration of tacrolimus hydrate alone inhibited graft-versus-host disease. Plasma interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5 and IgE, but not interferon-γ, levels decreased after BMT. Note that the second measurement of airway sensitivity was performed under systemic administration of tacrolimus. The presented case suggests that replacement of bone marrow-derived inflammatory cells is not enough to reverse once-established AHR. Hence, AHR and airway inflammation may develop independently in some part, but both need to be present for asthma to be present in this asthmatic
Modulating biocatalytic activity towards sterically bulky substrates in CO2-expanded bio-based liquids by tuning physicochemical properties
The study of CO2-expanded liquids using a green component such as a bio-based solvent has been recently raised as a new concept for an alternative solvent, and yet been largely unexplored in literature for neither fundamental nor application studies. On the other hand, structural bulkiness of substrates remains one of the main limitations to promote enzymes as an efficient versatile catalytic tool for organic synthesis, especially biocatalysis in non-conventional solvents. Herein, we report a detailed investigation of CO2-expanded bio-based liquids as reaction media for improved biocatalysis of sterically hindered compounds. We have found that CO2 acts as a crucial trigger for various lipases to catalyse transesterification of challenging bulky alcohols in CO2-expanded 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MeTHF). Furthermore, this study determines physicochemical and transport properties of CO2-expanded MeTHF for the first time, which were then utilized for modulating biocatalytic activity. It was found that lipase activity increased with the accordingly decrease of the dipolarity of CO2-expanded MeTHF, which is tunable by altering the concentration of CO2 in the solvent system
High expression of cancer stem cell markers in cholangiolocellular carcinoma
Purpose
Cholangiolocellular carcinoma (CLC) is an extremely rare malignant liver tumor. It is thought to originate from the ductules and/or canals of Hering, where hepatic stem cells (HpSC) are located, but there are few reports on cancer stem cell markers in CLC. Thus, we evaluated the significance of cancer stem cell markers, including CD133, CD44, and EpCAM, in CLC.
Methods
The subjects of this study were three patients with CLC and one patient with an intermediate type of combined hepatocellular cholangiocarcinoma (CHC). The cancer cell markers, CK7, CK19, and EMA, were evaluated immunohistochemically.
Results
Histological examination of the CLC revealed morphologically cholangiolar features and immunohistochemical examination revealed positivity for CD133, CD44, and EpCAM. On the other hand, in the intermediate type of CHC, only CD44 was positive, whereas CD133 and EpCAM were negative.
Conclusion
CLC may have stronger features derived from HpSCs than an intermediate type of CHC
Kohn anomalies in graphene nanoribbons
The quantum corrections to the energies of the point optical phonon
modes (Kohn anomalies) in graphene nanoribbons are investigated. We show
theoretically that the longitudinal optical modes undergo a Kohn anomaly
effect, while the transverse optical modes do not. In relation to Raman
spectroscopy, we show that the longitudinal modes are not Raman active near the
zigzag edge, while the transverse optical modes are not Raman active near the
armchair edge. These results are useful for identifying the orientation of the
edge of graphene nanoribbons by G band Raman spectroscopy, as is demonstrated
experimentally. The differences in the Kohn anomalies for nanoribbons and for
metallic single wall nanotubes are pointed out, and our results are explained
in terms of pseudospin effects.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figure
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