A Possible Scenario for Environmental Remediation in Coastal Waters by Use of Phytoplankton and Waste Materials

environmental remediationphytoplanktonseafood productionsewagesteelmaking sla

Changes of Coronary Blood Flow in Vasospastic Angina under Cold Stimulation by Transthoracic Doppler Echocardiography

This study was done to evaluate changes of microvascular function under cold stimulation by measuring coronary flow velocities (CFVs) in vasospastic angina (VA) patients using transthoracic Doppler echocardiography (TTDE). 14 patients with VA and 15 healthy controls were included. CFVs were measured at the distal left anterior descending coronary artery by TTDE at baseline and under cold stimulation. Hyperemia was induced by intravenous adenosine infusion (140 µg/kg/min). At baseline, CFVs and coronary flow reserve (CFR) were not different between controls and VA patients. Under cold stimulation, the degree of increment of CFV with adenosine was lower in VA patients than in controls. Comparing baseline with cold stimulation, coronary flow reserve (CFR) increased (3.1±0.7 to 3.8±1.0, p=0.06) in controls. In contrast, in VA patients, CFR was decreased (2.8±0.9 to 2.6±0.7, p=0.05) and coronary vascular resistance index markedly increased (0.35 to 0.43, p=0.01). Throughout the study, no patient experienced chest pain or ECG changes. In VA patients, CFR was preserved at baseline, but coronary blood flow increase in response to cold stimulation was blunted and CFR was decreased. These findings suggest that endothelial dependent vasodilation is impaired at the coronary microvascular and the epicardial artery level in VA under cold stimulation

Smaller Hippocampal Volume and Degraded Peripheral Hearing Among Japanese Community Dwellers

A growing body of literature has demonstrated that dementia and hearing loss are interrelated. Recent interest in dementia research has expanded to brain imaging analyses with auditory function. The aim of this study was to investigate the link between hearing ability, which was assessed using pure-tone audiometry, and the volume of brain regions, specifically the hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, Heschl’s gyrus, and total gray matter, using Freesurfer software and T1-weighted brain magnetic resonance imaging. The data for 2082 samples (age range = 40–89 years) were extracted from a population-based cohort of community dwellers. Hearing-impaired individuals showed significantly smaller hippocampal volumes compared with their non-hearing-impaired counterparts for all auditory frequency ranges. In addition, a correlational analysis showed a significant dose-response relationship for hearing ability and hippocampal volume after adjusting for potential confounding factors so that the more degraded the peripheral hearing was, the smaller the hippocampal volume was. This association was consistent through the auditory frequency range. The volume of the entorhinal cortex, right Heschl’s gyrus and total gray matter did not correlate with hearing level at any frequency. The volume of the left Heschl’s gyrus showed a significant relationship with the hearing levels for some auditory frequencies. The current results suggested that the presence of hearing loss after middle age could be a modifier of hippocampal atrophy

A New Light on the Evolution and Propagation of Prehistoric Grain Pests: The World's Oldest Maize Weevils Found in Jomon Potteries, Japan

Three Sitophilus species (S. granarius L., S. oryzae L., and S. zeamais Mots.) are closely related based on DNA analysis of their endosymbionts. All are seed parasites of cereal crops and important economic pest species in stored grain. The Sitophilus species that currently exist, including these three species, are generally believed to be endemic to Asia's forested areas, suggesting that the first infestations of stored grain must have taken place near the forested mountains of southwestern Asia. Previous archaeological data and historical records suggest that the three species may have been diffused by the spread of Neolithic agriculture, but this hypothesis has only been established for granary weevils in European and southwestern Asian archaeological records. There was little archeological evidence for grain pests in East Asia before the discovery of maize weevil impressions in Jomon pottery in 2004 using the “impression replica” method. Our research on Jomon agriculture based on seed and insect impressions in pottery continued to seek additional evidence. In 2010, we discovered older weevil impressions in Jomon pottery dating to ca. 10 500 BP. These specimens are the oldest harmful insects in the world discovered at archaeological sites. Our results provide evidence of harmful insects living in the villages from the Earliest Jomon, when no cereals were cultivated. This suggests we must reconsider previous scenarios for the evolution and propagation of grain pest weevils, especially in eastern Asia. Although details of their biology or the foods they infested remain unclear, we hope future interdisciplinary collaborations among geneticists, entomologists, and archaeologists will provide the missing details

Plasma brain natriuretic peptide as a surrogate marker for cardioembolic stroke

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cardioembolic stroke generally results in more severe disability, since it typically has a larger ischemic area than the other types of ischemic stroke. However, it is difficult to differentiate cardioembolic stroke from non-cardioembolic stroke (atherothrombotic stroke and lacunar stroke). In this study, we evaluated the levels of plasma brain natriuretic peptide in acute ischemic stroke patients with cardioembolic stroke or non-cardioembolic stroke, and assessed the prediction factors of plasma brain natriuretic peptide and whether we could differentiate between stroke subtypes on the basis of plasma brain natriuretic peptide concentrations in addition to patient's clinical variables.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Our patient cohort consisted of 131 consecutive patients with acute cerebral infarction who were admitted to Kagawa University School of Medicine Hospital from January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2007. The mean age of patients (43 females, 88 males) was 69.6 ± 10.1 years. Sixty-two patients had cardioembolic stroke; the remaining 69 patients had non-cardioembolic stroke (including atherothrombotic stroke, lacunar stroke, or the other). Clinical variables and the plasma brain natriuretic peptide were evaluated in all patients.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Plasma brain natriuretic peptide was linearly associated with atrial fibrillation, heart failure, chronic renal failure, and left atrial diameter, independently (F_4,126= 27.6, p < 0.0001; adjusted R²= 0.45). Furthermore, atrial fibrillation, mitral regurgitation, plasma brain natriuretic peptide (> 77 pg/ml), and left atrial diameter (> 36 mm) were statistically significant independent predictors of cardioembolic stroke in the multivariable setting (Χ²= 127.5, p < 0.001).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>It was suggested that cardioembolic stroke was strongly predicted with atrial fibrillation and plasma brain natriuretic peptide. Plasma brain natriuretic peptide can be a surrogate marker for cardioembolic stroke.</p

臥床患者の水平移動法の違いによる看護学生の主観的な容易性の検討

本研究の目的は、看護学生に複数の方法で臥床患者の水平移動を実施してもらい、移動方法と実施時に感じた主観的な容易性との関連を明らかにすることである。同意を得た看護学生16 名を対象に、上方水平移動と左右水平移動の模擬患者への実施を求めた。その際に看護者が感じた主観的な容易性を4件法で評価した。自由記載は、Microsoft excel を用いてキーワード分析を行った。結果、上方水平移動の主観的な容易性は順に、シート法、古武術法、キネステティク法であった。左右水平移動の主観的な容易性は高い順に、グローブ法、キネステティク法、古武術法であった。上方水平移動の頻出記載語は多い順に、「動」、「力」、「できた」であった。左右水平移動の頻出記載語は多い順に、「動」、「腰」、「身体」であった。以上より、シート法とグローブ法は看護学生にとっても主観的な容易性の高い、臨床の場や看護教育の中で広く活用されるべき体位変換方法と推察された

オンデマンド看護過程展開とハイブリッド基礎看護学実習のための看護教育方法の提案

A看護系大学では、COVID-19の影響により2020年度前期のすべての科目と実習がオンデマンドとなった。看護過程展開論もオンデマンド授業となり、学内ネットワークシステム（kyonet）の授業およびディスカッションボード機能（プロジェクト学習）を用いた課題提出とグループワークを実施した。基礎看護学実習Ⅱは、臨地での実習が困難となったため、ハイブリッド実習にて実施した。ハイブリッド実習では教員が難易度を考慮した事例を設定し、看護過程展開論の授業方法と同様の方法で実施したため、学生は混乱なく実習を進めることができた。模擬事例を用いて既習の方法と同様に情報取集を行い、援助実施においても慣れ親しんだ学内の環境で実施できた。また、プロジェクト学習の利用により、学生は他の学生の成果物や指導内容を閲覧でき、学習内容を共有できたことと、教員が解答例を提示したことにより、学生は自身の修正点に気づきやすくなったと考えられた