Black Strings in Our World

The brane world scenario is a new approach to resolve the problem on how to compactify the higher dimensional spacetime to our 4-dimensional world. One of the remarkable features of this scenario is the higher dimensional effects in classical gravitational interactions at short distances. Due to this feature, there are black string solutions in our 4-dimensional world. In this paper, assuming the simplest model of complex minimally coupled scalar field with the local U(1) symmetry, we show a possibility of black-string formation by merging processes of type I long cosmic strings in our 4-dimensional world. No fine tuning for the parameters in the model might be necessary.Comment: 11pages, no figur

Magnetostriction measurements with a laser Doppler velocimeter

A new method for measuring the magnetostriction of silicon steel sheet using a laser Doppler velocimeter has been developed. This method has the following advantages: (a) non-contact measurement, (b) better resolution (less than 4×10-8 m under the condition that the error is within 1%) than conventional methods, (c) measurement of magnetostriction in any direction of anisotropic material and (d) little operator skill required </p

奈良における侵襲性GBS感染症における臨床的特徴と分子疫学的特徴(2007～2016年)

Invasive Streptococcus agalactiae (GBS) infections are increasingly common among neonates and the elderly. Therefore, GBS surveillance for better antibiotic treatment and prophylaxis strategies are needed. We retrospectively evaluated the clinical aspects of invasive infections and the phenotypic and genetic diversity of infectious isolates from Nara, Japan, collected between 2007 and 2016, by using information from hospital records. GBS strains collected from the blood and cerebrospinal fluid cultures were evaluated for capsular types, multi-locus sequence typing (MLST), antibiotic susceptibility, antibiotics resistance gene, and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Forty GBS isolates (10 from children and 30 from adults) were analyzed, and the distribution of molecular serotype and allelic profiles varied between children and adults. We found the rates of early-onset disease in neonates with birth complications to be higher than that of previous reports, indicating that there could be relevance between complications at birth and early-onset disease. Standard antibiotic prophylaxis strategies may need to be reconsidered in patients with birth complications. In adults, the mean age of the patients was 68 years (male: 63%). Primary bacteremia was the most common source of infection. In the neonates, six had early-onset diseases and four had late-onset diseases. The most frequently identified strains were molecular serotype Ia ST23 (40%) and molecular serotype Ib ST10 (20%) in children and molecular serotype Ib ST10 (17%), molecular serotype VI ST1 (13%), and molecular serotype V ST1 (13%) in adults. Levofloxacin-resistant molecular serotype Ib strains and molecular serotypes V and VI ST1 were common causes of GBS infection in adults but were rarely found in children. Furthermore, pulsed-field gel electrophoresis in our study showed that specific clone isolates, that tend to have antibiotics resistance were widespread horizontally for a decade. Continuous surveillance and molecular investigation are warranted to identify the transmission route and improve antibiotic treatment strategies.博士（医学）・甲第773号・令和3年3月15日Copyright: © 2020 Hirai et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited

Observation in the Antarctic Sea using pCO2 autonomous buoy

第2回極域科学シンポジウム　共通セッション「海氷圏の生物地球化学」 11月16日（水） 統計数理研究所 3階セミナー

The Role of a Brain-specific Splice Variant of Ryanodine Receptor Type 1

The ryanodine receptor type 1 (RyR1) is capable of homotetrameric assembly to form a Ca2+ release channel at intracellular Ca2+ storage sites such as endoplasmic reticulum (ER). The mRNA transcript encoding full-length RyR1 is approximately 16kb and is mainly distributed in excitable cells. A 2.4-kb mRNA splice variant from the 3\u27-terminal region of the RyR1 gene coexists specifically in brain together with the full-length form, although the functions of this brain-specific splice variant remain unclear. To investigate the short form of RyR1 in intracellular Ca2+ signaling in brain at the cellular level, we established an experimental system whereby the green fluorescent protein (GFP) -tagged brain-specific variant of RyR1 is coexpressed with the full-length protein in the same cell. Both forms of RyR1 were localized in the ER. Caffeine-induced Ca2+-release activities in cells expressing both the brain-specific and full-length RyR1 were reduced compared to cells expressing only the full-length form of RyR1. These results suggested that coexpression of the brain-specific splice variant of RyR1 with its full-length counterpart modulates intracellular Ca2+ signaling by acting as a dominant-negative subunit of the Ca2+ release channel in a tissue-specific fashion

EFFICACY OF INTERFERON THERAPY FOR CHRONIC HEPATITIS C ： A COOPERATIVE STUDY IN ELEVEN HOSPITALS

We investigated the influences of liver histology，serum levels of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HCV genotypes on responsiveness to interferon (IFN) therapy in 342 patients with chronic hepatitis C. Either 9 million units (MU) of lymphoblastoid alpha IFN or 3 MU of recombinant IFN-alpha was administered daily for 2 weeks and then three times a week for 22 weeks. IFN responses were divided into three groups on the basis of the results of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay detecting HCV-RNA in serum. Complete response (CR) was defined as sustained elimination of HCV for at least 6 months after treatment，partial response (PR) as HCV elimination for a limited period，non-response (NR) as continuously positive for HCV-RNA in serum. Quantitation of pre-treament HCV-RNA amount in serum was determined by competitive PCR assay in 47 patients. HCV genotyping was performed in 114 patients by PCR with genotype-specific primers. CR was obtained in 97 patients (28.4%)，PR in 104 (30.4%) and NR in 141 (41.2%). IFN responses，represented by CR/PR/NR，were 15/18/11 in 44 patients with chronic persistent hepatitis (CPH)，72/65/73 in 210 patients with chronic aggressive hepatitis (CAH) 2a，and 10/21/57 in 88 patients with CAH2b. CR rate was lower in patients with CAH2b (11.4%) compared to those with CPH (34.1%) or CAH2a (34.3%). Averages of pre-treatment serum HCV-RNA amount (copies/50μl) were 10³·⁵⁵ in 13 CRs，10⁴·⁵⁶ in 17 PRs，and 10⁵·⁹⁵ in 17 NRs. There was a positive correlation between pre-treatment HCV-RNA levels and IFN unresponsiveness. HCV genotyping in 114 patients revealed that HCV type Ⅰ infection was observed in one，type Ⅱ in 94，type Ⅲ in 11，type Ⅳ in 6 and mixed (types Ⅱ and Ⅳ) in 2 patients，and their IFN responses (CR/PR/NR) were 0/0/1，28/26/40，3/5/3，1/3/2 and 0/1/1，respectively

Aprepitant plus granisetron and dexamethasone for prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in patients with gastric cancer treated with S-1 plus cisplatin

Background: We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a new combination antiemetic therapy comprising aprepitant, granisetron, and dexamethasone in gastric cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy with cisplatin and S-1. Methods: Gastric cancer patients scheduled to receive their first course of chemotherapy with cisplatin (60 mg/m2) and S-1 (80 mg/m2) were treated with a new combination antiemetic therapy aprepitant, granisetron, and dexamethasone on day 1; aprepitant and dexamethasone on days 2 and 3; and dexamethasone on day 4. The patients reported vomiting, nausea, use of rescue therapy, and change in the amount of diet intake, and completed the Functional Living Index-Emesis (FLIE) questionnaire. The primary endpoint was complete response (CR; no emesis and use of no rescue antiemetics) during the overall study phase (0-120 h after cisplatin administration). The secondary endpoints included complete protection (CP; CR plus no significant nausea); change in the amount of diet intake; and the impact of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) on daily life during the overall, acute (0-24 h), and delayed (24-120 h) phases. Results: Fifty-three patients were included. CR was achieved in 88.7, 98.1, and 88.7 % of patients in the overall, acute, and delayed phases, respectively. The corresponding rates of CP were 67.9, 96.2, and 67.9 %. Approximately half of the patients had some degree of anorexia. FLIE results indicated that 79.5 % of patients reported "minimal or no impact of CINV on daily life". Conclusions: Addition of aprepitant to standard antiemetic therapy was effective in gastric cancer patients undergoing treatment with cisplatin and S-1. © 2013 Springer Japan

The minimally invasive open video-assisted approach in surgical thyroid diseases

BACKGROUND: The targets of minimally invasive surgery (MIVA) could be summarised by: achievement of the same results as those obtained with traditional surgery, less trauma, better post-operative course, early discharge from hospital and improved cosmetic results. The minimally invasive techniques in thyroid surgery can be described as either endoscopic "pure" approach (completely closed approach with or without CO(2 )insufflation), or "open approach" with central neck mini-incision or "open video-assisted approach". Traditionally, open thyroidectomy requires a 6 to 8 cm, or bigger, transverse wound on the lower neck. The minimally invasive approach wound is much shorter (1.5 cm for small nodules, up to 2–3 cm for the largest ones, in respect of the exclusion criteria) upon the suprasternal notch. Patients also experience much less pain after MIVA surgery than after conventional thyroidectomy. This is due to less dissection and destruction of tissues. Pathologies treated are mainly nodular goiter; the only kind of thyroid cancer which may be approached with endoscopic surgery is a small differentiated carcinoma without lymph node involvement. The patients were considered eligible for MIVA hemithyroidectomy and thyroidectomy on the basis of some criteria, such as gland volume and the kind of disease. In our experience we have chosen the minimally invasive open video-assisted approach of Miccoli et al. (2002). The aim of this work was to verify the suitability of the technique and the applicability in clinical practice. METHODS: A completely gasless procedure was carried out through a 15–30 mm central incision about 20 mm above the sternal notch. Dissection was mainly performed under endoscopic vision using conventional endoscopic instruments. The video aided group included 11 patients. All patients were women with a average age of 54. RESULTS: We performed thyroidectomy in 8 cases and hemithyroidectomy in 3 cases. The operative average time has been 170 minutes. CONCLUSION: Nowadays this minimally invasive surgery, in selected patients, clearly demonstrates excellent results regarding patient cure rate and comfort, with shorter hospital stay, reduced postoperative pain and most attractive cosmetic results