Effects of tender point acupuncture on delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) – a pragmatic trial

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Acupuncture is used to reduce inflammation and decrease pain in delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). This study investigates the efficacy of acupuncture on the symptoms of DOMS.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Thirty subjects were assigned randomly to there groups, namely the control, non-tender point and tender point groups. Measurement of pain with full elbow flexion was used as indices of efficacy. Measurements were taken before and after exercise, immediately after treatment and seven days after treatment.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Significant differences in visual analog scores for pain were found between the control group and tender point group immediately after treatment and three days after exercise (P < 0.05, Dunnetts multiple test).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results show that tender point acupuncture relieves muscle pain of DOMS.</p

Switching between intramolecular charge transfer and excimer emissions in solids based on aryl-modified ethynyl-o-carboranes

Because of its unique electronic properties, o-carborane has attracted attention as a scaffold for constructing solid-state luminescent materials. Here, we report stimulus-responsive luminochromic materials based on polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH), such as anthracene and pyrene, modified with the ethynyl-o-carborane unit. Initially, luminochromism originating from switching of different emission mechanisms is described between intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) emission and excimer emission triggered by mechanical stimuli, heat, and vapor annealing regarding the single o-carborane-substituted anthracene. Next, the luminescence properties of two ethynyl-o-carboranes at both ends of PAHs are presented. In particular, multi-step mechanochromic luminescence of the pyrene derivative is explained. Stepwisely changes triggered by weak stimuli that can induce cracking sites, followed by luminochromic behavior and by grinding treatment, which causes phase transition from crystal to amorphous, leading to luminescent mechanism changes from ICT emission to excimer emission

Time-Dependent Emission Enhancement of the Ethynylpyrene-o-Carborane Dyad and Its Application as a Luminescent Color Sensor for Evaluating Water Contents in Organic Solvents

The time‐dependent emission enhancement (TDEE) phenomena of the 1‐(o‐carboran‐1‐yl)ethynylpyrene dyad were reported. It was found that the emission intensity from the dyad increased in tetrahydrofuran (THF), acetone and dichloromethane with increasing incubation time. From the mechanistic studies, it was suggested that agglomeration of the dyad gradually proceeded in these media, followed by expression of excimer luminescence. Additionally, it was shown that the rates of TDEE of the dyad were sensitively accelerated in the presence of a trace amount of water. Based on this fact, a detection system for water contents in acetone was constructed. Before and after incubation for 96 h at room temperature, time courses of changes in optical properties were monitored. Finally, water contents in acetone can be estimated by the degrees of TDEE and emission color changes in the range from 0.1 wt % to 2.0 wt % and from 2.0 wt % to 20 wt %, respectively

Surgical Treatment for Skeletal Metastases From Soft Tissue Sarcomas: Experience With 23 Lesions in 20 Patients

Purpose. This paper reports the procedures and the clinical results of a series of surgical treatments for skeletal metastases from soft tissue sarcomas

Palliative Percutaneous Jejunal Stent for Patients with Short Bowel Syndrome

Gastrointestinal obstruction is a common preterminal event in patients with gastric and pancreatic cancer who often undergo palliative bypass surgery. Although endoscopic palliation with self-expandable metallic stents has emerged as a safe and effective alternative to surgery, experience with this technique remains limited. In particular, a proximal jejunal obstruction requires more technical expertise than a duodenal obstruction. Palliative treatment modalities include both surgical and nonsurgical approaches. In this report, we describe the successful placement of self-expandable metallic stents at the proximal jejunum using a combination of percutaneous endoscopic, intraoperative, and transstomal stenting. Usually endoscopy is not indicated in cases of proximal jejunal obstruction, but some cases may require palliative endoscopy instead of bypass operation

Smad6/Smurf1 overexpression in cartilage delays chondrocyte hypertrophy and causes dwarfism with osteopenia

Biochemical experiments have shown that Smad6 and Smad ubiquitin regulatory factor 1 (Smurf1) block the signal transduction of bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs). However, their in vivo functions are largely unknown. Here, we generated transgenic mice overexpressing Smad6 in chondrocytes. Smad6 transgenic mice showed postnatal dwarfism with osteopenia and inhibition of Smad1/5/8 phosphorylation in chondrocytes. Endochondral ossification during development in these mice was associated with almost normal chondrocyte proliferation, significantly delayed chondrocyte hypertrophy, and thin trabecular bone. The reduced population of hypertrophic chondrocytes after birth seemed to be related to impaired bone growth and formation. Organ culture of cartilage rudiments showed that chondrocyte hypertrophy induced by BMP2 was inhibited in cartilage prepared from Smad6 transgenic mice. We then generated transgenic mice overexpressing Smurf1 in chondrocytes. Abnormalities were undetectable in Smurf1 transgenic mice. Mating Smad6 and Smurf1 transgenic mice produced double-transgenic pups with more delayed endochondral ossification than Smad6 transgenic mice. These results provided evidence that Smurf1 supports Smad6 function in vivo

Three-Dimensional Anisotropy Contrast MRI and Functional MRI of the Human Brain: Clinical Application to Assess Pyramidal Tract in Patients with Brain Tumor and Infarction

We describe and evaluate the findings of three-dimensional anisotropy contrast MR axonography (3DAC MRX) and functional MRI (fMRI) in brain tumor and infarction. We obtained diffusion-weighted images (DWI) in 28 patients including 23 brain tumors and 15 acute infarctions located in or near pyramidal tract. Three anisotropic DWIs were transformed into graduations color-coded as red, green or blue, and then composed to form a combined color 3DAC MRX. We also performed functional MRI in 7 of the 28 patients and compared with cortical mapping of 3DAC MRX. 3DAC MRX with 23 brain tumors showed that the ipsilateral pyramidal tract was either discontinuous due to impaired anisotropy (n=8) or compressed due to mass effect (n=15). In 10 patients of acute infarction with motor impairment, pyramidal tract involvement was visually more conspicuous on 3DAC MRX compared to standard DWI. On functional MRI, hand motor activation was observed between blue vertical directional colors of pre- and post central gyrus. In conclusion, 3DAC MRX is a new noninvasive approach for visualization of the white matter neuronal tract and provides the information concerning pyramidal tract involvement

Combined landscape of single-nucleotide variants and copy number alterations in clonal hematopoiesis

クローン性造血の臨床予後への影響を解明 --遺伝子変異とコピー数異常の統合的な知見--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2021-07-09.Clonal hematopoiesis (CH) in apparently healthy individuals is implicated in the development of hematological malignancies (HM) and cardiovascular diseases. Previous studies of CH analyzed either single-nucleotide variants and indels (SNVs/indels) or copy number alterations (CNAs), but not both. Here, using a combination of targeted sequencing of 23 CH-related genes and array-based CNA detection of blood-derived DNA, we have delineated the landscape of CH-related SNVs/indels and CNAs in 11, 234 individuals without HM from the BioBank Japan cohort, including 672 individuals with subsequent HM development, and studied the effects of these somatic alterations on mortality from HM and cardiovascular disease, as well as on hematological and cardiovascular phenotypes. The total number of both types of CH-related lesions and their clone size positively correlated with blood count abnormalities and mortality from HM. CH-related SNVs/indels and CNAs exhibited statistically significant co-occurrence in the same individuals. In particular, co-occurrence of SNVs/indels and CNAs affecting DNMT3A, TET2, JAK2 and TP53 resulted in biallelic alterations of these genes and was associated with higher HM mortality. Co-occurrence of SNVs/indels and CNAs also modulated risks for cardiovascular mortality. These findings highlight the importance of detecting both SNVs/indels and CNAs in the evaluation of CH