Glueball mass from quantized knot solitons and gauge-invariant gluon mass

We propose an approach which enables one to obtain simultaneously the glueball mass and the gluon mass in the gauge-invariant way to shed new light on the mass gap problem in Yang-Mills theory. First, we point out that the Faddeev (Skyrme--Faddeev-Niemi) model can be induced through the gauge-invariant vacuum condensate of mass dimension two from SU(2) Yang-Mills theory. Second, we obtain the glueball mass spectrum by performing the collective coordinate quantization of the topological knot soliton in the Faddeev model. Third, we demonstrate that a relationship between the glueball mass and the gluon mass is obtained, since the gauge-invariant gluon mass is also induced from the relevant vacuum condensate. Finally, we determine physical values of two parameters in the Faddeev model and give an estimate of the relevant vacuum condensation in Yang-Mills theory. Our results indicate that the Faddeev model can play the role of a low-energy effective theory of the quantum SU(2) Yang-Mills theory.Comment: 17 pages, 2 figures, 3 tables; a version accepted for publication in J. Phys. A: Math. Gen.; Sect. 2 and sect. 5 (old sect. 4) are modified. Sect. 4, Tables 1 and Table 3 are adde

Efficacy of glutathione for the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: an open-label, single-arm, multicenter, pilot study

Background: Glutathione plays crucial roles in the detoxification and antioxidant systems of cells and has been used to treat acute poisoning and chronic liver diseases by intravenous injection. This is a first study examining the therapeutic effects of oral administration of glutathione in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Methods: The study was an open label, single arm, multicenter, pilot trial. Thirty-four NAFLD patients diagnosed using ultrasonography were prospectively evaluated. All patients first underwent intervention to improve their lifestyle habits (diet and exercise) for 3 months, followed by treatment with glutathione (300 mg/day) for 4 months. We evaluated their clinical parameters before and after glutathione treatment. We also quantified liver fat and fibrosis using vibration-controlled transient elastography. The primary outcome of the study was the change in alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels. Results: Twenty-nine patients finished the protocol. ALT levels significantly decreased following treatment with glutathione for 4 months. In addition, triglycerides, non-esterified fatty acids, and ferritin levels also decreased with glutathione treatment. Following dichotomization of ALT responders based on a median 12.9% decrease from baseline, we found that ALT responders were younger in age and did not have severe diabetes compared with ALT non-responders. The controlled attenuation parameter also decreased in ALT responders. Conclusions: This pilot study demonstrates the potential therapeutic effects of oral administration of glutathione in practical dose for patients with NAFLD. Large-scale clinical trials are needed to verify its efficacy. Trial registration: UMIN000011118 (date of registration: July 4, 2013)

Olfactory neuroblastoma: A peculiar case showing unusual squamous metaplasia in a late lymph node metastasis

Olfactory neuroblastoma is a rare neuroendocrine tumor derived from the olfactory epithelium. We report a case that showed peculiar histology in a late lymph node metastasis. The patient was a 78-year-old Japanese male, who had headache, epistaxis, and nasal obstruction following bloody sputum that was untreated for ten years. The initial biopsy was interpreted as anaplastic carcinoma, and after being referred to a regional university hospital, a total of 60 Gy of radiation therapy was performed prior to the excision of the residual tumor. Neck metastasis was found on the left side two years later, and the patient died of other disease with no recurrence five years after successful neck dissection.Retrospective examination of the biopsy specimen revealed a neurofibrillary matrix besides nesting growth of basophilic naked cells. The neck metastases exhibited similar histology, and a large number of rosette structures containing mucus and extensive squamous metaplasia were observed. Immunohistochemically, naked cells and neurofibrillary matrix were positive for synaptophysin and chromogranin A, and rosette structures and some naked cells were positive for AE1/AE3 and CAM5.2. While epithelial differentiation of olfactory neuroblastoma is a unique feature absent in neuroblastomas in other regions, it was clearly and prominently manifested in the present case