High correlation of scotopic and photopic electroretinogram components with severity of central retinal artery occlusion

Celso S Matsumoto1,2, Kei Shinoda1, Kazuo Nakatsuka21Department of Ophthalmology, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan; 2Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Oita University, Oita, JapanPurpose: The aim of this study was to determine whether a significant correlation exists between the scotopic and photopic components of electroretinograms (ERGs) and the degree of circulation disturbances caused by a central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO).Design: Observational clinical study.Participants: Sixteen patients with a CRAO (16 eyes).Methods: The circulatory disturbance in eyes with CRAO was graded as mild (group 1) when the arm-to-retina transmission time was <30 sec and severe (group 2) when the arm-to-retina transmission time was ≥30 sec. Scotopic and photopic ERG components in eyes with CRAO were compared with those in healthy fellow eyes with respect to the degree of circulation disturbance.Results: The scotopic and photopic b-waves were significantly reduced only in group 2, whereas the amplitudes of the photopic negative response (PhNR) of the photopic cone ERGs were significantly reduced in both groups. The amplitudes of each ERG component, except for the a-wave of the mixed rod-cone ERG, were significantly smaller in group 2 than in group 1.Conclusions: The PhNR was reduced even in group 1 with minimal circulatory disturbance and thus may be a good functional indicator.Keywords: scotopic electroretinogram, photopic electroretinogram, photopic negative response, central retinal artery occlusion, fluorescein angiograph

Simple Congenital Hamartoma of the Retinal Pigment Epithelium

This is a Photo Essay and does not have an abstract

Comparison of absolute intensity between EAS with gamma-families and general EAS at Mount Norikura

Gamma-families with total energy greater than 10 TeV, found in the EX chamber which was cooperated with the EAS array were combined with EAS triggered by big bursts. The absolute intensity of the size spectrum of these combined EAS was compared with that of general EAS obtained by AS trigger. The EAS with sizes greater than 2x1 million were always accompanied by gamma-families with sigma E sub gamma H 10 TeV, n sub gamma, H 2 and Emin=3 TeV, although the rate of EAS accompaning such gamma-families decreases rapidly as their sizes decrease

Fabrication of ZnSnP(2) thin films by phosphidation

ZnSnP(2) is a promising candidate as a solar absorbing material consisting of earth-abundant and low-toxic elements. In this study, the phosphidation method, where co-sputtered Zn–Sn thin films react with phosphorus gas, was adopted for fabricating ZnSnP(2) thin films. To establish the conditions for producing ZnSnP(2) thin films, we investigated the influence of phosphidation temperature on the product phases, and interpreted the experimental results using chemical potential diagrams of the Zn–Sn–P system. ZnSnP(2) thin films with a single phase were obtained by phosphidation at 500 °C under a phosphorus vapor pressure of 10[−2] atm. However, formation of ZnSnP(2)protrusions was observed on the surface of the thin films. Based on the experimental results and the chemical potential diagrams, it is indicated that un-reacted liquid Sn particles reacted with Zn and phosphorus gas to form ZnSnP(2) protrusions in a manner similar to the vapor-Liquid-Solid growth mode

Modulation of transient receptor potential vanilloid 4-mediated membrane currents and synaptic transmission by protein kinase C

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Transient receptor potential Vanilloid (TRPV) receptors are involved in nociception and are expressed predominantly in sensory neurons. TRPV1, a non-selective cation channel has been extensively studied and is responsible for inflammatory thermal hypersensitivity. In this study, the expression and function of TRPV4 have been characterized and compared with those of TRPV1.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Immunohistochemical studies revealed that both TRPV1 and TRPV4 were co-expressed in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neuronal cell bodies and in the central terminals of laminae I and II of the spinal dorsal horn (DH). In Ca²⁺fluorescence imaging and whole-cell patch-clamp experiments, TRPV1- and TRPV4-mediated responses were observed in a population of the same DRG neurons. Sensitization of TRPV1 has been shown to be involved in inflammatory pain conditions. Incubation with phorbol 12, 13-dibutyrate (PDBu), a PKC activator, resulted in a significant potentiation of TRPV4 currents in DRG neurons. In TRPV4 expressing HEK 293T cells, PDBu increased 4α-phorbol 12, 13-didecanoate (4α-PDD)-induced single-channel activity in cell-attached patches, which was abrogated by bisindolylmaleimide (BIM), a selective PKC inhibitor. TRPV4 is also expressed at the central terminals of sensory neurons. Activation of TRPV4 by 4α-PDD increased the frequency of miniature excitatory post synaptic currents (mEPSCs) in DRG-DH neuronal co-cultures. 4α-PDD-induced increase in the frequency of mEPSCs was further enhanced by PDBu. The expression of TRP channels has been shown in other areas of the CNS; application of 4α-PDD significantly increased the mEPSC frequency in cultured hippocampal neurons, which was further potentiated by PDBu, whereas, TRPV1 agonist capsaicin did not modulate synaptic transmission.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results indicate that TRPV4 and TRPV1 are co-expressed in certain DRG neurons and TRPV4 can be sensitized by PKC not only in DRG neuronal cell bodies, but also in the central sensory and non-sensory nerve terminals. Co-expression of TRPV1 and TRPV4 ion channels, their modulation of synaptic transmission and their sensitization by PKC may synergistically play a role in nociception.</p

Effects of perceptual learning on local stereopsis and neuronal responses of V1 and V2 in prism-reared monkeys.

Visual performance improves with practice (perceptual learning). In this study, we sought to determine whether or not adult monkeys reared with early abnormal visual experience improve their stereoacuity by extensive psychophysical training and testing, and if so, whether alterations of neuronal responses in the primary visual cortex (V1) and/or visual area 2 (V2) are involved in such improvement. Strabismus was optically simulated in five macaque monkeys using a prism-rearing procedure between 4 and 14 wk of age. Around 2 yr of age, three of the prism-reared monkeys ( trained monkeys) were tested for their spatial contrast sensitivity and stereoacuity. Two other prism-reared monkeys received no training or testing ( untrained monkeys). Microelectrode experiments were conducted around 4 yr of age. All three prism-reared trained monkeys showed improvement in stereoacuity by a factor of 7 or better. However, final stereothresholds were still approximately 10-20 times worse than those in normal monkeys. In V1, disparity sensitivity was drastically reduced in both the trained and untrained prism-reared monkeys and behavioral training had no obvious effect. In V2, the disparity sensitivity in the trained monkeys was better by a factor of approximately 2.0 compared with that in the untrained monkeys. These data suggest that the observed improvement in stereoacuity of the trained prism-reared monkeys may have resulted from better retention of disparity sensitivity in V2 and/or from learning by upstream neurons to more efficiently attend to residual local disparity information in V1 and V

Increased Variability of Thailand\u27s Chao Phraya River Peak Season Flow and Its Association With ENSO Variability: Evidence From Tree Ring δ\u3csup\u3e18\u3c/sup\u3eO

We present a statistically robust reconstruction of Thailand\u27s Chao Phraya River peak season streamflow (CPRPF) that spans the 202 years from 1804 to 2005 CE. Our reconstruction is based on tree ring δ18O series derived from three Pinus merkusii sites from Laos and Thailand. The regional δ18O index accounts for 57% of the observed variance of CPRPF. Spatial correlation and 21‐year running correlation analyses reveal that CPRPF is greatly influenced by regional precipitation variations associated with the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Periods of enhanced and reduced ENSO activity are associated with strong and weak ENSO‐streamflow correlation, respectively. At the longer timescale, the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) appears to modulate the ENSO‐streamflow correlations, with the most extreme flood events along the Chao Phraya River occurring during periods of increased frequency of La Niña events that coincide with extended cold phases of the PDO. The CPRPF reconstruction could aid management planning for Thailand\u27s water resources

Characterization of scintillators for lost alpha diagnostics on burning plasma experiments

The characteristics of light output by ion beam irradiations under high ion fluxes have been measured for three kinds of scintillators: ZnS:Ag deposited on the glass plate, Y_3Al_5O_12:Ce powder stiffened with a binder, and Y_3Al_5O_12:Ce ceramics sintered at high temperature. The ion beam flux in the range from 10^12 to 10^13 ions/(cm^2 s) is irradiated to simulate the burning plasma experiments. The decrease of light output has been observed by long time ion irradiation. The deterioration of ZnS:Ag deposited scintillator is most serious. The deterioration has been improved for the scintillators of Y_3Al_5O_12:Ce with a binder and that sintered. Their applications to ITER lost alpha diagnostics are discussed

Evolution of the dipole polarizability in the stable tin isotope chain

The dipole polarizability of stable even-mass tin isotopes 112,114,116,118,120,124 was extracted from inelastic proton scattering experiments at 295 MeV under very forward angles performed at RCNP. Predictions from energy density functionals cannot account for the present data and the polarizability of 208Pb simultaneously. The evolution of the polarizabilities in neighboring isotopes indicates a kink at 120Sn while all model results show a nearly linear increase with mass number after inclusion of pairing corrections.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Lett.