Neural-humoral responses during head-up tilt in healthy young white and black women

Young black women have higher prevalence of hypertension during pregnancy compared to white women, which may be attributable to differences in blood pressure (BP) regulation. We hypothesized that young normotensive black women would demonstrate augmented muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA) and renal-adrenal responses to orthostasis. Fifteen white and ten black women (30 ± 4 vs. 32 ± 6 years; means ± SD) had haemodynamics and MSNA measured during baseline (BL), 30 and 60° head-up tilt (HUT), and recovery. Blood was drawn for catecholamines, direct renin, vasopressin, and aldosterone. BL brachial systolic BP (SBP: 107 ± 6 vs. 101 ± 9 mmHg) and diastolic BP (DBP: 62 ± 4 vs. 56 ± 7 mmHg) were higher in white women (both p < 0.05). Δ DBP (60° HUT-BL) was greater in black women compared to white (p < 0.05). Cardiac output and total peripheral resistance were similar between groups. MSNA burst frequency was higher in whites (BL: 16 ± 10 vs. 14 ± 9 bursts/min, main effect p < 0.05) and increased in both groups during HUT (60°: 39 ± 8 vs. 34 ± 13 bursts/min, p < 0.05 from BL). Noradrenaline was higher in white women during 60° HUT (60° HUT: 364 ± 102 vs. 267 ± 89 pg/ml, p < 0.05). Direct renin was higher and vasopressin and Δ aldosterone tended to be higher in blacks (BL, direct renin: 12.1 ± 5.0 vs. 14.4 ± 3.7 pg/ml, p < 0.05; BL, vasopressin: 0.4 ± 0.0 vs. 1.6 ± 3.6 pg/ml, p = 0.065; Δ aldosterone: −0.9 ± 5.1 vs. 3.8 ± 7.5 ng/ml; p = 0.069). These results suggest that young normotensive white women may rely on sympathetic neural activity more so than black women who have a tendency to rely on the renal-adrenal system to regulate BP during an orthostatic stress

High-speed simulation of PCB emission and immunity with frequency-domain IC/LSI source models

Some recent results from research conducted in the EMC group at Okayama University are reviewed. A scheme for power-bus modeling with an analytical method is introduced. A linear macro-model for ICs/LSIs, called the LECCS model, has been developed for EMI and EMS simulation. This model has a very simple structure and is sufficiently accurate. Combining the LECCS model with analytical simulation techniques for power-bus resonance simulation provides a method for high-speed EMI simulation and decoupling evaluation related to PCB and LSI design. A useful explanation of the common-mode excitation mechanism, which utilizes the imbalance factor of a transmission line, is also presented. Some of the results were investigated by implementing prototypes of a high-speed EMI simulator, HISES. </p

A Normal Range of KL-6/MUC1 Independent of Elevated SP-D Indicates a Better Prognosis in the Patients with Honeycombing on High-Resolution Computed Tomography

Both SP-D and KL-6/MUC1 are established biomarkers of the interstitial pneumonias, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), but the causes and clinical outcomes based on their independent effects are not known. Eleven asymptomatic patients, detected with honeycombing on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), were compared with 17 other IPF outpatients having slight respiratory symptoms and honeycombing as well. Although SP-D was increased in both groups, KL-6 was significantly higher in the symptomatic IPF group. When the patients (n = 11) having both biomarkers elevated were compared with the other patients (n = 6) with only SP-D elevated, the distribution of fibrotic lesions with honeycombing on HRCT was larger and the survival time was shorter in the patients having both biomarkers elevated. Immunohistochemical analysis also differentiated these biomarkers in the lung. These results suggest both a cause and the prognostic value of dissociation of these biomarkers

Does respiratory drive modify the cerebral vascular response to changes in end‐tidal carbon dioxide?

What is the central question of this study? An interaction exists between the regulatory systems of respiration and cerebral blood flow (CBF), because of the same mediator (carbon dioxide, CO ) for both physiological systems. The present study examined whether the traditional method for determining cerebrovascular reactivity to CO (cerebrovascular reactivity; CVR) is modified by changes in respiration. What is the main finding and its importance? CVR was modified by voluntary changes in respiration during hypercapnia. This finding suggests that an alteration in the respiratory system may under- or over-estimate CVR determined by traditional methods in healthy adults.The cerebral vasculature is sensitive to changes in the arterial partial pressure of carbon dioxide (CO ). This physiological mechanism has been well established as a cerebrovascular reactivity to CO (CVR). However, arterial CO may not be an independent variable in the traditional method to assess CVR since the cerebral blood flow (CBF) response is partly affected by the activation of respiratory drive or higher centers in the brain. We hypothesized that CVR is modified by changes in respiration. To test our hypothesis, in the present study, ten young healthy subjects performed hyper- or hypo-ventilation to change end-tidal CO (P CO ) under different concentrations of CO gas inhalation (0, 2.0, 3.5%). We measured middle cerebral artery mean blood flow velocity (MCAVm) by transcranial Doppler to identify the CBF response to change in P CO during each condition. At each F CO condition, P CO was significantly altered by changes in ventilation, and MCA Vm changed accordingly. However, the relationship between changes in MCV Vm and P CO as a response curve of CVR was reset upwards and downwards by hypo- and hyper-ventilation, respectively, compared with CVR during normal-ventilation. The findings of the present study may provide the possibility that an alteration in respiration under- or over-estimates CVR determined by the traditional methods

Impact of noncontrast PCI for ACS

Purpose : Contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) is one of the common serious complications of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). This study aimed to assess the significance of noncontrast strategy in the setting of ACS. Methods : CI-AKI was defined as an increase in serum creatinine of ≥ 0.5 mg / dL or ≥ 1.25 times from the baseline. One-year worsening renal function (WRF) was defined as an increase of ≥ 0.3 mg / dL in serum creatinine from the baseline after PCI. Results : Of 250 ACS patients, 81 were treated with noncontrast PCI. The average doses of contrast medium in the noncontrast and conventional groups were 17 (9–22) ml and 150 (120–200) ml, respectively. CI-AKI was observed in 4 patients (5%) in the noncontrast group and 29 patients (17%) in the conventional group. Noncontrast PCI was associated with a lower incidence of CI-AKI (adjusted odds ratio, 0.26 ; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.08–0.82). The bootstrap method and inverse probability weighting led to similar results. CI-AKI was associated with a higher incidence of 1-year WRF (adjusted hazard ratio, 2.30 ; 95% CI, 1.12–4.69), while noncontrast PCI was not. Conclusions : Noncontrast PCI was associated with the lower incidence of CI-AKI in ACS patients

A Normal Range of KL-6/MUC1 Independent of Elevated SP-D Indicates a Better Prognosis in the Patients with Honeycombing on High-Resolution Computed Tomography

学術論文 (Article)journal articl

A Normal Range of KL-6/MUC1 Independent of Elevated SP-D Indicates a Better Prognosis in the Patients with Honeycombing on High-Resolution Computed Tomography

Both SP-D and KL-6/MUC1 are established biomarkers of the interstitial pneumonias, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), but the causes and clinical outcomes based on their independent effects are not known. Eleven asymptomatic patients, detected with honeycombing on high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT), were compared with 17 other IPF outpatients having slight respiratory symptoms and honeycombing as well. Although SP-D was increased in both groups, KL-6 was significantly higher in the symptomatic IPF group. When the patients (n = 11) having both biomarkers elevated were compared with the other patients (n = 6) with only SP-D elevated, the distribution of fibrotic lesions with honeycombing on HRCT was larger and the survival time was shorter in the patients having both biomarkers elevated. Immunohistochemical analysis also differentiated these biomarkers in the lung. These results suggest both a cause and the prognostic value of dissociation of these biomarkers

Synthesis of Sterically Protected Isoindoles from ortho-Phthalaldehyde

o-Phthalaldehyde (OPA) reacts with O-protected tris(hydroxyalkyl) aminomethanes in the presence of 1-propanethiol to afford a novel class of stable isoindoles. Steric protection provided by the bulkiness of C3-symmetric primary amines derived from tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane could be significant for the stabilization of 1-alkylthio-2-alkyl-substituted isoindoles derived from OPA. A plausible reaction mechanism is proposed to explain the formation of the isoindole and an isoindolin-1-one by-product

Ancient Jomon genome sequence analysis sheds light on migration patterns of early East Asian populations

Anatomically modern humans reached East Asia more than 40,000 years ago. However, key questions still remain unanswered with regard to the route(s) and the number of wave(s) in the dispersal into East Eurasia. Ancient genomes at the edge of the region may elucidate a more detailed picture of the peopling of East Eurasia. Here, we analyze the whole-genome sequence of a 2,500-year-old individual (IK002) from the main-island of Japan that is characterized with a typical Jomon culture. The phylogenetic analyses support multiple waves of migration, with IK002 forming a basal lineage to the East and Northeast Asian genomes examined, likely representing some of the earliest-wave migrants who went north from Southeast Asia to East Asia. Furthermore, IK002 shows strong genetic affinity with the indigenous Taiwan aborigines, which may support a coastal route of the Jomon-ancestry migration. This study highlights the power of ancient genomics to provide new insights into the complex history of human migration into East Eurasia