Influence of the Consideration of Future Consequences on Financial Behavior: The Case of Japanese Individual Investors

We analyze the impact of the “consideration of future consequences” (CFC) on the amount of financial assets and the liabilities of individual investors by applying a Tobit model to data from a web-based survey. We find that impatient individuals with high CFC have fewer deposits and financial asset balances. We also examine the influence of the CFC-immediate (CFC-I) and CFC-future (CFC-F) sub-indicators often used in psychology as well as CFC on financial asset balances and liabilities. CFC-I show concern with immediate consequences and also an index related to ego depletion. We find that the higher the CFC-I, the lower the amount of deposits and financial asset balances. However, CFC-F is a sub-indicator designating lack of concern with future consequences; thus, the higher the CFC-F, the larger the debt

Full MAC System Demonstration of Extended 10G-EPON Uplink with 512 ONU Splits Access Span via Burst-Mode SOA and Enhanced-FEC combined with Burst-Mode 3R

This first Extended 10G-EPON uplink system test achieved the largest access span loss of 37 dB supporting 512 ONU splits over 25 km with an enlarged loss budget of 51.2 dB via burst-mode SOA, E-FEC and burst-mode 3R

Dynamic X-ray Diffraction Technique for Measuring Rheo-optical Properties of Crystalline Polymeric Materials

A dynamic X-ray diffraction technique, which can follow the responses of polymer crystals (crystallization, orientation, and lattice deformation) to a mechanical excitation of sinusoidal strain induced to a bulk specimen, was described. The descriptions for such responses are qualitatively made by using a narrow sector technique, which can measure the X-ray diffraction intensity distribution at a particular phase angle of the sinusoidal strain as a function of static and dynamic strains, temperature, and angular frequency. A typical result is demonstrated in terms of the investigation of orientationcrystallization phenomena of natural rubber vulcanizates. More quantitative descriptions can be made by using a half-circle sector technique, which can measure the in-phase and out-of phase components of the dynamic X-ray diffraction intensity distribution. From these, one can obtain the dynamic strain-induced crystallization and orientation coefficients and the dynamic response of lattice deformation of a specific crystal plane both as functions of temperature and frequency. After a brief survey of the principle of the half-circle sector technique, frequency dependence of the dynamic strain-induced crystallization coefficients of the (002) and (200) crystal planes of natural rubber vulcanizates is demonstrated in terms of the two frequency dispersion regions around 10⁻² and 10¹ Hz at a room temperature. The former and latter dispersions must be correlated with the crystallization processes of the so-called α- and γ-filaments, respectively. In addition, frequency and temperature dispersions of the dynamic strain-induced orientation coefficient and the dynamic response of lattice deformation of the (110) crystal plane of polyethylene are demonstrated in relation to the so-called a₁ and a₂ dispersions of dynamic mechanical modulus function of this material

Case Report: De Clerambault's Syndrome in Dementia With Lewy Bodies

Background: Erotomania, also known as de Clerambault's syndrome, is characterized by the delusion that a person has fallen in love with the patient. It occasionally appears secondary to psychiatric disorders and organic brain diseases. However, there have been no reports on cases secondary to dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB).Case Presentation: The patient was an 83-year-old woman who lived alone. Mild cognitive impairment appeared at the age of 82 years. Soon after, she had the delusional conviction that her family doctor was in love with her. Her symptoms, such as gradually progressive cognitive impairment, cognitive fluctuations, and parkinsonism, indicated DLB. She was treated with a small dose of antipsychotic agents.Conclusions: This case report suggests the possibility of de Clerambault's syndrome during the early stages of DLB. Further investigations are required to clarify the mechanism and treatment of de Clerambault's syndrome in patients with DLB

Immunohistochemical Examination of a Resected Advanced Hilar Cholangiocarcinoma Arising in a 29-Year-Old Male without Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis

A 29-year-old man with advanced hilar cholangiocarcinoma was successfully treated with an extended right lobectomy. The carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9) level was elevated to 939 IU/l, and the pathological findings revealed moderately differentiated tubular adenocarcinoma which involved almost the entire thickness of the hepatic duct and the adjacent liver tissue (T3) and which was associated with lymph node metastasis (N1). It was a stage IIB (T3N1M0) tubular adenocarcinoma according to UICC pathological staging. Immunohistochemical examination revealed that Ki-67, cyclin D1, and MMP-7 were positive, and 14-3-3σ and p27 were negative. The pathological and immunohistochemical findings indicated high malignant potential indicating poor prognosis. We administrated the postoperative adjunct gemcitabine combined with S-1 chemotherapy. The patient is alive without recurrence and doing well two years after surgery. We also review other reports of cholangiocarcinoma patients aged less than 30 years

The role of Kyoto classification in the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori infection and histologic gastritis among young subjects in Japan

　BACKGROUND AND AIM: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection induces inflammation of the gastric mucosa and leads to erosions, gastro-duodenal mucosa atrophy, and intestinal metaplasia. The Kyoto classification diagnoses H. pylori infection via endoscopic findings. We aimed to clarify the role of the Kyoto classification in diagnosing H. pylori infection and histologic gastritis in young Japanese individuals.　METHODS: From1031 consecutive subjects aged ≤29 years who underwent esophagogastroduodenal endoscopy at our two hospitals from 2010 to 2017, 220 were selected for participation in the present study. Endoscopic biopsy specimens from the antrum and corpus were used to investigate H. pylori infection and histology. Endoscopic and histological interpretations were based on the Kyoto classification and updated Sydney System. H. pylori infection was confirmed by histology and Giemsa or Gimenez staining.　RESULTS: Endoscopic findings were normal in 103 cases. Atrophy was found in 56 cases; diffuse redness, in 45 cases; nodularity, in 38 cases; and mucosal swelling, in 34 cases. The infection rate was 30.9% (68/220). In total, 67 subjects with H. pylori -positive endoscopic findings and confirmed as H. pylori -positive had histologic gastritis of the antrum and corpus. In contrast, of 153 subjects with H. pylori -negative endoscopic findings only 1 was subsequently confirmed to be H. pylori positive. Among the 67 subjects with H. pylori -positive endoscopic findings, 23 (34.3%) presented with histological atrophic gastritis of the corpus and 6 (9.0%) with intestinal metaplasia.　CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show that H. pylori infection is strongly associated with endoscopic and histologic gastritis in young subjects and both H. pylori infection and histologic gastritis can be evaluated endoscopically based on the Kyoto classification. Furthermore, prompt H. pylori eradication may prevent gastric cancer development given the high prevalence of atrophic gastritis and intestinal metaplasia in young Japanese individuals

Validation of the Japanese version of the Social Functioning in Dementia scale and COVID-19 pandemic's impact on social function in mild cognitive impairment and mild dementia

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to psychometrically evaluate and validate a Japanese version of the Social Functioning in Dementia scale (SF-DEM-J) and investigate changes in social function in people with dementia during the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic. DESIGN: We interviewed people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and mild dementia and their caregivers during June 2020-March 2021 to validate patient- and caregiver-rated SF-DEM-J and compared their scores at baseline (April 2020 to May 2020) and at 6-8 months (January 2021 to March 2021) during a time of tighter COVID-19 restrictions. SETTING: The neuropsychology clinic in the Department of Psychiatry at Osaka University Hospital and outpatient clinic in the Department of Psychiatry and Neurology at Daini Osaka Police Hospital, Japan. PARTICIPANTS: 103 dyads of patients and caregivers. MEASUREMENTS: SF-DEM-J, Mini-Mental State Examination, Neuropsychiatric Inventory, UCLA Loneliness Scale, and Apathy Evaluation Scale. RESULTS: The scale's interrater reliability was excellent and test-retest reliability was substantial. Content validity was confirmed for the caregiver-rated SF-DEM-J, and convergent validity was moderate. Caregiver-rated SF-DEM-J was associated with apathy, irritability, loneliness, and cognitive impairment. The total score of caregiver-rated SF-DEM-J and the score of Section 2, "communication with others," significantly improved at 6-8 months of follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: The SF-DEM-J is acceptable as a measure of social function in MCI and mild dementia. Our results show that the social functioning of people with dementia, especially communicating with others, improved during the COVID-19 pandemic, probably as a result of adaptation to the restrictive life

The Role of the OR Region in BSE Pathogenesis

Conformational conversion of the cellular isoform of prion protein PrPC, into the abnormally folded, amyloidogenic isoform, PrPSc, is a key pathogenic event in prion diseases including Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans and scrapie and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in animals. We previously reported that the octapeptide repeat (OR) region could be dispensable for converting PrPC into PrPSc after infection with RML prions. We demonstrated that mice transgenically expressing mouse PrP with deletion of the OR region on the PrP-knockout background, designated Tg(PrPΔOR)/Prnp0/0 mice, did not reduced susceptibility to RML scrapie prions, with abundant accumulation of PrPScΔOR in their brains. We show here that Tg(PrPΔOR)/Prnp0/0 mice were highly resistant to BSE prions, developing the disease with markedly elongated incubation times after infection with BSE prions. The conversion of PrPΔOR into PrPScΔOR was markedly delayed in their brains. These results suggest that the OR region may have a crucial role in the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc after infection with BSE prions. However, Tg(PrPΔOR)/Prnp0/0 mice remained susceptible to RML and 22L scrapie prions, developing the disease without elongated incubation times after infection with RML and 22L prions. PrPScΔOR accumulated only slightly less in the brains of RML- or 22L-infected Tg(PrPΔOR)/Prnp0/0 mice than PrPSc in control wild-type mice. Taken together, these results indicate that the OR region of PrPC could play a differential role in the pathogenesis of BSE prions and RML or 22L scrapie prions. IMPORTANCE Structure-function relationship studies of PrPC conformational conversion into PrPSc are worthwhile to understand the mechanism of the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc. We show here that, by inoculating the three different prion strains of RML, 22L and BSE prions, into Tg(PrP∆OR)/Prnp0/0 mice, the OR region could play a differential role in the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc after infection with RML or 22L scrapie prions and BSE prions. PrPΔOR was efficiently converted into PrPScΔOR after infection with RML and 22L prions. However, the conversion of PrPΔOR into PrPScΔOR was markedly delayed after infection with BSE prions. Further investigation into the role of the OR region in the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc after infection with BSE prions might be helpful for understanding the pathogenesis of BSE prions

Complete response to pembrolizumab in advanced hepatocellular carcinoma with microsatellite instability

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has limited systemic treatment options and a poor prognosis. The immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab was recently approved for the treatment of solid tumors with microsatellite instability (MSI). However, its clinical utility for the management of HCC remains to be clarified. Here, we present a case of unresectable HCC with MSI that showed an impressive response to pembrolizumab treatment. A 64-year-old man with chronic HCV infection was diagnosed with a large HCC. His severe liver dysfunction and poor performance status prevented any treatment option other than sorafenib. However, sorafenib failed after a few days due to the rapid progression of the tumor. Based on the finding of MSI in a biopsy specimen, immunotherapy using pembrolizumab was initiated. A dramatic improvement in his general condition and a reduction in tumor size were observed after the initiation of pembrolizumab treatment. Among a cohort of 50 consecutive patients with advanced HCC who were refractory to standard systemic therapy, MSI was found only in the present case. Immune checkpoint blockade therapy induced prominent anti-tumor effects in HCC with MSI. Screening for defects in DNA mismatch repair function may be warranted in HCC patients despite the low frequency of MSI