Zernike generation with MEMS deformadle mirror actuated by electrostatic piston array

2018 IEEE Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS), 21-25 Jan. 2018.We report a low-voltage and large-displacement electrostatic deformable mirror for in vivo retinal imaging by adaptive-optics optical coherence tomography. The mirror utilizes an electrostatic piston actuator which allows bottom electrodes to move vertically to keep the gap small to maintain large actuation force at low actuation voltage. An 8-mm-diameter mirror device was fabricated from two components; the mirror part and the actuator part. The parts were assembled with 7-μm-gap defined by an SU-8 layer. We successfully demonstrated operation of the mirror in various Zernike modes

Role of Survival Post-Progression in Phase III Trials of Systemic Chemotherapy in Advanced Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND: In advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), with the increasing number of active compounds available in salvage settings, survival after progression to first-line chemotherapy seems to have improved. A literature survey was conducted to examine whether survival post-progression (SPP) has improved over the years and to what degree SPP correlates with overall survival (OS). METHODS AND FINDINGS: Median progression-free survival (MPFS) time and median survival time (MST) were extracted in phase III trials of first-line chemotherapy for advanced NSCLC. SPP was pragmatically defined as the time interval of MST minus MPFS. The relationship between MPFS and MST was modeled in a linear function. We used the coefficient of determination (r(2)) to assess the correlation between them. Seventy trials with 145 chemotherapy arms were identified. Overall, median SPP was 4.7 months, and a steady improvement in SPP was observed over the 20 years (9.414-day increase per year; p<0.001) in parallel to the increase in MST (11.253-day increase per year; p<0.001); MPFS improved little (1.863-day increase per year). Overall, a stronger association was observed between MST and SPP (r(2) = 0.8917) than MST and MPFS time (r(2) = 0.2563), suggesting SPP and MPFS could account for 89% and 25% of the variation in MST, respectively. The association between MST and SPP became closer over the years (r(2) = 0.4428, 0.7242, and 0.9081 in 1988-1994, 1995-2001, and 2002-2007, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: SPP has become more closely associated with OS, potentially because of intensive post-study treatments. Even in advanced NSCLC, a PFS advantage is unlikely to be associated with an OS advantage any longer due to this increasing impact of SPP on OS, and that the prolongation of SPP might limit the original role of OS for assessing true efficacy derived from early-line chemotherapy in future clinical trials

<教育研究報告> 保育士養成課程における実習事前事後指導 : 初めての「施設実習」に向けた動機形成への取り組み

Nursery school teacher training courses require a practicum at a social welfare facility along with a practicum at a nursery school. Pre- and post-practicum guidance is a requirement for the curriculum. This paper describes the contents of the pre- and post-practicum guidance classes offered concerning the facility practicums by the authors. Many students are less motivated to pursue practicums at social welfare facilities . Therefore, a major aim of our course was to address such an issue. This paper focuses on our efforts to develop a new program that promotes the motivation of trainees to work at such facilities by discussing specific topics such as important information about facility practicums, related legislation, how to keep a daily record of practicum, class structure depending on type of facility, and goal setting

Perspectives on enteral tube feeding in Japan

[Introduction] The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in the preference of enteral tube feeding between elderly inhabitants of Mugi town, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan, and their parents in various physical conditions. [Methods] This population-based questionnaire survey studied 300 randomly selected participants aged 65–80 years. Respondents were to consider a situation where eating was difficult, and were questioned on their desire for tube feeding, using a visual analogue scale (VAS) ranging from “do not want tube feeding (0)” to “want tube feeding (100).” [Results] Valid responses of 103 (34.4%) participants were analyzed. Under conditions of being “healthy,” “bedridden,” “with dementia,” and “bedridden and with dementia,” the median (IQR) of the VAS values for the desire for tube feeding were 31.8 (3.3 to 83.8), 19.3 (2.4 to 52.3), 5.2 (0.7 to 18.9), 4.0 (0.3 to 15.2) for respondents and 55.2 (11.6 to 92.2), 48.7 (5.5 to 85.5), 9.0 (1.2 to 46.8), 5.1 (0.1 to 36.5) for parents, respectively. The VAS values for the parents were significantly higher (p=0.001, 0.002, 0.001, and 0.01, respectively for the four conditions described) for the same items. [Conclusion] Surrogate decisions made by family members often differ from what the patients would have desired

Past infections and low ACPA in RA

Background : Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), an autoimmune disease of unknown etiology, is believed to occur as the result of actions of genetic and environmental factors. In this study, we examined the relation of past histories about infectious diseases with the levels anti-citrullinated protein autoantibodies (ACPA) in RA. Methods : Results of a questionnaire about histories of infectious diseases were obtained from 85 patients with RA, and were analyzed. Results : Significantly lower level of ACPA was detected in patients with the history of tonsillitis, otitis media or urinary cystitis than in those without it. There was no difference in the level of ACPA in RA patients between with and without cold / influenza, rubella, chickenpox, herpes labialis or herpes zoster. When RA patients were divided into two groups, high-level and low-level ACPA, multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the history of otitis media was a significantly independent factor for the low level of ACPA. There was no significant relation between the level of rheumatoid factor and histories of infectious diseases. Conclusion : This study clarified that the past history of otitis media is associated with the low level of ACPA in RA

CRP in PMR and RS3PE syndrome

Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and remitting seronegative symmetrical synovitis with pitting edema (RS3PE) syndrome are common inflammatory rheumatic diseases in the elderly. In this study, we investigate predictive factors which correspond to subsequent disease control of PMR and RS3PE syndrome. Twenty four patients, which contained 18 PMR and 6 RS3PE syndrome, were treated with initial dosages of 10-20 mg per day oral prednisolone, and the dosage of prednisolone was then tapered. Significantly higher initial CRP was observed in patients with poor disease control than in those with good disease control afterwards. The number of patients with negative CRP after 4 weeks was significantly more in patients with good disease control after 1 year than in those with poor disease control. Patients were shown to be in good disease control status after 1 year when CRP after 4 weeks became negative even if they had initial high CRP. Our study clarify that to make CRP negative after 4 weeks is associated with subsequent suppression of the disease activity and with decreased dosages of corticosteroids

Development of a thick and functional human adipose-derived stem cell tissue sheet for myocardial infarction repair in rat hearts

Zhang J., Li J., Qu X., et al. Development of a thick and functional human adipose-derived stem cell tissue sheet for myocardial infarction repair in rat hearts. Stem Cell Research and Therapy 14, 380 (2023); https://doi.org/10.1186/s13287-023-03560-9.Background: Heart failure (HF) is a major cause of death worldwide. The most effective treatment for HF is heart transplantation, but its use is limited by the scarcity of donor hearts. Recently, stem cell-based therapy has emerged as a promising approach for treating myocardial infarction. Our research group has been investigating the use of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocyte patches as a potential therapeutic candidate. We have successfully conducted eight cases of clinical trials and demonstrated the safety and effectiveness of this approach. However, further advancements are necessary to overcome immune rejection and enhance therapeutic efficacy. In this study, we propose a novel and efficient technique for constructing mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) tissue sheets, which can be transplanted effectively for treating myocardial infarction repair. Methods: We applied a one-step method to construct the human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cell (hADSC) tissue sheet on a poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) fiber scaffold. Histology, immunofluorescence, and paracrine profile assessment were used to determine the organization and function of the hADSC tissue sheet. Echocardiography and pathological analyses of heart sections were performed to evaluate cardiac function, fibrosis area, angiogenesis, and left ventricular remodeling. Results: In vitro, the hADSC tissue sheet showed great organization, abundant ECM expression, and increased paracrine secretion than single cells. In vivo, the hADSC tissue sheet group demonstrated improved cardiac functional recovery, less ventricular remodeling, decreased fibrosis, and enhanced angiogenesis than the MI group. Conclusions: We developed thick and functional hADSC tissue sheets via the one-step strategy. The hADSC tissue sheet showed excellent performance in treating myocardial infarction in the rat model

Local application of Usag-1 siRNA can promote tooth regeneration in Runx2-deficient mice

Runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2)-deficient mice can be used to model congenital tooth agenesis in humans. Conversely, uterine sensitization-associated gene-1 (Usag-1)-deficient mice exhibit supernumerary tooth formation. Arrested tooth formation can be restored by crossing both knockout-mouse strains; however, it remains unclear whether topical inhibition of Usag-1 expression can enable the recovery of tooth formation in Runx2-deficient mice. Here, we tested whether inhibiting the topical expression of Usag-1 can reverse arrested tooth formation after Runx2 abrogation. The results showed that local application of Usag-1 Stealth small interfering RNA (siRNA) promoted tooth development following Runx2 siRNA-induced agenesis. Additionally, renal capsule transplantation of siRNA-loaded cationized, gelatin-treated mouse mandibles confirmed that cationized gelatin can serve as an effective drug-delivery system. We then performed renal capsule transplantation of wild-type and Runx2-knockout (KO) mouse mandibles, treated with Usag-1 siRNA, revealing that hindered tooth formation was rescued by Usag-1 knockdown. Furthermore, topically applied Usag-1 siRNA partially rescued arrested tooth development in Runx2-KO mice, demonstrating its potential for regenerating teeth in Runx2-deficient mice. Our findings have implications for developing topical treatments for congenital tooth agenesis