Association of HCV Core Antigen Seropositivity with Long-Term Mortality in Patients on Regular Hemodialysis

Anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody seropositivity is independently associated with poor prognosis in hemodialysis (HD) patients. However, anti-HCV antibody cannot distinguish between patients with active infection and those who have recovered from infection. We therefore aimed in this study to examine the association of HCV core antigen (HCVcAg) seropositivity with mortality in HD patients. We first measured serum HCVcAg using an immunoradiometric assay and anti-HCV antibody in 405 patients on regular HD, and followed them for 104 months. There were 82 patients (20.2%) who had been positive for anti-HCV antibodies; 57 (69.5%) of these were positive for HCVcAg. During the follow-up, 29 patients were excluded, so we tested the association of HCVcAg seropositivity with all-cause, cardiovascular (CV) and non-CV mortalities in 376 patients. A total of 209 patients (55.6%) had expired during the observational period, 92 out of them due to CV causes. After adjusting for comorbid parameters, HCVcAg was independently associated with overall mortality (HR 1.61, 95% CI 1.05–2.47, p < 0.05). HCV infection was significantly related to liver disease-related mortality. Past HCV infection also contributed to CV mortality (HR 2.63, 95% CI 1.27–5.45, p < 0.01). In contrast, anti-HCV antibody and HCVcAg seropositivities did not associate with infectious disease-related and cancer-related (expect for hepatocellular carcinoma) mortality. It follows from these findings that HCVcAg serology is associated with all-cause and CV mortality in HD patients

Subaru High-z Exploration of Low-luminosity Quasars (SHELLQs). XIII. Large-scale Feedback and Star Formation in a Low-luminosity Quasar at z = 7.07 on the Local Black Hole to Host Mass Relation

We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array [C II] 158 μm line and underlying far-infrared (FIR) continuum emission observations (0 70 × 0 56 resolution) toward HSC J124353.93+010038.5 (J1243+0100) at z = 7.07, the only low-luminosity (M1450 > −25 mag) quasar currently known at z > 7. The FIR continuum is bright (1.52 mJy) and resolved with a total luminosity of LFIR = 3.5 × 1012 Le. The spatially extended component is responsible for ∼40% of the emission. The area-integrated [C II] spectrum shows a broad wing (FWHM = 997 km s−1 , L[C II] = 1.2 × 109 Le), as well as a bright core (FWHM = 235 km s−1 , L[C II] = 1.9 × 109 Le). This wing is the first detection of a galactic-scale quasar-driven outflow (atomic outflow rate >447 Me yr−1 ) at z > 7. The estimated large mass-loading factor of the total outflow (e.g., 9 relative to the [C II]-based star formation rate) suggests that this outflow will soon quench the star formation of the host. The core gas dynamics are governed by rotation, with a rotation curve suggestive of a compact bulge (∼3.3 × 1010 Me), although it is not yet spatially resolved. Finally, we found that J1243+0100 has a black hole mass–to–dynamical mass (and –to–bulge mass) ratio of ∼0.4% (∼1%), consistent with the local value within the uncertainties. Our results therefore suggest that the black hole–host coevolution relation is already in place at z ∼ 7 for this object

Subaru High-z Exploration of Low-luminosity Quasars (SHELLQs). XII. Extended [C ii] Structure (Merger or Outflow) in a z = 6.72 Red Quasar

We present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array [C II] 158 μm line and far-infrared (FIR) continuum emission observations toward HSC J120505.09−000027.9 (J1205−0000) at z = 6.72 with a beam size of ∼0 8 × 0 5 (or 4.1 kpc × 2.6 kpc), the most distant red quasar known to date. Red quasars are modestly reddened by dust and are thought to be in rapid transition from an obscured starburst to an unobscured normal quasar, driven by powerful active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback that blows out a cocoon of interstellar medium. The FIR continuum of J1205−0000 is bright, with an estimated luminosity of LFIR ∼ 3 × 1012 Le. The [C II] line emission is extended on scales of r ∼ 5 kpc, greater than that of the FIR continuum. The line profiles at the extended regions are complex and broad (FWHM ∼ 630–780 km s−1 ). Although it is not practical to identify the nature of this extended structure, possible explanations include (i) companion/merging galaxies and (ii) massive AGN-driven outflows. For the case of (i), the companions are modestly star-forming (∼10 Me yr−1 ) but are not detected by our Subaru optical observations (yAB,5σ = 24.4 mag). For the case of (ii), our lower limit to the cold neutral outflow rate is ∼100 Me yr−1 . The outflow kinetic energy and momentum are both much lower than predicted in energyconserving wind models, suggesting that the AGN feedback in this quasar is not capable of completely suppressing its star formatio

Efficacy of salvage therapies for advanced acral melanoma after anti-PD-1 monotherapy failure: a multicenter retrospective study of 108 Japanese patients

BackgroundAnti-programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) monotherapy is one of the standard systemic therapies for advanced melanoma; however, the efficacy of salvage systemic therapies after PD-1 monotherapy failure (PD-1 MF), particularly in acral melanoma (AM), the main clinical melanoma type in Japanese patients, is unclear. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of salvage systemic therapies in Japanese patients with AM after PD-1 MF.Patients and methodsThe study included 108 patients with advanced AM (palm and sole, 72; nail apparatus, 36) who underwent salvage systemic therapy at 24 Japanese institutions. We mainly assessed the objective response rate (ORR), progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS).ResultsThirty-six (33%) patients received ipilimumab, 23 (21%) received nivolumab and ipilimumab (nivo/ipi), 10 (9%) received cytotoxic chemotherapy, 4 (4%) received BRAF and MEK inhibitors (BRAFi/MEKi), and the remaining 35 (32%) continued with PD-1 monotherapy after disease progression. The ORRs in the ipilimumab, nivo/ipi, cytotoxic chemotherapy, and BRAFi/MEKi groups were 8, 17, 0, and 100%, respectively. The nivo/ipi group showed the longest OS (median, 18.9 months); however, differences in ORR, PFS, and OS between the groups were insignificant. The OS in the nivo/ipi group was higher in the palm and sole groups than in the nail apparatus group (median: not reached vs. 8.7 months, p &lt; 0.001). Cox multivariate analysis demonstrated that nail apparatus melanoma independently predicted unfavorable PFS and OS (p = 0.006 and 0.001). The total OS (from PD-1 monotherapy initiation to death/last follow-up) was insignificant between the groups.ConclusionNivo/ipi was not more effective than cytotoxic chemotherapy and ipilimumab after PD-1 MF in patients with advanced AM. The prognosis after PD-1 MF would be poorer for nail apparatus melanoma than for palm and sole melanoma

Search for continuous gravitational wave emission from the Milky Way center in O3 LIGO--Virgo data

We present a directed search for continuous gravitational wave (CW) signals emitted by spinning neutron stars located in the inner parsecs of the Galactic Center (GC). Compelling evidence for the presence of a numerous population of neutron stars has been reported in the literature, turning this region into a very interesting place to look for CWs. In this search, data from the full O3 LIGO--Virgo run in the detector frequency band $[10,2000]\rm~Hz$ have been used. No significant detection was found and 95$\%$ confidence level upper limits on the signal strain amplitude were computed, over the full search band, with the deepest limit of about $7.6\times 10^{-26}$ at $\simeq 142\rm~Hz$. These results are significantly more constraining than those reported in previous searches. We use these limits to put constraints on the fiducial neutron star ellipticity and r-mode amplitude. These limits can be also translated into constraints in the black hole mass -- boson mass plane for a hypothetical population of boson clouds around spinning black holes located in the GC.Comment: 25 pages, 5 figure