Burr hole locations are associated with recurrence in single burr hole drainage surgery for chronic subdural hematoma

Hashimoto H., Maruo T., Kimoto Y., et al. Burr hole locations are associated with recurrence in single burr hole drainage surgery for chronic subdural hematoma. World Neurosurgery: X 19, 100204 (2023); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wnsx.2023.100204.Background: Various factors have been reported as risk factors for chronic subdural hematomas (CSDH) recurrence. However, few studies have quantitatively evaluated the impact of CSDH locations and burr hole positions on recurrence. This study aimed to reveal the relation between CSDH recurrence and the locations of CSDH and burr holes. Methods: Initial single burr hole surgeries for CSDH with a drainage tube between April 2005 and October 2021 at Otemae Hospital were enrolled. Patients’ medical records, CSDH volume, and CSDH computed tomography values (CTV) were evaluated. The locations of CSDH and burr holes were assessed using Montreal Neurological Institute coordinates. Results: A total of 223 patients were enrolled, including 34 patients with bilateral CSDH, resulting in 257 surgeries investigated. The rate of CSDH recurrence requiring reoperation (RrR) was 13.5%. The RrR rate was significantly higher in patients aged ≥76 years, those with bilateral CSDH, and those with postoperative hemiplegia. In RrR, the preoperative CSDH volume was significantly larger, and CTV was significantly smaller. The locations of CSDH had no influence on recurrence. However, in RrR, the locations of burr holes were found to be more lateral and more ventral. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis showed that bilateral CSDH, more ventral burr hole positions, and postoperative hemiplegia were risk factors for recurrence. Conclusions: The locations of burr holes are associated with CSDH recurrence. In RrR, CSDH profiles tend to show a larger volume and reduced CTV. Hemiplegia after burr hole surgery serves as a warning sign for RrR

The association between diffusion-weighted imaging-Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score and the outcome following mechanical thrombectomy of anterior circulation occlusion

Hashimoto H., Maruo T., Kimoto Y., et al. The association between diffusion-weighted imaging-Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score and the outcome following mechanical thrombectomy of anterior circulation occlusion. Interdisciplinary Neurosurgery: Advanced Techniques and Case Management 33, 101758 (2023); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.inat.2023.101758.Background: Although preoperative diffusion-weighted imaging-Alberta Stroke Program Early Computed Tomography Score (DWI-ASPECTS) is well known as a predictor of outcomes after mechanical thrombectomy (MT) for large-vessel occlusion (LVO), assessment of changes in DWI-ASPECT from before to after MT is rare. Therefore, we clarified the relationship between the change in DWI-ASPECTS and clinical outcomes. Methods: In this retrospective single-center study, we enrolled 63 cases of anterior LVOs treated with MT between April 2015 and March 2022. Preoperative and postoperative DWI-ASPECTSs were calculated. DWI-ASPECTSs were categorized into cortical-ASPECTSs (c-ASPECTSs) and subcortical ASPECTSs and assessed. Additionally, medical variables related to patients, such as sex, age, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, and premorbid modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score, were evaluated. A good outcome was defined as an mRS score of 0–2 at 3 months. Results: Forty-five patients met the inclusion criteria. Nine (20 %) had a good outcome. The good outcome group showed significantly higher postoperative DWI-ASPECTs (median 8 vs. 5, p = 0.012) and c-ASPECTSs (median 4 vs. 3, p = 0.020) than the poor outcome group. No difference in DWI-ASPECTSs and c-ASPECTSs from before to after MT were significantly associated with the good outcome (p = 0.017, p = 0.016, respectively). The cut-off values for the good outcome on receiver operating characteristic curve analysis for differences between DWI-ASPECTSs and c-ASPECTSs were 0 [area under the curve (AUC) 0.77] and 0 [AUC 0.74]. Logistic regression analyses showed that baseline NIHSS score (odds ratio, 0.69; 95 % confidence interval 0.48–1.00; p = 0.046) and postoperative DWI-ASPECTS (odds ratio, 2.27; 95 % confidence interval 1.02–5.04; p = 0.039) were independent factors for the good outcome. Conclusions: The good outcome of patients with anterior LVO was associated with no difference in DWI-ASPECTSs and c-ASPECTSs from before to after MT

精神疾患におけるマイクログリア由来ニューレグリン発現

Several studies have revealed that neuregulins (NRGs) are involved in brain function and psychiatric disorders. While NRGs have been regarded as neuron- or astrocyte-derived molecules, our research has revealed that microglia also express NRGs, levels of which are markedly increased in activated microglia. Previous studies have indicated that microglia are activated in the brains of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Therefore, we investigated microglial NRG mRNA expression in multiple lines of mice considered models of ASD. Intriguingly, microglial NRG expression significantly increased in BTBR and socially-isolated mice, while maternal immune activation (MIA) mice exhibited identical NRG expression to controls. Furthermore, we observed a positive correlation between NRG expression in microglia and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in mice, suggesting that NRG expression in human PBMCs may mirror microglia-derived NRG expression in the human brain. To translate these findings for application in clinical psychiatry, we measured levels of NRG1 splice-variant expression in clinically available PBMCs of patients with ASD. Levels of NRG1 type III expression in PBMCs were positively correlated with impairments in social interaction in children with ASD (as assessed using the Autistic Diagnostic Interview-Revised test: ADI-R). These findings suggest that immune cell-derived NRGs may be implicated in the pathobiology of psychiatric disorders such as ASD.博士（医学）・乙第1404号・平成29年6月28日Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Strain-induced creation and switching of anion vacancy layers in perovskite oxynitrides

Using strain to control oxynitride properties. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2020-12-01.原子空孔の配列を制御する新手法の発見. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2020-12-02.Perovskite oxides can host various anion-vacancy orders, which greatly change their properties, but the order pattern is still difficult to manipulate. Separately, lattice strain between thin film oxides and a substrate induces improved functions and novel states of matter, while little attention has been paid to changes in chemical composition. Here we combine these two aspects to achieve strain-induced creation and switching of anion-vacancy patterns in perovskite films. Epitaxial SrVO3 films are topochemically converted to anion-deficient oxynitrides by ammonia treatment, where the direction or periodicity of defect planes is altered depending on the substrate employed, unlike the known change in crystal orientation. First-principles calculations verified its biaxial strain effect. Like oxide heterostructures, the oxynitride has a superlattice of insulating and metallic blocks. Given the abundance of perovskite families, this study provides new opportunities to design superlattices by chemically modifying simple perovskite oxides with tunable anion-vacancy patterns through epitaxial lattice strain

Harmonizing solubility measurement to lower inter-laboratory variance – progress of consortium of biopharmaceutical tools (CoBiTo) in Japan

The purpose of the present study was to harmonize the protocol of equilibrium solubility measurements for poorly water-soluble drugs to lower inter-laboratory variance. The “mandatory” and “recommended” procedures for the shake-flask method were harmonized based on the knowledge and experiences of each company and information from the literature. The solubility of model drugs was measured by the harmonized protocol (HP) and the non-harmonized proprietary protocol of each company (nonHP). Albendazole, griseofulvin, dipyridamole, and glibenclamide were used as model drugs. When using the nonHP, the solubility values showed large inter-laboratory variance. In contrast, inter-laboratory variance was markedly reduced when using the HP

Double negatively charged carbon vacancy at the h- and k-sites in 4H-SiC: Combined Laplace-DLTS and DFT study

We present results from combined Laplace-Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (Laplace-DLTS) and density functional theory studies of the carbon vacancy (VC) in n-type 4H-SiC. Using Laplace-DLTS, we were able to distinguish two previously unresolved sub-lattice-inequivalent emissions, causing the broad Z1/2 peak at 290K that is commonly observed by conventional DLTS in n-type 4H-SiC. This peak has two components with activation energies for electron emission of 0.58 eV and 0.65 eV. We compared these results with the acceptor levels of VC obtained by means of hybrid density functional supercell calculations. The calculations support the assignment of the Z1/2 signal to a superposition of emission peaks from double negatively charged VC defects. Taking into account the measured and calculated energy levels, the calculated relative stability of VC in hexagonal (h) and cubic (k) lattice sites, as well as the observed relative amplitude of the Laplace-DLTS peaks, we assign Z1 and Z2 to VC(h) and VC(k), respectively. We also present the preliminary results of DLTS and Laplace-DLTS measurements on deep level defects (ET1 and ET2) introduced by fast neutron irradiation and He ion implantation in 4H-SiC. The origin of ET1 and ET2 is still unclear

MuCHLoc: Indoor ZigBee Localization System Utilizing Inter-Channel Characteristics

The deployment of a large-scale indoor sensor network faces a sensor localization problem because we need to manually locate significantly large numbers of sensors when Global Positioning System (GPS) is unavailable in an indoor environment. Fingerprinting localization is a popular indoor localization method relying on the received signal strength (RSS) of radio signals, which helps to solve the sensor localization problem. However, fingerprinting suffers from low accuracy because of an RSS instability, particularly in sensor localization, owing to low-power ZigBee modules used on sensor nodes. In this paper, we present MuCHLoc, a fingerprinting sensor localization system that improves the localization accuracy by utilizing channel diversity. The key idea of MuCHLoc is the extraction of channel diversity from the RSS of Wi-Fi access points (APs) measured on multiple ZigBee channels through fingerprinting localization. MuCHLoc overcomes the RSS instability by increasing the dimensions of the fingerprints using channel diversity. We conducted experiments collecting the RSS of Wi-Fi APs in a practical environment while switching the ZigBee channels, and evaluated the localization accuracy. The evaluations revealed that MuCHLoc improves the localization accuracy by approximately 15% compared to localization using a single channel. We also showed that MuCHLoc is effective in a dynamic radio environment where the radio propagation channel is unstable from the movement of objects including humans