単一ドップラーライダのためのパラメトリック風速ベクトル推定法

ドップラーレーダは受信信号の周波数偏移量を抽出して，観測領域の風向・風速を高分解能に推定できるため，空港周辺の気象監視等への応用が考えられる．しかし，レーダは降水粒子や雲粒子からの散乱波を計測するため，晴天時には運用が困難であった．一方，発振源安定化技術の向上により，波長数マイクロメートルのレーザ光を用いるドップラーライダの風向・風速観測システムへの応用機運が高まっている．同システムは，大気中の微粒子(エアルゾル) からの散乱波を利用するため，晴天時の観測が可能である．単一のドップラーライダで風向・風速を推定する手法に，VAD(VAD:Velocity Azimuth Display)法，VVP(VVP:Velocity Volume Processing)法がある．両手法は，局所的な観測領域における風の一様性や線形変化を仮定することにより，風速ベクトルを推定する．しかし，これらの方法では竜巻のように風の変化が顕著な場合においては，大きな推定誤差を生じる問題があった．同問題に対し，筆者は相関領域を風速場に応じて自動最適化機能を持つ拡張VAD法を考案し，これにより風向・風速の推定精度が向上することを明らかにした．しかしながら，実用化するためにはさらに推定精度を向上させることが必要であった．本研究では，推定精度向上を目的として，風速場を数理モデルで表し，モデルのパラメータを同定することで，風向・風速推定する方法を提案する．本手法は，乱気流モデルごとに設けた評価関数の最適化により風速パラメータを推定し，最適パラメータ時の評価関数値の比較により観測領域の乱気流を決定する．ここでは，多峰性を有する評価関数を導入するため，大局的な探索法として知られる粒子群最適化(PSO:Particle Swarm Optimization)を用いて最適化の精度向上を図る．数値計算に基づく性能評価により，本研究の有効性を確認する．電気通信大学201

Parametric Wind Velocity Vector Estimation Method for Single Doppler LIDAR Model

Doppler lidar (LIght Detection And Ranging) can provide accurate wind velocity vector estimates by processing the time delay and Doppler spectrum of received signals. This system is essential for real-time wind monitoring to assist aircraft taking off and landing. Considering the difficulty of calibration and cost, a single Doppler lidar model is more attractive and practical than a multiple lidar model. In general, it is impossible to estimate two or three dimensional wind vectors from a single lidar model without any prior information, because lidar directly observes only a 1-dimensional (radial direction) velocity component of wind. Although the conventional VAD (Velocity Azimuth Display) and VVP (Velocity Volume Processing) methods have been developed for single lidar model, both of them are inaccurate in the presence of local air turbulence. This paper proposes an accurate wind velocity estimation method based on a parametric approach using typical turbulence models such as tornado, micro-burst and gust front. The results from numerical simulation demonstrate that the proposed method remarkably enhances the accuracy for wind velocity estimation in the assumed modeled turbulence cases, compared with that obtained by the VAD or other conventional method

Pre-malignant signs of gastric MALT lymphoma

Mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma is the most common type of extra-nodal non-Hodgkin lymphoma, which mostly involves the stomach. The clinical suspicion and diagnosis are often challenging because of the lack of specific symptoms and conventional endoscopic findings. Three magnifying endoscopic signs of the gastric mucosa have been described as highly specific to the diagnosis of MALT lymphoma, such as (i) tree-like appearance of the microvessels; (ii) non-structural area; and (iii) ballooning crypt pattern. We report the case of a middle-aged woman in which these signs appeared chronologically over a period of 2 years, showing the association of the sequence of the endoscopic findings and the final histological diagnosis of gastric MALT lymphoma

Mild Acute Graft-Versus-Host Disease Improves Outcomes After HLA-Haploidentical-Related Donor Transplantation Using Posttransplant Cyclophosphamide and Cord Blood Transplantation

Haploidentical-related donor transplantation using posttransplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy-haplo) and cord blood transplantation (CBT) are valid alternatives for patients with hematological malignancies when HLA-matched donor transplantation (MDT) is unavailable. However, the effects of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) on outcomes after these transplants have not been fully elucidated. Therefore, we evaluated the effects of acute and chronic GVHD on transplant outcomes after PTCy-haplo transplants and compared them with CBT and MDT. We included a total of 914 adult patients with hematological malignancies in the Kyoto Stem Cell Transplantation Group registry who received PTCy-haplo (N = 120), CBT (N = 402), and MDT (N = 392), and achieved neutrophil engraftment. A multivariate analysis revealed that grade I-II acute GVHD improved of overall survival (OS) after PTCy-haplo [hazard ratio (HR) = 0.39, P = 0.018] and CBT (HR = 0.48, P < 0.001), but not after MDT (HR = 0.80, P = 0.267) compared with patients without acute GVHD. Grade I-II acute GVHD had a trend toward reducing the risk of nonrelapse mortality (NRM) after PTCy-haplo (HR = 0.13, P = 0.060) and this positive effect was significant after CBT (HR = 0.39, P = 0.003). A negative impact of grade III-IV acute GVHD on NRM was observed after CBT and MDT, but not after PTCy-haplo. Limited chronic GVHD had a positive impact on OS after CBT and MDT, but not after PTCy-haplo. In conclusion, mild acute GVHD improved outcomes after PTCy-haplo and CBT, and limited chronic GVHD improved outcomes after CBT and MDT. These data indicated that the effects of GVHD on transplant outcomes depended on transplant platforms

Cilostazol Activates Function of Bone Marrow-Derived Endothelial Progenitor Cell for Re-endothelialization in a Carotid Balloon Injury Model

BACKGROUND: Cilostazol(CLZ) has been used as a vasodilating anti-platelet drug clinically and demonstrated to inhibit proliferation of smooth muscle cells and effect on endothelial cells. However, the effect of CLZ on re-endothelialization including bone marrow (BM)-derived endothelial progenitor cell (EPC) contribution is unclear. We have investigated the hypothesis that CLZ might accelerate re-endothelialization with EPCs. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Balloon carotid denudation was performed in male Sprague-Dawley rats. CLZ group was given CLZ mixed feed from 2 weeks before carotid injury. Control group was fed normal diet. CLZ accelerated re-endothelialization at 2 weeks after surgery and resulted in a significant reduction of neointima formation 4 weeks after surgery compared with that in control group. CLZ also increased the number of circulating EPCs throughout the time course. We examined the contribution of BM-derived EPCs to re-endothelialization by BM transplantation from Tie2/lacZ mice to nude rats. The number of Tie2-regulated X-gal positive cells on injured arterial luminal surface was increased at 2 weeks after surgery in CLZ group compared with that in control group. In vitro, CLZ enhanced proliferation, adhesion and migration activity, and differentiation with mRNA upregulation of adhesion molecule integrin αvβ3, chemokine receptor CXCR4 and growth factor VEGF assessed by real-time RT-PCR in rat BM-derived cultured EPCs. In addition, CLZ markedly increased the expression of SDF-1α that is a ligand of CXCR4 receptor in EPCs, in the media following vascular injury. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: CLZ promotes EPC mobilization from BM and EPC recruitment to sites of arterial injury, and thereby inhibited neointima formation with acceleration of re-endothelialization with EPCs as well as pre-existing endothelial cells in a rat carotid balloon injury model. CLZ could be not only an anti-platelet agent but also a promising tool for endothelial regeneration, which is a key event for preventing atherosclerosis or restenosis after vascular intervention

Influence of the combination of SGLT2 inhibitors and GLP-1 receptor agonists on eGFR decline in type 2 diabetes: post-hoc analysis of RECAP study

Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that both SGLT2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) and GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP1Ra) have protective effects in patients with diabetic kidney disease. Combination therapy with SGLT2i and GLP1Ra is commonly used in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D). We previously reported that in combination therapy of SGLT2i and GLP1Ra, the effect on the renal composite outcome did not differ according to the preceding drug. However, it remains unclear how the initiation of combination therapy is associated with the renal function depending on the preceding drug. In this post hoc analysis, we analyzed a total of 643 T2D patients (GLP1Ra-preceding group, n = 331; SGLT2i-preceding group, n = 312) and investigated the differences in annual eGFR decline. Multiple imputation and propensity score matching were performed to compare the annual eGFR decline. The reduction in annual eGFR decline in the SGLT2i-preceding group (pre: −3.5 ± 9.4 mL/min/1.73 m2/year, post: −0.4 ± 6.3 mL/min/1.73 m2/year, p &lt; 0.001), was significantly smaller after the initiation of GLP1Ra, whereas the GLP1Ra-preceding group tended to slow the eGFR decline but not to a statistically significant extent (pre: −2.0 ± 10.9 mL/min/1.73 m2/year, post: −1.8 ± 5.4 mL/min/1.73 m2/year, p = 0.83) after the initiation of SGLT2i. After the addition of GLP1Ra to SGLT2i-treated patients, slower annual eGFR decline was observed. Our data raise the possibility that the renal benefits—especially annual eGFR decline—of combination therapy with SGLT2i and GLP1Ra may be affected by the preceding drug

Effects of HMGB1 on Tricellular Tight Junctions via TGF-β Signaling in Human Nasal Epithelial Cells

様々な組織の炎症性疾患と密接な関係があるHigh mobility group box-1（HMGB1）は，主に核内に局在して転写の制御を行うとともに，細胞死や炎症性の刺激によって細胞外に放出され細胞障害性のシグナルを誘導するとされている．アレルギー性鼻炎や慢性副鼻腔炎の病態においてHMGB1が密接な関連があり，今回われわれはHMGB1 がTGF-βシグナリングを介して3細胞間接着分子であるangulin-1/LSRの発現を低下させることでバリア機能を低下させることを明らかとした