Combination of Paeoniae Radix and Cnidii Rhizoma Prolonged Survival of Fully Mismatched Cardiac Allografts and Generated Regulatory Cells in Mice

In previous studies, we have demonstrated that Tokishakuyakusan (TJ-23) can prolong the survival of allogeneic cardiac grafts and induce regulatory T cells. In this study we investigated the effects of Paeoniae radix and Cnidii rhizoma, two components of TJ-23, on alloimmune responses in a murine cardiac transplantation model and whether the two agents have synergistic effect. CBA mice underwent transplantation of a C57BL/6 heart and received oral administration of 2 g/kg/day of Paeoniae radix, Cnidii rhizoma, or the mixture of two agents from the day of transplantation until 7 days afterward. Naïve CBA mice rejected C57BL/6 cardiac graft acutely (median survival time (MST): 7 days). Paeoniae radix and Cnidii rhizoma prolonged C57BL/6 allograft survival (MSTs: 13.5 and 15.5 days, resp.). However, the mixture of two agents prolonged C57BL/6 allograft survival indefinitely (MST > 100 days). Secondary CBA recipients given whole splenocytes from primary combination-treated CBA recipients with B6 cardiac allografts 30 days after grafting had prolonged survival of B6 hearts (MST: 33 days). Flow cytometry studies showed that the CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory cell population was increased in combination-treated recipients. Combination of Paeoniae radix and Cnidii rhizoma induced hyporesponsiveness to fully allogeneic cardiac allografts and may generate CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory cells in our model

Power-Law Inter-Spike Interval Distributions Infer a Conditional Maximization of Entropy in Cortical Neurons

The brain is considered to use a relatively small amount of energy for its efficient information processing. Under a severe restriction on the energy consumption, the maximization of mutual information (MMI), which is adequate for designing artificial processing machines, may not suit for the brain. The MMI attempts to send information as accurate as possible and this usually requires a sufficient energy supply for establishing clearly discretized communication bands. Here, we derive an alternative hypothesis for neural code from the neuronal activities recorded juxtacellularly in the sensorimotor cortex of behaving rats. Our hypothesis states that in vivo cortical neurons maximize the entropy of neuronal firing under two constraints, one limiting the energy consumption (as assumed previously) and one restricting the uncertainty in output spike sequences at given firing rate. Thus, the conditional maximization of firing-rate entropy (CMFE) solves a tradeoff between the energy cost and noise in neuronal response. In short, the CMFE sends a rich variety of information through broader communication bands (i.e., widely distributed firing rates) at the cost of accuracy. We demonstrate that the CMFE is reflected in the long-tailed, typically power law, distributions of inter-spike intervals obtained for the majority of recorded neurons. In other words, the power-law tails are more consistent with the CMFE rather than the MMI. Thus, we propose the mathematical principle by which cortical neurons may represent information about synaptic input into their output spike trains

Reproductive Seasonality, Estrous Cycle, Pregnancy, and the Recurrence of Postpartum Estrus Based on Long-Term Profiles of Fecal Sex Steroid Hormone Metabolites regarding Zoo-Housed Female Golden Takins (<i>Budorcas taxicolor bedfordi</i>)

This study investigates the non-invasive monitoring of the endocrine ovarian activities of captive female golden takins (Budorcas taxicolor bedfordi) based on long-term fecal sex steroid hormone metabolite dynamics. Fecal progesterone (P4) metabolite dynamics were monitored in nine females for 0.5–15 years between 2004 and 2022. Fecal estradiol-17β (E2) and estrone (E1) metabolites were measured during certain estrous cycles, and fecal E1 metabolite concentrations were measured during all gestation periods. The breeding season of the captive animals was mainly between May and December, and they were polyestrous animals whose breeding season begins during the long-day period. The onset of the breeding season occurred slightly earlier as age increased. The mean age (±SD) at puberty based on fecal P4 metabolite dynamics was 4.1 ± 2.9 years. The first conception ages ranged from 2.3–10.2 years. The mean estrous cycle period (±SEM) was 25.4 ± 1.1 days, and mounting and mating occurred in periods of low fecal P4 metabolite levels during the breeding season. The mean gestation period (±SD) from the estimated mating date to the calving date was 253.9 ± 5.7 days, and the fecal P4 metabolite distribution during pregnancy was bimodal. Fecal estrone metabolite levels gradually increased 21 weeks before delivery, peaked during the week of delivery, and then markedly decreased in the first week after delivery. Estrus resumed in the first April–August period after delivery (mean ± SD; 103.5 ± 40.9 days) or in May of the year after delivery (421.0 ± 16.5 days). This study revealed that the estrous cycle and pregnancy of female golden takins can be determined by fecal progesterone metabolite dynamics and that fecal estrone metabolite dynamics increases toward parturition and are useful for predicting the date of delivery. This endocrinological information is important for planned breeding efforts for the golden takins

Utility of Cardiac Rehabilitation for Long-Term Outcomes in Patients with Hospital-Acquired Functional Decline after Cardiac Surgery: A Retrospective Study

Hospital-acquired functional decline is an important outcome that affects the long-term prognosis of patients after cardiac surgery. Phase II cardiac rehabilitation (CR) for outpatients is expected to improve prognosis; however, this is not clear in patients with hospital-acquired functional decline after cardiac surgery. Therefore, this study evaluated whether phase II CR improved the long-term prognosis of patients with hospital-acquired functional decline after cardiac surgery. This single-center, retrospective observational study included 2371 patients who required cardiac surgery. Hospital-acquired functional decline occurred in 377 patients (15.9%) after cardiac surgery. The mean follow-up period was 1219 ± 682 days in all patients, and there were 221 (9.3%) cases with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) after discharge during the follow-up period. The Kaplan–Meier survival curves indicated that hospital-acquired functional decline and non-phase II CR was associated with a higher incidence of MACE than other groups (log-rank, p p = 0.047). Hospital-acquired functional decline after cardiac surgery and non-phase II CR were risk factors for MACE. The participation in phase II CR in patients with hospital-acquired functional decline after cardiac surgery could reduce the risk of MACE

Successful resection of a primary angiosarcoma of the azygos vein: A case report

Abstract A 63‐year‐old woman was admitted to our department for the investigation of superior vena cava (SVC) syndrome. Computed tomography revealed an azygos tumor extending into the SVC. Video‐assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) was performed to remove the distal end of the azygos vein in the left lateral position, followed by complete resection of the entire tumor under median sternotomy in the supine position. The histological diagnosis was a primary angiosarcoma of the azygos vein. The patient was discharged without any complications and is now alive and tumor‐free 24 months after surgery. In addition, contrast‐enhanced computed tomography revealed no graft occlusion in the two reconstructed brachiocephalic veins. Thoracoscopic surgery in the lateral position is useful for safe and reliable complete resection of a tumor arising from the azygos vein

Efficient mutation induction using heavy-ion beam irradiation and simple genomic screening with random primers in taro (Colocasia esculenta L. Schott)

Progress in conventional breeding methods for taro (Colocasia esculenta L. Schott) via crossing has been limited, and suitable genetic materials for the development of new cultivars are scarce as most commercial taro cultivars are either non-flowering or rarely flowering triploids. In an attempt to advance taro breeding, we performed mutational breeding by heavy-ion beam irradiation of multiple shoots of ‘Chiba maru’ cultivar. Using 2–10 Gy neon and carbon ion beams, we achieved a plant survival rate of more than 90 % and used 94 surviving plants for genomic screening. To efficiently detect DNA polymorphisms induced by ion beam irradiation in young plants, we used five sets of 15-mer randomly amplified polymorphic DNA and arbitrarily primed-polymerase chain reaction random primers based on retrotransposon sequences for genomic screening. Two plants had polymorphic DNA bands, and the specific DNA patterns were maintained in all leaves. In one of these plants, which lacked somatic mosaicism (Cm10), the polymorphic patterns were maintained in the leaves and cormels of clones propagated from daughter cormels. Ion beam irradiation of multiple taro shoots could thus generate mutants that can be developed as new cultivars; the resulting novel polymorphic patterns would facilitate inter- and intra-cultivar identification