The Significance of Age and Causative Bacterial Morphology in the Choice of an Antimicrobial Agent to Treat Acute Uncomplicated Cystitis

Differentiating patients by age and causative bacterial morphology might aid in making the appropriate choice of antimicrobial agent when treating acute uncomplicated cystitis. In this retrospective analysis, the non-susceptibility rates of the causative bacteria to cefcapene-pivoxil (CFPN-PI) and levofloxacin (LVFX) were determined after dividing patients with acute uncomplicated cystitis by age group (15-54 and 55-74 years old) and by bacterial morphology: gram-positive cocci (GPC) or gram-negative rod (GNR). The overall non-susceptibility rates for CFPN-PI and LVFX were 19.4% and 15.3%, respectively. When the subjects were divided by age, only the non-susceptibility rate for LVFX in the younger group significantly decreased (to 8.7%). When the groups were divided by both age and bacterial morphology, the younger GNR group had non-susceptibility rates of 6.9% to CFPN-PI and 7.8% to LVFX, whereas the younger GPC group showed 10.2% non-susceptibility to LVFX. The older GNR group showed 9.8% non-susceptibility to CFPN-PI, while the older GPC group showed 7.2% non-susceptibility to LVFX. All the non-susceptibility rates were lower than 10.2% in the sub-divided groups. Differentiating patients by age and the morphology of causative bacteria can aid in making the appropriate choice of antimicrobial agent and may improve treatment outcomes in patients with acute uncomplicated cystitis

Real-time Trading System based on Selections of Potentially Profitable, Uncorrelated, and Balanced Stocks by NP-hard Combinatorial Optimization

Financial portfolio construction problems are often formulated as quadratic and discrete (combinatorial) optimization that belong to the nondeterministic polynomial time (NP)-hard class in computational complexity theory. Ising machines are hardware devices that work in quantum-mechanical/quantum-inspired principles for quickly solving NP-hard optimization problems, which potentially enable making trading decisions based on NP-hard optimization in the time constraints for high-speed trading strategies. Here we report a real-time stock trading system that determines long(buying)/short(selling) positions through NP-hard portfolio optimization for improving the Sharpe ratio using an embedded Ising machine based on a quantum-inspired algorithm called simulated bifurcation. The Ising machine selects a balanced (delta-neutral) group of stocks from an $N$-stock universe according to an objective function involving maximizing instantaneous expected returns defined as deviations from volume-weighted average prices and minimizing the summation of statistical correlation factors (for diversification). It has been demonstrated in the Tokyo Stock Exchange that the trading strategy based on NP-hard portfolio optimization for $N$=128 is executable with the FPGA (field-programmable gate array)-based trading system with a response latency of 164 $\mu$s.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:2307.0592

The Efficacy of Mirabegron for the Relief of Ureteral Stent-Related Symptoms

To investigate the efficacy of mirabegron for lower urinary tract symptoms in patients with an indwelling ureteral stent after ureterorenoscopic lithotripsy. This was a prospective follow-up study of 76 patients with stent-related symptoms (SRSs). Patients with upper urinary calculi who were pre-stented for > 2 weeks before lithotripsy were examined for the presence of SRSs by tests including the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS), OAB Symptom Score (OABSS), and urinary bother and pain measured by a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) before lithotripsy. Mirabegron (50 mg/day) was prescribed post-lithotripsy for 2 weeks. SRSs were assessed at the time of stent removal. The IPSS scores improved significantly from 16.2 to 14.3 (p<0.001) and the IPSS-QoL scores decreased significantly from 5.0 to 4.6 (p=0.012). The OABSS scores improved significantly from 7.7 to 6.8 (p=0.006), and the urinary urgency scores (OABSS-Q3) decreased significantly from 3.24 to 2.68 (p<0.001). The number of nocturia episodes decreased significantly from 2.5 to 2.2 (p=0.045). Urinary bother and pain assessed by the VAS declined from 4.2 and 3.1 to 3.8 (p=0.15) and 2.5 (p=0.075), respectively. Mirabegron significantly improved SRSs and the number of nocturia episodes due to a ureteral stent

IgA-enhancing effects of membrane vesicles derived from Lactobacillus sakei subsp. sakei NBRC15893

Immunoglobulin (Ig) A in the mucus of the intestinal tract plays an important role in preventing the invasion of pathogenic microorganisms and regulating the composition of the gut microbiota. Several strains of probiotic lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are known to promote intestinal IgA production. Bacteria are also known to naturally release spherical membrane vesicles (MVs) that are involved in various biological functions such as quorum sensing, pathogenesis, and host immunomodulation. However, the production of MVs by LAB and their effects on host immunity remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the MV production by Lactobacillus sakei subsp. sakei NBRC15893 isolated from kimoto, the traditional seed mash used for brewing sake. MVs were separated from the culture broth of L. sakei NBRC15893 through filtration and density gradient ultracentrifugation and were observed by transmission electron microscopy. The MVs showed a spherical morphology, with a diameter of 30–400 nm, and contained proteins and nucleic acids. In addition, both the LAB cells and purified MVs promoted IgA production by murine Peyer’s patch cells. This MV- and cell-induced IgA production was suppressed by neutralization of Toll-like receptor (TLR) 2, which recognizes cell wall components of gram-positive bacteria, using an anti-TLR2 antibody. Collectively, our results indicate that MVs released from L. sakei NBRC15893 enhance IgA production by activating host TLR2 signaling through its cell wall components. Thus, it is important to consider novel interactions between gut microbiota and hosts via MVs, and MVs derived from probiotic bacteria could have promising applications as safe adjuvants.Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI grant (Nos. 16K18302 and 18K04857 [to S.Y.Y]; 15H05790, 16H01373, 17H04134, and 26293111 [to J.K.]

Splenic Infarction in Acute Cytomegalovirus and Human Parvovirus Concomitant Infection

We present a case report of a 35-year-old woman who had splenic infarction. She had persistent high fever, systemic joint pain, and abnormal liver function. She was diagnosed with cytomegalovirus and human parvovirus B19 concomitant infection. Her coagulopathy test revealed no abnormal results. She was treated with intravenous ganciclovir for 13 days; consequently, her splenic infarction improved after 7 weeks. As per our knowledge, this is the first case of cytomegalovirus and parvovirus B19 coinfection complicated by splenic infarction. Cytomegalovirus and parvovirus B19 may induce a hypercoagulation state during the acute phase

Oncogenic FGFR1 mutation and amplification in common cellular origin in a composite tumor with neuroblastoma and pheochromocytoma

Neuroblastoma (NB) and pheochromocytoma (PCC) are derived from neural crest cells (NCCs); however, composite tumors with NB and PCC are rare, and their underlying molecular mechanisms remain unknown. To address this issue, we performed exome and transcriptome sequencing with formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE) samples from the NB, PCC, and mixed lesions in a patient with a composite tumor. Whole-exome sequencing revealed that most mutations (80%) were shared by all samples, indicating that NB and PCC evolved from the same clone. Notably, all samples harbored both mutation and focal amplification in the FGFR1 oncogene, resulting in an extraordinarily high expression, likely to be the main driver of this tumor. Transcriptome sequencing revealed undifferentiated expression profiles for the NB lesions. Considering that a metastatic lesion was also composite, most likely, the primitive founding lesions should differentiate into both NB and PCC. This is the first reported case with composite-NB and PCC genetically proven to harbor an oncogenic FGFR1 alteration of a common cellular origin

Coherent Relation between Structure and Conduction of Infinite Atomic Wires

We demonstrate a theoretical analysis concerning the geometrical structures and electrical conduction of infinite monatomic gold and aluminum wires in the process of their elongation, based on first-principles molecular-dynamics simulations using the real-space finite-difference method. Our study predicts that the single-row gold wire ruptures up to form a dimer coupling structure when the average interatomic distance increases up to more than 3.0 A, and that the wire is conductive before breaking but changes to an insulator at the rupturing point. In the case of the alumi-num wire, it exhibits a magnetic ordering due to the spin polarization, and even when stretched up to the average interatomic distance of 3.5 A, a dimerization does not oc-cur and the wire keeps a metallic nature.Comment: 10 pages and 6 figures. accepted to Nanotechnolog

Specialized Pro-Resolving Mediators Do Not Inhibit the Synthesis of Inflammatory Mediators Induced by Tumor Necrosis Factor-α in Synovial Fibroblasts

Background : Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, a proinflammatory cytokine, is involved in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The omega-3 unsaturated fatty acid-derived metabolites resolvin (Rv) D1, RvE1, and maresin-1 (MaR1) have been reported as anti-inflammatory lipid mediators and are known as specialized pro-resolving mediators (SPMs). In this study, we aimed to investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of SPMs on TNF-α-induced responses in synovial fibroblasts. Methods: We investigated the effects of SPMs on gene expression and/or production of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), microsomal prostaglandin E synthase-1 (mPGES-1), interleukin (IL)-6, and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-3, which are involved in TNF-α-induced synovitis in RA or OA synovial fibroblasts, by quantitative real-time PCR. We also investigated the effects of SPMs on the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway by western blotting. Anti-inflammatory effects of SPMs were evaluated by applying SPMs to cultured synovial fibroblasts, followed by TNF-α stimulation. Results: The induction of COX-2, mPGES-1, IL-6, and MMP-3 by TNF-α in synovial fibroblasts was not suppressed by omega 3-derived SPMs regardless of their origin such as RA or OA. SPMs had no effect on lipid mediator receptor gene expression induce by TNF-α and did not inhibit the TNF-α-activated MAPK signaling pathway. The production of COX-2 and IL-6 protein was significantly decreased by p38 inhibitor. Conclusion: Despite reports on the anti-inflammatory effect of omega 3-derived SPMs, its anti-inflammatory effect on TNF-α-induced responses was not observed in synovial fibroblasts. The reason may be that SPMs have no suppressive effect on p38 activation, which plays an important role in the production of inflammatory cytokines in synovial fibroblasts