Kyphectomy for severe kyphosis with pyogenic spondylitis associated with myelomeningocele: a case report

A 32-year-old woman was referred to our hospital for a refractory ulcer on her back. She had a history of myelomeningocele with spina bifida that was treated surgically at birth. The ulcer was located at the apex of the kyphosis. An X-ray film revealed a kyphosis of 154° between L1 and 3 and a scoliosis of 60° between T11 and L5. Computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging and laboratory data indicated the presence of a pyogenic spondylitis at L2/3. To correct the kyphosis and remove the infected vertebrae together with the skin ulcer, kyphectomy was performed. Pedicle screws were inserted from T8 to T12 and from L4 to S1. The dural sac was transected and ligated at L2, followed by total kyphectomy of the L1-L3 vertebrae. The spinal column was reconstructed by approximating the ventral wall of the T12 vertebral body and the cranial endplate of the L4 vertebra. Postoperatively, the kyphosis was corrected to 61° and the scoliosis was corrected to 22°. In the present case, we treated the skin ulcer and pyogenic spondylitis successfully by kyphectomy, thereby, preventing recurrence of the ulcer and infection, and simultaneously obtaining sufficient correction of the spinal deformity

Leukemia autopsies in Japan

For the purpose to know whether the annual increase of leukemia incidence in Japan is due to some leukemogenic factors or due to the increased detection rate, the authors made some statistical survey of autopsy cases in which the diagnosis is reliable and not any type of leukemias escape the detection. The results showed that acute leukemias, which are found mostly in younger age, is actually increasing. In addition, it has been deduced that among the suspected factors the increase in ionizing radiation will be one of the most probable factors for the increase in leukemia incidence</p

2004ネン タイフウ 10ゴウ ゴウウ ニヨリ トクシマケン デ ハッセイ シタ シャメン ホウカイ ニ エイキョウ スル ウリョウ チケイ チシツ トクセイ

Many slope failures and debris flows triggered by heavy rainfall associated with Typhoon 0410 (Namtheun) occurred in Nakagawa area, Tokushima, Japan on July 31st to August 1st, 2004. Extraordinary intense heavy rainfall was recorded in this area. Many slope failures and some landslides occurred at steep mountain slopes, which consist of accretionary complex. Distribution and density of slope failures are closely related to amount of total rainfall and soil water index, topographical features such as density of valley head and relative relief, and geological features such as crack density of rock masses

Comprehensive Behavioral Analysis of Calcium/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase IV Knockout Mice

Calcium-calmodulin dependent protein kinase IV (CaMKIV) is a protein kinase that activates the transcription factor CREB, the cyclic AMP-response element binding protein. CREB is a key transcription factor in synaptic plasticity and memory consolidation. To elucidate the behavioral effects of CaMKIV deficiency, we subjected CaMKIV knockout (CaMKIV KO) mice to a battery of behavioral tests. CaMKIV KO had no significant effects on locomotor activity, motor coordination, social interaction, pain sensitivity, prepulse inhibition, attention, or depression-like behavior. Consistent with previous reports, CaMKIV KO mice exhibited impaired retention in a fear conditioning test 28 days after training. In contrast, however, CaMKIV KO mice did not show any testing performance deficits in passive avoidance, one of the most commonly used fear memory paradigms, 28 days after training, suggesting that remote fear memory is intact. CaMKIV KO mice exhibited intact spatial reference memory learning in the Barnes circular maze, and normal spatial working memory in an eight-arm radial maze. CaMKIV KO mice also showed mildly decreased anxiety-like behavior, suggesting that CaMKIV is involved in regulating emotional behavior. These findings indicate that CaMKIV might not be essential for fear memory or spatial memory, although it is possible that the activities of other neural mechanisms or signaling pathways compensate for the CaMKIV deficiency

Oolong tea increases energy metabolism in Japanese females

Oolong tea is a traditional Chinese tea that has long been believed to be beneficial to health such as decreasing body fat. We were interested in this assertion and tried to evaluate the effect of oolong tea on energy expenditure (EE) in comparison with green tea. The subjects were eleven healthy Japanese females (age 20±1 y body mass index(BMI) 21.2±2.5kg/m2)who each consumed of three treatments in a crossover design : 1) water, 2) oolong tea, 3) green tea. Resting energy expenditure (REE) and EE after the consumption of the test beverage for 120 min were measured using an indirect calorimeter. The cumulative increases of EE for 120 min were significantly increased 10% and 4% after the consumption of oolong tea and green tea, respectively. EE at 60 and 90 min were significantly higher after the consumption of oolong tea than that of water (Plt0.05). In comparison with green tea, oolong tea contained approximately half the caffeine and epigallocatechin galate, while polymerized polyphenols were double. These results suggest that oolong tea increases EE by its polymerized polyphenols

A comparative study of food habits and body shape perception of university students in Japan and Korea

BACKGROUND: Abnormal body weight, dietary concerns, and unhealthy weight loss behaviors are increasingly being observed in young females in Japan. Our previous research has shown that the irregular lifestyles of female Japanese and Chinese students are significantly related to their desire to be thinner. In the present study, we compare the food habits and body shape preferences of female university students in South Korea and Japan to explore body shape perceptions in those populations. METHODS: A total of 265 female university students aged 19 – 25 years participated in this study. University students in Korea (n = 141) and university students in Japan (n = 124) completed a self-reported questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS statistical software. Descriptive statistics were used to identify the demographic characteristics of the students and parametric variables were analyzed using the Student's t-test. Chi-square analyses were conducted for non-parametric variables. RESULTS: Comparison of body mass index (BMI) distributions in Japan and Korea showed the highest value in the normal category (74%) together with a very low obesity rate (1.2%). Significant differences were observed between the two countries in terms of eating patterns, with more Japanese eating breakfast daily and with Japanese students eating meals more regularly than Korean students. A difference was also observed in frequency of meals, where Korean students reported eating meals two times per day (59%) and the majority of Japanese students reported eating meals three times per day (81%). Although most subjects belonged to the normal BMI category, their ideal BMI classification was the underweight category (BMI: 18.4 ± 3.4). CONCLUSION: Few studies have compared the health related practices of Japanese and Korean university students. The present results suggest the necessity of nutrition and health promotion programs for university students, especially programs emphasizing weight management

水耕栽培野菜の抗酸化活性とミネラル含有量の測定

Many kinds of minerals and antioxidants are contained in foods. However, correlation between antioxidant activities and mineral contents have not been discussed in detail. In this study, therefore, we examined antioxidant activities of two typical hydroponic lettuces (i.e., furyl lettuce and green leaf lettuce) and their mineral contents. Antioxidant activities were measured by using Trolox (6-hydroxy-2, 5, 7, 8-tetramethylchroman-2-carboxylic acid) as a typical water-soluble model compound of vitamin E. Mineral contents were measured simultaneously for multiple elements using Inductively Coupled Plasma- Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES).As a result, antioxidant activities of both lettuces at the leaf part and green leaf lettuce were higher than those at the stem part. In the same manner, mineral contents of those contents at the leaf part were also larger than the stem part. Thus, we found for the first time appreciable correlations between the mineral contents and the antioxidants activities in such hydroponic vegetables

Nutritional knowledge, food habits and health attitude of Chinese university students –a cross sectional study–

BACKGROUND: We have previously shown that irregular lifestyle of young Japanese female students are significantly related to their desire to be thinner. In the present study, we examined the nutritional knowledge and food habits of Chinese university students and compared them with those of other Asian populations. METHODS: A self-reported questionnaire was administered to 540 students, ranging in age from 19-24 years. Medical students from Beijing University (135 men and 150 women) in Northern China and Kunming Medical College in southern China (95 men and 160 women) participated in this study. The parametric variables were analyzed using the Student's t-test. Chi-square analyses were conducted for non-parametric variables RESULTS: Our results showed that 80.5% of students had a normal BMI and 16.6 % of students were underweight with the prevalence of BMI>30 obesity being very low in this study sample. Young Chinese female students had a greater desire to be thinner (62.0%) than males (47.4%). Habits involving regular eating patterns and vegetable intake were reported and represent practices that ought to be encouraged. CONCLUSIONS: The university and college arenas represent the final opportunity for the health and nutritional education of a large number of students from the educator's perspective. Our findings suggest the need for strategies designed to improve competence in the area of nutrition

Collagen adhesion gene is associated with blood stream infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Objectives: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) causes hospital- and community-acquired infections. It is not clear whether genetic characteristics of the bacteria contribute to disease pathogenesis in MRSA infection. We hypothesized that whole genome analysis of MRSA strains could reveal the key gene loci and/or the gene mutations that affect clinical manifestations of MRSA infection. Methods: Whole genome sequences (WGS) of MRSA of 154 strains were analyzed with respect to clinical manifestations and data. Further, we evaluated the association between clinical manifestations in MRSA infection and genomic information. Results: WGS revealed gene mutations that correlated with clinical manifestations of MRSA infection. Moreover, 12 mutations were selected as important mutations by Random Forest analysis. Cluster analysis revealed strains associated with a high frequency of bloodstream infection (BSI). Twenty seven out of 34 strains in this cluster caused BSI. These strains were all positive for collagen adhesion gene (cna) and have mutations in the locus, those were selected by Random Forest analysis. Univariate and multivariate analysis revealed that these gene mutations were the predictor for the incidence of BSI. Interestingly, mutant CNA protein showed lower attachment ability to collagen, suggesting that the mutant protein might contribute to the dissemination of bacteria. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the bacterial genotype affects the clinical characteristics of MRSA infection. (c) 2019 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of International Society for Infectious Diseases

Integrated genetic and clinical prognostic factors for aggressive adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma

成人T細胞白血病リンパ腫（ATL）におけるゲノム情報と臨床情報を統合したリスクモデルを確立 --ATLの個別化医療を推進--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-04-10.The prognosis of aggressive adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL) is poor, and allogeneic hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is a curative treatment. To identify favorable prognostic patients after intensive chemotherapy, and who therefore might not require upfront allo-HSCT, we aimed to improve risk stratification of aggressive ATL patients aged <70 years. The clinical risk factors and genetic mutations were incorporated into risk modeling for overall survival (OS). We generated the m7-ATLPI, a clinicogenetic risk model for OS, that included the ATL prognostic index (PI) (ATL-PI) risk category, and non-silent mutations in seven genes, namely TP53, IRF4, RHOA, PRKCB, CARD11, CCR7, and GATA3. In the training cohort of 99 patients, the m7-ATLPI identified a low-, intermediate-, and high-risk group with 2-year OS of 100%, 43%, and 19%, respectively (hazard ratio [HR] 5.46, p < 0.0001). The m7-ATLPI achieved superior risk stratification compared to the current ATL-PI (C-index 0.92 vs. 0.85, respectively). In the validation cohort of 84 patients, the m7-ATLPI defined low-, intermediate-, and high-risk groups with a 2-year OS of 81%, 30%, and 0%, respectively (HR 2.33, p = 0.0094), and the model again outperformed the ATL-PI (C-index 0.72 vs. 0.70, respectively). The simplified m7-ATLPI, which is easier to use in clinical practice, achieved superior risk stratification compared to the ATL-PI, as did the original m7-ATLPI; the simplified version was calculated by summing the following: high-risk ATL-PI category (+10), low-risk ATL-PI category (−4), and non-silent mutations in TP53 (+4), IRF4 (+3), RHOA (+1), PRKCB (+1), CARD11 (+0.5), CCR7 (−2), and GATA3 (−3)