Karyotype analysis of buckwheat using atomic force microscopy

Karyotype analysis and classification of buckwheat chromosomes were performed without chemical banding or staining using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Fagopyrum esculentum (common buckwheat) and Fagopyrum tartaricum (Tartarian buckwheat) chromosomes were isolated from root tissues using an enzymatic maceration technique and spread over a glass substrate. Air-dried chromosomes had a surface with ridges, and the height of common and tartary buckwheat were approximately 350 and 150 nm. Volumes of metaphase sets of buckwheat chromosomes were calculated using three-dimensional AFM measurements. Chromosomes were morphologically characterized by the size, volume, arm lengths, and ratios. The calculated volumes of the F. esculentum and F. tartaricum chromosomes were in the ranges of 1.08-2.09 μm 3 and 0.49-0.78 μm 3, respectively. The parameters such as the relative arm length, centromere position, and the chromosome volumes measured using AFM provide accurate karyomorphological classification by avoiding the subjective inconsistencies in banding patterns of conventional methods. The karyotype evolutionary trend indicates that F. esculentum is an ancient species compared to F. tartaricum. This is the first report of a cytological karyotype of buckwheat using AFM

National trends in the outcomes of subarachnoid haemorrhage and the prognostic influence of stroke centre capability in Japan: retrospective cohort study

Objectives To examine the national, 6-year trends in in-hospital clinical outcomes of patients with subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) who underwent clipping or coiling and the prognostic influence of temporal trends in the Comprehensive Stroke Center (CSC) capabilities on patient outcomes in Japan.Design Retrospective study.Setting Six hundred and thirty-one primary care institutions in Japan.Participants Forty-five thousand and eleven patients with SAH who were urgently hospitalised, identified using the J-ASPECT Diagnosis Procedure Combination database.Primary and secondary outcome measures Annual number of patients with SAH who remained untreated, or who received clipping or coiling, in-hospital mortality and poor functional outcomes (modified Rankin Scale: 3–6) at discharge. Each CSC was assessed using a validated scoring system (CSC score: 1–25 points).Results In the overall cohort, in-hospital mortality decreased (year for trend, OR (95% CI): 0.97 (0.96 to 0.99)), while the proportion of poor functional outcomes remained unchanged (1.00 (0.98 to 1.02)). The proportion of patients who underwent clipping gradually decreased from 46.6% to 38.5%, while that of those who received coiling and those left untreated gradually increased from 16.9% to 22.6% and 35.4% to 38%, respectively. In-hospital mortality of coiled (0.94 (0.89 to 0.98)) and untreated (0.93 (0.90 to 0.96)) patients decreased, whereas that of clipped patients remained stable. CSC score improvement was associated with increased use of coiling (per 1-point increase, 1.14 (1.08 to 1.20)) but not with short-term patient outcomes regardless of treatment modality.Conclusions The 6-year trends indicated lower in-hospital mortality for patients with SAH (attributable to better outcomes), increased use of coiling and multidisciplinary care for untreated patients. Further increasing CSC capabilities may improve overall outcomes, mainly by increasing the use of coiling. Additional studies are necessary to determine the effect of confounders such as aneurysm complexity on outcomes of clipped patients in the modern endovascular era