Development and verification of wall-flap-gate as tsunami inundation defence for nuclear plants

A wall-flap-gate is automatic watertight door, and it works by buoyancy without powered machineries and human operations. In the Tohoku Earthquake tsunamis, serious damages were caused by inundation from ventilators of outer walls in power plants. The wall-flap-gate is estimated to be effective in keeping sustainability of nuclear plants against extreme tsunamis. The present study examines the hydrodynamic characteristics of the wall-flap-gate by hydraulic model experiments and verifies its capability of flood prevention for nuclear plants through various prototype tests. The experimental results proved that the wall-flap-gate had sufficient strength, watertightness, and durability against tsunamis and that its motion was not disturbed by debris. The viability of the wall-flap-gate as an inundation defence structure for nuclear plants was confirmed through this study. As a result, practical wall-flap-gates are installing on Hamaoka nuclear power station in Shizuoka prefecture, Japan

Absence of self-averaging in the complex admittance for transport through random media

A random walk model in a one dimensional disordered medium with an oscillatory input current is presented as a generic model of boundary perturbation methods to investigate properties of a transport process in a disordered medium. It is rigorously shown that an admittance which is equal to the Fourier-Laplace transform of the first-passage time distribution is non-self-averaging when the disorder is strong. The low frequency behavior of the disorder-averaged admittance, $-1 \sim \omega^{\mu}$ where $\mu < 1$, does not coincide with the low frequency behavior of the admittance for any sample, $\chi - 1 \sim \omega$. It implies that the Cole-Cole plot of $$ appears at a different position from the Cole-Cole plots of $\chi$ of any sample. These results are confirmed by Monte-Carlo simulations.Comment: 7 pages, 2 figures, published in Phys. Rev.

Significance of Smoking as a Postoperative Prognostic Factor in Patients with Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

IntroductionIn this study, we investigated the influence of smoking on the postoperative prognosis in patients with non-small cell lung cancer.MethodsThe subjects consisted of 770 patients who underwent a resection of lung cancer in our department between 1994 and 2005. We compared the clinico-pathological findings between the smoking and never-smoking groups. The pack-year index (PYI) was used as a smoking index.ResultsThe smoking group consisted of 569 patients (74%), and the never-smoking group consisted of 201 patients (26%). The smokers were composed of 492 men and 77 women. Among the adenocarcinoma patients, there were 293 (61%) smokers and 185 (39%) never-smokers. The patients with squamous cell carcinoma included 204 (95%) smokers and 10 (5%) never-smokers. The proportion of patients with stage IA disease was significantly higher in the never-smokers than that of the smokers. The 5-year survival rate after surgery was 66% in the never-smoking group; however, the rates were 56% in patients with a PYI more than or equal to 20, and 55% in those with PYI more than 20. Seventy-nine (13.9%) patients in the smoking group and seven (3.5%) patients in the never-smoking group died of other diseases, with a significant difference (p < 0.01). Of these patients, 44 (56%) and 13 (16%) in the smoking group died of respiratory and cardiovascular disorders, respectively. In our series, excluding those who died of other diseases, there were no significant differences in the postoperative prognosis.ConclusionsIn the smoking group, the prognosis was poorer than that in the never-smoking group. The higher proportion of early stage disease (stage IA) and female gender were major causes of the better prognosis of the never-smokers. Nevertheless, the high pulmonary/cardiovascular complication-related mortality was another cause of the poor prognosis of the smokers with lung cancer

Mechanism of Voriconazole-Induced Transient Visual Disturbance: Reversible Dysfunction of Retinal ON-Bipolar Cells in Monkeys

PURPOSE. To investigate the mechanism of voriconazole-induced transient visual disturbance in humans. METHODS. Standard full-field electroretinograms (ERGs) were recorded from monkeys treated intravenously with voriconazole. In addition, photopic ERGs elicited by long-duration stimuli (ON-OFF response) were also recorded from monkeys receiving intravenous voriconazole or intravitreal 2-amino-4-phosphonobutyric acid (APB). RESULTS. Characteristic changes were observed in the waveform of the standard full-field ERGs obtained immediately after dosing of voriconazole as follows: electronegative combined rod-cone response (markedly attenuated b-wave and oscillatory potentials), undetectable rod response (eliminated b-wave); slightly abnormal single-flash cone response (flattened appearance in the bottom of the a-wave, mildly attenuated b-wave); and slightly abnormal 30 Hz flicker (mildly attenuated b-wave). The above changes fully recovered to baseline 24 hours after each dosing, along with a decrease in plasma voriconazole concentration. In addition, the change in the waveform of the ON-OFF response recorded in voriconazole-treated monkeys was quite similar to that recorded in APB-treated monkeys as follows: the b-wave was eliminated or prominently attenuated; and the a-and d-waves were not apparently attenuated. V oriconazole is a triazole antifungal agent with potent activity against a broad spectrum of clinically significant pathogens. 1-3 Voriconazole has been generally well tolerated in clinical trials 4 and postmarketing surveillances 5-7 with frequently reported adverse events of transient visual disturbances, which are described as enhanced/altered light perception, photopsia, photophobia, blurred vision, or color vision changes without any abnormality in the fundus oculi. Very few studies have focused on the detailed effect of voriconazole on retinal function, although the retina is generally considered to be the site of the visual disturbances because reversible decreases in the amplitude of the electroretinogram (ERG) were noted in voriconazole-treated humans. METHODS Animals A total of ten cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) between three and eight years of age were used in this study. The animals were housed individually in stainless steel cages in an animal study room where the environmental condition was set as follows: room temperature, 24°C; relative humidity, 60%; illumination, 12-hour lighting (7:00 to 19:00) at 150 to 300 luces. The animals were fed 100 g per animal per day of pellet food for monkeys (PS; Oriental Yeast Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan). Tap water from a feed-water nozzle was supplied ad libitum to the animals. All experimental procedures adhered to the ARVO Statement for the Use of Animals in Ophthalmic and Vision Research, and were approved by the Institutional Animal Care Committee of DaiichiSankyo Co. Ltd. Drug Administration Voriconazole (VFEND for Intravenous Use; Pfizer Inc., New York, NY) was dissolved in physiologic saline. The dose formulation was administered intravenously at a rate of 0.2 mL/kg per minute for ten minutes to six animals with increasing doses of 0, 3, 6 and 12 mg/kg at intervals of one week or more, and the standard full-field ERGs were recorded as described below. Several months after the 12 mg/kg dosing, voriconazole was administered to three animals at 0 mg/kg and to another three animals at 6 mg/kg in the same manner, and the photopic ERG elicited by a long-duration stimulus (the ON-OFF response) was recorded as described below. Intravitreal injection of 2-amino-4-phosphonobutyric acid (APB) (Sigma-Aldrich; St. Louis, MO) was also conducted in two animals several weeks after the last dosing of voriconazole mentioned above. The techniques for intravitreal injection have been described in detail elsewhere

Synthesis and pharmacological characterization of potent, selective, and orally bioavailable isoindoline class dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitors

Focused structure-activity relationships of isoindoline class DPP-IV inhibitors have led to the discovery of 4b as a highly selective, potent inhibitor of DPP-IV. In vivo studies in Wistar/ST rats showed that 4b was converted into the strongly active metabolite 4l in high yield, resulting in good in vivo efficacy for antihyperglycemic activity

The changes in treatment strategies in ABOi living donor liver transplantation for acute liver failure

Introduction. Living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) using ABO-incompatible (ABOi) graft for acute liver failure (ALF) is a developing treatment modality. Methods. We reviewed the changes in our treatment strategies in applying ABOi LDLT for FH over our fourteen years of experience. Results. Five patients with ALF received LDLT in adults using ABOi grafts, with different but gradually renewed protocols. The etiologies for acute liver failure included autoimmune hepatitis (n=3) and unknown (n=2). The desensitization protocol for ABOi barrier included Case #1 ; local infusion (portal vein)+plasma exchange (PE), Case #2 ; local infusion (hepatic artery)+rituximab+PE, Case #3 and #4 ; rituximab+PE, and Case #5 ; rituximab+PE under high-flow continuous hemodiafiltration. Local infusion was abandoned since Case #3, because Case #1 had portal vein thrombosis resulting in graft necrosis and Case #2 had hepatic artery dissection. The patients (Case #2 and #3), who received rituximab within 7 days before LDLT, experienced antibody-mediated rejection. Thus, the most recent protocol for ABOi-LDLT is that rituximab is given 2 weeks before LDLT, followed by high-flow continuous hemodiafiltration to obstacle hepatic encephalopathy until LDLT. The four patients except Case #1 are doing well with good graft function over 3.8±3.7 years. Conclusion. Rituximab-based ABOi-LDLT, most-recently under high-flow hemodiafiltration for treating encephalopathy, is a feasible option for applying LDLT for ALF

Detectability of colorectal neoplasia with fluorine-18-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomography and computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT)

The purpose of this study was to analyze the detectability of colorectal neoplasia with fluorine-18-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (FDG-PET/CT). Data for a total of 492 patients who had undergone both PET/CT and colonoscopy were analyzed. After the findings of PET/CT and colonoscopy were determined independently, the results were compared in each of the six colonic sites examined in all patients. The efficacy of PET/CT was determined using colonoscopic examination as the gold standard. In all, 270 colorectal lesions 5 mm or more in size, including 70 pathologically confirmed malignant lesions, were found in 172 patients by colonoscopy. The sensitivity and specificity of PET/CT for detecting any of the colorectal lesions were 36 and 98%, respectively. For detecting lesions 11 mm or larger, the sensitivity was increased to 85%, with the specificity remaining consistent (97%). Moreover, the sensitivity for tumors 21 mm or larger was 96% (48/50). Tumors with malignant or high-grade pathology were likely to be positive with PET/CT. A size of 10 mm or smaller [odds ratio (OR) 44.14, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 11.44-221.67] and flat morphology (OR 7.78, 95% CI 1.79-36.25) were significant factors that were associated with false-negative cases on PET/CT. The sensitivity of PET/CT for detecting colorectal lesions is acceptable, showing size- and pathology-dependence, suggesting, for the most part, that clinically relevant lesions are detectable with PET/CT. However, when considering PET/CT for screening purposes caution must be exercised because there are cases of false-negative results

Treatment results of two-stage operation for the patients with esophageal cancer concomitant with liver dysfunction

Purpose : The aim of this study was to clarify the usefulness of two-stage operation for the patients with esophageal cancer who have liver dysfunction. Methods : Eight patients with esophageal cancer concomitant with liver dysfunction who underwent two-stage operation were analyzed. The patients initially underwent an esophagectomy, a cervical esophagostomy and a tube jejunostomy, and reconstruction with gastric tube was performed after the recovery of patients’ condition. Results : The average time of the 1st and 2nd stage operation was 410.0 min and 438.9 min, respectively. The average amount of blood loss in the 1st and 2nd stage operation was 433.5 ml and 1556.8 ml, respectively. The average duration between the operations was 29.8 days. The antesternal route was selected for 5 patients (62.5%) and the retrosternal route was for 3 patients (37.5%). In the 1st stage operation, no postoperative complications were observed, while, complications developed in 5 (62.5%) patients, including 4 anastomotic leakages, after the 2nd stage operation. Pneumonia was not observed through two-stage operation. No in-hospital death was experienced. Conclusion : A two-stage operation might prevent the occurrence of critical postoperative complications for the patients with esophageal cancer concomitant with liver dysfunction

Separation of Sympathomimetic Amines of Abuse and Related Compounds by Micellar Electrokinetic Chromatography

Separation of twelve sympathomimetic amines and related compounds by micellar electrokinetic chromatography (MEKC) with UV absorbance detection is described. These amines were well separated within 25 min using 50 mM sodium tetraborate solution containing 15 mM sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) of pH 9.3 as a running solution and detected at 210 nm. MEKC was performed with an applied voltage of 13 kV at 25 °C using a fused-silica capillary (50 cm×75 mm i.d.) with effective length of 37.5 cm. The detection limits of these compounds were in the range from 4 to 97 fmol/injection at a signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) of 3. The reproducibility of the method expressed as relative standard deviation (RSD) for within-day (n=6) and between-day (n=5) assays was less than 4.8 and 8.8%, respectively. The proposed method could be applied to the determination of an anorectic drug, phentermine, in Chinese tea with a detection limit of 99 μg/g (105 fmol/injection, S/N=3)