Parametric and non-parametric statistical approaches to the determination of paleostress from dilatant fractures: Application to an Early Miocene dike swarm in central Japan

Several methods have been proposed for determining paleostress states from orientations of dilatant fractures such as dikes and veins. Recently a stochastic inversion method was invented to objectively estimate the principal stress axes and the stress ratio. Whether a fracture is dilated or not is controlled by the balance of the fluid pressure and the normal stress acting on it. The magnitude of normal stress depends on the fracture orientation, which causes anisotropic orientation distribution of dilatant fractures. The inversion method assumes that the orientation distribution of fractures can be approximated by a Bingham distribution, an exponential probability distribution on the unit sphere, of which symmetric axes are interpreted as the principal stress axes. However, it is unknown if the exponential type of distribution function is suitable or not. Here, we examine the distribution functions and propose two improved methods. One method uses the shifted power-law function as the shape of probability distribution, which is more flexible than the Bingham distribution and is applicable to various shapes of orientation distributions. Furthermore, an index of the driving fluid pressure can be estimated with a confidence interval. The other is a non-parametric (distribution-free) method, which can avoid the a priori assumption on the shape of distribution function without significantly losing accuracy or precision. The new methods were applied to an Early Miocene dike swarm formed during the back-arc opening of the Japan Sea. A normal-faulting stress regime with the minimum principal stress axis trending roughly perpendicular to the arc was obtained from the dikes. A moderately high stress ratio and a high fluid pressure were also estimated

Three-dimensional semiautomatic liver segmentation method for non-contrast computed tomography based on a correlation map of locoregional histogram and probabilistic atlas

Background: We sought to evaluate a new regional segmentation method for use with three-dimensional (3D) non-contrast abdominal CT images and to report the preliminary results. Methods: The proposed method was evaluated in ten cases. Manually segmented areas were used as the gold standard for evaluation. To compare the standard and the extracted liver regions, the degree of coincidence R% was redefined by transforming a volumetric overlap error. We also evaluated the influence of varying the density window size in terms of setting the starting points. Results: We confirmed in ten cases that our method could segment the liver region more precisely than the conventional method. A size of window 15 voxels was optimal as the starting point in all cases. Conclusions: We demonstrated the accuracy of a 3D semiautomatic liver segmentation method for non-contrast CT. This method promises to offer radiologists a time-efficient segmentation aid.Yamaguchi S., Satake K., Yamaji Y., et al. Three-dimensional semiautomatic liver segmentation method for non-contrast computed tomography based on a correlation map of locoregional histogram and probabilistic atlas. Computers in Biology and Medicine 55, 79 (2014); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compbiomed.2014.10.003

Significantly low level of small RNA accumulation derived from an encapsidated mycovirus with dsRNA genome

AbstractThe role of RNA silencing as an antiviral defence has been well elucidated in plants and invertebrates, but not in filamentous fungi. We have previously determined the complete genome sequence of Magnaporthe oryzae virus 2 (MoV2), a dsRNA virus that infects the rice blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae. In this study, we detected small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) from both positive- and negative-strand MoV2 viral RNA, suggesting that the RNA silencing machinery in M. oryzae functions against the mycovirus. Cloning and characterisation of MoV2 siRNAs indicated that, in MoV2, the ratio of virus-derived siRNAs to total small RNA is significantly lower than that in either plant viruses or Cryphonectria hypovirus 1 (CHV1), another mycovirus. Nevertheless, any MoV2-encoded proteins did not exhibit RNA silencing suppressor activity in both the plant and fungal systems. Our study suggests the existence of a novel viral strategy employed to evade host RNA silencing

A Novel Fibroblast Growth Factor-1 (FGF1) Mutant that Acts as an FGF Antagonist

Background: Crosstalk between integrins and FGF receptors has been implicated in FGF signaling, but the specifics of the crosstalk are unclear. We recently discovered that 1) FGF1 directly binds to integrin avb3, 2) the integrin-binding site and FGF receptor (FGFR) binding site are distinct, and 3) the integrin-binding-defective FGF1 mutant (R50E) is defective in inducing FGF signaling although R50E still binds to FGFR and heparin and induces transient ERK1/2 activation. Principal Findings: We tested if excess R50E affect DNA synthesis and cell survival induced by WT FGF1 in BaF3 mouse pro-B cells expressing human FGFR1. R50E suppressed DNA synthesis and cell proliferation induced by WT FGF1. We tested if WT FGF1 and R50E generate integrin-FGF1-FGFR ternary complex. WT FGF1 induced ternary complex formation (integrin-FGF-FGFR1) and recruitment of SHP-2 to the complex in NIH 3T3 cells and human umbilical endothelial cells, but R50E was defective in these functions. It has been reported that sustained ERK1/2 activation is integrin-dependent and crucial to cell cycle entry upon FGF stimulation. We thus determined the time-course of ERK1/2 activation induced by WT FGF1 and R50E. We found that WT FGF1 induced sustained activation of ERK1/2, but R50E was defective in this function. Conclusions/Significance: Our results suggest that 1) R50E is a dominant-negative mutant, 2) Ternary complex formation is involved in FGF signaling, 3) The defect of R50E to bind to integrin may be directly related to the antagonistic action o

心不全を合併した心房細動患者のカテーテルアブレーション後の長期予後 : 左室駆出率に基づいた心不全のサブタイプ間における比較

Aims: Heart failure (HF) prognosis has been reported similar in patients with preserved vs. reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). This study compared the long-term prognosis of HF patients undergoing radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) for atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods and results: Among 5010 patients undergoing RFCA in Kansai Plus AF registry, 656 patients (13.1%) with a documented history of HF were enrolled in the study before RFCA. The primary endpoint was a composite of all-cause death, HF hospitalization, and stroke or systemic embolism. Patients with reduced (<40%), mid-range (40-49%), and preserved (≥50%) LVEF were 98 (14.9%), 107 (16.3%), and 451 (68.8%) patients, respectively. The prevalence of ischaemic heart disease and cardiomyopathies was higher among patients with reduced as compared with preserved LVEF (27.6% vs. 10.0%, P < 0.05 and 36.7% vs. 15.3%, P < 0.05, respectively). The median follow-up period was 2.9 years. The 3-year cumulative risk for the primary endpoint was higher in patients with reduced LVEF (32.7%) compared to those with mid-range (11.7%) or preserved (11.6%) LVEF (P < 0.001). Reduced LVEF was the most significant independent risk factor for primary endpoint (hazard ratio, 2.83; 95% confidence interval 1.74-4.61, P < 0.001). The 3-year arrhythmia recurrence rate was similar among the groups (48.2%, 42.8%, and 47.3%, respectively, P = 0.75). Conclusion : This study raises hypothesis that patients with HFrEF and AF had approximately three times higher risk for a composite of all-cause death, HF hospitalization, and stroke or systemic embolism after AF ablation compared with patients with HFmrEF or HFpEF.博士（医学）・甲第802号・令和3年12月21日Copyright: © Published on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. © The Author(s) 2021.This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Europace following peer review. The version of record "Europace Online ahead of print (2021 Aug 31;euab201) is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/europace/euab201.発行元が定める登録猶予期間終了の後、本文を登録予定（2022.08