Subcritical Water Extraction and Direct Formation of Microparticulate Polysaccharide Powders from Ganoderma Lucidum

Ganoderma lucidum (hereafter G. lucidum) has been known as a food and raw material used in the development of medications because of its high content of polysaccharides, or ?-glucans, which support the immune function. In this work, subcritical water was applied to utilize G. lucidum for the extraction of polysaccharides at temperatures of 373–463K and a pressure level of 4.0 MPa using a semi-batch system. Furthermore, these extracts were atomized and contacted with hot air to produce microsphere particles. During extraction, thermal softening of G. lucidum occurred, allowing the removal of the polysaccharides and protecting other constituents in G. lucidum via hydrolysis. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images showed that the microsphere particles formed were spherical and dimpled or shriveled particles with diameters varying from 1 to 6 ?m. Characteristics of the molecular mass revealed that main massed peaks of water soluble products were distributed at around 688–2636 m/z with a peak-to-peak mass difference of 162 m/z, consistent with the repeating unit of the glucans

Protocol for a multicentre, prospective, cohort study to investigate patient satisfaction and quality of life after immediate breast reconstruction in Japan: the SAQLA study

Introduction The aim of breast reconstruction (BR) is to improve patients' health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Therefore, measuring patient-reported outcomes (PROs) would clarify the value and impact of BR on a patient's life and thus would provide evidence-based information to help decision-making. The Satisfaction and Quality of Life After Immediate Breast Reconstruction study aimed to investigate satisfaction and HRQOL in Japanese patients with breast cancer who undergo immediate breast reconstruction (IBR). Methods and analysis This ongoing prospective, observational multicentre study will assess 406 patients who had unilateral breast cancer and underwent mastectomy and IBR, and were recruited from April 2018 to July 2019. All participants were recruited from seven hospitals: Okayama University Hospital, Iwate Medical University Hospital, The Cancer Institute Hospital of Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research, Showa University Hospital, University of Tsukuba Hospital, Osaka University Hospital and Yokohama City University Medical Center. The patients will be followed up for 36 months postoperatively. The primary endpoint of this study will be the time-dependent changes in BREAST-Q satisfaction with breast subscale scores for 12 months after reconstructive surgery, which will be collected via an electronic PRO system. Ethics and dissemination This study will be performed in accordance with the Ethical Guidelines for Medical and Health Research Involving Human Subjects published by Japan's Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the modified Act on the Protection of Personal Information and the Declaration of Helsinki. This study protocol was approved by the institutional ethics committee at the Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry, on 2 February 2018 (1801-039) and all other participating sites. The findings of this trial will be submitted to an international peer-reviewed journal

Incidence of Remote Cerebellar Hemorrhage in Patients with a Dural Tear during Spinal Surgery: A Retrospective Observational Analysis

Introduction: The incidence of remote cerebellar hemorrhage (RCH) in patients with a dural tear during spinal surgery is unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of RCH and the causative factors in these patients. Methods: Two hundred and thirty-nine patients underwent spinal surgery at our institution between March 2015 and September 2016. Eleven of these patients needed dural suturing intraoperatively. All patients underwent CT of the head on the first postoperative day and were categorized according to whether they had RCH or not. The mean values for the amount of intraoperative bleeding, maximum perioperative blood pressure, postoperative drainage volume, and complaints of headache during the first 24 h postoperatively were compared between the two groups using the Welch's two-sample t-test and Fisher's exact test. The follow-up duration was 12 months. Results: There were four patients in the RCH group and seven in the non-RCH group. The incidence of RCH was 36.4%. There were three cerebellar hemorrhages and one interhemispheric fissure hemorrhage in the RCH group. The mean intraoperative bleeding volume was 284 mL in the RCH group and 569 mL in the non-RCH group. The mean respective values for maximum perioperative blood pressure and postoperative drainage volume were 132 mmHg and 547 mL in the RCH group and 144 mmHg and 567 mL in the non-RCH group; none of the differences was statistically significant. However, complaints of headache in the first 24 h postoperatively were significantly more common in the RCH group than in the non-RCH group (100% vs. 14.3%; p = 0.01). All patients with intracranial bleeding had recovered 3 months after surgery. Conclusions: The incidence of RCH following a dural tear during spinal surgery was 36.4%. There was a significant association between RCH and increased reporting of headache during the first 24 h postoperatively

Quantitative analysis of condensation/decondensation status of pDNA in the nuclear sub-domains by QD-FRET

Recent studies indicate that controlling the nuclear decondensation and intra-nuclear localization of plasmid DNA (pDNA) would result in an increased transfection efficiency. In the present study, we established a technology for imaging the nuclear condensation/decondensation status of pDNA in nuclear subdomains using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between quantum dot (QD)-labeled pDNA as donor, and rhodamine-labeled polycations as acceptor. The FRET-occurring pDNA/polycation particle was encapsulated in a nuclear delivery system; a tetra-lamellar multifunctional envelope-type nano device (T-MEND), designed to overcome the endosomal membrane and nuclear membrane via step-wise fusion. Nuclear subdomains (i.e. heterochromatin and euchromatin) were distinguished by Hoechst33342 staining. Thereafter, Z-series of confocal images were captured by confocal laser scanning microscopy. pDNA in condensation/decondensation status in heterochromatin or euchromatin were quantified based on the pixel area of the signals derived from the QD and rhodamine. The results obtained indicate that modulation of the supra-molecular structure of polyrotaxane (DMAE-ss-PRX), a condenser that is cleaved in a reductive environment, conferred euchromatin-preferred decondensation. This represents the first demonstration of the successful control of condensation/decondensation in specific nuclear sub-domain via the use of an artificial DNA condenser

A study on the transformation and succession of a historical environment a case study in Cakranegara, Indonesia

This study sought to clarify the transformation and succession of the historical environment of Cakranegara, a historical Indonesian city based on the following viewpoints: 1) transformation of building lots and their uses; 2) utilization of space on the streets; and 3) proposing appropriate indices to evaluate the historical environment of Cakranegara. The major findings were: 1) the transformation of the spatial structure of the city can be evaluated by analyzing the relationship between the change of building lots and their uses. The tendency of splitting or consolidating lots varies depending on land use type and location; however, almost half of the building lots have retained their original size; 2) the utilization of public space in Cakranegara can be analyzed and evaluated using seven categories of objects, three time scales, three types of ownership, and five categories of open space; 3) usage of Tagtagan, which is a space installed along both sides of a street, has transformed from a space for religious activities and planting trees to a space with multiple uses for daily living activities; and 4) public space is characterized by a dualistic spatial structure – space for commercial/transportation uses and space for residential uses – based on road hierarchies

Urinary Excretion of Tetrodotoxin Modeled in a Porcine Renal Proximal Tubule Epithelial Cell Line, LLC-PK1

This study examined the urinary excretion of tetrodotoxin (TTX) modeled in a porcine renal proximal tubule epithelial cell line, LLC-PK1. Time course profiles of TTX excretion and reabsorption across the cell monolayers at 37 °C showed that the amount of TTX transported increased linearly for 60 min. However, at 4 °C, the amount of TTX transported was approximately 20% of the value at 37 °C. These results indicate that TTX transport is both a transcellular and carrier-mediated process. Using a transport inhibition assay in which cell monolayers were incubated with 50 µM TTX and 5 mM of a transport inhibitor at 37 °C for 30 min, urinary excretion was significantly reduced by probenecid, tetraethylammonium (TEA), l-carnitine, and cimetidine, slightly reduced by p-aminohippuric acid (PAH), and unaffected by 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP+), oxaliplatin, and cefalexin. Renal reabsorption was significantly reduced by PAH, but was unaffected by probenecid, TEA and l-carnitine. These findings indicate that TTX is primarily excreted by organic cation transporters (OCTs) and organic cation/carnitine transporters (OCTNs), partially transported by organic anion transporters (OATs) and multidrug resistance-associated proteins (MRPs), and negligibly transported by multidrug and toxic compound extrusion transporters (MATEs)