Serum BAFF and APRIL levels in patients with IgG4-related disease and their clinical significance.

[Introduction]B cell-activating factor of the tumor necrosis factor family (BAFF) and a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) play a crucial role in B cell development, survival, and antibody production. Here we analyzed the serum levels of BAFF and APRIL and their respective clinical associations in patients with an immunoglobulin (Ig) G4-related disease (IgG4-RD). [Methods]We measured serum levels of BAFF and APRIL in patients with IgG4-RD, primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS), and healthy individuals. Serum BAFF and APRIL levels in IgG4-RD were assessed for correlations with serological parameters, including Ig, particularly IgG4, and the number of affected organs. Serum BAFF and APRIL levels in IgG4-RD were monitored during glucocorticoid (GC) therapy. [Results]Serum BAFF and APRIL levels in patients with IgG4-RD were significantly higher (P < 0.01) than in healthy individuals. The BAFF levels of patients with IgG4-RD were comparable to those of patients with pSS. Although clinical parameters, such as serum IgG4 and the number of affected organs, were not correlated with the levels of BAFF, serum APRIL levels were inversely correlated with serum IgG4 levels (r = -0.626, P < 0.05). While serum BAFF levels decreased following GC therapy, serum APRIL levels increased during follow-up. [Conclusion]These results indicate that BAFF and APRIL might be useful markers for predicting disease activity in IgG4-RD. Further studies are needed to elucidate the role of BAFF and APRIL in the pathogenesis of IgG4-RD

Effect of various products development made from local products on food loss reduction : Case study of Shimagocoro Corporation.

日本の国内外において，食品の廃棄物に関する関心が高まり，課題解決の方策が検討されている（環境省，2017；農林水産省，2019）。また，企業では，MFCA（Material Flow CostAccounting）などのマネジメント手法が開発され（経済産業省，2009），普及に向けての研究が進められている（安城，2011；萬田，2012；加登・山田，2019）。本研究では，事業において，生産段階における廃棄を含む食品の廃棄物（食品ロス）低減を既存のマネジメント手法に頼らない方法でも実施できる可能性に関する研究の第一弾として，ポーター（1985）およびPorter（2008）のバリューチェーンを議論の枠組みに利用した地域企業のケーススタディを行う。顕在化した食品ロスを直接的な発生要因を解消するなかで関連製品として開発する方法の特長を整理した結果，第一に，既存のマネジメント手法に頼らない，地域産物を素材とした独自の方法で食品ロス低減を基盤とするビジネスモデル開発に取り組む現状を理論的に整理することができた。第二に，地域産物に関する食品ロス低減に取り組むことによって，１つの企業としてのみならず，所在する地域の持続的な成長にコミットメントする機会を創出することから社会的企業として位置付ける可能性を指摘した

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Interstitial lung disease in myositis: clinical subsets, biomarkers, and treatment.

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is the most frequent organ involvement (found in nearly half) of myositis patients, but it reveals various clinical courses and therapeutic responsiveness according to clinical and serological subsets. Autoantibodies, as well as imaging and histopathological studies, are useful for the classification of ILD in myositis and provide useful information for predicting prognosis and determining treatment. Antisynthetase antibodies are correlated with chronic and recurrent ILD, whereas anti-CADM-140 (MDA5/IFIH1) antibodies are a marker of acute progressive ILD in clinically amyopathic dermatomyositis. Serum KL-6, SP-D, and ferritin are useful biomarkers for monitoring the activity and severity of ILD. Regarding treatment, glucocorticoids are the first-line drug, but additional immunomodulating drugs are also used in refractory patients. Cyclophosphamide and calcineurin inhibitors (cyclosporine and tacrolimus) appear to be the key drugs in the treatment of refractory myositis-ILD. Rituximab may become another candidate if these drugs are not effective

Splicing factor proline/glutamine-rich は皮膚筋炎の新規自己抗原で抗melanoma differentiation-associated gene 5抗体と関連する。

京都大学0048新制・課程博士博士(医学)甲第20273号医博第4232号新制||医||1021(附属図書館)京都大学大学院医学研究科医学専攻(主査)教授 椛島 健治, 教授 山田 亮, 教授 清水 章学位規則第4条第1項該当Doctor of Medical ScienceKyoto UniversityDFA

Formation and morphological change of BaTaO2N perovskite from BaCN2/Ta2O5 mixture

Metal oxynitrides are generally synthesized by heating their component oxides in a flow of ammonia for longer than 20 h. In the present study, pure BaTaO2N oxynitride perovskite powder was obtained by heating a mixture of tetragonal BaCN2 and Ta2O5 in a flow of nitrogen. The BaTaO2N powder synthesized at slightly below the melting point of tetragonal BaCN2 (910 degrees C) was found to consist of coarse aggregates of 300 nm-sized particles based on scanning electron microscopy observations. In contrast, BaTaO2N powder obtained above the melting point of tetragonal BaCN2 contained highly-dispersed particles after washing with acid. This difference is attributed to the dissolution and precipitation of the surfaces of the BaTaO2N grains in the BaCN2 melt to generate grain boundary layers soluble in acid. This work represents the first report of the synthesis of a metal oxynitride using a metal carbodiimide as both the metal and nitrogen source. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Spark plasma sintering of dielectric BaTaO2N close to the melting point of the BaCN2 additive

The perovskite-type oxynitride BaTaO2N is a promising lead-free relaxor ferroelectric material. However, this material releases a part of its nitrogen during its sintering above 1350 degrees C. Subsequent annealing of the resulting sintered BaTaO2N0.85 ceramics under an ammonia flow is necessary to recover an insulating, stoichiometric BaTaO2N ceramics. Very recently, molten BaCN2 was reported to be a useful flux for the preparation of BaTaO2N microcrystals without the loss of nitrogen. In the present work, BaTaO2N powder was sintered with a BaCN2 additive under mechanical pressure, using a spark plasma sintering system. Nitrogen loss from the BaTaO2N ceramic was avoided during liquid phase sintering at approximately 900 degrees C. The stoichiometric BaTaO2N ceramic product with a relative density of 79.8 % was an electrically insulator and it showed its relative dielectric constants, epsilon(r) in the range from 320 to 650 and a loss tans values from 0.04 to 0.19 at room temperature