Political Attitudes towards the Bush Administration by Ethnic and Racial Groups

This project analyzes the attitudes towards political statements according to a person’s ethnic and racial groups. The statements relate to the Bush administration and some of its policies. The different responses are categorized by age, gender and location as well. It is hypothesized that Caucasians would have a more positive outlook on the administration and its policies while racial and ethnic minorities would have a less positive response to the questions. Overall, a total of 219 participants were surveyed from Minnesota State University, Mankato and from communities of southeastern Minnesota through questions asking them to indicate their political attitudes. When analyzed, a significant difference between the majority and the minority was shown in three-fifths of the questions asked. This data supports the hypothesis that the racial/ethnic majority (Caucasians) would more strongly support the Bush administration and its policies when compared to racial and ethnic minorities

Concomitant vancomycin and piperacillin/tazobactam treatment is associated with an increased risk of acute kidney injury in Japanese patients

Introduction Recent studies have corroborated that the co-administration of vancomycin (VCM) and piperacillin/tazobactam (PT) is correlated with an increased incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI). However, evidence directed at the Japanese population is scarce. Therefore, we conducted a retrospective study to compare the occurrence of AKI among Japanese patients who received VCM with PT (VP therapy) and VCM with another β-lactams (VA therapy). Methods The present study, performed at Tsuyama Chuo Hospital between June 2012 and December 2018, included adult patients who received VCM and β-lactam antibiotics for ≥48 h. We defined the primary outcome as the incidence of AKI based on the risk, injury, failure, loss, and end-stage kidney disease criteria. Patients' clinical characteristics and outcomes were reviewed and compared between the two groups with univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Subgroup analysis was conducted by stratifying the patients’ baseline hospital admittance status, as intensive care unit or general wards. Results We analyzed 272 patients (92 V P therapy and 180 VA therapy). Univariate analysis revealed a significant difference in AKI development between VP and VA therapy (25.0% vs 12.2%; p Conclusion VP therapy was associated with an increased risk of AKI compared to that with VA therapy among the Japanese population

Relationship between postural balance and knee and toe muscle power in young women.

Muscle power in the lower extremities and body sway were measured in 57 healthy young women volunteers in their 20's. Body sway was measured with a stabilimeter for 30 sec during two-leg standing, and for 10 sec during one-leg standing with the eyes open or closed, alternating between right and left legs (5 times each). The measured parameters of body sway were locus length per time unit, locus length per environmental area, environmental area, rectangle area, root mean square area, and the ratio of sway with eyes closed to sway with eyes open. Knee flexor and extensor power and toe flexor and abductor power were the measures representing lower extremity muscle power. The increase in sway with the eyes closed was more marked during one-leg standing than two-leg standing, as expected. We found that 36 of 57 subjects (62%) were unable to maintain one-leg standing with their eyes closed, and this failure correlated with marked body sway (P = 0.0086). Many subjects had one leg that was classified as stable and the other leg classified as unstable. Clearly, testing of both legs alternately with eyes closed is necessary to measure the full range of sway in subjects. Lower extremity muscle power did not appear to be the dominant factor in maintaining balance in these young subjects.</p

保険金支払いデータを活用した家庭飼育犬および猫の寿命並びに疾患に関する疫学研究

学位の種別: 論文博士審査委員会委員 : （主査）東京大学教授 杉浦 勝明, 東京大学教授 遠藤 秀紀, 東京大学准教授 松本 安喜, 東京大学教授 辻本 元, 東京大学教授 岸野 洋久University of Tokyo(東京大学

tert-Butylcarbamate-Containing Histone Deacetylase Inhibitors: Apoptosis Induction, Cytodifferentiation, and Antiproliferative Activities in Cancer Cells

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Presepsin and renal function

Background : Presepsin (P-SEP) is a highly specific sepsis marker, and its fluctuation with respect to advanced renal impairment or sample agitation has not been fully investigated. We evaluated several renal function-corrected P-SEP indices to establish a simple index and its reference range. Methods : Blood samples for P-SEP measurement were collected with minimal agitation. P-SEP levels were measured using the rapid automated immunoanalyzer “PATHFAST.” This study included 85 chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients, 65 healthy volunteers, and 4 sepsis patients. Results : Patients stratified by estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) had significantly higher P-SEP levels for CKD stage G3, especially the advanced GFR stage. We evaluated presepsin / creatinine (P-SEP / CRE) and P-SEP / eGFR ratios as possible indices for renal function. The P-SEP / CRE ratio exhibited no increase correlating with the GFR stage and was identical in the normal and CKD groups ; P-SEP / eGFR decreased if GFR stage worsened. The P-SEP / CRE ratio became significantly higher in sepsis patients and was a more useful index with a reference range of 67–263. Conclusions : P-SEP levels were inversely correlated with renal function, indicating the necessity to consider the influence of renal impairment in CKD patients. The P-SEP / CRE ratio is helpful for sepsis diagnosis, even in patients with renal impairment

Eta-photoproduction in a gauge-invariant chiral unitary framework

We analyse photoproduction of eta mesons off the proton in a gauge-invariant chiral unitary framework. The interaction kernel for meson-baryon scattering is derived from the leading order chiral effective Lagrangian and iterated in a Bethe-Salpeter equation. The recent precise threshold data from the Crystal Ball at MAMI can be described rather well and the complex pole corresponding to the S11(1535) is extracted. An extension of the kernel is also discussed.Comment: Updated version to be published in Physics Letters

Clinical evaluation of presepsin considering renal function

Presepsin, a glycoprotein produced during bacterial phagocytosis, is used as a sepsis marker for bacterial infections. However, presepsin levels are affected by renal function, and the evaluation criteria according to kidney function or in chronic kidney diseases remain controversial. Furthermore, presepsin may be increased by sample stirring, but no studies have evaluated this effect.In this study, we excluded the effect of stirring by standardizing the blood collection conditions, analyzed the influence of kidney function on presepsin concentrations, and recalculated the reference range based on the findings. EDTA-whole blood from 47 healthy subjects and 85 patients with chronic kidney disease was collected to measure presepsin by PATHFAST. Presepsin was found to be significantly correlated with the levels of creatinine (r = 0.834), eGFRcreat (r = 0.837), cystatin-C (r = 0.845), and eGFRcys (r = 0.879). Furthermore, in patients with CKD, presepsin levels stratified by eGFRcys showed a significant increase in the CKD G2 patient group and with advancing glomerular filtration rate stage. The following values were obtained: Normal: 97.6 ± 27.4 pg/mL, CKD G1: 100.2 ± 27.6 pg/mL, CKD G2: 129.7 ± 40.7 pg/mL, CKD G3: 208.1 ± 70.2 pg/mL, CKD G4: 320.2 ± 170.1 pg/mL, CKD G5: 712.8 ± 336.3 pg/mL. The reference range, calculated by a nonparametric method using 67 cases of healthy volunteers and patients with chronic kidney disease G1, was found to be 59–153 pg/mL, which was notably lower than the standard reference range currently used. Presepsin concentrations were positively correlated with a few biomarkers of renal function, indicating the necessity to consider the effect of renal function in patients with renal impairment. Using the recalculated reference range considering kidney function may improve the accuracy of evaluating presepsin for diagnosis of sepsis compared to the standard reference currently in use

GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION DUE TO ARSENIC, IRON, AMMONIA, AND ORGANIC MATTER IN HANOI CITY, VIETNAM

Joint Research on Environmental Science and Technology for the Eart

Chiral dynamics of the S11(1535) and S11(1650) resonances revisited

We analyze s-wave pion-nucleon scattering in a unitarized chiral effective Lagrangian including all dimension two contact terms. We find that both the S11(1535) and the S11(1650) are dynamically generated, but the S31(1620) is not. We further discuss the structure of these dynamically generated resonances.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, version to be published in PL