近赤外線スベクトロスコピィを用いた小児期自閉スペクトラム症の前頭前野における血液動態反応の低下

Background: Functional neuroimaging studies suggest that prefrontal cortex dysfunction is present in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Near-infrared spectroscopy is a noninvasive optical tool for examining oxygenation and hemodynamic changes in the cerebral cortex by measuring changes in oxygenated hemoglobin. Methods: Twelve drug-naïve male participants, aged 7-15 years and diagnosed with ASD according to DSM-5 criteria, and 12 age- and intelligence quotient (IQ)-matched healthy control males participated in the present study after giving informed consent. Relative concentrations of oxyhemoglobin were measured with frontal probes every 0.1 s during the Stroop color-word task, using 24-channel near-infrared spectroscopy. Results: Oxyhemoglobin changes during the Stroop color-word task in the ASD group were significantly smaller than those in the control group at channels 12 and 13, located over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (FDR-corrected P: 0.0021-0.0063). Conclusion: The results suggest that male children with ASD have reduced prefrontal hemodynamic responses, measured with near-infrared spectroscopy.博士（医学）・乙第1442号・令和元年12月5日© The Author(s) 2019. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/ publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated

青年期の統合失調症と自閉スペクトラム症のロールシャッハ・テスト反応の相違

OBJECTIVE: The differential diagnosis of schizophrenia (SZ) versus autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be clinically challenging because accumulating evidence suggests both clinical and biological overlaps between them. The aim of this study was to compare Rorschach profiles between young adults with SZ and those with ASD. METHODS: We evaluated quantitative tendencies on the Rorschach test among 20 patients diagnosed with SZ and 20 diagnosed with ASD. Both groups were matched for age, sex, and intelligence quotient. RESULTS: We found significant differences in six response variables on the Rorschach comprehensive system. Those with SZ had significantly higher scores on D score, adjusted D score (Adj D), developmental quality code reflecting ordinary response (DQo), and form quality minus (FQ -) than those with ASD. In contrast, those with SZ had significantly lower scores on the active and developmental quality code reflecting synthesized response (DQ+) subscales than those with ASD. CONCLUSION: The present findings reveal that individuals with SZ might have more stress tolerance, stronger perception distortions, and simpler and poorer recognition than those with ASD. We suggest that the Rorschach test might be a useful tool for differentiating between SZ and ASD.博士（医学）・乙第1386号・平成28年11月24日© 2016 Kishimoto et al. This work is published and licensed by Dove Medical Press Limited. The full terms of this license are available at https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php and incorporate the Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/). By accessing the work you hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms (https://www.dovepress.com/terms.php).The definitive version is available at " https://doi.org/10.2147/NDT.S116223

Reduced prefrontal hemodynamic response in pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder as measured by near-infrared spectroscopy.

Recent developments in near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) have enabled non-invasive clarification of brain functions in psychiatric disorders. Functional neuroimaging studies of patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) have suggested that the frontal cortex and subcortical structures may play a role in the pathophysiology of the disorder. Twelve treatment-naïve children with OCD and 12 age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects participated in the present study after giving consent. The relative concentrations of oxyhemoglobin (oxy-Hb) were measured with prefrontal probes every 0.1 s during the Stroop color-word task, using 24-channel NIRS machines. During the Stroop color-word task, the oxy-Hb changes in the OCD group were significantly smaller than those in the control group in the prefrontal cortex, especially in the frontopolar cortex. The present study suggests that children with OCD have reduced prefrontal hemodynamic response as measured by NIRS.博士（医学）・乙第1315号・平成25年7月22

Soft chromophore featured liquid porphyrins and their utilization toward liquid electret applications

Optoelectronically active viscous liquids are ideal for fabricating foldable/stretchable electronics owing to their excellent deformability and predictable π-unit-based optoelectronic functions, which are independent of the device shape and geometry. Here we show, unprecedented 'liquid electret' devices that exhibit mechanoelectrical and electroacoustic functions, as well as stretchability, have been prepared using solvent-free liquid porphyrins. The fluidic nature of the free-base alkylated-tetraphenylporphyrins was controlled by attaching flexible and bulky branched alkyl chains at different positions. Furthermore, a subtle porphyrin ring distortion that originated from the bulkiness of alkyl chains was observed. Its consequences on the electronic perturbation of the porphyrin-unit were precisely elucidated by spectroscopic techniques and theoretical modelling. This molecular design allows shielding of the porphyrin unit by insulating alkyl chains, which facilitates its corona-charged state for a long period under ambient conditions

近赤外線スペクトロスコピィを用いた覚醒剤精神病と統合失調症の鑑別

Despite some slight differences in symptomatology, differential diagnosis of methamphetamine-induced psychosis (MAP) versus schizophrenia can be challenging because both disorders present a large overlap in their clinical symptoms. However, a recent study has shown that near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) performed during a cognitive task can be a powerful tool to differentiate between these two disorders. Here, we evaluated verbal fluency task performance during NIRS in 15 patients diagnosed with MAP and 19 with schizophrenia matched for age and sex. We used prefrontal probes and a 24-channel NIRS machine to measure the relative concentrations of oxyhaemoglobin every 0.1 s during the task. For each patient, the neurocognitive function and clinical psychopathology were evaluated using the Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS), and the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS). Oxyhaemoglobin changes in the prefrontal cortex were significantly higher in the MAP group compared to those in the schizophrenia group, particularly in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. In contrast, we found no significant difference in PANSS and BACS scores. Our findings suggest that NIRS measurement could be applied to differentiate patients with MAP from those with schizophrenia, even in cases where clinical symptoms are similar.博士（医学）・甲第645号・平成28年3月15日This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

精神疾患におけるマイクログリア由来ニューレグリン発現

Several studies have revealed that neuregulins (NRGs) are involved in brain function and psychiatric disorders. While NRGs have been regarded as neuron- or astrocyte-derived molecules, our research has revealed that microglia also express NRGs, levels of which are markedly increased in activated microglia. Previous studies have indicated that microglia are activated in the brains of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Therefore, we investigated microglial NRG mRNA expression in multiple lines of mice considered models of ASD. Intriguingly, microglial NRG expression significantly increased in BTBR and socially-isolated mice, while maternal immune activation (MIA) mice exhibited identical NRG expression to controls. Furthermore, we observed a positive correlation between NRG expression in microglia and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in mice, suggesting that NRG expression in human PBMCs may mirror microglia-derived NRG expression in the human brain. To translate these findings for application in clinical psychiatry, we measured levels of NRG1 splice-variant expression in clinically available PBMCs of patients with ASD. Levels of NRG1 type III expression in PBMCs were positively correlated with impairments in social interaction in children with ASD (as assessed using the Autistic Diagnostic Interview-Revised test: ADI-R). These findings suggest that immune cell-derived NRGs may be implicated in the pathobiology of psychiatric disorders such as ASD.博士（医学）・乙第1404号・平成29年6月28日Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved