Cigarette smoking and cognitive health in elderly Japanese.

Objective: To examine the relationships between smoking status and various domains of cognitive function in community-dwelling elderly subjects.

Methods: Participants (N = 4348) were asked about smoking status, demographic variables, and lifestyle factors, and underwent multidimensional neurocognitive tests.

Results: All analyses were conducted separately by sex.

Comparison of accumulation of four metalloids in Allium sativum.

In this study, we evaluated the accumulation and metabolism of four metalloids: arsenic (As), selenium (Se), antimony (Sb), and tellurium (Te) in garlic to determine whether garlic can be used for the phytoremediation of those metalloids. Garlic was able to efficiently accumulate As and Se, the two-fourth-period metalloids. However, it was not able to accumulate Sb and Te, the two-fifth-period metalloids, because their bioaccumulation factors were below one.

Why is radiofrequency ablation therapy applied for hepatocellular carcinoma up to 3 nodules and smaller than 3 cm in tumor size?

Background/aims: Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has been applied for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) up to 3 nodules, within 3 cm in size. However, the scientific rationale of the treatment criteria for RFA has not been well analyzed. We compared the number and size of tumors with recurrence rates and survival rates.

The association between kidney function and cognitive decline in community-dwelling, elderly Japanese people.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between chronic kidney disease (CKD) and cognitive decline in community-dwelling older adults without dementia.

Design: Cross-sectional.

Setting: Obu Study of Health Promotion for the Elderly in Japan.

Visual deprivation elicits subclinical postural inflexibilities in early Parkinson's disease.

Background: Postural instability is often experienced in the late stages of PD and is a marker of disease progression. Little information is available on the role of visual inputs as an adaptive strategy to compensate for postural instability in PD. The purpose of this study was to determine visual dependency for postural control in early PD.

Lysine Demethylase LSD1 Coordinates Glycolytic and Mitochondrial Metabolism in Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells.

The hallmark of most cancer cells is the metabolic shift from mitochondrial to glycolytic metabolism for adapting to the surrounding environment. Although epigenetic modification is intimately linked to cancer, the molecular mechanism, by which epigenetic factors regulate cancer metabolism, is poorly understood. Here, we show that lysine-specific demethylase-1 (LSD1, KDM1A) has an essential role in maintaining the metabolic shift in human hepatocellular carcinoma cells.

A comparison of laparoscopic energy devices on charges in thermal power after application to porcine mesentery.

Introduction: Advances in energy devices have played a major role in the rapid expansion of laparoscopic surgery. However, complications due to these energy devices are occasionally reported, and if the characteristics of these devices are not well understood, serious complications may occur. This study evaluated various typical energy devices and measured temperature rises in the adjacent tissue and in the devices themselves.

Lysine-specific demethylase 2 suppresses lipid influx and metabolism in hepatic cells.

Cells link environmental fluctuations, such as nutrition, to metabolic remodeling. Epigenetic factors are thought to be involved in such cellular processes, but the molecular basis remains unclear. Here we report that the lysine-specific demethylase 2 (LSD2) suppresses the flux and metabolism of lipids to maintain the energy balance in hepatic cells.

Going outdoors and cognitive function among community-dwelling older adults: Moderating role of physical function.

Aims: Identifying the risk factors of cognitive impairment is essential for implementing effective prevention strategies for dementia. Previous studies have shown that the frequency of going outdoors is inversely associated with cognitive decline. Little research has examined whether the relationship between going outdoors and cognitive decline varies with physical functioning in older adults.

[Effect of weekly paclitaxel followed by 5-fluorouracil, epirubicin, and cyclophosphamide as neoadjuvant treatment for patients with triple-negative and luminal-type breast cancer - a multicenter study].

This study examined the pathological complete response (pCR )rate and safety of induction chemotherapy with 12 cycles of weekly paclitaxel (80 mg/m²) followed by 4 cycles of 5-fluorouracil (500 mg/m²), epirubicin (100 mg/m²), and cyclo- phosphamide (500 mg/m²). The study medication was administered to female patients (n=31)with a mean age of 51 years, diagnosed with stage II A (n=18), II B (n=11) and III A (n=2) disease and with an estrogen receptor positive rate of 65% (20/31). No patient was HER2-IHC [human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) immunohistochemistry (IHC)](3+) or HER2-FISH (fluorescence in situ hybridization) positive.

Gadolinium-ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging as a useful detection method for advanced primary biliary cirrhosis.

Aim: In primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), damaged hepatocytes resulting from chronic cholestasis follow a compensatory mechanism that alters hepatobiliary transporter expression to reduce the accumulation of potentially toxic compounds such as bile acid. Organic anion transporter peptide 1B3 (OATP1B3), which transports agents such as gadolinium-ethoxybenzyl-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid (Gd-EOB-DTPA), has reduced expression in the late stages of PBC. Therefore, we investigated the use of Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a useful detection method for the advanced staging of PBC.

Do patients with knee osteoarthritis perform sit-to-stand motion efficiently?

The sit-to-stand motion (STS) is a frequently executed activity that is affected by weakness in the quadriceps femoris muscle and knee joint pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA). We investigated whether patients with knee OA can efficiently perform STS through mechanical energy transfer assessments. Participants were 20 women with knee OA and 17 age-matched asymptomatic controls.

Understanding and using the brief Implicit Association Test: recommended scoring procedures.

A brief version of the Implicit Association Test (BIAT) has been introduced. The present research identified analytical best practices for overall psychometric performance of the BIAT. In 7 studies and multiple replications, we investigated analytic practices with several evaluation criteria: sensitivity to detecting known effects and group differences, internal consistency, relations with implicit measures of the same topic, relations with explicit measures of the same topic and other criterion variables, and resistance to an extraneous influence of average response time.

p38 Mitogen-activated protein kinase and c-Jun NH2-terminal protein kinase regulate the accumulation of a tight junction protein, ZO-1, in cell-cell contacts in HaCaT cells.

To investigate the involvement of stress-activated protein kinases, JNK and p38 MAPK, in the assembly of tight junctions in keratinocytes, we treated HaCaT cells with various combinations of SP600125 (an inhibitor of JNK), SB202190 (an inhibitor of p38 MAPK) and anisomycin (an activator of both JNK and p38 MAPK) and examined the localization of ZO-1, an undercoat constitutive protein of the tight junction. Short-term (8h) incubation with SP600125, SB202190 or anisomycin induced the accumulation of ZO-1 in the cell-cell contacts, with reduced ZO-1 staining in the cytoplasm, while only long-term (24h) incubation with SP600125 induced the accumulation of ZO-1. SP600125, SB202190 or SP600125 plus SB202190 treatment induced thin linear staining for ZO-1 in the cell-cell contacts.

Experience from the Great East Japan Earthquake response as the basis for revising the Japanese Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) training program.

Objective: The objective of this study was to draft a new Japanese Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) training program based on the responses to the Great East Japan Earthquake.

Methods: Working group members of the Japan DMAT Investigative Commission, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, reviewed reports and academic papers on DMAT activities after the disaster and identified items in the current Japanese DMAT training program that should be changed. A new program was proposed that incorporates these changes.

Four Japanese cases of dendritic cell neurofibroma with pseudorosettes.

Dendritic cell neurofibroma with pseudorosettes (DCNWPR) is a rare peripheral nerve sheath tumor (PNST). To our knowledge, the only reported case of DCNWPR in Japan was documented by our team. We experienced three additional cases of DCNWPR in our institute since 2007, and report the clinical and histological features of DCNWPR of these Japanese cases.

Adjusting the starting dose of telaprevir according to renal function decreases adverse effects and affects the sustained virological response rate.

Background: Telaprevir (TVR) plays a major role in renal damage and anemia associated with TVR/pegylated interferon/ribavirin therapy for chronic hepatitis C. Adjusting the TVR starting dose may reduce these adverse effects. We aimed to determine whether adjusting the starting dose according to renal function reduces TVR-associated renal damage and anemia and affects the sustained virological response (SVR).

Thymidine phosphorylase mRNA expression may be a predictor of response to post-operative adjuvant chemotherapy with S-1 in patients with stage III colorectal cancer.

The aim of the present study was to investigate markers in surgically resected specimens of colorectal cancer that can be used to predict the response to chemotherapy. The mRNA expression levels of enzymes involved in 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) metabolism and folate metabolism were measured in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tumor sections obtained from the primary tumors of 54 patients with resected stage II or III colorectal cancer who received S-1 for one year. The 5-FU metabolizing enzymes studied were thymidylate synthase, dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase and thymidine phosphorylase (TP).

Metabolic pathway of inorganic and organic selenocompounds labeled with stable isotope in Japanese quail.

The distribution and metabolism of an inorganic selenium (Se) compound and a selenoamino acid in quails were evaluated by speciation with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and a stable isotope. Quails were orally administered stable isotope [(77)Se]-labeled selenite and selenomethionine (SeMet) at the nutritional dose of 10 μg Se/bird. Then, the quails were dissected 3, 9, and 24 h after the administration to examine the metabolic pathway and the time-dependent change of Se.

Real time monitoring of gases emitted from soils using a multi-turn time-of-flight mass spectrometer "MULTUM-S II".

Many miniaturized mass spectrometers used for on-site analysis have been designed and developed recently utilizing a broad range of analyzer platforms. These instruments are expected to have widespread applications covering many fields of interest. In our laboratory, a miniaturized multi-turn time-of-flight (TOF) mass spectrometer "MULTUM-S II" was designed and constructed.

Physical frailty predicts incident depressive symptoms in elderly people: prospective findings from the Obu Study of Health Promotion for the Elderly.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine whether frailty is an important and independent predictor of incident depressive symptoms in elderly people without depressive symptoms at baseline.

Design: Fifteen-month prospective study.

Setting: General community in Japan.

Histologic evaluation of the effects of Emdogain gel on injured root apex in rats.

Introduction: This study investigated the effects of Emdogain gel (EMD) on the injured open apex within periapical lesions.

Methods: Periapical lesions were induced in rats by opening the pulp chambers of the mandibular first molars and filing the apical foramen through the distal root canal with #25 K-files to make an open apex. The teeth were exposed to the oral environment for 7 days.

Arsenic (+3 oxidation state) methyltransferase is a specific but replaceable factor against arsenic toxicity.

Inorganic metalloids, such as arsenic (As), antimony (Sb), selenium (Se), and tellurium (Te), are methylated in biota. In particular, As, Se, and Te are methylated and excreted in urine. The biomethylation is thought to be a means to detoxify the metalloids.

A clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical study of 7 cases of sclerosing perineurioma.

Sclerosing perineurioma is a relatively rare tumor that has remained widely unknown since first reported by Fetsch in 1997. To our knowledge, no large or small series of claudin-1 in sclerosing perineurioma has been confirmed to date. We collected 7 new cases of sclerosing perineurioma.