Publications by authors named "A Tokuyama"

Article Synopsis
  • Fibrocartilaginous entheses are structures that include tendons and both mineralized and unmineralized fibrocartilage, all with varying stiffness properties, playing a crucial role in tissue mechanics.
  • The study focused on sclerostin, a protein expressed in fibrochondrocytes, revealing that its levels impact the mineralization processes and overall tissue integrity.
  • Mice lacking the gene for sclerostin showed increased density in fibrocartilaginous regions and enhanced stiffness, indicating that sclerostin is important for maintaining the mechanical properties of these tissues under varying load conditions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Introducing the concept of topology has revolutionized materials classification, leading to the discovery of topological insulators and Dirac-Weyl semimetals. One of the most fundamental theories underpinning topological materials is the Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model, which was developed in 1979-decades before the recognition of topological insulators-to describe conducting polymers. Distinct from the vast majority of known topological insulators with two and three dimensions, the SSH model predicts a one-dimensional analogue of topological insulators, which hosts topological bound states at the endpoints of a chain.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The mechanisms responsible for glomerular hemodynamic regulation with sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors in kidney disease due to type 2 diabetes remain unclear. Therefore, we investigated changes in glomerular hemodynamic function using an animal model of type 2 diabetes, treated with an SGLT2 inhibitor alone or in combination with a renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitor using male Zucker lean (ZL) and Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats. Afferent and efferent arteriolar diameter and single-nephron glomerular filtration rate (SNGFR) were evaluated in ZDF rats measured at 0, 30, 60, 90, and 120 minutes after the administration of a SGLT2 inhibitor (luseogliflozin).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Ecologies of zoonotic vector-borne diseases may shift with climate and land use change. As many urban-adapted mammals can host ectoparasites and pathogens of human and animal health concern, our goal was to compare patterns of arthropod-borne disease among medium-sized mammals across gradients of rural to urban landscapes in multiple regions of California. DNA of Anaplasma phagocytophilum was found in 1-5% of raccoons, coyotes, and San Joaquin kit foxes; Borrelia burgdorferi in one coyote, rickettsiae in two desert kit foxes, and Yersinia pestis in two coyotes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Leptospirosis, the most widespread zoonotic disease in the world, is broadly understudied in multi-host wildlife systems. Knowledge gaps regarding Leptospira circulation in wildlife, particularly in densely populated areas, contribute to frequent misdiagnoses in humans and domestic animals. We assessed Leptospira prevalence levels and risk factors in five target wildlife species across the greater Los Angeles region: striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis), raccoons (Procyon lotor), coyotes (Canis latrans), Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana), and fox squirrels (Sciurus niger).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF