Qualitative analysis of blood from patients engaging in deliberate self-harm: Differences between prescribed and detected drugs.

Background: While drugs are sometimes taken during deliberate self-harm (DSH), no study has attempted to analyze drugs in the blood of DSH patients and compare them with prescribed medications or other drugs. In this study, drugs were analyzed from the blood of DSH patients, and the detected, prescribed, and suspected drugs were documented.

Methods: Patients who practiced DSH and were transferred to the emergency sites of Fukuoka University Hospital between April 2021 and September 2022 participated in the study.

Sex estimation using skull silhouette images from postmortem computed tomography by deep learning.

Prompt personal identification is required during disasters that can result in many casualties. To rapidly estimate sex based on skull structure, this study applied deep learning using two-dimensional silhouette images, obtained from head postmortem computed tomography (PMCT), to enhance the outline shape of the skull. We investigated the process of sex estimation using silhouette images viewed from different angles and majority votes.

Gray-Scale Extraction of Bone Features from Chest Radiographs Based on Deep Learning Technique for Personal Identification and Classification in Forensic Medicine.

Post-mortem (PM) imaging has potential for identifying individuals by comparing ante-mortem (AM) and PM images. Radiographic images of bones contain significant information for personal identification. However, PM images are affected by soft tissue decomposition; therefore, it is desirable to extract only images of bones that change little over time.

Survey of psychiatric symptoms among inpatients with COVID-19 using the Diagnosis Procedure Combination data and medical records in Japan.

Physical symptoms such as fatigue and muscle weakness, and psychiatric symptoms like depression and anxiety are considered as complications and sequelae of COVID-19. This epidemiological study investigated the actual status of psychiatric symptoms and disorders caused by COVID-19, from four major university hospitals and five general hospitals in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, having a population of 5 million. We conducted a survey of psychiatric disorders associated with COVID-19 using Diagnosis Procedure Combination (DPC) data and the psychiatric records of the hospitals.

Development of an artificial intelligence-based algorithm to classify images acquired with an intraoral scanner of individual molar teeth into three categories.

Background: Forensic dentistry identifies deceased individuals by comparing postmortem dental charts, oral-cavity pictures and dental X-ray images with antemortem records. However, conventional forensic dentistry methods are time-consuming and thus unable to rapidly identify large numbers of victims following a large-scale disaster.

Objective: Our goal is to automate the dental filing process by using intraoral scanner images.

Excessive Intake of High-Fructose Corn Syrup Drinks Induces Impaired Glucose Tolerance.

The number of patients with diabetes was approximately 463 million worldwide in 2019, with almost 57.6% of this population concentrated in Asia. Asians often develop type 2 diabetes (T2D), even if they are underweight and consume a smaller amount of food.

Enhanced water dispersibility and permeability through a Caco-2 cell monolayer of β-cryptoxanthin extracted from kumquats by complexation with casein.

β-Cryptoxanthin (BCX) possesses potential therapeutic and health benefits. However, BCX absorption is low because of its poor aqueous solubility. In this study, a complex between BCX and casein (Cas) was prepared to improve the water dispersibility and bioavailability of BCX.

Analyses of putative anti-cancer potential of three STAT3 signaling inhibitory compounds derived from .

The extract of (Common Sage) exhibited inhibitory activity of STAT3 signal after screening of several plants extracts using the STAT3-responsive reporter system. Cirsiliol, luteolin, and carnosol were identified from the methanol extract of as inhibitors of STAT3 signaling and the effects of these three compounds on STAT3 protein or growth inhibition on cancer cells was compared. Luteolin at the dose of 90 μM clearly suppressed the phosphorylation of STAT3 induced by IL-6, while carnosol was prone to decrease total STAT3 proteins at high doses (>90 μM).

Immunostimulatory effect of kumquat (Fortunella crassifolia) and its constituents, β-cryptoxanthin and R-limonene.

Natural killer (NK) cells play an important role in the innate immune system by eliminating cancer cells and virally infected cells. Aging and stress attenuate the activity of NK cells, thereby increasing the risk of various diseases. In this study, we demonstrated that the consumption of a small number of kumquats in an in vivo model could suppress elevated plasma corticosterone levels and reverse the decline in splenocyte cytotoxicity caused by restraint stress.

Naturally occurring 3RS, 7R, 11R-phytanic acid suppresses in vitro T-cell production of interferon-gamma.

Background: Among the eight stereoisomers of phytanic acid (PA), the 3RS, 7R, 11R-isomer is naturally occurring and is present in foods and the human body. PA is considered to have possible health benefits in the immune system. However, it remains undetermined whether these effects are elicited by the 3RS, 7R, 11R-PA isomer, because previous studies used a commercially available PA whose isomer configuration is unknown.

A novel in vitro model of sarcopenia using BubR1 hypomorphic C2C12 myoblasts.

Sarcopenia is the age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass and function with adverse outcomes that include physical disability, poor quality of life, and death. The detailed molecular mechanisms remain unknown. An in vitro muscle atrophy model is needed to enable mechanistic studies.

Effect of kumquat (Fortunella crassifolia) pericarp on natural killer cell activity in vitro and in vivo.

Natural killer (NK) cells play a key role in innate immune defense against infectious disease and cancer. A reduction of NK activity is likely to be associated with increased risk of these types of disease. In this study, we investigate the activation potential of kumquat pericarp acetone fraction (KP-AF) on NK cells.

Inflammation and hypoxia linked to renal injury by CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein δ.

Tubulointerstitial hypoxia plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of kidney injury, and hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1 is a master regulator of cellular adaptation to hypoxia. Aside from oxygen molecules, factors that modify HIF-1 expression and functional operation remain obscure. Therefore, we sought to identify novel HIF-1-regulating genes in kidney.

[Development of a monitor for quantifying personal eye exposure to visible and ultraviolet radiation and its application in epidemiology].

Objective: Eye diseases including cataract, keratitis and pterygium have been reported to be sun-exposure-related. The association between macular degeneration and blue light has also been discussed. Moreover, it is hypothesized that retinal exposure to blue light may influence the human circadian rhythm.

Spinal posture in the sagittal plane is associated with future dependence in activities of daily living: a community-based cohort study of older adults in Japan.

Background: Accumulated evidence shows how important spinal posture is for aged populations in maintaining independence in everyday life. However, the cross-sectional designs of most previous studies prevent elucidation of the relationship between spinal posture and future dependence in activities of daily living (ADL). We tried to clarify the association by measuring spinal posture noninvasively in a community-based prospective cohort study of older adults, paying particular attention to thoracic curvature, lumbar curvature, sacral hip angle, and inclination to determine which parameter is most strongly associated with dependence in ADL.

Efficient approach for simultaneous estimation of multiple health-promoting effects of foods.

The investigation of new food constituents for purposes of disease prevention or health promotion is an area of increasing interest in food science. This paper proposes a new system that allows for simultaneous estimation of the multiple health-promoting effects of food constituents using informatics. The model utilizes expression data of intracellular marker proteins as descriptors that reply to stimulation of a constituent.

Knee pain and future self-reliance in older adults: evidence from a community-based 3-year cohort study in Japan.

Background: Although knee pain is common in older persons and can cause ambulatory limitation, its impact on self-reliance has rarely been examined in Japan, particularly in a community setting. The aim of this 3-year cohort study was to investigate the association of knee pain with dependence in activities of daily living (ADL) and mortality in community-dwelling older Japanese adults.

Methods: In 2005, presence of knee pain was assessed by a home visit survey of 1391 older adults aged 65 years or older (participation proportion = 97.

Body mass index misclassification due to kyphotic posture in Japanese community-dwelling adults aged 65 years and older.

Background: In older adults, kyphosis (slouching posture) can lead to underestimation of height, which may in turn lead to overestimation of body mass index (BMI). We investigated the extent to which inaccurate BMI assessments led to misclassification of elderly people as normal weight (when they were actually underweight) or overweight (actually normal weight).

Methods: Anthropometric measurements were taken in 2005 and 2006 for 842 residents aged 65 years or older (women: 491; men: 351).

Mitogen-activated protein 3 kinase 6 mediates angiogenic and tumorigenic effects via vascular endothelial growth factor expression.

Genome-wide screening using a small interfering RNA (siRNA) library has revealed novel molecules that are involved in a wide range of physiological responses. The expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is increased under hypoxic conditions, and plays a crucial role in tumor angiogenesis and tissue responses to ischemia. Here, we used a siRNA expression vector library to elucidate molecules that modify VEGF expression.

Immuno-chromatographic assay for diagnosis of feline leukemia virus infection.

Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infectious disease is one of feline infection diseases spreading broadly all over the world. For bedside diagnosis of FeLV infectious disease, an immuno-chromatographic assay was investigated. Five different monoclonal antibodies were developed against the major core protein FeLV-p27.