Retrieval of an Aveir Leadless Pacemaker With a Standard Retrieval Catheter by Releasing the Wedged Docking Button Using a Loop Wire Technique.

Introduction: The docking button of the Aveir leadless pacemaker (LP) is occasionally difficult to access due to its inappropriate position in the right ventricle (RV).

Methods And Results: We report a case where the Aveir LP was successfully retrieved by releasing the wedged docking button in the inferior wall of the RV using a loop wire technique.

Conclusion: The loop wire technique may be useful to change the position of the Aveir LP.

The real-world efficacy and safety of frontline therapy of obinutuzumab plus bendamustine for untreated high-tumor-burden follicular lymphoma.

Background: While R-CHOP has been one of the standard therapies for untreated high-tumor-burden (HTB) follicular lymphoma (FL) for over 2 decades, obinutuzumab plus bendamustine (OB) is also currently regarded as the standard of care since its approval in 2018 in Japan; however, the long-term efficacy and safety of OB in the daily clinical practice has not been thoroughly evaluated.

Methods: We conducted a multicenter retrospective study for the clinical outcome of 53 patients with HTB FL treated by OB as the frontline therapy between 2018 and 2021 in the Kyoto Hematology Clinical Study Group (KOTOSG). All patients had at least 2-year follow-up period.

Association between maternal usage of volatile organic compounds and West syndrome, the Japan Environment and Children's study.

Multiple etiologies of West syndrome have been reported; however, there are cases of unknown etiologies. Exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) increases the risk of epilepsy; however, their effects on children remain unknown. This study aimed to investigate the association between maternal occupational usage of VOCs and West syndrome development in children.

Clonal hematopoiesis-related mutant ASXL1 promotes atherosclerosis in mice via dysregulated innate immunity.

Certain somatic mutations provide a fitness advantage to hematopoietic stem cells and lead to clonal expansion of mutant blood cells, known as clonal hematopoiesis (CH). Among the most common CH mutations, ASXL1 mutations pose the highest risk for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), yet the mechanisms by which they contribute to CVDs are unclear. Here we show that hematopoietic cells harboring C-terminally truncated ASXL1 mutant (ASXL1-MT) accelerate the development of atherosclerosis in Ldlr mice.

Implementation of an Image Tampering Detection System with a CMOS Image Sensor PUF and OP-TEE.

Since image recognition systems use image data acquired by image sensors for analysis by AI technology, an important security issue is guaranteeing the authenticity of data transmitted from image sensors to successfully perform inference using AI. There have been reports of physical attacks on image sensor interfaces by tampering with images to cause misclassifications in AI classification results. As a countermeasure against these attacks, it is effective to add authenticity to image data with a message authentication code (MAC).

Translocation mechanism and the role of aerenchyma in nanoplastic translocation in Myriophyllum sp. "Roraima" and physiological responses.

Nanoplastics have become a growing concern due to their potential impact on freshwater vegetation. The uptake, translocation, and effects of 0.05-µm nanoplastics on Myriophyllum sp.

Clinical and pathological characteristics of immune checkpoint inhibitor-related fulminant myocarditis.

The advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has significantly improved cancer treatment. With the increasing use of ICIs, ICI-related myocarditis has been recognized. However, an evidence-based therapeutic strategy has not been established because of the limited knowledge on ICI-related myocarditis.

A rare case of infiltrative optic neuropathy caused by vitreoretinal lymphoma with hyperreflective deposits in the intraretinal and subretinal pigment epithelial layers prior to the disease onset.

Background: To describe a rare case of infiltrative optic neuropathy (ION) caused by vitreoretinal lymphoma (VRL) with hyperreflective deposits in the intraretinal and subretinal pigment epithelial (RPE) layers before the disease onset.

Case Presentation: An 87-year-old Japanese female, previously treated for unexplained uveitis in the right eye, was referred for further evaluation. Despite the absence of intraocular inflammation or vitreous opacification (VO), yellowish-white deposits were noted in the macula, and OCT revealed hyperreflective deposits in the intraretinal and sub-RPE layers.

Synthesis of Stable Hypervalent Bromine(III) Complexes by Oxidation with Lewis Acids Containing -Hybridized Nitrogen.

Stable hypervalent bromine(III) compounds were synthesized via aryl bromine oxidation with -hybridized nitrogen cations generated by oxime N-O bond cleavage in trifluoroacetic acid. The resulting intramolecular N-Br hypervalent bond is effectively stabilized by the planar xanthone structure. The structures and physicochemical properties of these λ-bromanes were characterized by X-ray crystallography, cyclic voltammetry, UV-vis spectroscopy, and computational analysis.

A chromosome-level genome assembly of a model conifer plant, the Japanese cedar, Cryptomeria japonica D. Don.

Background: The Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don) is one of the most important Japanese forest trees, occupying approximately 44% of artificial forests and planted in East Asia, the Azores Archipelago, and certain islands in the Indian Ocean. Although the huge genome of the species (ca.

Clinical and Histopathological Characteristics of Patients With Myocarditis After mRNA COVID-19 Vaccination.

Background: The effects of myocarditis after mRNA COVID-19 vaccination (mCV) on myocardial tissue, and the association between cardiomyocyte injury and clinical presentation, are not fully understood.

Methods And Results: We retrospectively registered patients clinically diagnosed with myocarditis after the first or second mCV who underwent endomyocardial biopsy or autopsy from 42 participating centers in Japan. We investigated the histological features and their association with clinical presentation based on cardiomyocyte injury.

Health Effects of Methylmercury in Coastal Areas of the Yatsushiro Sea, Far from Minamata.

Minamata disease, caused by ingesting seafood contaminated with methylmercury dumped by corporations, was discovered in 1956; however, there has been no continued investigation to determine the full extent of the damage. Since 2004, it has been discovered that affected patients can be found in areas further away from Minamata than previously known. In the present study, we investigated various symptoms and somatosensory disturbances in western Miyanokawachi District, northern Himedo District, southwestern Nagashima District, and the uncontaminated Amami district and calculated the proportion of patients with sensory disturbances as a percentage of the population in each area.

Somatic mutation rates scale with time not growth rate in long-lived tropical trees.

The rates of appearance of new mutations play a central role in evolution. However, mutational processes in natural environments and their relationship with growth rates are largely unknown, particular in tropical ecosystems with high biodiversity. Here, we examined the somatic mutation landscapes of two tropical trees, (slow-growing) and (fast-growing), in central Borneo, Indonesia.

Robust anti-myeloma effect of TAS0612, an RSK/AKT/S6K inhibitor, with venetoclax regardless of cytogenetic abnormalities.

Multiple myeloma (MM) remains a difficult-to-treat disease even with the latest therapeutic advances due to the complex, overlapping, and heterogeneous cytogenetic, genetic, and molecular abnormalities. To address this challenging problem, we previously identified the universal and critical roles of RSK2 and AKT, the effector signaling molecules downstream of PDPK1, regardless of cytogenetic and genetic profiles. Based on this, in this study, we investigated the anti-myeloma potency of TAS0612, a triple inhibitor against RSK, including RSK2, AKT, and S6K.

Data Poisoning Attack against Neural Network-Based On-Device Learning Anomaly Detector by Physical Attacks on Sensors.

In this paper, we introduce a security approach for on-device learning Edge AIs designed to detect abnormal conditions in factory machines. Since Edge AIs are easily accessible by an attacker physically, there are security risks due to physical attacks. In particular, there is a concern that the attacker may tamper with the training data of the on-device learning Edge AIs to degrade the task accuracy.

Right Ventricular to Pulmonary Artery Uncoupling Is Associated With Impaired Exercise Capacity in Patients With Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis.

Background: Exercise capacity is related to mortality and morbidity in heart failure (HF) patients. Determinants of exercise capacity in transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis (ATTR-CA) have not been established.

Methods And Results: This single-center study retrospectively evaluated ATTR-CA patients and patients with non-amyloidosis HF with preserved/mildly reduced ejection fraction (HFpEF/HFmrEF) (n=32 and n=51, respectively).

Intermittent Versus Daily Trimethoprim/Sulfamethoxazole Regimens for Pneumonia Prophylaxis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Background: In immunocompromised individuals, trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (TMP/SMX) for pneumonia (PCP) prophylaxis has adverse events, and the optimal dosage is unclear. The objective of this study was to assess efficacy and safety of intermittent versus daily TMP/SMX for PCP prophylaxis.

Methods: This systematic review included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) indexed in the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, Ichushi, or Embase databases, published from database inception to September 2023.

KIT-13, a novel plasmalogen derivative, attenuates neuroinflammation and amplifies cognition.

Plasmalogens (Pls) are specialized phospholipids integral to brain health, whose decline due to aging and stress contributes to cognitive impairment and neuroinflammation. This study explores the potential of a novel Pls derivative, KIT-13 (1-O-octadecyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycerol-3-phosphoethanolamine), in mitigating neuroinflammation and enhancing cognition. When administered to mice, KIT-13 exhibited potent memory enhancement attributed to upregulated brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a key player in cognitive processes.

Different Impact of Immunosuppressive Therapy on Cardiac Outcomes in Systemic Versus Isolated Cardiac Sarcoidosis.

Isolated cardiac sarcoidosis (iCS) is increasingly recognized; however, its prognosis and the efficacy of immunosuppressive therapy remain undetermined. We aimed to compare the prognosis of iCS and systemic sarcoidosis including cardiac involvement (sCS) under immunosuppressive therapy.We retrospectively reviewed the clinical data of 42 patients with sCS and 30 patients with iCS diagnosed at Kyushu University Hospital from 2004 through 2022.

Development and validation of a new scoring system to discriminate between uncomplicated and complicated appendicitis.

A scoring system to discriminate between uncomplicated and complicated appendicitis is beneficial to determine the optimal treatment for acute appendicitis. We developed a scoring system to discriminate between uncomplicated and complicated appendicitis and assessed the clinical usefulness of the scoring system using external validation. A total of 299 patients with acute appendicitis were retrospectively reviewed.

Small cell pattern of ALK-negative anaplastic large cell lymphoma with double-hit rearrangements of and .

In ALK-negative anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), gene rearrangements of and are considered mutually exclusive. The former predicts a favorable prognosis, while the latter is generally unfavorable. We report the first case of ALK-negative ALCL in a leukemic phase with small cell pattern transformation, harboring double-hit rearrangements of the gene by inv(6)(p25q21) and gene by TBL1XR1-TP63 inversion.