Light-Harvesting Spin Hyperpolarization of Organic Radicals in a Metal-Organic Framework.

Light-driven spin hyperpolarization of organic molecules is a crucial technique for spin-based applications such as quantum information science (QIS) and dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP). Synthetic chemistry provides the design of spins with atomic precision and enables the scale-up of individual spins to hierarchical structures. The high designability and extended pore structure of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) can control interactions between spins and guest molecules.

Small molecules and heat treatments reverse vernalization via epigenetic modification in Arabidopsis.

Monocarpic plants flower only once and then produce seeds. Many monocarpic plants require a cold treatment known as vernalization before they flower. This requirement delays flowering until the plant senses warm temperatures in the spring.

Prosthetic Double Valve Endocarditis Caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae Due to Overwhelming Post-Splenectomy Infection (OPSI) in a Pre-Vaccine Licensure Era: A Case Report.

Overwhelming post-splenectomy infection (OPSI) is a severe and potentially life-threatening condition that can occur in patients undergoing splenectomy. We report a case of a patient who had a splenectomy approximately 30 years ago during prosthetic valve insertion for infective endocarditis (IE). The patient later developed prosthetic valve endocarditis caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae associated with OPSI.

The relationship between spontaneous cystic degeneration and pseudocapillarization in sinusoids in the liver of aged Sprague-Dawley rats.

Cystic degeneration (CD) in the liver is a cyst-like lesion composed of one or more pseudocysts lacking lining cells, occurring spontaneously in rats older than 12 months, with a male predilection. In this study, 32 CDs were identified in 23 out of 104 non-treated, control male Sprague-Dawley rats from two combined chronic toxicity and carcinogenicity studies with agrochemicals. They were examined histologically, histochemically, and immunohistochemically to assess the pathogenesis and pathological significance of CD, focusing on pseudocapillarization in aged rat liver.

Avelumab + axitinib treatment in older patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma in Japan: Subgroup analyses of post-marketing surveillance data by age.

Introduction: Avelumab + axitinib was approved in Japan in December 2019 for the treatment of curatively unresectable or metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) based on results from the JAVELIN Renal 101 trial.

Materials And Methods: To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of avelumab + axitinib in older patients in general clinical practice in Japan, an ad hoc analysis of data from post-marketing surveillance (PMS) by age group was conducted.

Results: The analysis population included 328 patients who had received ≥1 dose of avelumab and were enrolled between December 2019 and May 2021.

Final Analysis of Post-Marketing Surveillance for Avelumab + Axitinib in Patients With Renal Cell Carcinoma in Japan.

Introduction: Avelumab, an anti-programmed death ligand 1 antibody, was approved in combination with axitinib for curatively unresectable or metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in Japan in December 2019. Because the pivotal JAVELIN Renal 101 study included a limited number of Japanese patients, post-marketing surveillance (PMS) was required to evaluate outcomes (safety and effectiveness) in patients with RCC who received avelumab + axitinib treatment in clinical practice in Japan.

Materials And Methods: We report data from prospective, noncomparative, multicenter, observational PMS in patients with RCC who received ≥ 1 dose of avelumab.

Long-term survival analysis based on tumor location in patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma who underwent pancreatectomy following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy.

Background: The study aimed at assessing whether long-term survival outcomes were different based on tumor location in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) patients who underwent pancreatectomy following neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (CRT).

Methods: Following CRT, resection rate was 60.5% (286/473) and the resected patients had pancreatic head (n = 218), body (n = 34) and tail (n = 34) tumors.

Clinical features and pathological findings by liver biopsy in patients with immune-related sclerosing cholangitis induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Background: Immune-related sclerosing cholangitis (irSC) induced by immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) is relatively rare, and its clinical and pathological features are not well known.

Aims: We aimed to compare the clinical course and pathological findings of irSC with those of non-irSC liver injury.

Methods: Clinical data were retrospectively collected from 2416 patients with advanced malignancies treated with ICIs between September 2014 and October 2023.

Transcriptome analysis of human oral squamous cancer SAS cells as an early response after boron neutron capture therapy.

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is based on nuclear reactions between thermal neutron and boron-10 preferentially distributed in the cancer cells. B-boronophenylalanine (BPA) is the approved drug for treatment of oral cancers for BNCT. However, the predictive biomarkers to evaluate therapeutic efficacy and side-effects have not been clarified yet.

Discovery of STX-721, a Covalent, Potent, and Highly Mutant-Selective EGFR/HER2 Exon20 Insertion Inhibitor for the Treatment of Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

After L858R and ex19del epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations, ex20ins mutations are the third most common class of driver-mutations in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Unfortunately, first-, second-, and third-generation EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are generally ineffective for ex20ins patients due to insufficient mutant activity and selectivity over wild-type EGFR, leading to dose-limiting toxicities. While significant advances in recent years have been made toward identifying potent EGFR ex20ins mutant inhibitors, mutant vs wild-type EGFR selectivity remains a significant challenge.

Quantitative Assessment of Postural Influence on Lung Function Using Deformable Image Registration-Based Breath-Hold CT Ventilation Imaging.

Purpose This study aimed to clarify which positions are beneficial for patients with pathological lung diseases, such as acute respiratory distress syndrome, by obtaining lung ventilation and deformable vector field (DVF) images using Deformable Image Registration (DIR). Methods Thirteen healthy volunteers (5 female, 8 male) provided informed consent to participate to observe changes in normal lungs. DIR imaging was processed using the B-spline algorithm to obtain BH-CTVI (inhale, exhale) in four body positions (supine, prone, right lateral, left lateral) using DIR-based breath-hold CT ventilation imaging (BH-CTVI).

Evaluation of renal fibrosis using scanning acoustic microscopy.

Background: Renal fibrosis is strongly correlated with renal functional outcomes. Therefore, this is a significant finding in determining renal prognosis. There are various reports on the imaging evaluation of renal fibrosis, but these are not well established.

Asymmetric Synthesis, Structure Determination, and Biologic Evaluation of Isomers of TLAM as PFK1 Inhibitors.

Inhibiting phosphofructokinase-1 (PFK1) is a promising approach for treating lactic acidosis and mitochondrial dysfunction by activating oxidative phosphorylation. Tryptolinamide (TLAM) has been shown as a PFK1 inhibitor, but its complex stereochemistry, with 16 possible isomers complicates further development. We conducted an asymmetric synthesis, determined the absolute configurations, and evaluated the PFK1 inhibitory activity of the TLAM isomers.

HIF1α Plays a Crucial Role in the Development of TFE3-Rearranged Renal Cell Carcinoma by Orchestrating a Metabolic Shift Toward Fatty Acid Synthesis.

Tumor development often requires cellular adaptation to a unique, high metabolic state; however, the molecular mechanisms that drive such metabolic changes in TFE3-rearranged renal cell carcinoma (TFE3-RCC) remain poorly understood. TFE3-RCC, a rare subtype of RCC, is defined by the formation of chimeric proteins involving the transcription factor TFE3. In this study, we analyzed cell lines and genetically engineered mice, demonstrating that the expression of the chimeric protein PRCC-TFE3 induced a hypoxia-related signature by transcriptionally upregulating HIF1α and HIF2α.

Photoabsorption of silver cluster cations in an ion trap: nonlinear action spectra multi-photon dissociation directly measured linear absorption spectra.

We report photodissociation processes and spectral measurements upon photoabsorption of size-selected cationic silver clusters, Ag, stored in an ion trap. The experiment shows that small clusters ( ≲ 15) dissociate upon one-photon absorption, whereas larger ones require multiple photons up to five in the present study. The emergence of multi-photon processes is attributed to collisional cooling in the presence of a buffer helium gas in the trap, which competes with size-dependent dissociation rates.

Comparative Analysis of Needleless and Needle-Based Electrospinning Methods for Polyamide 6: A Technical Note.

This study investigates the influence of needleless versus needle-based electrospinning methods on the fiber diameter of polyamide 6 (PA6) nanofibers under comparable conditions, with an emphasis on potential pharmaceutical applications. Additionally, it examines how varying solvent systems impact fiber diameter specifically in needleless electrospinning. In this study, it was found that fibers produced by the needleless method were thicker compared to those produced by the needle-based method, a trend attributable to the specific solution characteristics and parameter settings unique to this study.

Type 2 Diabetes and Hypertension as Risk Factors for Advanced Fibrosis in Biopsy Proven Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease.

Objectives: To identify the diagnostic criteria for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) related to liver fibrosis and to characterize patients with cryptogenic steatotic liver disease (SLD) (non-MASLD) among those previously diagnosed with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Methods: This multicenter retrospective study included 511 patients diagnosed with NAFLD via liver biopsy, and the prevalence of MASLD was assessed based on the diagnostic criteria. Patients were divided into those who met the MASLD criteria and those who did not, and the characteristics of advanced fibrosis and associated cardiometabolic factors were evaluated.

A Case of Robot-Assisted Pylorus-Preserving Pancreatoduodenectomy for Branch-Duct Intraductal Papillary Mucinous Neoplasms Complicated With an Annular Pancreas.

Annular pancreas is a rare congenital anatomical anomaly, in which the pancreatic parenchyma surrounds the descending duodenum. Generally, annular pancreas is diagnosed on the basis of symptoms associated with complications of peptic ulcer, pancreatitis, cholelithiasis, and rarely, malignant tumors. Herein, we report an 84-year-old man for whom, during hospitalization for a urinary tract infection, pancreatic cystic lesions and an annular pancreas were noted incidentally on computed tomography.

Effectiveness for remission maintenance rate and safety of different rituximab regimens for treating anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis in Japan: a J-CANVAS study.

Rituximab (RTX) has been reported to effectively maintain remission in anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitis (AAV). In this multicenter study involving 57 patients who achieved remission after 24 weeks, we evaluated the effectiveness of RTX in maintaining remission in patients with AAV. Patients were divided into three groups based on RTX administration: continuous, induction phase-only, and maintenance phase-only groups.

Deep learning multi-classification of middle ear diseases using synthetic tympanic images.

Background: Recent advances in artificial intelligence have facilitated the automatic diagnosis of middle ear diseases using endoscopic tympanic membrane imaging.

Aim: We aimed to develop an automated diagnostic system for middle ear diseases by applying deep learning techniques to tympanic membrane images obtained during routine clinical practice.

Material And Methods: To augment the training dataset, we explored the use of generative adversarial networks (GANs) to produce high-quality synthetic tympanic images that were subsequently added to the training data.

Girolline is a sequence context-selective modulator of eIF5A activity.

Natural products have a long history of providing probes into protein biosynthesis, with many of these compounds serving as therapeutics. The marine natural product girolline has been described as an inhibitor of protein synthesis. Its precise mechanism of action, however, has remained unknown.

Distinct prognostic impacts of age-adjusted Charlson comorbidity index and geriatric nutritional risk index in patients with intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm.

The optimal surgical indication for intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMN) remains highly contentious. We aimed to determine the preoperative predictive factors of malignancy and independent prognostic factors in patients with IPMN who underwent curative-intent resection. In this study, 104 patients with a pathological diagnosis of IPMN who underwent curative-intent resection were included.

Clinical practice guidelines for management of disseminated intravascular coagulation in Japan 2024. Part 3: solid cancers and vascular abnormalities.

This study discusses disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) associated with solid cancers and various vascular abnormalities, both of which generally exhibit chronic DIC patterns. Solid cancers are among the most significant underlying diseases that induce DIC. However, the severity, bleeding tendency, and progression of DIC vary considerably depending on the type and stage of the cancer, making generalization difficult.