Improving residential care amid COVID-19: The link between risk factors and hospitalization.

Aim: This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between the hospitalizations and backgrounds of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 to identify specific risk factors.

Methods: This retrospective study used health observation records to analyze the relationship between certain risk factors and the subsequent hospitalization of 321 patients who were discharged from a residential care facility between January 16 and February 8, 2021. The usefulness of a hospitalization prediction score, created based on the presence of comorbidities and sex, was examined.

EQUOL, A SOYBEAN METABOLITE WITH ESTROGEN-LIKE FUNCTIONS, DECREASES LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDE-INDUCED HUMAN NEUTROPHIL EXTRACELLULAR TRAPS IN VITRO.

Objective: Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) defend against acute infections. However, their overexpression causes organ failure during sepsis. Control of NET formation may improve the outcomes of patients with sepsis.

The role of death receptor signaling pathways in mouse Sertoli cell avoidance of apoptosis during LPS- and IL-18-induced inflammatory conditions.

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) triggers infectious acute inflammation, and interleukin (IL)-18 is an inflammasome-mediated cytokine. We previously demonstrated that endogenous IL-18 induces testicular germ cell apoptosis during acute inflammation when plasma IL-18 levels are high. Additionally, high-dose recombinant IL-18 (rIL-18) induced Leydig cell apoptosis.

Use of Slack for COVID-19 disaster response in Hyogo Prefecture.

Introduction: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has caused great disruptions in education and healthcare systems. However, before the COVID-19 pandemic, Hyogo Prefecture did not have a centralized system for sharing information among hospitals, public healthcare centers, the government, fire departments, and medical associations. In March 2021, we used Slack,® an enterprise social network, to invite people from hospitals, healthcare centers, the government, fire departments, and medical associations to join our workspace.

Dysfunctional Sars-CoV-2-M protein-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes in patients recovering from severe COVID-19.

Although the importance of virus-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) in virus clearance is evident in COVID-19, the characteristics of virus-specific CTLs related to disease severity have not been fully explored. Here we show that the phenotype of virus-specific CTLs against immunoprevalent epitopes in COVID-19 convalescents might differ according to the course of the disease. We establish a cellular screening method that uses artificial antigen presenting cells, expressing HLA-A24:02, the costimulatory molecule 4-1BBL, SARS-CoV-2 structural proteins S, M, and N and non-structural proteins ORF3a and nsp6/ORF1a.

Prognostic Factors Associated With Mortality of Patients With COVID-19 Requiring Ventilator Management: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Aim There are few reports on the prognostic factors associated with mortality in coronavirus disease (COVID-19) patients with critical disease. This study assessed prognostic factors associated with mortality of patients with critical COVID-19 who required ventilator management. Methods This single-center, retrospective cohort study used medical record data of COVID-19 patients admitted to an emergency ICU at a hospital in Japan between March 1, 2020 and September 30, 2021, and provided with ventilator management.

N95 masks worn to protect against COVID-19 prevented tuberculosis exposure in healthcare workers.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the healthcare workers in our institution have been equipped with N95 masks when performing aerosol-generating procedures, as these are associated with an increased risk of infection. We present a case in which using an N95 mask prevented tuberculosis (TB) exposure among healthcare workers administering prehospital care in rapid response vehicles. Even after the resolution of the COVID-19 pandemic in the future, wearing N95 masks among healthcare workers is recommended to protect against pathogens, including TB, when performing aerosol-producing procedures or prehospital activities for patients suspected of having respiratory diseases.

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia Bacteremia Associated With Severe COVID-19: Successful Treatment With Appropriate Antimicrobial Therapy.

an opportunistic pathogen, can cause bacteremia in immunocompromised and debilitated patients. A 50-year-old man with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was admitted to our hospital's intensive care unit where he underwent extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and ventilatory support. On day 25, he developed bacteremia originating from an indwelling central venous catheter.

Determination of Ultra-trace Tellurium in Steel by ID-ICP-MS/MS with Liquid-Liquid Extraction.

Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry using isotope dilution (ID-ICP-MS) with liquid-liquid extraction was used for determining ultra-trace tellurium (Te) in steels to improve the sensitivity, accuracy, and precision of the analysis. Single quadrupole-type ICP-MS cannot be used to determine the trace amount of Te because of the contribution of mass spectrometric interference by Xe. To overcome this, tandem mass-filter-type ICP-MS (ICP-MS/MS) was used to determine Te.

Interleukin-18 levels and mouse Leydig cell apoptosis during lipopolysaccharide-induced acute inflammatory conditions.

Interleukin (IL)-18 is an inflammasome-mediated cytokine produced by germ cells, Leydig cells, and resident macrophages that is indispensable in the maintenance of homeostasis in the testis. We previously demonstrated that endogenous IL-18 induces testicular germ cell apoptosis during acute inflammation when plasma IL-18 levels are very high. However, the impact of acute inflammation and IL-18 on Leydig cells remained unclear.

Diagnosis and long-term management of hydrolyzed wheat protein wheat-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis.

Case: A 37-year-old woman was admitted to the emergency room with bilateral periorbital edema, hypotension, and expiratory stridor that developed 30 min after starting to hang out washing following consumption of a jam bun. Despite no food allergies or similar episodes, she had recently developed facial wheals after bathing.

Outcome: She was immediately and repeatedly administered adrenalin and succinic acid hydrocortisone sodium for wheat-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis.

A Japanese case of cerebellar ataxia, spastic paraparesis and deep sensory impairment associated with a novel homozygous TTC19 mutation.

Mitochondrial complex III (CIII) deficiency comprises a group of complex and heterogeneous genetic disorders. TTC19 mutations constitute a rare cause of CIII deficiency and are associated with neurological disorders in childhood and adulthood. Herein, we describe a 27-year-old Japanese man with cerebellar ataxia, spastic paraparesis, loss of deep sensation, mild frontal lobe dysfunction and transient psychiatric symptoms.

Determination method of multi elements in ferromanganese samples by LA-ICP-MS.

A dilution method using MnO(2) for the manganese nodule standard, JMn1, has been newly adopted to obtain accurate calibration lines. Moreover, an internal standard correction method was applied to correct changes in the sample introduction efficiency for the prime purpose of laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) analysis. Using the dilution method and the correction method, good calibration lines were successfully obtained for 13 elements.

A role for IL-18 in human neutrophil apoptosis.

Decreased neutrophil apoptosis is associated with persistent inflammation, the severity of which correlates with serum IL-18 levels. IL-18 receptors as well as Toll-like receptors, including Toll-like receptor 4, a receptor for LPS, possess a highly conserved intracellular domain called "Toll-IL-1R domain" and activate overlapping signaling pathways. Here, we show that IL-18 modulates neutrophil apoptosis and compare its mechanism of action with LPS.

Effect of high pressure carbon dioxide on the clumping of the bacterial spores.

The formation of spore clumps of Bacillus coagulans and Bacillus licheniformis during high-pressure carbon dioxide treatment (HCT) was investigated. As the treatment time increased, the number of spore clumps increased. After 120 min, single spore decreased to 20-35% of the population.

Dietary effect of pomegranate seed oil rich in 9cis, 11trans, 13cis conjugated linolenic acid on lipid metabolism in obese, hyperlipidemic OLETF rats.

Conjugated fatty acid, the general term of positional and geometric isomers of polyunsaturated fatty acids with conjugated double bonds, has attracted considerable attention because of its potentially beneficial biological effects. In the present study, dietary effect of pomegranate seed oil rich in punicic acid (9cis, 11trans, 13cis-conjugated linolenic acid; 9c, 11t, 13c-CLNA) on lipid metabolism was investigated in obese, hyperlipidemic Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima Fatty (OLETF) rats. After 2 weeks feeding period, OLETF rats revealed obesity and hyperlipidemia compared with their progenitor LETO rats.

Conjugated linoleic acid prevents the development of essential hypertension in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a mixture of positional and geometric isomers of linoleic acid found in beef, lamb, and dairy products. CLA has attracted considerable attention over the past several decades because of its potentially beneficial biologic effects, including protective effects against several cancers, atherosclerosis, and obesity. In previous studies, we provided evidence that dietary CLA could prevent the development of obesity-related hypertension in obese animals.

Inactivation of Geobacillus stearothermophilus spores by high-pressure carbon dioxide treatment.

High-pressure CO2 treatment has been studied as a promising method for inactivating bacterial spores. In the present study, we compared this method with other sterilization techniques, including heat and pressure treatment. Spores of Bacillus coagulans, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, Bacillus licheniformis, and Geobacillus stearothermophilus were subjected to CO2 treatment at 30 MPa and 35 degrees C, to high-hydrostatic-pressure treatment at 200 MPa and 65 degrees C, or to heat treatment at 0.

The 10trans,12cis isomer of conjugated linoleic acid suppresses the development of hypertension in Otsuka Long-Evans Tokushima fatty rats.

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) is a mixture of positional and geometric isomers of linoleic acid found in beef, lamb, and dairy products. CLA has attracted considerable attention over the past several decades because of its potentially beneficial biological effects, including protective effects against several cancers, atherosclerosis, and obesity. Here we provide the first evidence that the 10trans,12cis-CLA isomer is able to suppress increases in blood pressure during the onset of obesity in OLETF rats.