Publications by authors named "Koji Isodono"
Purpose To clarify the predominant causative plaque constituent for periprocedural myocardial injury (PMI) following percutaneous coronary intervention: erythrocyte-derived materials, indicated by a high plaque-to-myocardium signal intensity ratio (PMR) at coronary atherosclerosis T1-weighted characterization (CATCH) MRI, or lipids, represented by a high maximum 4-mm lipid core burden index (maxLCBI) at near-infrared spectroscopy intravascular US (NIRS-IVUS). Materials and Methods This retrospective study included consecutive patients who underwent CATCH MRI before elective NIRS-IVUS-guided percutaneous coronary intervention at two facilities. PMI was defined as post-percutaneous coronary intervention troponin T values greater than five times the upper reference limit.
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- A new method called CATCH was created to better measure high-intensity plaque in heart arteries, which can help predict heart problems after procedures.
- The study looked at 137 areas in 125 patients before they had stents put in their hearts using this new MRI method.
- Results showed that the new CATCH method was better at predicting heart issues than the old method, making it an important advancement in heart health monitoring.
Article Synopsis
- * It involved evaluating 273 plaques from 141 patients, finding that LAP burden correlates with high-risk plaque features determined by NIRS-IVUS, and is more effective at identifying these types of plaques compared to just visual assessment.
- * The results indicated that quantifying LAP burden enhances the detection of high-risk plaques, suggesting that measuring LAP could be a valuable tool in assessing coronary artery health.
Background: Lipid-rich plaque detected by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) and attenuated plaque detected by intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) predict periprocedural myocardial injury (MI) following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Although echolucent plaque detected by IVUS was reported to be associated with a no-reflow phenomenon in acute myocardial infarction, it remains unclear whether echolucent plaque is predictive of periprocedural MI following elective PCI. We aimed to elucidate whether echolucent plaque is independently associated with periprocedural MI after elective PCI and whether the predictive ability for periprocedural MI is improved by the combination of NIRS and IVUS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground The histologic nature of coronary high-intensity plaques (HIPs) at T1-weighted MRI in patients with stable coronary artery disease remains to be fully understood. Coronary atherosclerosis T1-weighted characterization (CATCH) enables HIP detection by simultaneously acquiring dark-blood plaque and bright-blood anatomic reference images. Purpose To determine if intraplaque hemorrhage (IPH) or lipid is the predominant substrate of HIPs on T1-weighted images by comparing CATCH MRI scans with findings on near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) intravascular US (IVUS) images.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe purpose of this study was to evaluated the clinical characteristics of calcified nodule-like in-stent restenosis (ISR) lesions using optical coherence tomography (OCT) in vivo. A total of 124 ISR lesions that were treated with a repeat coronary intervention under OCT guidance were included in this analysis. ISR neointimal morphology was classified as "calcified nodule-like ISR", that appeared as a high-backscattering protruding mass with an irregular surface covered by signal-rich bands, or "non-calcified nodule-like ISR".
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: This study aimed to assess the clinical efficacy of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS)-guided intraplaque wiring for femoropopliteal (FP) chronic total occlusion (CTO).
Methods: This single-center, retrospective, observational study was performed at the Japanese Red Cross Kyoto Daini Hospital. From March 2013 to June 2017, a total of 75 consecutive patients (mean age: 75.
Article Synopsis
- This study assessed the effectiveness of using physiological maps alongside angiograms to evaluate heart lesions in patients with stable angina, employing a technique called the instantaneous wave-free ratio (iFR).
- Data was gathered from 70 patients, and the analysis revealed that changes in lesion morphology occurred in 37.1% of cases, with notable shifts from tandem to focal lesions.
- The study concluded that while physiological maps can help reduce unnecessary stent placements, the predictive accuracy of post-iFR measurements was somewhat lower than findings from previous studies.
Article Synopsis
- Minimizing contrast volume is crucial in preventing contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with severe renal dysfunction.
- A 70-year-old man with severe renal dysfunction and three-vessel heart disease underwent three PCI procedures using a total of only 31 mL of contrast medium, achieving complete revascularization without CIN.
- The strategy included hydration with saline, the use of microcatheter injections, and intravascular ultrasound, showing a successful approach for similar high-risk patients.
Article Synopsis
- Cholesterol crystals (CCs) may play a significant role in the progression and vulnerability of atherosclerotic plaques, impacting coronary artery health.
- A study assessed 55 acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and 80 stable angina pectoris patients, revealing that while CC incidence was similar, CCs were located closer to the surface in ACS patients.
- The findings suggest that the depth of CCs within plaques correlates with increased plaque vulnerability, making CC depth a potential new indicator for evaluating coronary artery health.
Article Synopsis
- The study assessed the effectiveness of using a motorized pullback technique with pressure guidewires to evaluate coronary lesions' characteristics and the benefits of interventions, particularly in patients undergoing PCI.
- Results showed that the average FFR values improved significantly after PCI, indicating successful intervention, with a median increase and correlation between percentage FFR area and changes in FFR values.
- Additionally, the technique offered valuable insights into lesion morphology, such as length and pressure-drop patterns, which could guide better stent placement and enhance diagnostic accuracy in coronary procedures.
Article Synopsis
- Myocardial perfusion SPECT is an effective tool for predicting cardiac events in patients with coronary artery disease, but sometimes may give false negatives.
- The study assessed the value of the Heart Risk View software in evaluating cardiac risk among patients who had normal MPS results.
- Among 698 patients studied, those identified with a higher cardiac event probability by Heart Risk View had significantly more cardiac events during follow-up, indicating that this tool enhances risk assessment even when SPECT results are normal.
Previous reports have suggested that right ventricular apical pacing may lead to cardiac dysfunction. Septal pacing is thought to be superior to apical pacing in the prevention of cardiac dyssynchrony, however, there have been no reports on the contribution of septal pacing to improving clinical outcome.We retrospectively evaluated factors associated with cardiac events in patients with right ventricular pacing.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTo identify novel transmembrane and secretory molecules expressed in cardiac myocytes, signal sequence trap screening was performed in rat neonatal cardiac myocytes. One of the molecules identified was a transmembrane protein, prostatic androgen repressed message-1 (PARM-1). While PARM-1 has been identified as a gene induced in prostate in response to castration, its function is largely unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDownregulation of Dicer expression by serum withdrawal sensitizes human endothelial cells to apoptosis.
Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol
December 2008
Although the modulated expression of Dicer is documented upon neoplastic transformation, little is known of the regulation of Dicer expression by environmental stimuli and its roles in the regulation of cellular functions in primary cells. In this study, we found that Dicer expression was downregulated upon serum withdrawal in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Serum withdrawal induced a time-dependent repression of Dicer expression, which was specifically rescued by vascular endothelial cell growth factor or sphingosine-1-phosphate.
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- - The process of skeletal myogenesis involves the transformation of undifferentiated myoblasts into multinucleated muscle fibers, but the exact molecular mechanisms are still unclear.
- - Researchers identified the muscle-restricted coiled-coil (MURC) protein as a key positive regulator in this process, showing its presence in the muscle cells and its correlation with the expression of myogenin and activation of ERK during muscle cell differentiation.
- - MURC levels increase during muscle regeneration and are found more abundantly in immature myofibers; manipulating MURC expression affects myoblast differentiation, indicating its critical role in skeletal muscle development and repair.
Article Synopsis
- Researchers discovered a novel protein called MURC, found specifically in muscle cells, that is consistent across species from frogs to humans, and is located mainly in the heart's cytoplasm, particularly at the Z-line of muscle fibers.
- MURC levels in the heart increase from embryonic stages to adulthood and rise further in response to heart pressure overload, suggesting its role in heart development and stress response.
- MURC interacts with another protein, SDPR, enhancing the activity of genes crucial for heart function; however, mice engineered to overexpress MURC exhibited serious heart problems, indicating that MURC is linked to cardiac dysfunction and increased risk of arrhythmias.
Article Synopsis
- The study focuses on the existence and functionality of muscle-derived stem cells (MDSCs) in mammals, particularly their ability to become beating cardiomyocytes.
- Researchers identified myosphere-derived progenitor cells (MDPCs) that show promise for muscle repair and regeneration, finding that follistatin plays a key role in enhancing their growth.
- Inhibiting certain signaling pathways, specifically activin A and GDF11, significantly boosts MDPC proliferation, suggesting that follistatin could be a valuable agent for promoting muscle stem cell growth.
The role of Smads and their specific ligands during cardiomyogenesis in ES cells was examined. Smad2 was activated bimodally in the early and late phases of cardiac differentiation, whereas Smad1 was activated after the middle phase. Nodal and Cripto were expressed in the early stage and then downregulated, whereas transforming growth factor-beta and activin were expressed only in the late phase.
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- MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small RNA molecules that regulate gene expression after transcription, highlighting their importance in cellular functions.
- This study investigated the impact of the muscle-specific miRNA, miR-1, on the differentiation of C2C12 muscle cells, finding that overexpressing miR-1 significantly boosted myogenic differentiation and myotube formation.
- However, miR-1 did not influence osteoblastic or adipogenic differentiation, suggesting its role is primarily in the development and maturation of muscle cells rather than determining their fate.