Effect of Freeze-Thawing Treatment on Platelet-Rich Plasma Purified with Different Kits.

Osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK), a progressive degenerative disease affecting quality of life, is characterized by cartilage degeneration, synovial inflammation, and osteophyte formation causing pain and disability. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is an autologous blood product effective in reducing OAK-associated pain. PRP compositions depend on their purification.

Polydactyly-derived allogeneic chondrocyte cell-sheet transplantation with high tibial osteotomy as regenerative therapy for knee osteoarthritis.

Allogeneic cell therapies are not fully effective in treating osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK). We recently reported that transplantation of autologous chondrocyte cell-sheets along with open-wedge high tibial osteotomy promoted hyaline cartilage repair in humans. Here we describe our regenerative therapy for OAK using polydactyly-derived allogeneic chondrocyte cell-sheets (PD sheets) and temperature-responsive culture inserts.

Utilizing questionnaires for medication counselling of patients taking antipsychotics during the COVID-19 pandemic: a single site, community pharmacy-based survey study.

Background: During the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, general strategies for preventing infectious diseases, such as social distancing and the use of protective equipment have resulted in communication barriers between pharmacists and patients in community pharmacies.

Methods: To resolve these communication challenges to medication counselling during the COVID-19 pandemic, during their waiting time at our community pharmacy, we administered two questionnaires to patients receiving at least one antipsychotic drug. The first questionnaire, Questionnaire (A), included questions about any problems with wearing a mask and face shield, forgetting to take medication and adverse effects of their medication.

Ulnar Nerve Injury Following Distal Radius Fracture Assessed by Ultrasonography: Management of an Ulnar Nerve Lesion.

A fracture of the distal radius with an associated injury to the ulnar nerve is rare. The management of the ulnar nerve lesion is unclear. We present a patient with a closed distal radius fracture related to an injury to the ulnar nerve associated with diminished sensation and a claw deformity.

Palsy of the posterior interosseous nerve treated by targeted ultrasound-guided perineural hydrodissection.

Perineural hydrodissection is a minimally invasive technique using an injection of fluid to dissect the perineural plane and tissue space. This report describes a case of palsy of the descending branch of the posterior interosseous nerve (PIN) which was recovered by targeted ultrasound-guided perineural hydrodissection. Ultrasonographic examination was performed, and multiple stenotic lesions interrupted by hyperechoic bands within the fascicles of the PIN were found.

Safety and efficacy of human juvenile chondrocyte-derived cell sheets for osteochondral defect treatment.

Knee cartilage does not regenerate spontaneously after injury, and a gold standard regenerative treatment algorithm has not been established. This study demonstrates preclinical safety and efficacy of scaffold-free, human juvenile cartilage-derived-chondrocyte (JCC) sheets produced from routine surgical discards using thermo-responsive cultureware. JCCs exhibit stable and high growth potential in vitro over passage 10, supporting possibilities for scale-up to mass production for commercialization.

School Canteens in Selected Areas in Indonesia: A Situation Analysis.

Background: The school canteen has a massive impact on the dietary intake and nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents. This study aimed at assessing the current situation of school canteens in selected areas in Indonesia and relevant knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of school-going children and adolescents.

Methods: A qualitative study was implemented in a purposive sample of 18 schools in Klaten and West Lombok districts with 2 comparison schools in Jakarta and Klaten.

A community pharmacist's intervention in antipsychotic drug-induced sexual dysfunction in a patient with schizophrenia.

The community pharmacist interviewed a patient with sexual dysfunction (SD) and suggested a change in prescription. Early intervention by the community pharmacist ameliorated antipsychotic drug-induced SD timeously.

Candidates for Intra-Articular Administration Therapeutics and Therapies of Osteoarthritis.

Osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee is a disease that significantly decreases the quality of life due to joint deformation and pain caused by degeneration of articular cartilage. Since the degeneration of cartilage is irreversible, intervention from an early stage and control throughout life is important for OA treatment. For the treatment of early OA, the development of a disease-modifying osteoarthritis drug (DMOAD) for intra-articular (IA) injection, which is attracting attention as a point-of-care therapy, is desired.

Development of Injectable Polydactyly-Derived Chondrocyte Sheets.

We are conducting a clinical study of the use of allogeneic polydactyly-derived chondrocyte sheets (PD sheets) for the repair of articular cartilage damage caused by osteoarthritis. However, the transplantation of PD sheets requires highly invasive surgery. To establish a less invasive treatment, we are currently developing injectable fragments of PD sheets (PD sheets-mini).

Potential of Exosomes for Diagnosis and Treatment of Joint Disease: Towards a Point-of-Care Therapy for Osteoarthritis of the Knee.

In the knee joint, articular cartilage injury can often lead to osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK). Currently, no point-of-care treatment can completely address OAK symptoms and regenerate articular cartilage to restore original functions. While various cell-based therapies are being developed to address OAK, exosomes containing various components derived from their cells of origin have attracted attention as a cell-free alternative.

Effect of Platelet-Rich Plasma on M1/M2 Macrophage Polarization.

Osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK) is a chronic degenerative disease and progresses with an imbalance of cytokines and macrophages in the joint. Studies regarding the use of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) as a point-of-care treatment for OAK have reported on its effect on tissue repair and suppression of inflammation but few have reported on its effect on macrophages and macrophage polarization. Based on our clinical experience with two types of PRP kits Cellaid Serum Collection Set P type kit (leukocyte-poor-PRP) and an Autologous Protein Solution kit (APS leukocyte-rich-PRP), we investigated the concentrations of humoral factors in PRPs prepared from the two kits and the effect of humoral factors on macrophage phenotypes.

Regenerative effects of human chondrocyte sheets in a xenogeneic transplantation model using immune-deficient rats.

Although cell transplantation has attracted much attention in regenerative medicine, animal models continue to be used in translational research to evaluate safety and efficacy because cell sources and transplantation modalities are so diverse. In the present study, we investigated the regenerative effects of human chondrocyte sheets on articular cartilage in a xenogeneic transplantation model using immune-deficient rats. Osteochondral defects were created in the knee joints of immune-deficient rats that were treated as Group A, untreated (without transplantation); Group B, transplantation of a layered chondrocyte sheet containing 5.

Characteristics of autologous protein solution and leucocyte-poor platelet-rich plasma for the treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee.

Recently, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has received attention as a treatment for patients with osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK), a chronic degenerative disease, to bridge the gap between conservative and surgical treatments. Here, we investigated the differences in the humoral factors present in two types of PRP purified using the Autologous Protein Solution (APS) kit (group Z; leucocyte-rich PRP) or the Cellaid Serum Collection Set P type (group J; leucocyte-poor [LP]-PRP). Differences in humoral factors between healthy subjects (n = 10) and OAK patients (n = 12; group Z = 6, group J = 6), and the relationship between humoral factors and clinical outcome scores were investigated.

Assessment of baseline bone turnover marker levels and response to risedronate treatment: Data from a Japanese phase III trial.

Background: Risedronate increases bone mineral density (BMD) and reduces fracture risk, but treatment response may depend on the baseline state of bone turnover. Data regarding the selection of therapeutic drugs or the prediction of therapeutic effects with baseline levels of bone turnover markers (BTMs) as a reference are insufficient. We hypothesized that when the baseline levels of BTMs are higher, baseline BMD might be lower, changes in BMD at 12 months after risedronate treatment might be higher, and the reduction of fracture incidence might be greater.

Development of an efficient vitrification method for chondrocyte sheets for clinical application.

Introduction: Regenerative therapy using chondrocyte sheets is effective for osteoarthritis. The clinical application of chondrocyte sheet therapy is expected to be further advanced by the use of a feasible cryopreservation technique. Previously, we developed a chondrocyte sheet vitrification method; however, it was too complex to be used for routine clinical application.

Hollow fiber vitrification allows cryopreservation of embryos with compromised cryotolerance.

Purpose: This study aims to demonstrate vitrification methods that provide reliable cryopreservation for embryos with compromised cryotolerance.

Methods: Two-cell stage mouse embryos and in vitro produced porcine embryos were vitrified using the hollow fiber vitrification (HFV) and Cryotop (CT) methods. The performance of these two methods was compared by the viability of the vitrified-rewarmed embryos.

Reasons for Undergoing CT During Childhood: Can CT-Exposed and CT-Naive Populations Be Compared?

Several epidemiological studies suggested an increased risk of cancer and other tumors in individuals undergoing computed tomography (CT) examination during childhood; however, it was questioned whether the group undergoing CT was comparable to that not undergoing CT. To address this issue, we investigated the reasons for undergoing CT in 763 children aged 0 to 19 years in 2013. Their medical records were fully evaluated and symptoms, underlying conditions, reasons for CT, and clinical courses after CT were investigated.

Transcriptomic and Proteomic Analyses Reveal the Potential Mode of Action of Chondrocyte Sheets in Hyaline Cartilage Regeneration.

Chondrocyte sheet transplantation is a novel and promising approach to treating patients who have cartilage defects associated with osteoarthritis. Hyaline cartilage regeneration by autologous chondrocyte sheets has already been demonstrated in clinical research. In this study, the efficacy of polydactyly-derived chondrocyte sheets (PD sheets) as an allogeneic alternative to standard chondrocyte sheets was examined using an orthotopic xenogeneic transplantation model.

Analysis of proliferating neuronal progenitors and immature neurons in the human hippocampus surgically removed from control and epileptic patients.

Adult neurogenesis in the mammalian hippocampus is a well-known phenomenon. However, it remains controversial as to what extent adult neurogenesis actually occurs in the adult human hippocampus, and how brain diseases, such as epilepsy, affect human adult neurogenesis. To address these questions, we analyzed immature neuronal marker-expressing (PSA-NCAM+) cells and proliferating neuronal progenitor (Ki67+/HuB+/DCX+) cells in the surgically removed hippocampus of epileptic patients.

Overweight in Indonesia: an observational study of trends and risk factors among adults and children.

Objective: To conduct a secondary data analysis detailing overweight prevalence and associations between key hypothesised determinants and overweight.

Design: This observational study used publicly available data from the Indonesian Family Life Survey (IFLS) (1993-2014). The IFLS is a home-based survey of adults and children that collected data on household characteristics (size, physical infrastructure, assets, food expenditures), as well as on individual-level educational attainment, occupation type, smoking status and marital status.

Electron Microscopic and Immunohistochemical Findings of the Epidermal Basement Membrane in Two Families with Nail-patella Syndrome.

Nail-patella syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by nail dysplasia and skeletal anomaly. Some patients have been shown to have ultrastructural abnormalities of the glomerular basement membrane that result in nephrosis. However, little has been reported on the epidermal basement membrane in this condition.

Risk factors for nutrition-related chronic disease among adults in Indonesia.

Objective: To conduct a secondary data analysis detailing the associations between sociodemographic and behavioral factors and nutrition-related chronic disease.

Methods: These analyses utilized 2014 data from the Indonesian Family Life Survey, a home-based survey that collected socioeconomic, dietary intake, physical activity, and biological data among adults. We explored four outcomes in relation to sociodemographic and behavioral determinants: 1) hypertension, 2) elevated high-sensitivity c-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and 3) central obesity, as these are critical metabolic determinants in the progression to cardiovascular disease, and 4) type 2 diabetes.