Ultrasound evaluation of vagus nerve cross-sectional area in a community-dwelling elderly Japanese cohort.

Objectives: Although the vagus nerve (VN) is easily observed by ultrasonography, few studies have evaluated the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the VN in healthy older individuals from East Asia. In this study, we aimed to report reference values for the CSA of the VN in community-dwelling elderly Japanese individuals and to identify any associated medical history and/or lifestyle factors.

Methods: The present study included 336 participants aged ≥ 70 years from a prospective cohort study conducted in Yahaba, Japan from October 2021 to February 2022.

A case of repeated occlusion in the common iliac artery due to an unexpected stent deformation.

We report a case experiencing repeated common iliac artery (CIA) occlusion due to an unexpected stent deformation. A 74-year-old man with intermittent claudication had undergone balloon-expandable stenting for the left CIA. Six years after his first stent implantation, his left CIA was totally occluded inside the stent.

Prognostic value of I-123 metaiodobenzylguanidine imaging in vasospastic angina without significant coronary stenosis.

Background: Myocardial imaging is widely used to detect coronary artery disease and to assess its prognosis. In vasospastic angina (VA), cardiac imaging can provide information on disease activity, which is related to cardiac events. The aim of this study was to clarify whether exercise thallium-201 imaging (Tl-SPECT) and 123I-metaiodobenzylguanidine imaging (MIBG) have prognostic value for patients with VA, but without significant coronary artery stenosis.

Development of fluorescence change-based, reagent-less optic immunosensor.

A reagent-less, regenerable and portable optic immunosensor was developed. A model sample, immunoglobulin G (IgG), was detected with this system based on changes in fluorescent intensity of fluorescent labeled protein A with specific reactivity to IgG depending on a reaction between the proteins. A glass plate immobilized with Qdot-labeled protein A was placed on the top of optic fibers designed for both excitation and fluorescence emission.

Effective monitoring of protein reaction on glass plate surfaces by TOF-SIMS.

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) is capable of chemically visualizing proteins on insulated samples. Distribution of an immobilized probe protein, fluorescent-labeled protein A-immobilized on a glass plate, and that of a sample protein, immunogloblin G (IgG) in solution, reacting with protein A on the biosensor surface, were evaluated with TOF-SIMS (TFS-2100, Physical Electronics). TOF-SIMS spectra and images of the protein on the glass plates were obtained, and this "mutual information", as defined by information theory, was employed to analyze the TOF-SIMS spectra of proteins.

Fucoxanthin induces apoptosis and enhances the antiproliferative effect of the PPARgamma ligand, troglitazone, on colon cancer cells.

The effect of fucoxanthin, from the edible seaweed Undaria pinnatifida on viability of colon cancer cells and induction of apoptosis was investigated. Fucoxanthin remarkably reduced the viability of human colon cancer cell lines, Caco-2, HT-29 and DLD-1. Furthermore, treatment with fucoxanthin induced DNA fragmentation, indicating apoptosis.

Reagentless and regenerable immunosensor for monitoring of immunoglobulin G based on non-separation immunoassay.

Based on the enhancement of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) fluorescence caused by reactions between proteins, we developed a reagentless, regenerable and rapid immunosensing system to determine immunoglobulin G (IgG). Fluorescence intensity of the immobilized FITC depends on IgG concentration, ranging from 10 to 50 microg/ml, specifically, even with co-existing proteins. The response time is 30 min during steady-state measurement and is less than a minute during transient measurement.