Association between decreased grip strength in preschool children and the COVID-19 pandemic: an observational study from 2015 to 2021.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has reduced people's physical activity. It is essential to accumulate knowledge regarding the influence of COVID-19 on the stimulation of physical fitness and physical functions. Several studies have reported the effects of COVID-19 on physical fitness; however, there are very few reports regarding preschoolers.

RNA Modification in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disorder characterized by damage to the intestinal mucosa, which is caused by a combination of factors. These include genetic and epigenetic alterations, environmental influence, microorganism interactions, and immune conditions. Some populations with IBD show a cancer-prone phenotype.

EpisomiR, a New Family of miRNAs, and Its Possible Roles in Human Diseases.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are synthesized through a canonical pathway and play a role in human diseases, such as cancers and cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, psychiatric, and chronic inflammatory diseases. The development of sequencing technologies has enabled the identification of variations in noncoding miRNAs. These miRNA variants, called isomiRs, are generated through a non-canonical pathway, by several enzymes that alter the length and sequence of miRNAs.

Single-cell RNA sequencing unravels heterogeneity of skeletal progenitors and cell-cell interactions underlying the bone repair process.

Introduction: Activation of skeletal progenitors upon tissue injury and the subsequent cell fate specification are tightly coordinated in the bone repair process. Although known osteoimmunological signaling networks play important roles in the microenvironment of the bone defect sites, the molecular mechanism underlying the bone repair process has not been fully understood.

Methods: To better understand the behavior of the skeletal progenitors and the heterogeneity of the cells during bone repair at the microenvironmental level, we performed a combinatorial analysis consisting of lineage tracing for skeletal progenitors using the mouse line followed by single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis using a mouse model of calvarial bone repair.

[A case of combined hepatocellular and cholangiocarcinoma showing tumor growth and invasion to the diaphragm during interferon-alpha and 5-fluorouracil combined intra-arterial chemotherapy].

We report a case of combined hepatocellular and cholangiocarcinoma showing tumor growth and invasion to the diaphragm during interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) combined intra-arterial chemotherapy. A 63-year-old female was in hospital for treatment of hepatic tumor in left lobe with portal venous tumor thrombus. She was treated by IFN-alpha/5-FU chemotherapy, and the tumor was significantly reduced.

First phase viral kinetic parameters and prediction of response to interferon alpha-2b/ribavirin combination therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis C.

The aim of the present study was to assess parameters in early phase HCV dynamics for predicting the outcome of interferon (IFN)/ribavirin combination therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CH-C). Sixty-five CH-C patients who received IFN alpha-2b/ribavirin combination therapy were enrolled. The serum levels of HCV RNA 0h and 3 months after commencing therapy were serially quantified.

Prediction of breakthrough hepatitis due to lamivudine-resistant hepatitis B virus by a sensitive semiquantitative assay using peptide nucleic acids.

Objective: The aim of this study was to predict breakthrough hepatitis and analyze the dynamics of lamivudine-resistant hepatitis B virus in patients treated with lamivudine.

Methods: Fifty-five chronic hepatitis B patients treated with lamivudine were included. The emergence of YMDD motif mutants was detected by peptide nucleic acid (PNA) mediated PCR clamping with a detection limit of 10(1) YMDD mutants.

A follow-up study to determine the value of liver biopsy and need for antiviral therapy for hepatitis C virus carriers with persistently normal serum aminotransferase.

Background/aims: Long-term follow-up study was performed to identify the candidates for antiviral therapy for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection among carriers with persistently normal aminotransferase (ALT< or = 30 U/L) levels (PNAL).

Methods: One hundred and twenty-nine HCV carriers with PNAL who underwent liver biopsy and had platelet count over 150,000/microl were entered and 69 were followed for over 5 years. Thirty-five patients underwent serial liver biopsies.

Cell growth after withdrawal of gefitinib ("Iressa", ZD1839) in human lung cancer cells.

Gefitinib ("Iressa", ZD1839) is a selective epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitor, which blocks signal transduction pathways implicated in proliferation and survival of cancer cells. However, in vitro and in vivo studies concerning cell growth after withdrawal of gefitinib are limited. To determine whether cancer cells would resume proliferation upon removal of gefitinib, an in vitro study was undertaken using 4 human non-small cell lung cancer cell lines.

Circuit training for elderly patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a preliminary study.

To examine the efficacy of the circuit training in elderly patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), we evaluated muscle forces of the upper and lower extremities and respiratory muscles, exercise tolerance and quality of life (QOL) before and after the circuit training in 10 male patients with mild to severe COPD. The circuit training improved muscle forces of the upper and lower extremities and abdominal muscles (P < 0.05), and 6 min walking distance (P < 0.

Cytokeratin 19 fragment in patients with nonmalignant respiratory diseases.

Study Objective: Cytokeratin 19 fragment (CYFRA) is a specific tumor marker in patients with lung cancer; however, it has been reported that serum CYFRA levels are elevated in some patients with nonmalignant respiratory diseases such as interstitial pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and collagen disease-associated pulmonary fibrosis (CDPF). To investigate the serum CYFRA levels in nonmalignant respiratory diseases in detail, we studied 413 patients with respiratory diseases.

Design: Retrospective study.

Plasma orexin-A levels and body composition in COPD.

Study Objective: To study the role of orexins in regulating body composition in patients with COPD.

Design: Prospective study.

Patients And Measurements: We measured the plasma concentration of orexin-A in 20 patients with COPD and compared the results to those obtained from 10 age-matched control subjects.

Effect of heavy-ion radiotherapy on pulmonary function in stage I non-small cell lung cancer patients.

Study Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of heavy-ion radiotherapy on pulmonary function in patients with clinical stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.

Design: Retrospective study.

Setting: Research Center Hospital for Charged Particle Therapy, National Institute of Radiological Sciences, Chiba, Japan.

Age-related changes in plasma orexin-A concentrations.

To study the effect of aging on orexin-A, we measured plasma orexin-A concentrations in 82 healthy volunteers (55 men and 27 women) over a wide range of ages (mean 50.2 +/- 13.9 years, ranging from 23 to 79 years).