Evaluation method for proteoglycans using near-infrared spectroscopy.

Cartilage is a connective tissue composed of mainly water, collagen (COL) and proteoglycans (PGs) including chondroitin sulfate (CS). Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is adequate for examination of soft and hard tissues with large amount of water non-destructively and non-invasively. We measured tablets containing CS and COL using NIR spectroscopy to develop an evaluation method for PGs in cartilage non-destructively and non-invasively.

Fluctuation of physical function during chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy during rehabilitation intervention: Real-world data and risk factor analyses.

Introduction: Patients undergoing chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy face prolonged treatment timelines and are prone to cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome (ICANS) after infusion. Disabilities in physical function and the importance of rehabilitation during CAR-T-cell therapy to maintain physical function have been poorly documented.

Method: We performed a retrospective cohort study to assess changes in exercise tolerance via differences in a 6-min-walking distance (Δ6MWD) and factors influencing it.

Impact of Preoperative Skeletal Muscle Quality on Functional Outcome in Total Hip Arthroplasty.

Objectives: To investigate the effect of preoperative muscle quality on functional outcomes after total hip arthroplasty (THA).

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting And Participants: We included 426 patients who underwent primary THA between 2015 and 2022 to evaluate the relationship between preoperative muscle quality and 1-year functional outcomes following THA.

Discriminant analysis of occupational performance characteristics in patients with major depressive disorders and healthy individuals.

Aim: Assessing symptoms and daily functioning in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) can be challenging, as their limited self-monitoring abilities may result in behavior observed during structured interviews not accurately reflecting their daily lives. This study aimed to determine if specific occupational behaviors could distinguish individuals with MDD from healthy individuals.

Methods: Baseline data were collected from medical records and activity programs.

Appearance time of blood in the brain as a possible indicator of oxygen extraction fraction: a feasibility study.

Background: Imaging examination of cerebral blood flow (CBF), oxygen extraction fraction (OEF), and metabolic rate of oxygen is crucial for understanding the normal functioning and pathophysiology of the brain. A recently developed method estimates the appearance time of cerebral blood (ATB) pixel-wise from the imaging examination of CBF alone. In this study, we aimed to test the potential of ATB as an indicator of OEF.

Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of suspected difficult-to-treat depression.

Introduction: Difficult-to-treat depression (DTD) represents a broad spectrum of patients with persistent depression where standard treatment modalities are insufficient, yet specific characteristics of this group remain insufficiently understood. This investigation aims to delineate the sociodemographic and clinical profiles of suspected DTD patients in real-world clinical settings.

Method: We conducted a retrospective analysis of data from patients comprehensively evaluated for suspected DTD at Kyorin University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan, between October 2014 and September 2018.

Assessing the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology Self-Report scores to predict continuous employment in mood disorder patients.

Objective: Depression significantly impacts the job performance and attendance of workers, leading to increased absenteeism. Predicting occupational engagement for individuals with depression is of paramount importance. This study aims to determine the cut-off score which predicts continuous employment for patients with mood disorders using the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology, Self-Report (QIDS-SR).

Texture Features of F-Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography for Predicting Programmed Death-Ligand-1 Levels in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer.

Identifying programmed death-ligand-1 (PD-L1) expression is crucial for optimizing treatment strategies involving immune checkpoint inhibitors. However, the role of intratumoral metabolic heterogeneity specifically derived from F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) images in predicting PD-L1 expression in patients with newly diagnosed non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) remains unexplored. Here, we investigated the association between FDG PET texture features and PD-L1 expression by retrospectively analyzing the data of patients newly diagnosed with NSCLC who underwent FDG PET/CT scans and PD-L1 immunohistochemical staining before treatment.

Comparative evaluation of C-methionine and F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography for distinguishing between primary central nervous system lymphoma and isocitrate dehydrogenase-wildtype glioblastoma.

Purpose: Distinguishing between primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL) and isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH)-wildtype glioblastoma is important for therapeutic decision-making. This study aimed to compare the performance of C-methionine (MET) and F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) for distinguishing between these two major malignant brain tumors.

Methods: We retrospectively conducted qualitative and semiquantitative analyses of pre-treatment MET and FDG PET/computed tomography (CT) images of 22 patients with PCNSL and 64 patients with IDH-wildtype glioblastoma.

Pre-transplant phase angle as a potential marker for predicting the development of infection after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Background & Aims: Nutritional assessment in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is important and decreased skeletal muscle mass is a risk factor for the development of infection. Recently, it has become clear that qualitative rather than skeletal muscle mass loss is a marker that reflects post-transplant outcome, but its association with the development of infection remains unclear. Therefore, we assessed skeletal muscle status by body composition using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) and investigated its association with the development of infection.

Association of physical activity with fatty infiltration of muscles after total hip arthroplasty.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the association between muscle density as an indicator of fatty infiltration of lower extremity muscles and physical activity (PA) after total hip arthroplasty (THA) and identify the patient characteristics with high postoperative PA.

Methods: This study included 62 female patients who underwent THA for unilateral hip osteoarthritis. Muscle density of the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, iliopsoas, and quadriceps muscles was measured using computed tomography (CT).

Reversing Unknown Qubit-Unitary Operation, Deterministically and Exactly.

We report a deterministic and exact protocol to reverse any unknown qubit-unitary operation, which simulates the time inversion of a closed qubit system. To avoid known no-go results on universal deterministic exact unitary inversion, we consider the most general class of protocols transforming unknown unitary operations within the quantum circuit model, where the input unitary operation is called multiple times in sequence and fixed quantum circuits are inserted between the calls. In the proposed protocol, the input qubit-unitary operation is called 4 times to achieve the inverse operation, and the output state in an auxiliary system can be reused as a catalyst state in another run of the unitary inversion.

Minimal important difference of the 6-minute walk test after allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Purpose: The 6-min walk test (6MWT) of allogenic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) recipients has been gaining attention; however, minimal differences have not been reported. This study aimed to determine the minimal important difference (MID) in the 6MWT among hospitalized patients with allo-HSCT.

Materials And Methods: The MID of the 6MWT was calculated using three different methodologies based on an anchor-based method; basic anchor-based methods, linear regression analysis, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis.

A Small Compound, HYGIC, Promotes Hypocotyl Growth Through Ectopic Ethylene Response.

Plant seedlings adjust the growth of the hypocotyl in response to surrounding environmental changes. Genetic studies have revealed key players and pathways in hypocotyl growth, such as phytohormones and light signaling. However, because of genetic redundancy in the genome, it is expected that not-yet-revealed mechanisms can be elucidated through approaches different from genetic ones.

FDG PET texture indices as imaging biomarkers for epidermal growth factor receptor mutation status in lung adenocarcinoma.

Identifying the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation status is important for the optimal treatment of patients with EGFR mutations. We investigated the relationship between F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) texture indices and EGFR mutation status in patients with newly diagnosed lung adenocarcinoma. We retrospectively analyzed data of patients with newly diagnosed lung adenocarcinoma who underwent pretreatment FDG PET/computed tomography and EGFR mutation testing between August 2014 and November 2020.

Feasibility of whole-body 2-deoxy-2-[F]fluoro-D-glucose positron emission tomography angiography using continuous bed motion in patients with vascular disease: a pilot study.

Objective: Positron emission tomography (PET) angiography is a promising PET imaging method for vessel evaluation. With advances in PET technologies, PET angiography of the whole body is now possible using continuous bed motion (CBM) mode. This study aimed to evaluate the image quality for depicting the aorta and main branches and the diagnostic performance of whole-body PET angiography in patients with vascular disease.

Identification of a pluripotency-inducing small compound, PLU, that induces callus formation Heat Shock Protein 90-mediated activation of auxin signaling.

Plants retain the ability to generate a pluripotent tissue called callus by dedifferentiating somatic cells. A pluripotent callus can also be artificially induced by culturing explants with hormone mixtures of auxin and cytokinin, and an entire body can then be regenerated from the callus. Here we identified a pluripotency-inducing small compound, PLU, that induces the formation of callus with tissue regeneration potency without the external application of either auxin or cytokinin.

Evaluating the contribution of fat infiltration in anterior gluteus minimus muscle to walking ability in female with unilateral hip osteoarthritis and candidates for total hip arthroplasty.

Background: The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between gait and fat infiltration in anterior and posterior gluteus minimus in the patients with hip osteoarthritis.

Methods: Ninety-one female patients who were diagnosed as the unilateral hip osteoarthritis, classified into Kellgren-Lawrence global scoring system grades 3 or 4, and candidate for total hip arthroplasty were retrospectively reviewed. The horizontally cross-sectional regions of interest for the gluteus medius and anterior and posterior gluteus minimus were manually circumscribed in a single transaxial computed tomography image and muscle density of those regions were obtained.

[F] FDG uptake in patients with spondyloarthritis: correlation with serum inflammatory biomarker levels.

Background: We aimed to evaluate the correlation between 2-deoxy-2-[F]fluoro-D-glucose (FDG) uptake and disease activity assessed by serum inflammatory biomarker levels in patients with spondyloarthritis (SpA).

Methods: A total of 36 SpA patients (24 untreated and 12 treated) were examined using FDG positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography and classified into axial SpA (axSpA) and peripheral SpA (pSpA). FDG uptake was evaluated in 23 regions of the body and scored as follows: 0 = less than liver uptake; 1 = more than or equal to liver uptake; and 2 = more than or equal to twice liver uptake.