Impact of Artificial Sunlight Aging on the Respiratory Effects of Polyethylene Terephthalate Microplastics through Degradation-Mediated Terephthalic Acid Release in Male Mice.

Microplastics are ubiquitous in the atmosphere, leading to human exposure through inhalation. Airborne microplastics undergo degradation due to sunlight irradiation, yet the respiratory risks associated with degraded microplastics remain poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the respiratory effects of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) degraded by artificial sunlight and created a transport and degradation model of PET for risk assessment.

Tuning of a Hydrogen-Bonded Organic Framework by Liquid-Assisted Mechanosynthesis between Trans-Aconitic Acid and Isonicotinamide.

Cocrystallization of trans-aconitic acid (TACA) and isonicotinamide (INA) using liquid assisted mechanochemical grinding results in a unique supramolecular hydrogen-bonded organic framework (HOF) system encapsulating various organic solvents (liquid guest) with the formation of channel inclusion compounds. Dimension and shape of the framework is dependent on the solvent used during liquid assisted grinding (LAG). Although crystal structure of the cocrystal (TACA) ⋅ (INA) ⋅ (HO)@(INA) has been determined by Single Crystal X-ray diffraction (SCXRD), crystal structures of 3 cocrystal HOFs were determined by microcrystal electron diffraction (MicroED) and synchrotron X-ray diffraction due to lack of suitable single crystal.

Synthesis of Antitumor Bicyclic Hexapeptide RA-VII Analogues Possessing an Aromatic Amino Acid at Residue 2.

RA-III acetate was treated with Lawesson's reagent to afford [Tyr-3-Ψ(CS-NH)-Ala-4]RA-III acetate. Treatment of this product with Hg(OAc)/LiCO and then methanol gave an oxazole intermediate. Acid-catalyzed arylation of the methylene carbon atom on the oxazole ring and subsequent partial hydrolysis of the oxazole ring in the resultant compounds afforded RA-VII analogues having an aromatic amino acid at residue 2.

Phenolic compounds from the aerial parts of in Japan, and their antioxidant activity and chemical adaptation to alpine environment.

Twelve flavonoids (-) including a new flavonol glycoside, hibiscetin 3--glucopyranoside-8--glucuronopyranoside, ten known galloylglucoses (-) and three known phenolic acids (-) were isolated from the aerial parts of growing in Japan. Their chemical structures were elucidated by UV-vis spectra, LC-MS, HR-MS, acid hydrolysis, NMR, and/or HPLC, and TLC comparisons with authentic samples. Antioxidant activity of major 14 compounds was measured by H-ORAC method, and two flavonols, herbacetin 3--glucoside-8--glucuronide, and gossypetin 3--glucuronide-8--glucoside, showed the strongest activity.

Thickness-Dependent Segmental Dynamics in Supported Thin Films: Insights from a Dynamically Correlated Network Model.

A large body of experimental studies shows that the local dynamics in supercooled liquids are significantly altered by spatial nanoconfinement. In a previous study, we proposed a concept of a dynamically correlated network (DCN) model, which assumes that segments in a supercooled liquid undergo cooperative rearrangements within a network-like cluster. We further demonstrated that a model modified for freestanding thin films can predict for the glass transition dynamics in atactic polystyrene (PS) films consistent with experimental results.

Structure and engineering of Brevibacillus laterosporus Cas9.

The RNA-guided DNA endonuclease Cas9 cleaves double-stranded DNA targets complementary to an RNA guide, and is widely used as a powerful genome-editing tool. Here, we report the crystal structure of Brevibacillus laterosporus Cas9 (BlCas9, also known as BlatCas9), in complex with a guide RNA and its target DNA at 2.4-Å resolution.

Real-time observation of a metal complex-driven reaction intermediate using a porous protein crystal and serial femtosecond crystallography.

Determining short-lived intermediate structures in chemical reactions is challenging. Although ultrafast spectroscopic methods can detect the formation of transient intermediates, real-space structures cannot be determined directly from such studies. Time-resolved serial femtosecond crystallography (TR-SFX) has recently proven to be a powerful method for capturing molecular changes in proteins on femtosecond timescales.

Enhancement of keratinocyte survival and migration elicited by interleukin 24 upregulation in dermal microvascular endothelium upon welding-fume exposure.

Occupational exposure to welding fumes constitutes a serious health concern. Although the effects of fumes on the respiratory tract have been investigated, few apparent reports were published on their effects on the skin. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of exposure to welding fumes on skin cells, focusing on interleukin-24 (IL-24), a cytokine involved in the pathophysiology of skin conditions, such as atopic dermatitis and psoriasis.

Data-driven regularization lowers the size barrier of cryo-EM structure determination.

Macromolecular structure determination by electron cryo-microscopy (cryo-EM) is limited by the alignment of noisy images of individual particles. Because smaller particles have weaker signals, alignment errors impose size limitations on its applicability. Here, we explore how image alignment is improved by the application of deep learning to exploit prior knowledge about biological macromolecular structures that would otherwise be difficult to express mathematically.

Flavonoids from the leaves and stems of Sedum japonicum var. senanense and their antioxidant activity.

Twenty flavonoids (1-20) were isolated from the leaves and stems of Sedum japonicum var. senanense endemic to Japan. Among them, nine compounds were reported in nature for the first time, and identified as herbacetin 3-O-neohesperidoside-8-O-(2‴-acetylxyloside) (2), gossypetin 8-O-(2″-acetylxyloside) (4), gossypetin 8-O-(3″-acetylxyloside) (5), gossypetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-(3‴-acetylxyloside) (9), gossypetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-(2‴,3‴-diacetylxyloside) (10), gossypetin 3-O-neohesperidoside-8-O-xyloside (11), gossypetin 3-O-neohesperidoside-8-O-(2⁗-acetylxyloside) (12), gossypetin 3-O-neohesperidoside-8-O-(3⁗-acetylxyloside) (13) and gossypetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-xylofuranoside (14) by UV spectral survey, HR-MS, LC-MS, acid hydrolysis, NMR including H and C NMR, COSY, NOESY, HSQC and HMBC.

Diffusion Tensor Image Analysis ALong the Perivascular Space (DTI-ALPS): Revisiting the Meaning and Significance of the Method.

More than 5 years have passed since the Diffusion Tensor Image Analysis ALong the Perivascular Space (DTI-ALPS) method was proposed with the intention of evaluating the glymphatic system. This method is handy due to its noninvasiveness, provision of a simple index in a straightforward formula, and the possibility of retrospective analysis. Therefore, the ALPS method was adopted to evaluate the glymphatic system for many disorders in many studies.

Characteristics and prognosis of patients with COVID-19 and hematological diseases in Japan: a cross-sectional study.

The Japanese Society of Hematology performed an observational cross-sectional study to clarify the morbidity, prognosis, and prognostic factors in patients with COVID-19 with hematological diseases (HDs) in Japan. The study included patients with HDs who enrolled in our epidemiological survey and had a COVID-19 diagnosis and a verified outcome of up to 2 months. The primary endpoints were characteristics and short-term prognosis of COVID-19 in patients with HDs.

Impact of metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease on the incidence of Helicobacter pylori-negative gastric cancer.

Aim: The incidence of Helicobacter pylori-negative gastric cancer (HPNGC) is increasing worldwide. Recently, metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) has been reported to be associated with various cancers, but its association with HPNGC has not been reported. We aimed to identify important independent factors associated with HPNGC, including MAFLD.

Cold-induced suspension and resetting of Ca and transcriptional rhythms in the suprachiasmatic nucleus neurons.

Does the circadian clock keep running under such hypothermic states as daily torpor and hibernation? This fundamental question has been a research subject for decades but has remained unsettled. We addressed this subject by monitoring the circadian rhythm of clock gene transcription and intracellular Ca in the neurons of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), master circadian clock, under a cold environment. We discovered that the transcriptional and Ca rhythms are maintained at 22°C-28°C, but suspended at 15°C, accompanied by a large Ca increase.

Phase transitions and slow spin dynamics of slightly inverted A-site spinel CoAlGaO.

We report the properties of an A-site spinel magnet, CoAlGaO, and analyze its anomalous, low-temperature magnetic behavior, which is derived from inherent, magnetically frustrated interactions. Rietveld analysis of the x-ray diffraction profile for CoAlGaOrevealed that the metallic ions were randomly distributed in the tetrahedral (A-) and octahedral (B-) sites in the cubic spinel structure. The inversion parametercould be controlled by varying the gallium (Ga) composition in the range 0.

Effectiveness of venetoclax and azacytidine against myeloid/natural killer cell precursor acute leukemia.

Myeloid/natural killer (NK) cell precursor acute leukemia (MNKPL) is a rare leukemia subtype that possibly originates from precursor NK cells. The disease has a poor prognosis, and information on its treatment is lacking. We herein report the first case of a 46-year-old woman with MNKPL who was refractory to two lines of acute myeloid leukemia (AML)-type intensive chemotherapy but was successfully treated with venetoclax and azacytidine (VEN/AZA).

Development of an isogenic human cell trio that models polyglutamine disease.

Polyglutamine (polyQ) diseases are rare autosomal-dominant neurodegenerative diseases associated with the expansion of glutamine-encoding triplet repeats in certain genes. To investigate the functional influence of repeat expansion on disease mechanisms, we applied a biallelic genome-engineering platform that we recently established, called Universal Knock-in System or UKiS, to develop a human cell trio, a set of three isogenic cell lines that are homozygous for two different numbers of repeats (first and second lines) or heterozygous for the two repeat numbers (third line). As an example of a polyQ disease, we chose spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2).

Impact of non-obese metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease on risk factors for the recurrence of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma treated with endoscopic submucosal dissection: A multicenter study.

Aim: Metabolic dysfunction is a risk factor for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). We investigated the impact of the recently proposed metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) and its subtypes on ESCC recurrence after endoscopic treatment.

Methods: This multicenter observational cohort study enrolled consecutive patients newly diagnosed with ESCC after endoscopic treatment.

Evaluation of alterations in interstitial fluid dynamics in cases of whole-brain radiation using the diffusion-weighted image analysis along the perivascular space method.

In the current study, we assessed changes in interstitial fluid dynamics resulting after whole-brain radiotherapy using the diffusion-weighted image analysis along the perivascular space (DWI-ALPS) method, which is a simplified variation of the diffusion tensor image ALPS (DTI-ALPS) method using diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) with orthogonal motion-probing gradients (MPGs). This retrospective study included 47 image sets from 22 patients who underwent whole-brain radiotherapy for brain tumors. The data for the normal control group comprised 105 image sets from 105 participants with no pathological changes.

Thickness Dependence of Segmental Dynamics in Free-Standing Thin Films Predicted by a Dynamically Correlated Network Model.

The anomalous dynamics and glass transition behaviors of supercooled liquids under nanoconfinement, such as ultrathin polymer films, have attracted much attention in recent decades. However, a complete elucidation of this mechanism has not yet been achieved. For the dynamics of bulk materials without confinement, we previously proposed a dynamically correlated network (DCN) model, which was found to agree well with the experimental data.

Characteristics of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Induced Colitis: A Systematic Review.

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) including anti-CTLA-4, anti-PD-1, and anti-PD-L1 antibodies have been increasingly used for various malignancies. These ICIs activate immune functions to treat malignant tumors; however, this causes characteristic complications called immune-related adverse events (irAE). In the gastrointestinal tract, ICIs cause adverse events such as diarrhea and enterocolitis, thus warranting treatment discontinuation.