Rapid Biodegradation Assessment of Biomass Plastics Using Closed Recirculating Aquaculture Systems: A Novel Approach for Environmental Sustainability.

The increasing plastic production causes serious problems in the marine environment, and the main source of plastic waste comes from the fishing and aquaculture industries. Although there have been various efforts to develop aquaculture equipment with marine biodegradable plastics, an urgent need is to develop an assay to evaluate their biodegradation in aquaculture environments. This study focused on evaluating the biodegradation of biomass plastic in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) that mimic freshwater, brackish water, and saltwater aquacultures.

Association between confirmed COVID-19 cases at hospitals and SARS-CoV-2 levels in municipal wastewater during the pandemic and endemic phases.

COVID-19 is now considered endemic in many countries. On May 8, 2023, Japan reclassified COVID-19 from a pandemic to an endemic status, shifting surveillance from universal to sentinel reporting and transitioning the testing and treatment cost of COVID-19 from public funding to individual health insurance coverage. Restrictions on movement, events, and business hours were lifted, potentially increasing cases and complicating tracking.

The association among ball speed and the rotation of pivot leg, pelvis, and trunk separation in collegiate baseball pitchers.

In baseball pitching, pivot leg is known to play an important role in linear acceleration down the mound. However, its contribution to the rotational movements of the proximal segments such as pelvis and upper body remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the association between the pivot leg rotation, pelvis rotation, and trunk separation during the stride phase of baseball pitching in relation to ball speed.

Fully bio-based cellulose ester synthesis from natural aldehydes aerobic oxidation.

This study presents a novel synthetic method to synthesize fully bio-based cellulose esters from natural aldehydes in a multi-functional ionic liquid (as a solvent for cellulose and as an esterification and oxidation catalyst) in atmospheric oxygen. The aerobic oxidative esterification of cellulose with high atom economy proceeded under metal-free conditions without any additional catalysts or activators.

Voltage-gated calcium channel αδ-1 subunit is involved in the regulation of glucose-stimulated GLP-1 secretion in mice.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is an incretin produced by enteroendocrine preproglucagon (PPG)-expressing cells in response to nutrient ingestion that potentiates insulin secretion. The voltage-gated Ca channel has been reported previously to be involved in glucose-stimulated GLP-1 secretion; in this study, we show that PPG-cells in upper and lower small intestine substantially express the voltage-gated Ca channel αδ-1 subunit (Caαδ-1). In vitro experiments using NCI-H716 cells demonstrate that inhibition of Caαδ-1 by gabapentin (GBP), an inhibitory ligand of the αδ subunit, attenuates glucose-stimulated intracellular calcium elevation and reduces GLP-1 secretion.

A Scoring System for Diagnosing Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction Based on Exercise Echocardiography.

Aims: Exercise stress echocardiography (ESE) is often used to identify heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) in patients presenting dyspnea. However, diagnostic criteria have not been standardized. Here, we sought to develop ESE-based criteria to diagnose HFpEF in dyspneic patients.

Trends in age and antithrombotic therapy in patients who underwent transurethral resection of bladder tumor and perioperative complications.

Introduction: We investigated the subsequent trends in age and antithrombotic therapy in patients who underwent transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT) and examined the rate of perioperative complications.

Methods: Medical records of patients who underwent TURBT were retrospectively analyzed. We arbitrarily divided the observation years into three periods (I: 2007-2013, II: 2014-2018, and III: 2019-2023) to compare the trends in age and frequency of perioperative complications after TURBT between patients taking and those not taking antithrombotic drugs.

Refractory Severe Anti-SRP Myopathy that Improved with Long-term Rehabilitation Therapy: A Case Report.

Background: Immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy (IMNM) is a type of autoimmune myositis. Anti-signal recognition particle (SRP) antibodies are highly specific to this disease.

Case: A 76-year-old woman presented with a 4-month history of acute progressive limb muscle weakness and dysphagia.

Synthesis and characterization of thermoplastic resin from sugar beet polysaccharides via one-step transesterification.

Lignocellulosic biomass-based plastics provide a sustainable alternative to petroleum-based plastics by converting agricultural by-products into value-added materials, promoting a circular economy. This study investigates the development of thermoplastics from sugar beet pulp (SBP), a by-product rich in cellulose and pectin. A one-pot direct transesterification process was used to fully substitute hydroxy groups in SBP with acyl chains of varying lengths (C2-C10), achieving up to 96 % substitution.

Role of Exercise Stress Echocardiography in Systemic Sclerosis: Pathophysiological and Prognostic Significance of the Systemic Sclerosis with a Heart Failure and Preserved Ejection Fraction Phenotype.

Aims: Left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) are common cardiac complications of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc). Exercise stress echocardiography is often used in symptomatic patients with SSc to detect abnormal increases in pulmonary pressures during exercise, but the pathophysiologic and prognostic significance of exercise stress echocardiography to assess the presence of HFpEF in these patients is unclear.

Methods And Results: Patients with SSc (n=140) underwent ergometry exercise stress echocardiography with simultaneous expired gas analysis.

[A Case of Retroperitoneal Abscess with Severe Inflammatory Adherence to Inferior Vena Cava].

We report a case of retroperitoneal abscess mimicking a malignant retroperitoneal tumor. A 77-yearold woman was referred to our hospital because of retroperitoneal tumor without any symptoms. The tumor was located just behind the inferior vena cava, and the tumor size was about 38 mm.

[Rehabilitation and outcomes in acquired hemophilia A: a single-center clinical study].

The main goals of acquired hemophilia A (AHA) therapy are to arrest bleeding using bypass agents and eradicate FVIII inhibitors using immunosuppressive therapy (IST). We treated a total of 25 patients with AHA in the past 10 years at Gunma University Hospital. Fifteen patients (60%) underwent rehabilitation during hospitalization.

Screening tool for sarcopenia (SARC-F) predicts unsatisfactory medical treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms in elderly men aged 75 years or older: a preliminary observational study.

We investigated the influence of sarcopenia on treatment outcomes in elderly patients receiving medical therapy for lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). We included male patients with LUTS aged ≥ 75 years who had not changed their medication for 1 year. Current conditions were estimated using IPSS, overactive bladder symptoms score (OABSS), and screening tool for sarcopenia (SARC-F).

Variability in approach to exercise stress echocardiography for diagnosis of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction: an international survey on real-world practice.

Aims: The diagnosis of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) remains challenging based on resting assessments. Exercise echocardiography is often used to unmask abnormalities that develop during exercise, but the diagnostic criteria have not been standardized. This study aimed to elucidate how cardiologists utilize exercise echocardiography to diagnose HFpEF in real-world practice.

Carbon monoxide-loaded red blood cells ameliorate metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis progression via enhancing AMP-activated protein kinase activity and inhibiting Kupffer cell activation.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) is a progressive form of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease characterised by fat accumulation, inflammation, oxidative stress, fibrosis, and impaired liver regeneration. In this study, we found that heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) is induced in both MASH patients and in a MASH mouse model. Further, hepatic carbon monoxide (CO) levels in MASH model mice were >2-fold higher than in healthy mice, suggesting that liver HO-1 is activated as MASH progresses.

Impaired Left Atrial Reserve Function in Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction.

Background: Left atrial (LA) dysfunction is common in heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction. However, data on the pathophysiologic impacts of impaired LA functional reserve remained limited. We sought to determine the association of abnormal LA dynamics during exercise with cardiovascular reserve, exercise capacity, and clinical outcomes.

Validation of the area under the Watts factor curve during the voiding cycle as a novel parameter for diagnosing detrusor underactivity in females.

Objective: Detrusor underactivity (DU) is a common cause of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). To date, no consensus has been reached on the urodynamic criteria for defining DU. We previously proposed the area under the curve of the Watts factor (WF-AUC) as a new parameter for diagnosing DU.

[Three Cases of Bilateral Metachronous Testicular Tumors].

We present three cases of bilateral metachronous testicular tumors. The patient in case 1 had a history of left orchiectomy for undescended testis at the age of 19. The pathological findings revealed germ cell neoplasia in situ.

Association between parental decisions regarding abortion and severity of fetal heart disease.

The prenatal diagnosis of fetal heart disease potentially influences parental decision-making regarding pregnancy termination. Existing literature indicates that the severity, whether in complexity or lethality, significantly influences parental decisions concerning abortion. However, questions remain as to how fetal heart disease severity impacts parental decisions, given recent advancements in postsurgical outcomes.

Prognostic utility of cardiopulmonary exercise testing with simultaneous exercise echocardiography in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.

Aims: Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) combined with exercise echocardiography (CPETecho) allows simultaneous assessments of cardiac, pulmonary, and ventilation in heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). This study sought to determine whether simultaneous assessment of CPET variables could provide additive predictive value over exercise stress echocardiography in patients with dyspnoea.

Methods And Results: CPETecho was performed in 443 patients with suspected HFpEF (240 HFpEF and 203 controls without HF).

A Case of SMARCB1-Deficient Sinonasal Carcinoma With Clear Cell Morphology.

SMARCB1 is a gene known to cause carcinogenesis in many soft tissue tumors, including malignant rhabdoid tumors and epithelioid sarcoma. Since the first report of a subtype of sinonasal carcinoma characterized by a deficiency of the SMARCB1 gene in 2014 to date, fewer than 200 cases have been reported. We report a case of SMARCB1-deficient sinonasal carcinoma with clear cell morphology.