CCL4 Affects Eosinophil Survival via the Shedding of the MUC1 N-Terminal Domain in Airway Inflammation.

Eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (ECRS), a CRS with nasal polyps (CRSwNP), is characterized by eosinophilic infiltration with type 2 inflammation and is highly associated with bronchial asthma. Intractable ECRS with poorly controlled asthma is recognized as a difficult-to-treat eosinophilic airway inflammation. Although eosinophils are activated and coincubation with airway epithelial cells prolongs their survival, the interaction mechanism between eosinophils and epithelial cells is unclear.

Age-Related Changes in Lens Elasticity Contribute More to Accommodative Decline Than Shape Change.

Purpose: To determine whether lens biomechanical or geometric changes contribute to the decline in the accommodative capacity of the human eye, and to examine any differences in zonular function between different age groups.

Methods: Eighteen finite element whole eye models were developed to simulate the accommodative process. Six models were constructed in each of the two age cohorts, from the fourth and the sixth decades of life using data from ex vivo human lenses.

Platelet activation through CD62P and the formation of platelet-monocyte complexes are associated with the exacerbation of mucosal inflammation in patients with ulcerative colitis.

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a refractory, chronic inflammatory bowel disease of unknown etiology. Although platelets are activated in UC, their relevance in pathophysiology remains unclear. We analyzed the correlation of platelet activation and platelet-monocyte complexes (PMCs) with severity of mucosal inflammation using the Mayo endoscopic subscore (MES).

Density of fresh wall of acute aortic dissection with synchrotron-based x-ray phase tomography.

Objectives: The mechanisms behind the onset of acute aortic dissection have not been fully elucidated. We developed dynamic synchrotron-based X-ray phase-contrast tomography to quantitatively study the dynamics of biological samples and applied it to the fresh aortic wall in acute type-A aortic dissection (ATAAD).

Methods: Fresh, ring-shaped aortas undergoing aortic repair in ATAAD were measured in a container filled with normal cold saline within 24 h of surgery.

Membrane structures and functional correlates in the bi-segmented eye lens of the cephalopod.

The cephalopod eye lens is unique because it has evolved as a compound structure with two physiologically distinct segments. However, the detailed ultrastructure of this lens and precise optical role of each segment are far from clear. To help elucidate structure-function relationships in the cephalopod lens, we conducted multiple structural investigations on squid.

Optical development in the murine eye lens of accelerated senescence-prone SAMP8 and senescence-resistant SAMR1 strains.

The eye lens is responsible for focusing objects at various distances onto the retina and its refractive power is determined by its surface curvature as well as its internal gradient refractive index (GRIN). The lens continues to grow with age resulting in changes to the shape and to the GRIN profile. The present study aims to investigate how the ageing process may influence lens optical development.

Mechanism of sac expansion without evident endoleak analyzed with X ray phase-contrast tomography.

Objective: Synchrotron radiation-based X ray phase-contrast tomography (XPCT) was used in this study to evaluate abdominal aorta specimens from patients with sac expansion without evidence of an endoleak (endotension) following endovascular aortic repair (EVAR) for an abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). The aim of this study was to analyze the morphologic structure of the aortic wall in patients with this condition and to establish the cause of the endotension.

Methods: Human aortic specimens of the abdominal aorta were obtained during open repair, fixed with formalin, and analyzed among three groups.

Combined serum albumin, fecal immunochemical test, and leucine-rich alpha-2 glycoprotein levels for predicting prognosis in remitting patients with ulcerative colitis.

This study investigated the usefulness of serum leucine-rich alpha-2 glycoprotein (LRG) and fecal immunochemical tests (FIT) for predicting relapse in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC). Data of 194 patients tested for LRG between January 2020 and June 2022 were retrospectively collected and clinical characteristics were recorded. LRG was strongly correlated with CRP levels and it had a moderately negative correlation with albumin levels, whereas FIT was not significantly correlated with either CRP or albumin levels.

Evaluation of cataract formation in fish exposed to environmental radiation at Chernobyl and Fukushima.

Recent studies apparently finding deleterious effects of radiation exposure on cataract formation in birds and voles living near Chernobyl represent a major challenge to current radiation protection regulations. This study conducted an integrated assessment of radiation exposure on cataractogenesis using the most advanced technologies available to assess the cataract status of lenses extracted from fish caught at both Chernobyl in Ukraine and Fukushima in Japan. It was hypothesised that these novel data would reveal positive correlations between radiation dose and early indicators of cataract formation.

Behavioral changes of preventive activities of influenza among children in satellite cities of a metropolitan area of Tokyo, Japan, by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: In children in a metropolitan area of Tokyo, Japan, behavioral change and influenza infection associated with the frequency of nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPI) was assessed from the 2018-2019 season (Preseason) and the 2020-2021 season (coronavirus disease 2019 [COVID-19] season).

Methods: We conducted an exclusive survey among children attending preschool, elementary school, and junior high school in the Toda and Warabi regions, Japan, during the 2018-2019 (Preseason, distributed via mail) and 2020-2021 seasons (COVID-19 season, conducted online). The proportion of preventive activities (hand washing, face mask-wearing, and vaccination) was compared in the Preseason with that of the COVID-19 season.

Epidemiological survey to establish thresholds for influenza among children in satellite cities of Tokyo, Japan, 2014-2018.

Objective: We described the characteristics of children reported as having influenza across five consecutive influenza seasons and investigated the usefulness of setting influenza thresholds in two satellite cities of Tokyo, Japan.

Methods: An annual survey was conducted among parents of children at preschools (kindergartens and nursery schools), elementary schools and junior high schools in Toda and Warabi cities, Saitama prefecture, at the end of the 2014-2018 influenza seasons. Using the World Health Organization method, we established seasonal, high and alert thresholds.

Precise phase retrieval for propagation-based images using discrete mathematics.

The ill-posed problem of phase retrieval in optics, using one or more intensity measurements, has a multitude of applications using electromagnetic or matter waves. Many phase retrieval algorithms are computed on pixel arrays using discrete Fourier transforms due to their high computational efficiency. However, the mathematics underpinning these algorithms is typically formulated using continuous mathematics, which can result in a loss of spatial resolution in the reconstructed images.

A maternal high-fat diet induces fetal origins of NASH-HCC in mice.

Maternal overnutrition affects offspring susceptibility to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Male offspring from high-fat diet (HFD)-fed dams developed a severe form of NASH, leading to highly vascular tumor formation. The cancer/testis antigen HORMA domain containing protein 1 (HORMAD1), one of 146 upregulated differentially expressed genes in fetal livers from HFD-fed dams, was overexpressed with hypoxia-inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1alpha) in hepatoblasts and in NASH-based hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in offspring from HFD-fed dams at 15 weeks old.

Effectiveness of Influenza Vaccination among Children in Satellite Cities of a Metropolitan Area in Tokyo, Japan during the 2014/2015-2018/2019 Season.

Influenza vaccination is recommended for children. In particular, those aged 6 months to 12 years were recommended two vaccinations in Japan, whereas the recommended year range for the twice vaccination is 6 months to 8 years by the World Health Organization (WHO). This study assessed the effectiveness of influenza vaccination and whether the twice vaccinations enhanced preventive effects against influenza infection among children living in two satellite cities of a metropolitan area in Tokyo, Japan.

Improved in-vivo airway gene transfer via magnetic-guidance, with protocol development informed by synchrotron imaging.

Gene vectors to treat cystic fibrosis lung disease should be targeted to the conducting airways, as peripheral lung transduction does not offer therapeutic benefit. Viral transduction efficiency is directly related to the vector residence time. However, delivered fluids such as gene vectors naturally spread to the alveoli during inspiration, and therapeutic particles of any form are rapidly cleared via mucociliary transit.

Oxysterol Compounds in Mouse Mutant αA- and αB-Crystallin Lenses Can Improve the Optical Properties of the Lens.

Purpose: To investigate how cataract-linked mutations affect the gradient refractive index (GRIN) and lens opacification in mouse lenses and whether there is any effect on the optics of the lens from treatment with an oxysterol compound.

Methods: A total of 35 mice including wild-type and knock-in mutants (Cryaa-R49C and Cryab-R120G) were used in these experiments: 26 mice were treated with topical VP1-001, an oxysterol, in one eye and vehicle in the other, and nine mice were untreated controls. Slit lamp biomicroscopy was used to analyze the lens in live animals and to provide apparent cataract grades.

High-Resolution X-ray Phase-Contrast Imaging and Sensory and Rheometer Tests in Cooked Edamame.

Although several reports exist on the use of X-ray analysis in vegetables and fruits to examine internal disorders, cavities, and porosity, information on X-ray analysis of qualities, such as texture, is lacking as well as information on X-ray analysis of legumes. Therefore, this study aimed to perform X-ray analysis with sensory and rheometer tests in cooked vegetable soybean (edamame). Edamame is popular worldwide due to its deliciousness and nutritional value.

Structures of Nanoconfined Liquids Determined by Synchrotron X-ray Diffraction.

We have successfully performed X-ray diffraction measurements of the liquids octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (OMCTS, a quasi-spherical-shaped molecule) and -hexadecane (a normal alkane) confined between mica surfaces at surface separation distances ('s) from 500 nm to the hard-wall thickness (1.9 nm for OMCTS and 1.0 nm for hexadecane).

EphA2 Affects Development of the Eye Lens Nucleus and the Gradient of Refractive Index.

Purpose: Our studies in mouse eye lenses demonstrate that ephrin-A5 and EphA2 are needed for normal epithelial cells and lens transparency. We sought to determine whether EphA2 and ephrin-A5 are important for lens morphometrics, nucleus formation, and refractive index.

Methods: We performed tissue morphometric measurements, electron microscopy, Western blots, and interferometric measurements using an X-ray synchrotron beam source to measure the gradient of refractive index (GRIN) to compare mouse lenses with genetic disruption of EphA2 or ephrin-A5.

Active Extraction of Experience of Adverse Drug Reactions in Children.

Objective: Safety information regarding the use of medication, over-the-counter drugs, and supplements for Japanese children is scarce. The aim of this study was to clarify adverse drug reaction (ADR) experiences in children and consider the method to collect ADRs efficiently.

Methods: We conducted a questionnaire survey regarding the ADR experiences of 20,412 children who were attending a preschool or kindergarten in the cities of Warabi and Toda, Saitama Prefecture, in May 2013.

Aquaporins Have Regional Functions in Development of Refractive Index in the Zebrafish Eye Lens.

Purpose: In the eye lens, cytosolic protein concentrations increase progressively from the periphery to the center, contributing to the gradient of refractive index (GRIN). Aquaporins are membrane proteins of lens fiber cells that regulate water transport and adhesion and interact with cytoskeletal proteins. This study investigates how these membrane proteins contribute to proper development of the lens GRIN.

Development of an X-ray imaging detector for high-energy X-ray microtomography.

A dedicated X-ray imaging detector for 200 keV high-energy X-ray microtomography was developed. The novelty of the detector is a large-format camera lens employed for a wide field of view. Several scintillators were evaluated in terms of the degree of efficiency of detection for high-energy X-ray photons and the modulation transfer function.

Evaluation of Ductal Tissue in Coarctation of the Aorta Using X-Ray Phase-Contrast Tomography.

We assessed the histological accuracy of X-ray phase-contrast tomography (XPCT) and investigated three-dimensional (3D) ductal tissue distribution in coarctation of the aorta (CoA) specimens. We used nine CoA samples, including the aortic isthmus, ductus arteriosus (DA), and their confluences. 3D images were obtained using XPCT.