Publications by authors named "Ogura J"

Article Synopsis
  • Mycotoxins, like Deoxynivalenol (DON), are naturally occurring toxins from fungi linked to health issues, prompting public health concern, especially in Europe.
  • A study analyzed urinary DON levels from 1270 participants across six countries to assess exposure and identify key factors influencing it, finding notable variances based on demographics and lifestyle.
  • About 12.3% of participants had DON levels exceeding the recommended safe limit, highlighting significant exposure among certain groups and contributing valuable data on mycotoxin risks in Europe.
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Fatty acids are known to have significant effects on the properties of cancer cells. Therefore, these compounds have been incorporated into therapeutic strategies. However, few studies have examined the effects of individual fatty acids and their interactions in depth.

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Primary peritoneal cancer has characteristics similar to high-grade serous carcinomas of ovarian and fallopian tube origin. However, the relationship between endometriosis and primary peritoneal cancer is not well understood. This study focuses on a case of peritoneal cancer in a patient who had undergone hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy 5 yr before.

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Objective: Metastatic colorectal cancer with KRAS wild type is treated using a range of drug regimens, including fluorouracil, irinotecan, and Leucovorin(FOLFIRI)plus bevacizumab(Bmab), cetuximab(Cmab), or panitumumab(Pmab). The present study aimed to identify the optimal regimen using a decision analysis method, in combination with clinical and economic evidence.

Method: A simple Markov model with a monthly cycle time was constructed.

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A new compound, a derivative of 3,4,5-trimethoxy--phenyl benzamide bearing an 8''-methylimidazopyridine moiety, is found to demonstrate neuroprotective effects by preventing cell death caused by oxidative stress. The compound possesses high solubility and metabolic stability, and inhibits MPTP-induced effects , indicating high potential as a therapeutic drug for Parkinson's disease.

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Background: Palbociclib and endocrine therapy has been approved to treat hormone receptor-positive/human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative inoperable or recurrent breast cancer in Japan. However, this cotherapy imposes an economic burden on both patients and society because of its high cost. In this study, we assessed the cost-effectiveness of cotherapy with palbociclib and fulvestrant compared to fulvestrant monotherapy for inoperable or recurrent breast cancer.

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Aims: Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) is an essential enzyme involved in oxidative protein folding. PDI is S-nitrosylated in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients, and S-nitrosylated PDI is considered one of main causes of Alzheimer's disease. However, the mechanisms underlying PDI S-nitrosylation have not yet been elucidated.

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Article Synopsis
  • The Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology organized "Welcome to OBGYN World!" (WOW!) to address a decline in doctors specializing in obstetrics and gynecology, particularly targeting lower-grade medical students.
  • The event was held online to ensure safety during the COVID-19 pandemic and involved participation from 60 of 82 medical schools in Japan, with 285 students and 106 tutors engaged.
  • Post-event feedback revealed that a significant majority of participants (97.6%) developed a strong interest in the specialty, while all tutors acknowledged the event's effectiveness in recruitment, leading to plans for an annual WOW! event.
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As intermolecular and intramolecular disulfide bridges in proteins play a vital role in the stability of the final protein structure, the disruption of disulfide bridges in proteins may lead to disease development and progression. Therefore, understanding the association of abnormal protein disulfide bond formation with disease development and progression can be useful for developing novel drugs for various diseases. Considering that disulfide-linked protein folding involves redox reactions in the endoplasmic reticulum, this process may be affected by oxidative stress.

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NaCT mediates citrate uptake in the liver cell line HepG2. When these cells were exposed to iron (Fe), citrate uptake/binding as monitored by the association of [C]-citrate with cells increased. However, there was no change in NaCT expression and function, indicating that NaCT was not responsible for this Fe-induced citrate uptake/binding.

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Dementia dramatically affects the activities of daily living and quality of life; thus, many therapeutic approaches for overcoming dementia have been developed. However, an effective treatment regimen is yet to be developed. As diabetes is a well-known risk factor for dementia, drug repositioning and repurposing of antidiabetic drugs are expected to be effective dementia treatments.

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For leukotriene receptor antagonists (LTRAs), especially pranlukast, safety data during pregnancy is limited. Therefore, we conducted a prospective, two-centered cohort study using data from teratogen information services in Japan to clarify the effects of LTRA exposure during pregnancy on maternal and fetal outcomes. Pregnant women who being counseled on drug use during pregnancy at two facilities were enrolled.

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Niemann-Pick disease type C (NPC) is an autosomal recessive disease caused by a functional deficiency of cholesterol-transporting proteins in lysosomes, and exhibits various clinical symptoms. Since mitochondrial dysfunction in NPC has recently been reported, cholesterol catabolism to steroid hormones may consequently be impaired. In this study, we developed a comprehensive steroid hormone analysis method using liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and applied it to analyze changes in steroid hormone concentrations in NPC model cells.

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Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is a disease with symptoms similar to those of alcoholic liver inflammation without alcohol intake. As an effective treatment strategy has not been established for this disease, a detailed understanding of the pathological progression mechanism is required. We focused on cholesterol metabolites, which are suspected to regulate NASH pathology, and investigated their relationship with the pathological progression in the early stages of NASH.

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Aim: We aimed to examine the gut permeability in patients with schizophrenia and its relevance to schizophrenia symptoms, medication, cognitive functions, and blood immune markers.

Methods: We selected 22 patients with schizophrenia (mean age: 37.9 ± 10.

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β-Hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB), a leucine metabolite, is used as a nutritional ingredient to improve skeletal muscle health. Preclinical studies indicate that this supplement also elicits significant benefits in the brain; it promotes neurite outgrowth and prevents age-related reductions in neuronal dendrites and cognitive performance. As orally administered HMB elicits these effects in the brain, we infer that HMB crosses the blood-brain barrier (BBB).

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Background: Dementia places a significant burden on both patients and caregivers. Since diabetes is a risk factor for dementia, it is imperative to identify the relationship between diabetes and cognitive disorders. Protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) is an enzyme for oxidative protein folding.

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Introduction: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection has a significant clinical impact on both pregnant women and neonates. The aim of this study was to assess accurately the vertical transmission rate of MRSA and its clinical impacts on both pregnant mothers and neonates.

Material And Methods: We conducted a prospective observational cohort study of 898 pregnant women who were admitted to our department and 905 neonates from August 2016 to December 2017.

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We previously reported lower counts of lactobacilli and Bifidobacterium in the gut microbiota of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), compared with healthy controls. This prompted us to investigate the possible efficacy of a probiotic strain, strain Shirota (LcS; basonym, strain Shirota; daily intake of 8.0 × 10 colony-forming units), in alleviating depressive symptoms.

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Cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 (CDK4/6) inhibitors (palbociclib, abemaciclib, and ribociclib) are used to treat human epithelial growth factor receptor (HER)-2 negative and hormone receptor (HR) positive advanced breast cancer in combination with aromatase inhibitors (letrozole, anastrozole) or an estrogen receptor antagonist (fulvestrant). Administration of these drugs frequently causes severe side effects, such as neutropenia and diarrhea. Therefore, therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of CDK4/6 inhibitors, aromatase inhibitors, and the estrogen receptor antagonist is considered important for ensuring the efficacy and safety of these drugs.

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Recent studies have shown that therapeutic drug monitoring of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) could improve treatment efficacy and safety. A simple analytical method using high-performance LC/electrospray ionization-tandem mass spectrometry has been developed and validated for simultaneous quantification of BCR-ABL and Bruton's TKIs used for chronic leukemia (imatinib, dasatinib, bosutinib, nilotinib, and ibrutinib) in human plasma. Although these structures and physical properties are similar, owing to their different linear ranges, simultaneously determining the plasma levels of these five TKIs by applying optimal MS parameters remains difficult.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study explores the differing perceptions of self-training and overtime work among doctors of varying experience levels in response to new regulations in Japan aimed at reducing overtime.
  • - A survey conducted among 1,256 members of the Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology found that younger doctors (≤5 years) believe these regulations may improve service quality, while experienced doctors (≥20 years) fear quality may decline.
  • - The findings highlight a significant generational divide in attitudes towards work regulations, suggesting that more experienced doctors are concerned about the impact on medical training and service quality due to reduced working hours.
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Clozapine (CLZ) is a key drug in treatment-resistant schizophrenia. Therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM) of CLZ and its metabolites, N-desmethylclozapine and clozapine N-oxide, is required to monitor and manage the risks of side effects. Although quantification methods for TDM have been developed for CLZ and its metabolites, they were not sufficiently accurate for the quantification of CLZ owing to the upper limits of the calibration curves.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to explore the glucose profiles in pregnant women with and without gestational diabetes by using continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) data over two weeks.
  • Three distinct clusters of glucose profiles were identified: a low glucose variability group, a moderate glucose variability group, and a high glucose variability group, with higher instances of gestational diabetes in the high glucose group.
  • The findings suggest that thorough analysis of CGM data can help identify women at risk for gestational diabetes based on their glucose patterns and other characteristics.
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Several drugs are administered to lung-transplanted patients, which are monitored using therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM). Therefore, we developed and validated a liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method to simultaneously analyze immunosuppressive drugs such as mycophenolic acid, antifungal drugs such as voriconazole and itraconazole, and its metabolite hydroxyitraconazole. Chromatographic separation was achieved using a C18 column and gradient flow of mobile phase comprising 20 mM aqueous ammonium formate and 20 mM ammonium formate-methanol solution.

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