Isotropy of Cosmic Rays beyond 10^{20} eV Favors Their Heavy Mass Composition.

We report an estimation of the injected mass composition of ultrahigh energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) at energies higher than 10 EeV. The composition is inferred from an energy-dependent sky distribution of UHECR events observed by the Telescope Array surface detector by comparing it to the Large Scale Structure of the local Universe. In the case of negligible extragalactic magnetic fields (EGMFs), the results are consistent with a relatively heavy injected composition at E∼10  EeV that becomes lighter up to E∼100  EeV, while the composition at E>100  EeV is very heavy.

[LAPAROSCOPIC LIVE DONOR NEPHRECTOMY WITH HORSESHOE KIDNEY: A CASE REPORT].

We performed laparoscopic live donor nephrectomy (LDN) on approximately 200 patients in Ehime Prefectural Center Hospital between 2003 and 2016. In 2016, a fifty-something woman who was a donor candidate for her husband was revealed to have a horseshoe kidney through contrast-enhanced computed tomography; other LDN procedures used a retroperitoneal approach, but this one used a transperitoneal approach since the latter approach allowed for a more favorable visual field. The left kidney was selected since renal scintigraphy showed equal bilateral renal function and renal arteries are simpler on the left side.

Experimental and Theoretical Mutation of Exciton States on the Smallest Type-I Photosynthetic Reaction Center Complex of a Green Sulfur Bacterium .

The exciton states on the smallest type-I photosynthetic reaction center complex of a green sulfur bacterium (GsbRC) consisting of 26 bacteriochlorophylls (BChl ) and four chlorophylls (Chl ) located on the homodimer of two PscA reaction center polypeptides were investigated. This analysis involved the study of exciton states through a combination of theoretical modeling and the genetic removal of BChl pigments at eight sites. (1) A theoretical model of the pigment assembly exciton state on GsbRC was constructed using Poisson TrESP (P-TrESP) and charge density coupling (CDC) methods based on structural information.

Soluble domains of cytochrome -556 and Rieske iron-sulfur protein from m: Crystal structures and interaction analysis.

In photosynthetic green sulfur bacteria, the electron transfer reaction from menaquinol:cytochrome oxidoreductase to the P840 reaction center (RC) complex occurs directly without any involvement of soluble electron carrier protein(s). X-ray crystallography has determined the three-dimensional structures of the soluble domains of the gene product and Rieske iron-sulfur protein (ISP). The former is a mono-heme cytochrome with an α-absorption peak at 556 nm.

Purification of Emu IgY for Therapeutic and Diagnostic Use Based on Monoclonal Secondary Antibodies Specific to Emu IgY.

The emu is the second largest ratite; thus, their sera and egg yolks, obtained after immunization, could provide therapeutic and diagnostically important immunoglobulins with improved production efficiency. Reliable purification tools are required to establish a pipeline for supplying practical emu-derived antibodies, the majority of which belongs to the immunoglobulin Y (IgY) class. Therefore, we generated a monoclonal secondary antibody specific to emu IgY.

Energy transfer fluctuation observed by single-molecule spectroscopy of red-shifted bacteriochlorophyll in the homodimeric photosynthetic reaction center.

The photosynthetic reaction center of heliobacteria (hRC) is a homodimeric chromoprotein responsible for light harvesting and photoelectric conversion. The fluorescence of the hRC is radiated from a bacteriochlorophyll (Bchl) g having the lowest energy level, called red-Bchl g. The homodimeric architecture of the hRC indicates that it includes two red-Bchls g arranged symmetrically in pairs.

Dietary glycine improves urine storage symptoms in urology outpatients.

Objectives: Spinal glycinergic mechanisms inhibit the micturition reflex, and administration of glycine inhibits bladder activity in rats. Therefore, we examined whether dietary glycine would improve storage symptoms in urological outpatients.

Methods: We enrolled 20 participants (16 men and four women) with an overactive bladder symptom score (OABSS) ≥ 3.

Cryogenic Single-Molecule Spectroscopy of the Primary Electron Acceptor in the Photosynthetic Reaction Center.

The photosynthetic reaction center (RC) converts light energy into electrochemical energy. The RC of heliobacteria (hRC) is a primitive homodimeric RC containing 58 bacteriochlorophylls and 2 chlorophyll s. The chlorophyll serves as the primary electron acceptor (Chl -A) responsible for light harvesting and charge separation.

Light-Induced Electron Spin-Polarized (ESP) EPR Signal of the P800 Menaquinone Radical Pair State in Oriented Membranes of Heliobacterium modesticaldum: Role/Location of Menaquinone in the Homodimeric Type I Reaction Center.

Function/location of menaquinone (MQ) was studied in the photosynthetic reaction center of Heliobacterium (Hbt.) modesticaldum (hRC), which is one of the most primitive homodimeric type I RCs. The spin-polarized electron paramagnetic resonance signals of light-induced radical pair species, which are made of oxidized electron donor bacteriochlorophyll g (P800) and reduced menaquinone (MQ) or iron-sulfur cluster (F), were measured in the oriented membranes of Hbt.

Clinical Efficacy of 1-Year Intensive Systematic Dietary Manipulation as Complementary and Alternative Medicine Therapies on Female Patients With Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome.

Objective: To evaluate the clinical efficacy of intensive systematic dietary manipulation (ISDM) for female patients with interstitial cystitis (IC)/bladder pain syndrome (BPS) in stable condition who were followed up in our hospital.

Materials And Methods: In cooperation with the nutrition control team, we created a basic IC/BPS diet menu for 1 month. Data regarding daily food intake and food-related symptoms were collected by conducting a detailed interview of each patient, and we set meal menu to control IC/BPS symptoms and advised the patients to reduce the intake of specific food items to the maximum possible extent.

Hyperfine Sublevel Correlation Spectroscopy Studies of Iron-Sulfur Cluster in Rieske Protein from Green Sulfur Bacterium Chlorobaculum tepidum.

The magnetic properties of the Rieske protein purified from Chlorobaculum tepidum were investigated using electron paramagnetic resonance and hyperfine sublevel correlation spectroscopy (HYSCORE). The g-values of the FeS center were g = 1.81, g = 1.

[STUDY OF NEW ORAL QUINOLONES (LEVOFLOXACIN AND SITAFLOXACIN) AS PROPHYLACTIC ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS IN TRANSRECTAL PROSTATE NEEDLE BIOPSY].

(Objective) A single prophylactic dose of new quinolones is recommended to prevent infection associated with transrectal prostate needle biopsy (TRPB), except in high-risk patients, and a single dose of levofloxacin (LVFX) 500 mg is often administered. We examined single administrations of LVFX and sitafloxacin (STFX), in relation to the frequency of febrile infection. (Patients and methods) The subjects were 411 patients deemed to be suitable candidates for TRPB and ranging in age from 52 to 84 years (median, 75 years).

Characteristics of communication among Japanese children with autism spectrum disorder: A cluster analysis using the Children's Communication Checklist-2.

Some overlap has been suggested among the subtypes of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children. The Japanese version of the Children's Communication Checklist-2 (CCC-2) is a useful measure for identifying profiles in relation to communication impairments in children with ASD. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the CCC-2 could identify subtypes in relation to communication impairments in Japanese children with ASD.

Orientations of Iron-Sulfur Clusters FA and FB in the Homodimeric Type-I Photosynthetic Reaction Center of Heliobacterium modesticaldum.

Orientations of the FA and FB iron-sulfur (FeS) clusters in a structure-unknown type-I homodimeric heriobacterial reaction center (hRC) were studied in oriented membranes of the thermophilic anaerobic photosynthetic bacterium Heliobacterium modesticaldum by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and compared with those in heterodimeric photosystem I (PS I). The Rieske-type FeS center in the cytochrome b/c complex showed a well-oriented EPR signal. Illumination at 14 K induced an FB(-) signal with g-axes of gz = 2.

Mutation-induced perturbation of the special pair P840 in the homodimeric reaction center in green sulfur bacteria.

Homodimeric photosynthetic reaction centers (RCs) in green sulfur bacteria and heliobacteria are functional homologs of Photosystem (PS) I in oxygenic phototrophs. They show unique features in their electron transfer reactions; however, detailed structural information has not been available so far. We mutated PscA-Leu688 and PscA-Val689 to cysteine residues in the green sulfur bacterium Chlorobaculum tepidum; these residues were predicted to interact with the special pair P840, based on sequence comparison with PS I.

[CLINICAL EFFICACY OF DIETARY MANIPULATION AS COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE THERAPIES ON FEMALE INTERSTITIAL CYSTITIS PATIENTS].

(Objectives) We examined the clinical efficacy of dietary manipulation (DM) for female patients with interstitial cystitis (IC) in stable condition who were followed in our hospital. (Patients and methods) This study included 20 female patients with IC in rather stable condition who were followed at our hospital. In cooperation with the nutrition control team, we created a basic IC diet menu for 1 month (total daily calories, 1,500 kcal; protein, 65 g; fat, 40 g; carbohydrate, 220 g; water, 1,000 ml; salt, 7 g).

Menaquinone as the Secondary Electron Acceptor in the Type I Homodimeric Photosynthetic Reaction Center of Heliobacterium modesticaldum.

The type I photosynthetic reaction center (RC) of heliobacteria (hRC) is a homodimer containing cofactors almost analogous to those in the plant photosystem I (PS I). However, its three-dimensional structure is not yet clear. PS I uses phylloquinone (PhyQ) as a secondary electron acceptor (A1), while the available evidence has suggested that menaquinone (MQ) in hRC has no function as A1.

Relationship between social support during pregnancy and postpartum depressive state: a prospective cohort study.

Although the association between social support and postpartum depression has been previously investigated, its causal relationship remains unclear. Therefore, we examined prospectively whether social support during pregnancy affected postpartum depression. Social support and depressive symptoms were assessed by Japanese version of Social Support Questionnaire (J-SSQ) and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), among 877 pregnant women in early pregnancy and at one month postpartum.

Factor structure of the Japanese version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale in the postpartum period.

Background: The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) is a widely used screening tool for postpartum depression (PPD). Although the reliability and validity of EPDS in Japanese has been confirmed and the prevalence of PPD is found to be about the same as Western countries, the factor structure of the Japanese version of EPDS has not been elucidated yet.

Methods: 690 Japanese mothers completed all items of the EPDS at 1 month postpartum.

Effect of carbazochrome sodium sulfonate on refractory chronic prostatitis.

Objectives: To study the effect of carbazochrome sodium sulfonate, an agent that reduces capillary permeability, on refractory chronic prostatitis.

Methods: Patients with prostatitis refractory to at least 8 weeks of routine therapy and with urinalysis positive for microhematuria were considered for the present study. In addition to their prior therapy, the patients received carbazochrome at a dose of 30 mg three times a day.