Publications by authors named "Okumura M"

Unbalanced atrioventricular septal defect with hypoplastic right ventricle in infants with trisomy 21 poses significant challenges as they are not ideal candidates for single-ventricle palliation. We describe a patient with the diagnoses who underwent a biventricular repair but subsequently required a Blalock-Thomas-Taussig shunt (BTTS) with enlargement of atrial communication because of severe right-sided heart failure and low cardiac output. Staged device embolization of the BTTS and atrial communication were achieved by 7 years of age.

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The extraction of mineral deposits is often associated with the occurrence of acid mine drainage (AMD), which can persist even after mine closure due to remaining sulfide minerals. This study investigates a 200-year-old abandoned mine and its impacts on nearby water resources. The study area is well known for Kuroko ore deposits located upstream of spring and river water resources.

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Purpose: Young adults with autism spectrum disorder (YAASD) often lack the skills needed for successful adult living and subsequently develop lower quality of life and health in adulthood. Therefore, we developed a framework to support resilience and improve quality of life in YAASD, which will be used to develop a life-skills curriculum for YAASD.

Methods: We conducted a qualitative study of YAASD, parents of YAASD and service providers recruited from agencies that serve YAASD using Grounded Theory.

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From October 2020 to February 2021, a total of 95 retail chicken meat products from 39 retail meat shops in Tokyo Metropolis and Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, were collected and examined for the prevalence of Salmonella to assess public health implications. If a sample tested positive for Salmonella, a quantitative analysis was performed using the three-tube most probable number (MPN) method. Of 95 retail chicken meat products, Salmonella was isolated from 30 samples (31.

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Importance: Classification of persons with long COVID (LC) or post-COVID-19 condition must encompass the complexity and heterogeneity of the condition. Iterative refinement of the classification index for research is needed to incorporate newly available data as the field rapidly evolves.

Objective: To update the 2023 research index for adults with LC using additional participant data from the Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER-Adult) study and an expanded symptom list based on input from patient communities.

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Background And Objectives: Families of children with special health care needs (CSHCN) have reported to benefit from social, emotional, and informational support from other families (peer support) with similarly affected children. Pediatric subspecialists often serve as the primary medical providers for CSHCN, as well as educators for these children's families. The extent to which subspecialists refer families to sources of peer support is unknown.

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Article Synopsis
  • * A study from 2012 to 2021 analyzed radiocesium levels in the stomach contents and muscles of wild rodents and insectivores in Fukushima Prefecture, revealing a decrease in Cs concentrations at one site (Mt. Kuchibutoyama) but stability or slight increase at another (Mt. Hayama).
  • * The study estimated effective half-lives for Cs in stomach contents and muscles, indicating it may remain in some species for years, with concentrations of Cs still detectable as of November 2021, highlighting ongoing ecological concerns.
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Pembrolizumab has been found effective against various solid tumors with high tumor mutation burden, but there are no reports of successful treatment with pembrolizumab for extramammary Paget's disease (EMPD) with a high tumor mutation burden (TMB). This report describes a 71-year-old male patient who presented with irregularly shaped erythematous lesions on his scrotum, which had been there for several years. He was diagnosed with EMPD.

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Background: DNA methylation is a covalent bond modification that is observed mainly at cytosine bases in the context of CG pairs. DNA methylation patterns reflect the status of individual tissues, such as cell composition, age, and the local environment, in mammals. Genetic factors also impact DNA methylation, and the genetic diversity among various dog breeds provides a valuable platform for exploring this topic.

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Light sensing is a critical function in most organisms and is mediated by photoreceptor proteins and phototransduction. Although most nematodes lack eyes, some species exhibit phototaxis. In the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the unique photoreceptor protein Cel-LITE-1, its downstream G proteins, and cyclic GMP (cGMP)-dependent pathways are required for phototransduction.

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General strategies for synthesizing sulfated oligosaccharides employ the protection of sulfate groups for glycosylation or post-sulfation after the synthesis of oligosaccharides. However, the chemical behavior of free sulfate groups in glycosylation reactions has not been thoroughly studied. We examined several glycosyl donors with free sulfate groups, but neither glycosyl imidates nor thioglycosides achieved products.

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Exophiala dermatitidis (E. dermatitidis), which causes skin or respiratory disease, is occasionally fatal in immunocompromised patients. Here, we report the unique antifungal potency of terbinafine (TRB), which targets squalene epoxidase, against E.

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Disulfide formation generally involves a two-electron oxidation reaction between cysteine residues. Additionally, disulfide formation is an essential post-translational modification for the structural maturation of proteins. This oxidative folding is precisely controlled by an electron relay network constructed by protein disulfide isomerase (PDI), with a CGHC sequence as the redox-active site, and its family enzymes.

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The exploration of Venus has received much attention in the past and will keep growing due to the starting of the NASA DAVINCI project. To explain the extremely low O : CO ratio observed in Venus' atmosphere, a chlorine-initiated CO oxidation catalytic cycle has been proposed. However, relevant studies on the key intermediates, such as the peroxychloroformyl radical (ClC(O)OO), are rare.

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Angiogenesis plays an important role in cancer growth and metastasis, and it is considered a therapeutic target to control tumour growth following anti-angiogenic therapy. However, it is still unclear when tissues initiate angiogenesis during malignant transformation from premalignant condition and whether this premalignant condition could be a therapeutic target of anti-angiogenic therapy. In this study, we aimed to analyse the onset of angiogenesis by evaluating morphological and functional alterations of microvessels during oral multistep carcinogenesis using a 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide (4NQO)-induced oral carcinogenesis mouse model.

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VAMP-associated protein (VAP) is a type IV integral transmembrane protein at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Mutations in human VAPB/ALS8 are associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The N-terminal major sperm protein (MSP) domain of VAPB (Drosophila Vap33) is cleaved, secreted, and acts as a signaling ligand for several cell-surface receptors.

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Article Synopsis
  • The hemagglutinating virus of Japan envelope (HVJ-E) is an inactivated virus that has shown promise in treating chemotherapy-resistant malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) by inducing antitumor immunity.
  • A phase I clinical study focused on determining a suitable dosage and evaluating the preliminary efficacy of HVJ-E, finding that higher doses resulted in better disease control rates compared to lower doses.
  • The study concluded that HVJ-E is safe for patients and appears to have some antitumor activity, leading to plans for a phase II trial with higher dosages.
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  • A study explored the use of bioaerosol detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) as a diagnostic tool for patients unable to provide sputum samples.
  • Researchers developed a specialized mask with different types of filters to capture MTB particles from patients shortly after starting treatment.
  • Results showed high sensitivity and perfect specificity for the filters, indicating that this method could be an effective alternative for diagnosing presumed tuberculosis in clinical settings.
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Background: Thrombectomy is a standard treatment for acute large vessel occlusion (LVO); however, its effectiveness in treating LVO related to intracranial atherosclerosis disease (ICAD) remains uncertain. This study aimed to compare thrombectomy outcomes in ICAD-related and embolic LVO, focusing on patients with similar symptom severities upon hospital admission.

Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at Jikei University Hospital and Jikei University Kashiwa Hospital between October 2017 and March 2023.

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  • Competition in sports differs from everyday cooperation, as athletes aim for unpredictable behavior to outsmart opponents.
  • The study uses a hybrid dynamics model to explore how players in court sports control unpredictability and reveals that skilled athletes show more consistent behaviors than intermediate players.
  • The findings suggest that these skilled players leverage their consistency to disrupt opponents' expectations, highlighting that competition can involve cooperative strategies, which could inform policies to enhance competitiveness in broader contexts.
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Aim: To determine whether the severity of cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) is associated with prehospital delay in acute ischemic stroke.

Methods: Consecutive patients with ischemic stroke were included in this study. We evaluated the SVD burden using the total SVD score.

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Backgrounds And Objectives: Severe hyposmia (SH) is a prodromal symptom of dementia associated with Parkinson's disease (PD) caused by Lewy bodies deposited in the limbic regions that connect the frontal and temporal lobes. We aimed to clarify the association between hyposmia and frontal lobe dysfunction (FLD) among patients with PD.

Methods: Patients with PD and Hoehn & Yahr stage 1-3 at on-periods without apparent dementia were screened.

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Background: Ex vivo heart perfusion (EVHP) of donation after circulatory death (DCD) hearts has become an effective strategy in adults; however, the small circulating volume in pediatrics poses the challenge of a low-hemoglobin (Hb) perfusate. We aimed to determine the impact of perfusate Hb levels during EVHP on DCD hearts using a juvenile porcine model.

Methods: Sixteen DCD piglet hearts (11-14 kg) were reperfused for 4 h in unloaded mode followed by working mode.

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