Publications by authors named "Sakai S"

Subcutaneous indwelling of nonabsorbable threads for tissue fixation and tension reduction is often used in plastic surgery and is applied in breast reduction surgery, umbilicoplasty, and in frontalis muscle lifting for congenital ptosis. However, in a few cases, exposure of the indwelling thread necessitates its removal. Exposure of the indwelling threads mostly occurs due to exposure of the knots.

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The pseudogap phenomena have been a long-standing mystery of the cuprate high-temperature superconductors. The pseudogap in the electron-doped cuprates has been attributed to band folding due to antiferromagnetic (AFM) long-range order or short-range correlation. We performed an angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy study of the electron-doped cuprates PrLaCeCuO showing spin-glass, disordered AFM behaviors, and superconductivity at low temperatures and, by measurements with fine momentum cuts, found that the gap opens on the unfolded Fermi surface rather than the AFM Brillouin zone boundary.

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Lymphocytes are generally non-adherent. This makes it challenging to fabricate three-dimensional (3D) structures mimicking the three-dimensional lymphoma microenvironment in vivo. This study presents the fabrication of a hemispherical 3D lymphoma model using the on-chip Cell Dome system with a hemispherical cavity (1 mm in diameter and almost 300 µm in height).

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Objective: Radiographic findings to identify central venous catheter misplacement in the arteries, which can cause lethal complications, have not been fully evaluated, and its training is difficult because it is rare. The purpose of this study is to clarify radiographic findings for differentiating central venous and misplaced arterial lines using virtual chest radiographs and elucidate their usefulness in training radiologists.

Methods: This retrospective study included 150 patients (mean age, 67 [SD, ±12] years; 97 men) who underwent colon cancer surgery between January 2018 and December 2020.

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Case Presentation: An 86-year-old female presented to our emergency department with chest pain and orthopnea and was diagnosed with heart failure and ST-elevation myocardial infarction, prompting hospitalization. During hospitalization, she developed a fever. A chest and abdominal contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT), conducted to investigate the cause of the fever, coincidentally revealed sedimentation of contrast agent in the descending aorta.

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With the aging of society, the incidence of chronic kidney disease (CKD), a common cause of death, has been increasing. Transcription factor EB (TFEB), the master transcriptional regulator of the autophagy-lysosomal pathway, is regarded as a promising candidate for preventing various age-related diseases. However, whether TFEB in the proximal tubules plays a significant role in elderly CKD patients remains unknown.

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Radiotherapy (RT) combined with immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) therapy has attracted substantial attention due to its potential to improve outcomes for patients with several types of cancer. However, the optimal administration timepoints and drug combinations remain unclear because the mechanisms underlying RT-induced changes in immune checkpoint molecule expression and interaction with their ligand(s) remain unclear. Herein, we demonstrated the dynamics of lymphocyte-mediated molecular interactions in tissue samples from esophageal cancer patients throughout RT schedules.

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To investigate the excitation mechanism of ionospheric perturbations on Mars by the Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer (NGIMS) onboard Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN), we categorize ionospheric perturbations into three cases: (a) the ion-neutral coupling cases where ion and neutral perturbations are well coupled, (b) the ion-specific cases where ion perturbations move independently from neutrals, and (c) the coronal mass ejection cases associated with solar wind extreme events. A representative number of cases from total profiles are compared with a numerical model to determine the fraction that can be explained by an atmospheric gravity waves (GW). The neutral perturbations on the dayside at 170-190 km altitudes are in excellent agreement with the GW.

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Rhamnan sulfate (RS) is a sulfated polysaccharide extracted from the cell wall of the green alga . Owing to its negative charge, RS interacts with a variety of proteins, enabling various biological activities, such as antiviral, anticoagulant, and antitumor effects. However, RS does not form a stable hydrogel under physiological conditions, which is required for its beneficial biological activities in tissue engineering.

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Conservation faces a chronic shortage of resources, including time, funding, mental capacity, and human capital. Efforts to make the expenditure of these resources more efficient should, therefore, support more equitable and effective conservation prioritization. To achieve this, it is necessary to ensure the integration of the knowledge and perceptions of local stakeholders into larger scale conservation decisions.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study explores the measurement of glomerular filtration rate (GFR), suggesting that the rare amino acids d-serine and d-asparagine can provide a more accurate assessment than traditional urine collection methods.
  • A cross-sectional analysis involving 209 kidney transplant donors and recipients utilized urine levels of these amino acids to establish an equation for estimating urine volume (eUV), which helped correct GFR measurements.
  • Results showed that d-serine and d-asparagine clearances had less bias compared to creatinine, highlighting their potential for improving GFR estimations and urine volume assessments.
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Mammalian wounds leave visible scars, and there are no methods for complete regeneration. However, mouse fetuses regenerate their skin, including epidermal and dermal structures, up to embryonic day (E)13. This regeneration pattern requires the formation of actin cables in the wound margin epithelium; however, the molecular mechanisms are not fully understood.

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Reverse genetics systems for rotaviruses (RV) facilitate the generation of genetically engineered RVs by transfection of 11 plasmids encoding 11 genomic viral RNA segments. In addition to viral genome expression, overexpression of NSP2 and NSP5 has been used to increase the rescue efficiency of recombinant RVs. Here, we showed that the overexpression of nucleotide sequence-modified NSP2 and NSP5 enabled the rapid and efficient production of recombinant RVs.

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Scorpion venom contains linear peptides without disulfide bonds in addition to peptides with disulfide bonds. Many such linear peptides have an amphiphilic α-helical structure, often with antimicrobial activity and can be classified into three groups based on their molecular size. Among them, long-chain antimicrobial peptides consisting of more than 40 residues have not been thoroughly studied due to the difficulty of synthesizing them.

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FMS-like tyrosine kinase 3-internal tandem duplication (FLT3-ITD)-positive acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has a poor prognosis, particularly with DNMT3A and NPM1 mutations. Quizartinib, a FLT3 inhibitor showing clinical benefit in FLT3-ITD-positive AML, has unclear safety and efficacy when combined with donor lymphocyte infusion (DLI). We report a case of FLT3-ITD-positive AML with DNMT3A and NPM1 mutations that relapsed after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HCT) and was treated with quizartinib and DLI.

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  • The study aimed to explore the connection between the gut microbiome and the effectiveness of PARP inhibitors in treating ovarian cancer.
  • Researchers analyzed fecal samples and blood for circulating tumor DNA from ovarian cancer patients on PARP inhibitor therapy, comparing microbiome composition and progression-free survival (PFS) between mutation-positive and mutation-negative patients.
  • Findings indicated that in mutation-negative patients, higher levels of certain gut microbes correlated with longer PFS, while no specific gut bacteria showed this association for mutation-positive patients, suggesting different microbiome influences based on genetic mutation status.
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Azo dyes in textile industry effluents pose significant health and environmental risks. Laccase is an enzyme capable of degrading azo dyes, offering an environmentally friendly solution for treating textile wastewater. However, laccases need to be immobilized on specific carriers to enable effective reuse in batch reactors and continuous operation in flow-through reactors.

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  • Bow hunter's stroke (BHS) occurs when the vertebral artery gets compressed during head rotation, leading to temporary neurological issues and a risk of stroke.
  • A case study of a 25-year-old woman who developed multiple cerebral infarctions after sleeping with her head rotated showed that her vertebral artery was affected by this position.
  • The treatment involved a surgical procedure to stabilize the cervical vertebrae, which successfully prevented further incidents, highlighting the importance of considering sleep position in similar cases.
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D-Alanine, a rare enantiomer of alanine, can potentially alleviate the worsening of viral infections and maintain circadian rhythm. This study aimed to analyze the kinetics of D-Alanine upon oral intake. Five healthy volunteers were administered D-Alanine as a single oral dose at 11,236 or 33,708 µmoL (1-3 g).

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  • Recent research shows that SLC5A2/SGLT2 inhibitors, like empagliflozin, offer kidney protection in non-diabetic chronic kidney disease (CKD) without clear signs of albuminuria, yet the mechanism of this effect remains unclear.
  • The study used various mouse models, including those with obesity and kidney injury, and found that empagliflozin reduced harmful effects like lipotoxicity, inflammation, and fibrosis in kidney tubules by lowering intraglomerular pressure.
  • Empagliflozin also decreased albumin reabsorption, improved autophagic processes, and lessened the risk of kidney injury, suggesting that enhancing autophagy is key to the protective effects
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Background: Medial soft tissue release is occasionally performed to achieve mediolateral ligament balance in total knee arthroplasty (TKA), whose sequential effect on mediolateral and anteroposterior stability remains unclear. This study aimed to quantitatively evaluate the difference in mediolateral and anteroposterior stability according to a sequential medial soft tissue release in TKA.

Methods: Cruciate-retaining TKA was performed in six cadaveric knees.

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  • Focused extracorporeal shock wave therapy (FSWT) was analyzed for its effectiveness in treating chronic calcific rotator cuff tendinitis, with a focus on factors influencing calcium resorption post-treatment.
  • In a study of 117 shoulders treated with FSWT over 16 weeks, results were categorized into complete resorption (CR) and incomplete resorption (ICR), revealing that the CR group had longer disease duration and more tenderness.
  • Key factors associated with successful calcium resorption included the presence of blood flow around calcium deposits, Gärtner classification type, and the length of time the condition had persisted, with specific odds ratios calculated for each factor.
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Background & Aims: Limited evidence exists on the association between malnutrition diagnosis using the Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria in hospitalized acute care patients and their outcomes; several aspects still require clarification. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between malnutrition, as defined by the GLIM criteria, at the time of acute hospital admission and discharge to home.

Methods: This retrospective observational study was conducted at a hospital that provides acute care in Japan.

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The fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) is a critical protein for biological processes such as angiogenesis and tissue regeneration. Recently, hydrogels based on semi-synthetic sulfated polysaccharides have been developed for the controlled delivery of FGF-2. These affinity-based FGF-2 carriers utilizing hydrogels based on sulfated polysaccharides enable sustained delivery of FGF-2, yet choice of materials is limited.

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  • Current screening tools for urothelial carcinoma (UC) are not effective, especially during early stages of the disease.
  • A study discovered that serum d-asparagine levels are significantly higher in UC patients, leading to the development of a new blood-based diagnostic equation combining d-asparagine levels and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).
  • This new screening method shows promising results, with a high accuracy (AUC-ROC of 0.869), and significantly improves diagnosis when used alongside urinary tests.
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