Associations of the fibrosis-4 index with left atrial low-voltage areas and arrhythmia recurrence after catheter ablation: cardio-hepatic interaction in patients with atrial fibrillation.

Background: The relationship between liver fibrosis and left atrial (LA) remodeling in atrial fibrillation (AF) remains uncertain. We examined the associations between the fibrosis-4 (FIB4) index, an indicator of liver fibrosis, and both LA low-voltage areas (LVAs) on electroanatomic mapping and AF recurrence postablation.

Methods: We recruited 343 patients who underwent radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) or cryoballoon ablation (CBA) for AF.

Development of silicon-on-insulator direct electron detector with analog memories in pixels for sub-microsecond imaging.

We have developed a high-speed recordable direct electron detector based on silicon-on-insulator technology. The detector has 16 analog memories in each pixel to record 16 images with sub-microsecond temporal resolution. A dedicated data acquisition system has also been developed to display and record the results on a personal computer.

Reduction of bitter taste receptor gene family in folivorous colobine primates relative to omnivorous cercopithecine primates.

Bitter taste perception is important in preventing animals from ingesting potentially toxic compounds. Whole-genome assembly (WGA) data have revealed that bitter taste receptor genes (TAS2Rs) comprise a multigene family with dozens of intact and disrupted genes in primates. However, publicly available WGA data are often incomplete, especially for multigene families.

Heart Failure Post-Myocardial Infarction Promotes Mammary Tumor Growth Through the NGF-TRKA Pathway.

Background: Epidemiological investigations suggest that patients with heart failure have a higher incidence of cancer; however, the causal role of cardiac disease on cancer progression remains unclear.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the impact and underlying mechanisms of myocardial infarction (MI)-induced heart failure on tumor cell growth.

Methods: We generated a syngeneic mouse model by implanting mammary tumor-derived 4T1 cells into BALB/c mice with MI resulting from ligation of the left anterior descending artery.

Cigarette Smoking and Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease.

The detrimental effects of cigarette smoking on cardiovascular health, particularly atherosclerosis and thrombosis, are well established, and more detailed mechanisms continue to emerge. As the fundamental pathophysiology of the adverse effects of smoking, endothelial dysfunction, inflammation, and thrombosis are considered to be particularly important. Cigarette smoke induces endothelial dysfunction, leading to impaired vascular dilation and hemostasis regulation.

Targeting N-Myristoylation Through NMT2 Prevents Cardiac Hypertrophy and Heart Failure.

Protein diversity can increase via N-myristoylation, adding myristic acid to an N-terminal glycine residue. In a murine model of pressure overload, knockdown of cardiac N-myristoyltransferase 2 (NMT2) by adeno-associated virus 9 exacerbated cardiac dysfunction, remodeling, and failure. Click chemistry-based quantitative chemical proteomics identified substrate proteins of N-myristoylation in cardiac myocytes.

Viral load of Torquetenovirus correlates with Sano's score and levels of total bilirubin and aspartate aminotransferase in Kawasaki disease.

Cause of Kawasaki disease (KD) is unknown. KD is often resistant to treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Sano's score, which is derived from total bilirubin (TBIL), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and C-reactive protein (CRP), is predictive of IVIG resistance in Japan.

Mitochondrial DNA is a key driver in cigarette smoke extract-induced IL-6 expression.

Smoking is an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis, the primary pathogenesis of which is inflammation. We recently reported that cigarette smoke extract (CSE) causes cytosolic and extracellular accumulation of both nuclear (n) and mitochondrial (mt) DNA, which leads to inflammation in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). In this study, we examined whether inflammation induction depends more on cytosolic nDNA or mtDNA, and which chemical constituents of CSE are involved.

Acute coronary syndrome with severe coronary calcification in a patient with pseudo-pseudohypoparathyroidism.

Unlabelled: A 40-year-old female with a history of steroid therapy for juvenile rheumatoid arthritis was brought to our hospital because of chest pain. A diagnosis of non-ST elevation myocardial infarction was made, and emergency coronary angiography revealed stenotic lesions with severe calcification in the left anterior descending artery and the right coronary artery. Percutaneous coronary intervention with rotational atherectomy followed by a drug-coated balloon was performed to the lesion in the left anterior descending artery.

A possible role for proinflammatory activation via cGAS-STING pathway in atherosclerosis induced by accumulation of DNA double-strand breaks.

DNA damage contributes to atherosclerosis. However, causative links between DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) and atherosclerosis have yet to be established. Here, we investigated the role of DSBs in atherosclerosis using mice and vascular cells deficient in Ku80, a DSB repair protein.

Identification of Torquetenovirus Species in Patients with Kawasaki Disease Using a Newly Developed Species-Specific PCR Method.

A next-generation sequencing (NGS) study identified a very high viral load of Torquetenovirus (TTV) in KD patients. We aimed to evaluate the feasibility of a newly developed quantitative species-specific TTV-PCR (ssTTV-PCR) method to identify the etiology of KD. We applied ssTTV-PCR to samples collected from 11 KD patients and 22 matched control subjects who participated in our previous prospective study.

Carbonization of a Molybdenum Substrate Surface and Nanoparticles by a One-Step Method of Femtosecond Laser Ablation in a Hexane Solution.

Molybdenum carbides (MoC and MoC) are being reported for various applications, for example, catalysts for sustainable energies, nonlinear materials for laser applications, protective coatings for improving tribological performance, and so on. A one-step method for simultaneously fabricating molybdenum monocarbide (MoC) nanoparticles (NPs) and MoC surfaces with a laser-induced periodic surface structure (LIPSS) was developed by using pulsed laser ablation of a molybdenum (Mo) substrate in hexane. Spherical NPs with an average diameter of 61 nm were observed by scanning electron microscopy.

A case of COVID-19-associated fulminant myocarditis due to SARS-CoV-2 omicron BA.2 sub-lineage in an unvaccinated female.

Unlabelled: COVID-19-associated myocarditis can be a lethal complication in previous variants, but it is not well understood in the Omicron variant. We present an unvaccinated case of COVID-19-associated fulminant myocarditis due to the Omicron BA.2 sub-lineage requiring mechanical circulatory support (MCS).

Static Hydrophobic Cuprous Oxide Surface Fabricated via One-Step Laser-Induced Oxidation of a Copper Substrate.

In this study, we developed a one-step method for fabricating hydrophobic surfaces on copper (Cu) substrates. Cuprous oxide (CuO) with low free energy was successfully formed after low-fluence laser direct irradiation. The formation of CuO enhanced the hydrophobicity of the Cu substrate surface, and the contact angle linearly increased with the proportion of CuO.

A rare case of fibromuscular dysplasia with multifocal coronary artery involvement evaluated by intravascular ultrasound.

Unlabelled: Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD) is non-atherosclerotic, non-inflammatory vascular disease that results in arterial stenosis. The lesions in FMD are commonly found in the renal and extracranial carotid and vertebral arteries, but the prevalence of FMD with lesions in the coronary artery is unclear. Although the vascular morphology of coronary artery lesion in FMD is mostly dissection, the following case of FMD showed the stenotic and aneurysmal lesions in coronary arteries, which was treated by percutaneous coronary angioplasty.

Cigarette smoke induces mitochondrial DNA damage and activates cGAS-STING pathway: application to a biomarker for atherosclerosis.

Cigarette smoking is a major risk factor for atherosclerosis. We previously reported that DNA damage was accumulated in atherosclerotic plaque, and was increased in human mononuclear cells by smoking. As vascular endothelial cells are known to modulate inflammation, we investigated the mechanism by which smoking activates innate immunity in endothelial cells focusing on DNA damage.

The Prognostic Impact of D-Dimer on Long-Term Mortality in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

D-dimer is a common measurable coagulation marker that is associated with the risk of thrombotic events in vascular diseases. However, the impact of D-dimer on long-term mortality in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients remains unclear. This study investigated the association between D-dimer and long-term all-cause, cardiac and cancer mortality in CAD patients.

Role of DNA damage in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis.

Atherosclerosis is a cause of coronary artery disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm, and stroke. The pathogenesis underlying atherosclerosis is complex but it is clear that inflammation plays a pivotal role. Inflammation in atherosclerosis is triggered by the recognition of intracellular contents released from damaged cells by pattern recognition receptors, and is therefore sterile and chronic.

Clinical usefulness of the pattern of non-adherence to anti-platelet regimen in stented patients (PARIS) thrombotic risk score to predict long-term all-cause mortality and heart failure hospitalization after percutaneous coronary intervention.

Background: The Patterns of non-Adherence to Anti-Platelet Regimen in Stented Patients (PARIS) thrombotic risk score has been proposed to estimate the risk of stent thrombotic events after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, the prognostic value of the PARIS thrombotic risk score for long term all-cause and cardiac mortalities, as well as hospitalization due to heart failure, has not yet been evaluated. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to evaluate the prognostic value of the PARIS thrombotic risk score for all-cause and cardiac mortalities and hospitalization due to heart failure following PCI.

Self-construal and behavioral motivation systems among patients with depression in Indonesia: A hospital-based study.

Objective: To validate Indonesian versions of two social/cultural psychological scales: the Self-Construal Scale (SCS) that measures independent and interdependent cultural values, and the Behavioral Inhibition (Avoidance) System and Behavioral Approach System (BIS/BAS) that measures motivation focus. We also explored the cultural background for the rising prevalence of depression in Indonesia.

Design: Case (hospital)-control (population) study.

DNA Damage Induced by Radiation Exposure from Cardiac Catheterization.

Almost 40% of medical radiation exposure is related to cardiac imaging or intervention. However, the biological effects of low-dose radiation from medical imaging remain largely unknown. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of ionized radiation from cardiac catheterization on genomic DNA integrity and inflammatory cytokines in patients and operators.