Cognitive impairment in PSP compared with PD: assessment by clinical subtype and longitudinal change.

Background: Longitudinal studies investigating cognitive function changes in patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) are limited. The variability of cognitive impairment across clinical subtypes of PSP remains unclear.

Objective: This study aimed to compare the longitudinal changes in cognitive function between patients with PSP and Parkinson's disease (PD) and to assess differences in cognitive impairment among PSP subtypes.

efficacy and safety of systemically administered serinol nucleic acid-modified antisense oligonucleotides in mouse kidney.

Nucleic acid medicine encompassing antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) has garnered interest as a potential avenue for next-generation therapeutics. However, their therapeutic application has been constrained by challenges such as instability, off-target effects, delivery issues, and immunogenic responses. Furthermore, their practical utility in treating kidney diseases remains unrealized.

Approaches for difficult-to-induce-seizures electroconvulsive therapy cases (DEC): a Japanese expert consensus.

Background: Seizure threshold increases with age and the frequency of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Therefore, therapeutic seizures can be difficult to induce, even at maximum stimulus charge with available ECT devices. Such cases are known as difficult-to-induce-seizures electroconvulsive therapy cases (DECs).

Ultrastructural expansion microscopy (U-ExM) visualization of malaria parasite dense granules using RESA as a representative marker protein.

Dense granules (DG) are understudied apical organelles in merozoites, the malaria parasite stage that invades erythrocytes. Only six proteins have been identified which localize to DGs, despite that DG proteins play crucial roles in multiple steps of intraerythrocytic parasite development. To develop a tool for investigating DG structure and function, this study applied ultrastructural expansion microscopy (U-ExM) to visualize the ring-infected erythrocyte surface antigen (RESA) in Plasmodium falciparum merozoites.

Introduction and Short-Term Outcomes of Robot-Assisted Transabdominal Preperitoneal Inguinal Hernia Repair at a Municipal Hospital by a Robotic Surgery Novice: A Single-Center, Observational Study.

Introduction: Robot-assisted transabdominal preperitoneal inguinal hernia repair (RTAPP) has been rapidly gaining popularity. However, RTAPP is currently limited to university hospitals and large medical centers and is performed mainly by experts in robotic surgery in Japan. In this study, we report the introduction of RTAPP at a municipal hospital by a robotic surgery novice and its short-term outcomes.

Evaluation of mild cognitive impairment in older patients with essential tremor.

Introduction: Recent studies have reported that essential tremor (ET) presents with not only motor symptoms but also cognitive dysfunction. However, detailed pathological mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we evaluate the characteristics of cognitive changes in older patients.

Intestinal butyric acid-mediated disruption of gut hormone secretion and lipid metabolism in vasopressin receptor-deficient mice.

Objectives: Arginine vasopressin (AVP), known as an antidiuretic hormone, is also crucial in metabolic homeostasis. Although AVP receptor-deficient mice exhibit various abnormalities in glucose and lipid metabolism, the mechanism underlying these symptoms remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the involvement of the gut hormones including glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and microbiota as essential mediators.

Discriminant analysis of occupational performance characteristics in patients with major depressive disorders and healthy individuals.

Aim: Assessing symptoms and daily functioning in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) can be challenging, as their limited self-monitoring abilities may result in behavior observed during structured interviews not accurately reflecting their daily lives. This study aimed to determine if specific occupational behaviors could distinguish individuals with MDD from healthy individuals.

Methods: Baseline data were collected from medical records and activity programs.

The role of osteocrin in memory formation during early learning, as revealed by visual imprinting in chicks.

Osteocrin (OSTN) is structurally associated with natriuretic peptides. Its expression in the brain, which has only been recognized in anthropoid primates, is induced by sensory stimuli and regulates the activity-dependent dendritic growth of neurons. However, details on the signaling mechanisms of OSTN and its function in plastic changes during learning and memory have yet to be elucidated.

The association between benzodiazepine prescriptions and the risk of laxative use in schizophrenia treatment.

Aim: Constipation is one of the most common adverse effects in schizophrenia treatment, and it can sometimes cause severe gastrointestinal disease. However, the results of association studies between constipation and psychotropic medications in patients with schizophrenia are inconsistent. Therefore, we investigated the characteristics of psychotropic and laxative prescriptions at discharge in patients with schizophrenia to clarify the association between psychotropics and constipation.

Association between the Monthly Visit Behavior and CPAP Adherence in OSAS Patients.

Objective Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS) causes multiple breathing interruptions during sleep and increases mortality if left untreated. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy improves the prognosis of OSAS; however, patient adherence is often poor. This study investigated the relationship between monthly hospital visits and CPAP adherence to CPAP therapy in patients with OSAS.

Mitochondrial protein heterogeneity stems from the stochastic nature of co-translational protein targeting in cell senescence.

A decline in mitochondrial function is a hallmark of aging and neurodegenerative diseases. It has been proposed that changes in mitochondrial morphology, including fragmentation of the tubular mitochondrial network, can lead to mitochondrial dysfunction, yet the mechanism of this loss of function is unclear. Most proteins contained within mitochondria are nuclear-encoded and must be properly targeted to the mitochondria.

RH5: rationally-designed malaria vaccine antigen improving efficacy.

Plasmodium falciparum reticulocyte-binding protein homolog 5 (RH5) is a unique asexual blood-stage malaria vaccine candidate because of its high conservation and essential biological function of binding to basigin on the erythrocyte surface. Recent studies by Barrett et al., Wang et al.

A systems serology approach to identifying key antibody correlates of protection from cerebral malaria in Malawian children.

Background: Plasmodium falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1) proteins are expressed on the surface of infected erythrocytes, mediating parasite sequestration in the vasculature. PfEMP1 is a major target of protective antibodies, but the features of the antibody response are poorly defined.

Methods: In Malawian children with cerebral or uncomplicated malaria, we characterized the antibody response to 39 recombinant PfEMP1 Duffy binding like (DBL) domains or cysteine-rich interdomain regions (CIDRs) in detail, including measures of antibody classes, subclasses, and engagement with Fcγ receptors and complement.

Sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of suspected difficult-to-treat depression.

Introduction: Difficult-to-treat depression (DTD) represents a broad spectrum of patients with persistent depression where standard treatment modalities are insufficient, yet specific characteristics of this group remain insufficiently understood. This investigation aims to delineate the sociodemographic and clinical profiles of suspected DTD patients in real-world clinical settings.

Method: We conducted a retrospective analysis of data from patients comprehensively evaluated for suspected DTD at Kyorin University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan, between October 2014 and September 2018.

Macroporous Structures of Nb-SnO Particles as a Catalyst Support Induce High Porosity and Performance in Polymer Electrolyte Fuel Cell Catalyst Layers.

Macroporous niobium-doped tin oxide (NTO) is introduced as a robust alternative to conventional carbon-based catalyst supports to improve the durability and performance of polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs). Metal oxides like NTO are more stable than carbon under PEFC operational conditions, but they can compromise gas diffusion and water management because of their denser structures. To address this tradeoff, we synthesized macroporous NTO particles using a flame-assisted spray-drying technique employing poly(methyl methacrylate) as a templating agent.

Persistence Pays: Diagnosing Tuberculous Meningitis after 11 Negative Polymerase Chain Reaction Evaluations.

Managing tuberculous meningitis (TBM) is challenging because of its poor prognosis and the difficulty in making an early diagnosis due to the low sensitivity of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) polymerase chain reaction (PCR) evaluations. A 75-year-old woman presented with fatigue and multiple enlarged lymph nodes and was initially suspected of having metastatic cancer of unknown primary origin. Differential diagnoses included carcinomatous meningitis, neurosarcoidosis, and TBM, as suggested by the presence of multiple enhancing cerebral nodules.

Plasma biomarkers of neurodegeneration in patients and high risk subjects with Lewy body disease.

Comorbid Alzheimer's disease (AD) neuropathology is common in Lewy body disease (LBD); however, AD comorbidity in the prodromal phase of LBD remains unclear. This study investigated AD comorbidity in the prodromal and symptomatic phases of LBD by analyzing plasma biomarkers in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and individuals at risk of LBD (NaT-PROBE cohort). Patients with PD (PD group, n = 84) and DLB (DLB group, n = 16) and individuals with LBD with ≥ 2 (high-risk group, n = 82) and without (low-risk group, n = 37) prodromal symptoms were enrolled.

Effect of prior depression diagnosis on bipolar disorder outcomes: A retrospective cohort study using a medical claims database.

Background: Bipolar disorder often emerges from depressive episodes and is initially diagnosed as depression. This study aimed to explore the effects of a prior depression diagnosis on outcomes in patients diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

Methods: This cohort study analyzed data of patients aged 18-64 years who received a new bipolar disorder diagnosis in Japan, using medical claims data from January 2005 to October 2020 provided by JMDC, Inc.

Autoantibodies inhibit Plasmodium falciparum growth and are associated with protection from clinical malaria.

Many infections, including malaria, are associated with an increase in autoantibodies (AAbs). Prior studies have reported an association between genetic markers of susceptibility to autoimmune disease and resistance to malaria, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here, we performed a longitudinal study of children and adults (n = 602) in Mali and found that high levels of plasma AAbs before the malaria season independently predicted a reduced risk of clinical malaria in children during the ensuing malaria season.

Clinical practice for unspecified anxiety disorder in primary care.

Aim: Clinicians face difficulties in making treatment decisions for unspecified anxiety disorder due to the absence of any treatment guidelines. The objective of this study was to investigate how familiar and how often primary care physicians use pharmacological and nonpharmacological approaches to manage the disorder.

Methods: A survey was conducted among 117 primary care physicians in Japan who were asked to assess the familiarity of using each treatment option for unspecified anxiety disorder on a binary response scale (0 = "unfamiliar," 1 = "familiar") and the frequency on a nine-point Likert scale (1 = "never used," 9 = "frequently used").