[The effects of the employment of physical therapists and occupational therapists on the gait function of adult day service users after 1 year].

Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the effects of the presence or absence of physical therapists (PTs) and occupational therapists (OTs) in an adult day service on the users' gait function, and to generalize the format of an effective service aimed at the preventing the exacerbation of the gait function and at promoting self-reliance in activities and participation.

Methods: The study population included 830 elderly day service users (mean age, 83.7±6.

The Thymidine Phosphorylase Imaging Agent 123I-IIMU Predicts the Efficacy of Capecitabine.

Unlabelled: Recently, companion diagnostics with nuclear medicine techniques have been anticipated as more suitable means than biopsy for predicting treatment efficacy. The anticancer effect of capecitabine, an orally administered chemotherapeutic agent activated by thymidine phosphorylase (TP), is positively associated with tumor TP expression levels. This study aimed to assess whether TP imaging using a radiolabeled uracil derivative, (123)I-5-iodo-6-[(2-iminoimidazolidinyl)methyl]uracil ((123)I-IIMU), could predict the efficacy of capecitabine treatment.

A Novel CYP11B2-Specific Imaging Agent for Detection of Unilateral Subtypes of Primary Aldosteronism.

Context: Although adrenal vein sampling is the standard method to distinguish unilateral from bilateral forms of primary aldosteronism, it is an invasive and technically difficult procedure. (11)C-metomidate (MTO)-positron emission tomography was reported as a potential replacement for adrenal vein sampling. However, MTO has low selectivity for CYP11B2 over CYP11B1.

[Clinical usefulness of indoor life-space assessment in community-dwelling older adults certified as needing support or care].

Purpose: This study aimed to develop a questionnaire to evaluate indoor life-space mobility and assess its validity in community-dwelling older adults certified as needing support or care.

Methods: The participants included 37 community-dwelling older adults undergoing home-visit rehabilitation (mean age: 78.5±7.

Phenotype of cardiomyopathy in cardiac-specific heat shock protein B8 K141N transgenic mouse.

A K141N missense mutation in heat shock protein (HSP) B8, which belongs to the small HSP family, causes distal hereditary motor neuropathy, which is characterized by the formation of inclusion bodies in cells. Although the HSPB8 gene causes hereditary motor neuropathy, obvious expression of HSPB8 is also observed in other tissues, such as the heart. The effects of a single mutation in HSPB8 upon the heart were analyzed using rat neonatal cardiomyocytes.

[Predictors of interruptions to living at home in elderly people enrolled in a home visit rehabilitation service].

Aim: The purpose of this study was to determine the predictors of interruption to living at home as a result of death, hospitalization, or admission to a long-term care facility in frail elderly people enrolled in a home visit rehabilitation service.

Methods: A total of 311 patients entered a home visit rehabilitation service within a study period of 1 September, 2005 to 31 March, 2010, 146 of whom met the criteria to be enrolled in this study and gave consent. Of these, 73 received a continuous home visit rehabilitation service (continuous group) of over 2 years and 73 experienced interruption to this service due to death, hospitalization, or admission to a long-term care facility (interruption group).

Combined effect of factors associated with burdens on primary caregiver.

Background: It is argued that a multidimensional approach is necessary for burden assessment. Reducing caregiver burden is a social problem in the ageing Japan society. We examined the combined effect of factors affecting the care burden among community-dwelling handicapped people and their caregivers.

[Factors burdening the caregiving relatives of community-dwelling disable Japanese people].

Aim: This study examined the factors associated with burdens on the primary caregivers of community-dwelling disabled people.

Methods: Participants were 78 disabled people (40 men, 38 women; mean age 77.8+/-11.

[Cognitive function among physically independent very old people in an urban community in Japan: the Itabashi Oldest-Old Study II].

This study was conducted to clarify the characteristics of cognitive function among physically independent very old people dwelling in an urban community in Japan. Five hundred and thirteen Old-Old (aged 75-84 years) and 168 Oldest-Old (aged 85-100 years) adults participated. We carried out the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) for measuring cognitive functions in the elderly.

[Functional status of very old people in urban area: the Itabashi Oldest-Old Study I].

It is predicted that the future increase in the oldest-old (85 years and older) population will have a marked influence on society. However, little is known about the features of various functions in the oldest-old. The purpose of this study was to clarify the functional status of the oldest-old.

Altered Bad localization and interaction between Bad and Bcl-xL in the hippocampus after transient global ischemia.

Accumulating evidence indicates that the mitochondrial cell-death pathway, which involves the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria, participates in neuronal cell death after transient cerebral ischemia. However, the upstream events, that induce cytochrome c release after transient global ischemia are not fully understood. Bad is a pro-apoptotic member of the bcl-2 gene family that promotes apoptosis by binding to and inhibiting functions of anti-apoptotic proteins Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL.

The effects of monobromobimane on calcium and phenylarsineoxide-induced mitochondrial swelling and cytochrome C release in isolated brain mitochondria.

A possible involvement of inhibitory effects of monobromobimane (MBM), a thiol reagent, on the swelling and the release of cytochrome c in the isolated brain mitochondria was examined. MBM dose-dependently inhibited the calcium and phenylarsineoxide-induced mitochondrial swelling and cytochrome c release. Significant relationships between mitochondrial swelling and cytochrome c release were detected.

The effects of monobromobimane on neuronal cell death in the hippocampus after transient global cerebral ischemia in rats.

Calcium accumulation and free radical formation in the mitochondria are suggested to result in opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore that may be an initial step in neuronal cell death. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether monobromobimane (MBM) was a possible protective agent against neuronal cell death after transient global ischemia and the swelling of isolated hippocampal mitochondria. Infusion of MBM (1 or 3 microg) to cerebral ventricles 30 min before ischemia attenuated the expression of TUNEL-labeled cells and neuronal cell death in the hippocampal CA1 region at 72 h of reperfusion dose-dependently.

Effects of monochlorobimane on cerebral ischemia-induced damage to mitochondria.

A possible involvement of inhibitory effects of monochlorobimane (MCB) on the opening of mitochondrial permeability transition (MPT) pore in the cerebroprotection against the ischemic brain injury was examined. MCB (1 mM) inhibited the opening of MPT pore in vitro. Sustained cerebral ischemia was induced by injecting 900 microspheres (48 microm in diameter) into the right hemisphere of rats.