Medical Record Survey after Comprehensive Health Checkup Referral and Its Contribution to the Early Detection of Cancer.

Comprehensive health checkups in Japan are a preventive method to detect cancer and metabolic diseases. Unlike group medical examinations, individual examinations in health checkups are possible, with additional tests possible for disease detection. However, it is difficult to accurately ascertain the results from only the report after referral to a medical institution in individuals suspected of having cancer who need to be examined.

Regulatory Aspects of Cell and Gene Therapy Products: The Japanese Perspective.

Regulations for regenerative medicine for human use, such as cell and gene therapy (CGT), have evolved in accordance with advancements in clinical experience, scientific knowledge, and social acceptance of these technologies. In November 2014, two acts, "The Act on the Safety of Regenerative Medicine" (ASRM) and the "Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices, and Other Therapeutic Products Act" (PMD Act), came into effect in Japan. The responsibilities of medical institutions in ensuring the safety and transparency of such medical technologies are described under ASRM.

Insights into the clinical development of regenerative medical products through a comparison of three cell-based products recently approved for limbal stem cell deficiency.

Three regenerative medical products for limbal stem cell deficiency (LSCD), a rare and intractable ocular surface disease, have recently been approved in Japan. To our knowledge, this is the first time multiple stem-cell-based medical products have been approved for the same ocular disease. Development plans and study designs for each product differ, resulting in differences in indications.

Regulatory Issues: PMDA - Review of Sakigake Designation Products: Oncolytic Virus Therapy with Delytact Injection (Teserpaturev) for Malignant Glioma.

In June 2021, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare approved Delytact Injection as a regenerative medical product for oncolytic virus therapy. The active substance of Delytact Injection is teserpaturev, a genetically engineered herpes simplex virus type 1 (strain F) in which the α47 gene and both copies of the γ34.5 gene have been deleted and the infected cell protein 6 (ICP6) gene has been inactivated by the insertion of the lacZ gene from Escherichia coli.

Can Outpatient Rehabilitation Be Continued During the COVID-19 Pandemic? A Report from a Japanese Regional Medical University Hospital.

Objective: To describe the operation of an outpatient rehabilitation practice at a Japanese hospital severely affected by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Design: Analytical observational study.

Setting: Outpatient rehabilitation department in Saitama, Japan.

Investigation of arterial-cardiac-pulmonary interaction.

Pulmonary function and arterial stiffness correlate significantly, attributing to the chronic inflammation of atherosclerosis. However, through the pulmonary or systemic circulation, pulmonary and vascular functions associate hemodynamically with cardiac morphology and function. In the present study, we investigated arterial-cardiac-pulmonary interaction by examining how the pulmonary and vascular functions correlate with the heart.

Echocardiographic Changes in Eosinophilic Endocarditis Induced by Churg-Strauss Syndrome.

Eosinophilic myocarditis may be accompanied by Churg-Strauss syndrome (CSS). We report a case of CSS that was accompanied by myocardial changes in the early stage. A 71-year-old woman complained of mild chest pain at rest, but routine echocardiography did not reveal any endocardial abnormalities.

Report of the International Regulatory Forum on Human Cell Therapy and Gene Therapy Products.

The development of human cell therapy and gene therapy products has progressed internationally. Efforts have been made to address regulatory challenges in the evaluation of quality, efficacy, and safety of the products. In this forum, updates on the specific challenges in quality, efficacy, and safety of products in the view of international development were shared through the exchange of information and opinions among experts from regulatory authorities, academic institutions, and industry practitioners.

Eicosapentaenoic Acid combined with optimal statin therapy improves endothelial dysfunction in patients with coronary artery disease.

Purpose: Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) has been reported to augment endothelial function and improve clinical outcomes in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). The purpose of this study was to determine whether EPA could improve residual endothelial dysfunction despite adequate lipid-lowering with statin in CAD patients.

Methods: Eighty patients with established CAD, who had been on statin treatment and had serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels <100 mg/dl, were randomly assigned to receive either 1,800 mg of EPA daily plus statin (EPA group, n = 40) or statin alone (Control group, n = 40).

Longitudinal heterogeneity of coronary artery distensibility in plaques related to acute coronary syndrome.

Background: How coronary distensibility contributes to stable or unstable clinical manifestations remains obscure. We postulated that the heterogeneous plaque distensibility is associated with unstable clinical presentations in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Methods And Results: Seventeen and 19 ACS-related and -unrelated lesions, respectively, were visualized using intravascular ultrasound imaging with simultaneous intracoronary pressure recording.

Aging and arterial-cardiac interactions in the elderly.

Cardiovascular system changes with aging, and these changes are modified by arteriosclerosis-risk factors, i.e., hypertension and diabetes, as well as arterial-cardiac interactions.

Quality of warfarin control affects the incidence of stroke in elderly patients with atrial fibrillation.

Objective: Adjusted-dose warfarin therapy can prevent stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. However, the quality of the warfarin control may be considered to be important for elderly patients. methods: We followed 188 patients (age > or =70 years) with atrial fibrillation (warfarin, 120 patients; non-warfarin, 68 patients) for 2 years.

Aging-related arterial-cardiac interaction in Japanese men.

Vascular and cardiac aging is rapidly progressing among the Japanese population. A close relation exists between the artery and cardiac performance (arterial-cardiac interaction), but the relationships between age and these parameters have not been well examined. The aim of this study was to elucidate the changes of arterial-cardiac interaction with aging, using pulse wave velocity (PWV) as an indicator of atherosclerosis.

Dyssynchrony during acute phase determined by real-time three-dimensional echocardiography predicts reverse cardiac remodeling and improved cardiac function after reperfusion therapy.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate whether parameters of dyssynchrony from real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT-3DE) can predict cardiac remodeling in patients of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) after reperfusion therapy.

Methods: The subjects were 41 AMI patients after reperfusion therapy who underwent RT-3DE within 2 weeks from onset and at 6 months thereafter. End-diastolic volume (EDV), end-systolic volume (ESV), ejection fraction (EF), and the change rate of these parameters were derived during the acute and chronic phases.

Correlation of left ventricular dyssynchrony with myocardial stunning using dual single photon emission computed tomography of (123)iodine-beta-methyl iodophenyl pentadecanoic acid and (201)thallium scintigraphy after reperfusion therapy.

Objective: Left ventricular (LV) dyssynchrony after reperfusion therapy has been closely examined as a cause of chronic remodeling, but the details have not been clarified. The present study measured LV dyssynchrony appearing immediately after reperfusion therapy using real-time three-dimensional echocardiography (RT-3DE), and assessed the significance of this phenomenon in relation to dual single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) of (123)iodine beta methyliodophenyl pentadecanoic acid ((123)I-BMIPP) and (201)thallium ((201)Tl).

Methods: Subjects comprised 58 patients with first-time acute myocardial infarction who received reperfusion therapy and underwent RT-3DE and dual SPECT of (123)I-BMIPP and (201)Tl within two weeks of onset.

Effectiveness of risk stratification according to CHADS2 score in Japanese patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation.

Cerebrovascular events increase with additional risk factors in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). The relative risk proportional to the number of risk factors in Japanese patients has not been reported. The prevalence of risk factors was investigated for over 2 years in a prospective cohort study of 265 patients with NVAF.

Accuracy of three-dimensional echocardiography in patients with prior anteroseptal myocardial infarction.

Background: Echocardiography is the most feasible modality for monitoring cardiac volume and function. However, conventional two-dimensional echocardiography (2DE) is frequently not accurate in measuring cardiac performance in cases of abnormal left ventricular wall motion, because of the geometric assumptions. Quantitative gated scintigraphy and magnetic resonance imaging are reliable modalities, but are expensive and not feasible for repetitive use.

Gene expression profiling reveals complex changes in the olfactory bulbectomy model of depression after chronic treatment with antidepressants.

We investigated the effects of antidepressants on the gene expression profile and behavior of olfactory-bulbectomized (OBX) rats. Removal of the main olfactory bulbs in rats alters neuronal function in brain areas involved in emotional regulation, resulting in maladaptive behavioral patterns similar to the symptoms of patients with depression. Previously, we found that OBX-induced behavioral and neuronal abnormalities were completely rescued by chronic treatment with SNC80, an opioid delta agonist, as well as with classical monoaminergic antidepressants.

Effect of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors and beta-blockers on left ventricular remodeling after coronary artery bypass graft surgery.

Preventing left ventricular (LV) remodeling after coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) is important to avoid long-term congestive heart failure. The present study evaluated the effects of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and beta-blockers on LV remodeling. Twenty-three patients with angina pectoris and 36 with old myocardial infarction underwent CABG.

Ubiquitin ligase Kf-1 is involved in the endoplasmic reticulum-associated degradation pathway.

Kf-1 was first identified as a gene showing enhanced expression in the cerebral cortex of a sporadic Alzheimer's disease patient. To date, however, the functional properties of Kf-1 protein remain unknown. In this study, immunohistochemical analysis showed that Kf-1 immunoreactivity was detected in rat hippocampus and cerebral cortex neurons.

[TREK-1: a potential target for novel antidepressants].

The neurotransmitter serotonin (5-HT: 5-hydroxytryptamin) was suggested to be involved in the pathogenesis of depression as well as in the mechanisms of antidepressant treatments. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology or treatment of depression are still poorly understood. A recent paper has shown that deletion of the two-pore domain potassium channel TREK-1 results in an antidepressant-like phenotype.

Transient receptor potential channel 6-mediated, localized cytosolic [Na+] transients drive Na+/Ca2+ exchanger-mediated Ca2+ entry in purinergically stimulated aorta smooth muscle cells.

The Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX) is increasingly recognized as a physiological mediator of Ca2+ influx and significantly contributes to salt-sensitive hypertension. We recently reported that Ca2+ influx by the NCX (1) is the primary mechanism of Ca2+ entry in purinergically stimulated rat aorta smooth muscle cells and (2) requires functional coupling with transient receptor potential channel 6 nonselective cation channels. Using the Na+ indicator CoroNa Green, we now directly observed and characterized the localized cytosolic [Na+] ([Na+]i) elevations that have long been hypothesized to underlie physiological NCX reversal but that have never been directly shown.

Heteromultimeric TRPC6-TRPC7 channels contribute to arginine vasopressin-induced cation current of A7r5 vascular smooth muscle cells.

The molecular identity of receptor-operated, nonselective cation channels (ROCs) of vascular smooth muscle (VSM) cells is not known for certain. Mammalian homologues of the Drosophila canonical transient receptor potential channels (TRPCs) are possible candidates. This study tested the hypothesis that heteromultimeric TRPC channels contribute to ROC current of A7r5 VSM cells activated by [Arg(8)]-vasopressin.