Type 2 Diabetes and Hypertension as Risk Factors for Advanced Fibrosis in Biopsy Proven Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatotic Liver Disease.

Objectives: To identify the diagnostic criteria for metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) related to liver fibrosis and to characterize patients with cryptogenic steatotic liver disease (SLD) (non-MASLD) among those previously diagnosed with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Methods: This multicenter retrospective study included 511 patients diagnosed with NAFLD via liver biopsy, and the prevalence of MASLD was assessed based on the diagnostic criteria. Patients were divided into those who met the MASLD criteria and those who did not, and the characteristics of advanced fibrosis and associated cardiometabolic factors were evaluated.

Outcome of a Mix-and-Match Approach with a Monofocal Aspherical and a Bifocal Extended Depth-of-Focus Intraocular Lens to Achieve Extended Monovision in Cataract Patients.

Background: Extended monovision is a novel mix-and-match approach that has been recently introduced. It involves implanting an aspherical monofocal intraocular lens (IOL) for distance vision in the dominant eye, and a bifocal extended depth-of-focus (EDOF) IOL in the nondominant eye. The target refraction for the nondominant eye is - 1.

Role of spin-orbit coupling for the band splitting in ⍺-Sb and ⍺-Bi on SiC(0001).

Monolayer atomic thin films of group-V elements have a high potential for application in spintronics and valleytronics because of their unique crystal structure and strong spin-orbit coupling. We fabricated Sb and Bi monolayers on a SiC(0001) substrate by the molecular-beam-epitaxy method and studied the electronic structure by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) and first-principles calculations. The fabricated Sb film shows the (√3×√3)R30º superstructure associated with the formation of ⍺-Sb, and exhibits a semiconducting nature with a band gap of more than 1.

Nuclear accident-derived I in several river water, eastern Fukushima, Japan, 2016-2020.

Radionuclides, including I, were released into the atmosphere by the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident. We measured the dissolved I concentration in 11 rivers in eastern Fukushima from 2016 to 2020 to clarify the I concentration level in river water under base-flow conditions. During the study period, the maximum I concentration in the river water was 1.

Accelerator neutron sources for BNCT: Current status and some pointers for future development.

Recent decades have seen the development of accelerator neutron sources suitable for installation in a hospital setting. Numerous challenges have been faced and solved to deliver technology which continues to transform the field of BNCT. This paper begins by briefly reviewing the technologies which are currently, or soon will be, in clinical use.

Quantitative Assessment of Delivered Dose in Carbon Ion Spatially Fractionated Radiotherapy (C-SFRT) and Biological Response to C-SFRT.

Objective Applying carbon ion beams, which have high linear energy transfer and low scatter within the human body, to Spatially Fractionated Radiation Therapy (SFRT) could benefit the treatment of deep-seated or radioresistant tumors. This study aims to simulate the dose distributions of spatially fractionated beams (SFB) to accurately determine the delivered dose and model the cell survival rate following SFB irradiation. Approach Dose distributions of carbon ion beams are calculated using the Triple Gaussian Model.

Effects of the maternal work environment on psychological distress during pregnancy: A cross-sectional research-The Japan Environment and Children's Study.

Objectives: As part of the "Japan Environment and Children's Study (JECS)," a national prospective birth cohort study, we examined the association between the maternal work environment and psychological distress during pregnancy in Japan.

Methods: Employing a cross-sectional design, we analyzed data from 42,797 participants, originally collected between 2011 and 2014. Associations between the maternal work environment and psychological distress (Kessler 6) were examined using generalized estimation equation models adjusted for confounding factors.

Work functioning impairment and telework: Influence of family cohabiting situation.

Objectives: To clarify the association between telework with family members at home and work functioning impairment.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 27,036 participants. Having children or cohabitants in need of care at home during telework was considered an exposure factor.

Impact of family cohabitation status and work-from-home on sleep problems among Japanese workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study.

Objective: This cross-sectional study examined the impact of family cohabitation status and work-from-home (WFH) on sleep during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: An online survey of 27,036 Japanese workers assessed WFH frequency, family cohabitation, and trouble sleeping to estimate odds ratios (OR) for sleep problems from December 22 to 26, 2020.

Results: In multivariate analysis, WFH had no significant benefit for trouble sleeping ≥3 months.

Association between the occupation of pregnant women's partners and risks of infant low birth weight and preterm birth in a prospective birth cohort: the Japan Environment and Children's Study.

Objective: We examined the association between the occupations of pregnant women's partners and infant low birth weight (LBW) and preterm birth (PB).

Methods: Birth outcome data were collected from 46,540 participants enrolled in the Japan Environment and Children's Study. Participants were recruited from January 2011 to March 2014.

Association between presenteeism and mistreatment at the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan: A one-year prospective cohort study.

Objective: Workers were subject to both presenteeism and workplace mistreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to examine their association during the pandemic in Japan.Methods: An internet-based, one-year prospective cohort study was conducted from 2020 to 2021.

Comparative Safety of Istradefylline Among Parkinson Disease Adjunctive Therapies: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Studies.

Introduction: Adjunctive therapies to treat OFF episodes resulting from long-term levodopa treatment in Parkinson disease (PD) are hampered by safety and tolerability issues. Istradefylline offers an alternative mechanism (adenosine A2A receptor antagonist) and therefore potentially improved tolerability.

Methods: A systematic review of PD adjuncts published in 2011 was updated to include randomized controlled trials published from January 1, 2010-April 15, 2019.

Internal carotid artery dissection leading to occlusion in a patient with nonelongated styloid process: illustrative case.

Background: Eagle syndrome is characterized by an elongated styloid process causing mechanical stress on the internal carotid artery (ICA). The authors present the case of a patient who had cervical ICA dissection with a nonelongated styloid process.

Observations: A 43-year-old man presented with left hemiparesis and hemispatial neglect.

Structural determinants of oxygen resistance and Zn-mediated stability of the [FeFe]-hydrogenase from .

[FeFe]-hydrogenases catalyze the reversible two-electron reduction of two protons to molecular hydrogen. Although these enzymes are among the most efficient H-converting biocatalysts in nature, their catalytic cofactor (termed H-cluster) is irreversibly destroyed upon contact with dioxygen. The [FeFe]-hydrogenase CbA5H from has a unique mechanism to protect the H-cluster from oxygen-induced degradation.

Pick-and-Place Transfer of Arbitrary-Metal Electrodes for van der Waals Device Fabrication.

Van der Waals electrode integration is a promising strategy to create nearly perfect interfaces between metals and 2D materials, with advantages such as eliminating Fermi-level pinning and reducing contact resistance. However, the lack of a simple, generalizable pick-and-place transfer technology has greatly hampered the wide use of this technique. We demonstrate the pick-and-place transfer of prefabricated electrodes from reusable polished hydrogenated diamond substrates without the use of any sacrificial layers due to the inherent low-energy and dangling-bond-free nature of the hydrogenated diamond surface.

Myeloid Cells Induce Infiltration and Activation of B Cells and CD4+ T Follicular Helper Cells to Sensitize Brain Metastases to Combination Immunotherapy.

Brain metastasis (BM) is a poor prognostic factor in cancer patients. Despite showing efficacy in many extracranial tumors, immunotherapy with anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody (mAb) or anti-CTLA-4 mAb appears to be less effective against intracranial tumors. Promisingly, recent clinical studies have reported that combination therapy with anti-PD-1 and anti-CTLA-4 mAbs has a potent antitumor effect on BM, highlighting the need to elucidate the detailed mechanisms controlling the intracranial tumor microenvironment (TME) to develop effective immunotherapeutic strategies.

A new Drosophila melanogaster research resource: CRISPR-induced mutations for clonal analysis of fourth chromosome genes.

As part of an ongoing effort to generate comprehensive resources for the experimental analysis of fourth chromosome genes in Drosophila melanogaster, the Fourth Chromosome Resource Project has used CRISPR mutagenesis with single guide RNAs to isolate mutations in 62 of the 80 fourth chromosome, protein-coding genes. These mutations were induced on a fourth chromosome bearing a basal FRT insertion to facilitate experimental approaches involving FLP recombinase-induced mitotic recombination. To permit straightforward comparisons among mutant stocks, most of the mutations were generated on isogenic fourth chromosomes, which were then crossed into a common genetic background.

Coping strategies and changes in type D personality were associated with depressive tendency at 9 months after percutaneous coronary intervention.

Type D personality, characterized by negative affectivity and social inhibition, has been associated with both the psychophysiology of coronary artery disease (CAD) and depressive disorders. However, few reports have described the impact of coping strategies in these patients. This study aimed to analyze the characteristics of type D personality and the coping strategies adopted by patients with CAD and to explore the factors associated with depressive tendencies during follow-up.

Spectral study of COVID-19 pandemic in Japan: The dependence of spectral gradient on the population size of the community.

We have carried out spectral analysis of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) notifications in all 47 prefectures in Japan. The results confirm that the power spectral densities (PSDs) of the data from each prefecture show exponential characteristics, which are universally observed in the PSDs of time series generated by nonlinear dynamical systems, such as the susceptible/exposed/infectious/recovered (SEIR) epidemic model. The exponential gradient increases with the population size.

Dynamic Control of Weight-Update Linearity in Magneto-Ionic Synapses.

Multifunctional hardware technologies for neuromorphic computing are essential for replicating the complexity of biological neural systems, thereby improving the performance of artificial synapses and neurons. Integrating ionic and spintronic technologies offers new degrees of freedom to modulate synaptic potentiation and depression, introducing novel magnetic functionalities alongside the established ionic analogue behavior. We demonstrate that magneto-ionic devices can perform as synaptic elements with dynamically tunable depression linearity controlled by an external magnetic field, a functionality reminiscent of neuromodulation in biological systems.

Preparation of Small Extracellular Vesicles Using Sequential Ultrafiltration with Regenerated Cellulose Membranes of Different Molecular Weight Cutoffs: A Study of Morphology and Size by Electron Microscopy.

There is still room for improvement in the isolation and purification techniques for extracellular vesicles (EVs), particularly in the separation of exosomes (small EVs) from other membrane vesicles such as microvesicles and apoptotic bodies. Furthermore, it is crucial to establish preparation methods that preserve the intrinsic properties of EVs in this context. In this study, we focus on the isolation and preparation of small EVs, exosomes, from the culture supernatant of a human cell line.

Cathode Design Based on Nitrogen Redox and Linear Coordination of Cu Center for All-Solid-State Fluoride-Ion Batteries.

All-solid-state fluoride-ion batteries (FIBs) have attracted extensive attention as candidates for next-generation energy storage devices; however, promising cathodes with high energy density are still lacking. In this study, CuN is investigated as a cathode material for all-solid-state fluoride-ion batteries, which offers enough anionic vacancies around the 2-fold coordinated Cu center for F intercalation, thereby enabling a multielectron-transferred fluorination process. The contribution of both cationic and anionic redox to charge compensation, in particular, the generation of molecular nitrogen species in highly charged states, has been proved by several synchrotron-radiation-based spectroscopic technologies.

A Bioabsorbable Implant Seeded with Adipose-Derived Stem Cells for Adipose Regeneration.

Adipose tissue engineering requires effective strategies for regenerating adipose tissue, with adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) being favored due to their robust self-renewal capacity and multipotent differentiation potential. In this study, the efficacy of poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) mesh containing collagen sponge (CS), seeded with ASCs to promote adipose tissue formation, was investigated. PLLA-CS implants seeded with GFP-positive ASCs were inserted at high concentration (1 × 10 cells/implant, H-ASC) and low concentration (1 × 10 cells/implant, L-ASC), as were unseeded controls.