Aneurysmal rupture in microscopic polyangiitis: a case-based review.

Microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) affects small and medium vessel, which sometimes leads to arterial aneurysms. In English database, only 15 reports refer to ruptured aneurysms in MPA. We experienced a fatal case with MPA who developed multiple visceral aneurysms, resulting in rupture of the hepatic aneurysm.

Role of polyamines in intestinal mucosal barrier function.

The intestinal epithelium is a rapidly self-renewing tissue; the rapid turnover prevents the invasion of pathogens and harmful components from the intestinal lumen, preventing inflammation and infectious diseases. Intestinal epithelial barrier function depends on the epithelial cell proliferation and junctions, as well as the state of the immune system in the lamina propria. Polyamines, particularly putrescine, spermidine, and spermine, are essential for many cell functions and play a crucial role in mammalian cellular homeostasis, such as that of cell growth, proliferation, differentiation, and maintenance, through multiple biological processes, including translation, transcription, and autophagy.

iForensic, multicentric validation of digital whole slide images (WSI) in forensic histopathology setting according to the College of American Pathologists guidelines.

Pathology has benefited from the rapid progress of image-digitizing technology during the last decade. However, the application of digital whole slide images (WSI) in forensic pathology still needs to be improved. WSI validation is crucial to ensure diagnostic performance, at least equivalent to glass slides and light microscopy.

Role of Exercise Stress Echocardiography in Systemic Sclerosis: Pathophysiological and Prognostic Significance of the Systemic Sclerosis with a Heart Failure and Preserved Ejection Fraction Phenotype.

Aims: Left ventricular (LV) diastolic dysfunction and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) are common cardiac complications of patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc). Exercise stress echocardiography is often used in symptomatic patients with SSc to detect abnormal increases in pulmonary pressures during exercise, but the pathophysiologic and prognostic significance of exercise stress echocardiography to assess the presence of HFpEF in these patients is unclear.

Methods And Results: Patients with SSc (n=140) underwent ergometry exercise stress echocardiography with simultaneous expired gas analysis.

In Vitro Formation of Actin Ring in the Fission Yeast Cell Extracts.

Cytokinesis in animal and fungal cells requires the contraction of actomyosin-based contractile rings formed in the division cortex of the cell during late mitosis. However, the detailed mechanism remains incompletely understood. Here, we aim to develop a novel cell-free system by encapsulating cell extracts obtained from fission yeast cells within lipid vesicles, which subsequently leads to the formation of a contractile ring-like structure inside the vesicles.

Vestibular Function in Patients With Vestibular Neuritis Experiencing Prodromal Dizziness.

Introduction: It is unknown whether prodromal dizziness (PD) before an attack of vestibular neuritis (VN) has an association with peripheral vestibular lesions. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the severity of vestibular dysfunction has an association with the presence of PD.

Methods: We reviewed the medical records of 88 consecutive unilateral VN patients with unilateral canal paresis in caloric testing.

Capnographic monitoring using a novel mainstream system during endoscopic ultrasound and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography: A prospective randomized controlled trial.

Background/purpose: Insufficient studies exist on capnography efficacy during endoscopic ultrasound or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, and no definitive conclusions have been drawn. To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of a novel mainstream capnography using an over-the-biteblock end-tidal CO (EtCO) detector in decreasing the risk of hypoxemia during endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP).

Methods: Patients undergoing EUS or ERCP with conscious sedation at a single Japanese center were randomized to a control or a novel capnography monitored (intervention) group in a 1:1 ratio.

Pharmacokinetic characterization and exposure-response relationship of crovalimab in the COMMODORE 1, 2 and 3 and COMPOSER trials of patients with paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria.

Aims: Crovalimab is a novel C5 inhibitor administered first intravenously and then subcutaneously in patients with paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH) naive to complement inhibition or switching from eculizumab or ravulizumab. Crovalimab showed efficacy and safety comparable to eculizumab in the pivotal COMMODORE 2 and supporting studies.

Methods: We characterized crovalimab pharmacokinetics and the relationship between exposure pharmacokinetic parameters and pharmacodynamic biomarkers, efficacy and safety endpoints using pooled data (healthy volunteers [n = 9], naive [n = 210] and switched [n = 211] patients).

Preventive effect of flavor/fragrance components on SARS-CoV-2 infections.

The SARS-CoV-2 infection has spread to various areas of the world, and the number of infected people, seriously ill people, and deaths have increased in 2020∼2023. It is important to suppress the spread of virus from infected people to non-infected people in order to prevent the disease from becoming more severe. To protect widespread of virus, flavor/fragrances composition was selected as a convenient effective material to protect the inhibition.

Bicycle-inspired simple balance control method for quadruped robots in high-speed running.

This paper explores the applicability of bicycle-inspired balance control in a quadruped robot model. Bicycles maintain stability and change direction by intuitively steering the handle, which induces yaw motion in the body frame and generates an inertial effect to support balance. Inspired by this balancing strategy, we implemented a similar mechanism in a quadruped robot model, introducing a yaw trunk joint analogous to a bicycle's steering handle.

Android avatar improves educational effects by embodied anthropomorphization.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, the adoption of distance learning has been accelerated in educational institutions in multiple countries. In addition to using a videoconferencing system with camera images, avatars can also be used for remote classes. In particular, an android avatar with a sense of presence has the potential to provide higher quality education than a video-recorded lecture.

Recyclable and air-stable colloidal manganese nanoparticles catalyzed hydrosilylation of alkenes with tertiary silane.

We synthesized ,-dimethylformamide (DMF)-stabilized manganese nanoparticles (Mn NPs) in a one-step process under air using manganese(ii) chloride as the precursor. The Mn NPs were characterized in terms of particle size, oxidation state, and local structure using annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (ADF-STEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). The results indicate that Mn NPs are divalent nanosized particles with Mn-O bonds.

Efficacy and safety of avalglucosidase alfa in Japanese patients with late-onset and infantile-onset Pompe diseases: A case series from clinical trials.

Background: The efficacy and safety of avalglucosidase alfa for Pompe disease (PD) have been demonstrated in a global Phase 3 trial (COMET) in patients with late-onset PD (LOPD) and a global Phase 2 trial (Mini-COMET) in patients with infantile-onset PD (IOPD). This case series examines the individual results of three Japanese patients enrolled in these trials.

Methods: Case reports were assembled from data collected in the COMET and Mini-COMET trials.

Adrenaline Dilution in Dental Local Anesthetic Cartridges: A Practical Method Using the Inner Needle of Intravenous Catheter.

Local anesthesia is a routine medical procedure for dentists. To achieve the desired anesthetic effect of lidocaine and favorable hemostatic effects by adrenaline, the combination of 2% lidocaine + 1:80,000 adrenaline is commonly used, including in dental patients with underlying diseases for whom adrenaline in local anesthetics is problematic due to its vasoconstrictive effects, as the adrenaline concentration in dental local anesthetic cartridges in Japan is commercially set at 1:80,000. To reduce the effect of adrenaline on the cardiovascular system, adrenaline is sometimes diluted in dental local anesthetic cartridges.

Clinical Characteristics and Management of Oral Candidiasis Associated with Calcinosis, Raynaud's Phenomenon, Esophageal Dysmotility, Sclerodactyly, and Telangiectasia Syndrome.

Calcinosis, Raynaud's phenomenon, esophageal dysmotility, sclerodactyly, and telangiectasia (CREST) syndrome, a systemic sclerosis subtype, features skin thickening, vascular issues, and organ involvement, causing complications in the gastrointestinal and musculoskeletal systems. Herein, we present a rare case of oral candidiasis, with CREST syndrome. The patient presented with xerostomia, tongue erythema, and burning pain.

Desmoid Fibromatosis Involving the Retropharyngeal and Danger Spaces: A Case Report.

Desmoid fibromatosis (DF) is a rare, non-metastasizing but locally aggressive mesenchymal tumor arising from fibroblasts or myofibroblasts. We report a solitary case of DF involving the retropharyngeal and danger spaces, a location rarely documented. The patient, a woman in her 70s, presented with progressive pharyngeal discomfort over six months.

A Longitudinal Study on Parent-Infant Rest-Activity Rhythms Using Actigraphy From Late Pregnancy to Eight Months After Birth.

Circadian rhythms develop from an ultradian to a circadian rhythm during a few months in the early human life stage. One of the strong factors in promoting the development of circadian rhythms during infancy is maternal rest-activity rhythms. However, few studies have examined comparing the rest-activity rhythms of parents and infants.

High-Degree Posterior Rotational Osteotomy Provides Post-operative Stability Superior to Anterior Rotational Osteotomy for Non-traumatic Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head: Evaluation Using Computed Tomography.

Introduction This study evaluated hip joint dynamic instability in patients with non-traumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH) with extensive lesions, who had undergone anterior rotational osteotomy (ARO) and high-degree posterior rotational osteotomy (HDPRO), based on the femoral head translation observed by computed tomography (CT) at 0° and 45° hip flexion. Materials and methods Medical records of patients who had undergone transtrochanteric rotational osteotomy for non-traumatic ONFH were retrospectively reviewed to identify patients who had undergone CT examinations six weeks post-operatively. In all, 64 hips (60 patients; 19 men and 41 women), comprising 36 hips treated with HDPRO and 28 hips treated with ARO, respectively, were included.

Augmented Reality-Assisted Microsurgery for Severe Thoracic Ossification of the Ligamentum Flavum: A Case Report.

Ossification of the ligamentum flavum (OLF) can lead to dural ossification, significantly increasing the risk of complications, including intraoperative nerve injury. The application of augmented reality (AR) and advanced digital technologies in spine surgery has the potential to reduce these risks. This case report highlights a perioperative nerve injury-free microsurgery using elastic image fusion technology, which integrates preoperative imaging with intraoperative computed tomography for a patient with severe stenotic OLF and dural ossification.

Gemcitabine-Based Chemotherapy for Advanced Soft Tissue Sarcoma: Identifying the Appropriate Dose and Schedule.

Background In 2024, reimbursement for gemcitabine-docetaxel therapy (GEM-DOC; gemcitabine 900 mg/m on days 1 and 8 and docetaxel 70 mg/m on day 8 every 21 days, GEM 900-DOC 70) to treat recurrent/metastatic soft tissue sarcoma (STS) was made in Japan. Methods We retrospectively reviewed clinical records of advanced/metastatic STS patients who underwent off-label gemcitabine-containing chemotherapy at the Cancer Institute Hospital of the Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research between February 2007 and October 2019. Results Of 115 enrolled patients, 51 were treated with GEM-DOC (26 patients received the dose as previously stated) and the other 64 with gemcitabine monotherapy.