Phenotypic screening using waveform analysis of synchronized calcium oscillations in primary cortical cultures.

At present, in vitro phenotypic screening methods are widely used for drug discovery. In the field of epilepsy research, measurements of neuronal activities have been utilized for predicting efficacy of anti-epileptic drugs. Fluorescence measurements of calcium oscillations in neurons are commonly used for measurement of neuronal activities, and some anti-epileptic drugs have been evaluated using this assay technique. However, changes in waveforms were not quantified in previous reports. Here, we have developed a high-throughput screening system containing a new analysis method for quantifying waveforms, and our method has successfully enabled simultaneous measurement of calcium oscillations in a 96-well plate. Features of waveforms were extracted automatically and allowed the characterization of some anti-epileptic drugs using principal component analysis. Moreover, we have shown that trajectories in accordance with the concentrations of compounds in principal component analysis plots were unique to the mechanism of anti-epileptic drugs. We believe that an approach that focuses on the features of calcium oscillations will lead to better understanding of the characteristics of existing anti-epileptic drugs and allow to predict the mechanism of action of novel drug candidates.

[The Structure of Practices and Tasks of Death Watch Care of Residents in the A National Sanatorium for Hansen's Disease].

This study aims to clarify the structure of practices and tasks of death watch care in the A National Sanatorium for Sufferers of Hansen's Disease (shown as A Sanatorium). A semi-structured interview was conducted of four nurses with experience of death watch care. Then, it was analyzed using the qualitative unification methods (KJ methods) individually and comprehensively. According to the results of the comprehensive analysis, nurses tended to feel strongly toward "a necessity of death watch care with a focus on family" through their communication with residents with poor relationships with their families. With this feeling in mind, they were placed everyday in "death watch care, focusing on supporting resident's lives through daily care" while trying to be conscious of life-support for them. In practice every day, they seemed to be satisfied and encouraged by "tasks of death care are to focus on the resident's value of life." However, nurses with little experience of death watch care were full of anxiety and dilemmas emerged when they began death watch care. During this process, it was verified that there was "a gap in consciousness among nurses administering death watch care" and "an uncertainness of policies of institutions that accepted the death watch of residents." In this way, an method for future death watch care in A Sanatorium was shown.

[Improved care of foot ulcer using foot pressure measurement and foot care method sheet].

At this sanatorium, the number of foot bottom ulcer patients was 13 and the tenure of the foot bottom ulcer was average 11 years. According to the treatment that was not unified, we thought about the cause of the prolongation. Therefore, we made evaluation and care method sheet ("foot care sheet") of the ulcer for the unification. We used the foot pressure measurement system (F-scan) to 4 patients for the pressure dispersion of the ulcer. We devised the protection law of the ulcer, and an ulcer did not require pressure more than 5 kilos/cm2. We recorded the size of the ulcer, weight of the liquid from ulcer, a photograph to care sheet once a week. I performed ulcer protection law and management with the foot care sheet to 4 patients for average 4 months. As a result, the ulcers of 3 patients out of 4 patients became small.