Life history and reproductive ecology of the endangered Itasenpara bitterling Acheilognathus longipinnis (Cyprinidae) in the Himi region, central Japan.

The life history, reproductive ecology and habitat utilization of the Itasenpara (deepbody) bitterling Acheilognathus longipinnis were investigated in a lowland segment of the Moo River in Toyama Prefecture, central Honshu, Japan. Analysis of 1285 individuals revealed that the study population comprised a single size class, an age at maturation of 3 months and a life span of 1 year. On the basis of the growth pattern, the life cycle was divided into two stages: the juvenile stage, characterized by rapid growth, and the adult stage at which growth ceased. Spawning by A. longipinnis was recorded between early September and late October. Female A. longipinnis in the 0+ year age class began to mature when they reached a standard length (LS ) of 56·4 mm. Mature females had a large clutch size (maximum 273 eggs) and deposited highly adhesive and relatively large eggs (2·55 mm(3) ; major axis, 3·12 mm; minor axis, 1·22 mm) via a short ovipositor (mean length, 21·5 mm) into freshwater mussels. The embryos remained in the gill cavities of the freshwater mussels (used as a spawning substratum) and emerged as juveniles (LS , 9 mm). Habitat utilization during spawning was analysed using a generalized linear model. The best-fit model showed that three environmental factors (freshwater mussel availability, water depth and vegetation cover) were important variables for habitat utilization by A. longipinnis. Shallow areas (water depth, 250-330 mm) created for rice paddy management and areas with an abundance of cover were particularly effective for predator avoidance. These results suggest that maintenance of water level fluctuations corresponding with rice cultivation and the abundance of vegetation on the river bank (particularly avoidance of concrete revetments) is essential for conservation of this species under current practices for rice cultivation in Japan.

Systemic ventricular assist device support of the Fontan circulation yields promising outcomes: An analysis of The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Pedimacs and Intermacs Databases.

BACKGROUND: Outcomes of ventricular assist device (VAD) support in patients with Fontan circulatory failure (or failing Fontan physiology) are largely unknown. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients with a Fontan circulation who underwent VAD implant in the Society of Thoracic Surgeons Pedimacs and Intermacs Databases from September 19, 2012, to December 31, 2019. RESULTS: We identified 55 Fontan patients who had undergone VAD implant with a median age at implantation of 10.2 years (interquartile range, 6.4-16.9 years) and weight, 26.8 kg (interquartile range, 17.7-53.8 years). More VADs were implanted in 2018-2019 than in 2012-2017 (28 vs 27; P = .01). The later era had higher pre-VAD glomerular filtration rate (101.1 ± 48.5 vs 71.2 ± 34.9; P = .02); there was no difference in Interagency Registry for Mechanically Assisted Circulatory Support profile (P = .69). Kaplan-Meier survival on device was 76% at 6 months with no difference by era. Competing outcomes demonstrated a positive outcome of 81% (alive on VAD, transplanted, or recovered) at 6 months, with 58% of mortality occurring during month 1. Median length of support was 3.8 months (interquartile range, 0.6-6.9 months). Five patients were supported for >1 year with no added mortality; the longest support time was 4 years, 7 months. Adverse event rates included pump thrombosis incidence of 4% (3.3 out of 100 patient-months), stroke 5.5% (1.4 out of 100 patient-months), gastrointestinal bleeding of 7% (2.6 out of 100 patient-months), and nongastrointestinal bleeding of 9% (2.3 out of 100 patient-months). CONCLUSIONS: This is the largest reported analysis of systemic VAD support of Fontan patients. VAD support of the Fontan circulation is becoming more frequent. This analysis demonstrates that VAD use in this growing population can yield promising outcomes.

The Residency Selection Process in the New World; Time for a Rethink.

The transition of the USMLE to a pass fail system provides a unique opportunity to re-evaluate the residency selection process.

Pulmonary function tests do not predict mortality in patients undergoing continuous-flow left ventricular assist device implantation.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of pulmonary function testing on outcomes after continuous flow left ventricular assist device implantation. METHODS: A total of 263 and 239 patients, respectively, had tests of forced expiratory volume in 1 second and diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide preoperatively for left ventricular assist device implantations between July 2005 and September 2015. Kaplan-Meier analysis and multivariable Cox regressions were performed to evaluate mortality. Patients were analyzed in a single cohort and across 5 groups. Postoperative intensive care unit and hospital lengths of stay were evaluated with negative binomial regressions. RESULTS: There is no association of forced expiratory volume in 1 second and diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide with survival and no difference in mortality at 1 and 3 years between the groups (log rank P = .841 and .713, respectively). Greater values in either parameter were associated with decreased hospital lengths of stay. Only diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide was associated with increased intensive care unit length of stay in the group analysis (P = .001). Ventilator times, postoperative pneumonia, reintubation, and tracheostomy rates were similar across the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Forced expiratory volume in 1 second and diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide are not associated with operative or long-term mortality in patients undergoing continuous flow left ventricular assist device implantation. These findings suggest that these abnormal pulmonary function tests alone should not preclude mechanical circulatory support candidacy.

Isolation of an inhibitor of type II interferon induction from tumor ascitic fluids.

A low-molecular-weight fraction (M.W. approximately 700) that specifically impairs the induction of type II interferon in mice by purified protein derivative of tuberculin or OK-432 was isolated from the cell-free ascitic fluid of mice bearing Ehrlich ascites carcinoma. Purification was achieved by ultrafiltration and gel filtration. The inhibitory activity of the isolated fraction was 10 times greater than that of the unfractionated starting material in the impairment of type II interferon induction. The significant inhibition was observed even when 0.2 ml of the 10,000-fold dilution of the fraction, which was previously adjusted to 0.25 A unit at 290 nm absorption, was once treated i.p. in normal mice 48 hr before challenge of type II interferon inducers. This fraction was stable to heating at 56 degrees for 60 min. The active component, however, did not affect the in vivo induction of type I interferon by polyriboinosinic-polyribocytidylic acid or tilorone-HCl. In parallel experiments, an identical low-molecular-weight fraction that impairs the type II interferon induction in mice was isolated from the ascitic fluids of rats bearing AH-100B ascites tumor and from a human hepatoma case with advanced cancer metastatic to the peritoneal cavity. However, nontumorous ascitic fluids obtained from adjuvant-stimulated mice and a human liver cirrhosis case did not contain any such inhibitory activity.

Distribution of carbon-11 labeled methamphetamine and the effect of its chronic administration in mice.

[11C]Methamphetamine, a psychotropic agent, was synthesized by N-methylation of amphetamine with [11C]CH3 I in hopes that it could be applied in the near future to assist positron emission tomography (PET) in the imaging of its distribution in the human brain. The regional distribution of [11C]methamphetamine was investigated in the mice brain at various intervals after an intravenous (i.v.) injection. Radioactivity was higher in the hypothalamus, cortex, striatum and hippocampus. Furthermore, in chronically administered mice, the uptake of [11C]methamphetamine was higher in the striatum than those in other regions. The regional differences in the distribution of methamphetamine in the mice brain may enable the imaging of its distribution by PET using [11C]methamphetamine.

Unstability of neocarzinostatin-chromophore.

The unstability of neocarzinostatin (NCS), apo-NCS and NCS-chromophore (NCS-chr) has been investigated by using an extra-weak chemiluminescence (CL) analyzer. A significantly high emission intensity (10,840 counts/10 seconds) was detected from NCS under dark conditions at 20 degrees C, while no significant emission was observed in other antitumor antibiotics, such as, mitomycin C and pepleomycin. This high emission intensity of NCS was due to NCS-chr I (epoxide form) but not apo-NCS. The functional group generating the high extra-weak CL of NCS-chr I is probably the epoxide in the molecule, since the emission intensity of NCS-chr I (epoxide form) is much higher than that of NCS-chr II (hydrochloride adduct form). The extra-weak CL emission of NCS decreased under a nitrogen atmosphere and it was greatly enhanced under an oxygen atmosphere. The spectral analysis of NCS showed emission peaks around 460 and 570 nm. These observations strongly suggest that one of the emission species of NCS-chr may be due to singlet oxygen.

An antitumor polypeptide antibiotic neocarzinostatin: the mode of apo-protein--chromophore interaction.

The mode of neocarzinostatin-chromophore (NCS-chr)-apo-neocarzinostatin (apo-NCS) interaction in neocarzinostatin (NCS) complex has been described. The NCS-chr release from the NCS complex in the presence of various reagents, which destroy the high-order structure of the protein under various pH conditions, was examined. We found that (i) sodium dodecylsulfate, Nonidet P 40, 8 M urea, and 2-propanol did release NCS-chr from NCS, (ii) no NCS-chr release is detected below pH 7, but it is enhanced at high pH and (iii) beta-naphthol as a model of naphthalenecarboxylic acid derivative and D-galactosamine as a model of N-methylfucosamine of NCS-chr did release NCS-chr from NCS. These observations indicate that the binding of NCS-chr to apo-NCS may be due to not only ionic interaction between the acidic side chain of apo-NCS and the basic center of an aminosugar moiety of NCS-chr but also hydrophobic interaction between the hydrophobic amino acids of apo-NCS and hydrophobic moieties of NCS-chr. Apo-NCS is a very hydrophilic protein, since it has an high hydrophilic amino acid content. So, local hydrophobicity, local hydrophilicity and secondary structure of apo-NCS were predicted. Hydrophobic residues of apo-NCS predominantly located in beta-sheet structures near the carboxyl-terminus. These predictions are in good agreement with the results suggesting that NCS-chr bound carboxyl-terminal-43-peptide of apo-NCS in our previous result.

[Medical education for students in compulsory education: the conception of the preparation of three graded textbooks and preliminary evaluation of lectures using these textbooks].

The school pharmacist in our hospital pharmacy used three graded textbooks about medicine for students at the Sukagawa School for the Health-Impaired (Fukushima Medical University Hospital Branch (H. I. school)). A revised textbook for 4th-6th grade elementary school students containing 12 important items of information about medicine, a new picture textbook for 1st-3rd grade elementary school students, and a new textbook containing practical data for junior high school students were prepared by supplementing original information with illustrations, simplified expression and large type face. Additionally, the pronunciation of Chinese characters was included in the textbook for the 1st-3rd grade elementary school students. In this study, 9 students from H. I. school and 37 students from Koyase junior high school took part in a questionnaire and an examination evaluating the usefulness of the lectures, and these textbooks, in regard to the student's recognition and understanding of medicine. Most students answered that the lectures and textbooks helped them to understand medicine. Furthermore, the results of the examination indicated that the students had a general understanding of medicine. In conclusion, we suggest that it is important for students in compulsory education to learn about medicine, and that according to the preliminary result of questionnaires and examinations, both the lectures and textbooks were useful to help the students to understand more about medicine.