Inter-limb Asymmetry of Equilibrium Regulation in the Legs of 10-11-Year-Old Boys during Overground Sprinting.

Short-distance running at top speed is important in field sports. Previous studies have analyzed kinematic and kinetic properties of sprinting in adults, but equivalent knowledge in children is underexplored. Quantifying relevant aspects of children's sprinting is useful for classifying their running skills and providing effective coaching based on motor control theory. This study aimed to clarify differences in equilibrium regulation in more- and less-skilled boy sprinters. Five 10-11-year-old boys regularly participating in lessons at the Mizuno running school performed 30-meter and 50-meter field track sprints, and the kinematic and electromyography findings were recorded. Equilibrium-point-based synergy analysis was then applied to estimate their respective virtual trajectories. The virtual trajectory is an equilibrium time sequence that indicates how the central nervous system controls a skeletal system with multiple muscles. The results suggested that: (1) the equilibrium of the right and left legs was regulated differently, although together the legs showed similar kinematics; (2) in the first type of virtual trajectory (type-I) in one leg, the equilibria after foot-strike were regulated intermittently during the early swing phase; (3) in the second type of virtual trajectory (type-II) in the other leg, the equilibria after foot-strike were continuously regulated during the early swing phase; and (4) the less-skilled child runners showed a slow equilibrium action response in both types of virtual trajectory during the early swing phase. These findings provide insights for "tailor-made" coaching based on the type of leg control during sprinting.Clinical relevance-Information on gait asymmetry would be beneficial not only for coaching to improve sprint training but also from clinical and injury perspectives.

Systematic regional lymph node dissection for upper tract urothelial carcinoma improves patient survival.

OBJECTIVE: Unlike for bladder cancer, the impact of regional lymph node dissection for upper tract urothelial carcinoma is unclear. We explored whether patient survival was influenced by systematic regional lymph node dissection, using resection templates according to the main tumor location, during radical nephroureterectomy for upper tract urothelial carcinoma. METHODS: The systematic regional lymph node dissection group was defined as cases in which the dissection of nodes and surrounding tissues followed the established template, and the non-systematic regional lymph node dissection group as cases undergoing limited or no lymph node dissection. We performed radical nephroureterectomy on 98 consecutive patients with various stages of upper tract urothelial carcinoma from May 1994 to September 2014 at our institution. Of these, 77 patients with cTanyN0M0 of upper tract urothelial carcinoma undergoing radical nephroureterectomy were grouped into systematic regional lymph node dissection or non-systematic regional lymph node dissection cohorts according to the extent of dissection, and their outcomes compared. RESULTS: Forty-four patients were categorized as systematic regional lymph node dissection and 33 as non-systematic regional lymph node dissection, including 17 with more limited nodal dissection and 16 with no nodal dissection. Five-year recurrence-free survival and cancer-specific survival were significantly higher in the systematic regional lymph node dissection (93% and 94%, respectively) than in the non-systematic regional lymph node dissection group (75% and 77% recurrence-free survival and cancer-specific survival, respectively). Further, 5-year recurrence-free survival and cancer-specific survival of muscle-invasive upper tract urothelial carcinoma (pT2-4) were significantly higher in the systematic regional lymph node dissection (87% and 91%, respectively) than in the non-systematic regional lymph node dissection group (59% and 62%, respectively) (P = 0.0237 and P = 0.0224). Neither recurrence-free survival nor cancer-specific survival was significantly prolonged by systematic dissection in patients with pTis-1 histology. CONCLUSIONS: Systematic regional lymph node dissection during radical nephroureterectomy for cTanyN0M0 upper tract urothelial carcinoma patients has a significantly beneficial impact on survival compared with patients undergoing more limited dissection, especially in the cases involving muscle invasion.

Recreational drug use and related social factors among HIV-positive men in Japan.

This study aims to determine the relationship between recreational drug use in HIV-positive males in the past year and socio-economic factors and/or social support networks in Japan. A national online survey in a cross-sectional study was conducted by HIV Futures Japan project from July 2013 to February 2014. Of the 1095 HIV-positive individuals who responded, 913 responses were determined to be valid; responses from the 875 males were analysed. A total of 282 participants used addictive drugs (32.2%) in past year. New psychoactive substances were used by 121 participants (13.8%), methamphetamine or amphetamine by 47 (5.4%), air dusters/sprays/gas by 31 (3.5%), 5-methoxy-N,N-diisopropyltryptamine (5MeO-DIPT) by 16 (1.8%) and cannabis (1.0%) by 9. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed with the use of alkyl nitrites, addictive drugs, air dusters and thinners, which are low illegality, as dependent variables. We found that the odds ratio (95% confidence interval) for use among participants with full-time and temp/contracted/part-time employees compared to management/administration professions were 2.59 (0.99-6.77) and 2.61 (0.91-7.51). Also, a correlation was observed between alkyl nitrites and new psychoactive substances and usage rates in people engaged in few HIV-positive networks. It is necessary to develop targeted policies for drug use prevention and user support among HIV-positive men and to support and provide care for drug users who are isolated or have a narrow HIV/AIDS support network.

[A survey comparing the route of HIV transmission reported by patients to their physicians and the self-reported "actual route"].

OBJECTIVES: To clarify the proportion of HIV patients who inform their physicians of the actual route of transmission and the factors related to non-disclosure in order to improve conditions to support open disclosure in healthcare settings. METHODS: We conducted an anonymous self-completed online questionnaire between September and December 2010 of people with HIV. The data from 237 subjects living in Japan were analyzed. To identify factors causing patients to not be truthful to their physicians, odds ratios and confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated, with "discrepancy between the actual route of HIV transmission and the route reported to the physician' as a dependent variable, and sex, age, residential area, route of transmission, presence or absence of consent to undergo HIV testing, time since being diagnosed as infected with HIV, and favorability of physician responses as independent variables. RESULTS: The proportions of patients who had informed their physicians of actual and false routes of HIV transmission were 75.1% and 17.7%, respectively. Among subjects reporting homosexual contact, 97.5% reported the actual route. On the other hand, among subjects reporting heterosexual contact, only 64.3% reported the actual route while 28.6% actually had homosexual contact. Furthermore, 47.4% of the subjects who reported their routes of HIV transmission as sexual contact, but did not disclose whether the contact had been homosexual or heterosexual, actually had homosexual contact. On comparing subjects who had evaluated responses from their physicians favorably and unfavorably, the proportion of those reporting a false route of transmission was significantly higher in the latter group, with the odds ratio being 2.51 (95% CI: 1.26-5.01). CONCLUSION: AIDS Surveillance Committee reports of HIV and AIDS cases attributed to a homosexual route of infection may be lower than actual numbers. The most common factor related to non-disclosure was the perception of unfavorable responses from physicians; improvements to support open disclosure are thus needed.

[Salvage therapy for castration-refractory prostate cancer resistant to docetaxel].

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the treatment for castration-refractory prostate cancer (CRPC) resistant to docetaxel MATERIALS AND METHODS: Among 45 patients with CRPC treated with docetaxel (70-75 mg/m2) every 3 to 4 weeks at Hamamatsu University Hospital from January 2004 to July 2012, 19 patients underwent salvage treatments. We retrospectively analyzed the medical records of 14 patients except for 5 patients who were enrolled in clinical trials. RESULTS: The median age and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level at starting salvage treatments was 71 years (range 45 to 79) and 241.1 ng/mL (range 3.06 to 1,643.0), respectively. All patients maintained castration status. Salvage treatments include DTX (30 mg/m2) + cisplatin (CDDP) (70 mg/m2)/carboplatin (Area under the curve = 4), etoposide + CDDP, paclitaxel + CDDP, cyclophosphamide, S-l, tegaful-uracil. The reasons why 14 patients moved to salvage treatments after DTX were progressive disease in 12 patients and adverse events in 2. Eight patients had a PSA response, 3 patients>50% and 5 patients<50%. Six patients had a PSA progression. The median overall survival was 10.4 months (range 4.1 to 27.3). All patients died of cancer, 13 patients with prostate cancer and one patient with lung adenocarcinoma. Most adverse events were mild. Transitory grade 3 leukopenia was observed in 2 patients, and grade 3 anemia in 2. No grade 4 toxicities were noted. CONCLUSIONS: All salvage treatments without grade 4 toxicities described in this study may be acceptable in the patients with CRPC progressing after docetaxel although the effect would be limited.

Morphological and genetic characteristics of the entomopathogenic fungus Ophiocordyceps nutans and its host insects.

We examined the morphology, genetic variation, and insect host species of the fungus Ophiocordyceps nutans. Fifty-two fruit bodies collected in Hokkaido, Japan, were grouped by host species, and 19 samples were analysed. The ranges of the lengths and breadths of all fruit body parts were similar among host groups. In the genetic analysis, the 5.8S rDNA region showed completely identical sequences, although differences of up to six nucleotides were recognized in the ITS regions. The distance values between our samples using the Kimura two-parameter model were lower than 0.007. Thus, the O. nutans examined here were concluded to form a closely related group with little detectable variability that parasitized nine hemipteran species.

Mycorrhizal associations in woody plant species at the Mt. Usu volcano, Japan.

We investigated the association between ectomycorrhizal (ECM) and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and pioneer woody plant species in areas devastated by the eruption of Mt. Usu, Japan, in 2000. We observed eight woody plant species at the research site, most of which were associated with ECM and/or AM fungi. In particular, dominant woody plant species Populus maximowiczii, Salix hultenii var. angustifolia and Salix sachalinensis were consistently associated with ECM fungi and erratically associated with AM fungi. We found one to six morphotypes in the roots of each ECM host and, on average, two in the roots of each seedling, indicating low ECM fungal diversity. ECM colonization ranged from 17 to 42% of root tips. Using morphotyping and molecular analyses, 15 ECM fungi were identified. ECM fungi differed greatly between hosts. However, Laccaria amethystea, Hebeloma mesophaeum, Thelephora terrestris and other Thelephoraceae had high relative colonization, constituting the majority of the ECM colonization in the roots of each plant species. These ECM fungi may be important for the establishment of pioneer woody plant species and further revegetation at Mt. Usu volcano.

Pileus differentiation and pileus-specific protein expression in Flammulina velutipes.

Fruiting bodies of Flammulina velutipes formed under complete darkness had a poorly developed pileus on top (pinhead fruiting body), and lacked a hymenium. Upon light stimulation, the pileus immediately began to develop on the apical region of the pinhead fruiting body. Swelling of the apical region caused by cell division was observed 2 days after light treatment; at day 4, the junction fracture between the pileus and stipe, and formation of the hymenium primordia were observed; at 6 days, gills were observed. We identified a cell wall-associated protein (PSH) that was specifically induced in the pileus, but not in the stipe, following light treatment of the pinhead fruiting body. Cloning and sequence analysis of the gene encoding PSH (psh) revealed a motif in the C-terminal region of the predicted amino acid sequence that was similar to hydrophobin. The level of transcription of psh was low in the stipe, but it was expressed at a high level in the pileus of the normal fruiting body. Transcription was also low in pinhead fruiting bodies, but increased after light treatment. These results indicate that psh is specifically expressed during pileus differentiation induced by light stimulation.

Electronic properties of a single-walled carbon nanotube/150mer-porphyrin system measured by point-contact current imaging atomic force microscopy.

The electronic properties of a single-walled carbon nanotube/150mer of porphyrin polymer wire system were investigated. Current-voltage (I-V) curves were measured simultaneously along with topographic observations using point-contact current imaging atomic force microscopy. Symmetric I-V curves were obtained at bare single-walled carbon nanotubes but characteristic asymmetrical rectifying behavior was found at the single-walled carbon nanotube/150mer-porphyrin junctions. This finding is of key importance for the development of new nanoscale molecular electronic devices.

[Two cases of advanced pancreatic cancer responding to gemcitabine with long survival of 2 years].

Gemcitabine (GEM) is currently considered a standard drug for advanced pancreatic cancer and widely used for patients with this carcinoma. We report on 2 patients with unresectable pancreatic cancer who were able to survive for more than 2 years after GEM treatments. Case 1 was a 82-year-old woman with invasion to celiac artery and who was inoperable. During GEM administration, she had no symptoms and the tumor did not progress. However, because of the toxicities of heart failure, GEM administration was stopped after she took a total of 16,800 mg. After GEM administration was stopped, symptoms appeared and the tumor progressed. Case 2 was a 39-year-old man with obstructive jaundice with liver and lymph node metastases. He was treated with metallic stent in order to reduce cholestasis. During GEM administration, he had no symptoms and the tumor did not progress. As an adverse event, rash occurred after he took a total of 51,800 mg. GEM administration was then stopped. This patient sometimes developed cholestasis due to tumor ingrowths and sludge and was treated successful by endoscopy. GEM has shown to improve survival and show a clinically beneficial response in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. However, toxic events can be expected to occur with long term GEM administration. We consider that management of complications such as obstructive jaundice is very important in the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Isolation of vegetable wasps and plant worms, Cordyceps nutans, from fruit-body tissue.

We isolated Cordyceps nutans from the stipe and abdominal tissues of fruit bodies using a surface sterilization method. Hyphal growth was observed in inocula from both the stipe and abdominal tissue. Some strains from discharged ascospores were obtained and colony characteristics were compared to the strains isolated from the tissues. Colonies of isolates from ascospores grew quite slowly. Isolates of 43 from the 52 examined fruit bodies formed colonies similar to those from ascospores. To confirm the success of isolation, we analyzed by PCR-RFLP of the ITS regions of rDNA samples from fruit bodies, isolates from fruit bodies, and isolates from ascospores. All the isolates obtained from stipe and abdominal tissues presented identical patterns. In this study, we report the first successful isolation of C. nutans from fruit-body tissue using a surface sterilization method.