[Survey on Preparedness, Concerns, and Support Demands for Autonomous Management of Chemical Substances].

The management of workplace chemicals shifted from a regulatory-based to a self-managed approach as of April 2023. To assess readiness, concerns, and necessary support for this change, a free-response questionnaire survey was conducted for the participants of the "Promoting self-management of chemicals in enterprises" seminar held by the Department of Occupational Health, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan, in January-February 2023. Text-mining using KH Coder (Ver.3) was conducted to investigate relationships between words that appeared in sentences using a co-occurrence network and hierarchical cluster analysis. From the questionnaire's description text, combinations of the terms "information" and "collection," "small and medium-sized" and "enterprise," and "chemical" and "substance" were extracted. Results suggest a need for "information gathering" and "support for small and medium-sized enterprises."

[Support Needed for the Transition From Legal System Management to Self-Controlled Management of Chemical Substances].

An open-ended questionnaire was administered to the participants of a six-part lecture series on self-controlled management of chemical substances regarding the support those participants would need when transitioning to that system, and the required elements of support were examined using a text-mining tool (KH Coder Ver. 3). The subjects were 59 persons who attended the lectures on an overview of self-controlled management of chemical substances and answered a questionnaire after the course. The lectures were organized by the Graduate School of Occupational Health, University of Occupational and Environmental Health from January-February 2022. The participants themselves indicated that they needed knowledge and up-to-date information on the revised law, as well as education about chemical substances. As for the support needed for individuals, the following were considered necessary: to provide support for education; management; information; the latest information; and education about the toxicity and dangers of chemical substances, which are necessary for education and chemical substance management in accordance with the revised law. As for the support needed for organizations, it was considered necessary to support the understanding of top management and the securing of necessary human resources.

Estimating core body temperature using electrocardiogram signals.

Suppressing the elevation in core body temperature is an important factor in preventing heatstroke. However, there is still no non-invasive method to sense core body temperature. This study proposed an algorithm that estimates core body temperature based on electrocardiogram signals. A total of 12 healthy men (mean age ± SD = 39.6 ± 13.4) performed an ergometric exercise load test under two conditions of exercise load in an environmental chamber adjusted to a temperature of 35°C and humidity of 50%. Vital sensing data such as electrocardiograms, core body temperatures, and body surface temperatures were continuously measured, and physical data such as body weight were obtained from participants pre- and post-experiment. According to basic physiological knowledge, heart rate and body temperature are closely related. We analyzed the relationship between core body temperature and several indexes obtained from electrocardiograms and found that the amount of change in core body temperature had a strong relationship with analyzed data from electrocardiograms. Based on these findings, we developed the amount of change in core body temperature estimation model using multiple regression analysis including the Poincaré plot index of the ECG R-R interval. The estimation model showed an average estimation error of -0.007°C (average error rate = -0.02%) and an error range of 0.457-0.445°C. It is suggested that continuous core body temperature change can be estimated using electrocardiogram signals regardless of individual characteristics such as age and physique. Based on this applicable estimation model, we plan to enhance estimation accuracy and further verify efficacy by considering clothing and environmental conditions.

Discrete and Discontinuous Increase in the Micellar Aggregation Number: Effects of the Alkyl Chain Length on Platonic Micelles.

Micelles with perfect monodispersity in terms of the aggregation number ( Nagg) have recently been discovered, whose values of Nagg interestingly always coincide with the vertex or face number of regular polyhedral structures (i.e., Platonic solids). Owing to the monodispersity of the micelles, named Platonic micelles, we could expect them to exhibit unprecedented aggregation behavior. In this study, the effects of alkyl chain length on micellar aggregation behavior were characterized using small-angle scattering techniques such as small-angle X-ray scattering and asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation coupled with multi-angle light scattering, as well as analytical ultracentrifugation measurements. The Nagg of Platonic micelles discretely and discontinuously increased when increasing the alkyl chain length, which differs markedly from the findings for conventional micelles. This aggregation behavior could be reasonably explained by the relationship between the thermodynamic stability of the micelles and the coverage density defined by one of the unsolved mathematical problems: the Tammes problem.

Interleukin-33/ST2 signaling contributes to the severity of hemolytic uremic syndrome induced by enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli.

OBJECTIVES: Interleukin (IL)-33 plays an important role in host defense, immune regulation, and inflammation. This study assessed IL-33's role in the pathogenesis of severe hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) induced by enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC). We also investigated the clinical significance of IL-33 and soluble ST2 (soluble form of IL-33 receptor) serum levels in patients with EHEC-induced HUS. METHODS: The role of IL-33 in Shiga toxin (STx)-2-induced endothelial injury was studied in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in vitro. Blood samples were obtained from 21 HUS patients and 15 healthy controls (HC). The IL-33 and sST2 serum levels were quantified using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The results were compared to HUS' clinical features. RESULTS: Cytotoxic assays indicated that IL-33 enhanced STx2 toxicity in HUVECs. Serum IL-33 levels in most HUS patients were below the lowest detection limit. On the other hand, serum sST2 levels in patients during the HUS phase were significantly higher than those in HC and showed a correlation with disease severity. Serum sST2 levels in patients with encephalopathy were significantly higher than those in patients without it. A serum sST2 level > 63.2 pg/mL was associated with a high risk of encephalopathy. Serum sST2 levels significantly correlated with serum levels of inflammatory cytokines related to the development of HUS. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that IL-33 contributes to the severity of EHEC-induced HUS. Serum sST2 level in HUS patients correlated with disease activity, which suggests its potential role as a marker for disease activity and development of encephalopathy in patients with EHEC-induced HUS.

Platonic Micelles: Monodisperse Micelles with Discrete Aggregation Numbers Corresponding to Regular Polyhedra.

The concept of micelles was first proposed in 1913 by McBain and has rationalized numerous experimental results of the self-aggregation of surfactants. It is generally agreed that the aggregation number (Nagg) for spherical micelles has no exact value and a certain distribution. However, our studies of calix[4]arene surfactants showed that they were monodisperse with a defined Nagg whose values are chosen from 6, 8, 12, 20, and 32. Interestingly, some of these numbers coincide with the face numbers of Platonic solids, thus we named them "Platonic micelles". The preferred Nagg values were explained in relation to the mathematical Tammes problem: how to obtain the best coverage of a sphere surface with multiple identical circles. The coverage ratio D(N) can be calculated and produces maxima at N = 6, 12, 20, and 32, coinciding with the observed Nagg values. We presume that this "Platonic nature" may hold for any spherical micelles when Nagg is sufficiently small.

How effective is the early fast treadmill gait speed training for stroke patients at the 2nd week after admission: comparison with comfortable gait speed at the 6th week.

[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to find whether a fast treadmill gait training speed is effective for the gait training of stroke patients in the early rehabilitation stage. [Subjects and Methods] Thirty-nine stroke patients were the subjects of our investigation. They walked on a treadmill with handrail supports at a fast speed (130% of their comfortable gait speed in the 2nd week). The treadmill gaits of the patients were recorded using a 3-dimensional analysis system at two and six weeks after their admissions. Intraclass Correlation Coefficients (ICC) of the temporal and spatial parameters of the two periods were statistically analyzed. [Results] For all of the patients, the ICCs of the measured parameters were greater than 0.58. In the case of patients whose gait speeds of the two periods were close, the ICC units were greater than 0.7. [Conclusion] The fast gait speed training allowed us to expose the patients to a gait speed that they were expected to acquire at a later stage of their rehabilitation. This training method was found to be beneficial for the mildly paralyzed patients.

Amphiphilic benzothiadiazole-triphenylamine-based aggregates that emit red light in water.

In this study, we report a preparation and an aggregate emission behavior of an amphiphilic donor-acceptor dye, which is composed of a triphenylamine-benzothiadiazole donor-acceptor chromophore and two water-soluble hexa(ethylene glycol) chains. The dye is strongly fluorescent in nonpolar solutions such as cyclohexane and toluene, whereas the emission intensity is reduced in aprotic polar solutions such as DMF and acetonitrile. This fluorescence reduction correlates with the increase in polarity, by which the transition from a local excited state to a highly polarized excited state is facilitated, leading to an increased nonradiative deactivation rate. Furthermore, significant fluorescence quenching is observed in protic polar solutions such as ethanol and methanol. Hydrogen-bonding interactions between the dye and the protic solvent molecules further accelerate the deactivation rate. In contrast, in a water solution, red light emission is achieved distinctly at 622 nm with a relatively large fluorescence quantum yield of 0.20. This red emission is related to the aggregation of the dye molecules grown in water. The kinetic analysis from the fluorescence rate constant and nonradiative rate constant indicates that the nonradiative deactivation channel is restricted in water. The formed aggregate, which was indicated by transmittance electron microscopy as a spherical aggregate morphology with a diameter of 3-4 nm, provides a less polar hydrophobic space inside the aggregate structure, by which hydrogen-bonding and the subsequent quenching are restricted, leading to the reduction of the nonradiative deactivation rate.

Micelles consisting of choline phosphate-bearing calix[4]arene lipids.

We synthesized new calix[4]arene-based lipids, denoted by CPCaLn, bearing the choline phosphate (CP) group which is an inverse phosphoryl choline (PC) structure. Small-angle X-ray scattering and multi-angle light scattering coupled with field flow fractionation showed that these lipids form monodisperse micelles with a fixed aggregation number and diameters of 1.9 and 2.6 nm for lipids bearing C3 and C6 alkyl tails, respectively. Furthermore, when CPCaLn was mixed with the fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-bearing lipids and added to cells, strong fluorescence was observed at 37 °C, but not at 4 °C, indicating that the micelles were taken up by the cells through endocytosis. Recent studies have shown that replacement of polymer-attached PC groups with CP groups markedly promotes cellular uptake, even though the surface charge is neutral. On the basis of the idea, CPCaLn micelles interacted with cells in the same way, suggesting that the micelles bearing CP groups are expected to use as carriers in the drug delivery system.

Physiological responses to workload change. A test/retest examination.

The purpose of this study is to examine the test/retest consistency of physiological responses induced by mental tasks. Fifteen healthy male university students were recruited as participants. They were instructed to perform a 5-min Multi-Attribute Task Battery (MATB) trial three times successively. The task difficulty level of the tracking task of the second trial was set as medium (M). The first one was set as more difficult (H) and the last trial was easiest (L). The difficulty levels of the other two tasks (resource management and system monitoring) of the MATB were identical for all three trials. The participants repeated this procedure on three different days separated by at least a 1-day interval. The order of the tasks was the same for all repeated trials, i.e., H-M-L. Tissue blood volume from the tip of the nose using a laser Doppler blood flow meter, skin potential level (SPL), ECG from three leads on the chest, systolic time intervals (pre-ejection period, left ventricular ejection time), and hemodynamic parameters (stroke volume, cardiac output) were recorded during the task trials and before and after 5-min resting periods. The participants reported their subjective workload via NASA-TLX after each task trial. Autonomic nervous system parameters derived from the above-mentioned signals, subjective workload scores, and performance indices of MATB were analyzed, and test/retest reliability was investigated. The results showed that a significant test/retest correlation was obtained for SPL for more participants than in the other parameters, although there were large individual differences.

[Effects of long term mental arithmetic on physiological parameters, subjective indices and task performances].

This study examined the effects of long term mental arithmetic on physiological parameters, subjective indices and task performances to investigate the psychophysiological changes induced by mental tasks. Fifteen male university students performed six successive trials of a ten-minute mental arithmetic task. They took a five-minute resting period before and after the tasks. CFF (Critical Flicker Fusion frequency) and subjective fatigue scores using a visual analog scale, POMS (Profiles of Mood States) and SFF (Subjective Feelings of Fatigue) were obtained after each task and resting period. The voices of participants who were instructed to speak five Japanese vowels ('a', 'i', 'u', 'e', 'o') were recorded after each block to investigate a chaotic property of vocal signals that is reported to be changed by fatigue. Subjective workload ratings were also obtained by the NASA-TLX (National Aeronautics and Space Administration-Task Load Index) after the task. Physiological signals of ECG (Electrocardiogram), PTG (Photoelectric Plethysmogram), SCL (Skin Conductance Level), TBV (Tissue Blood Volume) and Respiration were recorded for all experimental blocks. The number of answers, correct rates and average levels of task difficulty for each ten-minute task were used as task performance indices. In this experiment, the task performance did not decrease, whereas subjective fatigue increased. Activation of the sympathetic nervous system was suggested by physiological parameters.

Plasma concentrations of brain natriuretic peptide in patients with acute ischemic stroke.

BACKGROUND: Acute blood pressure (BP) elevation and cardiac abnormalities are known to follow ischemic stroke. Brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), which is produced in response to such cardiovascular alterations, is expected to play a hemodynamic role. We measured plasma BNP concentrations in patients with cerebral infarction (CI) to determine the implications of BNP in acute ischemic stroke. METHODS: Eighty-eight patients with CI, 59 with essential hypertension, 44 with spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage, 22 with asymptomatic atrial fibrillation (Af), and 20 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers were recruited in the study. CI patients were divided into 2 subgroups either having Af (27 patients) or not (61 patients). BNP levels were repeatedly measured in 58 patients with CI. BNP levels were compared between ischemic subgroups categorized by size of infarction. Correlation was investigated between BNP levels and hemodynamic parameters. RESULTS: BNP levels in CI patients were significantly higher, but they decreased in the subacute period. BNP levels in CI patients without Af were correlated with mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) on admission or the degree of reduction in MAP at day 1, while in CI patients with Af BNP levels showed negative correlation with MAP on admission. Follow-up serum sodium levels in CI patients with Af were negatively correlated with BNP levels on admission. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests the hemodynamic implications of BNP in acute ischemic patients.