Protective effects of liposomes encapsulating ferulic acid against CCl4-induced oxidative liver damage in vivo rat model.

Antioxidants are useful for the treatment of oxidative stress mediated liver damage. A naturally occurring antioxidant γ-oryzanol is rapidly hydrolyzed to its active hydrophobic metabolite, ferulic acid, inside the body. Limitations associated with the hydrophobicity of ferulic acid can be overcome by encapsulating in a liposomal formulation. As intravenously administered nanoparticles (including liposomes) can effectively reach the liver, such systems may be suitable drug delivery carriers to treat liver injury. In this study, we prepared a liposomal formulation of ferulic acid (ferulic-lipo) and examined its effects on liver damage induced by CCl4. Ferulic-lipo were ~100 nm in size and drug encapsulation efficiency was about 92%. Ferulic-lipo showed potent scavenging efficacy against hydroxyl radical compared to α-tocopherol liposomes. Ferulic-lipo significantly prevented CCl4-mediated cytotoxicity in human hepatocarcinoma cells. Furthermore, intravenous administration of ferulic-lipo significantly reduced alanine aminotransferase and aspartate amino transferase levels in a rat model of liver injury. CCl4-mediated reactive oxygen species generation in liver was also reduced by intravenous administration of ferulic-lipo. Hepatoprotective effects of ferulic-lipo were demonstrated by histological observation of CCl4-induced liver tissue damage. Therefore, ferulic-lipo exhibit potent antioxidative capacity and were suggested to be an effective formulation for prevention of oxidative damage of liver tissue.

Hierarchical emergence of sequence sensitivity in the songbird auditory forebrain.

Bengalese finches (Lonchura striata var. domestica) generate more complex sequences in their songs than zebra finches. Because of this, we chose this species to explore the signal processing of sound sequence in the primary auditory forebrain area, field L, and in a secondary area, the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM). We simultaneously recorded activity from multiple single units in urethane-anesthetized birds. We successfully replicated the results of a previous study in awake zebra finches examining stimulus-specific habituation of NCM neurons to conspecific songs. Then, we used an oddball paradigm and compared the neural response to deviant sounds that were presented infrequently, with the response to standard sounds, which were presented frequently. In a single sound oddball task, two different song elements were assigned for the deviant and standard sounds. The response bias to deviant elements was larger in NCM than in field L. In a triplet sequence oddball task, two triplet sequences containing elements ABC and ACB were assigned as the deviant and standard. Only neurons in NCM that displayed broad-shaped spike waveforms had sensitivity to the difference in element order. Our results suggest the hierarchical processing of complex sound sequences in the songbird auditory forebrain.

Estimating Triglyceride Levels Using Total Cholesterol, Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol, and High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Levels: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Objective: Triglyceride (TG) levels are affected by food intake, and the cutoff values for nonfasting TG levels vary. This study aimed to calculate fasting TG levels based on total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels. Methods: Multiple regression analysis was performed to determine estimated triglyceride (eTG) levels using data from 39,971 participants divided into six groups based on non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (nHDL-C) levels (<100, <130, <160, <190, <220, and ≥220 mg/dL). Results: Provided that fasting TG and eTG levels ≥150 mg/dL were positive and those <150 mg/dL were negative, the three groups (nHDL-C levels <100, <130, and <160 mg/dL) consisting of 28,616 participants had a false-positive rate of <5%. The coefficient and constant terms in the formula for the eTG in groups with nHDL-C levels <100, <130, and <160 mg/dL were as follows: constant terms, 12.193, 0.741, and -7.157; coefficients of LDL-C, -3.999, -4.409, and -5.145; coefficients of HDL-C, -3.869, -4.555, and -5.215; and coefficients of TC, 3.984, 4.547, and 5.231, respectively. The adjusted coefficients of determination were 0.547, 0.593, and 0.678, respectively (P < 0.001, P < 0.001, and P < 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Fasting TG levels can be calculated from TC, LDL-C, and HDL-C levels when nHDL-C levels are <160 mg/dL. Using nonfasting TG and eTG levels as indicators of hypertriglyceridemia might eliminate the need for venous sampling after overnight fasting.

Estimation of visceral fat area using criteria for metabolic syndrome: A cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The aim of this study was to calculate the visceral fat area (VFA) based on the criteria for metabolic syndrome (MetS). METHODS: A multiple regression analysis was performed to determine the estimated VFA using data from Japanese participants (2315 men and 1684 women). Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analyses were performed to determine the optimal estimated VFA cutoff for the diagnosis of central obesity. The cutoff was also applied to a second cohort to validate the model. RESULTS: The estimated VFA was calculated using the MetS criteria, age, and body mass index (adjusted coefficient of determination = 0.682 for men and 0.726 for women). The area under the ROC curve for waist circumference, VFA, and estimated VFA were 0.669, 0.741, and 0.749, respectively, for men and 0.711, 0.787, and 0.803, respectively, for women. The optimal cutoffs for estimated VFA were 128.1 cm2 for men and 82.2 cm2 for women. Multivariate logistic regression for heart disease revealed that estimated VFA, rather than waist circumference, was associated with a high risk of heart disease. CONCLUSION: The estimated VFA is a better index of central obesity than waist circumference and VFA for the diagnosis of MetS.

Refractory status epilepticus with fever due to mumps vaccine-induced encephalitis caused secondary encephalopathy mimicking acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and late reduced diffusion.

BACKGROUND: Encephalitis due to vaccination for mumps is a rare complication that occurs in 0.00004% of recipients, and there has been no report of serious neurological sequelae. Acute encephalopathy with biphasic seizures and late reduced diffusion (AESD) has been reported as the most frequent type among acute encephalopathy syndromes in the pediatric population in Japan. There has been no report of AESD caused by vaccinations. Case presentation We present the clinical course of a 1-year and 10-month-old boy who had no preexisting condition, and developed mumps vaccine-induced severe primary encephalitis. Refractory status epilepticus due to encephalitis persisted for 16 h and resulted in secondary encephalopathy as a form of AESD mimic. He had serious neurological sequelae, such as West syndrome, transient spastic tetraplegia, and intellectual disability, despite intensive treatments. DISCUSSION: The presented boy is the first patient to develop mumps vaccine-induced primary encephalitis with severe central nervous system (CNS) damage. Screening of the immunological background in the presented patient revealed no abnormalities; therefore, it is unclear why he developed such severe adverse events. In patients with acute encephalitis caused by the herpes simplex virus 1, inborn immune errors in CNS based on mutations in single genes are involved in its pathophysiology. Consequently, some immunogenetic alterations could be found by further analysis in the presented patient.

[Case of angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma with eosinophilia and interstitial shadows].

A 76-year-old woman was admitted because of respiratory failure with bilateral multiple interstitial shadows and mediastinal adenopathy on chest CT images. Blood examination revealed eosinophilia without leukocytosis and elevated C-reactive protein levels. Corticosteroids were administered before diagnosis because of rapid respiratory failure. Although her symptoms and pulmonary lesions disappeared with steroid therapy, they recurred 4 days later. A definitive diagnosis was not obtained until bronchofiberoptic examination. At the time of recurrence 6 months later, angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma (AITL) was diagnosed with axillary lymph node biopsy. AITL is rare, and shows rapid deterioration of respiratory failure with poor prognosis. Lymph node biopsy is necessary to establish a definitive diagnosis.

[A case of right paratracheal air cyst].

An 87-year-old female was being examined by her primary care doctor during a follow-up of 4 to 5 years after a diagnosis of non-tuberculous mycobacterial infection. An exacerbation of a shadow was suspected on a chest X-ray film, and therefore the patient was referred to our hospital. Her chief clinical symptom was mild occasional coughing, but no clearly abnormal findings were observed on the clinical examination. On chest CT, a cystic lesion was detected in the right posterodorsal side of the trachea at the level of the thoracic aperture, resulting in the diagnosis of a right paratracheal air cyst. Right paratracheal air cyst is a relatively rare disease, but it is believed that such a diagnosis can be made easily based on its localization and the CT findings, and it is a disease to which attention should be paid, which is why we are reporting it.

A Cluster of Hepatitis A Infections Presumed to be Related to Asari Clams and Investigation of the Spread of Viral Contamination from Asari Clams.

In a cluster of hepatitis A infections that occurred in Nagano Prefecture in 2017, hepatitis A virus (HAV) was detected in asari clams (reference food) and the patients' fecal samples. Initially, the asari clams were suspected to be the infection source. However, the exact infection route remained unknown because a patient who had not consumed an asari clam dish also developed the disease. Suspecting a secondary infection originating from the asari clams, we investigated the presence of HAV genomes in water used for washing and soaking the frozen asari clams and detected HAV in the soaking water. These results suggest that soaking water is a risk factor for secondary contamination because of the leakage of HAV accumulated in midgut gland of the asari clam. During the asari clam sand removal process, the water used to clean asari clams spread across a wide area in a concentric fashion, raising concerns that this process may aggravate contamination. In addition to HAV, diarrhea viruses, such as norovirus, have often been detected in bivalves, including asari clams. Thus, handling these foodstuffs requires adequate care.

Limitations of a habituation task to demonstrate discrimination of natural signals in songbirds.

The habituation-dishabituation (HDH) paradigm is a common method used to examine animal cognition. Recent studies reported that spontaneous vocalizations could be used as an index of song familiarity and novelty in songbirds. However, these studies assigned only a few stimulus sets for all subjects, which might cause pseudoreplication. Therefore, we examined universality and general applicability of this method in Bengalese finches using a variety of stimulus sets. Seven unfamiliar conspecific songs were collected as a stimulus pool and a habituation song was randomly chosen for each subject. The subject was exposed to the habituation song repeatedly over 2h. During the test phase, the habituation song and a novel song randomly chosen from the stimulus pool were presented. We compared the degree of increase in call production during playback of those two songs. Although the degree was greater for the novel song compared with the habituation song in some birds, the trend was not consistent across all stimulus sets tested in these birds. Our results show that the HDH paradigm is not suitable to test song discrimination in songbirds unless precautions are taken to increase external validity by utilizing a variety of stimulus sets for each subject.