Dental hygiene and dental students' motivations for future work: a cross-sectional study of first-year students at a dental hygiene school and a dental school in Japan.

BACKGROUND: It is important to understand the career motivations and perceptions of students who intend to become dental health professionals. Both dental and dental hygiene students may have different opinions about the profession and future work prospects. To our knowledge, no study has compared the career motivations and career perceptions of Japanese dental and dental hygiene students after admission to dental or dental hygiene school. This cross-sectional study examined the motivations of dental and dental hygiene students for their future career perceptions.  METHODS: First-year students of dental and dental hygiene schools in the academic years 2021 and 2022 participated in the study. Group 1 comprised 104 female dental hygiene students, Group 2-1 comprised 55 female dental students, and Group 2-2 comprised 61 male dental students. A self-administered questionnaire survey was conducted on opinions of the work and prospects of future work with four-point Likert scales ranging from "strongly agree" to "strongly disagree," according to the items. RESULTS: Dental hygiene students consider that they would like to work as professionals and would also like to earn efficiently. Specifically, female dental students prioritized contributing to society by working long-term in a fulfilling environment rather than earning an income, whereas male dental students would like to work as a professional while also effectively earning income. CONCLUSIONS: Small but significant differences were found in opinions of the dental hygienist/dentist profession in terms of attractiveness and credibility. Small but significant differences were found for income and working hours when considering future job prospects. The results of this study revealed differences in the first year students between dental and dental hygiene school in their attitudes toward career motivation and prospects for future work.

[Acute lymphoblastic leukemia with "masked" Philadelphia chromosome].

A 76-year-old woman with leukocytosis and thrombocytopenia was admitted to our hospital. A bone marrow examination showed a composition of 82.0% blasts, i.e., positive for TdT, CD10, CD19, CD34, and HLA-DR and negative for cyCD3, CD13, CD33, MPO, and cyµ. The reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction analysis revealed a minor BCR-ABL1 fusion gene, leading to a diagnosis of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) with a BCR-ABL1 fusion gene. G-band assay was negative for Philadelphia (Ph) chromosome and also revealed add (21) (q22. 1) and del (20) (q11. 2q13.3). Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assaying revealed a positive BCR-ABL1 fusion signal. Thus, this patient was diagnosed as Ph chromosome-negative and BCR-ABL1-positive fusion gene ALL, which suggested the presence of ALL with the "masked" Ph chromosome found in approximately 1% of chronic myeloid leukemia. Therefore, the FISH analysis may complement cytogenetic analysis when cytogenetic and molecular genetic findings are contradictory in ALL.

[De novo blast phase of chronic myeloid leukemia with 3q26 abnormality diagnosed by cytogenetic analysis of extramedullary lesion].

A 62-year-old woman was presented at our hospital with visual disturbance. An ocular examination revealed bilateral Roth spots. Laboratory data revealed leukocytosis (236,200 µl) with an excess blast (11%). Physical examination and computed tomography (CT) showed systemic lymphadenopathy. A bone marrow examination revealed a composition of 9.2% blast. Chromosomal analysis on bone marrow cells revealed 46,XX,t (3;12)(q26.2;p13),t (9;22)(q34.1;q11.2) in 80% of metaphases (16/20). Inguinal lymph node biopsy revealed diffuse proliferation of myeloperoxidase (MPO)-positive abnormal cells. Fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis was used to detect the BCR-ABL1 fusion gene and split the signals of MECOM and ETV6. She was diagnosed with de-novo chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) extramedullary blast crisis. She received tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) combination chemotherapy and allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and achieved a major molecular response. In this study, we reported a case of CML in blast-phase initially presenting as extramedullary, in which cytogenetic and molecular analyses were useful in the staging method.

Consideration of familiarity accumulated in the confined field trials for environmental risk assessment of genetically modified soybean (Glycine max) in Japan.

To date, there have been 160 regulatory approvals for environmental safety in Japan for the major genetically modified (GM) crops, including corn, soybean, canola and cotton. Confined field trials (CFTs) have been conducted in Japan for all single events, which contain various traits. The accumulated information from these previously conducted CFTs, as well as the agronomic field study data from other countries, provides a rich source of information to establish "familiarity" with the crops. This familiarity can be defined as the knowledge gained through experience over time, and used to inform the environmental risk assessments (ERA) of new GM crops in Japan. In this paper, we compiled agronomic data from the CFTs performed in Japan for 11 GM soybean events which obtained food, feed and environmental safety approvals from regulatory agencies in Japan. These CFTs were conducted by multiple developers according to Japan regulations to support the ERA of these GM soybean, covering standard measurement endpoints evaluated across developers in Japan. With this dataset, we demonstrate how familiarity gained from the CFTs of GM soybeans in Japan can be used to inform on the ERA of new GM soybean events. By leveraging this concept of familiarity, we discuss potential enhancements to the ERA process for GM soybean events in Japan.

[Relationship between CT Numbers and Artifacts Obtained Using CT-based Attenuation Correction of PET/CT].

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to clarify the artifacts that occurred in the non-activity signal with computed tomography (CT)-based attenuation correction (CTAC) error due to image misregistration. METHODS: We used a cylindrical phantom containing a test tube with a diameter of 15 mm as the non-activity signal part. Positron emission tomography (PET) images were acquired for 30 minutes using the phantom with water in the non-activity signal part and 18F-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (18F-FDG) (5.3 kBq/ml) in the background area. CT scanning was performed by replacing the water with contrast agents at different dilutions to obtain arbitrary CT numbers (-1000 to 1000). The PET images were attenuation-corrected individually by the CT images in which the CT number of the non-activity signal part had changed. The relationship between the CT numbers and the CTAC artifact was determined by measuring the PET value in the non-activity signal part of the PET images and comparing Ci. RESULTS: As the CT number of the CT images increased, Ci of the artifact increased. The CT number and Ci had a correlation of y=1.48x+2.86×103 (R2 =0.99) when CTAC was performed in units of CT numbers above 0 for PET data of water (0 HU) and a correlation of y=3.15x+6.26×103 (R2 =0.97) when CTAC was performed in units of CT numbers below 0 for PET data of air (-1000 HU). Although the original CT image was air, the artifacts due to CTAC errors with different Hounsfield units showed larger changes. In particular, positive artifacts were recognized in the PET images after CTAC depending on the Hounsfield units. CONCLUSIONS: When the CT number was different from the original in CTAC, the PET value was different. CTAC should be performed with caution as there may be image misregistration.

[Human parvovirus B19-induced hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis and myocarditis in an adult patient with hereditary spherocytosis].

Human parvovirus B19 (HPV-B19) causes hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). Here we describe a 35-year-old female with hereditary spherocytosis (HS) who developed HLH due to HPV-B19 infection. Upon admission, she had high fever and diarrhea. Laboratory findings included severe pancytopenia and elevated serum triglyceride and ferritin levels. Moreover, high HPV-B19 levels in the peripheral blood and increased reactive lymphocytosis in the bone marrow led to a diagnosis of HLH due to HPV-B19 infection. With supportive therapy and a blood transfusion, HLH symptoms, including fever and myelosuppression, improved in 1 week. However, symptoms of heart failure (HF) suddenly developed, and an echocardiography revealed diffuse systolic dysfunction, suggesting viral myocarditis due to HPV-B19 infection. Conservative management with diuretics gradually improved HF symptoms over a period of 2 weeks. HPV-B19 infection in adult patients with HS rarely results in severe HLH, but conservative therapy may improve the symptoms. Nonetheless, a careful follow-up is required after HLH improves because viral myocarditis can develop, as was seen in our patient.

Photoperiodic and thermosensory pathways interact through CONSTANS to promote flowering at high temperature under short days.

Plants detect changes in day length to induce seasonal patterns of flowering. The photoperiodic pathway accelerates the flowering of Arabidopsis thaliana under long days (LDs) whereas it is inactive under short days (SDs), resulting in delayed flowering. This delay is overcome by exposure of plants to high temperature (27°C) under SDs (27°C-SD). Previously, the high-temperature flowering response was proposed to involve either the impaired activity of MADS-box transcription factor (TF) floral repressors or PHYTOCHROME-INTERACTING FACTOR 4 (PIF4) TF-mediated activation of FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT), which encodes the output signal of the photoperiodic pathway. We integrate these observations by studying several PIFs, the MADS-box SHORT VEGETATIVE PHASE (SVP) and the photoperiodic pathway under 27°C-SD. We find that the mRNAs of FT and its paralogue TWIN SISTER OF FT (TSF) are increased at dusk under 27°C-SD compared with 21°C-SD, and that this requires PIF4 and PIF5 as well as CONSTANS (CO), a TF that promotes flowering under LDs. The CO and PIF4 proteins are present at dusk under 27°C-SD, and they physically interact. Although Col-0 plants flower at similar times under 27°C-SD and 21°C-LD the expression level of FT is approximately 10-fold higher under 21°C-LD, suggesting that responsiveness to FT is also increased under 27°C-SD, perhaps as a result of the reduced activity of SVP in the meristem. Accordingly, only svp-41 ft-10 tsf-1 plants flowered at the same time under 21°C-SD and 27°C-SD. Thus, we propose that under non-inductive SDs, elevated temperatures increase the activity and sensitize the response to the photoperiod pathway.

Phosphorylation of CONSTANS and its COP1-dependent degradation during photoperiodic flowering of Arabidopsis.

Seasonal flowering involves responses to changes in day length. In Arabidopsis thaliana, the CONSTANS (CO) transcription factor promotes flowering in the long days of spring and summer. Late flowering in short days is due to instability of CO, which is efficiently ubiquitinated in the dark by the CONSTITUTIVE PHOTOMORPHOGENIC 1 (COP1) E3 ligase complex. Here we show that CO is also phosphorylated. Phosphorylated and unphosphorylated forms are detected throughout the diurnal cycle but their ratio varies, with the relative abundance of the phosphorylated form being higher in the light and lower in the dark. These changes in relative abundance require COP1, because in the cop1 mutant the phosphorylated form is always more abundant. Inactivation of the PHYTOCHROME A (PHYA), CRYPTOCHROME 1 (CRY1) and CRYPTOCHROME 2 (CRY2) photoreceptors in the phyA cry1 cry2 triple mutant most strongly reduces the amount of the phosphorylated form so that unphosphorylated CO is more abundant. This effect is caused by increased COP1 activity, as it is overcome by introduction of the cop1 mutation in the cop1 phyA cry1 cry2 quadruple mutant. Degradation of CO is also triggered in red light, and as in darkness this increases the relative abundance of unphosphorylated CO. Finally, a fusion protein containing truncated CO protein including only the carboxy-terminal region was phosphorylated in transgenic plants, locating at least one site of phosphorylation in this region. We propose that CO phosphorylation contributes to the photoperiodic flowering response by enhancing the rate of CO turnover via activity of the COP1 ubiquitin ligase.

The GI-CDF module of Arabidopsis affects freezing tolerance and growth as well as flowering.

Plants monitor and integrate temperature, photoperiod and light quality signals to respond to continuous changes in their environment. The GIGANTEA (GI) protein is central in diverse signaling pathways, including photoperiodic, sugar and light signaling pathways, stress responses and circadian clock regulation. Previously, GI was shown to activate expression of the key floral regulators CONSTANS (CO) and FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) by facilitating degradation of a family of CYCLING DOF FACTOR (CDF) transcriptional repressors. However, whether CDFs are implicated in other processes affected by GI remains unclear. We investigated the contribution of the GI-CDF module to traits that depend on GI. Transcriptome profiling indicated that mutations in GI and the CDF genes have antagonistic effects on expression of a wider set of genes than CO and FT, whilst other genes are regulated by GI independently of the CDFs. Detailed expression studies followed by phenotypic assays showed that the CDFs function downstream of GI, influencing responses to freezing temperatures and growth, but are not necessary for proper clock function. Thus GI-mediated regulation of CDFs contributes to several processes in addition to flowering, but is not implicated in all of the traits influenced by GI.

Evaluation of the Effect of Attenuation Correction by External CT in a Semiconductor SPECT.

The discovery of NM530c with a cadmium-zinc-telluride detector (CdZnTe-SPECT) is superior to the conventional Anger-type SPECT with a sodium-iodide detector (NaI-SPECT) in terms of sensitivity and spatial resolution. However, in the clinical example, even in CdZnTe-SPECT, a count decrease in myocardium due to the attenuation of the gamma ray is an issue. This study was conducted to evaluate the effect of computed tomography attenuation correction (CTAC) in CdZnTe-SPECT with the help of external CT. We evaluated the revision effect of uniformity, influence by the difference in attenuation distance, contrast ratio, an uptake rate using the heart phantom. As a result of the phantom studies, a good revision effect was obtained. In the clinical study, there was a statistical significant difference between the contrast ratio before and after CTAC in the inferior wall. In addition, the contrast ratio before and after CTAC in CdZnTe-SPECT image was equal to those of NaI-SPECT image. It was suggested that CTAC using external CT in CdZnTe-SPECT was clinically useful for inferior wall.

[Cardiac and breast diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with pericardial effusion and AV-block].

Primary cardiac lymphoma is extremely rare and is associated with a poor prognosis. In most cases, cardiac involvement occurs as a late symptom and the diagnosis is thus delayed. We herein report a 35-year-old woman with cardiac diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) with breast infiltration. The patient was admitted to our hospital based on an initial presentation with dyspnea on exertion, chest pain, and a hard mass of the left breast. Echocardiography revealed a mass in the right atrium wall and interatrial septum, and massive pericardial effusion. ECG showed atrioventoricular block. We promptly performed a needle biopsy of the breast mass, which showed CD5-positive DLBCL, non-GCB type. The serum HIV reaction was negative. We thus diagnosed this patient as having cardiac and breast CD5-positive DLBCL, stage IVA, based on the massive pericardial effusion. The patient's prognosis was apparently poor. Therefore, she received 3 cycles of R-CHOP chemotherapy followed by autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT), resulting in a complete response. In general, cardiac lymphoma is associated with high mortality and has a poor prognosis. This case demonstrates that rapid and appropriate diagnosis, and immediate intensive chemotherapy followed by PBSCT might be necessary for the treatment of extranodal lymphoma indicative of a poor prognosis.

Successful Treatment of Disseminated Nocardiosis by Rapid Identification of the Organism via Genetic Analysis in a Leukemia Patient Undergoing Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation.

Nocardia infections have been reported to occur in immunocompromised patients. Early diagnosis and therapeutic intervention are especially important for disseminated nocardiosis because of its high mortality rate. A case of disseminated nocardiosis after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, which was promptly treated after identification of the organism by genetic analysis, is presented. A 43-year-old man was diagnosed with T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia and underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Subsequently, during long-term prednisolone administration for chronic graft-versus-host disease, he developed mass lesions throughout his body at 1033 days after transplantation. Pus culture and genetic testing of the parotid mass showed Nocardia farcinica, which improved with treatment with sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim, and imipenem cilastatin, and there has been no recurrence. When multiple mass lesions occur after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and the diagnosis is difficult, disseminated nocardiosis should be included in the differential diagnosis, and appropriate laboratory testing and treatment should be performed.

Evaluation of Data-Driven Respiration Gating in Continuous Bed Motion in Lung Lesions.

Respiration gating is used in PET to prevent image quality degradation due to respiratory effects. In this study, we evaluated a type of data-driven respiration gating for continuous bed motion, OncoFreeze AI, which was implemented to improve image quality and the accuracy of semiquantitative uptake values affected by respiratory motion. Methods: 18F-FDG PET/CT was performed on 32 patients with lung lesions. Two types of respiration-gated images (OncoFreeze AI with data-driven respiration gating, device-based amplitude-based OncoFreeze with elastic motion compensation) and ungated images (static) were reconstructed. For each image, we calculated SUV and metabolic tumor volume (MTV). The improvement rate (IR) from respiration gating and the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), which indicates the improvement in image noise, were also calculated for these indices. IR was also calculated for the upper and lower lobes of the lung. As OncoFreeze AI assumes the presence of respiratory motion, we examined quantitative accuracy in regions where respiratory motion was not present using a 68Ge cylinder phantom with known quantitative accuracy. Results: OncoFreeze and OncoFreeze AI showed similar values, with a significant increase in SUV and decrease in MTV compared with static reconstruction. OncoFreeze and OncoFreeze AI also showed similar values for IR and CNR. OncoFreeze AI increased SUVmax by an average of 18% and decreased MTV by an average of 25% compared with static reconstruction. From the IR results, both OncoFreeze and OncoFreeze AI showed a greater IR from static reconstruction in the lower lobe than in the upper lobe. OncoFreeze and OncoFreeze AI increased CNR by 17.9% and 18.0%, respectively, compared with static reconstruction. The quantitative accuracy of the 68Ge phantom, assuming a region of no respiratory motion, was almost equal for the static reconstruction and OncoFreeze AI. Conclusion: OncoFreeze AI improved the influence of respiratory motion in the assessment of lung lesion uptake to a level comparable to that of the previously launched OncoFreeze. OncoFreeze AI provides more accurate imaging with significantly larger SUVs and smaller MTVs than static reconstruction.

Variations in Hd1 proteins, Hd3a promoters, and Ehd1 expression levels contribute to diversity of flowering time in cultivated rice.

Rice is a facultative short-day plant, and molecular genetic studies have identified the major genes involved in short-day flowering. However, the molecular mechanisms promoting the diversity of flowering time in cultivated rice are not known. We used a core collection of 64 rice cultivars that represent the genetic diversity of 332 accessions from around the world and studied the expression levels and polymorphisms of 6 genes in the short-day flowering pathway. The RNA levels of Heading date 3a (Hd3a), encoding a floral activator, are highly correlated with flowering time, and there is a high degree of polymorphism in the Heading date 1 (Hd1) protein, which is a major regulator of Hd3a expression. Functional and nonfunctional alleles of Hd1 are associated with early and late flowering, respectively, suggesting that Hd1 is a major determinant of variation in flowering time of cultivated rice. We also found that the type of Hd3a promoter and the level of Ehd1 expression contribute to the diversity in flowering time and Hd3a expression level. We evaluated the contributions of these 3 factors by a statistical analysis using a simple linear model, and the results supported our experimental observations.

Construction of a Phantom for Image Quality Evaluation in PET/MRI System.

Background: There is no phantom for image quality test in magnetic resonance imaging combined with positron emission tomography systems (PET/MRI systems). In MRI, radioactive water phantom containing 2-deoxy-2-[F-18] fluoro-D-glucose (18F-FDG) cannot be used due to the dielectric effect. Even for phantoms filled with MR-available solutions, the source current of the RF coil is strongly disturbed as the diameter of the phantom increases. Stable MR images require proper phantom size and solution selection. Previous reports have not provided these details. Other than that, few existing phantoms evaluate negative signals such as N-13 ammonia (13N-NH3). We created a phantom for PET/MRI system for image quality test. Methods: The phantom for the PET/MRI system was assembled in two portions. One portion is a signal part containing 18F-FDG radioactive water. The other portion is filled with polyvinyl alcohol glue to construct MRI image to generate µ-map. The glue part is allowed to rewrite the table position overlaps with the first layer, and attenuation correction is performed. Signals are set as positive (4 times and twice higher than background radioactivity) and negative (no radioactivity) columns with different sizes (15 mm φ and 7 mm φ). The PET images with X-ray computed tomography-based attenuation correction (CT-AC) and MRI-AC were evaluated by %-contrasts, variation and uniformity. Results: The %-contrasts of the positive shallow signals with PET/magnetic resonance (MR) and PET/CT were 41.8% and 45.4%, respectively. And it of the positive deep signals with PET/MR and PET/CT were 40.7% and 44.9%. On the other hand, the %-contrasts of the negative shallow signals with PET/MR and PET/CT were 62.3% and 65.6%, respectively. And it of the negative deep signals with PET/MR and PET/CT were 60.7% and 63.7%. Moreover, the % Nj index of uniformity was 2.0% on PET/MRI images and 0.34% on PET/CT images. For negative signals that assume a decrease in myocardial blood flow, The image quality of MR-AC was almost the same as that of CT-AC. Consistency between the images after CT-AC and MR-AC correction were confirmed, and in particular, a stable MR-AC µ-map was obtained in the phantom study. Conclusion: The suggested prototype phantom for generating µ-map is reasonable and useful for evaluating PET/MRI image quality, based on the present standard.

Changing Methods of Education During a Pandemic: Questionnaire Survey about Examinations for Nuclear Medicine Technology at Educational Institutions in Japan.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread around the world. Its effects go far beyond health care: education has to be conducted so as to prevent infection among students and faculty. Accordingly, changes have occurred in Japan's educational institutions, including methods of preparing students for examinations for nuclear medicine. To assess the quality of training for radiologic technologists, we investigated the related changes undertaken at educational institutions. We investigated the lecture format for teaching nuclear medicine technology at Japanese institutions during COVID-19 and efforts to ensure the quality of conventional education. Methods: We sent a questionnaire to 19 Japanese institutions. It addressed the lecture format and initiatives in examinations for nuclear medicine technology in the first and second semesters of 2020. Results: We obtained responses from 17 institutions. In the first semester of 2020, the lecture format for nuclear medicine technology included remote, hybrid (combination of remote and face-to-face), and video-on-demand lectures. To reinforce the effect of the new teaching formats, institutions adopted various methods, such as enhancing the possibility of allowing students to ask questions, increasing the number of quizzes during lectures, delivering lectures to YouTube, and introducing an e-learning system. In the second semester of 2020, the lecture format included face-to-face, remote, hybrid, and video-on-demand lectures. In that second semester, the number of institutions providing face-to-face lectures while taking thorough measures against infection showed a marked increase. Conclusion: The institutions introduced various educational techniques and initiatives. They prioritized students' understanding of lecture content and applied what they considered the best teaching methods. Sharing information about the changes adopted at different institutions should help promote good radiologic technologists-even during a pandemic.

Achievements of true whole-body imaging using a faster acquisition of the lower extremities in variable-speed continuous bed motion.

Variable-speed continuous bed motion 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18F-FDG-PET/CT), a reliable imaging technique, allows setting the bed motion speed for arbitrary sections of the body. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between the PET image quality and the bed speed following shortening of the scanning time for the lower extremities to achieve whole-body acquisition optimization of the examination time. Four sets of images were created by editing four-phase dynamic whole-body PET/CT images acquired at a bed speed of 6 and 14 mm/s in the trunk and lower extremities, respectively. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) was calculated using regions of interest in the liver, gluteus muscles, thigh, and lower legs, and the relationship between the bed speed and the SNR was assessed. The number of patients with findings in the lower extremities among 967 cases was evaluated. Based on this relationship between the SNR and bed motion speed, it is reasonable to increase the speed of the lower extremities by up to three times that of the trunk. The findings from whole-body FDG-PET imaging revealed that the number of patients with detected lesions in the lower extremities was 6.6% (64/967), bone metastases were found in 2.6%, soft lesions in 1.8%, and inflammation in 2.3%. Images of the lower extremities, which have a better SNR than the trunk, can be acquired at a faster bed speed using the variable-speed continuous bed motion PET.

Identification of dynamin-2-mediated endocytosis as a new target of osteoporosis drugs, bisphosphonates.

Nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates are pyrophosphate analogs that have long been the preferred prescription for treating osteoporosis. Although these drugs are considered inhibitors of prenylation and are believed to exert their effects on bone resorption by disrupting the signaling pathways downstream of prenylated small GTPases, this explanation seems to be insufficient. Because other classes of prenylation inhibitors have recently emerged as potential antiviral therapeutic agents, we first investigated here the effects of bisphosphonates on simian virus 40 and adenovirus infections and, to our surprise, found that viral infections are suppressed by bisphosphonates through a prenylation-independent pathway. By in-house affinity-capture techniques, dynamin-2 was identified as a new molecular target of bisphosphonates. We present evidence that certain bisphosphonates block endocytosis of adenovirus and a model substrate by inhibiting GTPase activity of dynamin-2. Hence, this study has uncovered a previously unknown mechanism of action of bisphosphonates and offers potential novel use for these drugs.

Improvement of diagnostic accuracy of Parkinson's disease on I-123-ioflupane single photon emission computed tomography (123I FP-CIT SPECT) using new Japanese normal database.

OBJECTIVES: I-123-ioflupane single photon emission computed tomography (FP-CIT-SPECT) has been used to assess dopamine transporter (DAT) loss in Parkinson's disease. The specific binding ratio (SBR), a quantitative parameter of DAT density in the striatum, may be affected by differences in age, sex, and SPECT system. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the utility of FP-CIT-SPECT using the Japanese normal database (NDB) in the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease. METHODS: To standardize the quantitative outcome measures of DAT density obtained with different SPECT systems, striatal phantoms filled with striatal to background materials at ratios between 8:1 and 1:1 were measured using a gamma camera (ECAM) in our institute. Consecutive fifty patients (23 men and 27 women; age range, 40-86 years) with suspected PD undergoing FP-CIT SPECT brain imaging during the period from April to October 2016 were enrolled in this retrospective study. Their final diagnoses were PD in 28 patients and PD in 22 patients. SBRs of the patients were calculated using either new (Japanese database with different age and sex; NEWver) or old (non-Japanese database not specifying age and sex; OLDver) version software (AZE Virtual Place Hayabusa [DaTView], AZE, Ltd. Tokyo, Japan). The McNemar test was used to compare the diagnostic accuracy between old and new versions. RESULTS: Based on the phantom study, the calibrated SBR could be calculated by Y=1.25×Measured SBR+0.78. The sensitivities for OLDver and NEWver were 100% and 93%, respectively (p=0.5), and the specificities were 55% and 100% (p=0.002). The diagnostic accuracy of NEWver (96%) was better than that of OLDver (80%, p<0.001). CONCLUSION: FP-CIT-SPECT using the Japanese NDB improved the diagnostic accuracy of PD by improving specificity.

Evaluation of a Correction Method for 111In-Pentetreotide SPECT Imaging of Gastroenteropancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors.

The number of patients with the extremely rare disease gastroenteropancreatic (GEP) neuroendocrine tumor (NET) has increased rapidly in recent years. 111In-pentetreotide SPECT in somatostatin receptor scintigraphy has been used for the assessment of GEP NET patients. To diagnose GEP NET, appropriate selection of image correction parameters is critical. Correction methods may improve the 111In-pentetreotide SPECT image quality, but there is currently no standard technique. The purpose of this study was to determine the optimal correction parameter settings for 111In-pentetreotide SPECT. Methods: A phantom study produced images with a tumor-to-background ratio of as high as 16:1. A triple energy window was used for scatter correction (SC), and attenuation correction (AC) was CT-based. Correlation analysis was performed in 4 groups: no correction (NC), SC, AC, and combined SC with AC (CC). The 111In-pentetreotide SPECT results for 20 randomly selected patients (13 men and 7 women; age range, 37-81 y) with confirmed GEP NET were analyzed using data collected 4 h after injection of 111 MBq of 111In-pentetreotide. Emission data were reconstructed using ordered-subset expectation maximization (OSEM) with different settings. Different combinations of the correction parameters were used to analyze the contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) obtained with the phantom. In the clinical study, 20 GEP NET patients were used to evaluate the GEP NET lesion CNR by 4 different image correction methods obtained from 111In-pentetreotide SPECT images: NC, SC, AC, and CC. NC was used as a reference method. Results: The phantom study revealed that the optimal energy window in the photopeak for somatostatin receptor scintigraphy was 171 keV ± 10% and 245 keV ± 7.5%, and the optimal OSEM reconstruction conditions were 8 subsets and 6 iterations. Among the OSEM collection conditions, CC produced a significantly higher CNR than NC or SC (P < 0.05). In the clinical study, CC was found to increase the CNR (P < 0.05). Conclusion: CC improves the correction in 111In-pentetreotide SPECT studies, compared with NC, providing better contrast and sharper outlines of lesions and organs.