Population-based X-ray gastric cancer screening in Hiroshima prefecture, Japan

BACKGROUND X-ray gastric cancer(GC)screening has been shown to decrease mortality.Population-based X-ray GC screening has been performed in Hiroshima Prefe-cture,Japan,since 1983 but time trends and the efficacy of the method over 39 years have not been assessed.METHODS This was a population-based retrospective study.The data were derived from aggregated data of the Hiroshima Regional Health Medical Promotion Organization,including the number and rate of participants and those requiring esophagogastroduodenoscopies(EGDs),the number and rate of participants diagnosed as having GC,and the positive predictive value of the abnormal findings detected by X-ray and confirmed by EGDs.The number and rate of esophageal cancers were also collected.Further,the cost of detecting one GC was evaluated.RESULTS The number of participants has decreased during the last four decades,from 39925 in 1983 to 12923 in 2021.The rate of those requiring EGDs decreased significantly in recent years(P<0.001).The number of participants diagnosed as having GC has also declined,from 76 to 10 cases.However,the rate of cases diagnosed as GC among the participants remained around 0.1%.The positive predictive value increased significantly in recent years except during 1983-1991.The number and rate of accidentally detected esophageal cancers have risen recently,from 0%in 2008 to 0.02%in 2021,one-fifth of the diagnosis rate of GC.One GC diagnosis costs approximately 4200000 Japanese Yen(30000 United States Dollars)for the X-ray screenings and EGDs.CONCLUSION X-ray GC screening in Hiroshima has been efficient,but one challenge is the cost.Esophageal cancers may also need to be considered because they have gradually increased in recent years.

The Effect of Umami Stimulation on Salivary Secretion Rate and Duration

Purpose: Umami reportedly promotes salivation. We aimed to investigate the effects of taste stimuli on slow and fast salivary secretion in humans using umami, sweet, and sour stimuli. Methods: Eight healthy women participated between 14:00 and 15:00, taking the circadian rhythm of salivary secretion into account. The types and concentrations of the taste solutions were glutamic acid (1.7 × 10−3 M), inosinic acid (9.8 × 10−3 M), and guanylic acid (9.8 × 10−3 M) for umami stimulation, citric acid (6.5 × 10−3 M) for acidity stimulation, and sucrose (1.6 × 10−2 M) for sweetness stimulation. First, the unstimulated salivary flow rate was measured. Then, 3 ml of a flavor solution was dropped under the tongue using a syringe. The saliva was expelled into an aluminum cup every minute and weighed. The first minute’s value minus 3 ml flavor solution was the stimulated salivary secretion rate produced by each flavor. The time-to-return to the initial unstimulated salivary flow rate was the duration of the stimulated saliva secretion rate. Results: The mean unstimulated salivary flow rate across participants was 0.64 ± 0.25 ml/min (range: 0.23 - 1.03 ml/min). The highest amount of saliva was induced by citric acid. There were significant differences between citric acid and the other flavor solutions (p < 0.05 for glutamic acid, inosinic acid, and sucrose;p < 0.01 for guanylic acid). There were no significant differences in duration of salivation between the flavor solutions. When the participants were divided into slow (0.45 ± 0.16 ml/min) and fast groups (0.83 ± 0.15 ml/min) based on their median resting salivary secretion rate, there were no significant differences between the two groups in the amount of saliva secreted at 1 minute after stimulation and the duration of the salivary secretion rate. Conclusion: Umami stimulation was effective in slowing salivary secretion and sustaining salivary secretion after stimulation.

High-grade pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia diagnosed based on changes in magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography findings:A case report

BACKGROUND High-grade pancreatic intraepithelial neoplasia(PanIN)exhibits no mass and is not detected by any examination modalities.However,it can be diagnosed by pancreatic juice cytology from indirect findings.Most previous cases were diagnosed based on findings of a focal stricture of the main pancreatic duct(MPD)and caudal MPD dilatation and subsequent pancreatic juice cytology using endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography(ERCP).We experienced a case of high-grade PanIN with an unclear MPD over a 20-mm range,but without caudal MPD dilatation on magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography(MRCP).CASE SUMMARY A 60-year-old female patient underwent computed tomography for a follow-up of uterine cancer post-excision,which revealed pancreatic cysts.MRCP revealed an unclear MPD of the pancreatic body at a 20-mm length without caudal MPD dilatation.Thus,course observation was performed.After 24 mo,MRCP revealed an increased caudal MPD caliber and a larger pancreatic cyst.We performed ERCP and detected atypical cells suspected of adenocarcinoma by serial pancreatic juice aspiration cytology examination.We performed a distal pancreatectomy and obtained a histopathological diagnosis of high-grade PanIN.Pancreatic parenchyma invasion was not observed,and curative resection was achieved.CONCLUSION High-grade Pan-IN may cause MPD narrowing in a long range without caudal MPD dilatation.

IMPACT EVALUATION OF HAIZUKA DAM ON ITS UP STREAM A CASE STUDY IN HIROSHIMA PREFECTURE, JAPAN

Japan ranks fifth in the world for the number of large dams. Environmental impacts of large dams are known, such as enormous losses of water or disruption of fish spawning, however, impacts of the dams on their up streams are functions of topography of the up stream. Haizuka Dam is located in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan and its implementation will start in 2006. This large dam influences its up stream through dam making activities, which occurs in order and with different spatial presences that were categorized into chronological and spatial impacts. In this case study, spatial impacts were further divided into horizontal and vertical ones. The horizontal impacts were identified as new roads, diversion tunnel, dam lake, and submerged cultivated land, while vertical impacts were recognized as submerged historical monuments, slope protections, dam body, and deforested area in the reservoir. There were convergences of spatial and temporal impacts, however, the extent of the impacts was limited to the lake boundary.

Nontidal sea level changes in Hiroshima Bay,Japan

Nontidal sea level changes generated in Hiroshima Bay of the Seto-Inland Sea in Japan are studied over various time scales, from the sub-tidal(2 d to 1 month) to inter-annual scales(>2 years). The total sea level variation produces a standard deviation(STD) of 12.5 cm. The inter-annual component of the sea level variation in Hiroshima Bay oscillates with a STD of 3.4 cm, forming a long-term trend of 4.9 mm/a. The STD of the sea level variation is 9.8 cm for the seasonal component(8 months to 2 years) and 4.7 cm for the intra-seasonal one(1 month to 8 months). Significant sea level variations with a STD of 4.2 cm also occur in the sub-tidal range. Special attention is paid to the sub-tidal sea level changes. It is found that the upwelling and associated transient sea level changes generated along the north coast of Hiroshima Bay(opened southward) by the strong northerly wind, play a significant role in sub-tidal sea level changes. The transient sea level changes are over 10 cm in most cases when caused by typhoons that pass through the Pacific Ocean off the Kii Peninsula, located at about 400 km east of Hiroshima Bay. Reasonable sea level changes are evaluated by the balance of pressure forces at the onshore and offshore boundary of the study domain.

Differences in Self-Assessment Regarding Eating Behaviors among Female University Students Living in Japan, Korea, and Austria

Objective: To investigate cross-cultural differences in self-assessments of eating behaviors of female university students who bear responsibility for their own eating behaviors and who will, in the future, likely determine a family’s eating style. Design: A cross-cultural comparison. Setting: Japan, South Korea, and Austria. Subjects: Female university students from Japan (n = 276), Korea (n = 103), and Austria (n = 127). The survey comprised a questionnaire containing ten sections about eating behaviors (eating habits, regular meal times, and frequency of food intake) and eating attitudes. Results: Eating behaviors and attitudes differed significantly among the three cultures. Japanese students practiced healthier eating behaviors than did Korean and Austrian students, on the basis of their variety of food intake and regular consumption of three meals, but rated themselves lower on healthy eating behaviors. Austrian students tended to have more independent attitudes toward eating and food preparation (e.g., “I want to eat only my favorite dishes”) than Japanese or Korean students. Conclusions: Effects of cultural differences in psychological processes, such as self-cognition, emotion, motivation, and values, on self-assessment of eating behaviors is suggested.

Delay-CJ:A novel cryptojacking covert attack method based on delayed strategy and its detection

Cryptojacking is a type of resource embezzlement attack,wherein an attacker secretly executes the cryptocurrency mining program in the target host to gain profits.It has been common since 2017,and in fact,it once became the greatest threat to network security.To better prove the attack ability the harm caused by cryptojacking,this paper proposes a new covert browser-based mining attack model named Delay-CJ,this model was deployed in a simulation environment for evaluation.Based on the general framework of cryptojacking,Delay-CJ adds hybrid evasion detection techniques and applies the delayed execution strategy specifically for video websites in the prototype implementation.The results show that the existing detection methods used for testing may become invalid as result of this model.In view of this situation,to achieve a more general and robust detection scheme,we built a cryptojacking detection system named CJDetector,which is based on cryptojacking process features.Specifically,it identifies malicious mining by monitoring CPU usage and analyzing the function call information.This system not only effectively detects the attack in our example but also has universal applicability.The recognition accuracy of CJDetector reaches 99.33%.Finally,we tested the web pages in Alexa 50K websites to investigate cryptojacking activity in the real network.We found that although cryptojacking is indeed on the decline,it remains a part of network security threats that cannot be ignored.

Role of circulating tumor cell clusters in patients with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer receiving a gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist: A pilot study

Dear Editor,Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men[1].Androgen deprivation therapy(ADT)has remained the primary treatment of metastatic-hormone-sensitive prostate cancer(mHSPC),providing a temporary disease control in the majority of patients.Despite initial ADT response,castration-resistance prostate cancer(CRPC)still develops.Previous study have attempted to determine possible biomarkers for poor prognosis in patients with CRPC[2].

Effect of pressure cooking on phenolic compounds of quinoa

Due to good nutritional properties and potential health benefits,quinoa has gained an increasing attention.The study aimed to analyze the effect of pressure cooking on the composition,antioxidant activity,antibacterial activity and bioavailability of phenolic compounds in four types of quinoa,and to evaluate the correlation between phenolics and its biological activities by correlation analysis.The results showed that different varieties of quinoa contained different phenolic components and their biological activities were different.Pressure cooking could significantly increase(P<0.05)the phenolic contents of quinoa,and decrease in vitro digestibility of protein.The antioxidant activity,antibacterial activity and bioavailability of quinoa were also enhanced which were positively related with phenolic contents.HPLC analysis indicated that at least twelve phenolic compounds were found in quinoa,and hyperoside,sinapic acid,rutin and ferulic acid occupied a majority of them.Correlation analysis suggested that hyperoside,quercetin,sinapic acid,ferulic acid and gallic acid made the key contribution to antioxidant and antibacterial activities of phenolic compounds of quinoa.The results provided valuable information for quinoa processing with phenolics as functional ingredient.

Geochemistry and hydrocarbon source rock potential of shales from the Palaeo-Mesoproterozoic Vindhyan Supergroup, central India

With increase in shale gas exploration, inorganic and organic geochemical investigations of shale have become extremely important. Here, we explore the six argillaceous (shale) intervals (Arangi, Koldaha, Rampur, Bijaygarh, Rewa and Sirbu shale) from Son valley sector, Vindhyan Basin with an aim to understand provenance conditions, palaeoclimate, tectonic setting and hydrocarbon generation potential. Whole rock geochemistry indicates Vindhyan sediments derived from felsic source(s) except for Sirbu shale that indicates additional influx of mafic rocks with differentiated felsic source. A comparative study of Vindhyan shale rare earth elements (REEs) points to Mahakoshals and Chhotanagpur gneissic complex (CGC) as probable sediment provenance for Vindhyan sediments. CIA analysis, after necessary corrections for K-metasomatism, suggests evolution in weathering and palaeoclimate indicating a transformation from moderate weathering conditions with warm and humid climate during lower Vindhyan deposition to intense weathering conditions with hot and humid climate during upper Vindhyan deposition. Trace (La/Y vs. Sc/Cr) and REE analysis indicates passive margin setting for Vindhyan sediments whereas a wide range spanning passive to active continental margin setting is also inferred using (Th-Sc-Zr/10) and (Th–La-Sc) ternary diagrams. However, these tectonic discriminant diagrams lack in explaining rift- or sag-related origin of any intracratonic basin such as the Vindhyan Basin. The total organic carbon (TOC) content in Vindhyan shales ranges from 0.29% to 8.44%. The thermally liberated hydrocarbon (S1) values range from 0.01 to 0.18 mg HC/g rock (milligram hydrocarbon per gram of rock sample), whereas hydrocarbon from cracking of the kerogen (S2) shows values ranging from 0.04 to 0.47 mg HC/g rock. Based on modified Van Krevelen correlation (HI vs. Tmax) diagram, organic matter from Arangi and Bijaygarh shales is characterized as thermally mature, Type III kerogen of gas prone character indicating good to very good gas generation potential.

Chiral Dirac Fermion in a Collinear Antiferromagnet

In a Dirac semimetal, the massless Dirac fermion has zero chirality, leading to surface states connected adiabatically to a topologically trivial surface state as well as vanishing anomalous Hall effect. Recently, it is predicted that in the nonrelativistic limit of certain collinear antiferromagnets, there exists a type of chiral“Dirac-like” fermion, whose dispersion manifests four-fold degenerate crossing points formed by spin-degenerate linear bands, with topologically protected Fermi arcs. Such an unconventional chiral fermion, protected by a hidden SU(2) symmetry in the hierarchy of an enhanced crystallographic group, namely spin space group, is not experimentally verified yet. Here, by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements, we reveal the surface origin of the electron pocket at the Fermi surface in collinear antiferromagnet CoNb3S6. Combining with neutron diffraction and first-principles calculations, we suggest a multidomain collinear antiferromagnetic configuration, rendering the the existence of the Fermi-arc surface states induced by chiral Dirac-like fermions.Our work provides spectral evidence of the chiral Dirac-like fermion caused by particular spin symmetry in CoNb_(3)S_(6), paving an avenue for exploring new emergent phenomena in antiferromagnets with unconventional quasiparticle excitations.

Characteristics of Sleep and Autonomic Activity in Active Older Adults Based on Metabolic Age: A Comparative Case Study

Background: The balance of autonomic nervous system activity and its relationship with body composition, sleep quality, and activities of daily living among older people is still unclear. Purpose: This comparative case study examined the characteristics of body composition, sleep quality, and autonomic nerve activity in active older adults with a younger body age-calculated from age trends in body composition and basal metabolic rate. Methods: We selected two cases with a metabolic age younger than their actual age. They had good sleep quality, no sarcopenia, strong muscle and grip strength, and balanced autonomic nervous system activity. They were compared with two other age- and gender-matched cases, who had poor sleep quality, unbalanced autonomic nervous system activity, and had a physical age closer to their actual age. Results: Older adults with more muscle mass and higher basal metabolism were younger than their actual age, had a better sleep status, and had a good balance of autonomic nervous activity during exercise stimulation. They also had lower percentages of body and visceral fat and higher percentages of body water. Conclusion: Two cases had a metabolic age younger than their actual age were found to be much younger than their actual age. However, the older adults with normal muscle mass and basal metabolic rate had poor sleep status and no sympathetic hyperactivity during exercise simulation.

Analysis of Emotions Using Multimodal Data: A Case Study

In this case study, we hypothesized that sympathetic nerve activity would be higher during conversation with PALRO robot, and that conversation would result in an increase in cerebral blood flow near the Broca’s area. The facial expressions of a human subject were recorded, and cerebral blood flow and heart rate variability were measured during interactions with the humanoid robot. These multimodal data were time-synchronized to quantitatively verify the change from the resting baseline by testing facial expression analysis, cerebral blood flow, and heart rate variability. In conclusion, this subject indicated that sympathetic nervous activity was dominant, suggesting that the subject may have enjoyed and been excited while talking to the robot (normalized High Frequency < normalized Low Frequency: 0.22 ± 0.16 < 0.78 ± 0.16). Cerebral blood flow values were higher during conversation and in the resting state after the experiment than in the resting state before the experiment. Talking increased cerebral blood flow in the frontal region. As the subject was left-handed, it was confirmed that the right side of the brain, where the Broca’s area is located, was particularly activated (Left < right: 0.15 ± 0.21 < 1.25 ± 0.17). In the sections where a “happy” facial emotion was recognized, the examiner-judged “happy” faces and the MTCNN “happy” results were also generally consistent.

Recent evidence for subcutaneous drains to prevent surgical site infections after abdominal surgery:A systematic review and metaanalysis

BACKGROUND Surgical site infections(SSIs)increase mortality,hospital stays,additional medical treatment,and medical costs.Subcutaneous drains prevent SSIs in gynecological and breast surgeries;however,their clinical impact in abdominal surgery remains unclear.AIM To investigate whether subcutaneous drains were beneficial in abdominal surgery using a systematic review and meta-analysis.METHODS The database search used PubMed,MEDLINE,and the Cochrane Library.The following inclusion criteria were set for the systematic review:(1)Randomized controlled trial studies comparing SSIs after abdominal surgery with or without subcutaneous drains;and(2)Studies that described clinical outcomes,such as SSIs,seroma formation,the length of hospital stays,and mortality.RESULTS Eight studies were included in this meta-analysis.The rate of total SSIs was significantly lower in the drained group(54/771,7.0%)than in the control group(89/759,11.7%),particularly in gastrointestinal surgery.Furthermore,the rate of superficial SSIs was slightly lower in the drained group(31/517,6.0%)than in the control group(49/521,9.4%).No significant differences were observed in seroma formation between the groups.Hospital stays were shorter in the drained group than in the control group.CONCLUSION Subcutaneous drains after abdominal surgery prevented SSIs and reduced hospital stays but did not significantly affect seroma formation.The timing of drain removal needs to be reconsidered in future studies.

面向21世纪的Si基光子学

Si基光子学是近年来在半导体光电子学和纳米材料科学领域中迅速发展起来的一个新型分支学科，旨在研究各类Si基低维材料的发光特性。各种Si基光子器件的设计与制作，并进而实现用于现代光通信技术的全Si光电子集成电路。预计在未来10年内，随着Si基纳米材料发光效率的提高，器件制备技术的进步和光电子集成工艺的成熟，Si基光子学的研究将出现重大突破性进展，并很有可能引发一场新的信息技术革命。本文着重介绍了用于Si基光电集成的光子学材料、器件与工艺在近3～5年内所取得的研究进展，并预测了它们的未来发展趋势。

新生代深海冷水碳酸盐泥丘成因及IODP 307航次初步研究结果

记述了新生代深海冷水碳酸盐泥丘近期的9个重要研究事件;总结了冷水泥丘具有全球海洋(大陆斜坡为主)分布、形态各异、冷水枝状珊瑚构筑泥丘的特点;介绍了冷水泥丘形成的(地质流体渗流和微生物作用)内因及(海底牵引底流作用)外因两种主要观点。对2005年IODP 307航次实施的北大西洋Porcupine Seabight冷水泥丘大洋钻探工作初步成果进行了编译,公布了中国科学家在碳氧同位素方面的初步实验结果。实验结果显示上新世中期以来的2 Ma里冷水碳酸盐泥丘启动和发育过程中存在2次碳氧同位素偏移事件(I和II),碳氧同位素偏移事件I与泥丘的启动相呼应,暗示北大西洋古海洋气候发生巨大变化,可能与北极冰盖极盛有关。

TiO2纳米结构在染料敏化太阳电池中的应用

利用纳米结构材料作为光阳极制备的染料敏化太阳电池被称为纳米结构染料敏化太阳电池(NDSSC)。一般而言,它由纳米结构金属氧化物半导体的光阳极、染料敏化剂,电解质和对电极等几个部分组成。目前,纳米结构光阳极的研究主要集中在如何优化设计和成功制备各种纳米结构的光阳极材料,以改善NDSSC的光电转换性能。本文着重介绍了各种TiO2纳米结构,例如TiO2晶粒薄膜、TiO2准一维纳米结构、TiO2纳米复合物膜层、TiO2核-壳纳米结构、TiO2量子点敏化结构以及串联电池结构等在NDSSC中的应用,并评论了它们最近的主要研究进展。

铝合金钎焊凝固接头的组织特征和性能

研究了钎焊温度对钎焊接头微观组织的影响 ,并利用图像软件Image ProPlus确定了不同初始凝固温度下α (Al)相在钎焊接头中的体积分数。结果表明 :随着初始凝固温度增加 ,α (Al)相所占的比例增大。通过成分分析 (EPMA)和硬度测试 ,分析了硅扩散层的特征。压痕法测试结果表明 :不同初始凝固温度下获得的同种组织 ,其力学和物理等综合性能不同 ,从而造成整个钎焊接头力学性能的差异。

上海闵行区林业生态规划构想

上海闵行区林业生态建设提出“126工程”的规划构想,探讨了林业生态建设内涵,认为林业生态建设的空间布局应有前期规划,要因地制宜,并与城市总体规划相适应。

人类重组PIF1解螺旋酶C-末端多肽的纯化及其抗体制备

目的:表达纯化人类PIF1解螺旋酶C-末端的338-641氨基酸的多肽PIF338-641,同时用纯化蛋白制备特异抗体。方法:从HeLa细胞的cDNA文库中PCR扩增得到PIF1解螺旋酶C-末端1012-1926的cDNA片段(对应氨基酸338-641),插入N-末端融合有六聚组氨酸的表达载体pET15b产生pET15b-PIF338-641重组质粒,转化RosettaTM2(DE3)感受态细胞,使PIF338-641蛋白在大肠杆菌中表达,用自制的镍亲和柱纯化PIF338-641蛋白,并以纯化蛋白免疫家兔制备抗血清。结果:PIF338-641蛋白在大肠杆菌中成功表达,纯化了PIF338-641蛋白并制备了PIF338-641蛋白抗血清。结论:制备的PIF338-641蛋白抗体能与蛋白发生特异的免疫反应。