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Objectives: To examine predictors of syllable extraction proficiency, a prerequisite forchildren with hearing impairments progressing from spoken to written language by theKanazawa Method.Background: The rates of delayed language acquisition in children with hearingimpairments have remained unchanged despite increased use of cochlear implants. Childrenborn with hearing deficiencies do not receive sufficient auditory inputs, which contributesto delayed acquisition of spoken language. As spoken language is the springboard towritten language, such children are likely to experience delays in acquisition of syllableawareness and written language when taught in the same way as children without hearingimpairments. However, most research on syllable awareness in children with hearingimpairments in Japan is related to studies targeting school-age children and later. Therefore,it remains unclear how to manage syllable awareness problems in pre-school-age children.Methods: This study was conducted on 68 children with hearing impairments, between 4 and6 years of age, diagnosed by the Kanazawa University Hospital with congenital deafness beforethe age of 4 years and receiving outpatient language instruction. To examine the predictors ofsyllable extraction scores, we performed multiple-regression analysis with syllable extraction asthe dependent variable and age, unaided hearing level, and scores for remaining language skills(auditory word comprehension, syllabification, syllable extraction, written language characterrecognition, and written language sentence comprehension) as independent variables.Results: Stepwise regression analysis showed that written language character recognitionscore, age, and auditory word comprehension score contributed to the syllable extraction score.Discussion: The relationship between syllable extraction proficiency and age was consistentwith previous reports. Early intervention targeting character recognition and auditory wordcomprehension assisted the teaching of written language and improved syllable awarenessin children with hearing impairments. The results of this study indicated that early-stageintervention in written language character recognition and auditory word comprehension isan effective method of teaching children with hearing impairments to facilitate acquisitionof written language and the development of syllable awareness. The vocabulary and syllableawareness acquired by exposure to a combination of spoken language, Japanese sign language,and written language can be easily transferred to speechreading. Using the Kanazawa Methodto facilitate understanding of the structure of Japanese language can help children with hearingimpairments to acquire syllable extraction proficiency, regardless of their unaided hearing level.

金沢大学理工研究域自然システム学系, The frequency and scale of Asian dust events have increased rapidly in East Asia since 2000. In connection with this, the effects of Asian dust (kosa) on human health, especially on allergic diseases, are major concern in Japan. We herein discuss the effects of kosa on allergic diseases, including asthma, chronic cough and Japanese cedar pollinosis. Epidemiological studies, as well as experimental studies, have demonstrated the association between kosa and the exacerbation of asthma and allergic diseases.The kosa particles increase airway inflammation as one of the major sources of atmospheric particulate matter. Furthermore the kosa particles absorb various atmospheric gases, including air pollution. Such environmental pollution enhances the response to allergens, including Japanese cedar pollen. Recently, some epidemiological studies used the kosa data obtained by the light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system, which distinguish between mineral dust and other spherical particles, by identifying differences in the shape of the particles. Further studies using the LIDAR system will help to identify the kosa aerosol components that have adverse health effects, leading to provide new strategies to prevent environmentally induced allergic diseases.

Aims: Cancer cells induce de-novo lymphatic vessel growth within draining lymph nodes before they metastasize. The aim of this study was to retrospectively evaluate lymph node lymphangiogenesis before the establishment of nodal recurrence in squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the tongue. Methods and results: Surgical specimens from 28 patients with pT2-T3N0M0 SCC of the tongue after local excision with supraomohyoid neck dissection were studied by immunohistochemistry. Intranodal lymphatic endothelium was highlighted by podoplanin staining to evaluate lymphatic vessel counts (LVCs). Primary tumour sections were examined for the expression of lymphangiogenic factors: vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-C and VEGF-D. LVCs in regional lymph nodes were significantly increased in the cases with nodal recurrence (P=0.0013). Simultaneous increases in VEGF-C and VEGF-D expression were significantly associated with both an increase in LVC in regional lymph nodes (P=0.0001) and a decrease in the rate of survival without nodal recurrence (P=0.016). Conclusions: Knowing the status of lymphangiogenesis in the regional pN0 lymph nodes in tongue cancer would help in predicting which patients will develop nodal recurrence. The use of a therapeutic approach which blocks lymphangiogenic factors, such as VEGF-C and VEGF-D, may be beneficial in suppressing the lymphatic spread of tongue cancer with intense intranodal lymphangiogenesis. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 発行後1年より全文公開.

金沢大学医薬保健研究域医学系, We present the imaging and pathological features of a 38-year-old man in whom a large parapharyngeal solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) on the left side was found. On MRI, the tumor showed a nodule-in-nodule appearance. The inner nodule revealed high signal intensities both on T1- and T2-weighted MR images. The entire tumor showed heterogeneous enhancement on gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted images. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) identified heterogeneous radiotracer uptake of FDG in the inner nodule of the tumor. Histologic examinations revealed an admixture of growth patterns, including a "patternless pattern" and "haemangiopericytoma-like pattern". The tumor was positive for CD34. Imaging features of SFT arising in the parapharyngeal space are discussed with a review of literatures. This is the first report of FDG-PET finding of SFT arising in the head and neck. More cases are needed to achieve diagnostic significance from FDG-PET findings of parapharyngeal SFTs. © 2008 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is an Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated tumor. Viruses that are associated with malignant transformation have evolved unique mechanisms to interfere with this interaction to evade antiviral T cell responses. EBV exploits many immune evasive strategies to successfully establish a latent infection in B cells. CD8+ T cell responses to LMP-1 are generally very low and rarely detected in healthy virus carriers. Activation of the NF-kB pathway by EBV-LMP-1 leads to an upregulation of the MHC class I antigen-processing pathway. Paradoxically, LMP-1itself induces a subdominant CD8+ T cell response and appears to have evolved to avoid immune recognition. An expression of LMP-1 in human cells enhanced the trans-presentation of CD8+ T cell epitopes; however, cis-presentation of LMP-1-derived epitopes was severely impaired. Deletion of the first transmembrane domain of LMP-1, which prevented self-aggregation, significantly enhanced the cis-presentation of T cell epitopes from this protein, whereas it lost its ability to upregulate trans-presentation. These results delineate a novel mechanism of immune evasion, which renders a virally encoded oncogene inaccessible to the conventional MHC class I pathway limiting its cis-presentation. Copyright © 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel.