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Identifying the main factors influencing the land surface temperature (LST) of each local climate zone (LCZ) built type is of great significance for controlling LST. This study investigated the main factors influencing the LST of each LCZ built type in two Asian megacities: Tokyo and Shanghai. Each area in both megacities was classified according to the LCZ scheme. The diurnal LST, pervious surface fraction (PSF), surface albedo (SA), average building height ( 〈 B H 〉 ), and gross building coverage ratio (λp) of each LCZ were also calculated. Finally, the influence of the properties of each LCZ built type on LST was investigated. The results demonstrated that the main factors influencing LST of different LCZ built types differed in Tokyo and Shanghai. 〈 B H 〉 was the main factor influencing LST for compact mid-rise and open high-rise types in Tokyo, and the compact mid-rise type in Shanghai; PSF was the main factor influencing LST for other LCZ built types. Moreover, both 〈 B H 〉 and PSF negatively correlated with LST. Based on the above results and characteristics of each LCZ built type, specific LST mitigation strategies for each LCZ built type were proposed for Tokyo and Shanghai. The approach in this study can contribute to perspectives for urban planners and policymakers to develop highly feasible and reasonable LST mitigation strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sea breezes are important in a coastal urban climate; however, the impact of urban development on the effects of sea breezes, which decrease air temperature and increase humidity, has not been understood quantitatively. To quantitatively evaluate this impact in Sendai, Japan over the past twenty years, this study analyzed the heat balance mechanisms in urban spaces based on the simulation results of the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model coupled with Local Climate Zone (LCZ) maps. Compared to the observation data on air temperature, specific humidity, and wind in August 2002, results of the numerical simulation, using the 2002 LCZ map and the meteorological conditions of August 2002, confirmed that the WRF model could reproduce meteorological factors well. Thereafter, two numerical simulations using the LCZ maps from 2002 and 2022 were conducted based on the same meteorological condition, from 25 July to 1 September 2008, to extract the impact of urban development on the effects of sea breeze. Consequently, when land use changed from urban built-up land to natural land cover, both the effects of sea breeze—decreasing air temperature and increasing humidity—decreased. Additionally, increases in LCZ 3 (compact low rise), mainly from LCZ 6 (open low rise) and LCZ 9 (sparsely built), decreased the effects of sea breeze (decreasing air temperature and increasing humidity) by 5% and 10%, respectively, in areas around Sendai Station. This was because the consumption of the sea breeze's potential to decrease air temperature and increase humidity increased and the wind speed of sea breezes decreased in the windward areas of Sendai Station. These results provide new insights into the impact of urban development on the effects of sea breeze and quantitatively reveal changes in the effects of sea breeze. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-rise buildings cause accelerated winds around them. However, the interference effects of high-rise buildings on the surrounding low-rise buildings in urban blocks have not been evaluated. This study investigated the wind pressure coefficients on the roofs and walls of low-rise buildings surrounding a high-rise building through wind tunnel experiments. Seventy-two wind directions were considered from 0° to 355° in 5° increments, and the influence of the wind direction on the wind pressure coefficients of surrounding buildings was evaluated. At a 30° wind direction angle, the positive and negative peak wind pressure coefficients occurred in a low-rise building at the leeward side of the high-rise building. The positive peak pressure, approximately 1.4 times that without a nearby high-rise building, occurred at the windward corner on the front wall of a low-rise building. The negative peak value, approximately three times that without a nearby high-rise building, was observed at the windward edge on the roof of a low-rise building. Thus, accelerated winds caused by high-rise buildings may result in unexpected damage to the surrounding low-rise buildings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Lansoprazole, amoxicillin, and clarithromycin are commonly used drugs for eradication of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). A few studies reported that the eradication rate was influenced by the functional polymorphism of CYP2C19, whose product metabolizes proton pomp inhibitors including lansoprazole. Methods: This study examined the eradication rate among 67 participants in the polymorphism study who visited Daiko Medical Center, Nagoya University from July 2004 to October 2005. The participants aged 20 to 69 years were classified into three group according to CYP2C19 genotype; rapid metabolizers (RM) with *1*1 genotype, intermediate metabolizers (IM) with *1*2 or *1*3 genotype, and poor metabolizers (PM) with *2*2, *2*3, or *3*3 genotype. For the genotype classification, G681A (681G for *1 and 681A for *2) and G636A (636G for *1 and 636A for *3) were genotyped by PCR with confronting two-pair primers (PCR-CTPP). They were also genotyped for IL-1B T-31C and TNF-A T-1031C by a duplex PCR-CTPP. Results: The eradication rate was 70.0% for RM, 93.9% for IM, and 85.7% for PM. The difference in the rate between RM and IM+PM was statistically significant (p=0.025). The eradication rate was highest for those with IL-1B -31CC; the p value was marginal among the whole subjects (χ2=3.78, p=0.05) and not significant among the RM group (χ2=1.60, p=0.21). The genotypes of TNF-A T-1031C had no associations with the eradication rate. But among the RM group, the odd ratio (OR) of the TNF-A CT for the eradication rate relative to TT was marginally reduced (OR=0.05, 95% confidence interval, 0.002-1.19). Conclusions: The present study confirmed the low eradication rate for RM. The reproduced finding provides evidence that the CYP2C19 genotype is useful to predict the success of the treatment. For the RM group, alternative regimens expected to be with a higher eradication rate will be recommended, especially to those with the TNF-A -1031C allele.

The Local Climate Zone (LCZ) scheme is an urban classification system which classifies urban areas into discrete local climates by morphological and land cover characteristics, proposed based on urban heat island researches in 1970s to 2000s. However, while the original scheme defines high‐rise buildings as areas higher than 25 m on average, buildings over 100 m have become more common in Asia since the 2000s. With the heterogeneity of urban areas, directly applying the original LCZ scheme to Asian cities has become difficult. Studies to incorporate the heterogeneity of urban morphology into the scheme have been conducted by researchers, although the increase in the number of taller buildings is not explored. This study proposes, LCZ categories and standards considering the super high‐rise buildings in Asian cities for a detailed categorization of urban morphology. For this, the urban morphological characteristics of Tokyo Metropolis, with a wide range of morphologies that exist in Asian cities, were analyzed. The proposal was made based on this analysis in relation to the thermal characteristics. Then, the characteristics of land surface temperature in each LCZ category were investigated in Shanghai and Xi'an, which indicated the applicability of the proposed categories to mid to large scale Asian cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Direct detection of phospholipids in gram-positive bacterial is tried by means of matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) combined with the on-probe sample pretreatment. MALDI-MS has become a powerful method to characterize lipid components in bacterial cells.

Background: Although a loss of rotator cuff integrity leads to the superior migration of the humeral head, the parameters that characterize the anterolateral migration of the humeral head have not been established. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation between the translation of the humeral head scale (T-scale) and clinical outcomes of rotator cuff repair, as well as the correlation between the T-scale and radiologic parameters.Methods: One hundred thirty-five consecutive patients with full-thickness rotator cuff tears underwent primary rotator cuff repair. The T-scale, which indicates the distance from the center of the humeral head to the lateral coracoacromial arch, was measured on axial computed tomography scans, and the acromiohumeral interval (AHI) was measured radiographically. The correlation of the two parameters with the clinical scores of the Japanese Orthopaedic Association and University of California-Los Angeles scores and active forward elevation (FE) were evaluated at the preoperative and postoperative stages, respectively.Results: The postoperative T-scale and AHI correlated well with the postoperative FE and clinical scores in the patients with large-massive tears but not in those patients with small-medium tears and preoperative large-massive tears. A significant correlation was observed between the postoperative T-scale and AHI. The T-scale was subject to cuff repair integrity.Conclusions: We demonstrated that the postoperative T-scale was well correlated with the clinical results and postoperative AHI after rotator cuff repair for large-massive tears, indicating that poor outcomes are associated with combined superior and anterolateral migration of the humeral head following retears. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Hydrogen gas has successfully been produced from biomass by hydrothermal gasification. Various alkaline additives have been found to increase the hydrogen yield. However, studies have not yet been done on pollutants that would be produced in the hydrothermal gasification with real biomass waste containing hetero-atoms such as S, N, and P elements. Studies have also yet to be done on finding ways to suppress the formation of pollutants. For this purpose, l-cysteine containing hetero-atoms S and N, and O-phospho-dl-serine with P, were selected as pure test samples. The objective was to determine the optimum conditions for the suppression of the pollutants produced in the hydrothermal gasifications, while effectively generating hydrogen. Phosphate ion was found in the liquid phase after the gasification of O-phospho-dl-serine with and without additive at 400°C. Phosphorus compounds were not detected in the gas phase. When a large quantity of Ca(OH)2 was added, phosphorus compounds were precipitated in the solid phase. Hydrogen gas yields were increased and other gases were suppressed by using the additive. These results were same as those of chicken manure. The test samples were used to determine the optimum conditions of 400°C, 21MPa, and the Ca(OH)2 additive. was mainly produced in liquid phase by using the model sample of l-cysteine. With the addition of Ca(OH)2, the yields of SO2 and H2S are significantly decreased. and were detected at trace levels. The main gas produced was hydrogen and the generation of CO2 gas was efficiently suppressed. These optimum conditions were then applied to real biowastes, cow dung. Hydrogen production increased and was found to be mainly in the gas phase, while there was negligible generation of pollutants, with these were in the gas phase. H2S were detected at trace levels. NO was not recorded, and production of other gases were suppressed by using the additive. Nitrogen in the sample was trapped as in the liquid phase. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Potential risks of supply shortages for critical metals including rare-earth elements and yttrium (REY) have spurred great interest in commercial mining of deep-sea mineral resources. Deep-sea mud containing over 5,000 ppm total REY content was discovered in the western North Pacific Ocean near Minamitorishima Island, Japan, in 2013. This REY-rich mud has great potential as a rare-earth metal resource because of the enormous amount available and its advantageous mineralogical features. Here, we estimated the resource amount in REY-rich mud with Geographical Information System software and established a mineral processing procedure to greatly enhance its economic value. The resource amount was estimated to be 1.2 Mt of rare-earth oxide for the most promising area (105 km 2  × 0-10 mbsf), which accounts for 62, 47, 32, and 56 years of annual global demand for Y, Eu, Tb, and Dy, respectively. Moreover, using a hydrocyclone separator enabled us to recover selectively biogenic calcium phosphate grains, which have high REY content (up to 22,000 ppm) and constitute the coarser domain in the grain-size distribution. The enormous resource amount and the effectiveness of the mineral processing are strong indicators that this new REY resource could be exploited in the near future.

Background: Although a loss of rotator cuff integrity leads to the superior migration of the humeral head, the parameters that characterize the anterolateral migration of the humeral head have not been established. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation between the translation of the humeral head scale (T-scale) and clinical outcomes of rotator cuff repair, as well as the correlation between the T-scale and radiologic parameters., Methods: One hundred thirty-five consecutive patients with full-thickness rotator cuff tears underwent primary rotator cuff repair. The T-scale, which indicates the distance from the center of the humeral head to the lateral coracoacromial arch, was measured on axial computed tomography scans, and the acromiohumeral interval (AHI) was measured radiographically. The correlation of the two parameters with the clinical scores of the Japanese Orthopaedic Association and University of California-Los Angeles scores and active forward elevation (FE) were evaluated at the preoperative and postoperative stages, respectively., Results: The postoperative T-scale and AHI correlated well with the postoperative FE and clinical scores in the patients with large-massive tears but not in those patients with small-medium tears and preoperative large-massive tears. A significant correlation was observed between the postoperative T-scale and AHI. The T-scale was subject to cuff repair integrity., Conclusions: We demonstrated that the postoperative T-scale was well correlated with the clinical results and postoperative AHI after rotator cuff repair for large-massive tears, indicating that poor outcomes are associated with combined superior and anterolateral migration of the humeral head following retears.

Aim: To elucidate the factors associated with residual gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms in patients receiving proton pump inhibitor (PPI) maintenance therapy in clinical practice., Methods: The study included 39 GERD patients receiving maintenance PPI therapy. Residual symptoms were assessed using the Frequency Scale for Symptoms of GERD (FSSG) questionnaire and the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS). The relationships between the FSSG score and patient background factors, including the CYP2C19 genotype, were analyzed., Results: The FSSG scores ranged from 1 to 28 points (median score: 7.5 points), and 19 patients (48.7%) had a score of 8 points or more. The patients' GSRS scores were significantly correlated with their FSSG scores (correlation coefficient = 0.47, P < 0.005). In erosive esophagitis patients, the FSSG scores of the CYP2C19 rapid metabolizers (RMs) were significantly higher than the scores of the poor metabolizers and intermediate metabolizers (total scores: 16.7 ± 8.6 vs 7.8 ± 5.4, P < 0.05; acid reflux-related symptom scores: 12 ± 1.9 vs 2.5 ± 0.8, P < 0.005). In contrast, the FSSG scores of the CYP2C19 RMs in the non-erosive reflux disease patients were significantly lower than those of the other patients (total scores: 5.5 ± 1.0 vs 11.8 ± 6.3, P < 0.05; dysmotility symptom-related scores: 1.0 ± 0.4 vs 6.0 ± 0.8, P < 0.01)., Conclusion: Approximately half of the GERD patients receiving maintenance PPI therapy had residual symptoms associated with a lower quality of life, and the CYP2C19 genotype appeared to be associated with these residual symptoms., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.