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Manabu Saito,1,&ast; Hiroshi Uchino,1,&ast; Yoko Iwata,1 Ayako Fuchigami,1 Genki Sato,1 Fukumi Yoshikawa,1 Masahiko Miyagi,1 Taito Miyazaki,2 Yoshihisa Urita,2 Kotaro Aoki,3 Yoshikazu Ishii,3 Kazuhiro Tateda,3 Takahisa Hirose1 1Division of Diabetes, Metabolism and Endocrinology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Graduate School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan; 2Department of General Medicine and Emergency Care, Toho University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan; 3Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Toho University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan&ast;These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Hiroshi Uchino, Division of Diabetes, Metabolism and Endocrinology, Department of Internal Medicine, Toho University Graduate School of Medicine, 6-11-1 Omori-nishi, Ota-ku, Tokyo, 143-8541, Japan, Tel +81-3-3762-4151, Fax +81-3-3765-6488, Email h.uchino@med.toho-u.ac.jpPurpose: The severe pathogenic ancient-type COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2/WA-1/2020 was the predominant gene variant in early 2020 in Japan, however, its transmissibility was uncertain. The period before the public commenced using any personal protective equipment (PPE) was evaluating to describe the transmissibility of the SARS-CoV-2/WA-1/2020. We analyzed the secondary attack rate (SAR) among close contacts and the risk factor for SAR.Methods: This retrospective cohort study included a total of 539 patients who were anticipated for the SARS-CoV-2/WA-1/2020 infection at Toho University Medical Center Omori Hospital from February to May 2020. We selected 54 patients with 1) exclude other pathogens infection, 2) include “Three Cs” condition: crowded places between distance< 6 feet, closed spaces indoor and close contact settings involving contact > 15min with a person tested positive for SARS-CoV-2/WA-1/2020 without PPE. We evaluated alternative infection risks: the body mass index (BMI) and diabetes (DM) status (non-DM, pre-DM, and DM) as demographic determi

Infectious virus shedding from individuals infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is used to estimate human-to-human transmission risk. Control of SARS-CoV-2 transmission requires identifying the immune correlates that protect infectious virus shedding. Mucosal immunity prevents infection by SARS-CoV-2, which replicates in the respiratory epithelium and spreads rapidly to other hosts. However, whether mucosal immunity prevents the shedding of the infectious virus in SARS-CoV-2-infected individuals is unknown. We examined the relationship between viral RNA shedding dynamics, duration of infectious virus shedding, and mucosal antibody responses during SARS-CoV-2 infection. Anti-spike secretory IgA antibodies (S-IgA) reduced viral RNA load and infectivity more than anti-spike IgG/IgA antibodies in infected nasopharyngeal samples. Compared with the IgG/IgA response, the anti-spike S-IgA post-infection responses affected the viral RNA shedding dynamics and predicted the duration of infectious virus shedding regardless of the immune history. These findings highlight the importance of anti-spike S-IgA responses in individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2 for preventing infectious virus shedding and SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Developing medical countermeasures to shorten S-IgA response time may help control human-to-human transmission of SARS-CoV-2 infection and prevent future respiratory virus pandemics.

Posttransplant cyclophosphamide (PTCy) is associated with a low incidence of chronic graft -versus-host disease (cGVHD) following hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation. Previous studies have shown the important roles of B cell immunity in cGVHD development. Here, we investigated the long-term reconstitution of B lymphopoiesis after PTCy using murine models. We first demonstrated that the immune homeostatic abnormality leading to cGVHD is characterized by an initial increase in effector T cells in the bone marrow and subsequent B and Treg cytopenia. PTCy, but not cyclosporine A or rapamycin, inhibits the initial alloreactive T cell response, which restores intra-bone marrow B lymphogenesis with a concomitant vigorous increase in Tregs. This leads to profound changes in posttransplant B cell homeostasis, including decreased B cell activating factors, increased transitional and regulatory B cells, and decreased germinal center B cells. To identify the cells responsible for PTCy-induced B cell tolerance, we selectively depleted Treg populations that were graft or HSC derived using DEREG mice. Deletion of either Treg population without PTCy resulted in critical B cytopenia. PTCy rescued B lymphopoiesis from graft-derived Treg deletion. In contrast, the negative effect of HSC-derived Treg deletion could not be overcome by PTCy, indicating that HSC-derived Tregs are essential for maintaining favorable B lymphopoiesis following PTCy. These findings define the mechanisms by which PTCy restores homeostasis of the B cell lineage and reestablishes immune tolerance.

Perfluoroalkyl (Rf) compounds are known to have a poor solubility for most solvents except fluorinated solvents, which is known as a fluorous property. In Langmuir (L) film studies of Rf compounds, fluorinated solvents such as perfluoro-n-alkanes are generally used as a good solvent for depositing a sample monolayer on the water surface. On the other hand, a single Rf chain with a short length such as C₆F₁₃– is known to exhibit a totally different character from a condensed matter to have a strong affinity to a water molecule on the water surface via the dipole–dipole interaction, which is known as the dipole interactive (DI) property. On considering the DI property, the solvents of perfluoro-n-alkanes would remain on water for a long time, which may disturb the formation of L film on water. In the present study, details of a liquid layer of perfluoro-n-alkanes on water are investigated by using infrared external reflection (IR ER) spectrometry. Although the perfluoro-n-alkanes are highly volatile, the relevant vibration bands did not disappear even after two hours, which means that they remain on the water surface. Fortunately, however, the remained solvent, C₆F₁₄, has been found no disturbing factor for preparation of L films.

Transposable elements (TEs) are mobile DNA sequences that can catalyse their own replication and movement within a genome. As a result of their proliferation, TEs have become a major constituent in almost all eukaryotic genomes. While TEs were historically overlooked or dismissed as ‘junk’ DNA, these elements have now been reappraised as important contributors to gene regulation and genome evolution. Markedly, in plant-associated fungi, it has been proposed that TEs regulate expression of genes that mediate the invasion of plants; the localisation of TEs proximal to invasion-mediating genes is proposed to create a niche for accelerated fungal evolution, extending their host-range and assisting in the antagonistic co-evolution with their host plants. Epichloë is a genus of ascomycete fungi that live in close association with pasture grasses. This symbiosis can provide the host plants with profound bioprotective benefits such as increased resistance to drought, herbivory and pests. Hence, there is considerable interest in developing novel Epichloë strains with improved host-range. However, TEs in Epichloë genomes have been considerably inactivated by host genome defences, thus it was unclear whether active elements remain in this genus. In this project, I have curated a high quality library of TEs in three closely related strains of the Epichloë typhina species complex. Using this data, I have demonstrated lineage-specific activity of TEs that have contributed to genome evolution in the recent history of this genus. Furthermore, I have identified sets of TEs that are enriched near virulence-related genes. The work produced here will serve as foundation for future studies to elucidate regulatory roles of TEs in Epichloë.

Background and Aim: Chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) is a major cause of nonrelapse morbidity and mortality following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). alpha-Galactosylceramide (alpha-GC) is a synthetic glycolipid that is recognized by the invariant T-cell receptor of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells in a CD1d-restricted manner. Stimulation of iNKT cells by alpha-GC leads to the production of not only immune-stimulatory cytokines but also immune-regulatory cytokines followed by regulatory T-cell (Treg) expansion in vivo. Methods: We investigated the effect of iNKT stimulation by liposomal alpha-GC just after transplant on the subsequent immune reconstitution and the development of sclerodermatous cGVHD. Results: Our study showed that multiple administrations of liposomal alpha-GC modulated both host- and donor-derived iNKT cell homeostasis and induced an early expansion of donor Tregs. We also demonstrated that the immune modulation of the acute phase was followed by the decreased levels of CXCL13 in plasma and follicular helper T cells in lymph nodes, which inhibited germinal center formation, resulting in the efficient prevention of sclerodermatous cGVHD. Conclusions: These data demonstrated an important coordination of T- and B-cell immunity in the pathogenesis of cGVHD and may provide a novel clinical strategy for the induction of immune tolerance after allogeneic HSCT.

Posttransplantation cyclophosphamide (PTCy) has become a popular option for haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). However, personalized methods to adjust immune intensity after PTCy for each patient's condition have not been well studied. Here, we investigated the effects of reducing the dose of PTCy followed by alpha -galactosylceramide (alpha -GC), a ligand of iNKT cells, on the reciprocal balance between graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and the graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) effect. In a murine haploidentical HSCT model, insufficient GVHD prevention after reduced-dose PTCy was efficiently compensated for by multiple administrations of alpha -GC. The ligand treatment maintained the enhanced GVL effect after reduced-dose PTCy. Phenotypic analyses revealed that donor-derived B cells presented the ligand and induced preferential skewing to the NKT2 phenotype rather than the NKT1 phenotype, which was followed by the early recovery of all T cell subsets, especially CD4(+)Foxp3(+) regulatory T cells. These studies indicate that alpha -GC administration soon after reduced-dose PTCy restores GVHD-preventing activity and maintains the GVL effect, which is enhanced by reducing the dose of PTCy. Our results provide important information for the development of a novel strategy to optimize PTCy-based transplantation, particularly in patients with a potential relapse risk.

Hisanaga K, Uchino H, Kakisu N, et al. Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2021;14:773—781. Page 775, left column, third paragraph, line 4, the text “(p<0.5)” should read “(p<0.05)”. Page 775, left column, second line from the bottom, the text “11.3±20.8” should read “113.0±20.8”. Page 776, Table 1, Plasma glucose (mg/dl) row, Unmatched, Non-DM (n=64) column, the value “11.3±20.8” should read “113.0±20.8”. The authors apologize for these errors. Read the original article

Kaori Hisanaga, 1 Hiroshi Uchino, 1 Naoko Kakisu, 1 Masahiko Miyagi, 1 Fukumi Yoshikawa, 1 Genki Sato, 1 Kazutoshi Isobe, 2 Kazuma Kishi, 2 Sakae Homma, 3 Takahisa Hirose 1 1Division of Diabetes, Metabolism and Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Toho University Graduate School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan; 2Department of Respiratory Medicine, Toho University Graduate School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan; 3Department of Advanced and Integrated Interstitial Lung Disease Research, School of Medicine, Toho University, Tokyo, JapanCorrespondence: Hiroshi UchinoDivision of Diabetes, Metabolism and Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Toho University Graduate School of Medicine, 6-11-1 Omori-Nishi, Ota-Ku, Tokyo, 143-8541, JapanTel +81-3-3762-4151Fax +81-3-3765-6488Email h.uchino@med.toho-u.ac.jpBackground: Although immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are promising in the treatment of advanced cancer, their use is associated with immune-related adverse events (irAEs) that affect endocrine organ systems. Although development of irAEs was associated with improved cancer-specific survival, the risk of irAEs is unclear. We investigated the association of pre-ICI comorbidities—including diabetes—with irAEs, overall survival (OS), and progression-free survival (PFS) in advanced lung cancer.Methods: Patients with lung cancer who were treated with ICIs during the period from September 1, 2015 through July 31, 2018 were retrospectively enrolled. All data were collected from the NEPTUNE database of university patients. Hazard ratios were estimated by using Cox regression weighted for propensity scores. Odds ratios were calculated by logistic regression and adjusted for unbalanced variables. The Kaplan–Meier method was used to compare OS, and the generalized Wilcoxon test was used to compare median survival.Results: Among the 88 patients identified, 22 (25.0%) had diabetes (DM) before ICI treatment and 57 (75.0%) did not (non-DM); irAEs developed in 12.2%

Infrared (IR) spectra of an organic thin film are mostly understood by considering the normal modes of a single molecule, if the dipole–dipole (D–D) interaction is ignorable in the film. When the molecules have a chemical group having a large permanent dipole moment such as the C=O and C—F groups, the D–D interaction induces vibrational couplings across the molecules, which produces an extra band as a surface phonon or polariton band because of the small thickness. Since the dipole moment of an organic compound is much less than that of an inorganic ionic crystal, we have a problem that the extra band looks like a normal-mode band, which are difficult to be discriminated from each other. In fact, this visual similarity sometimes leads us to a wrong direction in chemical discussion because the direction of the transition moment of the extra band is totally different from those of the normal modes. Here, we show useful selection rules for discussing IR spectra of a thin film without performing the permittivity analysis. The apparent change in the spectral shape on decrease in the thickness of the sample can be correlated with the morphological change in the film surface, which can also be discussed with changes in the molecular packing. This analytical technique has effectively been applied for studying the chemical properties of perfluoroalkanes as a chemical demonstration, which readily supports the stratified dipole-array theory for perfluoroalkyl compounds.

We propose a method to detect human wants by using an electroencephalogram (EEG) test and specifying brain activity sensing positions. EEG signals can be analyzed by using various techniques. Recently, convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have been employed to analyze EEG signals, and these analyses have produced excellent results. Therefore, this paper employs CNN to extract EEG features. Also, support vector machines (SVMs) have shown good results for EEG pattern classification. This paper employs SVMs to classify the human cognition into “wants,” “not wants,” and “other feelings”. In EEG measurements, the electrical activity of the brain is recorded using electrodes placed on the scalp. The sensing positions are related to the frontal cortex and/or temporal cortex activities although the mechanism to create wants is not clear. To specify the sensing positions and detect human wants, we conducted experiments using real EEG data. We confirmed that the mean and standard deviation values of the detection accuracy rate were 99.4% and 0.58, respectively, when the target sensing positions were related to the frontal and temporal cortex activities. These results prove that both the frontal and temporal cortex activities are relevant for creating wants in the human brain, and that CNN and SVM are effective for the detection of human wants.

This paper introduces an individual difference in the activities of the prefrontal cortex when a person wants to listen to music using near-infrared spectroscopy. The individual differences are confirmed by visualizing the variation in oxygenated hemoglobin level. The sensing positions used to record the brain activities are around the prefrontal cortex. The existence of individual differences was verified by experiments. The experiment results show that active positions while feeling a wish to listen to music are different in each subject, and an oxygenated hemoglobin level is different in each subject compared to its value when a subject does not feel the wish to listen to music. The experiment results show that it is possible to detect a wish to listen to the music based on changes in the oxygenated hemoglobin level. Also, these results suggest that active positions are different in each subject because the sensitivities and how to feel on stimulus are different. Lastly, the results suggest that it is possible to express the individual differences as differences in active positions.

Problem-based learning (PBL) is a teaching method that encourages the student´s proactivity to reason, in order to seek solutions to the problem in question. This article aims to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of using the PBL method for top level students in business areas. In order to meet the objective, a questionnaire was prepared from the literature studied and sent to 375 students, with a return rate of 19%. The main results show that 74% of the respondents consider that the practical classes contribute to the memorization of the content, 93% of the respondents consider it an opportunity for personal and social formation, besides promoting the sharing of knowledge and improvement in decision-making.  It also found that 83% feel more protagonists in the PBL method and more than 81% feel more engaged in their own learning. As a result, it was possible to identify a favorable perception of the learning method that leads and engages the student. This research also allows us to conclude that the PBL is, in fact, perceived as a more current and innovative method by students.

Fluorous properties represented by water-and-oil repellency are perfluoroalkyl (Rf) compound-specific characteristics, which are widely used for surface coating of glass, electronic devices and textiles for preventing water and grease fouling. According to the stratified dipole-arrays (SDA) theory, the minimum Rf length of (CF₂)₇ is theoretically necessary for realizing fluorous properties. Unfortunately, however, production of compounds involving this chemical unit is strictly banned because of concerns of environmental pollution, which is a big dilemma. Here, we show that the fluorous properties can be realized by self-assembled monolayer (SAM) even with a short Rf-containing compound, since the SAM technique makes the best use of the self-aggregation property of the Rf groups, and it readily makes the molecules immobile.

Case Report

This paper proposes a method to evaluate a sound sleep using an image gathering technique and its analysis techniques. The proposed method consists of three phases; gathered images generation, gathered images analysis and sound sleep evaluation. The gathered images designed to gather sleep postures and their changes are generated at 1 second, 10 seconds, 1 minute, 10 minutes, 1 hour intervals and all times, respectively. In the gathered image analysis, the gathered images are analyzed by calculating difference values among the gathered images of 10-minute and all times. Then, the sound sleep conditions are evaluated by visual inspection and analysis results. In order to show the effectiveness of the proposed method, we conduct experiments using real movies and their images. In experimental results, we confirm that there were sound sleep conditions, bad sleep conditions and borderline cases by checking subjective evaluation using questionnaire and generated gathered images visually. Moreover, we confirm that the calculated difference values among the gathered images of 10-minute and all times are different between sound sleep and other cases. Furthermore, the analyzed results show that the proposed method was successful in the sleep conditions classifications on four of five subjects. These results suggest that the gathered images analysis method is effective for evaluating whether sleep condition is sound sleep or not. In particular, it is important to calculate the difference values among the gathered images of 10-minute and all times to evaluate sleeping conditions.

In this paper, we propose a method to evaluate accumulated stress by extraction the height of the lunula of the nail from a nail image. The proposed method consists of three stages: measurement, preprocessing, and stress evaluation. In the measurement, we take a nail image. In the preprocessing, we extract the height of the lunula of the nail. Then, we carry out edge detection using a hue histogram in a rectangle. In the stress evaluation, we evaluate accumulated stress at 0 to 1 using fuzzy reasoning. In order to show the effectiveness of the proposed method, we conducted experiments. These results suggested that the difference between the minimum and maximum values of the height of the lunula while the experiment might be able to determine the presence or absence of accumulated stress.

With the progress of IoT, everything is going to be connected to the network. It will bring us a lot of benefits however some security risks will be occurred by connecting network. To avoid such problems, it is indispensable to strengthen security more than now. We focus on personal authentication as one of the security. As a security enhancement method, we proposed a method to carry out numeral identification and personal authentication using numerals written in the air with Leap motion sensor. In this paper, we also focus on proper handling of aerial input numerals to verify whether the numerals written in the air are helpful for authentication. We collect numerals 0 to 9 from five subjects, then apply three pre-processing to these data, learn and authenticate them by CNN (convolutional neural network) which is a method of machine learning. As a result of learning, an average authentication accuracy was 92.4%. This result suggests that numerals written in the air are possible to carry out personal authentication and it will be able to construct a better authentication system.

The objective of this study is to develop a Driving Fatigue Strain Index using fuzzy logic to analyze the risk levels of driving activity among road users. Driving fatigue is always related to the driving activity and has been identified as one of the vital contributors to the road accidents and fatalities in Malaysia. Therefore, the present paper introduces the use of fuzzy logic for the development of strain index to provide the systematic analysis and propose an appropriate solution in minimizing the number of road accidents and fatalities. The development of strain index is based on the six risk factors associated with driving fatigue; muscle activity, heart rate, hand grip pressure force, seat pressure distribution, whole-body vibration, and driving duration. The data is collected for all the risk factors and consequently, the three conditions or risk levels are defined as “safe”, “slightly unsafe”, and “unsafe”. A membership function is defined for each fuzzy conditions. IF-THEN rules were used to define the input and output variables which correspond to physical measures. This index is a reliable advisory tool for providing analysis and solutions to driving fatigue problem, which constitutes the first effort toward the minimization of road accidents and fatalities.

This paper proposes a method to classify words in Japanese Sign Language (JSL). This approach employs a combined gathered image generation technique and a neural network with convolutional and pooling layers (CNNs). The gathered image generation generates images based on mean images. Herein, the maximum difference value is between blocks of mean and JSL motions images. The gathered images comprise blocks that having the calculated maximum difference value. CNNs extract the features of the gathered images, while a support vector machine for multi-class classification, and a multilayer perceptron are employed to classify 20 JSL words. The experimental results had 94.1% for the mean recognition accuracy of the proposed method. These results suggest that the proposed method can obtain information to classify the sample words.

The introduction of exogenous molecules into embryos is required for analyses of molecular dynamics and specific gene functions during early embryonic development. Electroporation is an effective method to transport exogenous molecules into cells, but is rarely used in bovine embryos. First, we evaluated the viability of in vivo-derived bovine blastocysts after electroporation with fluorescein (FAM) labeled-oligonucleotides with varying pulse numbers (3, 5, 7, and 10), while keeping the pulse duration at 1 msec and the electric field of 20 V/mm. Next, we examined the effects of zona pellucida status on blastocyst quality after electroporation, by comparing the average diameter of blastocysts before and after electroporation using blastocysts with intact zona pellucida and hatching/hatched blastocysts. Electroporation successfully introduced exogenous molecules into in vivo-derived bovine blastocysts without loss of viability. Moreover, the status of the zona pellucida may be associated with the quality of blastocysts after electroporation.

Nakajo-Nishimura syndrome (NNS) is an immunoproteasome-associated autoinflammatory disorder caused by a mutation of the PSMB8 gene. Although dysfunction of the immunoproteasome causes various cellular stresses attributed to the overproduction of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines in NNS, the underlying mechanisms of the autoinflammation are still largely unknown. To investigate and understand the mechanisms and signal pathways in NNS, we established a panel of isogenic pluripotent stem cell (PSC) lines with PSMB8 mutation. Activity of the immunoproteasome in PSMB8-mutant PSC-derived myeloid cell lines (MT-MLs) was reduced even without stimulation compared with non-mutant-MLs. In addition, MT-MLs showed an overproduction of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, with elevated reactive oxygen species (ROS) and phosphorylated p38 MAPK levels. Treatment with p38 MAPK inhibitor and antioxidants decreased the abnormal production of cytokines and chemokines. The current PSC model revealed a specific ROS-mediated inflammatory pathway, providing a platform for the discovery of alternative therapeutic options for NNS and related immunoproteasome disorders.

A 43-year-old homosexual man was referred to our hospital for chest pain and loss of consciousness. He was hypertensive, and had an uncontrolled viral load. Serum creatinine revealed acute renal failure, and he died 3 days later. On autopsy, aortic dissection (TypeB) was found. No obvious inflammatory change, granulation, bacterial or fungal infection, or medionecrosis were seen at the dissection site. To our knowledge, this was the first case with HIV in whom aortic dissection was diagnosed at autopsy. Aortic dissection is a potential differential diagnosis even in young patients presenting with hypertension and chest pain.

This paper introduces an electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis method to detect preferences for particular sounds. Our study aims to create novel brain–computer interfaces (BMIs) to control human mental (NBMICM), which are used to detect human mental conditions i.e., preferences, thinking, and consciousness, choose stimuli to control these mental conditions, and evaluate these choices. It is important to detect the preferences on stimuli. If the stimuli related to the preference can be detected, the NBCIMC can provide stimuli to the user based on their emotions by detecting their favorite stimuli. The proposed method adopted EEG recording technique, extraction techniques of EEG features and detection methods of preferences. EEG recording employs a simple electroencephalograph, for which the measurement position is the left frontal lobe (Fp1) of the brain. We assume that the differences of the EEG activities on the patterns of preference are expressed in the association between the changes of the power spectra on each frequency band of the EEG. To calculate the association, we employ the gray theory model. The EEG feature is extracted by calculating the gray association degree, then, the preferences are detect using a support vector machine (SVM). Experiments are conducted to test the effectiveness of this method, which is validated by a mean accuracy rate >88% on the favorite sound detection. These results suggest that the detection of subject’s favorite sounds becomes easy when the EEG signals are analyzed while the gray associate degrees are used as the EEG feature and the SVM is used as the classifier.

Driving has become more important as this medium being practically, faster and cheaper in connecting human from one to other places. However, in some occurrences driving activity can cause disaster or death to human in daily life as they get fatigued while driving. Driving fatigue is one of the top contributor to the road crashes. Therefore this study is to develop a driving fatigue strain index (DFSI), collaborate with Decision Support System (DSS), to quantify the risk levels caused by driving activity, and to propose an appropriate solution in minimizing the number of road accidents caused by the driving fatigue. The decision support system provide fast and systematic analysis, and solutions to minimize the risk and the number of accidents associated with driving fatigue. The development of DFSI is based on risk factors associated with driving activity such as muscle activity, heart rate, hand grip force, seat pressure distribution, whole-body vibration, and driving duration. All risk factors are assigned with multipliers, and the DFSI is the output or result of those multipliers. The development of DFSI is essential to analyze the risk factors that would contribute significantly to discomfort and fatigue associated with driving. Besides, in the future this index will have a capability to recommend alternative solutions to minimize fatigue while driving.

This paper proposes a method to enter characters and/or character string in an augmented reality using a gesture motion. The proposed method detects the region of character string using the gesture motion. It consists of five phases; template generation, skin color detection, hand region detection, gesture motion extraction and designation of character string region. The template image consists of two fingers because a gesture is to take hold the tips of the first and second fingers. In the skin color detection, we extract the skin color on the basis of values in saturation by using threshold processing. The hand region is detected by calculating areas and detecting the area with the maximum value as a hand. The gesture motion is extracted using template matching. In order to show the effectiveness of the proposed method, we conduct experiments for character string specification.

We propose a method which can discriminate hand motions in this paper. We measure an electromyogram (EMG) of wrist by using 8 dry type sensors. We focus on four motions, such as "Rock-Scissors-Paper" and "Neutral". "Neutral" is a state that does not do anything. In the proposed method, we apply fast Fourier transformation (FFT) to measured EMG data, and then remove a hum noise. Next, we combine values of sensors based on a Gaussian function. In this Gaussian function, variance and mean are 0.2 and 0, respectively. We then apply normalization by linear transformation to the values. Subsequently, we resize the values into the range from -1 to 1. Finally, a support vector machine (SVM) conducts learning and discrimination to classify them. We conducted experiments with seven subjects. Average of discrimination accuracy was 89.8%. In the previous method, the discrimination accuracy was 77.1%. Therefore, the proposed method is better in accuracy than the previous method. In future work, we will conduct an experiment which discriminates Japanese Janken of a subject who is not learned.

This study reports the effects of oral Aloe vera gel powder (AVGP) containing Aloe sterols on skin elasticity and the extracellular matrix in ultraviolet B (UVB)-irradiated hairless mice. Ten-week-old hairless mice were fed diets containing 0.3% AVGP for 8 weeks and irradiated UVB for 6 weeks. Mice treated with AVGP showed significant prevention of the UVB-induced decrease in skin elasticity. To investigate the mechanism underlying this suppression of skin elasticity loss, we measured the expression of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, -9, and -13. AVGP prevented both the UVB-induced increases in MMPs expressions. Moreover, we investigated hyaluronic acid (HA) content of mice dorsal skin and gene expression of HA synthase-2 (Has2). In the results, AVGP oral administration prevented UVB-induced decreasing in skin HA content and Has2 expression and attenuates the UVB-induced decrease in serum adiponectin, which promotes Has2 expression. These results suggested that AVGP has the ability to prevent the skin photoaging. AVGP has the potent anti-photoaging activity via suppressing UVB-induced overexpression of MMPs and loss of hyaluronic acid.

Este artigo apresenta um estudo de caso de aplicação do KDD (Knowledge Discovery in Databases) sobre Ordens de Serviço (OS) de informática de uma instituição hospitalar do Paraná, objetivando identificar novas práticas a serem aplicadas na gestão. Esta pesquisa surgiu da necessidade de conhecer os padrões de relacionamento entre os diversos setores do hospital com a área de informática, no que se refere à solicitação de atendimentos a problemas de Tecnologia de Informação (TI). Desta forma seria possível avaliar a atuação efetiva, do setor, bem como identificar eventuais desvios ou não conformidades. Para os experimentos foi utilizada a tarefa de classificação, sendo avaliados três métodos, possibilitando a obtenção de regras com potencial de validação por especialista. O resultado produzido neste estudo demonstrou a aplicabilidade do KDD na obtenção de conhecimento relevante para auxílio à tomada de decisão com vistas ao investimento em melhores práticas para ganho de qualidade dos serviços de TI. Dentre eles, destacam-se: o desenvolvimento de planos de ação para ajustes de inconsistências no uso da OS pelos setores para demanda de ações de TI; o estabelecimento de novos parâmetros de priorização dos atendimentos emergenciais dos setores demandantes; o ajuste, implementação e divulgação de novos de procedimentos de atendimento das OS; e em consequência o ganho de agilidade e qualidade no atendimento e a melhora no relacionamento da TI com os demais setores.

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Tanaka M, Yamamoto Y, Misawa E, et al. Clin Cosmet Investig Dermatol. 2016;9:435–442.On page 438, Figure 1, the y-axis title should have read “ΔR2 (%)” instead of “ΔR5 (%)”.On page 439, Figure 2, the y-axis title should have read “ΔR5 (%)” instead of “ΔR7 (%)”.Read the original article here.

Miyuki Tanaka,1 Yuki Yamamoto,2 Eriko Misawa,1 Kazumi Nabeshima,1 Marie Saito,1 Koji Yamauchi,1 Fumiaki Abe,1 Fukumi Furukawa2 1Functional Food Ingredients Department, Food Ingredients & Technology Institute, Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Ltd., Zama, Kanagawa, 2Department of Dermatology, Wakayama Medical University, Kimiidera, Wakayama, Japan Background/objective: Recently, it was confirmed that the daily oral intake of plant sterols of Aloe vera gel (Aloe sterol) significantly increases the skin barrier function, moisture, and elasticity in photoprotected skin. This study aimed to investigate whether Aloe sterol intake affected skin conditions following sunlight exposure in Japanese men. Methods: We performed a 12-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to evaluate the effects of oral Aloe sterol supplementation on skin conditions in 48 apparently healthy men (age range: 30–59 years; average: 45 years). The subjects were instructed to expose the measurement position of the arms to the sunlight outdoors every day for 12 weeks. The skin parameters were measured at 0 (baseline), 4, 8, and 12 weeks. Results: Depending on the time for the revelation of the sunlight, the b* value and melanin index increased and the skin moisture decreased. After taking an Aloe sterol tablet daily for 12 weeks, the skin elasticity index (R2, R5, and R7) levels were significantly higher than the baseline value. There were no differences between the groups in these skin elasticity values. In the subgroup analysis of subjects aged <46 years, the change in the R5 and R7 was significantly higher in the Aloe group than in the placebo group at 8 weeks (P=0.0412 and P=0.0410, respectively). There was a difference in the quantity of sun exposure between each subject, and an additional clinical study that standardizes the amount of ultraviolet rays is warranted. No Aloe sterol intake-dependent har

Makoto Mizuno,1,2 Kayo Kunimoto,1 Eiji Naru,2 Koichi Kameyama,2 Fukumi Furukawa,1 Yuki Yamamoto1,3 1Department of Dermatology, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama, Japan; 2Fundamental Research Laboratories, KOSÉ Corporation, Tokyo, Japan; 3Department of Cosmetic Dermatology and Photomedicine, Wakayama Medical University, Wakayama, Japan Abstract: Since photoaging of skin is caused by chronic sun exposure, it is well-recognized that regular sunscreen use can help prevent photoaging of skin in fair-skinned people. Therefore, application of sunscreen is recommended for the prevention of photoaging in many countries. However, the relationship between UV exposure and photoaging has rarely been investigated in clinical studies in Japan. In addition, there have been almost no long-term interventional studies in Japanese people. We have previously conducted a study where Japanese actinic keratosis patients were instructed to continuously apply sunscreen. The results indicated that long-term application of sunscreen is effective in suppressing actinic keratosis progression and generation. In the present study, we investigated the effects of sunscreen on photoaged skin in 14 elderly Japanese people. Skin conditions such as water content, transepidermal water loss, the number of spots, wrinkles, and skin color tone uniformity were measured and compared before and after the study. A statistically significant difference was observed only in skin surface hydration. There were large inter-individual differences in amount of sunscreen used throughout the study. The changes in the number of spots and skin color tone uniformity during the 18 months showed good correlation with amount of sunscreen being used. These results suggest an increase in the number of spots and deterioration in skin color tone uniformity in the 18-month non-sunscreen application period, and that such skin conditions improved with increasing use of sunscreen. In this study, we suggested an inhibito

In this paper we introduce a method to classify matching patterns between music and human mood using an electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis technique and considering personality. We analyse the EEG of the left prefrontal cortex by single-point sensing. The EEG recording device uses dry-type sensors. The feature vector is created by connecting the personality quantification results and the EEG features. Egograms—the Yatabe-Guilford personality inventory and a Kretschmer-type personality inventory are used to quantify personality. The EEG features are extracted using fast Fourier transform. Then, the matching patterns are classified using the k -nearest neighbour method. To show the effectiveness of the proposed method, we conduct experiments using real EEG data.

In this paper, we propose an object search method which is adapted to transformation of an object to be searched to detect lost property. Object search is divided into two types; global and local searches. We used a template matching using Genetic Algorithm (GA) in the global search. Moreover we use a random search in the local search. According to experimental results, this system can detect rough position of the object to be searched. The search accuracy obtained using the present method is 83.6%, and that of a comparative experiment using only GA is 42.1%. We have verified that our proposed method is effective for lost property detection. In the future, we need to increase search accuracy to search objects more stably. In particular, we need to improve local search.

Recognition of eye motions has attracted more and more attention of researchers all over the world in recent years. Compared with other body movements, eye motion is responsive and needs a low consumption of physical strength. In particular, for patients with severe physical disabilities, eye motion is the last spontaneous motion for them to make a respond. In order to provide an efficient means of communication for patients such as ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) who cannot move even their muscles except eye, in this paper we proposed a system that uses EOG signals and Learning Vector Quantization algorithm to recognize eye motions. According to recognition results, we use API (application programming interface) to control cursor movements. This system would be used as a means of communication to help ALS patients.

This paper introduces a method to classify the preference patterns of sounds on the basis of an electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis and a personality analysis. We analyze the EEG of the left prefrontal cortex by single-point sensing. For EEG recording, a dry-type sensor and few electrodes were used. The proposed feature extraction method employs gray relational grade detection on the frequency bands of EEG and egogram. The gray relational grade is used for extracting the EEG feature. The egogram is extracted for quantifying the subject’s personality. The preference patterns generated when the subject is hearing a sound are classified using the nearest neighbor method. To show the effectiveness of the proposed method, we conduct experiments using real EEG data. These results show that the accuracy rate of the preference classification using the proposed method is better than that using the method that does not to consider the subject’s personality.

We give a comprehensive account of our proposed experimental method of using atoms or molecules in order to measure parameters of neutrinos still undetermined; the absolute mass scale, the mass hierarchy pattern (normal or inverted), the neutrino mass type (Majorana or Dirac), and the CP violating phases including Majorana phases. There are advantages of atomic targets, due to the closeness of available atomic energies to anticipated neutrino masses, over nuclear target experiments. Disadvantage of using atomic targets, the smallness of rates, is overcome by the macro-coherent amplification mechanism. The atomic or molecular process we use is a cooperative deexcitation of a collective body of atoms in a metastable level |e> emitting a neutrino pair and a photon; |e> -> |g> + gamma + nu_i nu_j where nu_i's are neutrino mass eigenstates. The macro-coherence is developed by trigger laser irradiation. We discuss aspects of the macro-coherence development by setting up the master equation for the target quantum state and propagating electric field. With a choice of heavy target atom or molecule such as Xe or I_2 that has a large M1 x E1 matrix element between |e> and |g>, we show that one can determine three neutrino masses along with the mass hierarchy pattern by measuring the photon spectral shape. If one uses a target of available energy of a fraction of 1 eV, Majorana CP phases may be determined. Our master equation, when applied to E1 x E1 transition such as pH_2 vibrational transition Xv=1 -> 0, can describe explosive PSR events in which most of the energy stored in |e> is released within a few nanoseconds. The present paper is intended to be self-contained explaining some details related theoretical works in the past, and further reports new simulations and our ongoing experimental efforts of the project to realize the neutrino mass spectroscopy using atoms/molecules., Comment: 85 pages. Accepted for publication in Progress of Theoretical and Experimental Physics

In the field of pattern recognition, principal component analysis (PCA) is one of the most well-known feature extraction methods for reducing the dimensionality of high-dimensional datasets. Simple-PCA (SPCA), which is a faster version of PCA, performs effectively with iterative operated learning. However, SPCA might not be efficient when input data are distributed in a complex manner because it learns without using the class information in the dataset. Thus, SPCA cannot be said to be optimal from the perspective of feature extraction for classification. In this study, we propose a new learning algorithm that uses the class information in the dataset. Eigenvectors spanning the eigenspace of the dataset are produced by calculating the data variations within each class. We present our proposed algorithm and discuss the results of our experiments that used UCI datasets to compare SPCA and our proposed algorithm.

Th2-related immune and inflammatory responses have been implicated in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis (AD), but few clinical lines of evidence have been reported regarding how and whether Th2-related responses are associated with other risk factors in the treatment of AD patients. In this study, the associations between the polymorphisms of genes related to the pathophysiology of AD and the efficacy of suplatast tosilate, an oral immunemodulator known to downregulate Th2-related allergic responses, were analyzed in adult patients with chronic AD. Patients were recruited from our previous study, where suplatast tosilate was evaluated for its efficacy when used in combination with topical steroids. The genotypes of 35 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of 27 genes related to AD pathogenesis were then determined in 17 responders and 18 non-responders, as defined by the improvement rate in their AD skin scores. While no significant difference in the patient background was observed between responders and non-responders, significant associations were noted between the response to treatment with suplatast tosilate and three SNPs of IL-4 (-590C/T: P=0.04, -33C/T: P=0.04) and IL-12B (1188A/C: P=0.03), but not for the other SNPs. Of note, ethnic differences in the genotype frequencies of IL-4 -590C/T and IL-12B 1188A/C SNPs were found. In conclusion, the present results raise the possibility that AD patients who tend to produce more IL-4 and IL-12 may be susceptible to suplatast tosilate treatment and that ethnic variations should be considered to further understand the role of Th2-related responses., The Open Dermatology Journal, 6(1), pp.42-50; 2012

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We report on a possibility of measuring parity violating effects in radiative neutrino pair emission from metastable atoms; asymmetric angular distribution of emitted photons from oriented atoms and emergent circular polarization. Their observation, along with the continuous photon energy spectrum which has 6 thresholds, may be interpreted as events being a combined weak and QED process, emission of $\gamma \nu_i \nu_j$ in the final state. The method may greatly help to perform neutrino mass spectroscopy using atoms, a systematic determination of the neutrino mass matrix., Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures