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Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is often associated with metabolic disorders such as obesity and type 2 diabetes and may contribute to cardiovascular events. A novel class of antidiabetic drugs, the sodium glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) reduce body weight (BW), although there is limited data on their impact on OSAS. We therefore evaluated the effect of SGLT2i on OSAS in patients with type 2 diabetes. The presented study was a retrospective design in 18 patients with type 2 diabetes with OSAS (4 males, age range 39-81 yr) administrated a SGLT2i. HbA1c, BW, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure (BP) and apnea hypopnea index (AHI) were evaluated before and after SGLT2i administration. The relationships between the reduction in AHI and the other variables were examined using Pearson correlation analysis. We have got result that SGLT2i reduced AHI from 31.9 ± 18.0 to 18.8 ± 11.5 events per hr (p = 0.003). HbA1c, BW and BMI decreased significantly, whereas BP did not. The Pearson correlation analysis showed a significant relationship between the reduction in AHI and pre-administration of AHI. In conclusion, SGLT2i reduced not only HbA1c, BW and BMI but also AHI significantly and therefore has potential as an effective treatment of OSAS.

We implemented a 3-3-1 algorithm in order to provide safe and simple self-titration in patients who newly initiated BOT as well as who were already on BOT and evaluated its utility in clinical setting. A total of 46 patients, 21 patients in the newly-initiated group and 25 patients in the existing BOT group performed dose adjustment using 3-3-1 algorithm. HbA1c was significantly improved 4 weeks after the initiation from 8.5% ± 1.2% at baseline to 7.3% ± 0.7% at the final evaluation (p 0.01, vs. Baseline). The average daily insulin units increased throughout the study period from 10.1 ± 6.7 at baseline to 14.6 ± 8.9 units at the final evaluation. Weight didn’t significantly change throughout the study (p = 0.12). The incidents of hypoglycemia were 0.8/month during the insulin dose self-adjustment period and 0.4/month during the follow-up period. The 3-3-1 algorithm using insulin glargine provided a safe and simple dose adjustment and demonstrated its utility in patients who were newly introduced to insulin treatment as well as who were already on BOT.

We have demonstrated that the liquid/solid interfacial structure of liquid marbles is determined by the surface–interface interaction between the encapsulating particles and liquid droplet. X-ray c...

Background Angiopoietin-like protein 8 (ANGPTL8) is considered to be metabolically multifunctional. One notable function still to be elucidated definitively is a betatrophic role in protecting and preserving pancreatic beta-cell function. There is, however, a paucity of data regarding the role of ANGPTL8 in the etiology of type 2 diabetes (T2D), but some findings of human research have suggested the potential for significant involvement. Objective To examine the frequency of T2D and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) in Japanese subjects with the ANGPTL8 R59W variant. Methods ANGPTL8 R59W (Rs2278426, c.194C > T) was determined by polymerase chain reaction–restriction fragment length polymorphism using the restriction enzyme FokI in 797 consecutive Japanese individuals. Subjects with triglyceride levels greater than or equal to 150 mg/dL were considered to be hypertriglyceridemic. Results Genotype frequencies of ANGPTL8 R59W were as follows: wild-type RR (C/C) 53.5%, RW (C/T) 36.6%, and WW (T/T) 9.9%. T2D and IGT were significantly prevalent in WW and RW subjects relative to RR among all 797 subjects ( P = .0138) and also in hypertriglyceridemic subjects ( P = .0015). In multiple logistic regression models for the existence of T2D and IGT in hypertriglyceridemic subjects, the odds ratio for heterozygote RW and homozygote WW genotypes to wild-type RR was 2.406 ( P = .0017) after controlling the risk factors of age, gender, and body mass index as covariates. Conclusions The frequency of ANGPTL8 R59W is significantly higher in Japanese subjects than in other ethnic groups. The rates of T2D and IGT were greater in subjects with the R59W variant. These findings indicate that ANGPTL8 is a participant in diabetes and a potential therapeutic target for T2D prevention, especially in East Asians.

Toward the establishment and realization of medical applications accompanied with a phase change such as a drug delivery system, a formulation of the effect of mass transfer (i.e., mass flux) at the bubble-liquid interface on a ultrasound propagation process has been desired. Since a large amplitude ultrasound is utilized in such an application, the consideration of both the mass flux and the wave nonlinearity is essential. Although Fuster and Montel [J. Fluid Mech.(2015)] investigated linear wave propagation, nonlinear analysis has not been performed. In this paper, we theoretically clarify the effect of mass flux at the bubble-liquid interface on weakly nonlinear (i.e., finite but small amplitude) propagation of pressure waves in bubbly liquids. The effect of total evaporation or condensation as a mass flux across the bubble interface is taken into account as a simple classical model. Although various types of dissipation are installed, the effect of viscosity of gas inside the bubble is neglected. The set of basic equations for bubbly flows is composed of the conservation laws of mass, momentum, and energy, equation of motion for radial oscillations of bubble wall, equations of state, and so on. From the method of multiple scales, some nonlinear wave equations (e.g., KdV-Burgers equation) are derived. We then discuss the effects of mass flux on the propagation processes of nonlinear waves.

Antioxidants themselves are oxidized to prevent oxidation of other molecules. One may ask if the oxidized antioxidants are safe for humans. However, there is very little information on the toxicity of oxidized antioxidants. We previously identified cytotoxic compounds in the products from oxidation of sesamol, a potent antioxidant in sesame oil. In this study using a flow cytometer with fluorescent probes, we revealed cytotoxic characteristics of two isomeric dimers (dimer A and B) in rat thymocytes. Increase in cell lethality by dimer A was more profound than those by sesamol and dimer B. The incubation of cells with dimer A increased the populations of shrunken cells and the cells with phosphatidylserine exposed on outer surface of cell membranes. Since these phenomena are parameters for early stage of apoptosis, the results indicate that dimer A may promote the process of apoptosis. However, the population of the cells containing hypodiploid DNA, a parameter for late stage of apoptosis, was decreased by the incubation with dimer A. It was not the case for dimer B. Results indicate that dimer A may inhibit the degradation of DNA during apoptosis. Taken together, it is likely that dimer A exerts both proapoptotic action and inhibitory action on late stage of apoptosis in rat thymocytes.

Biohydrogen is expected as one of the alternative energy to fossil fuel. In this study, halotolerant photosynthetic hydrogen producing bacteria (ht-PHB) were isolated from a sediment of tideland, and hydrogen gas (H2) production by isolated ht-PHB from mixed short-chain fatty acids (SFAs) using a long-wavelength light emitting diode (LW-LED) was investigated. The isolated ht-PHB grow on a culture containing three kinds of SFAs (lactic acid, acetic acid, butyric acid) and produced H2 with their complete consumption at NaCl concentration in the 0–3% range in the light of tungsten lamp. The isolated ht-PHB was phylogenetically identified as Rhodobacter sp. KUPB1. The KUPB1 showed well growth and H2 production even under LW-LED light irradiation, indicating that LW-LED is quite useful as an energy-saving light source for photosynthetic H2 production.

Potent inhibitory activity of the leaves of Myrica rubra against both chemical and enzymatic (tyrosinase and lipoxygenase) oxidation was found in our project to develop utility of unused and rarely used plant resources in the local area. A constituent analysis of the most active ethyl acetate-soluble part of a methanol extract of the leaves clarified the structures of eight major compounds. The tyrosinase and lipoxygenase inhibitory activities and DPPH radical scavenging activity of the isolated compounds were measured as indicators of the inhibitory capacity against the enzymatic and chemical oxidation of food. The obtained data indicate that the chemical and enzymatic (lipoxygenase and tyrosinase) antioxidant activities of the leaves mainly depended on the galloyl flavonoid derivatives.

In this study, a novel acryl fiber biomass carrier (ABC) was applied for anammoxresearch in an up-flow column reactor. This material could retain anammox microorganismefficiently and the average weight of attached sludge in the bottom part of the reactor wascalculated to be 0.14 g-TSS/cm3 ABC. High removal efficiencies of ammonium, nitrite andTN were obtained at a high volumetric loading rate of 2.0 kg-TN/m3/d. Furthermore,anammox activity did not decrease significantly with decreasing temperature, e.g., whenthe temperature decreased from 33.0℃ to 26.2℃, nitrite removal efficiencies decreasedonly about 5% (from 94% to 89%). Scanning electronic microphotographs revealed thatthe microorganisms were in a compacted state when attached on the support material.Based on the analysis of 16S rDNA, two close matches of anammox bacteria, KSU-1 andKOLL2a, were detected. This material showed potential for treatment of wastewater withlow concentrations of nitrogen using a short hydraulic retention time.

The effect of conditioning for a variety of inoculums on fermentative hydrogen production was investigated. In addition, the effects of pH condition on hydrogen fermentation and bacterial community were investigated. The effect of conditioning on hydrogen production was different depending on the inoculum types. An appreciable hydrogen production was shown with anaerobic digested sludge and lake sediment without conditioning, however, no hydrogen was produced when refuse compost and kiwi grove soil were used as inoculums without conditioning. The highest hydrogen production was obtained with heat-conditioned anaerobic digested sludge, almost the same production was also obtained with unconditioned digested sludge. The pH condition considerably affected hydrogen fermentation, hydrogen gas was efficiently produced with unconditioned anaerobic sludge when the pH was controlled at 6.0 throughout the culture period and not when only the initial pH was adjusted to 6.0 and 7.0. Hydrogen production decreased when the culture pH was only adjusted at the beginning of each batch in continuous batch culture, and additionally, bacterial community varied with the change in hydrogen production. It was suggested that Clostridium and Coprothermobacter species played important role in hydrogen fermentation, and Lactobacillus species had an adverse effect on hydrogen production.

Denitrification activity behavior and bacterial community structure in a poly-β-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) embedded soil-column reactor were investigated. The influent containing nitrate (NO3-N) was applied in a downward flow. The NO3-N concentration rapidly decreased only in the middle part of the column where PHB was embedded, which indicated that the denitrification activity in the reactor was related to PHB. Influent NO3-N was effectively removed in the reactor following 60 days of continuous operation. The total number of bacteria in the lower and middle parts of the column decreased after 30 days, and then increased again after 60 days; however, the number in the upper part continuously decreased with time. The number of PHB utilizing denitrifiers increased in both the middle and lower parts with time, contributing to denitrification activity in the reactor. From the result of PCR and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE), the presence of two denitrifing and a few other bacteria were determined, and which suggested of Ralstonia related species played an important role in the denitrification capability of the reactor.

The Hippo pathway has the unique capacity to sense tissue architecture and the external forces that shape it, and dysregulation of this pathway leads to tumorigenesis. The study of mice bearing systemic or tissue-specific mutations of Hippo elements has driven huge progress in understanding this pathway’s role in normal physiology and disease. Here, we summarize how disruption of Hippo signaling relates to cancer, and we highlight the importance of this pathway as a new drug target for malignant tumors.

慢性脳血管障害患者の在宅生活に重要な要素となる安全性について行動評価形式で評価することによって，動作の安全性にかかわる要素と安全性が及ぼす影響を明らかにすることを目的とした。入院中の34例（平均年齢65.2±12.7歳）を対象に，車椅子駆動，移乗動作，歩行，トイレ動作の4動作における機能性と自己管理能力の評価を行い，理学療法士のみた安全性と比較するとともに実際の退院先との関連を調査した。さらに患者自身が感じている主観的安全性との比較，半側無視の有無による違いについても検討した。その結果，安全性は機能性よりも自己管理能力との関連が大きく，理学療法士のみた安全性が高い患者で実際に自宅退院が多くなっていた。また，PTによる安全性の評価と主観的安全性とは必ずしも相関せず，半側無視がある症例では自己の安全性を高く認識している傾向があった。以上のことから，理学療法評価においては機能性とともに自己管理能力を含んだ安全性の視点から評価を行うことの重要性が示唆された。

The functionality of spring mountain herbs, which were collected in the Kajigamori mountain area of Shikoku area in Japan, was investigated in the course of our studies for utilizing local plant resources. The radical scavenging activity of the extracts from seventeen herbs was measured. Among these herbs, two extracts from Polystichym ovato-paleaceum (Japanese name: Tsuyanashiinode) and Sambucus racemosa subsp. sieboldiana (Japanese name: Niwatoko) showed potent DPPH radical scavenging activity. The material evidence for the potent activity of the extracts was studied by a combination of our developed method for detecting antiradical compounds, LC-MS/MS, and enzymatic hydrolysis.

The antioxidative activity of secocyclolignanes was compared with that of the corresponding dibenzyl lignans for the first time. The radical scavenging activity of the secocyclolignanes was weaker than that of the corresponding dibenzyl lignans, the butane diol type showing the highest activity. The butane type of secocyclolignane exhibited the highest antioxidant activity of the unsaturated fatty acid.

Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) is a novel nitrogen pathway catalyzed by anammox bacteria which are obligate anaerobic chemoautotrophs. In this study, enrichment culture of marine anammox bacteria (MAAOB) from the samples related to seawater was conducted. Simultaneous removal of ammonium and nitrite was confirmed in continuous culture inoculated with sediment of a sea-based waste disposal site within 50 days. However, no simultaneous nitrogen removal was observed in cultures inoculated with seawater-acclimated denitrifying sludge or with muddy sediment of tideland even during 200 days. Nitrogen removal rate of 0.13 kg/m3/day was achieved at nitrogen loading rate of 0.16 kg/m3/day after 320th days in the culture inoculated with the sediment of waste disposal site. The nitrogen removal ratio between ammonium nitrogen and nitrite nitrogen was 1:1.07. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis indicated that an abundance of the bacteria close to MAAOB and coexistence of ammonium oxidizing bacteria and denitrifying bacteria in the culture.

The present study investigates the enrichment of anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) bacteria in the marine environment using sediment samples obtained from a sea-based waste disposal site and discusses the construction of marine anammox bioreactor. Enrichment of bacteria related to Candidatus Scalindua wagneri along with simultaneous removal of nitrite and ammonium ions was observed in the continuous bioreactor culture under a total nitrogen loading rate of 0.4 kg-N m − 3 day − 1 .