In large multi-user multi-input multi-output systems, the computational cost and circuit scale of base stations (BSs) are effectively reduced using two-stage signal processing consisting of a slow ...varying outer beamformer (OBF) based on long-term channel statistics and group-specific multi-user detection for instantaneous channel variations. However, the dimensionality reduction of the group-specific beam-domain channel based on the OBF causes significant performance degradation in the subsequent spatial-filtering detection. To compensate for this drawback, this paper introduces a novel layered belief propagation (BP) detector with a concatenated structure of beam- and antenna-domain BP layers for post-stage OBF processing. The proposed detector is designed for improving the convergence of iterative detection by suppressing intra- and inter-group interference in stages. The layered structure provides the advantages of both beam and antenna domains while maintaining low signal-processing complexity. Numerical results show the validity of our proposed method in terms of the bit error rate performance in both the uncoded and coded cases and the computational complexity.
In Bacillus subtilis, a sporulation‐related gene, spsM, is disrupted by SPβ prophage, but reconstituted during sporulation through SPβ excision. The spsM reconstitution is catalyzed by a ...site‐specific DNA recombinase, SprA, and its cognate recombination directionality factor, SprB. SprB interacts with SprA, directing the SprA‐mediated recombination reaction from integration to excision; however, the details of the directionality control remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate the importance of the extreme C‐terminal region (ECT) of SprA in the DNA recombination and directionality control. We created a series of SprA C‐terminal deletants and examined their DNA‐binding and recombination activities. Deletions in the ECT caused a loss of integration and excision activity, the magnitudes of which positively correlated with the deletion size. Gel shift study revealed that the loss of the integration activity was attributable to the failure of synaptic complex formation. The excision deficiency was caused by defective interaction with SprB. Moreover, alanine scanning analysis revealed that Phe532 is essential to interact with SprB. SprAF532A, therefore, showed almost no excision activity, while retaining the integration activity. Collectively, these results suggest that the ECT plays the crucial roles in the interaction of SprA with SprB and possibly in the directional control of the recombination.
The extreme C‐terminal region (ECT) of a site‐specific DNA recombinase, SprA, from Bacillus subtilis temperate phage SPβ is required for formation of synaptic complex (SprA tetramer containing DNA targets) during recombination. Moreover, Phe532 residue is essential to interact with its cognate recombination directionality factor, SprB, which is required for phage excision.
Hypoxia is a long-standing environmental problem in coastal areas worldwide, but technical and economic difficulties impede accurate and continuous spatiotemporal monitoring. This study aims to ...monitor seasonal hypoxia dynamics at high-resolution by developing a novel capacitive potentiometric sensor. The underlying hypothesis of this study was that (1) the capacitive carbon electrode charges redox energy and creates an overvoltage; (2) the overvoltage reflects the redox energy as an amplified signal. A viability of the capacitive potentiometric sensor for seasonal hypoxia was investigated from summer to autumn in Fukuyama inner bay, Japan. The study area was a brackish water with strong stratification of upper fresh water and lower saline water. In the water surface, which is a redox-equilibrium environment, the capacitive potential increased to 0.7 V with overvoltage, which corresponds to amplifying the redox energy of dissolved oxygen by 35 times. In contrast, in the bottom layer, the capacitive potential responded in a Nernstian manner, confirming that diffusion of hydrogen sulfide was the direct cause of the hypoxic water mass in the bottom of the study area. The vertical discontinuity layer of the redox reactions was defined as 0.05 V of the capacitive potential. This threshold value intuitively illustrates the spatiotemporal dynamics of the seasonal hypoxia. A principal component analysis confirmed that dissolved oxygen concentration was a major determinant of the capacitive potential. Furthermore, this novel potentiometric sensor overcomes the limitations of conventional redox potential sensors, which fail to capture weakly poised redox couples. The capacitive potential exhibited that the stratification protected environments for photosynthesis (surface water temperature and aerobic condition), thus regularly supplies dissolved oxygen to seabed with tide and suppressed full-depth hypoxia. In conclusion, the capacitive potential provides spatiotemporal information on the chemical activity of dissolved oxygen, which is a novel approach to elucidate the mechanisms of hypoxia dynamics.
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•A method for sensing hypoxic water mass with capacitive potentiometric sensor (CPS).•CPS amplifies signals for redox activity of dissolved oxygen by 35-fold.•CPS provides high-resolution data on spatiotemporal thermodynamic distribution.•Threshold signal of 0.05 V illustrates diffusion range of bottom hypoxic water mass.•The significance of CPS as a water quality indicator is discussed.
In the knee joint, articular cartilage injury can often lead to osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK). Currently, no point-of-care treatment can completely address OAK symptoms and regenerate articular ...cartilage to restore original functions. While various cell-based therapies are being developed to address OAK, exosomes containing various components derived from their cells of origin have attracted attention as a cell-free alternative. The potential for exosomes as a novel point-of-care treatment for OAK has been studied extensively, especially in the context of intra-articular treatments. Specific exosomal microRNAs have been identified as possibly effective in treating cartilage defects. Additionally, exosomes have been studied as biomarkers through their differences in body fluid composition between joint disease patients and healthy subjects. Exosomes themselves can be utilized as a drug delivery system through their manipulation and encapsulation of specific contents to be delivered to specific cells. Through the combination of exosomes with tissue engineering, novel sustained release drug delivery systems are being developed. On the other hand, many of the functions and activities of exosomes are unknown and challenges remain for clinical applications. In this review, the possibilities of intra-articular treatments utilizing exosomes and the challenges in using exosomes in therapy are discussed.
The oral administration of pure monosaccharides is effective for improving intestinal function such as nutrient digestion and absorption. However, day-to-day diets tend not to include high purity ...monosaccharides for intestinal health. Honey possesses large amounts of monosaccharides including glucose and fructose in the same ratio. In this study, we have evaluated the nutritional properties of honey and examined the effects of its oral ingestion on the recovery of intestinal function in the total parenteral nutrition (TPN) rat model. It was observed that honey remarkably recovered the function of the small intestine including the villous morphology, nutrient digestion, and absorption capabilities. In particular, the expression of disaccharidase was significantly enhanced by the ingestion of honey after TPN treatment. Therefore, oral intake of honey is effective in recovering and maintaining small intestinal functions and can potentially be used as a supplement for promoting small intestinal function recovery.
Angiogenesis and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) are involved in osteoarthritis (OA). We previously reported the inhibitory effect of bevacizumab in a rabbit model of OA. In the current ...study, we investigated the effects of lenvatinib, an angiogenesis inhibitor targeting the VEGF and fibroblast growth factor receptors, on synovitis, osteophyte formation, and cartilage degeneration in a rabbit OA model. Posttraumatic OA was induced by anterior cruciate ligament transection (ACLT) on one knee of each rabbit. Rabbits were placed into four groups according to the following lenvatinib doses: untreated control (n = 12), L0.3: 0.3 mg/kg/day (n = 15), L1.0: 1.0 mg/kg/day (n = 14), and L3.0: 3.0 mg/kg/day (n = 13) groups. We evaluated limb pain using the weight distribution ratio measured with an incapacitance tester, macroscopic osteophyte formation, and femoral condyle synovium and cartilage histology. For cartilage evaluation, the following distal sites of the femur were evaluated separately: femoral–tibial (FT), femoral–patellar (FP), and femoral corner (between FP and FT). The weight distribution ratio at 12 weeks after surgery was higher in the L0.3 and L1.0 groups than in the control group. Osteophyte formation and synovitis scores were significantly lower in the L0.3, L1.0, and L3.0 groups than in the control group. The Osteoarthritis Research Society International scores of the FT, corner, and FP sites in the L0.3 group were lower than in the control group. The cartilage thickness ratio at the FT and corner sites was significantly lower in the L0.3 group than in the control group. Krenn’s grading system of cartilage synovitis showed that all lenvatinib-administered groups had significantly lower scores than the control group. MMP3 expression level in cartilage tissue was significantly lower in the L3.0 group compared with the other three groups. ADAMTS5 expression was lower in the L3.0 group compared with the control and L0.3 groups. Oral administration of lenvatinib inhibited synovitis, osteophyte formation, and cartilage degeneration and reduced pain in a rabbit ACLT model. Lenvatinib is an oral VEGF inhibitor that is easier to administer than other VEGF inhibitors and may have potential as a treatment of posttraumatic OA.
Patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) exhibit balance deficits. Although only a few studies have evaluated the relationship between the brain images and balance ...indices. In this study, we measured balance indices, including the index of postural stability (IPS) and assessed the relationship between the brain images and their clinical motor and cognitive functional features.
The study included patients with MCI (N = 14) and patients with AD (N = 19). The primary outcome was IPS under a visual block condition and/or a proprioception block condition. In addition, 9 MCI and 8 AD patients underwent a 1.5-Tesla (1.5-T) Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan, and the relationships between the MRI parameters and the balance indices were evaluated.
The IPS score was significantly lower in the AD group than the MCI group, but only under the closed eyes/hard surface condition. In terms of MRI, there was a significant positive correlation between the IPS and the regional betweenness centrality in the left hippocampal region.
The finding of a significantly lower IPS score under the closed eyes/hard surface condition in AD than in MCI cases suggests that the vestibular and/or proprioceptive systems were more severely impaired in AD than MCI cases. The results suggest that a dynamic balance disturbance due to deficits of the vestibular hippocampal pathway may be a useful marker for the diagnosis of MCI and detection of disease progression from MCI to AD.
•We showed balance deficit in patients with Alzheimer's disease•There was a positive correlation between balance index and cognitive function•Balance index under closed eyes was associated with network in hippocampal region•Balance deficit may be an effect of impaired vestibular-hippocampal pathway
Introduction: There have been numerous reports of cluster outbreaks of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in hospitals and nursing homes. Healthcare workers fighting COVID-19 experience mental ...health issues. Caregivers in nursing homes experienced increased psychological distress and concern about deterioration of their mental health. We conducted a large-scale web-based survey exploring mental health among caregivers working in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic with the aim of identifying their support needs. Methods: Survey participants were caregivers working at 284 nursing homes in Ibaraki prefecture, Japan. The survey period was from September 2020 to March 2021. Participants responded to a questionnaire covering gender, age, occupation, infections at facilities, infection protection, changes in nursing home users, cooperation with other medical institutions, and prejudice/discrimination. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used to evaluate participants’ depression and anxiety. Results: In total, 676 participants completed the survey; 350 (52.5%) were with anxiety symptoms and 378 (56.7%) were with depressive symptoms (scores exceeding the HADS cut-off points). The risk for anxiety was associated with being care worker or social worker. The risk of anxiety or depression was high when family caregivers’ mental state changed. Discussion/Conclusion: This study found that caregivers working in nursing homes were exposed to high levels of stress during the COVID-19 pandemic and were at high risk for developing depression and anxiety.
Abstract
Background
Cartilage degeneration is assessed using various methods. Although macroscopic evaluation can directly measure cartilage degeneration, it cannot accurately assess cartilage ...properties. Histological examination is one of the most accurate methods for evaluating cartilage degeneration. However, it is invasive and requires collection of cartilage tissue. In contrast, the Arthro-BST™ probe can assess cartilage properties noninvasively. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the Arthro-BST in assessing cartilage degeneration by comparing macroscopic (International Cartilage Repair Society ICRS classification) and histological evaluations (modified Mankin score and Osteoarthritis Research Society International OARSI histological grade).
Methods
Fourteen femoral heads were excised from 13 patients during surgery to treat hip osteoarthritis or femoral fracture. The ICRS score was used for macroscopic evaluation of cartilage degeneration. The Arthro-BST was applied at sites matching the areas of cartilage damage. The sites assessed using the ICRS classification and Arthro-BST were evaluated histologically (modified Mankin score and OARSI histological grade), and these were compared with the Arthro-BST results.
Results
The ICRS classification identified significant differences between grades 1 and 3 (
p
< 0.01), between grades 1 and 4 (
p
< 0.01), between grades 2 and 3 (
p
< 0.01), and between grades 2 and 4 (
p
< 0.01). Significant correlations were observed between the Arthro-BST results and the ICRS score, modified Mankin score (structure, cellularity, matrix staining, total score), and OARSI histological grade.
Conclusions
In the assessment of hip osteoarthritis, the Arthro-BST results correlated with those of macroscopic and histological evaluations. The Arthro-BST is useful for assessing hip osteoarthritis and may be helpful for noninvasive assessment of cartilage degeneration.
We propose a novel look-up table (LUT)-based multi-user detection (MUD) algorithm to imitate approximate message passing (AMP) for uplink signal detection in massive multi-user multi-input ...multi-output (MU-MIMO) systems. When AMP is implemented with double-precision arithmetic, the dramatic increase in power consumption and process latency becomes a major barrier to practical application, as the system scale expands. To circumvent this issue, we design a novel referential AMP detector composed of many small LUTs cascaded hierarchically, where only informative integer-valued messages are exchanged on a factor graph (FG). Our method tracks the discrete distribution of the LUT outputs according to the multi-layer structure, and successively determines non-uniform quantization thresholds of the LUTs, using an unsupervised learning approach. Specifically, the thresholds at each level of the hierarchy, i.e ., layer, are optimized by clustering with the Lloyd-Max algorithm with initial values given by the k-means++ method, in order to minimize the performance degradation caused by quantization errors. The efficacy of the proposed referential AMP detector is confirmed by numerical simulations, which show that the proposed method significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art (SotA) in terms of the bit error rate (BER) performance in various channel models. The results also indicate the referential AMP is robust to changes in wireless channels, and then clarify the reason in terms of the algorithmic structure.
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