The aim of this paper is to investigate storing and recalling performances of embedded patterns on associative memory. The associative memory is composed of quaternionic multistate Hopfield neural ...network. The state of a neuron in the network is described by three kinds of discretized phase with fixed amplitude. These phases are set to discrete values with arbitrary divide size. Hebbian rule and projection rule are used for storing patterns to the network. Recalling performance is evaluated through storing random patterns with changing the divide size of the phases in a neuron. Color images are also embedded and their noise tolerance is explored.
Background
Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and gut microbiota have health-related effects and are associated with a wide range of disorders. However, the changes of SCFAs and their receptors after ...sleeve gastrectomy (SG) remain unclear. This study aimed to examine changes of SCFAs and their receptors after SG in an obese rat model.
Methods
Thirty obese Sprague–Dawley rats eating a high-energy diet for 6 weeks were divided into three groups: sham-operated (SO) control, pair-fed (PF) control, and SG group. Six weeks after the surgery, metabolic parameters, SCFA levels in the blood and stool, mRNA and protein expression of SCFA receptors in the ileum and epididymal fat, and gut microbiota were examined.
Results
Metabolic parameters in the SG group were significantly improved compared with the SO group. Acetic acid levels in the blood and stool were significantly higher in the SG group than the PF group. The butyric acid level in the stool was also significantly higher in the SG group than in the PF group. In the ileum and epididymal fat, mRNA and protein expression of GPR41 was significantly higher in the SG group than in the other two groups, and mRNA and protein expression of GPR43 was significantly higher in the SG group than in the PF group. Increases in the genera
Enterococcus
,
Lactobacillus
,
Lactococcus
, and
Clostridium
were observed in the stool after SG.
Conclusions
SG may activate SCFA pathways through a change in gut microbiota.
Background
There are multiple surgical procedures for resecting non-ampullary duodenal neoplasms (NADNs), and the appropriate method is selected depending on the tumor location and diagnosis. We ...herein report 3 cases of NADNs that were resected using pancreas-preserving partial duodenectomy (PPD).
Case reports
The first patient, a 73-year-old woman with a circumferential duodenal adenoma in the supra-ampullary duodenum, underwent surgery. After laparotomy, the duodenum proximal to the tumor was confirmed using intraoperative endoscopy and dissected. The duodenum distal to the tumor was dissected under direct visualization, and the specimen was removed. The distal stump of the duodenum was closed, and duodenojejunostomy was performed as described by Billroth II. The tumor was diagnosed as an adenoma 75 mm in size. She was discharged 12 days after surgery without any complications. The second patient, a 48-year-old man, was diagnosed with a neuroendocrine neoplasm (NEN) with a diameter of 14 mm in the supra-ampullary duodenum. Laparoscopic PPD was performed. He was diagnosed with NEN G1 and discharged the 11th day after surgery. The third patient, a 71-year-old man with a 0–Is + IIa lesion in the horizontal duodenum, underwent surgery. After laparotomy, the horizontal duodenum and proximal jejunum were resected, and duodenojejunostomy was performed. The patient was diagnosed with stage I adenocarcinoma and discharged on the 15th day after surgery.
Conclusion
PPD is useful for avoiding the morbidity of pancreatoduodenectomy in the management of NADNs without invasion to the ampulla of Vater or pancreas.
The Elongin complex stimulates the rate of transcription elongation by RNA polymerase II (pol II) by suppressing transient pausing of the pol II at many sites along the DNA. Elongin is composed of a ...transcriptionally active A subunit and two small regulatory B and C subunits, which can form an isolable Elongin BC subcomplex. Here, we have shown that both the ubiquitylation and proteasomal degradation of the largest subunit of pol II (Rpb1) following UV‐irradiation are significantly suppressed in Elongin A‐deficient cells; however, in both cases suppression is rescued by transfection of wild‐type Elongin A. Moreover, we have demonstrated that the Elongin A–Elongin BC complex is capable of assembling with the Cul5/Rbx2 module, and that this hetero‐pentamer complex efficiently ubiquitylates Rpb1 in vitro. Mechanistic studies indicate that colocalization of Elongin A and Cul5 in cells and the interaction of Elongin A with the Ser5‐phosphorylated form of Rpb1 are strongly enhanced following UV‐irradiation. Taken together, our results suggest that mammalian Elongin A is directly involved in ubiquitylation and degradation of Rpb1 following DNA damage.
This paper presents a mathematical model for a mechanical computer called the
Turing Tumble
. We show that our model called
Turing Tumble Model (TTM)
is computationally universal under the ...assumptions that a configuration of TTM is sufficiently large and that local interactions between elements can be transferred without limitations. The Turing Tumble has a strict constraint, based on gravity, since signals can only move from top to bottom. We introduce a uniform scheme that takes into account this restriction in directionality to construct universal machines in the TTM based on directed acyclic graphs. This model may be useful for implementing computers that exploit mechanical interactions in nature, especially those on micrometer-scales.
Previous studies have reported contrasting results regarding the advantages of spleen preservation during laparoscopic distal pancreatectomy (LDP) for preventing infectious complications.
A total of ...3787 patients who underwent LDP for benign or low-grade malignant pancreatic disease in 92 centers across Korea and Japan were included in this retrospective study. Postoperative infectious complications and other complications were compared between LDP with splenectomy (LDPS) and LDP with spleen preservation (LSPDP) by propensity score matching (PSM) analysis.
After PSM, the LSPDP group had a lower rate of overall infectious complications (P = .079) and a significantly lower rate of intra-abdominal abscess (P = .014) compared with the LDPS group. Within the LSPDP group, the vessel preservation subgroup had a significantly higher rate of infectious complications (P = .002) compared with the vessel resection subgroup. Low-volume centers had a higher rate of intra-abdominal abscess than high-volume centers in the LSPDP group (P = .001) and the splenic vessel preservation subgroup (P = .003).
Spleen preservation in LDP for benign or borderline malignant pancreatic diseases was advantageous in lowering the risk of infectious complications, specifically intra-abdominal abscess. However, the risk of intra-abdominal abscess may differ according to the level of surgeon's experience.
In this paper, a method of detecting hypertensive subjects is proposed, using retinal fundus photographs classified by convolutional neural networks (CNNs for short). The proposed method employs ...Inception-v3 model as a CNN. The data to be presented to the proposed model are prepared from retinal fundus photographs. The scheme of fine tuning is conducted to construct a discrimination model. The model specifies the photographs corresponding to the subjects being in hypertensive states. Experimental results establish that the proposed method can achieves favorable metric values. Especially, Accuracy value achieved by the proposed method is comparatively high for the small scale of dataset, compared with the previously proposed method.
Patients diagnosed with resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma often experience early recurrence even after upfront R0 resection. This study aimed to define early recurrence and identify ...preoperative risk factors for early recurrence after upfront pancreaticoduodenectomy in patients with resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreatic head.
This multicenter, retrospective study involved 500 patients who underwent pancreaticoduodenectomy resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreatic head at 10 institutions between 2007 and 2016. Preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative clinicopathological results were compared between early and non-early recurrence groups. Predictors of early recurrence were determined using statistical analyses.
Log-rank tests revealed a significant difference (P < .001) between recurrence within 3 to 6 months and 6 to 9 months. Early recurrence was subsequently defined as recurrence within 6 months. Patients were categorized into early recurrence (n = 104) and non-early recurrence groups (n = 389). The median overall survival of the early and non-early recurrence groups was 8.6 months and 42.6 months (P < .001), respectively. Preoperatively, high carbohydrate antigen 19-9 levels ≥120 U/mL, retroperitoneal invasion, and diabetes mellitus were identified as independent predictive risk factors for early recurrence according to multivariate analysis. Comparing survival rates among patients with 3, 2, 1, or none of these factors, the median overall survival was 17.6 (n = 90), 21.2 (n = 184), 47 (n = 141), and 61.5 (n = 73) months, respectively.
The optimal period that defines the early recurrence for resectable pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreatic head is 6 months. Tumor size ≥20 mm, preoperative carbohydrate antigen 19-9 levels ≥120 U/mL, retroperitoneal invasion of the tumor, and the presence of diabetes mellitus are independently associated with early recurrence.
In Japan, the number of bariatric surgeries performed has remained low. Thus, concomitant laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) with laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) is still relatively uncommon, ...but is increasing. We developed new port-sharing techniques for LC and LSG, which we performed on 26 obese Japanese patients with gall bladder (GB) diseases, using the LSG trocar arrangement and one additional trocar. We performed LC first, and after exchanging a port for a liver retractor in the epigastrium, we then completed LSG. One patient with an anomalous extrahepatic bile duct required one additional port. The mean LC time was 55 min, and the transition to LSG just after LC was smooth in all the patients. One patient suffered postoperative intraperitoneal hemorrhage, which was managed conservatively. Concomitant LC with LSG using port-sharing techniques is feasible and safe for obese Japanese patients with GB diseases.
PDF
