Influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on children with autism spectrum disorder and their mothers in Japan.

Background and aims: Research on the psychological impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has highlighted its negative and positive effects on children with autism spectrum disorder and their families. However, little is known about the neutral effects that remain the same, even in particular circumstances, and how children with autism spectrum disorder and their parents perceive each other. We explored how children with autism spectrum disorder and their mothers perceived and experienced the pandemic in Japan. Methods: A mixed-methods design was employed. Thirteen children with autism spectrum disorder and 12 mothers participated. Data were collected through online semi-structured interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. Similarities and differences in perceptions were compared. Results: The results revealed six broad themes and 27 categories. Regarding neutral effects, some mothers reported no substantial impact because there were no changes in their jobs or other dramatic life changes. In addition, some children were not affected because they had had no social contact before the pandemic or because their lives had not changed dramatically. Regarding the perceptions of children/mothers, most expressed that they/their children enjoyed spending time with their families. At home, mothers made various efforts to interact with their children. However, mothers and children differed in their perceptions, such as regarding the emergence of anxiety about conducting school events and the resolution of study-related concerns. Conclusions: There were negative, neutral, and positive effects on both children with autism spectrum disorder and their mothers; specifically, they were striving to move forward to overcome the problems posed by the pandemic. Both parties tapped into their resilience by enhancing family interactions, such as cooking together or discussing children's interests. Implications: These findings have important implications for developing more creative solutions to the challenges of coping and resilience in future crises.

Improving the Use of Deictic Verbs in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Background: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show difficulty in comprehension and production of the deictic verbs "come/go." Objective: To examine whether introducing conditions related to daily conversations into training would improve the use of deictic verbs. Methods: Six Japanese children with ASD participated. We set up multiple scenes where the questioner presented the sentence using "come/go" with/without deictic gestures, and children with ASD replied with "come/go." The conditions such as spatial relations between the two parties (face-to-face or side-by-side) and presentations of the gestures (moving one's arm toward or away from the body or moving one's upper body forward/backward) were introduced. Results: The appropriate use of deictic verbs during training and in daily life situations among children with ASD increased. Conclusions: Training children with ASD to look in the direction indicated by the questioner and to synchronize their bodies with the questioner's movements promotes their acquisition of deictic verbs.

Preparation of yellowish-red Al-substituted α-Fe2O3 powders and their thermostability in color.

Inspired by the traditional Japanese pigment Fukiya bengala, nanocomposite materials were synthesized using a polymer complex method, comprising Al-substituted α-Fe2O3 (hematite) particles with diameters ranging from 40 to 100 nm and ultrafine Fe-substituted α-Al2O3 (corundum) particles smaller than 10 nm in diameter. The obtained powders exhibited a vivid yellowish-red color and high thermostability, making them attractive as potential overglaze enamels on porcelain. Quantitative color measurements revealed that, when heated to 700, 800, and 900 °C, samples displayed high lightness (L*) and color-opponent dimensions (a* and b*) at 10 mol % Al. For the same particle size samples, L*, a*, and b* values increased with the Al molar ratio, revealing that Al substitution in the hematite structure intrinsically enhances lightness and chroma in hematite color. These samples mostly retained their color upon reheating at 900 °C, indicating their high thermostability. This thermostability should originate from the Al substitution-induced enhancement in lightness and chroma in hematite color, which should counter color fading caused by particle growth. These composite materials are expected to find application in the porcelain industry, cosmetics, and nanotechnology.

Zoledronic acid improves clinical outcomes in patients with bone metastatic hormone-naïve prostate cancer in a multicenter clinical trial.

AIM: To assess whether zoledronic acid (ZOL) adds to the effect of combined androgen blockade (CAB) in patients with hormone-naive bone metastatic prostate cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients were treated with either a combination of CAB (luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist and bicalutamide) and ZOL (CAB-Z group) or CAB-alone (historical control patients, CAB-C group). ZOL was injected intravenously at 4 mg every 4 weeks. One hundred and five and 100 patients among 205 enrolled patients were assigned to the CAB-Z group and CAB-C group, respectively. The time to prostate-specific antigen (PSA) failure in patients in the CAB-Z group was compared to that in the CAB-C group. The primary end-point of the study was the time-to-PSA failure. RESULTS: PSA and serum N-telopeptide of type I collagen (NTx) levels were examined before treatment and every 3 months after treatment. PSA failure occurred in 42 (40.0%) patients in the CAB-Z group and 48 (48.0%) patients in the CAB-C group. The biochemical recurrence-free rate was significantly lower in patients in the CAB-C group (p=0.004, by log-rank test). The categorical biopsy Gleason score pre-treatment serum NTx and treatment with ZOL were shown to be independent predictors of PSA failure-free survival time (p=0.040, p=0.005 and p=0.026, respectively). CONCLUSION: ZOL given with CAB as initial treatment delays the time-to-PSA failure in patients with hormone-naive bone metastatic prostate cancer.

Hepatocyte growth factor fusion protein having collagen-binding activity (CBD-HGF) accelerates re-endothelialization and intimal hyperplasia in balloon-injured rat carotid artery.

AIM: Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is known to stimulate endothelial cell proliferation. However, re-endothelialization is not enhanced when the native protein is administered to the injured artery, probably due to the short half-life of HGF at the site of injury. Therefore, the effects of an HGF fusion protein having collagen-binding activity (CBD-HGF) on re-endothelialization and neointimal formation was studied in the balloon-injured rat carotid artery. METHODS: The left common carotid artery of male Sprague-Dawley rats was injured with an inflated balloon catheter, and then treated with CBD-HGF 10 microg/mL), HGF (10 micro g/mL) or saline (control) for 15 min. After 14 days, the rats were injected with Evans blue and sacrificed. RESULTS: The re-endothelialized area was significantly greater in the CBD-HGF- treated rats than in the control or HGF -treated rats. Neointimal formation was significantly more pronounced in the CBD-HGF treated rats than in other rat groups. Both HGF and CBD-HGF stimulated proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells as well as endothelial cells in vitro. Consistent with this, cultured smooth muscle cells were shown to express the HGF receptor (c-Met). CONCLUSION: CBD-HGF accelerates re-endothelialization and neointimal formation in vivo. CBD fusion protein is a useful vehicle to deliver vascular growth factors to injured arteries.

Hyperbaric oxygen induces basic fibroblast growth factor and hepatocyte growth factor expression, and enhances blood perfusion and muscle regeneration in mouse ischemic hind limbs.

BACKGROUND: It is not clear how hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) affects ischemia-induced pathophysiological responses such as angiogenesis and skeletal muscle regeneration. In the present study the effects of HBO on the functional and morphological recovery of ischemic hind limbs, blood perfusion and the local production of angiogenic growth factors were studied in a mouse model. METHODS AND RESULTS: Mice were placed in pure oxygen under 3 atm for 1 h/day for 14 days after the removal of a segment of the left femoral artery. HBO-treated mice showed better functional recovery and greater blood flow in the ischemic hind limb than untreated mice. Histological examination revealed unatrophied muscle fibers with islands of small regenerating muscle cells only in HBO-treated mice. Regeneration of muscle was confirmed by the increase in myf5 mRNA. The amount of mRNA for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) was slightly increased in the ischemic hind limbs. HBO eliminated the increase in VEGF mRNA. In contrast, the amount of mRNA for bFGF and HGF was further increased by HBO treatment. HBO transiently increased early growth response protein 1 (Egr-1) in the ischemic hind limbs. CONCLUSIONS: HBO accelerates the recovery of ischemic hind limbs by increasing the production of bFGF and HGF and by promoting muscle regeneration in mice.

High glucose concentrations impair the activation of K+ channels and proteases in undifferentiated THP-1 monocytes.

Transient alkalization caused by activation of the BK(Ca) channels has been reported to be essential for the activation of proteolytic enzymes and bacterial killing in the leukocytic phagosomes. We investigated the effects of high glucose concentrations on these processes in THP-1 cells. While E. coli transiently raised the pH of the phagosomes in THP-1 monocytes, high glucose concentrations impaired the transient rise of pH in a dose-and time-dependent manner. Electrophysiological studies confirmed that the bacteria elicited a transient K+ current, and that a high glucose concentration diminished the current. High glucose concentrations also inhibited the activation of cathepsin G in the THP-1 cells. NS1619, a BK(Ca) channel opener, accentuated the transient alkalization induced by the bacteria, and reversed the inhibitory effect of high concentrations of glucose. However, electrophysiological study revealed that the membrane current differed from the BK(Ca) current. Our findings indicate that high glucose concentrations impair K+ channel activation and the subsequent activation of proteolytic enzymes in THP-1 monocytes. The precise identity of the K+ channel remains unclear, although it dose not appear to be the BK(Ca). Suppression of the transient alkalization and activation of proteases may be one of the mechanisms for bacterial killing by phagocytes in diabetic patients.

Aqueous foam stabilized by dispersed surfactant solid and lamellar liquid crystalline phase.

Foaming properties of dilute aqueous solutions of pentaglycerol monostearate (C(18)G(5)) and pentaglycerol monooleate (C(18:1)G(5)) have been studied at 25 degrees C. The aqueous C(18)G(5) system formed highly persistent foams, which did not rupture for several days. Foamability and foam stability were increased on increasing the surfactant concentration in both C(18)G(5) and C(18:1)G(5) systems. The C(18:1)G(5)/water system showed lower foam stability compared to the C(18)G(5)/water system. Aqueous phase behavior of the C(18)G(5) and C(18:1)G(5) systems showed the dispersion of alpha-solid and L(alpha) phase respectively in water rich region at 25 degrees C. Stable foam in the C(18)G(5)/water system was mainly due to the finely dispersed small surfactant solid particles. The average particles diameter of alpha-solid and L(alpha) dispersion is found less than 1 mum and it decreases with increasing surfactant concentration. There is no appreciable difference in the particle size of the alpha-solid and L(alpha) dispersion; however, the foam stability differs largely. Foam stabilized by lamellar liquid crystal dispersion in C(18:1)G(5)/water system, is less stable compared to the foam stabilized by the surfactant solid dispersion in C(18)G(5)/water system. The foamability and foam stability of the surfactant systems show poor correlation with the dynamic surface tension properties.