Evaluation of vehicle running performance on ash-covered roads.

The scale of volcanic eruptions influences the effects of wide-ranging disasters involving ashfall, such as the disruption of lifelines and paralysis of urban functions. This highlights the importance of vehicle availability on ash-covered roads for disaster management personnel involved in rescue and recovery efforts and for citizens who must evacuate or continue their social lives. We conducted tests to scientifically verify the running ability of vehicles on ash-covered roads. Results revealed that all-wheel-drive vehicles showed better running performance than two-wheel-drive vehicles, which get stuck when ashfall thickness exceeds 10 cm. Most of the vehicle's drive power is consumed as energy to scrape ash grains from under the tires, hindering sufficient propulsion. In addition, the tires sink into the ash layer, which increases driving resistance and causes the vehicle to get stuck. Running ability on ash-covered roads is mainly determined by the relation between the "drive system" of the vehicle and the "thickness of ash" on the roads. In addition, road surface conditions, including ash thickness, could change in time and space because of traffic volume and weather conditions.

[Successful eculizumab treatment for multiple coronary thrombosis complicated in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria].

We herein report a rare case of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH) who repeatedly developed coronary arterial thromboembolism. Anticoagulant therapies including heparin, aspirin as an antiplatelet agent and even drug-eluting stent placement in the coronary artery failed to prevent the recurrence of ischemic heart disease. Of note, initiating the administration of a humanized anti-C5 antibody, eculizumab, achieved prompt thrombolysis and maintenance treatment with eculizumab prevented the recurrence of thromboembolic disease in this patient. Taking these observations together, we suggest that the use of eculizumab be considered for treatment or prevention of arterial thrombosis complicated by PNH, although arterial thrombosis is an extremely rare event in the Japanese population.

[Detection of FADD gene amplification in oral leukoplakia].

UNLABELLED: The Fas-associated death domain containing protein, FADD, is an adaptor for relaying apoptotic signals. However, recent studies have shown that FADD also plays an important role in the growth and regulation of the cell cycle, and FADD gene amplifications were observed in oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). The purpose of this study was to elucidate the role of FADD in oral leukoplakia, known as potentially malignant disorder. METHODS: The gene amplifications of FADD from the fresh-frozen tissues and the formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissues of 51 patients who underwent biopsy or surgical resection of oral leukoplakia were detected: singleplex and multiplex assays were employed. RESULTS: The gene amplifications of FADD were detected in the samples of 3 patients who were diagnosed pathologically with severe epithelial dysplasia or early invasive carcinoma. CONCLUSION: Because the gene amplifications of FADD were observed in early invasive carcinoma rather than precancerous lesions, the FADD gene amplification was not useful for the predictive marker of cancerization and is possibly related to the malignancy of OSCC including metastatic potential.