High Levels of the Cleaved Form of Galectin-9 and Osteopontin in the Plasma Are Associated with Inflammatory Markers That Reflect the Severity of COVID-19 Pneumonia

Numbers of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) have increased rapidly worldwide. Plasma levels of full-length galectin-9 (FL-Gal9) and osteopontin (FL-OPN) as well as their truncated forms (Tr-Gal9, Ud-OPN, respectively), are representative inflammatory biomarkers. Here, we measured FL-Gal9, FL-OPN, Tr-Gal9, and Ud-OPN in 94 plasma samples obtained from 23 COVID-19-infected patients with mild clinical symptoms (CV), 25 COVID-19 patients associated with pneumonia (CP), and 14 patients with bacterial infection (ID). The four proteins were significantly elevated in the CP group when compared with healthy individuals. ROC analysis between the CV and CP groups showed that C-reactive protein had the highest ability to differentiate, followed by Tr-Gal9 and ferritin. Spearman’s correlation analysis showed that Tr-Gal9 and Ud-OPN but not FL-Gal9 and FL-OPN, had a significant association with laboratory markers for lung function, inflammation, coagulopathy, and kidney function in CP patients. CP patients treated with tocilizumab had reduced levels of FL-Gal9, Tr-Gal9, and Ud-OPN. It was suggested that OPN is cleaved by interleukin-6-dependent proteases. These findings suggest that the cleaved forms of OPN and galectin-9 can be used to monitor the severity of pathological inflammation and the therapeutic effects of tocilizumab in CP patients.     

A Novel LRRK2 Variant p.G2294R in the WD40 Domain Identified in Familial Parkinson’s Disease Affects LRRK2 Protein Levels

Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) is a major causative gene of late-onset familial Parkinson’s disease (PD). The suppression of kinase activity is believed to confer neuroprotection, as most pathogenic variants of LRRK2 associated with PD exhibit increased kinase activity. We herein report a novel LRRK2 variant—p.G2294R—located in the WD40 domain, detected through targeted gene-panel screening in a patient with familial PD. The proband showed late-onset Parkinsonism with dysautonomia and a good response to levodopa, without cognitive decline or psychosis. Cultured cell experiments revealed that p.G2294R is highly destabilized at the protein level. The LRRK2 p.G2294R protein expression was upregulated in the patient’s peripheral blood lymphocytes. However, macrophages differentiated from the same peripheral blood showed decreased LRRK2 protein levels. Moreover, our experiment indicated reduced phagocytic activity in the pathogenic yeasts and α-synuclein fibrils. This PD case presents an example wherein the decrease in LRRK2 activity did not act in a neuroprotective manner. Further investigations are needed in order to elucidate the relationship between LRRK2 expression in the central nervous system and the pathogenesis caused by altered LRRK2 activity.     

Broadband bowtie belt nanoantennas

In this article, we study a linear array of bowtie nanoantennas placed between two metallic strips that can work from 800 to 1420 nm (600 nm linewidth), with an electric field enhancement factor close to 20. We study the dynamical change of the position of the electric field enhancement amongst different elements in the array and, at the same time, the effects of dispersion on the scalability of the array elements. A systematic analysis and methodology to produce an array that can operate over a large bandwidth whilst maintaining the electric field enhancement without significant variation is provided.     

Suppressed Lattice Disorder for Large Emission Enhancement and Structural Robustness in Hybrid Lead Iodide Perovskite Discovered by High-Pressure Isotope Effect

The soft nature of organic–inorganic halide perovskites renders their lattice particularly tunable to external stimuli such as pressure, undoubtedly offering an effective way to modify their structure for extraordinary optoelectronic properties. Here, using the methylammonium lead iodide as a representative exploratory platform, it is observed that the pressure-driven lattice disorder can be significantly suppressed via hydrogen isotope effect, which is crucial for better optical and mechanical properties previously unattainable. By a comprehensive in situ neutron/synchrotron-based analysis and optical characterizations, a remarkable photoluminescence (PL) enhancement by threefold is convinced in deuterated CD₃ND₃PbI₃, which also shows much greater structural robustness with retainable PL after high peak-pressure compression–decompression cycle. With the first-principles calculations, an atomic level understanding of the strong correlation among the organic sublattice and lead iodide octahedral framework and structural photonics is proposed, where the less dynamic CD₃ND₃⁺ cations are vital to maintain the long-range crystalline order through steric and Coulombic interactions. These results also show that CD₃ND₃PbI₃-based solar cell has comparable photovoltaic performance as CH₃NH₃PbI₃-based device but exhibits considerably slower degradation behavior, thus representing a paradigm by suggesting isotope-functionalized perovskite materials for better materials-by-design and more stable photovoltaic application.     

Mechanical role of reinforcement in seismic behavior of steel-strip reinforced earth wall

In the current design practices of steel-strip reinforced earth walls (SSREWs), the length of the reinforcing material is determined based on the equilibrium between the reinforcement tension and the earth pressure acting on the wall. Here, the resistance of the reinforcing material laid in the active failure zone (AFZ) is not considered. Moreover, the mechanical role of the reinforcing material against the integrity of the SSREW has not been sufficiently verified. Regarding the seismic stability of SSREW, although it is investigated by treating the entire reinforced earth wall as a rigid body, this inspection method is for gravity-retaining walls, and the difference in the seismic behavior between the SSREW and the rigid body is not clear. In this study, therefore, dynamic centrifuge model tests on 6 types of SSREWs were conducted to clarify the following items: (1) the basic earthquake behavior of a SSREW, (2) the mechanical role of the reinforcing material laid in the AFZ and (3) the mechanical role of the reinforcing material against the integrity of the SSREW. The results indicated that the reinforcing material laid in the AFZ can restrain the amount of deformation of the wall during earthquakes. Furthermore, the more stable the AFZ is, the smaller the maximum wall displacement will be.     

Quantitative analysis of α-mangostin in hydrophilic ointment using near-infrared spectroscopy

The objective of this research was to quantify the α-mangostin content in mangosteen pericarp (MP) ointment as a colloidal dispersion using near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Various concentrations of MP (IP and EP) ointments containing both internal and external pericarps were prepared and the NIR spectra of these ointments were measured. The NIR spectrum of each ointment was correlated with α-mangostin concentration by partial least square (PLS) regression. Validation of the models was performed and their predictive ability was also investigated. The equation and R² value for the prediction of α-mangostin concentration in IP ointment were y?=?0.9843x?+?0.4441 and 0.9730 and those in EP ointment were y?=?0.9569x?+?0.1142 and 0.9136, respectively. The biases of the IP and EP ointment models were 0.23 and 0.00, respectively. The results showed that NIR could be a useful tool for the quality control of herbal medicine in hydrophilic ointment without any sample preparation. It could predict α-mangostin content in hydrophilic ointment at very low concentration with sufficient accuracy.     

Stimulation of THP-1 Macrophages with LPS Increased the Production of Osteopontin-Encapsulating Exosome

Osteopontin (OPN) mediates bone remodeling and tissue debridement. The OPN protein is cleaved, but it is unclear how full-length (FL)-OPN or its cleaved form perform their biological activities in target cells. We, therefore, performed the molecular characterization of OPN in exosomes (Exo). The Exo were isolated from lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA)-differentiated THP-1 macrophages. The Exo were also isolated from PMA-differentiated THP-1 macrophages. The Exo were identified using the qNano multiple analyzer (diameter 59–315 nm) and western blotting with a CD9 antibody. LPS-stimulated cells produced more particles than non-stimulated cells. The presence of the FL or the cleaved form of OPN was confirmed using western blot analysis. A mixture of FL and cleaved OPN was also measured using an ELISA system (Ud-OPN) and their presence in the Exo was confirmed. Ud/FL ratios became low after LPS stimulation, indicating the enhanced encapsulation of FL-OPN in the Exo by LPS. These findings suggest that LPS stimulation of human macrophages facilitates the synthesis of FL-OPN, which is cleaved in cells or the Exo after release. These findings indicate that Exo is a suitable vehicle to transfer OPN to the target cells.     

Te concentration dependent photoemission and inverse-photoemission study of FeSe1?xTex

We have characterized the electronic structure of FeSe_1−xTe_x for various x values using soft x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (SXPES), high-resolution photoemission spectroscopy (HRPES) and inverse photoemission spectroscopy (IPES). The SXPES valence band spectral shape shows that the 2 eV feature in FeSe, which was ascribed to the lower Hubbard band in previous theoretical studies, becomes less prominent with increasing x. HRPES exhibits systematic x dependence of the structure near the Fermi level (E_F): its splitting near E_F and filling of the pseudogap in FeSe. IPES shows two features, near E_F and approximately 6 eV above E_F; the former may be related to the Fe 3d states hybridized with chalcogenide p states, while the latter may consist of plane-wave-like and Se d components. In the incident electron energy dependence of IPES, the density of states near E_F for FeSe and FeTe has the Fano lineshape characteristic of resonant behavior. These compounds exhibit different resonance profiles, which may reflect the differences in their electronic structures. By combining the PES and IPES data the on-site Coulomb energy was estimated at 3.5 eV for FeSe.     

The evaluation of the emotion by near-infrared spectroscopy

Our purpose is to develop the technology for evaluating emotion objectively from the oxygenated hemoglobin within a brain. Nowadays, Japan is an aging society. The elderly people who need care will increase from now on increasingly. In the case of the person requiring the care who lost the function to convey an intention especially, the objective judgment to a physical and mental pain is required. Persons requiring care will also increase in number with the increase in this population. We gave subject stimulus of a comfortable or an uncomfortable sound and measured concentration of the oxygenated hemoglobin of a frontal lobe part by near-infrared spectroscopy. Based on the experimental result, a comfortable state or an uncomfortable state was distinguished by concentration of the oxygenated hemoglobin using the bayesian network. As a result, we were able to estimate the subject’s psychological condition.