Hokkaido Bunkyo University

Assessing pain and functional impairment in individuals with haemophilia is crucial for understanding disease burden and optimizing care. This study assess the relationship between pain and functional impairment in young patients with hemophilia. This cross-sectional study involved 273 participants conveniently selected from different tertiary-level hospitals in various areas of Bangladesh. A structured questionnaire was used to assess socio-demographic and clinical information. The primary outcome was pain measured by the Brief Pain Inventory v2 Short Form and functional impairment by EQ-5D- 5 L with a visual analogue scale. The study of 184 Haemophilia A and 89 Haemophilia B Young patients revealed similar demographics, with mean ages of 22.5 ± 6.8 and 23.2 ± 7.1 years, respectively, and over 95% male. Pain assessments revealed minimal discomfort for most, with the hips being the least affected (77–78% reported no pain), while the right elbow and knee reported the most pain (38.6% reported no pain). Functionally, self-care was least impaired (81%, had no issues), but mobility and usual activities showed moderate challenges. A strong correlation (r = 0.731, 0.703) linked higher pain/discomfort with increased pain severity and interference, both significant (p < 0.05). This study reveals that young males with Haemophilia A and B in Bangladesh experience varying degrees of pain and functional impairment, with the elbows and knees being the most commonly affected joints. Although a high rate of unemployment was observed; likely reflecting physical limitations and socioeconomic barriers; self-care abilities remained largely intact, suggesting that basic daily tasks are still manageable for most individuals. In contrast, mobility challenges were more prevalent, indicating that while participants may be capable of managing personal care, they face greater difficulty with physically demanding activities such as walking or commuting. The strong correlation between pain severity and functional interference further underscores the need for targeted interventions, including joint protection strategies, pain management, and vocational rehabilitation, to improve both functional outcomes and quality of life.

In this study, a questionnaire was used to identify the components of place engagement and structural characteristics. Factor analysis revealed that place engagement consists of “Community Involvement and Contribution Orientation Factor” and “Place Attachment and Orientation Toward Unity Factor.” In addition, latent variables extracted from the results of the factor analysis were analyzed using a structural analysis of covariance. The results revealed the following:

The marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum contains a diverse range of structurally unique bioactive compounds, such as eicosapentaenoic acid-enriched sulfoquinovosyldiacylglycerol (EPA-SQDG). The present study aimed to elucidate the anti-inflammatory role and the underlying mechanisms of EPA-SQDG in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. The results demonstrated that EPA-SQDG dose-dependently suppressed LPS-induced overexpression of pro-inflammatory molecules in RAW264.7 macrophages, including NO, iNOS, COX-2, TNF- α , IL-1 β , and IL-6. Additionally, EPA-SQDG notably blocked LPS-induced degradation of I κ B α and nuclear translocation of NF- κ B. Moreover, EPA-SQDG markedly inhibited the phosphorylation of ERK 1/2, JNK, and p38 MAPKs. Furthermore, EPA-SQDG significantly reduced the intracellular ROS generation, and enhanced the nuclear Nrf2 protein levels, and HO-1 expression in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. These findings collectively suggest that EPA-SQDG exerts potent anti-inflammatory effect through coordinated modulation the NF- κ B, MAPKs, and Nrf2/HO-1 signaling pathways, highlighting its potential as a functional ingredient for prevention and treatment of inflammatory diseases. • Marine diatom P. tricornutum biosynthesizes EPA-SQDG. • EPA-SQDG combats inflammation LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. • EPA-SQDG suppresses NF- κ B and MAPK signaling pathways. • EPA-SQDG activates Nrf-2/HO-1 antioxidant defense system.

The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between vertical ground reaction force (VGRF) and acceleration from wearable inertial measurement units (IMUs) during single-leg drop landing after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR). Twenty-six participants, 42.4 ± 5.3 weeks after ACLR, performed three single-leg drop landing trials bilaterally. The peak VGRF was assessed using a force plate. The resultant acceleration was calculated using IMUs attached to the shank, thigh, and lumbar region. Univariate regression analysis was performed to examine the linear relationship between the VGRF and resultant acceleration. The limb symmetry index (LSI) of the VGRF was linearly associated with the LSI of the resultant accelerations at the shank, thigh, and lumbar sensors (R2 = 0.166, p = 0.039; R2 = 0.525, p &lt; 0.001; and R2 = 0.250, p = 0.009, respectively). In the involved limb, only the resultant acceleration at the thigh was a significant predictor of VGRF (R2 = 0.490, p &lt; 0.001), whereas in the uninvolved limb, the resultant accelerations at the shank, thigh, and lumbar sensors were significant predictors of VGRF (R2 = 0.245, p = 0.010; R2 = 0.684, p &lt; 0.001; and R2 = 0.412, p &lt; 0.001, respectively). Caution may be required when using IMUs to predict VGRF asymmetry because the coefficient of determination for predicting VGRF is lower in the involved limb than in the uninvolved limb.

Even with the same energy supply, differences in energy sources may affect calf growth and metabolism. In this study, we evaluated the effects of feeding 3 different milk replacers (MR) with different lactose supplies under isoenergetic conditions on calf digestibility, growth, and metabolism-related markers. Fifteen Holstein bull calves were randomly assigned to one of 3 MR feeding treatments: low lactose (L: 38%), medium lactose (M: 41%), or high lactose (H: 46%). After birth, calves were provided colostrum, and treatment MR were fed from 1 d of age and gradually increased to a maximum feeding rate at 20 d of age (L: 1.16 kg/d, M: 1.21 kg/d, H: 1.26 kg/d DM) without feeding solid feeds during the experimental period. Blood samples were temporarily collected weekly to assess blood concentrations of metabolites and hormones. From 30 to 36 d of age, the calves were euthanized and liver samples were collected to determine growth-related mRNA expression. The L calves showed a greater body length than H calves and the highest growth hormone receptor (GHR) mRNA expression. Plasma concentrations of total cholesterol, urea nitrogen, total protein, albumin, insulin, and IGF-1 were not different, but plasma concentrations of triglycerides were greater in order H, M, and L. These results showed that the difference in lactose content in the MR affected calf metabolism, and the L-MR was suggested to be more likely to enhance growth into the peripheral tissues.

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is one of the most fatal cancers, and there is an urgent need to develop new anticancer agents with fewer side effects for the treatment of this condition. A patient-derived xenograft (PDX) mouse model transplanted with cancer tissue from patients is widely accepted as the best preclinical model for evaluating the anticancer potential of drug candidates. Fucoxanthin (Fx) is a highly polar carotenoid contained in edible marine brown algae and possesses anticancer activity. However, there is a lack of data on the effects of Fx in PDX models. We investigated the anticancer effects of Fx in PDX mice transplanted with cancer tissues derived from a patient with PC (PC-PDX) using comprehensive protein expression assay. Fx administration (0.3%Fx diet) ad libitum for 27 days significantly abrogated tumor development (0.4-fold) and induced tumor differentiation in PC-PDX mice, as compared to those in the control mice. Fx significantly upregulated the expression of non-glycanated DCN (2.4-fold), tended to increase the expressions of p-p38(Thr180/Tyr182) (1.6-fold) and pJNK(Thr183/Tyr185) (1.8-fold), significantly downregulated IGFBP2 (0.6-fold) and EpCAM (0.7-fold), and tended to decrease LCN2 (0.6-fold) levels in the tumors of the PC-PDX mice, as compared to those in the control mice. Some of the protein expression patterns were consistent with the in vitro experiments. That is, treatment of fucoxanthinol (FxOH), a prime metabolite derived from dietary Fx, enhanced non-glycanated DCN, p-p38(Thr180/Tyr182), and pJNK(Thr183/Tyr185) levels in human PC PANC-1 and BxPC-3 cells.These results suggested that Fx exerts anticancer and differentiation effects in a PC-PDX mice through alterations of some multifunctional molecules.

IntroductionDuring voluntary muscle contraction, the amplitude of the somatosensory evoked potential (SEP) is reduced by inhibiting sensory information from a peripheral nerve supplying the contracted muscle. This phenomenon is called “gating.” We reported that participants with good motor skills indicated strong suppression of somatosensory information. The present study investigated the effects of motor performance improvement following repetitive practice on the SEP amplitude.MethodsThe ball rotation task (BR task) was practiced by 15 healthy participants repetitively. SEPs were recorded before (pre) and after (post) repetitive practice.ResultsThe BR task performance was significantly improved and the required muscle activation to perform the task was significantly reduced after the repetitive practice. The degree of gating was not significant between pre and post- for the SEP amplitude. A significant correlation was found between changes in SEP amplitude from pre to post and performance improvement.DiscussionAfter repetitive practice, the degree of gating did not change, but the performance of the BR task improved, and the muscle activity required for the BR task decreased. These results suggest that repetitive practice does not change the degree of gating but changes the mechanism of gating. Furthermore, they indicate that suppression of the somatosensory area may play a role in improving task performance.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate if leg cycling could reduce lower extremity spasticity in patients with cerebral palsy (CP). In addition, we investigated whether the intervention could cause changes in the modulation of presynaptic inhibition. Methods: This study was a quasi-experimental study, with pretest–posttest for 1 group. Participants in this experiment were eight adult patients with CP with lower extremity spasticity. Spasticity parameters assessed were the amplitude of soleus maximum Hoffmann’s reflex (Hmax) and maximum angular velocity (MAV) of knee flexion measured using the pendulum test. D1 inhibition, which seems to be related to the presynaptic inhibition, was recorded by measuring soleus Hoffmann’s reflex (H-reflex) with conditioned electric stimuli to the common peroneal nerve. Results: D1 inhibition was significantly enhanced immediately by the cycling intervention. The amplitude of the soleus Hmax was significantly depressed, and there was significant difference in Hmax/maximum M-wave. The MAV was increased due to inhibition of the stretch reflex. Conclusion: Leg cycling suppressed stretch reflex and H-reflex, and caused plasticity of inhibitory circuits in patients with CP with lower extremity spasticity. These findings strongly suggest that lower extremity spasticity can be improved by cycling movements.