Meijo University

This study aimed to evaluate the risk of major congenital malformations (MCMs) associated with first-trimester exposure to antipsychotics, using a large claims database in Japan. This retrospective cohort study was based on data from a large claims database in Japan. We used a large claims database from 2010 to 2019. Dates of pregnancy onset and delivery were estimated using the developed algorithms. Overall MCMs were defined according to the International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision codes. To address confounding by indication, the risk of MCM in relation to first-trimester antipsychotic use was evaluated among pregnant women with psychiatric disorders diagnosed before the end of the first-trimester. We compared the prevalence of MCMs among infants born to pregnant women with or without first-trimester exposure to antipsychotics and estimated the weighted odds ratios (wORs) using propensity-score overlap weights. The prevalence of psychiatric diagnoses before the end of the first-trimester was 6291 women among the 91 390 who delivered between 2010 and 2019. Among the 6291 diagnosed with psychiatric disorders, 317 were exposed to any antipsychotics during the first-trimester of pregnancy. The prevalence of overall MCMs among live births was 411 (6.9%) among women unexposed to any antipsychotics and 24 (7.6%) among those exposed. The first-trimester exposure to any antipsychotics was not significantly associated with overall MCMs when wORs were calculated using propensity-score overlap weights (wOR 1.144, 95% confidence intervals 0.727-1.799). Exposure to any antipsychotics during the first-trimester of pregnancy was not associated with an increased risk of overall MCMs in infants.

Composite molecules consisting of one Co4O4 cubane complex and two perylenediimide moieties were synthesized. The cyclic voltammogram of the molecule exhibited reversible redox waves for oxidation of Co4O4 complex and two-stage reduction of the perylenediimide moieties. The emission spectrum in a solution revealed strongly quenched fluorescence of perylenediimide, which suggests intramolecular electron transfer from Co4O4 to the excited perylenediimide.

The aim of this study was to clarify the characteristics of 100-m hurdles performance in female athletes, spanning from the world-record time to the 18-s range. Video data were randomly selected from internet broadcasts, covering race times from 12.12 s to 18.98 s, from international and national competitions held between 1987 and 2024. Time for each hurdle section from start to finish was measured, along with the total number of steps. Maximal running velocity occurred in the 4th and 5th hurdles (H4–5) for athletes at the world-class and national championship levels, similar to the finding for a 100-m sprint race around the 50-m mark. Conversely, athletes at the regional competition level tended to show maximal running velocities in the early sections of the race (H1–2 or H2–3), followed by a decrease in velocity. Across all groups, the ratio of running to hurdling time in the shortest interval section was consistently approximately 60%–40%. In the final section (H9–10), running time increased in the 17-s and 18-s groups. Sprinting ability and step count are crucial factors in determining race patterns. Athletes with more than 35 steps in total were limited to performances in the high 15-s range.

Abstract InGaN power converters, which can absorb near-ultraviolet light with a low attenuation coefficient in water, are expected to be used for underwater optical wireless power transmission. To improve photovoltaic conversion efficiency under high-power near-ultraviolet laser illumination, we fabricated InGaN converter cells with Pd/Pt electrodes, grown on a GaN substrate instead of a sapphire substrate. We investigated the dependence of laser power, temperature, and laser wavelength. As a result, the InGaN converter cell showed a photovoltaic conversion efficiency of 26.4% under 394 nm laser light (16 mW/cm2) at 25°C and 20.2% under 395 nm laser light (3.15 W/cm2) at 80°C. To further improve the efficiency of InGaN converter cells under high-power laser irradiation, it was found that three key issues must be overcome: reducing the dislocation density, lowering the electrical resistivity of the surface layer, and increasing the thickness of the optical absorption layer.

This paper investigates Binary-Phase Shift Keying (BPSK) based Time-Domain Single Carrier Index Modulation (TDSC-IM) optical signaling for next generation very high speed Passive Optical Network (VH-PON) systems that use coherent detection. Our preliminary 2.5 GBaud experiments demonstrated that the sensitivity gain attainable with TDSC-IM signaling can be used to reduce local oscillator power at receivers. This paper details additional experiments with the higher baud rate of 12.5 Gbaud and confirms the reproducibility of optical signal detection with 7 dB lower local oscillator power with the assistance of a newly developed adaptive finite-impulse response filter applicable to TDSC-IM optical signaling.

Brown-rot fungi decompose polysaccharides such as cellulose and hemicellulose through mechanisms that do not involve extracellular polysaccharide-degrading enzymes. Instead, oxidative degradation occurs via the Fenton reaction, which requires hydroquinone as an extracellular electron donor. However, the mechanisms by which brown-rot fungi generate and transport hydroquinones remains unclear. This study aimed to investigate the quinone reduction systems in the brown-rot fungus Tyromyces palustris and compare it with that in the white-rot fungus Pleurotus ostreatus. Using fungal protoplasts, we found that T. palustris rapidly reduced 2,6-dimethoxy-1,4-benzoquinone (2,6-DMBQ) to 1,4-dihydroxy-2,6-dimethoxybenzene (2,6-DMHQ), and 2,6-DMHQ, which accumulated exclusively in the extracellular fraction. In contrast, P. ostreatus exhibited lower reduction activity, with 2,6-DMBQ and 2,6-DMHQ retained within the intracellular compartments. The addition of the uncoupling reagent carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP), which disrupts the pH gradient across the plasma membrane, had little effect on extracellular 2,6-DMHQ formation in T. palustris but significantly inhibited 2,6-DMBQ reduction in P. ostreatus. These findings suggest that brown-rot fungi employ a plasma membrane-bound enzyme with an outward-facing quinone-reducing site, enabling the extracellular supply of hydroquinone to facilitate the Fenton reaction. Understanding this mechanism enhances our knowledge of fungal biodegradation and may have applications in biotechnological processes involving lignocellulose degradation.