Takarazuka City Hospital

Abstract The powder-post beetle Lyctus brunneus (Stephens) causes a great deal of damage to dry hardwood and bamboo. Adult females oviposit only on wood or bamboo with a sufficient starch content. Although starch detection has traditionally been attributed to a behavior known as “tasting”, in which females gnaw the wood surface with their mandibles to make small incisions, recent observations suggest that this behavior may function primarily as a mechanical preparation for ovipositor insertion rather than as a true chemosensory action. Consequently, the mechanism by which L. brunneus females actually detect starch remains unclear. This study elucidated how L. brunneus detects the polysaccharide starch to select optimal oviposition sites, including the organs involved and the detection method. We examined the role of mouthparts (maxillary and labial palps), antennae, and tarsi in starch detection by evaluating egg-laying responses after functionally inhibiting these organs. Our investigations revealed that the coating of the mouthparts resulted in a significant reduction in the number of eggs laid, implicating the maxillary and labial palps' involvement in the detection of starch by L. brunneus . Scanning electron microscopy confirmed the presence of gustatory sensilla on the maxillary and labial palps. Testing the effects of several types of sugars on egg-laying numbers revealed that females laid significantly more eggs on starch and maltose than on glucose, sucrose, or control substrates. When female adults were placed on starch-containing substrates for designated periods, maltose was detected within the substrates. These results suggest that female adults secrete amylase externally to decompose starch, then detect the resulting maltose using gustatory sensilla on the maxillary and labial palps, to perceive starch sources—that is, optimal oviposition sites.

Correction: Overall survival of palbociclib plus endocrine therapy in Japanese patients with HR+/HER2- advanced breast cancer in the first-or second-line setting: a multicenter observational study (P-BRIDGE study)

A novel facultatively anaerobic, Gram-negative, curved rod-shaped bacterium was isolated from blood cultures obtained from a patient with pyogenic spondylitis in Japan. The organism was additionally detected by 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis in a formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded lumbar spine biopsy specimen from the same patient. The type strain, designated THUN1379ᵀ, is motile by means of a single polar flagellum and forms circular, white to translucent colonies on R2A agar and 5% sheep blood agar. The strain is oxidase-positive and catalase-negative and grows at temperatures ranging from 25 to 42 °C. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence placed strain THUN1379ᵀ within the genus Paludibacterium (family Chromobacteriaceae), showing the highest sequence similarity to Paludibacterium purpuratum KJ031ᵀ (98.6%). Whole-genome sequencing revealed a genome size of approximately 3.6 Mb with a DNA G+C content of 61.3 mol%. Phylogenomic analysis based on whole-genome sequences supported the distinct taxonomic position of strain THUN1379ᵀ within the genus. The average nucleotide identity (ANI) and digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) values between strain THUN1379ᵀ and Paludibacterium purpuratum KJ031ᵀ were 79.7% and 23.1%, respectively, which are well below the accepted thresholds for species delineation. On the basis of phenotypic, chemotaxonomic, and genomic characteristics, strain THUN1379ᵀ represents a novel species of the genus Paludibacterium, for which the name Paludibacterium flexuosum sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is THUN1379ᵀ (=JCM 36560ᵀ = KCTC 8465ᵀ).

Lumbar pseudogout, or calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate deposition disease (CPPD), is an uncommon manifestation of a crystal-induced arthropathy that typically affects peripheral joints. Spinal involvement, particularly in the lumbar region, is rare and may closely mimic infectious conditions such as pyogenic spondylitis. An 85-year-old man was hospitalized for pneumococcal pneumonia and subsequently developed severe low back pain on day 7 of admission. Although his pneumonia improved with antimicrobial therapy, inflammatory markers remained elevated, raising suspicion of pyogenic spondylitis. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging of the lumbar spine demonstrated compression fractures and inflammatory changes at the L2/3 intervertebral disc but were insufficient to establish a definitive diagnosis. A diagnostic intervertebral disc biopsy was therefore performed, and polarized light microscopic examination revealed calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystals, confirming the diagnosis of lumbar pseudogout. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs were discontinued because of renal dysfunction, and the patient's symptoms improved rapidly after corticosteroid therapy. This case highlights the diagnostic challenge of lumbar pseudogout, which can closely resemble infectious or neoplastic spinal disease. Although imaging plays an important role in excluding alternative diagnoses, definitive diagnosis of CPPD relies on crystal identification, most commonly through synovial fluid analysis or, when not feasible, tissue biopsy. Lumbar pseudogout should be considered in older adults presenting with acute inflammatory low back pain to facilitate timely diagnosis and appropriate management.

BACKGROUNDAlthough acute pancreatitis and walled-off necrosis (WON) are rare complications following aortic surgery, they are serious risk factors for postoperative mortality. Considering the poor general condition of the postoperative patient, more effective and less invasive treatments are favorable.CASE SUMMARYA 67-year-old man was referred to our hospital for the treatment of WON after acute pancreatitis. He had undergone total aortic arch replacement due to aortic arch aneurysm and coronary artery bypass grafting due to angina pectoris 6 weeks prior in another hospital. On the second postoperative day, laboratory data and computed tomography showed that the patient had developed acute pancreatitis. Although conservative management (antibiotics, hydration, etc.) had helped in relieving the symptoms of acute pancreatitis, peripancreatic fluid collection (PFC) persisted, accompanied by duodenal obstruction and vomiting. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography showed that the heterogeneous enhancement and fluid collection in the pancreatic body and tail had increased, consistent with walled-off WON. We therefore performed endoscopic ultrasound-guided transluminal drainage for the PFC. As a result, the WON resolved gradually, resulting in improved oral intake.CONCLUSIONAcute pancreatitis is a rare gastrointestinal complication following thoracic and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm surgery. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of WON after aortic arch surgery treated with endoscopic ultrasound-guided transluminal drainage for PFC.

34 participating institutions'.