Syndemic and syndemogenesis of low back pain in Latin-American population: a network and cluster analysis

Clinical Rheumatology - Although low back pain (LBP) is a high-impact health condition, its burden has not been examined from the syndemic perspective. To compare and assess clinical,...     

Intrinsic connections of the rat amygdaloid complex: Projections originating in the accessory basal nucleus

The amygdaloid complex plays an important role in the detection of emotional stimuli, the generation of emotional responses, the formation of emotional memories, and perhaps other complex associational processes. These functions depend upon the flow of information through intricate and poorly understood circuitries within the amygdala. As part of an ongoing project aimed at further elucidating these circuits, we examined the intra-amygdaloid connections of the acessory basal nucleus in the rat. In addition, we examined connections of the anterior cortical nucleus and amygdalahippocampal area to determine whether portions of these nuclei should be included in the accessory basal nucleus (as some earlier studies suggest). Phaseolus vulgaris leucoagglutinin was injected into different rostrocaudal levels of the accessory basal nucleus (n = 12) or into the anterior cortical nucleus (n = 3) or amygdalahippocampal area (n = 2). The major intra-amygdaloid projections from the accessory basal nucleus were directed to the medial and capsular divisions of the central nucleus, the medial division of the amygdalohippocampal area, the medial division of the lateral nucleus, the central division of the medial nucleus, and the posterior cortical nucleus. The projections originating in the anterior cortical nucleus and the lateral division of the amygdalohippocampal area differed from those originating in the accessory basal nucleus, which suggests that these areas are not part of the deep amygdaloid nuclei have different intra-amygdaloid connections. The pattern of these various connections suggests that information entering the amygdala from different sources can be integrated only in certain amygdaloid regions. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

One-pot synthesis,structural analysis,and oxidation applications of a series of diaryltellurium dicarboxylates

This paper presents a concise and efficient one-pot synthesis of a variety of functionalized diaryltellurium dicarboxylates. The method is based on a mild photosensitized oxygenation of cheap and readily available carboxylic acids. The molecular structures of the diaryltellurium dicarboxylates were determined unambiguously using single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. The thus obtained diaryltellurium dicarboxylates were used to study the oxidation of benzoin derivatives.

This paper presents a concise and efficient one-pot synthesis of a variety of functionalized diaryltellurium dicarboxylates.

Recently we have taken interest in the synthesis of organotellurium compounds and the study of their behavior in organic reactions. Specifically, we have reported on the synthesis of organotellurium compounds as well as the oxidation of organic compounds using organotellurium compounds such as telluroxides.^1–4We have been interested in extending our methodology to telluroxide derivatives such as diaryltellurium dicarboxylates. Although a method for the synthesis of related diallyl tellurium dicarboxylates has already been reported, it is a complicated reaction that requires very precise reaction conditions. Moreover, there are few reports on the detailed crystallographic characterization of diallyl tellurium dicarboxylates.So far, the main method for the synthesis of diallyl tellurium dicarboxylates has been to react a diallyl tellurium or a diallyl tellurium derivative with a hypervalent iodine reagent.^5,6 This method requires hypervalent reagents that are expensive and potentially explosive. Chandrasekhar et al. have reported the synthesis of diallyl tellurium dicarboxylates using diallyl telluroxides and carboxylic acids. However, this method requires the conversion of a diallyl tellurium to a diallyl telluroxide.⁷ It is generally known that the oxidation of a diallyl tellurium to a diallyl telluroxide using peroxides such as NaIO₄ carries the risk of explosion. Chandrasekhar et al. also succeeded in synthesizing tellurium ferrocene carboxylates using this same synthetic method.⁸ Furthermore, there is a report on a similar synthetic method for the generation of macrocyclic multi-telluranes using telluronium salts prepared from telluroxides and triflic anhydride.⁹In this study, we demonstrate a simple and safe method for the synthesis of diaryltellurium dicarboxylates using inexpensive carboxylic acids and air as the source of oxygen. In addition, the molecular structures of the diaryltellurium dicarboxylates in the solid state were determined unambiguously via a single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis.     

Effects of Thiamin Restriction on Exercise-Associated Glycogen Metabolism and AMPK Activation Level in Skeletal Muscle

This study aimed to investigate the direct influence of a decrease in the cellular thiamin level, before the onset of anorexia (one of the symptoms of thiamin deficiency) on glycogen metabolism and the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activation levels in skeletal muscle at rest and in response to exercise. Male Wistar rats were classified as the control diet (CON) group or the thiamin-deficient diet (TD) group and consumed the assigned diets for 1 week. Skeletal muscles were taken from the rats at rest, those that underwent low-intensity swimming (LIS), or high-intensity intermittent swimming (HIS) conducted immediately before dissection. There were no significant differences in food intake, locomotive activity, or body weight between groups, but thiamin pyrophosphate in the skeletal muscles of the TD group was significantly lower than that of the CON group. Muscle glycogen and lactate levels in the blood and muscle were equivalent between groups at rest and in response to exercise. The mitochondrial content was equal between groups, and AMPK in the skeletal muscles of TD rats was normally activated by LIS and HIS. In conclusion, with a lowered cellular thiamin level, the exercise-associated glycogen metabolism and AMPK activation level in skeletal muscle were normally regulated.     

A Novel One-Step Knife Approach Can Reduce the Submucosal Injection Time of Endoscopic Submucosal Dissection: A Single-Blinded Randomized Multicenter Clinical Trials

Background/AimsEndoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is a curative treatment modality for early gastric neoplasms; however, ESD can be a time-consuming process. To overcome this pitfall, we developed the one-step knife (OSK) approach, which combines an endoscopic knife and injection needle on a single sheath. We aimed to evaluate whether this approach could reduce the ESD procedure time.MethodsThis single-blinded randomized multicenter trial at four tertiary hospitals from June 2019 to June 2020 included patients aged 19 to 85 years undergoing ESD. Patients were randomly assigned to two groups (OSK or conventional knife [CK]). The injection time, total procedure time, resected specimen size, submucosal fluid amount, degree of device satisfaction, and adverse events were evaluated and compared between groups.ResultsFifty-one patients were analyzed (OSK 25 patients and CK 26 patients). No baseline differences were observed between groups, with the exception of a higher portion of males in the OSK group. The mean injection time was significantly reduced in the OSK group (39.0 seconds) compared to that in the CK group (87.5 seconds, p<0.001). A decrease of more than 10 minutes in the total procedure time (18.0 minutes vs 28.1 minutes, p=0.055) in the OSK group compared to the CK group was observed. Second-look esophagogastroduodenoscopy revealed two delayed bleeding cases in the OSK group that were easily controlled by endoscopic hemostasis.ConclusionsOSK reduced the injection time and showed a decrease in total procedure time compared with the CK approach. OSK can be a feasible tool for ESD, especially in difficult cases.     

Biological variation and reference change values of serum Mac‐2–binding protein glycosylation isomer (M2BPGi)

BackgroundLimited data are available with regard to biological variations of the Mac‐2–binding protein glycosylation isomer (M2BPGi), a liver fibrosis biomarker.MethodsLong‐term biological variation of M2BPGi was investigated using longitudinally measured M2BPGi test results from healthy Korean adult subjects. One‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests were used to calculate the reference change value (RCV) of M2BPGi based on biological variation estimates. Furthermore, asymmetric RCV was calculated according to a recent publication of the European Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine Working Group on Biological Variation and Task Group for the Biological Variation Database (EFLM TG‐BVD).ResultsA total of 363 test results from 174 Korean subjects undergoing general health checkups were requested from 13 local clinics and hospitals during a 38‐month period. The within‐subjects biological variation (CV_I), between‐subject biological variation (CV_G), analytical variation (CV_A), RCV, and individuality index (II) values for serum M2BPGi were 23.3%, 30.0%, 4.3%, 65.6%, and 0.78, respectively. Asymmetric RCV calculated using formulae by a recent EFLM TG‐BVD publication ranged from −41.9 to 72.0%. Desirable analytical performance specifications for M2BPGi derived from biological variation were as follows: imprecision 11.6%, bias 9.6%, and total allowable error 28.7%.ConclusionsRCV based on biological estimates may be helpful for evaluating and interpreting serial M2BPGi measurements by physicians and in clinical laboratories.