Pet Ownership and Children's Emotional Expression: Propensity Score-Matched Analysis of Longitudinal Data from Japan

With many children and young adolescents reporting strong emotional bonds with their pets, the impact of pet ownership on child/adolescent health—especially on their emotional development—has garnered increasing scientific interest. We examined the association between pet ownership in toddlerhood (age 3.5 years) and poor emotional expression in later childhood (age 5.5 years) using propensity score matching within a longitudinal cohort dataset from Japan (n = 31,453). A propensity score for pet ownership was calculated by logistic models based on a comprehensive list of each child’s observed characteristics, including sex, household income, parental education, mother’s employment status, residential environment, number of siblings, and living arrangement. Log-binomial regression analyses using matched samples revealed that children who owned pets during the toddler years were 6% less likely to have a poor emotional expression in later childhood (prevalence ratio = 0.94, 95% confidence interval = 0.90–0.99) compared to those without pets. This suggests that owning pets may provide children with opportunities to control their emotions, and lead to a lower prevalence of poor emotional expression. Pet ownership in toddlerhood may contribute to the development of expression.

Propensity score-matched comparison of non-anatomical resection and radiofrequency ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with up to three tumours, each measuring up to 3 cm in diameter

Background

Non‐anatomical liver resection (NAR) and radiofrequency ablation (RFA) are treatment options for early‐stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The aim was to compare the outcomes of NAR and RFA for HCC in patients with three or fewer tumour nodules, each measuring not more than 3 cm in maximum diameter.

Methods

Eligible patients undergoing NAR or RFA with curative intent between September 2002 and December 2014 were identified. A propensity score‐matching analysis was performed to reduce bias, and outcomes in these patients were analysed.

Results

From a total of 199 patients, 1:1 propensity score matching identified 70 matched pairs. Patients having NAR had a longer hospital stay (median 10 days versus 4 days for those who had RFA; P < 0·001) and a higher morbidity rate (24 versus 10 per cent respectively; P = 0·042). Patients who had NAR had slightly better recurrence‐free survival but this failed to reach statistical significance in univariable analysis (P = 0·064). There was no significant difference in overall survival between the two groups (P = 0·475). RFA was identified as an independent risk factor for recurrence‐free survival (hazard ratio (HR) 1·57; P = 0·041) in multivariable analysis. Local recurrence was significantly more common in patients receiving RFA (23 versus 1 per cent; P < 0·001).

Conclusion

RFA was an independent risk factor for shorter recurrence‐free survival, with a significantly higher local recurrence rate than NAR. Despite these differences, overall survival was not affected.

Familial Congenital Methemoglobinemia in Pomeranian Dogs Caused by a Missense Variant in the NADH-Cytochrome B5 Reductase Gene

Background

In veterinary medicine, congenital methemoglobinemia associated with nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH)‐cytochrome b5 reductase (b5R) deficiency is rare. It has been reported in several breeds of dogs, but little information is available about its etiology.

Objectives

To analyze the NADH‐cytochrome b5 reductase gene, CYB5R3, in a Pomeranian dog family with methemoglobinemia suspected to be caused by congenital b5R deficiency.

Animals

Three Pomeranian dogs from a family with methemoglobinemia were analyzed. Five healthy beagles and 5 nonrelated Pomeranian dogs without methemoglobinemia were used as controls.

Methods

Methemoglobin concentration, b5R activity, and reduced glutathione (GSH) concentration were measured, and a turbidity index was used to evaluate Heinz body formation. The CYB5R3 genes of the affected dog and healthy dogs were analyzed by direct sequencing.

Results

Methemoglobin concentrations in erythrocytes of the affected dogs were remarkably higher than those of the control dogs. The b5R activity of the affected dogs was notably lower than that of the control dogs. DNA sequencing indicated that this Pomeranian family carried a CYB5R3 gene missense variant (ATC→CTC at codon 194) that resulted in the replacement of isoleucine (Ile) by leucine (Leu).

Conclusions and Clinical Importance

This dog family had familial congenital methemoglobinemia caused by b5R deficiency, which resulted from a nonsynonymous variant in the CYB5R3 gene. This variation (c.580A>C) led to an amino acid substitution (p.Ile194Leu), and Ile194 was located in the proximal region of the NADH‐binding motif. Our data suggested that this variant in the canine CYB5R3 gene would affect function of the b5R in erythrocytes.

A Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, Multicenter, Prospective, Randomized Study of Beraprost Sodium Treatment for Cats with Chronic Kidney Disease

Background

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a common progressive and irreversible disease in cats. The efficacy and safety of beraprost sodium (BPS) in cats with CKD have not been evaluated.

Hypothesis/Objectives

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of BPS in the treatment of cats with CKD, as compared to placebo.

Animals

Seventy‐four client‐owned cats with naturally occurring CKD.

Methods

Double‐blind, placebo‐controlled, multicenter, prospective, randomized trial. The cats received BPS (55 μg/cat) or a placebo PO q12 h for 180 days. The primary endpoint was prospectively defined as a change in the serum creatinine (sCr), serum phosphorus‐to‐calcium ratio or urine specific gravity (USG).

Results

The sCr increased significantly (P = 0.0030) in the placebo group (mean ± SD: 2.8 ± 0.7 to 3.2 ± 1.3 mg/dL) but not in the BPS group (2.4 ± 0.7 to 2.5 ± 0.7 mg/dL). The difference between the groups at day 180 was significant (0.8 mg/dL, 95% CI: 0.2 to 1.3 mg/dL, P = 0.0071). The serum phosphorus‐to‐calcium ratio was significantly (P = 0.0037) increased in the placebo group (0.46 ± 0.10 to 0.52 ± 0.21 mg/dL) but not in the BPS group (0.50 ± 0.08 to 0.51 ± 0.11 mg/dL). There was no significant change in the USG in either group. An adverse event judged as being treatment‐related included vomiting that occurred in 1 case in the placebo group. No clinically relevant change was observed in the CBC and other blood chemistry tests.

Conclusions and Clinical Importance

Beraprost sodium treatment was well tolerated and safe in cats with CKD. BPS inhibited the reduction in renal filtration function as measured by sCr increase.

Self-assembly of MoO3 needles in gas current for cubic formation pathway

Nucleation and subsequent rapid growth are enigmatic due to the unrevealed pathways. Despite the relatively simpler mechanism compared to nucleation and growth in solution, that in vapor has received little attention. The largest hindrance to unveiling this process may be observing the rapid and mesoscopic-scale phenomena. To overcome this hindrance, we combine an experimental approach with in situ spatial scanning Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, which reveals the nucleating and growing nanoparticles in vapor. The nanoparticles are then collected at different evolutionary stages and analyzed by ex situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Needle-shaped molybdenum oxide (MoO₃) nanoparticles were formed within ∼0.1 s after homogeneous nucleation from a highly supersaturated vapor. Over one second, the needle particles gradually evolved into a cubic shape by fusion in a crystallographically favored orientation in a free-flying state in vapor. The similar sizes of the elongated axes of the needle and cubic structures suggest an additional growth stage, in which the needle particles become the growth units of the cubic particles. The morphology of a final crystal should reflect the formation environment of the particle because growing crystals are sensitive to the formation conditions such as temperature, concentration, and impurities. Although nucleation under very high supersaturation induces the anisotropic growth of the needle particles, this information of the initial nucleation environment is lost in the final cubic crystal. These findings enrich our understanding of pathways in the nucleation and growth of nanoparticles and provide new insights into the growth stages driven by oriented attachment.

Testing Hadronic Interactions at Ultrahigh Energies with Air Showers Measured by the Pierre Auger Observatory

Ultrahigh energy cosmic ray air showers probe particle physics at energies beyond the reach of accelerators. Here we introduce a new method to test hadronic interaction models without relying on the absolute energy calibration, and apply it to events with primary energy 6-16 EeV (E_{CM}=110-170  TeV), whose longitudinal development and lateral distribution were simultaneously measured by the Pierre Auger Observatory. The average hadronic shower is 1.33±0.16 (1.61±0.21) times larger than predicted using the leading LHC-tuned models EPOS-LHC (QGSJetII-04), with a corresponding excess of muons.

Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy

We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of 15.8±0.7(stat)±6.7(syst)  MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from state-of-the-art first-principles calculations shows agreement with our measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.

Analysis of factors for poor activated partial thromboplastin time control after dabigatran administration

In this study, we compared patients whose activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) was prolonged excessively with those whose APTT was controlled within the normal range after dabigatran administration. We analyzed the factors for the APTT prolongation. We divided the patients into two groups: those whose APTTs prolonged to more than 65 s and those whose APTTs were less than 65 s after dabigatran administration. There were 130 patients from March 2011 to July 2013, and we analyzed the background features and laboratory data of these patients. Results showed that there were no significant differences in the patients' background and laboratory data except for the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) level. However, details of the relationship between the APTT prolongation and the HDL-C level are currently unknown. We hypothesize that the reason for the APTT prolongation is the variability in such parameters as the time of blood drawing, internal time of dabigatran, individual variability, and blood concentration. Therefore, we consider that these parameters need to be carefully evaluated even if APTT does not show prolongation.

Search for patterns by combining cosmic-ray energy and arrival directions at the Pierre Auger Observatory

Energy-dependent patterns in the arrival directions of cosmic rays are searched for using data of the Pierre Auger Observatory. We investigate local regions around the highest-energy cosmic rays with [Formula: see text] eV by analyzing cosmic rays with energies above [Formula: see text] eV arriving within an angular separation of approximately 15[Formula: see text]. We characterize the energy distributions inside these regions by two independent methods, one searching for angular dependence of energy-energy correlations and one searching for collimation of energy along the local system of principal axes of the energy distribution. No significant patterns are found with this analysis. The comparison of these measurements with astrophysical scenarios can therefore be used to obtain constraints on related model parameters such as strength of cosmic-ray deflection and density of point sources.

Identification of a new disease cluster of pemphigus vulgaris with autoimmune thyroid disease, rheumatoid arthritis and type I diabetes

BACKGROUND

Pemphigus vulgaris (PV) is a potentially fatal autoimmune blistering skin disease. It is known that individuals with autoimmune diseases such as PV, as well as their family members, are at increased risk of developing other autoimmune diseases. However, it is unknown whether there are specific autoimmune diseases that cluster with PV.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the frequency of coexisting autoimmune diseases in patients with PV and their relatives, to determine the prevalence of specific autoimmune diseases in patients with PV vs. the general population and to identify statistically significant clinical clusters linking PV with other autoimmune disorders.

METHODS

We performed a cross-sectional study and meta-analysis of patient data from our own patient database (n = 230), an anonymous online survey conducted by our laboratory (n = 171) and the International Pemphigus & Pemphigoid Foundation registry (n = 393).

RESULTS

We found that the prevalences of autoimmune thyroid disease (AITD), rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes were significantly increased in patients with PV compared with the general population. These diseases were also among the most frequent in family members of patients with PV, in addition to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Descriptive cluster analysis using basic principle components methods revealed that PV forms a distinct cluster with AITD, rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes, and another cluster with SLE, AITD and rheumatoid arthritis.

CONCLUSIONS

PV belongs to an established autoimmune disease cluster that includes AITD, rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes. Our data suggest the possibility of common genetic elements across clinically distinct diseases that might underlie autoimmune susceptibility.

Determination of a localized surface plasmon resonance mode of Cu7S4 nanodisks by plasmon coupling

Plasmon properties such as peak position, extinction cross-section and local electric field intensity are strongly dependent on excited, localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) modes. In non-spherical copper chalcogenide nanoparticles, assignment of the LSPR peaks to the corresponding oscillation modes has been controversial and requires experimental verification. We determined the in-plane LSPR mode of roxbyite Cu₇S₄ nanodisks from the plasmon coupling effect of nanodisks in solution. Compared with individual Cu₇S₄ nanodisks, self-assembled Cu₇S₄ nanodisk arrays in chloroform exhibited a blue-shifted LSPR peak with weaker optical density. This strongly suggests that the singular LSPR peak in the near-infrared region mainly originates from the in-plane oscillation mode. In addition, we demonstrate that the same LSPR peak can be readily tuned by controlling the number of disks in the array.