In patients with HCM, an abnormal serum concentration of hs-cTnT is an independent predictor of adverse outcome, and a higher degree of abnormality in hs-cTnT value is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular events.

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BackgroundIn the oral and maxillofacial surgery and dentistry fields, the use of three-dimensional (3D) patient-specific organ models is increasing, which has increased the cost of obtaining them. We developed an environment in our facility in which we can design, fabricate, and use 3D models called the “One-stop 3D printing lab”. The lab made it possible to quickly and inexpensively produce the 3D models that are indispensable for oral and maxillofacial surgery. We report our 3D model fabrication environment after determining the dimensional accuracy of the models with different laminating pitches (; layer thickness) after fabricating over 300 3D models. Considerations were made for further reducing modeling cost and model print time. MDCT imaging was performed using a dry human mandible, and 3D CAD data were generated from the DICOM image data. 3D models were fabricated with a fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printer MF-2000 (MUTOH) with a laminating pitch of 0.2 mm, 0.3 mm, 0.4 mm, or 0.5 mm. Each 3D model was then subjected to reverse scanning to evaluate the modeling conditions and deformation during modeling. For the 3D image processing system, Volume Extractor 3.0 (i-Plants Systems) and POLYGONALmeister V2 (UEL) were used. For the comparative evaluation of CAD data, spGauge 2014.1 (Armonicos) was used.ResultsAs the laminating pitch increased, the weight of the 3D model, model print time, and material cost decreased, and no significant reduction in geometric accuracy was observed.ConclusionsThe amount of modeling material used and preparation cost were reduced by increasing the laminating pitch. The “One-stop 3D printing lab” made it possible to produce 3D models daily. The use of 3D models in the oral and maxillofacial surgery and dentistry fields will likely increase, and we expect that low-cost FDM 3D printers that can produce low-cost 3D models will play a significant role.

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The collapsing glomerulopathy of HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN) is characterized by podocyte dedifferentiation and proliferation. In affected glomeruli, proliferating podocytes adhere in aggregates to form glomerular pseudocrescents and fill an enlarged Bowman's space. Previously, we reported that sidekick-1 (sdk-1), an adhesion molecule of the immunoglobulin superfamily, was highly up-regulated in HIV-1 transgenic podocytes. In the current work, we explore how sdk-1 overexpression contributes to HIVAN pathogenesis. Murine podocytes infected with HIV-1 virus expressed significantly more sdk-1 than control-infected cells. Podocytes stably transfected with an sdk-1 expression construct grew in large aggregates with a simplified morphology characterized by a disorganized actin cytoskeleton, changes similar to podocytes in HIVAN. In contrast to controls, HIV-1 infected podocytes adhered to stably transfected sdk-1 podocyte aggregates in mixing studies. Furthermore, substrate-released cell sheets of wild-type podocytes were readily dissociated by mechanical stress, whereas HIV-1 podocytes remained in aggregates. The number of HIV-1 podocyte aggregates was significantly reduced in cells expressing a short hairpin RNA (shRNA) construct specific for sdk-1 compared with cells expressing control shRNA. Finally, in a HIVAN mouse model, sdk-1 protein was detected in podocytes in collapsed glomerular tufts and in glomerular pseudocrescents. These findings suggest that sdk-1 is an important mediator of cellular adhesion in HIV-infected podocytes and may contribute to podocyte clustering that is characteristic of pseudocrescent formation in HIVAN.

Assessment of the diastolic function by TDI is useful for risk stratification in HCM patients with no or mild symptoms. TDI measurements should be incorporated into the clinical management of HCM.

Sidekick-1, a cell adhesion molecule of the immunoglobulin superfamily, is up-regulated in glomerular podocytes in the collapsing glomerulopathy of HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN). Sidekick-1 and its ortholog sidekick-2 have also been shown to function as neuronal targeting molecules, guiding developing neurons to specific synapses. In the current work, we overexpress mouse sidekick-1 and -2 in HEK 293 T cells in order to characterize their binding specificities. Cells transiently transfected with either sidekick-1 or -2 cDNA formed separate aggregates when mixed together, demonstrating that sidekicks are homophilic adhesion molecules. The transfection of the short splice variant (lacking the first two Ig domains) or a construct encoding sidekick-1 with the second Ig domain deleted both resulted in nearly abolished adhesion. A beta-sheet strand peptide containing the sequence QLVILA corresponding to an amino acid sequence in the second Ig domain of sidekick-1 showed specific interaction with the recombinant first Ig domain-His protein of sidekick-1. Cells expressing a mutant sidekick-1 where the binding sequence QLVILA is deleted failed to mediate significant adhesion. Furthermore, cells transfected with a chimeric sidekick, where the first two Ig domains of sidekick-2 are replaced with the corresponding two Ig domains of sidekick-1, form aggregates with sidekick-1-transfected cells. The reverse chimera, where the first two Ig domains of sidekick-2 are substituted onto sidekick-1, was similarly able to form aggregates with sidekick-2-transfected cells. These results establish that the first and second Ig domains of sidekick-1 and -2 are necessary and sufficient to mediate and target homophilic adhesion, and the QLVILA sequence is critical to the interaction. Understanding these functional domains has widespread implications in normal development and HIVAN pathogenesis.