No abstract

We experimentally investigate delay-based photonic reservoir computing using semiconductor lasers with optical feedback and injection. We apply different types of temporal mask signals, such as digital, chaos, and colored-noise mask signals, as the weights between the input signal and the virtual nodes in the reservoir. We evaluate the performance of reservoir computing by using a time-series prediction task for the different mask signals. The chaos mask signal shows superior performance than that of the digital mask signals. However, similar prediction errors can be achieved for the chaos and colored-noise mask signals. Mask signals with larger amplitudes result in better performance for all mask signals in the range of the amplitude accessible in our experiment. The performance of reservoir computing is strongly dependent on the cut-off frequency of the colored-noise mask signals, which is related to the resonance of the relaxation oscillation frequency of the laser used as the reservoir.

Introduction The optimal surgical management strategy for isolated para‐aortic lymph node (PALN) metastases from colorectal cancer (CRC) remains unclear. However, the complication rates for open approaches remain high. In this study, the outcomes of laparoscopic para‐aortic lymphadenectomy in patients with clinically suspected PALN metastasis were evaluated. Methods Between April 2013 and April 2018, we performed laparoscopic primary resection and para‐aortic lymphadenectomy in 11 patients with advanced colorectal cancer and clinically suspected PALN metastasis. This study was a single‐center, retrospective, case series analysis, and the surgical outcomes were reviewed. Results There were no cases of perioperative mortality, and conversion to open surgery was necessary in only one patient (9%) because of invasion into a rib. One patient (9%) required a blood transfusion. Postoperative complications occurred in three patients, and the morbidity rate was 27% (3/11). Pathologically, PALN metastasis was confirmed in five patients (45%), all of whom received postoperative chemotherapy. The median survival time for all patients was 25 months, and one patient died of recurrence at 25 months after the initial surgery. Two other patients were alive with recurrence after 47 and 36 months, and two patients were alive without recurrence after 17 and 2 months. Conclusion Laparoscopic para‐aortic lymphadenectomy for advanced colorectal cancer with clinically suspected PALN is technically feasible and may be beneficial in selected patients. It is necessary to investigate the feasibility of this procedure in a future case series, and information regarding true oncologic outcome will require long‐term follow‐up.

High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) is a monocyte-derived inflammatory mediator that is released in some conditions including shock, tissue injury, and endotoxin-induced lethality. In this study, we determined the plasma and hepatic tissue levels of HMGB1 in a drug-induced rat acute liver failure (ALF) model and investigated the effect of HMGB1 blockade on ALF. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats, weighing 250 to 300 g, were used for this study. d-galactosamine was injected into the penile vein to induce ALF. To determine HMGB1 levels, plasma and hepatic tissue samples were serially collected after the d-galactosamine injection. To test the effect of HMGB1 blockade, anti-HMGB1 polyclonal antibodies or control antibodies were injected into the penile vein right after injection of d-galactosamine. Levels of HMGB1 were increased in plasma and decreased in hepatic tissue after induction of ALF. Immunohistochemical examination for HMGB1 showed that liver from animals with ALF had little staining, whereas normal liver had strong staining in the nuclei. Injection of anti-HMGB1 antibodies resulted in significant suppression of plasma HMGB1 and hepatic enzymes, marked suppression of plasma inflammatory cytokines, marked improvement of histological findings, and significant improvement of survival. The decrease of hepatic HMGB1 was also significantly suppressed in the group injected with anti-HMGB1 antibodies. The present study suggests that in ALF, the liver may release HMGB1 into the plasma, and that neutralizing the released HMGB1 has a protective effect against injury.

Background: High-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) is a monocyte-derived late-acting inflammatory mediator, which is released in conditions such as shock, tissue injury and endotoxin-induced lethality. In this study, we determined the plasma and hepatic tissue levels of HMGB1 in patients with acute liver failure (ALF). Patients and Methods: We determined the plasma levels of HMGB1 and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) in 7 healthy volunteers (HVs), 40 patients with liver cirrhosis (LC), 37 patients with chronic hepatitis (CH), 18 patients with severe acute hepatitis (AH), and 14 patients with fulminant hepatitis (FH). The 14 patients with FH were divided into two subgroups depending upon the history of plasma exchange (PE) before their plasma sample collection. The hepatic levels of HMGB1 were measured in tissue samples from 3 patients with FH who underwent living-donor liver transplantation and from 3 healthy living donors. Hepatic tissue samples were also subjected to immunohistochemical examination for HMGB1. Results: The plasma levels of HMGB1 (ng/ml) were higher in patients with liver diseases, especially in FH patients with no history of PE, than in HVs (0.3 ± 0.3 in HVs, 4.0 ± 2.0 in LC, 5.2 ± 2.6 in CH, 8.6 ± 4.8 in severe AH, 7.8 ± 2.7 in FH with a history of PE, and 12.5 ± 2.6 in FH with no history of PE, p < 0.05 in each comparison). There was a strong and statistically significant relationship between the mean plasma HMGB1 level and the logarithm of the mean AST level (R = 0.900, p < 0.05). The hepatic tissue levels of HMGB1 (ng/mg tissue protein) were lower in patients with FH than in healthy donors (539 ± 116 in FH vs. 874 ± 81 in healthy donors, p < 0.05). Immunohistochemical staining for HMGB1 was strong and clear in the nuclei of hepatocytes in liver sections from healthy donors, but little staining in either nuclei or cytoplasm was evident in specimens from patients with FH. Conclusion: We confirmed that plasma HMGB1 levels were increased in patients with ALF. Based on a comparison between HMGB1 contents in normal and ALF livers, it is very likely that HMGB1 is released from injured liver tissue.

At advanced stages of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the multikinase inhibitor sorafenib is the only effective treatment. Surrogate markers that predict the biological and clinical efficacy of sorafenib may help tailor treatment on an individual patient basis. In the present study, the clinical significance of the expression of HOXB9, a transcriptional factor, in HCC was assessed. Increased HOXB9 expression in HCC was found to be positively correlated with the expression of angiogenic factors, increased vascular invasion and was found to be associated with poor overall patient survival. Sorafenib treatment effectively suppressed the expression of angiogenic factors and activation of the Raf/MEK/ERK pathway in HOXB9-expressing HCC cell lines. Consistent with these findings, HCC patients, whose cancer expressed high levels of HOXB9, exhibited increased overall survival upon sorafenib treatment. Collectively, these results suggest that HOXB9 expression in HCC could be a surrogate marker for a beneficial response to sorafenib treatment.

We report a case of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma arising 33 years after excision of a choledochal cyst. A 61-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital complaining of fever. Thirty-three years ago she had undergone extrahepatic choledochal cystectomy and choledochojejunostomy for a choledochal cyst. Computed tomography showed a tumor in the anterior segment of the liver, extending to the posterior and medial segments and the right portal vein. Intrahepatic biliary stones were seen in the bile ducts. We performed extended right lobectomy. Microscopically, the tumor was cholangiocarcinoma. Most of the tumor area was composed of invasive adenocarcinoma but a carcinoma-in-situ component was also observed in some regions including the hilar bile duct, where an intrahepatic biliary stone was seen. This suggests that the cancer development could be related to intrahepatic cholestasis. Patients with choledochal cyst may have to be carefully followed up for more than 30 years even after diversion surgery.

A fluorescent ratiometric optical chemical sensor (optode) for alcohol detection is presented. A lipophilized bacteriochlorin derivative possessing a trifluoroacetyl group at the 3-position was synthesized for alcohol detection. When embedded in a plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membrane, the fluororeceptor shows a significant signal change on exposure to aqueous ethanol solutions both in the absorbance and the fluorescence emission. This optode allows the determination of ethanol concentrations in aqueous sample solutions by ratiometric fluorometry. The fluorescent indicator responds with increasing fluorescence around 701 nm and decreasing fluorescence around 751 nm towards the presence of ethanol. The optode response was found to be fully reversible in a dynamic measurement range from 0.3% to at least 25% (v/v) ethanol. The limit of detection (LOD) and the limit of quantification (LOQ) of the sensor for ethanol were estimated to be 0.1% and 0.4% (v/v), respectively. These results indicate that the new optode can be employed as an ethanol-sensing device with high sensitivity for beverage and industrial analyses.