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Many invasive and noninvasive methods have been used to study the cardiac atria; however, few allow quantitative measurement of atrial function. To determine the interaction between left ventricular (LV) contraction and left atrial (LA) filling, gated radionuclide angiography was conducted in 30 normal subjects (24 men and 6 women, mean age 58 +/- 10 years, range 26-68). LV and LA time-activity curves and their first-derivative curves were obtained simultaneously by using the method of Bough et al. The LV ejection fraction (64 +/- 18%) and LV peak ejection rate (LVPER; 3.42 +/- 0.27 EDV/s) were computed from these curves. As indices of LA filling, LA fractional emptying (38 +/- 12%) and LA peak filling rate (LAPFR; 2.86 +/- 0.17 LAVmax/s)--the latter being defined as the peak rate of LA filling during the LA filling phase--were also computed from these curves. In all subjects, the timing of the LVPER coincided with the occurrence of LAPFR, and there was a significant positive correlation between the LVPER and LAPFR (r = 0.81, p < 0.001), indicating that the LAPFR was strongly affected by the degree of LVPER. Thus, these results indicate that LV contractile performance plays an important role in determining LA passive filling during ventricular systole.

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Background Thrombus formation is an important factor affecting cardiovascular events and venous thromboembolism in type 2 diabetes. However, it is unclear whether glycemic control reduces thrombogenicity. We investigated the effect of short-term glycemic control (STUDY 1) and hypoglycemia (STUDY 2) on thrombus formation using an automated microchip flow chamber system. Methods For STUDY 1, we recruited 10 patients with type 2 diabetes. Before and after 2 weeks of treatment, blood glucose was analyzed with a continuous glucose monitoring system, and thrombogenicity was analyzed with an automated microchip flow chamber system. For STUDY 2, we recruited 10 subjects without diabetes who underwent an insulin tolerance test. We evaluated the change in thrombogenic potential with hypoglycemia. Results STUDY1: The mean blood glucose level reduced from 10.1 ± 2.6 to 6.9 ± 0.97 mM ( P < 0.01). T10, an indicator of thrombogenicity, significantly attenuated after glycemic control (338 ± 65 vs. 425 ± 117 s, P < 0.05). The attenuation in T10 was significantly correlated with changes in mean blood glucose level after treatment ( r = − 0.718, P < 0.05). STUDY 2: Platelet function was enhanced with decreasing blood glucose; increased platelet function was strongly correlated with an increase in epinephrine. Conclusions We demonstrated attenuation in thrombogenicity with short-term comprehensive diabetes care and enhancement in thrombogenicity with hypoglycemia, using a new flow chamber system. Trial registration UMIN-CTR UMIN 000019899 , registered 26-Jan-2015 (STUDY 2). Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12959-019-0206-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The present study investigated the distribution of Batillaria multiformis and B. attramentaria in the tidal flats of Southern Kyushu. These two species are the dominant inhabitants of tidal flats and play an important role in conserving the environmental condition of the coastal area. Since it is difficult to distinguish between the two species based on shell morphology, the polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) technique was used for identification. Among the 55 tidal flats surveyed, Batillaria species were found in 32, mainly along the coasts of Kagoshima Bay and East China Sea. Furthermore, these species were not observed in certain tidal flats, although their presence in these tidal flats was confirmed from 1999 to 2003. The reason for their absence or decline has been discussed here. Batillaria multiformis was distributed along the neighboring tidal flats of inner Kagoshima Bay and around Nagashima Island, whereas B. attramentaria was isolated along a few scattered tidal flats facing to the Pacific Ocean or East China Sea. The difference in the distribution of two species might be attributed to their developmental system B. multiformis and B. attramentaria employ planktonic and direct developmental systems, respectively.

Aim: Elevated level of serum triglyceride (TG) is a characteristic of type 2 diabetes. We evaluated the clinical significance of intervention for the serum TG levels in the fasting and postprandial states in patients with type 2 diabetes.Methods: Fifty patients with type 2 diabetes, treated with statins, were selected and divided into two groups. One group was treated with a combination of fenofibrate and ezetimibe (F/E group) and the other group with statins (statin group) for 12 weeks. The lipoprotein profile of both groups was compared using high-performance liquid chromatography, and the vascular function was assessed using flow-mediated dilation (FMD) at the forearm.Results: The levels of very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) cholesterol, malondialdehyde low-density lipoprotein (MDA-LDL), total TG, chylomicron-TG, VLDL-TG, and HDL-TG decreased in the F/E group, whereas those of HDL cholesterol increased. Furthermore, the peak particle size of LDL increased, but that of HDL decreased in the F/E group. The combination treatment significantly improved the FMD. The change in the cholesterol level in a very small fraction of HDL was a significant independent predictor for determining the improvement of FMD (p < 0.01).Conclusions: Compared with the treatment with statins, the treatment with the combination of fenofibrate and ezetimibe effectively controlled the LDL cholesterol and TG levels, increased the HDL cholesterol level, especially in its small fraction, and improved vascular function of patients with type 2 diabetes.

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In the evaluation of intermediate lesions in the LAD, CFVR as assessed by CE-TTDE could accurately predict the presence of ischemia on stress thallium imaging, whereas angiographic stenosis did not yield reliable results.