Nanoparticles are used in many everyday products because of their innovative properties, but there are concerns that, being smaller than conventional materials, they have the potential to induce unexpected biological effects. Despite the need for the safety of nanoparticles to be assessed, action in this area is still lagging. Several studies, including those by us, have revealed that nanoparticles can reach the placenta and show placental toxicity, but it remains unclear how nanoparticles affect placental function. Here, we attempted to assess the effect of nanoparticles on placental hormone-producing function by using an in vitro forskolin-induced BeWo syncytialization model. BeWo cells were treated with amorphous silica nanoparticles with a diameter of 10 nm (nSP10) either during syncytialization or after being syncytialized by forskolin treatment. RT-PCR analysis showed that nSP10 inhibited forskolin-induced upregulation in the expression level of human chorionic gonadotropin β (hCGβ; gene name, CGB) during syncytialization, but not in syncytialized BeWo cells. Moreover, nSP10 downregulated forskolin-induced elevation in the expression of endogenous retrovirus group FRD member 1 (ERVFRD-1) and syndecan-1 (SDC1), which are involved in cell fusion during syncytialization. These results suggest that nSP10 could suppress trophoblast cell fusion, thus inhibiting the production of hCG in syncytialized BeWo cells.

Rosacea is an intractable skin disease and no effective treatment has been established, but there are cases of improvement with Kampo medicine. In this study, the efficacy of Keishi-Bukukryo-gan-ka-Yokuinin (KBY) in ameliorating the symptoms of rosacea was investigated in a steroid-induced rosacea mouse model. The mice were fed a KBY-containing diet for 28 d, after application of clobetasol propionate for 10 d; thereafter, the velocity of capillary blood flow, area of the skin purpura, histopathologic features, and gut microbiota were analyzed. The KBY-fed mice showed remarkable recovery in the capillary blood flow velocity and purpura area, as well as restoration of the epidermis features. Furthermore, gut microbiome analysis showed the enhancement of Lactobacillus population in the KBY-fed mice. The KBY-induced improvement of circulatory disturbances in skin might contribute to the alleviation of telangiectasia and erythema. Lactobacillus may be involved in alleviating the rosacea-like symptoms in association with KBY; however, this association should be investigated further by using other analysis methods. Our results provide evidence of the effectiveness of KBY in improving the pathology of rosacea.

Adolescent blood pressure (BP) is associated with the prevalence of hypertension in later life, and anthropometric measures have been shown to be useful indicators for predicting hypertension. However, little is known about their associations in Japanese young adults. Here, this study aimed to analyze the association between BP and anthropometric measures in Japanese university students. The participants of this cross-sectional study included 17,512 university students (12,559 males and 4,953 females) in Japan between 2011 and 2019. Abnormal BP (ABP) was defined as systolic/diastolic BP above 120 and/or 80 mmHg. ABP was seen in 59.2% of males and 16.3% of females, with the proportion in male students increasing over the nine year study period. Areas under receiver operating characteristics curves analysis showed that the top three predictors (and their cut-off points) of ABP in descending order were body mass index (20.5 kg/m²), waist circumference (74.1 cm) and chest circumference (85.4 cm) in males, and body mass index (19.8 kg/m²), body fat rate (28.5%) and chest circumference (82.4 cm) in females. The odds ratio was 2.69 (2.45‒2.94) in males and 2.40 (1.96‒2.95) in females when all three measurements were higher than their cut-off points. The incidence of ABP has increased in male university students, suggesting the need for interventions for appropriate BP control. This study suggests that anthropometric measures in combination with body mass index might be useful for this intervention in Japanese university students.

Immune suppression is one of the major factors affecting the pandemic outbreak of infectious diseases in societies where malnutrition is common. The thymus and spleen are known to respond to starvation via reductions in their size and functions, which is called thymic or splenic involution. However, almost no reports have been published on the response of lymph nodes, other secondary immune organs, to starvation. Therefore, we here examined the histological characters of lymph nodes of a mouse dietary restriction model. Dietary restriction for 48 h reduced the size of inguinal lymph nodes by 48%. Immunoreactivity to anti-immunoglobulin G antibody was reduced by the dietary restriction, along with a normal level of immunoglobulin M-immunoreactivity, suggesting inhibited immune capacity. Because splenic involution involves macrophages, we immunostained the lymph node sections to detect macrophages. The immunoreactivity to anti-ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule 1 (IBA1)/allograft inflammatory factor 1 (AIF1) antibody was not changed by the dietary restriction. In contrast, anti-F4/80 antibody reactivities in medullary cord macrophages, interfollicular macrophages, and the macrophages located along trabeculae in the subcapsular sinus were reduced by the dietary restriction. These results indicate that, in addition to thymus and spleen, lymph nodes are also susceptible to starvation. Specific subpopulations of macrophages are reduced in the lymph nodes of starved mice.

Background: A rubric-based intervention program was designed to reduce the risk of developing coronary artery disease (CAD) in patients with dyslipidemia, and the effectiveness of community pharmacist-led intervention using the program was evaluated. Methods: We conducted an open-label, multicenter, randomized controlled trial. Participants included patients with dyslipidemia on statin medication recruited from August 2020 to July 2021. The intervention group received instructions from community pharmacists using a rubric-based intervention program in addition to usual pharmacist care. Conversely, the control group only received the usual care. The primary outcome was the change in the Suita score at month 6, which was compared between the intervention and control groups. The secondary outcome was the change in the rubric score, which was compared between the post-intervention and baseline. Results: We analyzed 15 participants (mean age, 61.9 years), whose mean Suita score was 42.6. No significant difference was observed in the change in the Suita score between the two groups. However, in the intervention group, the post-intervention Suita score was significantly lower than the baseline (43.9 vs. 38.7, p = 0.01), and the CAD risk classification based on Suita score decreased from medium to low risk. The post-intervention rubric score increased significantly compared with the baseline (2.0 vs. 3.1, p < 0.01). Conclusion: The rubric was a useful tool in promoting behavior changes in patients. The community pharmacist-led intervention for patients with dyslipidemia using a rubric-based intervention program showed the possibility of reducing the risk of developing CAD.

The seeds of jojoba [Simmondsia chinensis (Link) Schneider] contain a unique oil known as jojoba oil. It mainly consists of liquid wax monoesters with structures similar to human sebum wax and is popular as a cosmetic ingredient. We previously observed that the oxidative stability and antioxidant activity of crude jojoba oil are higher than those of many other vegetable oils. In this study, these two parameters were determined and compared among crude jojoba oils from different companies, countries, and years of production, together with deodorized or refined oils. Oxidative stability and antioxidant activity vary among crude oils, and there was a negligible correlation between these two parameters. Both deodorized and refined oils showed lower antioxidant activities than crude oils. In addition to wax esters, triglycerides and squalene are other major oil components of human sebum. To compare the autooxidation of jojoba oil (wax ester), olive oil (triglyceride), and squalene, we measured their acid, peroxide, and carbonyl values after heat treatment at 60°C for 60 d. The acid value did not change in jojoba oil but increased in the other ones. In addition, the peroxide and carbonyl values were the lowest in jojoba oil following heat treatment. These results suggest that jojoba oil was the most stable in terms of autooxidation among these three investigated oils. Finally, we determined the cytotoxicity of olive and jojoba oils in human epidermal cells, and concluded that they were non-toxic after heating at 60°C for 30 or 60 d.