Peer Reviewed

Osaka Metropolitan University scientists revealed quadriceps tendon-patellar bone (QTB) grafts as a more suitable option than bone-patellar tendon-bone (BPTB) grafts for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. Examinations in human cadavers and ACL reconstruction patients showed that the QTB graft is more similar to the ACL at the femoral insertion site than the BPTB graft. The difference between graft bending angle (GBA) and an angle corresponding to GBA showed that the QTB graft bends less than the BPTB graft, suggesting a lower risk of excessive stress on the insertion site and thereby a lower probability of ACL reconstruction failures. These findings contribute to potential improvement in ACL reconstruction for knee injury patients.

Scientists at Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, have found that elevated blood levels of an amino acid called homocysteine correlate strongly with the severity of an advanced form of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. They also found vitamin B12 and folic acid could potentially prevent and/or delay disease progression.

New research using genome editing technology has allowed scientists to create a model and assess a gene mutation associated with neuropsychiatric disorders in humans. The study has revealed how the mutation functions in the brain and affects anxiety and sociality.

New, easily fabricated, high performance carbon microlattice electrodes could soon be used to make cheaper batteries powered by readily available sodium ions. The approach was published by Tohoku University researchers and colleagues in the journal Small.

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers have clarified the first suitable computational conditions for Adiabatic State Preparation (ASP) executable on a quantum computer, a method that can improve the accuracy of calculating atomic and molecular wave functions. ASP is thought to be one of the leading methods for efficiently preparing correlated wave functions of molecules with complex electronic structures, but the specific conditions required for the calculations have not been thoroughly investigated so far. This new research has clarified the computational conditions needed to use ASP, a major development for making quantum chemical calculations on a quantum computer practical for chemical or materials research.

When the evolution of towns and of roads are modeled together, the natural landscape alone is enough to predict the actual arrangement of real towns.

Researchers have discovered that vitamin K acts as a powerful antioxidant. It can inhibit ferroptosis, a type of cell death associated with Alzheimer’s disease and organ damage, by trapping lipid radicals. Furthermore, the team identified the long-sought-after vitamin K-reducing enzyme, the identity of which remained unknown for more than half a century.

Researchers from Osaka University and collaborating partners measured intracellular temperature gradients in human-derived cells at unprecedented spatial, temporal, and readout resolution. Intracellular temperature is a fundamental indicator of health, and corresponding gradients are the subject of medical hypotheses as well as potential drug development directions. The results of this work will advance such research by providing a versatile tool that's compatible with standard technology and procedures.

Osaka University researchers created a diminished reality system for providing a future view of a building to be demolished. By implementing generative adversarial networks on a remote server, the team was able to stream real-time video that predicted what a landscape would look like after a building was demolished. This technology can help with urban renewal planning and stakeholder discussions.

Researchers from Osaka University and collaborating partners used straightforward chemical synthesis to modulate the phase transition of a thermal conductivity-switching block copolymer. Reversible changes in the nanostructured anisotropy in the material corresponded to an approximately two-fold change in the thermal conductivity, over the 27°C to 147°C temperature range. These results will enhance the sustainability of upcoming advanced flexible organic electronics.

A research group led by Associate Professor Kazuki Uemura of the Graduate School of Rehabilitation Science, Osaka Metropolitan University conducted a cross-sectional study, using GPS and accelerometers, of 133 elderly people (aged 65 or older) in Toyama Prefecture to investigate their out-of-home behavior and amounts of physical activity during 14 days. The results demonstrated that the amounts of physical activity among the participants were more strongly influenced by the number of visited places (nodes) than by out-of-home time. This suggests that diversity, not just duration, of out-of-home behavior may be important when encouraging the elderly to go out to extend their life expectancy.

Evidence for Molecular Packing of Monovalent Iridium (III) Complexes within Interlayer Spaces of Sodium Montmorillonite

Exposure to persistent organic pollutants in pet cats lowers blood thyroid hormone levels and causes chronic oxidative stress.

Osaka University researchers designed a silicon-based agent that successfully generated hydrogen continuously in the mouse gastrointestinal tract in an ulcerative colitis (UC) model. The hydrogen served as an antioxidant that could eliminate the reactive oxygen species shown to induce the chronic inflammation responsible for the damage and symptoms caused by UC. Mice given the agent had reduced hemorrhage, inflammation, and hyperexcitability in the brain area associated with visceral pain and discomfort. These results may help with the development of a novel treatment for UC.

A key molecule for cancer metastasis has been identified as a molecule already known for its involvement in cardiovascular disease, suggesting a possible treatment approach for both diseases simultaneously.

Three of the nuclear power plants that supplied Tokyo, Japan with its electricity have been shut down since 2003. To understand the long-term implications of this change to Tokyo’s power grid, researchers studied how CO2 emissions in the city differed since the power plant closures.

A professor emeritus at Tohoku University has unearthed evidence pointing to a strong relationship between the magnitude of mass extinctions and global temperature changes in geologic times. This interesting correlation reveals a more optimistic outlook on future extinction events.

Research team develops functional annotation workflow for genome sequencing of insects

Nonthermal plasma (NTP) is used to activate CO2 molecules for hydrogenation into alternative fuels at low temperatures, also enabling the conversion of renewable electricity to chemical energy. Researchers from Tokyo Tech combined experimental and computational methods to investigate the hydrogenation pathway of NTP-promoted CO2 on the surface of Pd2Ga/SiO2 catalysts. The mechanistic insights from their study can help improve the efficiency of catalytic hydrogenation of CO2 and allows the engineers to design new concept catalysts.

Methane emitted from cows is a significant source of greenhouse emissions. Now, a collaborative project has used biomarkers to tell us more about the metabolic and nutritional characteristics linked to enteric methane emissions in Japanese Black cattle.

Researchers at the Institute of Industrial Science at The University of Tokyo introduce a machine learning method to help predict past infection from receptor sequences of immune T-cells even when little data is available, which may help improve human health and our understanding of adaptive immunity

The quest for the ideal COVID-19 policies to contain outbreaks without border closures that harm the travel industry led researchers to one protocol.

Solar panels often get a bad rap for spoiling the appearance of homes and businesses. Yet, a research group has fabricated a highly transparent solar cell with a 2D atomic sheet. These near-invisible solar cells achieved an average visible transparency of 79%, meaning they can, in theory, be placed everywhere—building windows, the front panel of cars, and even human skin.

Saliva and oral cells are important routes for transmission and infection by the novel coronavirus COVID-19. A research group led by Associate Professor Misako Matsubara and Specially Appointed Professor Katsutoshi Yoshizato of Osaka Metropolitan University hypothesized that the body's innate immune system may protect against SARS-CoV-2 infection. The onset and severity of COVID-19 are age-dependent, as are parts of the innate immune system like saliva production and quality, which are significantly reduced in the elderly. They found that saliva from healthy individuals prevented the binding of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein S1 on the viral envelope to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor present on the plasma membrane of human cells in a concentration-dependent manner.

A research group has successfully synthesized a ‘half-metal’ material, achieving a rare feat in the pursuit of zero magnetization. The new material will enhance the performance of electronic devices thanks to the unique behavior of its spin.

A research group led by Dr. Soichi Sano, a specially appointed lecturer in the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka Metropolitan University, revealed that men with hematopoietic mosaic loss of Y chromosome (mLOY) — meaning men with an increase, in the blood, of cells that have lost the male sex chromosome — have a worse prognosis for heart failure due to fibrosis progression in the heart. Furthermore, in experiments using mice, which, like humans, have an increased mortality rate with age, they found that the presence of mLOY causes overproduction of fibrosis-promoting substances, which leads to the progression of cardiac fibrosis, a mechanism directly related to a worse prognosis for heart failure.

Cultured human skeletal muscle cells infused with serum from hibernating bears exhibited “muscle gain” confirming that these creatures’ ability to avoid muscular damage despite months of inactivity is in their blood.

Fresh vegetables in vinegar, similar to pickles, are a perfect side dish, commonly served with Japanese cooking. One traditional side dish called sunomono, a cool cucumber or seaweed salad, provided a unique opportunity as a source of dietary vinegar. This new observational study from Osaka Metropolitan University noted that men over 40 who eat sunomono at least once a month were significantly more likely to be in lower blood pressure categories.

Osaka University researchers identified a novel mechanism by which expression of the tumor suppressor p53 paradoxically promotes liver cancer development in patients with chronic liver disease. By generating a mouse model with constant p53 expression in its liver cells, the team observed increased numbers of hepatic progenitor cells (HPCs) and liver cancer incidence. These HPCs could induce cancer when injected into certain mice. This did not occur with p53 deleted, demonstrating its critical significance.

A thermoelectric metal oxide film with a thermoelectric figure of merit of ~0.55 at 600°C has been discovered, opening new avenues towards the widespread use of thermoelectric converters.