The physiological and psychological relaxing effects of viewing rose flowers in office workers

Background

In recent years, the physiological relaxing effect brought by nature is becoming clear; however, many workers find it difficult to be exposed to nature in their working environment. Exposure to fresh flowers represents an opportunity to incorporate nature into their working lives. In this study, we examined the effects of exposure to roses on physiological and psychological variables (heart rate variability, pulse rate, and subjective responses) in office workers.

Results

The experimental site was Mizuho Information & Research Institute, Inc., in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Thirty-one male office workers were included in the present study. The subjects were exposed to thirty unscented pink roses (Rosa, Dekora) arranged in a cylindrical glass vase for 4 min. In the control condition, the subjects were not exposed to flowers. After the experiments, the subjects completed a questionnaire. The order of exposure was counterbalanced among subjects. Among subjects exposed to roses, the high-frequency component of heart rate variability was significantly higher than in controls. Similarly, ''comfortable,’ ''relaxed’ and ''natural’ feelings were more common in subjects exposed to roses.

Conclusions

Data from this study support the presence of physiological and psychological relaxing effects of being exposed to flowers on office workers.     

Interleukin-17 Induces an Atypical M2-Like Macrophage Subpopulation That Regulates Intestinal Inflammation

Interleukin 17 (IL-17) is a pleiotropic cytokine that acts on both immune and non-immune cells and is generally implicated in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Although IL-17 as well as their source, mainly but not limited to Th17 cells, is also abundant in the inflamed intestine, the role of IL-17 in inflammatory bowel disease remains controversial. In the present study, by using IL-17 knockout (KO) mice, we investigated the role of IL-17 in colitis, with special focus on the macrophage subpopulations. Here we show that IL-17KO mice had increased susceptibility to DSS-induced colitis which was associated with decrease in expression of mRNAs implicated in M2 and/or wound healing macrophages, such as IL-10, IL-1 receptor antagonist, arginase 1, cyclooxygenase 2, and indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase. Lamina propria leukocytes from inflamed colon of IL-17KO mice contained fewer CD11b⁺Ly6C⁺MHC Class II⁺ macrophages, which were derived, at least partly, from blood monocytes, as compared to those of WT mice. FACS-purified CD11b⁺ cells from WT mice, which were more abundant in Ly6C⁺MHC Class II⁺ cells, expressed increased levels of genes associated M2/wound healing macrophages and also M1/proinflammatory macrophages. Depletion of this population by topical administration of clodronate-liposome in the colon of WT mice resulted in the exacerbation of colitis. These results demonstrate that IL-17 confers protection against the development of severe colitis through the induction of an atypical M2-like macrophage subpopulation. Our findings reveal a previously unappreciated mechanism by which IL-17 exerts a protective function in colitis.     

The Effect of 17β-Estradiol on Cutaneous Wound Healing in Protein-Malnourished Ovariectomized Female Mouse Model

Cutaneous wound healing is delayed by protein malnutrition (PM). On the other hand, estrogen promotes cutaneous wound healing by its anti-inflammatory and cell proliferation effects. Therefore, we hypothesized that estrogen administration in protein-malnourished ovariectomized (OVX) female mice might improve the inflammatory response and promote cutaneous wound healing as well as normal nutrition. To test this hypothesis, we used full-thickness excisional wounds in Control SHAM, PM SHAM, PM OVX and PM OVX+17β-estradiol mice. The Control diet included 200 g/kg protein and the PM diet included 30 g/kg protein. The ratio of wound area in the Control SHAM group was significantly smaller than those in the three PM groups. In addition, microscopic findings also showed that the ratio of collagen fibers, the ratio of myofibroblasts and the number of new blood vessels in the Control SHAM group were significantly greater than those in the three PM groups. However, the number of Ym1-positive cells as an anti-inflammatory M2-like macrophage marker in the PM OVX+17β-estradiol group was significantly higher than those in the other three groups. These results indicate that the appearance of anti-inflammatory M2-like macrophages was promoted by estrogen administration; however, it could not promote cutaneous wound healing upon a low-protein diet. Therefore, it may be confirmed that nutrition is more important for promoting cutaneous wound healing than estrogen administration.     

π‐Extended Narrow‐Bandgap Diketopyrrolopyrrole‐Based Oligomers for Solution‐Processed Inverted Organic Solar Cells

A series of narrow‐bandgap π‐conjugated oligomers based on diketopyrrolopyrrole chromophoric units coupled with benzodithiophene, indacenodithiophene, thiophene, and isoindigo cores are designed and synthesized for application as donor materials in solution‐processed small‐molecule organic solar cells. The impacts of these different central cores on the optoelectronic and morphological properties, carrier mobility, and photovoltaic performance are investigated. These π‐extended oligomers possess broad and intense optical absorption covering the range from 550 to 750 nm, narrow optical bandgaps of 1.52–1.69 eV, and relatively low‐lying highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy levels ranging from ?5.24 to ?5.46 eV in their thin films. A high power conversion efficiency of 5.9% under simulated AM 1.5G illumination is achieved for inverted organic solar cells based on a small‐molecule bulk‐heterojunction system consisting of a benzodithiophene‐diketopyrrolopyrrole‐containing oligomer as a donor and [6,6]‐phenyl‐C₇₁‐butyric acid methyl ester (PC₇₁BM) as an acceptor. Transmission electron microscopy and energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy reveal that interpenetrating and interconnected donor/acceptor domains with pronounced mesoscopic phase segregation are formed within the photoactive binary blends, which is ideal for efficient exciton dissociation and charge transport in the bulk‐heterojunction devices.     

Pilot Quasi-Randomized Controlled Study of Herbal Medicine Hochuekkito as an Adjunct to Conventional Treatment for Progressed Pulmonary Mycobacterium avium Complex Disease

Introduction

Hochuekkito, a traditional herbal medicine, is occasionally prescribed in Japan to treat patients with a poor general condition. We aimed to examine whether this medicine was beneficial and tolerable for patients with progressed pulmonary Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) disease.

Methods

This pilot open-label quasi-randomized controlled trial enrolled 18 patients with progressed pulmonary MAC disease who had initiated antimycobacterial treatment over one year ago but were persistently culture-positive or intolerant. All patients continued their baseline treatment regimens with (n = 9) or without (n = 9) oral Hochuekkito for 24 weeks.

Results

Baseline characteristics were generally similar between the groups. Most patients were elderly (median age 70 years), female, had a low body mass index (<20 kg/m²), and a long-term disease duration (median approximately 8 years). After the 24-week treatment period, no patient achieved sputum conversion. Although the number of colonies in sputum tended to increase in the control group, it generally remained stable in the Hochuekkito group. Radiological disease control was frequently observed in the Hochuekkito group than the control group (8/9 vs. 3/9; p = 0.05). Patients in the Hochuekkito group tended to experience increase in body weight and serum albumin level compared with those in the control group (median body weight change: +0.4 kg vs. −0.8 kg; median albumin change: +0.2 g/dl vs. ±0.0 g/dl). No severe adverse events occurred.

Conclusions

Hochuekkito could be an effective, feasible adjunct to conventional therapy for patients with progressed pulmonary MAC disease. Future study is needed to explore this possibility.

Trial Registration

UMIN Clinical Trials Registry UMIN000009920     

Evaluation of the third solvent clusters fitting procedure for the prediction of protein-protein interactions based on the results at the CAPRI blind docking study

To predict protein-protein interactions, rough or coarse handling for the induced fit problem is proposed. Our method involves the overlap of two hydrophobic interactions as "third solvent clusters fitting." Predictions for binding sites and geometric centers were acceptable, but those of the binding axes were poor. In this study, only the largest benzene cluster was used for the third solvent clusters fitting. For the next CAPRI targets, we must perform protein-protein interaction analyses, which include other smaller benzene clusters.     

Synthesis of a biotin-conjugate of phosmidosine O-ethyl ester as a G1 arrest antitumor drug

This paper deals with the synthesis of a stable biotin–phosmidosine conjugate molecule 3 that is required for isolation of biomolecules that bind to phosmidosine (1). It was found that introduction of a biotin residue into the 6-N position of phosmidosine could be carried out by reaction of an N⁷-Boc-7,8-dihydro-8-oxoadenosine derivative 13 with phenyl chloroformate followed by displacement with a diamine derivative 6 along with the simultaneous removal of the Boc group and one of the two phenoxycarbonyl groups and the successive condensation with an N-tritylated biotin derivative 5. The condensation of an N-prolylphosphorodiamidite derivative 4 with an appropriately protected 7,8-dihydro-8-oxoadenosine derivative 17 having the biotin residue gave the coupling product 18, which was deprotected to give the biotin–phosmidosine (O-ethyl ester) conjugate 3.     

Lipid microsphere containing lipophilic heme: preparation and oxygen transportation under physiological conditions.

Lipophilic heme (1-laurylimidazole-ligated 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(alpha, alpha, alpha, alpha-o- pivalamidophenyl)porphinatoiron(II) complex) is solubilized in lipid (triglyceride) at high concentrations and emulsified with a phospholipid in physiological salt solution, giving a deeply red-colored suspension of lipid microspheres (approx. 250 nm in diameter). The heme forms an oxygen adduct in a similar manner as oxyhemoglobin and the lipid microspheres take up and release oxygen reversibly at 37 degrees C in the aqueous medium. The oxygen-transporting ability is comparable with that of the red blood cell. Intravenous injection of the heme/lipid microsphere solution to rabbits demonstrates that it transports oxygen even in vivo and that it is cleared from the blood stream with a half-life time of approx. 1 h.