1: Use of Intra-aortic Balloon Pump in a Japanese Multicenter Percutaneous Coronary Intervention Registry.

JAMA Intern Med

2015 Dec 1;175(12):1980-2. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2015.5119.

Inohara T, Miyata H, Ueda I, Maekawa Y, Fukuda K, Kohsaka S.

The intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) is a cylindrical balloon inserted into the aorta via the femoral artery that assists circulation by inflating in sync with the heart's beat. Although this approach is rational, the IABP has not actually demonstrated positive outcomes in randomized trials. It is also possible that it has become less necessary than in the past due to advances in the safety of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). We therefore used our university's multicenter prospective registry (KiCS) to assess the current status of IABP use and examine its efficacy. KiCS has been implemented at our university hospital and 15 affiliated institutions since 2009, with over 17,000 cases registered as of 2016. In the data we analyzed, IABP was used in 7% of all PCI cases. An overall comparison showed a higher number of deaths in the IABP group, a trend that persisted even after statistical adjustment. A similar trend was observed in the sub-analysis. Notably, the risk was higher in patient groups for which its use is not standard (e.g., non-shock cases). In other words, a greater increase in risk was of concern in milder cases where IABP might not seem necessary. This study is significant in that it demonstrates how a treatment method previously considered standard is changing its role in line with overall progress in the field.

(Keiichi Fukuda, Professor, Department of Cardiology, 62nd Graduating Class)

CELL

163 (2):367-380; 10.1016/j.cell.2015.08.058 OCT 8 2015

Atarashi K, Tanoue T, Ando M, Kamada N, Nagano Y, Narushima S, Suda W, Imaoka A, Setoyama H, Nagamori T, Ishikawa E, Shima T, Hara T, Kado S, Jinnohara T, Ohno H, Kondo T, Toyooka K, Watanabe E, Yokoyama S, Tokoro S, Mori H, Noguchi Y, Morita H, Ivanov II, Sugiyama T, Nunez G, Camp JG, Hattori M, Umesaki Y, Honda K

Hundreds of species and one hundred trillion individual commensal bacteria inhabit our intestines, exerting a significant influence on the host's immune system, physiological functions, and metabolism. Consequently, gut bacteria are closely linked to our health, and it is becoming clear that abnormalities in the gut microbiota (dysbiosis) are involved in the onset of various diseases. This paper, a result of joint research with Dr. Yoshinori Umesaki and others at the Yakult Central Institute, clarifies the mechanism by which gut bacteria promote the induction and activation of Th17 cells. We found that the strong adhesion of bacteria to intestinal epithelial cells acts as a trigger, causing epithelial cells, dendritic cells, and innate lymphoid cells to cooperate, ultimately promoting strong Th17 cell induction. We also succeeded in isolating 20 bacterial strains from human gut microbiota that induce Th17 cells. Th17 cells are helper T cells that play an important role in eliminating fungi and extracellular parasitic bacteria; however, their excessive activation has been suggested to lead to the onset of inflammatory bowel disease and autoimmune diseases. These findings are expected to lead to applications in probiotics that effectively induce Th17 cells, as well as to the development of treatments and preventive methods for inflammatory bowel disease and autoimmune diseases through the artificial manipulation of gut microbiota.

(Kenya Honda, Professor, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Class of 2000 equivalent)

Gastroenterology

December 2015, Volume 149, Issue 7, Pages 1775–1783.e2

Naoki Yoshimura*, Mamoru Watanabe, Satoshi Motoya, Keiichi Tominaga, Katsuyoshi Matsuoka,Ryuichi Iwakiri, Kenji Watanabe, Toshifumi Hibi

NATURE IMMUNOLOGY

17 (1):76-+; 10.1038/ni.3309 JAN 2016

Moro K, Kabata H, Tanabe M, Koga S, Takeno N, Mochizuki M, Fukunaga K, Asano K, Betsuyaku T, Koyasu S