The 1.03 million yen ceiling and earnings inequality among married women in Japan

In this paper, we examine the impact of the `1.03 million yen ceiling,' a means-tested transfer scheme for secondary earners in Japan, on earnings inequality of married women. We find that the decline in earnings inequality among married women between 1993 and 2003 is attributable to the increase in the number of wives with low earnings and the decrease in the number of wives with zero earnings.Coefficient of variation, 1.03 million yen ceiling, Japan

Induction of steady-state glomeruloid sphere by self-assembly from human embryonic kidney cells

The glomerulus is a network of capillaries known as a tuft, located at the beginning of a nephron in the kidney. Here we describe a novel method for the induction of a macroscopically visible three-dimensional glomerulus-like sphere (GLS). This procedure did not require any additional cytokines and completed the formation of spheres within 24 h. After the formation was complete, GLS maintained a steady state for at least five days without proliferation and without a decrease in viability. Therefore, this procedure assists various assays for a prolong period of time. Overall, our protocol allows for a very simple mixing of cells from different sources to obtain fine-grained and highly dispersed GLSs. The kidney filtration barrier is a unique structure characterized by a complex three-dimensional framework of podocytes and endothelial cells. GLS exhibited the induction of many podocyte-specific gene profiles similar to those in adult human kidneys, suggesting that the sphere formation process is important for the maturation of podocytes. Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) is one of the major causes of steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome, and some circulating permeability factors in the patient's serum FSGS have been implicated in the pathogenesis of the disease. Serum from patients with FSGS induced the collapse of GLS, which imitates the appearance of glomerulosclerosis in patients. In conclusion, the investigation and use of GLS may provide a novel method to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying complicated and unexplained events in glomeruli in a similar condition in adult kidneys

Verification of reliability and validity of a face scale for pain assessment of preterm infants (FSPAPI) <Original Articles>

本研究の目的は, 上部顔面運動の三次元行動解析により, 臨床で活用しやすい早産児の痛みのアセスメント・ツールとして開発したフェース・スケール(FSPAPI)の信頼性と妥当性を検証することである. 調査は, III次レベルのNICUにおいて16名の早産児に実施された61の処置場面(採血, 皮下注射, 栄養チューブ交換, 電極除去)について, 34名の看護師の観察によって行った. 評定者間信頼性はベッドサイドでの看護師間の観察結果の一致度を, 評定者内信頼性はベッドサイドの観察と同じ場面のビデオ録画との一致度を分析した. 妥当性については, PIPPによる併存妥当性を分析した. 評定者間信頼性について, 一致度は0.809(信頼できる一致度), κ係数は0.707(p<0.001)で「かなりの一致」を得ることができ, FSPAPIの同等性を確認できた. 評定者内信頼性については, 一致度は評定者間よりも低値で0.761と「満足できる一致度」ではなかったが, κ係数は0.626(p<0.001)であり, 「かなりの一致」を得ることができた. FSPAPIで重要となる皺形成の判断は, ベッドサイドで直接観察するよりもビデオ画像のほうが難しく, そのため評定者内一致度は低く出ることが予想されていたが, 本研究ではかなりの一致を得ることができ, FSPAPIの安定性が得られたものと考える. 併存妥当性については, FSPAPIレベルとPIPPスコアの相関係数(ρ)は0.766(p<0.001)であり, 両者間に強い相関を確認することができた. 以上から, FSPAPIはPIPPよりも少ない項目, すなわち上部顔面表情のみを用いて, 早産児に実施されるベッドサイド処置に伴う痛みのアセスメントに使用できると考えられる.The purpose of this study is to examine reliability and validity of the face scale for pain assessment of preterm infants developed by the applicant based on quantification of facial motions by 3-D behavioral analysis in order to facilitate pain assessment of preterm infants in clinical settings. The investigation was conducted at three tertiary-level NICU facilities, with 61 recorded images of scenes from 16 preterm infants and observational data of 34 nurses. As for intra-evaluator reliability, agreement was 0.761, k coefficient 0.626 (pretty much agree), whereas for inter-evaluator reliability, agreement was 0.809 (agreement with reliability) and k coefficient 0.707 (pretty much agree). Dependence validity was compared with PIPP and was strongly correlated, with correlation coefficient (p) of 0.766 (p<0.001). The reason why intra-evaluator reliability was lower than inter-evaluator reliability, which was high, was considered to be because of the poor quality of recorded images which were used for reproducing the scenes, due to low intensity of illumination at NICU. However, because of the good inter-evaluator reliability and good correlation with PIPP used for research, the scale developed by the applicant was considered to be convenient in clinical settings

Farming strategy of African smallholder farmers in transition from traditional to alternative agriculture : the case of the Nupe in central Nigeria

It is worthwhile to understand farming strategies of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, especially those of farmers who are in transition from traditional to alternative agriculture in terms of adoption of innovative technologies. In a case study of inland valleys in central Nigeria, we investigated the farming strategy of Nupe farmers who have a long-term tradition of wet rice cultivation and indigenous methods of land preparation for soil, water and weed management. In this region, a new method of land preparation has recently been introduced along with a recommendation to use improved seeds and chemical fertilizers. Our findings reveal that Nupe farmers directly sow traditional seeds and apply a marginal amount of fertilizer to paddy plots prepared by labor-saving methods on drought-prone hydromorphic valley fringes and flood-susceptible valley bottoms, whereas they preferentially transplanted improved seedlings and applied a relatively large quantity of fertilizer to paddy fields prepared by a labor-intensive and mechanized method on a valley position where they can access to optimum water condition (less risky against the drought and flood)

Locus coeruleus input to hippocampal CA3 drives single-trial learning of a novel context

The memory for a new episode is formed immediately upon experience and can last up to a lifetime. It has been shown that the hippocampal network plays a fundamental role in the rapid acquisition of a memory of a one-time experience, in which the novelty component of the experience promotes the prompt formation of the memory. However, it remains unclear which neural circuits convey the novelty signal to the hippocampus for the single-trial learning. Here, we show that during encoding neuromodulatory input from locus coeruleus (LC) to CA3, but not CA1 or to the dentate gyrus, is necessary to facilitate novel contextual learning. Silencing LC activity during exposure to a novel context reduced subsequent reactivation of the engram cell ensembles in CA3 neurons and in downstream CA1 upon reexposure to the same context. Calcium imaging of the cells reactivated in both novel and familiar contexts revealed that suppression of LC inputs at the time of encoding resulted in more variable place fields in CA3 neurons. These results suggest that neuromodulatory input from LC to CA3 is crucial for the formation of a persistent memory in the hippocampus

Dissolution Properties of CO2 in the High Pressure Environment Equivalent to 3500m Deep Sea

AbstractThe purpose of the present study is to investigate the influence of CO2 hydrate formation and dissociation on the dissolution properties of liquid CO2. In order to clarify the influence of CO2 hydrate formation and dissociation, pressure and temperature are measured under both conditions of hydrate region and non-hydrate region. Hysteresis is obtained in the formation and dissociation of CO2 hydrate as a function of temperature. It is confirmed that there is hysteresis in the case of hydrate region, however, virtually no hysteresis in the case of non-hydrate region. As the result, it is confirmed that hysteresis is caused by CO2 hydrate and all hysteresis loop obtained in this study are all different, though experiment conditions is almost same. In other words, it is suggested that the amount of CO2 hydrate is constant chang

Progress of the SDR-based dual-band scintillation detector development and its application for space weather study

第150回地球電磁気・地球惑星圏学会（SGEPSS）総会および講演会, 2021年10月31日-11月4

Desensitization treatment with cisplatin after carboplatin hypersensitivity reaction in gynecologic cancer

Platinum-based chemotherapy is the standard regimen for the treatment of gynecologic cancers ; however, hypersensitivity reactions (HR) to platinum often lead to discontinuation of this effective treatment. Here we performed a desensitization protocol for platinum infusion in 3 patients who required platinum re-administration after developing HR. Two patients (Case 1 and 2) were treated with the desensitization protocol successfully without developing HR during the subsequent 3 courses. Case 3 tolerated desensitization well for 2 courses, but in the 3rd course, she developed severe HR immediately after the initiation of cisplatin infusion because the desensitization protocol was unintentionally omitted. These cases show the usefulness and effectiveness of the desensitization protocol for the continuation of platinum treatment in patients who have undergone an extended number of treatments