Health technology and policy-making function of the judiciary ： based on comparison between the U.S and Japan

As long as the development of science and technology is not accompanied by the legislation or policies to govern this technology, actual social problems will occur that will require the judiciary to take on the initial role of finding resolutions to these problems. Policies and legislation appear in response to the course of litigation, and plaintiffs may intentionally instigate lawsuits in order to have this sort of impact on political issues. These lawsuits have been called policy-oriented lawsuits. In lawsuits of posthumously conceived child in the U.S, the judiciary has affirmed legal parentage of children by inferring the intention of the legislature. In contrast, Japan has adopted a policy of refusing to do so in the absence of legislation. On the other hand, in lawsuits on adverse drug, Japan has aggressively judged the illegality of administrative bodies in order to provide remedy. There have also been cases where litigation has stirred up policy debates that have encouraged the government to establish safety strategy. While it is recognized that such a use of litigation has an impact on drug administration, the time has come to reconsider its function as a forum for administrative and legislative bodies that essentially play direct roles

Dinuclear Iron(0) Complexes of N‑Heterocyclic Carbenes

The synthesis, structures, and reactivity of dinuclear Fe⁰ complexes of N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs, denoted as L) are reported. The NHC adducts of ferric chloride (L)­FeCl₃ were prepared from the reactions of FeCl₃ with L in toluene. The reduction of (L)­FeCl₃ with KC₈ resulted in the formation of the dinuclear Fe⁰ complexes Fe₂{μ-η¹(C):η⁶(arene)-L}₂ (<b>2a</b>, L = 1,3-bis­(2,4,6-trimethylphenyl)­imidazol-2-ylidene (IMes); <b>2b</b>, L = 1,3-bis­(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)­imidazol-2-ylidene (IPr)), in which NHC ligands bridge two iron atoms using one of the arene rings as an η⁶ ligand. Their magnetic properties are different: <b>2a</b> is paramagnetic and <b>2b</b> is diamagnetic. The dinuclear complexes <b>2a</b>,<b>b</b> serve as precursors for monomeric (NHC)­Fe⁰ species, and treatment of <b>2a</b>,<b>b</b> with 1 atm of CO led to the formation of (L)­Fe­(CO)₄. Complex <b>2a</b> was found to react with 1-azidoadamantane, giving rise to the dinuclear tetrazene complex (IMes)­Fe­(μ-NAd)₂Fe­(AdNNNNAd) (<b>4</b>)

The flavonoid Sudachitin regulates glucose metabolism via PDE inhibition

Sudachitin, a member of the flavonoid family, reportedly improves glucose metabolism after long-term administration, but details of the underlying mechanisms are unknown. We found that Sudachitin approximately doubles insulin secretion under high glucose concentrations in mouse pancreatic islets and MIN6 cells. When Sudachitin was orally administered to mice, early-phase insulin secretion was increased and a 30 % reduction in blood glucose levels was demonstrated 30 min after glucose loading. Insulin tolerance tests also showed Sudachitin to increase systemic insulin sensitivity. Additionally, we observed that Sudachitin raised intracellular cAMP levels in pancreatic islets. Phosphodiesterase (PDE) activity assays revealed Sudachitin to inhibit PDE activity and computer simulations predicted a high binding affinity between PDEs and Sudachitin. These findings suggest that Sudachitin enhances both insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity via an increase in intracellular cAMP resulting from PDE inhibition. These insights may facilitate understanding the mechanisms underlying the regulation of glucose metabolism by Sudachitin and other isoflavones

Size-Dependent Partitioning of Nano/Microparticles Mediated by Membrane Lateral Heterogeneity

It is important that we understand the physical, chemical, and biological mechanisms that govern the interaction between nanoparticles (NPs) and heterogeneous cellular surfaces because of the possible cytotoxicity of engineered nanomaterials. In this study, we investigated the lateral localization of nano/microparticles within a biomimetic heterogeneous membrane interface using cell-sized two-phase liposomes. We found that lateral heterogeneity in the membrane mediates the partitioning of nano/microparticles in a size-dependent manner: small particles with a diameter of ≤200 nm were localized in an ordered phase, whereas large particles preferred a fluidic disordered phase. This partitioning behavior was verified by temperature-controlled membrane miscibility transition and laser-trapping of associated particles. In terms of the membrane elastic energy, we present a physical model that explains this localization preference of nano/microparticles. The calculated threshold diameter of particles that separates the particle-partitioning phase was 260 nm, which is in close agreement with our observation (200 nm). These findings may lead to a better understanding of the basic mechanisms that underlie the association of nanomaterials within a cell surface

Concordance of International Regulation of Pediatric Health Research

Objective: To assess the comparability of international ethics principles and practices used in regulating pediatric research as a first step in determining whether reciprocal deference for international ethics review is feasible. Prior studies by the authors focused on other aspects of international health research, such as biobanks and direct-to-participant genomic research. The unique nature of pediatric research and its distinctive regulation by many countries warranted a separate study. Study design: A representative sample of 21 countries was selected, with geographical, ethnic, cultural, political, and economic diversity. A leading expert on pediatric research ethics and law was selected to summarize the ethics review of pediatric research in each country. To ensure the comparability of the responses, a 5-part summary of pediatric research ethics principles in the US was developed by the investigators and distributed to all country representatives. The international experts were asked to assess and describe whether principles in their country and the US were congruent. Results were obtained and compiled in the spring and summer of 2022. Results: Some of the countries varied in their conceptualization or description of one or more ethical principles for pediatric research, but overall, the countries in the study demonstrated a fundamental concordance. Conclusions: Similar regulation of pediatric research in 21 countries suggests that international reciprocity is a viable strategy