The Therapeutic Effect on Bone Mineral Formation from Biomimetic Zinc Containing Tricalcium Phosphate (ZnTCP) in Zinc-Deficient Osteoporotic Mice

The aim of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of biomimetic zinc-containing tricalcium phosphate (ZnTCP) produced by hydrothermally converting calcium carbonate exoskeletons from foraminifera, in the treatment of osteoporotic mice. X-Ray powder diffraction showed crystallographic structures matching JCPDS profile for tricalcium phosphate. Mass spectroscopy used to calculate total composition amount showed similar amount of calcium (5×104 μg/g) and phosphate (4×104ppm) after conversion and the presence of zinc (5.18×103 μg/g). In vitro zinc release showed no release in PBS buffer and <1% zinc release in 7 days. In vivo evaluation was done in ovariectomized mice by implanting the ZnTCP samples in the soft tissues near the right femur bone for four weeks. Thirty ddY mice (5 weeks old, average weight of 21 g) were divided into six experimental groups (normal, sham, OVX, β-TCP, ZnTCP and direct injection of zinc). CT images were taken every two weeks where the bone mineral density (BMD) and bone mineral content (BMC) were calculated by software based on CT images. The ZnTCP group exhibits cortical and cancellous bone growth of 45% and 20% respectively. While sham, OVX and β-TCP suffered from bone loss. A correlation was made between the significant body weight increase in ZnTCP with the significant increase in plasma zinc level compared with OVX. The presented results indicate that biomimetic ZnTCP were effective in preventing and treating bone loss in osteoporotic mice model. © 2013 Chou et al

Evacuation policies and strategies for infrastructure construction and supporting method development against huge disasters

The tragic events have gathered much attention and have opened way to research opportunities on topics related to evacuation and risk reduction from earthquakes as well as from tsunami and nuclear disaster immediately after them. The central government of Japan has conducted surveys using formulated questionnaires to collect data on the condition of the actual evacuations after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011. And researchers became able to utilize the data on individual evacuation time, distance, speed, mode share ratio and other information. Since another huge disaster is forecast to attack Japan soon, we are required to prepare for it by infrastructure construction and supporting software development as well based on researches. Evacuation is not always between two areas in the vicinity, but often across long distances from one city to another. This presentation will report the present situation of evacuation policies and discuss how to consider guidance and supporting method to develop the evacuation plans

Comparative Analysis of Tokyo and Moscow Experience in Addressing the Traffic Jams Problem: A View from Moscow and Tokyo

The problem of traffic jams in Moscow turns out to be chronic. The author employs a comparative analysis of the experiences of different countries, especially Russia and Japan, in decreasing traffic congestion, appropriate damage and in solving other transport problems. The article analyzes the objective and subjective reasons for the deterioration of the traffic situation, as well as effective strategies to address them

Attitude-Based Segmentation of Residential Self-Selection and Travel Behavior Changes Affected by COVID-19

This study evaluated the effects of COVID-19 on attitudes toward residential associated with travel behavior on decisions regarding future relocation. Chi-square automatic interaction detection was used to generate tree and classification segments to investigate the various segmentations of travelers and residents around mass transit stations. The decision tree revealed that the most influential variables were the number of transport card ownerships, walking distance to the nearest mass station, number of households, type of resident, property ownership, travel cost, and trip frequency. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people have concentrated on reducing travel time, reducing the number of transfers, and decreasing unnecessary trips. Consequently, people who live near mass transit stations less than 400 and 400&ndash;1000 m away prefer to live in residential and rural areas in the future. Structural Equation Modeling was used to confirm the relationship between attitudes in normal and pandemic situations. According to the findings, attitudes toward residential accessibility of travel modes were a significant determinant of attitudes toward residential location areas. This research demonstrates travelers&rsquo; and residents&rsquo; uncertain decision-making regarding relocation, allowing policymakers and transport authorities to better understand their behavior to improve transportation services

Guideline Formulation for Signalized Intersection Design Considering Impacts on Pedestrians\u27Psychology

University of Tokyo (東京大学