As a Matter of Factions: The Budgetary Implications of Shifting Factional Control in Japan’s LDP

For 38 years, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) maintained single-party control over the Japanese government. This lack of partisan turnover in government has frustrated attempts to explain Japanese government policy changes using political variables. In this paper, we look for intraparty changes that may have led to changes in Japanese budgetary policy. Using a simple model of agenda-setting, we hypothesize that changes in which intraparty factions “control” the LDP affect the party’s decisions over spending priorities systematically. This runs contrary to the received wisdom in the voluminous literature on LDP factions, which asserts that factions, whatever their raison d’être, do not exhibit different policy preferences. We find that strong correlations do exist between which factions comprise the agenda-setting party “mainstream” and how the government allocates spending across pork-barrel and public goods items

Differences in weight status and energy-balance related behaviors among schoolchildren in German-speaking Switzerland compared to seven countries in Europe

BACKGROUND: Overweight in children and adolescents have increased significantly and are a major public health problem. To allow international comparisons, Switzerland joined the European study 'ENERGY' cross sectional survey consortium that investigated the prevalence of overweight and obesity as well as selected dietary, physical and sedentary behaviors of 10--12 years old pupils across seven other countries in Europe. The aims of the present study was to compare body composition and energy-balance related behaviors of Swiss schoolchildren to those of the seven European ENERGY-countries and to analyze overweight and energy-balance related behaviors of Swiss children according to socio-demographic factors. METHODS: A school-based cross-sectional study among 10--12 year old children was conducted in Switzerland and seven other European countries using a standardized protocol. Body height, weight and waist-circumference were measured by trained research assistants. Energy-balance related behaviors - i.e. selected dietary, physical activity and screen-viewing behaviors were assessed by questionnaires. Weight status and behaviors in Switzerland were compared to the seven European ENERGY countries. Within the Swiss sample, analyses stratified by gender, parental education and ethnicity were performed. RESULTS: Data of 546 Swiss children (mean age 11.6+/-0.8y, 48% girls) were obtained and compared to the EN

Hydrokinetic pancreatic function and insulin secretion are moduled by Cl− uniporter Slc26a9 in mice

Aim: Slc26a9 is a member of the Slc26 multifunctional anion transporter family. Polymorphisms in Slc26a9 are associated with an increased incidence of meconium ileus and diabetes in cystic fibrosis patients. We investigated the expression of Slc26a9 in the murine pancreatic ducts, islets and parenchyma, and elucidated its role in pancreatic ductal electrolyte and fluid secretion and endocrine function. Methods: Pancreatic Slc26a9 and CFTR mRNA expression, fluid and bicarbonate secretion were assessed in slc26a9−/− mice and their age- and sex-matched wild-type (wt) littermates. Glucose and insulin tolerance tests were performed. Results: Compared with stomach, the mRNA expression of Slc26a9 was low in pancreatic parenchyma, 20-fold higher in microdissected pancreatic ducts than parenchyma, and very low in islets. CFTR mRNA was ~10 fold higher than Slc26a9 mRNA expression in each pancreatic cell type. Significantly reduced pancreatic fluid secretory rates and impaired glucose tolerance were observed in female slc26a9−/− mice, whereas alterations in male mice did not reach statistical significance. No significant difference was observed in peripheral insulin resistance in slc26a9−/− compared to sex- and aged-matched wt controls. In contrast, isolated slc26a9−/− islets in short term culture displayed no difference in insulin content, but a significantly reduced glucose-stimulated insulin secretion compared to age- and sex-matched wt islets, suggesting that the impaired glucose tolerance in the absence of Slc26a9 expression these is a pancreatic defect. Conclusions: Deletion of Slc26a9 is associated with a reduction in pancreatic fluid secretion and impaired glucose tolerance in female mice. The results underline the importance of Slc26a9 in pancreatic physiology. © 2021 The Authors. Acta Physiologica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Scandinavian Physiological Society

Neuropsychiatric phenotype of post COVID-19 syndrome in non-hospitalized patients

The post COVID-19 syndrome (PCS) is an emerging phenomenon worldwide with enormous socioeconomic impact. While many patients describe neuropsychiatric deficits, the symptoms are yet to be assessed and defined systematically. In this prospective cohort study, we report on the results of a neuropsychiatric consultation implemented in May 2021. A cohort of 105 consecutive patients with merely mild acute course of disease was identified by its high symptom load 6 months post infection using a standardized neurocognitive and psychiatric-psychosomatic assessment. In this cohort, we found a strong correlation between higher scores in questionnaires for fatigue (MFI-20), somatization (PHQ15) and depression (PHQ9) and worse functional outcome as measured by the post COVID functional scale (PCFS). In contrast, neurocognitive scales correlated with age, but not with PCFS. Standard laboratory and cardiopulmonary biomarkers did not differ between the group of patients with predominant neuropsychiatric symptoms and a control group of neuropsychiatrically unaffected PCS patients. Our study delineates a phenotype of PCS dominated by symptoms of fatigue, somatisation and depression. The strong association of psychiatric and psychosomatic symptoms with the PCFS warrants a systematic evaluation of psychosocial side effects of the pandemic itself and psychiatric comorbidities on the long-term outcome of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection

Observation of amplitude and phase in ridge and photonic crystal waveguides operating at 1.55 μm by use of heterodyne scanning near-field optical microscopy

We apply heterodyne scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM) to observe with subwavelength resolution the amplitude and phase of optical fields propagating in several microfabricated waveguide devices operating around the 1.55 mu m wavelength. Good agreement between the SNOM measurements and predicted optical mode propagation characteristics in standard ridge waveguides demonstrates the validity of the method. In situ observation of the subwavelength-scale distribution and propagation of optical fields in straight and 90 degrees bend photonic crystal waveguides facilitates a more detailed understanding of the optical performance characteristics of these devices and illustrates the usefulness of the technique for investigating nanostructured photonic devices