Optimal Monetary Policy in an Estimated Local Currency Pricing Model

We analyze fluctuations in inflation and the nominal exchange rate under optimal monetary policy with local currency pricing by developing two-country DSGE local currency pricing and producer currency pricing models. We estimate our models using Bayesian techniques with Japanese and US data, and calculate impulse response functions. Our estimation results show that local currency pricing is strongly supported against producer currency pricing. From the estimated parameters, we show that completely stabilizing consumer price index inflation is optimal from the viewpoint of minimizing welfare costs and that completely stabilizing consumer price index inflation is consistent with completely stabilizing the nominal exchange rate.local currency pricing, optimal monetary policy, CPI inflation, fixed exchange rate, Bayesian estimation

Equivalence of BRST cohomologies for 2-d black hole and c=1 Liouville theory

We study the relation between the $SL(2,R)/U(1)$ black hole and the $c=1$ Liouville theory. A deformation, which interpolates the BRST operators of both models, is explicitly constructed. This interpolation is isomorphic, and the physical spectrum of the black hole is equivalent to that of the $c=1$ model tensored by a topological $U(1)/U(1)$ model. Some implications of the deformation are discussed.Comment: latex. 10 pages. UT-Komaba/92-1

ホンポウ オヨビ トクシマケン ニオケル カクマク イショク イリョウ ノ ゲンジョウ ト モンダイ

Current status and problems of corneal transplantations in Japan and Tokushima Prefectureare described. The major issue is donor cornea deficiency. It would not an exaggeration to saythat Japanese corneal transplantation depends on foreign donors. There are two reasons whycorneal donation is rare in Japan. One is related to marked decline of enrollments, after the organtransplant law went into effective in October 1997, who wish to donate cornea in future. Anotheris related to an inefficiency of former enrollments’ contribution to actual corneal donations. Thelack of communications between eye bank associations and other transplant-related associationsmight be the background factor.To develop corneal transplantations in Tokushima Prefecture, it is necessary for Tokushimaeye bank association to establish the system offering more domestic corneal grafts to more cornealtransplant recipients than ever. To that end, the eye bank is required to spread correct knowledgeabout corneal donation to all healthcare professionals who involved in emergency and end-oflifecare. A government that support all associations involved in corneal transplantation is alsonecessary

Assembly Sequence Planning by Probabilistic Tree Transformation

Various types of computer systems including CAD/CAM systems have been introduced in machine industry. Some of the systems can handle assembly sequence planning, however it requires long time for planning. This paper proposes a method of generating assembly sequences efficiently. This method extracts some parts and/or subassemblies whose possibilities of being removed from a product are strong, and tests whether they can be removed without any geometric interference. By performing these operations repeatedly, the method generates a disassembly sequence of the product, and obtains an assembly sequence by reversing it. The extraction of some parts and/or subassemblies is performed, based on probabilistic tree transformation. The authors present a calculation example by using a software tool integrated with a CAD system

平面を用いた等週問題の解法

Classical isoperimetric inequality is shown in a complex plane. In a complex plane we can use effectively the complex Fourier expansion in the computations

Infectious conjunctivitis caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolated from a bathroom

Background: The elucidation of the routes of transmission of a pathogen is crucial for the prevention of infectious diseases caused by bacteria that are not a resident in human tissue. The purpose of this report is to describe a case of suture-related conjunctivitis caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa for which we identified the transmission route using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Case presentation: A 38-year-old man, who had undergone surgery for glaucoma 2 years ago previously, presented with redness, discomfort, and mucopurulent discharge in the right eye. A 9–0 silk suture had been left on the conjunctiva. A strain of P. aeruginosa was isolated from a culture obtained from the suture, and the patient was therefore diagnosed with suture-related conjunctivitis caused by P. aeruginosa. The conjunctivitis was cured by the application of an antimicrobial ophthalmic solution and removal of the suture. We used PFGE to survey of the indoor and outdoor environments around the patient’s house and office in order to elucidate the route of transmission of the infection. Three strains of P. aeruginosa were isolated from the patient’s indoor environment, and the isolate obtained from the patient’s bathroom was identical to that from the suture. Conclusion: The case highlights the fact that an indoor environmental strain of P. aeruginosa can cause ocular infections

Identification and Modification ofPorphyromonas gingivalisCysteine Protease, Gingipain, Ideal for Screening Periodontitis

Chronic periodontitis is an inflammatory disease caused by the formation of oral microbial biofilms. Periodontitis is associated with general health and not only oral diseases.Porphyromonas gingivalisis a well-known keystone pathogen for periodontitis and is associated with several systemic diseases, such as diabetes mellitus and Alzheimer's disease. We previously developed a system for screening periodontitis usingP. gingivalis-specific serum immunoglobulin G (IgG) in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with a sensitivity of 0.774 and a specificity of 0.586 and an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.708. However, the antigens elicited non-specific responses, since they were obtained from whole extracts of sonicated cultured bacteria. The purpose of this study was to identify antigens ideal for a sensitive and specific serum test. We identified the specific antigens using immunoaffinity columns immobilized with IgG antibodies from periodontitis patients. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry identified 29 antigens from the elutes. Recombinant proteins for these candidates were synthesized using the wheat germ cell-free translation system and screened by dot blot analysis with serum from the columns. Three of the 16 candidates that reacted showed strongest affinities upon dot blot analysis; they included outer membrane protein 28, cysteine proteases, lysine gingipain Kgp, and arginine gingipain RgpA. Outer membrane protein 28 was not suitable for screeningP. gingivalisinfection because of its high false-negative rates. Kgp and RgpA were unstable antigens since they underwent self-digestion. They were made stable by substituting the active cysteine residues in Kgp and RgpA with alanine using site-directed mutagenesis. Using the modified antigens, we demonstrated that the patient serum IgG level against RgpA was the highest among all the antigens expressed inP. gingivalis. Moreover, the N-terminus of recombinant RgpA was excellent in differentiating between diseased and non-diseased states (with sensitivity of 0.85, specificity of 0.9, and area under the curve of 0.915). Although dot blot analysis was the only experiment used, the N-terminus of RgpA is an excellent antigen to immunologically test forP. gingivalisinfection, especially for estimating the risks for periodontitis-associated systemic diseases. In conclusion, we have developed aP. gingivalisantigen for screening periodontitis

Achromobacter buckle infection diagnosed by a 16S rDNA clone library analysis : a case report

Background: In clinical settings, bacterial infections are usually diagnosed by isolation of colonies after laboratory cultivation followed by species identification with biochemical tests. However, biochemical tests result in misidentification due to similar phenotypes of closely related species. In such cases, 16S rDNA sequence analysis is useful. Herein, we report the first case of an Achromobacter-associated buckle infection that was diagnosed by 16S rDNA sequence analysis. This report highlights the significance of Achromobacter spp. in device-related ophthalmic infections. Case presentation: A 56-year-old woman, who had received buckling surgery using a silicone solid tire for retinal detachment eighteen years prior to this study, presented purulent eye discharge and conjunctival hyperemia in her right eye. Buckle infection was suspected and the buckle material was removed. Isolates from cultures of preoperative discharge and from deposits on the operatively removed buckle material were initially identified as Alcaligenes and Corynebacterium species. However, sequence analysis of a 16S rDNA clone library using the DNA extracted from the deposits on the buckle material demonstrated that all of the 16S rDNA sequences most closely matched those of Achromobacter spp. We concluded that the initial misdiagnosis of this case as an Alcaligenes buckle infection was due to the unreliability of the biochemical test in discriminating Achromobacter and Alcaligenes species due to their close taxonomic positions and similar phenotypes. Corynebacterium species were found to be contaminants from the ocular surface. Conclusions: Achromobacter spp. should be recognized as causative agents for device-related ophthalmic infections. Molecular species identification by 16S rDNA sequence analysis should be combined with conventional cultivation techniques to investigate the significance of Achromobacter spp. in ophthalmic infections

Corneal Nerve Fiber Structure, Its Role in Corneal Function, and Its Changes in Corneal Diseases

Recently, in vivo confocal microscopy is used to examine the human corneal nerve fibers morphology. Corneal nerve fiber architecture and its role are studied in healthy and pathological conditions. Corneal nerves of rats were studied by nonspecific acetylcholinesterase (NsAchE) staining. NsAchE-positive subepithelial (stromal) nerve fiber has been found to be insensitive to capsaicin. Besides, NsAchE-negative but capsaicin-sensitive subbasal nerve (leash) fibers formed thick mesh-like structure showing close interconnections and exhibit both isolectin B4- and transient receptor potential vanilloid channel 1- (TRPV1-) positive. TRPV1, TRPV3, TRPA (ankyrin) 1, and TRPM (melastatin) 8 are expressed in corneal nerve fibers. Besides the corneal nerve fibers, the expressions of TRPV (1, 3, and 4), TRPC (canonical) 4, and TRPM8 are demonstrated in the corneal epithelial cell membrane. The realization of the importance of TRP channels acting as polymodal sensors of environmental stresses has identified potential drug targets for corneal disease. The pathophysiological conditions of corneal diseases are associated with disruption of normal tissue innervation, especially capsaicin-sensitive small sensory nerve fibers. The relationships between subbasal corneal nerve fiber morphology and neurotrophic keratopathy in corneal diseases are well studied. The recommended treatment for neurotrophic keratopathy is administration of preservative free eye drops