Lateral current injection GaInAsP/InP laser on semi-insulating substrate for membrane-based photonic circuits

金沢大学理工研究域電子情報学系A room-temperature pulsed operation was demonstrated using lateral current injection-type lasers composed of a 400-nm-thick GaInAsP core layer with compressively strained 5 quantum wells. A threshold current of 105 mA and corresponding density of 1.3 kA/cm2 (260 A/cm2 per well) were obtained with the stripe width of 5.4 μm and the cavity length of 1.47 mm. A fundamental transverse mode operation was obtained with the narrower stripe device of 2.0 μm and the cavity length of 805 μm, while the threshold current and corresponding density were 49 mA and 3.0 kA/cm 2, respectively. © 2009 Optical Society of America

The Relationship Between Microbial Community Structures and Environmental Parameters Revealed by Metagenomic Analysis of Hot Spring Water in the Kirishima Area, Japan

Diverse microorganisms specifically inhabit extreme environments, such as hot springs and deep-sea hydrothermal vents. To test the hypothesis that the microbial community structure is predictable based on environmental factors characteristic of such extreme environments, we conducted correlation analyses of microbial taxa/functions and environmental factors using metagenomic and 61 types of physicochemical data of water samples from nine hot springs in the Kirishima area (Kyusyu, Japan), where hot springs with diverse chemical properties are distributed in a relatively narrow area. Our metagenomic analysis revealed that the samples can be classified into two major types dominated by either phylum Crenarchaeota or phylum Aquificae. The correlation analysis showed that Crenarchaeota dominated in nutrient-rich environments with high concentrations of ions and total carbons, whereas Aquificae dominated in nutrient-poor environments with low ion concentrations. These environmental factors were also important explanatory variables in the generalized linear models constructed to predict the abundances of Crenarchaeota or Aquificae. Functional enrichment analysis of genes also revealed that the separation of the two major types is primarily attributable to genes involved in autotrophic carbon fixation, sulfate metabolism and nitrate reduction. Our results suggested that Aquificae and Crenarchaeota play a vital role in the Kirishima hot spring water ecosystem through their metabolic pathways adapted to each environment. Our findings provide a basis to predict microbial community structures in hot springs from environmental parameters, and also provide clues for the exploration of biological resources in extreme environments

A Senior Recital

Program listing performers and works performe

女子短大生の体力と血液性状の10年間の動向

"1) 10年間において, 身体状況では, 身長, 体重に大きな変動は認められなかったが, 体脂肪率に減少傾向, 収縮期血圧, 拡張期血圧, 安静時心拍数に上昇傾向がみられた。2) 体力測定結果では, 握力 (筋力), 垂直跳び (瞬発力), 全身反応時間 (敏捷性) で有意な低下がみられた。立位体前屈 (柔軟性), 最大酸素摂取量 (心肺持久力) では年度間の差はみられなかったが, 全国平均値に比べ, 体力的にやや低い集団であると考えられた。3) 血液測定結果では, 食物摂取の影響が考えられる血糖値, 総コレステロール, 総蛋白質で有意な増加がみられた。4) 対象者では, 体力の低下や, やせ傾向が認められたことから, 学生自身が健康に対する意識を高め, 体力向上への実践として, 体育などに取り組む必要性が明らかとなった。本研究の一部は第50回日本栄養改善学会に報告した。

食品重量見積もりにおける情報提供およびトレーニングの有無による誤差率の変動

1) 今回のトレーニングで見積もり誤差率の改善がみられた食品は, 対象となる食品すべてのトレーニングを実施したトレーニング有グループでうずら卵 (p<0.05), 草加煎餅 (p<0.01), ピンキー (p<0.01) の3食品, 一部食品のみトレーニングを行った一部トレーニング有グループではピーマン (p<0.01), 草加煎餅 (p<0.01) の2食品であった。2) 正解域群の解答割合がトレーニング後に増加する傾向を示したものは, 菓子類, さんま, ちくわ, うずら卵, ピーマンなど一定の形状を示す食品に多くみられたが, 形状・大きさが定型化していない食品については把握しにくい傾向がみられ, 今後の検討課題と考えられた。3) CV値50以上を示すばらつきの多い食品数はトレーニングにより減少する傾向にあり, その効果がみられた。4) 鶏卵Mの重量を50gと解答した割合はトレーニング無グループ74.2%, 一部有グループ72%で, 目安重量として学習した値を用いる傾向がみられた。5) 塩分・糖度の見積もりでは今回の情報提供による改善はみられず, 今後, 栄養成分表示などを活用した教育の必要性が示唆された

A Report on Overseas Teaching Practicum by Graduate Students in Elementary/Secondary Schools in the United States (Ⅶ)

The present reports is on the 7th overseas teaching practicum in the United States by 15 graduate students of Hiroshima University, Japan, partly organized by Hiroshima University Global Partnership School Center since 2007. The group was comprised of 13 elementary school and 2 secondary school education major graduate students. They planned and conducted lessons in English in three local public schools in North Carolina. The expected outcomes of this project were: 1) to self-develop practical instructional competence by teaching pupils with diverse backgrounds in the U.S.; 2) to enhance the abilities in developing teaching materials through hands-on teaching experiences in English; and 3) to acquire the abilities to design, implement and evaluate programs for promoting global partnership. In addition, the teaching experience was followed by cross-cultural study visits to Raleigh, NC and Washington, D.C. It helped to boost our group motivation that the local media, newspaper and TV, and the city Board of Education covered our visit. It is hoped that this project will enhance the students’ teaching competence in designing quality materials/lessons and classroom communication skills in English

The Nanos3-3′UTR Is Required for Germ Cell Specific NANOS3 Expression in Mouse Embryos

BACKGROUND: The regulation of gene expression via a 3' untranslated region (UTR) plays essential roles in the discrimination of the germ cell lineage from somatic cells during embryogenesis. This is fundamental to the continuation of a species. Mouse NANOS3 is an essential protein required for the germ cell maintenance and is specifically expressed in these cells. However, the regulatory mechanisms that restrict the expression of this gene in the germ cells is largely unknown at present. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In our current study, we show that differences in the stability of Nanos3 mRNA between germ cells and somatic cells is brought about in a 3'UTR-dependent manner in mouse embryos. Although Nanos3 is transcribed in both cell lineages, it is efficiently translated only in the germ lineage. We also find that the translational suppression of NANOS3 in somatic cells is caused by a 3'UTR-mediated mRNA destabilizing mechanism. Surprisingly, even when under the control of the CAG promoter which induces strong ubiquitous transcription in both germ cells and somatic cells, the addition of the Nanos3-3'UTR sequence to the coding region of exogenous gene was effective in restricting protein expression in germ cells. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our current study thus suggests that Nanos3-3'UTR has an essential role in translational control in the mouse embryo

A Novel PAN/Apple Domain-Containing Protein from Toxoplasma gondii: Characterization and Receptor Identification

Toxoplasma gondii is an intracellular parasite that invades nucleated cells, causing toxoplasmosis in humans and animals worldwide. The extremely wide range of hosts susceptible to T. gondii is thought to be the result of interactions between T. gondii ligands and receptors on its target cells. In this study, a host cell-binding protein from T. gondii was characterized, and one of its receptors was identified. P104 (GenBank Access. No. CAJ20677) is 991 amino acids in length, containing a putative 26 amino acid signal peptide and 10 PAN/apple domains, and shows low homology to other identified PAN/apple domain-containing molecules. A 104-kDa host cell-binding protein was detected in the T. gondii lysate. Immunofluorescence assays detected P104 at the apical end of extracellular T. gondii. An Fc-fusion protein of the P104 N-terminus, which contains two PAN/apple domains, showed strong affinity for the mammalian and insect cells evaluated. This binding was not related to protein-protein or protein-lipid interactions, but to a protein-glycosaminoglycan (GAG) interaction. Chondroitin sulfate (CS), a kind of GAG, was shown to be involved in adhesion of the Fc-P104 N-terminus fusion protein to host cells. These results suggest that P104, expressed at the apical end of the extracellular parasite, may function as a ligand in the attachment of T. gondii to CS or other receptors on the host cell, facilitating invasion by the parasite