The prevalence of Plasmodium vivax in Vanuatu Islands: Computer simulation of malaria control trails

We have estimated the degree of transmission of Plasmodium vivax malaria in Vanuatu Islands, eastern Melanesia with the aid of the computer simulations, which has been carried out on the platform of a mathematical transmission model. The malaria caused by Plasmodium vivax has a relapse character, which arises from hypnozoites in the liver. This phenomen makes a malaria control strategy difficult. When the mass drug administration is executed, the prevalence of Plasmodium vivax decreases moderately as compared with that of Plasmodium falciparum, and it recovers before long being affected by the relapses. The simulations suggest that one cannot attain the eradication of Plasmodium vivax malaria without the concentrated execution of the mass drug administration and the vector control that fairly reduces the vactorial capacity

Application of Long-Range Surface Plasmon Resonance for ABO Blood Typing

In this study, we demonstrate a long-range surface plasmon resonance (LR-SPR) biosensor for the detection of whole cell by captured antigens A and B on the surface of red blood cells (RBCs) as a model. The LR-SPR sensor chip consists of high-refractive index glass, a Cytop film layer, and a thin gold (Au) film, which makes the evanescent field intensity and the penetration depth longer than conventional SPR. Therefore, the LR-SPR biosensor has improved capability for detecting large analytes, such as RBCs. The antibodies specific to blood group A and group B (Anti-A and Anti-B) are covalently immobilized on a grafting self-assembled monolayer (SAM)/Au surface on the biosensor. For blood typing, RBC samples can be detected by the LR-SPR biosensor through a change in the refractive index. We determined that the results of blood typing using the LR-SPR biosensor are consistent with the results obtained from the agglutination test. We obtained the lowest detection limits of 1.58 × 105 cells/ml for RBC-A and 3.83 × 105 cells/ml for RBC-B, indicating that the LR-SPR chip has a higher sensitivity than conventional SPR biosensors (3.3 × 108 cells/ml). The surface of the biosensor can be efficiently regenerated using 20 mM NaOH. In summary, as the LR-SPR technique is sensitive and has a simple experimental setup, it can easily be applied for ABO blood group typing

Petrological characteristics of the stone chamber of Tobiotsuka Kofun, Okayama Prefecture

　Tobiotsuka Kofun, a tumulus built on the Misu Hills in the Kofun period, has a horizontal stone chamber made of huge stone blocks with a width up to 2 meters or more. To specify the source of the stone blocks, we carried out the measurement of magnetic susceptibility, petrographic observation, and chemical analysis of minerals. The stones are amphibole-biotite granite with phenocrystic large grains of K-feldspar. The back-wall stone of the chamber has higher magnetic susceptibility than ceiling and side-wall stones, which probably results from a higher amount of magnetite formed by the alteration of biotite in the back-wall stone. Furthermore, the back-wall stone is different from ceiling stone in that it has lower XMg [Mg/(Mg + Fe) mole ratio], lower Al, Ti, and Na + K contents and higher Si contents of amphibole, higher XMg of biotite, and shows a tendency to have higher Na (albite component) contents at rims of plagioclase crystals and lower Ti contents of zircon. These characteristics of the back-wall stone are similar to those of granite exposed in the Koshinzan area about 2 km northeast of Tobiotsuka Kofun, whereas the ceiling and side-wall stones are similar to granite outcrops in the vicinity of Tobiotsuka Kofun, e.g., in the Midoriyama area. It is concluded that the quarry for the back-wall was located at a different place from that for the ceiling and side-wall stones