Associations between dietary n-6 and n-3 fatty acids and arachidonic acid compositions in plasma and erythrocytes in young and elderly Japanese volunteers

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>We reported that the compositions of arachidonic acid (ARA) in erythrocytes and plasma phospholipids (PL) in the elderly were lower than those in the young, though the ARA intake was nearly identical.</p> <p>Objective</p> <p>We further analyzed data in four study groups with different ages and sexes, and determined that the blood ARA levels were affected by the kinds of dietary fatty acids ingested.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>One hundred and four healthy young and elderly volunteers were recruited. Dietary records together with photographic records from 28 consecutive days were reviewed and the fatty acid composition in plasma lipid fractions and erythrocyte PL was analyzed.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No correlations for ARA between dietary fatty acids and blood lipid fractions were observed. A significant negative correlation between eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) + docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) intake and ARA composition in erythrocyte PL was observed. ARA composition in erythrocyte PL was significantly lower in elderly subjects than in young subjects, because EPA and DHA intake in elderly subjects was higher than in young subjects. However, after removing the effect of dietary EPA+DHA intake, the ARA composition in erythrocyte PL in elderly subjects was significantly lower than that in young subjects.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Changes in physical conditions with aging influenced the low ARA composition of erythrocyte in elderly subjects in addition to the effects of dietary EPA and DHA.</p

Indicators for blood glucose control in diabetics with end-stage chronic renal disease : GHb vs. glycated albumin (GA)

Diabetics with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) exhibit abnormal life span of erythrocytes, and thus, HbAlc is not necessarily a good indicator for blood glucose control. The present study was conducted to reaffirm this point and determine whether glycated albumin (GA) can be used instead of HbAlc. The following three groups of patients with diabetes served as subjects : 49 predialysis patients with ESRD (predialysis group), 37 patients with ESRD on dialysis (dialysis group), and 40 patients without nephropathy (non-dialysis group). The profile set mean blood glucose was calculated by measuring blood glucose levels seven times a day. The relationship of profile set mean blood glucose with HbAlc and GA levels was then investigated. Corrected HbAlc levels were calculated by applying the profile set mean blood glucose of each ESRD patient to the regression formula for the HbAlc of non-dialysis patients. The actual and corrected HbAlc levels for the predialysis patients were 5.4±1.1 and 7.9±1.1%, respectively, while those for the dialysis patients were 5.6±1.0 and 7.5±0.9%, respectively (plt0.0001). The changes in GA levels in relation to the blood glucose control in the dialysis patients matched those in non-dialysis patients. HbAlc levels for diabetics with ESRD were lower than indicated by their blood glucose control. When assessing blood glucose control based solely on HbAlc, erroneous results may be obtained. In such cases, GA may be used instead of HbAlc

アニメ マンガ ノ ニホンゴ Web サイト カイハツ シュミ カラ ニホンゴ ガクシュウヘ

今、世界中で日本のアニメ・マンガは大人気であり、日本語学習者の多くがアニメ・マンガをきっか けに日本語を学び始めると言われている。しかし、アニメ・マンガの日本語には、教科書や辞書には載 っていない表現も多く、アニメ・マンガを日本語で理解するのは難しい。そこで、関西国際センターで は、趣味から日本語学習への橋渡しとなるサイトをめざし、海外で人気のあるアニメ・マンガに現れる キャラクターやジャンルの日本語を楽しく学べるE ラーニングサイト「アニメ・マンガの日本語」を 開発した。海外の現状や学習者のニーズ調査に基づき、(1)アニメ・マンガと日本語学習をつなぐ(2) 学習者の好きなアニメ・マンガの世界観を生かす(3)楽しく学べ、自律学習につながるをサイト開 発の基本方針とした。サイト公開後、8ヶ月で168カ国から155万ページビューを超えるアクセスがあり、 ユーザーの声をサイト改善に生かしている。Today, Japanese anime and manga are popular among young people around the world and are motivating many to start learning Japanese. However, many words and phrases in these media are not found in standard textbooks or dictionaries, making it even more difficult for foreigners to understand their contents in Japanese. For these Japanese learners fond of anime and manga, The Japan Foundation, Japanese-Language Institute, Kansai has launched an e-learning site, “Japanese in Anime & Manga”, to help them learn various character / genre-based Japanese expressions found in the media. Basic website development policies are set from needs analysis thus ; (1) Connecting Anime & Manga and Japaneselanguage learning, (2) Making use of perspectives unique to Anime & Manga, (3) Making learning fun and supporting learner autonomy. Since it opened, the website has had over 1,550,000 page views from 168 countries within 8 months. User feedback has helped improve the website