Pollock oil supplementation modulates hyperlipidemia and ameliorates hepatic steatosis in mice fed a high-fat diet

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hyperlipidemia associated with obesity is closely related to the development of atherosclerosis. Both n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and long-chain monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs; i.e., C20:1 and C22:1 isomers) supplementation modulate risk factors for metabolic syndrome via multiple mechanisms, including the restoration of impaired lipid metabolism. We therefore examined the effects of pollock oil, which contains a considerable amount of n-3 PUFAs as well as long-chain MUFAs, on plasma hyperlipidemia and hepatic steatosis in diet-induced obese mice.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Male C57BL/6J mice (24-26 g) were divided into two groups (n = 10/group) and were fed a high-fat diet containing 32% lard (control group) or 17% lard plus 15% pollock oil (experimental group) for 6 weeks. For both groups, fat comprised 60% of the total caloric intake.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Although body and liver masses for the two groups did not differ significantly, hepatic lipids concentrations (triglycerides and total cholesterols) were lower (<it>P </it>< 0.05) after pollock oil ingestion. After 2 weeks on the specified diets, plasma lipid levels (total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides) significantly decreased (<it>P </it>< 0.05) in the experimental group compared with the control group, although plasma HDL cholesterol levels did not differ. At the end of 6 weeks, plasma adiponectin levels increased (<it>P </it>< 0.05), whereas plasma resistin and leptin levels decreased (<it>P </it>< 0.05) in the experimental mice. Increased levels of long-chain MUFAs and n-3 PUFAs in plasma, liver and adipose tissue by ingesting pollock oil were possibly correlated to these favorable changes. Expression of hepatic genes involved in cholesterol metabolism (<it>SREBP2</it>, <it>HMGCR</it>, and <it>ApoB</it>) and lipogenesis (<it>SREPB1c</it>, <it>SCD-1</it>, <it>FAS</it>, and <it>Acac</it>α) was suppressed in the experimental group, and may have favorably affected hyperlipidemia and hepatic steatosis induced by the high-fat diet.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We demonstrated that pollock oil supplementation effectively improved hyperlipidemia, attenuated hepatic steatosis, and downregulated the express of hepatic genes involved in cholesterol and lipid metabolism in mice with diet-induced obesity.</p

Variable Selection in Nonlinear Principal Component Analysis

Principal components analysis (PCA) is a popular dimension reduction method and is applied to analyze quantitative data. For PCA to qualitative data, nonlinear PCA can be applied, where the data are quantified by using optimal scaling that nonlinearly transforms qualitative data into quantitative data. Then nonlinear PCA reveals nonlinear relationships among variables with different measurement levels. Using this quantification, we can consider variable selection in the context of PCA for qualitative data. In PCA for quantitative data, modified PCA (M.PCA) of Tanaka and Mori derives principal components which are computed as a linear combination of a subset of variables but can reproduce all the variables very well. This means that M.PCA can select a reasonable subset of variables with different measurement levels if it is extended so as to deal with qualitative data by using the idea of nonlinear PCA. A nonlinear M.PCA is therefore proposed for variable selection in nonlinear PCA. The method, in this chapter, is based on the idea in “Nonlinear Principal Component Analysis and its Applications” by Mori et al. (Springer). The performance of the method is evaluated in a numerical example

Chemical and Rb-Sr isotopic features of the shock-melted chondrite Yamato-793533

The Sr isotopic compositions and Rb and Sr abundances, as well as major element abundances in olivine, pyroxenes and glass, were determined for a chip and 21 fractions separated from a shock-melted chondrite Yamato-793533, a dark-colored, porous stone with glassy texture. Two lithologies were recognized for the 1.5g specimen studied (Yamato-793533, 67) ; L (Main portion) and L to LL (Dark portion) chondritic in terms of chemical compositions of olivine and pyroxenes. The chemical compositions of glass are relatively homogeneous (SiO2=67-77%) compared to those of other ordinary chondrites, suggesting a moderate cooling rate after shock-melting. The data points for fractions do not foem any isochron in a 87Rb/86Sr vs. 87Sr/86Sr diagram. However, it is noted that six out of nine points for the dark portion plot around a 1.2 Ga line, while most of points for the main portion plot around a 4.55 Ga chondrite isochron. The observed difference could be responsible for difference in melting degrees between the two portions. Similar Rb-Sr features have been found among shock-melted Yamato-79 LL-chondrites which are considered to be paired stones experienced the same shock-melting event at 1.2 Ga. Consequently, the Rb-Sr systematics as well as petrologic features strongly suggest that Yamato-793533 is a member of a series of the shock-melted Yamato-79 LL-chondrites

A usage-centered approach to the promotion of Institutional Repository

This presentation explains the four projects of Digital Repository Federation in Japan from the view points of a usage-centered approach to institutional repositories.This is a presentation for SPARC Digital Repository Meeting 2008 held by SPARC, SPARC Europe, SPARC Japan on the 17th and 18the of Novemver 2008 at Baltimore in the United States

Isolation and characterization of cancer stem cells derived from human glioblastoma

Cancer stem cell (CSC) is considered as a cause of cancer recurrence and metastasis. Simultaneously CSCs are responsible for the heterogeneous population in tumor tissues due to their differentiation potential. However, the characterizations of CSCs are still not enough and cancer stem cell lines widely available is desired to be established for the advancement of cancer research. In this study, we tried to isolate and characterize stem like cells from human glioblastoma cell line U-251MG cells. U-251MG P1 cells, which was previously condensed in the presence of hyaluronic acid as CD44 positive population were subjected to single cell isolation procedure. Although 5 clones were isolated, only one clone exhibited high expression of CD44, Nanog, OCT3/4 and SOX2, and named U-251MGSC1. The sphere forming ability of U-251MGSC1 cell was significantly higher than the parental U-251MG cells. Tumorigenicity of U-251MG-SC1 cells were higher than that of U-251MG cells. U-251MGSC1 cells exhibited higher expression of CD44, SOX2, Nestin and A2B5 than U-251MG cells in vitro and in vivo. The expression of GFAP and NF-M was enhanced when the cells were treated with the conditioned medium of U-251MG cells indicating the potential of differentiation. Sphere forming ability was more efficient than that of U-251MG cells and was enhanced in the presence of hyaluronic acid, which enhanced the cell growth as well. U-251MGSC1 cells exhibited rapid growth tumor in nude mice and efficient metastatic ability in transmembrane assay when compared with U-251MG cells. As the result, we concluded U-251MGSC1 cell was a glioblastoma CSC line derived from the parental U-251MG cells. U-251MGSC1 cells will be a good tool to develop effective therapeutic agents against CSCs and to elucidate the properties of glioma derived CSCs and the mechanism of tumor development in brain

Human mast cell activation through Fc receptors and Toll-like receptors

ABSTRACTMast cells express high-affinity IgE receptors (FcεRI) on their surface and can be activated to secrete a variety of biologically active mediators by cross-linking of receptor-bound IgE. Recent studies in animal models indicate that mouse mast cells may play a protective role in host defense against bacteria through the production of tumor necrosis factor-α, mainly as a result of Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4- or CD48-mediated activation. Moreover, several recent observations in animal models have indicated that mast cells may also play a pivotal role in coordinating the early phases of autoimmune diseases, particularly those involving auto-antibodies. We recently identified functional TLR4 and FcγRI on human mast cells, in which their expression had been upregulated by interferon-γ. We compared each of the receptor-mediated gene expression profiles with the FcεRI-mediated gene expression profile using high-density oligonucleotide probe arrays and discovered that human mast cells may modulate the immune system in a receptor-specific manner

Factors related to depression among childcare worker;Cross-sectional study in Hokkaido, Japan

The goal of the present study was to investigate the factors related to depression among childcare workers. From November 2015 to August 2016, 358 nurseries (17.9%) answered a questionnaire. Adjusted for nursery work experience totaling more than five years, work place, cooperation in the work place, quality of sleep, hospital visiting, factors related to work of more than five years (OR=0.55, 95%CIs=(0.34, 0.91)), ability to consult troubles with boss (OR=0.36, 5%CIs=(0.18, 0.73)), to be able to take paid holidays (OR=0.49, 95%CIs=(0.27, 0.88)), having a spouse (OR=0.55, 95%CIs=(0.32, 0.94)) were considered to decrease the risk of depression. The Japanese government should prompt to improve the reatment of nurseries

Heme Oxygenase-1 is an Essential Cytoprotective Component in Oxidative Tissue Injury Induced by Hemorrhagic Shock

Hemorrhagic shock causes oxidative stress that leads to tissue injuries in various organs including the lung, liver, kidney and intestine. Excess amounts of free heme released from destabilized hemoproteins under oxidative conditions might constitute a major threat because it can catalyze the formation of reactive oxygen species. Cells counteract this by rapidly inducing the rate-limiting enzyme in heme breakdown, heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), which is a low-molecular-weight stress protein. The enzymatic HO-1 reaction removes heme. As such, endogenous HO-1 induction by hemorrhagic shock protects tissues from further degeneration by oxidant stimuli. In addition, prior pharmacological induction of HO-1 ameliorates oxidative tissue injuries induced by hemorrhagic shock. In contrast, the deletion of HO-1 expression, or the chemical inhibition of increased HO activity ablated the beneficial effect of HO-1 induction, and exacerbates tissue damage. Thus, HO-1 constitutes an essential cytoprotective component in hemorrhagic shock-induced oxidative tissue injures. This article reviews recent advances in understanding of the essential role of HO-1 in experimental models of hemorrhagic shock-induced oxidative tissue injuries with emphasis on the role of its induction in tissue defense

日本の大学における英語アカデミックライティング教育の可能性と課題

Today, whether English's dominance as a global lingua franca benefits higher education, more and more universities around the world have made efforts to integrate English academic writing education into their institutional policies and strategies. This trend has been observed particularly against the background where, with the increased internationalization of higher education, the imperative for universities globally to focus on maintaining or improving their international reputation and rankings has grown significantly. Indeed, such prestige tends to be assessed largely in terms of publications in English. With this in mind, we are concerned with how higher education institutions address these efforts toward promoting English academic writing in a specific non-English L1 context, namely Japan. English academic writing in university contexts where English is an additional language exists where the fields of language education, higher education administration, research methodology, and cultural socialization converge. Therefore, this volume brings together scholarship that aims to examine the different ways in which academic writing education shapes and is shaped by students, faculty and other stakeholders in Japanese universities. This volume’s eight chapters, by authors with diverse backgrounds, ranging from administrators to researchers, and from humanities and social sciences to medical studies, explore the opportunities and challenges of English academic writing education in Japanese universities by looking at related topics, including writing centers, faculty members, genre-specific education, and technology development. Together, the discussions in the individual chapters can contribute profoundly to theory, policy, and practice in the domains of curriculum, research, and administration in university contexts.Introduction… Norifumi Miyokawa 1 Part I: A writing center in Japan: Hiroshima University Chapter One: Development of the Hiroshima University Writing Center －From an administrative perspective－… Hiroko Araki & Norifumi Miyokawa 3 Chapter Two: Perceptions of academic writing support －A needs analysis of the Hiroshima University Writing Center－… Roehl Sybing & Norifumi Miyokawa 17 Part II: Faculty development for academic writing Chapter Three: Potential roles of writing centers for writing related Faculty Development… Machi Sato & Shinichi Cho 31 Chapter Four: Academic writing support for faculty members －Writing Groups and Writing Retreats－… Adina Staicov 45 Part III: Genre-specific education: Cases in the medical field Chapter Five: How to write the Introduction of biomedical research articles －Move analysis of the first and last sentences－… Takeshi Kawamoto & Tatsuya Ishii 57 Chapter Six: Error analysis of overt lexicogrammatical errors in the prepublication English-language manuscripts of Japanese biomedical researchers －With implications for the teaching of writing for biomedical research –… Flaminia Miyamasu 67 Part IV: Theoretical and practical approaches to academic writing Chapter Seven: Language socialization and writing centers… Akiko Katayama 81 Chapter Eight: Socialization into integrity －Using plagiarism software to teach L2 writing－… Gavin Furukawa 95 Acknowledgements… Norifumi Miyokawa 10