Effects of Thinning on Flow Peaks in a Forested Headwater Catchment in Western Japan

This study examined the changes in rainfall-runoff characteristics in the year prior to and after intensive thinning of 50% in number in a steep headwater catchment, covered with 46-year-old Japanese cedar and cypress in western Japan. The magnitude of event peak flow, event quick flow, event water yield, and event response time did not change after thinning. Because 70% of rainfall events had multiple flow peaks, relationships between each flow peak and the rainfall just prior to that peak were also analyzed. The increases in accumulated quick flow, flow rise and flow drop were significant after thinning. The flow drop following each flow peak increased, and led to a lower initial flow in subsequent peaks, resulting in no increase in peak size. The flow peaks in events with over 30 mm rainfall amount and over 2 mm/h average rainfall intensity showed significant increases in flow peak, flow rise, flow drop, and accumulated quick flow, which suggests that the catchment exhibited more shallow flow paths during large rainfall amounts after thinning. No changes were identified using event-based analysis, but changes in flow peaks were detected, which indicates the importance of examining all flow peaks when investigating rainfall-runoff characteristics of headwater catchments

A model relating transpiration for Japanese cedar and cypress plantations with stand structure

Previous studies have revealed that changes in forest structure due to management (e.g., thinning, aging, and clearcutting) could affect the forest water balance. However, there are unexplained variability in changes in the annual water balance with changing structure among different sites. This is the case even when analyzing data for specific species/regions. For a more advanced and process-based understanding of changes in the water balance with changing forest structure, we examined transpiration (E) observed using the sap-flux method for 14 Japanese cedar and cypress plantations with various structure (e.g., stem density and diameter) in Japan and surrounding areas and developed a model relating E with structural parameters. We expressed E using the simplified Penman–Monteith equation and modeled canopy conductance (G[c]) as a product of reference G[c] (G[cref]) when vapor pressure deficit is 1.0 kPa and functions expressing the responses of G[c] to meteorological factors. We determined G[cref] and parameters of the functions for the sites separately. E observed for the 14 sites was not reproduced well by the model when using mean values of G[cref] and the parameters among the sites. However, E observed for the sites was reproduced well when using G[cref] determined for each site and mean values of the parameters of the functions among the sites, similar to the case when using G[cref] and the parameters of the functions determined for each site. These results suggest that considering variations in G[cref] among the sites was important to reproduce variations in E, but considering variations in the parameters of the functions was not. Our analysis revealed that G[cref] linearly related with the sapwood area on a stand scale (A) and that Alinearly related with stem density (N) and powers of the mean stem diameter (d[m]). Thus, we proposed a model relating E with A (or N and d[m]), where G[cref] was calculated from A (or N and d[m]) and the parameters of the functions were assumed to be the mean values among the sites. This model estimates changes in Ewith changing structure from commonly available data (N and d[m]), and therefore helps improve our understanding of the underlying processes of the changes in the water balance for Japanese cedar and cypress plantations

Search for Outer Massive Bodies around Transiting Planetary Systems: Candidates of Faint Stellar Companions around HAT-P-7

We present results of direct imaging observations for HAT-P-7 taken with the Subaru HiCIAO and the Calar Alto AstraLux. Since the close-in transiting planet HAT-P-7b was reported to have a highly tilted orbit, massive bodies such as giant planets, brown dwarfs, or a binary star are expected to exist in the outer region of this system. We show that there are indeed two candidates for distant faint stellar companions around HAT-P-7. We discuss possible roles played by such companions on the orbital evolution of HAT-P-7b. We conclude that as there is a third body in the system as reported by Winn et al. (2009, ApJL, 763, L99), the Kozai migration is less likely while planet-planet scattering is possible.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, 2 tables, PASJ in pres

Epigenetic modulation of Fgf21 in the perinatal mouse liver ameliorates diet-induced obesity in adulthood

The nutritional environment to which animals are exposed in early life can lead to epigenetic changes in the genome that influence the risk of obesity in later life. Here, we demonstrate that the fibroblast growth factor-21 gene (Fgf21) is subject to peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) α–dependent DNA demethylation in the liver during the postnatal period. Reductions in Fgf21 methylation can be enhanced via pharmacologic activation of PPARα during the suckling period. We also reveal that the DNA methylation status of Fgf21, once established in early life, is relatively stable and persists into adulthood. Reduced DNA methylation is associated with enhanced induction of hepatic FGF21 expression after PPARα activation, which may partly explain the attenuation of diet-induced obesity in adulthood. We propose that Fgf21 methylation represents a form of epigenetic memory that persists into adulthood, and it may have a role in the developmental programming of obesity

Long-term trends in mortality risk associated with short-term exposure to air pollution in 10 Japanese cities between 1977 and 2015

Background and aim: Short-term associations between air pollution and mortality have been well reported in Japan, but the historical changes in mortality risk remain unknown. We examined temporal changes in the mortality risks associated with short-term exposure to four criteria air pollutants in selected Japanese cities.Methods: We collected daily mortality data for non-accidental causes (n = 5,748,206), cardiovascular (n = 1,938,743) and respiratory diseases (n = 777,266), and air pollutants (sulfur dioxide [SO2], nitrogen dioxide [NO2], suspended particulate matter [SPM], and oxidants [Ox]) in 10 cities from 1977 to 2015. We performed two-stage analysis with 5-year stratification to estimate the relative risk (RR) of mortality per 10-unit increase in the 2-day moving average of air pollutant concentrations. In the first stage, city-specific associations wereassessed using a quasi-Poisson generalized linear regression model. In the second stage, city-specific estimates were pooled using a random-effects meta-analysis. Linear trend and ratio of relative risks (RRR) were computed to examine temporal changes.Results: When stratifying the analysis by every 5 years, average concentrations in each sub-period decreased for SO2, NO2, and SPM (14.2–2.3 ppb, 29.4–17.5 ppb, 52.1–20.6 μg/m3, respectively) but increased for Ox (29.1–39.1 ppb) over the study period. We found evidence of a negative linear trend in the risk of cardiovascular mortality associated with SPM across sub-periods. However, the risks of non-accidental and respiratory mortality per 10-unit increase in SPM concentration were significantly higher in the most recent period than in the earliest period. Other gaseous pollutants did not show such temporal risk change. The risks posed by these pollutants were slightly to moderately heterogeneous in the different cities.Conclusions: The mortality risks associated with short-term exposure to SPM changed, with different trends by cause of death, in 10 cities over 39 years whereas the risks for other gaseous pollutants were relatively stable

Long-term trends in mortality risk associated with short-term exposure to air pollution in 10 Japanese cities between 1977 and 2015

Short-term associations between air pollution and mortality have been well reported in Japan, but the historical changes in mortality risk remain unknown. We examined temporal changes in the mortality risks associated with short-term exposure to four criteria air pollutants in selected Japanese cities.This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI [grant numbers JP20H03942, JP19K10644] and the Nagasaki University WISE Program.Peer reviewe

Proteomic Biomarkers for Acute Interstitial Lung Disease in Gefitinib-Treated Japanese Lung Cancer Patients

Interstitial lung disease (ILD) events have been reported in Japanese non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients receiving EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors. We investigated proteomic biomarkers for mechanistic insights and improved prediction of ILD. Blood plasma was collected from 43 gefitinib-treated NSCLC patients developing acute ILD (confirmed by blinded diagnostic review) and 123 randomly selected controls in a nested case-control study within a pharmacoepidemiological cohort study in Japan. We generated ∼7 million tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) measurements with extensive quality control and validation, producing one of the largest proteomic lung cancer datasets to date, incorporating rigorous study design, phenotype definition, and evaluation of sample processing. After alignment, scaling, and measurement batch adjustment, we identified 41 peptide peaks representing 29 proteins best predicting ILD. Multivariate peptide, protein, and pathway modeling achieved ILD prediction comparable to previously identified clinical variables; combining the two provided some improvement. The acute phase response pathway was strongly represented (17 of 29 proteins, p = 1.0×10−25), suggesting a key role with potential utility as a marker for increased risk of acute ILD events. Validation by Western blotting showed correlation for identified proteins, confirming that robust results can be generated from an MS/MS platform implementing strict quality control

壮年期の住民の健康意識向上を目指した保健師学生と地域住民との取り組み

保健師学生と住民との協働活動により、壮年期の住民を対象に運動を取り入れた生活習慣病予防のキャンペーンや健康教室を実施した。本研究の目的は、壮年期の住民の健康意識向上を促すために必要とされる支援方法を明らかにすることである。活動の周知方法は、回覧板が最も効果的であり、知人からの紹介も多数見られた。また、教室参加者のうち45.5％が子ども連れであった。このことから、壮年期の特性を考慮し、子どもや職場、サークルなどをきっかけにした支援が有効な方法であることが明らかとなった。また、地域の核となる人と協働活動を行うことで、より壮年期の住民のニーズや視点に沿った活動を展開できることが明らかとなった

Effects of Thinning on Flow Peaks in a Forested Headwater Catchment in Western Japan

This study examined the changes in rainfall-runoff characteristics in the year prior to and after intensive thinning of 50% in number in a steep headwater catchment, covered with 46-year-old Japanese cedar and cypress in western Japan. The magnitude of event peak flow, event quick flow, event water yield, and event response time did not change after thinning. Because 70% of rainfall events had multiple flow peaks, relationships between each flow peak and the rainfall just prior to that peak were also analyzed. The increases in accumulated quick flow, flow rise and flow drop were significant after thinning. The flow drop following each flow peak increased, and led to a lower initial flow in subsequent peaks, resulting in no increase in peak size. The flow peaks in events with over 30 mm rainfall amount and over 2 mm/h average rainfall intensity showed significant increases in flow peak, flow rise, flow drop, and accumulated quick flow, which suggests that the catchment exhibited more shallow flow paths during large rainfall amounts after thinning. No changes were identified using event-based analysis, but changes in flow peaks were detected, which indicates the importance of examining all flow peaks when investigating rainfall-runoff characteristics of headwater catchments