Risk Factors for Renal Cell Cancer in a Japanese Population

The incidence of renal cell cancer has been increasing worldwide. Although the incidence of renal cell cancer in Japan is lower than the rates in the other industrialized countries, there is no doubt that it is increasing. In this paper, we would like to introduce the result of our studies, which evaluate the risk factors for renal cell cancer in Japan. Hypertension, diabetes mellitus, kidney diseases, fondness for fatty food and black tea showed an increased risk of renal cell carcinoma while an intake of starchy roots such as taro, sweet potato and potato reduced the risk of renal cell carcinoma. In Japan, however, drinking black tea may be a surrogate for westernized dietary habits while eating starchy roots may be a surrogate for traditional Japanese dietary habits. Further studies may be needed to evaluate risk factors for renal cell cancer because the number of renal cancer cases was small in our studies in spite of a large population-based cohort study

Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3 (PMN) Relaxor: Dipole Glass or Nano-Domain Ferroelectric?

Combining our comprehensive investigations of polarization evolution, soft-mode by Raman scattering and microstructure by TEM, and the results reported in the literatures, we show that prototypical relaxor Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3 (PMN) is essentially ferroelectric for T<Tc~225 K. Its anomalous dielectric behavior over a broad temperature range results from the reorientation of domains in the crystal. A physic picture of the structure evolution in relaxor is also revealed. It is found that nanometric ferroelectric domains (gennerally called as polar nano-region (PNR)) interact cooperatively to form micrometric domain. Such multiscale inhomogeneities of domain structure in addition to the well-known inhomogeneities of chemical composition and local symmetry are considered to play a crucial role in producing the enigmatic phenomena in relaxor system.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures; http://www.intechopen.com/books/advances-in-ferroelectrics/pb-mg1-3nb2-3-o3-pmn-relaxor-dipole-glass-or-nano-domain-ferroelectric

The relationship between periodontal disease and oral health

Evidence for a link between periodontal disease and several systemic diseases is increasing rapidly. However the relationship of periodontal disease to oral health behavior and oral health knowledge have been studied as extensively. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association of periodontal disease with oral health behavior and oral health knowledge among adult Japanese people. Subjects were 988 persons over 20 years in the eastern part of Hokkaido, Japan. The survey items were age, sex, history of systemic diseases, smoking status, oral health behavior such as frequency of tooth brushing, having a family dentist and so on. Odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confi dence intervals (CIs) of variables related to having Community Periodontal Index (CPI)≧ 3 were evaluated using the unconditional logistic regression model by sex . Former smoking (OR=1.94, 95%CI: 1.02-3.69) and having no family dentist (OR=2.52, 95%CI: 1.49-4.27) were significantly associated with risk of having CPI≧3 in the male subjects. Not using a toothpaste was marginally signifi cantly associated with risk of having CPI≧3 in the female subjects (OR=1.43, 95%CI: 0.99-2.04). This study suggests that there is a signifi cant relationship of oral health behavior and smoking to periodontal disease

Use of Procalcitonin in Patients on Chronic Hemodialysis: Procalcitonin Is Not Related with Increased Serum Calcitonin

Objectives. To investigate whether procalcitonin (PCT) could be useful for detecting bacterial infections in patients on hemodialysis (HD) and with increased calcitonin (CT). Methods. This prospective study included 42 males and 34 females on HD. The infection group consisted of 15 patients with proven bacterial infections; the other 61 patients were designated as the noninfection group. Serum C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin (IL)-6, white blood cell (WBC) count, immature and total neutrophil (I/T) ratio, and CT were measured at the beginning of HD, and serum PCT levels at the beginning of HD and after HD. Results. The mean CT level in the both groups was apparently higher than that of nonchronic kidney disease. Significantly higher values between the infection and noninfection groups were seen for CRP, IL-6, WBC, I/T ratio, PCT, and CT. The PCT value of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.921, which was significantly higher than the values for CRP (0.853; P < 0.01), IL-6 (0.739; P < 0.01), WBC (0.692; P < 0.01), and I/T ratio (0.584; P < 0.01). Conclusions. PCT was useful marker of bacterial infection in patients on HD and with increased CT. PCT levels should be determined before HD

Implantable pneumatically actuated microsystem for renal pressure-mediated transfection in mice.

In vivo transfection is an important technique used in biological research and drug therapy development. Previously, we developed a renal pressure-mediated transfection method performed by pressing a kidney after an intravenous injection of naked nucleic acids. Although this is a useful method because of its safety and wide range of applications, an innovative approach for performing this method without repeatedly cutting open the abdomen is required. In this study, we developed an implantable microsystem fabricated by Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technologies for renal pressure-mediated transfection. The system consists of a polydimethylsiloxane pneumatic balloon actuator (PBA) used as an actuator to press the target kidney. The PBA of the implanted microsystem can be actuated without opening the abdomen by applying air pressure from outside the body to the pressure-supplying port via a needle. We successfully performed renal pressure-mediated transfection using the newly developed system when the implanted system was activated at 60kPa for 10s. This is the first report of an implantable MEMS-based microsystem that demonstrates in vivo transfection to a kidney using naked plasmid DNA

Risk factors for osteoporosis in elderly people with a cohort study : Using calcaneus stiffness as an index

We investigated risk factors for decreased calcaneus stiffness as an index of osteoporosis in Japanese elderly perpersons with a cohort study. Calcaneus stiffness was obtained through ultrasonographic heel measurement for 214 subjects (162 women and 52 men) who voluntarily participated in the baseline survey in 2000. Body mass index (BMI), medical history, oral health status, smoking cigarettes, alcoholic drinking, physical activities, and frequency of various foods intake were surveyed at that time. Stiffness was again measured among 93 subjects (70 women and 23 men) of them (43.5%) in the follow-up survey in 2005. Risk factors for decreased stiffness were evaluated using the unconditional logistic regression model adjusted for age and BMI by sex. Tooth loss was not associated with risk of decreased stiffness. From the results of stiffness in 2005 as a dependent variable, less frequent intake of vinegared dishes (OR=3.9, 95%CI: 1.3-11.6) and seaweed (OR=4.5, 95%CI: 1.5-14.2) in females as well as less frequent intake of green or yellow vegetables in males (OR=28.0, 95%CI: 2.5-317.4) were sigsignificantly associated with risk of decreased stiffness. From the results of change in stiffness as a dependent variable, less frequent intake of soybean products except for fermented soybeans (OR=3.2, 95%CI: 1.1-9.1) was significantly associated with risk of decreased stiffness in females. None of the other variables were significantly associated with risk of decreased stiffness. Dietary habits might play a role in calcium enrichment of the systemic bone. Further study is necessary to assess the relationship of dietary habits to risk of osteoporosis

Net-step exercise and depressive symptoms among the community-dwelling elderly in Japan

Introduction: Leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) and exercise have attracted attention as potential preventive factors against depression in the elderly. The net-step exercise (NSE) was developed in Hokkaido, Japan to assist elderly people with decreased physical functions. NSE is a non-aerobic, low-intensity, and slow balance motion LTPA. In the present study, the relationship between NSE and depressive symptoms among the community-dwelling elderly is examined. Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional design with community-dwelling elderly participants, aged 72?81 years (n = 672; mean age = 76.4 years). Participation in NSE and other LTPA, including walking, jogging, and park golf, a sport popular in Hokkaido, particularly among the elderly, was assessed. Depressive symptoms were measured using the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15). Results: Univariate analysis showed that those participating in NSE more than once a month and those who reported engaging in walking or park golf more than once a week were less likely to report symptoms of depression. Multivariate analysis showed that NSE and walking had marginally significant (odds ratio (OR) = 0.53; 95% CI: 0.27?1.02) and significant (OR = 0.61; 95% CI: 0.40?0.93) inverse associations, respectively, with reports of depressive symptoms even after adjustments for age, sex, years of education, continuous walking for 15 min, experience of a fall in the past year, utilization of various long-term care services provided for the elderly, stroke, frequency of jogging, and park golf. Discussion: This study showed that participants engaging in NSE, which is a non-aerobic, low-intensity, and low frequency activity, had a marginally significantly inverse association with depressive symptoms. Longitudinal research should be conducted in the future