An Acoustic Phonetic Portfolio of a Japanese-Accented English Idiolect

This is an acoustic analysis of the pronunciation of 11 vowels of a native Japanese speaker. These 11 vowels are compared to that of a native English speaking female and the differences are discussed. Reasons for the differences in pronunciation are mainly attributed to a lack of tongue movement. Pedagogical implications for teachers of Japanese students are also briefly considered

Effect of ZrC phase on high-temperature strength and room-temperature fracture toughness of ZrC-added Mo-Si-B alloys

Mo-Si-B-based alloys are one of leading candidate materials as ultra-high temperature structure materials. However, their high density and poor room-temperature fracture toughness have to be improved for the structural applications. Recently, we found that these problems can be solved by adding carbides such as TiC and ZrC. In this study, the high-temperature strength and room-temperature fracture toughness of ZrC-added Mo-Si-B alloys were investigated, and the effect of ZrC phase on the material properties were discussed. ZrC-added Mo-Si-B alloys (Mo-(3.2-7.0)Si-(6.5-14.0)B-(4.7-12.9)ZrC (at.%)) were prepared by arc-melting and heat-treated at 1800 °C for 24 h for homogenization. After heat-treatment, the microstructure was observed to investigate phase equilibria. Moreover, high-temperature compression tests at 1400 and 1600 °C and four-point bending tests with a Chevron notch at room temperature were conducted to investigate their mechanical properties. The constituent phases of the ZrC-added alloys were molybdenum solid solution (Moss), Mo5SiB2, ZrC and a small amount of Mo2B in a few cases. The density of the alloys ranged from 8.9 to 9.3 g/cm3, comparable to that of nickel-based superalloys. The alloys exhibited better high-temperature strength with relatively good deformability, for example, 1260 MPa at 1400 °C and 830 MPa at 1600 °C. The room-temperature fracture toughness of the alloys ranged from 12.4 to 20.3 MPa(m)1/2 depending on the volume fraction of Moss and ZrC. River patterns were observed on fracture surfaces of not only Moss but also ZrC phase, suggesting that ZrC also work for toughening by plastic deformation during crack propagation. Therefore ZrC plays a significant role in improving the high-temperature strength and room-temperature fracture toughness in the Mo-Si-B system

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

Oral health conditions and swallowing in patients with Parkinson\u27s disease

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to investigate oral health conditions, oral health behavior, and swallowing among patients with Parkinson\u27s disease (PD) in Hokkaido, Japan. Materials and methods: We investigated 223 PD patients in the Kushiro area of Hokkaido, Japan by mail in 2020. From 112 respondents, we used 71 PD patients from 50 to 79 years old as cases. Four hundred and forty-three persons over 40 years of age underwent dental examinations conducted by Kushiro city from 2018 to 2019. We retrospectively selected 141 persons from 50 to 79 years old as control. Controls were matched to cases for sex and age. We compared oral health conditions and related factors between 71 PD patients and 141 controls. The logistic regression model was used for adjusting for sex and age. We also conducted stratified analysis by sex while adjusting for age using this model. Results: Compared with the controls, PD patients had more complaints of chewing difficulties, gingival bleeding, annoying teeth alignment, food impaction, swollen gums or mucosa and tooth movement. Among PD patients, 66.2% had problems with swallowing. Conclusion: We found that PD patients had more complaints about oral health and troubles with swallowing

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

Epidermal growth factor receptor mutation in combination with expression of MIG6 alters gefitinib sensitivity

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling plays an important role in the regulation of cell proliferation, survival, metastasis, and invasion in various tumors. Earlier studies showed that the EGFR is frequently overexpressed in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and EGFR mutations at specific amino acid residues in the kinase domain induce altered responsiveness to gefitinib, a small molecule EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor. However, the mechanism underlying the drug response modulated by EGFR mutation is still largely unknown. To elucidate drug response in EGFR signal transduction pathway in which complex dynamics of multiple molecules involved, a systematic approach is necessary. In this paper, we performed experimental and computational analyses to clarify the underlying mechanism of EGFR signaling and cell-specific gefitinib responsiveness in three H1299-derived NSCLC cell lines; H1299 wild type (H1299WT), H1299 with an overexpressed wild type EGFR (H1299EGFR-WT), and H1299 with an overexpressed mutant EGFR L858R (H1299L858R; gefitinib sensitive mutant).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We predicted and experimentally verified that Mig6, which is a known negative regulator of EGFR and specifically expressed in H1299L858R cells, synergized with gefitinib to suppress cellular growth. Computational analyses indicated that this inhibitory effect is amplified at the phosphorylation/dephosphorylation steps of MEK and ERK.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Thus, we showed that L858R receptor mutation in combination with expression of its negative regulator, Mig6, alters signaling outcomes and results in variable drug sensitivity.</p

Development of thermal switch using liquid column

Paper presented at the 6th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, South Africa, 30 June - 2 July, 2008.This paper presents the thermal switch which is composed of several switching channels, breathing grooves, reservoirs and actuators to control the liquid column. In the “on” state, a switching channel is filled with liquid supplied by an actuator, which decreases the thermal resistance. In the “off” state, the air fills in the gap of two plates instead of the liquid column and the thermal resistance is increased. Through this switch operation, temperature of the designated hot spot can be controlled locally. In order to realize the desired switch operation, the liquid column should be precisely controlled based on channel design. The switching channel is composed of burst area and path area to achieve the smooth operation. The burst area was geometrically designed to provide the hydrophilic surface geometrically by taking into account of burst area. Experiments were performed on a designed switch for the liquid column control and the heat flow regulation. The results showed that this thermal switch is able to make the “on” and “off” state by controlling liquid column well. Also, the temperature distribution and thermal resistance has been changed according to channel state.vk201

One-Year Period Prevalence of Oral Aphthous Ulcers and Oral Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Behçet&apos;s Disease

The aim of this study was to investigate the 1-year period prevalence of oral aphthous ulcers (OAUs) and their association with oral health-related quality of life (OHQOL) in patients with Behçet&apos;s disease (BD) and in the general population. In this cross-sectional study, 675 patients with Behçet&apos;s disease (BD group) and 1,097 males and females in the Japanese general population (control group) completed both questionnaires on their OAU status during the prior year and the General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI). In the BD group, 84% of patients reported experiencing an OAU during the previous year, and the mean number of OAUs/year was 13. In the control group, 31% of individuals experienced an OAU during the previous year, and the mean number of OAUs/year was one. Multivariate analysis indicated that both BD patients (OR, 6.2; 95% CI, 4.8-8.0) and controls (OR, 2.6; 95% CI, 2.0-3.5) who had OAUs at least twice per year were more likely to have GOHAI scores below the norm than were controls who had fewer than two OAUs per year. The association between HLA-B * 51 and OAUs remains unknown. The presence of OAUs has a negative effect on the OHQOL of patients with BD

Characterization of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus strains isolated from migratory waterfowl in Mongolia on the way back from the southern Asia to their northern territory

AbstractH5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses were isolated from dead wild waterfowl at Khunt, Erkhel, Doityn Tsagaan, Doroo, and Ganga Lakes in Mongolia in July 2005, May 2006, May 2009, July 2009, and May 2010, respectively. The isolates in 2005 and 2006 were classified into genetic clade 2.2, and those in 2009 and 2010 into clade 2.3.2. A/whooper swan/Mongolia/6/2009 (H5N1) experimentally infected ducks and replicated systemically with higher mortality than that of the isolates in 2005 and 2006. Intensive surveillance of avian influenza in migratory waterfowl flying from their nesting lakes in Siberia to Mongolia in every autumn indicate that HPAI viruses have not perpetuated at their nesting lakes until 2009. The present results demonstrate that wild waterfowl were sporadically infected with H5N1 HPAI viruses prevailing in domestic poultry in the southern Asia and died in Mongolia on the way back to their northern territory in spring