Die Welt der Religionen in einem Buch: Religion, Ritual und die vergleichende Konstruktion religiöser Traditionen in den Cérémonies et coutumes religieuses (Bernard & Picart 1723-1737)

Chukyo University（中京大学

Study on the method to quantify viable bacterial cellson the surface of endotracheal suction catheters

気管内吸引カテーテルに付着した一般細菌の生菌数測定方法について,超音波法およびチューブミキサーによ攪拌法を用いて検討した｡まず,人工的に緑膿菌を付着させた気管内吸引カテーテルを超音波処理することにより生菌数を測定した｡その結果,処理時間が1分を経過すると生菌数は減少をはじめ経時的に減少傾向を示した｡一方,攪拌法では0.5分の処理をピーク値としてその後の減少傾向は認められなかった｡次に,在宅療養患者に使用したカテーテルをチューブミキサーで0.5分攪拌後,生菌数の測定を行った｡また,同じカテーテルを用いて走査型電子顕微鏡による観察を行った結果,画面上の細菌数の印象と生菌数の測定結果に矛盾はなかった｡これらのことから気管内吸引カテーテルに付着した一般細菌の生菌数測定方法として,生理食塩水に入れたカテーテルをチューブミキサーで攪拌する方法が有用であると考えられた｡As a method for the detection of viable bacteria attached to endotracheal suction catheters, we evaluated sonication and dissociation using a tube mixer. The catheter fragments with Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 were treated by each of the two methods, and viable cells in the elutions were counted. The highest number of viable cells was observed at 0.5 min by either method. The viable cell count decreased when the sonication time exceeded 1 min, while only a slight decrease of viable cells was observed by using a tube mixer. The catheters used for patients receiving care at home were fragmented and treated by a tube mixer to detach bacteria, and viable cells were counted. Electron microscopy observation showed an association between the viable cell count and morphology of surfaces of the catheters. These results suggest that adequate removal of bacteria attached to endotracheal suction catheters is possible by agitating catheter fragments for 0.5 min in physiological saline using a tube mixer

Study of childcare anxieties and way coping in O city

本研究の目的は,母親たちが育児に関して直面している不安を把握し,その不安に対する保健師の対処の実態を明らかにすることである｡そこでO市にあるN保健センターの家庭訪問と月1回の育児相談会において,保健師が受けた育児に関する相談を分析した｡対象はN保健センター管内の4つの地区で,1歳2ヶ月未満の児を持つ母親からの216件の相談内容である｡その結果,母親たちの育児不安で最も多かったのは児の身体や栄養についてであった｡さらに不安は出産順位によっても差があり,また児の月齢により変化し,その内容は児の成長発達と深く関係していた｡そして,育児に関する情報は増えているものの,個別性に欠けていることや,母親たちの知識に偏りがあることも明らかになった｡これらの結果をもとに,現在の母親が抱える不安の傾向を考察し,N保健センターで実施している育児支援活動を踏まえ,母親の不安の対処について検討した｡The purpose of this study is to identify childcare anxieties of mothers and how public health nurses cope with them. The data was collected from the contents of 216 consultations of mothers with children under 14th months of age carried by public health nurses of N public health center, O city. It was revealed that most of the consultations were about child's physical and nutritious concerns. The childcare anxieties associated with growth and birth order and the child's age in months. Moreover, we found that even though there is a large volume of information available about childcare, it is too general. Based on the research findings, we made clear tendency of childcare anxiety of mothers and how the public health nurses coped with them

Biological responses according to the shape and size of carbon nanotubes in BEAS-2B and MESO-1 cells

This study aimed to investigate the influence of the shape and size of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and cup-stacked carbon nanotubes (CSCNTs) on biological responses in vitro. Three types of MWCNTs - VGCF (R)-X, VGCF (R)-S, and VGCF (R) (vapor grown carbon fibers; with diameters of 15, 80, and 150 nm, respectively) - and three CSCNTs of different lengths (CS-L, 20-80 mu m; CS-S, 0.5-20 mu m; and CS-M, of intermediate length) were tested. Human bronchial epithelial (BEAS-2B) and malignant pleural mesothelioma cells were exposed to the CNTs (1-50 mu g/mL), and cell viability, permeability, uptake, total reactive oxygen species/superoxide production, and intracellular acidity were measured. CSCNTs were less toxic than MWCNTs in both cell types over a 24-hour exposure period. The cytotoxicity of endocytosed MWCNTs varied according to cell type/size, while that of CSCNTs depended on tube length irrespective of cell type. CNT diameter and length influenced cell aggregation and injury extent. Intracellular acidity increased independently of lysosomal activity along with the number of vacuoles in BEAS-2B cells exposed for 24 hours to either CNT (concentration, 10 mu g/mL). However, total reactive oxygen species/superoxide generation did not contribute to cytotoxicity. The results demonstrate that CSCNTs could be suitable for biological applications and that CNT shape and size can have differential effects depending on cell type, which can be exploited in the development of highly specialized, biocompatible CNTs.ArticleINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF NANOMEDICINE. 9:1979-1990 (2014)journal articl

Non-Gaussian Error Contribution to Likelihood Analysis of the Matter Power Spectrum

We study the sample variance of the matter power spectrum for the standard Lambda Cold Dark Matter universe. We use a total of 5000 cosmological N-body simulations to study in detail the distribution of best-fit cosmological parameters and the baryon acoustic peak positions. The obtained distribution is compared with the results from the Fisher matrix analysis with and without including non-Gaussian errors. For the Fisher matrix analysis, we compute the derivatives of the matter power spectrum with respect to cosmological parameters using directly full nonlinear simulations. We show that the non-Gaussian errors increase the unmarginalized errors by up to a factor 5 for k_{max}=0.4h/Mpc if there is only one free parameter provided other parameters are well determined by external information. On the other hand, for multi-parameter fitting, the impact of the non-Gaussian errors is significantly mitigated due to severe parameter degeneracies in the power spectrum. The distribution of the acoustic peak positions is well described by a Gaussian distribution, with its width being consistent with the statistical interval predicted from the Fisher matrix. We also examine systematic bias in the best-fit parameter due to the non-Gaussian errors. The bias is found to be smaller than the 1 sigma statistical error for both the cosmological parameters and the acoustic scale positions.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in ApJ, minor change

Phosphate Homeostasis and Osteocyte Ablation

In response to kidney damage, osteocytes increase the production of several hormones critically involved in mineral metabolism. Recent studies suggest that osteocyte function is altered very early in the course of chronic kidney disease. In the present study, to clarify the role of osteocytes and the canalicular network in mineral homeostasis, we performed four experiments. In Experiment 1, we investigated renal and intestinal Pi handling in osteocyte-less (OCL) model mice [transgenic mice with the dentin matrix protein-1 promoter-driven diphtheria toxin (DT)-receptor that were injected with DT]. In Experiment 2, we administered granulocyte colony-stimulating factor to mice to disrupt the osteocyte canalicular network. In Experiment 3, we investigated the role of osteocytes in dietary Pi signaling. In Experiment 4, we analyzed gene expression level fluctuations in the intestine and liver by comparing mice fed a high Pi diet and OCL mice. Together, the findings of these experiments indicate that osteocyte ablation caused rapid renal Pi excretion (P < 0.01) before the plasma fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) and parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels increased. At the same time, we observed a rapid suppression of renal Klotho (P < 0.01), type II sodium phosphate transporters Npt2a (P < 0.01) and Npt2c (P < 0.05), and an increase in intestinal Npt2b (P < 0.01) protein. In OCL mice, Pi excretion in feces was markedly reduced (P < 0.01). Together, these effects of osteocyte ablation are predicted to markedly increase intestinal Pi absorption (P < 0.01), thus suggesting that increased intestinal Pi absorption stimulates renal Pi excretion in OCL mice. In addition, the ablation of osteocytes and feeding of a high Pi diet affected FGF15/bile acid metabolism and controlled Npt2b expression. In conclusion, OCL mice exhibited increased renal Pi excretion due to enhanced intestinal Pi absorption. We discuss the role of FGF23–Klotho on renal and intestinal Pi metabolism in OCL mice

Culture medium type affects endocytosis of multi-walled carbon nanotubes in BEAS-2B cells and subsequent biological response

AbstractWe examined the cytotoxicity of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and the resulting cytokine secretion in BEAS-2B cells or normal human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEpCs) in two types of culture media (Ham’s F12 containing 10% FBS [Ham’s F12] and serum-free growth medium [SFGM]). Cellular uptake of MWCNT was observed by fluorescent microscopy and analyzed using flow cytometry. Moreover, we evaluated whether MWCNT uptake was suppressed by 2 types of endocytosis inhibitors. We found that BEAS-2B cells cultured in Ham’s F12 and HBEpCs cultured in SFGM showed similar biological responses, but BEAS-2B cells cultured in SFGM did not internalize MWCNTs, and the 50% inhibitory concentration value, i.e., the cytotoxicity, was increased by more than 10-fold. MWCNT uptake was suppressed by a clathrin-mediated endocytosis inhibitor and a caveolae-mediated endocytosis inhibitor in BEAS-2B cells cultured in Ham’s F12 and HBEpCs cultured in SFGM. In conclusion, we suggest that BEAS-2B cells cultured in a medium containing serum should be used for the safety evaluation of nanomaterials as a model of normal human bronchial epithelial cells. However, the culture medium composition may affect the proteins that are expressed on the cytoplasmic membrane, which may influence the biological response to MWCNTs

Liver-kidney axis and plasma Pi rhythm

Circulating inorganic phosphate exhibits a remarkable daily oscillation based on food intake. In humans and rodents, the daily oscillation in response to food intake may be coordinated to control the intestinal absorption, renal excretion, cellular shifts, and extracellular concentration of inorganic phosphate. However, mechanisms regulating the resulting oscillation are unknown. Here we investigated the roles of the sodium phosphate cotransporter SLC34 (Npt2) family and nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase (Nampt) in the daily oscillation of plasma inorganic phosphate levels. First, it is roughly linked to urinary inorganic phosphate excretion. Second, expression of renal Npt2a and Npt2c, and intestinal Npt2b proteins also exhibit a dynamic daily oscillation. Analyses of Npt2a, Npt2b, and Npt2c knockout mice revealed the importance of renal inorganic phosphate reabsorption and cellular inorganic phosphate shifts in the daily oscillation. Third, experiments in which nicotinamide and a specific Nampt inhibitor (FK866) were administered in the active and rest phases revealed that the Nampt/NAD+ system is involved in renal inorganic phosphate excretion. Additionally, for cellular shifts, liver-specific Nampt deletion disturbed the daily oscillation of plasma phosphate during the rest but not the active phase. In systemic Nampt+/- mice, NAD levels were significantly reduced in the liver, kidney, and intestine, and the daily oscillation (active and rest phases) of the plasma phosphate concentration was attenuated. Thus, the Nampt/ NAD+ system for Npt2 regulation and cellular shifts to tissues such as the liver play an important role in generating daily oscillation of plasma inorganic phosphate levels

自閉症スペクトラム障害(ASD) 児・者に対する相互交渉スキル支援プログラムの実践と効果（その１）：認知面への効果を中心に

報告Reports　本論は、自閉症スペクトラム障害(ASD) 児・者が対人葛藤場面に直面した時に、自分と相手の要求や視点を調整して話し合う（交渉する）ことで解決に導く「相互交渉スキル」を身につけるための支援プログラムに関する研究の第１報である。本研究では、支援プログラムを新たに開発・実践してその効果について検討した。プログラムの実施対象者はASD の診断を受けている小学４～６年生、中学生、高校生、大学生の計25 名であった。プログラムは「対人葛藤場面でのより良い解決についての説明」「自分も相手も納得できる解決案を考える」「話し合い（交渉）の仕方の手順を示した上でのロールプレイ」等から構成され、３セッション（１回２時間）行った。プログラムの前後に質問紙にて測定した対人交渉方略尺度の得点の変化をみたところ、プログラムの実施後、未熟な方略が減少し、より発達した方略が増加した。このことから本プログラムがASD 当事者の認知面に肯定的な変化をもたらす効果があることが明らかになった

Simulations of Baryon Acoustic Oscillations II: Covariance matrix of the matter power spectrum

We use 5000 cosmological N-body simulations of 1(Gpc/h)^3 box for the concordance LCDM model in order to study the sampling variances of nonlinear matter power spectrum. We show that the non-Gaussian errors can be important even on large length scales relevant for baryon acoustic oscillations (BAO). Our findings are (1) the non-Gaussian errors degrade the cumulative signal-to-noise ratios (S/N) for the power spectrum amplitude by up to a factor of 2 and 4 for redshifts z=1 and 0, respectively. (2) There is little information on the power spectrum amplitudes in the quasi-nonlinear regime, confirming the previous results. (3) The distribution of power spectrum estimators at BAO scales, among the realizations, is well approximated by a Gaussian distribution with variance that is given by the diagonal covariance component. (4) For the redshift-space power spectrum, the degradation in S/N by non-Gaussian errors is mitigated due to nonlinear redshift distortions. (5) For an actual galaxy survey, the additional shot noise contamination compromises the cosmological information inherent in the galaxy power spectrum, but also mitigates the impact of non-Gaussian errors. The S/N is degraded by up to 30% for a WFMOS-type survey. (6) The finite survey volume causes additional non-Gaussian errors via the correlations of long-wavelength fluctuations with the fluctuations we want to measure, further degrading the S/N values by about 30% even at high redshift z=3.Comment: submitted to ApJ, 14 pages, 12 figures. The full halo model is included. Minor changes also made, and references adde