「子ども食堂」を「子どもの居場所」として地域に広げる方策に関する研究 : 徳島県内の子ども食堂運営者へのインタビュー調査より

For this research, we conducted interviews with managers of cafeteria for children in Tokushima Prefecture. While we ascertained details about these cafeterias in Tokushima Prefecture, our goal was to deliberate on strategies to expand upon these cafeterias for children, and details of how they should serve as a beneficial place for children to be. The interviews, conducted from November 2019 through January of 2020, featured five managers of four cafeterias for children in Tokushima Prefecture. Data collected through semi-structured interviews was compiled into memory card format, organized systematically, and grouped into the following five topics: 1) social background necessitating a place for the children to be, 2) individuals managing the cafeterias (providing assistance), 3) social work skills, 4) child cafeteria operations, and 5) the kind of children utilizing these cafeterias. Based on detailed analysis, we examined the circumstances of these cafeterias for children and their role as a place for children to be, making concrete recommendations on strategies to popularize these cafeterias in regional communities

The Effect of Cranial Change on Oropharyngeal Airway and Breathing During Sleep

Mandibular micrognathia is one of the characteristics of obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of bimaxillary surgery without maxillary advancement on the upper airway using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) results of comparing pre- and post-operative finite element model. Seven female patients with jaw deformity, who underwent two-jaw surgery (Le Fort1 osteotomy and bilateral sagittal split ramus osteotomy; BSSRO) were enrolled. Maxillary was moved for correcting occlusal plane and mandibular was moved to advancement. Pharyngeal airway space and breathing during sleep were evaluated, comparing the periods of 2 days before and 6 months after the operation. The cross-sectional area of the level of the hard palate (HP) and the level of the tip of the uvula (TU), and airway volume of total, HP-TU, and TP- the level of the base of the epiglottis (BE) were increased. AI and AHI in 2 days before and 6 months after were decreased. As the result of nasal ventilation condition, velocity of HP and TU in 2 days before and 6 months after were decreased. We think that it was revealed that movement of the maxilla without advancement did not affect to the morphology and function of airway

健常者と味覚異常者における味覚受容体発現

RT-PCR法を用いて,葉状乳頭における味覚受容体の発現を検討した。すなわち葉状乳頭部から擦過法により取得した組織を使用し,味覚受容体候補であるTHTRファミリー(THTRs)およびT2Rファミリー(T2Rs)の発現をRT-PCR後,マイクロキャピラリー電気泳動により測定した。40歳以上の健常者ではTHTRs,T2Rsの受容体において,多数を発現していることが認められた。これに対し30歳以下の被験者ではいくつかのTHTRsおよびT2Rsで発現を認めたが,典型的な発現パターンはなかった。さらに薬服用者や高齢の味覚異常者においては,健常者に比べてTHTRs, T2Rsともに発現していない受容体が多かった。これらのことから,まず青年期では味覚受容体が成長段階にあり,20歳の成人になっても味覚の成長は十分ではないことが考えられた。壮年期になると味覚受容体が十分発達し,高齢者になってもその味覚受容体の発現数は減少しないことが示唆された。また薬剤の服用者や味覚異常者も,味覚受容体の欠落の可能性が示唆された。Tongue tissue from foliate papillae of 22 subjects was scraped and used. The expression of THTR family (THTRs) and T2R family (T2Rs) that are the candidate taste receptors were measured by RT-PCR and micro-capillary electrophoresis. The expression of taste receptors in the foliate papillae was measured using this scraping RT-PCR method. Normal persons over 40 years old expressed many THTRs and T2Rs. In contrast, for people under 30 years old there were some THTRs and T2Rs expressions without typical patterns. The taste disordered persons expressed few kinds of THTRs and T2Rs, and there were no or almost no expressions. These results suggested that in young adults of about 20 years old the taste receptors are not yet developed. We suggest that expression of taste receptors don\u27t decrease in a person of advanced years because taste receptors development peaks in late middle age. With further assay and analyzation of expression of THTRs and T2Rs, it maybe possible to clear up factors of disturbance in taste

Efficacy of Life Protection Probably from Newly Isolated Bacteria against Cisplatin-Induced Lethal Toxicity

Cisplatin may be commonly used in chemotherapy against various solid tumors. However, cisplatin has a limited safety range with serious side effects, which may be one of the dose-restraining reasons for cisplatin. A favorable therapeutic approach is immediately required for ameliorating cisplatin-induced toxicity. In the present study, the potential protective effects of certain bacteria have been investigated at the lethal dosage of cisplatin in mice experimental models. Treated under the highest dosage of cisplatin, treatment of certain commensal bacteria could significantly increase the survival rate. In addition, our findings revealed that probiotic supplementation of these bacteria could result in the attenuation of the damage appearance on the kidney as well as the alteration of several antioxidant-related gene expressions, including SOD1, SOD2, SOD3, Nrf2, and/or HO-1 genes in the high dosage of cisplatin-treated mice. In short, acute kidney injury in mice was induced by a single dose of cisplatin 11 or 15 mg/kg intraperitoneally. Then, peroral administration of newly isolated bacteria could protect against the cisplatin-induced injury, probably by decreasing oxidative stress. Therefore, the data shown here might suggest that the usage of certain probiotic supplementation could contribute to the life protection of patients suffering from severe toxicity of cisplatin. However, the molecular mechanisms need to be further explored

Inspiring Tactics with the Improvement of Mitophagy and Redox Balance for the Development of Innovative Treatment against Polycystic Kidney Disease

Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is the most common genetic form of chronic kidney disease (CKD), and it involves the development of multiple kidney cysts. Not enough medical breakthroughs have been made against PKD, a condition which features regional hypoxia and activation of the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) pathway. The following pathology of CKD can severely instigate kidney damage and/or renal failure. Significant evidence verifies an imperative role for mitophagy in normal kidney physiology and the pathology of CKD and/or PKD. Mitophagy serves as important component of mitochondrial quality control by removing impaired/dysfunctional mitochondria from the cell to warrant redox homeostasis and sustain cell viability. Interestingly, treatment with the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-α (PPAR-α) agonist could reduce the pathology of PDK and might improve the renal function of the disease via the modulation of mitophagy, as well as the condition of gut microbiome. Suitable modulation of mitophagy might be a favorable tactic for the prevention and/or treatment of kidney diseases such as PKD and CKD

Circular RNAs, Noncoding RNAs, and N6-methyladenosine Involved in the Development of MAFLD

Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs), including circular RNAs (circRNAs) and N6-methyladenosine (m6A), have been shown to play a critical role in the development of various diseases including obesity and metabolic disorder-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). Obesity is a chronic disease caused by excessive fat accumulation in the body, which has recently become more prevalent and is the foremost risk factor for MAFLD. Causes of obesity may involve the interaction of genetic, behavioral, and social factors. m6A RNA methylation might add a novel inspiration for understanding the development of obesity and MAFLD with post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. In particular, circRNAs, microRNAs (miRNAs), and m6A might be implicated in the progression of MAFLD. Interestingly, m6A modification can modulate the translation, degradation, and other functions of ncRNAs. miRNAs/circRNAs can also modulate m6A modifications by affecting writers, erasers, and readers. In turn, ncRNAs could modulate the expression of m6A regulators in different ways. However, there is limited evidence on how these ncRNAs and m6A interact to affect the promotion of liver diseases. It seems that m6A can occur in DNA, RNA, and proteins that may be associated with several biological properties. This study provides a mechanistic understanding of the association of m6A modification and ncRNAs with liver diseases, especially for MAFLD. Comprehension of the association between m6A modification and ncRNAs may contribute to the development of treatment tactics for MAFLD

In Search of a Function for the N6-Methyladenosine in Epitranscriptome, Autophagy and Neurodegenerative Diseases

Changes in epitranscriptome with N6-methyladenine (m6A) modification could be involved in the development of multiple diseases, which might be a prevalent modification of messenger RNAs (mRNAs) in eukaryotes. The m6A modification might be performed through the action of methyltransferases, demethylases, and methylation-binding proteins. Importantly, the m6A methylation may be associated with various neurological disorders including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), depression, aging-related diseases, and/or aging itself. In addition, the m6A methylation might functionally regulate the eukaryotic transcriptome by influencing the splicing, export, subcellular localization, translation, stability, and decay of mRNAs. Neurodegenerative diseases may possess a wide variety of phenotypes, depending on the neurons that degenerate on occasion. Interestingly, an increasing amount of evidence has indicated that m6A modification could modulate the expression of autophagy-related genes and promote autophagy in neuronal cells. Oxidative stresses such as reactive oxygen species (ROS) could stimulate the m6A RNA methylation, which may also be related to the regulation of autophagy and/or the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Both m6A modification and autophagy could also play critical roles in regulating the health condition of neurons. Therefore, a comprehensive understanding of the m6A and autophagy relationship in human diseases may benefit in developing therapeutic strategies in the future. This paper reviews advances in the understanding of the regulatory mechanisms of m6A modification in the occurrence and development of neurodegenerative diseases and/or aging, discussing the possible therapeutic procedures related to mechanisms of m6A RNA methylation and autophagy

Non-Coding RNAs and Gut Microbiota in the Pathogenesis of Cardiac Arrhythmias: The Latest Update

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are indispensable for adjusting gene expression and genetic programming throughout development and for health as well as cardiovascular diseases. Cardiac arrhythmia is a frequent cardiovascular disease that has a complex pathology. Recent studies have shown that ncRNAs are also associated with cardiac arrhythmias. Many non-coding RNAs and/or genomes have been reported as genetic background for cardiac arrhythmias. In general, arrhythmias may be affected by several functional and structural changes in the myocardium of the heart. Therefore, ncRNAs might be indispensable regulators of gene expression in cardiomyocytes, which could play a dynamic role in regulating the stability of cardiac conduction and/or in the remodeling process. Although it remains almost unclear how ncRNAs regulate the expression of molecules for controlling cardiac conduction and/or the remodeling process, the gut microbiota and immune system within the intricate networks might be involved in the regulatory mechanisms. This study would discuss them and provide a research basis for ncRNA modulation, which might support the development of emerging innovative therapies against cardiac arrhythmias

Risk Factors for Complications in Expander-Based Breast Reconstruction: Multivariate Analysis in Asian Patients

Background:. There have been many studies examining risk factors for complications in expander-based breast reconstruction after mastectomy, and some patient factors have been identified as risk factors. However, most of the previous studies were based on Caucasian patients. Methods:. Asian patients who had a tissue expander placed for immediate breast reconstruction between January 2006 and December 2015 (363 patients and 371 expanders) were analyzed retrospectively. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to elucidate risk factors for complications. Results:. The rate of skin necrosis was significantly higher in nipple-sparing mastectomy than in other types of mastectomies (12 patients among 107 patients, P = 0.001). The weight of the resected specimen was significantly higher in the group with complications than in the group without complications (444 g compared with 363 g, P = 0.027). Other factors (age, body mass index, smoking, expander type, preoperative chemotherapy, axillary dissection) had no significant effect on complications. Multivariate analysis with a logistic regression showed that a large breast (over 500 g) was the only significant risk factor for complications, with an odds ratio of 3.20 and a 95% confidence interval of 1.33–7.54 (P = 0.010). Conclusion:. In this series of Asian patients, breast size, rather than body mass index, is the most important predictor for complications in expander-based breast reconstruction