Driver\u27s Licence Ownership in Japan : Long Term Forecasting by Cohort Analysis

This　paper，　in　the　attempt　of　presenting　a　part　of　study　examining　the　theoretical　and empirical　relationships　between　driver，s　licence　ownership　and　passenger　car　ownership， shows　the　results　of　a　long　term　forecast　of　the　driver，s　licence　ownership　by　sex　and age－group　in　Japan．　The　method　of　cohort　analysis　is　applied　to　Japan，s　data　in　order　to estimate　the　future　rates　of　driver，s　licence　ownership．　It　has　been　fou訟d　that，　under assumptio且s　set　in　this　study，　the　marginal　increlnent　of　total　driver，s　licence　ownership remains　approximately　six　to　eight　times　larger　than　that　of　population　level　ulltil　the beginning　of　the　next　century．論文(Article

Steroids-producing nodules: a two-layered adrenocortical nodular structure as a precursor lesion of cortisol-producing adenoma

コルチゾール産生腫瘍の前駆病変を世界で初めて発見--副腎腫瘍の発生メカニズムの解明と副腎皮質疾患の治療への応用に期--京都大学プレスリリース. 2024-04-03.Background: The human adrenal cortex consists of three functionally and structurally distinct layers; zona glomerulosa, zona fasciculata (zF), and zona reticularis (zR), and produces adrenal steroid hormones in a layer-specific manner; aldosterone, cortisol, and adrenal androgens, respectively. Cortisol-producing adenomas (CPAs) occur mostly as a result of somatic mutations associated with the protein kinase A pathway. However, how CPAs develop after adrenocortical cells acquire genetic mutations, remains poorly understood. Methods: We conducted integrated approaches combining the detailed histopathologic studies with genetic, RNA-sequencing, and spatially resolved transcriptome (SRT) analyses for the adrenal cortices adjacent to human adrenocortical tumours. Findings: Histopathological analysis revealed an adrenocortical nodular structure that exhibits the two-layered zF- and zR-like structure. The nodular structures harbour GNAS somatic mutations, known as a driver mutation of CPAs, and confer cell proliferative and autonomous steroidogenic capacities, which we termed steroids-producing nodules (SPNs). RNA-sequencing coupled with SRT analysis suggests that the expansion of the zF-like structure contributes to the formation of CPAs, whereas the zR-like structure is characterised by a macrophage-mediated immune response. Interpretation: We postulate that CPAs arise from a precursor lesion, SPNs, where two distinct cell populations might contribute differently to adrenocortical tumorigenesis. Our data also provide clues to the molecular mechanisms underlying the layered structures of human adrenocortical tissues. Funding: KAKENHI, The Uehara Memorial Foundation, Daiwa Securities Health Foundation, Kaibara Morikazu Medical Science Promotion Foundation, Secom Science and Technology Foundation, ONO Medical Research Foundation, and Japan Foundation for Applied Enzymology