Features of IP rights enforcement in Korea and China

This report examines recent updates to the regulation and enforcement of intellectual property (IP) rights in Korea and China, in particular patent rights including invention, utility, and design rights. This paper also discusses some features and issues of the actual IP enforcement situation in those countries in comparison with Japan

Study on functions of board of education : Report about questionnaire-survey in the City of Ichikawa

We sent out questionnaires to staff members of the bureau of education in the City of Ichikawa. The purpose of this questionnaire-survey is to find out how each staff evaluates functions of the system of board of education. We found out two important matters. 1. Teaching professions and government officials differently evaluate the functions of the board of education. 2. Those who don\u27t appreciate the usefulness of the system of board of education have some characteristic views on the function

Comparison between Serum and Saliva Biochemical Constituents in Dairy Cows during Lactation and Dry Period

The present study was undertaken to compare serum and salivary biochemical constituents during lactation and dry period in dairy cows. Also, the present study evaluated for the first time the salivary biochemical constituents in dairy cows. The study was carried out using 45 healthy multiparous Holstein cows maintained in dairy farms located in Morioka city (Iwate prefecture, Japan). Cows were classified into groups based on the month of lactation. Serum, saliva and milk samples were collected and analyzed. Data were statistically analyzed and the variation in serum and salivary biochemical constituents during lactation and dry period were discussed. From the present study, it could be concluded that the 1st month of lactation has the highest levels for serum free fatty acids (FFA), β- Hydroxy butyric acid (BHBA) and aceto Acetic acid (ACAC). The dry period has the highest serum glucose level and the lowest serum FFA, BHBA and aspartate aminotransferase levels. Both serum and salivary FFA showed the highest value during the 1st month of lactation. Saliva contains a high level of gamma glutamyl transferase. The level of ammonia in saliva is higher than its serum level during all months of lactation and dry period. Most of the biochemical constituents in saliva change in different way from serum during lactation and dry period. Milk protein/fat ratio of 0.7 may be not indicative for subclinical ketosis

The functions of boards of education and plants for the reform of educational administration

Recently, there were many criticisms pointed at boards of education in Japan. Especially, a severe criticism that the board of education system ought to be abolished and educational administration ought to be carried out by the heads of local governments is one of them. In order to decide whether this criticism is right or wrong, following matters have to be clear up. Whether or not the boards of education is functioning as it has been originally expected. The heads of local governments are participating in educational administration or not. Whether or not the superintendents of education and the heads of local governments believe that the board of education system is unnecessary. To give answers to the above-mentioned questions, a nation-wide survey was conducted to the city mayors and superintendents. In short, this article covers the result of this survey and offers suggestion for reforming educational administration in Japan

Postnatal liver functional maturation requires Cnot complex-mediated decay of mRNAs encoding cell cycle and immature liver genes

Liver development involves dramatic gene expression changes mediated by transcriptional and post-transcriptional control. Here, we show that the Cnot deadenylase complex plays a crucial role in liver functional maturation. The Cnot3 gene encodes an essential subunit of the Cnot complex. Mice lacking Cnot3 in liver have reduced body and liver masses, and they display anemia and severe liver damage. Histological analyses indicate that Cnot3-deficient (Cnot3(-/-) ) hepatocytes are irregular in size and morphology, resulting in formation of abnormal sinusoids. We observe hepatocyte death, increased abundance of mitotic and mononucleate hepatocytes, and inflammation. Cnot3(-/-) livers show increased expression of immune response-related, cell cycle-regulating and immature liver genes, while many genes relevant to liver functions, such as oxidation-reduction, lipid metabolism and mitochondrial function, decrease, indicating impaired liver functional maturation. Highly expressed mRNAs possess elongated poly(A) tails and are stabilized in Cnot3(-/-) livers, concomitant with an increase of the proteins they encode. In contrast, transcription of liver function-related mRNAs was lower in Cnot3(-/-) livers. We detect efficient suppression of Cnot3 protein postnatally, demonstrating the crucial contribution of mRNA decay to postnatal liver functional maturation

Implementation and Evaluation of Teacher Training on Food Allergy Education in Kindergarten ― Aiming to Foster Children Leading Healthy Lives, Regardless of the Presence of Food Allergies ―

　本研究の目的は，幼稚園において食物アレルギーと共に生活する子供を育む方策を検討することである。本研究では，食物アレルギー教育に関する教員研修を行い，研修中の教員の反応と研修前後のアンケート調査の結果を基に，その効果を評価した。 　研修後には,食物アレルギーやその対応によって生じる子供達の心境へも目を向ける必要性の理解が深まった。また事例検討を通して，幼稚園においても幼児なりに食物アレルギーを理解して対応できるように伝える必要性があると明らかになり，実際に指導できそうな具体的な場面も挙げられた。さらに研修中，脈々と受け継がれてきた“教育観”と，現在の多様化した時代背景や子供達の実態，社会的なつながりを踏まえて更新される“教育観”の中で揺れ動く教員の姿が見られ，その揺らぎや葛藤自体が，個別のニーズを適切に受け入れ，多様性を尊重する教師の観念を磨くことにつながっていると考えられた。This study aims to explore strategies for nurturing kindergarten children with food allergies. Teacher training on food allergy education was conducted, and its effectiveness was evaluated based on teacher reactions and pre- and post-training surveys. The training deepened the understanding of the importance of addressing the emotional needs of children with food allergies. Case studies revealed the necessity of conveying this understanding to preschoolers and equipping them to respond appropriately. The study also observed teachers navigating between traditional and evolving educational perspectives, with observed fluctuations and conflicts contributing to refining teachers' beliefs tow ard embracing individual needs and diversity

MEF/ELF4 transactivation by E2F1 is inhibited by p53

Myeloid elf-1-like factor (MEF) or Elf4 is an E-twenty-six (ETS)-related transcription factor with strong transcriptional activity that influences cellular senescence by affecting tumor suppressor p53. MEF downregulates p53 expression and inhibits p53-mediated cellular senescence by transcriptionally activating MDM2. However, whether p53 reciprocally opposes MEF remains unex-plored. Here, we show that MEF is modulated by p53 in human cells and mice tissues. MEF expression and promoter activity were suppressed by p53. While we found that MEF promoter does not contain p53 response elements, intriguingly, it contains E2F consensus sites. Subsequently, we determined that E2F1 specifically binds to MEF promoter and transactivates MEF. Nevertheless, E2F1 DNA binding and transactivation of MEF promoter was inhibited by p53 through the association between p53 and E2F1. Furthermore, we showed that activation of p53 in doxorubicin-induced senescent cells increased E2F1 and p53 interaction, diminished E2F1 recruitment to MEF promoter and reduced MEF expression. These observations suggest that p53 downregulates MEF by associating with and inhibiting the binding activity of E2F1, a novel transcriptional activator of MEF. Together with previous findings, our present results indicate that a negative regulatory mechanism exists between p53 and MEF

A Report on Overseas Teaching Practicum by Graduate Students in Elementary/Secondary Schools in the United States (Ⅶ)

The present reports is on the 7th overseas teaching practicum in the United States by 15 graduate students of Hiroshima University, Japan, partly organized by Hiroshima University Global Partnership School Center since 2007. The group was comprised of 13 elementary school and 2 secondary school education major graduate students. They planned and conducted lessons in English in three local public schools in North Carolina. The expected outcomes of this project were: 1) to self-develop practical instructional competence by teaching pupils with diverse backgrounds in the U.S.; 2) to enhance the abilities in developing teaching materials through hands-on teaching experiences in English; and 3) to acquire the abilities to design, implement and evaluate programs for promoting global partnership. In addition, the teaching experience was followed by cross-cultural study visits to Raleigh, NC and Washington, D.C. It helped to boost our group motivation that the local media, newspaper and TV, and the city Board of Education covered our visit. It is hoped that this project will enhance the students’ teaching competence in designing quality materials/lessons and classroom communication skills in English

A review of clinical characteristics and genetic backgrounds in Alport syndrome

Alport syndrome (AS) is a progressive hereditary renal disease that is characterized by sensorineural hearing loss and ocular abnormalities. It is divided into three modes of inheritance, namely, X-linked Alport syndrome (XLAS), autosomal recessive AS (ARAS), and autosomal dominant AS (ADAS). XLAS is caused by pathogenic variants in COL4A5, while ADAS and ARAS are caused by those in COL4A3/COL4A4. Diagnosis is conventionally made pathologically, but recent advances in comprehensive genetic analysis have enabled genetic testing to be performed for the diagnosis of AS as first-line diagnosis. Because of these advances, substantial information about the genetics of AS has been obtained and the genetic background of this disease has been revealed, including genotype–phenotype correlations and mechanisms of onset in some male XLAS cases that lead to milder phenotypes of late-onset end-stage renal disease (ESRD). There is currently no radical therapy for AS and treatment is only performed to delay progression to ESRD using nephron-protective drugs. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors can remarkably delay the development of ESRD. Recently, some new drugs for this disease have entered clinical trials or been developed in laboratories. In this article, we review the diagnostic strategy, genotype–phenotype correlation, mechanisms of onset of milder phenotypes, and treatment of AS, among others

Common Variants in MAGI2 Gene Are Associated with Increased Risk for Cognitive Impairment in Schizophrenic Patients

Schizophrenia is a complex psychiatric disorder characterized by positive symptoms, negative symptoms, and cognitive impairment. MAGI2, a relatively large gene (∼1.5 Mbps) that maps to chromosome 7q21, is involved in recruitment of neurotransmitter receptors such as AMPA- and NMDA-type glutamate receptors. A genetic association study designed to evaluate the association between MAGI2 and cognitive performance or schizophrenia has not been conducted. In this case-control study, we examined the relationship of single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) variations in MAGI2 and risk for schizophrenia in a large Japanese sample and explored the potential relationships between variations in MAGI2 and aspects of human cognitive function related to glutamate activity. Based on the result of first schizophrenia genome-wide association study in a Japanese population (JGWAS), we selected four independent SNPs and performed an association study using a large independent Japanese sample set (cases 1624, controls 1621). Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) was used to evaluate executive function in 114 cases and 91 controls. We found suggestive evidence for genetic association of common SNPs within MAGI2 locus and schizophrenia in Japanese population. Furthermore in terms of association between MAGI2 and cognitive performance, we observed that genotype effect of rs2190665 on WCST score was significant (p = 0.034) and rs4729938 trended toward significance (p = 0.08). In conclusion, although we could not detect strong genetic evidence for association of common variants in MAGI2 and increased schizophrenia risk in a Japanese population, these SNPs may increase risk of cognitive impairment in schizophrenic patients