Investigation of environmental change pattern in Japan

The author has identified the following significant results. A detailed land use classification for a large urban area of Tokyo was made using MSS digital data. It was found that residential, commercial, industrial, and wooded areas and grasslands can be successfully classified. A mesoscale vortex associated with large ocean current, Kuroshio, which is a rare phenomenon, was recognized visually through the analysis of MSS data. It was found that this vortex affects the effluent patterns of rivers. Lava flowing from Sakurajima Volcano was clearly classified for three major erruptions (1779, 1914, and 1946) using MSS data

Effects of fertility education on knowledge, desires and anxiety among the reproductive-aged population: findings from a randomized controlled trial

STUDY QUESTION What are the effects of fertility education on knowledge, childbearing desires and anxiety? SUMMARY ANSWER Providing fertility information contributed to greater knowledge, but increased anxiety. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Past studies have found that exposure to educational material improved fertility awareness and changed desires toward childbearing and its timing. Existing educational websites with evidence-based medical information provided in a non-judgmental manner have received favorable responses from reproductive-aged men and women. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION This three-armed (one intervention and two control groups), randomized controlled trial was conducted using online social research panels (SRPs) in Japan in January 2015. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS A total of 1455 participants (726 men and 729 women) between 20 and 39 years of age who hoped to have (more) children in the future were block-randomized and exposed to one of three information brochures: fertility education (intervention group), intake of folic acid during pregnancy (control group 1) or governmental financial support for pregnancy and childbirth (control group 2). Fertility knowledge was measured with the Japanese version of the Cardiff Fertility Knowledge Scale (CFKS-J). Knowledge, child-number and child-timing desires, subjective anxiety (i.e. whether participants felt anxiety [primary outcome]), and scores on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory were assessed immediately after exposure. Non-inferiority comparisons were performed on subjective anxiety with non-inferiority declared if the upper limit of the two-sided 95% confidence interval (CI) for risk difference did not exceed a margin of 0.15. This test for non-inferiority was only performed for subjective anxiety; all the other variables were tests of superiority. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE Posttest scores on the CFKS-J (mean, SD) were higher in the intervention group than that of the control groups: intervention versus Control 1 and versus Control 2: 52.8 (28.8) versus 40.9 (26.2) (P< 0.001) versus 45.1 (27.1) (P = 0.003) among men and 64.6 (26.0) versus 50.8 (26.9) (P< 0.001) versus 53.0 (26.4) (P< 0.001) among women. The percentage of participants who felt subjective anxiety after exposure to the intervention brochure was significantly higher than that of the control groups: intervention versus Control 1 and versus Control 2: 32.6 versus 17.8% (risk difference [RD] = 0.149, 95% CI: 0.073–0.225) versus 14.5% (RD = 0.182, 95% CI: 0.108–0.256) among men, and 50.2 versus 26.3% (RD = 0.239, 95% CI: 0.155–0.322) versus 14.0% (RD = 0.362, 95% CI: 0.286–0.439) among women. Non-inferiority of the intervention was inconclusive (i.e. the CI included 0.15) among men whereas inferiority was declared among women. The incidence of anxiety was higher in the intervention group than that of the control groups especially among men aged 30 and older and among women aged 25 and older. No difference existed in childbearing desires between groups after exposure. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION The possibility of selection bias associated with the use of SRPs (higher socioeconomic status and education) and volunteer bias toward those more interested in fertility may limit the generalizability of these findings. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS In addition to education targeting a younger generation, psychological approaches are needed to alleviate possible anxiety caused by fertility information. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) This study was funded by National Center for Child Health and Development, Seiiku Medical Study Grant (24-6), the Daiwa Foundation Small Grants and Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows (26-1591). No competing interest declared. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER UMIN Clinical Trials Registry. Trial registration number, 000016168. TRIAL REGISTRATION DATE 13 January 2015. DATE OF FIRST PATIENT'S ENROLMENT 15 January 2015

From lean production to Industrie 4.0: More autonomy for employees?

The article examines the relationship between lean production and Industrie 4.0 focusing on the question of autonomy in the work process. In contrast to the claim made by official Industrie 4.0 concepts that the autonomy of the employees would increase, we see in the current implementation projects a tendency towards greater standardization and control of work. This is in continuity with concepts of lean production, but neglects the participation-oriented elements of lean production such as teamwork and shop-floor-based improvement activities. Our argument is developed by analyzing practical examples from three relevant fields (digital assistance systems, data-based process management, modular assembly). The conclusions of this article also discuss the extent to which the concept of individual autonomy is suitable for the assessment of Industrie 4.0 concepts, given the high levels of interdependence already achieved in production processes

Successful treatment of Trichosporon fungemia in a patient with refractory acute myeloid leukemia using voriconazole combined with liposomal amphotericin B

Trichosporon fungemia is a rare and fatal fungal infection that occurs in patients with prolonged neutropenia associated with hematologic malignancies. A 21-year-old male developed Trichosporon fungemia during remission induction therapy for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Although two courses of induction therapy failed to induce a remission of AML, combination therapy with voriconazole and liposomal amphotericin B (L-AmB) followed by monocyte colony-stimulating factor ameliorated the Trichosporon fungemia and enabled the patient to receive reduced-intensity bone marrow transplantation (BMT) from his human leukocyte antigen-A one-locus mismatched mother. The patient achieved a durable remission after BMT without exacerbation of Trichosporon fungemia. The combination therapy with voriconazole and L-AmB may therefore be useful in controlling Trichosporon fungemia associated with prolonged neutropenia after remission induction therapy for AML

Serum carotenoids and vitamins and risk of cervical dysplasia from a case–control study in Japan

The relationships between risk of cervical dysplasia and dietary and serum carotenoids and vitamins were investigated in a case–control study. Cases were 156 women who attended Papanicolaou test screening in nine institutes affiliated with Japan Study Group of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and Cervical Cancer and had cervical dysplasia newly histologically confirmed. Age-matched controls were selected from women with normal cervical cytology attending the same clinic. Blood sample and cervical exfoliated cells were obtained for measuring serum retinol, α-carotene, β-carotene, zeaxanthin/lutein, cryptoxanthin, lycopene and α-tocopherol and for HPV detection. Higher serum level of α-carotene was significantly associated with decreased risk of cervical dysplasia after controlling for HPV infection and smoking status (odds ratio (OR) = 0.16, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.04–0.62 for the highest as compared with the lowest tertile). Decreased risk for the highest tertile of serum lycopene (OR = 0.28) was marginally significant. Decreased risks observed for the highest tertiles of β-carotene (OR = 0.65) and zeaxanthin/lutein (OR = 0.53), were not statistically significant. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig

Pax6 Expression Is Sufficient to Induce a Neurogenic Fate in Glial Progenitors of the Neonatal Subventricular Zone

The forebrain subventricular zone (SVZ) of neonatal mammals contains a large, heterogeneous population of migratory and proliferating precursors of interneurons and glia. These cell types are produced in large numbers in the immediate postnatal period, the glioblasts populating the hemispheres with astrocytes and oligodendrocytes, the neuroblasts migrating to the olfactory bulb to become interneurons. How cell fate decisions are determined or stabilized in this mixed population is not clear, although previous studies indicate the importance of two transcription factors, Pax6 in neurons and Olig2 in glia, and suggest there may be reciprocal repression between these genes.In examining the SVZ of neonatal mouse and rat brain, we find that the very large majority of SVZ cells express either Pax6 or Olig2, but few express both. We have used in vivo retro- and lenti-virus injections into the neonatal SVZ and in vitro gene transfer to demonstrate that pax6 over-expression is sufficient to down-regulate olig2 and to promote a neuronal lineage development and migration pattern in olig2-expressing cells. Furthermore, we provide evidence that Pax6 binds to the olig2 promoter and that an HEB sequence in the promoter is required for the Pax6 repression of olig2 transcription. Lastly, we constructed a lentivirus to target olig2-expressing cells in the SVZ to trace their fates, and found that the very large majority developed into glia.We provide evidence for a direct repression of olig2 by Pax6. Since SVZ cells can display developmental plasticity in vitro, the cross-repression promotes a stabilization of cell fates. This repression may be critical in a germinal zone in which immature cells are highly migratory and are not organized into an epithelium

Ultraconserved Elements in the Olig2 Promoter

. basal promoter and found that it represses expression in undifferentiated embryonic stem cells. expression during development

Extraordinary luminous soft x-ray transient maxi j0158-744 as an ignition of a nova on a very massive o-ne white dwarf

We present the observation of an extraordinary luminous soft X-ray transient, MAXI J0158-744, by the Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI) on 2011 November 11. This transient is characterized by a soft X-ray spectrum, a short duration (1.3 × 103 s &lt; Td &lt; 1.10 × 104 s), a very rapid rise (&lt; 5.5 × 103 s), and a huge peak luminosity of 2×1040 erg s-1 in 0.7-7.0 keV band. With Swift observations and optical spectroscopy from the Small and Moderate Aperture Research Telescope System (SMARTS), we confirmed that the transient is a nova explosion, on a white dwarf in a binary with a Be star, located near the Small Magellanic Cloud. An extremely early turn-on of the super-soft X-ray source (SSS) phase (&lt; 0.44 d), the short SSS phase duration of about one month, and a 0.92 keV neon emission line found in the third MAXI scan, 1296 s after the first detection, suggest that the explosion involves a small amount of ejecta and is produced on an unusually massive O-Ne white dwarf close to, or possibly over, the Chandrasekhar limit. We propose that the huge luminosity detected with MAXI was due to the fireball phase, a direct manifestation of the ignition of the thermonuclear runaway process in a nova explosion