Intonational variations at the end of interrogative sentences in Japanese dialects : From the “Corpus of Japanese Dialects”

National Institute for Japanese Language and LinguisticsNational Institute for Japanese Language and LinguisticsNational Institute for Japanese Language and LinguisticsLREC 2018 Special Speech Sessions "Speech Resources Collection in Real-World Situations"; Phoenix Seagaia Conference Center, Miyazaki; 2018-05-09In general, it is said that interrogative sentences have a final rising intonation (Kori 2003). However, this rule is not true of some Japanese dialects. Kibe (2010, 2011,2013) classify sentence-final tones of interrogatives in Japanese dialects into four types: Type A as a rising tone (Tōkyō dialect), Type B as a falling tone (Hirosaki dialect, Kagoshima dialect), Type C as a rising/falling tone (Hiroshima dialect), and Type D as a gradual rising tone (Fukuoka dialect). Since the data in Kibe (2010, 2011 and 3013) were extracted from an existing nation-wide dialect survey where an elicitation task was employed, it is not clear whether how much such intonation patterns appear in a spontaneous speech in each region. This article examines sentence-final tones of interrogatives extracted from a natural discourse stored in the “Corpus of Japanese Dialects” (COJADS), which is currently in preparation for release by the National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics (NINJAL). The results revealed that the four types are attestable even in a natural discourse, and furthermore, we identified a dialect such as Hirosaki dialect which distinguishes interrogatives from declaratives by the pitch range in the final falling tone

Alterations of circulating endothelial cell and endothelial progenitor cell counts around the ovulation.

Context:Circulating endothelial cells (CECs) and progenitor cells (CEPs) have been intensively studied as a promising tool for treating ischemic diseases and monitoring cancer treatments, but how the menstrual cycle affects the variation in their counts remains unclear. Objective:The aims of the study were to determine the influence of the menstrual cycle on the number of CECs and CEPs and to investigate the association of their counts with circulating hormones and angiogenesis-associated factors. Design:CEP and CEC counts by flow cytometry and the CellSearch system and circulating factor levels were measured eight times during the menstrual cycle in 18 volunteers. The menstrual cycle was divided into six phases based on hormone concentrations. Results:CEP counts peaked in the periovulatory and middle luteal phases with a drop in the early luteal phase. CEC counts showed no significant variation. There were significant correlations between the CEP counts and the serum concentrations of estradiol (E2), LH, and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) (P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001, and P = 0.01, respectively). The difference in CEP counts between two adjacent phases was significantly correlated with that in E2, LH, G-CSF, and serum vascular endothelial growth factor (P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001, P = 0.02, and P = 0.006, respectively). Conclusion:CEP counts peaked in the periovulatory and middle luteal phases, with a drop in the early luteal phase, and were correlated with serum E2, LH, and G-CSF concentrations. Consideration of the variation in CEP counts would be important for the clinical application of CEPs

Full-Length Sequence of Mouse Acupuncture-Induced 1-L (Aig1l) Gene Including Its Transcriptional Start Site

We have been investigating the molecular efficacy of electroacupuncture (EA), which is one type of acupuncture therapy. In our previous molecular biological study of acupuncture, we found an EA-induced gene, named acupuncture-induced 1-L (Aig1l), in mouse skeletal muscle. The aims of this study consisted of identification of the full-length cDNA sequence of Aig1l including the transcriptional start site, determination of the tissue distribution of Aig1l and analysis of the effect of EA on Aig1l gene expression. We determined the complete cDNA sequence including the transcriptional start site via cDNA cloning with the cap site hunting method. We then analyzed the tissue distribution of Aig1l by means of northern blot analysis and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction. We used the semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction to examine the effect of EA on Aig1l gene expression. Our results showed that the complete cDNA sequence of Aig1l was 6073 bp long, and the putative protein consisted of 962 amino acids. All seven tissues that we analyzed expressed the Aig1l gene. In skeletal muscle, EA induced expression of the Aig1l gene, with high expression observed after 3 hours of EA. Our findings thus suggest that the Aig1l gene may play a key role in the molecular mechanisms of EA efficacy

The Evidence-based Physical Assessment for headache by Yogo Teacher’s practices

学校において適切な救急処置を行うために，養護教諭には緊急度・重症度の判断が求められている。しかし，養護教諭に必要な救急処置の範囲は明確にされておらず，困難を感じる要因となっている。近年，救急度・重症度の判断のためにフィジカルアセスメントの重要性が認識されているが，これについても必要な項目が明確になっていないのが現状である。そこで，本研究では，養護教諭が保健室で経験する疾患を根拠として，養護教諭に必要なフィジカルアセスメントを明らかにすることを試み，「息苦しい」の訴えに対して必要な項目を示した

A Case of Lipoma in the Deep Part of Neck

It is comparatively rare that lipoma is found in the deep part of neck, though lipoma is often found in parts of back, neck, breast, etc. And so the authors reported a case of lipoma in 71-year-old woman that was made the diagnosis of lipoma in the deep part of neck, from the clinical symptoms and CT examination, and was confirmed histologically after the enucleation under general anesthesia