Osteoporosis Changes Collagen/Apatite Orientation and Young’s Modulus in Vertebral Cortical Bone of Rat

This study revealed the distinguished changes of preferential orientation of collagen and apatite and Young’s modulus in two different types of osteoporotic bones compared with the normal bone. Little is known about the bone material properties of osteoporotic bones; therefore, we aimed to assess material properties in osteoporotic bones. 66 female Sprague–Dawley rats were used. We analyzed the volumetric bone mineral density, collagen/apatite orientation, and Young’s modulus of fifth lumbar vertebral cortex for osteoporotic rats caused by ovariectomy (OVX), administration of low calcium and phosphate content (LCaP) diet, and their combination (OVX + LCaP), as well as sham-operated control. Osteocyte conditions were assessed by hematoxylin and eosin and immunohistochemical (matrix extracellular phosphoglycoprotein (MEPE) and dentin matrix protein 1 (DMP1)) staining. All osteoporotic animals showed bone loss compared with the sham-operated control. OVX improved craniocaudal Young’s modulus by enhancing collagen/apatite orientation along the craniocaudal axis, likely in response to the elevated stress due to osteoporotic bone loss. Conversely, LCaP-fed animals showed either significant bone loss or degraded collagen/apatite orientation and Young’s modulus. Osteocytes in LCaP and OVX + LCaP groups showed atypical appearance and MEPE- and DMP1-negative phenotype, whereas those in the OVX group showed similarity with osteocytes in the control group. This suggests that osteocytes are possibly involved in the osteoporotic changes in collagen/apatite orientation and Young’s modulus. This study is the first to demonstrate that osteoporosis changes collagen/apatite orientation and Young’s modulus in an opposite manner depending on the cause of osteoporosis in spite of common bone loss.Ozasa R., Ishimoto T., Miyabe S., et al. Osteoporosis Changes Collagen/Apatite Orientation and Young’s Modulus in Vertebral Cortical Bone of Rat. Calcified Tissue International, 104, 4, 449. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00223-018-0508-z

Dual inhibition of TMPRSS2 and Cathepsin B prevents SARS-CoV-2 infection in iPS cells

TMPRSS2とカテプシンBを標的とした新型コロナウイルスの感染阻害. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2021-10-21.A drug cocktail stops SARS-CoV-2 infection of stem cells. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2021-10-21.It has been reported that many receptors and proteases are required for SARS-CoV-2 infection. Although angiotensin-converting enzyme2 (ACE2) is the most important of these receptors, little is known about the contribution of other genes. In this study, we examined the roles of neuropilin-1, basigin, transmembrane serine proteases (TMPRSSs), and cathepsins (CTSs) in SARS-CoV-2 infection using the CRISPR interference system and ACE2-expressing human iPS cells. Double-knockdown of TMPRSS2 and CTSB reduced the viral load to 0.036±0.021%. Consistently, the combination of the CTPB inhibitor CA-074 methyl ester and the TMPRSS2 inhibitor Camostat reduced the viral load to 0.0078±0.0057%. This result was confirmed using four SARS-CoV-2 variants (B.1.3, B.1.1.7, B.1.351, and B.1.1.248). The simultaneous use of these two drugs reduced viral load to less than 0.01% in both female and male iPS cells. These findings suggest that compounds targeting TMPRSS2 and CTSB exhibit highly efficient antiviral effects independent of gender and SARS-CoV-2 variant

Milk Replacers and Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in Calves, Japan

Milk Replacers and Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy in Calves, Japa

Development of a new screening tool for neuromotor development in children aged two – the neuromotor 5 min exam 2-year-old version (N5E2)

Acknowledgement This study is a part of the project related to the Japan Environment and Children’s Study (JECS) that is conducted and funded by the Ministry of Environment of Japan.Peer reviewedPostprin

<Literature, Film and Culture in Southeast Asia> Twelve Sisters: A Shared Heritage in Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand

Edited by YAMAMOTO HiroyukiList of Contributors [v]Acknowledgements [ix]Introduction /YAMAMOTO Hiroyuki [x]1. Cultural Identity and Creative Tourism: The Folktale Nang Sip Song (Twelve Sisters) in the Global Contexts /Trisilpa BOONKHACHORN [1]2. From Folktale to Buddhist Tale: The Twelve Sisters in the Buddhist Tale, Paññāsajātaka in Thailand /Chanwit TUDKEAO [6]3. Shapes of Love in Lao Tradition: The Legend of the Twelve Sisters in Laos /Khamphuy PHOLLURXA [13]4. Being a Good Son is the Greatest Virtue: The Twelve Sisters in the Cambodian National Language Textbook /VAN Sovathana [26]5. Power of Tales: How Narrating Stories Instilled Hope to Survive during the Pol Pot Regime in Cambodia /PAL Vannarirak [33]6. Male Mountain, Female Mountain: Local Topography and Oral Tradition in Laos /HASHIMOTO Sayaka [36]7. Princess Kongrey's Last Wish: Cambodian Utopia in Ly Bun Yim's Puthisen Neang Kongrey /OKADA Tomoko [50]8. Comical Thevada and Feminine Ogre: Innovative Characters Reflecting Modern Thai /HIRAMATSU Hideki [68]9. The Blooming Season: Thai Short Film /Chalida UABUMRUNGJIT [74]10. Aspiring for the Next "Golden Age" /DOUNG Sarakpich [77]11. For the Development of Lao Film: Film Archives and Film Industry in Laos /Dethnakhone LUANGMOVIHANE [88]12. Boosting Passions for Making Stories: The Short Filmmaking Scene in Laos /Athidxay BOUANDAOHEUANG [95

The New Intelligentsia of 1830\u27s : The University of Helsinki and the 19th-Century Religious Nationalism in Finland (Luukkanen, Tarja-Liisa)

(Proceedings of the Helsinki Conference, 14 th March 2011

An fMRI Study of an Abnormal Neurovascular Response in the Right Premotor Cortex during Inner Speech and the Relationship to Auditory Hallucinations in Patients with Schizophrenia

There is evidence for sensory and cognitive impairments at multiple levels in schizophrenia, which may be related to the clinical symptoms of the condition. Inner speech involves both auditory and language systems and dysfunction of inner speech and may be associated with auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine this association by measuring brain activation in 23 patients with schizophrenia and 23 healthy control individuals. The participants performed an auditory verbal working memory task that required inner speech in the form of subvocal rehearsal. The control participants showed prominent activation in the inferior frontal cortex (IFC), premotor cortex (PMC), superior temporal cortex (STC), and lateral parietal cortex (LPC) bilaterally, throughout the task. In contrast, patients with schizophrenia showed significant activation in STC bilaterally during encoding phase and in the IFC, PMC, STC, and LPC bilaterally during the recognition phase. A comparison between groups showed that controls had greater activation during rehearsal in the IFC, LPC, and PMC bilaterally than patients with schizophrenia. In the region-of-interest analysis, we observed a significant negative correlation between right PMC activation and Auditory Hallucination Rating Scale scores as well as the hallucination item in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. These observations indicate that inner speech is impaired in schizophrenia and that the severity of auditory hallucinations is associated with abnormal activation in the right PMC during inner speech

Elucidation of the liver pathophysiology of COVID-19 patients using liver-on-a-chips

新型コロナウイルス感染症（COVID-19）研究のための肝臓チップの開発 --肝障害の病態解明と治療薬の評価--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-03-08.Using organ-on-a-chip technology to elucidate the liver pathophysiology of COVID-19 patients. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-03-08.SARS-CoV-2 induces severe organ damage not only in the lung but also in the liver, heart, kidney, and intestine. It is known that COVID-19 severity correlates with liver dysfunction, but few studies have investigated the liver pathophysiology in COVID-19 patients. Here, we elucidated liver pathophysiology in COVID-19 patients using organs-on-a-chip technology and clinical analyses. First, we developed liver-on-a-chip (LoC) which recapitulating hepatic functions around the intrahepatic bile duct and blood vessel. We found that hepatic dysfunctions, but not hepatobiliary diseases, were strongly induced by SARS-CoV-2 infection. Next, we evaluated the therapeutic effects of COVID-19 drugs to inhibit viral replication and recover hepatic dysfunctions, and found that the combination of anti-viral and immunosuppressive drugs (Remdesivir and Baricitinib) is effective to treat hepatic dysfunctions caused by SARS-CoV-2 infection. Finally, we analyzed the sera obtained from COVID-19 patients, and revealed that COVID-19 patients, who were positive for serum viral RNA, are likely to become severe and develop hepatic dysfunctions, as compared with COVID-19 patients who were negative for serum viral RNA. We succeeded in modeling the liver pathophysiology of COVID-19 patients using LoC technology and clinical samples

抗体遺伝子転写細胞の分化過程の解析 : 速度論による解析

Differential processes of immunoglobulin (Ig) gene-transcribing cells were investigated in the thymus of BALB/c male mice from neonatal to 40 weeks old. Both membrane-bound type IgM (IgM_m) and total IgM (IgM_t) transcriptions were detected by realtime PCR and the IgM_m/IgM_t ratios were determined. The ratio was approximately 1 to 1 week after the birth, and then decreased gradually following to age increase. Kinetics was applied in order to analyze the result with supposing that the transcription quantity was proportional to the cell number, that immature cells transcribing membrane-bound type IgM_m continued to be supplied from stem cells in vivo, and that the concentration of total cells transcribing IgM_t was unchanged in the thymus with age. Immature IgM_m cells were thought to differentiate either to ones transcribing secretory type IgM (IgM_s) or to other class 1g-transcribing by recombining heavy-chain genes. Theoretical values were in fair agreement with experimental values of log IgM_m/IgM_t on the first order concurrent reaction process and the rate constants for each process were determined