Seasonal changes in objectively measured sedentary behavour and physical activity in Japanese primary school children

Background: The recent prevalence of obesity in Japanese children is much higher compared to 1980. The present study compared daily sedentary behavior (SB) and physical activity (PA) between the school year and summer vacation in Japanese primary school children. Methods: Participants were 98 Japanese boys (8.9 ± 1.8 years at baseline) and 111 girls (9.1 ± 1.8 years). SB and PA were measured in May (school term) and July/August (summer vacation), 2011. SB and PA were assessed using a triaxial accelerometer (Active style Pro HJA-350IT, Omron Healthcare) for 7 consecutive days. The average number of minutes spent in SB (no more than 1.5 metabolic equivalents (METs)), light intensity activity (LPA; more than 1.5 to less than 3.0 METs) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA; 3.0 METs or more), and step counts were calculated for each individual. Moreover, the determinants/moderators of changes in SB and PA were examined. Results: Daily SB was significantly higher in the summer vacation than in the school year for both boys and girls (p < 0.05). Ambulatory and total LPA and MVPA, non-ambulatory LPA and step counts were lower in summer vacation in both genders (p < 0.001). Moreover, non-ambulatory MVPA was significantly lower in the summer vacation than in the school year for girls (p < 0.001). The decrease in non-ambulatory MVPA in boys and increase in SB in girls were significantly lower in those who participated in sports compared to those who did not (p < 0.040 or p < 0.033). The change in SB for boys was significantly associated with having a TV in the bedroom (p < 0.022). Conclusions: These findings show that primary school children in Japan are less active in the summer vacation, as indicated by both higher SB and lower LPA and ambulatory MVPA in both genders. Moreover, the seasonal change in non-ambulatory MVPA for Japanese children was affected by gender. This study also suggests that sports participation and bedroom TV ownership may moderate seasonal changes in PA and SB. The results emphasize the need to take summer vacation into account when planning interventions aimed at decreasing SB or increasing PA in Japanese children

Gender Differences in Metabolic Responses During Water Walking

The purpose of this study was to compare metabolic responses between men and women during water walking. Japanese men (27-73 yr, n = 26) and women (33-70 yr, n = 14) performed water walking at 25 m/min, 30 m/min and 35 m/min. Oxygen consumption (VO2), VO2 per weight (VO2/W), respiratory ventilation (VE), heart rate (HR), energy expenditure (EE), EE per weight (EE/W), and actual walking speed were analyzed at each velocity. VO2/W and EE/W were higher in women compared to men. However, VO2 and EE showed similar values between men and women. HRs were significantly higher for women than those of men at all speeds. The regression analysis with third-ordered polynomial equation by actual walking speed showed high correlation coefficients for VO2 and VO2/W. In relative terms exercise intensity was higher for women than men; however, absolute intensity were similar in both men and women during water walking. Moreover, analysis using third-ordered equations found that absolute intensity during water walking was dominated by walking spee

Localizing Japanese toads in a mountainous terrain using drone-based radiotelemetry

山に棲む小動物の位置を空から推定する --生物に装着した電波発信機をドローンで捜索--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2023-06-09.Monitoring the movement of small animals is a fundamental aspect of ecological studies as well as spatially explicit conservation and management. However, this remains a challenging task especially in mountainous terrains. Although drone-based radiotelemetry (DRT) is employed to localize animals, its application in mountainous terrains is limited by the collision risks associated with undulating terrains as well as the obstruction of signals by dense vegetation and steep slopes. We addressed these challenges by generating fine-scale three-dimensional maps and moving vertically mounted directional antennas in a double grid pattern, scanning both in longitudinal and latitudinal grids. This new DRT system was helpful in localizing four adult Japanese toads (Bufo japonicus) living in hiding places typical of mountainous terrains. All toads were located within 1–60 days of being released. Transmitter signals were detected within two consecutive flights (three flights in one case). Instances of transmitter detection were significantly biased when the drone was facing either direction of the double-grid path, indicating that the double-grid pattern had reduced detection failure. The absolute localization error (n = 48) of 22.4 ± 21.0 m (44.8 ± 42% of the transmitter-to-receiver distance) was lower than that reported in a previous study conducted in a similar mountainous terrain

Results from the Japan 2016 report card on physical activity for children and youth

Background: The Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth aims to consolidate existing evidence, encourage more evidence-informed physical activity, and improve surveillance of physical activity. Methods: Application of Canada and Scotland Report Card methodology to Japan, adapted to Japanese circumstances and availability of data, and based on nationally representative surveys. Results: The 2016 Japan Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth consists of Health Behaviors and Outcomes (7 indicators); and Influences on Health Behaviors (4 indicators). Three Health Behaviors and Outcomes received C grades (Participation in Sport; Sedentary Behavior; Recreational Screen Time; Physical Fitness), while two indicators could not be graded (Overall Physical Activity, and Active Play). The indicators Active Transportation (B) and Weight Status were favorable (A). In the Influences domain, Family Influence and Community and the Built Environment were graded as D, while the School & Childcare Settings and the Government Strategies and Investments were favorable (B). Conclusions: The Japan report card illustrated some favorable health behaviors, health outcomes, and influences. There is a need for more evidence especially on overall physical activity, active play, and community and the built environment

Relationship among resilience, self-esteem, depression, and coping

Relationship among resilience, self-esteem, depression, and coping was investigated. University students (n = 277) completed four questionnaires that measured the above variables. Resilience means a psychological trait for maintaining mental health during stressful events. Results indicated the following. (1) There was no gender difference in resilience. (2) There was a positive correlation between resilience and self-esteem. (3) There was a negative correlation between resilience and depression. (4) Students with high resilience had a tendency to use constructive coping compared to those with low resilience

ラットにおける記憶過程の能動的制御に関する実験的検討

13301甲第5101号博士（学術）金沢大学博士論文本文Full 以下に掲載：Learning & Behavior 47(4) pp.310-325 2019. The Psychonomic Society. 共著者：Chiaki Tanaka, Hayato Yahagi, Tohru Taniuch

Direct ethanol production from cellulosic materials using a diploid strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae with optimized cellulase expression

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hydrolysis of cellulose requires the action of the cellulolytic enzymes endoglucanase, cellobiohydrolase and β-glucosidase. The expression ratios and synergetic effects of these enzymes significantly influence the extent and specific rate of cellulose degradation. In this study, using our previously developed method to optimize cellulase-expression levels in yeast, we constructed a diploid <it>Saccharomyces cerevisiae </it>strain optimized for expression of cellulolytic enzymes, and attempted to improve the cellulose-degradation activity and enable direct ethanol production from rice straw, one of the most abundant sources of lignocellulosic biomass.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The engineered diploid strain, which contained multiple copies of three cellulase genes integrated into its genome, was precultured in molasses medium (381.4 mU/g wet cell), and displayed approximately six-fold higher phosphoric acid swollen cellulose (PASC) degradation activity than the parent haploid strain (63.5 mU/g wet cell). When used to ferment PASC, the diploid strain produced 7.6 g/l ethanol in 72 hours, with an ethanol yield that achieved 75% of the theoretical value, and also produced 7.5 g/l ethanol from pretreated rice straw in 72 hours.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We have developed diploid yeast strain optimized for expression of cellulolytic enzymes, which is capable of directly fermenting from cellulosic materials. Although this is a proof-of-concept study, it is to our knowledge, the first report of ethanol production from agricultural waste biomass using cellulolytic enzyme-expressing yeast without the addition of exogenous enzymes. Our results suggest that combining multigene expression optimization and diploidization in yeast is a promising approach for enhancing ethanol production from various types of lignocellulosic biomass.</p

ジドウ ムケ コジキ トウ サクヒン モクロク キンダイヘン

Today colloquial style of Kojiki, or Anthology of Japanese myths, is being published. It is similar to Kojiki adapted for children as well as works related to Kojiki. There are more than 120 different versions of Kojiki adapted for children in modern times. Not only those children\u27s stories but also are there various other styles like drama, picture books and picture-card shows. We can say that Kojiki has been handed down from generation to generation in various styles. In order to promote the study of Kojiki adapted for children, in the first place, classifying and arranging various works by items are required. Therefore, in this paper, I made a bibliography of Kojiki adapted for children and of those works related to the Kojiki, which were published from 1868, the first year of Meiji Era to 1945, the 20^ year of Showa Era. I first classified broadly Kojiki and others, and then subdivided them by items. I hope that it will help the further study of Kojiki and juvenile literature

Deep neural networks based automated extraction of dugong feeding trails from UAV images in the intertidal seagrass beds

Dugongs (Dugong dugon) are seagrass specialists distributed in shallow coastal waters in tropical and subtropical seas. The area and distribution of the dugongs’ feeding trails, which are unvegetated winding tracks left after feeding, have been used as an indicator of their feeding ground utilization. However, current ground-based measurements of these trails require a large amount of time and effort. Here, we developed effective methods to observe the dugongs’ feeding trails using unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images (1) by extracting the dugong feeding trails using deep neural networks. Furthermore, we demonstrated two applications as follows; (2) extraction of the daily new feeding trails with deep neural networks and (3) estimation the direction of the feeding trails. We obtained aerial photographs from the intertidal seagrass bed at Talibong Island, Trang Province, Thailand. The F1 scores, which are a measure of binary classification model’s accuracy taking false positives and false negatives into account, for the method (1) were 89.5% and 87.7% for the images with ground sampling resolutions of 1 cm/pixel and 0.5 cm/pixel, respectively, while the F1 score for the method (2) was 61.9%. The F1 score for the method (1) was high enough to perform scientific studies on the dugong. However, the method (2) should be improved, and there remains a need for manual correction. The mean area of the extracted daily new feeding trails from September 12–27, 2019, was 187.8 m2 per day (n = 9). Total 63.9% of the feeding trails was estimated to have direction within a range of 112.5° and 157.5°. These proposed new methods will reduce the time and efforts required for future feeding trail observations and contribute to future assessments of the dugongs’ seagrass habitat use