A COMPARISON BETWEEN SATOYAMA AND THE AINU WAY OF LIFE

This study compares the concept of Satoyama with that of the Ainu, with a view of establishing the cultural,ecological and economical similarities between them and to examine the impact of the developmentof Hokkaido on the Ainu human ecology. Research was conducted in the Noto Peninsula, and theHidaka region of Hokkaido. Data was collected through individual, household and group interviews,questionnaire surveys, field visits and available documentation. Results revealed agricultural, ecologicaland cultural-spiritual practices that were synonymous to Satoyama and that of the Ainu. Research showedthat the development of Hokkaido resulted in a necessary increase in agriculture in the Ainu communitiessince it was no longer possible to live sustainably almost entirely from the gifts of nature; which holdstrue for indigenous peoples globally. We posit that these commonalities provide a viable entry point forthe promotion of Satoyama if it is to be used as a developmental model for promoting the introduction ofnew, effective and sustainable agricultural practices that are tailored to suit the local culture and existingtraditional knowledge, with a view of building sustainable indigenous communities globally, since it isinfrequent that modern systems practiced today mirror so closely traditional indigenous culture

A method of gastric conduit elevation via the posterior mediastinal pathway in thoracoscopic subtotal esophagectomy

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Despite efforts to improve surgical techniques, serious complications still sometimes occur. Use of a physiological posterior mediastinal pathway has increased given advances such as automated anastomotic devices and a reduction in the incidence of anastomotic sufficiency. Until now the gastric conduit created has been protected by an echo probe cover and, sown to the ventral side of polyester tape placed through the abdomen to the neck, and then blindly elevated to the neck. We report on a new method of gastric conduit elevation.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Two 60-cm lengths polyester tape are ligated at both ends to form a loop. An echo probe cover of 10 cm in diameter and 50 cm in length is prepared and the tip cut off, forming a cylinder. The knots in the previously looped polyester tape are inserted into the echo probe cover. The looped polyester tape and echo probe cover is ligated with silk approximately 5 cm in front of the knots on both sides.</p> <p>After dissection is carried out according to practice, the previously crafted polyester tape is inserted into the chest cavity. One end of polyester tape is fixed to the distal esophageal stump with the clips, with the opposite end fixed to the proximal esophageal stump. The echo probe cover that connects the proximal esophagus and distal esophagus is monitored for the presence of creases along the long axis to ensure there are no twists in the echo probe cover.</p> <p>We carry out a laparoscopic-assisted perigastric lymph node dissection, make a small skin incision, and guide part of the thoracic esophagus and stomach outside the body.</p> <p>Either one of the two lengths of polyester tape is connected to the gastric conduit. By pulling up this length of polyester tape from the neck, the gastric conduit can pass through the echo probe cover and be elevated to the neck.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No perioperative complications such as bleeding or difficulty of the gastric conduit elevation were recognized with this method.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This method is considered to serve as a useful technique for gastric conduit elevation.</p

Poor tolerance of beta-blockers by elderly patients with heart failure

Despite the well-understood importance of beta-blocker therapy in heart failure, it is sometimes not possible to use beta-blockers in elderly patients due to poor tolerance. In this report, we describe the case of an 83-year-old patient with severe systolic heart failure complicated by aortic valve stenosis and atrial fibrillation. A simple therapeutic approach involving discontinuation of beta-blockers remarkably alleviated the symptoms such as left ventricular ejection fraction, and improved the chest radiography and laboratory findings; further, atrial fibrillation converted to sinus rhythm. It is important to carefully administer beta-blocker therapy to elderly patients with heart failure, especially after considering cardiac output

MITOL assists Parkin in mitochondrial localization

PINK1 (PARK6) and PARKIN (PARK2) are causal genes of recessive familial Parkinson's disease. Parkin is a ubiquitin ligase E3 that conjugates ubiquitin to impaired mitochondrial proteins for organelle degradation. PINK1, a Ser/Thr kinase that accumulates only on impaired mitochondria, phosphorylates two authentic substrates, the ubiquitin-like domain of Parkin and ubiquitin. Our group and others have revealed that both the subcellular localization and ligase activity of Parkin are regulated through interactions with phosphorylated ubiquitin. Once PINK1 localizes on impaired mitochondria, PINK1-catalyzed phosphoubiquitin recruits and activates Parkin. Parkin then supplies a ubiquitin chain to PINK1 for phosphorylation. The amplified ubiquitin functions as a signal for the sequestration and degradation of the damaged mitochondria. Although a bewildering variety of Parkin substrates have been reported, the basis for Parkin substrate specificity remains poorly understood. Moreover, the mechanism underlying initial activation and translocation of Parkin onto mitochondria remains unclear, because the presence of ubiquitin on impaired mitochondria is thought to be a prerequisite for the initial PINK1 phosphorylation process. Here, we show that artificial mitochondria-targeted proteins are ubiquitylated by Parkin, suggesting that substrate specificity of Parkin is not determined by its amino acid sequence. Moreover, recruitment and activation of Parkin are delayed following depletion of the mitochondrial E3, MITOL/March5. We propose a model in which the initial step in Parkin recruitment and activation requires protein ubiquitylation by MITOL/March5 with subsequent PINK1-mediated phosphorylation. Because PINK1 and Parkin amplify the ubiquitin signal via a positive feedback loop, the low substrate specificity of Parkin might facilitate this amplification process

A COMPARISON BETWEEN SATOYAMA AND THE AINU WAY OF LIFE

This study compares the concept of Satoyama with that of the Ainu, with a view of establishing the cultural, ecological and economical similarities between them and to examine the impact of the development of Hokkaido on the Ainu human ecology. Research was conducted in the Noto Peninsula, and the Hidaka region of Hokkaido. Data was collected through individual, household and group interviews, questionnaire surveys, field visits and available documentation. Results revealed agricultural, ecological and cultural-spiritual practices that were synonymous to Satoyama and that of the Ainu. Research showed that the development of Hokkaido resulted in a necessary increase in agriculture in the Ainu communities since it was no longer possible to live sustainably almost entirely from the gifts of nature; which holds true for indigenous peoples globally. We posit that these commonalities provide a viable entry point for the promotion of Satoyama if it is to be used as a developmental model for promoting the introduction of new, effective and sustainable agricultural practices that are tailored to suit the local culture and existing traditional knowledge, with a view of building sustainable indigenous communities globally, since it is infrequent that modern systems practiced today mirror so closely traditional indigenous culture

Superconductivity in the α-Form Layer Structured Metal Nitride Halide

Layered metal nitride halides MNX (M = Ti, Zr, Hf; X = Cl, Br, I) have two polymorphs, including α- and β-forms, which have the FeOCl and SmSI structures, respectively. These compounds are band insulators and become metals and show superconductivity after electron doping by intercalating alkali metals between the layers. The superconductivity of β-form had been extensively characterized from decades ago, but it is not easy to consistently interpret all experimental results using conventional phonon-mediated Bardeen–Cooper–Schriefer mechanisms. The titanium compound TiNCl crystallizes only in the α-form structure. TiNCl also exhibits superconductivity as high as ~16 K after electron doping by intercalating metals and/or organic basis. It is important to compare the superconductivity of different M–N networks. However, α-form compounds are vulnerable to moisture, unlike β-form ones. The intercalation compounds are even more sensitive to humid air. Thus, there are few experimental studies on the superconducting mechanism of α-form, although it has been discussed for exotic Cooper-pairing mechanisms. This short review gathers the recent progress in experimental studies of TiNCl