Update of the Spectro-polarimeter on the Domeless Solar Telescope at Hida Observatory

A new spectro-polarimeter was installed on the Domeless Solar Telescope at Hida Observatory. Major update s from the previous system are as follows; a super achromatic dual beam polarimeter, communication interface between telescope and data acquisition PC for image scanning , flexible setup for observing a wavelength range of 500-1100 nm, and a high sensitivity infrared camera. The field of view of the system is 120arcsec along the slit of spectrograph, and with a slit width of 0.64 arcsec, the system can achieve a sensitivity of 3x10⁻⁴ in a few second in on disk observation. Details of the instruments, the data reduction flow and initial results obtained by the new system are presented. At the end, future prospect is also discussed

TNF-α and IL-17A induce the expression of lympho-epithelial Kazal-type inhibitor in epidermal keratinocytes

BACKGROUND: Serine proteases have important roles in skin barrier function and desquamation, and the aberrant expression or the dysfunction of serine proteases is associated with the pathogenesis of skin diseases. Serine protease activities are tightly regulated by serine proteases such as kallikrein-related peptidases (KLKs) and serine protease inhibitors such as lympho-epithelial Kazal-type related inhibitor (LEKTI). For a better understating of diseases' pathogenesis, the regulation mechanism of serine proteases and the inhibitors' expression in epidermal keratinocytes must be clarified. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effects of the cytokines on the expression of LEKTI in epidermal keratinocytes. METHODS: Normal human epidermal keratinocytes (NHEKs) were stimulated with panels of inflammatory cytokines. The expression of serine protease inhibitors was analyzed using quantitative real-time PCR and ELISA. LEKTI expression in normal human skin and lesions from psoriasis or atopic dermatitis (AD) were analyzed by immunohistochemically and tape-stripping. Trypsin- and chymotrypsin-like serine protease activities in culture supernatants were measured by using specific substrates. RESULTS: TNF-α and IL-17A significantly induced the expression of LEKTI in NHEKs. The immunohistochemical and tape-stripping analysis revealed that psoriatic skin lesions had higher LEKTI expression compared to normal skin and AD lesions. Trypsin- and chymotrypsin-like protease activities in the culture media were upregulated 3-5 days later but attenuated 6-7 days later period by these cytokines. CONCLUSIONS: In epidermal keratinocytes, the Th1&Th17 cytokines TNF-α and IL-17A induce the expression of serine protease inhibitor LEKTI, and it might occur to suppress the increase in the serine protease activities under inflammation

An Arabidopsis SBP-domain fragment with a disrupted C-terminal zinc-binding site retains its tertiary structure

AbstractSQUAMOSA promoter-binding proteins (SBPs) form a major family of plant-specific transcription factors, mainly related to flower development. SBPs share a highly conserved DNA-binding domain of ∼80 amino acids (SBP domain), which contains two non-interleaved zinc-binding sites formed by eight conserved Cys or His residues. In the present study, an Arabidopsis SPL12 SBP-domain fragment that lacks a Cys residue involved in the C-terminal zinc-binding pocket was found to retain a folded structure, even though only a single Zn2+ ion binds to the fragment. Solution structure of this fragment determined by NMR is very similar to the previously determined structures of the full SBP domains of Arabidopsis SPL4 and SPL7. Considering the previous observations that chelating all the Zn2+ ions of SBPs resulted in the complete unfolding of the structure and that a mutation of the Cys residue equivalent to that described above impaired the DNA-binding activity, we propose that the Zn2+ ion at the N-terminal site is necessary to maintain the overall tertiary structure, while the Zn2+ ion at the C-terminal site is necessary for the DNA binding, mainly by guiding the basic C-terminal loop to correctly fit into the DNA groove

Nursing Support Increases the Efficacy of Interferon Therapy in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C

Nursing support might help patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) remain in good mental and physical condition during interferon (IFN) therapy. However, the effects of nursing support have not been studied adequately in this context. This case-control study evaluated the effects of nursing support during IFN therapy. Twenty-four CHC patients who received pegylated IFN and ribavirin were enrolled. Nurses advised patients on the maintenance of their mental and physical condition at weekly visits, based on the results of written questionnaires. An additional 24 patients who received IFN therapy without nursing support and who were matched for age, sex, platelet count, viral serogroup and IFN regimen were selected with propensity score matching as controls. The patients with nursing support during IFN therapy achieved higher sustained virological responses (79%) than those without nursing support (58%). Adherence to the IFN and ribavirin regimens at 24 weeks of therapy were slightly higher in the patients with nursing support than those without it, but these differences were not statistically significant. Adherence to ribavirin after 24 weeks of therapy was significantly higher in those with nursing support than those without it (93% and 66%, p＝0.045). These results suggested that nursing support services could contribute to the virological responses of CHC patients by promoting drug-regimen adherence

Genome-wide identification and gene expression profiling of ubiquitin ligases for endoplasmic reticulum protein degradation

Endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated degradation (ERAD) is a mechanism by which unfolded proteins that accumulate in the ER are transported to the cytosol for ubiquitin–proteasome-mediated degradation. Ubiquitin ligases (E3s) are a group of enzymes responsible for substrate selectivity and ubiquitin chain formation. The purpose of this study was to identify novel E3s involved in ERAD. Thirty-seven candidate genes were selected by searches for proteins with RING-finger motifs and transmembrane regions, which are the major features of ERAD E3s. We performed gene expression profiling for the identified E3s in human and mouse tissues. Several genes were specifically or selectively expressed in both tissues; the expression of four genes (RNFT1, RNF185, CGRRF1 and RNF19B) was significantly upregulated by ER stress. To determine the involvement of the ER stress-responsive genes in ERAD, we investigated their ER localisation, in vitro autoubiquitination activity and ER stress resistance. All were partially localised to the ER, whereas CGRRF1 did not possess E3 activity. RNFT1 and RNF185, but not CGRRF1 and RNF19B, exhibited significant resistance to ER stressor in an E3 activity-dependent manner. Thus, these genes are possible candidates for ERAD E3s.This study was supported by Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI) 15K21706, 26460099, 24300135, 22020032, 25251014, 15K15067, 15K20001, 15K18377 and 15K19516 from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan and also supported by the Takeda Science Foundation. We thank H. Hishigaki and Otsuka GEN Research Institute for bioinformatic analysis. We also thank M. Minami and T. Uehara for the helpful discussions. We are grateful to T. Yoshikawa, T. Ike, Y. Maeoka, Y. Wada and Z. Cao for their technical assistance. The authors would like to thank Enago (www.enago.jp) for the English language review

Association between Hardness (Difficulty of Chewing) of the Habitual Diet and Premenstrual Symptoms in Young Japanese Women

Recent evidence suggests that voluntary rhythmic movements such as chewing may increase blood serotonin and subsequently brain serotonin, which in turn acts to alleviate premenstrual symptoms. In this observational cross-sectional study, we tested the hypothesis that hardness (difficulty of chewing) of the habitual diet (i.e. dietary hardness) is associated with decreased premenstrual symptoms. Subjects were 640 female Japanese dietetic students aged 18–22 years. Dietary hardness was assessed as an estimate of masticatory muscle activity for the habitual diet (i.e. the difficulty of chewing the food). The consumption of a total of 107 foods was estimated by means of a self-administered, comprehensive diet history questionnaire, and masticatory muscle activity during the ingestion of these foods was estimated according to published equations. Menstrual cycle symptoms were assessed using the retrospective version of the Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire, from which total score and subscale scores (i.e. pain, concentration, behavioral change, autonomic reactions, water retention, and negative affect) in the premenstrual phase were calculated and expressed as percentages relative to those in the intermenstrual phase. Dietary hardness was not associated with total score in the premenstrual phase (P for trend = 0.48). Further, no association was seen for any subscale score in the premenstrual phase (P for trend = 0.18–0.91). In conclusion, this preliminary study failed to substantiate a hypothesized inverse relationship between hardness of the habitual diet and premenstrual symptoms. Considering the plausibility of the putative mechanism, however, further investigation using more relevant measures of chewing and premenstrual symptoms is warranted

Multifaceted Analyses of Epidermal Serine Protease Activity in Patients with Atopic Dermatitis

The serine proteases kallikrein-related peptidase (KLK) 5 and KLK7 cleave cell adhesion molecules in the epidermis. Aberrant epidermal serine protease activity is thought to play an important role in the pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis (AD). We collected the stratum corneum (SC) from healthy individuals (n = 46) and AD patients (n = 63) by tape stripping and then measuring the trypsin- and chymotrypsin-like serine protease activity. We also analyzed the p.D386N and p.E420K of SPINK5 variants and loss-of-function mutations of FLG in the AD patients. The serine protease activity in the SC was increased not only in AD lesions but also in non-lesions of AD patients. We found, generally, that there was a positive correlation between the serine protease activity in the SC and the total serum immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels, serum thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC) levels, and peripheral blood eosinophil counts. Moreover, the p.D386N or p.E420K in SPINK5 and FLG mutations were not significantly associated with the SC's serine protease activity. Epidermal serine protease activity was increased even in non-lesions of AD patients. Such activity was found to correlate with a number of biomarkers of AD. Further investigations of serine proteases might provide new treatments and prophylaxis for AD

Low-grade B-cell lymphoma presenting primarily in the bone marrow

Cases of low-grade B-cell lymphoma presenting primarily in the bone marrow are rare, and its clinicopathology remains unclear. We retrospectively examined patients with low-grade B-cell lymphoma presenting primarily in the bone marrow. Fourteen patients met the inclusion criteria, including 5 with lymphoplasmacytic lymphoma (LPL), 3 with chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma, 2 with follicular lymphoma (FL), and 4 with low-grade B-cell lymphoma not otherwise specified (LGBCL-NOS). The median age was 69.5 years (range, 42-89 years), and a slight male predominance was noted (9 men and 5 women, 1.8: 1). Immunohistochemically, all cases were positive for CD20. One case was positive for CD138. Both cases of FL were positive for CD10 and B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2), and immunoglobulin heavy locus (IgH)/B-cell lymphoma 2 rearrangement was observed by fluorescence in situ hybridization. The myeloid differentiation primary response gene (88) leucine to proline mutation was observed in 3 of 5 LPL, 1 of 2 FL, and 2 of 4 LGBCL-NOS patients. Paraproteinemia was observed in 10 patients; IgM and IgG paraproteinemia were observed in 6 and 3 patients, respectively. In this patient series, 3 patients had died at a median follow-up of 36.5 months; the cause of death of 1 LPL patient was malignant lymphoma itself. Thus, low-grade B-cell lymphoma presenting primarily in the bone marrow has various subtypes, and approximately one-third of the patients had LGBCL-NOS. The immunophenotypic features and myeloid differentiation primary response gene (88) leucine to proline mutation data of LGBCL-NOS suggested that some cases present with characteristics similar to those of LPL or marginal zone lymphoma

Identification of oxidative stress-regulated genes in rat aortic smooth muscle cells by suppression subtractive hybridization

AbstractA suppression subtractive hybridization technique was used to identify reactive oxygen species (ROS)-regulated genes in rat vascular smooth muscle cells. Three genes out of 89 clones, identified as fibronectin, p105 coactivator and ECA39, showed increased expression after treatment with H2O2. The mRNA expressions of these three genes were induced in a time- and dose-dependent manner, independent of protein kinase C activation. Immunohistochemical staining showed that the p105 coactivator expression was markedly induced in the neointima of balloon-injured rat carotid arteries. These results suggest that ROS may play an important role in the development of atherosclerosis by regulating the gene expressions we identified in this study