Health expectancies in Japan: Gender differences and policy implications for women

SUMMARY. Based on prospective observation of elderly people in the community in Japan, we compared the time-course of development and progression of physical disability between women and men. Men experienced disability at a younger age and at a faster rate than did women. The duration of time spent with disability in women was twice as long as in men. Consequently, women consume about two-thirds of the total resources of formal caregiving services in Japan. Women in Japan are increasingly educated, postponing marriage to higher ages, and less likely to care for parents in the home. Given these changes in family structure and social norms, the capacit

Sleep-wake patterns are altered with age, Prdm13 signaling in the DMH, and diet restriction in mice

Old animals display significant alterations in sleep-wake patterns such as increases in sleep fragmentation and sleep propensity. Here, we demonstrated that PR-domain containing protein 13 (Prdm13)+ neurons in the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) are activated during sleep deprivation (SD) in young mice but not in old mice. Chemogenetic inhibition of Prdm13+ neurons in the DMH in young mice promotes increase in sleep attempts during SD, suggesting its involvement in sleep control. Furthermore, DMH-specifi

Design of Three-Dimensional Optical Circuit Devices by Using Topology Optimization Method with Function-Expansion-Based Refractive Index Distribution

We extend topology optimization method with function-expansion-based refractive index distribution to optimization for three-dimensional optical circuits, in which a refractive index distribution in a design region is expressed by an expansion with some analytical functions. Three-branch optical waveguides have been optimized as numerical examples. Equally branching three-branch waveguides are achieved using our method. A limitation of topology optimization in two dimensions and dependency of initial structure are also shown