Intrusive Rocks and their Influences on Coal-Seams, Chikuhō Coal-Field, Japan

The author treats of the occurrences and the petrographical properties of the intrusives, their influences on coal-seams and some suggestions on the utilization of the metamorphosed coal in Chikuhō coal-field in this paper. Several thick coal-seams in the lower part of the coal-bearing Tertiary in the field are intruded with the igneous dykes and sheets of pyroxene-andesite or olivine-basalt. The coal, which is strongly influenced by these intrusives, is lower in volatile matters and higher in carbon and ash than are such as those of anthracite, and has been changed into graphite in the extreme case. A property of the decrepitation on heating is one of the characteristics of the coal. Macerations can be observed near the contact, and materials from the intrusives have been supplied to the coal. Abundant micro-pores and veins, containing quarts, chalcedony, opal, calcite and zeolites, also can be observed in the thin sections of such metamorphosed coal. Although oxygen and hydrogen in the coal decrease in inverse proportion to the proximity of the intrusives, those elements rather increase a little in amount instead of reaching a minimum when the coal is in direct contact with the rocks. The author concluded that the phenomenon of the contact-metamorphism of coal by intrusives in this region can not be explained completely by a simple thermal effect only, but some substances such as water-vapor, gases and hydrothermal solutions from the intrusives have been supplied to the coal in the high pressured conditions underground

Brain Mechanisms of Flavor Learning

Once the flavor of the ingested food (conditioned stimulus, CS) is associated with a preferable (e.g., good taste or nutritive satisfaction) or aversive (e.g., malaise with displeasure) signal (unconditioned stimulus, US), animals react to its subsequent exposure by increasing or decreasing ingestion to the food. These two types of association learning (preference learning vs. aversion learning) are known as classical conditioned reactions which are basic learning and memory phenomena, leading selection of food and proper food intake. Since the perception of flavor is generated by interaction of taste and odor during food intake, taste and/or odor are mainly associated with bodily signals in the flavor learning. After briefly reviewing flavor learning in general, brain mechanisms of conditioned taste aversion is described in more detail. The CS–US association leading to long-term potentiation in the amygdala, especially in its basolateral nucleus, is the basis of establishment of conditioned taste aversion. The novelty of the CS detected by the cortical gustatory area may be supportive in CS–US association. After the association, CS input is conveyed through the amygdala to different brain regions including the hippocampus for contextual fear formation, to the supramammillary and thalamic paraventricular nuclei for stressful anxiety or memory dependent fearful or stressful emotion, to the reward system to induce aversive expression to the CS, or hedonic shift from positive to negative, and to the CS-responsive neurons in the gustatory system to enhance the responsiveness to facilitate to detect the harmful stimulus

Attenuation of Food Intake by Fragrant Odors: Comparison between <em>Osmanthus fragrans</em> and Grapefruit Odors

Odors affect various physiological and mental activities. Previous studies in rats have shown that the odors of grapefruit and Osmanthus fragrans (OSM, fragrant tea olive) attenuate food intake, leading to a reduction in body weight gain, but it is not yet clear whether the causative mechanisms underlying these effects are the same for both odors. The first part of the present study revealed that grapefruit odor had no effect on the expression of feeding-related neuropeptides, in contrast to the previous finding that OSM odor suppresses orexigenic and activates anorexigenic neuropeptides in the hypothalamus of the rat. The second part revealed that OSM odor activated the parasympathetic nerve, in contrast to the previous finding demonstrating that grapefruit odor activates sympathetic nerve activity. The third part was performed to confirm the previous findings about the effects of OSM odor on appetitive reactions in humans. In human subjects, we found that continuous exposure to OSM odor attenuated appetite and consumption of snacks (cookies) and improved mood, when evaluated using the POMS (Profile of Mood States) data from university students. In conclusion, OSM odor attenuated appetite and decreased food intake in humans, and the underlying causative mechanisms differed from those mediating the effects of grapefruit odor, specifically in terms of the expression of hypothalamic feeding-related neuropeptides and autonomic nerve activity