Case Studies on Long-term Settlement of Soft Clay Ground

Two case histories on long-term settlements of Ariake clay which is counted as one of the soft clays in Japan are described. The one of them is to report the settlement which have been observed over 25 years since construction of embankment for breakwater on the coastal Ariake deposit. The another case history is concerned with the settlement of low embankment highway on Ariake clay whose shallow surface was improved by quickline-clay mixture as a countermeasure for the settlement. The current paper is featured by the fact that the predominant secondary settlement is common with two case histories. The finite element method using an elasto-plastic mo1el was adopted to analyze the settlement of the Ariake clay observed in the above-mentioned two case histories under sustained and transient loading, respectively. It is concluded from comparison of analytical results with observed settlement that the proposed model with consideration of secondary compression is advantageous for long-term settlement prediction of soft clay

Systems genomics of nucleoporins provides prognostic insights into breast cancer

Background: Nucleoporins (Nups) constitute a large group of proteins that are structurally arranged at the nuclear envelope and facilitate the bidirectional movement of molecules across the nuclear membrane. In addition to regulating the shuttling of ribonucleoprotein complexes, RNAs and proteins, various Nups interact with chromatin either directly or indirectly, thus regulating gene expression. Any mutations or expression anomalies of Nups may lead to abnormal localization of critical molecules, or dysregulated expression of genes that they interact with. A comprehensive genomic study encompassing all Nup genes in relation to breast cancer is lacking. Methods: We used genomic and transcriptomic datasets from Pan-Cancer TCGA (The Cancer Genome Atlas), Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx) and microarray platforms and conducted in silico analysis of all the genes encoding nucleoporins that are associated with the Nuclear Pore Complexes (NPCs). For mutation detection, we used cBioportal; for expression analysis, we used Xena and for patient survival plots, KMPlot was utilized. Results: The genetic and molecular profile of nucleoporin genes identified multiple mutations and detected aberrant expression in breast cancer. Interestingly, NUP133, AHCTF1, TPR, Nup121L showed simultaneous gene amplification in nearly 10% of breast cancer patients. In addition, deregulated expression of some of the nucleoporins, namely, NUP62, NUP 93, NUP98, NUP155, POM121L12, RAE1, SEC13, TPR were correlated with patient prognosis. Conclusion: The current study is the first one that unravels a comprehensive molecular and genetic profile of nucleoporins genes in breast cancer and underscores the critical roles of various nucleoporins in cancer progression. The identified molecules may advance our understanding of the etiology of the disease and serve as possible targets for novel therapeutic strategies in cancer

Second Seminar and Workshop

The Second International Seminar and Workshop (ISW) on Technological Competency as Caring in the Health Sciences was offered by the Rozzano Locsin Institute for Advancing the Theory of Technological Competency as Caring in Nursing, and held from August 17- 19, 2018 at Tokushima University in Tokushima, Japan. The ISW was envisioned to provide a platform for sharing research and scholarly works into innovative design and developments on studying and applying the theory of Technological Competency as Caring in the Health Sciences. This ISW was founded on the theory of Technological Competency as Caring in Nursing (TCCN) (Locsin, 2005). The ISW, as aimed broadened the influence of theory, research, and practice through the advancements in technology, caring, and nursing, as espoused in the theory of Technological Competency as Caring particularly within the Health Sciences. This report illuminates the contents of the ISW and its outcomes, and reveals the direction of the theory, its development, and future implications through formalized activities

Settlement Prediction of Soft Clay Ground under Sustained and Transient Loading

Two case studies of settlement prediction of Ariake clay ground which is counted as one of the soft clays in Japan are described. The one of them is to report a long-term settlement which have been observed over 25 years since construction of embankment for breakwater on the coastal Ariake deposit. The another case study is concerned with the settlement of low embankment highway on Ariake clay whose shallow surface was improved by quicklime-clay mixture as a countermeasure for the settlement. It is featured by the fact that the predominant secondary settlement is common with two case studies. The finite element method using an elasto-plastic model was adopted to analyze the settlement of Ariake clay observed in above-mentioned two case studies under sustained and transient loading, respectively. It is concluded from comparison of analytieal results with observed settlement that the proposed model with consideration of secondary compression is advantageous for settlement prediction of soft clay ground

Conceptual Design of Electron Density Measurement System for DEMO-Relevant Helical Plasmas

Electron density measurement remains indispensable to control fueling on a DEMO reactor. For steady-state operation of the DEMO reactor, density measurement should be highly reliable and accurate. A dispersion interferometer and a Faraday polarimeter are free from measurement errors caused by mechanical vibrations. Hence combination of the two diagnostics yields a suitable system for density measurement on future steady-state fusion reactors. A wavelength around 1 ?m is one of the desirable candidates in terms of the fringe shift and the Faraday rotation angle, the variety of optical components, and the efficiency of frequency doubling for the dispersion interferometer. This paper presents a conceptual design for the dispersion interferometer and Faraday polarimeter with a 1 ?m light source

[70]Fullerenes Assists the Formation of Phospholipid Bicelles at Low Lipid Concentrations

The incorporation of neutral [70]fullerenes (C70) led to the bicelles formation at relatively low lipid concentration range from neutral lipid mixtures (DMPC/DHPC). Furthermore, the C70 addition resulted in the formation of large bicelles with a radius of ca. 100 nm in contrast to C70-free bicelles that were formed from anionic lipid mixtures (DMPC/DHPC/DMPG). The stabilization of these bicelles was attributed to C70 incorporation into the membranes.This file includes Supporting Information.This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) (Grant No. 25288037), a Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research (Grant Nos. 24655128 and 25650053), and a Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A) (Grant No. 24681028)

トクシマ ケンナイ ノ カンゴ ショクイン コウド ジンザイ イクセイ ケンシュウ スイシン ジギョウ ニオケル トクテイ コウイ ニ カカル ジッタイ チョウサ

The purpose of this survey was to determine nurse administrators and hospital directors’ perspectives about nurses’ abilities in performing specific medical practices in hospitals in Tokushima Prefecture. The nurse administrators and hospital directors of all hospitals （１１３ hospitals） in Tokushima Prefecture were invited to respond to a survey questionnaire by mail posted during the period between February and March of ２０１５. Responses were received from ４６ nurse administrators （response rate, ４１％） and ３８ hospital directors （response rate, ３４％）. The obtained data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and the narrative descriptions summarized. Majority of responses from nurse administrators and hospital directors were accepting that nurses have responsibilities for administering medicines such as tranquilizers, anti-anxiety and anticonvulsant drugs. This result was not affected by the size of the hospital, in which fifty four percent （５４％） of respondents were from hospitals with less than １００ beds. In Japan, only hospitals with １００ beds or more may have procedures involving highly invasive treatments. Because of this, many of the respondents answered “not applicable” to statements in the questionnaire which were related to invasive treatments. Recruitment of nurses, strategies to cope with accidents and education curriculum were important concerns of nurse administrators and hospital directors which remain to be answered in future investigations