Histomorphological species identification of tiny bone fragments from a Paleolithic site in the Northern Japanese Archipelago

AbstractBone histomorphology is an effective method for species identification of fragmentary osseous remains. The 1997–1998 excavations of the Kashiwadai 1 Upper Paleolithic site (ca. 22–20.5 kyBP) in Hokkaido (the northern island of the Japanese Archipelago) yielded tiny bone fragments, which had been burned to white and broken into pieces less than 1 cm in size, making their species identification by gross morphology alone impossible. For the purpose of species identification, histomorphological analyses were performed on thin sections of the Kashiwadai 1 bone fragments. Compact bone cross sections taken from medium- to large-sized land mammals in the Pleistocene and Holocene Hokkaido were prepared for comparison. The structures of the Kashiwadai 1 samples consisted of secondary osteons and plexiform bone. Consideration of the presence versus absence of plexiform bone and quantitative assessments of osteon sizes and bone cortical thickness allows for distinction between medium-sized deer, large-sized artiodactyls, small- to medium-sized carnivores, large-sized carnivores, elephants, and humans. The histomorphological characteristics of the Kashiwadai 1 samples were quite similar to those of both sika deer and ancient sika deer. A probable conclusion is that medium-sized deer was the primary game hunted by Paleolithic people at the Kashiwadai 1 site. Interestingly, the samples did not include elephant or large-sized artiodactyls, which were the predominant species in other Paleolithic sites of the Japanese Archipelago. This is the first evidence of human hunting medium-sized animals in the Upper Paleolithic period of the Japanese Archipelago based on faunal remains

Two regulatory steps of ER-stress sensor Ire1 involving its cluster formation and interaction with unfolded proteins

Chaperone protein BiP binds to Ire1 and dissociates in response to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. However, it remains unclear how the signal transducer Ire1 senses ER stress and is subsequently activated. The crystal structure of the core stress-sensing region (CSSR) of yeast Ire1 luminal domain led to the controversial suggestion that the molecule can bind to unfolded proteins. We demonstrate that, upon ER stress, Ire1 clusters and actually interacts with unfolded proteins. Ire1 mutations that affect these phenomena reveal that Ire1 is activated via two steps, both of which are ER stress regulated, albeit in different ways. In the first step, BiP dissociation from Ire1 leads to its cluster formation. In the second step, direct interaction of unfolded proteins with the CSSR orients the cytosolic effector domains of clustered Ire1 molecules

Risk factors related to the reduction of subjective taste ability in middle-to old-aged nursing home residents in Sri Lanka : a cross-sectional study

The purpose of this study is to verify the factors significantly related to the reduction of subjective taste ability of 1,015 middle-aged and elderly (50 - 96 years old) at 25 randomized selected nursing homes in Sri Lanka. Binary logistic regression analyses by gender were performed using IBM SPSS on following variables. A dependent variable is taste ability, and 27 independent variables are age, daily lifestyle, nutritional problems, general status, dental status and physiological thresholds of taste abilities (sweet, salt, sour, bitter, and umami). Smell ability (p < 0.001 - 0.05) and the Self-Report Questionnaire, 20-item version :SRQ 20 (p < 0.01 - 0.05) were significant risk factors of reducing taste ability in both genders. Especially, smell ability was closely linked to taste ability. Existence of comprehensive perception of “flavor” composed of taste and smell ability was illustrated. Significant gender differences factors were observed in long term care needs (p < 0.05), sleeping (p < 0.01 - 0.001), bowel condition (p < 0.05) in males; and height (p < 0.05), weight (p < 0.05), BMI 3 categories (p < 0.05), and brushing (p < 0.05) in females. Other variables such as age and five types of physiological taste ability were not significant in both genders. The results of this investigation also strongly indicated that the perception of subjective sense of taste was different from the objective sense of taste. Epidemiological studies such as cohort or intervention studies focusing on a relationship between subjective taste ability and sense of smell are necessary to identify more accurate and changeable risk factors for dysgeusia in order to improve elderly’s nutritional intake in Sri Lanka

A Study of the Structure and Problems in Social Welfare Accounting

研究論

miR-200b Precursor Can Ameliorate Renal Tubulointerstitial Fibrosis

Members of the miR-200 family of micro RNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to inhibit epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). EMT of tubular epithelial cells is the mechanism by which renal fibroblasts are generated. Here we show that miR-200 family members inhibit transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta)-induced EMT of tubular cells. Unilateral ureter obstruction (UUO) is a common model of EMT of tubular cells and subsequent tubulointerstitial fibrosis. In order to examine the role of miR-200 family members in tubulointerstitial fibrosis, their expression was investigated in the kidneys of UUO mice. The expression of miR-200 family miRNAs was increased in a time-dependent manner, with induction of miR-200b most pronounced. To clarify the effect of miR-200b on tubulointerstitial fibrosis, we injected miR-200b precursor intravenously. A single injection of 0.5 nM miR-200b precursor was sufficient to inhibit the increase of collagen types I, III and fibronectin in obstructed kidneys, and amelioration of fibrosis was confirmed by observation of the kidneys with Azan staining. miR-200 family members have been previously shown to inhibit EMT by reducing the expression of ZEB-1 and ZEB-2 which are known repressors of E-cadherin. We demonstrated that expression of ZEB-1 and ZEB-2 was increased after ureter obstruction and that administration of the miR-200b precursor reversed this effect. In summary, these results indicate that miR-200 family is up-regulated after ureter obstruction, miR-200b being strongly induced, and that miR-200b ameliorates tubulointerstitial fibrosis in obstructed kidneys. We suggest that members of the miR-200 family, and miR-200b specifically, might constitute novel therapeutic targets in kidney disease

Annual report by The Japanese Association for Thoracic Surgery

All data regarding cardiovascular surgery and thoracic surgery were obtained from NCD, whereas data regarding esophageal surgery were collected from survey questionnaire by The Japanese Association for Thoracic Surgery forms because NCD of esophageal surgery does not include non-surgical cases (i.e., patients with adjuvant chemotherapy or radiation alone). Based on the change in data aggregation, there are several differences between this 2015 annual report and previous annual reports: the number of institutions decreased in each category from 578 (2014) to 568 (2015) in cardiovascular, from 762 to 714 in general thoracic and from 626 to 571 in esophageal surgery. Because more than two departments in the same institute registered their data to NCD individually, we cannot calculate correct number of institutes in this survey. Then, the response rate is not indicated in the category of cardiovascular surgery (Table 1), and the number of institutions classified by the operation number is also not calculated in the category of cardiovascular surgery (Table 2)

On the origin and evolution of the asteroid Ryugu: A comprehensive geochemical perspective

Presented here are the observations and interpretations from a comprehensive analysis of 16 representative particles returned from the C-type asteroid Ryugu by the Hayabusa2 mission. On average Ryugu particles consist of 50% phyllosilicate matrix, 41% porosity and 9% minor phases, including organic matter. The abundances of 70 elements from the particles are in close agreement with those of CI chondrites. Bulk Ryugu particles show higher δ18O, Δ17O, and ε54Cr values than CI chondrites. As such, Ryugu sampled the most primitive and least-thermally processed protosolar nebula reservoirs. Such a finding is consistent with multi-scale H-C-N isotopic compositions that are compatible with an origin for Ryugu organic matter within both the protosolar nebula and the interstellar medium. The analytical data obtained here, suggests that complex soluble organic matter formed during aqueous alteration on the Ryugu progenitor planetesimal (several 10’s of km), <2.6 Myr after CAI formation. Subsequently, the Ryugu progenitor planetesimal was fragmented and evolved into the current asteroid Ryugu through sublimation