高等学校新入生の健康診断における 体型指数と血液生化学検査値との関系 ── Body Mass Index とHDL-C・LDL-C・ALT との検討 ──

For new high school students (431 persons), an evaluation of the relationship between body shape (BMI: calculated by height and weight) and HDL-C, LDL-C, and ALT are summarized below. 　　Firstly, the percentages of skinny students (BMI＜18.5) and obese students (BMI≧25) based on BMI were examined. The percentages of skinny students are 6.9% (15/218 persons) for males and 12.7% (27/213 persons) for females, and of obese students are 11.5% (25/218 persons) for male and 4.7% (10/213 persons) for females. 　　Secondly, the relationship between BMI and biochemical markers were examined by using Pearson's correlation coefficient. For male students, the relationship between BMI and HDL-C is significantly negative at r＝－0.26, p＜0.05. Conversely, there is a positive correlation between BMI and LDL-C (r＝0.27, p＜0.05), as well as ALT (r＝0.57, p＜0.01). In addition, there is a significant positive correlation between ALT and LDL-C (r＝0.27, p＜0.05). For female students, there is no significant correlation between BMI and HDL-C, LDL-C or ALT. 　　These results suggest that from around the second growth spurt, the body shape might change to visceral fatty obesity in males and to subcutaneous fatty obesity in females

Behavior of Ionic Liquids Under Nanoconfinement Greatly Affects Actual Friction

Ionic liquids (ILs) are organic salts consisting of anions and cations that exist as liquids at room temperature. ILs exhibit many attractive properties such as negligible volatility, low flammability, and relatively high thermal stability. These properties can be varied in a controlled fashion through systematic changes in the molecular structure of their constituent ions. Some recent studies have aimed to use ILs as new lubricant materials. However, the behavior of ILs as lubricants on the sliding interfaces has not been elucidated. In this chapter, we describe the nano- and macrolubrication properties of some ILs with different types of anions using resonance shear measurement (RSM) and conventional ball-on-plate-type tribotests, respectively. This study reveals that the properties observed by RSM for nanoscale systems can provide important insights for the study of the friction coefficients (macrolubrication properties) obtained by tribotests

火山島の荒廃地における自生種を用いた緑化に関する生態学的基礎研究

科学研究費助成事業 研究成果報告書：基盤研究(B)2015-2017課題番号 : 15H0450

Development of Low-Friction Ion Gels for Industrial Applications

Friction reduction is imperative for improving the service life and energy efficiency of mechanical systems. Ion gels using ionic liquids (ILs) as swelling agents are expected to be stable gel lubricants owing to the high thermal stability and negligible volatility of ILs; they can maintain their swollen state even under harsh conditions. Therefore, we investigated two types of ion gels: an IL-substituted double-network gel (DN ion S-gel), in which the water in the DN hydrogel is replaced by the IL 3-ethyl-1-methyl-imidazolium ethylsulfate; and a DN ion gel containing N,N-diethyl-N-(2-methoxyethyl)-N-methyl-ammonium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (DEME-TFSI), where one of the polymer backbones is a network of poly(N,N-diethyl-N-(2-methacryloylethyl)-N-methylammonium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide), an IL-type polymer based on our previous synthetic study of IL polymer technology. The DN ion S-gel and DN ion gel achieved compression strengths of 25 and 30 MPa, respectively, and were thermally stable until 196°C and 335°C (10% weight-loss temperature), respectively. The coefficient of friction remained stable and low (0.02) after repeated measurements under harsh conditions (high temperature or vacuum conditions), affirming the durability of the DN ion gel

PPARα Activation Protects against Anti-Thy1 Nephritis by Suppressing Glomerular NF-κB Signaling

The vast increase of chronic kidney disease (CKD) has attracted considerable attention worldwide, and the development of a novel therapeutic option against a representative kidney disease that leads to CKD, mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis (MsPGN) would be significant. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα), a member of the steroid/nuclear receptor superfamily, is known to perform various physiological functions. Recently, we reported that PPARα in activated mesangial cells exerted anti-inflammatory effects and that the deficiency of PPARα resulted in high susceptibility to glomerulonephritis. To investigate whether PPARα activation improves the disease activity of MsPGN, we examined the protective effects of a PPARα agonist, clofibrate, in a well-established model of human MsPGN, anti-Thy1 nephritis, for the first time. This study demonstrated that pretreatment with clofibrate (via a 0.02% or 0.1% clofibrate-containing diet) continuously activated the glomerular PPARα, which outweighed the PPARα deterioration associated with the nephritic process. The PPARα activation appeared to suppress the NF-κB signaling pathway in glomeruli by the induction of IκBα, resulting in the reduction of proteinuria and the amelioration of the active inflammatory pathologic glomerular changes. These findings suggest the antinephritic potential of PPARα-related medicines against MsPGN. PPARα-related medicines might be useful as a treatment option for CKD

伊豆諸島南部におけるスダジイ林とタブノキ林の分布とその成因

[論文] Articl

Kidney dysfunction induced by protein overload nephropathy reduces serum sulfatide levels in mice

We recently proposed serum sulfatides as a novel biomarker for cardiovascular disease in patients with end-stage renal failure (ESRF), based on the possible antithrombotic properties of this molecule. In this earlier study, the level of serum sulfatides was gradually decreased in parallel with kidney dysfunction; however the precise mechanism underlying this decrease was unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the mechanism underlying the decrease in serum sulfatide levels caused by kidney dysfunction in an experimental animal model. To produce a kidney dysfunction animal model, we prepared a mouse model of protein overload nephropathy. Using high-throughput analysis combined with matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry, we measured the levels of sulfatides in the sera, livers, small intestines and kidneys of protein overload nephropathy mice. As the disease progressed, the levels of sulfatides in sera decreased. Also, the levels in livers and small intestines decreased in a similar manner to those in sera, to approximately 60% of the original levels. On the contrary, those in kidneys increased by approximately 1.4-fold. Our results indicate that kidney dysfunction affects the levels of sulfatides in lipoprotein-producing organs, such as livers and small intestines, and lowers the levels of sulfatides in sera.ArticleNEPHROLOGY. 14(7):658-662 (2009)journal articl

Seed Germination Response to Storage Conditions of Eriocaulon heleocharioides (Eriocaulaceae), an Extinct Species in the Wild

Abstract Seed germination experiments with Eriocaulon heleocharioides Satake (Eriocaulaceae) were performed to investigate the effect of air exposure on seeds during the storage period. Although the seeds germinated both above and under water, the response and durability of germination differed from each other. Moreover, the seeds that were dried for 1 month and sown in water showed the highest germination rate (84.4%) among all combinations of conditions. This result shows that treatment by drying prior to sowing promotes the germination of this species