Cellular clocks in AVP neurons of the scn are critical for interneuronal coupling regulating circadian behavior rhythm

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), the primary circadian pacemaker in mammals, is a network structure composed of multiple types of neurons. Here, we report that mice with a Bmal1 deletion specific to arginine vasopressin (AVP)-producing neurons showed marked lengthening in the free-running period and activity time of behavior rhythms. When exposed to an abrupt 8-hr advance of the light/dark cycle, these mice reentrained faster than control mice did. In these mice, the circadian expression of genes involved in intercellular communications, including Avp, Prokineticin 2, and Rgs16, was drastically reduced in the dorsal SCN, where AVP neurons predominate. In slices, dorsal SCN cells showed attenuated PER2::LUC oscillation with highly variable and lengthened periods. Thus, Bmal1-dependent oscillators of AVP neurons may modulate the coupling of the SCN network, eventually coupling morning and evening behavioral rhythms, by regulating expression of multiple factors important for the network property of these neurons

Differential responses of normal human coronary artery endothelial cells against multiple cytokines comparatively assessed by gene expression profiles

AbstractEndothelial cells play an important role in terms of biological functions by responding to a variety of stimuli in the blood. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism involved in rendering the variety in the cellular response. To investigate the variety of the cellular responses against exogenous stimuli at the gene expression level, we attempted to describe the cellular responses with comprehensive gene expression profiles, dissect them into multiple response patterns, and characterize the response patterns according to the information accumulated so far on the genes included in the patterns. We comparatively analyzed in parallel the gene expression profiles obtained with DNA microarrays from normal human coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAECs) stimulated with multiple cytokines, interleukin-1β, tumor necrosis factor-α, interferon-β, interferon-γ, and oncostatin M, which are profoundly involved in various functional responses of endothelial cells. These analyses revealed that the cellular responses of HCAECs against these cytokines included at least 15 response patterns specific to a single cytokine or common to multiple cytokines. Moreover, we statistically extracted genes contained within the individual response patterns and characterized the response patterns with the genes referring to the previously accumulated findings including the biological process defined by the Gene Ontology Consortium (GO). Out of the 15 response patterns in which at least one gene was successfully extracted through the statistical approach, 11 response patterns were differentially characterized by representing the number of genes contained in individual criteria of the biological process in the GO only. The approach to dissect cellular responses into response patterns and to characterize the pattern at the gene expression level may contribute to the gaining of insight for untangling the diversity of cellular functions

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1)食事サービスの種類は配食サービス,会食サービス,家事援助サービスの3種類がある。2)配食サービスについては各務原市が決めた条件に該当する人に補助金をだして行っているもの(訪問給食サービス)と,民間業者によって値段は高いが老人向けに継続的に栄養バランスのよい弁当が提供されているものがある。3)会食サービスについては各施設で介護保険認定者には介護保険とは別に料金を徴収し,食事を提供している。非介護保険認定者には週1回のみ決められた施設(生きがいデイサービス施設)において利用する事ができる。4)家事援助サービスは介護保険認定者はケアプランによりヘルパーを利用できる。非介護認定者には週2回以内で生活援助活動員の利用をすることができる。5)各務原市が独自に行っている高齢者への施策は.非介護保険認定者に対して行われている高齢者生活支援事業として,生活援助活動員派遣事業,生きがいデイサービス事業,訪問給食サービス事業である。これは一人暮らしの高齢者及び,高齢者世帯に対して行われている。6)各務原市では地域で行われている施策としては地域住民が地域の高齢者をサポートするために週に一度行われているボランタリーハウス活動支援事業と不定期に行われている近隣ケアグループ活動支援事業がある

A Role of Aromatase in Sjögren Syndrome

Several autoimmune diseases are known to develop in postmenopausal women. However, the mechanism by which estrogen deficiency influences autoimmunity is unknown. Aromatase is a converting enzyme from androgens to estrogens. In the present study, we used female aromatase gene knockout (ArKO) mice as a model of estrogen deficiency to investigate the molecular mechanism that underlies the onset and development of autoimmunity. Histological analyses showed that inflammatory lesions in the lacrimal and salivary glands of ArKO mice increased with age. Adoptive transfer of spleen cells or bone marrow cells from ArKO mice into recombination activating gene 2 knockout mice failed to induce the autoimmune lesions. Expression of mRNA encoding proinflammatory cytokines and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) increased in white adipose tissue (WAT) of ArKO mice and was significantly higher than that in wild-type mice. Moreover, an increased number of inflammatory M-1 macrophage was observed in WAT of ArKO mice. A significantly increased MCP-1 mRNA expression of the salivary gland tissue in ArKO was found together with adiposity. Furthermore, the autoimmune lesions in a murine model of Sjögren’s syndrome (SS) were exacerbated by administration of an aromatase inhibitor. These results suggest that aromatase may play in a key role in the pathogenesis of SS-like lesions by controlling the target organ and adipose tissue-associated macrophage

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・みその種類は,豆みそが多く使用されていて75.7%であり,地域別にみて岐阜県・愛知県に多かった。・だしについては,だしの素といわれるうま味調味料を使用しているのがほとんどであった。・汁の実は3～4種類用いている者が58.3%であり,一般にこの地方のみそ汁は実の種類・量とも多く用いられている。・みそ汁の摂取状況は,朝食において最も多く摂られているが,およそ40%の者はほとんど食べていない。・朝食に米飯を主食とする者が60%であったが,本調査で朝食にみそ汁を摂る者は33.3%であり,最近はみそ汁以外の副食で食事をする者がかなりあると思われる。・1食に食べるみそ汁は,ほとんどの者が1杯であり1椀の汁の量は80～140gが56.6%であった。・みそ汁の時間経過に伴う塩分濃度の変化についての実験結果によると,みそ汁の塩分は時間経過とともに実の方に移行し,又実の量が多いほど汁の塩分濃度の低下は大きかった。・塩分濃度を測定した結果は,ばらつきが多く最もうすいものは0.59%,濃いものは1.75%で,平均1.04±0.22%であった。祖父母同居と核家族における塩分濃度の差はあまりみられなかった。・日常食べているみそ汁のからさについては,かなり濃いものも,うすいものも,ちょうど良いと答えている者がほとんどであった。塩分濃度では1.2%未満でからいと感じている者が11.5%あり,中でも1%未満でからいと感じている者が5.7%あり,かなりうす味が定着していると思われる。・1食のみそ汁からの塩分摂取量は,ばらつきが大きく,平均では1.31±0.61gであり,1～2g摂取するものが56.0%であった。・汁の実の量の多少と塩分摂取量の関係は,実の多いほど摂取量は少なかった