Secured Transactions Law Reform in Japan: Japan Business Credit Project Assessment of Interviews and Tentative Policy Proposals

This article summarizes key findings from the Japan Business Credit Project (JBCP), which involved more than 30 semi-structured interviews conducted in Japan from 2016 through 2018. It was inspired by important and previously unexplored questions concerning secured financing of movables (business equipment and inventory) and claims (receivables)—“asset-based lending” or “ABL.” Why is the use of ABL in Japan so limited? What are the principal obstacles and disincentives to the use of ABL in Japan? The interviews were primarily with staff of banks, but also included those of government officials and regulators, academics, and law practitioners. The article proposes reforms of Japanese secured transactions law that would address several prevailing problems with ABL. The reforms would move Japanese law toward the modern principles that are epitomized by Article 9 of the UCC in the United States and the UNCITRAL Model Law on Secured Transactions. These proposals also could materially improve Japan’s standings in the World Bank Group Doing Business Rankings. Three committees with government connections recently have been studying secured transactions law reforms in Japan. We expect that the government will move to a more formal stage of considering reforms in the near future. We are optimistic that the article will be influential on the substance and ultimate enactment of law reforms. Our research illuminates the stark contrast between the situation in Japan and the modern principles of secured transactions law embodied in the UNCITRAL Model Law, which is designed to enhance access to credit through ABL. Finally, the article identifies important new insights for secured transactions law reforms, not only in Japan but in other jurisdictions. These insights are illuminating as well for future business law reforms more generally. In particular, the article explains the value and utility of qualitative empirical research such as the JBCP for the process of law reform

Three-dimensional observation and analysis of remineralization in dentinal caries lesions

The remineralization mechanism in dental caries lesions is not completely understood. This study reports on ultrastructural and chemical changes observed within arrested caries lesions. Carious human teeth were observed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and focused-ion-beam (FIB)-SEM. The crystals detected in the caries lesions were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), along with chemical element mapping using energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS)-STEM. FIB-SEM 3D reconstructions revealed a severely damaged dentin surface abundantly covered by bacteria. Although the dentin tubules were clogged up to a depth of 100 mu m, bacterial invasion into dentin tubules was not observed. TEM crystal analysis and EDS-STEM revealed the presence of Ca and P, as well as of Mg within the HAp crystals deposited inside the dentin tubules. It was concluded that extensive remineralization with deposition of Mg-HAp crystals had occurred in dentin tubules of caries-arrested dentin. Understanding the natural remineralization process is thought to be helpful for developing clinical biomimetic remineralization protocols

<Abstract of Published Report>Identification of Amino Acid Residues Responsible for Difference in Substrate Specificity and Inhibitor Sensitivity Between Two Human Liver Dihydrodiol Dehydrogenase Isoenzymes by Site-directed Mutagenesis.

Human liver dihydrodiol dehydrogenase isoenzymes (DD1 and DD2), in which only seven amino acid residues are substituted, differ remarkably in specificity for steroidal substrates and inhibitor sensitivity: DD1 shows 20alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity and sensitivity to 1,10-phenanthroline, whereas DD2 oxidizes 3alpha-hydroxysteroids and is highly inhibited by bile acids. In the present study we performed site-directed mutagenesis of the seven residues (Thr-38, Arg-47, Leu-54, Cys-87, Val-151, Arg-170 and Gln-172) of DD1 to the corresponding residues (Val, His, Val, Ser, Met, His and Leu respectively) of DD2. Of the seven mutations, only the replacement of Leu-54 with Val produced an enzyme that had almost the same properties as DD2. No significant changes were observed in the other mutant enzymes. An additional site-directed mutagenesis of Tyr-55 of DD1 to Phe yielded an inactive protein, suggesting the catalytically important role of this residue. Thus a residue at a position before the catalytic Tyr residue might play a key role in determining the orientation of the substrates and inhibitors

The Effect of Touching a Dolphin on the EEG Slow Waves hi Children

Among animal-facilitated therapies, dolphin-facilitated therapy has been shown to beneficially affect human behavior, emotion and speech ability. We recently showed that touching a dolphin reduced the respiratory rate and state anxiety in healthy children. In this study, we collected electroencephalographic data (EEG), widely used for examining various brain functions, before and after touching dolphins. We examined the relationship between EEG power spectra and individual trait anxiety scores. The results showed that the appearance of slow waves in the frontal area increased significantly after touching a dolphin. Furthermore, the difference in slow wave activity was negatively, but significantly, correlated with trait anxiety in the frontal area. This negative correlation showed that slow wave power was greater in subjects with lower trait anxiety, indicating that touching a dolphin may be more effective for subjects with low trait anxiety than those with high trait anxiety. However, even though the increase in slow wave power was lower in subjects with high trait anxiety, touching a dolphin appeared to affect brain rhythms by increasing slow waves