Resonant tunneling of Hydrogen in Pd

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Effect of Paraquat-Induced Oxidative Stress on Insulin Regulation of Insulin-Like Growth Factor-Binding Protein-1 Gene Expression

Oxidative stress is thought to play a role in the development of insulin resistance. In order to elucidate the molecular effect of oxidative stress on liver insulin signaling, we analyzed the effect of paraquat (1,1-dimethyl-4,4-dipyridynium; PQ)-derived oxidative stress on the expression of insulin-dependent genes and activation of liver insulin signaling pathway. Incubation of primary cultured rat hepatocytes with 2 mM PQ for 6 h impaired the suppressive effect of insulin on insulin-like growth factor-binding protein-1 (IGFBP-1) gene expression, but did not influence glucose-6-phosphatase gene expression. Insulin-dependent phosphorylation or activation of insulin receptor, insulin receptor substrate-1 and -2, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, Akt and forkhead in rhabdomyosarcoma were not affected by PQ pre-treatment. In contrast, PQ treatment impaired insulin-dependent phosphorylation of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). These results indicate that PQ-induced oxidative stress impairs insulin-dependent mTOR activation and that this impairment probably causes inhibition of insulin-dependent repression of IGFBP-1 expression

The prevalence of insomnia and restless legs syndrome among Japanese outpatients with rheumatic disease: A cross-sectional study

The prevalence of symptomatic insomnia and the prevalence of restless legs syndrome (RLS) are known to be higher among patients with rheumatic diseases compared to the general population. The prevalences of insomnia and RLS reported in a questionnaire by Japanese patients with rheumatic diseases at an outpatient clinic were analyzed herein. The association between the patients\u27 disease activity and their sleep quality was analyzed. Of 121 rheumatic disease patients, 70 were enrolled. The median (interquartile range) age at enrollment was 62.0 (47.8-68.0) years. There were 58 women (82.9%) and 12 men (17.1%), and 43 patients (61.4%) with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), nine (12.9%) with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and 18 (25.7%) with other rheumatic diseases. Twenty patients (28.6%) had one or more moderate-to-severe insomnia symptoms, and 10 (14.3%) were diagnosed with RLS. Among the patients with RA, the swollen joint count based on a 28-joint assessment (SJC28) was significantly higher in the insomnia group (n = 13) compared to the non-insomnia group (n = 30) (p = 0.006). A classification and regression tree (CART) analysis showed that the cut-off points of ?3 mg/day prednisolone (PSL) treatment and <16.54% as the transferrin saturation (TSAT) value would best predict RLS in rheumatic disease. Patients with rheumatic disease had a high prevalence of symptomatic insomnia and RLS. A higher dose of PSL and lower TSAT were associated with the occurrence of RLS. Copyright

Magic numbers in exotic nuclei and spin-isospin properties of {\it NN} interaction

The magic numbers in exotic nuclei are discussed, and their novel origin is shown to be the spin-isospin dependent part of the nucleon-nucleon interaction in nuclei. The importance and robustness of this mechanism is shown in terms of meson exchange, G-matrix and QCD theories. In neutron-rich exotic nuclei, magic numbers such as N = 8, 20, etc. can disappear, while N = 6, 16, etc. arise, affecting the structure of lightest exotic nuclei to nucleosynthesis of heavy elements.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, revte

大学院新入生を対象としたサポートグループによる支援の試み

大学院生は在学年数が短いため，入学初期に早く環境に適応することが重要となる。近年，大学院新入生に「他大学出身者」，「社会人」，「留学生」の割合が増え，大学の環境に適応するには課題が多い。本学では，ピアサポートルームの活動の一環として，大学院生の早期適応を支援するためのサポートグループ活動を実施した。本研究では，その実践活動の内容と効果について検討した。その結果，サポートグループに参加した大学院新入生は，緊張-不安，疲労，混乱，抑うつ-落ち込みなどのネガティブな感情（日本語版POMS 短縮版）が軽減された。また，他大学出身の新入生において，抑うつ-落ち込みの程度が低減するとともに，大学への所属感が高まったことが示唆された。Graduate school programs are short term, so it is important for first-year graduate students to adapt to the environment as soon as they begin their first semester. As part of peer support activities, we conducted support group activities to assist in early adaptation of new graduate students. In this paper, we examined the effect of the support group. We found that the first-year graduate students who joined the support group had reduced negative emotions (POMS shortened version) such as anxiety, fatigue, confusion, and depression. In addition, depression in students transferring from other universities was reduced and the sense of belonging to the university had increased