Lengthened circadian rhythms in mice with self-controlled ambient light intensity.

Laboratory animals are typically maintained under 12-h light and 12-h dark (12:12 LD) conditions with a daytime light intensity of ~ 200 lx. In this study, we designed an apparatus that allowed mice to self-select the room light intensity by nose poking. We measured the behavioral rhythms of the mice under this self-controlled light regimen.

Mesolimbic dopamine release precedes actively sought aversive stimuli in mice.

In some models, animals approach aversive stimuli more than those housed in an enriched environment. Here, we found that male mice in an impoverished and unstimulating (i.e.

Infiltration of hidden antimicrobial resistance among healthy people in a Japanese community.

Background: Under non-antimicrobial selective pressure, antimicrobial-resistant bacteria do not easily become dominant in the microbiota. Furthermore, their low levels prevent detection by isolation, resulting in an underestimation of the prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.

Objectives: We evaluated the infiltration of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria and their related β-lactamase genes among healthy people in non-clinical settings.

Deep neural network-based classification of cardiotocograms outperformed conventional algorithms.

Cardiotocography records fetal heart rates and their temporal relationship to uterine contractions. To identify high risk fetuses, obstetricians inspect cardiotocograms (CTGs) by eye. Therefore, CTG traces are often interpreted differently among obstetricians, resulting in inappropriate interventions.

Seven-year surveillance of the prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant Escherichia coli isolates, with a focus on ST131 clones, among healthy people in Osaka, Japan.

Objectives: Escherichia coli (E. coli) is an indicator of antimicrobial resistance, and some strains of E. coli cause infectious diseases.

Polymethoxyflavone purified from reduces visceral fat in Japanese overweight individuals: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Visceral fat is a more important factor in obesity-associated disorders in Japanese individuals than in Caucasian individuals. The objective of this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel group study, conducted in Japanese overweight adults, was to investigate the effects of polymethoxyflavone purified from Kaempferia parviflora on visceral fat. A total of 80 subjects (aged 20-64 years, 23.

Prevalence and mechanisms of fluoroquinolone-resistant among sheltered companion animals.

To better understand the prevalence of fluoroquinolone-resistant among sheltered companion animals, we conducted a screening study of 38 dogs and 78 cats and investigated the resistance mechanisms and characteristics of the isolates. Fluoroquinolone-resistant was detected in 18 dogs (47.4 %) and 14 cats (17.

Prevalence and genetic characterization of cephalosporin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae among dogs and cats in an animal shelter.

Purpose: The prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria, especially cephalosporin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, is a major concern for human and animal health. We investigated the prevalence of cephalosporin-resistant Enterobacteriaceae among sheltered dogs and cats with various backgrounds.

Method: Faecal samples or rectal swabs were collected from 151 dogs and 182 cats, and screened for the presence of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.

Longitudinal genotyping surveillance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in an area with high tuberculosis incidence shows high transmission rate of the modern Beijing subfamily in Japan.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a severe and wide-spread infectious disease worldwide. The modern Beijing subfamily, one lineage of M. tuberculosis, reportedly has high pathogenicity and transmissibility.

Ten-Year Surveillance of Measles Virus from 2007-2016 in Osaka City, Japan.

Measles is a highly contagious infection caused by the measles virus (MV). This study performed long-term surveillance in order to survey the prevalence of MV. A total of 417 patients diagnosed with or suspected of having measles were tested for MV between January 2007 and December 2016 in Osaka City, Japan.

Comparison of Three Molecular Subtyping Methods among O157 and Non-O157 Shiga Toxin-Producing Escherichia coli Isolates from Japanese Cattle.

To determine the infection source, route, and extent of an outbreak, it is important to subtype Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) isolates belonging to the same serotype for clustering into clonally related groups. In this study, we compared 3 molecular subtyping methods-multilocus sequence typing (MLST), pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), and multiple-locus variable-number of tandem repeat analysis (MLVA)-using O157 and non-O157 STEC isolates from Japanese beef cattle. A total of 73 STEC isolates belonging to 9 O-serogroups were analyzed.

Molecular and epidemiological characterization of staphylococcal foodborne outbreak of Staphylococcus aureus harboring seg, sei, sem, sen, seo, and selu genes without production of classical enterotoxins.

Staphylococcal food poisoning is the result of consumption of food contaminated with staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) produced by Staphylococcus aureus. To date, 23 SEs and SE-like enterotoxins (SEls) have been described in the literature. They are divided into classical SEs (SEA-SEE) and new SE/SEls (SEG-SElX).

Cytological findings of langerhans cell sarcoma in a case of quintuple cancer.

Langerhans cell sarcoma (LCS) and quintuple cancers are extremely rare. In this report, a case of quintuple cancers including LCS was described. An 80-year-old man had squamous cell carcinoma of the nasal skin, colon and rectum adenocarcinomas, and T-cell/histiocyte-rich large B-cell lymphoma.

Distribution of Capnocytophaga canimorsus in dogs and cats with genetic characterization of isolates.

Capnocytophaga canimorsus, which is often found in the oral cavities of dogs and cats, is sometimes transmitted to humans, causing severe infection. To elucidate the risk of C. canimorsus in humans and animals, this study was undertaken to characterize this bacterium epidemiologically and genetically.

Specific properties of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli isolates from diarrheal patients and comparison to strains from foods and fecal specimens from cattle, swine, and healthy carriers in Osaka City, Japan.

For exhaustive detection of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli, we previously developed a colony-hybridization method using hydrophobic grid-membrane filters in combination with multiplex real-time PCR. To assess the role of domestic animals as the source of atypical enteropathogenic E. coli (aEPEC), a total of 679 samples (333 from foods, fecal samples from 227 domestic animals, and 119 from healthy people) were examined.

[Evaluation of the immunochromatography kit for detection of emetic-toxin producing Bacillus cereus].

We evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of an immunochromatography kit, Single-path Emetic Tox Mrk (Merck), which targets a marker protein for the detection of Bacillus cereus that produces emetic toxin. Strains were isolated after outbreaks of food poisoning, and from retail prepared foods and food products. The strains were examined for the presence of the emetic toxin-synthetase gene by PCR.

Enhancement of Shiga toxin production in enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli serotype O157:H7 by DNase colicins.

Colicins are proteins produced by and active against several strains of Escherichia coli. Previously we reported that colicinogenic bacteria seemed beneficial in preventing the clinical manifestations of infectious disease caused by enterohemorrhagic E. coli O157 in humans.

Association of IL-8-inducing strains of diffusely adherent Escherichia coli with sporadic diarrheal patients with less than 5 years of age.

The role of diffusely adherent Escherichia coli (DAEC) in diarrheal disease has been controversial. However, DAEC strains were recently implicated in diarrheal disease in developing countries. To clarify whether DAEC are prevalent among sporadic cases of diarrheal illness in Osaka City, Japan, E.

Molecular typing to trace Listeria monocytogenes isolated from cold-smoked fish to a contamination source in a processing plant.

In this study, Listeria monocytogenes contamination in a cold-smoked fish processing plant in Osaka, Japan, was examined from 2002 to 2004. A total of 430 samples were collected and divided into five categories: raw fish, materials during processing, processing equipment, environment, and finished products. A total of 59 finished products were examined throughout this study.

Epithelial cells secrete interleukin-8 in response to adhesion and invasion of diffusely adhering Escherichia coli lacking Afa/Dr genes.

Escherichia coli that sparsely adhere to human epithelial cells are known as diffusely adherent E. coli (DAEC), and the role of the Afa/Dr family of adhesins is now understood. Strains that do not possess Afa/Dr, however, comprise another group of DAEC, of which the pathogenicity remains unknown.

Interleukin-8 secretion by epithelial cells infected with diffusely adherent Escherichia coli possessing Afa adhesin-coding genes.

Escherichia coli that adhere sparsely to human epithelial (HEp-2) cells are known as diffusely adherent E. coli(DAEC) and considered potentially diarrheagenic. The role of the afimbrial adhesive sheath (Afa)-identified originally as a uropathogenic factor-in diffuse adhesion is now understood.

Fast and sensitive algorithm for aligning ESTs to human genome.

There is a pressing need to align growing set of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) to newly sequenced human genome. The problem is, however, complicated by the exon/intron structure of eucaryotic genes, misread nucleotides in ESTs, and millions of repeptive sequences in genomic sequences. Indeed, to solve this, algorithms that use dynamic programming have been proposed, but in reality, these algorithms require an enormous amount of processing time.

Detection and isolation of Escherichia coli with a coding gene for enteroaggregative Escherichia coli heat-stable enterotoxin 1 from food and comparison with fecal isolates.

Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli heat-stable enterotoxin 1 (EAST1) was originally regarded as a putative enterotoxin of enteroaggregative Escherichia coli. Although its etiological role has not yet been elucidated, it has been epidemiologically suggested that some strains of E. coli possessing EAST1-coding gene (astA) but no other identifiable pathogenic properties comprise a new group of diarrhea-associated E.