Survey of Attitudes toward Uterus Transplantation among Japanese Women of Reproductive Age: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Objective: Uterus transplantation (UTx) is a potential option for women with uterine factor infertility to have a child, but there has been no large-scale survey of the views on UTx in women of reproductive age in Japan. The present study was aimed to clarify the views of Japanese women of reproductive age on UTx for uterine factor infertility.

Methods: A questionnaire on UTx was conducted by an Internet research company in December 2014 as a cross-sectional study in 3,892 randomly chosen women aged 25 to 39 years old.

Complementary DNA Cloning and Characterization of Pearlin, a New Class of Matrix Protein in the Nacreous Layer of Oyster Pearls.

Calcified shell layer is composed of two polymorphs of CaCO(3), aragonite or calcite, and an organic matrix. The organic matrix consists of EDTA-soluble and insoluble fractions. These fractions are thought to regulate the formation of the elaborate shell structure.

Production of a hybrid protein consisting of the N-terminal fragment of urokinase and the C-terminal domain of urinary trypsin inhibitor in Escherichia coli.

We have constructed a hybrid protein (ATFHI) consisting of an N-terminal fragment from urokinase (ATF) and HI-8, which is the C-terminal domain of urinary trypsin inhibitor. The fusion genes for the hybrid proteins were engineered by PCR and cloned into expression plasmids. Under the control of the tac promoter, fusion genes were efficiently expressed in Escherichia coli.

A carbonic anhydrase from the nacreous layer in oyster pearls.

It is believed that the polymorphism observed in calcium carbonate crystals, such as aragonite and calcite in mollusk shells, is controlled by organic matrix proteins secreted from the mantle epithelia. However, the fine structures of these proteins are still unknown, and to understand the molecular mechanisms of mineralization process, detailed structural analyses of the organic matrix proteins are essential. For this, we have carried out purification, characterization, and cDNA cloning of nacrein, which is a soluble organic matrix protein in the nacreous layer of oyster pearls.

Molecular cloning and nucleotide sequencing of the Arthrobacter dextranase gene and its expression in Escherichia coli and Streptococcus sanguis.

A bacterial strain, which assimilated dextran and water-insoluble glucan produced by Streptococcus mutans, was isolated from soil. The bacterium produced and secreted potent dextranase activity, which was identified as Arthrobacter sp. and named CB-8.