Spatial and temporal change patterns of near-surface CO and CH concentrations in different permafrost regions on the Mongolian Plateau from 2010 to 2017.

Greenhouse gases (GHGs) released from permafrost regions may have a positive feedback to climate change, but there is much uncertainty about additional warming from the permafrost carbon cycle. One of the main reasons for this uncertainty is that the observation data of large-scale GHG concentrations are sparse, especially for areas with rapid permafrost degradation. We selected the Mongolian Plateau as the study area.

Effects of Moxibustion on Stress-Induced Delayed Gastric Emptying via Somatoautonomic Reflex in Rats.

Moxibustion (MOX) is used to treat a wide variety of disorders, including those with gastric symptoms. However, the exact mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of MOX are unknown. The purpose of this study was to investigate if application of indirect MOX (iMOX) to ST 36 reduces restraint stress (RS)-induced alteration in gastric responses of conscious rats, and if a somatoautonomic reflex mediates gastric emptying (GE).

Vitamin D Supplements for Prevention of Tuberculosis Infection and Disease.

Background: Vitamin D metabolites support innate immune responses to . Data from phase 3, randomized, controlled trials of vitamin D supplementation to prevent tuberculosis infection are lacking.

Methods: We randomly assigned children who had negative results for infection according to the QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube assay (QFT) to receive a weekly oral dose of either 14,000 IU of vitamin D or placebo for 3 years.

Contribution of adenosine to the increase in skeletal muscle blood flow caused by manual acupuncture in rats.

Background And Aim: Adenosine is believed to play an important role in local acupuncture analgesia. The aim of this study was to investigate the contribution of adenosine to the increase in skeletal muscle blood flow (MBF) caused by manual acupuncture (MA).

Methods: Thirty-two male Sprague-Dawley rats (310-360 g) were anaesthetised and divided into four equal groups (n=8 each): Saline, Saline+MA, Theophylline, and Theophylline+MA.

Neverland regulates embryonic moltings through the regulation of ecdysteroid synthesis in the water flea Daphnia magna, and may thus act as a target for chemical disruption of molting.

Embryo development in arthropods is accompanied by a series of moltings. A cladoceran crustacean Daphnia magna molts three times before reaching first instar neonate during embryogenesis. Previous studies argued ecdysteroids might regulate D.

Contributions of ADP and ATP to the increase in skeletal muscle blood flow after manual acupuncture stimulation in rats.

Objective: To investigate the contributions of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and adenosine diphosphate (ADP) to the increase in skeletal muscle blood flow (MBF) observed following manual acupuncture (MA) stimulation in rats.

Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were used as experimental animals (300-370 g, n=40). MA was applied to the right tibialis anterior muscle (TA) for 1 min using a stainless steel acupuncture needle.

Neofunctionalization of Androgen Receptor by Gain-of-Function Mutations in Teleost Fish Lineage.

Steroid hormone receptor family provides an example of evolution of diverse transcription factors through whole-genome duplication (WGD). However, little is known about how their functions have been evolved after the duplication. Teleosts present a good model to investigate an accurate evolutionary history of protein function after WGD, because a teleost-specific WGD (TSGD) resulted in a variety of duplicated genes in modern fishes.

Phosphoproteomic analysis of kinase-deficient mice reveals multiple TAK1 targets in osteoclast differentiation.

TAK1 (encoded by Map3k7) is a mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAP3K), which activates the transcription factors AP-1 and NF-κB in response to receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL) stimulation, thus constituting a key regulator of osteoclast differentiation. Here we report the functional relevance of the kinase activity of TAK1 in the late stage of osteoclast differentiation in vivo using Ctsk-Cre mice and TAK1 mutant mice in which the TAK1 kinase domain was flanked by loxP. The Map3k7(flox/kd)Ctsk(Cre/+) mice displayed a severe osteopetrotic phenotype due to a marked decrease in osteoclast number.

Diabetic silkworms for evaluation of therapeutically effective drugs against type II diabetes.

We previously reported that sugar levels in the silkworm hemolymph, i.e., blood, increase immediately (within 1 h) after intake of a high-glucose diet, and that the administration of human insulin decreases elevated hemolymph sugar levels in silkworms.

Immune complexes regulate bone metabolism through FcRγ signalling.

Autoantibody production and immune complex (IC) formation are frequently observed in autoimmune diseases associated with bone loss. However, it has been poorly understood whether ICs regulate bone metabolism directly. Here we show that the level of osteoclastogenesis is determined by the strength of FcRγ signalling, which is dependent on the relative expression of positive and negative FcγRs (FcγRI/III/IV and IIB, respectively) as well as the availability of their ligands, ICs.

Contributions of nitric oxide and prostaglandins to the local increase in muscle blood flow following manual acupuncture in rats.

Objective: To investigate the contributions of nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandins (PGs) to the increase in local muscle blood flow (MBF) observed following manual acupuncture (MA).

Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats (n=112; 250-310 g) were injected intraperitoneally with a non-selective NO synthase inhibitor (NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester hydrochloride: L-NAME; 10, 50 or 500 mg/kg), a non-selective cyclo-oxygenase inhibitor (indomethacin; 10, 50 or 500 mg/kg), a combination of L-NAME and indomethacin (500 mg/kg each) or saline only under urethane anaesthesia (1.2 g/kg).

Comparison of JH signaling in insects and crustaceans.

Physiological importance of sesquiterpenoids such as the juvenile hormone (JH) has been recognized in both insects and crustaceans. Yet, little is known about when and how these two closely related arthropod groups acquired the JH signaling system. Methyl farnesoate (MF), a natural precursor of insect JH, has been identified as an innate JH of crustaceans.

Bmp7 and Lef1 are the downstream effectors of androgen signaling in androgen-induced sex characteristics development in medaka.

Androgens play key roles in the morphological specification of male type sex attractive and reproductive organs, whereas little is known about the developmental mechanisms of such secondary sex characters. Medaka offers a clue about sexual differentiation. They show a prominent masculine sexual character for appendage development, the formation of papillary processes in the anal fin, which has been induced in females by exogenous androgen exposure.

Inhibition of microtubule assembly by a complex of actin and antitumor macrolide aplyronine A.

Aplyronine A (ApA) is a marine natural product that shows potent antitumor activity. While both ApA and ApC, a derivative of ApA that lacks a trimethylserine ester moiety, inhibit actin polymerization in vitro to the same extent, only ApA shows potent cytotoxicity. Therefore, the molecular targets and mechanisms of action of ApA in cells have remained unclear.

Participation of calcitonin gene related peptide released via axon reflex in the local increase in muscle blood flow following manual acupuncture.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine how calcitonin gene related peptide (CGRP) via axon reflex participates in increasing local muscle blood flow (MBF) following manual acupuncture (MA).

Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats (N=56, 270-350 g) were used. We examined (1) the effects of MA on MBF in the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle in normal rats; (2) the effects of MA on MBF in the TA injected with saline or hCGRP8-37 (low: 2×10(-4) mol/litre; high: 2×10(-3) mol/litre), a competitive CGRP receptor antagonist, in rats; and (3) the effects of MA on MBF in the TA in capsaicin-treated rats.

Stage-specific functions of leukemia/lymphoma-related factor (LRF) in the transcriptional control of osteoclast development.

Cell fate determination is tightly regulated by transcriptional activators and repressors. Leukemia/lymphoma-related factor (LRF; encoded by Zbtb7a), known as a POK (POZ/BTB and Krüppel) family transcriptional repressor, is induced during the development of bone-resorbing osteoclasts, but the physiological significance of LRF in bone metabolism and the molecular mechanisms underlying the transcriptional regulation of osteoclastogenesis by LRF have not been elucidated. Here we show that LRF negatively regulates osteoclast differentiation by repressing nuclear factor of activated T cells c1 (NFATc1) induction in the early phase of osteoclast development, while positively regulating osteoclast-specific genes by functioning as a coactivator of NFATc1 in the bone resorption phase.

An invertebrate hyperglycemic model for the identification of anti-diabetic drugs.

The number of individuals diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus, which is caused by insulin resistance and/or abnormal insulin secretion, is increasing worldwide, creating a strong demand for the development of more effective anti-diabetic drugs. However, animal-based screening for anti-diabetic compounds requires sacrifice of a large number of diabetic animals, which presents issues in terms of animal welfare. Here, we established a method for evaluating the anti-diabetic effects of compounds using an invertebrate animal, the silkworm, Bombyx mori.

Cell-morphology profiling of a natural product library identifies bisebromoamide and miuraenamide A as actin filament stabilizers.

Natural products provide a rich source of biological tools, but elucidating their molecular targets remains challenging. Here we report a cell morphological profiling of a natural product library, which permitted the identification of bisebromoamide and miuraenamide A as actin filament stabilizers. Automated high-content image analysis showed that these two structurally distinct marine natural products induce morphological changes in HeLa cells similar to those induced by known actin-stabilizing compounds.

Reduced expression of Sytl 1 and Ccdc21 and impaired induction of Mt I by oxidative stress in SII-K1 knockout mice.

SII-K1 is a member of the transcription elongation factor S-II family. In the mouse, SII-K1 is expressed exclusively in the liver, kidney, heart, and skeletal muscle. Here, we report that deletion of the SII-K1 gene in mice resulted in the downregulation of the synaptotagmin-like 1 (Sytl 1) gene in liver and of the coiled-coil domain-containing 21 (Ccdc21) gene in liver and kidney.

A Wide-View Parallax-Free Eye-Mark Recorder with a Hyperboloidal Half-Silvered Mirror and Appearance-Based Gaze Estimation.

In this paper, we propose a wide-view parallax-free eye-mark recorder with a hyperboloidal half-silvered mirror and a gaze estimation method suitable for the device. Our eye-mark recorder provides a wide field-of-view video recording of the user's exact view by positioning the focal point of the mirror at the user's viewpoint. The vertical angle of view of the prototype is 122 degree (elevation and depression angles are 38 and 84 degree, respectively) and its horizontal view angle is 116 degree (nasal and temporal view angles are 38 and 78 degree, respectively).

Do Japanese style acupuncture and moxibustion reduce symptoms of the common cold?

We summarize the results from a series of investigations of Japanese style acupuncture and moxibustion therapies on symptoms of the common cold that have been conducted (FTLE 1999-03, supported by the Foundation for Training and Licensure Examination in Anma- Massage- Acupressure, Acupuncture and Moxibustion). We also discuss the various interventions and concerns that we faced during these investigations. The subjects were students and teachers.

Transcriptional repression of the IMD2 gene mediated by the transcriptional co-activator Sub1.

Sub1 was originally identified as a transcriptional co-activator and later demonstrated to have pleiotropic functions during multiple transcription steps, including initiation, elongation and termination. The present study reveals a novel function of Sub1 as a transcription repressor in budding yeast. Sub1 does not activate IMP dehydrogenase 2 (IMD2) gene expression but rather represses its expression.

Effects of manual acupuncture with sparrow pecking on muscle blood flow of normal and denervated hindlimb in rats.

Introduction: In clinical practice, it has been thought that acupuncture might serve to wash out pain-generating metabolic end-products by improving blood circulation in muscles. We investigated the effects of manual acupuncture (MA) on muscle blood flow (MBF) of normal and denervated hindlimbs in rats.

Method: Sprague-Dawley rats (n=100) anaesthetised with urethane (1.

Improved method for the PCR-based gene disruption in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The PCR-based gene disruption strategy originally devised by Baudin et al. is widely used for gene targeting in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. An advantage of this strategy is its simplicity in making targeting constructs.

The influence of aging on renal blood flow in human beings.

Object: We studied the relationship between age and renal blood flow parameters to determine the clinical significance of using Doppler color flow imaging (CFI) in their measurement.

Subjects And Methods: One hundred forty-four healthy subjects with no renal or circulatory diseases took part in this study. All subjects were placed in the prone position and examined with CFI.