Collagen XVII regulates tumor growth in pancreatic cancer through interaction with the tumor microenvironment.

Expression of the gene for collagen XVII (COL17A1) in tumor tissue is positively or negatively associated with patient survival depending on cancer type. High COL17A1 expression is thus a favorable prognostic marker for breast cancer but unfavorable for pancreatic cancer. This study explored the effects of COL17A1 expression on pancreatic tumor growth and their underlying mechanisms.

Do Community Social Capital and Built Environment Associate With Homebound in Older Adults? The JAGES Niigata Study.

Background: Homebound status is one of the most important risk factors associated with functional decline and long-term care in older adults. Studies show that neighborhood built environment and community social capital may be related to homebound status. This study aimed to clarify the association between homebound status for community-dwelling older adults and community environment-including social capital and neighborhood built environment-in rural and urban areas.

Association between Neighborhood Environment and Quality of Sleep in Older Adult Residents Living in Japan: The JAGES 2010 Cross-Sectional Study.

Poor sleep is associated with lifestyle, however, few studies have addressed the association between sleep quality and the neighborhood environment. This study aimed to investigate the associations between living environment factors and sleep quality in older people. Participants were community-dwelling people aged ≥65 years who participated in the 2010 Japanese Gerontological Evaluation Study.

Effects of substituents in silyl groups on the absorption, fluorescence and structural properties of 1,3,6,8-tetrasilylpyrenes.

1,3,6,8-Tetrasilylpyrenes and related germyl and stannyl derivatives were synthesized, and their absorption and fluorescence spectroscopic and structural properties were elucidated. The results show that the UV-vis absorption maxima of these substances in CH2Cl2 solutions shift to longer wavelengths as the size of the alkyl groups and numbers of phenyl groups on silicon increase. Fluorescence quantum yields of tetrasilylpyrenes in cyclohexane are larger than that of pyrene, and a pentamethyldisilyl derivative has an emission efficiency of 0.

Synthesis, Electronic Structure, and Reactivities of Two-Sulfur-Stabilized Carbones Exhibiting Four-Electron Donor Ability.

Bis(sulfane)carbon(0) (BSC; Ph S→C←SPh (1)) is successfully synthesized by deprotonation of the corresponding protonated salt 1⋅HTfO. The diprotonated salt 1⋅(HTfO) as the starting material can be also easily accessed by the deimination of iminosulfane(sulfane)carbon(0) (iSSC)⋅HBF . Density functional theory calculations revealed the peculiar electronic structure of 1, which has two lone pairs of electrons at the central carbon atom.

Syntheses, structures, and reactivities of two chalcogen-stabilized carbones.

Electronic effects on the central carbon atom of carbone, generated by the replacement of the S(IV) ligand of carbodisulfane (CDS) with other chalcogen ligands (Ph2 E, E=S or Se), were investigated. The carbones Ph2 E→C←SPh2 (NMe) [E=S(1) or Se(2)] were synthesized from the corresponding salts, and their molecular structures and electronic properties were characterized. The carbone 2 is the first carbone containing selenium as the coordinated atom.

Effectiveness of trivalent influenza vaccine among children in two consecutive seasons in a community in Japan.

Influenza vaccination is considered the single most important medical intervention for the prevention of influenza. The dose of trivalent influenza vaccine in children was increased almost double since 2011/12 season in Japan. We estimated the influenza vaccine effectiveness for children 1-11 years of age using rapid test kits in Isahaya City, involving 28,884 children-years, over two consecutive influenza seasons (2011/12 and 2012/13).

Novel measurement of spreading pattern of influenza epidemic by using weighted standard distance method: retrospective spatial statistical study of influenza, Japan, 1999-2009.

Background: Annual influenza epidemics occur worldwide resulting in considerable morbidity and mortality. Spreading pattern of influenza is not well understood because it is often hampered by the quality of surveillance data that limits the reliability of analysis. In Japan, influenza is reported on a weekly basis from 5,000 hospitals and clinics nationwide under the scheme of the National Infectious Disease Surveillance.