The Efficacy of Health Surveys and Polymerase Chain Reaction Tests Prior to Judo Tournaments During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Background As of October 2021, sports activities require preventive measures against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection. Judo, a close-contact sport, demands careful prevention with great consideration to the risk of infection. The All Japan Judo Federation Medical Science Committee (AJJF) designed COVID-19 prevention protocols from a medical perspective and developed policies for safe regular practices and tournaments.

Developmental toxicity of p,p'-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, their metabolites, and benzo[a]pyrene in Xenopus laevis embryos.

Since 1995, high incidences of deformed frogs have been documented in Kitakyushu, Japan. In this area, relatively high concentrations of DDT, trinitrotoluene (TNT), their metabolites (p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene [DDE], p,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane [DDD], 2-amino-4,6-dinitrotoluene [2ADNT], and 4-amino-2,6-dinitrotoluene [4ADNT]), and benzo[a]pyrene [BaP]) have been identified from field samples. I used a standardized assay with Xenopus laevis embryos (frog embryo teratogenesis assay--Xenopus, FETAX) to examine the developmental toxicity of these compounds.

Comparative analyses of serum vitellogenin levels in male and female Reeves' pond turtles (Chinemys reevesii) by an immunological assay.

A quantitative immunological method was developed for measuring serum vitellogenin levels of Reeves' pond turtles (Chinemys reevesii) to investigate the effects of endocrine disruptors on the freshwater ecosystem. Vitellogenin was induced by injecting estradiol-17beta into C. reevesii turtles (adult females, juvenile females, and males) and was purified from the turtle serum by EDTA-MgCl2 precipitation followed by gel filtration.

Examination of an amphibian-based assay using the larvae of Xenopus laevis and Ambystoma mexicanum.

Semistatic acute toxicity tests of amphibian larvae (Xenopus laevis and Ambystoma mexicanum) were conducted at different developmental stages and by different methods to establish a simple amphibian-based assay. Test substance was pentachlorophenol sodium salt (PCP-Na). The endpoint was mortality and the 24-, 48-, 72-, and 96-h LC50 values were calculated by probit analysis.

Dengue hemorrhagic fever in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1988: isolation of dengue virus from patient whole blood using cell cultures.

During an outbreak of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) in Jakarta, Indonesia in 1988, we attempted to isolate dengue virus using mosquito cells and a medium containing heparin. Whole blood, immediately after being drawn from patients, was inoculated into Aedes albopictus cell cultures temporarily maintained in the heparin-containing medium. The overall virus isolation rate was 25% (17 of 69) samples collected within three days after admission of the patients to hospital.