Surgical Outcomes for Perihilar Cholangiocarcinoma with Vascular Invasion.

Purpose: To investigate short- and long-term surgical outcomes for patients with perihilar cholangiocarcinoma and vascular invasion.

Methods: Data from 249 patients who underwent perihilar cholangiocarcinoma surgery between 2000 and 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. Patient evaluations included short-term surgical outcomes following vascular resection and long-term outcomes in cases with histopathological vascular invasion.

Iteroparity of stream resident masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou.

The degree of iteroparity in stream-resident forms of masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou was examined using mark-recapture studies in natural streams. In a partially migratory population, at least 10% of resident males survived after maturation and repeatedly matured for up to 5 years. In the landlocked amago salmon subspecies, the post-maturation survival rate was at least 7% and repeat maturation was observed for up to 3 years for both males and females.

Ten-Year Trends of Public-Access Defibrillation in Japanese School-Aged Patients Having Neurologically Favorable Survival After Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest.

The effectiveness of dissemination of public-access automated external defibrillators (AEDs) has been well established for adults, but not for children at the population level. We obtained out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) data between January 2005 and December 2014 from a nationwide OHCA registry of Japan. Our study subjects were OHCA cases aged 6 to 17, involving attempted resuscitation by emergency medical service personnel or by bystanders.

The RNA Methyltransferase Complex of WTAP, METTL3, and METTL14 Regulates Mitotic Clonal Expansion in Adipogenesis.

Adipocyte differentiation is regulated by various mechanisms, of which mitotic clonal expansion (MCE) is a key step. Although this process is known to be regulated by cell cycle modulators, the precise mechanism remains unclear. -Methyladenosine (mA) posttranscriptional RNA modification, whose methylation and demethylation are performed by respective enzyme molecules, has recently been suggested to be involved in the regulation of adipogenesis.

Effects of Whole Grain Wheat Bread on Visceral Fat Obesity in Japanese Subjects: A Randomized Double-Blind Study.

Metabolic syndrome is a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and has become increasingly common in Japan. Epidemiological studies show inverse associations between intake of whole wheat grains and metabolic syndrome, but few dietary intervention trials have investigated the effect of whole wheat grain consumption. It was investigated whether a diet in which refined wheat bread (RW diet) was substituted by whole grain wheat bread (WW diet) would reduce visceral fat obesity in Japanese subjects.

[Milk, Daily products and Bone health.Characteristics of calcium in milk.].

Milk contains approximately 110mg of calcium per 100mL of milk, a good source of dietary calcium. The calcium in milk comprises of calcium caseinate, micellar calcium phosphate and soluble calcium. It is also reported that the calcium in milk has an excellent bioavailability.

Maternal vegetable intake in early pregnancy and wheeze in offspring at the age of 2 years.

Background/objectives: Vegetable intake during childhood may reduce the risk of subsequent asthma. We verified the effect of maternal intake during pregnancy on asthma risk in offspring, which has rarely been studied.

Subjects/methods: In a hospital-based birth cohort study conducted in Tokyo, we administered a food frequency questionnaire at two periods during the respondents' pregnancy: early and mid to late periods.

Dietary n-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Late Pregnancy and Postpartum Depressive Symptom among Japanese Women.

Background: The use of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3PUFA) in preventive or therapeutic modalities for postpartum depression, especially long-chain types such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and a docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), is of considerable interest. High n-3PUFA consumption has been reported among pregnant Japanese women. Therefore, analysis of this group could provide important insights into the relationship between postpartum depression and dietary n-3PUFA consumption.

Identification of genes and critical control proteins associated with inflammatory breast cancer using network controllability.

One of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer is inflammatory breast cancer (IBC), whose lack of tumour mass also makes a prompt diagnosis difficult. Moreover, genomic differences between common breast cancers and IBC have not been completely assessed, thus substantially limiting the identification of biomarkers unique to IBC. Here, we developed a novel statistical analysis of gene expression profiles corresponding to microdissected IBC, non-IBC (nIBC) and normal samples that enabled us to identify a set of genes significantly associated with a specific disease state.

Effects of high β-glucan barley on visceral fat obesity in Japanese individuals: A randomized, double-blind study.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate whether a diet in which high β-glucan barley was substituted for rice would reduce visceral fat obesity in Japanese individuals.

Methods: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled intervention study was conducted with 100 Japanese individuals with waist circumference (WC) ≥85 cm for men or ≥90 cm for women and body mass index (BMI) ≥24 kg/m. Participants were randomly assigned to consume a mixture of rice and either high β-glucan barley (test group, 4.

Fluorescence Analysis of the Mitochondrial Effect of a Plasmalemmal Na/Ca Exchanger Inhibitor, SEA0400, in Permeabilized H9c2 Cardiomyocytes.

We investigated the effect on mitochondrial Ca of SEA0400, an inhibitor of the Na/Ca exchanger (NCX) which reduces mitochondrial Ca overload during myocardial ischemia, in digitonin-permeabilized H9c2 cells expressing the mitochondrial-targeted Ca indicator, yellow cameleon 3.1. The elevation of mitochondrial Ca concentration caused by an increase in extramitochondrial Ca concentration was inhibited by carbonyl cyanide p-(trifluoromethoxy) phenylhydrazone (FCCP) or ruthenium red, but enhanced by CGP-37157, a mitochondrial NCX inhibitor.

Dietary intake of antioxidant vitamins and risk of stroke: the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Study.

Background/objectives: Epidemiologic evidence on the relationship between antioxidant vitamin intake and stroke is limited. We aimed to investigate the association between dietary intake of antioxidant vitamins and the incidence of total stroke and ischemic stroke.

Subjects/methods: The subjects were 82 044 Japanese men and women aged 45-74 years under the Japan Public Health Center-based Prospective Cohort Study.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae MSA1 mRNA has a sequence for localization at the bud tip.

MSA1 mRNA encodes Msa1p, a protein associated with the SCB-binding factor (SBF) and MCB-binding factor (MBF) complex. Msa1p promotes the transcription of G1 phase-specific genes, and is subjected to cell cycle-dependent regulation for its abundance and subcellular localization. MSA1 mRNA and Msa1p levels oscillate in the cell cycle with peaks at the late M/early G1 phase and early G1 phase, respectively.

Vowels in infant-directed speech: More breathy and more variable, but not clearer.

Infant-directed speech (IDS) is known to differ from adult-directed speech (ADS) in a number of ways, and it has often been argued that some of these IDS properties facilitate infants' acquisition of language. An influential study in support of this view is Kuhl et al. (1997), which found that vowels in IDS are produced with expanded first and second formants (F1/F2) on average, indicating that the vowels are acoustically further apart in IDS than in ADS.

Validation of a food frequency questionnaire for Japanese pregnant women with and without nausea and vomiting in early pregnancy.

Background: No previous study has shown the validity of a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) in early pregnancy with consideration of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy (NVP). The aim of this study was to evaluate the validity of a FFQ in early pregnancy for Japanese pregnant women.

Method: We included 188 women before 15 weeks of gestation and compared estimated nutrient intake and food group intake based on a modified FFQ with that based on 3-day dietary records (DRs).

Validity of a food frequency questionnaire to estimate long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid intake among Japanese women in early and late pregnancy.

Background: The relative validity of food frequency questionnaires for estimating long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid (LC-PUFA) intake among pregnant Japanese women is currently unclear. The aim of this study was to verify the external validity of a food frequency questionnaire, originally developed for non-pregnant adults, to assess the dietary intake of LC-PUFA using dietary records and serum phospholipid levels among Japanese women in early and late pregnancy.

Methods: A validation study involving 188 participants in early pregnancy and 169 participants in late pregnancy was conducted.

Validation of a food-frequency questionnaire for assessing vitamin intake of Japanese women in early and late pregnancy with and without nausea and vomiting.

Maternal vitamin intake during pregnancy is crucial for pregnancy outcomes and the child's subsequent health. However, there are few valid instruments for assessing vitamin intake that address the effects of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy (NVP). This study aimed to investigate the validity of a FFQ concerning vitamin intake during early and late pregnancy with and without NVP.

Acute exercise increases fibroblast growth factor 21 in metabolic organs and circulation.

Fibroblast growth factor 21, a metabolic regulator, plays roles in lipolysis and glucose uptake in adipose tissues and skeletal muscles. Its expression in skeletal muscle is upregulated upon activation of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt signaling pathway, which is induced by exercise and muscle contraction. We examined the increase of fibroblast growth factor 21 after acute exercise in metabolic organs, especially skeletal muscles and circulation.

Predicting link directionality in gene regulation from gene expression profiles using volatility-constrained correlation.

To uncover potential disease molecular pathways and signaling networks, we do not only need undirected maps but also we need to infer the directionality of functional or physical interactions between cellular components. A wide range of methods for identifying functional interactions between genes relies on correlations between experimental gene expression measurements to some extent. However, the standard Pearson or Spearman correlation-based approaches can only determine undirected correlations between cellular components.

A simplified vector system for visualization of localized RNAs in Schizosaccharomyces pombe.

RNA localization is an important event that is essential for the polarization and differentiation of a cell. Although several methods are currently used to detect localized RNAs, a simplified detection system has not yet been developed for Schizosaccharomyces pombe. In the present study, we describe a new vector system for the visualization of localized RNAs in S.

Cultural Difference in Conflict Management Strategies of Children and Its Development: Comparing 3- and 5-Year-Olds Across China, Japan, and Korea.

The purpose of this study was to examine differences in the development of conflict management strategies, focusing on 3- and 5-year-olds, through a comparison of 3 neighboring Asian cultures, those of China ( = 114), Japan ( = 98), and Korea ( = 90). The dual concern model of conflict management was adopted to probe which strategy children would prefer to use in 2 hypothetical conflict situations. Results indicated that, first, for disagreement, 3-year-olds in the 3 countries equally preferred the dominating strategy.

Knockdown of aquaporin-8 induces mitochondrial dysfunction in 3T3-L1 cells.

Background: Aquaporin-8 (AQP8), a member of the aquaporin water channel family, is expressed in various tissue and cells, including liver, testis, and pancreas. AQP8 appears to have functions on the plasma membrane and/or on the mitochondrial inner membrane. Mitochondrial AQP8 with permeability for water, HO and NH has been expected to have important role in various cells, but its information is limited to a few tissues and cells including liver and kidney.

Putative Epimutagens in Maternal Peripheral and Cord Blood Samples Identified Using Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells.

The regulation of transcription and genome stability by epigenetic systems are crucial for the proper development of mammalian embryos. Chemicals that disturb epigenetic systems are termed epimutagens. We previously performed chemical screening that focused on heterochromatin formation and DNA methylation status in mouse embryonic stem cells and identified five epimutagens: diethyl phosphate (DEP), mercury (Hg), cotinine, selenium (Se), and octachlorodipropyl ether (S-421).

Novel Antitumor Strategy Utilizing a Plasmid Expressing a Mycobacterium tuberculosis Antigen as a "Danger Signal" to Block Immune Escape of Tumor Cells.

Immune escape of tumor cells is one of the main obstacles hindering the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapy. We developed a novel strategy to block immune escape by transfecting tumor cells in vivo with genes of pathogenic antigens from Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB). This induces presentation of the TB antigen on tumor cell surfaces, which can be recognized by antigen presenting cells (APCs) as a "danger signal" to stimulate antitumor immune response.