Fukuoka Prefecture Education Center

Abstract Background Gut microbiota are key regulators of epithelial renewal and barrier defense. Chronic stress perturbs the gut–brain–microbiota axis (HPA, vagal, immune pathways), alters microbial communities, and can compromise epithelial integrity. Aims To determine how chronic stress–induced dysbiosis affects the small-intestinal crypt stem-cell niche and Paneth-cell function. Methods Six–eight-week-old mice underwent daily restraint stress (1 h/day, 7 days). Anxiety-like behavior was assessed with the dark/light transition test. Paracellular permeability was quantified in Ussing chambers. Middle-jejunum mucosa/submucosa (after muscle removal) was processed for RNA-seq; immunofluorescence probed OLFM4 (stem cells) and proliferation markers Ki-67 and p-H3. To model glucocorticoid signaling, dexamethasone (synthetic steroid) or metyrapone (11β-hydroxylation inhibitor) was administered. To test microbiota involvement, broad-spectrum antibiotics were given before and throughout stress exposure. Fecal communities were profiled by 16S rRNA analysis. Results Chronic restraint stress produced anxiety-like behavior and dysbiosis, with increased Streptococcus and decreased Bifidobacterium. Barrier dysfunction was evident as increased small-intestinal epithelial permeability, accompanied by reduced villus and crypt length in the jejunum. RNA-seq demonstrated downregulation of Paneth-cell and stem-cell markers in jejunal mucosa. Immunofluorescence confirmed reduced OLFM4, Ki-67, and p-H3 within crypts. Ablation of gut microbiota with antibiotics attenuated the stress-induced downregulation of stem-cell markers but did not alter the Paneth-cell marker changes. Dexamethasone mimicked the effects of restraint stress on crypt stem cells and Paneth cells, whereas metyrapone attenuated both. Conclusions Chronic stress drives microbiota changes that accompany anxiety-like behavior and barrier dysfunction. Epithelial villus/crypt alterations occur in a microbiota-dependent manner, with glucocorticoid signaling contributing to these effects. These findings delineate a microbiota-linked pathway by which stress impairs epithelial renewal and differentiation, with implications for stress-related intestinal disorders. Funding Agencies McMaster Farcombe institute start-up grant for new faculty

Abstract Factors in sound change are still a major subject of debate in the field of linguistics, with the frequency factor perhaps being the most controversial. The present article focuses on palatalization of the velars before high front vowels and glides in Northern Mandarin, because palatalization stretched for more than 100 years and can provide detailed information concerning its contour. Based on a statistical analysis of corpus data of palatalization in Northern Mandarin, the present article argues that the factor of frequency is positively associated with palatalization and the factor of frequency change is negatively associated. Morphosyntactic structure and word class are also claimed to be factors in sound change. However, neither of these two factors has emerged as significant in the current study.

The present study aimed to determine possible risk factors affecting reproductive performance, especially time taken to establish pregnancy in dairy cows, using Cox’s proportional hazardmodel. The data were collected from 154 Holstein Friesian cows (199 lactations). Cows diagnosed with a vaginal discharge score (VDS) of one or calving abnormality showed significantlydelayed pregnancy: hazard ratio (HR)=0.654 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.436–0.983; P=0.041) and HR=0.457 (95% CI: 0.270–0.774; P=0.004), respectively.Our study suggested that the occurrence of VDS of one or calving abnormality might be possible risk factors increasing the number of days open and affecting reproductive performance in dairycows.

Dynamic scripting languages become very popular for high productivity. However, many of these languages have significant runtime overheads because they employ interpreter-based virtual machines. One of the major overheads for the interpreter is derived from operand accesses, which significantly increase memory accesses. We propose VMOR, microarchitectural support for the operand accesses in the interpreter. VMOR remaps operand values into floating-point physical registers, which are rarely used in the interpreter, and thus, VMOR effectively reduces the memory accesses.

The current study explores the problem with the lack of measurement invariance for the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI) by addressing two issues: conceptual heterogeneity of narcissism and methodological issues related to the binary character of data. We examine the measurement invariance of the 13-item version of the NPI in three populations in Japan, Poland and the UK. Analyses revealed that leadership/authority and grandiose exhibitionism dimensions of the NPI were cross-culturally invariant, while entitlement/exploitativeness was culturally specific. Therefore, we proposed NPI-9 as indicating scalar invariance, and we examined the pattern of correlations between NPI-9 and other variables across three countries. The results suggest that NPI-9 is valid brief scale measuring general levels of narcissism in cross-cultural studies, while the NPI-13 remains suitable for research within specific countries.

A new super-hard rice cultivar, ‘Chikushi-kona 85’, which was derived from a cross between ‘Fukei 2032’ and ‘EM129’, was developed via bulk method breeding. ‘Chikushi-kona 85’ showed a higher content of resistant starch than the normal non-glutinous rice cultivar, ‘Nishihomare’, and a higher grain yield than the first super-hard rice cultivar, ‘EM10’. The amylopectin chain length of ‘Chikushi-kona 85’ and its progenitor line ‘EM129’ was longer than that of ‘Nishihomare’, and was similar to that of ‘EM10’. This suggests that the starch property of ‘Chikushi-kona 85’ was inherited from ‘EM129’, which is a mutant line deficient in a starch branching enzyme similar to ‘EM10’. Genetic analysis of ‘Chikushi-kona 85’ crossed with ‘Nishihomare’ also showed that the starch property of ‘Chikushi-kona 85’ was regulated by a single recessive gene. Consumption of processed cookies made from ‘Chikushi-kona 85’ flour showed a distinctive effect in controlling blood sugar levels in comparison to the normal non-glutinous rice cultivar ‘Hinohikari’. These results show that ‘Chikushi-kona 85’ is a novel genetic source to develop new products made of rice, which could reduce calorie intake and contribute to additional health benefits.

ABSTRACTA 23-month-old Holstein cow had a multi-cystic and enlarged left ovary detected by rectal palpation and ultrasonography. The plasma anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) concentration was 36.5 ng/ml, which is higher than normal. From the clinical history and plasma AMH levels, a granulosa cell tumour (GCT) was diagnosed. Affected ovary was removed by ovariectomy, and GCT was confirmed with histopathological findings. The cow was artificially inseminated at 145 days after ovariectomy, and conceived. The plasma AMH concentration declined at 224 days after removal of affected ovary to less than 0.1 ng/ml, and recovery of fertility was achieved. In conclusion, measurement of plasma AMH levels combined with rectal palpation and ultrasonography examinations could be useful in clinical diagnosis of bovine GCT.

The theory of ecological unequal exchange explains how trade and various forms of economic activity create the problem of environmental degradation, and lead to the deterioration of population health. Based on this theory, the present study examined the interrelationships among economic characteristics, ecological footprints, CO2 emissions, infant mortality rates, and under-five mortality rates in low-income countries. Methods A longitudinal ecological study design focused on 66 lowincome countries from 1980 to 2010 was used. Data were collected from the World Development Indicators, United Nations Commodity Trade Statistics Database, Global Footprint Network, and Polity IV Project. Linear mixed models with a spatial power covariance structure and a correlation that decreased over time were constructed to accommodate the repeated measures.

Besides being a useful building material, bamboo also is a potential source of bioactive substances. Although some studies have been performed to examine its use in terms of the biological activity, only certain parts of bamboo, especially the leaves or shoots, have been studied. Comprehensive and comparative studies among different parts of bamboo would contribute to a better understanding and application of this knowledge. In this study, the biological activities of ethanol and water extracts from the leaves, branches, outer culm, inner culm, knots, rhizomes and roots of Phyllostachys pubescens, the major species of bamboo in Japan, were comparatively evaluated. The phytochemical profiles of these extracts were tentatively determined by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) analysis. The results showed that extracts from different parts of bamboo had different chemical compositions and different antioxidative, antibacterial and antiallergic activities, as well as on on melanin biosynthesis. Outer culm and inner culm were found to be the most important sources of active compounds. 8-C-Glucosylapigenin, luteolin derivatives and chlorogenic acid were the most probable compounds responsible for the anti-allergy activity of these bamboo extracts. Our study suggests the potential use of bamboo as a functional ingredient in cosmetics or other health-related products.