Kyoto Women's University

In exploring the history of interior design in Japan, the styles of residential spaces and offices have not been studied as extensively as those of commercial facilities and public buildings. To fill this gap, a trio of Kansai-based researchers–Professor Emeritus Setsuko Katayama from Kyoto Women’s University, Professor Hitomi Yabe from Tezukayama University, and Dr. Takayuki Nakamura, Head of the Living Space Research Laboratory–are working to bring together their diverse expertise in interior design, architectural history, and industry practice. Each scholar offers a distinct perspective: Yabe contributes as a former professional designer, Nakamura brings insight from the housing and furniture industries, and Katayama offers a historically grounded academic lens. Their research sheds light on how changes in lifestyle, technology, and industry since World War II have shaped Japanese interior design in homes and offices. Western influences, particularly American, grew significantly after the war, not only due to the presence of US troops but also through collaborations with Japanese professionals and the establishment of interior design firms by former US military officers. The urgent need for postwar housing led to the construction of concrete‐structured apartments with modern dining kitchens, which redefined everyday spatial habits. This period also saw the emergence of key movements: the Kanto (Tokyo‐centric) and Kansai (Osaka-centric) styles, and design collectives such as the Osaka based ‘Maison de Création’, which incorporated Bauhaus and other Western philosophies into Japanese interiors. By examining these historical developments through a multidisciplinary lens, the researchers, based in the Kansai region where many of Japan’s interior industry leaders have originated, aim to reconstruct a more comprehensive and human-centered narrative of Japan’s interior design history.

Introduction: No studies have investigated the prognostic effect of skeletal muscle mass and quality and adipose tissue distribution in patients who undergo endoscopic resection (ER) for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Thus, this study aimed to evaluate their association. Methods: We retrospectively collected data from patients who underwent ER for ESCC at our institution between 2005 and 2020. Multivariate Cox analysis was performed to investigate the association of 17 candidate factors, including indices for skeletal muscle mass and quality and adipose tissue distribution assessed with computed tomography (CT) images, with prognosis. Further, we evaluated the association of impaired skeletal muscle, characterized by the combination of low skeletal mass index (SMI) and high intramuscular adipose tissue content (IMAC), with prognosis and early and late mortality. Results: Among 450 patients, 116 (25.8%) died during the median follow-up of 111.6 months. Multivariate analyses revealed low SMI (hazard ratio [HR], 1.65) and high visceral adipose index (HR, 0.48) showed significant association with mortality, in addition to male sex, performance status, Charlson comorbidity index, American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status, and prognostic nutrition index. Conversely, no significant association was revealed in other indices. Impaired skeletal muscle was a risk factor for mortality (HR, 2.87) but not the combination of low SMI and low IMAC. It was significantly associated with late mortality (HR, 4.53) but not with early mortality. Conclusion: Impaired skeletal muscle assessed with CT images was a risk factor for late mortality in patients who underwent ER for ESCC.

ABSTRACTBackgroundWhether adherence to a healthy lifestyle can mitigate genetic risk for renal dysfunction remains unclear.MethodsThis prospective cohort study included 12 680 adults aged ≥20 years, free from chronic kidney disease at baseline, enrolled in the Tohoku Medical Megabank Community-based Cohort study. A healthy lifestyle score—based on normal weight, never smoking, never drinking, regular physical activity, and a low urinary sodium-to-potassium ratio—classified participants into ideal, intermediate, or poor lifestyle groups. A polygenic risk score (PRS) was constructed using estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) data from a previous multi-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis. The primary outcome was renal dysfunction, defined as eGFR <60.0 ml/min/1.73 m2.ResultsAmong the 12 680 adults, 123 participants (0.9%) developed renal dysfunction during a mean follow-up of 4.4 ± 0.8 years. Poor lifestyle was consistently associated with higher risk of renal dysfunction across most PRS categories. Participants with intermediate genetic risk had elevated risk only when also exhibiting an intermediate lifestyle. Formal testing for effect modification by PRS provided modest evidence that the association between high genetic risk and increased risk of renal dysfunction was stronger among individuals with an intermediate lifestyle. Although the addition of the PRS to the model included the C-statistic, this improvement was not statistically significant.ConclusionsMaintaining a healthy lifestyle is associated with lower risk of renal dysfunction, regardless of genetic risk. Combining PRSs with lifestyle information may enhance risk stratification, although further studies are needed to improve predictive accuracy.

Cytokine storm syndrome (CSS), commonly associated with hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH), is a fatal hyperinflammatory syndrome. Differentiating the underlying diseases responsible for CSS is essential for timely therapeutic decisions. This study explored the clinical usefulness of serum cytokine profiling in distinguishing underlying diseases in patients with CSS. Serum samples were collected from 143 adult and pediatric patients with CSS and 22 healthy controls. The cohort included patients with various diagnoses of primary and secondary HLH and Kawasaki disease (KD)-like hyperinflammatory syndromes. Serum levels of 48 cytokines were analyzed in 97 patients using a bead-based multiplex immunoassay (Luminex assay). Serum levels of interferon alpha (IFN-α), interleukin-18 (IL-18), IL-6, CXCL9, and soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor II (sTNF-RII) were measured in 165 participants using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Luminex assay categorized patients with CSS into five clusters based on serum cytokine patterns. ELISA revealed distinct cytokine patterns, wherein patients with histiocytic necrotizing lymphadenitis-associated HLH and systemic lupus erythematosus-associated macrophage activation syndrome (MAS) showed elevated IFN-α; systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis-associated and adult-onset Still's disease-associated MAS, X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein deficiency with HLH, and NLRC4-associated autoinflammatory disorder exhibited higher IL-18 levels. Additionally, KD shock syndrome had higher IL-6 levels than the other groups. CXCL9 was significantly elevated in patients with virus-associated HLH, familial HLH, malignant lymphoma-associated HLH, and KD-MAS. Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children and toxic shock syndrome also showed moderate elevations of CXCL9 and IL-6 levels. Serum cytokine profiling effectively differentiates CSS subtypes, facilitating better diagnosis and personalized treatment strategies based on specific disease backgrounds.

Adiposity rebound (AR) corresponds to the start of the second rise in the body mass index curve during infant growth. Early AR (before age 5) confers increased risk of adiposity and metabolic disorders but is less likely to occur in breastfed infants. Although lipids in breast milk are important in child growth, information is limited regarding which lipids are involved in AR. The object of this study was to explore the association between breast milk lipids and AR status in children. We designed a case-control study of 184 mother-child pairs (AR cases: n = 93; controls: n = 91) included from the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Birth and Three-Generation Cohort Study. Breast milk was collected 1 month postpartum and comprehensive lipid analysis was performed. Partial least square-discriminant analysis was used to explore candidate lipids, and multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate associations with the AR status of children. We detected 667 lipid molecules in 12 lipid classes in breast milk. Partial least square-discriminant analysis revealed the association of fatty acid-hydroxy fatty acid (FAHFA) and cholesterol ester (ChE) with AR status. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that in pairs with exclusive breastfeeding at 1 month postpartum, FAHFA (odds ratio 1.57 [95% confidence interval, 1.06-2.32]) was positively associated with early AR, and ChE (odds ratio 0.55 [95% confidence interval, 0.36-0.86]) was negatively associated. Breast milk lipids (FAHFA, ChE) associated with the AR status of children, indicating the potential to regulate a child's adiposity and possible metabolic disorders in adulthood.

Persons with epilepsy suffer from problems with social adaptation and face numerous social issues, even when the seizures are well-controlled. Facial emotion recognition (FER), one of the key components of social cognition, has been shown to be impaired in persons with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE). To clarify the impairment of neural networks in persons with MTLE, we performed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies of MTLE persons using six dynamic tasks involving FER. We evaluated brain responses to realistic dynamic facial emotional expressions involving six basic emotions (fear, happiness, anger, sadness, disgust and surprise) in nine persons with left MTLE and ten healthy controls (HCs) using fMRI. We noted brain responses to facial emotions in regions related to FER, such as the anterior insular cortex, medial frontal gyrus, superior frontal gyrus and cerebellum by our moving tasks which involved video tasks used to evaluate FER. Persons with left MTLE showed a reduced response in the right calcarine cortex compared to that of HCs. This is the first study to evaluate task-related fMRI on exposure to six basic emotions involving moving tasks in persons with epilepsy. FER deficit in persons with left MTLE may be partially associated with calcarine activity.

Saliva plays a crucial role in digestion, including taste perception, food breakdown, chewing, swallowing, and bolus formation. Saliva is mainly produced by three pairs of major glands: parotid, submandibular, and sublingual glands. To evaluate the effect of each salivary gland on taste preference, we conducted a 48-h two-bottle preference test using mouse models in which the parotid glands (PGs), submandibular glands (SMGs), or sublingual glands (SLGs) were surgically removed. The taste preferences for the five basic tastes of the PG- and SLG-removed mice were similar to those of the control mice. However, in SMG-removed mice, the avoidance of bitter compounds was significantly decreased. These findings indicate that the SMG plays an important role in bitter taste perception among the three major salivary glands. To investigate the reasons for this preference change, we examined the impact of salivary gland removal on the expression of taste-related molecules in the taste buds. No apparent changes were observed in the expression of these molecules after salivary gland removal. When comparing the protein concentration and composition of saliva between the control and salivary gland removal groups, we found that, although the protein concentration did not change significantly, its composition was substantially altered by SMG removal. These results suggest that changes in protein composition in saliva may be one of the factors responsible for the altered bitter preferences observed in the SMG-removed mice.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Using mouse models with surgically removed parotid glands (PGs), submandibular glands (SMGs), or sublingual glands (SLGs), we examined taste preferences. PG- and SLG-removed mice showed no significant changes in preference, but SMG removal notably reduced the avoidance of bitter compounds. Although the salivary protein concentration remained unchanged, its composition was altered by SMG removal, suggesting that these changes may underlie the modified perception of bitter taste.

Bacteriophage T4 gene 32 protein (gp32) preferentially binds to single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) to facilitate DNA replication but shows weak binding to double-stranded DNA (dsDNA). Polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies against gp32 were raised, and an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to evaluate their reactivities against gp32. The reactivity of the monoclonal antibody MGP45 was diminished in the presence of 5ng/mL dsDNA, suggesting a conformational change that reduces epitope availability. Notably, the same concentration of ssDNA had little effect; instead, 500ng/mL ssDNA was required to elicit the same degree of inhibition. A decrease in MGP45 reactivity with gp32 was observed in the presence of NaCl at concentrations less than 100m m under neutral conditions. These changes in antibody reactivity reflect differences in the gp32 conformation, which may underlie its different affinities for ssDNA and dsDNA.

This study investigated the association between nasogastric tube feeding (NGF) and discharge rate to previous residences with oral intake in patients aged 80+ with aspiration pneumonia. A retrospective cohort study included 256 hospitalized patients with aspiration pneumonia from 2012 to 2022, which could not start oral intake within 48 h due to dysphagia. Using 1:2 matched-pair analysis, the association of interest was examined using logistic regression analysis. NGF was associated with a lower discharge rate (odds ratio: 0.15; 95% CI: 0.05-0.46). Patients with NGF had a lower discharge rate to previous residences with oral intake.