Toyo University

ABSTRACT Rising ambient temperatures increase health risks for outdoor workers; however, exertional heat exhaustion (EHE) among golf course workers remains underexplored. This study aimed to identify organizational, environmental, and personal factors associated with EHE-related symptoms. We conducted a retrospective case–control study of outdoor workers at 491 golf clubs in the Kanto region of Japan during the summer of 2025. Multivariate logistic regression identified independent risk and protective factors among 388 respondents, of whom 63.7% reported symptoms. Significant risk factors included high work intensity (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 4.40; p = 0.006), high humidity (AOR: 2.94; p = 0.012), and insufficient airflow (AOR: 2.03; p = 0.004). Protective factors included employer-provided heat education (AOR: 0.56; p = 0.025), sleep duration ≥6 h (AOR: 0.49; p = 0.001), and awareness of heat countermeasures (AOR: 0.42; p = 0.019). Scheduled breaks (AOR: 0.33; p = 0.008) and cooled break areas (AOR: 0.23; p < 0.001) were strongly associated with reduced risk, whereas shaded areas showed no significant association. Sunlight-shielding clothing (AOR: 0.52; p = 0.001) and cooling vests (AOR: 0.55; p = 0.018) were also protective. Effective risk reduction requires an integrated approach that combines workload moderation with functional apparel. This study provides the first quantitative evidence that organizational measures such as scheduled breaks and cooled break areas serve as effective protective factors in this occupational setting. Because key determinants often lie beyond individual control, proactive employer engagement and structural support are essential for ensuring worker safety.

Following the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident, radioactive cesium was released into the environment, prompting intensified efforts to identify cesium-resistant microorganisms. During these studies, we isolated a cesium-resistant Escherichia coli strain, designated ZX-1, which exhibits remarkable tolerance to cesium concentrations exceeding 700 mM. As no prior reports of cesium-resistant E. coli exist, this finding suggests the presence of a previously unrecognized resistance mechanism. This study aims to elucidate the molecular basis of cesium resistance in ZX-1. RNA-seq analysis comparing ZX-1 with its parental strain, the commercial E. coli Mach1™, revealed constitutive upregulation of the guanidinium exporter gene gdx in ZX-1. Reanalysis of the whole-genome sequence identified a 20-bp deletion upstream of the gdx open reading frame, likely disrupting formation of the guanidinium riboswitch P2 loop and resulting in constitutive gdx expression. To evaluate gdx function, the gene was cloned into the expression vector pBAD24 and expressed in E. coli. The resulting gdx-expressing strain exhibited even greater cesium resistance than ZX-1. Functional assays demonstrated that this strain mediates not only guanidinium/H⁺ antiport activity but also Cs⁺/H⁺ antiport activity. Cesium resistance was further enhanced in the presence of guanidinium, consistent with riboswitch-mediated induction of gdx. Collectively, these findings provide evidence for a novel cesium efflux mechanism in E. coli and uncover an unexpected role of the guanidinium exporter Gdx in cesium export. These insights may facilitate the discovery of additional cesium-resistant microorganisms and broaden the potential for future applications.

The cold pressor test (CPT) is a clinical stress test commonly used to evoke acute pressor and respiratory responses, accompanied by increased sympathetic nerve activity. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) is well-preserved during CPT despite elevated arterial blood pressure (ABP), but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. We hypothesized that dynamic cerebral autoregulation (dCA) contributes to this CBF preservation, preventing overperfusion under stress-induced hypertension. Thirty-seven healthy volunteers performed CPT for 3 min, while ABP, middle cerebral artery mean velocity (MCA Vmean), and end-tidal carbon dioxide partial pressure (PETCO2) were measured. CPT significantly increased ABP (p < 0.001) and decreased PETCO2 (p = 0.032), whereas MCA Vmean remained unchanged (p = 0.976), resulting in a significant decrease in cerebrovascular conductance index (CVCi) (p < 0.001). The CPT-induced relative change in CVCi was significantly associated with the low-frequency (LF) phase (p < 0.001). Notably, the CPT-induced decrease in PETCO2 was significantly associated with the decreases in MCA Vmean (p < 0.001) and in %CVCi (p = 0.009). These findings suggest that dynamic cerebral autoregulation, as well as the respiratory response (change in PETCO2), plays a key role in maintaining CBF during CPT-induced elevations in ABP. Furthermore, individual differences in dCA and respiratory responses may account for variability in cerebrovascular responses to acute pressor stimuli.

Voter turnout has been decreasing, and news organizations need to attract voters' interest in elections and encourage them to vote. However, election coverage is not only constrained by law and fairness but also suffers from a shortage of news producers and individualization. Additionally, it remains unclear how voters evaluate information from election coverage. In this paper, we propose a framework that addresses these issues and bridges the gap between election coverage and voters. We demonstrate that data-driven extraction of "unexpected" reasons for winning elections can address the problem of a shortage of news producers and individualization. Furthermore, we show that these reasons effectively engage voters' interest and influence candidate selection, thereby addressing the issue of how voters evaluate such information. By modeling the process by which voters evaluate this information and validating the model, we provide guidelines for news organizations to make decisions on data-driven information for election coverage. Specifically, to attract voters' interest and assist them in selecting candidates, it is important to consider the relationship between the alignment of voters' knowledge and unexpectedness and to explain the information.

Maintaining sustainable mental health is an increasing societal challenge in Japan, where psychological distress and sleep problems have become major public health concerns. This study examined how three culturally grounded dimensions of self-construal-Subjective Self (SS), Objective Self (OS), and Autonomous Self (AS)-relate to both positive and negative indicators of psychological adjustment among Japanese adults. This study aimed to examine whether internally guided forms of self-regulation (SS and AS) function as psychological resources, whereas externally guided self-regulation (OS) operates as a potential vulnerability factor in a culturally tight social context. By simultaneously examining multiple indicators of adjustment, this research clarifies how culturally shared self-regulatory patterns are linked to distress and sleep difficulties that affect large segments of the population. From a public health perspective, the findings highlight socially reinforced risk and protective patterns that can inform population-level prevention and mental health promotion in settings such as schools, workplaces, and communities, rather than relying solely on individual clinical intervention. These results underscore the importance of integrating cultural psychology into public health frameworks aimed at promoting sustainable mental health in contemporary and increasingly diverse social environments.

Tendons and ligaments are crucial connective tissues linking bones and muscles, yet achieving full functional recovery after injury remains challenging. We investigated the characteristics of tendon stem/progenitor cells (TSPCs) by focusing on the declining tendon repair capacity with growth. Using single-cell RNA sequencing on Achilles tendon cells from 2- and 6-week-old mice, we identified Cd55 and Cd248 as novel surface antigen markers for TSPCs. Combining single-cell RNA sequencing with single-nucleus RNA and ATAC sequencing analyses revealed that Cd55- and Cd248 -positive fractions in tendon tissue represent TSPCs, as confirmed by their expression of established TSPC markers, with this population decreasing at 6 weeks. We also identified candidate upstream transcription factors regulating these fractions. Functional analyses of isolated CD55/CD248-positive cells demonstrated high clonogenic potential and tendon differentiation capacity, forming functional tendon-like tissue in vitro. This study establishes CD55 and CD248 as novel TSPC surface antigens, potentially advancing tendon regenerative medicine and contributing to the development of new treatment strategies for tendon and ligament injuries.

Under lighting using RGB(red, green and blue) color LEDs, retina images become sharper. Under lighting light with the same illuminance and chromaticity, the near point distance, which is extended by presbyopia was reduced by 12%. Also visual acuity was improved by 11%. However, further improvements are desired to commercialize RGB color LED lighting. The sharpness of the boundaries of retinal images is thought to be due to the chromatic aberration of each color of light. The near point distance and visual acuity were thought that they could be further improved by lengthening the dominant wavelength of the red LED and shortening the dominant wavelength of the blue LED. Therefore, the authors analyzed chromatic aberration and manufactured a lighting, in which the dominant wavelength of the red LED was lengthened to 660nm from 625nm, and the dominant wavelength of the blue LED was shortened to 425nm from 470nm, as long as the luminous efficiency can be maintained. We repeated measure the near point distance and visual acuity using the manufactured lighting. As a result, the near point distance was shortened by 9% to 13% and visual acuity was improved by 11% to 22%.

Cellular senescence contributes to aging and disease, and senolytic drugs that selectively eliminate senescent cells hold therapeutic promise. Although over 20 candidates have been reported, their relative efficacies remain unclear. Here we systematically compared 21 senolytic agents using a senolytic specificity index, identifying the Bcl-2 inhibitor ABT263 and the BET inhibitor ARV825 as most effective senolytics across fibroblast and epithelial senescence models. However, even upon extended treatment with these most potent senolytics, a proportion of senescent cells remained viable. We found that senolytic resistance was driven by maintenance of mitochondrial integrity through V-ATPase-mediated clearance of damaged mitochondria. Imposing mitochondrial stress via metabolic workload enhanced the senolytic efficacies of ABT263 and ARV825 in vitro, and in mouse models, ketogenic diet adoption or SGLT2 inhibition similarly potentiated ABT263-induced and ARV825-induced senolysis, reducing metastasis and tumor growth. These findings suggest that mitochondrial quality control is a key determinant of resistance to ABT263-induced and ARV825-induced senolysis, providing a possible framework for rational combination senotherapies.

This paper develops a mechanism of PF-deletion within a probe–goal system that incorporates C-to-T feature inheritance. I propose that the phase head C enters the derivation not only with an edge feature (EF) and agree (φ-)features but also with a delete-feature, which licenses the deletion of an element at PF (PF-deletion). When C-to-T feature inheritance applies, the target of PF-deletion is determined through φ-probing from T; when it does not, it is determined through EF-probing from C. By linking PF-deletion to phase-internal probing, this approach dispenses with pro, traditionally assumed to exist in the lexicon of null subject languages such as Italian, as a theoretical primitive. Crucially, it offers a unified account of the distribution of null arguments in both Italian (a pro-drop language) and German (a topic-drop language), two language types that have traditionally resisted unified analysis under the principles-and-parameters approach. In addition to the synchronic study of the distribution of null arguments, I further argue that diachronic evidence from old languages such as Old French and Old English lends additional support to the proposal, and conclude that whether C-to-T inheritance applies or not is a crucial factor in explaining crosslinguistic variation in null argument phenomena.