Recent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on the dietary habits of the Japanese population have shown that an effect rs671 allele was inversely associated with fish consumption, whereas it was directly associated with coffee consumption. Although meat is a major source of protein and fat in the diet, whether genetic factors that influence meat-eating habits in healthy populations are unknown. This study aimed to conduct a GWAS to find genetic variations that affect meat consumption in a Japanese population. We analysed GWAS data using 14 076 participants from the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort (J-MICC) study. We used a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire to estimate food intake that was validated previously. Association of the imputed variants with total meat consumption per 1000 kcal energy was performed by linear regression analysis with adjustments for age, sex, and principal component analysis components 1–10. We found that no genetic variant, including rs671, was associated with meat consumption. The previously reported single nucleotide polymorphisms that were associated with meat consumption in samples of European ancestry could not be replicated in our J-MICC data. In conclusion, significant genetic factors that affect meat consumption were not observed in a Japanese population.

We summarize the findings from an interlaboratory study conducted between ten international research groups and investigate the use of the commonly used maximum separation distance and local concentration thresholding methods for solute clustering quantification. The study objectives are: to bring clarity to the range of applicability of the methods; identify existing and/or needed modifications; and interpretation of past published data. Participants collected experimental data from a proton-irradiated 304 stainless steel and analyzed Cu-rich and Ni–Si rich clusters. The datasets were also analyzed by one researcher to clarify variability originating from different operators. The Cu distribution fulfills the ideal requirements of the maximum separation method (MSM), namely a dilute matrix Cu concentration and concentrated Cu clusters. This enabled a relatively tight distribution of the cluster number density among the participants. By contrast, the group analysis of the Ni–Si rich clusters by the MSM was complicated by a high Ni matrix concentration and by the presence of Si-decorated dislocations, leading to larger variability among researchers. While local concentration filtering could, in principle, tighten the results, the cluster identification step inevitably maintained a high scatter. Recommendations regarding reporting, selection of analysis method, and expected variability when interpreting published data are discussed.

Although higher circulating levels of oestrogen are related to postmenopausal breast cancer risk, limited information is available regarding effects of diet on endogenous oestrogen. Thus, we examined associations between macronutrient intakes and serum oestrogen with consideration of polymorphisms in oestrogen-metabolising genes. In this cross-sectional study, 784 naturally menopaused Japanese women aged 47–69 years were selected from participants of the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort Study. We documented dietary intakes, measured serum concentrations of oestrone (E1) and oestradiol (E2) and genotyped polymorphisms in oestrogen-metabolising CYP19A1 (rs4441215 and rs936306) and HSD17B1 (rs605059) genes. Trends and interactions were examined using linear regression models. In addition, we calculated the ratios of the oestrogen concentrations of the second to the highest quartiles (Q2–Q4) of dietary intake to those of the lowest quartiles (Q1). After adjustment for potential confounders, E2 was significantly associated with intake of carbohydrate and noodles; ratios of Q4 v. Q1 were 1·15 (95 % CI 1·04, 1·28) and 1·15 (95 % CI 1·04, 1·26), respectively. In contrast, E2 levels were inversely associated with intake of total energy, SFA and n-3 highly unsaturated fatty acids (n-3 HUFA); ratios of Q4 v. Q1 were 0·90 (95 % CI 0·82, 0·99), 0·89 (95 % CI 0·81, 0·98) and 0·91 (95 % CI 0·83, 1·00), respectively. In stratified analysis by polymorphisms, the rs605059 genotype of HSD17B1 significantly modified associations of E2 with intake of n-3 HUFA and fish; the associations were limited to those with the CC genotype. Macronutrient intakes were associated with serum E2 level, and these associations may be modified by HSD17B1 polymorphism in postmenopausal women.

The traditional archaeological chronology in the Japanese Islands during the Jomon period was essentially based on the relative age given to cord-impressed patterns marked on pottery, as well as the shape of the pottery and the thickness of the cultural layers that were excavated. We aimed to correlate the classical archaeological chronology with calibrated radiocarbon dates, to posit a new chronology for the Jomon period in northeastern Japan. We calibrated 80 accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14C dates from NE Japan and reconstructed a chronological timetable for Hokkaido and the Tohoku District. We collected 43 samples from 5 shellmounds and 2 archaeological sites on Hokkaido Island and 4 shellmounds in the Tohoku District in order to determine the calibrated age of their sites. ΔR values used on Hokkaido Island and the Tohoku District were between 282 and –158 yr and between ±0 and –40 yr, respectively. The large ΔR value for the eastern part of Hokkaido Island indicates the influence of the Oyashio Current, while an anomalous ΔR value was obtained from northern Hokkaido Island. These figures show larger apparent ΔR values than those from southwest Japan (Nakamura et al. 2007). The calibrated Jomon period in the investigated area was from 2000 to 200 yr younger than the previous chronology. Calibrated 14C ages of the shellmounds investigated ranged between ∼6000 and 3000 yr, correlating to the Early Jomon and Final Jomon periods as indicated by the former archaeological chronology of Honshu Island.

Let R be a commutative Noetherian ring. Let [Pscr ](R) (respectively, [Iscr ](R)) be the category of all finite R-modules of finite projective (respectively, injective) dimension. Sharp [9] constructed a category equivalence between [Iscr ](R) and [Pscr ](R) for certain Cohen–Macaulay local rings R. Thus many properties about finite modules of finite projective dimension can be connected with those of finite injective dimension through this equivalence.

Let R be a commutative Noetherian ring. Let [Pscr ](R) (respectively, [Iscr ](R)) be the category of all finite R-modules of finite projective (respectively, injective) dimension. Sharp [9] constructed a category equivalence between [Iscr ](R) and [Pscr ](R) for certain Cohen–Macaulay local rings R. Thus many properties about finite modules of finite projective dimension can be connected with those of finite injective dimension through this equivalence.

This article presents an HPSG parser using a technique called CFG filtering. The parser predicts possible parse trees using a CFG generated automatically from a given HPSG-based grammar. Parsing costs are reduced because unification is applied only to the predicted parse trees. In other words, parsing is speeded up because the parser avoids unnecessary unification by eliminating impossible parse trees. We show the method for generating a CFG from an HPSG-based grammar and outline a parsing scheme using the CFG. The effectiveness of the parsing scheme is shown through experimental results obtained by using several HPSG-based grammars, including the LinGO grammar.