Dietary intake modification is important for the treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD); however, little is known about the association between dietary intake of antioxidant vitamins and kidney function based on gender difference. We examined the relationship of dietary intake of antioxidant vitamins with decreased kidney function according to gender in Japanese subjects. This population-based, cross-sectional study included 936 Japanese participants with the age of 40 years or older. A validated brief self-administered diet history questionnaire was used to measure dietary intakes of vitamin E and its four isoforms, vitamin A and vitamin C. Decreased kidney function was defined as estimated glomerular filtration rate <60 ml/min/1·73 m2. A total of 498 (53·2 %) of the study participants were women. Mean age was 62·4 ± 11·3 years. Overall, 157 subjects met the criteria of decreased kidney function. In the fully adjusted model, a high vitamin E intake is inversely associated with decreased kidney function in women (odds ratio, 0·886; 95 % confidence interval, 0·786–0·998), whereas vitamin E intake was not associated with decreased kidney function (odds ratio, 0·931; 95 % confidence interval, 0·811–1·069) in men. No significant association between dietary intake of vitamins A and C and decreased kidney function was observed in women and men. Higher dietary intake of vitamin E was inversely associated with decreased kidney function in middle-aged and older women, and the result may provide insight into the more tailored dietary approaches to prevent CKD.

Sample geometry effects on mechanical strengths of gold micro-cantilevers are evaluated by a micro-bending test. Six micro-cantilevers with the same length of 50 μm are prepared, and the width and the thickness are varied to examine individual effects on the yield stress. The yield stress increases from 428 to 519 MPa when the thickness decreases from 11.1 to 6.0 μm. No obvious dependency is observed when varying the width. The results reveal that the thickness and the width each has a different influence on the yield stresses of micro-cantilevers evaluated by the bending test, which is the sample geometry effect.

In this paper, we formulate and prove a duality for cohomology of curves over perfect fields of positive characteristic with coefficients in Néron models of abelian varieties. This is a global function field version of the author’s previous work on local duality and Grothendieck’s duality conjecture. It generalizes the perfectness of the Cassels–Tate pairing in the finite base field case. The proof uses the local duality mentioned above, Artin–Milne’s global finite flat duality, the nondegeneracy of the height pairing and finiteness of crystalline cohomology. All these ingredients are organized under the formalism of the rational étale site developed earlier.

We have studied a procedure to determine Tight-Binding (TB) parameters automatically, by which the band structure of the crystalline solid can be reproduced so as to be good agreement with that of first-principles molecular dynamics calculation. According to this procedure, we determine TB parameter sets for silicon and diamond accurately, and a fairly good set for their compound SiC.

With AKARI, we have performed a systematic study of interstellar dust grains in various environments of galaxies. In many cases, the IR emission of dust is an important tool to trace star-forming activities in galaxies. However it is much more than just star-formation tracers. AKARI has revealed the detailed properties of dust grains in regions not relevant to star formation as well, some of which are found not to follow our old empirical knowledge. Because of its unique capabilities, such as near- and far-IR spectroscopy, and all-sky coverage, AKARI has provided new knowledge on the processing of carbonaceous grains including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. We present the latest results obtained from our AKARI observations of the ISM in our Galaxy and nearby galaxies.

Many elliptical galaxies possess an appreciable amount of X-ray-emitting hot plasma, providing a harsh interstellar environment for the survival of dust grains and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Despite such a hostile environment, it has been found that a significant fraction of X-ray elliptical galaxies contain a considerable amount of dust, which cannot be explained solely from replenishment by old stars. Some of them even show the presence of PAHs. We present the results of AKARI and Spitzer observations of dust and PAHs in X-ray elliptical galaxies. We investigate their possible origins and discuss the implications of their presence for the evolution of elliptical galaxies.

Stephan's Quintet (SQ, HCG92) is a well studied compact group of galaxies with a disturbed intergalactic medium (IGM). An “intruder” galaxy NGC 7318b is currently colliding with the IGM at a relative velocity of 1000 km s−1, causing a large-scale shock front. We observed SQ with the Far-Infrared Surveyor (FIS) aboard AKARI in four far-infrared (far-IR) bands at 65, 90, 140, and 160μm. The 160μm image clearly shows an additional peak of emission overlying structure extending in the North-South direction along the shock ridge seen in the 140μm band, and in H2 and X-ray emission. Whereas most of the far-IR emission in the shocked region is from cold dust (20 K), the [CII]158μm emission - whose luminosity is comparable to that of the warm H2 gas - can significantly contribute to the single peak emission in the 160μm band. We conclude that the [CII] line emission comes from the warm H2 gas in the shock. Our result represents the first detection of shock-excited [CII] line emission.

We developed a new microscale technique for evaluating the local interface adhesion in a thin film stack and we compared it with a conventional four-point bending technique. Using the microscale technique, the interface adhesion was estimated to be 3.0 J/m2 by comparing experimental results with numerical simulation results for interface crack propagation behavior. The four-point bending technique was applied to the same interface and the interface adhesion was estimated to be 4.4 J/m2 by experiment. However, this value is an overestimate because it includes the plastic deformation of epoxy resin used to fabricate the specimens. By eliminating the additional energy dissipated through plastic deformation of the epoxy resin close to the interface crack tip, the interface adhesion was evaluated to be 3.3 J/m2. This value agrees well with that obtained using the microscale technique.

Visualization of neurotransmission components in living small animals using positron emission tomography (PET) has the potential of contributing to the preclinical development of neuroactive drugs, although it is yet to be examined whether quantitative animal PET data on candidate compounds can be extrapolated to humans. Here, we investigated the comparability of the occupancies of serotonin transporter (5-HTT) by therapeutic agents in rat PET studies with our predetermined data from ex- vivo animal experiments and clinical PET scans. Rats were treated with varying doses of fluvoxamine and a newly developed compound, (2S)-1-[4-(3,4-dichlorophenyl) piperidin-1-yl]-3-[2-(5-methyl-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl)benzo[b]furan-4-yloxy]propan-2-ol monohydrochloride (Wf-516), and underwent PET scans with [11C]3-amino-4-(2-dimethylaminomethyl-phenylsulfanyl)-benzonitrile ([11C]DASB), a selective radioligand for in-vivo quantification of 5-HTT. PET images indicated a reduction of [11C]DASB binding to 5-HTT as a function of the doses and/or plasma concentrations of fluvoxamine and Wf-516. The doses of these drugs at half-maximal effect (15.2 mg/kg and 3.1 mg/kg, respectively), determined that using binding potentials for [11C]DASB, were comparable to those estimated by our previous ex-vivo measurements in rats (4.5 mg/kg and 1.1 mg/kg, respectively), as there was only a 3-fold difference between these results. Moreover, the plasma concentration of fluvoxamine needed for 50% occupancy of central 5-HTT (6.1 ng/ml) was almost equivalent to the value determined in human PET studies (4.6 ng/ml). These findings support the view that the conjunctive use of small-animal PET and [11C]DASB facilitates a quantitative comparison of in-development drugs targeting 5-HTT with established inhibitors and a predictive estimation of their plasma concentrations exerting therapeutic effects in humans.

The effectiveness and safety of yokukansan (TJ-54), a traditional Japanese medicine (kampo) for the treatment of the behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD), were evaluated in 106 patients diagnosed as having Alzheimer's disease (AD) (including mixed-type dementia) or dementia with Lewy bodies. Patients were randomly assigned to group A (TJ-54 treatment in period I and no treatment in period II; each period lasting 4 wk) or group B (no treatment in period I and TJ-54 treatment in period II). BPSD and cognitive functions were evaluated using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), respectively. Activities of daily living (ADL) were evaluated using Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) in outpatients and the Barthel Index in in-patients. For the safety evaluation, adverse events were investigated. Significant improvements in mean total NPI score associated with TJ-54 treatment were observed in both periods (Wilcoxon test, p=0.040 in period I and p=0.048 in period II). The mean NPI scores significantly improved during TJ-54 treatment in groups A and B (p=0.002 and p=0.007, respectively) but not during periods of no treatment. Among the NPI subscales, significant improvements were observed in delusions, hallucinations, agitation/aggression, depression, anxiety, and irritability/lability. The effects of TJ-54 persisted for 1 month without any psychological withdrawal symptoms in group A. TJ-54 did not show any effect on either cognitive function or ADL. No serious adverse reactions were observed. The present study suggests that TJ-54 is an effective and well-tolerated treatment for patients with BPSD.

We have observed 18 nearby dusty elliptical galaxies in the near- to far-infrared with Spitzer and AKARI. We have found that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are present in 14 out of the 18 elliptical galaxies.