We present ALMA detection of the [O iii] 88 μm line and 850 μm dust continuum emission in a Y-dropout Lyman break galaxy, MACS0416_Y1. The [O iii] detection confirms the object with a spectroscopic redshift to be z = 8.3118±0.0003. The 850 μm continuum intensity (0.14 mJy) implies a large dust mass on the order of 4×106M⊙. The ultraviolet-to-far infrared spectral energy distribution modeling, where the [O iii] emissivity model is incorporated, suggests the presence of a young (τage ≍ 4 Myr), star-forming (SFR ≍ 60M⊙yr−1), and moderately metal-polluted (Z ≍ 0.2Z⊙) stellar component with a stellar mass of 3 × 108M⊙. An analytic dust mass evolution model with a single episode of star formation does not reproduce the metallicity and dust mass in ≍ 4 Myr, suggesting an underlying evolved stellar component as the origin of the dust mass.

An ion-exchange adduct of saponite with tetra-n-decylammonium cation ((n-decyl)4N+) was prepared and dispersed in chloroform. The material was spread on a water surface to form a thin film at the air-water interface. From the measurements of surface pressure vs. area, it was concluded that the film consisted of the very thin layer which was a mixture of single and double layers of saponite adduct. A clay-modified electrode was prepared by depositing the film on a glassy carbon substrate using the Langmuir-Blodgett method. When the electrode was soaked in an aqueous solution of [Fe(phen)3](ClO4)2 (phen = 1,10-phenanthroline), (n-decyl)4N+ cations were replaced by [Fe(phen)3]2+ ions from solution. This process was followed by measuring the cyclic voltammogram.

An outbreak of enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157 occurred in multiple prefectures of Japan in November 2009. We conducted two case–control studies with trace-back and trace-forward investigations to determine the source. The case definition was met by 21 individuals; 14 (66.7%) were hospitalised, but no haemolytic uraemic syndrome, acute encephalopathy or deaths occurred. Median age was 23 (range 12–48) years and 14 cases were male (66.7%). No significant associations with food were found in a case–control study by local public health centres, but our matched case–control study using Internet surveys found that beef hanging tender (or hanger steak), derived from the diaphragm of the cattle, was significantly associated with illness (odds ratio = 15.77; 95% confidence interval, 2.00–124.11). Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis analysis of isolates from patients and the suspected food showed five different patterns: two in faecal and food samples, and another three in patient faecal samples only, although there were epidemiological links to the meat consumed at the restaurants. Trace-back investigation implicated a common food processing company from outside Japan. Examination of the logistics of the meat processing company suggested that contamination did not occur in Japan. We concluded that the source of the outbreak was imported hanging tender. This investigation revealed that Internet surveys could be useful for outbreak investigations.

A large outbreak of enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) O111 and O157 occurred in Japan in April 2011. We conducted an unmatched case-control study and trace-back investigation to determine the source of EHEC O111 infection and risk factors for severe complications. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis was performed to help define cases. A total of 86 individuals met the case definition. Of these, 40% experienced haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), 24% acute encephalopathy, and 6% died. Illness was significantly associated with eating the raw beef dish yukhoe (odds ratio 19·64, 95% confidence interval 7·03–54·83), the likely food vehicle. EHEC O111 and its closely related stx-negative variants were found in the beef. HUS occurred most frequently in individuals aged 5–9 years, and this age group was significantly associated with acute encephalopathy. The prevalence of HUS and acute encephalopathy was higher than in previous non-O157-related outbreaks, indicating a high risk of severe complications.

The prevalence and epidemiological traits of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections in high-risk populations (HRPs) remained unclarified in Japan. We determined the prevalence of HIV, HBV and Treponema pallidum (TP) and the viral genotypes in HRPs who attended primary sexually transmitted infection (STI) clinics in Osaka province during 2006–2011. Of 7898 specimens, 133 (1·7%) were HIV positive, which was significantly higher than the figures reported by Japanese Red Cross (0·0019%) and public health centres (0·27%) in Japan. The frequency of HIV-1 subtype B was 88·7%, followed by CRF01_AE (2·3%) and C (0·8%), which were almost identical to the national trend. HBV seroprevalence was surprisingly high in the HIV-positive group (63·2%), which was significantly higher than that in the HIV-negative group (25·6%). By contrast, there was no statistical correlation between HIV and TP infection. Interestingly, the distinct HBV genotypes Ae and G were prevalent in the HIV-positive population (60·0% and 20·0%, respectively), although both were rarely detected during nationwide surveillance. The transmission of HIV and HBV appeared to occur largely within a closed community early in life. Of note, about one-quarter of HIV-positive cases would have remained untested if health professionals had not motivated individuals to undergo HIV testing. This is the first evidence-based assessment of HIV positivity and HIV/HBV co-infection in HRPs at primary STIs in Japan and the effect of the involvement of health professionals in the diagnosis of HIV infections in asymptomatic carriers. The genotyping of HBV provided valuable information for understanding HIV epidemical traits.

Chemical properties of AGNs and their redshift evolution are of interest to understand the star-formation history of AGN host galaxies and the co-evolution between galaxies and supermassive black holes (SMBHs). One important observational clue on this issue is a tight correlation between the AGN luminosity and the metallicity of the broad-line region. Surprisingly this relation shows no redshift evolution, even up to z ~ 6. This correlation is attributable mainly to the positive correlation between metallicity and SMBH mass, rather than to the relation between metallicity and Eddington ratio. A significant positive correlation between the metallicity and the AGN luminosity is also seen in narrow-line regions, not only in broad-line regions. Possible implications of these results on the galaxy–SMBH co-evolution are briefly mentioned.

We investigate the metallicity of the narrow line regions (NLRs) of high-z radio galaxies (HzRGs), using new deep optical spectra of 9 HzRGs obtained with FORS2 on VLT and data from the literature. To estimate the metallicity of NLRs we focus on the Civ/Heii and Ciii]/Civ flux ratios. Based on comparison between the observed emission-line flux ratios and the prediction of our photoionization model calculations, we find no significant metallicity evolution in NLRs of HzRGs, up to z ~ 4. We discuss the possibility that massive galaxies had almost completed the major epoch of the star formation in the very high-z universe (z > 5).

MecA, a structural gene located on the chromosome of Staphylococcus aureus, characterizes methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), and femA and femB(fem) genes encode proteins which influence the level of methicillin resistance of S. aureus. In order to examine effectiveness of detecting mecA and fem genes in identification of MRSA, the presence of these genes in 237 clinically isolated strains of staphylococci was investigated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). An amplified mecA DNA fragment of 533 base pairs (bp) was detected in 100% of oxacillin-resistant S. aureus, in 16·7 % of oxacillin-sensitive S. aureus, in 81·5% of S. epidermidis, and in 58·3% of other coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS). While the PCR product of femA (509 bp) or femB (651 bp) was obtained from almost all the S. aureus strains except for five oxacillin-resistant strains (2·5%), neither of these genes were detected in CNS. Therefore, the detection of femA and femB together with mecA by PCR was considered to be a more reliable indicator to identify MRSA by differentiating it from mecA-positive CNS than single detection of mecA.

Low-affinity penicillin-binding protein PBP-2a encoded by mecA is closely related to methicillin resistance in staphylococci, and expression of PBP-2a is controlled by regulator elements encoded by mecRl and mecI which are located adjacent to mecA on the chromosome. Deletion or mutation which occurred in mec regulator gene is considered to be associated with constitutive production of PBP-2a. The distribution of the mec regulator genes in 176 strains of Staphylococcus aureus and 33 strains of S. epidermidis isolated from a single hospital was studied by polymerase chain reaction amplification. Most clinical isolates of methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) (94.3 %) and S. epidermidis (MRSE) (83.9 %) possessed both mecI and mecR1 genes (type I), whereas no mec regulator genes were detected in mecA-negative isolates. In contrast, 7 MRSA and 5 MRSE isolates were found to have incomplete regulator genes, and they were classified into three groups; strains which lacked only mecI gene (type II), strains which lacked mecIand 3'-end of mecR1 gene (type III), and strains which lacked both regulator genes (type IV). Analysis of mecI gene from all the strains having mecI by restriction fragment length polymorphism after Mse I digestion indicated that three MRSA strains possessed one of the known point mutations identified previously. These findings indicated the predominance of a single type of MRSA possessing both mecI and mecR1 in the study period and also suggested a high genomic diversity in mec regulator region of staphylococci.

A molecular typing method for Staphylococcus aureus based on coagulase gene polymorphisms (coagulase gene typing) was evaluated by examining a total of 240 isolates which comprised 210 methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and 30 methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) collected from a single hospital. By Alul restriction enzyme digestion of the PCR-amplified 3′-end region of the coagulase gene including 81-bp repeated units, the MRSA and MSSA isolates examined were divided into 6 and 12 restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) patterns, respectively, whereas five patterns were commonly detected in MRSA and MSSA. MRSA isolates that showed a particular RFLP pattern were considered to be predominant in the hospital. Coagulase typing with type-specific antisera was also performed for all S. aureus isolates for comparison. Coagulase types II and VII were most frequently detected and included isolates with four and five different AluI RFLP patterns, respectively, whereas each of the other coagulase types corresponded to a single RFLP pattern. These results indicated that RFLP typing was more discriminatory than serological typing, for typing S. aureus and demonstrated its utility in epidemiologic investigation of S. aureus infection in hospitals.

The use of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for identifying serotypes of human and bovine rotaviruses was examined. In the identification of 115 human rotavirus samples in stools, results with PCR showed excellent agreement with results of serotyping by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using serotype-specific monoclonal antibodies. Furthermore, the PCR showed a much higher sensitivity (93%) than the ELISA test (82·6%). The PCR method could also be applied for identifying the serotype of bovine rotaviruses.

A total of 241 group A rotavirus-positive stool samples collected from diarrhoeic patients in Thailand between July 1988 and June 1991 were characterized for their serotypes by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using serotype-specific monoclonal antibodies and by a polymerase chain reaction (PCR). In July 1988–June 1989, serotype 1 was the most prevalent (63·4%), followed by serotype 4 (11·0%) and serotype 2 (8·5%). In July 1989–June 1990, 59·8% were serotype 1, 24·3% were serotype 2, and 6·1 % were serotype 3. In contrast, in July 1990–June 1991, serotype 3 was detected in the highest frequency (40·5%), 29·9% were serotype 1, and 27·3% were serotype 2. Thus, a distinct yearly change of serotype distribution of rotavirus in Thailand was observed in the three consecutive years. In particular, it was of note that the prevalence of serotype 3 greatly increased, in contrast to the previous studies in which almost no serotype 3 rotaviruses were detected in the years 1983–8 in Thailand.

Dome Fuji is potentially one of the best astronomical sites in Antarctic plateau. We have a plan to build a 2-m class infrared telescope at Dome Fuji, and have been evaluating the site since the 2006/2007 Antarctic summer. We present the outline of a 2-m class telescope project and some results of our SODAR measurements.

The Japanese quarantine system monitors incoming passengers to detect imported pathogens at international airports. At one airport, we found that 74% of 13315 travellers returning with diarrhoea had visited only one country before entering Japan. On the basis of our results, we hypothesized that the international distribution and potential source of bacterial strains could be inferred by analysing strains isolated from travellers returning to Japan. In order to demonstrate the potential for this system, we randomly selected five Shigella sonnei strains and examined their restriction fragment length polymorphism patterns. One set of strains appeared to be closely related, while three sets, isolated from travellers who visited different countries were possibly related. These results suggest that international distributions and potential sources of S. sonnei may be inferred by monitoring isolates from passengers arriving at a Japanese quarantine station.

Based on our previous work about a co-evolution of massive black holes (MBH) and their host spheroids, we estimate the cosmic star formation history associated with AGN accretion by ROSAT X-ray All sky surveys. We show: 1) the total amount of star formation associated with MBH growth is at least half of the net star formation at high redshift, which probably totally missed by the current UV/optical deep surveys; 2) the FIR emission from the dust heated by star formation on-going during the MBH growth could be a significant energy source for SCUBA populations; 3)the peak redshift of the massive spheroid formation in this case is around 1.5, not necessary to be at much higher redshift.To search for other articles by the author(s) go to: http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abstract_service.html

From a long-term study of IR mergers/QSOs (at low redshift), we report detailed spectroscopic evidences for outflow (OF)and starburst features. We found extreme velocity OF (EVOF) in IRAS 01003-2238, 11119+3257, 13218+0552, 14394+5332, 15130-1958 and 15462-0450. The EVOF were detected mainly in objects with strong starburst plus obscured IR QSOs. Meanwhile, the low velocity OF components were detected in objects with starburst and LINER processes. HST images of IR+BAL+Fe II QSOs show in practically all of these objects “arc or shell” features probably associated to galactic-winds. In addition, results from a study of two-dimensional (2D) fibre spectroscopy of IR mergers/QSOs with galactic winds are presented. Comparing our data base for IR mergers/QSOs with two sample of nearby mergers we found in both samples a high proportion (75 per cent) of IR mergers with galactic winds.

From a very deep imaging and spectroscopic survey of Lyα emitters (LAEs) at z=5.7 we present the results of a study of sample of 20 LAEs candidates. Two of these objects have been already confirmed as LAE at z = 5.7. We detected in one of these LAE (at z=5.687), spectral features probably associated with the more distant galactic wind observed to date.To search for other articles by the author(s) go to: http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abstract_service.html