Antimicrobial-product package inserts and insufficient staffing impede routine carbapenem monitoring in the inpatient setting in Japan. The collaboration between antimicrobial stewardship teams and clinical pharmacists was associated with a sustained improvement in carbapenem dosing optimization. Our findings could be of use to countries with inadequate monitoring of carbapenem antimicrobial use.

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic disease characterised by repeated relapses and remissions and a high recurrence rate even after symptom resolution. The primary method for IBD diagnosis is endoscopy; however, this method is expensive, invasive, and cumbersome to use serially. Therefore, more convenient and non-invasive methods for IBD diagnosis are needed. In this study, we aimed to identify biological gas markers for the development of gut inflammation. Using dextran sulphate sodium (DSS)-induced colitis mouse models, five biological gases were analysed to identify predictive markers for the development of gut inflammation. Additionally, the correlation between the changes in gas composition, gut microbiota, and inflammatory markers was assessed. The hydrogen (H2) level was found to be negatively correlated with the level of lipocalin-2 (LCN2), a gut inflammation biomarker, and weight loss due to DSS-induced colitis. Furthermore, gut microbes belonging to the Rikenellaceae and Akkermansiaceae families were positively correlated with LCN2 levels and weight loss, whereas Tannerellaceae abundance was negatively correlated with LCN2 level and weight loss and positively correlated with H2 levels. This study provides new insights for IBD diagnosis; the H2 levels in biological gases are a potential biomarker for intestinal inflammation, and specific gut microbes are associated with H2 level changes.

We report on a direct comparison of VLBI maser data and ALMA thermal-emission data for the high-mass protostar G353.273+0.641. We detected a gravitationally-unstable disk by dust and a high-velocity jet traced by a thermal CO line by ALMA long-baselines (LB). 6.7 GHz CH3OH masers trace infalling streamlines inside the disk. The innermost maser ring indicates another compact accretion disk of 30 au. Such a nested system could be caused by angular momentum transfer by the spiral arms. 22 GHz H2O masers trace the jet-accelerating region, which are directly connecting the CO jet and the protostar. The recurrent maser flares imply episodic jet ejections per 1–2 yr, while typical separation of CO knots indicates a variation of outflow rate per 100 yr. Our study demonstrates that VLBI maser observations are still a powerful tool to explore detailed structures nearby high-mass protostars by combining ALMA LB.

Differences in individual eating habits may be influenced by genetic factors, in addition to cultural, social or environmental factors. Previous studies suggested that genetic variants within sweet taste receptor genes family were associated with sweet taste perception and the intake of sweet foods. The aim of this study was to conduct a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to find genetic variations that affect confection consumption in a Japanese population. We analysed GWAS data on confection consumption using 14 073 participants from the Japan Multi-Institutional Collaborative Cohort study. We used a semi-quantitative FFQ to estimate food intake that was validated previously. Association of the imputed variants with confection consumption was performed by linear regression analysis with adjustments for age, sex, total energy intake and principal component analysis components 1–3. Furthermore, the analysis was repeated adjusting for alcohol intake (g/d) in addition to the above-described variables. We found 418 SNP located in 12q24 that were associated with confection consumption. SNP with the ten lowest P-values were located on nine genes including at the BRAP, ACAD10 and aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 regions on 12q24.12-13. After adjustment for alcohol intake, no variant was associated with confections intake with genome-wide significance. In conclusion, we found a significant number of SNP located on 12q24 genes that were associated with confections intake before adjustment for alcohol intake. However, all of them lost statistical significance after adjustment for alcohol intake.

It is generally accepted that oceanic plate subduction has occurred along the eastern margin of Asia since about 500 Ma ago. Therefore, the Japanese Islands have a >500 Ma history of oceanic plate subduction in their geological records. In this paper, the accretionary history of the Japanese Islands is divided into six main stages based on the mode and nature of tectonic events and the temporal gaps in the development of accretionary processes. In the first stage, oceanic plate subduction and accretion started along the margin of Gondwana. After detachment of the North and South China blocks in Devonian time, accretionary complexes developed along island arcs offshore of the South and North China blocks. After the formation of back arc basins such as the Japan Sea, accretionary processes occurred only along the limited convergent margin, e.g. Nankai Trough. Detrital zircons of sandstones revealed the accretionary history of Japan. An evaluation of a comprehensive dataset on detrital zircon populations shows that the observed temporal gaps in the development of the Japanese accretionary complexes were closely related to the intensity of igneous activity in their provenance regions. Age distributions of detrital zircons in the accretionary complexes of Japan change before and after the Middle Triassic period, when the collision of the South and North China blocks occurred.

We aimed to clarify the effect of low-carbohydrate diet (LCD) on renal function in overweight and obese individuals without chronic kidney disease (CKD). Literature searches were performed using EMBASE, MEDLINE and Cochrane Library until December 2015. We selected articles that reported human studies from their inception until December 2015 in English using the following searching terms: ‘Low carbohydrate diet’ AND (‘Clinical trial’ OR ‘Clinical study’ OR ‘Clinical investigation’ OR ‘Observational study’ OR ‘Cohort study’). We compared the effects of LCD on renal function, defined as change in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), assessed in randomised-controlled trials. We calculated the mean change in eGFR and the mean change in standard deviations by eGFR or creatinine clearance, and compared the mean change in eGFR and standard deviations in LCD with those in the control diet using fixed-effects models. We selected nine randomised controlled trials including 1687 participants (861 were fed LCD and 826 were fed the control diet). The mean change in eGFR in the LCD group was −4·7 to 24·0 ml/min per 1·73 m2 and that in the control diet group was −4·1 to 10·8 ml/min per 1·73 m2. The mean change in eGFR in the LCD group was greater than that in the control diet (0·13 ml/min per 1·73 m2; 95 % CI 0·00, 0·26). In the present meta-analysis, we identified that the increase in eGFR was greater in LCD compared with the control diet in overweight and obese individuals without CKD.

Integrated safety assessment methodology that analyzes radionuclide migration reflecting the spatial and temporal changes of disposal systems was developed for a geological disposal site with uplift and denudation, and then some case analyses for an assumed site were carried out. The combination of uniform uplift and denudation has the largest effect on the radionuclide migration because the ground water flow velocity increases with decreasing depth from the ground surface. In the case without denudation, tilted uplift has more effect than uniform uplift because flow velocity in tilted uplift increases with increasing hydraulic gradient. The long-term change of the geological structures including the uplift and denudation, the hydraulic conditions, and the recharge and outlet of the ground water around a candidate site should be carefully investigated to determine the appropriate the place, depth and layout of the repository.

We have fabricated high-efficiency a-Si/µc-Si tandem solar cells and modules with a very high µc-Si deposition rate using Localized Plasma Confinement CVD to give very high-rate deposition (>2.0 nm/s) of device-grade µc-Si layers. For further progress in productive plasma-CVD techniques, we have studied plasma phenomena by combining newly developed plasma simulation and plasma diagnosis techniques that reveal the importance of non-emissive atomic hydrogen. We also have proposed a model of defective µc-Si formation on highly textured substrates in which the atomic H in plasma is assumed to play an important role. We are also developing a non-vacuum deposition technique that we term “Liquid Si Printing.” A new record conversion efficiency for HIT solar cells of 24.7% has been achieved using a very thin c-Si wafer (Thickness: 98 µm, Area: 102 cm2).

A fabrication technology for high-quality, device-grade microcrystalline silicon (μc-Si) thin film with a higher deposition rate has been required to reduce the production cost of amorphous silicon (a-Si)/μc-Si tandem modules. Localized Plasma Confinement CVD (LPC-CVD) has been proposed as one solution to this problem. It was found that this CVD is suitable for the deposition of high crystalline fractions and (220) orientation in the development of small-to-medium-size substrates. Since then, we have been developing high-rate deposition technology for production-size substrates by using the essence of LPC-CVD and evaluation techniques for μc-Si materials and plasma. A stabilized module efficiency of 11.1% was reported with a very high deposition rate on a production-size substrate. To improve conversion efficiency, we have been focusing on elemental technologies as well as high-rate deposition technology. Stabilized conversion efficiency of 12.2% for small-size cells (1 cm2) and stabilized module conversion efficiency of 10.7% for production-size substrates were achieved.

Changes in the morphology of γ′ precipitates in a γ/γ′ two-phase microstructure in Co-based superalloys, which occur through higher-order alloying, have been investigated. The shape of γ′ precipitates changes from a cuboid to an irregularly rounded shape when the Ta content increases to 4 at.%. The irregular shape of the γ′ precipitates changes to cuboid again upon further alloying with 2 at.% Mo. Changes in the morphology of γ′ precipitates are closely related to variations in the lattice misfit between γ and γ′ phases upon alloying. A lattice misfit increases with an increase in Ta content, which makes γ/γ′ interfaces incoherent when the lattice misfit exceeds a critical value. On the contrary, the lattice misfit decreases upon alloying with Mo. Changes in the lattice misfit upon alloying are well explained through the partition behavior of alloying elements and their atomic volume.

The infrared astronomical satellite AKARI performed an all sky survey at six infrared bands. We report here on the calibration of the all-sky image data, observed in the four long wavelength bands with the FIS instrument (AKARI Far-infrared All Sky Survey : AFASS). The preliminary image attains a calibration uncertainty and sensitivity of better than ~ 30% and ~ 10 MJy str−1, respectively, for all four bands. The point spread function (PSF) is obtained via a stacking technique. The data are shown to be useful for exploring the internal structure and dust spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of nearby galaxies.

We present the results of a cross-correlation analysis of the projected positions of AGNs and galaxies at redshifts from 0.3 to 3.0. It is widely accepted that the origin of AGN activity is accretion of matter onto a massive black hole at the center of a galaxy (e.g., Lynden-Bell 1969). To explain the activity of AGNs, a large fraction of matter in the galaxy must be delivered to the inner region on a short timescale (Hopkins et al. 2008). One possible mechanism for causing rapid gas inflows into the central region is a major galaxy merger between gas-rich galaxies (e.g., Kauffmann & Haehnelt 2000). If this is the case, AGNs are expected to be found in an environment with higher galaxy density than that of typical galaxies. We investigated environments of ~ 750 AGNs, which is about a ten times larger sample than used in previous studies, and we find a significant excess of galaxies around the AGNs in the redshift range of 0.3 to 1.8. We used the Japanese Virtual Observatory (JVO) to obtain the Subaru Suprime-Cam images and UKIDSS data around known AGNs. The datasets accessed through the JVO are: Catalog of Quasars and Active Galactic Nuclei by Veron-Cetty et al. (2006), SDSS DR-5 Quasar Catalog by Schneider et al. (2007), Subaru Suprime-Cam Reduced Image Archive of JVO, and UKIDSS DR2 catalog by Warren et al. (2007). We divided all the AGN samples into four redshift groups, 0.3≲z ≲ 0.8, 0.8≲ z ≲ 1.5, 1.5≲ z ≲ 1.8, and 1.8≲ z ≲ 3.0. For each redshift group, the dataset was further divided into a fainter group (MV ≥ −25 mag) and a brighter group (MV < −25 mag). We found that the correlation length of the high-redshift bright sample (1.5≲ z ≲ 1.8) was larger than that of the low-redshift faint sample (0.3≲ z ≲ 0.8). We also found that the correlation length was larger for the faint group at redshift range 0.8≲ z ≲1.5. These results can be explained by downsizing of mass assembly. More details can be found in the paper by Shirasaki et al. (2009). Our result implies that the Japanese Virtual Observatory can be a powerful tool to investigate the co-evolution of central black holes and galaxies at the intermediate redshift universe.

Virtual Observatory (VO) is an emerging astronomical infrastructure for sharing the astronomical data set in the world. National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) started its VO project (Japanese Virtual Observatory – JVO) in 2002, and developed JVO portal prototypes. We have carried out several science use cases, such as cosmic string searches and QSO environment studies, by using the prototype system to examine the functionality of the system. This paper describes a preliminary result of the latter science use case.

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2004 in Savannah, Georgia, USA, August 1–5, 2004.

A channel add-filtering function of a device based on defects in a two dimensional photonic crystal slab is investigated in addition to a channel drop-filtering function reported previously. It is considered that photons irradiated to a point defect from free space are trapped by the point defect, are transferred to a line defect waveguide nearby, and are emitted from the waveguide edge. It is shown that the spectrum of the add-filtering function is almost same as that of the drop-filtering function, which demonstrates that photons can be not only dropped-from but also added-to a line-defect waveguide through the resonant trapping by point defects.

Chickens fed on semi-purified low (7%) or high (61%) protein-energy diets for 14 or 17 d were used for determinations of oxidative phosphorylation and specific amounts of mitochondrial protein in liver. The ADP: oxygen (ADP:O) values obtained when pyruvate + malate were used as substrates were significantly reduced in the high-protein-fed group after the 4th day compared with those for the group fed the low-protein diet, while the differences in ADP:O values between the two treatments when L-glutamate was used as substrate were found to be significant on the 14th day. At any feeding period no significant differences in ADP:O values were observed between the two groups when α-ketoglutarate, malate, or octanoate + malate were used as substrates, nor in specific amounts of mitochondrial protein in liver. The dependency of the pyruvate + malate-supported respiration rate on the temperature in the reaction medium was also determined. The results of an Arrhenius plot showed that transition temperatures, and the lower and upper energies of activation, were similar for the groups fed on low- and high-protein diets. Furthermore, no morphological changes in mitochondria were observed among chickens fed on diets with various protein levels for 14 d. From these results we concluded that the reduction of ADP: O value with pyruvate + malate or L-glutamate substrates in chickens fed on a high-protein diet was substrate-specific, and was not due to functional damage to the respiratory chain for electron flow from NAD-linked substrates to the ubiquinone pool, nor to modulation of properties of the inner mitochondrial membrane.

Computational fluid dynamics was born principally in the aerospace field as a method for fluid flow and heat transfer research methods following experimental and analytical approaches. Along with progress in the cost performance of computers, computational fluid dynamics is now establishing itself as a tool to improve production processes and product quality in the steel, nonferrous metals, glass, plastics, and composite materials industries.

Materials manufacturers use computational fluid dynamics for diverse purposes:

• 1. Reduction in experimental conditions and costs;

• 2. Detailed analysis of mechanisms with multifaceted information unobtainable through experimentation;

• 3. Universal tool for scale-up; and

• 4. Evaluation of novel processes.

It can be readily imagined that accuracy, flexibility, and other requirements of computational fluid dynamics should vary with specific applications.

Fluids generally observed in materials manufacturing processes are molten materials such as metal, glass, and plastics, and gases for stirring and refining. In the flow of such fluids, materials quality and process characteristics are governed by the following:

1. 1. Transport phenomena in the bulk region (where fluid flow is normally turbulent);

2. 2. Chemical reaction at interfaces;

3. 3. Transport phenomena in boundary layers near the interfaces; and

4. 4. Complex coupled phenomena (heat transfer, diffusion, chemical reaction, phase transformation like solidification, free surface, electromagnetic force, and bubble flow).

The ADP:O values in both cardiac and hepatic mitochondria have significantly decreased with an increase in protein level after 7, 14 and 21 d of feeding (Toyomizu et al. 1992). The present studies were undertaken to clarify tissue-specific effects of dietary protein levels on oxidative phosphorylation in the liver, kidney, skeletal muscles and small intestine and to characterize oxidative metabolism with diverse substrates in the liver. Chicks were fed on semi-purified diets of different protein levels (7, 25, 43 and 61% of metabolizable energy content) for 21 d. The responses of protein levels to oxidative phosphorylation showed tissue-dependency; although liver mitochondria of chickens fed on higher- protein diets exhibited reduced ADP:O values and state 3, neither changes in ADP:O value nor state 3 and state 4 rates were observed in the isolated mitochondria from kidney and skeletal muscles. Small intestinal mucosal mitochondria from chickens fed on a high (61%)-protein-energy diet showed significantly reduced ADP:O value and respiratory control ratio when compared with medium-protein- energy diets (25 and 43%). In liver mitochondria showing the most sensitive dependency to the levels of dietary protein, the ADP:O value decreased with increasing protein levels when pyruvate + malate- or glutamate-requiring complexes I, III and IV of the electron transport chain were used as substrates, but it did not change when succinate-requiring complexes II, III and IV or ascorbate + tetramethyl-p- phenylenediamine requiring complex IV was used. These results imply that impaired oxidative phosphorylation capacities with increasing dietary protein levels may be associated with functional damage to the respiratory chain for electron flow from NAD-linked substrates to the ubiquinone pool.

To determine the effects of dietary protein level on cardiac and hepatic mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation, chicks were fed on semi-purified diets of different protein levels (7, 25, 43 and 61% of metabolizable energy content) for 7, 14 and 21 d. All diets were formulated to contain equivalent fat, mineral and vitamin contents on a gross energy basis. Cardiac and hepatic mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation rates were assessed polarographically with pyruvate and malate as substrates. Cardiac mitochondria isolated from chicks fed on a 43 or 61% protein-energy diet for 7 d exhibited significantly reduced ADP:oxygen (ADP:O) ratios when compared with mitochondria isolated from chicks fed on a lower-protein-energy diet. Feeding low- (7%) protein-energy diets for 14 d resulted in a relatively increased ADP:O ratio in the heart. Responses of ADP:O ratios to protein level in hepatic mitochondria showed more dependency on protein level than in heart muscle; at all feeding periods the ADP:O ratio decreased with an increase in protein level. As a result, ATP synthesized in the liver, expressed as nmol/mg mitochondrial protein per min, significantly decreased with increased dietary protein level. A parallel correlation was observed, in chicks fed on diets with different levels of protein, between ADP:O ratio for liver mitochondria and body fat. These results suggest that the reduction in oxidative phosphorylation in the heart and liver of animals fed on a higher protein-energy diet may partly contribute to the depression of body fat.