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Background: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging tick-borne zoonosis in China, the Republic of Korea (ROK), and Japan. The presence of the SFTS virus (SFTSV) in companion, livestock, and wild animals has been reported. Recently, human SFTS-like clinical symptoms in cats and cheetahs have been reported in Japan. Therefore, the prevalence of the SFTSV gene or antibody in cats is important for public health as well as veterinary medicine. Materials and Methods: Sera were collected from 201 feral and house cats in the ROK in 2017. Samples were analyzed for the presence of the SFTSV gene after RT-nested PCR amplification and for anti-SFTSV antibodies after enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. Results: Eight (4.0%) and nine (4.5%) of 201 cat sera were found to be positive for the SFTSV gene and anti- SFTSV nucleocapsid protein antibodies, respectively. Specifically, 5.9% feral and 2.0% house cats were positive for the SFTSV gene, and 6.9% feral and 2.0% house cats were positive for anti-SFTSV antibodies. All sequences of the SFTSV S segment obtained were included in Japanese/Korean SFTSV clades, as opposed to the Chinese clade. Conclusions: This study constitutes the first serological study of SFTSV in house and feral cats in the ROK. Evidence of SFTSV in companion animals indicates that SFTSV can circulate in homes and that more intensive precautions and education measures are needed for companion animal guardians and veterinarians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: There is growing evidence suggesting an association between air pollution and suicide. However, previous findings varied depending on the type of air pollutant and study location. OBJECTIVES: We examined the association between air pollutants and suicide in 10 large cities in South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. METHODS: We used a two-stage meta-analysis. First, we conducted a time-stratified case-crossover analysis to estimate the short-term association between nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and particulate matter [aerodynamic diameter =10 lm (PM10), aerodynamic diameter =2:5 lm (PM2:5), and PM10-2:5] and suicide, adjusted for weather factors, day-of-week, long-term time trends, and season. Then, we conducted a meta-analysis to combine the city-specific effect estimates for NO2, SO2, and PM10 across 10 cities and for PM2:5 and PM10-2:5 across 3 cities. We first fitted single-pollutant models, followed by two-pollutant models to examine the robustness of the associations. RESULTS: Higher risk of suicide was associated with higher levels of NO2, SO2, PM10, and PM10-2:5 over multiple days. The combined relative risks (RRs) were 1.019 for NO2 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.999, 1.039), 1.020 for SO2 (95% CI: 1.005, 1.036), 1.016 for PM10 (95% CI: 1.004, 1.029), and 1.019 for PM10-2:5 (95% CI: 1.005, 1.033) per interquartile range (IQR) increase in the 0-1 d average level of each pollutant. We found no evidence of an association for PM2:5. Some of the associations, particularly for SO2 and NO2, were attenuated after adjusting for a second pollutant. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that higher levels of air pollution may be associated with suicide, and further research is merited to understand the underlying mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper challenges the existing studies on Japan's Official Development Assistance (ODA) policy making, which have assumed that the Diet or Prime Minister is a key ODA decision-maker and argued that Japan's motive in increasing foreign aid spending was subject to the politicians' interests. Contrary to this position, the author argues that the primary ODA decision-making power in Japan has resided not with the politicians but with the bureaucracy. This study identifies the four primary decision makers (i.e., ministries) that exert influence on Japan's ODA policy prior to 2000, all of whom operated from different ODA motives, and sees these actors as interest maximizers. The analysis focuses on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which is mainly concerned with security and Japan's image in the eyes of other donors; the Ministry of International Trade and Industries, whose interests were commercial; the Ministry of Finance, which focuses on budget stringency; and the Economic Planning Agency, which had more comprehensive and various interests. According to the author's data analysis, the historical trend of Japan's ODA expenditure pattern reflects the ups and downs of ministries in decision-making power (e.g., MITI's diminishing power vs. MOFA's increasing influence), which was caused by the inter-ministerial battle over the foreign aid policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is a theoretically-informed comparative analysis of the constitution-making processes in Japan and South Korea after the end of the Second World War. Written under the hegemonic influence of the United States and against the backdrop of the dawning Cold War, both constitutions demonstrate the inadequacies of the conventional theoretical account of “We the People” as “constituent power.” We argue that the “constituent people” was forged in the course of a deep constitutional politics—rather than vice versa—in which the role of “externalities” and the resuscitation of “useable pasts” were intrinsically tied to the formation of new constitutional peoplehood in postwar Japan and postcolonial Korea. Going beyond the common presupposition that a well-defined constituent people exists prior to the constitutional moment with a unified political will and robust agency, we suggest that the Japanese and Korean “exception” may actually prove to be the rule for theorizing about constitutional democracy in the age of globalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study attempts to build a causal model of attitudes towards the welfare state in Japan and to compare it to those of Germany, Sweden and the U.S., which represent conservative, socialist, and liberal welfare regime respectively. The effect of political preferences on attitudes towards the welfare state is the focus of the comparison. The basic premise of this comparison is that welfare attitudes vary across countries, bearing the characteristics of the given welfare regime that they belong to. Structural equation modeling and path analysis are conducted on a large-scale international survey dataset, ISSP 1996. Each country is first analyzed separately, and then all four countries are compared to each other. The single-country analysis reveals the cross-national diversity of welfare attitudes, while the effect of political preferences on the welfare attitudes exhibits a bifurcate pattern: in Sweden and the U.S. it is quite strong, relatively weak in Germany, and not even statistically significant in Japan. The comparative analysis further confirms this pattern. Therefore, I conclude that Japan is closest to the German conservative regime in terms of attitudes and political preferences, sharing welfare conservatism that credits the conservative party for building a welfare state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Using the trajectories of ARGO floats, we report direct flows from the Ulleung Basin into the Yamato Basin through a gap between the Oki Spur and the Yamato Rise over the southern part of the East/Japan Sea. The gap is subdivided into two narrow (northern and southern) passages by a seamount located in the middle. The flows, therefore, are narrow and this explains why this flow was not reported earlier. More than half of the 25 ARGO floats, which operated around the gap, drifted through the gap or area near it. The strength of the throughflow estimated using the trajectories of the floats at parking depth is comparable to the mean deep flow found over the southwestern part of the East/Japan Sea. A high resolution regional ocean model whose overall circulation pattern over the Ulleung Basin is consistent with those from previous studies shows that the flow through the gap is supplied mainly by eastward flows crossing the mouth of the basin, and secondarily by the cyclonic circulation following the outer perimeter of the basin. Thus the throughflow is an important component of the deep circulation over the southern East/Japan Sea, and the narrow gap, where the flow is well confined, would be a good place to study the deep circulation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

In recent years, several observations based on direct current measurements and model simulations have been successful in detecting a northeastward undercurrent, "the Ryukyu Current", along the Pacific side of the Ryukyu Islands with a unique "subsurface northeastward current core" structure. The volume transport (20 - 25 Sv) of the Ryukyu current completes the volume transport budget (45 - 50 Sv) of the Kuroshio system. A Pacific Ocean circulation model based on the RIAM Ocean Model (RIAMOM) with 1/12° horizontal resolution successfully reproduced the observed structures of the northeastward Ryukyu Current with a subsurface core at 500 - 600 m. A three-layer model simulation shows the existence of the Ryukyu Current and explains the mechanism of subsurface current maximum through blocking effect of bottom topography around the Ryukyu Islands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dear Sir In Japan, nearly 10,000 people died because of foreign body airway obstruction (FBAO) that was the leading cause of accidental death.[1] According to the Utstein Osaka project, 7.0% of out-of-hospital cardiac arrests were caused by FBAO.[2] Various foods that are consumed daily cause FBAO, including rice, bread, and meat. Seasonal and traditional custom foods also cause FBAO, including Japanese rice cake (known as mochi), ehomaki, and beans for Setsubun. [Extracted from the article]

Introduction: Foreign body airway obstruction (FBAO) is a major public health issue worldwide. In 2017, there were more than 5000 fatal choking cases in the USA alone, and it was the fourth leading cause of preventable injury-related death in the home and community. In Japan, FBAO is the leading cause of accidental death and with almost 9000 fatalities annually. However, research on FBAO is limited, particularly on the impact of a foreign body (FB) removal manoeuvres by bystanders. The primary objective of this study is to determine the impact of bystander FB removal manoeuvres on 1 month neurological outcome. Our secondary objectives include (1) evaluating the efficacy of a variety of FB removal manoeuvres; (2) identifying risk factors for unsuccessful removal and (3) evaluating the impact of time intervals from incidents of FBAO to FB removal on neurological outcome., Methods and Analysis: We will conduct a nationwide multi-centre prospective cohort study of patients with FBAO who present to approximately 100 emergency departments in both urban and rural areas in Japan. Research personnel at each participating site will collect variables including patient demographics, type of FB and prehospital variables, such as bystander FB removal manoeuvres, medical interventions by prehospital personnel, advanced airway management and diagnostic findings. Our primary outcome is 1 month favourable neurological outcome defined as cerebral performance category 1 or 2. Our secondary outcomes include success of FB removal manoeuvres and complications from the manoeuvres. We hypothesise that bystander FB removal manoeuvres improve patient survival with a favourable neurological outcome., Ethics and Dissemination: This study received research ethics approval from Nippon Medical School Hospital (B-2019-019). Research ethics approval will be obtained from all participating sites before entering patients into the registry. The study was registered at the University Hospital Medical Information Network (UMIN) Clinical Trials Registry., Trial Registration Number: UMIN 000039907., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background Seasonal variations in acute coronary syndromes (ACS) have been reported, with incidence and mortality peaking in the winter. However, the underlying pathophysiology for these variations remain speculative. Methods and Results Patients with ACS who underwent optical coherence tomography were recruited from 6 countries. The prevalence of the 3 most common pathologies (plaque rupture, plaque erosion, and calcified plaque) were compared between the 4 seasons. In 1113 patients with ACS (885 male; mean age, 65.8±11.6 years), the rates of plaque rupture, plaque erosion, and calcified plaque were 50%, 39%, and 11% in spring; 44%, 43%, and 13% in summer; 49%, 39%, and 12% in autumn; and 57%, 30%, and 13% in winter ( P =0.039). After adjusting for age, sex, and other coronary risk factors, winter was significantly associated with increased risk of plaque rupture (odds ratio [OR], 1.652; 95% CI, 1.157-2.359; P =0.006) and decreased risk of plaque erosion (OR, 0.623; 95% CI, 0.429-0.905; P =0.013), compared with summer as a reference. Among patients with rupture, the prevalence of hypertension was significantly higher in winter ( P =0.010), whereas no significant difference was observed in the other 2 groups. Conclusions Seasonal variations in the incidence of ACS reflect differences in the underlying pathobiology. The proportion of plaque rupture is highest in winter, whereas that of plaque erosion is highest in summer. A different approach may be needed for the prevention and treatment of ACS depending on the season of its occurrence. Registration URL: https://www.clini​caltr​ials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT03479723.