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Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine how attitudes toward the return of genomic research results vary internationally. Methods: We analyzed the “Your DNA, Your Say” online survey of public perspectives on genomic data sharing including responses from 36,268 individuals across 22 low-, middle-, and high-income countries, and these were gathered in 15 languages. We analyzed how participants responded when asked whether return of results (RoR) would motivate their decision to donate DNA or health data. We examined variation across the study countries and compared the responses of participants from other countries with those from the United States, which has been the subject of the majority of research on return of genomic results to date. Results: There was substantial variation in the extent to which respondents reported being influenced by RoR. However, only respondents from Russia were more influenced than those from the United States, and respondents from 20 countries had lower odds of being partially or wholly influenced than those from the United States. Conclusion: There is substantial international variation in the extent to which the RoR may motivate people’s intent to donate DNA or health data. The United States may not be a clear indicator of global attitudes. Participants’ preferences for return of genomic results globally should be considered. This work was supported by Wellcome grant 206194 to Society and Ethics Research, Wellcome Connecting Science, Wellcome Genome Campus.

本稿では，労働生産の文脈で手作業と機械がどのような関係性を取り持つのかを技術論・組織論の観点から明らかにすることを目的とする。技術史家の中岡哲郎の理論的枠組みに沿うならば，手作業と機械の関係性のあり方は，工場が一つの組織として成り立つ過程の中で定まっていく。日本の青森県に立地する食品加工工場と機械加工工場でのフィールド調査をもとに，機械化が進む際の手作業と機械の新たな役割，ならびに分業を検討した。そこでは，“手作業の復権” とも呼べるような手作業の役割の強化が見出される一方，機械にシンボルとしての役割が付されていた。加えて，工程を制御するための知的熟練にも限界があることを事例の中から提起した。こうした手作業と機械の関係性は，生産の流動化と高付加価値化といった外部環境に対応する過程の中で形成されてきたと考えられる。総合考察では，以上の身体－機械関係性の議論が現代の自動化問題に対して持つ含意について論じた。, This study clarifies the relation between manual and automated work inthe context of labor production from the perspectives of technology and organizationstudies. According to the theoretical framework developed byNakaoka, a technology historian, the relation between manual and automatedwork is configured as a process by which the factory, as a single organization,develops its practices of manual and automated work. Based on a field surveyof food-processing factories and machining shops in Aomori Prefecture,Japan, the author examined the complicated relation between manual andautomated work in the mechanization process to elucidate the new roles ofmanual labor and machine. The practice of factory production reinforces theimportance of manual work, at least at the discourse level, which is designatedas the “revival of manual work,” whereas the body of the machine isassigned a new symbolic role. Additionally, we referred to difficulties in abilitiesof process control. Characteristics of the relation between manual andmachinery work seem to reflect the dynamics of modern factories related totheir adaptation to the external market environment characterized as highadded value and fluidization of production. The concluding part of the reportpresents an examination of how such a theoretical framework is useful toanalyze the coming age of automation.

Interactions between the hyporheic and benthic zones play a vital role in maintaining the integrity of river ecosystems, but simultaneous assessments of hyporheic and benthic macroinvertebr...

Analyzing genomic data across populations is central to understanding the role of genetic factors in health and disease. Successful data sharing relies on public support, which requires attention to whether people around the world are willing to donate their data that are then subsequently shared with others for research. However, studies of such public perceptions are geographically limited and do not enable comparison. This paper presents results from a very large public survey on attitudes toward genomic data sharing. Data from 36,268 individuals across 22 countries (gathered in 15 languages) are presented. In general, publics across the world do not appear to be aware of, nor familiar with, the concepts of DNA, genetics, and genomics. Willingness to donate one’s DNA and health data for research is relatively low, and trust in the process of data’s being shared with multiple users (e.g., doctors, researchers, governments) is also low. Participants were most willing to donate DNA or health information for research when the recipient was specified as a medical doctor and least willing to donate when the recipient was a for-profit researcher. Those who were familiar with genetics and who were trusting of the users asking for data were more likely to be willing to donate. However, less than half of participants trusted more than one potential user of data, although this varied across countries. Genetic information was not uniformly seen as different from other forms of health information, but there was an association between seeing genetic information as special in some way compared to other health data and increased willingness to donate. The global perspective provided by our “Your DNA, Your Say” study is valuable for informing the development of international policy and practice for sharing genomic data. It highlights that the research community not only needs to be worthy of trust by the public, but also urgent steps need to be taken to authentically communicate why genomic research is necessary and how data donation, and subsequent sharing, is integral to this.Analyzing genomic data across populations is central to understanding the role of genetic factors in health and disease. Successful data sharing relies on public support, which requires attention to whether people around the world are willing to donate their data that are then subsequently shared with others for research. However, studies of such public perceptions are geographically limited and do not enable comparison. This paper presents results from a very large public survey on attitudes toward genomic data sharing. Data from 36,268 individuals across 22 countries (gathered in 15 languages) are presented. In general, publics across the world do not appear to be aware of, nor familiar with, the concepts of DNA, genetics, and genomics. Willingness to donate one’s DNA and health data for research is relatively low, and trust in the process of data’s being shared with multiple users (e.g., doctors, researchers, governments) is also low. Participants were most willing to donate DNA or health information for research when the recipient was specified as a medical doctor and least willing to donate when the recipient was a for-profit researcher. Those who were familiar with genetics and who were trusting of the users asking for data were more likely to be willing to donate. However, less than half of participants trusted more than one potential user of data, although this varied across countries. Genetic information was not uniformly seen as different from other forms of health information, but there was an association between seeing genetic information as special in some way compared to other health data and increased willingness to donate. The global perspective provided by our “Your DNA, Your Say” study is valuable for informing the development of international policy and practice for sharing genomic data. It highlights that the research community not only needs to be worthy of trust by the public, but also urgent steps need to be taken to authentically communicate why genomic research is necessary and how data donation, and subsequent sharing, is integral to this.

Synthetic biology and genome editing have become increasingly controversial issues, necessitating careful attention and engagement with the public. Our study examined ambiguity in public perception about emerging biotechnologies through the use of several intermediate response options in a survey. To understand the relationship between respondents’ thoughts and attitudes, we also examined how respondents’ indecision is related to their cognitive concept of “self” as well as their interpretation of “future generations.” An online survey of 994 respondents living in Japan revealed that around 80% hold intermediate attitudes (two-sided, non-judgmental, or reserved attitudes) toward synthetic biology and genome editing. These results revealed that respondents who have a narrow self-concept tend to postpone decisions about the application of emerging technologies. In contrast, those with a broad self-concept tend to adopt an ambivalent attitude and are more short-sighted, but make judgments based on the impact of their decisions on current and future generations. This study thus demonstrates that public views are more diverse and nuanced than those obtained from conventional public surveys for policy making. This research was supported by RISTEX, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST).

The hydrophobic bacterium Rhodococcus rhodochrous NBRC15564 was employed as a whole-cell biocatalyst to examine its potential for bioconversion in solvent-free organic media. The genes encoding two different thermostable alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH Tt1 and ADH Tt2 ) of Thermus thermophilus HB27 were expressed in R. rhodochrous cells. To inactivate indigenous mesophilic enzymes in R. rhodochrous , transformant cells were heated at 70 °C for 10 min. Heat-treated hydrophobic wet cells were used for the bioconversion of 2,2,2-trifluoroacetophenone (TFAP) to α-(trifluoromethyl) benzyl alcohol (TFMBA) as a model reaction with ADH Tt1 . NADH, which was supplied in aqueous solution, was regenerated by converting cyclohexanol to cyclohexanone by ADH Tt2 . All reactions were performed by suspending heat-treated cells in solvent-free organic media consisting of 3.7 M TFAP and 4.8 M cyclohexanol (1:1, v/v ratio) at 60 °C. When 800 mg heat-treated R. rhodochrous cells were dispersed in 2 mL of solvent-free organic media (400 mg cells/mL), the product concentration reached about 3.6 M TFMBA by 48 h with a total NADH turnover number of approximately 900. The overall productivity was 190 mol TFMBA/kg cells/h.

Uroporphyrinogen III (urogen III) was produced from 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), which is a common precursor of all metabolic tetrapyrroles, using thermostable ALA dehydratase (ALAD), porphobilinogen deaminase (PBGD), and urogen III synthase (UROS) of Thermus thermophilus HB8. The UROS-coding gene (hemD₂) of T. thermophilus HB8 was identified by examining the gene product for its ability to produce urogen III in a coupled reaction with ALAD and PBGD. The genes encoding ALAD, PBGD, and UROS were separately expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). To inactivate indigenous mesophilic enzymes, the E. coli transformants were heated at 70 °C for 10 min. The bioconversion of ALA to urogen III was performed using a mixture of heat-treated E. coli transformants expressing ALAD, PBGD, and UROS at a cell ratio of 1:1:1. When the total cell concentration was 7.5 g/l, the mixture of heat-treated E. coli transformants could convert about 88 % 10 mM ALA to urogen III at 60 °C after 4 h. Since eight ALA molecules are required for the synthesis of one porphyrin molecule, approximately 1.1 mM (990 mg/l) urogen III was produced from 10 mM ALA. The present technology has great potential to supply urogen III for the biocatalytic production of vitamin B₁₂.

It has been almost 20 years since atomic force microscopy (AFM)appeared in the field of bioscience. Scientists have taken up thechallenge to use AFM to grapple with biological phenomena thathave been explained neither by genetic nor by biochemical methods.While the introduction of a new device holds promise for newbreakthroughs, the disadvantage exists that there is uncertaintyabout the efficacy of the new technology. How and why didpioneering scientists introduce AFM into biology in the emergingphase of the technology? How have nanobiology communities thatuse AFM sprung up and developed subsequently? This chapterintroduces the general trend of bioscience as studied using AFM.First, we will introduce the short story of AFM in biology, includinginterviewsa with researcherswho initiated areas of bio-AFM studies,and then we will overview the recent trends in bio-AFM research.

本稿では，科学技術に対する態度におけるDK（don't know,「分からない」）回答の意味を質問紙調査から明らかにする．筆者らは2004年に「バイオテクノロジーに関する意識調査」を日本で実施し，541名の成人男女から回答を得た．数量化III類を用いてDK回答の出現パタンを分析した結果，(1)DK回答群が肯定的回答群／否定的回答群の軸から独立して分離するパタン（疎外的DK）と，(2)DK回答群が肯定的回答群／否定的回答群の軸の中に位置づけられるパタン（両義的DK）が見出された．疎外的DKを顕著に示す層は知識量が相対的に少ないという特徴をもっていた．一方，両義的DKの出現は，回答者個人の知識の多寡によらず，科学技術の問題を消費者個人の選好や利用行動に内在化させる質問状況で顕在化していた．2つのDKの意味は，それぞれ，科学技術という主題における主体的かつ二分法的態度をもつ市民像の問題点を示し，社会的意思決定プロセスでの意識調査の位置づけに再考を迫るものである．

A new research project has started to develop two kinds of Internet communication systems which are aimed at effective social risk information on nuclear energy. One is mutual communication system for fostering safety culture among the workers in nuclear industry while the other is to enlighten general public about the risk issues on final disposal of high-level radioactive waste. Prior to the Internet systems development, social investigations have been conducted on risk perception for nuclear power for both the nuclear experts and women in the metropolitan area, in order to know how and what should be considered for the effective risk communication methods. It was found from the statistical analysis to the results of social investigation that the majority of nuclear people take business risk seriously but there is a fraction of nuclear people who are afraid of present practice of nuclear power operation while women in metropolitan area are evenly afraid of radioactive risk. The obtained results of social investigation gave useful insight for developing two kinds of risk communication systems and the related field study for enhancing safety culture in nuclear industries.Copyright © 2004 by ASME