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The Kansai BNCT Medical Center has a cyclotron based epithermal neutron source for clinical Boron Neutron Capture Therapy. The system accelerates a proton to an energy of 30 MeV which strikes a beryllium target producing fast neutrons which are moderated down to epithermal neutrons for BNCT use. While clinical studies in the past have shown BNCT to be highly effective for malignant melanoma of the skin, to apply BNCT for superficial lesions using this system it is necessary to shift the thermal neutron distribution so that the maximum dose occurs near the surface. A dose distribution shifter was designed to fit inside the collimator to further moderate the neutrons to increase the surface dose and reduce the dose to the underlying normal tissue. Pure polyethylene was selected, and a Monte Carlo simulation was performed to determine the optimum thickness of the polyethylene slab. Compared with the original neutron beam, the shifter increased the thermal neutron flux at the skin by approximately 4 times. The measured and simulated central axis depth distribution and off axis distribution of the thermal neutron flux were found to be in good agreement. Compared with a 2 cm thick water equivalent bolus, a 26% increase in the thermal neutron flux at the surface was obtained, which would reduce the treatment time by approximately 29%. The DDS is a safe, simple and an effective tool for the treatment of superficial tumours for BNCT if an initially fast neutron beam requires moderation to maximise the thermal neutron flux at the tissue surface.

Glycerophosphodiester phosphodiesterase (GDPD; EC 3.1.4.46) is involved in plant phosphate (Pi) utilization and its expression is upregulated under phosphorus (P)-deficient conditions. Although rice was grown under P-sufficient conditions, the transcript levels of specific OsGDPD were upregulated in mature rice leaf blades (LB) in elevated CO

Fusarium wilt of tomato, caused by the soilborne fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici, is an increasingly important disease of tomato. This paper reports the high-quality draft genome assembly of F. oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici isolate D11 (race 3), which consists of 39 scaffolds with 57,281,978 bp (GC content, 47.5%), an N50 of 4,408,267 bp, a mean read coverage of 99.8×, and 17,682 predicted genes.

Powdery mildew (Leveillula taurica) became more severe on tomatoes in California’s Central Valley during the 2007 through 2013 seasons. Eighteen uniform field trials evaluating chemical control programs were conducted over a four-year period to identify economical and effective control programs, but also to better understand the impact of powdery mildew on yield and fruit quality in processing tomatoes. Of the three trial years, disease pressure was highest in 2009 and 2012; lighter in two intervening years. Disease severity and foliar necrosis at harvest were always significantly reduced by the fungicide programs. Mildew reduced fruit yield by 52% in one trial; in all other trials there was no yield effect. Soluble solids were increased by an average of 0.6 °Brix in sulfur-treated plots relative to non-treated plots; the greatest increase was 1.4 °Brix in one trial. Disease increasing only one month prior to harvest may affect soluble solids without affecting yield, while earlier high disease pressure may significantly reduce yields.

Follow-up results of 141 patients with simple obesity were compared with those of 147 obese subjects who did not take part in the group behavior therapy comprising comprehensive guidance for daily diet and physical exercise. The initial body weight of the therapy and the control groups was 83.6 ± 1.2 kg (body mass index: 29.7 ± 0.3 kg/m2) and 80.4 ± 0.8 kg (29.0 ± 0.2 kg/m2), respectively. After 6 months, a 4.7 ± 0.5 kg weight loss of the therapy group was significantly greater than only a 1.2 ± 0.4 kg weight loss of the control group. Paper questionnaires concerning the longterm results showed that pup behavior therapy is effective for at least 3–4 years in the case of obese Japanese patients. Therefore, group therapy sessions should be recommended at 3- to 4-year intervals.

Purpose: To investigate whether saline pushing after contrast material improves hepatic vascular and parenchymal enhancement, and to determine whether this technique permits decreased contrast material concentration. Material and Methods: 120 patients who underwent hepatic multidetector computed tomography were divided randomly into four groups (Groups A–D): receiving 100 ml of contrast material (300 mgI/ml) only (A) or with 50 ml of saline solution (B); or 100 ml of contrast material (350 mgI/ml) only (C) or with 50 ml of saline solution (D). Computed tomography (CT) values of the aorta in the arterial phase, the portal vein in the portal venous inflow phase, and the liver in the hepatic phase were measured. Visualization of the hepatic artery and the portal vein by 3D CT angiography was evaluated as well. Results: Although the enhancement values of the aorta were not improved significantly with saline pushing, they continued at a high level to the latter slices with saline pushing. The enhancement value of the portal vein increased significantly and CT portography was improved with saline pushing. The enhancement value of the liver was not improved significantly using saline pushing. In a comparison between groups B and C, the enhancement values of the aorta and portal vein and the visualization of CT arteriography and portography were not statistically different. Conclusion: The saline pushing technique can contribute to a decrease in contrast material concentration for 3D CT arteriography and portography.

Peeling is one of the first operations in the manufacture of whole peeled and diced tomatoes, and the peelability of processing tomatoes is significantly affected by the presence of various tomato defects, in particular yellow eye and blossom-end rot. Tomato maturity also impacts both the percentage of peeled fruit and yield. Immature fruits are typically undercolored and small in size. Sunburned regions on the tomato surface are difficult to peel as well. In this study, we determined the impact of 24 selected tomato defects on tomato peelability and yield of whole peeled tomatoes. There are potential advantages to sorting to remove selected tomato defects early in the process.

A binomial sampling method for the potato aphid, Macrosiphum euphorbiae (Thomas), on processing tomato plants, Lycopersicon esculentum (Mill), is proposed. Relationships between mean number of M. euphorbiae per leaf and proportion of leaves infested [P(I)] with M. euphorbiae for both upper and interior leaves of the processing tomato varieties 'Alta' and 'Halley' are presented. A split-plot design was used with variety, position in the plant canopy, and block as the factors examined through linear regression and analysis of variance (ANOVA). Results supported the hypotheses that M. euphorbiae densities on upper canopy leaves are predictive of densities on inner canopy leaves and that proportion of M. euphorbiae infested leaves are predictive of mean densities per leaf. Mean M. euphorbiae density was greater on 'Alta' than 'Halley' tomato plants, supporting the assumption that 'Alta' is the more susceptible variety. Taylor's Power Law coefficients, a and b, were similar for proportion of M. euphorbiae-infested upper and inner leaves of both 'Alta' and 'Halley'. Taylor's b coefficients ranged from 1.57 to 1.74, indicating a highly clumped distribution for M. euphorbiae.

Solid-phase crystallization of Si1−xGex (x=0–1.0) alloy layers deposited on a Si (100) substrate was investigated by ellipsometric spectroscopy. From a dispersion analysis of dielectric spectra, we deduced a crystallinity corresponding to the degree of average lattice alignment of the composed polycrystalline Si1−xGex layers and investigated the dynamical change in crystallinity during crystallization. We found that the crystallinity and crystallization temperature (TC) rapidly decreased with increasing Ge concentration (x). When x was small (=0–0.3), the highest crystallinity was ∼0.8 of that for single crystals while the lowest one was considerably below 0.6 when x>0.8. Moreover, the crystallinity decreased with increasing temperature above TC. We investigated the nucleation rate during crystallization and found that the decrease in crystallinity at both large Ge concentration and high temperature can be explained by a trade-off between the nucleation and crystallization rates; nucleation was dominant u...

Le metre en indo-aryen moyen ainsi qu'en sanskrit classique se compose des 3 groupes suivants en fonction des particularites des schemes metriques : Aksaracchandas, Mātrāchandas et Ganacchandas. A l'aide d'un programme informatique d'analyse metrique, les As. proposent dans cet article un examen exhaustif de tous les metres importants appartenant a ces 3 groupes. Sur la base de resultats quantitatifs, ils developpent une discussion linguistique sur l'oeuvre jainiste la plus importante, le Uttrajjhāyā

Si-based heterostructure technologies have been widely developed over the last quarter century to overcome the scaling limit of CMOS performance. Strained growth, modulation doping, and formation of quantum well structures developed on Si substrates are the typical examples, which achieved significant enhancement of carrier mobility and electroluminescence efficiency. What is the next jump? Advanced crystal growth of high-quality SiGe crystals on insulating films is expected to open up high-performance system-in-displays and three-dimensional stacked devices. New functions created by spin-injection from ferromagnetic electrodes into SiGe channels are other candidates to be used for this purpose. In line with this, the present chapter describes recent developments in miscellaneous crystal growth methods and materials essential for SiGe on insulator structures and SiGe spintronics.

Limited‐area molecular‐beam epitaxial growth of Si1−xGex films, on a Si substrate with patterned SiO2, has been studied in order to eliminate misfit dislocations in Si1−xGex/Si heterostructures. This method is found to dramatically reduce misfit dislocations in Si1−xGex films. Hence, a thicker Si1−xGex film can be grown, without introducing misfit dislocations, on a Si substrate with patterned SiO2 than on a Si substrate without patterned SiO2. This phenomenon is attributed to the blocking of misfit dislocation extension and to a partial relaxation of the residual strain in the boundary between the crystal and polycrystalline Si1−xGex film.

Rising fuel and labor costs and stagnant commodity prices encourage tomato growers to minimize production costs whenever possible. Reducing tillage in crop rotations typically associated with bed-preparation operations may be a means to cut costs in tomato production systems. During the past several decades, a wide range of crop production systems have been developed that minimize or eliminate tillage from crops such as corn, cotton, beans, and wheat (MWPS 2000). By reducing soil disturbance, these systems preserve surface residues, reduce soil erosion, conserve water, and may enable more diverse and intensive crop rotations in areas of limited rainfall. Collectively, these practices have been called conservation tillage (CT) systems. Historically they have been based on various production practices that maintain 30 percent or more of the soil covered by residue at the time of planting (CTIC 2004), the minimum threshold for soil erosion mitigation.In California’s Central Valley, CT approaches are receiving interest as a means to cut costs and reduce dust and diesel fuel emissions from production fields. However, very little information currently exists on using CT for processing tomato production, most likely because of the recognized need for clean bed conditions for planting, harvesting, and incorporating herbicides, as well as the lack of effective CT tomato equipment. This publication summarizes recent advances in the development of CT tomato production and describes what CT tomato systems might look like.In CT tomato systems, planting beds are not disturbed or reworked following harvest of the crop preceding tomatoes. Two common forms of CT are no-till and strip-till. In no-till, no tillage is done from the harvest of one crop until the next crop is planted; the no-till crop is seeded or transplanted directly into the unworked soil of the previous crop. In strip-till, a narrow zone of soil is cleared, and subsoil layers are loosened prior to planting. This tillage zone is typically 8 to 12 inches wide and 2 to 14 inches deep. Compared with standard tillage (ST), also known as broadcast tillage, in which the entire field is tilled, strip-till decreases both the volume of soil that is disturbed and the amount of dust that is typically generated, and it also reduces fuel, labor, and equipment costs. It provides opportunities for band application of surface-incorporated herbicides and fertilizers at different depths prior to seeding. Because only a relatively small volume of soil is tilled using strip-till, it is often also called zone or vertical tillage. To be successful, strip-till and no-till systems require special implements as well as several other key changes in a cropping system.

A new SiGe/Si heterostructure is fabricated through a combination of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) and solid phase epitaxy (SPE). The hetro-interface obtained by SPE was atomically flat, as confirmed by transmission electron microscope (TEM) observation. This interface enables an ultrahigh electron mobility of the two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG).

For the study of ferromagnetic materials which are compatible with group-IV semiconductor spintronics, we demonstrate control of the ferromagnetic properties of Heusler-alloy Fe3-xMnxSi epitaxially grown on Ge(111) by tuning the Mn composition x. Interestingly, we obtain L2(1)-ordered structures even for nonstoichiometric atomic compositions. The Curie temperature of the epilayers with x approximately 0.6 exceeds 300 K. Theoretical calculations indicate that the electronic structures of the nonstoichiometric Fe3-xMnxSi alloys become half-metallic for 0.75or = xor = 1.5. We discuss the possibility of room-temperature ferromagnetic Fe(3-x)Mn(x)Si/Ge epilayers with high spin polarization.

A collection of 50,000 Tos17-induced mutant rice lines carrying about 250,000 independent insertions was generated. DNA pools derived from 50,000 lines have been produced for polymerase chain reaction (PCR)–based reverse genetics screening. For in silico screening of mutants of genes of interest, a large-scale analysis of the mutants by sequencing the genomic DNA sequence flanking Tos17 insertions is in progress. To facilitate the functional analysis, the database on phenotypes covering all the mutant lines has been developed. About half of the mutant lines exhibited at least one phenotype. About 5–10% of the mutations were shown to be caused by insertion of Tos17, whereas the rest of the mutations were deletions, possibly caused by double-strand break repair and point mutations. These deletion mutations can be detected by the PCR-based screening method, providing a new resource for functional analysis of genes. Considering gene redundancy in rice and the availability of a large number of full-length cDNAs, we have begun producing a new type of activation tagged lines in which 15,000 independent normalized full-length cDNAs are overexpressed under the control of the ubiquitin promoter.

heterostructures with high electron mobility were grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) combined with solid-phase epitaxy (SPE). The SPE growth completely suppressed Ge segregation in the layer on top of the Si channel layer. High-resolution cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy observation revealed that the heterointerfaces formed by the SPE growth technique were very flat compared with those for the MBE-grown samples. The electron mobility for an SPE-grown sample with a graded buffer layer was nearly one order of magnitude higher than without such a layer. A high electron mobility of was obtained at 15 K for the sample with a graded buffer layer ().

We have extended the two-dimensional deposition simulator with a micrometer feature scale based on the ballistic transport and reaction model originally developed by Cale et al. (1993) to include a scheme to inhibit and/or accelerate the deposition reaction stemming from the product gases. We have also improved the algorithm used to calculate a self-consistent gas flux distribution on micro features at each step in the simulation. Application of this deposition simulator to seven CVD systems for ULSI usage showed good agreement between the calculated and experimental feature profiles. The validity of the reactive sticking coefficient's role as a general descriptor for step coverage characteristics was thoroughly examined using these simulated results and we concluded that the intrinsic reaction mechanism is more reliable than the sticking coefficient for all CVD characteristics. Molecular orbital calculation was also demonstrated to be extremely helpful in clarifying the intrinsic deposition mechanism.

The mechanism for the improvement of gate oxide integrity through the incorporation of nitrogen atoms was examined in terms of molecular orbital theory by considering the chemical bond changes that accompany hole trapping and which cause degradation of the oxide. We found that the robustness against hot-hole injection was significantly improved by the formation of the N/spl equiv/Si/sub 3/ structure in the oxide.

A self-organization mechanism, "moderatism" is proposed, by which the input-to-output relationship of neural networks is automatically formed so as to adapt to the environment, even if there are feedback loops inside and/or outside. By applying this organization mechanism, it is shown that the networks acquire the reflex to avoid the dangerous stimulus. Also the networks start self-oscillation by themselves to get some amount of stimulus when there is no external signal.

The C(4)-Pdk gene encoding the C(4) enzyme pyruvate, orthophosphate dikinase (PPDK) of maize (Zea mays cv Golden Cross Bantam) was introduced into the C(3) plant, rice (Oryza sativa cv Kitaake). When the intact maize C(4)-Pdk gene, containing its own promoter and terminator sequences and exon/intron structure, was introduced, the PPDK activity in the leaves of some transgenic lines was greatly increased, in one line reaching 40-fold over that of wild-type plants. In a homozygous line, the PPDK protein accounted for 35% of total leaf-soluble protein or 16% of total leaf nitrogen. In contrast, introduction of a chimeric gene containing the full-length cDNA of the maize PPDK fused to the maize C(4)-Pdk promoter or the rice Cab promoter only increased PPDK activity and protein level slightly. These observations suggest that the intron(s) or the terminator sequence of the maize gene, or a combination of both, is necessary for high-level expression. In maize and transgenic rice plants carrying the intact maize gene, the level of transcript in the leaves per copy of the maize C(4)-Pdk gene was comparable, and the maize gene was expressed in a similar organ-specific manner. These results suggest that the maize C(4)-Pdk gene behaves in a quantitatively and qualitatively similar way in maize and transgenic rice plants. The activity of the maize PPDK protein expressed in rice leaves was light/dark regulated as it is in maize. This is the first reported evidence for the presence of an endogenous PPDK regulatory protein in a C(3) plant.

Service dogs have received much attention as effective choices for promoting participation in society of disabled persons. The purpose of this study was to obtain the fundamental data to prepare guidelines regarding service dogs use in community life, by making clear the problems in terms of public health and community welfare through a survey of attitudes towards service dogs in community residents.Study 1 was conducted as follows. The subjects were 423 community residents between their teens and seventies who participated in health and welfare lectures in 4 metropolitan areas. A questionnaire survey was conducted just after watching a promotion video about service dogs, including several items on aspects not accept, were anxious about or were unpleasant in the case of community life of a disabled person and a service dog. Study 2 was as follows. A questionnaire survey was conducted inside a supermarket in the central part of Tokyo. One group of subjects were 103 shopping customers who witnessed a shopping scene featuring a disabled person with her service dog, and the other subjects were 84 customers who were not witnessed to the scene. The same survey was simultaneously performed for impression about the shopping scene.Study 1 showed that 31.8% of all the respondents replied that they had some knowledge of service dogs before watching the video. A total of 20.4% (32.5% of the elderly) replied that there were places where service dogs should not enter. Concretely speaking, these included restaurants for 7.3-22.5% and medical institutions for 8.5-12.5% of the respondents. A third of all the respondents (51.3% of older persons) replied they could not endure some actions by service dogs, concretely "carrying food in the mouth" was highly pointed out by 27.3%. Zoonosis (15.3-19.0%), hair scattering (9.5-21.3%), injuries (4.4-7.4%) were also pointed out as main sources of anxiety or uncomfortable feelings. Such negative opinions were especially apparent among those aged 60 years and older. Also, 44.1% knew some disabled person. Cross tabulation showed those who had experience of taking care of a dog were significant less anxious about "vague anxiety or discomfort," and "zoonosis" than those who had not (P0.01). On the other hand, most of both witness (79.6%), and non-witness groups (81.0%) replied that it was heartwarming that the service dog assisted with shopping. None expressed discomfort about the presence of "service dog" inside the supermarket. In terms of carrying a commodity in the mouth, 92.2% and 89.1% in both groups replied that they don't mind, especially if safety was guaranteed for public health, and 91.3% and 95.2% in both groups replied that they had no other problems. Moreover, none of them would not entering stores. Significant differences were seldom in replies between the witness and non-witness groups.Although the respondents were extremely affirmative regarding the image of service dogs, it became clear that anxiety about public health aspects such as "zoonosis" or "utilization of medical institutions" was persisting. On the whole, negative opinions were more apparent in the elderly.

Transgenic rice plants expressing the maize phosphoeno/pyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) and pyruvate, orthophosphate dikinase (PPDK) exhibit a higher photosynthetic capacity (up to 35%) than untransformed plants. The increased photosynthetic capacity in these plants is mainly associated with an enhanced stomatal conductance and a higher internal CO2 concentration. Plants simultaneously expressing high levels of both enzymes also have a higher photosynthetic capacity. The results suggest that both PEPC and PPDK play a key role in organic acid metabolism in the guard cells to regulate stomatal opening. Under photoinhibitory and photooxidative conditions, PEPC transgenic rice plants are capable of maintaining a higher photosynthetic rate, a higher photosynthetic quantum yield by PSII and a higher capacity to dissipate excess energy photochemically and non-photochemically than untransformed plants. Preliminary data from field trials show that relative to untransformed plants, the grain yield is about 10-20% higher in selected PEPC and 30-35% higher in PPDK transgenic rice plants, due to increased tiller number. Taken together, these results suggest that introduction of C4 photosynthesis enzymes into rice has a good potential to enhance its tolerance to stress, photosynthetic capacity and yield.

Increasing evidence indicates a significant role for vitamin K in bone metabolism and osteoporosis. In this study, we found a large geographic difference in serum vitamin K2 (menaquinone-7; MK-7) levels in postmenopausal women. Serum MK-7 concentrations were 5.26 +/- 6.13 ng/mL (mean +/- SD) in Japanese women in Tokyo, 1.22 +/- 1.85 in Japanese women in Hiroshima, and 0.37 +/- 0.20 in British women. We investigated the effect of Japanese fermented soybean food, natto, on serum vitamin K levels. Natto contains a large amount of MK-7 and is eaten frequently in eastern (Tokyo) but seldom in western (Hiroshima) Japan. Serum concentrations of MK-7 were significantly higher in frequent natto eaters, and natto intake resulted in a marked, sustained increase in serum MK-7 concentration. We analyzed the relation between the regional difference in natto intake and fracture incidence. A statistically significant inverse correlation was found between incidence of hip fractures in women and natto consumption in each prefecture throughout Japan. These findings indicate that the large geographic difference in MK-7 levels may be ascribed, at least in part, to natto intake and suggest the possibility that higher MK-7 level resulting from natto consumption may contribute to the relatively lower fracture risk in Japanese women.

The small subunit of ribulose-bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco), encoded by rbcS, is essential for photosynthesis in both C3 and C4 plants, even though the cell specificity of rbcS expression is different between C3 and C4 plants. The C3 rbcS is specifically expressed in mesophyll cells, while the C4 rbcS is expressed in bundle sheath cells, and not mesophyll cells. Two chimeric genes were constructed consisting of the structural gene encoding beta-glucuronidase (GUS) controlled by the two promoters from maize (C4) and rice (C3) rbcS genes. These constructs were introduced into a C4 plant, maize. Both chimeric genes were specifically expressed in photosynthetic organs, such as leaf blade, but not in non-photosynthetic organs. The expressions of the genes were also regulated by light. However, the rice promoter drove the GUS activity mainly in mesophyll cells and relatively low in bundle sheath cells, while the maize rbcS promoter induced the activity specifically in bundle sheath cells. These results suggest that the rice promoter contains some cis-acting elements responding in an organ-specific and light-inducible regulation manner in maize but does not contain element(s) for bundle sheath cell-specific expression, while the maize promoter does contain such element(s). Based on this result, we discuss the similarities and differences between the rice (C3) and maize (C4) rbcS promoter in terms of the evolution of the C4 photosynthetic gene.

A ripe fruit rot of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) associated with stink bug (Euschistus conspersus) feeding caused extensive losses in the Sacramento Valley of California in 1998. Portions of several fields were abandoned at harvest due to fruit rot levels >30%. Symptoms included a soft, water-soaked rot often surrounding a firm, dark green island. Entire fruit sometimes became watery and soft. The ascomycetous yeast, Eremothecium coryli, characterized by spindle-shaped ascospores with long, thin, whip-like terminal appendages (1), was consistently isolated from diseased tissue plated on V8 or potato dextrose agar amended with tetracycline. Ripe tomato fruit were inoculated with a 0.1-ml suspension of 1.5 × 105 ascospores per ml injected to a depth of ≈4 mm to simulate stink bug probing. Fruit were placed in plastic containers and, in initial tests, were held at room temperature. In subsequent tests, inoculated fruit were maintained at constant temperatures of 20, 25, 30, or 35°C. Controls included inoculum either placed on the fruit surface or injected with sterilized water. Each treatment consisted of one to four fruit in two to four replications. All experiments were repeated. Lesions were visible within 5 days after inoculation and were >25 mm in diameter after 7 days. Progression of rot occurred at all temperatures but was fastest at 30 and 35°C. Controls remained symptomless. E. coryli was reisolated from infected fruit. This is the first documentation of field-level losses caused by E. coryli associated with stink bug feeding. Isolates are maintained in the Herman J. Phaff Collection of Yeast and Yeast-like Microorganisms at the University of California, Davis. Reference: (1) G. S. de Hoog et al. 1998. Eremothecium Borzi emend. Kurtzman. Pages 201-208 in: The Yeasts—A Taxonomic Study. C. P. Kurtzman and J. W. Fell, eds. Elsevier Scientific Publishers, Amsterdam.

In the present study, we developed a new event-related potentials (ERPs) stimulator system applicable to simultaneous audio visual stimuli, and tested it clinically on healthy adults and patients with learning disabilities (LD), using Japanese language task stimuli: hiragana letters, kanji letters, and kanji letters with spoken words. (1) The origins of the P300 component were identified in these tasks. The sources in the former two tasks were located in different areas. In the simultaneous task stimuli, a combination of the two P300 sources was observed with dominance in the left posterior inferior temporal area. (2) In patients with learning disabilities, those with reading and writing disability showed low amplitudes in the left hemisphere in response to visual language task stimuli with kanji and hiragana letters, in contrast to healthy children and LD patients with arithmetic disability. (3) To evaluate the effect of methylphenidate (10 mg) on ADD, paired-associate ERPs were recorded. Methylphenidate increased the amplitude of P300.

An Investigation by questionnaire was conducted in 1996 to know the tuberculosis (TB) status and living conditions of 50 homeless people registered as TB patients at one of Nagoya city's 16 health centers. 1. All patients had one or more symptoms of TB, 64% of them showed positive TB bacilli on smear, and 35.3% of them had a previous history of TB treatment. However, only 15.2% suspected they had TB at the onset of symptoms. 2. Main reasons of seeking medical treatment: 28.6% arrived by ambulance after falling down from exhaustion, 25.7% had consulted with welfare agencies after the onset of symptoms, and 20.0% had been diagnosed during the treatment of other diseases. 3. When they were admitted to the hospital they had many concerns: 29.0% loss of income, 19.4% living expenses, 19.4% smoking prohibition, 12.9% admission fee, and 9.7% privacy. 4. They lived in the following: 42.9% construction camps, 20.0% parks or streets, 17.1% single room occupancy hotels, 17.1% daily or monthly paid apartments, and 11.4% sauna baths. 5. Past medical histories of the subjects included 40.6% injuries by labor accidents, and 25.0% stomach ulcers. Current diseases were 15.6% mental diseases, 15.6% liver diseases, 15.6% diabetes mellitus, and 9.4% alcoholic dependence. Seventy percent of them consumed alcohol daily (average pure ethanol 125 ml per day). 6. From the results outlined above, the following proposals relating to TB control of the homeless should be considered. 1) Educating the homeless as to the need for a health check when TB symptoms are present. 2) Opening a clinic for the homeless for easy access to consultation on TB. 3) Directly observed therapy short-course, for TB in the homeless. 4) Health examination of the employees of single-room occupancy hotels and sauna baths which are used frequently by the homeless. 5) A fundamental countermeasure to deal with alcoholic dependency among the homeless.

Significant deformation of a grooved Si surface is discovered during low temperature processing (650–900 °C) in a ultra high vacuum. The lowest temperature at which deformation results is determined to be 650 °C for a (111)Si substrate. In addition, clear facets are formed after high temperature processing (850–900 °C). These new findings are tentatively considered to originate from the surface migration of Si atoms on atomically clean surfaces.

Two different cDNA clones for the chloroplast small heat shock protein (smHSP) were isolated from tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum cv. Petit Havana SR1). One of the cDNAs (type I) has a full-length open reading frame (ORF) of the smHSP of 26.6 kDa. By contrast, the other one (type II) contains an additional nucleotide that causes the frame shift inside a putative ORF for the smHSP. If this nucleotide is neglected, type II cDNA encodes the smHSP that is 89% identical to that encoded by type I cDNA. Southern blot and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analyses with genomic DNA indicated that tobacco has two different smHSP genes while two ancestors of tobacco, N. sylvestris and N. tomentosiformis, have a single gene that each corresponds to one of the two genes of tobacco. It was also found that one of the tobacco genes has an ORF for the smHSP disrupted by nucleotide insertion in the same way as type II cDNA, while both ancestor genes have a functional ORF. These results suggest that the two smHSP genes of tobacco had been derived from the two ancestor species, and that one of the two genes had been disrupted by nucleotide insertion during the course of the evolution of tobacco. Northern blot and reverse transcription (RT)-PCR analyses demonstrated that both the tobacco genes are expressed upon heat stress, exhibiting different dependences on temperature.

A survey was conducted to clarify the tuberculosis (TB) situation among the homeless during the period from 1991 to 1995 in Nagoya city, using 5,222 registration cards of TB cases registered at one of Nagoya City's 16 Health Centers. Out of 5,222 TB cases, there were 269 homeless cases (267 male and 2 female). Ninety-seven percent of them were pulmonary TB cases. The incidence and prevalence rates of TB per 100,000 among the homeless were estimated at around 1,500 and around 2,400, respectively, around 20 times higher than those of the non-homeless male over the 19 years of age. A decrease in the incidence rate of TB cases among the homeless was not seen, although the rate among the non-homeless decreased gradually. The percentage of infectious (bacillary and/or cavitary) tuberculous cases among the homeless was higher than in the non-homeless. In the infectious cases, the percentage of smear-positive bacillary cases or far advanced cavitary cases was 52.1% or 9.4% among the homeless compared to 48.1% or 2.6% among the non-homeless, respectively. The detection rate by chest X-ray examination of the homeless was 3.9%.

In eukaryotes, nuclear proteins that are transported into nuclei have nuclear localization signals (NLSs), which are recognized by proteins called importin alpha. We isolated a rice cDNA, #61L, and the corresponding gene that encodes a protein, which shows significant homology to the importin alpha. Although the encoded protein had only 23-27% amino acid identity to the importin alphas from various organisms including plants, the fusion protein with glutathione S-transferase showed a specific binding activity to the NLS of SV40 T-antigen. These results suggest that the rice #61L protein is a novel importin alpha in plants.

The relationship between aphasia and electroencephalogram (EEG) findings was studied in 2 patients with Landau-Kleffner syndrome. The appearance of diffuse spike and wave complexes almost always preceded the exacerbation of aphasia. Prior to the improvement of aphasia, EEG abnormality localized into the temporal region, and subsequently disappeared.

We describe a case of hemoglobinopathy detected on admission for examination for high blood glucose levels and abnormal liver function. In 1991, it was pointed out that he had postprandial hyperglycemia. In 1994, at age 60, he had lassitude and anorexia. He was admitted to our hospital on the suspicion of diabetes mellitus and liver disease. Glycosylated hemoglobin levels was very high, but the 75 gram oral glucose tolerance test result was within the normal range. After abstinence from alcohol, his glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, glutamic pyruvic transaminase and gamma glutamyl traspeptidase became normal. Diabetes was excluded and abnormal hemoglobinopathy had been suspected. We analyzed his abnormal hemoglobin. In isoelectro-phoresis a fast moving variant was detected suggesting the presence of abnormal hemoglobin at the cathode. We fractionated hemolytic globin by CM-chromatography and detected an abnormal peak before the alpha chain band. Subsequently, we sequenced isolated abnormal alpha chain and detected the substitution of Ariginine for Glutamamine at position 92 (Hb J Cape Town). So far he has not demonstrated any symptoms or signs of HbJ Cape Town. Hemoglobinopathy is not uncommon in aged people.

We performed the pharmacokinetics of balofloxacin in plasma and intraocular tissues in pigmented rabbits upon its oral administration. The penetrations of balofloxacin into plasma and aqueous humor of the anterior chamber reached their peaks of 6.46 micrograms/ml and 0.70 microgram/ml, respectively, and the ratio of drug concentration in aqueous humor to that of plasma was 0.12 at 1 hour after an oral administration of 20 mg/kg. Concentrations in plasma and aqueous humor of the anterior chamber reached 0.27 microgram/ml and 0.18 microgram/ml, respectively, at The T 1/2 (alpha) and T 1/2 (beta) of the drug in aqueous humor were longer than those in plasma The T 1/2 (alpha) and T 1/2 (beta) of the drug in aqueous humor were longer than those in plasma at a dose of 20 mg/kg. The concentrations in iris and ciliary body were much higher than in any other intraocular tissue in 24 hours after single administration of 20 mg/kg, and those concentrations remained at high levels for a long time.