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A 39-year-old man had an intracranial tumour without infiltration into the surrounding cerebral tissue. The tumour recurred seven times in 11 years but maintained a well-demarcated character. Histopathological examination of the 4th surgical specimens showed nests of tumour cells surrounding small blood vessels. The tumour cells harboured amphophilic cytoplasm and small round nuclei with fine chromatin, and perinuclear haloes and clear borders were frequently observed, which was unclassifiable histology. By the Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum methylation classifier, the tumour was not classified into any of the methylation classes. mRNA sequencing identified a novel SREBF1::NACC1 gene fusion. This intracranial tumour could be a novel tumour entity with NACC1 rearrangement showing characteristic histological and diagnostic imaging findings.

The mechanical properties of polyethylene (PE)/polypropylene (PP)/styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene (SEBS)/mica composites were investigated as a model composition. Four types of mica with different particle sizes and different aspect ratios were used. These composites were extruded by a twin-screw extruder and subsequently injection molded, and their mechanical properties, including their tensile, bending, and impact properties were evaluated. The addition of mica to PE/PP/SEBS effectively improved its mechanical properties; the addition of SEBS as a compatibilizer likewise enhanced the mechanical properties compared with those of PE/PP composites without SEBS. The use of larger average particle size and higher aspect ratio mica, such as M-35, M-27, and P-33, effectively increased the tensile and bending properties of the PE/PP/SEBS/mica composites. The morphologies of the composites with an added mica as observed by scanning electron microscopy, showed good dispersion between the matrix polymer and the mica.

We have studied the effects of silane coupling agents used for the surface treatment of fiber on the tribological properties of hemp fiber (HF) reinforced plant-derived polyamide 1010 (PA1010) biomass composites. Hemp fibers were surface-treated by two surface treatment methods: (a) alkali treatment by sodium hydroxide solution and (b) surface treatment by silane coupling agents. Three types of silane coupling agents, namely aminosilane, epoxysilane and ureidosilane were used. These HF/PA1010 biomass composites were extruded using a twin extruder, and injection-molded. The mechanical and tribological properties were evaluated by the ring-on-plate type sliding wear test. It was found that tribological properties of HF/PA1010 biomass composites improved with the surface treatment by the silane coupling agent. This may be attributed to the change in the mode of friction and wear mechanism by the interfacial adhesion between fiber and matrix polymer according to the type of silane coupling agent used. In particular, the ureidosilane coupling agent showed the best improvement effect for the tribological properties of these biomass composites in this study.

1Institute of Materials Structure Science, KEK, Tsukuba 305-0801, Japan 2Department Materials Structure Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies, Hayama 240-0193, Japan 3J-PARC Center, Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Naka-gun, Ibaraki 319-1195, Japan 4Graduate School of Advanced Sciences of Matter, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8530, Japan 5Institute for Advanced Materials Research, Hiroshima University, Higashi-Hiroshima 739-8530, Japan

The aim of this study is to investigate the influence of initial fiber length on the mechanical and tribological properties of hemp fiber filled plants-derived polyamide 1010 biomass composites in order to develop the new engineering materials such as structural materials and tribomaterials based on all plants-derived materials. Plants-derived polyamide 1010 (PA1010) was made from plants-derived castor oil. Hemp fiber (HF) was previously cut into length of 5mm, 10mm, 20mm and 50mm, and was surface-treated by two types of treatment: alkali treatment by NaOH solution and surface treatment by ureidosilane coupling agent (HF-S). The volume fraction of HF-S in the composites was fixed with 20vol.%. HF-S/PA1010 biomass composites were extruded by a twin screw extruder and injection-molded. Their mechanical properties such as tensile, bending, and Izod impact test, and tribological properties by ring-on-plate type sliding wear testing were evaluated. It was found that the mechanical properties of HF-S/PA1010 bio...

In order to develop the new engineering materials such as structural materials and tribomaterials based on all plants-derived materials, the purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of types of alkali treatment on the mechanical and tribological properties of hemp fiber (HF) reinforced plants-derived polyamide 1010 (HF/PA1010) biomass composites. HF were surface-treated by four types of surface treatments: (a) alkali treatment by sodium hydroxide (NaOH) solution, (b) alkali treatment by sodium chlorite (NaClO2) solution, (c) alkali treatment by NaOH solution and surface treatment by ureido silane coupling agent, and (d) alkali treatment by NaClO2 solution and surface treatment by ureido silane. The volume fraction of hemp fiber in the composites was fixed with 20vol.%. HF/PA1010 composites were extruded by a twin screw extruder and injection-molded. Mechanical properties such as tensile, bending and tribological properties by ring-on-plate type sliding wear testing were evaluated. It was found that the effect of the types of alkali treatment on the mechanical and tribological properties of the composites differed for each property. The mechanical and tribological properties are improved with both alkali treatments by NaOH and NaClO2 with or without the surface treatment by ureido silane coupling agent (A-1160). This may be attributed to the interfacial interaction and interphase adhesion between HF and PA1010 according to the type of these alkali treatments. The combination NaClO2 and A-1160 is the most effect improvement for the mechanical and tribological properties of HF/PA1010 biomass composites. It follows from these results that it may be possible to develop the new engineering materials with sufficient balance between mechanical and tribological properties. © 2016 Author(s).

The aim of this study is to improve the performance of all inedible plants-derived materials for new engineering materials such as structural materials and tribomaterials. Thermal properties of hemp fiber filled polyamide 1010 biomass composites and the blend of these composites and plants-derived TPE were investigated experimentally. These biomass composites were extruded by a twin screw extruder and compression or injection molded. Thermal properties such as dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) of these biomass composites were evaluated. It was found that the addition of HF and the blend of bio-TPE with PA1010 have strong influence on the thermal properties such as DMA, TGA and DSC. In particular, HF has a good effect for the improvement of the thermal and mechanical properties. These properties of HF/PA1010/PA11E biomass composites are better than those of HF/PA1010/TPU ones.

For developing the new engineering materials such as structural materials and tribomaterials based on all plants-derived materials, we investigated the effect of processing sequence on the dynamic viscoelastic properties of the ternary biomass composites: 5mm cut hemp fiber (HF) filled polymer blend of plants-derived polyamide 1010 (PA1010) and polyamide 11 elastomer (PA11E) composites in the molten state. PA1010 and PA11E, which contain the polyether groups as soft segment, were made from plant-derived castor oil. The composition of the polymer blend of PA1010 and PA11E was fixed with 60/40 weight fraction. HF was surface-treated by two types of treatment: alkali treatment by NaOH solution and surface treatment by ureido silane coupling agent. The volume fraction of HF in the composites was fixed with 20vol.%. Five different processing sequences: (1) HF, PA1010 and PA11E were mixed simultaneously (Process A), (2) Re-mixing (second compounding) of the materials prepared by Process A (Process AR), (3) PA11E was blended with PA1010 (PA1010/PA11E blends) and then these blends were mixed with HF (Process B), (4) HF was mixed with PA1010 (HF/PA1010 composites) and then these composites were blended with PA11E (Process C), and (5) HF were mixed with PA11E (HF/PA11E composites) and then these composites were blended with PA1010 (Process D) were attempted for preparing the ternary biomass composites (HF/PA1010/PA11E) composites. These ternary biomass composites were extruded by a twin screw extruder and compression-molded. Their dynamic viscoelastic properties in the molten state were evaluated by oscillatory flow testing using a parallel plate type rheometer. It was found that those properties of the ternary biomass composites in the molten state are influenced so much by processing sequence. This is attributed to the change of internal microstructure of these composites such as the distribution and dispersion of HF. © 2016 Author(s)., JSPS, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science

The Medaka is an excellent genetic system for studies of vertebrate development and disease and environmental and evolutionary biology studies. To facilitate the mapping of markers or the cloning of affected genes in Medaka mutants identified by forward-genetic screens, we have established a panel of whole-genome radiation hybrids (RHs) and RH maps for three Medaka chromosomes. RH mapping is useful, since markers to be mapped need not be polymorphic and one can establish the order of markers that are difficult to resolve by genetic mapping owing to low genetic recombination rates. RHs were generated by fusing the irradiated donor, OLF-136 Medaka cell line, with the host B78 mouse melanoma cells. Of 290 initial RH clones, we selected 93 on the basis of high retention of fragments of the Medaka genome to establish a panel that allows genotyping in the 96-well format. RH maps for linkage groups 12, 17, and 22 were generated using 159 markers. The average retention for the three chromosomes was 19% and the average break point frequency was approximately 33 kb/cR. We estimate the potential resolution of the RH panel to be approximately 186 kb, which is high enough for integrating RH data with bacterial artificial chromosome clones. Thus, this first RH panel will be a useful tool for mapping mutated genes in Medaka.

A gonad is formed from germ cells and somatic mesodermal cells through their interactions. Its development is coupled with the determination and differentiation of the sex and sex-associated traits. We carried out a large-scale screening of Medaka mutants in which gonadal development is affected. Screening was performed on larvae at 8 days posthatching for abnormal abundance and/or distribution of germ cells detected by the in situ hybridization for olvas (Medaka vasa). We describe here 16 mutants of 13 genes, which are classified into four groups. Group 1, consisting of four mutants of three genes kon, tot) characterised by an increase in germ cell number. An adult tot homozygote fish has the characteristic feature of possessing hypertrophic gonads filled with immature oocytes. Group 2, represented by a single gene (zen) mutant characterized by a gradual loss of germ cells. Group 3, consisting of four mutants of distinct genes (eko, eki, sht, ano) showing irregular clustering of germ cells. Group 4, consisting of seven mutants of five genes (arr, hyo, mzr, hdr, fbk) showing fragmented clusters of germ cells. In some mutants belonging to Groups 1, 3 and 4, the expression level of ftz-f1 (sf-1/Ad4BP) in gonadal somatic cells significantly decreased, suggesting that interaction between somatic and germ cells is affected.

A large-scale mutagenesis screen was performed in Medaka to identify genes acting in diverse developmental processes. Mutations were identified in homozygous F3 progeny derived from ENU-treated founder males. In addition to the morphological inspection of live embryos, other approaches were used to detect abnormalities in organogenesis and in specific cellular processes, including germ cell migration, nerve tract formation, sensory organ differentiation and DNA repair. Among 2031 embryonic lethal mutations identified, 312 causing defects in organogenesis were selected for further analyses. From these, 126 mutations were characterized genetically and assigned to 105 genes. The similarity of the development of Medaka and zebrafish facilitated the comparison of mutant phenotypes, which indicated that many mutations in Medaka cause unique phenotypes so far unrecorded in zebrafish. Even when mutations of the two fish species cause a similar phenotype such as one-eyed-pinhead or parachute, more genes were found in Medaka than in zebrafish that produced the same phenotype when mutated. These observations suggest that many Medaka mutants represent new genes and, therefore, are important complements to the collection of zebrafish mutants that have proven so valuable for exploring genomic function in development.

We screened for mutations affecting retinotectal axonal projection in Medaka, Oryzias latipes. In wild-type Medaka embryos, all the axons of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) project to the contralateral tectum, such that the topological relationship of the retinal field is maintained. We labeled RGC axons using DiI/DiO at the nasodorsal and temporoventral positions of the retina, and screened for mutations affecting the pattern of stereotypic projections to the tectum. By screening 184 mutagenized haploid genomes, seven mutations in five genes causing defects in axonal pathfinding were identified, whereas mutations affecting the topographic projection of RGC axons were not found. The mutants were grouped into two classes according to their phenotypes. In mutants of Class I, a subpopulation of the RGC axons branched out either immediately after leaving the eye or after reaching the midline, and this axonal subpopulation projected to the ipsilateral tectum. In mutants of Class II, subpopulations of RGC axons branched out after crossing the midline and projected aberrantly. These mutants will provide clues to understanding the functions of genes essential for axonal pathfinding, which may be conserved or partly divergent among vertebrates.

The development of germ cells has been intensively studied in Medaka (Oryzias latipes). We have undertaken a large-scale screen to identify mutations affecting the development of primordial germ cells (PGCs) in Medaka. Embryos derived from mutagenized founder fish were screened for an abnormal distribution or number of PGCs at embryonic stage 27 by RNA in situ hybridization for the Medaka vasa homologue (olvas). At this stage, PGCs coalesce into two bilateral vasa-expressing foci in the ventrolateral regions of the trunk after their migration and group organization. Nineteen mutations were identified from a screen corresponding to 450 mutagenized haploid genomes. Eleven of the mutations caused altered PGC distribution. Most of these alterations were associated with morphological abnormalities and could be grouped into four phenotypic classes: Class 1, PGCs dispersed into bilateral lines; Class 2, PGCs dispersed in a region more medial than that in Class 1; Class 3, PGCs scattered laterally and over the yolk sac area; and Class 4, PGCs clustered in a single median focus. Eight mutations caused a decrease in the number of PGCs. This decrease was observed in the offspring of heterozygous mothers, indicating the contribution of a maternal factor in determining PGC abundance. Taken together, these mutations should prove useful in identifying molecular mechanisms underlying the early PGC development and migration.

Workers have not been very satisfied with their positions in local governments in Japan because they are mostly regarded as “public servants.” Job satisfaction, however, seems to be important for performance of both employee and employer. According to the questionnaire survey of workers employed at Q city hall, clarity of the worker's own objectives and whether or not the worker is able to make use of his/her speciality in his/her career, whether there is a chance for advancement, and motivation of promotion are very much related to satisfaction with the job. As for measures in human resource management, management by objectives and self-control and career development plan, which consists of specialized subject and personnel arrangement plan and required skill and knowledge for each staff member, are important for workers' satisfaction and will promote better performance in local government.

The investigation of the possibility of low-cost SMES is an indispensable theme if that practical use is to be realized. We optimized the system composition by selecting the most suitable charge/discharge rate. We conducted the optimum design on the structure of superconductor and the coil system under special consideration of the material unit price, the total material amount, the manufacturing efficiency, and so on. The pool-cooling double-row solenoid system using NbTi base conductor is the most suitable one as 15kWh-100MW SMES for the system-stabilizing use and 500kWh-100MW SMES for the load-fluctuation-compensating and frequency-controlling use.

We have challenged to reduce an accelerator beam power for an accelerator-based BNCT facility. The required neutron source strength at the target has been estimated so as to make the epithermal neutron flux in the patient irradiation field exceed 1.7 x 10 9 n/cm 2 s. The energy of the incident proton and the arrangement of the moderator assemblies are optimized. The beam current and the accelerating voltage are determined so that the accelerator power becomes minimum. The beam power required for the treatment in one hour is 62.5 kW. The proposed facility is equipped with a 2.5 MeV proton accelerator of 25 mA, a lithium target, and a heavy water moderator contained in an aluminum tank.

An optimization study has been made on an accelerator-based facility for the boron neutron capture therapy. The energy of the incident proton and the arrangement of the moderator assemblies are optimized. The beam current and the accelerating voltage are determined so that the accelerator power becomes minimum. The proposed facility is equipped with a 2.5 MeV proton accelerator of 10–25 mA, a lithium target, and a heavy water moderator contained in an aluminum tank. Each of these equipment is feasible, if proper R&D works have been done. Our new design requires the beam power of less than a hundred kW for the accelerator, although that of our previous design was 1 MW. The reduction of the beam power makes the cooling system for the target much simpler. The essential issues for realization of this concept are long-life lithium targets under high heat flux and high current proton accelerators with average currents of more than 10 mA.