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Author(s): K. Kitagawa [1]; T. Takayama [2]; Y. Matsumoto [2]; A. Kato [1]; R. Takano [1]; Y. Kishimoto [3]; S. Bette [2]; R. Dinnebier [2]; G. Jackeli [2, 4]; H. [...]

Controlling nanostructures and crystallographic orientations in epitaxial nanocomposite thin films are important for tuning their physical properties. Here, we present epitaxial nanocomposite thin films of (110) oriented CoFe2O4 (CFO) and (1110) oriented Bi5Ti3FeO15 (BTFO15) grown on SrTiO3 (110) substrates with a vertically aligned pillar–matrix type structure. The size and density of CFO pillars embedded in the BTFO matrix were controlled by the growth temperature and CFO concentration. Moreover, BTFO takes intergrowth phases with the general formula of Bi4Ti3O12 • nBiFeO3 (n = 1–∼1.5) depending on the growth temperature. Scanning probe analysis on the ferroelectric properties of BTFO15–CFO nanocomposite thin films suggested that the BTFO has a switchable out-of-plane polarization component originating from the tilted orientation of its a–b plane polarization. For high CFO pillar density, however, a non-negligible number of conductive paths which might be formed at the pillar–matrix interface are likely to prevent the polarization reversal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nana Takahashi, Akihito Suzuki, Yoshihiko Matsumoto, Toshinori Shirata, Koichi Otani Department of Psychiatry, Yamagata University School of Medicine, Yamagata, Japan Objective: Depressed patients are prone to perceive that they were exposed to affectionless control by parents. Meanwhile, high neuroticism is a well-established risk factor for developing depression. Therefore, this study examined whether perceived parental affectionless control is associated with high neuroticism.Methods: The subjects were 664 healthy Japanese volunteers. Perceived parental care and protection were assessed by the Parental Bonding Instrument. Parental rearing was categorized into either optimal parenting (high care/low protection) or three dysfunctional parenting styles including affectionless control (low care/high protection). Neuroticism was evaluated by the NEO Personality Inventory-Revised.Results: The subjects with paternal affectionless control had higher neuroticism scores than those with paternal optimal parenting. Similar tendency was observed in maternal rearing. Neuroticism scores increased in a stepwise manner with respect to the increase in the number of parents with affectionless control.Conclusion: The present study shows that perceived parental affectionless control is associated with high neuroticism, suggesting that this parental style increases neuroticism in recipients. Keywords: parenting, attachment, personality, vulnerability, depression, PBI, NEO PI-R

Kotaro Ono,1 Yoshikazu Takaesu,1 Yukiei Nakai,2 Akiyoshi Shimura,1 Yasuyuki Ono,1 Akiko Murakoshi,1 Yasunori Matsumoto,1 Hajime Tanabe,3 Ichiro Kusumi,2 Takeshi Inoue1 1Department of Psychiatry, Tokyo Medical University, Tokyo, 2Department of Psychiatry, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Hokkaido, 3Department of Clinical Human Sciences, Graduate school of Humanities and Social Sciences, Shizuoka University, Shizuoka, Japan Background: Recent studies have suggested that the interactions among several factors affect the onset, progression, and prognosis of major depressive disorder. This study investigated how childhood abuse, neuroticism, and adult stressful life events interact with one another and affect depressive symptoms in the general adult population. Subjects and methods: A total of 413 participants from the nonclinical general adult population completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, the Child Abuse and Trauma Scale, the neuroticism subscale of the shortened Eysenck Personality Questionnaire – Revised, and the Life Experiences Survey, which are self-report scales. Structural equation modeling (Mplus version 7.3) and single and multiple regressions were used to analyze the data. Results: Childhood abuse, neuroticism, and negative evaluation of life events increased the severity of the depressive symptoms directly. Childhood abuse also indirectly increased the negative appraisal of life events and the severity of the depressive symptoms through enhanced neuroticism in the structural equation modeling. Limitations: There was recall bias in this study. The causal relationship was not clear because this study was conducted using a cross-sectional design. Conclusion: This study suggested that neuroticism is the mediating factor for the two effects of childhood abuse on adulthood depressive symptoms and negative evaluation of life events. Childhood abuse directly and indirectly predicted the severity of depressive symptoms. Keywords: childhood abuse, depression, neuroticism, stressful life events, structural equation modeling

Glypicans are a family of glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored cell surface heparan sulfate proteoglycans implicated in the control of cellular growth and differentiation. Here we show that glypican-1 is strongly expressed in human breast cancers, whereas expression of glypican-1 is low in normal breast tissues. In contrast, the expression of glypican-3 and -4 is only slightly increased in breast cancers by comparison with normal breast tissues, and glypican-2 and -5 are below the level of detection by Northern blotting in both normal and cancer samples. Treatment of MDA-MB-231 and MDA-MB-468 breast cancer cells with phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase-C abrogated the mitogenic response to two heparin-binding growth factors, heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor and fibroblast growth factor 2. Stable transfection of these cells with a glypican-1 antisense construct markedly decreased glypican-1 protein levels and the mitogenic response to the same heparin-binding growth factors, as well as that to heregulin alpha, heregulin beta, and hepatocyte growth factor. Syndecan-1 was also expressed at high levels in both breast cancer tissues and breast cancer cells when compared with normal breast tissues. There was a good correlation between glypican-1 and syndecan-1 expression in the tumors. However, clones expressing the glypican-1 antisense construct did not exhibit decreased syndecan-1 levels, indicating that loss of responsiveness to heparin-binding growth factors in these clones was not due to altered syndecan-1 expression. Furthermore, 8 of 10 tumors with stage 2 or 3 disease exhibited high levels of glypican-1 by Northern blot analysis. In contrast, low levels of glypican-1 mRNA were evident in 1 of 10 tumors with stage 2 or 3 disease and in 9 of 10 tumors with stage 1 disease. Taken together, these data suggest that glypican-1 may play a pivotal role in the ability of breast cancer cells to exhibit a mitogenic response to multiple heparin-binding growth factors and may contribute to disease progression in this malignancy.

(Objective) To examine the status of anemia and iron deficiency in high school female athletes based on the results of medical checkups of designated athletes who excelled in sports in Oita Prefecture. (Methods) We examined the results of blood tests of 162 high school female athletes, divided into quartiles based on their hemoglobin levels. (Results) The mean and the median hemoglobin levels were both 12.9 g/dl, which is lower than the average for females in general. Ferritin and transferrin saturation were significantly lower in the first quartile group by hemoglobin volume than in the fourth quartile group. There were no significant differences in the creatinine and total testosterone levels, but the decrease in cholinesterase and increase in the urea nitrogen/creatinine ratio were significant. (Conclusion) In the general population of female high school students, skeletal muscle does not increase, but in athletes, skeletal muscle increases, suggesting that iron deficiency is caused by the increase in tissue iron contained in skeletal muscle. However, the effect of a low energy intake and iron loss due to menstrual bleeding were considered as the cause of the decrease in hemoglobin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Yoshiaki Kanai,1,2 Yoshikazu Takaesu,1 Yukiei Nakai,3 Masahiko Ichiki,1 Mitsuhiko Sato,1 Yasunori Matsumoto,1 Jun Ishikawa,1 Yasuyuki Ono,1 Akiko Murakoshi,1 Hajime Tanabe,4 Ichiro Kusumi,3 Takeshi Inoue1 1Department of Psychiatry, Tokyo Medical University, 2Department of Palliative Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, 3Department of Psychiatry, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, 4Department of Clinical Human Sciences, Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Shizuoka University, Shizuoka, Japan Background: Previous studies have shown the effects of childhood abuse, life events, and temperaments on well-being (positive affect) and ill-being (negative affect). We hypothesized that childhood abuse, affective temperaments, and adult life events interact with one another and influence positive and negative affects in the general adult population and tested this hypothesis using structural equation modeling. Methods: A total of 415 participants from the general, nonclinical adult population were studied using the following self-administered questionnaires: the Subjective Well-Being Inventory (SUBI); Life Experiences Survey (LES); Temperament Evaluation of the Memphis, Pisa, Paris, and San Diego Auto-questionnaire (TEMPS-A); and the Child Abuse and Trauma Scale (CATS). The data were analyzed with single and multiple regression analyses and structural equation modeling (Mplus). Results: Childhood abuse indirectly predicted the worsening of positive and negative affects through cyclothymic, anxious, and irritable temperaments as measured by the TEMPS-A in the structural equation model. The cyclothymic, anxious, and irritable temperaments directly worsened the positive and negative affects and the negative appraisal of life events that occurred during the past year, while the hyperthymic temperament had the opposite effects. Limitations: The subjects of this study were nonclinical volunteers. The findings might not be generalizable to psychiatric patients. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that childhood abuse, particularly neglect, indirectly worsened the well-being of individuals through cyclothymic, anxious, and irritable affective temperaments. An important “mediator” role of affective temperaments in the effect of childhood abuse on well-being was suggested. Keywords: childhood abuse, well-being, affective temperament, TEMPS-A, adult life events, structural equation model

Ravindra M Samarth,1,2 Meenakshi Samarth,3 Yoshihisa Matsumoto4 1Department of Research, Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre (ICMR), Bhopal, India; 2National Institute for Research in Environmental Health (NIREH), Indian Council of Medical Research, Bhopal, India; 3Department of Zoology, Centre for Advanced Studies, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur, India; 4Research Laboratory for Nuclear Reactors, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan Abstract: Systematic biological measurement of “cytogenetic endpoints” has helped phenomenally in assessment of risks associated with radiation exposure. There has been a surge in recent times for the usage of radioactive materials in health care, agriculture, industrial, and nuclear power sectors. The likelihood of radiation exposure from accidental or occupational means is always higher in an overburdened ecosystem that is continuously challenged to meet the population demands. Risks associated with radiation exposure in this era of modern industrial growth are minimal as international regulations for maintaining the safety standards are stringent and strictly adhered to, however, a recent disaster like “Fukushima” impels us to think beyond. The major objective of radiobiology is the development of an orally effective radio-modifier that provides protection from radiation exposure. Once available for mass usage, these compounds will not only be useful for providing selective protection against accidental and occupational radiation exposure but also help to permit use of higher doses of radiation during treatment of various malignancies curtailing unwarranted adverse effects imposed on normal tissues. Bio-active compounds isolated from natural sources enriched with antioxidants possess unique immune-modulating properties, thus providing a double edged benefit over synthetic radioprotectors. We aim to provide here a comprehensive overview of the various agents originating from plant sources that portrayed promising radioprotection in various experimental models with special emphasis on studies that used cytogenetic biomarkers. The agents will include crude extracts of various medicinal plants, purified fractions, and herbal preparations. Keywords: cytogenetic biomarkers, medicinal plants, radioprotectors, radiation exposure

Kuniko Kohyama,1 Yoh Matsumoto2–4 1Department of Brain Development and Neural Regeneration, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo, Japan; 2Department of Sensory and Motor Systems, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, Tokyo, Japan; 3Immunotherapy Development Inc., Saitama, Japan; 4Geriatric Health Services Facility “Asahigaoka”, Saitama, Japan Abstract: Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterized by progressive neurodegeneration and is the most common cause of dementia. Immunotherapy has recently been regarded as a potential treatment for AD. This stems from the fact that the clinical and pathological findings from the active AD vaccine trial suggests that such vaccine therapy may be effective for AD. However, this trial was halted because of the occurrence of meningoencephalitis in some patients. Avoiding excessive immune reaction is necessary for the success of vaccine therapy. For this purpose, adjuvant-free vaccine therapies (eg, passive immunization or DNA vaccines) are currently under investigation. However, the results of clinical trials employing both active and passive anti-amyloid-beta immunotherapy have been unsatisfactory. In this article, we will analyze the reasons for the limited efficacy of currently available immunotherapies and discuss the effectiveness of new vaccine therapies. Finally, we will speculate on the possibility of its clinical application. Keywords: Aβ peptide vaccine, amyloid-beta, amyloid cascade theory, immunotherapy, monoclonal antibody, tau