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Education about menstruation is a sensitive topic for young female students; providing appropriate knowledge is essential for maintaining and improving their health. The present study was conducted to collect data corresponding to different factors affecting health among young individuals; the menstrual status, exercise habits, sleep status, and body composition of these individuals as well as the relationships among these factors, were evaluated. Altogether, 200 female students responded to the survey; 129 completed all the physical measurement items. As a case study, face-to-face interviews regarding menstrual symptoms were conducted. Results showed that 49/200 (25%) and 120/200 (60%) participants experienced moderate or severe pain before and during menstruation, respectively. The degree of pain one week before menstruation and during menstruation were significantly positively correlated (r = 0.573, p < 0.01). When analyzed as group data, it was difficult to identify the relationship between menstrual status, exercise habits, and sleep status; these were found to be intricately associated with various factors. The case study analysis confirmed that some individuals experienced physical and psychological symptoms, such as irregular menstrual cycles, premenstrual syndrome, and severe menstrual cramps.

長崎国際大学では、強化指定部12団体・運動部8団体、体育系サークル11団体と多様かつ多数の学生が所属している。本研究では、大学部活動の競技力向上のための基礎調査として、学生のニーズについて調査を行い、スポーツ系学生が大学に求めるトレーニングや講習などのサポートについて検討した。活動状況について、強化指定部は活動日数や休日の活動時間が他に比べ多く、特に強化指定部においては平日のうち週4日以上部活動を行っている者が9割以上であることが示された。また、ニーズ調査の結果、レベルアップのために身体的トレーニング（16.3％）やコンディショニング（12.4％）に取り組みたいこと、身体的トレーニング（12.4％）や心理的トレーニング（10.4％）、コンディションニングなどの講習や情報を求める回答が多かった。大学に望むこととして、活動頻度の低い体育系サークルに比べ、非常に多くの時間を部活動に費やしている強化指定部や運動部から多くの意見が得られ、学生のニーズに対する具体的支援を検討する必要性が示された。

本稿は、長崎国際大学にて2018年度に実施した2つのアダプテッド・スポーツ教育活動の報告とともに、その教育効果の検討することを目的とする。アダプテッド・スポーツ教育活動として、①講義の一部にアダプテッド・スポーツを体験する機会を組み込む、②障がい者との交流機会を設ける取り組みを実施した。その結果、アダプテッド・スポーツという言葉や概念を知り、競技を自ら体験して楽しむという第一義の目的を達成することができたと考えている。また、障がい者との交流機会として実施したアンプティサッカー選手を招いてのイベントでは、イベントの前後で実施した障がい者スポーツのイメージ等に関するアンケート調査結果から、参加学生の障がい者スポーツに対するイメージが肯定的なものへと変容したことがわかった。また、参加学生のイベントに対する感想文から、スポーツの価値や現在のスポーツ教育あるいはスポーツ活動の在り方を問い直す貴重な機会となったことがわかった。

本稿では、2019年度に新たにキャリア教育の1つとして立ち上がった「大学ゼミ・地元企業ジョイント授業」の紹介とともに、その成果の一部を報告する。今回紹介するジョイント授業の教育プログラムでは、自動車部品の一種であるサイドカーテンエアバッグを製造している企業への会社訪問が主な内容であった。また、会社訪問に向けた事前教育として履歴書の作成を行い、事後教育では企業担当者からの総評ならびに履歴書の添削を学生にフィードバックを行った。学生はそれらを基に授業全体の振り返りとして感想文を作成した。さらに、会社訪問にて印象に残っていることについてグループ討議を行い、学生による会社説明資料を作成した。本ジョイント授業に参加した学生13名の感想文からは、当初、就職に対する理解や意欲が高くなかったが、授業を通して就職活動に向けた危機感が喚起されたことが伺えた。この学生の意識の変化には、企業の方々からのフィードバックが有効的な役割を果たしていたと推察できる。このことから、大学のみならず、地域企業や地域社会と連携し、培われてきた経験やノウハウを活用することは、キャリア教育の効果を高める一助になるといえるだろう。

[Purpose] We aimed to determine the cause of floating toe syndrome, along with methods for correction and prevention. [Participants and Methods] We recruited 93 Japanese male students. Participants were grouped, according to primary sport, as Sprinters (SPR), Swimmers (SWM), Gymnasts (GYM), Kendoists (KND) and Controls (CON). Degree of floating toe syndrome was measured according to whether any toe was not in full contact with the ground in a static standing posture—the Floating Toe Point (FTP). Two points were given for each toe that was not at the FTP. The sum of the FTP was defined as the Floating Toes Score (FTS), and was classified as follows: Normalcy (over 18 points), Incomplete Contact (between 10 and 17 points), and Floating Toes (Under 9 points). [Results] The mean FTS for all participants (10.40 ± 5.803) met the criteria for Floating Toes. Scores were highest for SWMs (13.46 ± 5.710), followed by GYMs (13.26 ± 4.505), and SPRs (12.00 ± 4.870), who all met the criteria for Incomplete Contact. Both KNDs (6.55 ± 5.409) and CONs (9.45 ± 4.824) met the criteria for Floating Toes. [Conclusion] SWMs had the highest FTSs, followed by GYMs, and SPRs. KNDs had the lowest FTS. However, no group was classified as Normal. We suggest that athletes who practice or train with bare feet do not necessarily have higher FTSs, if evaluated in the standing posture.

本稿は、日本におけるアンプティサッカーの競技普及ならびに競技力向上に向けた取り組みの変遷をまとめるとともに、世界の動向を概説するものである。日本におけるアンプティサッカーの変遷は、各関係機関のホームページや過去に発行されたパンフレット、新聞等の掲載記事の情報を基に、①特定非営利活動法人日本アンプティサッカー協会、②国内のアンプティサッカー大会、③アンプティサッカー日本代表のワールドカップに向けた取り組みについてまとめた。世界の動向については、各関係機関のホームページ、書籍および学術論文を基に、①アンプティサッカーの歴史、②最近の競技発展の動き、③学術研究についてまとめた。アンプティサッカーは、高価な専用器具を用いないため、気軽に楽しめるスポーツとして人気が高まっており、今後も世界的な競技普及が進むと推察される。

本研究の目的は、子ども達へのスポーツ環境の提供およびスポーツを学ぶ大学生へのアクティブラーニングの場の提供を目的として長崎国際大学で実施された地域スポーツ教室の指導者意識が、参加者である児童生徒および保護者の満足度に与える影響を明らかにすることである。地域スポーツ教室に参加した児童生徒に対して形成的授業評価票および地域スポーツ教室の満足度、地域スポーツ教室の指導にあたった学生に対して体育授業観察チェックリストへの回答を地域スポーツ教室実施後に求めた。児童生徒の形成的授業評価と大学生の体育授業観察チェックリストの下位項目の相関係数を算出した結果、「心を込めて児童に関わること」と「成果」（r＝－.47, p＜.05）および「意欲・関心」（r＝.45, p＜.05）、「子ども同士が積極的に教え合うよう工夫すること」と「協力」（r＝.56, p＜.001）の間に有意な相関が見られ、学生が児童生徒に心を込めて関わることは児童生徒の楽しさにつながる一方で、児童生徒の学習成果を得る時間を妨げてしまう可能性が示唆され、指導にあたった大学生の関わり方や指導方法の工夫が重要であることが明らかとなった。

OBJECTIVES: Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an omega-3 fatty acid that is essential for normal brain development and cognitive function, and also consumed as a dietary supplement in worldwide. Recently, N-Docosahexanoylethanolamine (synaptamide) has been reported as an endocannabinoid-like metabolite endogenously synthesized from DHA, which produces neuritogenic and synaptogenic effects in vitro studies. These suggest synaptamide plays crucial roles in brain function and can be a novel dietary intervention to prevent cognitive dysfunction. The purpose of this study was to investigate how orally administered synaptamide act on cognitive function in mice. Methods: Exp1. Male ICR mice were oral ingested synaptamide (100 or 500 mg/kg body weight (BW) and measured synaptamide concentration in blood flow. Exp2. Male ICR mice at 4 weeks of age, and male C57BL/6 J mice at 54 weeks of age were orally administered vehicle (corn oil), or synaptamide (100 or 500 mg/kg BW) for 4 weeks. After that, we performed the Y-maze test and Object Recognition test (ORT) to evaluate cognitive function. Only ICR mice were intraperitoneally injected scopolamine just before 30 minutes performing Y-maze test or ORT. Hippocampal gene expression was analyzed by qPCR, and hippocampal phosphoprotein profiles were analyzed using the Phospho Explorer Antibody Array. RESULTS: Synaptamide level in plasma was increased by oral administration of synaptamide. Behavioral performance in the Y-maze test were comparable irrespective of administration. On the other hand, in the ORT, synaptamide-administered mice spent significantly more time exploring the novel object compared to familiar object in a dose dependent manner, while control mice did not discriminate between the objects. Furthermore, in hippocampus from aged mice administered synaptamide, expression of PSS2 gene was increased and several phosphoprotein profiles modification involved in inflammatory signal such as Nf-κB were observed. CONCLUSIONS: We found that oral administration of synaptamide ameliorates cognitive function in scopolamine-administered mice and aged mice, and increases PSS2 gene expression which is involved in memory formation, in hippocampus of aged mice. Our results suggest that supplementation with synaptamide could improve hippocampal-dependent memory formation. FUNDING SOURCES: Kyowa Hakko Bio Co., Ltd.

Sprint performance plays an important role in amputee soccer. Sprint motion such as step length and frequency are generally accepted as one of the determining factors of sprint performance. However, there is a paucity of sprint motion studies. Here we sought to analyze sprint motion in outfield positioned amputee soccer players using crutches and to clarify the relationship between sprint speed and sprint motion. Twelve male Japanese outfield players participated; they performed a 30-m sprint with maximum effort. Sprint times and speeds were recorded using electronic timing gates. A high-speed video camera recorded sprint motion. The time and distance of each crutch and step were determined via image analysis. Sprint speed was significantly positively correlated with body mass (r=0.692, p=0.013), length and frequency of one running cycle(r=0.817, p=0.001; r=0.666, p=0.018, respectively), 1st-2nd step length (r=0.890, p=0.001), and crutch-1st step length (r=0.659, p=0.020). In addition, sprint speed was significantly negatively correlated with time taken for each 10-m interval as well as with contact time of first foot (r=-0.881, p=0.001) and crutch stance time (r=-0.670, p=0.017). Our results suggest that improving sprint speed requires increasing the step length within a shorter time frame in first foot step and crutch stance.

The purpose of this study was to clarify whether foot strike patterns are associated with different sprint performance and kinematics in preadolescent boys. The study enrolled 24 healthy 10-11-year-old boys in the fifth grade at public elementary schools in Japan. The participants performed the 50-m sprint with maximum effort. Sprint motion was recorded using a high-speed video camera (120 fps) placed in the sagittal plane on the left side of a line drawn at 35-m from the start line. Kinematic variables were calculated based on manually digitized body landmark coordinates. The participants were categorized into two groups according to their foot strike pattern (rearfoot strikers, RF group, n = 12; forefoot or midfoot strikers, FF/MF group, n = 12). The time taken to complete the 50-m sprint in the FF/MF group (9.08±0.52 s) was faster than that in the RF group (9.63±0.51 s). The FF/MF group had greater sprint speed, higher step frequency, and shorter foot contact time than the RF group. Regarding the association between foot strike pattern and sprint kinematics, we found that the RF group had a greater range of knee flexion during the support-leg phase, whereas the FF/MF group had shorter horizontal distance from the heel of the support leg to the centre of mass at the touchdown, greater maximal knee flexion velocity during the swing-leg phase, and higher the maximum hip extension velocity during the support-leg phase. The current results suggested that, in preadolescent boys, forefoot or midfoot strike (rather than rearfoot strike) is effective for obtaining a higher step frequency and sprint speed through greater magnitude of knee flexion and hip extension movement velocities during the swing and support phases, respectively. The current findings will be useful for understanding the characteristics of the development of sprinting performance in preadolescent children.

BACKGROUND The purpose of this study was to profile the match performance and heart rate response in Japanese amputee soccer players. METHODS Twelve amputee soccer players participated in this study. Match data were collected 20 samples in 4 matches. Match performances data such as total distance, high-intensity running (HIR: ≥13 km·h-1) were collected using a global positioning systems technology. Heart rate (HR) was recorded using short-range radio telemetry. In addition, the rating of perceived exertion (RPE) was assessed immediately using Borg's original after the first half and the second half. RESULTS This study showed that the distance covered over the 50 minutes of the match was 2984.2±56.1 m, and it was significantly shorter in the second half than the first half (P

To develop the infrastructure for biotin production through naturally biotin-auxotrophic Corynebacterium glutamicum, we attempted to engineer the organism into a biotin prototroph and a biotin hyperauxotroph. To confer biotin prototrophy on the organism, the cotranscribed bioBF genes of Escherichia coli were introduced into the C. glutamicum genome, which originally lacked the bioF gene. The resulting strain still required biotin for growth, but it could be replaced by exogenous pimelic acid, a source of the biotin precursor pimelate thioester linked to either coenzyme A (CoA) or acyl carrier protein (ACP). To bridge the gap between the pimelate thioester and its dedicated precursor acyl-CoA (or -ACP), the bioI gene of Bacillus subtilis, which encoded a P450 protein that cleaves a carbon-carbon bond of an acyl-ACP to generate pimeloyl-ACP, was further expressed in the engineered strain by using a plasmid system. This resulted in a biotin prototroph that is capable of the de novo synthesis of biotin. On the other hand, the bioY gene responsible for biotin uptake was disrupted in wild-type C. glutamicum. Whereas the wildtype strain required approximately 1 mu g of biotin per liter for normal growth, the bioY disruptant (Delta bioY) required approximately 1 mg of biotin per liter, almost 3 orders of magnitude higher than the wild-type level. The Delta bioY strain showed a similar high requirement for the precursor dethiobiotin, a substrate for bioB-encoded biotin synthase. To eliminate the dependency on dethiobiotin, the bioB gene was further disrupted in both the wild-type strain and the Delta bioY strain. By selectively using the resulting two strains (Delta bioB and Delta bioBY) as indicator strains, we developed a practical biotin bioassay system that can quantify biotin in the seven-digit range, from approximately 0.1 mu g to 1 g per liter. This bioassay proved that the engineered biotin prototroph of C. glutamicum produced biotin directly from glucose, albeit at a marginally detectable level (approximately 0.3 mu g per liter)., Article, APPLIED AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY. 79(15):4586-4594 (2013)