• Title/Summary/Keyword: Kagawa

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Enhancement of Mucosal Immune Functions by Dietary Spirulina platensis in Human and Animals

  • Osamu Hayashi;Kyoko Ishii;Chinami Kawamura;Hei, Shi-Yen;Bao, Ning-Ye;Tomohiro Hirahashi;Toshimitsu Katoh
    • Nutritional Sciences
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    • v.7 no.1
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    • pp.31-34
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    • 2004
  • This paper reviews the effects of Spirulina platensis and its extracts and phycocyanin, a blue photosynthetic pigment protein in Spirulina on the mucosal immune functions in humans and animals as follows: TEX>$\bullet$ IgA antibody response and other classes in mucosal immunity of mice treated with Spirulina platensis and its extract. $\bullet$ Effect of Spirulina phycocyanin ingestion on the mucosal antibody responses in mice. - Distinct effects of phycocyanin on secretory IgA and allergic IgE antibody responses in mice following oral immunization with antigen-entrapped biodegradable microparticles. $\bullet$ Influence of dietary Spirulina platensis on IgA level in human saliva. $\bullet$ A study on enhancement of bone-marrow cell-proliferation and differentiation by Spirulina platensis in mice: in vivo and in vitro study

Relationship Between Cigarette Smoking and Muscle Strength in Japanese Men

  • Saito, Takeshi;Miyatake, Nobuyuki;Sakano, Noriko;Oda, Kanae;Katayama, Akihiko;Nishii, Kenji;Numata, Takeyuki
    • Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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    • v.45 no.6
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    • pp.381-386
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    • 2012
  • Objectives: To investigate the link between cigarette smoking and muscle strength in Japanese men. Methods: We used data on 4249 Japanese men, aged $43.3{\pm}13.9$ years, in this cross-sectional investigation study. Grip strength and leg strength were measured as indicators of overall muscle strength. Meanwhile, subjects' cigarette smoking habits were recorded by trained medical staff. The effect of cigarette smoking on muscle strength was evaluated. Results: A total of 1618 men (38.1%) were smokers and 1481 men (34.9%) exercised regularly. Significant differences in muscle strength were noted between men with and without a Brinkman index of 400 or greater, after adjusting for age. After adjusting for age, height, body weight and exercise habits, associations between the Brinkman index and leg strength and the ratio of leg strength to body weight were attenuated. Conclusions: Cigarette smoking might be negatively associated with muscle strength, especially grip strength in Japanese men.

Expression analysis of UDP-glucose:flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase (UFGT) gene in an interspecific hybrid grape between Vitis ficifolia var. ganebu and Vitis vinifera cv. Muscat of Alexandria

  • Poudel, Puspa Raj;Goto-Yamamoto, Nami;Mochioka, Ryosuke;Kataoka, Ikuo;Beppu, Kenji
    • Plant Biotechnology Reports
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    • v.2 no.4
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    • pp.233-238
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    • 2008
  • Kadainou R-1, an interspecific hybrid grape derived from red (Vitis ficifolia var. ganebu) and white (V. vinifera cv. Muscat of Alexandria) grapes, accumulates high concentrations of anthocyanin in the berry skin. Hence, the expression of uridine 50 -diphosphate (UDP)-glucose:flavonoid 3-O-glucosyltransferase (UFGT), the key enzyme of the anthocyanin pathway, was examined in the berry skin of Kadainou R-1. As information on gene sequences of V. ficifolia var. ganebu and other wild grape species was unavailable, we performed GeneChip hybridization using biotin-labeled genomic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) to investigate how the genomic sequences of V. vinifera varieties and that of V. ficifolia var. ganebu differ. The study showed a lower correlation coefficient between V. vinifera cultivars and V. ficifolia var. ganebu than that among V. vinifera cultivars. The sequences of the UFGT gene derived from both parents of the red and white cultivars were sequenced in Kadainou R1 and revealed that both were expressed irrespective of the fact that it was not expressed in the white grape (male parent).

γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) confers chromium stress tolerance in mustard (Brassica juncea L.) seedlings by modulating the antioxidant defense and glyoxalase systems

  • Al Mahmud, Jubayer;Hasanuzzaman, Mirza;Nahar, Kamrun;Rahman, Anisur;Hossain, Md. Shahadat;Fujita, Masayuki
    • Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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    • 2017.06a
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    • pp.235-235
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    • 2017
  • Chromium (Cr) toxicity is hazardous to the seed germination, growth, and development of plants. ${\gamma}$-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is a non-protein amino acid and is involved in stress tolerance in plants. To investigate the effects of GABA in alleviating Cr toxicity, we treated eight-d-old mustard (Brassica juncea L.) seedlings with Cr (0.15 mM and 0.3 mM $K_2CrO_4$, 5 days) alone and in combination with GABA ($125{\mu}M$) in a semi-hydroponic medium. The roots and shoots of the seedlings accumulated Cr in a dose-dependent manner, which led to an increase in oxidative damage [lipid peroxidation; hydrogen peroxide ($H_2O_2$) content; superoxide ($O{_2}^{{\cdot}-}$) generation; lipoxygenase (LOX) activity], MG content, and disrupted antioxidant defense and glyoxalase systems. Chromium stress also reduced growth, leaf relative water content (RWC), and chlorophyll (chl) content but increased phytochelatin (PC) and proline (Pro) content. Furthermore, supplementing the Cr-treated seedlings with GABA reduced Cr uptake and upregulated the non-enzymatic antioxidants (ascorbate, AsA; glutathione, GSH) and the activities of the enzymatic antioxidants including ascorbate peroxidase (APX), monodehydroascorbate reductase (MDHAR), dehydroascorbate reductase (DHAR), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glyoxalase I (Gly I), and glyoxalase II (Gly II), and finally reduced oxidative damage. Adding GABA also increased leaf RWC and chl content, decreased Pro and PC content, and restored plant growth. These findings shed light on the effect of GABA in improving the physiological mechanisms of mustard seedlings in response to Cr stress.

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The Restoration of Forest Fire Area in Kagawa Prefecture, Japan (일본 가가와현 산불피해지의 복구대책)

  • Chun, Kun-Woo;Lee, Si-Young;Lim, Young-Hyup;Kakihara, Toshiko;Ezaki, Tsugio
    • 한국방재학회:학술대회논문집
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    • 2007.02a
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    • pp.238-241
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    • 2007
  • The forest seemed apparently to die on the forest fire area in Honjima, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan. However, the soil that became growing basic of vegetation hardly suffered damage, and the forest recovery was started by the sprout, etc. in the next year. For restoration of forest fire area, the fascine mulching works and log barrier works using the damaged trees were used for the upper-stream, and chack dam and erosion control dam were set up in the downstream. Also, the forest restoration was tried with the plants and the microorganism that inhabit in Honjima to preserve a peculiar forest ecosystem.

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Inhibitory Substances of a Tau-Type Pumpkin Glutathione S-Transferase: Their Existence and Chemical Properties

  • Hossain, Md. Daud;Suzuki, Toshisada;Fujita, Masayuki
    • Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology
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    • v.10 no.2
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    • pp.117-122
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    • 2007
  • Distributions of physiological inhibitors of a tau-type pumpkin glutathione S-transferase(CmGSTU3) have been investigated in different organs of pumpkin plants, including the onion bulb and water hyacinth root. Inhibitory effects were observed in alcoholic extracts of all plant parts, but the extracts prepared from the roots of either water hyacinth or pumpkin plant showed the highest effect on CmGSTU3 toward 1-chloro-2,4- dinitrobenzene(CDNB). Results of various chromatographies indicated that a number of inhibitory substances were present in the alcoholic extract of each plant organ. Some macromolecules in the plant extracts exhibited inhibitory effects; however, the extracts might contain a large number of unknown low-molecular-weight inhibitory substances. Some of the low-molecular-weight inhibitors in water hyacinth root extract showed characteristics fluoresce under UV light.

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