Commuting distances to local non‐farm workplaces and out‐migration: The case of Northeast Thailand

The relationship between commuting distances and where people work has been studied for urban contexts in both developed countries and developing countries. However, few studies have examined the situation in rural areas, and none look at commuting distances to non‐farm workplaces in rural areas of developing countries. This paper investigates how commuting distance, and thus accessibility, to local non‐farm work influences non‐farm employment and out‐migration from rural villages in Northeast Thailand. The main issues examined are: (i) the distance that rural residents travel to work in local non‐farm jobs; and (ii) the influence that local non‐farm employment has on the number of outmigrants from rural villages. The study finds: (i) distance between villages and non‐farm work sites impact the number of villagers who are employed in regular wage work; (ii) beyond 20 km villagers are less likely to travel to non‐farm employment using their own means of transportation; and (iii) employment in regular wage work decreases outmigration. The findings from this study contribute to the debates over the drivers of rural out‐migration, rural livelihood changes, and agrarian changes that are taking place in Southeast Asia.     

Evaluation of the drug sensitivity and expression of 16 drug resistance-related genes in canine histiocytic sarcoma cell lines

Canine histiocytic sarcoma (HS) is an aggressive tumor type originating from histiocytic cell lineages. This disease is characterized by poor response to chemotherapy and short survival time. Therefore, it is of critical importance to identify and develop effective antitumor drugs against HS. The objectives of this study were to examine the drug sensitivities of 10 antitumor drugs. Using a real-time RT-PCR system, the mRNA expression levels of 16 genes related to drug resistance in 4 canine HS cell lines established from dogs with disseminated HS were determined and compared to 2 canine lymphoma cell lines (B-cell and T-cell). These 4 canine HS cell lines showed sensitivities toward microtubule inhibitors (vincristine, vinblastine and paclitaxel), comparable to those in the canine B-cell lymphoma cell line. Moreover, it was shown that P-gp in the HS cell lines used in this study did not have enough function to efflux its substrate. Sensitivities to melphalan, nimustine, methotrexate, cytarabine, doxorubicin and etoposide were lower in the 4 HS cell lines than in the 2 canine lymphoma cell lines. The data obtained in this study using cultured cell lines could prove helpful in the developing of advanced and effective chemotherapies for treating dogs that are suffering from HS.     

Pathological findings and probable causes of the death of Stejneger’s beaked whales (Mesoplodon stejnegeri) stranded in Japan from 1999 and 2011

One hundred and twenty stranding events of Stejneger’s beaked whales were reported in Japan between 1999 and 2011. The purpose of this study is to introduce pathological data and to discuss probable causes of death for 44 Stejneger’s beaked whales among them. The significant pathological findings were the pulmonary edema, parasitic granulomatous nephritis, emaciation, amyloidosis, suppurative bronchopneumonia and so on. The probable causes of death were categorized as noninfectious in 43 of the cases, which included drowning, starvation and secondary amyloidosis. One individual was diagnosed with septicemia, which was the only example of an infectious disease. Because we could not always perform advanced analyses, such as microbiology tests, biotoxin examinations or contaminant analyses, the finality of our findings may be impaired. However, the present study has broad implications on the causes of death of Stejneger’s beaked whales of the seas around Japan, which are valuable for the future studies and for the detection of emerging diseases.     

Evidence of LAT1 expression in canine caput epididymis

L-type amino acid transporter 1 (LAT1), the first isotype of amino acid transport system L, transports aromatic and branched amino acids pivotal for fundamental cellular activities such cellular growth and proliferation. LAT1 expression was high only in the brain in contrast to its limited distribution and low level of expression in normal tissues. We found potent LAT1 expression in canine caput epididymis by quantitative RT-PCR and Western blotting analysis. Immnuno-histochemical examination revealed observable LAT1 in microvillous epithelial cells.     

Temporal and spatial dynamics of an old-growth beech forest in western Japan

Dendrochronological approaches enable us to understand forest stand dynamics by estimation of disturbance history and age structure. The present study was conducted in an old-growth beech forest in a forest reserve in western Japan. Increment cores were taken for tree ring analysis from all canopy trees in a 50 m × 130 m study plot. Radial growth release criteria were developed to identify significant growth releases in each tree ring series and to characterize the disturbance history of the study site. The age structure of the forest was indicative of continuous establishment by Fagus crenata and simultaneous establishment by Magnolia obovata. A variety of low-intensity disturbances were identified in each decade, especially after the 1900s, but the occurrence of high-intensity catastrophic disturbance was rare, and likely played an important role in maintaining species diversity in the existing forest canopy. The results also suggest that F. crenata regenerates gradually before and after both large- and small-scale disturbances, whereas M. obovata and Betula grossa regenerate only after large-scale catastrophic disturbances.     

First report of trunk rot caused by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Fomitiporia torreyae</Emphasis> in Kyoto prefecture on cultivars of Japanese cedar with no relatedness to ‘Sanbu-sugi’

Trunk rot, caused by Fomitiporia torreyae, is one of the most economically important sap rot diseases on Cryptomeria japonica, especially on a cutting cultivar ‘Sanbu-sugi’. This disease had been reported only from Chiba and Ibaraki prefectures in Japan; however, a similar trunk rot on Japanese cedars was found recently in Kyoto prefecture. We identified the causal agent of the trunk rot on Japanese cedars in Kyoto prefecture, clarified the genotype of ‘Sanbu-sugi’ (sensu stricto) using microsatellite markers, and then investigated the relatedness of these infected cedars with ‘Sanbu-sugi’. The pathogen was identified as F. torreyae by its DNA sequences and morphological characteristics of the fruiting body. The 25 ramets of ‘Sanbu-sugi’ had only one genotype based on eight microsatellite loci. Infected Japanese cedars in Kyoto were comprised of different genotypes and showed no close relatedness to ‘Sanbu-sugi’. This is the first report of trunk rot caused by F. torreyae on cultivars of Japanese cedar with no relatedness to ‘Sanbu-sugi’ outside of Chiba and Ibaraki prefectures and showed the potential for expansion of this disease to Japanese cedar plantations in other areas.     

Atmospheric lead and cadmium deposition within forests in the Kanto district, Japan

Atmospheric lead and cadmium deposition in bulk precipitation and throughfall was investigated at four forests in the Kanto district, Japan, to assess the impact of human activities on the environmental health of forests. Annual lead and cadmium depositions in bulk precipitation ranged from 8.9 to 25.7 g ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ and from 0.77 to 1.30 g ha⁻¹ year⁻¹, respectively. Lead and cadmium deposition increased in the summer at every forest due to large amounts of rainfall. At one of the forests, the depositions were also high in the winter due to heavy snowfall. These depositions were similar to recent depositions observed at other rural and urban sites in Japan and several forests in Europe and North America after 1990. These results indicate that although anthropogenic lead and cadmium are deposited at these rates over wide areas, depositions are still higher than in remote areas.     

Assessment of wood surface roughness: comparison of tactile roughness and three-dimensional parameters derived using a robust Gaussian regression filter

Japanese oak and Japanese beech were sanded by hand with abrasive papers of varying grit number. Two three-dimensional parameters selected to characterize their surface roughness – one parameter for the distribution of roughness-profile peaks and the other for the relative area of the roughness-profile peaks above the threshold height – were compared against tactile roughness. The parameters were obtained from roughness profiles as determined by a robust Gaussian regression filter (RGRF) using seven cutoffs. The RGRF filtering process was adjusted specifically for the evaluation of wood surface roughness. Except for a cutoff wavelength of 0.25mm, the RGRF lent itself well to the determination of roughness profiles. No distortion of roughness profiles occurred around deep valleys, and there was a good correlation between the parameters and tactile roughness.Part of this study was presented at the 2002 Kansai Branch Office lecture meeting of the Japan Society for Precision Engineering, Kyotanabe, August 2002     

Structure-reactivity relationships of flavan-3-ols on product generation in aqueous glucose/glycine model systems

Ring structure-reactivity relationships of three flavan-3-ols [epicatechin (EC), epicatechin gallate (ECG), and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)] and three simple phenolic compounds (1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene, 1,2,3-trihydroxybenzene, and methylgallate as the analogous individual A, B, and C benzene rings of EGCG) on product generation in an aqueous glucose-glycine reaction model system (125 degrees C and 30 min) were investigated. The addition of EC, ECG, or EGCG to a glucose-glycine model was reported to similarly significantly reduce the formation of pyrazine, methyl-substituted pyrazines, and cyclotene. All three flavan-3-ols were also reported to generate phenolic-C2, C3, C4, and C6 sugar fragment adducts and to statistically reduce the concentration of glyoxal, glycolaldehyde, methylglyoxal, hydroxyacetone, diacetyl, acetoin, and 3-deoxyglucosone during the reaction time course, except for the EGCG reaction where 3-deoxyglucosone was not statistically different from the control after 20 min. For the simple phenolic compounds, methylgallate followed by 1,2,3-trihydroxybenzene was the least reactive, while 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzene was reported as the most reactive phenolic structure for quenching or reducing the concentration of the alpha-hydroxy- and alpha-dicarbonyl sugar fragments during the reaction time course. These results imply that the main mechanism flavan-3-ols reduced product generation was phenolic-sugar fragment carbonyl trapping reactions primarily on the A ring (the meta-polyhydroxylated benzene ring) or not due to the alteration of the reaction reduction potential.