Autophagy is induced during plant grafting to promote wound healing.

Grafting is an agricultural technique that joins tissues from different plants to obtain useful rootstock traits. However, cellular processes involved in joint tissue repair remain poorly understood. We analyzed Nicotiana benthamiana (Nb) and Arabidopsis thaliana (At) interfamily heterografting as a high-stress model and At homografting as a low-stress model.

genes facilitate tracheary element formation in interfamily grafting.

Grafting is a plant propagation technique widely used in agriculture. A recent discovery of the capability of interfamily grafting in has expanded the potential combinations of grafting. In this study, we showed that xylem connection is essential for the achievement of interfamily grafting and investigated the molecular basis of xylem formation at the graft junction.

Regulation of the iron-deficiency response by IMA/FEP peptide.

Iron (Fe) is an essential micronutrient for plant growth and development, participating in many significant biological processes including photosynthesis, respiration, and nitrogen fixation. Although abundant in the earth's crust, most Fe is oxidized and difficult for plants to absorb under aerobic and alkaline pH conditions. Plants, therefore, have evolved complex means to optimize their Fe-acquisition efficiency.

Feelings toward medicine in remote areas among medical students aiming to become generalists : A comparison with other specialists.

Geographic maldistribution of physicians is a serious problem in Japan, resulting in a few physicians in remote areas. We distributed questionnaires to 396 medical students at Tokushima University from 2013 to 2016. We examined the intensity of medical students toward medicine in remote areas by using a visual analog scale and investigated what medical specialty they chose after two years of clinical training.

mutation alleviates DNA damage in an mutant sensitive to excess boron.

Excess boron (B) is toxic to plants and thereby causes DNA damage and cell death in root meristems. However, the underlying mechanisms which link boron and DNA damage remain unclear. It has been reported that the mutant of the 26S proteasome is sensitive to excess boron, resulting in more frequent cell death in root meristem and reduced root elongation.

PECT1, a rate-limiting enzyme in phosphatidylethanolamine biosynthesis, is involved in the regulation of stomatal movement in Arabidopsis.

An Arabidopsis mutant displaying impaired stomatal responses to CO , cdi4, was isolated by a leaf thermal imaging screening. The mutated gene PECT1 encodes CTP:phosphorylethanolamine cytidylyltransferase. The cdi4 exhibited a decrease in phosphatidylethanolamine levels and a defect in light-induced stomatal opening as well as low-CO -induced stomatal opening.

Complementary and alternative medicines chosen for specific health problems: Internet survey using the I-CAM-Q in Japan: A STROBE-compliant cross-sectional study.

This study investigated the different complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs) adopted by people in Japan, as well as the health problems treated with CAMs. Understanding more about this topic will facilitate the appropriate incorporation of CAMs into conventional medicine when treating health problems. Data were collected through an online survey based on the International Questionnaire to Measure Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (I-CAM-Q).

Analysis of plasmodesmata permeability using cultured tobacco BY-2 cells entrapped in microfluidic chips.

Plasmodesmata are unique channel structures in plants that link the fluid cytoplasm between adjacent cells. Plants have evolved these microchannels to allow trafficking of nutritious substances as well as regulatory factors for intercellular communication. However, tracking the behavior of plasmodesmata in real time is difficult because they are located inside tissues.

Systemic Regulation of Iron Acquisition by Arabidopsis in Environments with Heterogeneous Iron Distributions.

Nutrient distribution within the soil is generally heterogeneous. Plants, therefore, have evolved sophisticated systemic processes enabling them to optimize their nutrient acquisition efficiency. By organ-to-organ communication in Arabidopsis thaliana, for instance, iron (Fe) starvation in one part of a root drives the upregulation of a high-affinity Fe-uptake system in other root regions surrounded by sufficient levels of Fe.

Development of microfluidic chip for entrapping tobacco BY-2 cells.

The tobacco BY-2 cell line has been used widely as a model system in plant cell biology. BY-2 cells are nearly transparent, which facilitates cell imaging using fluorescent markers. As cultured cells are drifted in the medium, therefore, it was difficult to observe them for a long period.

Regulation of ammonium acquisition and use in Oryza longistaminata ramets under nitrogen source heterogeneity.

Oryza longistaminata, a wild rice, vegetatively reproduces and forms a networked clonal colony consisting of ramets connected by rhizomes. Although water, nutrients, and other molecules can be transferred between ramets via the rhizomes, inter-ramet communication in response to spatially heterogeneous nitrogen availability is not well understood. We studied the response of ramet pairs to heterogeneous nitrogen availability using a split hydroponic system that allowed each ramet root to be exposed to different conditions.

Cell-cell adhesion in plant grafting is facilitated by β-1,4-glucanases.

Plant grafting is conducted for fruit and vegetable propagation, whereby a piece of living tissue is attached to another through cell-cell adhesion. However, graft compatibility limits combinations to closely related species, and the mechanism is poorly understood. We found that is capable of graft adhesion with a diverse range of angiosperms.

Past infections are associated with low levels of anti-citrullinated protein autoantibodies in rheumatoid arthritis.

Background : Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), an autoimmune disease of unknown etiology, is believed to occur as the result of actions of genetic and environmental factors. In this study, we examined the relation of past histories about infectious diseases with the levels anti-citrullinated protein autoantibodies (ACPA) in RA. Methods : Results of a questionnaire about histories of infectious diseases were obtained from 85 patients with RA, and were analyzed.

Micrografting device for testing systemic signaling in Arabidopsis.

Grafting techniques have been applied in studies of systemic, long-distance signaling in several model plants. Seedling grafting in Arabidopsis, known as micrografting, enables investigation of the molecular mechanisms of systemic signaling between shoots and roots. However, conventional micrografting requires a high level of skill, limiting its use.

Callose Synthesis Suppresses Cell Death Induced by Low-Calcium Conditions in Leaves.

Despite the importance of preventing calcium (Ca) deficiency disorders in agriculture, knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying plant adaptations to low-Ca conditions is limited. In this study, we provide evidence for a crucial involvement of callose synthesis in the survival of Arabidopsis () under low-Ca conditions. A mutant sensitive to low-Ca conditions, (), exhibited high levels of cell death in emerging leaves and had defects in its expanding true leaves under low-Ca conditions.

Japanese elderly individuals wish for enteral tube feeding more strongly for their parents than for themselves.

[Introduction] The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences in the preference of enteral tube feeding between elderly inhabitants of Mugi town, Tokushima Prefecture, Japan, and their parents in various physical conditions. [Methods] This population-based questionnaire survey studied 300 randomly selected participants aged 65-80 years. Respondents were to consider a situation where eating was difficult, and were questioned on their desire for tube feeding, using a visual analogue scale (VAS) ranging from "do not want tube feeding (0)" to "want tube feeding (100).

Predictive factors associated with the therapeutic response in patients with polymyalgia rheumatica and remitting seronegative symmetrical synovitis with pitting edema syndrome.

Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and remitting seronegative symmetrical synovitis with pitting edema (RS3PE) syndrome are common inflammatory rheumatic diseases in the elderly. In this study, we investigate predictive factors which correspond to subsequent disease control of PMR and RS3PE syndrome. Twenty four patients, which contained 18 PMR and 6 RS3PE syndrome, were treated with initial dosages of 10-20 mg per day oral prednisolone, and the dosage of prednisolone was then tapered.

Control of proliferation in the haploid meristem by CLE peptide signaling in Marchantia polymorpha.

The homeostasis of meristems in flowering plants is maintained by cell-to-cell communication via CLE (CLAVATA3/EMBRYO SURROUNDING REGION-related) peptide hormones. In contrast, cell signals that regulate meristem activity remains elusive in bryophytes that maintain apical meristems in the gametophyte (haploid) body and undergo a gametophyte-dominant life cycle. We here show that MpCLE1 confines the proliferative activity of gametophytic meristem and affects the overall size of gametangiophores (reproductive organs) in Marchantia polymorpha, which is in sharp contrast with the meristem-promoting function of its ortholog TDIF/CLE41/CLE44 in Arabidopsis vascular meristems.

Characteristics of medical students who would like to be a generalist physician and contribute to remote area medicine.

We administered a questionnaire to 5 grade medical students to examine the effect of community-based clinical practice on their attitudes to remote area medicine and their course after the graduation. Data from 192 students were obtained. The intensity of students' attitudes was estimated by using visual analogue scale.

Comparison of the efficacy and safety of 10-mg empagliflozin every day versus every other day in Japanese patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: a pilot trial.

The terminal elimination half-life (t1/2) of empagliflozin is 13.1 hours. Accordingly, we hypothesized that the administration of empagliflozin every other day might improve glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, not being inferior to the therapy every day.

Shoot-to-root mobile polypeptides involved in systemic regulation of nitrogen acquisition.

Plants uptake nitrogen (N) from the soil mainly in the form of nitrate. However, nitrate is often distributed heterogeneously in natural soil. Plants, therefore, have a systemic long-distance signalling mechanism by which N starvation on one side of the root leads to a compensatory N uptake on the other N-rich side.

Long-distance peptide signaling essential for nutrient homeostasis in plants.

Organ-to-organ communication is indispensable for higher organisms to maintain homeostasis over their entire life. Recent findings have uncovered that plants, like animals, mediate organ-to-organ communication by long-distance signaling through the vascular system. In particular, xylem-mobile secreted peptides have attracted much attention as root-to-shoot long-distance signaling molecules in response to fluctuating environmental nutrient status.

Heterotrimeric G proteins control stem cell proliferation through CLAVATA signaling in Arabidopsis.

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Polyamine Resistance Is Increased by Mutations in a Nitrate Transporter Gene NRT1.3 (AtNPF6.4) in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Polyamines are small basic compounds present in all living organisms and act in a variety of biological processes. However, the mechanism of polyamine sensing, signaling and response in relation to other metabolic pathways remains to be fully addressed in plant cells. As one approach, we isolated Arabidopsis mutants that show increased resistance to spermine in terms of chlorosis.

Drip-and-Ship Thrombolytic Therapy Supported by the Telestroke System for Acute Ischemic Stroke Patients Living in Medically Under-served Areas.

There are a few stroke specialists in medically under-served areas in Japan. Consequently, in remote area patients may not receive thrombolysis with intravenous recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (iv rt-PA), the standard treatment for acute ischemic stroke. Using a mobile telestroke support system (TSS) that accesses the internet via a smart phone, we implemented iv rt-PA infusion therapy under a drip-and-ship protocol to treat the stroke patients in medically under-served areas.