[Insomnia disorder].

The rate of those who have sleep problems increases due to aging. In Japan, a super-aging society, insomnia is a common disease. It is reported that the ratio of insomniacs over sixty year-old is 29.5 %. The sleep disturbance in the elderly is caused by multi factors, such as physiological, physical, psychosociological, psychiatric, and pharmacological factors. According to the latest diagnostic criteria of sleep disorders, ICSD-3, the concept of primary or secondary insomnia was abolished. Instead of that, insomnia is categorized by the duration of disease, and general doctors can diagnose sleep disorders more easily than the past. However, it is not necessary to consider the pathophysiological mechanism, there is a concern that the clinical level of insomnia treatment might decline in quality.

An integrative genomic analysis identifies Bhmt2 as a diet-dependent genetic factor protecting against acetaminophen-induced liver toxicity.

Acetaminophen-induced liver toxicity is the most frequent precipitating cause of acute liver failure and liver transplant, but contemporary medical practice has mainly focused on patient management after a liver injury has been induced. An integrative genetic, transcriptional, and two-dimensional NMR-based metabolomic analysis performed using multiple inbred mouse strains, along with knowledge-based filtering of these data, identified betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase 2 (Bhmt2) as a diet-dependent genetic factor that affected susceptibility to acetaminophen-induced liver toxicity in mice. Through an effect on methionine and glutathione biosynthesis, Bhmt2 could utilize its substrate (S-methylmethionine [SMM]) to confer protection against acetaminophen-induced injury in vivo. Since SMM is only synthesized in plants, Bhmt2 exerts its beneficial effect in a diet-dependent manner. Identification of Bhmt2 and the affected biosynthetic pathway demonstrates how a novel method of integrative genomic analysis in mice can provide a unique and clinically applicable approach to a major public health problem.

Kinetic study of the daytime atmospheric fate of (Z)-3-hexenal.

Rate coefficients for three daytime atmospheric reactions of (Z)-3-hexenal (3HA)-photolysis (J(1)), reaction with OH radicals (k(2)), and reaction with ozone (k(3))-were measured at 760 Torr and 298 K using a 6 m(3) photochemical reaction chamber. The UV absorption cross sections (σ(3HA)(λ)) were obtained in the wavelength range 240-350 nm. The photodissociation rate of 3HA relative to that of NO(2) was measured by a solar simulator at 760 Torr and was determined to be J(1)/J(NO2) = (4.7 ± 0.4) × 10(-3). Using the obtained σ(3HA)(λ) and J(1)/J(NO2), the effective photodissociation quantum yield was calculated to be Φ(3HA) = 0.25 ± 0.06. The rate coefficient for the reaction with OH radicals was measured by the relative rate method with three reference compounds and was determined to be k(2) = (6.9 ± 0.9) × 10(-11) cm(3) molecule(-1) s(-1). The rate coefficient for the reaction with ozone was measured by an absolute method and was determined to be k(3) = (3.5 ± 0.2) × 10(-17) cm(3) molecule(-1) s(-1). Using the obtained rate coefficients, the daytime atmospheric lifetime of 3HA was estimated.