A graph convolutional network for predicting COVID-19 dynamics in 190 regions/countries.

Introduction: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) rapidly spread from Wuhan, China to other parts of China and other regions/countries around the world, resulting in a pandemic due to large populations moving through the massive transport hubs connecting all regions of China via railways and a major international airport. COVID-19 will remain a threat until safe and effective vaccines and antiviral drugs have been developed, distributed, and administered on a global scale. Thus, there is urgent need to establish effective implementation of preemptive non-pharmaceutical interventions for appropriate prevention and control strategies, and predicting future COVID-19 cases is required to monitor and control the issue. Methods: This study attempts to utilize a three-layer graph convolutional network (GCN) model to predict future COVID-19 cases in 190 regions and countries using COVID-19 case data, commercial flight route data, and digital maps of public transportation in terms of transnational human mobility. We compared the performance of the proposed GCN model to a multilayer perceptron (MLP) model on a dataset of COVID-19 cases (excluding the graph representation). The prediction performance of the models was evaluated using the mean squared error. Results: Our results demonstrate that the proposed GCN model can achieve better graph utilization and performance compared to the baseline in terms of both prediction accuracy and stability. Discussion: The proposed GCN model is a useful means to predict COVID-19 cases at regional and national levels. Such predictions can be used to facilitate public health solutions in public health responses to the COVID-19 pandemic using deep learning and data pooling. In addition, the proposed GCN model may help public health policymakers in decision making in terms of epidemic prevention and control strategies.

Toward Citizen Dialogue-led Environmental Governance: An Exploratory Case Study in Post-Fukushima Japan.

This paper reports on an exploratory case study to help facilitate a culture of dialogue in Japan. There is an emphasis on proposing methods for polyphonic dialogue among citizens, and between citizens and experts, to effectively manage the environment. This paper argues that a culture of dialogue is essential to pluralistic participatory environmental governance. A random sampling-based citizen dialogue-involving experts and citizens-regarding radioactive waste disposal was held in Japanese cities. Three proposed methods-politeness-based facilitation dialogue, evidence-based and position-explicit presentations by experts with differing views and experts reflecting in tandem with citizens engaged in dialogue-might lead to enhanced positive attitudes toward dialogue with others holding different views, as well as better internal self-deliberation. Attitudes for dialogue were measured empirically. The current research suggests that explicit treatment of pluralistic positions and views among citizens and experts would be a key factor for quality social learning and resilience for uncertainty.

Downregulation of microRNA-1274a induces cell apoptosis through regulation of BMPR1B in clear cell renal cell carcinoma.

Our previous studies of the microRNA (miRNA) expression signature in clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) indicated that miRNA-1274a (miR-1274a) was significantly upregulated in clinical specimens, suggesting that miR-1274a may act as an oncogenic miRNA in ccRCC. The aim of this study was to investigate the functional roles of miR-1274a and identify downstream tumor-suppressive targets regulated by miR­1274a in ccRCC cells. Functional studies of miR-1274a were carried out by anti-miRNA to investigate cell proliferation and apoptosis using the A498, ACHN and Caki1 ccRCC cell lines. Suppression of miR-1274a significantly inhibited cancer cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in the ccRCC cells. Gene expression data combined with in silico analysis and luciferase reporter assays demonstrated that bone morphogenetic protein receptor type 1B (BMPR1B) was directly regulated by miR-1274a. Moreover, TCGA database as well as immunohistochemistry demonstrated low expression of BMPR1B in ccRCC clinical specimens compared to that in normal kidney tissues. We conclude that loss of oncogenic miR-1274a reduced cancer cell proliferation and induced apoptosis in ccRCC through targeting BMPR1B. Our data revealing molecular pathways and a target gene regulated by oncogenic miR-1274a provide new insight into the potential mechanisms of ccRCC oncogenesis.

Japanese Medical Education Reforms during the Allied Forces Occupancy; Roles Played by the Public Health and Welfare Section of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers.

The health and welfare of the Japanese people were of a lower standard compared to other developed countries at the end of the World War II in 1945. Crawford F. Sams, Chief, the Public Health and Welfare Section of the Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers thought that medical care in a wartom country could be improved not by building new hospitals and providing more medical equipment, but through professional education and training. He founded the Council on Medical Education to reform the Japanese medical education. The Council shaped Japanese medical education by establishing the standards for medical school education and initiating internship and a national medical licensure examination. In the early 1950s, the Unitarian Service Committee Medical Mission was invited to teach to medical school professors and students American medicine. This medical mission was also a contribution of the Public Health and Welfare Section to Japanese medical education. This article explores how Public Health and Welfare Section played vital roles in transforming Japanese medical education and postgraduate training during the occupation.

[A study on the 1946 smallpox epidemic in Japan and measures taken against it].

In early 1946, immediately after World War II, there was a smallpox epidemic in Japan. In this paper we investigated trends in the occurrence of smallpox by week and region using official documents of the General Headquarters, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (GHQ/SCAP), which are stored in the National Diet Library Modern Japanese Political History Materials Room, and summarized the measures taken against this epidemic. The following two points were clarified: 1) The 1946 smallpox epidemic peaked in Week 13 (March 24-30; 1,405 new patients), and the highest morbidity during this epidemic was seen in Hyogo Prefecture, followed by Osaka Prefecture, Aichi Prefecture, Tokyo Prefecture, and Hokkaido Prefecture. 2) Measures taken against this epidemic were classified into the following three stages: 1. "Vaccine shortage/Manufacture acceleration stage," 2. "Vaccine sufficiency/Smallpox vaccination program implementation stage," and 3. "Detection of defects in vaccination technique/Reimplementation of the smallpox vaccination program stage".

Coupling stimuli-responsive magnetic nanoparticles with antibody-antigen detection in immunoassays.

Because current homogeneous immunoassays show some limitations, particularly low sensitivity, we developed a new immunoassay to overcome these limitations. The approach was based on magnetic nanoparticles with a thermoresponsive polymer layer, a negatively charged polymer, and streptavidin-biotin-based antibody-antigen detection and yielded higher sensitivity than commonly used heterogeneous immunoassays. Because no special equipment is needed, it can be applied to currently available absorbance-based systems for high-throughput assays.

[How was endemic malaria eradicated?: community-based action in postwar Hikone].

Immediately after World War II, malaria became one of the major infectious disease threats in Japan. The prevalence of malaria was high in all regions in the summer of 1946. In most prefectures, the prevalence decreased with time thereafter and virtually no epidemics occurred after 1947. Shiga Prefecture, however, was an exception to this pattern. The epidemics in the prefecture occurred repeatedly until 1949, and the prevalence rapidly decreased in 1950. While the epidemics in most prefectures were caused by "imported malaria," those in Shiga Prefecture were caused by "indigenous malaria." This paper focuses on the eradication campaign of "endemic" malaria in Hikone City, Shiga prefecture after WWII. The city government began the campaign in April 1949. They established a malaria research institute for developing and implementing plans. The widespread spraying of insecticides such as DDT was implemented throughout the city and the moat around Hikone Castle was filled in, in order to reduce the mosquito population. Residents also cooperated extensively with programs for sanitation and health education. As a result of these efforts, malaria was completely eliminated in the city within six years. Malaria is still a life-threatening illness for many people in tropical areas of the world. Hikone's postwar experience could provide important lessons for malaria control programs in many places.

[Two types of malaria epidemics during the postwar occupation period in Japan].

OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to elucidate the condition of malaria epidemics during the postwar Occupation period in Japan. METHODS: The statistical records listed in the appendices of the "Weekly Bulletin", an official document of the General Headquarters, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (GHQ/SCAP) that is currently kept in the National Diet Library Modern Japanese Political History Materials Room, were converted into electronic files. On the basis of these records, the monthly prevalence of malaria was plotted in graphs to analyze the course of epidemics with respect to time and place. RESULTS: The prevalence was high in all regions in the summer of 1946, when the present records were initiated. As a general trend, the prevalence was high in western Japan and low in eastern Japan. In all regions except the Kinki region, the prevalence decreased with time thereafter and virtually no epidemics occurred after 1948. In the Kinki region, epidemics with a prevalence of over 70 cases per 100,000 individuals repeatedly occurred until 1949, but the prevalence rapidly decreased in 1950. By prefecture, Saga Prefecture showed the highest prevalence in the nation in July 1946. While the prevalence in most prefectures decreased with time, Shiga Prefecture was the only prefecture with recurring epidemics with a prevalence of over 800 cases per 100,000 individuals until 1949. CONCLUSIONS: Malaria epidemics during the Occupation were classified into epidemics caused by "imported malaria", which was observed in many prefectures, and those caused by "indigenous malaria", which was observed only in Shiga Prefecture.

[Acute infectious diseases in occupied Japan].

Japan's health statistics system, considered among the best in the world today, continually complies and organizes information about various infectious diseases. However, systematic surveillance was not conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare between World War II and the postwar period, creating a gap in health data. In contrast, the GHQ/SCAP/PHW. which was closely involved in health and medical reform during the Occupation, thoroughly investigated the health conditions of the Japanese people during this period. This article describes the trends in acute infectious diseases in Occupied Japan by using statistical records listed in the appendices of the "Weekly Bulletin", an official document of the GHQ/SCAP that is currently kept in the National Diet Library Modern Japanese Political History Materials Room.