Association between N-methyl-D-aspartate Receptor Subunit 2B Gene Polymorphisms and Personality Traits in a Young Japanese Population.

OBJECTIVE: The N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor subunit 2B (GluN2B) is involved in regulation of anxiety and depression and nervous activity in the brain. Single nucleotide polymorphisms of the GluN2B gene (GRIN2B) are associated with human mental function and behaviour. We investigated whether four GRIN2B polymorphisms (rs7301328, rs1806201, rs1805247, and rs1805502) affect characterisation of personality traits. METHODS: In 248 young people, GRIN2B polymorphisms were analysed, and personality traits were assessed using the Neuroticism Extraversion Openness-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). RESULTS: There was no main effect of the GRIN2B polymorphisms on the NEO-FFI and STAI dimension scores. Interaction between polymorphism and sex was found in rs1805247 (p = 0.034) and rs1805502 (p = 0.040) in terms of the conscientiousness score of the NEO-FFI. However, post hoc simple main effect analysis showed no significant effect. The preliminary haplotype analysis indicated that haplotype CTT (rs1806201-rs1805247-rs1805502) in the haplotype block was associated with the extraversion score of the NEO-FFI in female participants (p = 0.044), but the significance was lost on correction for multiple testing. CONCLUSION: There was no significant association between selected GRIN2B polymorphisms and personality traits, but this may be due to low statistical power. Further studies involving a larger study population are needed to clarify this.

Evaluation of the radioactivity of the pre-dominant gamma emitters in components used at high-energy proton accelerator facilities.

At a high-energy, high-intensity proton accelerator facility, the accelerator components inside the beam-line tunnel and the concrete wall of the tunnel are activated due to beam loss during operation. During maintenance work inside the tunnel, radiation emitted from these activated materials can cause exposure to radiation workers. In this study, the relation between the surface dose rate of activated materials and the induced radioactivity was considered, and an evaluation of the major radioactivity using the surface dose rate was made. It has been revealed that (22)Na in Al samples and (54)Mn in Fe samples, (60)Co and (54)Mn in Fe samples, and (60)Co in Fe and Cu samples are principal residual radionuclides after a few hundred days of cooling about a few years of cooling and approximately 10 y of cooling, respectively.

Radiation streaming experiment through a labyrinth of the 12 GeV proton accelerator facility at KEK(2)--TLD REM-counter method.

The doses of radiation streaming through a labyrinth were measured using thermoluminescence dosemeters (TLDs) and neutron moderators for TLDs at the neutrino beam line of the 12 GeV proton accelerator facility of High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK). The calculated doses using the Monte Carlo code, MCNPX basically agreed with the experimental results. However, unexpectedly, the calculated neutron doses were smaller than the measured ones along the upstream side of the labyrinth.

Radiation safety design for the J-PARC Project.

The High-Intensity Proton Accelerator Project, named J-PARC, is in progress, with the aim of enabling studies on the latest basic science and the advancement of nuclear technology. In the project, a high-energy proton accelerator complex with the world's highest instantaneous intensity is under construction. In order to establish a reasonable shielding design, both simplified and detailed design methods were used in the shielding design of J-PARC. This paper reviews the present status of the radiation safety design study for J-PARC.

Arrangement of high-energy neutron irradiation field and shielding experiment using 4 m concrete at KENS.

An irradiation field of high-energy neutrons produced in the forward direction from a thick tungsten target bombarded by 500 MeV protons was arranged at the KENS spallation neutron source facility. In this facility, shielding experiment was performed with an ordinary concrete shield of 4 m thickness assembled in the irradiation room, 2.5 m downstream from the target centre. Activation detectors of bismuth, aluminium, indium and gold were inserted into eight slots inside the shield and attenuations of neutron reaction rates were obtained by measurements of gamma-rays from the activation detectors. A MARS14 Monte Carlo simulation was also performed down to thermal energy, and comparisons between the calculations and measurements show agreements within a factor of 3. This neutron field is useful for studies of shielding, activation and radiation damage of materials for high-energy neutrons, and experimental data are useful to check the accuracies of the transmission and activation calculation codes.

Biotin-labeled proteins of Eimeria tenella sporozoite.

To identify surface proteins of eimerian sporozoite, Eimeria tenella sporozoites were labeled with biotin-LC-hydrazide, and analyzed by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE) and Western blotting. More than 200 sporozoite proteins were recognized with silver staining after 2D-PAGE. Among them, 7 biotin-labeled proteins were detected as surface molecules after Western blotting and reaction with horseradish peroxidase conjugated streptavidin. Their molecular masses ranged from 23 to 117 kilo daltons and their isoelectric points from 4.3 to 6.3. It appears that the biotin-labeling technique can be used to analyze of surface proteins of eimerian parasites.