Complete genome sequence of Japanese RSSC phylotype-I strains infecting different host plants.

Ralstonia solanacearum species complex (RSSC) shows a broad host range and is classified into four phylotypes. To compare type III effectors, we have determined the complete genome sequences of several RSSC strains, especially phylotype-I strains isolated in Japan, with different host specificity.

Draft Genome Sequences of Marine Bacteria, Degraders of the Sulfated Polysaccharide Ulvan, Extracted from a Green Alga, Ulva meridionalis.

We present the draft genome sequences of bacterial strains of the genera Alteromonas and Tenacibaculum. Polysaccharide utilization loci (PULs) were found in all of the ulvan utilizers. Comparison of the PULs will elucidate the degradation pathway for ulvan.

Complete Genome Sequences of Ralstonia solanacearum Strains Isolated from Infected Ginger Plants.

We present the complete genome sequences of Ralstonia solanacearum strains isolated from ginger plants. Strains MAFF 211471, MAFF 211479, MAFF 211491, MAFF 301560, MAFF 241647, and MAFF 241648 contain 69, 64, 65, 69, 72, and 64 type III effector genes, respectively.

Difficulties and innovations in teaching anatomy and physiology in nursing.

AIM: This study aimed to clarify the difficulties and innovations in anatomy and physiology education from the perspective of faculty members in charge of anatomy and physiology education in Japanese nursing universities. BACKGROUND: Many nursing students have difficulty acquiring anatomy and physiology knowledge and applying it in clinical situations; therefore, effective teaching and learning methods for anatomy and physiology must be provided in nursing education. DESIGN: This study followed a cross-sectional observational design using a web-based self-administered questionnaire. METHODS: A web-based self-administered open-ended survey regarding the difficulties and innovations in teaching anatomy and physiology in nursing was conducted involving nursing faculty members at universities in Japan. After inviting 280 nursing universities to participate in the survey, 37 completed questionnaires were collected and descriptively analyzed. RESULTS: In approximately 30% of the universities, multiple professions were involved in collaboratively teaching anatomy and physiology. Furthermore, 59.5% of the universities offered a combination of didactic lectures and laboratory learning. Difficulties in teaching anatomy and physiology included the limitations of the physical teaching environment, the difficulty of teaching the importance of anatomy and physiology in nursing practice, the difficulty of adjusting educational content to learner readiness, and the difficulty of terminology and concepts specific to anatomy and physiology. Innovations used in teaching anatomy and physiology from a nursing perspective included integrating anatomy and physiology with related disciplines, encouraging students to visualize human anatomy in three dimensions, and linking anatomy and physiology to clinical nursing practice. CONCLUSION: Despite some difficulties in teaching the subjects, faculty members have implemented effective educational methods on their own. Due to the various constraints of the learning environment, it is difficult for students to learn anatomy and physiology on campus in depth and acquire a deep understanding of its significance in clinical practice. Therefore, educational involvement that fosters students' self-directed learning skills and encourages flexible learning is expected. In addition, by collaborating with multiple disciplines to provide anatomy and physiology education, the participants of this study innovated pedagogies for teaching nursing students about the usefulness of anatomy and physiology and motivated their students. Moving forward, teachers need to relate their knowledge of anatomy and physiology to actual nursing care and clinical cases and convey the importance of deeply understanding anatomy and physiology in nursing practice to support their students' active learning.

Clustering of health behaviors among Japanese adults and their association with socio-demographics and happiness.

BACKGROUND: Scholars have associated happiness with health behaviors, which co-occur and exert synergistic effects. Therefore, identifying clusters of health behaviors and their effect on happiness can contribute to the development of strategies for promoting happiness and improving health behaviors. AIM: This study aimed to examine clusters of health behaviors and their associations with socio-demographics and with happiness among Japanese adults. METHODS: This study used data from the Japanese Household Panel Survey and the Keio Household Panel Survey. Questionnaires were distributed to 4,993 households out of which 1,554 responses were analyzed (participants aged 27-65 years). The survey included health behaviors (alcohol consumption, smoking, vegetable and fruit consumption, breakfast-eating habits, and physical activities), happiness, and socio-demographics. Latent class analysis was conducted to identify the clusters, whereas latent regression was employed to investigate socio-demographics related to the clusters. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine the relation between happiness and the clusters. RESULTS: Two health behavior clusters were identified: Cluster 1 (low substance use and good dietary habit; n = 817; 52.3%) and Cluster 2 (high alcohol, poor nutrition, and inactive; n = 737; 47.7%). Latent regression analysis indicated that all socio-demographics, barring socioeconomic status, were significantly associated with the clusters. The "low substance use and good dietary habit" cluster was significantly related with higher odds of happiness (odds ratio = 1.425, 95% confidence interval = 1.146-1.772, p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This study identified health behavior clusters among Japanese adults and established the association between the "low substance use and good dietary habit" cluster and high levels of happiness. However, the causality of the relationship between health behavior and happiness remains unclear, which highlights the need for further research to elucidate the underlying mechanisms.

Relationship between personality traits and health behavior among working women in Japan.

Considering personality traits is effective for cultivating health promotion habits. Therefore, individualized interventions that account for personality traits would be more beneficial for modifying health behaviors. The present study describes the relationship between personality traits and health behaviors among working women compared with non-working women in Japan. Secondary analysis was conducted using nationally representative data from the Japanese Household Panel Survey (JHPS/KHPS). In the 2019 wave, data were gathered from 1,141 women (939 who were working and 202 who were not) between the ages of 28 and 65. Associations among health behaviors, personality traits, and employment status were confirmed by phi coefficient and coefficient ratio. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to examine the association between health behaviors and personality traits. As for working women, daily fruit consumption was associated with extraversion (odds ratio [OR], 1.197; p = 0.003) and conscientiousness (OR, 1.238; p = 0.032). Conscientiousness has been found to significantly contribute to low-risk alcohol consumption (OR, 1.213; p = 0.035). Desirable physical activity habit was associated with extraversion (OR, 1.312; p = 0.000). In contrast, among non-working women, desirable physical activity habits was associated with extraversion (OR, 1.573; p = 0.007) and neuroticism (OR, 0.390; p = 0.001). Further research is needed to clarify the mechanisms underlying differences between working women and non-working women in the association between health behaviors and personality.

Relationship of attitudes toward uncertainty and preventive health behaviors with breast cancer screening participation.

BACKGROUNDCXS: Early detection of breast cancer is effective for prolonging survival, but the participation rate in breast cancer screening among target Japanese women remains low. This study examined the relationships between tendencies in decision-making under conditions of uncertainty, health behaviors, demographics, and breast cancer screening participation in Japanese women. METHODS: Secondary analysis was performed using data from the 2017 Keio Household Panel Survey (KHPS). The study population consisted of 2945 households. Data were obtained from the KHPS for women aged 40 years or older. Breast cancer screening participation in the past year, risk aversion, time preference, health behaviors (e.g., smoking, alcohol consumption, and medical treatment received in the past year), and demographic variables were analyzed. RESULTS: Data from 708 women were analyzed. Among the respondents, 28.8% had attended breast cancer screening in the past year. Factors found to significantly contribute to breast cancer screening participation included higher risk aversion (odds ratio [OR], 2.34; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.03-5.32; p = 0.043), medical treatment received in the past year (OR, 1.56; 95% CI = 1.06-2.30; p = 0.026), higher self-rated health (OR, 1.47; 95% CI = 1.18-1.83; p = 0.001), living above the poverty line (OR, 2.31; 95% CI = 1.13-4.72; p = 0.022), and having children (OR, 1.57; 95% CI = 1.02-2.42; p = 0.042). Factors significantly associated with non-participation in breast cancer screening were smoking (OR, 0.20; 95% CI = 0.10-0.42; p < 0.000), alcohol consumption (OR, 0.56; 95% CI = 0.37-0.86; p = 0.007), being self-employed (OR, 0.22; 95% CI = 0.10-0.46; p < 0.000), and being unemployed (OR, 0.48; 95% CI = 0.26-0.90; p = 0.022). No significant relationship was observed between time preference and screening participation. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate that women who recognize the actual risk of developing breast cancer or have high awareness of breast cancer prevention tend to participate in breast cancer screening. Barriers to screening participation are not working for an organization that encourages screening and low income.

Draft Genome Sequences of Bacterial Strains Capable of Degrading Ulvan from the Green Alga Ulva ohnoi.

We present here the draft genome sequences of four marine bacterial strains which can use ulvan as their sole carbon source. We used ulvan extracted from the green alga Ulva ohnoi Each bacterium contains a polysaccharide-utilizing locus, which is necessary for the complete degradation of ulvan.

Competency of Academic Nurse Educators.

BACKGROUND: In the face of a rapidly changing social environment and increasing demand for health care services, there is a global concern that academic nurse educators should have expert-level competencies and should improve the level of nursing education. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the elements that constitute competency in academic nurse educators. METHODS: A cross-sectional self-completed online survey was conducted involving academic nurse educators working at universities in Japan. We invited 277 nursing universities to participate in the survey and to provide academic nurse educators with information about the research by contacting the dean of each university's nursing department. In total, 372 educators completed the survey (response rate 4.03%), and after excluding those with incomplete data, 367 were analyzed (valid response rate 3.97%). The data were analyzed by exploratory-factor analysis, with the least-squares method and promax rotation performed. RESULTS: An exploratory analysis yielded five competency factors: "facilitating active learning," "engaging in academic research activities," "participating in university management," "undertaking self-directed learning based on professional ethics," and "practicing education autonomously." CONCLUSIONS: The competencies identified in the present study are essential for academic nurse educators, and the five factors are in accord with the findings of previous studies. Support systems for academic nursing educators should be established to improve their competencies comprehensively. However, further research is needed to develop the competencies of academic nurse educators into more comprehensive and sophisticated competencies.

Health indicators as moderators of occupational commitment and nurses' intention to leave.

AIM: This study examined the hypothesis that health indicators moderate the relationship between occupational commitment and intention to leave among nurses, using a large sample in Japan. METHODS: A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to all registered nurses (N = 11,171) working in group hospitals in western Japan in 2014. The questionnaire evaluated intention to leave, occupational commitment, psychological distress, cumulative fatigue, and demographic variables. After a preliminary analysis of the bivariate and multivariate associations between variables and intention to leave, we tested the interactions between occupational commitment and health indicators on intention to leave. RESULTS: Of the 5,768 returned questionnaires, data from 5,505 (49.3%) participants were analyzed. Participants' mean age was 36.27 years (SD = 10.37). Most (95.14%) were women. According to a generalized estimating equation, the interaction of continuance occupational commitment and cumulative fatigue was significantly related to intention to leave (b = -0.0055). Additionally, the interaction of affective occupational commitment and psychological distress was significantly related to intention to leave (b = 0.0079). CONCLUSIONS: This study clarified that the relationship between occupational commitment and intention to leave was robust for nurses in good health. Interventions aimed at reducing fatigue and improving psychological distress should be implemented to prevent the protective effects of occupational commitment on nurses' intention to leave from being compromised.

Determinants Strengthening Japanese Nurses' Intention to Stay at Their Current Hospital.

In order to retain nursing staff, it is crucial to have a comprehensive understanding of the factors that motivate nurses to stay at an institution. Toward this aim, we identified a variety of factors that strengthen nurses' intention to stay at their current hospital. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted at 12 hospitals in the Tohoku and Kanto regions of Japan. Of the 1,034 nurses working in those hospitals, 713 returned the questionnaire (response rate: 69.0%). Of these, we analysed the data of 485 nurses (17.42 ± 9.83 years of clinical experience, 95.3% female) (valid response rate: 46.9%) who met the inclusion criteria of planning to stay at their current hospital and completing all questionnaire items. An exploratory factor analysis indicated that variables strengthening intention to stay at the current hospital could be grouped into five factors: "comfortable workplace environment," "passive motivational factors," "convenience of hospital location," "favorable work-life balance," and "fulfilment in nursing." Nurses who were married or had children placed a higher priority on a "favorable work-life balance" in remaining at their current workplace. Regular employees or nurses working in the smaller cities tended to display higher "passive motivational factors," which comprised various extrinsic factors. Though extrinsic factors are considered to make only short-term contributions to employee retention, they could generate positive synergistic effects when combined with intrinsic motivations such as "fulfilment in nursing." Effective nurse-retention strategies should be developed by capitalizing on the interaction among the five factors that strengthen nurses to stay at their current hospital.

Disaster Nursing Knowledge and Competencies Among Nursing University Students Participated in Relief Activities Following the 2016 Kumamoto Earthquakes.

OBJECTIVE: This study examined disaster nursing knowledge and competencies among university nursing students who participated in relief activities following the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes. METHODS: Participants were university nursing students involved in disaster relief activities. Of the 260 individuals to whom a self-report questionnaire was distributed at nursing universities and hospitals located in Kyushu, southwestern Japan, 201 participants returned the questionnaires by mail (response rate 77.3%), of which 108 questionnaires were complete (valid response rate 41.5%). Questions involved experiences related to their volunteer activities, their motive for volunteering, type of relief activities performed, and use of disaster nursing knowledge and competencies. RESULTS: We identified four categories of disaster nursing competencies: "understanding and implementation of assistance to victims in collaboration with other members of the disaster response team," "understanding the natural disaster's influence on victims," "ethical practice in a disaster recovery area," and "understanding of their role within the disaster relief organization." Those who had completed a disaster nursing program had superior measures of performance across all four competencies compared with those who had not yet completed the program. CONCLUSIONS: Four domains of disaster nursing knowledge and competencies used by university nursing students during the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake relief activities were identified. Those who had completed a disaster nursing program had higher competencies than were those who were either currently or not yet enrolled in it.

Occupational commitment and job satisfaction mediate effort-reward imbalance and the intention to continue nursing.

AIM: Occupational commitment and job satisfaction are major predictors of the intention to continue nursing. This study's purpose was to verify the mediating effects of job satisfaction and three components of occupational commitment on the relationship between effort-reward imbalance and the intention to continue nursing. METHODS: A self-report questionnaire was distributed to 3977 nurses by the nursing department of 12 hospitals in the Tohoku and Kanto districts of Japan in 2013. Of these, 1531 (response rate: 38.5%) nurses returned the questionnaire by mail and the complete data that were provided by 1241 nurses (valid response rate: 31.2%) were analyzed. RESULTS: Structural equation modeling showed that the effort-reward ratio had negative effects on job satisfaction and affective and normative occupational commitment. Job satisfaction and affective and normative occupational commitment had positive effects on the intention to continue nursing, whereas the effort-reward ratio had no direct effect on the intention to continue nursing. Continuance occupational commitment was not a mediator, but it positively influenced the intention to continue nursing. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that it is important to increase job satisfaction and affective and normative occupational commitment in order to enhance their buffering effects on the relationship between job stress and the intention to continue nursing. Measures to increase continuance occupational commitment also would be an effective method of strengthening the intention to continue nursing. Improvements in these areas should contribute to an increase in nurses' intention to continue nursing and prevent the loss of this precious human resource from the health sector.

The Development of the Attitude Toward Professional Autonomy Scale for Nurses in Japan.

This study's aim was to develop and test the psychometric properties of the Attitude toward Professional Autonomy Scale for Nurses in Japan. In Study 1, the initial (26-item) version of the scale was pilot tested on 454 Japanese nurses; item analysis and exploratory factor analysis were performed. In Study 2, the revised version of the scale (19 items) was administered to 802 Japanese nurses. The scale had good internal consistency (α = .85). Correlations with the scale of the desire of self-determination supported its concurrent validity. The scale could facilitate the assessment of cognitive aspects of professional autonomy among nurses and contribute to assessment of the propensity to behave autonomously among nurses in various clinical settings.

Improved adsorption of an Enterococcus faecalis bacteriophage ΦEF24C with a spontaneous point mutation.

Some bacterial strains of the multidrug-resistant Gram-positive bacteria Enterococcus faecalis can significantly reduce the efficacy of conventional antimicrobial chemotherapy. Thus, the introduction of bacteriophage (phage) therapy is expected, where a phage is used as a bioagent to destroy bacteria. E. faecalis phage ΦEF24C is known to be a good candidate for a therapeutic phage against E. faecalis. However, this therapeutic phage still produces nonuniform antimicrobial effects with different bacterial strains of the same species and this might prove detrimental to its therapeutic effects. One solution to this problem is the preparation of mutant phages with higher activity, based on a scientific rationale. This study isolated and analyzed a spontaneous mutant phage, ΦEF24C-P2, which exhibited higher infectivity against various bacterial strains when compared with phage ΦEF24C. First, the improved bactericidal effects of phage ΦEF24C-P2 were attributable to its increased adsorption rate. Moreover, genomic sequence scanning revealed that phage ΦEF24C-P2 had a point mutation in orf31. Proteomic analysis showed that ORF31 (mw, 203 kDa) was present in structural components, and immunological analysis using rabbit-derived antibodies showed that it was a component of a long, flexible fine tail fiber extending from the tail end. Finally, phage ΦEF24C-P2 also showed higher bactericidal activity in human blood compared with phage ΦEF24C using the in vitro assay system. In conclusion, the therapeutic effects of phage ΦEF24C-P2 were improved by a point mutation in gene orf31, which encoded a tail fiber component.

Characterization of lytic enzyme open reading frame 9 (ORF9) derived from Enterococcus faecalis bacteriophage phiEF24C.

In bacteriophage (phage) therapy against Gram-positive bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, and Enterococcus faecalis, members of a genus of SPO1-like viruses are typically employed because of their extreme virulence and broad host spectrum. Phage φEF24C, which is a SPO1-like virus infecting E. faecalis, has previously been characterized as a therapeutic phage candidate. In addition to the phage itself, phage endolysin is also recognized as an effective antimicrobial agent. In this study, a putative endolysin gene (orf9) of E. faecalis phage φEF24C was analyzed in silico, and its activity was characterized using the recombinant form. First, bioinformatics analysis predicted that the open reading frame 9 (ORF9) protein is N-acetylmuramoyl-l-alanine amidase. Second, bacteriolytic and bactericidal activities of ORF9 against E. faecalis were confirmed by zymography, decrease of peptidoglycan turbidity, decrease of the viable count, and morphological analysis of ORF9-treated cells. Third, ORF9 did not appear to require Zn(2+) ions for its activity, contrary to the bioinformatics prediction of a Zn(2+) ion requirement. Fourth, the lytic spectrum was from 97.1% (34 out of 35 strains, including vancomycin-resistant strains) of E. faecalis strains to 60% (6 out of 10 strains) of Enterococcus faecium strains. Fifth, N-acetylmuramoyl-l-alanine amidase activity of ORF9 was confirmed by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and the subsequent MALDI-postsource decay (PSD) analyses. Finally, functional analysis using N- or C-terminally deleted ORF9 mutants suggested that a complete ORF9 molecule is essential for its activity. These results suggested that ORF9 is an endolysin of phage φEF24C and can be a therapeutic alternative to antibiotics.

The role of Nanos homologue in gametogenesis and blastogenesis with special reference to male germ cell formation in the colonial ascidian, Botryllus primigenus.

We examined the structure, expression, and possible functions of a nanos homologue during gametogenesis and blastogenesis in the colonial ascidian Botryllus primigenus. An approximately 1.3-kb-long cDNA was cloned; it was termed BpNos since the deduced amino acid sequence (288 aa) contained 2 Nanos-like CCHC zinc finger motifs. Immature and mature male germ cells expressed BpNos most strongly, while loose aggregates of hemoblasts, multipotent epithelial cells (in developing buds) and a few coelomic cells in the hemocoel and tunic vessels weakly expressed BpNos. No signals were detected from female germ cells. To determine possible functions of BpNos, B. primigenus colonies were injected with BpNos short interfering (si)RNA. Buds developed normally, showing that BpNos plays a limited role in B. primigenus blastogenesis. However, the developing buds possessed no spermatogonia and spermatocytes in the testes, although oocytes developed normally. In the knockdown colonies, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick-end labeling assay (TUNEL)-positive male germ cells were observed, suggesting that BpNos siRNA treatment might induce apoptosis. In conclusion, BpNos is a weak marker of germline precursor cells and multipotent somatic epithelial cells but a strong marker of spermatogonia and spermatocytes. A major function of BpNos may be the maintenance of male germline cells.