Tohoku Districts Research Articles

Survey of occupational health-related activities in Hokkaido and Tohoku hospitals

This study aimed to evaluate occupational health-related activities and factors related to the violation of labor-related regulations in hospitals in Hokkaido and Tohoku districts. The study questionnaires were distributed to 1,108 Hokkaido and Tohoku hospitals in April 2024, among whom 307 (answered by June 2) participated. The questionnaires included queries on hospital characteristics, occupational health-related activities, and labor-related laws. Relationships between the hospital location, number of hospital beds, number of employees, and provision of emergency services and the number of labor-related regulation violations (assignments of occupational physicians and health officers, agreement on overtime [per Article 36 of the Labour Standards Act], physician interviews for workers with prolonged overtime, and implementation of the Stress Check program) were analyzed using multivariable ordinal logistic regression. Among the hospitals, 4.2%, 11.9%, 11.1%, 8.5%, and 2.6% did not assign occupational physicians, assigned directors as occupational physicians, did not assign health officers, did not have an agreement on overtime, and did not implement the Stress Check program, respectively. The multivariable ordinal logistic regression analysis revealed that hospitals with few beds and employees and those that did not offer emergency services had significantly higher odds of violating labor-related regulations. Smaller hospitals and hospitals that did not offer emergency services in Hokkaido and Tohoku districts had some difficulties complying with labor-related regulations. These hospitals may need external support for occupational health-related activities.

東北地方５県における水源・森林環境税に関する研究 ― 高税率設定の意義と支出事業との関係性をめぐって ―

東北地方５県における水源・森林環境税に関する研究 ― 高税率設定の意義と支出事業との関係性をめぐって ―

Development of microsatellite markers for the endangered semi‐shrub Chimaphila umbellata (Ericaceae)

AbstractBased on the DNA sequencing reads obtained using 454 pyrosequencing, primers amplifying 16 microsatellite loci were developed for the endangered semi‐shrub Chimaphila umbellata, which occurs sporadically in the Japanese Archipelago. These 16 loci were polymorphic in the populations sampled from the Hokkaido and Tohoku Districts; the mean number of alleles was 3.31 and 3.44, and the mean expected heterozygosity was 0.42 and 0.44, respectively. These loci were not linked to each other and contained no null alleles. Amplification using these primers was also tested in the congeneric species C. japonica, but only three of them successfully amplified DNA of the species. These markers will be used to examine genetic diversity and genetic differentiation in populations of C. umbellata.

Ecology of the Bambusaceous genera Sasa and Sasimorpha in the Kanto and Tohoku districts of Japan : with special reference to their geographical distribution.

Ecology of the Bambusaceous genera Sasa and Sasimorpha in the Kanto and Tohoku districts of Japan : with special reference to their geographical distribution.

空間情報を考慮したカーボンフリー水素のポテンシャル推計および経済性評価

In this study, we estimate supply potential of carbon-free hydrogen from wind power in Japan using spatial information such as wind speed and the land use. Then, hydrogen supply cost is revealed for every municipality in the Tohoku districts considering hydrogen production to distribution. The estimation indicates that the supply potential of carbon-free hydrogen in Japan is as much as 205 billion Nm3/year. With that amount of hydrogen a fuel cell vehicle can drive 3,030 billion km. When a high-pressure gas transport system is used for delivery of carbon-free hydrogen from each municipalities to Sendai city, the hydrogen supply cost ranges from 159.8 to 257.0 JPY/Nm3, and the average cost is 180.6 JPY/Nm3. If all cost component of carbon-free hydrogen supply system are replaced by the future cost target, the supply cost range decreases to 82.4~137.3 JPY/Nm3 and the average cost is 99.4 JPY/Nm3. The driving cost of fuel cell vehicle by this future hydrogen supply cost ranges 5.60~9.31 JPY/km and the average cost is 6.72 JPY/km. This cost is cheaper than 7.01 JPY/km of the internal combustion engine vehicle fueled with gasoline.

北関東から東北南部にかけてのモリチャバネゴキブリ<i>Blattella niponica</i> Asahinaの分布とその北限記録

According to the literature, the northern limit of distribution for the cockroach, Blattella nipponica Asahina was near Tokyo in 1999. In 2012, it was reported that this cockroach was observed up to Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture in the Pacific Ocean coastal areas and Nasushiobara City, Tochigi Prefecture in the inland. In the present study, we investigated the distribution of B. nipponica in the Kanto and Tohoku districts during a period from May to September, 2015. This cockroach was observed at an altitude less than 150 m at 11 localities in 2 prefectures. In the coastal areas, B. nipponica was found commonly from the northern part of Ibaraki Prefecture (36.86°N) to Naraha-machi (37.30°N), Fukushima Prefecture and less commonly in Tomioka-machi (37.33°N), Fukushima Prefecture., However, no individual was observed in Ohkuma-machi (37.38°N). The results suggested that the northern limit of distribution for B. nipponica was Akagi, Motooka, Tomioka-machi, Fukushima Prefecture (37.34°N, 40.96°E), indicating that the northern limit moved northward as much as approximately 190 km in 24 years.

Indicator plant species selection for monitoring the impact of climate change based on prediction uncertainty

To develop a long-term volunteer-based system for monitoring the impacts of climate change on plant distributions, potential indicator plants and monitoring sites were assessed considering habitat prediction uncertainty. We used species distribution models (SDMs) to project potential habitats for 19 popular edible wild plants in Japan. Prediction uncertainties of SDMs were assessed using three high-performance modeling algorithms and 19 simulated future climate data. SDMs were developed using presence/absence records, four climatic variables, and five non-climatic variables. The results showed that prediction uncertainties for future climate simulations were greater than those from the three different modeling algorithms. Among the 19 edible wild plant species, six had highly accurate SDMs and greater changes in occurrence probabilities between current and future climate conditions. The potential habitats of these six plants under future climate simulations tended to shift northward and upward, with predicted losses in potential southern habitats. These results suggest that these six plants are candidate indicators for long-term biological monitoring of the impacts of climate change. If temperature continuously increases as predicted, natural populations of these plants will decline in Kyushu, Chugoku and Shikoku districts, and in low altitudes of Chubu and Tohoku districts. These results also indicate the importance of occurrence probability and prediction uncertainty of SDMs for selecting target species and site locations for monitoring programs. Sasa kurilensis, a very popular and widespread dominant scrub bamboo in the cool-temperate regions of Japan, was found to be the most effective plant for monitoring.

ホタテガイを用いたフレークおよび飯寿しの開発について

To increase the market niche for scallop-based food products, we developed a high-quality scallop flake food and a new type of fermented sushi using boiled scallop (izushi). Scallop flake food comprises heated adductor muscles that are shredded into coarse fibers. Scallop flake food is a useful material for various culinary preparations, and its processing method is quite simple. Such foods are expected to become popular. In the present study, conditions for thawing frozen adductor muscle, heating adductor muscle, breaking up adductor muscle fibers, and sterilizing scallop flake food were improved. We finally established a processing method for high-quality scallop flake food. Izushi is one of the traditional fermented foods consumed in the Hokkaido and Tohoku districts. However, izushi made from scallop adductor muscle has not yet been developed. One of the reasons for this is that the weak texture and taste of scallop adductor muscle are not considered suitable for izushi preparation. We therefore investigated conditions for pickling and adjusting the weight of scallop adductor muscle during the fermentation process, and found ways to improve both the texture and taste of izushi. Our innovative processes will enable novel, marketable food products based on scallop adductor muscle.

Afterslip distribution following the 2003 Tokachioki earthquake: An estimation based on the Green’s functions for an inhomogeneous elastic space with subsurface structure

We derive the 1-yr afterslip distribution following the 2003 Tokachi-oki (Hokkaido, northeastern Japan) earthquake (Mw8.0) by inverting geodetic data, i.e., horizontal and vertical displacements, at 142 land stations of the Global Positioning System (GPS) in Hokkaido and northernmost Tohoku districts, together with vertical displacements at two offshore stations of pressure gauge (PG) off the Pacific coast of Hokkaido. We use the Green’s functions (GFs), calculated with a finite element method, for an inhomogeneous elastic (IE) model incorporating subsurface structure. Obtained results show a striking feature of the distribution pattern of significant afterslip, namely, a U-shaped afterslip zone encircling the co-seismic rupture zone of the 2003 event. Amounts of the 1-yr afterslip reach up to 0.9 m, and total seismic moments released from all afterslip zones are of the order of 1021 N m, corresponding to an earthquake of MW 8.0. For comparison, we also estimate the 1-yr afterslips based on GFs for the homogeneous elastic (HE) model to find that the total seismic moment with GFs for the IE model is larger than that with GFs for the HE model by ∼33% (when the most probable values are compared) if we assume a rigidity of 40 GPa. This result implies that inhomogeneities due to subsurface structure have an important role in geodetic inversions.

Research on the Housing Problem of the Silkworm-rearing Farmers in Tohoku Districts

Research on the Housing Problem of the Silkworm-rearing Farmers in Tohoku Districts

PRESENT STATUS AND PROSPECTS OF STRAWBERRY BREEDING AND CROPPING TYPE IN NORTHERN JAPAN

As northern Japan (the Hokkaido and Tohoku districts) encompasses two different strawberry production regions, cold regions (Hokkaido, Akita and Yamagata Prefecture) and warmer regions (the Pacific coast of Aomori, Miyagi, and Fukushima Prefecture), during winter, breeding programs for late June-bearers and early June-bearers have been conducted. Cultivars with a relatively long dormant period such as 'Morioka-16' were released as late June-bearers. 'Fukuharuka', 'Fukuayaka', and 'Moikko' were bred as early June-bearers. 'Kitanokagayaki' and 'Belle Rouge' are grown in open field cultures in Hokkaido and Akita Prefecture, in semi-forced cultures in Hokkaido, Iwate and Akita Prefecture, and are late raised in Akita Prefecture. On the other hand, 'Mouikko', 'Fukuharuka' and 'Fukuayaka' are grown mainly using forced culture at the Pacific coast in Miyagi and Fukushima Prefecture. Though the area of strawberry cultivation and the amount of strawberry production in northern Japan occupy only 14% of the total areas and 8% of the total productions, respectively, its importance as a strawberry production region is high because the summer to autumn production which runs short in Japan is expected to increase in view of the region's cool climate conditions. For these reasons, the ever-bearers such as 'HS-138', 'Kiminohitomi', 'Natsuakari' and 'Summer Candy', have been bred. The strategy for summer and autumn production has also been spotlighted by developing a new cropping system (a short-day treatment carried out in nursery plants for around 30 days) for a June-bearer such as 'Kitanokagayaki'. As a new mode of cooperation, a study group intended to develop information exchange among all those involved with strawberry research, production, extension, and industries has recently been organized in northern Japan.

Japanese map of the earwax gene frequency: a nationwide collaborative study by Super Science High School Consortium

Wet/dry types of earwax are determined by the c.538G>A single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the ABCC11 gene; GA and GG genotypes give the wet type and AA the dry type. The Japanese population may have a dual structure comprising descendants of mixtures between the ancient 'Jomon' and 'Yayoi' populations. We hypothesized that the dry type was introduced by the Yayoi people to the Jomon population where the wet type was predominant, and as the mixture of the two populations has not yet been complete, the allele-A frequency (f(A)) would even now be higher along a putative Yayoi man's peopling route within Japanese islands. To know the frequency, a nationwide Super Science High School (SSH) Consortium collected 1963 fingernail samples of pupils/students from at least one high school/university in every prefecture. All further procedures, DNA extraction, SNP genotyping and gene frequency estimation, were carried out by trained SSH pupils. Although the allele-A frequency varied among the 47 prefectures, the Gifu/Kyoto and Okinawa prefectures showed the highest and lowest values, respectively. Areas with high frequencies included Northeastern Kyushu, Northern Shikoku and Kinki districts, showing a belt-like zone, whereas those with low frequencies other than Okinawa were the Southwestern Kyushu, Hiroshima prefecture and Tohoku districts. The f(A) value in Kinki district was statistically higher than those in prefectures westward and east-northward from it. The result may provide another line of evidence supporting a possible route of the Yayoi-man's peopling in Japan.

Field-Study of Maintenance between Relations in Mountain Village in Tohoku districts

Field-Study of Maintenance between Relations in Mountain Village in Tohoku districts

Microsatellite fingerprinting of barley scald pathogen, Rhynchosporium secalis, from the Hokuriku and Tohoku districts in Japan and genetic resources of barley breeding for resistance to its pathogen population

Microsatellite fingerprinting of barley scald pathogen, Rhynchosporium secalis, from the Hokuriku and Tohoku districts in Japan and genetic resources of barley breeding for resistance to its pathogen population

The Frequency of Recurrent Multiple Maternities Using Two Sets of Census Data in Japan: 1990 and 1995

Frequencies of recurrent multiple maternities were estimated using two sets of census data in Japan in 1990 and 1995. The repeat frequency (RF) of the twinning rate is the frequency of 2 sets of twins among families or couples who have already had 1 set of twins and 2 more siblings. The overall RFs were 9.6 per 1000 couples in 1990 and 9.3 in 1995. The RFs of the monozygotic (MZ) twinning rates were 5.9 per 1000 couples in 1990 and 5.5 in 1995. The RFs of the dizygotic (DZ) twinning rates were 3.7 in 1990 and 3.8 in 1995. For unlike-sexed propositus twins, the RF of MZ twins were 5.0 per 1000 couples in 1990 and 5.5 in 1995. The RF of DZ twins were 5.3 in 1990 and 4.6 in 1995. As for like-sexed propositus twins, the corresponding RFs were 6.2 and 5.5 for MZ twins, and 3.4 and 3.6 for DZ twins, respectively. In mothers who have experienced a twin maternity, the overall RF of twinning was 1.5 to 2 times as high as the average mother's chance of having twins. There was no RF for triplets for both census years. As for geographic variations of the overall RF, the rates in Okinawa (16.2) and Hokkaido (15.3) were significantly higher than those in the Tohoku (8.7), Kanto (8.0) and Kyushu (7.4) districts.

北海道・東北地方における冬期の早朝に最低気温が記録される時刻の地理的分布

The object of this study was to obtain the geographical distribution of minimum temperatures in northeastern Japan during winter using ten-minute Automated Meteorological Data Acquisition System (AMeDAS) readings. The area under analysis included the Hokkaido and Tohoku districts, as well as north of 37 North Latitude in Niigata Prefecture. Within this area there are 332 observation sites from which data were collected. Data were obtained from AMe-DAS, which records data every ten minutes. The observation period covered the months of January and February from 1998 through 2003. There were a total of 355 days of readings. For each station, seventy-one of the days from this period were extracted for an analysis of lowest temperature, being a 20 percent representation of the data. In this paper, the author defines minimum temperature as not being a record low but rather above a rank of six from data taken between 00 : 10 and 09 : 00 Japan Standard Time.The time at which minimum temperatures were most frequently observed was 06 : 50, with a frequency of 4.49%. The time at which minimum temperatures were observed least was 01 : 40, with a frequency of 1.14%. From 07 : 20, the frequency decreases abruptly.Using a Correspondence Analysis, the author classified the data into four types according to time and geographical distribution.In type I, there is no prominent overall peak of frequency, but the frequency increases slightly after 07 : 30. This type I was distributed along the eastern coast of the Hokkaido and Tohoku districts, as well as within Aomori prefecture. The type most closely identified with sunrise time (06 : 20 07 : 30) was located in the basins of inland areas in Hokkaido, Iwate, and Fukushima prefectures (type II). Pre-sunrise times were defined as 04 : 40 to 06 : 10 (type III). This type was distributed along the eastern coast of Hokkaido and the Pacific Ocean coast. Data from before 04 : 30 are classified as type IV. Type IV has a small peak in temperature variation before 01 : 00. Type I has a small peak after 07 : 30. These two types can be seen along the coast of the Sea of Japan. Types II and III are related to sunrise time. In these areas there is frequent radiative cooling and a good probability of a clear sky throughout the night. Types I and IV have less relation to sunrise time.

History and Climates of the Tohoku Districts and the Characteristics of the Rice planting Dance

History and Climates of the Tohoku Districts and the Characteristics of the Rice planting Dance

Classification of the mountain slopes in Hokkaido and Tohoku districts, northern Japan, by 1/25,000 topographical-map interpretation

Classification of the mountain slopes in Hokkaido and Tohoku districts, northern Japan, by 1/25,000 topographical-map interpretation

Distribution of Pathogenic Races of Rice Blast Fungus (Pyricularia grisea) in Hokkaido and Tohoku Districts in 2001

Distribution of Pathogenic Races of Rice Blast Fungus (<I>Pyricularia grisea</I>) in Hokkaido and Tohoku Districts in 2001

Management and Cost Allocation of Agricultural Water for Multi-purpose Domestic Use in Tohoku Districts

Management and Cost Allocation of Agricultural Water for Multi-purpose Domestic Use in Tohoku Districts