STAP Cell, It is just so amazing! No! More than amazing! You might be able to become younger!!!

STAP Cell From Youtube

RIKEN (is Japan's largest comprehensive research institution renowned for high-quality research in a diverse range of scientific disciplines.) has successfully created a new "embryo-stem cell". Simply stimulated with mildly acidic liquid, the cells of the body of the mouse change to the ES cell that can become any cell. 

People didn't believe that the cells of the body that a role is stated once can not change to the ES cell. It's a breakthrough to overturn the common sense of the life sciences! It was published as a lead story of the British science journal Nature electronic version on 29th.

Ms. Haruko Obogata (30) is an unit leader of  the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology (CDB) who has named STAP (Stimulus-Triggered Acquisition of Pluripotency) cell for the new embryo-stem cell.

Ms. Haruko Obogata From Youtube

She made STAP cell just 3 years after she got her PhD. It can be made more easily than iPS cells and the safety is excellent. To reshape the ES cell and the cells of the body, it is necessary to revert the cells to the state of a fertilized egg in the task of initialization. iPS cells initialize by introducing a gene. But STAP cell is simply immerse in acidic solution.

It was denied once from Nature. They said, "You are taunt the history of the cell biology of hundreds of years". "It's a mistake, I'm sure." Some researchers around were also puzzled, but she had a great deal of conviction that "It is useful for people always". She said, "I wanted quit my research and cried all night long many times. But I tried to work hard for just one day, today and just tomorrow. And I realized five years had passed. " She is very active person and a poor loser. She goes the limit. 

From Youtube 

She is very unique person. She doesn't wear a doctor's smock. She wears her grandmother's Japanese cooking apron. And her laboratory is very cute. She likes Moomin and turtle. 

From Youtube 

 There is Moomin's character on her lab's the wall. She said, "I feel lonely when I do experiments by myself, so the character helps me. "

From Youtube 

 This is her turtle in her lab.

From Youtube 

Only women are in her lab, I guess.

Still she has to try to make STAP cell by human cells, but I'm sure she can do it and it will help us a lot! This technology that the old cell reshapes to a younger cell. So If we can use this STAP cell, simply we can become younger! Oh my god! 

I want to write how come she could make STAP cell next time. She is just amazing. And RIKEN too!

Next article > [STAP Cell > easy explanation] Does it really exist? Nobody knows except researchers. But I still believe there is a hope.


Thank you so much!

Beautiful design and wonderful features, "Sony Xperia Z Ultra"

From sonymobile.com

I just like this "Sony Xperia Ultra". This is a very fantastic smart phone.  

October 15 2013, Sony has launched Android-powered of 6.4 inches "Xperia Z Ultra" (SIM free version) at the official online store of the United States.

The first Android smartphone with a 6.4″ Full HD Display – and the first one ever to incorporate a TRILUMINOS™ Display with X-Reality for mobile! You can watch a movie anywhere with the high image quality.

A side view. From sonymobile.com

The body is 6.5mm! It is so thin! And the weight is 212 grams. It is very slim, light and slick. 

And if you dropped this phone into the water, no problem. It is waterproof Full HD smartphone! So you can watch youtube when you are taking a shower or a bath! The Xperia is protected against the ingress of dust and is waterproof. 

The magnet docking station is letting you charge this phone without opening the USB protective cover. You can browse menus and view content while charging.

The magnet docking station. From sonymobile.com

 There are more fantastic features for this phone. I am using iPhone 4s (SIM free version) now and I like my iPhone but I am sure I will buy Xperia for the next. Because it is obviously better than iPhone... I am sorry, Apple... 

Here is a movie of Xperia Z Ultra. It's so nice...

You can buy this SIM free Xperia Z Ultra from Amazon!!!↓
Sony Xperia Z Ultra Unlocked Smartphone, No Warranty, Black (C6833-BK)

Thank you so much!

Nana Mizuki (水樹 奈々), she gives hope and courage to people.

I didn't know about her until I saw Kohaku (Kohaku Uta Gassen) which is an annual music show on New Year's Eve produced by Japanese public broadcaster NHK. She was singing with T.M. Revolution (Takanori Nishikawa). 

Yesterday, I saw a TV program about Nana Mizuki. She was singing in Taiwan.

 She was studying Taiwanese eagerly with a Taiwanese stuff and she tried to sing a part of her song "Shinai" in Taiwanese for her fans.

She graduated TRAIT (performing art) course at Horikoshi high school that produce a lot of celebrities, and voice actor talent department at Yoyogi Animation Gakuin in 1997. She made a her debut as a voice actor (Chisato Kadokura PlayStation game of "NOeL 〜La neige〜") in the same year. Her singer debut was single "thought (想い "Omoi")" in 2000.

Her father wanted be a singer. So she had a special training everyday at a karaoke classroom that her parents run until she graduate the junior high school from the age of five to be an Enka singer.

 When she was a kid, she often was in the singing contests.

She made her dad's and her dream happen.

Her fans were preparing a lot to make her happy.

 He said, "Nana Mizuki is very strict on herself like an idol in Showa period."

 People are trying to buy some her goods before a concert.

 She was waiting for Nana's concert from the day before.

"Please wave this fan as saying "Nana, Nana" before an encore."

She said "My boss was very strict and I had a very hard time everyday but I could overcome because of Nana's song."

 Nana Mizuki got a special fan from her fan. She was surprised.

She sang "Super Generation" in the encore for them. 

She was so excited to eat Xiaolongbao in Taiwan. She was so happy!

While I am watching this TV program, I felt she is a great person because she is very polite, positive, bright and a hard worker. And her voice is very beautiful, strong and stable. I am incredibly proud of Nana Mizuki as Japanese. I hope she can make people all over the world happy and gives hope and courage to people forever.

Thank you so much! 

The Seven Lucky Gods in Japan. (七福神)

The books about luck and the good luck goods has been published a lot in Japan. The beckoning cat is introduced in the books often. 

A beckoning cat. It is also called a welcome cat. "Please come to my restaurant (or my store)!"

But the Seven Lucky Gods (七福神) is being introduced as a lucky mascot following the beckoning cat.
The Seven Lucky Gods that it is faith in Japan as bring fortune.

In the end of Muromachi era (1336-1573), the god of wealth faith had spread in Kyoto. It is the age of the Onin War (1467-77). Not only samurai, people are also exhausted at the time. There was an atmosphere people needed the god of wealth. At the same time, the people (civilian) were trying to do the business and could earn money. 

The faith of the god of wealth began to fashion between the people. Buddha was god to wish the good harvest and to save the country. In the end of Muromachi era, it became the people wished their wealth individually. At the time, the Seven Lucky Gods were born for the people.

The name and features of The Seven Lucky Gods are like below.

1. Fukurokuju: god of happiness, wealth and longevity
2. Jurojin: god of long life
3. Benzaiten (Benten-sama): goddess of knowledge, art and beauty, especially music
4. Bishamonten: god of warriors
5. Hotei: the fat and happy god of abundance and good health
6. Daikokuten (Daikoku): god of wealth, commerce and trade
7. Ebisu: god of fishers or merchants, often depicted carrying a sea bream
Ebisu and Daikoku are often paired and represented as carvings or masks on the walls of small retail shops.

If you want to live longer, maybe you should be with Fukurokuju and Jurojin. Actually they are same god! If you want to be smart and be an artist, you should be with Benten-sama. Want to be strong? Please be with Bishamonten. Get a healthy body? Please be with Hotei. Everybody needs money! And get a prosperous business? Please be with Daikoku and Ebisu!

Thank you so much!

A Mini-liver (5mm) is made by iPS cell.

Mini-liver

Over one year has passed after Professor Shinya Yamanaka of Kyoto University was awarded the Nobel Prize. Big expectations of iPS cells is applied to regenerative medicine which is called dream medicine. It is close to practical use now. Professer Yamanaka and Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University supplies iPS cells to over 600 laboratories in Japan and abroad. iPS cells lead investigation of the cuases and mechanisms of disease onset, the discovery of new therapies and the development of new drugs.

Professer Yamanaka said "Six years has passed after the announcement of iPS cells of human. The accomplishment of iPS cells from Japan is far beyond our expectation. Japan is leading the world in regenerative medicine. "

At Laboratory of Professor Hideki Taniguchi of Yokohama City University, they made a 5mm diameter mini-liver with iPS cell technology. If they transplant the mini-liver into mice with sever liver faiure that would have died in one month, the survival rate was going up to 90 percent! It has a complex vascular structure. It is the same function as the real liver and connected to the surrounding blood vessels. 

White: the liver cells, Red: the blood vessel cells, Green: the adhered cells

Professor Taniguchi is a surgeon. He began to research because he wanted to help the patient who couldn't receive transplanted organ and went died. Through trial and error, he mixed the liver cells and the blood vessel cells with the adhered cells by paying attention to the process of a fertilized egg become a person. And then, the cells on the culture fluid solidified naturally and became the three-dimensional structure. He said "I felt the world has changed dramatically.". This mini-liver will be conducted at the bedside 6 years later.

The iPS cells lead to other oppotunities more. I want to tell you about it in the future if I can. I can't take my eyes off iPS!

Thank you so much!

A Happy New Year 2014!!!

Hi Everyone! A Happy New Year!

I am so sorry that I couldn't update so often in the end of last year. However I will try to update a lot in this year! 

By the way the animal of this year is horse. Do you know what is the twelve signs of the zodiac?

Long long time ago, most people have lived in agriculture in China and Japan. The people has been well-known that there was a deep connection with agriculture, the season and the weather. Crops do not grow with the cold weather, and it is difficult to grow crops even in the hot weather. So people made the calender to figure out the order of weather and season easily. The people calculated the number of day and night, and tried to find out when is the day of the storm and the rainy day.

In China, people originally are thinking Jupiter is the important star. Jupiter move around the Sun in 12 years. So the figure of 12 became the base of the time. A year is 12 months, and a day is 24 hours which is 12 multiply by 2. The people assigned 12 Chinese letter for the years and applied the animals for it as easy to understand. The animals are like below. 

No.	Animals
1	Rat (鼠)
2	Ox (牛)
3	Tiger (虎)
4	Rabbit (兔)
5	Dragon (龍)
6	Snake (蛇)
7	Horse (馬)
8	Goat (羊)
9	Monkey (猴)
10	Rooster (雞)
11	Dog (狗)
12	Pig (豬)

In Japan, we often say like, "What is the animal of next year?", "I am the Ox Year."Something like that. The twelve signs of the zodiac is deeply rooted in Japanese people's life.

The horse is useful for people and it deeply involved in people's lives. I will try to be like a horse to provide a kind of useful information to you. This is my New Year's resolution!

Thank you so much!