No abstract

A histochemical assay for detecting genetically modified (GM) papaya (derived from Line 55ῌ 1) is described. GM papaya, currently undergoing a safety assessment in Japan, was developed using a construct that included a b-glucuronidase (GUS) reporter gene linked to a virus coat protein (CP) gene. Histochemical assay was used to visualize the blue GUS reaction product from transgenic seed embryos. Twelve embryos per fruit were extracted from the papaya seeds using a surgical knife. The embryos were incubated with the substrate 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-b-9-glucuronide (X-Gluc) in a 96-well microtiter plate for 10ῌ15 hours at 37ῌ. Seventy-five percent of GM papaya embryos should turn blue theoretically. The histochemical assay results were completely consistent with those from a qualitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method developed by this laboratory. Furthermore, the method was validated in a five-laboratory study. The method for detection of GM papaya is rapid and simple, and does not require use of specialized equipment.

No abstract

The authors, community nurses, collected the narratives of the family caregivers who cared the old family members who were spending their lives mostly in bed. The narratives concerned the events that occurred for the old and the psychological states that the caregiver experienced since he/she became involved in the caregiving. It was found that many family caregivers hesitated to rely on public support service due to the social norm that the old should be cared by family members without depending on public services. The authors held a seminar in which they attempted to share the narratives with participants who were living in the same community as the research subjects to increase the understanding of family caregiving and to change the social norm.