SFTS has been endemic to Japan, and SFTSV has been circulating naturally within the country.

We studied morphologic changes in olivary hypertrophy from dentato-olivary tract lesions by immunohistologic methods with antialpha B-crystallin and antiheat shock protein 27 (HSP 27). The majority of central chromatolysis-like enlarged neurons, which are frequently seen in the early stages of olivary hypertrophy on ipsilateral lesions, showed a marked expression of alpha B-crystallin; however, HSP 27 did not show increased expression in those neurons. In the later stages of olivary hypertrophy, increased expressions of alpha B-crystallin varied in the remaining neurons and the expression of HSP 27 increased in hypertrophied astrocytes, although the expression of alpha B-crystallin in hypertrophic astrocytes was not prominent. The accumulation of alpha B-crystallin and HSP 27 may represent responses to pathologic conditions.

A fatal case of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome was reported in Japan in 2013. The ensuing process of public communication offers lessons on how to balance public health needs with patient privacy and highlights the importance of multilateral collaborations between scientific and political communities.

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The World Health Organization (WHO) has responded to the 2011 East-Japan earthquake and tsunami through the three levels of its decentralised structure. It has provided public health advice regarding a number of issues relating to protective measures, potassium iodide use, as well as safety of food and drinking water, mental health, travel, tourism, and trade. WHO is currently developing an initial health risk assessment linked to a preliminary evaluation of radiation exposure around the world from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident. Lessons learned from this disaster are likely to help future emergency response to multi-faceted disasters.