Advanced Research Project highlight
| Completion of a prototype of the world's first foldable bridge "Mobile Bridge" |
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 A scene from the temporary experiment site set up for University Festival 2009 (currently the Mobile Bridge has handrails) |
| Asst. Prof. Ario completed a prototype of the “Mobile Bridge,” the world’s first foldable bridge. It is expected to enable rapid post-disaster infrastructural restoration and victim rescue. Conventional bridge assembly requires several weeks because of the stability and other special characteristics that are required of a bridge in order to enable the passage of large vehicles. On the other hand, the completed prototype, which is a multi-fold aluminum alloy structure, can extend to approx. 8 meters, from 1-m-long components in about 1 minute. As Assoc. Prof. Ario pursued his research, he repeatedly asked himself questions – “What if we could fold a bridge?” “How can a bridge be foldable and strong at the same time?” and finally arrived at the development of a prototype by combining the principles of low control, leverage and smart structure. Once completed for practical use, the Mobile Bridge will be highly useful in accelerating post-disaster rescue and infrastructural restoration. | ||
| Overcoming cell leakage from cartilage transplants-regenerative technology that brings good news to patients suffering from cartilage defects | Professor Mitsuo OCHI Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences |
 Experiment on fixing cells in cartilage defect sites using magnetism |
| Prof. Ochi developed, for the first time in the world, a method creating three-dimensional cartilage cell cultures, thereby overcoming the shortcomings of treatments developed in the West for patients suffering from cartilage defects. In Japan alone about 10 million people suffer from indirect cartilage defects in the knees, so the development of a fundamental treatment that does not burden patients was much needed. Prof. Ochi’s method involves the use of second-generation self-cultured cartilage; that is, a small amount of cartilage cells extracted from the patient is formed into a 3D gel, then cultured and injected into the defective area. Seeking to avoid the need for repeated surgical interventions into a patient’s body, Prof. Ochi also developed a treatment method for bone or cartilage regeneration that involves mixing iron powder under an endoscope, into cultured cells that are to be transplanted so that the cells can be accurately drawn to the defect site (patent pending). | ||
| First to discover the disease-preventing effect of succinate, an "umami" substance that inhibits cancer cell proliferation and controls blood vessel generation | Professor Norihisa KATO Graduate School of Biospehre Science |
 Succinate controlling angiogenesis (extension of capillaries from arteries) |
| Prof. Kato was first in the world to discover the anti-cancer effect of succinate, which is known as the “umami” (the savory taste) in shellfish and Japanese sake. In the process of one of his experiments conducted to examine effects of increased succinate consumption on health, Prof. Kato confirmed that succinate increased considerably through fermentation in the large intestines of rats that were given ellagic acid and rutin, which are natural forms of polyphenol. Experiments further confirmed that succinate inhibits angiogenesis (creation of new blood vessels), a process involved in the proliferation of stomach and intestinal cancer calls, cancer cell metastasis and infiltration. This hints at the possibility of developing new functional foods using shellfish. | ||
| Learning about today’s Japanese from the history of the ‘on’ pronunciation of kanji (Chinese ideograms) – “on” is the pronunciation from a foreign language | Professor Isamu SASAKI Graduate School of Education |
 Left: “Sanjo wasan” annotated by Shinran Right: “Sanjo wasan” owned by Senju-ji Temple (From Zoho Shinran Shonin Shinseki Shusei [Extended Compilation of Authentic Writings by His Holiness Shinran; 2005-2007, Hozokan]) |
| Prof. Sasaki conducts research into the past use of kanji. Kanji are originally foreign characters pronounced with foreign sounds, and are now pronounced in on and kun ways in Japanese. They are essential in writing Japanese. Prof. Sasaki discovered that words written in kanji in the past were pronounced differently. They had different accents depending on each speaker’s proficiency, the purpose behind the use of the words and the social context of their use. This is like English words in Japan today. Prof. Sasaki compiled the results of his research into “Heian-Kamakura-jidai niokeru Nippon Kan’on no Kenkyu (Research into the Han-reading of Chinese characters during the Heian and Kamakura eras)” and was awarded the Shinmura Izuru Prize in 2009 (presented to those making an important contribution to Japanese philology or linguistics). Recently, Prof. Sasaki focuses on the use of kanji by one person, Shinran, who is a great Buddhist figure. Prof. Sasaki is trying to decipher the pronunciation of all kanji used in the hand-written documents left by Shinran in order to clarify the phase contrast of sounds in the Kamakura era. | ||
| The World’s first successful development of human autism in a mouse model | Professor Toru TAKUMI Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences |
 Creating a mouse model with human chromosomal abnormality |
| Prof. Takumi succeeded in developing the world’s first model mouse with a chromosomal abnormality similar to that of human autism. For this research achievement he was awarded second prize in the 46th (2009) Baelz. Behind this research are the remaining unknown factors of psychiatric diseases, as opposed to the ongoing molecular-level elucidation of various physical diseases that has taken place since the completion of the human genome sequencing. Prof. Takumi takes a molecular biological approach to mental disorders for which diagnostic standards exist, but for which no objective diagnostic methods can be mechanized (blood testing, diagnostic imaging, etc.). Like many other diseases, autism is caused by a biological abnormality. Accordingly, Prof. Takumi attempts to clarify the mysteries of human mental disorders by using embryological engineering techniques that enable him to produce and genetically examine model mice with human psychiatric diseases, to explore and analyze genes that may be responsible for abnormal psychiatric behavior. | ||
| Results of basic research into the universal mechanism of materials: creating general-use plastic that is as strong as steel | Professor (special appointment) Masamichi HIKOSAKA Graduate School of Integrated Arts and Sciences |
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Prof. Hikosaka succeeded in creating a general-use plastic that is as strong as steel. Polymer-based materials such as plastics are widely used because of their lightness, low cost and high plasticity. However, they are considerably inferior to metals in terms of tensile strength and heat resistance. To overcome these shortcomings research was undertaken to discover a method of increasing the degree of crystallization of crystalline polymers. After nearly ten years of dedicated study, Prof. Hikosaka succeeded in directly observing the generation of a nano-nucleus, the birth of “baby crystal,” so to speak, thereby showing the mechanism of initial crystallization. As a result, he developed a unique method for creating general-use plastic sheets that have greater tensile strength than iron yet are inexpensive and recyclable. The method involves cooling polymer melt below its melting point and stretching it out, to cause crystallization. This research achievement was the result of basic research into the mechanism of high polymer crystallization. Right: Compiled based on "Elastic Modules" on The Japan Society for Technology of Plasticity, "Polymer Processing Data Book (2nd Edition) published by the Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun (First Edition Released: January 28th, 2002) , p39. |
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（Excerpted from Hiroshima Univeristy Prospctus 2010-2011, p15-16)
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