Foreign tourists looking for souvenirs are seen at Nakamise Shopping Street in Asakusa district. [Photo/IC] Japan plans to exempt visa tests for educated foreigners and open 100 support centers for foreign workers, Japanese media reported. The government said it will consider exemptions if applicants have attained a certain degree of professional education in their home countries, the Japan Times reported without naming sources. According to the report, Japan's Health Ministry, which is in charge of making rules and conducting technical tests in the nursing care sector, is considering test exemptions mainly for graduates from nursing schools in Vietnam, the Philippines and elsewhere in Asia. In a move to bring in overseas workers amid a shrinking and aging population, the Japanese government this month enacted a revised law that will allow approximately 345,000 workers to enter the country in the next five years. Based on the law, people who want to work in Japan are required to pass technical and Japanese-language tests before getting a visa. On Sunday, Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga revealed that the government will open about 100 support centers for foreign workers across Japan. I hope to see such support centers in all prefectures, major cities, and municipalities where a large number of foreign workers reside, Suga said, adding that each center will have interpreters or translation systems. The central government will provide about 2 billion yen ($17.6 million) to local administrations for the support centers and will make plans to ensure fast access to housing, phone and bank services, which have long been criticized by foreigners, the top Japanese government spokesman said. Japan has carried out a series of comprehensive measures ahead of the implementation of the new immigration law in April and there will be more, said Yu Qiang, a Japanese studies researcher at the University of International Relations in Beijing. However, these measures will only have limited effects because of the country's long insular tradition, Yu added, citing a Gallup survey that showed Japan's 126 million population would grow just 1 percent if there were global freedom of movement, and its highly educated population would fall by 8 percent. So it seems that Japan may want migrants more than they want Japan, Yu said. According to this year's IMD World Competitiveness Center ranking, Japan was 29th out of 63 countries in terms of ability to attract and develop talent. inspirational rubber braceletspersonalized rubber braceletscustom rubber braceletscartier rubber braceletsilicone bracelets
HONG KONG -- The mutational mechanism of a rare and deadly brain cancer has been uncovered by scientists from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, providing new therapeutic lead to the disease.Starting off at nerve cells around the spine and brain, lower-grade glioma (LGG) is the early form of sGBM -- one of the deadliest brain cancers. While sGBM can be treated with surgery or an oral chemotherapy drug, most of these malign tumors would mutate and return with mortality rate reaching almost 100 percent.In their latest study made public on Monday, the team led by Wang Jiguang, assistant professor at the university's Division of Life Science and Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, analyzed and integrated the genomic data of 188 sGBM patients, including newly collected samples from Chinese mainland and South Korean patients.The study found that about 14 percent of the sampled sGBM patients displayed mutations in this gene.Taking reference from this discovery, the university's collaborators, Jiang Tao and his team from Beijing Neurosurgical Institute and Beijing Tiantan Hospital, identified a drug molecule named PLB-1001 that can reach the tumors in the brain.The molecule shows remarkable potency in selectively targeting sGBM tumors and those displaying further gene mutations.The clinical trial of PLB-1001 on 18 recurrent patients at late cancer stage returned with a partial positive response in two patients.After being prescribed a daily dosage ranging from 50 to 300 mg at Beijing Tiantan Hospital, the two patients experienced significant tumor shrinkage, with relieved symptoms and little side effects, lasting for more than 12 weeks.The outcome of this clinical trial is significant in a sense that it furthers the knowledge about sGBM treatment, Wang said, adding that developing computational models on cancer evolution helps predict cancer cells' future behavior and prioritize treatment options.Wang said more studies on PLB-1001 are needed to see if it can be used in conjunction with other drugs in achieving more persistent results.The findings were published in scientific journal Cell on Nov 29. silicone braceletscustom bangles and braceletsxl silicone wristbandsrubber band bracelet makercustom silicone wristbands<%2fcenter>
