SpaceX requests - Starlink service provided to Ukraine will stop if US Department of Defense does not contribute money

Recently CNN.co.jp reported the following:

ウクライナに提供のスターリンク、米国防総省の拠出なければサービス中止も　スペースＸが要請

2022.10.14 Fri posted at 11:02 JST

ワシントン（ＣＮＮ） イーロン・マスク氏率いる米スペースＸの衛星インターネット端末「スターリンク」は、今年春、ウクライナに届いた時からウクライナ軍にとって欠かせない通信手段だった。ロシアとの戦争で携帯電話やインターネットのネットワークが破壊されても、スターリンクのおかげで戦闘を続け、つながり続けることができていた。

スターリンクの衛星端末はこれまでに約２万台がウクライナに寄付されており、マスク氏は７日、「運用のためにスペースＸが負担した経費は８０００万ドル、年末までに１億ドルを超す」とツイートした。

だが、そうした慈善事業は打ち切りになるかもしれない。ＣＮＮが入手した文書によると、スペースＸは米国防総省に対し、米軍が月額数千万ドルを拠出しなければ、ウクライナでのサービスに対する資金提供は中止する可能性があると通告した。

スペースＸは先月、国防総省に宛てた書簡の中で、スターリンクのサービスに対する現状のような資金拠出は継続できなくなったと説明。ウクライナ政府と軍がスターリンクを使うために、米国防総省が拠出を引き継ぐよう申し入れた。スペースＸによると、経費は年内に１億２０００万ドル以上、次の１年で約４億ドルに上る。

「我々はウクライナへの端末にこれ以上寄付すべき立場にはなく、既存の端末のために無期限で資金を提供すべき立場にもない」。スペースＸは書簡にそう記していた。

スペースＸが国防総省に送った文書の中には、７月にウクライナ軍のバレリー・ザルジニー総司令官がマスク氏に対し、さらに約８０００台のスターリンク端末を求めた内容もあった。

スペースＸの外部コンサルタントは別の書簡で「同社には、ザルジニー総司令官の要請に従って追加の端末やサービスを提供する財政的な能力はないと考える」としている。

Translation

Washington (CNN) Elon Musk's SpaceX Starlink satellite internet terminal had been means of communications for the Ukrainian military since its arrival in Ukraine this spring. When the war with Russia destroyed mobile phone and internet networks, fighting could continue due to Starlink and connection could be maintained.

About 20,000 Starlink satellite terminals had been donated to Ukraine so far, and Musk on the 7th tweeted that "SpaceX has incurred $80 million in operating expenses, and will exceed $100 million by the end of the year."

But those charities could be discontinued. SpaceX had informed the Pentagon that it might stop funding its services in Ukraine unless the U.S. military  could contribute tens of millions of dollars a month, according to documents obtained by CNN.

SpaceX said in a letter to the Pentagon last month that it could no longer continue to fund Starlink services at its current rate. It proposed the Pentagon to take over the funding for the Ukrainian government and military in using the Starlink. SpaceX said it could cost more than $120 million this year and about $400 million next year.

SpaceX said in a letter that "We are not in a position to donate any more terminals to Ukraine, nor to provide indefinite funding for existing terminals."

In July, Ukrainian Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Valerii  Zaluzhnyi asked Musk for about 8,000 more Starlink terminals, according to a SpaceX document sent to the Pentagon.

An outside consultant for SpaceX in a separate letter said "We do not believe the company has the financial capacity to provide additional terminals or services as requested by General Zaluzhnyi."

So, SpaceX says that it could no longer continue to provide Starlink services to the Ukrainian government for financial reasons. I think it is natural for SpaceX to ask the US government to pay for it as Starlink is merely a private company that relies on earning for survival.

Biden administration - ``China is the only competitor'': Shows policy to win the competition

Recently NHK News on-line reported the following:

バイデン政権「中国は唯一の競合国」 競争に打ち勝つ方針示す

2022年10月13日 8時07分

アメリカのバイデン政権は外交・軍事戦略の指針となる「国家安全保障戦略」を発表し、中国を「国際秩序を変える意思と能力を兼ね備えた唯一の競合国」と位置づけ、同盟国との連携などによって競争に打ち勝つとする方針を示しました。

政権として初の「国家安全保障戦略」発表

アメリカのバイデン政権は12日、政権として初めてとなる外交・軍事戦略の指針「国家安全保障戦略」を発表しました。

この中で中国について、経済、外交、軍事、そして技術面において「国際秩序を変える意思と能力を兼ね備えた唯一の競合国」と位置づけ、競争に勝つために今後10年間が重要になると指摘しました。

そして中国に対抗していくための具体策として

▽アメリカ国内で競争力、技術革新、強じん性の強化に力を注ぎ、

▽同盟国や友好国との連携を一段と深め、

▽アメリカの利益を守るための責任ある競争を行っていくとしています。

「日本の防衛への揺るぎない決意」尖閣諸島に直接言及

またインド太平洋地域については「21世紀の地政学上の中心」だとし、日本については「日米安全保障条約に基づく日本の防衛への揺るぎない決意を確認する。条約の適用範囲には尖閣諸島も含まれる」として尖閣諸島に直接言及しました。

一方、ウクライナへの軍事侵攻を続けるロシアについては「国際的な平和と安定に対する喫緊かつ絶え間ない脅威をもたらしている」としたうえで通常戦力が弱体化し核兵器への依存度を高めるおそれがあると指摘し、「ロシアが核兵器を使用したり、使用すると脅したりすることで目的を達成することは許さない」としています。

バイデン政権としてはウクライナへの軍事侵攻が続くなかロシアを重大な脅威だとする一方で、唯一の競合国は中国だと明記し、同盟国や友好国との連携などを通じて中国との競争に打ち勝つとする方針を打ち出した形です。

国家安全保障戦略の発表はことしはじめに行われるとみられてきましたが、ウクライナへの軍事侵攻などを受けて発表が遅れていました。

Translation

The Biden administration in the United States announced a "National Security Strategy" that served as a guideline for diplomatic and military strategy, positioning China as "the only competing country that has the will and ability to change the international order", he showed a policy to win the competition by collaborating with allies, etc.

The government announced its first National Security Strategy

On the 12th, the Biden administration in the United States announced its "National Security Strategy”, the administration’s first guideline for diplomatic and military strategy.

In it, China was positioned as "the only competing country with the will and ability to change the international order" in terms of economy, diplomacy, military and technology, and pointed out that the next 10 years would be important to win the competition.

And as a concrete measure to counter China, it would

▽ Focus on strengthening competitiveness, innovation and resilience in the United States,

▽ Further deepen cooperation with allies and friendly countries,

▽ Compete responsibly to protect the interests of the United States.

``Unwavering determination to defend Japan'' referring directly to the Senkaku Islands

He also said that the Indo-Pacific region would be "the geopolitical center of the 21st century," and that regarding Japan "he affirms unwavering determination to defend Japan based on the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty. The treaty also covers the Senkaku Islands" in a direct reference to the Islands.

On the other hand, about Russia's continued military aggression against Ukraine, he pointed out that Russia posed an "immediate and constant threat to international peace and stability," and that Russia had a possibility to reduce conventional forces and increase reliance on nuclear weapons, and that "We will not allow Russia to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons to achieve its objectives."

While the Biden administration regarded Russia as a serious threat as the military aggression into Ukraine continued, it stated that the only competitor would be China, and set forth the form of the policy to win the competition with China through cooperation with allies and friendly countries.

The National Security Strategy was expected to be announced early this year, but the announcement was delayed due to the military invasion into Ukraine.

So, the US positions China as the only competing country with the will and ability to change the international order in terms of economy, diplomacy, military and technology, and the Russian aggression into Ukraine seems to be only a side show.

Product made by new technology that “does not impair taste even with reduced salt”: developed by various companies

Recently NHK New on-line reported the following:

“減塩でも味は損なわない”新しい技術の商品 各社が開発

2022年10月11日 4時45分

塩分の取り過ぎを防ごうと、味を損なわずに減塩できる新しい技術を使った商品の開発が相次いでいます。

ビール大手の「キリンホールディングス」が大学の研究室と共同で開発したのは、電気の力で塩味を強める機能を備えたおわんとスプーンです。

電源を入れて手で持つと、ごく弱い電気が流れ、食べ物に含まれるナトリウムイオンの動きを制御することで薄味の減塩食でも塩味を強く感じられる仕組みです。実証実験を進めていて、来年の発売を目指しています。

ヘルスサイエンス事業部の佐藤愛さんは「食器を活用しておいしく、楽しく、減塩生活を送ってほしい」と話しています。

食品大手の「味の素」は、塩分カット率を最大60％まで高めただし調味料を開発しました。塩分を減らし、別の成分を組み合わせる独自の技術で塩味を損なわないようにしたということです。

家庭用のほか、最近では減塩食の需要が高い介護施設や病院向けに業務用の販売を強化していて、カット率をさらに高める研究も進めています。

日本人の食塩の平均摂取量は生活習慣病の予防に向けて国が定める目標量を上回っていて、こうした味を損なわずに減塩できる商品開発は、企業の間でさらに活発になりそうです。

Translation

In order to prevent excessive salt intake, products using new technology that could reduce salt without spoiling the taste were being developed one after another.

Kirin Holdings, a major beer company, had jointly developed a bowl and spoon that used electricity to enhance the salty taste.

It was a mechanism that made even light low-salt food tastes very salty by controlling the movement of sodium ions contained in food. As you turned on the power and hold the food in your hand, a very weak electric current flowed through. Demonstration experiments were proceeding with the aim to sell it next year.

Ms. Ai Sato of the Health Science Division said, "I want people to use tableware to lead a delicious, fun, and low-salt lifestyle."

Ajinomoto Co., a major food company, had developed a seasoning that could cut salt content by up to 60%. It meant that the salty taste would not be sacrificed by using a  peculiar technology for combining different ingredients.

In addition to home use, sales for commercial usage towards nursing homes and hospitals were strengthening as their demand for low-salt diets was high recently.  Research to further increase the cut rate were also being conducted.

The average salt intake of Japanese people exceeded the target amount set by the government for the prevention of lifestyle-related diseases. The development of products that could reduce salt without impairing the taste probably would become even more active among companies.

              So, Japanese researchers have developed a new technology that can reduce salt without spoiling the taste of the food. As the average salt intake of Japanese people exceeds the target amount set by the government for the prevention of lifestyle-related diseases, such a product probably can lower the consumption of salt.

Aftereffects of the new corona - Half of the severely ill patients continue to have cognitive impairment after more than a year

Recently NHK News on-line reported the following:

新型コロナ後遺症 重症患者の半数が1年余り認知機能の不調続く

2022年10月8日 6時48分

新型コロナウイルスで重症化した患者の後遺症について日本集中治療医学会が調査した結果、1年余りたったあとも半数ほどの人で記憶など認知機能の不調が続いているとみられることが分かりました。ほかの病気で重症化した場合より割合が高く、早期にリハビリを行うことが重要だと指摘しています。

日本集中治療医学会は新型コロナに感染し、おととしの年末までに各地の合わせて32の病院で人工呼吸器による治療を受けた患者や家族を対象にアンケート調査を行い、209人から回答を得ました。

調査結果を分析した結果、集中治療室を出てから1年1か月余りの時点で記憶や日常の動作などに不調が続いているとみられるのは60.8％に上りました。

このうち、

▽物忘れなど認知機能の不調が53.1％と半数余り、

▽うつ状態など精神的な不調が28.7％、

▽日常の動作の際に息切れがするなどの不調が18.7％で、

複数の不調が重なる人もいました。

海外の研究では、コロナ以外で集中治療室での治療を受けた人で1年後に認知機能の不調があった人は30％余りで、コロナでは割合が高いとしています。

Translation

As a result of a survey by the Japanese Society of Intensive Care Medicine about the aftereffects of patients who became severely ill with the new coronavirus, it was found that about half of the people seemed to continue to have poor cognitive functions such as in memory even after more than a year. It pointed out that early rehabilitation would be important because the rate of severe illness was higher in  case of another disease.

The Japanese Society of Intensive Care Medicine conducted a questionnaire survey on patients and their families who were infected with the new corona, and were treated with ventilators at 32 hospitals in various places up to the end of the year before last. Responses from 209 people were received.

As a result of analyzing the survey results, it was found that 60.8% of the patients seemed to have problems with memory and daily activities even more than 1 year and 1 month after leaving the intensive care unit.

Among these,

▽ Cognitive dysfunction such as forgetfulness was 53.1%, i.e., more than half,

▽ Mental disorder such as depression was 28.7%,

▽ Short of breath during daily activities was 18.7%

Some people had multiple problems.

According to overseas research, more than 30% of people who received treatment in an intensive care unit other than for Corona had cognitive impairment after one year, and for Corona the ratio was high.

So, it is found that about half of the patients seem to continue to have poor cognitive functions such as in memory even more than a year after receiving treatments for Corona in hospitals.

芯片行業應對美國對中國銷售的新限制

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

Chip industry grapples with new U.S. curbs on China sales

Sat, October 8, 2022 at 1:05 AM

By Stephen Nellis and Jane Lanhee Lee

(Reuters) -Companies around the world on Friday began to wrestle with the impact of wide-ranging U.S. curbs on selling chips and chip manufacturing equipment to China.

The sweeping rules have hit chip stocks, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (.SOX) falling nearly 6% by the end of the day. American semiconductor equipment makers Lam Research Corp, Applied Materials Inc and KLA Corp were all down more than 4%.

Applied Materials said it was assessing the new rules, while Lam and KLA did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

South Korean memory chip maker SK Hynix Inc said on Friday it would seek a license under new U.S. export control rules for equipment to keep operating its factories in China.

American officials on Friday published a sweeping set of rules that restrict the export of some U.S.-made semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China, but provided exemptions for companies from the United States and its allies to seek a license.

"SK Hynix is ready to make its utmost efforts to get the U.S. government's license and will closely work with the Korean government for this," the company said in a statement. "We're also ready to operate our fabrication plants in China smoothly, while complying with the international order."

Officials on Friday also introduced rules against selling a broad swath of chips for any use in "supercomputer" systems in China. Supercomputers can be used in developing nuclear weapons and other military technologies. U.S. companies Nvidia Corp and Advanced Micro Devices Inc both said last month they had been told to stop exporting their top-tier chips to China.

The rules define a supercomputer as any system with 100 or more petaflops of so-called double precision computing power, or 200-plus petaflops of single precision computing power, within a 41,600 cubic feet area. A petaflop is a measure of a computer's processing speed.

Nvidia, which said last month the rules could affect $400 million of its current-quarter sales in China, said Friday it did not expect any further impact on its business.

"These regulations impose on the broader industry controls on processors meeting certain thresholds that we were already subject to. We don't expect the new controls, including restrictions on sales for highly dense systems, to have a material impact on our business," the company said in a statement.

AMD did not respond to a request for comment.

 (Reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco and Jane Lanhee Lee in Oakland; editing by Jonathan Oatis and Richard Chang)

Translation

（路透社）- 週五，世界各地的公司開始努力應對美國向中國出售芯片和芯片製造設備的廣泛限制的影響。

全方位的法例打擊了芯片股，費城半導體指數 (.SOX) 在當天收盤時下跌了近 6%。美國半導體設備製造商 Lam Research Corp、Applied Materials Inc 和 KLA Corp 均下跌超過 4%。

Applied Materials表示正在評估新法例，而 Lam 和 KLA 沒有立即回應置評請求。

韓國存儲芯片製造商 SK Hynix Inc 周五表示，將根據美國新的出口管制規則尋求設備上的許可証，以繼續在中國運營其工廠。

美國官員周五公佈了一套全面的法例，限制部分美國製造的半導體製造設備向中國出口，但為美國及其盟國的公司發出許可證提供了豁免。

SK Hynix在一份聲明中表示: “SK Hynix準備盡最大努力獲得美國政府的許可，並將為此與韓國政府密切合作”; “我們也準備好在中國順利運營我們的製造工廠，同時遵守國際秩序。”

週五，官員們還出台了規定，禁止在中國銷售大量用於 “超級計算機”系統的芯片。超級計算機可用於開發核武器和其他軍事技術。美國公司 Nvidia Corp 和 Advanced Micro Devices Inc 上個月都表示，他們已被告知停止向中國出口其頂級芯片。

這些規則將超級計算機定義為任何系統, 在 41,600 立方英尺的區域內具有 100 或更多的petaflop即所謂雙精度計算能力; 或單一台有 200 個petaflops或以上有精度計算能力的系統。 Petaflop 是衡量計算機處理速度的指標。

Nvidia上個月曾表示這些規定可能會影響其當前季度在中國的 4 億美元銷售額，週五表示，預計這不會對其業務產生任何進一步影響。

公司在一份聲明中說: “這些法規對我們對處理器已滿足地遵守的某些門檻施加更廣泛的行業控制。我們預計新的控制措施，包括對高密度系統的銷售限制，不會對我們的業務產生重大影響” 。 

AMD 沒有回應置評請求。

       So, companies around the world wrestle with the impact of wide-ranging U.S. curbs on selling chips and chip manufacturing equipment to China. I am expecting that China will speed up its research and development in making their own high-powered computer processors. Yet, this will take time and money to proceed, to say the least. Chips production is one of the competing fields between China and the US.

隨著煤炭投資飆升，氣候系統 “崩潰” 迫在眉睫

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

Climate Systems ‘Breakdown’ Looms as Coal Investments Soar

John Ainger

Thu, October 6, 2022 at 8:23 PM

(Bloomberg) -- The coal industry has backtracked on pledges to phase out existing plants and halt new investments, putting the planet on a trajectory that could lead to a “breakdown of our climate systems,” according to a study led by nonprofit Urgewald.

As warnings from climate scientists “become more and more dire,” data revealing the actions of coal companies “remains depressingly consistent,” said Heffa Schuecking, director of Urgewald. Almost half the coal industry is expanding, with China leading the way, according to the analysis published Thursday.

Nonprofits aren’t the only ones warning of the devastating fallout from continued expansion of the dirtiest fossil fuel. Goldman Sachs Group Inc’s Michele Della Vigna, who heads the Wall Street bank’s natural resources research for EMEA, has dubbed the surge in coal finance a “massive setback” for the climate, and warns that Europe’s reliance on both coal and even diesel may stretch past this winter.

Scientists, meanwhile, have singled out coal, noting there’s no hope of limiting temperature increases to the critical threshold of 1.5C if the world continues to finance new projects. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says the world may be facing temperature increases of more than twice the 1.5C threshold, as emissions continue to rise. That would leave large swaths of the planet uninhabitable.

“The vast majority” of companies in the so-called Global Coal Exit List (GCEL) “still have no intention of retiring the coal assets, which are propelling us towards a breakdown of our climate systems,” Schueking said. “A real transition requires clear and near coal exit dates.”

GCEL, which is a survey of more than 1,000 coal companies, shows that 46% are still developing new coal assets. Only 56 companies -- equivalent to 5.3% of the total -- have announced a coal exit date. But even those setting deadlines have settled on dates that are “ridiculously late,” Urgewald said.

Much of that is related to the energy policies of the governments in which the companies operate, with China by far leading the way. “Coal is a global climate problem,” Nathaniel Bullard, a senior contributor to BloombergNEF and Bloomberg Green, said on Thursday. “Its expansion is also concentrated in a very few places.”

There’s also more cash from the finance industry flowing into coal, again led by Chinese banks. Reclaim Finance estimates that 190 banks and money managers still have no coal policy. A further 272 have either weak or inadequate policies, and only 28 have effective exit strategies.

In the first nine months of 2022, banks provided $26 billion in loans and bonds to the coal industry, up 36% from the same period in 2021, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. China Securities and China Everbright Bank are listed as the two largest coal bond underwriters.

Coal has undergone a resurgence this year as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine turbo charges all fossil-fuel markets. The International Energy Agency estimates that consumption of the dirtiest fuel will rise by 0.7% this year and then hit an all-time high in 2023.

A little under a year ago, governments left the COP26 climate summit in Scotland having pledged to cut their use of coal. They meet again next month for the COP27 climate summit in Egypt, with an energy crisis, war and the prospect of recession casting a huge shadow over talks.

Still, climate think tank E3G says that it’s not too late for coal companies to make good on their commitments to scale back. “We’ve seen an uptick in the number of coal power stations being kept online,” said Leo Roberts, research managers for E3G’s coal team. But that doesn’t undermine pledges made at COP26 last year, he said.

According to Shuecking, however, it’s clear that most of the coal industry is “not transitioning.”

It’s “either developing new coal projects or dragging out the life of existing coal assets,” she said. “Delaying has become a new form of climate denial.”

Translation

（彭博社）- 根據非營利組織 Urgewald 領導的一項研究，煤炭行業已經放棄了逐步淘汰現有工廠和停止新投資的承諾，使地球走上可能導致 “我們氣候系統的崩潰” 的軌跡。

Urgewald 的主管 Heffa Schuecking 說，隨著氣候科學家的警告 “變得越來越駭人听聞” ，顯示煤炭公司行為的數據 “仍然令人沮喪地保持一貫不變” 。根據周四公佈的分析，幾乎一半的煤炭行業正在擴張，其中中國處於領先地位。

非營利組織並不是唯一警告這種最骯髒的化石燃料的持續擴張會帶來毀滅性後果的人。高盛集團的 Michele Della Vigna 是華爾街銀行歐洲、中東和非洲地區自然資源研究的負責人，他稱煤炭融資的激增對氣候來說是 “巨大的挫折” ，並警告說歐洲對煤炭甚至柴油的依賴可能會跨越這個冬天。

與此同時，科學家們特別提到了煤炭，指出如果世界繼續為煤炭新項目提供資金，那麼將溫度升高限制在 1.5C 的臨界門檻是沒有希望的。聯合國政府間氣候變化專門委員會表示，隨著排放量繼續增加，世界可能面臨超過 1.5 攝氏度門檻值兩倍以上的溫度升高。這將使地球上的大片土地無法居住。

Schueking 說，所謂的全球煤炭退出清單 (GCEL) 中的 “絕大多數” 公司 “仍然無意淘汰煤炭資產，這正在推動我們走向氣候系統的崩潰” 。 “真正的過渡需要明確且不遥遠的煤炭停產日期。”

GCEL 對 1,000 多家煤炭公司的調查顯示，46% 的公司仍在開發新的煤炭資產。只有 56 家公司（佔總數的 5.3%）宣布了煤炭退出日期。Urgewald 說, 即使是那些設定最後期限的人, 也確定了 “可笑地遲” 的日期。

這在很大程度上與公司運營所在政府的能源政策有關，中國遙遙領先。彭博新能源財經和Bloomberg Green的高級撰稿人Nathaniel Bullard 週四表示 “煤炭是一個全球氣候問題”; “它的擴張也集中在極少數地方。”

金融業也有更多現金流入煤炭，同樣由中資銀行帶動。 Reclaim Finance 估計，仍有 190 家銀行和基金經理沒有煤炭政策。另有 272 家政策薄弱或不足，只有 28 家製定了有效的退出策略。

根據彭博彙編的數據，2022 年前 9 個月，銀行向煤炭行業提供了 260 億美元的貸款和債券，較 2021 年同期增長 36%。中國證券和中國光大銀行被列為最大的兩家煤炭債券承銷商。

由於俄羅斯入侵烏克蘭使所有化石燃料市場有比平時更快的速度增長，令煤炭今年經歷了復甦。國際能源署估計，今年最不潔燃料的消費量將增長 0.7%，然後在 2023 年創下歷史新高。

不到一年前，各國政府離開了在蘇格蘭舉行的 COP26 氣候峰會時, 承諾減少對煤炭的使用。他們下個月在埃及舉行的 COP27 氣候峰會上再次會面，能源危機、戰爭和經濟衰退的前景給會談蒙上了巨大的陰影。

儘管如此，氣候智庫 E3G 表示，煤炭公司要兌現縮減規模的承諾還為時未晚。 E3G 煤炭團隊的研究經理 Leo Roberts 說： “我們看到保持生產運作的燃煤發電站數量有所增加” 。他說但這並沒有削弱去年在 COP26 上做出的承諾。

然而，根據 Shuecking 的說法，很明顯，大部分煤炭行業都 “沒有轉型” 。

她說它們 “要么開發新的煤炭項目，要么延長現有煤炭資產的壽命”; “延遲已成為否認氣候變化的一種新形式” 。

              So, for different reasons (economic benefits, greed, fighting a war etc.) human are unable or reluctant to give up those tradition unclean energy sources that are easy to obtain such as coal.  Global warming will continue as a result of increasing CO2 emission caused by human activities. It seems that human is sealing its own fate.

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to Svante Pääbo for genome analysis of Neanderthals

Recently CNN.co.jp reported the following:

ノーベル医学生理学賞、スバンテ・ペーボ氏に　ネアンデルタール人のゲノム解析

2022.10.03 Mon posted at 20:35 JST

ロンドン（ＣＮＮ） スウェーデンのカロリンスカ研究所は３日、今年のノーベル医学生理学賞をスウェーデン人遺伝学者のスバンテ・ペーボ氏に授与すると発表した。「絶滅したヒト族のゲノムや人類の進化に関する発見」を授賞理由に挙げた。

ペーボ氏は初めてネアンデルタール人のゲノムを解析し、現生人類のホモ・サピエンスがネアンデルタール人と交配していたことを発見した。ノーベル委員会は同氏が当時「不可能に見えたことをやり遂げた」と称賛した。

発見の公表は２０１０年。ペーボ氏はそれまでにネアンデルタール人の骨から古代のＤＮＡを抽出して配列を決定、解析する方法を開発した。こうした業績により、科学者らはネアンデルタール人のゲノムと現生人類の遺伝記録を比較できるようになった。

Translation

London (CNN) Sweden's Karolinska Institute announced today that this year's Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine would be awarded to Swedish geneticist Svante Pääbo. It cited "his discoveries of the relation of genomes of extinct hominins and the evolution of humans" as the reason for the award.

Pääbo first analyzed the Neanderthal genome and discovered that modern Homo sapiens interbred with Neanderthals. The Nobel Committee praised him for "having accomplished what seemed impossible" at the time.

The discovery was announced in 2010. By then, Pääbo had developed a method for extracting, sequencing and analyzing ancient DNA from Neanderthal bones. Because of these achievements scientists were able to compare Neanderthal genomes with the genetic record of modern humans.

              So, Pääbo has developed a method that enables scientists to compare Neanderthal genomes with the genetic record of modern humans. This tool will enable us to further understand modern human’s evolution, well done.

隨著經濟衰退的臨近，芯片製造商看到需求的 “驚人”下降

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

Chipmakers See ‘Breathtaking’ Drop in Demand as Recession Looms

Sohee Kim, Peter Elstrom and Debby Wu

Fri, October 7, 2022 at 5:51 PM

(Bloomberg) -- Signs are piling up that the tech downturn may be deeper and longer-lasting than feared.

After years of record capital spending, chipmakers are warning on a weekly basis that demand is sputtering. In the latest sign of trouble, Samsung Electronics Co. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. reported disappointing results within hours of each other that widely missed projections.

Samsung -- the world’s largest memory chipmaker -- reported a 32% dive in operating income, while PC-processor maker AMD said it will miss its earlier forecast by about $1 billion. Analysts’ reactions ranged from “breathtaking” to “Uff-da!”

Those numbers followed grim comments from memory makers Micron Technologies Inc. and Kioxia Holdings Corp., which are slashing spending and output in a bid to stabilize plummeting prices. AMD shares fell in premarket trading, along with chipmakers including Nvidia Corp. and Intel Corp. Chip gear suppliers such as ASML Holding NV and PC makers including Lenovo Group Ltd. also dropped. Japan’s Disco Corp., whose equipment grinds, polishes and dices chips, lost the most in more than two years Friday.

“It seems end demand has likely deteriorated markedly in recent weeks, and end customers appear to be aggressively draining inventory,” Bernstein’s Stacy Rasgon said. The cut in AMD’s client-revenue “is admittedly a bit breathtaking.”

The outlier has been Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., which posted a roughly 48% surge in quarterly revenue to about NT$613 billion ($19.4 billion) -- at the top range of its guidance in US dollar terms -- helped by its growing clout as the world’s most advanced maker of chips. The downtrend in demand may not have been fully reflected in the numbers, especially given the sharp depreciation of the Taiwan dollar, Haitong International Securities analyst Jeff Pu said.

Consumer electronics companies that had struggled with shortages during the pandemic are now facing a sudden falloff in demand, even while shipping and materials costs remain high. Recession fears are making cost-cutting the new norm across the tech industry, and businesses that hoarded chips for two years are now opting to cancel or postpone orders and tap inventory, just as new capacity goes online.

The semiconductor industry is also grappling with export restrictions from the US government, which is ratcheting up pressure on its allies to prevent shipment of cutting-edge chips to a growing list of Chinese companies, as it seeks to contain the Asian country. That’s hampering business for chipmakers from AMD to Nvidia in the world’s biggest semiconductor market.

Supply and demand are not all that is behind the current downcycle, said Heo Pil-Seok, chief executive officer at Midas International Asset Management in Seoul. “The US government’s exports controls would further limit IT companies’ sales in China and a large chunk of demand for chips will be weakened. If AMD, Nvidia can’t sell their chips in China, memory makers’ earnings will deteriorate further.”

The PC segment, which has for years been losing ground to smartphones, looks particularly vulnerable. But a serious recession would hammer demand even in areas that have remained solid, such as in cloud computing, automotives and factory automation.

“We would continue to stay away from PC-centric names, which within our coverage list include AMD, Intel, and Nvidia, due to a likely prolonged PC downturn into next year and continued weakness in consumer gaming,” Baird analysts Tristan Gerra and Tyler Bomba wrote in a note to clients.

Share prices dropped throughout the semiconductor supply chain, from materials makers like JSR Corp. to chip gear makers such as Advantest Corp. and Screen Holdings Co. Even silicon wafer makers such as Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. and Sumco Corp. fell.

The companies themselves are bracing for a prolonged downturn. Samsung’s chip business head, Kyung Kyehyun, said last month he doesn’t see the memory market rebounding throughout next year. Kyung told employees at an internal event that Samsung cut its guidance for chip sales in the second half of this year by 32% compared to a forecast in April, according to the Korea Economic Daily.

What Bloomberg Intelligence Says

PC demand will continue to be soft in 4Q, given heavy PC processor inventory as announced by chipmaker AMD. Won depreciation might not be enough to offset weak sales of memory chips and consumer electronics, such as TVs.

          -- Masahiro Wakasugi, BI analyst

 Delivery times for key components and machinery sometimes exceeded one year during the pandemic, causing companies to stockpile a year’s worth of inventory, while chipmakers rushed to ramp up capacity. Now that lead times have dropped, companies are scrambling to reduce stockpiles.

“You build supply for demand that turns out not to be as real as you thought it was,” Rasgon said. “No party lasts forever.”

Translation

（彭博社）- 有跡象表明，科技衰退可能比人們擔心的更深、更持久。

在多年創紀錄的資本支出之後，芯片製造商每週都在警告需求正在下降。在最新的麻煩跡像中，三星電子公司和 Advanced Micro Devices Inc. 在幾個小時內相繼報告了令人失望的結果，大大低於預期。

全球最大的內存芯片製造商三星報告營業收入下降 32%，而 PC 處理器製造商 AMD 表示將比之前的預測低約 10 億美元。分析師的反應從 “驚險” 到 “Uff-da！” 不等。

記憶体製造商Micron Technologies Inc. 和 Kioxia Holdings Corp. 在削減支出和產量以穩定暴跌的價格中, 發表了嚴峻的評論, 之後這些數字緊緊跟隨。 AMD 股價在盤前交易中下跌，Nvidia Corp和英特爾等芯片製造商也下跌。ASML Holding NV 等芯片設備供應商和聯想集團等個人電腦製造商也下跌。週五，日本迪斯科公司（Disco Corp.）, 其設備是專注磨削、拋光和切割芯片，見到兩年多來的損失最大。

Bernstein 的 Stacy Rasgon 說: “最近幾週，終端需求似乎明顯惡化，終端客戶似乎正在積極消耗庫存，” AMD 從客戶收的益下跌 “誠然有點驚人” 。

異常的是台積電，其季度收入增長約 48%，達到約 6,130 億新台幣（合 194 億美元）- 以美元計算是處於其指引的最高範圍 - 這是得益於其日益增長的影響力：世界上最先進的芯片製造商。海通國際證券分析師 Jeff Pu 表示，需求下降趨勢可能並未完全反映在數據之中，尤其是考慮到台幣大幅貶值。

即使在運輸和材料成本居高不下的情況下, 消費電子公司在病毒大流行期間已一直在與各類供應不足爭扎, 現在更面臨需求的突然下降。面對經濟衰退的擔憂, 使削減成本成為整個科技行業的新常態，正當預備開始啟動新產能之際, 囤積芯片兩年的企業, 現在選擇取消或推遲訂單並挖掘庫存。

半導體行業也在努力應對美國政府的出口限制，美國政府正在加大對其盟友的壓力，以阻止向越來越多的中國公司運送尖端芯片，因為它試圖遏制這個亞洲國家。這阻礙了從 AMD 到 Nvidia 等全球最大半導體市場的芯片製造商的業務。

Midas International Asset Management 首席執行官 Heo Pil-Seok 表示，供需並不是當前下行週期的全部原因。 “美國政府的出口管制將進一步限制 IT 公司在中國的銷售，很大一部分芯片需求將被削弱。如果 AMD、Nvidia 不能在中國銷售他們的芯片，記憶體製造商的收益將進一步惡化。”

多年來一直輸給智能手機的個人電腦市場看起來特別脆弱。但即使在雲計算、汽車和工廠自動化等一直保持穩健的領域，嚴重的衰退也會打擊其需求。

Baird 分析師 Tristan Gerra 和 Tyler Bomba 在給客戶的一份說明中寫道： “因為明年 PC 可能會長期低迷，並且消費者遊戲持續疲軟, 我們將繼續遠離以 PC 為中心的品牌，在我們的覆蓋範圍包括 A​​MD、英特爾和 Nvidia” 。

從 JSR Corp. 等材料製造商到 Advantest Corp. 和 Screen Holdings Co. 等芯片設備製造商，整個半導體供應鏈的股價都在下跌。甚至像 Shin-Etsu Chemical Co. 和 Sumco Corp. 這樣的矽片製造商也下跌。

這些公司本身正在為長期的低迷做準備。三星芯片業務負責人 Kyung Kyehyun 上個月表示，他認為明年記憶體市場不會反彈。據韓國經濟日報報導，Kyung 在一次內部活動中告訴員工，與 4 月份的預測相比，三星將今年下半年的芯片銷售預期下調了 32%。

彭博情報說什麼

鑑於芯片製造商 AMD 宣布的大量 PC 處理器庫存，第四季度 PC 需求將繼續疲軟。韓元貶值可能不足以抵消記憶體芯片和電視等消費電子產品的疲軟銷售。

    -- Masahiro Wakasugi，BI 分析師

在病毒大流行期間，關鍵零部件和機器的交貨時間有時會超過一年，導致公司囤積一年的庫存，而芯片製造商則急於提高產能。現在交貨時間已經縮短，公司正在爭先恐後地減少庫存。

Rasgon 說： “你為需求建立供應，結果並不像你想像的那樣真實”; “沒有什麼派對是永恆的。”

              So, after years of record capital spending, chipmakers are giving warning that demand is falling. In the latest sign of trouble, Samsung Electronics Co. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. report disappointing business results. Is this a sign of global recession?

Note

Uff da! is an exclamation or interjection used to express dismay, typically upon hearing bad news. Of Norwegian origin, the phrase was brought by Scandinavian Americans to the Upper Midwest, New England, and Pacific Northwest regions of the United States during the 19th century. (Wikipedia)

中國認證 C919 噴氣式飛機去與空中巴士和波音競爭

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

China certifies C919 jet to compete with Airbus and Boeing

Fri, September 30, 2022 at 8:08 AM

By Sophie Yu and Stella Qiu

BEIJING/SYDNEY, Sept 29 (Reuters) - China held a ceremony on Thursday to certify its C919 narrowbody passenger jet, photos on social media showed, representing a major milestone in the country's ambitions to challenge Airbus and Boeing in commercial aerospace.

The plane, produced by state-owned manufacturer Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), had been widely expected to be certified by the end of the month after two aircraft flew to Beijing on Sept. 13. A sign in one of the photos said "C919 aircraft type certificate issuance ceremony" in Chinese.

COMAC did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

The C919, launched 14 years ago and designed to carry up to 168 passengers, will compete against the popular Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX families in the world's second-biggest aviation market as China looks to boost its technological self-reliance amid trade tensions.

Although the plane is assembled in China, it relies heavily on Western components, including engines and avionics, from companies including GE, Safran and Honeywell International.

Tough U.S. export licensing rules have led to delays in sourcing parts and remain a key risk to ramped up production until China replaces foreign engines and components with homegrown technology.

Richard Aboulafia, U.S.-based managing director of AeroDynamic Advisory, said the plane seems like a relic of a bygone era of increasing integration between China and the West.

"Thus, we have an aircraft that is only superficially Chinese but is actually powered by Western technologies and systems," he said. "Turning it into a genuine Chinese aircraft would take well over a decade and many billions of dollars."

The type of certificate granted on Thursday means it can be delivered to the first customer, China Eastern Airlines Corp Ltd , though local media have reported the plane is unlikely to enter commercial service with passengers until next year.

The C919 has never made an appearance at the country's premier aviation event, Airshow China and it is unclear whether it will be on display or flown at the show in November.

COMAC will also need a separate production certificate before it can ramp up mass production of the plane, meaning its impact on the global aircraft market could remain limited given Airbus and Boeing produce dozens of narrowbodies a month.

"The C919 will gradually begin to replace single-aisle aircraft made by Boeing and Airbus," in China, a research note by Huaxi Securities said this month. "In the next 20 years, China's demand for narrowbody passenger aircraft like the C919 will be on average 300 per year."

The C919's regional jet predecessor, the ARJ21, faced a 2.5-year gap between obtaining the type certificate and the production certificate, slowing production. That contrasts with the West, where both certificates are typically granted around the same time.

FOREIGN CERTIFICATION

Like the ARJ21, the C919 lacks certification validation by U.S. and European regulators, limiting flights to the domestic market and possibly countries with close ties to China.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has been working for years on a certification validation process on the C919 with COMAC in parallel to CAAC's work, an EASA spokesperson said.

"We cannot comment on the date when this validation would be completed," the spokesperson said.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration did not respond to a request for comment on a potential C919 certification validation.

There have been 815 orders for the C919 from 28 customers, according to COMAC's website. But China Eastern is the only customer that has announced a firm delivery schedule and it expects to receive only four next year.

In the meantime, the Boeing 737 MAX has yet to return to commercial service in China, having been grounded since March 2019 after two fatal crashes.

However, three months ago major Chinese airlines placed an order for nearly 300 Airbus A320neo family planes, showing the country plans to continue imports for some time.

Aboulafia said if China did decide to halt Western aircraft imports, the United States and allied countries could kill the C919 for years by prohibiting component exports.

"Try building an aircraft without an engine, or avionics," he said. "It would just be a metal shell."

(Reporting by Sophie Yu in Beijing and Stella Qiu and Jamie Freed in Sydney Additional reporting by David Shepardson in Washington Editing by David Goodman, Gerry Doyle and Frances Kerry)

Translation

北京/悉尼，9 月 29 日（路透社）- 社交媒體上的照片顯示，中國周四舉行了 C919 窄體客機認證儀式，這是該國在商業航空領域挑戰空中巴士和波音公司的雄心的一個重要里程碑。

兩架這種由國有製造商中國商用飛機公司 (COMAC) 生產的飛機在 9 月 13 日飛往北京後，外界普遍預計該飛機將在本月底獲得認證。其中一張照片上的中文標誌說《C919機型合格證頒發儀式》。

COMAC沒有立即回應置評請求。

C919 於 14 年前推出，設計最多可搭載 168 名乘客，將在全球第二大航空市場與廣受歡迎的空中客車 A320neo 和波音 737 MAX 系列競爭，因為中國希望在貿易緊張局勢中提高技術自力更生。

儘管這架飛機是在中國組裝的，但它嚴重依賴西方零部件, 包括通用電氣、Safran和Honeywell International等公司的發動機和航空電子設備。

美國嚴格的出口許可規定導致零部件採購延遲，在中國用本土技術取代外國發動機和零部件之前，這仍然是提高產量的主要風險。

AeroDynamic Advisory 駐美國董事總經理Richard Aboulafia 表示，這架飛機似乎是中國與西方日益融合的過往時代的遺物。

他說: “因此，我們見到的飛機表面上是中國的，但實際上是由西方技術和系統提供動力的”; “把它變成一架真正的中國飛機需要十多年和數十億美元。”

週四頒發的證書類型,意味著它可以交付給第一個客戶: 中國東方航空公司，儘管當地媒體報導稱，這架飛機不太可能在明年之前投入商業服務。

C919 從未在中國頂級的航空盛會,中國航展上亮相，目前尚不清楚它是否會在 11 月的航展上展出或試飛。

COMAC還需要一份單獨的生產證書，然後才能加快飛機的大規模生產，鑑於空客和波音每月生產數十架窄體飛機，這意味著它對全球飛機市場的影響可能仍然有限。

Huaxi Securities 本月的一份研究報告稱，在中國， “C919 將逐漸開始取代波音和空客製造的單通道飛機”; “未來20年，中國對C919等窄體客機的需求量平均為每年300架。”

C919區域性飛機的前身ARJ21在獲得型號合格證和生產合格證之間存在2.5年的差距，放緩了生產速度。這與西方形成鮮明對比，西方通常同時授予這兩種證書。

國外認證

與 ARJ21 一樣，C919 缺乏美國和歐洲監管機構的認證驗證，限制了國內市場以及可能與中國關係密切的國家的航班。

歐盟航空安全局 (EASA) 發言人表示，多年來 EASA 一直在與COMAC共同開展 C919 的認證驗證過程，與CAAC 的工作同時開展。

發言人說： “我們無法就驗證完成的日期發表評論。”

美國聯邦航空管理局沒有回應對 C919 認證驗證可能性發表評論的請求。

根據COMAC的網站，已有 28 家客戶訂購了 815 架 C919。但東航是唯一宣布確定交貨時間表的客戶，並預計明年只會收到四架。

與此同時，波音 737 MAX 尚未在中國恢復商業服務，自 2019 年 3 月以來,因兩起致命墜機事故而停飛。

然而，三個月前，中國主要航空公司訂購了近 300 架空中巴士 A320neo 系列飛機，這表明該國計劃在一段時間內繼續進口。

Aboulafia說，如果中國確實決定停止進口西方飛機，美國和盟國可能會通過禁止零部件出口來扼殺 C919 多年。

他說: “試著製造一架沒有發動機或航空電子設備的飛機”; “它只是一個金屬外殼。”

              So, while China certifies its C919 narrowbody passenger jet represents a major milestone in the country's ambitions to challenge Airbus and Boeing, building an aircraft without an engine, or avionics would just be a metal shell. China has yet to spend more time and money in order to have a narrowbody passenger jet plane totally "made in China".

中國Walvax的mRNA COVID疫苗在海外獲得首個批准

Recently Yahoo New on-line reported the following:

China Walvax's mRNA COVID vaccine obtains first approval overseas

Thu, September 29, 2022 at 11:02 PM

JAKARTA/BEIJING (Reuters) -The Indonesian food and drugs agency (BPOM) said on Thursday it has approved the emergency use of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine developed by China's Walvax Biotechnology.

It is the first authorization for a China-developed COVID shot based on the novel mRNA technology, which Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna also use in their COVID vaccines, after more than two years of development.

The AWcorna shot, which is designed based on the original strain of the coronavirus, has yet to generate efficacy readings from large trials to show how well it can reduce the risk of COVID cases and deaths from the disease.

China has not yet authorized local use of the shot, previously known as ARCoV.

Walvax co-developed the vaccine with Suzhou Abogen Biosciences and a Chinese military-backed institution.

The two firms are also separately working on their own coronavirus variant-targeting candidates based on the mRNA technology.

(Reporting by Stanley Widianto in Jakarta and Roxanne Liu in Beijing; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)

Translation

雅加達/北京（路透社）- 印度尼西亞食品和藥物管理局（BPOM）週四表示，它已批准緊急使用由中國 Walvax 生物技術公司開發的 mRNA COVID-19 疫苗。

這是中國開發的基於新型 mRNA 技術的 COVID 疫苗的首次授權，輝瑞 / BioNTech 和 Moderna 曾經過兩年多的開發後也將其用於其 COVID 疫苗。

AWcorna 疫苗是根據冠狀病毒的原始毒株設計的, 尚未從大型試驗中產生療效讀數，以顯示它在降低 COVID 病例和死亡的風險。

中國尚未授權在本地使用這種疫苗，以前稱為 ARCoV。

Walvax 與蘇州阿原生物和一家中國軍方支持的機構共同開發了這種疫苗。

這兩家公司還分別基於 mRNA 技術開發自己的冠狀病毒變異靶向候選藥物。

       So, Indonesia has approved the emergency use of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine developed by China while China has yet to use it themselves.

New drug for Alzheimer's disease ``Confirmed effectiveness in suppressing exacerbation of symptoms'' – Eisai (2/2)

Recently NHK News on-line reported the following:

アルツハイマー病の新薬 “症状悪化抑える効果確認” エーザイ (2/2)

2022年9月28日 18時30分

アルツハイマー病の治療薬 開発の歩み

アルツハイマー病の治療薬として使われている薬は4種類ありますが、国内では新薬の承認は2011年以来ありません。

現在使われている薬はアルツハイマー病の症状を緩和したり悪化するのを遅らせたりするもので、脳の神経細胞が失われるのを防いで、病気の進行そのものを抑える薬はありませんでした。

その中で、製薬大手の「エーザイ」とアメリカの製薬会社「バイオジェン」は、アルツハイマー病の進行そのものを抑える目的で、今回の「レカネマブ」とは別の抗体医薬「アデュカヌマブ」の開発を進めてきました。

「アデュカヌマブ」について、アメリカのFDA＝食品医薬品局は去年6月、患者の脳内にたまる異常なたんぱく質「アミロイドβ」を減らす効果があるとして、深刻な病気の患者に早期に治療を提供するために設けられた「迅速承認」という制度のもとで、条件付きで承認しました。

ただ、この薬は最終段階の治験で有効性を示す一貫したデータが示されなかったなどとして専門家から異論が出され、アメリカでも「メディケア」と呼ばれる高齢者向けの保険では、特定の治験に参加する患者を除いて使用が認められていません。

また、ヨーロッパ医薬品庁も「全体としては治療に効果があると示されていない」として承認しないよう勧告し、製薬会社が申請を取り下げています。

さらに、日本の厚生労働省の専門家部会でも有効性を明確に判断するのは困難だとして、承認するかどうか判断せず、改めて審議するとしています。

アルツハイマー病の根本的な治療法がないなか、病気の進行そのものを抑えることを目的に開発が進められた今回の「レカネマブ」は最終段階の治験で有効性が示されるか、患者や専門家から注目が集まっていました。

専門家「次の時代に向けた非常に大きなステップ」

製薬大手「エーザイ」などが開発を進めるアルツハイマー病の治療薬「レカネマブ」について、日本認知症学会の理事長で、東京大学の岩坪威教授は「今回の治験結果は『アミロイドβ』に対する抗体医薬がはっきりと有効性を示した最初の例になる。『アミロイドβ』をターゲットとする治療法が一定の条件を満たす場合には確かに有効であると言えたのではないかと思う」と評価しました。

そして「これまでの薬は、症状を改善させる薬で、病気自体が進行していく過程に効果を及ぼすものでなかったが、今回は、脳の中の異常なたんぱく質がたまっていくのを防いで取り除く薬で、病気そのものに歯止めをかけていくものだ。まだすべての認知症の方をカバーできる薬ではないが、次の時代に向けた非常に大きなステップになると思う」と述べました。

また、今後のアルツハイマー病治療への影響について岩坪教授は、実用化された場合、当初は薬にかかる費用が高額になる可能性があるとしたうえで「早い段階で手を打って認知症の症状が進む人の数を減らすことができれば、介護にかかる努力やお金をセーブできることへの期待も高まっていく。今後、国内外で製薬会社が承認申請を行うことになると思うが、順調に進めば、来年にも日本で薬として承認される可能性があるのではないか」と指摘しました。

そのうえで「今後、さらに有効性の高い治療法やほかのターゲットに対する治療法の開発が加速する非常に大きなきっかけになると期待している。日本が認知症の医療や研究でリーダーシップをとっていく1つのきっかけになればと思う」と話していました。

認知症の当事者などの団体「待ち望んでいた」

アルツハイマー病の新たな治療薬「レカネマブ」の有効性が確認されたとする治験結果が発表されたことについて、認知症の当事者や家族などでつくる団体からは歓迎する声が上がっています。

全国およそ1万人の会員でつくる公益社団法人「認知症の人と家族の会」の鈴木森夫代表理事は28日、都内の看護学校で認知症への対応力を学ぶ講座の講師を務めました。

この中で「レカネマブ」の治験結果について紹介した鈴木代表理事は、「アルツハイマー病の患者はますます増え、若年性で30代ぐらいから発症する人もいる中、初期の段階でしっかり治療できる薬は皆が待ち望んでいたもので本当に喜びたい」と話していました。

また、講義のあとNHKの取材に答えた鈴木代表理事は「“不治の病”と言われるアルツハイマー病でも治る可能性があるという光が今回の治験の結果で見えたことの意味は大きい。認知症を根本から治療できる薬の実現を多くの人が期待している一方で今回の薬は早期のアルツハイマー病が対象だということで、症状が進んだ人たちにどこまで薬の効果が見込まれるかは気になるところだ。認知症にはさまざまな症状があるため、さらなる薬の開発が必要なのはもちろん、認知症になっても安心して暮らせる環境づくりが引き続き重要だ」と話していました。

Translation

(continue)

History of Development of Drugs for Alzheimer's Disease

There were four types of drugs used to treat Alzheimer's disease, but no new drugs had been approved in Japan since 2011.

The drugs currently in use eased the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease or delay the deterioration, and there was no drug that prevented the loss of nerve cells in the brain and suppressed the progression of the disease itself.

Against this backdrop, major pharmaceutical company Eisai together with American pharmaceutical company Biogen had been developing an antibody drug, “Aducanumab”, which was different from “Lecanemab”, with the aim of suppressing the progression of Alzheimer's disease itself.

Regarding "Aducanumab", the US FDA = Food and Drug Administration announced in June last year that it had the effect of reducing the abnormal protein "Amyloid β" that accumulated in the patient's brain, and had approved it conditionally under the system of "accelerated approval" in order to provide early treatment to patients with serious illness.

However, the drug had been disputed by experts, who said that the drug did not show consistent data in showing its efficacy in the final stage clinical trials, and in the insurance for the elderly which was also called "Medicare" in the United States, the drug was not approved for use except in patients participating in certain clinical trials.

Also, the European Medicines Agency had recommended not to approve it as ``it has not been shown to be effective for treatment as a whole'', and pharmaceutical companies had withdrawn their applications.

In addition, the expert subcommittee of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare in Japan also said that it would be difficult to clearly judge the effectiveness, so it will not decide whether to approve it or not, and would deliberate it again.

In the absence of a fundamental treatment for Alzheimer's disease, Lecanemab, which was developed with the aim of suppressing the progression of the disease itself, whether it could show effective in final-stage clinical trials was getting attention from patients and experts.

Experts: 'Very big step towards the next era'

About Lecanemab, an Alzheimer's disease drug being developed by major pharmaceutical company Eisai, etc., Professor Takeshi Iwatsubo of the University of Tokyo and chairman of the Japanese Society for Dementia said, ``The results of this clinical trial show that antibody drugs against 'amyloid is effective, a first example that clearly demonstrated this. I think we can say that a treatment that targets 'Amyloid β' is certainly effective if certain conditions are met."

Then it was said that "Previously, drugs were meant to improve symptoms and had no effect on the progression of the disease itself, yet this time, it is a drug that prevents and removes the accumulation of abnormal proteins in the brain, and puts a brake on the disease itself. It is not yet a drug that can cover all dementia patients, but I think it will be a very big step towards the next era."

Also, Professor Iwatsubo in commenting the impact on future treatment of Alzheimer's disease, said that if it were put into practical use, the cost of the drug might be high at first, “if we take necessary action against anticipated situations, we can reduce the number of people with advanced symptoms, the expectations that we will be able to save effort and money spent on nursing care may increase. In the future, I believe that pharmaceutical companies will apply for approval in Japan and overseas if steady progress is made, there is a possibility that it will be approved as a drug in Japan next year.”

On top of that he said, "In the future, I expect that it will be a very big opportunity to accelerate the development of even more effective treatments and treatments for other targets. I hope this will be an opportunity for Japan to take leadership in dementia care and research."

Groups of people with dementia etc. - "we were waiting"

Groups made up of people with dementia and their families welcomed the announcement of the results of a clinical trial that confirmed the effectiveness of a new drug for Alzheimer's disease.

Morio Suzuki, Representative Director of a public interest incorporated association the "Association for People with Dementia and Their Families", which is made up of about 10,000 members nationwide, would be a speaker on the 28th at a nursing school in Tokyo in knowing about how to deal with dementia.

In that, representative Director Suzuki, who introduced the clinical trial results of “Lecanemab” said, ``The number of Alzheimer's disease patients is increasing, and some people are young and develop symptoms in their 30s, everyone has been waiting for a drug that can treat it in an early stage, and I am really happy about it.”

In an interview with NHK after the lecture, Representative Director Suzuki said, "It is very significant that the results of this clinical trial have shown that even Alzheimer's disease, which is said to be an incurable disease, can be cured. While many people are hoping for a drug that can treat the root cause of Alzheimer's disease, it is a matter of concern as to what extent the drug is expected to be effective for people with advanced symptoms. Since dementia has various symptoms, it is necessary to develop further drugs, and it is also important to create an environment where people with dementia can live with peace of mind."

              So, a major pharmaceutical company has announced the result of a final-stage clinical trial on a drug for Alzheimer's disease and confirms that the drug is effective. Until now, Alzheimer's disease drugs have been able to delay the worsening of symptoms while "Lecanemab" is expected to have the effect of preventing the destruction of nerve cells and suppressing the progression of the disease itself. This is good news for all Alzheimer patients.