Ozone decomposition of 2-methylisoborneol (MIB) in adsorption phase on high silica zeolites with preventing bromate formation

This work elucidates the applicability of our newly developed adsorptive ozonation process for the decomposition of 2-methylisoborneol (MIB), a typical taste and odor chemical, without the formation of possibly carcinogenic bromate ions. First, zeolite adsorbents were screened for their ability to adsorb MIB with a batch-type adsorption experimental apparatus and a flow-type decomposition experimental apparatus included an adsorbent-packed column. The USY zeolite with the highest silica to alumina ratio (SiO(2)/Al(2)O(3) molar ratio=70) showed the best performance as an adsorbent. Using this adsorbent, an ozonation experiment on an MIB solution including bromide ions was performed under various retention times using the flow-type apparatus. As a result, sufficient decomposition of MIB was achieved with preventing bromate formation.     

On the model granularity to simulate protein dynamics: A biological physics view on biomolecular computing

What granularity is needed to carry out computer simulations of biomolecular reactions/motions? This is one of the central issues of the in silico biomolecular computing. In this paper, we addressed this issue by studying model granularity dependence of the native structure dynamics of protein molecules. We conducted molecular dynamics simulations employing three different protein models: the model with full atomic details and two coarse-grained models in which only C_α atoms interacting with each other through simple potentials are considered. In addition to the observed agreement among the three models in terms of isotropic thermal fluctuation, principal component analysis showed that the coarse-grained models can also reproduce the anisotropy (or directionality) of the fluctuation, particularly of collective modes having relevance to molecular function. This indicates that the dependence of the essential dynamics of a protein molecule on the model granularity is weak, although it was also shown that incorporation of the Lennard–Jones-type potential into the harmonic-potential-based coarse-grained model improves the reproducibility to some degree, and that a plastic nature of structural dynamics observed in the full atomic model transforms into an elastic one in the coarse-grained models. The coarse-grained model can be applied to a molecular motor system, which may lead to a new view of biomolecular computing in the context of biological physics.     

Track maintenance train operators’ attitudes to job,organisation and management,and their correlation with accident/incident rate

The present paper reports the results of a questionnaire-based survey of night train operators attitudes toward management, operating procedures, and other organisational issues that potentially impact on safety. Responses were collected from all of the operators of track maintenance trains servicing the Japanese high-speed railway (Shinkansen). Two versions of the questionnaire, the TMAQ (Train Management Attitudes Questionnaire), were developed based on Helmreichs FMAQ (Flight MAQ) and its derivative, the SMAQ (Ship MAQ). The TMAQ and its progenitor seek to elicit respondents views of, and attitudes to, a range of safety related factors including morale, motivation, leadership and human relations in their organisation.To identify dimensions of safety culture as elicited through the TMAQ, a principal component analysis was applied to the questionnaire responses of the original TMAQ. The analysis yielded seven attitude factors, including morale and motivation. Of the seven factors, a close correlation was identified between the factor scores representing operators morale and motivation and the actual accident/incident rates for each of the five branches belonging to a single-track maintenance company. A branch that employed train operators having relatively higher morale and motivation exhibited a lower accident/incident rate. Furthermore, the very same correlation was also found for company based responses collected from all track maintenance companies working for the high-speed railway.In addition to the branch and company based comparisons for track maintenance train operators, we also compared attitude factors between different groups of operators (drivers and supervisors), and between two different periods surveyed in a two year interval. Finally, we examined differences in terms of attitude factors between track maintenance operators and seafarers surveyed by applying slightly different variants of the same generic form of questionnaire (Helmreichs SMAQ). Based on these survey results, we discuss potential risk factors for accidents of track maintenance trains and some implications for improving railway safety.     

Effect of tin addition on mesoporous silica thin film and its application for surface photovoltage NO2 gas sensor

Self-ordered and structure-controlled transparent films of tin-modified mesoporous silica (Sn/Si ratio of 0.5-3%) were first prepared using a molecule surfactant template method employing spin coating. A surface photovoltage (SPV) NO(2) gas sensor was then fabricated using these self-ordered tin-modified mesoporous silica thin films based on a metal-insulator-semiconductor structure. Highly sensitive tin-modified mesoporous silica was obtained that could detect NO(2) gas concentrations of as low as 300 ppb at room temperature. The detection mechanism for NO(2) is believed to involve both the surface area, which contributes to the change in dielectric constant, and the amount of tin incorporated, which contributes to the change in charge. It was found that, in this SPV sensor, the optimal Sn/Si ratio of 0.5% delivered record-high sensing performance.     

Carbonation of low heat portland cement paste procured in water for different time

The carbonation technique was applied to accelerate the hydration of low heat portland cement (LHC). Before carbonation, the demoulded pastes were precured in water for 0, 2, 7, and 21 d, respectively. The results show that procuring time in water strongly influences the carbonation process. The phenolphthalein test indicates that the paste precured in water for a shorter time is more quickly carbonated than that for a longer time. The content of calcium hydroxide increases with increasing the procuring time in water, whereas, the amount of absorbed carbon dioxide changes contrarily. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) observation shows that portlandite always fills up big air bubbles in the paste during precuring in water, and the mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) results show that there are less large capillary pores in the paste precured in water for a longer time. It is found that the paste without precuring in water has more carbon dioxide absorption during curing in carbon dioxide atmosphere, and its total pore volume decreases remarkably with an increase in the carbonation time than that precured in water. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analyses indicate that the carbonate products are vaterite and calcite; CxSHy,, formed from carbonation has low BET surface area in comparison with that of C-S-H formed from curing in water.     

Preceding vehicle recognition based on learning from sample images

Preceding vehicle recognition is an important enabling technology for developing a driver assistance system and an autonomous vehicle system. However, this is difficult for computer vision to achieve because of the variety of shapes and colors in which vehicles are made. In this paper, we propose a novel vision-based preceding vehicle recognition method, which has the capability of recognizing a wide selection of vehicles. In the proposed method, classifiers learned from "vehicle" training samples and "nonvehicle" training samples are used to enable recognition. We also propose a novel classification method, the "multiclustered modified quadratic discriminant function" (MC-MQDF). The MC-MQDF is capable of estimating the complex distribution due to the variety of different possible appearances for preceding vehicles. In order to confirm the feasibility of recognizing various vehicles, and to demonstrate the advantage of the MC-MQDF over the MQDF, classification experiments were carried out using the images of various vehicles. In a complex distribution test including a variety of vehicles, the classification rate for the MC-MQDF was approximately 98%, whereas the classification rate for the ordinary MQDF technique was approximately 93%. This supports the superiority of the MC-MQDF technique over the MQDF technique, and demonstrates the feasibility of recognizing a variety of different vehicles.     

Quantitative analysis of surface atom positions in a thick crystal as determined by a reconstructed exit wave

Atomic structures of an Au (110) 2 x 1 reconstructed surface were analysed quantitatively using an exit wave reconstructed by the three-dimensional Fourier filtering method in high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. To reconstruct the exit wave in a relatively thick crystal, a practical criterion was proposed in the present analysis. In the 'pseudo-exit wave' obtained by the proposed criterion, relaxation of surface atoms was clearly visible in the top three layers. The atoms' displacement was measured to be about 5-20 pm. For quantitative analysis of the atom column positions, image contrast calculations were performed using a structural model of the Au (110) reconstructed surface. Calculations confirmed that the reconstructed pseudo-exit wave could represent the atom column positions directly with an accuracy of several pm, even for a relaxed surface, provided the sample thickness was <7 nm.     

Biological characteristics of the junctional epithelium

This review summarizes the biological properties of the junctional epithelium, focusing on its developmental aspects, wide intercellular spaces and desmosomes, dense granules, permeability barrier, phagocytotic activity, adhesive structures and nerve terminals. It also discusses the morphology and functions of long junctional epithelium and peri-implant epithelium. Junctional epithelium is derived from the reduced enamel epithelium during tooth development. Apoptosis occurs in the border between oral and reduced enamel epithelia during tooth eruption. Junctional epithelium expresses a cytokeratin-19 immunoreaction, suggesting that this protein is a consistent differentiation marker. Wide intercellular spaces, which contain neutrophils and nerve endings, are formed as there are fewer desmosomes than in the oral epithelium. Dense, membrane-bound granules in the epithelium might correspond with membrane-coating granules, as revealed by their shape, components and freeze-fracture images. Junctional epithelium with high permeability contains exogenously expressed alpha-defensins, while stratified epithelia contain endogenously expressed beta-defensins. The phagocytotic activity in this epithelium remains unclear. Integrin-alpha6beta4 and laminin-5 form a complex in the tooth surface internal basal lamina. Long junctional epithelium created experimentally attaches to the cementum surface by hemidesmosomes and basal lamina. The peri-implant epithelium differs in proliferation and in adhesive structure from the normal junctional epithelium. In conclusion, wide intercellular spaces and poorly developed desmosomes are closely correlated with a permeable nature. There is still uncertainty over the phagocytotic activity of the epithelium. Integrin-alpha6beta4 and laminin-5 form a significant complex in the internal basal lamina. Junctional epithelium receives a rich sensory nerve and has a high rate of cell turnover. Long junctional epithelium can be produced rapidly during wound healing, due to high proliferative activity. Peri-implant epithelium might be a poorly adhered and permeable epithelium.     

Stable expression and characterization of human PN1 and PN3 sodium channels

Nociceptive transduction in inflammatory and neuropathic pain involves peripherally expressed voltage-gated sodium channels, such as tetrodotoxin (TTX)-sensitive PN1 and TTX-resistant PN3. We generated recombinant cell lines stably expressing the human PN1 and PN3 sodium channels in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells using inducible expression vectors. The PN1 and PN3 cDNAs were isolated from human adrenal gland and heart poly(A)+ RNAs, respectively. The recombinant human PN1 currents exhibited rapid activation and inactivation kinetics and were blocked by TTX with a half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) of 32.6 nM. The human PN3 channel expressed in stable transfectants showed TTX-resistant inward currents with slow inactivation kinetics. The IC50 value for TTX was 73.3 microM. The voltage-dependence of activation of the PN3 channel was shifted to the depolarizing direction, compared to that of the PN1 channel. Lidocaine and mexiletine exhibited tonic and use-dependent block of PN1 and PN3 channels. The PN1 channel was more susceptible to inhibition by mexiletine than PN3. These results suggest that stable transfectants expressing the human PN1 and PN3 sodium channels will be useful tools to define subtype selectivity for sodium channel blockers.     

DCTN1 Binds to TDP-43 and Regulates TDP-43 Aggregation

A common pathological hallmark of several neurodegenerative diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is cytoplasmic mislocalization and aggregation of nuclear RNA-binding protein TDP-43. Perry disease, which displays inherited atypical parkinsonism, is a type of TDP-43 proteinopathy. The causative gene DCTN1 encodes the largest subunit of the dynactin complex. Dynactin associates with the microtubule-based motor cytoplasmic dynein and is required for dynein-mediated long-distance retrograde transport. Perry disease-linked missense mutations (e.g., p.G71A) reside within the CAP-Gly domain and impair the microtubule-binding abilities of DCTN1. However, molecular mechanisms by which such DCTN1 mutations cause TDP-43 proteinopathy remain unclear. We found that DCTN1 bound to TDP-43. Biochemical analysis using a panel of truncated mutants revealed that the DCTN1 CAP-Gly-basic supradomain, dynactin domain, and C-terminal region interacted with TDP-43, preferentially through its C-terminal region. Remarkably, the p.G71A mutation affected the TDP-43-interacting ability of DCTN1. Overexpression of DCTN1^G71A, the dynactin-domain fragment, or C-terminal fragment, but not the CAP-Gly-basic fragment, induced cytoplasmic mislocalization and aggregation of TDP-43, suggesting functional modularity among TDP-43-interacting domains of DCTN1. We thus identified DCTN1 as a new player in TDP-43 cytoplasmic-nuclear transport, and showed that dysregulation of DCTN1-TDP-43 interactions triggers mislocalization and aggregation of TDP-43, thus providing insights into the pathological mechanisms of Perry disease and other TDP-43 proteinopathies.