High‐resolution technology for FPD manufacturing

Using shorter wavelength for exposure light is one way to achieve high resolution while keeping sufficient depth of focus. We show exposure results for high resolution to confirm the effect of deep UV exposure light. With deep UV light, 1.2‐µm line and space pattern and 1.8‐µm contact hole pattern are resolved while keeping sufficient depth of focus.     

Impurity effect on Kramer-Pesch core shrinkage ins-wave vortex and chiralp-wave vortex

The low-temperature shrinking of the vortex core (Kramer-Pesch effect) is studied for an isolated single vortex for chiral p-wave and s-wave superconducting phases. The effect of nonmagnetic impurities on the vortex core radius is numerically investigated in the Born limit by means of a quasiclassical approach. It is shown that in the chiral p-wave phase the Kramer-Pesch effect displays a certain robustness against impurities owing to a specific quantum effect, while the s-wave phase reacts more sensitively to impurity scattering. This suggests chiral p-wave superconductors as promising candidates for the experimental observation of the Kramer-Pesch effect.     

Masking model for accurate colorimetric characterization of LCD

Abstract— A color management system (CMS) such as ICC profile or sRGB space have been proposed for color transformation and reproduction of cross media. In such a CMS, accurate colorimetric characterization of a display device plays a critical role in achieving device‐independent color reproduction. In the case of a CRT, colorimetric characterization based on a GOG model is accurate enough for this purpose. However, there is no effective counterpart in liquid‐crystal displays (LCDs) since the characterization of an LCD has many difficulties, such as channel interaction and non‐constancy of channel chromaticity. In this paper, a new method of display characterization is proposed which is applicable to the assessment of color reproduction of LCDs. The proposed method characterizes an electro‐optical transfer function considering both channel interaction and non‐constancy of channel chromaticity. Experimental results show that the proposed method is very effective in the colorimetry of LCDs.     

Downregulation of miR-122-5p Activates Glycolysis via PKM2 in Kupffer Cells of Rat and Mouse Models of Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) has pathological characteristics similar to those of alcoholic hepatitis, despite the absence of a drinking history. The greatest threat associated with NASH is its progression to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The pathophysiology of NASH is not fully understood to date. In this study, we investigated the pathophysiology of NASH from the perspective of glycolysis and the Warburg effect, with a particular focus on microRNA regulation in liver-specific macrophages, also known as Kupffer cells. We established NASH rat and mouse models and evaluated various parameters including the liver-to-body weight ratio, blood indexes, and histopathology. A quantitative phosphoproteomic analysis of the NASH rat model livers revealed the activation of glycolysis. Western blotting and immunohistochemistry results indicated that the expression of pyruvate kinase muscle 2 (PKM2), a rate-limiting enzyme of glycolysis, was upregulated in the liver tissues of both NASH models. Moreover, increases in PKM2 and p-PKM2 were observed in the early phase of NASH. These observations were partially induced by the downregulation of microRNA122-5p (miR-122-5p) and occurred particularly in the Kupffer cells. Our results suggest that the activation of glycolysis in Kupffer cells during NASH was partially induced by the upregulation of PKM2 via miR-122-5p suppression.     

MOCVD Growth of Erbium Monoantimonide Thin Film and Nanocomposites for Thermoelectrics

We report the growth of erbium monoantimonide (ErSb) thin films on indium antimonide (100) substrates by low-pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. The growth rate of ErSb thin films shows strong dependency on the growth temperature and the Sb/Er precursor molar flow rate ratio. Scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, and x-ray diffractometry (XRD) were employed to study the ErSb thin films grown under the growth conditions that gave the maximum growth rate in the range we investigated. We also report the growth of two types of nanocomposites in which ErSb nanocolumns or nanoslabs with lengths ~500 nm and diameters 20 nm to 30 nm are embedded in Zn-doped InGaSb (ErSb/InGaSb:Zn) and ErSb nanoparticles with diameters of ~30 nm are embedded in Zn-doped InSbAs (ErSb/InSbAs:Zn). These nanocomposites were intended to increase phonon scattering in a mid-to-long phonon wavelength range to reduce lattice thermal conductivity. We used time-domain thermoreflectance to measure total thermal conductivity for the two types of nanocomposites, obtaining 4.0 ± 0.6 W/mK and 6.7 ± 0.8 W/mK for the ErSb/InAsSb:Zn and ErSb/InGaSb:Zn nanocomposites, respectively, which suggests that the thermal conductivity was close to or slightly smaller than the alloy limit of the two ternary alloy hosts. The two nanocomposites were further studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to reveal their microscopic features and by XRD to assess their crystalline structures.     

A simple screening procedure for heterotrophic nitrifying bacteria with oxygen-tolerant denitrification activity

Various naturally occurring strains of heterotrophic nitrifying bacteria were isolated by enrichment culture using acetamide as the C and N source, and 21 strains were identified as heterotrophic nitrifiers. Using a new simple procedure, these 21 strains were also investigated for the ability to carry out denitrifcation in the presence of oxygen. Several of the nitrifying strains were found to exhibit a distinct activity that allows for denitrifcation via nitrite (NO2-) in the presence of oxygen, indicating that they have an oxygen-tolerant denitrifcation system. A wide variety of bacteria possessing both nitrification and denitrifcation capabilities in the presence of oxygen were isolated and partially characterized by using the simple screening combinatorial procedure described in this paper.     

Effects of highly hydrogenated soybean oil and cholesterol on plasma,liver cholesterol,and fecal steroids in rats

We investigated the relationship between dietary highly hydrogenated soybean oil (HSO) and cholesterol transport in rats. In the first study, to examine the effects of cholesterol transport of different concentrations of HSO in dietary oil, rats were given one of the three diets containing 0, 25, or 50% HSO in dietary oil with cholesterol (5 g/kg diet) or a diet without HSO and cholesterol for 22 d. Feeding the high concentration of HSO prevented the increase in plasma total cholesterol, hepatic total lipids, and cholesterol and the decrease in high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, which were caused by dietary cholesterol. Moreover, HSO increased the fecal excretion, fecal lipids, and steroids in a dose-dependent manner. In the second study, to examine the effects on cholesterol transport of redistribution of stearic acid in the triacylglycerol species contained in HSO, rats were given one of the six diets containing HSO (distearoylmonoacylglycerol and tristearoylglycerol)-rich, monostearoylglycerol-rich, or palmitic acid-rich oil with/without cholesterol (5 g/kg diet), for 30 d. Whereas the accumulation of cholesterol in the body was reduced, cholesterol excretion was enhanced effectively in rats given the HSO-rich diet compared with rats given the monostearoylglycerol-rich diet. These results suggested that not only the high concentration of stearic acid but also its uneven distribution in HSO-triacylglycerol contributed to the reduction in intestinal cholesterol absorption in rats.     

Minimum chemical requirements for adhesin activity of the acid-stable part of Candida albicans cell wall phosphomannoprotein complex

This study was conducted to define adhesive characteristics of the acid-stable moiety of the Candida albicans phosphomannoprotein complex (PMPC) on adherence of this fungus to marginal zone macrophages of the mouse spleen. Complete digestion of the acid-stable moiety (Fr.IIS) of the C. albicans PMPC with an alpha-mannosidase or hydrolysis with 0.6 N sulfuric acid destroyed adhesin activity, as determined by the inability of the soluble digests to inhibit yeast cell adherence to the splenic marginal zone. Fr.IIS adhesin activity was decreased following digestion with an alpha-1,2-specific mannosidase. Oligomannosyls consisting of one to six mannose units, which were isolated from the acid-stable part of the PMPC, did not inhibit yeast cell binding and thus do not function alone as adhesin sites in the PMPC. To gain more insight into the minimum requirements for adhesin activity, PMPCs were isolated from a Saccharomyces cerevisiae wild-type strain and from mutant strains mnn1, mnn2, and mnn4; the PMPCs were designated scwt/Fr.II, scmn1/Fr.II, scmn2/Fr.II, and scmn4/Fr.II, respectively. S. cerevisiae scmn2/Fr.II lacks oligomannosyl side chain branches from the outer core mannan, and scmn2/Fr.II was the only PMPC without adhesin activity. S. cerevisiae scwt/Fr.II, scmn1/Fr.II, and scmn4/Fr.II showed adhesin activities less than that of C. albicans Fr.II. These three S. cerevisiae PMPCs are generally similar to Fr. IIS, except that the S. cerevisiae structure has fewer and shorter side chains. Immunofluorescence microscopy show that the acid-stable part of the PMPC is displayed homogeneously on the C. albicans yeast cell surface, which would be expected for a surface adhesin. Our results indicate that both the mannan core and the oligomannosyl side chains are responsible for the adhesin activity of the acid-stable part of the PMPC.