Simultaneous manifestation of squamous cell carcinoma in identical twins with epidermolysis bullosa

We report a case of identical twins with recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa, who developed squamous cell carcinoma in the hand at the latter half of their third decade. To our knowledge, this is the first case of manifestation of squamous cell carcinoma in identical twins and may contribute to the understanding of oncogenesis in such patients.     

Expression of cellular adhesion regulatory molecule in hepatocellular carcinoma

OBJECTIVE: Studying gender differences in fat mass and distribution in a homogeneous group of children. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SUBJECTS: 610 children aged 5-7 y in Kiel, Germany. METHODS: Anthropometric measures, bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). RESULTS: Although boys had increased body weights (P<0.05), body mass indexes (BMI's) (P<0.001) and waist/hip ratios (WHRs) (P<0.001), the %fat mass as assessed by BIA (P<0.05) was increased in girls. Although the increased BMI in boys was independent of the percentile used, gender differences (that is, lower values for boys than for girls at the same age) in WHR, the sum of four skinfolds and %fat were seen up to the 90th percentile. By contrast, above the 90th percentile there were no differences in skinfold thickness and %fat between boys and girls. Studying 42 BMI-matched pairs (boys and girls) also showed that the %fat estimated by BIA (P<0.001) was increased in girls. Plotting the average of %fat as obtained from skinfold- and BAI-measurements against the difference between data obtained by the use of the two methods shows that BIA %fat overestimates skinfold %fat at low or normal percent fat mass (that is, up to 20%) in both genders. By contrast, at increased fat mass, BIA %fat seems to underestimate skinfold %fat in both genders. CONCLUSIONS: Gender differences in fat mass and fat distribution are obvious in children aged 5-7 y. These differences are independent of gender differences in body weight. However, the nutritional state has an influence and gender differences cannot be detected in overweight and obese children. Our data also suggest that a children-specific formula used to calculate %fat from skinfold measurements is inappropriate.     

Formation of a new catalyst (Saechol) for coal hydrogenation on the surface of molybdenum alloys by catechol treatment

For the hydrogenation of Japanese Taiheiyo coal, a new catalyst, Saechol, formed on the surfaces of blades made from molybdenum-containing alloys such as SUS316, SCM3 and SKH9 showed significant activity. The activity survived in the flame but was lost easily by washing in 6N hydrochloric acid. The activity was easily regenerated. Several procedures for generation of activity are reported.     

Steering law for roof type configuration control moment gyro system

A steering law is proposed for a roof type configuration Single Gimbal Control Moment Gyro (SGCMG) system for attitude control of the Large Space Telescope, a payload of the Space Shuttle. Although various steering laws have been developed for SGCMG systems, they have some drawbacks because of singular states of the system. The proposed steering law minimizes the effect of singular states by using a new momentum distribution scheme that makes all the singular states unstable. This scheme is formulated by treating the system as a sampled-data system.     

Controllability under decentralized information structure

In this paper, the controllability under decentralized information structure is studied for linear continuous-time systems. It is defined as follows. A system is controllable under the decentralized information structure if there exists a decentralized control law which transfers any unknown initial state to the origin in a finite time interval Necessary and sufficient conditions of the controllability under the decentralized information structure are given. It is also shown that the controllability under the decentralized information structure is a necessary condition of the pole-assignability with a local dynamic feedback control law.     

Inorganic-organic hybrid molecular architectures of cyanometalate host and organic guest systems: specific behavior of the guests

Molecular architectures built of inorganic cyanometalate building blocks provide variegated host structures with several organic guest molecules. The strategies to derive novel structures are presented briefly. The formation of a charge-transfer (CT) complex as the guest inside the cavity and the photochemistry of the CT complexes are discussed. The chemical pressure that the guest experiences inside the cavity is also discussed based on the vibrational spectroscopic results.     

Hepatoprotective, superoxide scavenging, and antioxidative activities of aromatic constituents from the bark of Betula platyphylla var. japonica

The 50% aqueous methanolic extract from the bark of Betula platyphylla SUKATCHEV var. japonica (MIQ). HARA was found to show potent inhibitory activity on the liver-injury induced by CCl4 or D-galactosamine (D-GalN)/lipopolysaccharide as well as O2- scavenging and antioxidative activities. From the 50% aqueous methanolic extract, two new diarylheptanoids named betulaplatosides Ia (1) and Ib (2) and a new arylbutanoid named betulaplatoside II (3) were isolated together with seventeen known aromatic constituents. 1, 2, and two known diarylheptanoids [(5S)-5-hydroxy-1,7-bis-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-3-heptanone 5-O-beta-D-apiofurano-syl-(1-->6)-beta-D-glucopyranoside (6) and aceroside VIII (7)] showed protective activity against D-GalN-induced cytotoxicity in primary cultured rat hepatocytes. Furthermore, several aromatic constituents exhibited potent O2- scavenging and antioxidative activities.