Effects of soy milk and bifidobacterium fermented soy milk on lipid metabolism in aged ovariectomized rats

The effects of soy milk and fermented soy milk on lipid metabolism were studied in aged ovariectomized rats. Twenty 8-mo-old Wistar rats were randomly assigned to four treatment groups: sham-operated + control diet (sham-C); ovariectomized (OVX) + control diet (OVX-C); OVX + soy milk diet (OVX-SM); and OVX + fermented soy milk diet (OVX-FSM). The rats were fed on these diets for 6 weeks. Ovariectomy induced an increase in the plasma cholesterol level by 40%. The plasma total cholesterol level of the OVX-FSM rats was decreased by 20% compared to that of the OVX-C rats. The plasma total cholesterol level of the OVX-SM group was not significantly different from that of the OVX-C and sham-C rats. The plasma triglyceride level of the OVX-FSM rats was lower than that of the sham-C rats. The liver cholesterol content in OVX-SM and OVX-FSM rats was lower than that of the OVX-C rats. The liver triglyceride contents of the sham-C, OVX-SM, and OVX-FSM groups were lower than that of the OVX-C group. Fecal steroid excretion did not differ among the groups. Ovariectomy decreased the uterus weight. The OVX-SM and OVX-FSM groups had the same uterus weights as those of the OVX-C group. Thus, the diet including fermented soy milk prevented the cholesterol elevation induced in rats by ovarian hormone deficiency.     

Properties of Bi-doped PbTe layers grown by liquid phase epitaxy under controlled Te vapor pressure

Effects of Bi doping in PbTe liquid-phase epitaxial layers grown by the temperature difference method under controlled vapor pressure (TDM-CVP) are investigated. For Bi concentrations in the solution, x_Bi, lower than 0.2 at.%, an excess deep-donor level (activation energy E_d≈0.03–0.04 eV) appears, and Hall mobility is low. In contrast, for x_Bi>0.2 at.%, Hall mobility becomes very high, while carrier concentration is in the range of 10¹⁷ cm⁻³. Inductive coupled plasma (ICP) emission analysis shows that, for x_Bi=1 at.%, Bi concentration in the epitaxial layer is as high as N_Bi=2.3–2.7 × 10¹⁹ cm⁻³. These results indicate that Bi behaves not only as a donor but also as an acceptor, and the nearest neighbor or very near donor-acceptor (D-A) pairs are formed, so that strong self-compensation of Bi takes place. Carrier concentration for highly Bi-doped layers shows a minimum at a Te vapor pressure of 2.2 × 10⁻⁵ torr for growth temperature 470°C, which is coincident with that of the undoped PbTe.     

Noise suppression effect in an avalanche multiplication photodiode operating in a charge accumulation mode

A pixel configuration available to solid-state imagers using an avalanche multiplication photodiode operated in a charge accumulation mode, with each pixel as a photo-element, is proposed and stable avalanche multiplication gains over several tens are demonstrated by using a test circuit composed of discrete elements, equivalent to the pixel configuration. Moreover, it is found that the self-quenching effects inherent to the APD operating in this mode suppress the reset or avalanche induced excess noises, predominant in readout process and in charge accumulation process, respectively. These results are advantageous for a solid-state imager since the use of the avalanche multiplication simultaneously satisfies the two requirements of high sensitivity and wide dynamic range.<>     

Recombinant cholera toxin B subunit acts as an adjuvant for the mucosal and systemic responses of mice to mucosally co-administered bovine serum albumin

We examined the mucosal adjuvant activity of recombinant cholera toxin B subunit (rCTB) produced by Bacillus brevis carrying pNU212-CTB by intranasal or oral co-administration of bovine serum albumin (BSA). Intranasal administration stimulated a high level of BSA-specific serum IgG antibody response and BSA-specific IgA antibody responses in the nasal and pulmonary lavages. Oral administration induced a moderate level of BSA-specific serum IgG antibody and a low level of BSA-specific IgA antibody in the large intestinal washes. These results show that CTB alone can act as an intranasal or oral delivery carrier; it also has strong adjuvant properties for stimulating serum IgG and mucosal IgA immune responses to unrelated, non-coupled antigens after intranasal or oral co-immunization.     

Plasma welding of thin plate

The plasma arc has a large arc force (regarded as the plasma force) and keyhole welding is generally performed by the formation of a small hole at the weld pool of a butt joint by making use of this plasma force. Under these circumstances, due to the small footprint area of the plasma heat source and welding by the formation of a keyhole, there is little melting at the joint zone and welding with a narrow bead width becomes feasible. Recently, a new type of plasma welding process has been proposed such that the welding tungsten electrode tip is brought close to the tip of the cooling chip and keyholeless welding is performed, similarly to TIG welding and this process has been made practicable.¹ This process solves the disadvantages of keyhole welding while retaining the advantages of plasma welding and is capable of meeting the requirements of high speed welding. However, it is difficult to apply either method to fillet joints where keyhole formation is difficult due to the problems of the large plasma force and the torch structure. In either case, the large plasma force due to the plasma passing through the cooling chip small hole is surmised to be intimately associated with the weld morphology due to plasma welding.     

Deoxyribonuclease I from rat urine: affinity purification, characterization, and immunochemical studies

Deoxyribonuclease I (DNase I) from rat urine was purified about 3,000-fold to apparent homogeneity with a 14% yield by affinity chromatography utilizing polyguanylic acid-agarose and DNA-cellulose. The purified enzyme preparation was found to contain no other detectable nucleases. Isoelectric focusing electrophoresis revealed that all six isoelectric forms of the enzyme had been purified, and the resulting bands all contained DNase I activity. Quantitative amino acid analysis and N-terminal amino acid sequencing were performed on the purified DNase I. The N-terminal sequence up to the 15th residue of the enzyme was identical to that of rat parotid DNase I. The enzyme was found to be a glycoprotein, containing 1 fucose, 10 galactose, 17 mannose, 12 glucosamine, and at least 3 sialic acid residues per molecule. The isoelectric multiplicity of the enzyme was partly due to differences in the sialic acid content of the isoforms. Gel filtration on Superose 12 and electrophoresis on sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gels indicated an approximate molecular mass for DNase I of 32 kDa. The enzyme had an optimum pH of 6.5 and required divalent cations such as Ca2+ for its activity. Its activity was inhibited by 1 mM EDTA and EGTA, but not G-actin. An antibody against the purified enzyme was found to be monospecific against rat urine and the pure antigen, and completely blocked the activity of the purified enzyme.     

Familial hypoparathyroidism: identification of a novel gain of function mutation in transmembrane domain 5 of the calcium-sensing receptor

Activating mutations of the extracellular calcium (Ca2+e)-sensing receptor (CaR) gene, mostly in its extracellular domain, can cause both familial and sporadic hypoparathyroidism. We report a Japanese family with severe hypoparathyroidism with pretreatment serum calcium (Ca) levels of 4.9-5.9 mg/dL. The proband presented with a seizure at 6 days of age. Her older brother and mother, who had also experienced seizures and tetany, respectively, likewise had hypoparathyroidism. A heterozygous missense mutation substituting a cysteine for the phenylalanine normally present at codon 788 (F788C) was identified in the CaR's fifth transmembrane domain and was shown to cosegregate with the disease. The mutation was absent in DNA from 50 control subjects. Analysis of the functional properties of the mutant receptor was carried out in transiently transfected HEK293 cells loaded with fura-2 by assessing Ca2+e-evoked increases in the cytosolic calcium concentration (Ca2+i). There was a leftward shift in the concentration-response curve for the mutant receptor [EC50 (effective concentration of Ca2+e producing half of the maximal Ca2+i response, 2.7 +/- 0.1 vs. 4.1 +/- 0.1 mmol/L for the wild-type receptor]. HEK293 cells cotransfected with both the wild-type and mutant CaRs (to mimic the heterozygous state in affected family members) showed an EC50 (3.0 +/- 0.1 mmol/L) similar to that of the mutant CaR alone. Thus, we confirm that 1) a gain of function mutation in the fifth transmembrane domain of the CaR causes severe familial hypoparathyroidism by rendering the receptor more sensitive than normal to activation by Ca2+e; 2) some patients in the family do not experience seizures despite their severe hypocalcemia; and 3) this condition needs to be differentiated from other causes of hypoparathyroidism.     

Amnesia following infarction in the right retrosplenial region

An animal model of subarachnoid cavity drugs perfusion and its prelimilary clinical application in treatment of acute spinal cord injury (SCI) were reported. Analysis of the heart rate (HR), ECG blood pressure (CVP, CAP) cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressuer and CSF gas and pH values of 10 healthy adult goats during subarachnoid daxamethasone verapamil perfusion showed that this model was safe anti reliable. 26 patients with acute SCI were selected for a clinical obseration. Good results were obtained in 7 cases who received this treatment of subarachnoid cavity perfusion with dexamethasone and verapamil.     

Pharmacokinetic differences between lansoprazole enantiomers in rats

Because limited information is available about potential differences between the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of the enantiomers of lansoprazole, the enantioselective pharmacokinetics of the compound have been investigated in rats. There was a noticeable difference between the serum levels of the enantiomers of lansoprazole and of their metabolites, 5-hydroxylansoprazole enantiomers, after oral administration of the racemate (50 mg kg(-1)) to rats. Cmax (maximum serum concentration) and AUC (area under the serum concentration-time curve) for (+)-lansoprazole were 5-6 times greater than those for (-)-lansoprazole, whereas for (+)-5-hydroxylansoprazole both values were significantly smaller than those for the (-) enantiomer. CLtot/F values (where CLtot is total clearance and F is the fraction of the dose absorbed) for (+)-lansoprazole were significantly smaller than those for the (-) enantiomer. There was no significant difference between the absorption rate constants of the lansoprazole enantiomers in the in-situ absorption study. The in-vitro protein-binding study showed that binding of (+)-lansoprazole to rat serum proteins was significantly greater than for the (-) enantiomer. The in-vitro metabolic study showed that the mean metabolic ratio (45.9%) for (-)-lansoprazole was significantly greater than that (19.8%) for the (+) enantiomer in rat liver microsomes at 5.6 microM lansoprazole. These results show that the enantioselective disposition of lansoprazole could be a consequence of the enantioselectivity of plasma-protein binding and the hepatic metabolism of the enantiomers.     

Glucose- and phorbol ester-induced insulin secretion in human insulinoma cells--association with protein kinase C activation

To investigate the incidence and demographics of gastric hypoacidity among persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), 146 asymptomatic subjects were evaluated with use of a radiotelemetry device (Heidelberg capsule). Gastric hypoacidity (minimum gastric pH of > or = 3) occurred in 24 subjects (17%). Demographic characteristics, CD4 cell counts, and Helicobacter pylori serological status were evaluated for an association with gastric pH. Subjects with hypoacidity were more likely to have positive H. pylori serology than were subjects without hypoacidity (15 of 24 vs. 23 of 74, respectively; P = .004). Multivariate analysis indicated that a positive H. pylori serology was the most significant predictor of hypoacidity, accounting for an increase in gastric pH of 39%. A history of injection drug use, heterosexual transmission of HIV, and male gender were also associated with an elevated gastric pH. CD4 cell counts did not contribute to predictions of gastric pH. A history of H. pylori infection is relatively common in HIV-positive black and Hispanic populations and is a predictor of gastric pH.