A Token-Based Distributed Group Mutual Exclusion Algorithm with Quorums

The group mutual exclusion problem is a generalization of mutual exclusion problem such that a set of processes in the same group can enter critical section simultaneously. In this paper, we propose a distributed algorithm for the group mutual exclusion problem in asynchronous message passing distributed systems. Our algorithm is based on tokens, and a process that obtains a token can enter critical section. For reducing message complexity, it uses coterie as a communication structure when a process sends a request messages. Informally, coterie is a set of quorums, each of which is a subset of the process set, and any two quorums share at least one process. The message complexity of our algorithm is $O(|Q|)$ in the worst case, where $|Q|$ is a quorum size that the algorithm adopts. Performance of the proposed algorithm is presented by analysis and discrete event simulation. Especially, the proposed algorithm achieves high concurrency, which is a performance measure for the number of processes that can be in critical section simultaneously.     

Temperature control-free full-mesh wavelength routing network (AWG-STAR) with CWDM AWG-router

AWG-STAR is a star-shaped network that utilizes a uniform-loss cyclic frequency arrayed-waveguide grating (AWG) as a wavelength router to obtain full-mesh interconnection between surrounding wavelength-division-multiplexing nodes. In this paper, we describe a temperature control-free AWG-STAR network that employs a coarse wavelength-division-multiplexing AWG-router. The center wavelength and transmission band of the AWG-router are designed based on the light source wavelength shift that results from changes in operating temperature. The system employs bidirectional transmission to avoid coherent crosstalk from adjacent channels. A cost-effective and small-scale full-mesh network is realized for metropolitan areas.     

Preparation and fluorescence property of red-emitting Eu-activated amorphous calcium silicate phosphor

This paper describes the energy efficient synthesis of a red-emitting Eu³⁺-activated amorphous calcium silicate phosphor produced by heating a Eu³⁺-activated calcium silicate hydrate phosphor. Concentration quenching of the Eu³⁺-activated calcium silicate hydrate phosphor was not observed and the emission intensity did not decrease up to a Eu/(Ca+Eu) atomic ratio of 0.46. Heating of the Eu³⁺-activated calcium silicate hydrate (Eu/(Ca+Eu) atomic ratio = 0.32) phosphor produced an amorphous Eu³⁺-activated calcium silicate phosphor, which had a maximum emission intensity at 870 °C and emitted in the red under near-ultraviolet irradiation (395 nm). The emission intensity of the Eu³⁺-activated amorphous calcium silicate phosphor was about half that of a commercial BaMgAl₁₀O₁₇:Eu²⁺ phosphor, and shows great potential for application in white light-emitting diodes.     

Development and Application of a Novel Quantum-Chemical Molecular-Dynamics Method for Degradation Dynamics of Organic Lubricants Under High Temperatures and Pressures

The dynamics of the degradation process of a monoester (ethyl acetate) at reaction temperatures was clarified for the first time by a novel tight-binding, quantum-chemical, molecular-dynamics method with initial parameters that are determined completely on the basis of first-principles calculations. It was confirmed that the proposed method can calculate the structure, electronic states and total energy of a monoester and its fragments as accurately as the density-functional calculations, while the CPU time of the new method is over 5000 times faster than that of the density-functional calculations. In the case of the acetic ester molecule, the -hydrogen which is located at the ethanol group was cleaved quickly. Compared to it, -hydrogen was cleaved more slowly than -hydrogen. Each atom expressed cleavage and association with repetition. As a whole, degradation phenomena were observed in this simulation. This observation agrees with experimental data.     

Effects of apafant on PAF-induced downregulation of beta-adrenoceptors in guinea pigs

The phase S ratio in cell cycles were analyzed in livers with hyperplastic foci (HPF) and in livers without HPF by nuclear DNA determinations using flow cytometry, and by staining with argyrophilic proteins of the nucleolar organizer region (AgNOR). Flow cytometric analysis was done on 50 fresh frozen specimens of livers resected from 50 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Paraffin sections from the same patients were analyzed using AgNOR staining. There were 25 cases each with and without HPF. We examined the stage of fibrosis and the grade of inflammatory activity according to the modified Scheuer and Desmet scale. The incidence of HCC recurrence among these patients was also studied. The average phase S ratio of the livers of the patients with HPF was 6.5 +/- 3.2%, and that of the livers of the patients without HPF was 4.0 +/- 2.5%. The ratio differed significantly between the two groups (P < 0.01). The average AgNOR score for HPF lesions of the HPF-positive cases was 1.60 +/- 0.34, that for non-HPF lesions in the HPF-positive cases was 1.29 +/- 0.12, and that for the HPF-negative cases was 1.19 +/- 0.14. Significant differences were found between the average AgNOR scores for HPF lesions of the HPF-positive cases and the non-HPF lesions of the HPF-positive cases (P < 0.01), as well as between the non-HPF lesions in the HPF-positive cases and the HPF-negative cases (P < 0.05). Severe fibrosis (stage 3) and cirrhosis (stage 4) were found in 76% of HPF-positive cases and 48% of HPF-negative cases. The livers of HPF-positive patients were significantly more cirrhotic than those of HPF-negative patients (P < 0.05). The association between HPF and the inflammatory grade was not significant (P > 0.05). The incidence of HCC recurrence among HPF-positive cases was significantly higher than that among the HPF-negative cases (P < 0.05). The average phase S ratio of the recurrent HPF-positive patients was 7.48 +/- 3.48%, significantly higher than that of HPF negative cases (5.57 +/- 3.06%, P < 0.05). Hyperplastic foci of the liver was shown to be a highly proliferative lesion. The proliferative activity of the non-HPF lesions in the HPF-positive patients was also higher than that of the HPF-negative patients. Hyperplastic foci tended to be present in cirrhotic livers, but it was not associated with the grade of inflammatory activity of the liver. Hyperplastic foci may represent an important predictor of recurrence after hepatic resection.     

Signaling pathways controlling trophoblast cell differentiation: Src family protein tyrosine kinases in the rat

A specific method for pancreatic elastase II activity analysis was developed. True elastase II activity could be discriminated from that of elastase I and chymotrypsin. The postnatal development of four pancreatic proteases in the duodenal juice of children and in the pancreatic homogenates of calves and piglets was measured. The study was carried out on patients without (14 children) and with (5 children) pancreatic insufficiency. Calves and piglets were either milk-fed or weaned until slaughter at different ages. Profiles of enzyme development were globally similar in milk-fed piglets and calves, while in children without pancreatic insufficiency, no significant change was observed between 4 and 168 months. In children with pancreatic insufficiency, enzyme activity was low. In animals, elastase II and chymotrypsin activities were maximal at birth, decreased with age, and probably were associated with the digestion of milk protein. In contrast, elastase I and trypsin activities increased markedly after weaning in connection with the intake of solid food.     

Extremely low-noise MESFETs fabricated by metal-organic chemical vapour deposition

Quarter-micron gate low-noise GaAs MESFETs have been developed by delineating gate electrodes by an electron-beam lithography technique and by using high-purity epiwafers prepared by a metal-organic-chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) technique. At 18 GHz, a noise figure of 1.75 dB with an associated gain of 8.5 dB and a maximum available gain of 11 dB were obtained at drain currents of 10 mA and 30 mA, respectively. This is the lowest noise figure yet reported for low-noise GaAs MESFETs.     

Antinociceptive effect of L-arginine in diabetic mice

The antinociceptive effect of L-arginine in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice was examined. Although s.c. administration of L-arginine produced a dose-dependent inhibition of the tail-flick response in both non-diabetic and diabetic mice, the antinociceptive response was greater in diabetic mice than in non-diabetic mice. The antinociceptive effects of L-arginine in both diabetic and non-diabetic mice were significantly antagonized by s.c. administration of naltrindole, a selective delta-opioid receptor antagonist. However, neither beta-funaltrexamine, a selective mu-opioid receptor antagonist, nor nor-binaltorphimin ++, a selective kappa-opioid receptor antagonist, significantly affected the antinociceptive effect of L-arginine in diabetic and non-diabetic mice. These results suggest that L-arginine produces a marked antinociceptive effect in diabetic mice through the activation of delta-opioid receptors.     

Novel antiasthmatic agents with dual activities of thromboxane A2 synthetase inhibition and bronchodilation. 1. 2-[2-(1-Imidazolyl)alkyl]-1(2H)-phthalazinones

A number of 4-substituted 2-[omega-(1-imidazolyl)alkyl]-1(2H)-phthalazinones were synthesized in order to develop agents possessing both thromboxane A2 synthetase inhibitory and bronchodilatory activities. The pharmacological evaluation of these compounds disclosed that they have both activities to various extents. Both activities were slightly dependent on the length of the 2-substituents and largely affected by the nature of the 4-substituents. Compounds bearing phenyl and thienyl groups exhibited relatively high and well-rounded activities. Among these compounds, 12j and 15f were found to be the most effective agents having well-rounded activities in vitro and in vivo. Introduction of a carboxyl group reduced both activities contrary to our expectation. 4-(3-Pyridyl)phthalazinone 18b was of particular interest because of unexpectedly high in vivo activities in spite of an absence of significant in vitro activities.     

Heterogeneous point mutations of the p53 gene in pulmonary fibrosis

Lung cancer is a frequent complication in pulmonary fibrosis. Overexpression of p53 proteins has been demonstrated by immunostaining in bronchoepithelial cells in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. However, it is still unclear whether this overexpressed p53 protein is wild-type or mutant. It was hypothesized that pulmonary fibrosis may be a precancerous lesion with deoxyribonucleic acid point mutations in bronchoepithelial cells. Mutations of the p53 gene were tested for by fluorescence-based single-strand conformation polymorphism (FSSCP), cloning-sequencing and immunostaining techniques. Out of 10 tissue samples that demonstrated overexpression of p53 protein by immunostaining, nine (90%) exhibited point mutations and eight (80%) exhibited heterogeneous point mutations of the p53 gene. The mutations found in pulmonary fibrosis were scattered throughout the central part of the p53 gene, and both guanine (G):cytosine (C) to adenine (A):thymine (T) and A:T to G:C transitions were frequently observed. In conclusion, frequent heterogeneous point mutations of the p53 gene were detected in pulmonary fibrosis. These mutations may have resulted from several types of deoxyribonucleic acid damage that occurred in bronchoepithelial cells and this may explain previous findings of a very high incidence of lung cancer complicating pulmonary fibrosis.