Current Concepts of Stem Cell Therapy for Chronic Spinal Cord Injury

Chronic spinal cord injury (SCI) is a catastrophic condition associated with significant neurological deficit and social and financial burdens. It is currently being managed symptomatically with no real therapeutic strategies available. In recent years, a number of innovative regenerative strategies have emerged and have been continuously investigated in clinical trials. In addition, several more are coming down the translational pipeline. Among ongoing and completed trials are those reporting the use of mesenchymal stem cells, neural stem/progenitor cells, induced pluripotent stem cells, olfactory ensheathing cells, and Schwann cells. The advancements in stem cell technology, combined with the powerful neuroimaging modalities, can now accelerate the pathway of promising novel therapeutic strategies from bench to bedside. Various combinations of different molecular therapies have been combined with supportive scaffolds to facilitate favorable cell–material interactions. In this review, we summarized some of the most recent insights into the preclinical and clinical studies using stem cells and other supportive drugs to unlock the microenvironment in chronic SCI to treat patients with this condition. Successful future therapies will require these stem cells and other synergistic approaches to address the persistent barriers to regeneration, including glial scarring, loss of structural framework, and immunorejection.     

High-power mid-infrared wavelength generation using difference frequency generation in damage-resistant Zn:LiNb03 waveguide

High-power 3.4 mum difference frequency generation (DFG) using a quasi-phase-matched Zn:LiNbO₃ waveguide fabricated by direct bonding technology is presented. The high resistance of the waveguide to photorefractive damage allows high-power generation. A 65 mW mid-infrared output was obtained using a continuous-wave high- power fibre amplifier as pump source. The DFG source can access over 10 nm continuously simply by scanning the signal wavelength, and will be useful for real-time trace gas sensing.     

Low Capture Switching Activity Test Generation for Reducing IR-Drop in At-Speed Scan Testing

At-speed scan testing, based on ATPG and ATE, is indispensable to guarantee timing-related test quality in the DSM era. However, at-speed scan testing may incur yield loss due to excessive IR-drop caused by high test (shift & capture) switching activity. This paper discusses the mechanism of circuit malfunction due to IR-drop, and summarizes general approaches to reducing switching activity, by which highlights the problem of current solutions, i.e. only reducing switching activity for one capture while the widely used at-speed scan testing based on the launch-off-capture scheme uses two captures. This paper then proposes a novel X-filling method, called double-capture (DC) X-filling, for generating test vectors with low and balanced capture switching activity for two captures. Applicable to dynamic & static compaction in any ATPG system, DC X-filling can reduce IR-drop, and thus yield loss, without any circuit/clock modification, timing/circuit overhead, fault coverage loss, and additional design effort.

A New Hybrid Phosphine Ligand for Palladium‐Catalyzed Amination of Aryl Halides

A new hybrid phosphine was designed. The phosphine combines two common structural characteristics found among the effective phosphine ligands reported recently, namely, three tert‐alkyl substituents binding to the phosphorus and an aryl group at an appropriate position. A hybrid phospine/palladium system is versatile and effective for the coupling reaction of various aryl halides with primary and secondary amines including carbazole.     

Evaporative concentration of a microdroplet for highly sensitive detection of trace heavy metal ions in real samples

The influence of surface tension becomes more prominent as the device is miniaturized. We used this effect to enhance the detection sensitivity of trace heavy metal ions. A microelectrode array was formed along with a Ag/AgCl reference electrode and was surrounded by a super-hydrophobic layer formed with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) beads. When a droplet of a sample solution was placed on the sensing area, the super-hydrophobic layer repelled the solution and a spherical droplet was formed. The droplet shrank to the sensing area as the solution evaporated. Electrochemical preconcentration was then carried out with the concentrated solution. Three heavy metal ions (Cd²⁺, Pb²⁺, and As³⁺) were analyzed by square-wave anodic stripping voltammetry. A significant increase in current peaks was observed by this novel method. When a 10-µL droplet was used, the detection limit was 600 ppt for Pb²⁺ and As³⁺ ions and 900 ppt for Cd²⁺ ions. Furthermore, the effect of the evaporative concentration was enhanced by increasing the volume of sample solution. We used this device for analysis of real samples. Correlation between the values obtained by this method and a conventional method was satisfactory with correlation coefficients of 0.982 (Pb²⁺), 0.969 (Cd²⁺), and 0.936 (As³⁺). Copyright © 2009 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Production of (S)-4-chloro-3-hydroxybutyrate by microbial resolution using hydrolase from Rhizobium sp. DS-S-51

(S)-4-Chloro-3-hydroxybutyrate (CHB) is essential for the synthesis of biologically and pharmacologically important compounds. Rhizobium sp. DS-S-51 isolated from soil samples showed hydrolytic activity toward (R)-CHB in the racemate to (R)-3-hydroxy-gamma-butyrolactone (HL) under a simple composition of the reaction. Residual (S)-CHB was obtained with high optical purity. The gene encoding the enzyme concerned, designated CHB hydrolase, was isolated from DS-S-51, and the gene was highly expressed in Escherichia coli JM109. When the resolution of racemic methyl CHB (CHBM) as a substrate was performed using this recombinant cell, JM109 (pKK-R1), the hydrolytic activity was found to be 40-fold greater than that of DS-S-51, and the maximum concentration of the substrate added increased 2-fold. Moreover, (R)-HL was also obtained without decreasing the optical purity compared with that when (R)-CHBM was used as a substrate.     

Physicochemical characteristics of rapidly dried onion powder and its anti-atherogenic effect on rats fed high-fat diet

Rapidly dried onion (Allium cepa L. cv. Momiji No. 3) powder (OP) prepared from the outer layers (from second to fourth scale leaves from the surface) of onion bulbs was analysed for its quercetin and polyuronide contents, the effects of enzymatic treatment and the anti-atherogenic effect on rats fed a high-fat diet. Quercetin 4′-glucoside (50%), free quercetin (30%) and quercetin 3,4′-diglucoside (20%) were identified as quercetin derivatives, and boiling-water extraction was effective in extracting these compounds. OP contained 12.9% of polyuronides, the basic skeleton of pectin. Enzymatic degradation (cellulase and pectinase, 50 °C for 12 h, pH 6.0) of OP was effective in obtaining a slurry of smaller particle sizes. The free quercetin increased and the glucosides decreased with enzyme treatment. In Wistar rats fed an OP-added high-fat diet, the total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were not significantly different from the rats fed a high-fat diet without OP. However, the atherogenic index (AI) of Wistar rats fed an OP-added high-fat diet was lower (AI = 3.3) than rats fed the diet without OP (AI = 4.1). The incremental elastic modulus (IEM) of the aorta from rats fed the OP-added diet was also significantly lower than that of the rats fed the diet without OP. The AI and IEM values of the rats fed the OP-added diet were quite similar to the values of rats fed the diet without OP but were allowed spontaneous exercise. These results suggest that OP intake is effective for decreasing the risk of arteriosclerosis.     

Development of lateral displacement sensor for real‐time detection of structural damage

We have developed a novel sensor that enables us to measure the relative story displacement of a building structure in real time. This lateral displacement sensor (LDS) is composed of a light‐emitting diode (LED) array, which is fixed on the ceiling, and a position‐sensitive detector (PSD) unit, which is placed on the floor. We optimized the LDS to achieve high accuracy in lateral displacement measurement. The accuracy was evaluated to be 60 µm by conducting shaking table tests. Two LDSs were implemented in an actual building equipped with an active variable stiffness (AVS) system, and the building was vibrated with seismic waveforms by an exciter placed on the rooftop. The seismic displacement of the second floor relative to the first floor was measured using the LDS. Furthermore, the inclination angle of the second floor could be measured using the LDS during the seismic vibration. Using the AVS system, we realized the residual displacement of the second floor without inducing damage to the building, and succeeded in real‐time residual displacement measurement for the first time. These results indicate that the LDS is useful for the health diagnosis of a building structure. © 2011 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

A Terahertz Video Camera Patch Sheet with an Adjustable Design based on Self-Aligned, 2D,Suspended Sensor Array Patterning

Terahertz (THz) imaging is expected to become powerful tools for non-destructive inspections. To ensure the practical use of THz non-destructive monitoring, versatile THz imagers with adjustable designs that can eliminate the complexities and the bulkiness of the device are urgently required. Herein, a self-aligned filtration process for a 2D, free-standing carbon nanotube film array and its application to a THz video camera patch are reported. The presented techniques enable a) to freely design the camera size, sensor array pattern, and suspended shape according to its applications, b) to cut the camera patch into desired shapes, and c) to attach them to the objects that are intended to be measured. Real-time, non-destructive monitoring of various infrastructures is demonstrated. These results indicate that it can function regardless of restrictions, such as the shapes and locations of the measurement samples, thus providing a strong possibility for use in future non-destructive sensor networks.     

Effect of texture on oxidation resistance of Ti3AlC2

Oxidation resistance of textured Ti₃AlC₂ ceramics was measured in the temperature range 1273–1573?K. It was found that the oxidation was markedly anisotropic and the samples exhibited a better oxidation resistance when tested along a direction transverse to the c-axis. This behavior was attributed to the rapid diffusion of Al within its basal planes to form a passivating Al₂O₃ scale and it respected Ellingham diagrams. The scales formed had different compositions depending on the testing direction; this response was clearly resulting from the crystallographic orientation. Even at 1473?K after 20?h exposure, the samples tested in a direction transverse to the c-axis showed a reduced weight gain which was 45 times lower than one seen on a basal plane.