Guinea pig bone marrow cells treated with platelet-activating factor generate factor(s) which affects their DNA synthesis and microbicidal activity

We have previously reported that platelet-activating factor (PAF) induces proliferation and microbicidal activity of guinea pig bone marrow cells. In the present study, we have found that the conditioned medium of PAF- or nonmetabolizable PAF agonist-treated guinea pig bone marrow cells augmented DNA synthesis and induced microbicial activity of bone marrow cells. A PAF specific antagonist, CV-6209, inhibited generation of the active conditioned medium by PAF. Addition of the PAF antagonist only partially suppressed the augmentative effect of the active conditioned medium on DNA synthesis; this is consistent with the fact that, because of the rapid breakdown, no appreciable amount of PAF remained in the conditioned medium of PAF-treated cells. Although mouse bone marrow cells did not respond to PAF unlike guinea pig cells, their DNA synthesis was significantly enhanced by the conditioned medium of PAF-treated guinea pig bone marrow cells. Thus, some newly generated factor(s) distinct from the originally inoculated PAF seemed to modulate the bioactions of PAF on bone marrow cells. An appreciable amount of PAF was produced by calcium ionophore-treated guinea pig bone marrow cells. These findings indicate that PAF synthesized in guinea pig bone marrow cells induces generation in the cells of some factor(s) which affects proliferation or microbicidal activity. Presented at The Third International Conference on Platelet-Activating Factor and Structurally Related Ether Lipids, Tokyo, Japan, May 1989.     

Gas phase oxidation of benzene to phenol using Pd-Cu composite catalysts. Effect of temperature,feeding gas and catalyst composition

Catalytic oxidation of benzene in the gas phase has been studied as a function of the catalyst composition, reaction temperature and the feed conditions of reactant gases, hydrogen, oxygen, benzene as well as diluting inert gas. The catalyst tested is composed of Pd and Cu(I) ions, both of which are supported on silica gel. If one of the two metal species is lacked from the catalyst, no catalytic activity appears. The product is almost exclusively phenol and some accompanying benzoquinone, in particular at lower temperatures, as minor byproduct.On leave from Hua-Dong Institute of Technology, Nanjing, People's Republic of China.     

基于涡流成像的碳纤维增强树脂基复合材料细观结构可视化

对碳纤维增强树脂基复合材料（CFRP）的细观结构成像方法进行了研究,利用涡流成像技术实现了CFRP层合板中纤维方向及纤维缺失、褶皱和空隙过大等缺陷的可视化。首先通过有限元仿真和电路理论分析了CFRP板中涡流的生成机制和分布特性,阐述了基于涡流法的CFRP细观结构成像机制。然后介绍了用于扫描成像的高频涡流检测（HF-ECT）实验系统并确定了涡流探头的形式及其参数。最后利用涡流成像技术分别对单层板、正交层合板和四方向斜交层合板进行了检测,绘制了涡流检测（ECT）信号的三维伪彩图并得到了清晰的纤维纹路分布。通过引入滤波去噪技术和二维快速傅里叶变换（2D-FFT）对图像进行进一步处理,提高了图像分辨率并完成了不同方向上纤维纹路的分离,从而实现对层合板每单向层中缺陷的精确定位。     

Influence of Metal Ions on the Order-Disorder Transition Temperature of the Ba-M-O (M: La, Y, In, or Ga) System

Preparation of BaLa₂O₄, B_a3,Y₄O₉, B_a,In₂O₅, and Ba₃Ga₂O₆ powders and their sintering were investigated in Ar or air. These sintered bodies with perovskite-related structure were synthesized by reaction sintering, using mixed powders in the atomic ratios of Ba/La = 1, Ba/Y = 0.75, Ba/In = 1, and Ba/Ga = 1.5. The order-disorder transition temperatures of the BaLa₂O₄, Ba₃Y₄O₉, Ba₂In₂O₅, and Ba₃Ga₂O₆ sintered bodies were 270°, 350°, 880°, and 123O^oC, respectively. It was found that the temperatures were influenced by the ionic radius of cations in B sites, and the transition temperatures decreased with increasing ionic radius.     

Proposal and development of radial air‐gap coreless generator suitable for small wind turbine used in urban area

Independent distributed power generation using small wind turbines is becoming more widespread as wind power generation increases. Installation of small wind turbines in densely populated urban areas is not only useful from the viewpoint of extracting wind power sources in weak‐wind areas but also for making renewable energy easier to access when power supplies are closer to consumers. It is from this point of view that the authors proposed “urban wind power generation” using a collective system with a number of small vertical wind turbines, and have developed a suitable generator for low‐speed vertical wind turbines such as a Savonius windmill. Based on a standard coreless generator, the proposed generator is designed to make the direction of the magnetic flux radial in order to install the magnets and coils on the outer end of the generator. The change of magnet composition and flux direction maximizes the speed of the flux change and output voltage within a limited space. With the above configuration, the power of the proposed generator is independent of the diameter. In this report, the authors describe and evaluate the fundamental performance of a prototype of the proposed generator. Based on the experiments, a maximum output power of 283 W was obtained. The obtained starting torque is small enough to begin rotation under weak wind conditions of no more than 1 m/s. Therefore, it is clear that the proposed “radial” coreless generator is suitable for self‐starting and producing high power at low wind speed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 167(1): 26– 34, 2009; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20695     

Deposition of DLC film with adhesive W-DLC layer on stainless steel and its tribological properties

Tribological properties of a diamond-like carbon (DLC) coating with an adhesive tungsten-containing DLC (W-DLC) layer were investigated. The coatings were deposited onto AISI316L steel substrates and Si wafers using plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition and tungsten co-sputtering of the metal target. Methane and argon gases were used as the precursor of the coatings. In this study, three types of coatings were evaluated: DLC/W-DLC on AISI316L (DLC-1), DLC/W-DLC on Si wafer (DLC-2), and DLC on Si wafer (DLC-3). The structural characterizations were performed by transmission electron microscopy and tapping mode atomic force microscopy. At the boundary between the W-DLC layer and the AISI316L substrate, microscopic decohesion or delamination was not observed. The surface roughness of the DLC-1 coating was greater than that of the DLC-2 coating. This feature was derived from the surface roughness of the initial surface of the AISI316L substrate. Friction tests were performed using a rotation-type ball-on-flat configuration tribometer. The observed friction of the DLC-1 coating was unstable compared with the DLC-2 or DLC-3 coatings. This was due to wear debris which had risen to the friction surface resulting in unstable friction on the DLC-1 coating. During the friction studies, the top DLC layer was removed from the adhesive W-DLC layer because the adhesive strength at this part was not enough. In order to achieve the low and stable friction of the DLC coating with the W-DLC layer on AISI316L, it is necessary to improve the smoothness of the surface and the adhesion between the DLC coating and the W-DLC layer.     

Mercury oxidation by hydrochloric acid over TiO2 supported metal oxide catalysts in coal combustion flue gas

Mercury oxidation by hydrochloric acid over the metal oxides supported by anatase type TiO₂ catalysts, 1 wt.% MO_x/TiO₂ where M = V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, and Mo, was investigated by the Hg⁰ oxidation and the NO reduction measurements both in the presence and absence of NH₃. The catalysts were characterized by BET surface area measurement and Raman spectroscopy. The metal oxides added to the catalyst were observed to disperse well on the TiO₂ surface. For all catalysts studied, the Hg⁰ oxidation by hydrochloric acid was confirmed to proceed. The activity of the catalysts was found to follow the trend MoO₃ ~ V₂O₅ > Cr₂O₃ > Mn₂O₃ > Fe₂O₃ > CuO > NiO. The Hg⁰ oxidation activity of all catalysts was depressed considerably by adding NH₃ to the reactant stream. This suggests that the metal oxide catalysts undergo the inhibition effect by NH₃. The activity trend of the Hg⁰ oxidation in the presence of NH₃ was different from that observed in its absence. A good correlation was found between the NO reduction and the Hg⁰ oxidation activities in the NH₃ present condition. The catalyst having high NO reduction activity such as V₂O₅/TiO₂ showed high Hg⁰ oxidation activity. The result obtained in this study suggests that the oxidation of Hg⁰ proceeds through the reaction mechanism, in which HCl competes for the active catalyst sites against NH₃. NH₃ adsorption may predominate over the adsorption of HCl in the presence of NH₃.     

Antimicrobial susceptibilities of Salmonella isolates obtained from layer chicken houses on a commercial egg-producing farm in Japan, 1997 to 2002

Susceptibility to antimicrobial agents was examined for 325 isolates of Salmonella enterica serotypes Cerro, Infantis, Livingstone, and Montevideo isolated from layer houses on a commercial egg-production farm in the western region of Japan between 1997 and 2002. No antimicrobials were used for therapeutic purposes on the farm during this period. From 1.8 to 3.1% of the isolates were resistant to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, and tetracycline. Resistance to streptomycin and sulfisoxazole was found in 52.9 and 65.5%, respectively, of Salmonella Montevideo isolates and in 0 to 13.2% of the isolates of the other serotypes. All the streptomycin-resistant isolates of Salmonella Montevideo also exhibited resistance to sulfisoxazole. Salmonella Montevideo isolates were first isolated in 1998, and 80.0% of the isolates obtained in this year were resistant to streptomycin and sulfisoxazole. The results suggest that Salmonella Montevideo isolates that had already acquired resistance may have been introduced into the layer houses, although the route and vehicle of transmission were uncertain. The proportion of Salmonella Montevideo isolates resistant to streptomycin and sulfisoxazole significantly decreased (P < 0.01) from 79.5% for 1998 through 1999 to 37.3% for 2000 through 2002. This decrease probably was due to the fact that no antimicrobials were used on the farm. Among 10 isolates from different serotypes obtained from 1997 to 2002 that were resistant to ampicillin, two and five isolates harbored 42- and 63-kb R plasmids and identical DraI restriction enzyme digest patterns, respectively, and carried the blaTEM gene. The results suggest that the ampicillin resistance determinants were transferred among different serotypes of Salmonella in the layer houses.     

Phytoextraction by a high-Cd-accumulating rice: reduction of Cd content of soybean seeds

Soybeans (Glycine max (L) Merr.) are the major summer crop grown in Japanese upland fields (characterized by aerobic soil) that have been converted from paddies. To evaluate the effect of phytoextraction by rice on the seed cadmium (Cd) content of soybeans grown subsequently, we grew Milyang 23, a high-Cd-accumulating rice cultivar, and then grew soybeans in three paddy soils contaminated with moderate Cd concentrations (2.50-4.27 mg Cd kg(-1)). The rice accumulated 7-14% of the total soil Cd in its shoots. The soybean seed Cd contents were 24-46% less than those grown on control soils. Phytoextraction by Milyang 23 rice is thus a promising remediation method for reducing seed Cd contents of soybeans grown on paddy soils under aerobic soil conditions.     

Molecular recognition by wall-assembling-type nanocavity in aqueous media

Steroid cyclophanes, each having a macrocyclic ring attached to four bile acid moieties via chiral lysine connectors, were synthesized, and the binding of the 2-naphthylphenylketone (guest) to the steroid cyclophanes in water was investigated. The circular dichroism spectra of the steroid cyclophane with cholic acid and L-lysine were significantly affected by the binding of the guest, and the induced circular dichroism based on the absorption of the achiral guest was also observed. The binding of the guest to the steroid cyclophane with cholic acids and D-lysines induced changes in the circular dichroism spectra with the opposite sign of the molecular ellipticities. An induced circular dichroism spectral change was not observed upon binding of the guest to the analogous host without OH sites. These results strongly suggest that the guest is conformationally fixed through hydrogen bonding between the carbonyl group of the guest and the steroidal hydroxyl group of the host. The assembly of only four steroid residues on the macrocyclic ring probably provided a hydrophobic nanocavity for hydrogen bonding.