A 64-Mb DRAM with meshed power line

A 64-Mb dynamic RAM (DRAM) has been developed with a meshed power line (MPL) and a quasi-distributed sense-amplifier driver (qDSAD) scheme. It realizes high speed, t_RAS=50 ns (typical) at V_cc=3.3 V, and 16-b input/output (I/O). This MPL+qDSAD scheme can reduce sensing delay caused by the metal layer resistance. Furthermore, to suppress crosstalk noise, a V_SS shield peripheral layout scheme has been introduced, which also widens power line widths. This 64-Mb DRAM was fabricated with 0.4-μm CMOS technology using KrF excimer laser lithography. A newly developed memory cell structure, the tunnel-shaped stacked-capacitor cell (TSSC), was adapted to this 64-Mb DRAM     

A 10 bit 20 MS/s 3 V supply CMOS A/D converter

A 10 bit CMOS A/D converter with 3 V power supply has been developed for being integrated into system VLSI's. In this A/D converter, redundant binary encoders named “twin encoders” enhance tolerance to substrate noise, together with employing differential amplifiers in comparators. The bias circuit using a replica of the amplifier is developed for biasing differential comparators with 3 V power supply. Subranging architecture along with a multilevel tree decoding structure improves dynamic performance of the ADC at 3 V power supply. The A/D converter is fabricated in double-polysilicon, double-metal, 0.8 μm CMOS technology. The experimental results show that the ADC operates at 20 MS/s and the twin encoders suppress the influence of substrate noise effectively. This ADC has a single power supply of 3 V, and dissipates 135 mW at 20 MS/s operation     

Surgical treatment of ventricular tachycardia after surgical repair of tetralogy of Fallot. Relation between intraoperative mapping and histological findings

BACKGROUND: The mechanism of ventricular tachycardia (VT) after correction of tetralogy of Fallot (TF) is poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to examine the histopathology of the arrhythmogenic area detected by intraoperative mapping. METHODS AND RESULTS: The patients were three men who underwent radical surgery for TF at age 3, 3, or 5 years, respectively. VT developed at 8, 9, or 11 years, respectively, after surgery, and shock developed during VT in every case. The ECG revealed monomorphic VT in two cases and polymorphic VT in one case. Induction of VT resulted in a wide left-axis deviation-pattern QRS with cycle lengths varying between 260 and 330 milliseconds. The VT origin was identified at the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT). A radical operation was performed with the patient under cardiopulmonary bypass. On epicardial mapping, delayed activation of the RVOT was recorded during sinus rhythm, and clockwise circus movement of the macroreentry current during VT on the right ventricular free wall was documented in each case. The VTs were treated successfully by surgical resection and cryoablation of the myocardium. In every patient, histology of the myocardial specimens showed degeneration, adiposis, fibrosis, inflammatory cell infiltration, and scattered myocyte islets. These lesions corresponded anatomically to the area of myocardium in which delayed activation was evident during epicardial mapping. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicate that patients with VT after radical correction of the TF have abnormal histopathological findings at the site of the prior right ventriculotomy scar. These lesions were noted within the region of delayed activation found during epicardial mapping and were found to be a part of the reentrant circuit.     

Disaccharide analysis of human skin glycosaminoglycans in sun-exposed and sun-protected skin of aged people

The negative conduction effect of quinidine on each of the successive phases of the ventricular depolarization was investigated using an original noninvasive method: the spatial velocity electrocardiogram of the QRS complex (SVECG-QRS). We performed a randomized placebo-controlled trial in 10 healthy subjects with a single oral dose of quinidine (330 mg) or placebo. Electrocardiographic acquisition and processing (220 recordings for the complete trial) were performed using the Lyon vectorcardiographic program. For each SVECG-QRS curve, the position of seven specific points from A (onset of QRS) to G (end of QRS) were determined precisely. The six successive time intervals between these points (AB-FG) and five velocity values (B-F) were then calculated. The QRS complex was longer under quinidine than placebo (102.4 +/- 1.6 vs. 100.3 +/- 1.5 ms). The difference was at the periphery of statistical significance (p = 0.05), and this lack of statistical difference may be mainly due to the low serum levels of quinidine obtained at the peak of the concentration (1.46 +/- 0.4 mg/1). All six QRS time intervals were longer under quinidine, but only the BC interval was significantly different (9.3 +/- 1.1 vs. 18.8 +/- 1.1 ms; p < 0.05) suggesting a more pronounced negative conduction effect at the onset of ventricular depolarization. No significant modifications were observed for the velocity values. We conclude that (1) the negative conduction effect of quinidine is heterogeneous, but a further study with a higher dose of quinidine (concentration-dependent effect) is required to confirm this hypothesis and (2) the spatial velocity electrocardiogram of the QRS complex allows a detailed analysis of the ventricular conduction phases. The results of the measurement were found to be reproducible. This noninvasive tool could be used in clinical practice to assess effects of antiarrhythmic drugs on successive ventricular depolarization phases.     

Late phase II trial of oral etoposide administered for 21 consecutive days in patients with cervical cancer. ETP 21 Study Group--Cervical Cancer Group

We conducted a multi-site late phase II trial of oral etoposide administered for 21 consecutive days in patients with cervical cancer in cooperation with 32 institutes. Fifty mg/body of oral etoposide was administered daily for 21 consecutive days. Treatment cycles were to be repeated at 4- to 5-week intervals. Eighty patients were enrolled and 70 patients were evaluated. The overall response rate (95% CI), including one complete response patient and 18 partial response patients, was 27.1% (19/70). The most commonly observed toxicity was myelosuppression such as leukopenia, neutropenia, hemoglobin decrease and thrombocytopenia. Other adverse effects were gastrointestinal toxicities such as anorexia, nausea, stomatitis and vomiting, as well as fatigue and alopecia. These adverse effects were well tolerated and controlled with medications. From these results we concluded oral etoposide administered for 21 consecutive days was an effective drug against cervical cancer.     

Left ventricular regional systolic motion in patients with right ventricular pressure overload

The highly reactive and cytotoxic hydroxyl radical (OH) was found by electrochemical detection to be produced in reactions involving hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and the nitric oxide (NO) donor diethylamine- NO complex. Using aromatic hydroxylation of salicylate as a specific indicator of OH, three salicylate hydroxylation products were identified; catechol, 2,3- and 2,5-dihydroxybenzoic acid. Four additional compounds were detected but not identified. The interactions of H2O2 and NO represent a biologically feasible reaction mechanism that can account for OH-induced damage in cellular environments where transition metal ions are unavailable for participation in the superoxide-mediated Fenton reaction. The ability of the NO/H2O2 complex to generate OH independently of iron or other transition metals provides a new focus for studies concerned with the origin of tissue-specific damage caused by oxygen-derived species.     

Efficient directional cloning of recombinant adenovirus vectors using DNA-protein complex

We describe an efficient cloning system utilizing adenoviral DNA-protein complexes which allows the directional cloning of genes into adenoviral expression vectors in a single step. DNA-protein complexes derived from a recombinant adenovirus (AVC2.null) were isolated by sequential use of CsCl step gradients followed by isopycnic centrifugation in a mixture of CsCl and guanidine HCl. AVC2.null is an adenoviral expression vector containing unique restriction sites between the human CMV-IE promoter and the SV40 intron/polyadenylation site. Transgenes were prepared for cloning into this vector by introduction of compatible restriction sites by PCR. A vector expressing rat granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) was constructed using DNA-protein complex as well as by traditional recombination techniques. The efficacy of our adenoviral cloning system utilizing DNA-protein complex was two logs higher than that seen using homologous recombination. All viruses generated by directional ligation of the insert into the vector DNA-protein complexes contained the desired transgene in the correct orientation. This technique greatly simplifies and accelerates the generation of recombinant adenoviral vectors.     

Fiberscope-assisted evaluation of prereconstructed and postreconstructed external auditory canal

The malignant tumors of the external auditory canal often invade the middle ear area through the narrow canal, so it is difficult to determine the surgical excisional margin. A patient undergoing external auditory canal reconstruction following excision of a squamous cell carcinoma using a chondrocutaneous flap and fiberscope-assisted preoperative and postoperative diagnoses are described. We obtained good patency of the canal postoperatively. This technique is quite simple and easy to use. We believe fiberscope-assisted surgery is useful for extracting lesions in small areas. In the future, its application will extend to the area of plastic surgery.     

Measurement of internal stresses in coatings using time resolved fluorescence

This paper describes a new nondestructive technique for detecting internal stresses in coatings using time resolved fluorescence. The measurement principle is based upon an experimental result that the decay time of fluorescence from poly(3-octylthiophene), P3OT, dispersed in uniaxially-stretched polymer films decreases with increasing tensile stress acting on the films. Internal stresses in the clear coat and in the base coat of a multilayer structure, which was composed of electrodeposited coat, surface coat, base coat, and clear coat, were estimated from the decay time of fluorescence from P3OT in both coats. The order of internal stresses in the clear coat and base coat of the multilayer system was 1 MPa. When the coatings were piled up, the internal stress decreased as the distance from a metal substrate was increased. It was found that moisture and temperature influenced internal stresses in the clear coat rather than in the base coat. Internal stress in the clear coat, which was one layer coated on a metal substrate, was measured by the traditional bimetallic method or by the time resolved fluorescence technique. Comparing both methods, it was concluded that the time resolved fluorescence technique gave reliable values for internal stresses in coatings.