Multiple uses of Essential Oil and By-Products from Various Parts of the Yakushima Native Cedar (Cryptomeria Japonica)

This article presents multiple potential uses of the Yakushima native cedar (Cryptomeria japonica), known in Japan as the Yaku-sugi tree. The Yaku-sugi was divided into four parts: leaves, branches with leaves, branches, and stems. We obtained the essential oil, hydrosol, distillation residue, and distillation wastewater from the trees. Essential oil and hydrosol were determined to be volatile organic compounds. All samples were screened for the following bioactivities: antioxidative, antibacterial, and anti-melanogenesis activities. Freeze-dried distillation residue was tested to assess whether it had a deodorizing effect. The main component of the leaf essential oil was found to be monoterpenes. In contrast, the stem essential oil mainly contained sesquiterpenes. In terms of bioactivities, the leaf essential oil showed antibacterial activity and the stem essential oil showed anti-melanogenesis activity. Distillation residue and wastewater showed many activities, including antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-melanogenesis activities. Moreover, the residue had a deodorizing effect against ammonia.     

Chain stiffness and chain conformation of poly(α-methylene-γ-butyrolactone) in dilute solutions

The chain stiffness and local chain conformation of atactic poly(α-methylene-γ-butyrolactone) (PMBL), which is a side chain cyclic structural analog of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), with a weight-average molecular weight (M_w) ranging from 2.8 × 10³ to 2.6 × 10⁶ in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) and γ-butyrolactone (GBL) were characterized by size exclusion chromatography with a multi-angle light-scattering detector (SEC-MALS) and synchrotron radiation small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). Based on the Kratky-Porod worm-like chain model, the scattering functions and the M_w dependence of z-average root-mean-square radius of gyration <S²>_z^1/2 yielded the Kuhn segment lengths λ⁻¹, the diameter of the PMBL chains d, and the excluded-volume strengths in DMF and GBL. The local conformation of atactic PMBL in DMF and GBL were slightly larger than those of atactic PMMA, due to the presence of the conformationally rigid lactone ring structure.     

Mechanical properties of drawn poly(methyl methacrylate) filled with ultrafine particles

The elastic and yield properties of drawn poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) filled with ultrafine SiO₂ are described as functions of filler content and size. The drawn PMMA composites were made by uniaxially drawing to x4.0 at 100°C and at a rate of 20 mm/min. Four compliance values, i.e., S₃₃, S₁₁, S₁₃, and S₄₄ were determined. These values decreased with filler content and decreasing filler size. The relative compliance values S^de/S^do(S^de is the compliance of drawn PMMA composites and S^do is that of drawn unfilled PMMA) are almost equivalently changed with changes in filler content. The elastic properties of drawn PMMA composites are thus reinforced isotopically. This is characteristic of PMMA which has a large side group. The yield behavior of drawn PMMA composites have similar filler size and content dependence to those of elastic properties except that the transverse yield stresses become more brittle with filler content. The anisotropy in yield stress is relatively larger than that of elastic properties. This is probably because the anti-reiforcing effect, such as fibrillation becomes prominent with increasing filler content in the perpendicular direction.     

Treatment of Chronic Kidney Disease with Extracellular Vesicles from Mesenchymal Stem Cells and CD133+ Expanded Cells: A Comparative Preclinical Analysis

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is characterized by structural abnormalities and the progressive loss of kidney function. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) from human umbilical cord tissue (hUCT)-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and expanded human umbilical cord blood (hUCB)-derived CD133⁺ cells (eCD133⁺) maintain the characteristics of the parent cells, providing a new form of cell-free treatment. We evaluated the effects of EVs from hUCT-derived MSCs and hUCB-derived CD133⁺ cells on rats with CDK induced by an adenine-enriched diet. EVs were isolated by ultracentrifugation and characterized by nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA) and electron microscopy. The animals were randomized and divided into the MSC-EV group, eEPC-EV group and control group. Infusions occurred on the seventh and 14th days after CKD induction. Evaluations of kidney function were carried out by biochemical and histological analyses. Intense labeling of the α-SMA protein was observed when comparing the control with MSC-EVs. In both groups treated with EVs, a significant increase in serum albumin was observed, and the increase in cystatin C was inhibited. The results indicated improvements in renal function in CKD, demonstrating the therapeutic potential of EVs derived from MSCs and eCD133⁺ cells and suggesting the possibility that in the future, more than one type of EV will be used concurrently.     

Am1 MO Study of Benzene Nitro Derivatives

Molecular properties of benzene nitro derivatives were investigated by using semi-empirical MO calculations. As the results, the molecular structures and the rotational barrier of the nitro group calculated by AM1 showed a good agreement with the experimental values. The heats of formation in gaseous and condensed phases were obtained by considering isodesmic reactions. By this procedure, the heat of formation of hexanitrobenzene in solid phase was calculated to be +22.7 kcal/mol. The detonation parameters were also calculated by using four equations of state. The predicted detonation velocities showed a good agreement with the experimental values.     

Vitamin E reduces cholesterol esterification and uptake of acetylated low density lipoprotein in macrophages

The effects of vitamin E on cholesteryl ester (CE) metabolism in 1774 cells were examined. Pretreatment of 1774 cells with vitamin E at concentrations above 50 μM significantly decreased acetylated low density lipoprotein (LDL)-induced incorporation of [¹⁴C]oleate into CF in cells in a dose-dependent manner. This was partly due to vitamin E Also significantly inhibiting the uptake of [³H]CE-labeled acetylated LDL by 1774 cells. A trend existed toward suppression of acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) activity in the cell lysate at high vitamin E concentration, but there was no effect on hydrolysis of CE. These data indicate that vitamin E reduces the uptake of modified LDL and suppresses ACAT activity, resulting in less cholesterol esterification in macrophages; a novel mechanism underlying the antiatherogenic properties of vitamin E.     

Thermal behaviors and flame‐retardancy of styrene–ethylene–butadiene–styrene–block copolymer containing various additives

The thermal behaviors and the flame‐retardancy of styrene–ethylene–butadiene–styrene–block copolymer containing various additives were studied. The combustion was measured by the Underwriter laboratory (UL) test and cone calorimeter test and thermogravimetric analysis and program‐mass spectroscopy were applied to analyze the thermal behaviors. The blend with halogen additives showed the best result in the UL test. However, the blend with red‐phosphorous was the best in the cone calorimeter test. As the styrene sequence in the copolymer tended to degradate at a lower temperature, the major scission products spouted out from the polymer surface originated from polystyrene. The shorter the ignition times of the blends with red‐phosphorous were, the lower the peak heat release rates were. It was an interesting phenomenon because it suggested that the chemical structure of the residue changed to more stable polymers. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 104: 156–161, 2007     

A Multiple‐Labeling Strategy for Nonribosomal Peptide Synthetases Using Active‐Site‐Directed Proteomic Probes for Adenylation Domains

Genetic approaches have greatly contributed to our understanding of nonribosomal peptide biosynthetic machinery; however, proteomic investigations are limited. Here, we developed a highly sensitive detection strategy for multidomain nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs) by using a multiple‐labeling technique with active‐site‐directed probes for adenylation domains. When applied to gramicidin S‐producing and ‐nonproducing strains of Aneurinibacillus migulanus (DSM 5759 and DSM 2895, respectively), the multiple technique sensitively detected an active multidomain NRPS (GrsB) in lysates obtained from the organisms. This functional proteomics method revealed an unknown inactive precursor (or other inactive form) of GrsB in the nonproducing strain. This method provides a new option for the direct detection, functional analysis, and high‐resolution identification of low‐abundance active NRPS enzymes in native proteomic environments.     

Miscibility and hydrolytic degradation in alkaline solution of poly(l-lactide) and poly(methyl methacrylate) blends

Poly(l-lactide) (PLLA) was melt blended with poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) using a two-roll mill. The miscibility and hydrolytic degradation of the blend films were characterized. It was found that PLLA/PMMA blend has high miscibility in the amorphous state because only single T_g was observed in the DSC and DMA measurements. In alkaline solution, the hydrolytic degradation rate of the blends whose PMMA content is higher than 30 wt% was decelerated while the rate of the blends whose PMMA content is lower than 30 wt% was accelerated. That is, the hydrolytic degradation rate of the blends could be widely controlled by PMMA content in the blend. It was also found that only PLLA was hydrolyzed and eluted into alkaline solution, while PMMA remained during alkaline hydrolysis.