Vasopressor effect of lysophosphatidic acid on spontaneously hypertensive rats and Wistar Kyoto rats

Early endothelial injury may play a role in the development of transplant arteriosclerosis. The present study documents early endothelial changes using a rat aortic graft model. Abdominal aortic allografts from PVG rats were orthotopically transplanted to DA rats. Controls were DA to DA transplants. Endothelial cell (EC) injury, regeneration, and leukocyte infiltration in the intima were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy and histological and immunocytochemical techniques. Nontransplanted aortic segments showed partial loss of ECs after 1 or 2 hr of preservation. Control isografts demonstrated extensive EC denudation and neutrophil adherence to residual ECs at 1 day post-transplantation. After 3 days, isografts showed continued regeneration of ECs in the central area and ingrowth of endothelium from both clamped sites in the recipient aorta. Reendothelialization was complete by day 14. Allografts showed similar findings to isografts up to day 3. In contrast to isografts, however, there was a secondary EC loss beginning at day 7. Monocytes/macrophages and T cells were noted to be adherent to residual ECs in 7- and 14-day allografts. At 20 days, ECs were absent from the luminal surface in the center of allografts. Endothelium did extend from clamped sites toward the midgraft region as in isografts. By 60 days allografts were completely reendothelialized. These results demonstrate that in both isografts and allografts there is initial EC loss due to mechanical trauma and ischemia/reperfusion injury, followed by partial reendothelialization. This latter process continues unabated in isografts, whereas in allografts the secondary EC loss occurs due to an allogenic response. This is followed by complete reendothelialization that occurs during the concurrent development of significant intimal hyperplasia.     

Performance evaluation of heat exchanger using alternative refrigerant R407C

R22 (HCFC22) has been widely used as the refrigerant in air conditioners. According to the Montreal protocol for ozone layer protection, the total production of HCFCs has been capped since the beginning of 1996. Zeotropic refrigerant mixture R407C and nearly azeotropic refrigerant mixture R410A have been selected as alternatives to R22. We examined refrigerant passages in heat exchangers used in heat pump‐type room air conditioners using zeotropic refrigerant R407C through simulation, and obtained the following conclusions. In an indoor heat exchanger, a counter flow configuration when operating as a condenser has higher temperature efficiency. When an outdoor heat exchanger operates as an evaporator, a configuration that suppresses the temperature glide by partially reducing the refrigerant passage not only produces high efficiency, but also reduces the frost formation on fins. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res, 31(8): 626–638, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/htj.10064     

Spontaneous stratification in composite films consisting of conjugated polymers and neat C60 prepared by electrophoretic deposition

The morphology of composite films consisting of conjugated polymers and C₆₀ prepared by electrophoretic deposition (EPD) has been studied. While C₆₀ exists as nanocrystals uniformly embedded in the composite films based on poly[2-methoxy-5-(2′-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylene vinylene], a spontaneous stratification of the composite films into polymer-C₆₀-mixture and C₆₀-microcrystal layers is observed in the films based on a polyfluorene derivative, poly[(9,9-dioctyl-2,7-divinylenefluorenylene)-alt-{2-methoxy-5-(2-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylene}]. The results suggest that EPD can be a useful tool for controlling the morphology of bulk heterojunction systems for organic photocells.     

Rapid erasing of wettability patterns based on TiO2-PDMS composite films

TiO₂-polydimethylsiloxane (TiO₂-PDMS) composite films are prepared using the sol–gel method from a Ti(OBu)₄–benzoylacetone solution containing PDMS. The prepared films are cured by irradiation with ultraviolet (UV) light. Structural changes in the films after UV irradiation are confirmed by UV–vis absorption experiments, which show that an absorption band characteristic of the benzoylacetonate chelate rings disappears. This finding is ascribed to structural changes associated with the dissociation of the chelate rings. The IR spectra of the thin films exhibit a broad absorption band after UV irradiation, indicating that a Ti–O–Ti network forms in the thin film. Contact angles are measured for the TiO₂-PDMS thin films, showing wettability conversion from hydrophobic to superhydrophilic states by irradiation with oxygen plasma for 1 s. This phenomenon is explained by XPS experiments which reveal that the number of carbon atoms decreases, whereas the number of oxygen atoms increases on the surface of the TiO₂-PDMS composite films. Finally, hydrophobic–superhydrophilic patterns are fabricated based on a patterned TiO₂-PDMS composite film. The film displays a rapid change to superhydrophilicity over the whole film surface upon plasma irradiation for 1 s, which means that the wettability patterns are rapidly erasable.     

Changes in textural properties of Japanese tenobe somen noodles during storage

Tenobe somen (TS) noodles are traditional Japanese wheat-based noodles that are produced manually using a sophisticated method called tenobe (literally, "hand stretched"). In the tension test, both the tensile strength and extensibility of TS noodles were greater than those of machine-made (MS) noodles. In the biting test, the chewy texture of TS noodles was realized in the analysis of the force-deformation curves of each type of somen noodles. The creep test indicated a clear difference between the external and internal elasticity of TS noodles. The texture of TS noodles appeared to change dramatically during storage in the rainy season. In addition, firm and chewy textures of TS noodles stored for 20 mo were observed. Similar to the results from our previous study, TS noodles exhibited significantly higher dityrosine content than the flour used for their manufacture. However, the increase in the dityrosine content during the manufacturing process was not observed in the case of MS noodles. Although clear textural differences were observed between TS noodles stored for 0 and 20 mo, the dityrosine contents of TS noodles at each stage were not largely different.     

Conjoint analysis on the purchase intent for traditional fermented soy product (natto) among Japanese housewives

Abstract: The effect of sensory and extrinsic attributes on consumer intentions to purchase the Japanese traditional fermented soybean product natto was evaluated using conjoint analysis. Six attributes with 2 levels each were chosen and manipulated: price (high compared with low), the country of origin of the soybeans (domestic compared with imported), stickiness (strong compared with moderate), smell (rich compared with moderate), attached seasonings (attached compared with no attached seasonings), and the environmental friendliness of the packaging (high compared with low). A fractional factorial design was applied and 8 hypothetical product labels were produced. A sample of 479 Japanese housewives ranked these product labels based on their purchase intentions. Overall purchase intention was affected by country of origin, attached seasonings, and price; those attributes accounted for 81.0%, while the sensory attributes of the product accounted for 19.0% of purchase intents. In order to estimate market segments for the natto products based on consumer preference, a cluster analysis was performed. It identified 4 segments of consumers: 1 oriented to attached seasonings, another conscious of the price, and the other 2 oriented to origins. The behavioral and demographic characteristics of the respondents had a limited influence on segment membership. Practical Application: This research was conducted to understand how consumers valuate various sensory and nonsensory product attributes based on their assessment of the overall product in the case of Japanese fermented soy product (natto). The data of this research would be of great importance both in understanding consumer behavior and in designing strategies for product development.     

A QoS-aware routing mechanism for multi-channel multi-interface ad-hoc networks

To accommodate real-time multimedia application while satisfying application QoS requirements in a wireless ad-hoc network, we need QoS control mechanisms. In this paper, we propose a new routing mechanism to support real-time multimedia communication by efficiently utilize the limited wireless network capacity. Our mechanism considers a wireless ad-hoc network composed of nodes equipped with multiple network interfaces to each of which a different wireless channel can be assigned. By embedding information about channel usage in control messages of OLSRv2, each node obtains a view of topology and bandwidth information of the whole network. Based on the obtained information, a source node determines a logical path with the maximum available bandwidth to satisfy application QoS requirements. Through simulation experiments, we confirmed that our proposal effectively routed multimedia packets over a logical path avoiding congested links. As a result, the load on a network is well distributed and the network can accommodate more sessions than QOLSR. We also conducted practical experiments using wireless ad-hoc relay nodes with four network interfaces and verified the practicality of our proposal.     

Venous aneurysm of the cephalic vein: report of a case

We herein report the rare case of a 41-year-old Japanese woman in whom a venous aneurysm in the left cephalic vein was excised under local anesthesia. Histological examination revealed significant diminution in the number and size of muscle and elastic fibers in the aneurysm wall. Conceivably, a combination of endophlebohypertrophy and a congenital focal defect of the elastic and muscle fibers might have contributed to the development of this venous aneurysm.