Self‐Assembly of m‐Diethynylbenzene Macrocycles Containing Exoannular Chiral Side Chains

Induced circular dichroism (CD) spectra of the m‐diethynylbenzene macrocycles (S)‐ 2 and (R)‐ 2 that have exoannular chiral side chains are observed in a methanol/chloroform (8:2) solution, indicating the formation of chiral, helical aggregates in solution. Solid films prepared on the surface of quartz substrates by spin‐coating solutions of (S)‐ 2 also exhibit CD signals that are remarkably dependent on the solvent used for the spin‐coating. The relationship between the CD spectra and the morphology of the solid films observed by atomic force microscopy is discussed.     

Oligonucleotide ligation assay for detecting mutations in the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 pol gene that are associated with resistance to zidovudine, didanosine, and lamivudine

Nonpregnant adults with group B streptococcus bacteremia were identified by active surveillance in three hospitals. Serum samples collected within 2 days of the time of blood culture were assayed for IgG antibodies to the capsular polysaccharide of the infecting strain: serotype Ia (3 isolates), III (5 isolates), or V (4 isolates). In 7 of 12 bacteremia episodes, the serum level of IgG to the infecting isolate was > or = 3.5 microg/mL, higher than the 1-2 microg/mL level thought to be protective in neonates. Among selected acute-phase sera, 4 of 5 that contained > or = 3.5 microg/mL specific IgG mediated efficient opsonophagocytic killing of the corresponding group B streptococcus isolate in vitro. High levels of specific antibodies during the acute phase of invasive group B streptococcus infection in nonpregnant adults may reflect a rapid antibody response to infection or, in some cases, may indicate that susceptibility is due to defects in other immune effectors.     

Growth hormone and prolactin stimulate tyrosine phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate-1, -2, and -3, their association with p85 phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase), and concomitantly PI3-kinase activation via JAK2 kinase

Growth hormone (GH) and prolactin (PRL) binding to their receptors, which belong to the cytokine receptor superfamily, activate Janus kinase (JAK) 2 tyrosine kinase, thereby leading to their biological actions. We recently showed that GH mainly stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation of epidermal growth factor receptor and its association with Grb2, and concomitantly stimulated mitogen-activated protein kinase activity in liver, a major target tissue. Using specific antibodies, we now show that GH was also able to induce tyrosine phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1/IRS-2 in liver. In addition, the major tyrosine-phosphorylated protein in anti-p85 phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-kinase) immunoprecipitate from liver of wild-type mice was IRS-1, and IRS-2 in IRS-1 deficient mice, but not epidermal growth factor receptor. These data suggest that tyrosine phosphorylation of IRS-1 may be a major mechanism for GH-induced PI3-kinase activation in physiological target organ of GH, liver. We also show that PRL was able to induce tyrosine phosphorylation of both IRS-1 and IRS-2 in COS cells transiently transfected with PRLR and in CHO-PRLR cells. Moreover, we show that tyrosine phosphorylation of IRS-3 was induced by both GH and PRL in COS cells transiently transfected with IRS-3 and their cognate receptors. By using the JAK2-deficient cell lines or by expressing a dominant negative JAK2 mutant, we show that JAK2 is required for the GH- and PRL-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation of IRS-1, -2, and -3. Finally, a specific PI3-kinase inhibitor, wortmannin, completely blocked the anti-lipolytic effect of GH in 3T3 L1 adipocytes. Taken together, the role of IRS-1, -2, and -3 in GH and PRL signalings appears to be phosphorylated by JAK2, thereby providing docking sites for p85 PI3-kinase and activating PI3-kinase and its downstream biological effects.     

In situ hybridization analysis of leucomyosuppressin mRNA expression in the cockroach, Diploptera punctata

In the cockroach Diploptera punctata, sequencing of the cDNA for the insect myoinhibitory neuropeptide, leucomyosuppressin (LMS), has demonstrated that LMS is the only Phe-Met-Arg-Phe-amide (NH2) (FMRFamide)-related peptide to be encoded by this gene (Donly et al. [1996] Insect Biochem. Mol. Biol. 26:627-637). However, in the present study, high performance liquid chromatography analysis of brain extracts showed six discrete FMRFamide-like immunoreactive fractions, one of which co-eluted with LMS. This study compared the distribution of FMRFamide-related peptides visualized by immunohistochemistry with LMS mRNA expression demonstrated by in situ hybridization in D. punctata. Immunohistochemistry with a polyclonal antiserum generated against FMRFamide, but which recognizes extended RFamide peptides, demonstrated numerous RFamide-like immunoreactive cells and processes in both nervous and nonnervous tissues. RFamide-like immunoreactivity was found in cells and processes of the brain and optic lobes, the stomatogastric nervous system, including the frontal and ingluvial ganglia, and the suboesophageal ganglion. Immunoreactivity was also present in all ganglia of the ventral nerve cord and in the alimentary canal. Within the alimentary canal, positively stained processes were found in the crop, midgut, and hindgut, and immunoreactive endocrinelike cells were located in the midgut. In situ hybridization with a digoxigenin-labeled RNA probe spanning the entire LMS coding region showed cell bodies containing LMS mRNA in all ganglia studied, other than the ingluvial ganglion. Expression was most abundant in the brain and optic lobes and in the frontal and suboesophageal ganglia. LMS mRNA was also apparent, although less intensely, in all other ganglia of the ventral nerve cord. Within the alimentary canal, LMS mRNA-positive cells were only visible in the anterior portion of the midgut, in the endocrinelike cells. The appearance of LMS mRNA in the central nervous system, stomatogastric nervous system, and midgut suggests that LMS may play a central role in Diploptera and may be associated with feeding and digestion.     

Structure of a new isoflavone from fungi and Streptomyces inhibiting dopa decarboxylase

A new dopa decarboxylase inhibiting isoflavone has been isolated from culture filtrates of fungi and streptomyces and shown to be 3',4',5,7-tetrahydroxy-8-methoxyisoflavone.     

Effects of nanoprecipitation on the shape memory and material properties of an Ni-rich NiTiHf high temperature shape memory alloy

Shape memory properties of a Ni_50.3Ti_29.7Hf₂₀ (at.%) polycrystalline alloy were characterized after selected heat treatments. The effects of heat treatment temperature and time on the transformation temperatures (TTs) and temperature hysteresis were determined by differential scanning calorimetry. Thermal cycling under constant compressive stress was carried out to reveal the changes in transformation strain, temperature hysteresis, and TT as a function of stress. Isothermal stress cycling experiments were conducted to reveal the critical stresses, transformation strain, and stress hysteresis as a function of temperature. The crystal structure and lattice parameters of the transforming phases were determined by X-ray diffraction at selected temperatures. Precipitate characteristics and martensite morphology were revealed by transmission electron microscopy. Precipitation was found to alter the martensite morphology and significantly improve the shape memory properties of the Ni-rich NiTiHf alloy. For the peak aged condition shape memory strains of up to 3.6%, the lowest hysteresis, and a fully reversible superelastic response were observed at temperatures up to 240 °C. In general, the nickel-rich NiTiHf polycrystalline alloy exhibited a higher work output (≈16.5 J cm^?3) than other NiTi-based high temperature alloys.     

Structural classification and similarity measurement of malware

This paper proposes a new lightweight method that utilizes the growing hierarchical self‐organizing map (GHSOM) for malware detection and structural classification. It also shows a new method for measuring the structural similarity between classes. A dynamic link library (DLL) file is an executable file used in the Windows operating system that allows applications to share codes and other resources to perform particular tasks. In this paper, we classify different malware by the data mining of the DLL files used by the malware. Since the malware families are evolving quickly, they present many new problems, such as how to link them to other existing malware families. The experiment shows that our GHSOM‐based structural classification can solve these issues and generate a malware classification tree according to the similarity of malware families. © 2014 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Allergen inactivation with colloidal silica

We evaluated the allergen inactivating effect of colloidal silica by performing enzyme-liked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) whose wells were coated with 150 ng/mL of Japanese cedar pollen allergen (Cry j 1) or mite allergen (Der f 2). The allergens were almost 100% inactivated by 100 microg/mL of colloidal silica having a particle size 5 nm, and the inactivating effect was increased by aluminum binding to the surface of the colloidal silica. The results show that colloidal silica is a promising material for allergen inactivation. Since colloidal silica forms an insoluble nondispersive solid when dried, it is expected that airborne allergens can be reduced by binding them to colloidal silica.     

Energy‐efficient human probes for high‐resolution sensing in urban environments

Portable sensory devices carried by humans—which are referred to as Human Probes—facilitate easy‐to‐use sensing and monitoring of urban areas. However, when each Human Probe individually senses and transmits information, the sensing activity is inefficient in terms of energy consumption. In this paper, we propose Aquiba protocol in which the sensing activities carried out by the Human Probes are adjusted autonomously under different conditions. Aquiba involves cooperative sensing that helps in efficiently maintaining the desired sensing resolution, while minimizing overall energy consumption. To validate Aquiba protocol, we have conducted comprehensive simulations by including small‐scale and large‐scale scenarios along with applying three movement patterns of human. The simulation results demonstrate that Aquiba protocol is capable of providing high sensing resolution and reducing energy consumption substantially. © 2011 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.