Synthesis and characterization of fully conjugated porphyrin tapes

meso-meso, ß-ß, ß-ß Triply-linked zinc(II) porphyrin tapes were synthesized by powerful oxidation of meso-meso-linked zinc(II) porphyrin arrays up to tetramers with DDQ-Sc(OTf)₃. Coordination of butylamine to zinc(II) ions of porphyrin rings dissociates their aggregation, resulting in clear NMR spectra and sharper red-shifted absorption bands.     

Gold Nanoparticle and Gold Nanorod Embedded PEDOT:PSS Thin Films as Organic Thermoelectric Materials

We report the thermoelectric properties of organic–inorganic hybrid thin films composed of conductive polymer, poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), and inorganic gold nanomaterials. Two kinds of material with different shapes, namely rod-shaped gold nanorods (AuNRs) and spherical gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), were used in this study. The PEDOT:PSS/AuNR hybrid films showed an enhancement in electrical conductivity (σ ≈ 2000 S cm^?1) and concurrently a decrease in the Seebeck coefficient (S ≈ 12 μV K^?1) with increase in the AuNR concentration. This behavior indicates the presence of the hybrid effect of AuNR on the thermoelectric properties. From scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observation of the highly concentrated PEDOT:PSS/AuNR hybrid films, the formation of a percolated structure of AuNRs was confirmed, which probably contributed to the large enhancement in σ. For the highly concentrated PEDOT:PSS/AuNP films, a dense distribution of AuNPs in the film was also observed, but this did not lead to a major change in the σ value, probably due to the less conductive connections between NPs. This suggests that one-dimensional particles with larger aspect ratio (rods and wires) are favorable nanocomponents for development of highly conductive hybrid materials.     

Carbon Nanotube–CoF2 Multifunctional Cathode for Lithium Ion Batteries: Effect of Electrolyte on Cycle Stability

Transition metal fluorides (MF_x) offer remarkably high theoretical energy density. However, the low cycling stability, low electrical and ionic conductivity of metal fluorides have severely limited their applications as conversion‐type cathode materials for lithium ion batteries. Here, a scalable and low‐cost strategy is reported on the fabrication of multifunctional cobalt fluoride/carbon nanotube nonwoven fabric nanocomposite, which demonstrates a combination of high capacity (near‐theoretical, ) and excellent mechanical properties. Its strength and modulus of toughness exceed that of many aluminum alloys, cast iron, and other structural materials, fulfilling the use of MF_x‐based materials in batteries with load‐bearing capabilities. In the course of this study, cathode dissolution in conventional electrolytes has been discovered as the main reason that leads to the rapid growth of the solid electrolyte interphase layer and attributes to rapid cell degradation. And such largely overlooked degradation mechanism is overcome by utilizing electrolyte comprising a fluorinated solvent, which forms a protective ionically conductive layer on the cathode and anode surfaces. With this approach, 93% capacity retention is achieved after 200 cycles at the current density of 100 mA g⁻¹ and over 50% after 10 000 cycles at the current density of 1000 mA g⁻¹.     

Structural, electrical and bending properties of transparent conductive Ga-doped ZnO films on polymer substrates

We investigated the characteristics of highly transparent conductive Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) polycrystalline films of 100 nm thickness deposited on glass and polymer substrates. GZO films were deposited by ion plating with dc-arc discharge. We developed multiple-deposition method to obtain various deposition process temperatures lower than 100 °C. Cross-sectional SEM images show that all the GZO films have columnar structure. Analysis of data obtained by XRD measurements shows that all the GZO films with wurtzite structure exhibit highly (002) orientation perpendicular to the substrate. The resistivity of the GZO films deposited on polyester and glass substrates were 5.0 × 10^-4 Ω · cm. The mechanical bending properties of the GZO films were investigated by comparing the sheet resistance determined before and after a bending test with various bending diameters. For the bending diameter of more than 30 mm, all the GZO films exhibited excellent bending properties with no change in sheet resistance. For the bending diameter of less than 20 mm, we found the sheet resistance affected by the bending. We demonstrated that our multiple-deposition method to achieve different controllable polyester substrate temperatures is highly suitable for improving the bending properties of GZO films.     

PCR-RFLP identification of prohibited animal derived DNA in animal feed

A method for confirming identification of prohibited species tissue in animal feed has been developed on the basis of PCR-RFLP analysis. In Japan, to prevent the spread of BSE through animal feed, the use of animal protein in feed has been regulated. Species-specific PCR detection of prohibited species materials in feed has been used as one of a series of laboratory tests to ensure the proper implementation of the feed regulations. However, since the result of this PCR method is determined only by amplicon length, it is sometimes necessary to confirm whether or not the positive result is due to the effect of a non-specific reaction. For this purpose, DNA sequencing is the best way to confirm the test result but it is not suitable for routine analysis because of the required time and cost. In this study, we developed an easy and rapid method to confirm the species identification (mammals, ruminants and cattle) by using 4 restriction enzymes: SmlI, MboI, BlnI and Hpy188III. This PCR-RFLP method, which ensures identification of prohibited animal species in feed, is useful for enhancing the reliability of feed inspection for BSE prevention. This method will be added to the Official Methods of Feed Analysis.     

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.     

A versatile method for analysis of serine/threonine posttranslational modifications by β-elimination in the presence of pyrazolone analogues

Post-translational modifications (PTMs) of serine and threonine occur by diverse mechanisms, including phosphorylation, sulfation, and various types of sugar chain modifications, making characterization of the resulting structures very labor-intensive. Moreover, to fully understand the biological functions of PTMs, both the sites of modification and the modified structures must be analyzed. The present work describes a novel, versatile strategy in which the released O-glycan and the formerly glycosylated/phosphorylated peptide are labeled and thus amenable to further study. In this approach, glycopeptides/phosphopeptides are subjected to β-elimination in the presence of pyrazolone derivatives (BEP), which in the same reaction labels the formerly glycosylated/phosphorylated peptide. The reaction is essentially a β-elimination/Michael addition in which a carbon-carbon bond-forming Michael donor rather than a heteroatomic Michael donor is used. The O-glycans released upon BEP are recovered as bis-pyrazolone derivatives, without any detectable side reaction (peeling). Using this technique, the O-glycan profiles of model mucin-type glycoproteins were successfully analyzed. The BEP strategy discriminates between phosphorylated and GlcNAcylated peptides, since cleaved GlcNAc is detectable. In addition, both the released O-glycan and the formerly glycosylated peptide can be selectively labeled by different reagents via a β-elimination reaction performed in the presence of pyrazolone and the thiol Michael donor.     

Simultaneous analysis of heparan sulfate, chondroitin/dermatan sulfates, and hyaluronan disaccharides by glycoblotting-assisted sample preparation followed by single-step zwitter-ionic-hydrophilic interaction chromatography

Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) play important roles in cell adhesion and growth, maintenance of extracellular matrix (ECM) integrity, and signal transduction. To fully understand the biological functions of GAGs, there is a growing need for sensitive, rapid, and quantitative analysis of GAGs. The present work describes a novel analytical technique that enables high throughput cellular/tissue glycosaminoglycomics for all three families of uronic acid-containing GAGs, hyaluronan (HA), chondroitin sulfate (CS)/dermatan sulfate (DS), and heparan sulfate (HS). A one-pot purification and labeling procedure for GAG Δ-disaccharides was established by chemo-selective ligation of disaccharides onto high density hydrazide beads (glycoblotting) and subsequent labeling by fluorescence. The 17 most common disaccharides (eight comprising HS, eight CS/DS, and one comprising HA) could be separated with a single chromatography for the first time by employing a zwitter-ionic type of hydrophilic-interaction chromatography column. These novel analytical techniques were able to precisely characterize the glycosaminoglycome in various cell types including embryonal carcinoma cells and ocular epithelial tissues (cornea, conjunctiva, and limbus).     

Half-data-page insertion method for increasing recording density in angular multiplexing holographic memory

We have developed a method to use a half-size data page between two full-size data pages to increase the recording density in angular multiplexing holographic memory up to 1.5× as much as the conventional angular multiplexing sequence. In our recording sequence, the full- and half-size data pages are alternately multiplexed. This is because each plane wave from various points in a data page has different angular selectivity. A half-size data page has higher angular selectivity than a full-size data page. The required angular intervals were estimated by numerical simulation taking holographic medium tilt into account. Also, an angular multiplexing experiment using the half-data-page insertion method resulted in a low bit error rate of the order of 10(-3), which is sufficient for practical use.     

Strain rate and temperature dependence of tensile strength for carbon/glass fibre hybrid composites

The tensile strength of epoxy resin reinforced with a random planar orientation of short carbon and glass fibres increased as the strain rate increased, and the increase in tensile strength became slightly remarkable with increasing temperature. The strain rate-temperature superposition was held for each composite. The strain rate and temperature dependence of tensile strength of composites could be estimated based on the dependence of the mechanical properties of the matrix resin, the interfacial yield shear strength and the critical fibre length. The strain rate and temperature dependence of the tensile strength of the hybrid composite could be estimated by the additive rule of hybrid mixtures, using the strain rate and temperature dependence of the tensile strength of both composites. The experimental values at a higher rate were lower than the calculated values. It was hypothesized that this may have been caused by the ineffective fibres formed during preparation of the specimen.