Molecular Hydrogen Enhances Proliferation of Cancer Cells That Exhibit Potent Mitochondrial Unfolded Protein Response

Molecular hydrogen ameliorates pathological states in a variety of human diseases, animal models, and cell models, but the effects of hydrogen on cancer have been rarely reported. In addition, the molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of hydrogen remain mostly unelucidated. We found that hydrogen enhances proliferation of four out of seven human cancer cell lines (the responders). The proliferation-promoting effects were not correlated with basal levels of cellular reactive oxygen species. Expression profiling of the seven cells showed that the responders have higher gene expression of mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) molecules than the non-responders. In addition, the responders have higher mitochondrial mass, higher mitochondrial superoxide, higher mitochondrial membrane potential, and higher mitochondrial spare respiratory capacity than the non-responders. In the responders, hydrogen provoked mitochondrial unfolded protein response (mtUPR). Suppression of cell proliferation by rotenone, an inhibitor of mitochondrial ETC complex I, was rescued by hydrogen in the responders. Hydrogen triggers mtUPR and induces cell proliferation in cancer cells that have high basal and spare mitochondrial ETC activities.     

Colorless polyimides derived from 1S,2S,4R,5R-cyclohexanetetracarboxylic dianhydride,self-orientation behavior during solution casting,and their optoelectronic applications

A novel cycloaliphatic monomer for polyimides (PI), 1S,2S,4R,5R-cyclohexanetetracarboxylic dianhydride (H′-PMDA) is proposed in this work. H′-PMDA shows high polymerizability with various diamines in contrast to its isomer, i.e., conventional hydrogenated pyromellitic dianhydride (H-PMDA) and leads to highly flexible and colorless PI films with very high T_g's. In particular, the combinations with rigid structures of diamines give rise to PIs with significantly decreased coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) owing to high extents of in-plane chain orientation induced by thermal imidization, whereas the H-PMDA-based counterparts do not. The decreased CTE reflects structural rigidity/linearity of the H′-PMDA-based diimide units as supported by liquid crystallinity observed in the corresponding model compound. Solution casting of a chemically imidized PI derived from H′-PMDA and 2,2′-bis(trifluoromethyl)benzidine (TFMB) results in a lower CTE than that of the thermally imidized counterpart, suggesting the presence of a self-orientation phenomenon during solvent evaporation. The mechanism is proposed in this work. H′-PMDA/TFMB and its copolymer systems can be useful as plastic substrates in image display devices and/or novel coating-type optical compensation films.     

Excess micromotion compensation of trapped ions in a linear Paul trap for trace isotope analysis

Excess micromotion of trapped calcium ions was detected and compensated in our linear Paul trap apparatus for trace isotope analysis. The micromotion was detected by Charge-coupled device (CCD). camera and radio frequency (rf) correlation method. We found that 230 and 2280 V of compensation voltages were needed for x- and y-axis compensation in our apparatus, respectively. The z-axis micromotion was confirmed by the experiment and its cause was investigated by finding a shape of z-axis confinement field. The confinement field was indeed distorted in our apparatus and it gave rise to the trapped ion to shift from potential center. And the micromotion of r-direction was transferred to the z-axis by the distorted confinement field. The z-axis micromotion was suppressed by increasing cap voltage of trap.     

Annealing Effect in GaDyN on Optical and Magnetic Properties

The annealing effect on the optical and magnetic properties of the GaDyN layers was studied. The PL intensities of yellow and green bands as well as the intra-4f orbital transition of Dy³⁺ ions were found to decrease for the samples annealed at 900 and 1000 °C. It is supposed that the intra-4f orbital transition is related to the broad peak luminescence coming from defects. Increasing the annealing temperature, the magnetization becomes smaller. It is considerable that the number of electrons coming from defects was reduced by the annealing treatments and that the ferromagnetism in GaDyN is attributed as carrier induced ferromagnetism.     

Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy on Overdoped Bi2Sr2?xLaxCuO6+δ

We have performed low-temperature scanning tunneling spectroscopy on overdoped Bi₂Sr_2−x La _x CuO_6+δ (x=0.1 and 0.2) at 4.2 K. The tunneling spectra in both samples obviously exhibit two energy gaps: one has clear gap structure with sharp gap edge peaks, and another is observed as kinks inside the larger gap. Both the energy gaps inhomogeneously vary on the surface at nanometer scale, and their values positively correlate each other. The distributions of both gaps normalized to the mean values are identical independent of the doping level. These results suggest that the two gaps are commonly affected by the source of the electronic disorder.     

Model analysis on dispersion characteristics of fine particles in Newtonian molten polymer

In this paper, a model estimating the time-dependent distribution of cluster size consisting of fine particles in Newtonian molten polymer was proposed. The present model for agglomerative suspension was developed based on Usui’s thixotropy model, derived by taking the balance between shear breakup, shear coagulation and Brownian coagulation processes. The analysis was applied to the experimental results for silica/(ethylene methyl-meta acrylate copolymer) suspensions. The time variations of cluster size distributions, of viscosities and of the mean numbers of particles in a cluster were calculated and the results were compared with experimental results for the cases of shear rates from 0.2 to 10 s^?1 when the solid volume fraction was set at 0.15. From the results, it was found that the present model can estimated the steady state values of the slurry viscosity and the mean particle numbers in a cluster as well as Usui’s original model. However, the model could not sufficiently express the time variation of rheological characteristics due to the over-estimation of the contribution of shear rate when the cluster size is small.