Hydrogel of biodegradable cellulose derivatives. I. Radiation‐induced crosslinking of CMC

Radiation crosslinking of carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) with a degree of substitution (DS) from 0.7 to 2.2 was the subject of the current investigation. CMC was irradiated in solid‐state and aqueous solutions at various irradiation doses. The DS and the concentration of the aqueous solution had a remarkable affect on the crosslinking of CMC. Irradiation of CMC, even with a high DS, 2.2 in solid state, and a low DS, 0.7 in 10% aqueous solution, resulted in degradation. However, it was found that irradiation of CMC with a relatively high DS, 1.32, led to crosslinking in a 5% aqueous solution, and 20% CMC gave the highest gel fraction. CMC with a DS of 2.2 induced higher crosslinking than that with a DS of 1.32 at lower doses with the same concentration. Hence, it was apparent that a high DS and a high concentration in an aqueous solution were favorable for high crosslinking of CMC. It is assumed that high radiation crosslinking of CMC was induced by the increased mobility of its molecules in water and by the formation of CMC radicals from the abstraction of H atoms from macromolecules in the intermediate products of water radiolysis. A preliminary biodegradation study confirmed that crosslinked CMC hydrogel can be digested by a cellulase enzyme. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 78: 278–283, 2000     

Suppression of Bone Necrosis around Tooth Extraction Socket in a MRONJ-like Mouse Model by E-rhBMP-2 Containing Artificial Bone Graft Administration

Medication-related osteonecrosis of the jaw (MRONJ) is related to impaired bone healing conditions in the maxillomandibular bone region as a complication of bisphosphonate intake. Although there are several hypotheses for the onset of MRONJ symptoms, one of the possible causes is the inhibition of bone turnover and blood supply leading to bone necrosis. The optimal treatment strategy for MRONJ has not been established either. BMP-2, a member of the TGF-β superfamily, is well known for regulating bone remodeling and homeostasis prenatally and postnatally. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to evaluate whether cyclophosphamide/zoledronate (CY/ZA) induces necrosis of the bone surrounding the tooth extraction socket, and to examine the therapeutic potential of BMP-2 in combination with the hard osteoinductive biomaterial, β-tricalcium phosphate (β-TCP), in the prevention and treatment of alveolar bone loss around the tooth extraction socket in MRONJ-like mice models. First, CY/ZA was intraperitoneally administered for three weeks, and alveolar bone necrosis was evaluated before and after tooth extraction. Next, the effect of BMP-2/β-TCP was investigated in both MRONJ-like prevention and treatment models. In the prevention model, CY/ZA was continuously administered for four weeks after BMP-2/β-TCP transplantation. In the treatment model, CY/ZA administration was suspended after transplantation of BMP-2/β-TCP. The results showed that CY/ZA induced a significant decrease in the number of empty lacunae, a sign of bone necrosis, in the alveolar bone around the tooth extraction socket after tooth extraction. Histological analysis showed a significant decrease in the necrotic alveolar bone around tooth extraction sockets in the BMP-2/β-TCP transplantation group compared to the non-transplanted control group in both MRONJ-like prevention and treatment models. However, bone mineral density, determined by micro-CT analysis, was significantly higher in the BMP-2/β-TCP transplanted group than in the control group in the prevention model only. These results clarified that alveolar bone necrosis around tooth extraction sockets can be induced after surgical intervention under CY/ZA administration. In addition, transplantation of BMP-2/β-TCP reduced the necrotic alveolar bone around the tooth extraction socket. Therefore, a combination of BMP-2/β-TCP could be an alternative approach for both prevention and treatment of MRONJ-like symptoms.     

High-melt-strength polypropylene with electron beam irradiation in the presence of polyfunctional monomers

High-melt-strength polypropylene (PP) was achieved with irradiation by an electron beam generated from an accelerator in the presence of polyfunctional monomers (PFM). Among 16 PFMs, the relatively shorter molecular chain bifunctional monomers such as 1,4-butanediol diacrylate (BDDA) and 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate (HDDA) were the most effective for enhancing the melt strength of PP. The concentration and dose of the HDDA to obtain the high melt strength PP in irradiation under nitrogen gas atmosphere were 1.5 mmol/100 g PP and 1 kGy, respectively. DSC measurement and dynamic mechanical analysis showed that the thermal behavior of the high-melt-strength PP was different from that of the original PP. Crystallinity and crystallization temperature during cooling after heating were lower and higher in high melt strength PP than original PP, respectively. Elongational viscosity at 180°C of the high-melt-strength PP showed a remarkable increase at a certain elongational time with constant strain rate, demonstrating the typical property of high-melt-strength samples. This implies that a few higher molecular chains of PP, formed by intermolecular combination of its chain by HDDA in irradiation, give higher melt strength to induce entanglement of molecular chains. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Enhancement of Anti-Tumoral Immunity by β-Casomorphin-7 Inhibits Cancer Development and Metastasis of Colorectal Cancer

β-Casomorphin-7 (BCM) is a degradation product of β-casein, a milk component, and has been suggested to affect the immune system. However, its effect on mucosal immunity, especially anti-tumor immunity, in cancer-bearing individuals is not clear. We investigated the effects of BCM on lymphocytes using an in vitro system comprising mouse splenocytes, a mouse colorectal carcinogenesis model, and a mouse orthotopic colorectal cancer model. Treatment of mouse splenocytes with BCM in vitro reduced numbers of cluster of differentiation (CD) 20⁺ B cells, CD4⁺ T cells, and regulatory T cells (Tregs), and increased CD8⁺ T cells. Administration of BCM and the CD10 inhibitor thiorphan (TOP) to mice resulted in similar alterations in the lymphocyte subsets in the spleen and intestinal mucosa. BCM was degraded in a concentration- and time-dependent manner by the neutral endopeptidase CD10, and the formed BCM degradation product did not affect the lymphocyte counts. Furthermore, degradation was completely suppressed by TOP. In the azoxymethane mouse colorectal carcinogenesis model, the incidence of aberrant crypt foci, adenoma, and adenocarcinoma was reduced by co-treatment with BCM and TOP. Furthermore, when CT26 mouse colon cancer cells were inoculated into the cecum of syngeneic BALB/c mice and concurrently treated with BCM and TOP, infiltration of CD8⁺ T cells was promoted, and tumor growth and liver metastasis were suppressed. These results suggest that by suppressing the BCM degradation system, the anti-tumor effect of BCM is enhanced and it can suppress the development and progression of colorectal cancer.     

Friction and wear properties of rice husk ceramics under dry condition

The friction and wear behaviors of rice husk (RH) ceramics, prepared by carbonizing the mixture of rice husk and phenol resin at 900 °C in N₂ gas environment, sliding against high carbon chromium steel (JIS SUJ2), austenitic stainless steel (JIS SUS304), and Al₂O₃ under dry condition were investigated using a ball-on-disk tribometer. The test results show that the friction coefficient of RH ceramics takes very low values 0.05–0.08 and 0.06–0.11 sliding against SUJ2 and SUS304, respectively, and much higher values around 0.14–0.23 against Al₂O₃. It was also shown that SUJ2 provides the lowest specific wear rate values below 10⁻⁹ mm²/N, while, those of SUS304 and Al₂O₃ mostly stayed between 10⁻⁹ to 10⁻⁸ mm²/N range. The worn surfaces of counterparts were observed with optical microscopy and analyzed using cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and electron diffraction. It was suggested that the tribological behaviors of RH ceramics are closely related with the formation of a transferred film, consisted of amorphous silica and carbon particles, on a counterpart surface. The transferred film was formed readily on SUJ2 balls, whereas for SUS304 the presence of the film was subject of the sliding conditions. Moreover, formation of the transferred film could not be detected on Al₂O₃ counterparts.     

Growth of ZnO crystal on sapphire and nitridated sapphire substrates at 1000 °C by halide vapor phase epitaxy

Using a halide vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) technique in which the starting materials are ZnCl₂ generated by the reaction between high purity Zn metal (7 N grade) and Cl₂ gas, and H₂O, ZnO crystals have been grown at a high temperature of 1000 °C on sapphire substrates with and without surface nitridation treatment. It was found that the nitridation treatment resulted in a change of the (112?0) sapphire surface to a (0001) AlN structure, leading to two possible sets of orientations for (0001) ZnO crystals. In addition, the nitridation treatment leads to a smaller average ZnO grain size and a higher density of nuclei.     

Design Study of Top Lid with Clamp Structure in JT-60SA Cryostat

JT-60SA is a fully superconducting coil tokamak upgraded from the JT-60U. This paper focused on the integrity of the top lid of cryostat in JT-60SA. The design requirement for the cryostat in normal operations is to achieve vacuum insulation of 10 3 Pa, and the top flange of the top lid is lightly welded onto its body flange. The weld is tensile-loaded by bending deformation of the top lid due to vacuum pressure of external 0.1 MPa. This weld integrity is evaluated with tensile-load reduction, which results in clamp reinforcement. The structural integrity of the top lid is validated.     

Improved rate-distortion optimized video coding using non-integer bit estimation and multiple Lambda search

Many modern video encoders use the Lagrangian rate-distortion optimization (RDO) algorithm for mode decisions during the compression procedure. For each encoding stage, this approach involves minimizing a cost, which is a function of rate, distortion and a multiplier called Lambda. This paper proposes to improve the RDO process by applying two modifications. The first modification is to increase the accuracy of rate estimation, which is achieved by computing a non-integer number of bits for arithmetic coding of the syntax elements. This leads to a more accurate cost computation and therefore a better mode decision. The second modification is to search and adjust the value of Lambda based on the characteristics of each coding stage. For the encoder used, this paper proposes to search multiple values of Lambda for the intra-4×4mode decision. Moreover, a simple shift in Lambda value is proposed for motion estimation. Each of these modifications offers a certain gain in RDO performance, and, when all are combined, an average bit-rate saving of up to 7.0% can be achieved for the H.264/AVC codec while the same concept is applicable to the H.265/HEVC codec as well. The extra added complexity is contained to a certain level, and is also adjustable according to the processing resources available.