Temperature effects on ion-desorption dynamics from solid Ne by low-energy ion impacts

Interactions between low-energy ions and solid rare gases have been investigated by observing desorbed ions. When low-energy ions were injected into solid Ne, we found that the kinetic energy of desorbed cluster ions significantly increased with irradiation time for a film thickness of several hundred monolayers. This result can be explained by charge-up (i.e., electronic holes) in the solid Ne. The kinetic energy of the desorbed ions is considered to be proportional to the number of holes created in the solid by the ion impacts. The solid’s temperature effects on the desorbed-ion kinetic energy can be understood as a dependence on the diffusion rate of the holes. The temperature was controlled between 4.7 and 7.0 K. The activation energy of hole-hopping transport is estimated at 0.7 meV based on the slope of Arrhenius plots.     

Preparation of π-conjugated polymers consisting of 1-aminopyrrole and 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole units

π-Conjugated polymers based on 1-aminopyrrole and 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole were prepared. Pd-catalyzed organometallic polycondensation gave poly(arylene-ethynylene) (PAE)-type π-conjugated polymers consisting of BOC-protected 4-amino-1,2,4-triazole (Taz(BOC)) units (BOC = t-butoxycarbonyl). The number average molecular weights (M_n) were determined to be 5200–19,200 using GPC. An alternating copolymer of Taz(BOC) and bithiophene (Th–Th) units, P(Taz(BOC)-Th-Th)_n-Pd, with an M_n of 10,800 was also prepared by Pd-catalyzed organometallic polycondensation. (Taz(BOC)-Th-Th)_n-Pd showed a UV–Vis absorption peak at λ_max = 425 nm, which is reasonable for a π-conjugated five-membered ring polymer with a coplanar structure. The deprotection of the BOC group of the polymers proceeded at 200 °C; this BOC-deprotection was investigated using a model compound. The optical and electrochemical properties of the π-conjugated polymers are reported.     

The lipopolysaccharide-binding protein participating in hemocyte nodule formation in the silkworm Bombyx mori is a novel member of the C-type lectin superfamily with two different tandem carbohydrate-recognition domains

We recently isolated and characterized the lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-binding protein, BmLBP, from the larval hemolymph of the silkworm Bombyx mori. BmLBP is a pattern recognition molecule that recognizes the lipid A portion of LPS and participates in a cellular defense reaction. This paper describes the cDNA cloning of BmLBP. The deduced amino acid sequence of BmLBP revealed that BmLBP is a novel member of the C-type lectin superfamily with a unique structural feature that consists of two different carbohydrate-recognition domains in tandem, a short and a long form.     

Slug to annular flow transition during boiloff in a rod bundle under high-pressure conditions

High-pressure boiloff experiments in a wide range of bundle powers by using the Two-Phase Flow Test Facility (TPTF) were conducted. Two kinds of boiloff patterns were observed in these experiments. One is the boiloff pattern in a low bundle power, in which the dryout points of rods locate at a certain elevation in the bundle because the mixture level controls the dryout points. The other is the boiloff pattern in a high bundle power, in which the clear mixture level can not be observed and the dryout points of rods locate in a wide range of vertical directions. The vertical scatter of the dryout points is considered to be due to the break of the thin water film on the heater rods under the annular flow pattern.A simple model to predict the slug to annular flow transition in the rod bundle is proposed. In the model, the slug to annular flow transition takes place when the interferences of the water films on the neighboring rods cease. The model appeares to give good predictions of the previous flow transition experiment conducted in a rod bundle. The slug-annular transition below the dryout points was predicted with the present model in the high power boiloff experiments of TPTF. No slug-annular transition below the dryout points is predicted with the present model in the low power boiloff experiments.     

Multiple lungs tumors found 17 years after hysterectomy--a case of benign metastasizing leiomyoma

Fifty-five samples of pus were collected from 51 acute, non-perforated, two spontaneously ruptured and two recurrent peritonsillar abscesses (35 males and 18 females; median age 18 years) and analysed regarding (i) aerobic and anaerobic bacteria (standard culturing), (ii) morphology of bacteria and inflammatory cells (direct microscopy of acridine orange-stained material), and (iii) the percentage of bacteria coated with immunoglobulins IgG, secretory IgA (SIgA) and IgM and complement cleavage product C3b (immunofluorescence assay). Seventy-one per cent of the abscesses harboured a mixed bacterial flora of various aerobes and anaerobes. In none of the cases with a single bacterial species (27 per cent) could immunoglobulin- or complement-coated bacteria be found. In abscesses with a mixed flora, 18 per cent harboured IgG-coated, 15 per cent SIgA-coated, five per cent IgM-coated and five per cent C3b-coated bacteria, respectively. All pus samples contained inflammatory cells in abundance but they were mostly deformed and only occasionally could intracellular bacteria be recognized. Insufficient immunoglobulin-coating of bacteria might be an important aetiopathogenic factor in the development of a peritonsillar abscess. Bactericide in the abscesses is accomplished chiefly by protective mechanisms not dependent on antigen recognition by antibodies.     

The effect of a secreted form of beta-amyloid-precursor protein on intracellular Ca2+ increase in rat cultured hippocampal neurones

1. The effects of secreted forms of beta-amyloid-precursor proteins (APP(S)s) on the intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) were investigated in rat cultured hippocampal neurones. APP695S, a secretory form of APP695, attenuated the increase in [Ca2+]i evoked by glutamate. In addition, APP695S itself evoked an increase in [Ca2+]i in 1 or 2 day-cultured hippocampal cells, but not in 7 to 13 day-cultured cells. 2. Eighty-one percent of neurones which were immunocytochemically positive for microtubule-associated protein 2 responded to APP695S with an increase in [Ca2+]i. 3. APP695S induced a transient rise in [Ca2+]i even in the absence of extracellular Ca2+ and produced an elevation in inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) in a concentration-dependent manner from 100 to 500 ng ml(-1). In the presence of extracellular Ca2+, APP695S caused a transient rise in [Ca2+]i followed by a sustained phase at high [Ca2+]i, suggesting Ca2+ entry from the extracellular space. 4. The [Ca2+]i elevation was mimicked by amino terminal peptides of APPs, but not by carboxy terminal peptides. 5. These results taken together suggest that APP695S induces an increase in [Ca2+]i in hippocampal neurones through an IP3-dependent mechanism that changes according to the stage of development.     

Simulation and fabrication of flat-plate concentrator modules

A flat-plate concentrator (FPC) module has been proposed and developed for cost reduction of PV modules. The FPC has V-grooved rear reflectors on spaces between adjacent cells. To find appropriate design parameters, yearly optical performance is simulated by using meteorological data and introducing a performance index. As a result of the simulation, it is shown that the FPC module can reduce occupation area of solar cells to 75% compared with that of a conventional module, although its module area increases to 1.16 times. Several prototypes are fabricated and measured under a solar simulator. The measured results are somewhat lower than the simulated ones, but generally show the validity of the simulation.     

Long-wavelength supercontinuum generation in bismuth-silicate fibres

A broad smooth supercontinuum has been generated at long wavelengths in a highly-nonlinear bismuth silicate fibre pumping near the zero-dispersion wavelength of the cladding glass.     

Effects of the degree of unsaturation of coexisting triacylglycerols on cholesterol oxidation

In order to evaluate the effects of the degree of unsaturation of triacylglycerols on cholesterol oxidation, mixtures of purified sardine oil triacylglycerols (iodine value, IV=182.6) and cholesterol; of partially hydrogenated sardine oil triacylglycerols (IV=174.5) and cholesterol; and of fully hydrogenated sardine oil triacylglycerols (IV=92.0) and cholesterol were incubated at 25°C in the dark. The oxidative stability of the samples decreased with increasing degree of unsaturation of the triacylglycerols in the sample mixtures; the induction period for peroxide values (PV) of the sardine oil triacylglycerols and cholesterol was shorter than that of the partially hydrogenated sardine oil triacylglycerols and cholesterol. Certain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) in the constituent fatty acids of sardine oil triacylglycerols started to decrease after a shorter induction period compared with that of the partially hydrogenated triacylglycerols. The prominent cholesterol oxides accumulated in the samples were 7β-hydroxycholesterol, 7-ketocholesterol, β-epoxide and cholestane triol. The tendency for accumulation of cholesterol oxides in the time course coincided with the changes in PV as well as the decrease in PUFAs. Cholesterol was oxidized in conjunction with autoxidation of coexisting fish oil triacylglycerols. Although lowering the degree of unsaturation of fish oil triacylglycerols was effective in prolonging the induction period of cholesterol oxidation, the rate of cholesterol oxidation in the cholesterol oxides' formation phase after the induction period was not affected by the difference in the proportion of highly unsaturated fatty acids in the natural and partially hydrogenated triacylglycerols of fish oils.     

Performance improvement of a static concentrator module with an asymmetric v-groove backsheet structure

A light-trapping type concentrator module with a new asymmetric V-groove structure at the rear surface is proposed to improve the performance of static concentrator module. Fundamental optical properties of various asymmetric V-grooves are calculated using a ray-tracing method. Based on these results, yearly integrated irradiance ratios of the concentrator module to a conventional flat-plate module are calculated using meteorological data. By the use of Ag as a reflection material, yearly integrated irradiance ratio of concentrator module with an asymmetric V-groove is 1.34, and the occupation area of Si cells in a module can be reduced to 74% compared with a conventional flat-plate module.