Possibility of Japanese Cedar Pollen Causing False Positives in the Deep Mycosis Test

Because Japanese cedar pollen (JCP) contains beta-1,3-d-glucan (BG), there is concern that its lingering presence in the atmosphere, especially during its scattering period, may cause false positives in the factor-G-based Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) assay used to test for deep mycosis (i.e., G-test). Hence, we examined whether the LAL assay would react positively with substances contained in JCP by using the G-test to measure JCP particles and extracts. BG was purified from the JCP extract on a BG-specific affinity column, and the percentage extractability was measured using three different BG-specific quantitative methods. The G-test detected 0.4 pg BG in a single JCP particle and 10 fg from a single particle in the extract. The percentage extractability of JCP-derived BG was not significantly different among the three quantitative methods. As the JCP particles should technically have been removed during serum separation, they should be less likely to be a direct false-positive factor. However, given that the LAL-assay-positive substances in the JCP extract were not distinguishable by the three BG-specific quantitative methods, we conclude that they may cause the background to rise. Therefore, in Japan false positives arising from JCP contamination should be considered when testing patients for deep mycosis.     

Electron Holography Studies on Narrow Magnetic Domain Walls Observed in a Heusler Alloy Ni50Mn25Al12.5Ga12.5

Peculiar magnetic domain walls produced in Heusler alloys, which have attracted renewed interest due to their potential application to actuators and spintronic devices, are studied here using electron holography. The observations reveal unexpectedly narrow magnetic domain walls, the width of which showed perfect agreement with that of the antiphase boundaries (APB, e.g., only 3 nm). While the results can be explained by the significant depression of ferromagnetism due to the local chemical disorder, the electron phase shift indicates that ferromagnetic correlation still remains in the APB region.     

Alloy Design,Combinatorial Synthesis,and Microstructure–Property Relations for Low-Density Fe-Mn-Al-C Austenitic Steels

We present recent developments in the field of austenitic steels with up to 18% reduced mass density. The alloys are based on the Fe-Mn-Al-C system. Here, two steel types are addressed. The first one is a class of low-density twinning-induced plasticity or single phase austenitic TWIP (SIMPLEX) steels with 25–30 wt.% Mn and <4–5 wt.% Al or even <8 wt.% Al when naturally aged. The second one is a class of κ-carbide strengthened austenitic steels with even higher Al content. Here, κ-carbides form either at 500–600°C or even during quenching for >10 wt.% Al. Three topics are addressed in more detail, namely, the combinatorial bulk high-throughput design of a wide range of corresponding alloy variants, the development of microstructure–property relations for such steels, and their susceptibility to hydrogen embrittlement.     

First-Order Phase Transition and Anomalous Hysteresis of Binary Bose Mixtures in an Optical Lattice

We study a first-order phase transition between superfluid and Mott insulator phases in binary Bose mixtures loaded into a hypercubic optical lattice. The system is described by a two-component Bose-Hubbard model. Considering the difference between the two kinds of bosons in the intra-component interaction strength, we discuss the metastability of the system and the hysteresis associated with the first-order superfluid-Mott insulator transition. It is found that the sweeping of hopping amplitude induces a conventional hysteresis-loop behavior. We also find an anomalous hysteresis behavior when the chemical potential is varied. In the anomalous hysteresis, the phase transition occurs in a unidirectional way and a hysteresis loop does not form.     

Discovery of a Novel Scaffold as an Indoleamine 2,3‐Dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) Inhibitor Based on the Pyrrolopiperazinone Alkaloid,Longamide B

Indoleamine 2,3‐dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) has emerged as a key target for cancer therapy, as IDO1 plays a critical role in the capacity of tumor cells to evade the immune system. The pyrrolopiperazinone alkaloid longamide B and its derivatives were identified as novel IDO1 inhibitors based on docking studies and small library synthesis. The thioamide derivative showed higher IDO1 inhibitory activity than longamide B, and displayed an activity similar to that of a representative IDO1 inhibitor, 1‐methyl‐tryptophan. These results suggest that the pyrrolopiperazinone scaffold of longamide B could be used in the development of IDO1 inhibitors.     

Electrical resistivity of Si3N4 ceramics with Yb2O3 additive

Si₃N₄ ceramics with excellent mechanical properties are used for heat dissipation substrates and so on. In order to improve their reliability and expand their application fields, it is desirable to understand and control the electrical properties of Si₃N₄ ceramics. In this study, the electrical resistivity of Si₃N₄ ceramics with Yb₂O₃ additive was investigated by applying various voltages at temperatures ranging from 25°C to 300°C. When Yb₂O₃ was added as a sintering aid to Si₃N₄ ceramics, a crystalline J-phase (Yb₄Si₂O₇N₂) was formed and their electrical resistivity was significantly lower than that of Y₂O₃ additive. The electrical resistivity of the Yb₂O₃-added ceramics decreased with an increase in temperature and applied voltage. Yb existed in multiple valence states, Yb²⁺ and Yb³⁺, in the Si₃N₄ ceramics and the decrease in the electrical resistivity can be attributed hopping conduction through the J-phase. The J-phase in the Si₃N₄ ceramics was observed to be continuous, and percolation analysis suggested that the J-phase formed an infinite cluster. Therefore, the decrease in the electrical resistivity of the Yb₂O₃-added Si₃N₄ ceramics was found mainly to result from the formation of an infinite cluster of J-phase, which exhibits hopping conduction.     

Poly(p‐phenylene sulfide) nanofibers prepared by CO2 laser supersonic drawing

Poly(p‐phenylene sulfide) (PPS) nanofibers are prepared by irradiating a PPS fiber with a carbon dioxide (CO₂) laser while drawing it at supersonic speeds. A supersonic jet is generated by blowing air into a vacuum chamber through the fiber injection orifice. Nanofibers obtained at a laser power of 30 W and chamber pressure of 10 kPa exhibit an average diameter of 600 nm and a draw ratio of 110,000. Scanning electron microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and wide‐angle X‐ray diffraction analyses are employed to investigate the relationships among the chamber pressure, fiber morphology, and crystallization behavior. The nanofibers exhibit two melting temperatures (T_m): approximately 280°C and 320°C. The endothermic peak at T_m = 280°C is ascribable to lamellar crystals and that at T_m = 320°C to the highly complete crystals, since the polymer molecular chain is highly oriented. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40922.     

Advanced synthesis for monodisperse polymer nanoparticles in aqueous media with sub-millimolar surfactants

Highly monodisperse polystyrene nanoparticles with mean diameters of less than 100 nm are synthesized via aqueous emulsion polymerization using an amphoteric initiator (VA-057) in the presence of sub-millimolar concentrations of anionic surfactant. Since the net charge on the initiator is almost zero at neutral pH, the resultant latex particle size is mainly determined by surfactant adsorption. Polymerizations were performed in the presence of a range of anionic surfactants with differing critical micelle concentrations (CMC) by varying the concentrations of surfactant, initiator and monomer, and also the ionic strength. Sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS), sodium hexadecyl sulfate (SHS), and sodium octadecyl sulfate (SOS) have relatively low CMCs and so enable formation of highly monodisperse nanoparticles at relatively low (sub-millimolar) surfactant concentrations, C_S (i.e. below the CMC in each case). Empirically, it was found that the particle number, N_p, and coefficient of variation of the particle size, C_V, were strongly dependent on the C_S/CMC ratio: N_p increased almost in proportion with the square of this ratio, while the C_V exhibited a minimum at approximately C_S/CMC = 0.20. Higher ionic strength reduced the particle size, which is consistent with the above relationship because the addition of salt lowers the CMCs of ionic surfactants. Polymer latex particles produced using such formulations form highly regular, close-packed colloidal arrays.     

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.