MAP kinase pathways as a route for regulatory mechanisms of IL-10 and IL-4 which inhibit COX-2 expression in human monocytes

Herein we describe a new test system to produce a standardized partial muscle-tendon junction (MTJ) stretch injury. In anesthetized rabbits the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle-tendon unit is unilaterally shortened using a custom designed clamp roller system. An angular displacement (average velocity of 450 degrees x s[-1]) is applied about the foot to plantarflex the ankle 90 degrees while the lower extremity is fixed. During ankle rotation the TA muscle is tetanically stimulated to generate an eccentric stretch injury at the MTJ. Forty-eight hours after injury, isometric torque deficit (injured/sham) was measured. Two groups of animals (N = 6 in each group) were tested with the only difference between the two groups being the initial tendon shortening. In Group 1 (tendon shortening = 1.2 cm. N = 6) the torque deficit was 36.7+/-5.9% (mean+/-SD). In Group 2 (tendon shortening = 1.5 cm. N = 6) the torque deficit was 58.7+/-7.4% (mean+/-SD). No order effect was suggested by the data (P = 0.6062), but the difference in torque deficit between the two groups was highly significant (P = 0.0001). For all tests in which the tendon was temporarily shortened before muscle stimulation and stretch (N = 12) there was a visible hematoma at the MTJ similar to the injury that is common in athletic injuries. Histological evaluation 48 h after injury revealed both fiber tearing and inflammation at the MTJ. In addition, there was focal fiber damage in the muscle belly for both groups. The damage and inflammatory process, however, were more severe in the group with greater initial tendon shortening.     

MBE growth and microstructural evaluation of Zn(S,Se)-based LEDs and diode lasers

The use of a nitrogen radio frequency plasma source together with an appropriate quantum well configuration have recently resulted in the successful realization of p-type ZnSe by molecular beam epitaxy. This has enabled a variety of pn heterojunction based devices to be built including the first semiconductor injection lasers operating in the blue/green portion of the spectrum first reported by 3M and the Brown/Purdue group. In this paper, we discuss two lattice matched multiple quantum well structures that produce laser emission in the blue and blue/green portion of the spectrum.     

(J, J′)-lossless factorization based on conjugation

This paper is concerned with a derivation of the state-space form of the (J, J′)-lossless factorization which contains both the inner-outer factorization and the spectral factorization of positive matrices as special cases. Also, the (J, J′)-lossless factorization gives a unified framework of H^∞ control theory. We use the method of conjugation which makes the derivation much simpler than the previous literature, most of which used the technique of (J, J′)-spectral factorization. A necessary and sufficient condition is represented in terms of two Riccati equations one of which is degenerated.     

Proposals and analyses on laser amplifier based integrated optical circuits

Simplified traveling wave laser (TWL) amplifier equations are given based on a lumped model. Pulse transfer characteristics for a TWL amplifier are examined theoretically. A new class of integrated optical amplifier with three terminals (OPATT) has been proposed as an optical analog of the electric transistor. Analytical formulas and dynamic properties of an OPATT have been considered. OPATT-based optical integrated circuits, including optical differential amplifiers, comparators, saturable oscillators, and optical logic gates, have been investigated theoretically.     

Electrical properties and microstructure in the system ceria-alkaline earth oxide

The ionic conduction of oxygen in the ceria-alkaline earth oxide system was investigated as a function of temperature, partial pressure of oxygen and oxide composition, together with its crystal structure, density, and microstructure. Undoped ceria and its solid solution with alkaline earth oxides have a cubic fluorite structure. The ionic conductivity of ceria is greatly enhanced by additions of calcia and strontia, even when they are added in excess of the solubility limit. The conductivities of ceria-calcia and ceria-strontia were much higher than those of calcia-and yttria-stabilized zirconia. Up to the limit of calcia and strontia, the ionic transference number was nearly unity in the temperature range between 600 and 900°C. With an increase in calcia and strontia content, the ionic conductivity was little affected by the presence of a second phase of CaO and SrCeO₃.     

An interactive system for constructing cat''s cradle string diagram using GA

In many method of the cat's cradle string diagram processing in use today, there is no a strong emphasis on user interaction. This paper discusses a method for constructing cat's cradle string diagram in 2-D. The method uses a string representation and processing in 2-D which preserves the topology characteristics of the string diagram and also uses a small data volume. The inputted string diagram is transformed onto its cat's cradle string diagram by geometric transformation and GA. The method allows the user to interactively construct a cat's cradle string diagram. Three operations are used for constructing cat's cradle diagram, they are pull (over and under), release and exchange. An implemented program executed some shapes of cat's cradle for verifying the method.     

High-power, wide-temperature range operation of 1.3-/spl mu/m gain-coupled DFB lasers with automatically buried InAsP absorptive grating

DFB lasers operating at 1.3 /spl mu/m with gain-coupling structure show single-mode operation over a wide temperature range of -20/spl sim/85/spl deg/C and up to a high power of 130 mW. These lasers have InAsP absorptive grating, which can be formed by a substantially simplified fabrication process, involving annealing a corrugated InP substrate in an atmosphere of mixed arsine and phosphine.     

Footprint analysis of the RAG protein recombination signal sequence complex for V(D)J type recombination

We have studied the interaction between recombination signal sequences (RSSs) and protein products of the truncated forms of recombination-activating genes (RAG) by gel mobility shift, DNase I footprinting, and methylation interference assays. Methylation interference with dimethyl sulfate demonstrated that binding was blocked by methylation in the nonamer at the second-position G residue in the bottom strand and at the sixth- and seventh-position A residues in the top strand. DNase I footprinting experiments demonstrated that RAG1 alone, or even a RAG1 homeodomain peptide, gave footprint patterns very similar to those obtained with the RAG1-RAG2 complex. In the heptamer, partial methylation interference was observed at the sixth-position A residue in the bottom strand. In DNase I footprinting, the heptamer region was weakly protected in the bottom strand by RAG1. The effects of RSS mutations on RAG binding were evaluated by DNA footprinting. Comparison of the RAG-RSS footprint data with the published Hin model confirmed the notion that sequence-specific RSS-RAG interaction takes place primarily between the Hin domain of the RAG1 protein and adjacent major and minor grooves of the nonamer DNA.