Antitumor activity of synthetic alkylphospholipids with or without PAF activity

1-O-Octadecyl-2-O-methyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (ET-18-OMe) has been reported to possess definite antitumor activity in vivo. Twenty-two alkyl lysophospholipid analogs were chemically synthesized, and their antitumor activity against mouse experimental tumors (Sarcoma 180, MM46, P388) was examined. Among them, 1-O-octadecyl-2-O-acetoacetyl-rac-glycerol-3-phosphocholine was found to show antitumor activity similar to ET-18-OMe with less acute toxicity. Intravenous injection of the ET-18-OMe withsn-3 configuration retarded the subcutaneous growth of Sarcoma 180 cells effectively, while the growth inhibition by thesn-1 isomer was much less effective. This stereospecificity was similar to that observed in their activities as platelet-activating factor (PAF) agonists. The acetoacetyl compound, another PAF agonist, showed similar stereospecific antitumor action in vivo. These findings suggest that some alkyl lysophospholipids may activate host cells to a cytostatic stage against tumor cells in vivo through binding to a PAF receptor. Our preliminary results indicated that the responsible cells under these conditions might be primarily immature macrophages present in the bone marrow. No appreciable or even adverse stereospecificity was observed in the different sets of experiments where the activity of ET-18-OMe against MM46 tumor cells in vivo or the direct cytotoxicity against human promyelocytic leukemia HL-60 cells in vitro was examined. Under, some conditions, the antitumor activity of ET-18-OMe in vivo may be revealed through direct cytotoxicity and/or modulation of the host defense system by “nonspecific” mechanisms. Some alkylphospholipids without PAF activity may also show antitumor activity through similar, “nonspecific” mechanisms.     

Validation of Platelet Counting Accuracy With the Celltac F Automated Hematology Analyzer

Rapid and accurate analysis of platelet count plays an important role in evaluating hemorrhagic status. Therefore, we evaluated platelet counting performance of a hematology analyzer, Celltac F (MEK-8222, Nihon Kohden Corporation, Tokyo, Japan), that features easy use with low reagent consumption and high throughput while occupying minimal space in the clinical laboratory. All blood samples were anticoagulated with dipotassium ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA-2K). The samples were stored at room temperature (18^{^}C–22^{^}C) and tested within 4 hours of phlebotomy. We evaluated the counting ability of the Celltac F hematology analyzer by comparing it with the platelet counts obtained by the flow cytometry method that ISLH and ICSH recommended, and also the manual visual method by Unopette (Becton Dickinson Vacutainer Systems). The ICSH/ISLH reference method is based on the fact that platelets can be stained with monoclonal antibodies to CD41 and/or CD61. The dilution ratio was optimized after the precision, coincidence events, and debris counts were confirmed by the reference method. Good correlation of platelet count between the Celltac F and the ICSH/ISLH reference method (r = 0.99, and the manual visual method (r= 0.93) were obtained. The regressions were y = 0.90 x+9.0 and y=1.11x+8.4, respectively. We conclude that the Celltac F hematology analyzer for platelet counting was well suited to the ICSH/ISLH reference method for rapidness and reliability.     

Gradient orientation pattern matching with the Hamming distance

This paper presents a novel pattern matching technique that is robust to illumination changes and the occlusion problem. The technique is based on the matching of gradient orientations in place of traditional image features such as intensities or gradients. Gradient orientations depend on the texture in an image. They are known to be insensitive to changes of image intensities that are often caused by time-varying illuminations or the auto-gain control (AGC) function of the camera. Moreover,the proposed method employs a voting strategy in the process of matching gradient orientations. The method works remarkably well even when a large part of the pattern is occluded with a foreign object. Consequently, the proposed method is robust to both irregular lighting conditions and the occlusion problem.     

Intrinsic Elastic, Dielectric, and Piezoelectric Losses in Lead Zirconate Titanate Ceramics Determined by an Immittance-Fitting Method

The material coefficients of "soft" and "hard" lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramics were determined as complex values by the nonlinear least-squares-fitting of immittance data measured for length-extensional bar resonators. The piezoelectric d -constant should be a complex value to obtain a best fitting between observed and calculated results. Because the elastic, dielectric, and piezoelectric losses determined in this process were not "intrinsic" losses, a calculation process to evaluate the "intrinsic" losses was proposed. It was confirmed that the intrinsic losses were smaller than the corresponding extrinsic losses. The intrinsic piezoelectric loss existed in both soft and hard PZTs; ∼50% of the loss of piezoelectric d -constant was derived from the elastic and dielectric losses. The most notable difference between the soft and hard PZTs was observed in their elastic losses.     

Characterization of extended filters in residuated lattices

We give a characterization theorem of extended filters on residuated lattices, from which many results are immediately obtained. We show that, for a bounded integral commutative residuated lattice X, (1) an extended filter $E_F (B)$ associated with $B$ is characterized by $E_F (B) = [B) \rightarrow F$ , where $B\subseteq X$ and $F$ is a filter of $X$ ; (2) the class $E(B)$ of all extended filters associated with $B$ is a complete Heyting algebra. (3) the class $S(B)$ of all stable filters relative to $B\subseteq X$ is also a complete Heyting algebra.     

Mechanical properties of DLC films prepared inside of micro-holes by pulse plasma CVD

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films are metastable amorphous carbon materials with superior tribological characteristics. In order to improve wear resistance of micro-extrusion dies with numerous imperceptible holes, DLC films were deposited on the inner wall surface of model dies with holes of 2 and 0.9 mm in diameter, and 20 mm in depth by using pulse plasma CVD method. This paper will discuss how argon gas, deposition pressure and time affect the characteristics of films deposited on the inner wall surface of dies. This micro-coating method can be applied widely for inner wall surface treatment of components with thin holes.     

Syntheses and conformational studies of poly(S-menthyloxycarbonylmethyl l- and d-cysteines)

S-menthyloxycarbonylmethyl l- and d-cysteines were prepared by the reaction of l- or d-cysteine and (?)-menthyl chloroacetate in liquid ammonia and were then polymerized to poly(S-menthyloxycarbonylmethyll- and d-cysteines) by the N-carboxyanhydride (NCA) method. From the results obtained by means of infra-red spectra, X-ray diffractions, optical rotatory dispersions (o.r.d.), and circular dichroisms (c.d.), $\text{poly}\text{(S-}\text{menthyloxycarbonylmethyl-}\text{l}\text{-cysteine}\text{)}$ was found to be a right-handed α-helix in the solid state and in ethyl ether/chloroform and chloroform solutions. Similarly, $\text{poly}\text{(S-}\text{menthyloxycarbonylmethyl-}\text{d}\text{-cysteine}\text{)}$ was a left-handed α-helix. The helix-coil transition of these polymers was observed in the vicinity of 3–4% trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in chloroform/TFA mixtures.     

Preparation of siloxane-like films by glow discharge polymerization

Glow discharge polymerizations of tetramethoxysilane (TMOS), tetramethylsilane/oxygen mixture (½ molar ratio) (TMS/O₂), hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO), and tetramethyldisiloxane (TMDSO) were carried out for the preparation of thin, polymeric films with siloxane structures. The chemical composition of the formed polymers was examined by elemental analysis, infrared spectroscopy, and electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA) in connection with polymerization conditions, especially, a level of the radiofrequency (rf) input power per mass of the monomers (W/FM value). The polymers prepared from HMDSO at fairly low W/FM values resembled in chemical composition the conventionally polymerized polydimethylsiloxane. The surface properties of the formed polymers also were evaluated by the measurement of surface energy.     

Uniformly Porous Composites with 3-D Network Structure (UPC-3D) for High-Temperature Filter Applications

Uniformly porous composites with 3-D network structure (UPC-3D) have been recently developed via a pyrolytic reactive sintering process, which takes advantage of the evolved CO₂ gas from a decomposing carbonate source (e.g., dolomite, CaMg(CO₃)₂) and does not require any additional pore-forming agent nor long-time burning-out process. Through liquid formation via LiF doping, strong necks are formed between constituent particles before completion of the pyrolysis of carbonate, resulting in the formation of a strong 3-D network structure. The pore size distribution is very narrow (with typical pore size: ∼1 μm), and the porosity was controllable (∼30–60%) by changing the sintering temperature. This article presents the development details of UPC-3D, and reports the recent findings in CaZrO₃/MgAl₂O₄ system, which will be one of the more promising systems for practical applications.