Anti-obesity and anti-diabetic effects of CL 316,243, a highly specific beta 3-adrenoceptor agonist, in yellow KK mice

The anti-obesity and anti-diabetic effects of CL 316,243, a highly specific beta 3-adrenoceptor agonist (beta 1: beta 2: beta 3 = 0:1:100,000), were evaluated in obese diabetic yellow KK mice and C57Bl control mice. The study compound was fed through a gastric tube at a rate of 0.1 mg/kg/day for 2 weeks. The following parameters were compared in the treated and control animals given distilled water: brown adipose tissue thermogenesis, resting metabolic rate, insulin receptors in adipocytes, and blood glucose and serum insulin levels during a glucose overloading test. CL 316,243 significantly increased brown adipose tissue thermogenesis and resting metabolic rate in both yellow KK mice and C57Bl controls. The amount of white adipose tissue decreased, although food intake was not affected. The effects contributed to the mitigation of obesity in yellow KK mice. CL 316,243 also increased the concentration of insulin receptors and decreased the levels of serum insulin and blood glucose during the glucose overloading test in yellow KK mice. These observations suggest that CL 316,243 possesses anti-obesity and anti-diabetic effects and consequently may be useful for treating obesity as well as non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in obese persons, without causing excessive side effects.     

Considerations on detailed analysis and particle growth in high impact polypropylene particles

Detailed analysis of the dispersion of ethylene and propylene copolymer components in high‐impact polypropylene particles was performed by the morphological observation, pore volume analysis, and microscopic Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy of SPring‐8. The results of the morphological observation and pore volume distribution suggest that copolymer components were formed in particles in such a manner as to fill the gaps of fine homopolypropylene particles. The results of the analysis by microscopic Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were that the distribution of the amount of ethylene in the particles was homogeneous and indicated that copolymer components were dispersed uniformly within the particles. Moreover, spots with high amounts of ethylene were formed on the particle surface, and when voids existed within the particle, spots with high amounts of ethylene were also formed on the void surface. The structure of the copolymer components existing locally on the surface was practically similar to the structure of the copolymer components within the particles. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Preparation and Properties of Woodceramic Thin Films

Woodceramic thin films were prepared onto alumina sheet and glass slide substrates by conventional radio frequency sputtering in an argon plasma. A woodceramic disk, 100 mm in diameter, sintered at 850°C was used as a target. The deposition rate was about 90 nm/h for 200 W input power. Remarkable differences were observed in the characteristics of films depending on the substrate temperature. Films prepared below 100°C had insulating properties, > 106 cm, and had transmission in the visible region ( > 600 nm), and had smooth surfaces. Increasing the substrate temperature causes sharp a decrease in the film resistivity and the growth of grain was 3–5 m. The film prepared at 300°C had semiconductor characteristics with an energy gap of about 0.05 eV.     

Calcium phosphate coating formed in infusion fluid mixture to enhance fixation strength of titanium screws

A novel technique was developed to coat a calcium phosphate (CaP) layer on titanium screws with a titanium oxide surface layer, using infusion fluids officially approved for clinical use. A calcium-containing solution, a phosphate-containing solution, and a sodium bicarbonate solution prepared from the infusion fluids were mixed at a Ca/P molar ratio of 2.0. Each screw was immersed in 10 mL of the resulting mixture at 37 °C for 2 days. A low-crystalline apatite layer (Ca/P molar ratio = 1.681 ± 0.038) was formed on the screws. The layer consisted of a few 100 nm diameter particles fixed on the screw surface. In animal experiments, the screws were percutaneously implanted in both proximal tibial metaphyses of rabbits. The insertion torque was not significantly different between the CaP-coated screws (0.132 ± 0.002 Nm, n = 10) and uncoated screws (0.140 ± 0.002 Nm, n = 10) (p = 0.5785). After the insertion torque test, the apatite layer remained on the surface of the screws, which means that the apatite layer survived the friction of screw insertion. The extraction torque of the screws in the CaP-coated group (0.239 ± 0.066 Nm, n = 19) was significantly higher (by 29.9%) than that in the uncoated group (0.184 ± 0.062 Nm, n = 18) 4 weeks after the operations (p = 0.0132). Histologically, a larger amount of new bone formation was observed around the CaP-coated screws than that around the uncoated screws. Even after the removal of the screw, the CaP layer remained on the screw at the site where soft tissues were attached. The coating technique with the use of the infusion fluids is an effective method of improving bone-screw interface strength.     

Accelerated Aging of Plateau Burn Composite Propellant

Effects of accelerated aging at 60 °C on combustion characteristics, thermal decomposition, and mechanical properties of high burn rate composite propellant were studied in this paper. Although less change in burn rate was observed until aging period of two weeks, approximately 7% decrease was obtained at a pressure range from 9 MPa to 14 MPa after 32 weeks aging. The pressure range of the plateau-mesa burning was shifted to higher pressure region by the aging. Although heat of decomposition measured by DSC decreased only 2% in the value, activation energy of thermal decomposition decreased 11%, from 133.3 kJ/mol to 119.5 kJ/mol. Increased CO₂ and decreased HCN were also observed in the gaseous product distribution. Iron catalyzed processes involving AP and binder decomposition products were altered with a time of aging and it might generate the plateau burning pressure range shift. The sample kept 32 weeks, however, did not show any significant changes in mechanical properties.     

A Thin Carbon‐Fiber Web as a Scaffold for Bone‐Tissue Regeneration

Due to the rapid progress being made in tissue regeneration therapy, biomaterials used as scaffolds are expected to play an important role in future clinical application. We report the development of a 3D web (sheet) consisting of high‐purity carbon fibers in a nanoscale structure. When the thin carbon‐fiber web (TCFW) and recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (rhBMP‐2) composite is implanted in the murine back muscle, new ectopic bone is formed, and the values of the bone mineral content and bone mineral density are significantly higher than those obtained with a collagen sheet. Observation of the interface between the carbon fibers and bone matrix reveal that the fibers are directly integrated into the bone matrix, indicating high bone‐tissue compatibility. Further, the rhBMP‐2/TCFW composite repairs a critical‐size bone defect within a short time period. These results suggest that the TCFW functions as an effective scaffold material and will play an important role in tissue regeneration in the future.     

Surface characterization of chitosan and cellulose-derived porous carbons with K2CO3 activation and its application to water and ethene adsorption

Journal of Porous Materials - Porous carbons were prepared by the K2CO3 activation of polysaccharides, cellulose and chitosan, to develop an adsorbent that can be used to keep fruits and vegetables...     

Implementation of cellular genetic algorithms with two neighborhood structures for single-objective and multi-objective optimization

In cellular algorithms, a single neighborhood structure for local selection is usually assumed to specify a set of neighbors for each cell. There exist, however, a number of examples with two neighborhood structures in nature. One is for local selection for mating, and the other is for local competition such as the fight for water and sunlight among neighboring plants. The aim of this paper is to show several implementations of cellular algorithms with two neighborhood structures for single-objective and multi-objective optimization problems. Since local selection has already been utilized in cellular algorithms in the literature, the main issue of this paper is how to implement the concept of local competition. We show three ideas about its utilization: Local elitism, local ranking, and local replacement. Local elitism and local ranking are used for single-objective optimization to increase the diversity of solutions. On the other hand, local replacement is used for multi-objective optimization to improve the convergence of solutions to the Pareto frontier. The main characteristic feature of our approach is that the two neighborhood structures can be specified independently of each other. Thus, we can separately examine the effect of each neighborhood structure on the behavior of cellular algorithms.