Incompressible deformation estimation algorithm (IDEA) from tagged MR images

Measuring the 3D motion of muscular tissues, e.g., the heart or the tongue, using magnetic resonance (MR) tagging is typically carried out by interpolating the 2D motion information measured on orthogonal stacks of images. The incompressibility of muscle tissue is an important constraint on the reconstructed motion field and can significantly help to counter the sparsity and incompleteness of the available motion information. Previous methods utilizing this fact produced incompressible motions with limited accuracy. In this paper, we present an incompressible deformation estimation algorithm (IDEA) that reconstructs a dense representation of the 3D displacement field from tagged MR images and the estimated motion field is incompressible to high precision. At each imaged time frame, the tagged images are first processed to determine components of the displacement vector at each pixel relative to the reference time. IDEA then applies a smoothing, divergence-free, vector spline to interpolate velocity fields at intermediate discrete times such that the collection of velocity fields integrate over time to match the observed displacement components. Through this process, IDEA yields a dense estimate of a 3D displacement field that matches our observations and also corresponds to an incompressible motion. The method was validated with both numerical simulation and in vivo human experiments on the heart and the tongue.     

Application of full-factorial design for optimization of the moisture determination in wheat flour using infrared scales

We studied the parameters that may affect the analysis of the moisture content in wheat flour using infrared scales. The parameters were studied by one-factor at a time methodology and then, by full-factorial design (2³). The best condition using infrared scales occurred at 120 °C, with a sample weight of 1.5 g and an exposure time to infrared radiation of 6 min. We observed the interaction effect between the three factors studied. The analysis time was 60 times lower than classical method. The optimized method for determination of the moisture content in wheat flour using infrared scales was validated to range between 9 and 17 %.     

Isolation and characterization of poly(butylene succinate-co-butylene adipate)-degrading microorganism

Poly(butylene succinate-co-butylene adipate) (PBSA)-degrading bacterium, strain 1-A, was isolated from soil. Strain 1-A was identified as Bacillus pumilus on the basis of its physiological properties and partial 16S rRNA gene sequence. Strain 1-A also degraded poly(butylene succinate) (PBS) and poly(epsilon-caprolactone). On the other hand, poly(butylene adipate terephthalate) and poly(lactic acid) were minimally degraded by strain 1-A. The NMR spectra of degradation products from PBSA indicated that the adipate units were more rapidly degraded than 1,4-butanediol and succinate units. This seems to be one of the reasons why strain 1-A degraded PBSA faster than PBS.     

Characterization of Aspergillus oryzae glycoside hydrolase family 43 β-xylosidase expressed in Escherichia coli

This is the first report of glycoside hydrolase family 43 β-xylosidase from Aspergillus oryzae. To characterize this enzyme, the recombinant enzyme was expressed in Escherichia coli. Unlike known β-xylosidases from fungal origins, the enzyme did not show substrate ambiguity and was stable at alkaline pH.     

Selective production of lactic acid in continuous anaerobic acidogenesis by extremely low pH operation

The selective production of lactic acid by anaerobic acidogenesis with low pH control was examined using a chemostat culture. By decreasing culture pH to 3.5 in a chemostat culture containing mixed microbial populations for anaerobic acidogenesis, heterolactic fermentation became dominant, resulting in the selective production of lactic acid and ethanol. This phenomenon was reversible between the acidic and neutral conditions, and was not affected by the dilution rate. The extremely low pH operation was effective for selective lactic acid production in anaerobic acidogenesis.     

Analysis of Plasmalogen Species in Foodstuffs

Ethanolamine plasmalogen (PlsEtn), which is present at high levels in brains, is believed to be involved in neuronal protection. The present study was performed to search for PlsEtn resources in foodstuffs. The foodstuffs examined showed a wide range of PlsEtn contents from 5 to 549 μmol/100 g wet wt. The marine invertebrates, blue mussel, and ascidian had high PlsEtn contents (over 200 μmol/100 g wet wt). Profiling of the molecular species showed that the predominant fatty acids of PlsEtn species were 20:5 (EPA) and 22:6 (DHA) at the sn‐2 position of the glycerol moiety in marine foodstuffs, whereas major PlsEtn species in land foodstuffs were 20:4. Following quantitative analysis by multiple reaction monitoring, the ascidian viscera were shown to contain the highest levels of 18:0/20:5‐PlsEtn and 18:0/22:6‐PlsEtn (86 and 68 μmol/100 g wet wt, respectively). In order to evaluate a neuronal antiapoptotic effect of these PlsEtn species, human neuroblastoma SH‐SY5Y cells were treated with ethanolamine glycerophospholipid (EtnGpl), purified from the ascidian viscera, under serum starvation conditions. Extrinsic EtnGpl from ascidian viscera showed stronger suppression of cell death induced by serum starvation than with bovine brain EtnGpl. The EtnGpl from ascidian viscera strongly suppressed the activation of caspase 3. These results suggest that PlsEtn, especially that containing EPA and DHA, from marine foodstuffs is potentially useful for a therapeutic dietary supplement preventing neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD).     

A contribution to the UV degradation of polyurethanes

The effects of the nature of the polyols used in polyurethane (PUR) synthesis on the structural transformations after ageing by UV irradiation has been studied. The investigations were performed on PUR prepared from polyester and polyether diol oligomers. The characterization of the samples before and after ageing in view of the structural changes, which influence the course of the photooxidative degradation and photocrosslinking as well as in view of changes of mechanical properties has been done. Comparative investigations were performed by spectroscopic and viscometric measurements. The results show pronounced heterogeneity of the degradative reactions, including the existence of crosslinking processes and producing thus very inhomogeneous polymeric material. The course and the intensity of photooxidative degradation of PUR differ together with changes of mechanical properties depending whether polyester or polyether polyol have been used. The processes of photooxidative degradation is less expressed in polyesterurethane then in polyurethane based on polyether, under the same conditions of experiments. Different structures of polyester diols caused the various ageing behaviour of PUR too.