Recent activities in antennas and propagation in Japan

Activities since August 1989 are covered. Included are antennas for mobile communication, multibeam earth station antennas, satellite-borne antennas for communication, and for earth remote sensing, direct broadcast satellite antennas, and propagation studies for land mobile radio, mobile satellite systems, fixed satellite systems, and terrestrial propagation     

Identification of an endonuclease responsible for apoptosis in rat thymocytes

We studied total occlusion of all three coronary arteries. From 1975 to 1992, a total of 4,100 patients underwent coronary arteriography at Show University Hospital. Of these, four patients (0.1%) had complete occlusion of all three coronary arteries and all of them underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). The mean numbers of coronary risk factors were only 2.3 but history of angina of effort were long-standing such as 4 to 29 years (mean 16.3 yr). All cases had previous episodes of myocardial infarction. Three cases (75%) had aortic aneurysm. One case was also diagnosed as Leriche syndrome besides coexisting aneurysm. Coronary arteriogram showed total occlusion of right coronary artery, left anterior descending artery and left circumflex artery in the segment of 1.6 or 7 and 11 respectively. All cases had intracoronary anastomosis and intercoronary anastomosis. Among 12 occluded coronary arteries of all four cases, 11 were distally visualized with contrast medium via collateral flow but good opacification of the distal coronary trees were not seen. Also proper assessments of cardiac performance including viability of myocardium were not established because all cases were in the state of C.C.S grades IV. But significant clinical recovery were obtained in all cases after CAGB of three or four bypass. We conclude that these results might be a useful suggestion for the treatment of total occlusion of all three coronary arteries.     

Physicochemical properties of rare earth perovskite oxides used as gas sensor material

The change of the conductivity in the rare earth perovskite oxide took place after the chemisorption of flammable gases. The sensitivity for methanol was highest. From the conductivity change of these perovskite oxides after the injection of methanol, the energy needed to promote an electron from a conducting to a nonconducting state, E=E _c-E _t, could be derived from the equation=A ₀ exp (–E/kT). LnCoO₃ had the smallest E and H (metal-O), which is the binding energy of oxygen coordinating to the metal ions, but exhibited the highest activity for gas sensing. The gas sensing mechanism was also considered.     

压痕法确定纤维复合材料界面影响区蠕变特性的数值模拟法

研究由平头压痕蠕变试验来确定纤维复合材料界面影响区蠕变性能参数的可行性。利用有限元蠕变分析确定在定压痕应力下的压痕蠕变率，重点放在稳定压痕蠕变率和复合材料材料界面影响区的蠕变性能参数的关系上。计算结果表明，界面影响区的剪应力沿纤维轴向在蠕变的主要过程中均匀分布，并且保持不变；详细地研究了压头大小对压痕蠕变响应的影响：提出两种方法由压痕蠕变试验来确定界面影响区蠕变性能参数，并给出了算例。这些结果也有利于准确认识平头压痕蠕变试验从而拓宽其应用范围。     

Hot isostatic pressing of tetragonal ZrO2 solid-solution powders prepared from acetylacetonates in the system ZrO2-Y2O3-Al2O3

In compositions having ZrO₂/Y₂O₃=(74.25–71.25)/(0.75–3.75) (mol% ratio) with 25 mol% Al₂O₃, metastable t-ZrO₂ solid solutions crystallize at 780° to 860°C from amorphous materials prepared by the simultaneous hydrolysis of zirconium, yttrium and aluminium acetylacetonates. Hot isostatic pressing has been performed for 1 h at 1130 and 1230°C under 196 MPa using their powders. Two kinds of material are fabricated: (i) perfect ZrO₂ solid-solution ceramics and (ii) composites of ZrO₂ solid solution and -Al₂O₃. Their mechanical properties are examined, in connection with microstructures and t/m ZrO₂ ratios. Composites with a homogeneous dispersed -Al₂O₃ derived from solid-solution ceramics result in a remarkable increase of strength.     

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.     

干茧触蒸丝胶变性机理分析

本文从丝胶的园二色光谱分析,发现干茧经触蒸后丝胶的性质发生了改变,即茧层丝胶的分子构象由无规卷曲向β—折叠结构转化,指出丝胶变性是茧层丝胶胶着力趋于均匀,为提高生丝净度成绩的关键之一.     

Prophylactic effect of papaverine prolonged-release pellets on cerebral vasospasm in dogs

OBJECTIVE: A drug delivery system using copoly(lactic/glycolic acid) was developed for the intracranial administration of papaverine. A rod-shaped implant prepared by a heat compression method was tested to determine its efficacy in preventing cerebral vasospasm in dogs. METHODS: Sixteen dogs were randomly assigned to one of two groups, i.e., placebo or papaverine. Control angiography was performed, followed by right craniectomy and the induction of subarachnoid hemorrhage by the placement of a clot in the Sylvian fissure. Two pellets, containing either 25 mg of papaverine or no papaverine, were placed in the cistern. In in vitro studies, 56% of the actual papaverine loading was released in the first 4 days and 78% within 8 days. On Day 7, angiography was repeated and the animals were killed. A similar experiment using low-dose pellets containing 5 mg of papaverine, half of which was released within 7 days, was performed with 16 mongrel dogs. RESULTS: There were significant differences between the papaverine- and placebo-treated groups in the reductions of vessel diameters of the internal carotid, middle cerebral, and anterior cerebral arteries on the clot side. The mean concentration of papaverine in the clot was 4.5 x 10(-4) mol/L. The low-dose pellet failed to prevent cerebral vasospasm, although the mean concentration of papaverine in the clot was 2.3 x 10(-5) mol/L. CONCLUSION: A prolonged-release preparation of papaverine that could be implanted intracranially at the time of surgery prevented vasospasm significantly while maintaining an appropriate concentration of papaverine in the cistern.     

The hydrogen electrode reaction characteristics of thin film electrodes of Ni-based hydrogen storage alloys

Film-type electrodes of hydrogen absorbing intermetallic compound and alloys, LaNi₅, Ni_0.11 Ti_0.89, Ni_0.50 Ti_0.50 and Ni_0.76 Ti_0.24 were prepared by a flash evaporation method. The hydrogen electrode reaction characteristics of the LaNi₅ and NiTi alloy films in 1 M NaOH are very similar to each other. The reaction proceeds via the Volmer-Tafel reaction route with mixed rate-determining characteristics. The exchange current densities of the constituent steps, as well as the overall reaction, are in the range of 10^?6 A cm^?2 (true). Surface analysis by an XPS technique has shown that La or Ti on the electrode surface exists as an electrocatalytically innert oxide of La₂O₃ or TiO₂. Close similarities of these electrodes with pure Ni electrodes indicate that Ni is responsible for the electrocatalytic activity. No synergistic effect is thus noticeable.     

Molecular characterization of Xenopus embryo heparan sulfate. Differential structural requirements for the specific binding to basic fibroblast growth factor and follistatin

Enzymatic elimination of heparan sulfate (HS) causes abnormal mesodermal and neural formation in Xenopus embryos, and HS plays an indispensable role in establishing the embryogenesis and tissue morphogenesis during early Xenopus development (Furuya, S., Sera, M., Tohno-oka, R., Sugahara, K., Shiokawa, K., and Hirabayashi, Y. (1995) Dev. Growth Differ. 37, 337-346). In this study, HS was purified from Xenopus embryos to investigate its disaccharide composition and binding ability to basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and follistatin (FS), the latter being provided in two isoforms with core sequences of 315 and 288 amino acids (designated FS-315 and FS-288) originating from alternative mRNA splicing. Disaccharide composition analysis of the purified Xenopus HS showed the preponderance of a disulfated disaccharide unit with uronic acid 2-O-sulfate and glucosamine 2-N-sulfate, which has been implicated in the interactions with bFGF. Specific binding of the HS to bFGF and FS-288, the COOH-terminal truncated form, was observed in the filter binding assay, whereas HS did not bind to FS-315, indicating that the acidic Glu-rich domain of FS-315 precluded the binding. The binding of the HS to bFGF or FS-288 was markedly inhibited by heparin (HP) and various HS preparations, but not by chondroitin sulfate, supporting the binding specificity of HS. The binding specificity was further investigated using FS-288 and bovine intestinal [3H]HS. Competitive inhibition assays of the HS binding to FS-288 using size-defined HP oligosaccharides revealed that the minimum size required for significant inhibition was a dodecasaccharide, which is larger than the pentasaccharide required for bFGF binding. The binding affinity of FS to HS increased in the presence of activin, a growth/differentiation factor, which could be inactivated by direct binding to FS. These results, taken together, indicate that the structural requirement for binding of HS to bFGF and FS is different. HS may undergo dynamic changes in its structure during early Xenopus embryogenesis in response to the temporal and spatial expression of various growth/differentiation factors.