Role of Metabolism in Bone Development and Homeostasis

Carbohydrates, fats, and proteins are the underlying energy sources for animals and are catabolized through specific biochemical cascades involving numerous enzymes. The catabolites and metabolites in these metabolic pathways are crucial for many cellular functions; therefore, an imbalance and/or dysregulation of these pathways causes cellular dysfunction, resulting in various metabolic diseases. Bone, a highly mineralized organ that serves as a skeleton of the body, undergoes continuous active turnover, which is required for the maintenance of healthy bony components through the deposition and resorption of bone matrix and minerals. This highly coordinated event is regulated throughout life by bone cells such as osteoblasts, osteoclasts, and osteocytes, and requires synchronized activities from different metabolic pathways. Here, we aim to provide a comprehensive review of the cellular metabolism involved in bone development and homeostasis, as revealed by mouse genetic studies.     

Efficiency of repeated batch penicillin fermentation using two fermentors. Computer simulation and optimisation

Repeated batch operation using two fermentors (RBTF) to penicillin fermentation was demonstrated by computer simulation to improve productivity. Three operation modes were compared: chemostat, repeated batch operation using a single fermentor (RBSF) and RBTF; in each case account was made of the lag period before growth. The simulated fermentor performances were assessed on the basis of the penicillin productivity and concentration; the simulation was based on published batch fermentation data. It was shown that RBTF was superior to RBSF and chemostat. The advantage of RBTF increased as the lag period became greater.     

A cathode readout gas sampling calorimeter with conductive plastic tubes

We constructed and tested a prototype gas sampling electromagnetic calorimeter of the Pb-proportional tube sandwich type. The calorimeter uses conductive plastic tubes and cathode pad readout with a tower structure which resulted in reasonable energy and spatial resolutions for electrons in the momentum range 0.5–4.0 GeV/c; $\text{σ}{}_{\mathrm{E}}\text{E =}\text{21\%}\text{(E(}\text{GeV}\text{)}\text{)}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>1</mtext><mtext>2</mtext>}}\text{, σ}{}_{\mathrm{x}}\text{= 6}\text{mm}\text{(at 3 GeV}$/c). This paper describes the test and the performance studied under various conditions.     

Pressure anomaly in the paramagnetic region of bcc solid3He

The isochoric pressure of bcc Solid³He in the vicinity of the triple point has been measured by changing the temperature stepwisely and waiting for thermal equilibrium. We observed anomalous pressure kinks of the temperature dependence in the paramagnetic region near the triple point. This anomaly appeared at 0.37 to 0.40 tesla, and disappeared below 0.36 tesla. Moreover, critical phenomena at the transition point from the paramagnetic phase (PP) to the high field phase was observed and the phase line curves toward the PP side.     

EXPANSION AND STRESS RELAXATION OF EXPRESSED CAKE

Expansion and stress relaxation of expressed cake are discussed.

The expansion process of expressed cake after release of load is very similar to consolidation of solidndashliquid mixtures, although a liquid flow in the expansion process is opposite in direction to that in consolidalion. This process can be analyzed well by use of the Terzaghi Voigt combined model. It is shown that the rate of primary deformation in expansion is much smaller than that in consolidation under the same change in compressive pressure. It is also found that the ratio of secondary deformation to total deformation in expansion is much larger than that in consolidation.

Stress relaxation of expressed cake, which is observed when expression is stopped before attaining an equilibrium compression state of a material, can be explained by use of a consolidation and expansion theory. In the relaxation process, local expansion appears near the drainage surface while local consolndash idation appears near the center of the cake. The equilibrium cake stress is uniquely determined by the average consolidation ratio when the expression is interrupted.     

Performance of compression/absorption hybrid refrigeration cycle with propane/mineral oil combination

This paper discusses the feasibility of a vapor compression/absorption hybrid refrigeration cycle for energy saving and utilization of waste heat. The cycle employs propane as a natural refrigerant and a refrigeration oil as an absorbent. A prototype of the cycle is constructed, in which a compressor and an absorption unit are combined in series. The performance of the cycle is examined both theoretically and experimentally. Although the solubility of the propane with the oil is not enough as a working pair in the absorption unit, the theoretical calculation shows that the hybrid cycle has a potential to achieve a higher performance in comparison with a simple vapor compression cycle by using the waste heat. In the experiment, the prototype cycle is operated successfully and it is found that an improvement of an absorber is necessary to achieve the good performance close to the theoretical one. The application of an AHE (absorber heat exchanger) can reduce the heat input to a generator. Further examinations on some other combinations of refrigerant/refrigeration oil and additives are desirable.     

Sensorless control of synchronous reluctance motors using on‐line parameter identification method not affected by position estimation accuracy

This paper presents a novel on‐line parameter identification method for sensorless control of Synchronous Reluctance Motors (SynRMs). Although conventional sensorless control methods based on mathematical models usually need some complex measurements of motor parameters in advance, the proposed identification method does not require them and can be realized on‐line. The proposed method identifies motor parameters under sensorless control, so rotor position and velocity cannot be used to identify these parameters. However, the proposed method does not need rotor position and velocity, and identified parameters are not affected by these estimation errors. The sensorless control using identified motor parameters is realized, and the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by experimental results. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 155(3): 62–69, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.20258     

Channelling studies on the lattice location of B atoms in graphite

In order to obtain information on the lattice location of B atoms in graphite, channelling experiments have been performed at room temperature with a proton beam of an energy of 0.65-0.77 MeV for the 〈0 0 0 1〉 axial channel in highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) crystals doped with 0.32 at.% B. The B atoms are detected by measuring α-particles which are emitted as a result of a nuclear reaction ¹¹B(p,α)αα. It is clearly demonstrated that most of B atoms are shadowed behind the 〈0 0 0 1〉 C atomic rows. Taking account of the already reported experimental results on a change of lattice parameters by B-doping, it is concluded that most of B atoms are located at substitutional sites. It is also observed that B-doping introduces lattice strain on the c-plane. In addition, the presence of a small portion of interstitial B atoms is suggested.