Strongyloidiasis associated with nephrotic syndrome

We report a nephrotic syndrome patient with eosinophilia who developed ileus, epigastralgia and malabsorption due to strongyloidiasis which became symptomatic by steroid therapy. The patient was then treated with thiabendazole and recovered. A percutaneous renal biopsy revealed minimal change nephrotic syndrome. This renal injury may be brought on by severe infection of Strongyloides stercoralis. It is important to rule out strongyloidiasis prior to corticosteroid therapy to patients from eosinophilia endemic areas.     

Ironmaking with ammonia at low temperature

This paper describes the reduction of hematite with ammonia for ironmaking, in which the effect of temperature on the products was examined. The results showed that the reduction process began at 430 °C during heating, and with an increase in temperature, the reduction mechanism changed apparently from a direct reduction of ammonia (Fe(2)O(3) + 2NH(3) → 2Fe + N(2) + 3H(2)O) to an indirect reduction via the thermal decomposition of ammonia (2NH(3) → N(2) + 3H(2), Fe(2)O(3) + 3H(2) → 2Fe + 3H(2)O) at temperatures over 530 °C. The final product obtained at 600 and 700 °C was pure metallic iron, in contrast with that formed at 450 °C, that is, a mixture of metallic iron and iron nitride. The results suggest the possibility of using ammonia as a reducing agent for carbonless ironmaking, which is operated at a much lower temperature than 900 °C in conventional coal-based ironmaking.     

Electrodeposition of amorphous gold alloy films

The process for electroplating amorphous gold-nickel-tungsten alloy that we developed previously based on the addition of a gold salt to a known amorphous Ni-W electroplating solution was investigated further using the X-ray diffraction (XRD) method for the purpose of quickly surveying the effects of various experimental variables on the microstructure of the alloy. In this system the gold concentration in the plating bath was found to be critical; i.e., when it is either very low or very high, the deposit becomes crystalline to XRD. The deposit composition varies linearly with the mole ratio of Au to Ni in solution, and the alloy deposit is amorphous to XRD when the atomic ratio of Au/Ni in the deposit is between 0.5 and 1.5. At suitable concentrations of the metal ions, the deposit contains essentially no tungsten. By extending the work on the Au-Ni-W system, an amorphous Au-Co alloy plating process was also developed.     

Characterization of a 34-kDa soybean binding protein for the syringolide elicitors

Syringolides are water-soluble, low-molecular-weight elicitors that trigger defense responses in soybean cultivars carrying the Rpg4 disease-resistance gene but not in rpg4 cultivars. 125I-syringolide 1 previously was shown to bind to a soluble protein(s) in extracts from soybean leaves. A 34-kDa protein that accounted for 125I-syringolide 1 binding activity was isolated with a syringolide affinity-gel column. Partial sequences of internal peptides of the 34-kDa protein were identical to P34, a previously described soybean seed allergen. In soybean seeds, P34 is processed from a 46-kDa precursor protein and was shown to have homology with thiol proteases. P34 is a moderately abundant protein in soybean seeds and cotyledons but its level in leaves is low. cDNAs encoding 46-, 34-, and 32-kDa forms of the soybean protein were cloned into the baculovirus vector, pVL1392, and expressed in insect cells. The resulting 32- and 34-kDa proteins, but not the 46-kDa protein, exhibited ligand-specific 125I-syringolide binding activity. These results suggest that P34 may be the receptor that mediates syringolide signaling.     

Vermiculite lamellae as substrates for transmission electron microscopy

A technique for preparing human skin for high-resolution scanning electron microscopy using phosphate-buffered crude bacterial α-amylase is described. Effects of the buffer solution alone are studied as well as the proteolytic activity of the enzyme solution used. The biochemical implications of these observations are discussed with regard to the in situ structure of the tissue.     

Polymer blends with spatially graded structures prepared by phase separation under a temperature gradient

Phase separation of poly(2-chlorostyrene)/poly(vinyl methyl ether) (P2CS/PVME) blends driven by a temperature gradient was investigated by phase-contrast optical microscopy combined with digital image analysis. The samples were set in a temperature gradient in such a way that the two ends of the gradient cover both sides of the critical point. When the high-temperature side of the gradient is increased with a constant rate, the interface that divides the miscible and the phase separated regions of the blend moves toward the low temperature side, leaving the phase separating region behind. It was found that in the vicinity of this interface, the phase separation takes place slowly via the spinodal decomposition process, giving interconnecting structures. In the region far from the newly growing interface, the droplet morphology appears as a result of the late stage of the spinodal decomposition. These droplets grow with time according to the power law ξ ∝ tβ, with β increasing from 0.30 to 0.44 along the temperature gradient. The phase separated blends with these graded morphologies show the broadened mechanical tanδ due to the graded structures distributed along the temperature gradient.     

Control of nonstoichiometric defects in manganese oxides by self-propagating high-temperature synthesis

Nonstoichiometric compounds of Mn_1−δO were self-propagating high-temperature synthesized by ignition of thoroughly mixed powders of Mn, NaClO₄, and MnO without additional external heating. The mixing ratio was systematically varied to control δ. Single phase Mn_1−δO products containing nonstoichiometric defects were obtained for 0 < δ ≤ 0.025. With increase in δ, Mn₃O₄ content of the products is increased. Double phases of Mn_1−δO and Mn₃O₄ were obtained at 0.025 < δ ≤ 0.150. The lattice parameter, a, of the single phase Mn_1−δO was well explained by the linear equation: a = −0.0667δ + 4.448.