Hinokitiol induces differentiation of teratocarcinoma F9 cells

Hinokitiol, a constituent of the wood of Chamaecyparis taiwanensis, was found to induce differentiation of teratocarcinoma F9 cells. When examined by the agar-overlay method, in which expression of plasminogen activator as a differentiation marker protein was detected, this compound exhibited a dose- and time-dependent induction. Induction of differentiation by hinokitiol occurred irreversibly and required its addition for more than 12h. Among its structure-related compounds tested, tropolone and two colchicine-related compounds exerted potent activities comparable to that of hinokitiol. These findings indicate that free tropolone structure in the molecules plays an essential role in inducing differentiation of F9 cells. Hinokitiol showed a strong inhibitory effect of DNA synthesis in very early stages of culture, suggesting that this effect may be responsible for triggering differentiation of F9 cells.     

Hydrothermal upgrading of wood biomass: Influence of the addition of K2CO3 and cellulose/lignin ratio

The hydrothermal treatment of two different wood biomass samples such as cherry (hard wood) and cypress (soft wood), whose composition is different i.e. lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose were performed at 280 °C for 15 min with aq. K₂CO₃ with different concentrations (0–1 M). The soft wood biomass contains higher lignin content than hard wood biomass. The cellulose rich cherry wood biomass produced higher proportion of acetic acid than cypress. The lignin rich cypress produced the hydrocarbons with major portion of phenolic hydrocarbons and derivatives than cherry. The total oil yields from both cherry and cypress wood biomass produced 50 wt% of liquid hydrocarbons at 280 °C for 15 min with 0.5 M K₂CO₃ solution. The volatility distribution of liquid hydrocarbons showed the characteristic features of soft and hard wood biomasses.     

High-performance polymer alloys of polybenzoxazine and bismaleimide

Two series of high-performance polymer alloys were prepared by mixing typical benzoxine monomers, 3-phenyl-3,4-dihydro-2H-1,3-benzoxazine (P-a) or 6,6-(1-methylethyliden)-bis-(3,4-dihydro-3-phenyl-2H-1,3-benzoxazine) (B-a), with a typical bismaleimide, 4,4-bismaleimidodiphenyl methane by various ratios followed by thermal treatment up to 240 °C. DSC and IR of the alloys were examined to follow the curing reaction. These analyses showed that the obtained polymer alloys are AB co-cross-linked polymer networks through the formation of ether linkage between the hydroxyl group of polybenoxazine and the double bond of bismaleimide. Viscoelastic analysis and softening temperature measurement revealed that the polymer alloys have much higher glass transition temperatures than those of each homopolymer. The thermal stability also increased with the increase of bismaleimide content as evidenced by TGA.     

Ion exchange of intercalation compounds from WOP2O7 and intercalation ofn-alkylamines

Ion exchange of Na _x WOP₂O₇ ·nH₂O (x 1.4) prepared from WOP₂O₇ was attempted, using alkaline and alkaline earth ions. The degree of exchange was observed to be >50% at 90° C except for Mg²⁺. The basal spacing of ion-exchanged materials for the hydrated phase were dependent on the number of water molecules in the interlayer spaces, while those for the dehydrated phase increased with the size of ions in the interlayer spaces. The network of water molecules linked by the hydrogen bond in the interlayer spaces seems to determine the basal spacing. By the ion-exchange reaction,n-alkylammonium ions were intercalated into the interlayer spaces of Na _x WOP₂O₇ ·nH₂O (x 1.4) and Sn _x H _y WOP₂O₇ ·nH₂O (2x +y 0.5). In spite of the difference in the charge density of the host layer, a similar arrangement of alkyl chains in the interlayer spaces resulted, and neutral amines were considered to be intercalated as well as ammonium ions. Direct reaction ofn-alkylamine with WOP₂O₇ produced an intercalation compound without reduction of tungsten. The arrangement of the amines in the interlayer spaces is similar to that supposed to the ion-exchanged derivatives when heated at 140° Cin vacuo.     

Site-specific electronic structure analysis by channeling EELS and first-principles calculations

Site-specific electronic structures were investigated by electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) under electron channeling conditions. The Al-K and Mn-L(2,3) electron energy loss near-edge structure (ELNES) of, respectively, NiAl2O4 and Mn3O4 were measured. Deconvolution of the raw spectra with the instrumental resolution function restored the blunt and hidden fine features, which allowed us to interpret the experimental spectral features by comparing with theoretical spectra obtained by first-principles calculations. The present method successfully revealed the electronic structures specific to the differently coordinated cationic sites.     

Electrical and structural properties of ortho-chloranil doped zinc phthalocyanine films

Electrical conductivity of evaporated zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) films, doped with orthochloranil (o-CA) molecules, is investigated. Benzoico-CA solution is introduced in the film and benzene is removed by vapourization afterwards. The film conductivity at first increased and then decreased with incremental doping. The maximum conductivity of the sample appeared at doping level × (=o-CA/ZnPc) 0.2 and is about 10³ times as large as that of the as-evaporated one. About a ten-fold further increase in the conductivity is obtained by the heat-treatment of 150 °C for 12 h. The conductivity change by doping is explained by taking into account thato-CA molecules behave not only as acceptors in the film but destructively for the film structure. The phase change of ZnPc by benzoic solution is also discussed.     

Thermodynamic study and intrinsic type II superconductivity in the A-15 compound V3Si

The specific heat of a single crystal of the A-15-type compound V₃Si in the normal, mixed, and superconducting states has been measured from 4 to 30 K in magnetic fields up to 50 kOe. The analysis has been performed in a self-consistent way based on the second-order phase transition from the normal to the superconducting state. The thermodynamic critical field and then various physical parameters characterizing the superconducting and normal states are almost consistently derived from the thermodynamics and the microscopic BCS-GLAG theory. It is confirmed that V₃Si is an intrinsic type II superconductor with a high intrinsic GL parameter ₀.This work was partially supported by a Grant in Aid for Scientific Research (B) from the Ministry of Education.     

High-intensity multi-bunch beam generation by a photo-cathode RF gun

A multi-bunch photo-cathode RF gun system has been developed as an electron source for the production of intense quasi-monochromatic X-rays based on inverse Compton scattering. The desired multi-bunch beam is 100 bunches/pulse with a total charge of 500 nC and a bunch spacing of 2.8 ns. We modified the gun cavity of a ‘BNL-type IV’ RF gun to allow a CsTe cathode plug in the end plate. The system uses a four-dipole chicane beam line to allow the injection of laser light normal to the cathode surface. We compensate the gun cavity beam loading caused by the high-intensity multi-bunch electron beam by injecting the laser pulse before RF power has filled the cavity. We have achieved a total intensity of 220 nC in 100 bunches with a bunch-to-bunch energy spread under 1.3% (peak-to-peak). This paper concentrates on experiments to generate the high-intensity multi-bunch beam with compensation of the bunch-to-bunch energy spread due to heavy beam loading.     

Development of sulfonated FEP-Nafion hybrid proton exchange membranes for PEFC

The performance of polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) is affected by an interfacial property between a proton exchange membrane (PEM) and electrodes. Thus, to develop a well-laminated membrane electrode assembly (MEA), a hybrid PEM (FN) was fabricated by mixing a radiation grafted membrane (sulfonated FEP) with ionomer (Nafion^® dispersion) which is applied to coat the interface of the PEM and electrodes.The obtained FN, sulfonated FEP and Nafion^®112 were characterized in terms of water uptake, ion exchange capacity (IEC), polarization performance and electrochemical impedance. FN showed high IEC and water uptake, which would induce the highest ionic conductivity (IC) among tested PEMs. In terms of FN, the interface between the PEM and electrodes should have been improved because FN showed the lowest charge transfer resistance than other tested PEMs. The high IC and improved interface between the PEM and electrodes resulted in the best cell performance of FN in tested PEMs.