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AbstractPurpose:To determine the relationship of the photopic negative response (PhNR) of the photopic electroretinogram (ERG) with the degree of circulatory disturbances in eyes following central retinal artery occlusion (CRAO). Methods:The circulatory disturbance was graded as mild (group 1) when the arm-to-retina transmission time was 30 s and severe (group 3) when concurrent choroidal circulatory damage was found. For statistical analysis, groups 1, 2 and 3 were scored as 1, 2 and 3, respectively. Photopic ERGs were elicited by either short-flash (SF) or long-flash (LF) stimuli. Results:Both the SF and LF PhNR were significantly reduced in groups 2 and 3. The PhNR amplitude was negatively correlated with the severity of the ocular circulatory disturbances (p = 0.0498, ρ = –0.507 for SF PhNR; p = 0.0050, ρ = –0.750 for LF PhNR). Conclusion:The amplitude of the PhNR became more reduced as the severity of the circulatory disturbances increased in eyes with CRAO.Copyright © 2009 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The prognosis for patients with scirrhous gastric cancer (SGC) is extremely poor. To improve the patients’ prognosis, laparoscopic-assisted intraperitoneal chemotherapy (IPC) was introduced for SGC. In this study, we analyzed whether IPC reduced the number of cancer cells in the peritoneal cavity of patients or changed the gene expression levels of cytokines in the peritoneal cavity. We also investigated whether IPC improved the prognosis of patients with SGC. Methods: Total RNA was extracted from 50 ml of peritoneal wash from 11 SGC patients before and after cisplatin-based IPC. The gene expression levels of survivin, c-myc, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-6, and IL-12 were analyzed using real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays. Also, carcinoembrionic antigen (CEA) messenger RNA (mRNA) was used to identify the number of gastric cancer cells in peritoneal washes by the real-time RT-PCR method. The gene expression levels of cytokines and the number of cancer cells in the peritoneal cavity were compared before and after cisplatin-based IPC treatment. Results: Before IPC, the gene expression of IL-2 from peritoneal washes of patients was significantly suppressed compared to the controls (p = 0.029); however, other gene expression levels did not differ. In 7 cases, more than 90% of the cancer cells were removed from the peritoneal cavity after cisplatin-based IPC. These 7 cases were named the IPC effective group, and the remaining 4 cases were named the IPC ineffective group. In the IPC effective group, elevated IL-2 and IL-6 genes were detected in 5 (71%) and in 6 (86%) after IPC. The correlation between IPC effectiveness and elevated gene expression after IPC (IL-2: p = 0.137, and IL-6: p = 0.044) was observed. However, the 50% survival period of the IPC effective group (9 months) was not different from that of that of the IPC ineffective group (6 months, p = 0.267). Conclusion: IPC effectiveness may correlate with elevation of gene expression of inflammatory cytokines, such as IL-2 and IL-6 in the peritoneal cavity after IPC. However, the prognostic benefits of IPC for SGC patients remain unclear.Copyright © 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract. Objectives:  To examine whether moderate changes in cell culture temperature influence the production of various cytokines and associated mediators of inflammation. Methods:  We performed lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation of the murine macrophagic RAW264.7 cell line under hyperthermic (40 �C), normothermic (37 �C) and hypothermic (34 �C) conditions. We then measured the levels of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70), heat shock factor protein (HSF) and nuclear factor–kB (NF-kB) dimers (p50 and p65) in the cells, and the levels of high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1) and the cytokines tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin 1β (IL-1β) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) in the culture supernatants. Results:  Levels of HMGB1, IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α, as well as NF-kB dimers (p50 and p65), were all reduced following LPS stimulation at 40 �C and 34 �C compared with those at 37 �C. Levels of HSP70 and HSF increased at 40 �C and 34 �C. Conclusions:  The application of moderate hyperthermia and hypothermia after LPS-induced cell activation attenuated the inflammatory response and reduced the likelihood of cell damage. These findings suggest that moderate temperature changes modulate the inflammatory response and could be a useful therapy against sepsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary. This report describes the characterization of the Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) orf8 gene. Immunoblot analyses demonstrated that orf8 was expressed as an early gene. The ORF8 protein accumulated in the nucleus, and was maintained at relatively constant levels from 4 to 24?h postinfection. Immunoblot analysis failed to detect ORF8 protein associated with budded virus and occlusion derived virus. In addition, immunohistochemical analysis by confocal microscopy showed that ORF8 protein colocalized with IE1 to specific nuclear foci throughout infection. To further examine the function of ORF8, a reporter gene was inserted into the orf8 reading frame. One orf8 disruption mutant (BmD8), which expressed the N-terminal half of ORF8, was isolated. However, it was not possible to isolate a null mutant, suggesting that orf8 may have an important role during viral infection. Single-step growth curves showed that BV production was reduced in BmD8 infected cells. Biochemical analyses indicated that ORF8 bound to nucleic acids. Together, these results suggest that BmNPV ORF8 may be involved in viral DNA replication and/or transcription. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal stability of well-crystallized cubic boron nitride (cBN) films grown by chemical vapor deposition has been investigated by cathodoluminescence (CL), Raman spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) with the cBN films annealed at various temperatures up to 1300 °C. The crystallinity of the cBN films further improves, as indicated by a reduction of the relevant Raman line width, when the annealing temperature exceeds 1100 °C. Structural damage or amorphization was observed on the grain boundaries of the cBN crystals when annealing temperature reaches 1300 °C. The CL spectra are found to be unchanged up to 1100 °C after annealing at 500 °C, showing the stability of the cBN films in electronic properties up to this temperature. New features were observed in the CL spectra when annealing temperature reaches 1200−1300 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a field shimming technology to obtain a spatially homogeneous magnetic field required for a high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) magnet under the influence of a screening current in a (RE)Ba2Cu3O7–x (REBCO) coil. Use of REBCO inner coils is one solution to realize a super-high field (>23.5 T, 1 GHz) NMR magnet. However, a REBCO coil generates a large amount of field error harmonics due to the inhomogeneous coil winding introduced by a thin tape conductor. In addition, the performance of a field correction coil and outer superconducting (SC) shim coils are significantly reduced due to the shielding effect of the screening current in the REBCO coil. Therefore, conventional shimming technology using SC shim coils and room temperature shim coils cannot adequately compensate those field error harmonics and high-resolution NMR measurements are not possible. In the present paper, an advanced field shimming technology including an inner SC shim coil and a novel type of ferromagnetic shim were installed in a 400 MHz low-temperature SC/REBCO NMR magnet. The inner SC shim coil and the ferromagnetic shim compensated for the reduction in the performances of the field correction coil and the SC shim coils, respectively. The field error harmonics were greatly compensated with the technology and a high NMR resolution <0.01 ppm was obtained. The results from the present work suggest an optimal shimming procedure for a super-high field NMR magnet with high-temperature superconductors inner coils, i.e. the best mix of shims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An advanced Bi-2223 conductor with Ni–Cr reinforcement is a likely candidate to achieve a compact super-high field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) magnet capable of operation beyond 1 GHz (23.5 T). However, the conductors must show both high hoop stress tolerance, typically >300 MPa, and a small screening current-induced magnetic field, both of which are essential for a compact magnet generating a highly accurate field. These two conditions have not yet been demonstrated in a working coil. This is the first paper to systematically investigate both characteristics for a layer-wound coil made with the advanced Bi-2223 conductor operated mainly at 4.2 K in an external field of ≤17 T. The coil tolerated a hoop stress of 370 MPa, even though the conductor had a bending strain corresponding to a diameter of 120 mm. On the other hand, the coil showed a notable screening current-induced field in a low external field, which may be explained by weak-link and direct contacts between highly packed Bi-2223 filaments in the silver matrix. The field sharply decreased with increasing external field between 0–1 T. Thus, the conductor should be useful for inner coils in compact super-high field NMR magnets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]