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By affinity capillary electrophoresis (ACE), the thermodynamic binding constants of a sulfonamide (SA) inhibitor to bovine carbonic anhydrase II (CA) and metal mutated variants (M-CAs) were evaluated. 1-(4-Aminosulfonylphenylazo)-2-naphthol-6,8-disulfonate was used as the SA in the electrophoretic buffer for ACE. The Scatchard analysis of the dependence of the electrophoretic mobility of native CA on the SA concentration provided the binding constant to be K b = (2.29 ± 0.05) × 10 6 M − 1 (at pH 8.4, 25 °C). On the other hand, apoCA showed far smaller value [ K b = (3.76 ± 0.14) × 10 2 M −1 ], suggesting that the coordination of SA to the Zn II center controlled the binding thermodynamics. The ACE of M-CAs showed the same behaviors as native CA but with different K b values. For example, Co–CA adopting the same tetrahedral coordination geometry as native CA exhibited the largest K b value [(2.55 ± 0.05) × 10 6 M −1 ] among the M-CAs. In contrast, Mn– and Ni–CA, which adopted the octahedral coordination geometry, had K b values that were about two orders of magnitude lower. Because the hydrophobic cavity of CA around the active center pre-organized the orientation of SA, thereby fixing the ligating NH − moiety to the apex of the tetrahedron supported by three basal His 3 of CA, metals such as Zn and Co at the center of M-CA gave the most stable CA–SA complex. However, pre-organization was not favored for octahedral geometry. Thus, pre-organization of SA was the key to facilitating the tetrahedral coordination geometry of the Zn II active center of CA.

In focal epilepsy, power imbalance between spike-related high frequency oscillations (HFOs) with 80-200 Hz and post-spike slow waves (PSS) in the spike and slow waves selectively occurs within the seizure onset zone (SOZ) before seizure onset. The aim of this study was to elucidate when this preictal power imbalance could occur in the SOZ. We analyzed intracranial EEG data from 6 patients with focal cortical dysplasia. During preictal 3-min period, which was divided into three intervals: 0-1 min, 1-2 min 2-3 min before seizure onset, we performed correlation (Spearman's coefficient) and simple linear regression analyses comparing power of spike-related HFOs and PSS. We analyzed 719 ± 57 (mean ± SD) spike and slow waves per patient, which were obtained from three seizures. In the SOZ, the positive correlation between spike-related HFO and PSS power was drastically reduced during preictal 3-min period, and the slope of regression line (ΔPSS power/ΔHFO power) decreased significantly during 0-1 min before seizure onset (p0.05, Steel-Dwass test). The present results indicate that the preictal dynamics of HFO and PSS power in the SOZ may have utility for early seizure detection.

A capillary electrophoretic reactor was used to analyze the dissociation kinetics of an enzyme–inhibitor complex in a homogeneous solution without immobilization. The complex consisting of trypsin (Try) and aprotinin (Apr) was used as the model. Capillary electrophoresis provided a reaction field for Try–Apr complex to dissociate through the steady removal of free Try and Apr from the Try–Apr zone. By analyzing the dependence of peak height of Try–Apr on separation time, the dissociation rate kdH was obtained as 2.73 × 10−4 s−1 (298 K) at pH 2.46. The dependence of kdH on the proton concentration (pH = 2.09–3.12) revealed a first-order dependence of kdH on [H+]; kdH = kd + k1[H+], where kd is the spontaneous dissociation rate and was 5.65 × 10−5 s−1, and k1 is the second-order rate constant and was 5.07 × 10−2 M−1 s−1. From the kd value, the half-life of the Try–Apr complex at physiological pH was determined as 3.4 h. The presence of the proton-assisted dissociation can be explained by the protonation of -COO– of the Asp residue in Try, which breaks the salt bridge with the –NH3+ group of Lys in Apr.

This article presents a re-working of Huang's (1984) parametric theory of null arguments through an in-depth examination of the so-called radical pro drop phenomenon and the role of syntactic agreement in Colloquial Singapore English/CSE, an English-lexified contact variety spoken in Singapore. We present a hitherto unnoticed observation that the otherwise liberal omission of the subject in CSE is blocked by the subject agreement –s appropriated from its English lexifier. Our central idea here is that meager agreement in CSE must be licensed/valuated by an overt NP through the specifier-head relation (Speas, 1994, 2006). This idea, coupled with Huang's theory of null arguments, captures the radical pro drop phenomenon in CSE. Our proposed analysis not only correctly predicts subject–object asymmetries with respect to reference and crossover effects in CSE but also derives the new observation that poor agreement in CSE blocks the generation of the empty category in subject position, but not in object position. We further compare our analysis with two recent alternative theories of the radical pro drop phenomenon presented by Neeleman and Szendroi (2007) and Saito (2007). We show that our analysis successfully circumvents the empirical problems CSE raises for these theories.

The effect of room temperature (RT) aging on the superelasticity of Ti–Nb–Mo-based superelastic alloys is investigated. The results show that annealing at relatively low temperatures such as 973 K after severe cold rolling results in poor resistance to the effect of RT aging. The transformation stress increases considerably due to the formation of an isothermal ω phase at RT. Addition of Sn is partially effective in suppressing the RT aging effect in the specimens annealed at 973 K. The RT aging effect is suppressed by increasing the annealing temperature, due to the annihilation of lattice defects or non-equilibrium vacancies introduced during cold rolling, which are responsible for accelerating the diffusion process, however, superelasticity is reduced by annealing at higher temperatures, due to a decrease in the critical stress for slip deformation (σCSS). The specimen annealed at 1173 K followed by aging at 773 K exhibits stable superelasticity with a high resistance to the effect of RT aging. Annealing at 1173 K causes the annihilation of lattice defects or non-equilibrium vacancies, while aging at 773 K induces precipitation of the α phase, which in turn causes an increase in σCSS, and further enhances the resistance to the RT aging effect by enriching the matrix with β-stabilizing elements.

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) has proven to be useful for the evaluation of language lateralization in healthy subjects, infants, and epileptic patients. This study for the first time investigated the expressive and receptive language functions separately, using NIRS in presurgical glioma patients. We also describe a special case with dissociated pattern of language functions. Ten glioma patients were examined. Using NIRS, the hemodynamic changes during a verb generation task or story listening task were measured in the cerebral hemisphere on either side covering the language areas. Following the NIRS study, the Wada test was performed in all the patients. The NIRS study revealed increases of oxyhemoglobin and decreases of deoxyhemoglobin in the language areas elicited by both tasks. In 9 patients, who were all right-handed, the expressive and receptive language functions were lateralized to the left hemisphere. The results of the NIRS study were completely consistent with those of the Wada test. In the remaining 1 patient with a right sided insular glioma, who was right-handed, the NIRS study revealed stronger activation of the right inferior frontal region during the verb generation task, and stronger activation of the left superior temporal region during the story listening task. This dissociated language function was validated by the Wada test and the postoperative neurological course. These results demonstrate that a NIRS study using our technique is extremely valuable for preoperative assessment of the language functions and exemplifies how a preoperative NIRS study can allow detection of unforeseen language lateralization.

A sintered bulk Li7La3Zr2O12 (LLZ) pellet was prepared in Ar flow. The Li ion conductivity of LLZ pellet sintered in Ar flow was lower than that sintered in air due to mainly high grain boundary resistance, indicating that air promotes sintering of LLZ. On the other hand, stability against molten Li metal was not affected by sintering atmosphere. LiCoO2 was prepared by a sol–gel method and no impurity phase was observed by XRD identification. All-solid-state battery with Li/LLZ/LiCoO2 configuration was constructed and operated successfully.

Bacterial degradation of 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(4-chlorophenyl)ethylene (DDE) has been previously reported, however, its degradation enzyme system has not been characterized. In this study, a DDE-degrading bacterium, Janibacter sp. TYM3221, was isolated and characterized. Transformation of DDE was demonstrated by TYM3211 resting cells grown in LB in the presence and absence of biphenyl. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis revealed five metabolites of DDE containing a meta-ring cleavage product and 4-chlorobenzoic acid, suggesting that TYM3221 degrades DDE to 4-chlorobenzoic acid via a meta-ring cleavage product. A gene cluster, bphAaAbAcAd, which codes for biphenyl dioxygenase subunits, was cloned from TYM3221. A mutant strain with a bphAa-gene inactivation did not grow on biphenyl, and showed no DDE degradation activity. These results indicate that in strain TYM3221, the bphAa-coded biphenyl dioxygenase is involved not only in the metabolism of biphenyl but also in the degradation of DDE.

In order to fabricate large scale all-solid-state Li battery, we suggested a novel structure of solid electrolyte, which is composed of porous electrolyte supported by honeycomb-type electrolyte. A possibility of fabrication of the honeycomb-supported porous electrolyte and a compatibility of this structure with all-solid-state battery were examined using LLT (Li0.35La0.55TiO3) solid electrolyte which is one of the anticipated solid electrolytes due to its high Li ion conductivity. A porous layer membrane with 3 dimensionally ordered (3DOM) macroporous structure was prepared by a colloidal crystal templating method. The porous honeycomb was fabricated by pushing the membrane into holes of honycomb using a needle followed by calcination. The 3DOM membrane and honeycmb electrolyte were sintered well each other. After filling the 3DOM pores with LiMn2O4 cathode material, the compatibility of this novel porous honeycomb electrolyte with all-solid-state battery was examined. The LiMn2O4/porous honeycomb cell clearly demonstrated charge and discharge behaviors, indicating the porous honeycomb structure can be applied to the all-solid-state battery. The discharge capacity was 71 mA h g−1 (1.3 mA h cm−2) at 30 °C.

Li 7 La 3 Zr 2 O 12 (LLZ) solid electrolyte is one of the promising electrolytes for all-solid-state battery due to its high Li ion conductivity and stability against Li metal anode. However, high calcination temperature for LLZ preparation promotes formation of La 2 Zr 2 O 7 impurity phase. In this paper, an effect of Al 2 O 3 addition as sintering additive on LLZ solid electrolyte preparation and electrochemical properties of Al 2 O 3 -added LLZ were examined. By the Al 2 O 3 addition, sintered LLZ pellet could be obtained after 1000 °C calcination, which is 230 °C lower than that without Al 2 O 3 addition. Chemical and electrochemical properties of the Al 2 O 3 -added LLZ, such as stability against Li metal and ion conductivity, were comparable with the LLZ without Al 2 O 3 addition, i.e. σ bulk and σ total were 2.4 × 10 −4 and 1.4 × 10 −4 S cm −1 at 30 °C, respectively. All-solid-state battery with Li/Al 2 O 3 -added LLZ/LiCoO 2 configuration was fabricated and its electrochemical properties were tested. In cyclic voltammogram, clear redox peaks were observed, indicating that the all-solid-state battery with Li metal anode was successfully operated. The redox peaks were still observed even after one year storage of the all-solid-state battery in the Ar-filled globe-box. It can be inferred that the Al 2 O 3 -added LLZ electrolyte would be a promising candidate for all-solid-state battery because of facile preparation by the Al 2 O 3 addition, relatively high Li ion conductivity, and good stability against Li metal and LiCoO 2 cathode.

Allosamidins, metabolites of Streptomyces with strong inhibitory activities toward family 18 chitinases, show a variety of biological activities in various organisms. We prepared photoaffinity and biotinylated probes of allosamidin and demethylallosamidin, the N-demethyl derivative that shows much stronger anti-asthmatic activity than allosamidin. Mild acid hydrolysis of allosamidins afforded mono-amine derivatives, which were amidated to prepare probes with a photoactivatable aryl azide and/or biotin moieties. The derivatives with an N-acyl group at C-2 of the D-allosamine residue at the non-reducing end of allosamidins inhibited Trichoderma chitinase as strongly as the original compounds. Since the target of allosamidins in asthma is unclear, photoaffinity probes were used to analyze allosamidin-binding proteins in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid in IL-13-induced asthmatic mice. Ym1, a chitinase-like protein, was identified as the main allosamidin-binding protein among proteins whose expression was upregulated by IL-13 in BAL fluid. Binding of allosamidins with Ym1 was confirmed by the experiments with photoaffinity probes and recombinant Ym1.

A property of interface between solid electrode and solid electrolyte is one of the most important keys to fabricate all-solid-state lithium ion battery. In this study, an influence of sol composition used for preparation of the electrode on the property of interface between electrode and electrolyte was examined. LiMn2O4/honeycomb Li0.55La0.35TiO3 (LLT) and Li4Mn5O12/honeycomb LLT half cells were fabricated by impregnation of mixture of active materials with various precursor sols into honeycomb holes. In the case of LiMn2O4 cathode, the sol composed of nitrate salt provides large contact area of LiMn2O4 and LLT, resulting in higher performance of the cell. Li2MnO3 impurity was produced at Li4Mn5O12/LLT interface prepared by the precursor sol composed of only nitrate or acetate salts although no impurity phase was observed at the interface prepared by acetate–nitrate sol containing lithium acetate and manganese nitrate. Li4Mn5O12/honeycomb LLT half cell prepared by the acetate–nitrate sol showed the best performance among them. It is concluded that composition of the precursor sol strongly influenced on the interface of electrode and electrolyte. The all-solid-state Li ion battery composed of LiMn2O4/honeycomb LLT/Li4Mn5O12 was successfully operated and the discharge capacity was 32 μAh cm−2.

In order to improve performance of all-solid-state lithium ion battery with honeycomb structure, a compatibility of two commonly used cathode materials, LiCoO 2 and LiMn 2 O 4 , to Li 0.55 La 0.35 TiO 3 (LLT) solid electrolyte was studied. LiCoO 2 /honeycomb LLT and LiMn 2 O 4 /honeycomb LLT half cells were fabricated by the impregnation of mixture of the cathode material with its precursor sol into honeycomb holes followed by the calcination. Impurity phases were observed at interface between LiCoO 2 and honeycomb LLT, while no impurity phase was confirmed in the case of LiMn 2 O 4 . In half cell test, the LiMn 2 O 4 /honeycomb LLT cell showed about 6 times larger discharge capacity than the LiCoO 2 /honeycomb LLT cell, because of high internal resistance of the LiCoO 2 /honeycomb LLT cell caused by the impurity phases. It can be said that the formation of low resistance interface at active material/electrolyte is one of the most important key to improve performance of the all-solid-state battery. Using LiMn 2 O 4 instead of LiCoO 2 , better interface between cathode material and LLT was obtained.

In this paper, I explore the issue of the division of labor between syntax and morphology within the context of the lexicalist vs. non-lexicalist debate on the basis of case studies of phrasal compounds in English and ber –constructions in Indonesian. I first show what challenges these phenomena raise for various existing versions of the lexicalist theory to have a clear grasp of what aspect(s) of the theory must be dropped or improved upon. I then propose (non-lexicalist) alternative accounts of the two phenomena. I show that phrasal compounds can be explained on a par with regular compounding of two simplex roots as a natural consequence of the Multiple Spell-Out model of the Minimalist Program. I provide evidence that ber –constructions in Indonesian are derived via head movement, rejecting potential alternative lexicalist accounts in terms of lexical compounding. I also briefly discuss several architectural design specifications that any model of the morphology–syntax interface must meet. I conclude that the firewall theory of the interface, which determines the degree of the interpenetration between syntax and morphology on a language-particular basis, not only meets these specifications, but also serves as an explanatory model within which the syntax–morphology interaction can be productively pursued.

Effect of the stress ratio on fatigue properties of a bearing steel (JIS:SUJ2) in the long life regime was experimentally examined under axial loading. As a result, the duplex S–N characteristics given by superposition of S–N curves for surface-induced fracture and interior inclusion-induced fracture were obtained similar to the corresponding results in rotating bending. Fish-eye marks were necessarily observed on the fracture surfaces failed in the latter fracture mode and an inclusion was found at the center of the fish-eye. The fatigue fracture of this steel in the long life regime occurred through three different processes of: (1) formation of the characteristic area of Fine Granular Area (FGA), (2) crack propagation to form the fish-eye and (3)rapid crack propagation to cause the catastrophic fracture. The effect of the stress ratio on the FGA size was confirmed and, this effect was well explained by the stress intensity factor at front of the FGA.

Silica gels with well-defined co-continuous gel skeletons and pore in the micrometer range have been prepared using a poly(ethylene oxide–propylene oxide–ethylene oxide (EO–PO–EO)) triblock copolymer. Being essentially independent of the micrometer-range structure, the mesopore exhibited narrow distributions around an identical median size and its volume was correlated well to the concentration of triblock copolymer. Small-angle neutron scattering of wet, dried and heat-treated gels revealed that the mesopore structure had been already templated at the sol–gel transition, and was preserved or even enhanced during the removal of solvent and carbonaceous constituents.