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An intranasal (i.n.) dosing model was developed in mice as a potential alternative to more difficult, time-consuming, and costly guinea pig intratracheal (GPIT) or mouse intratracheal models for assessment of the respiratory immunogenicity of detergent enzymes. Using a benchmark enzyme, Alcalase (protease subtilisin Carlsberg), studies were conducted to standardize the model in terms of mouse strain, dosing and serum harvest regimen, and the primary immunoglobulin endpoint to use. The primary assay endpoint selected was the enzyme-specific IgG1 titer determined by an Alcalase-specific ELISA. This is not the primary allergenic antibody in mice (IgE is); however, IgG1 is coregulated with IgE via the IL-4/TH2 pathway and may have a role in mediating allergic-type responses. BDF1 mice (C57B1/6 x DBA/2) were selected as representative of high responder strains, with high response associated with the H-2b (C57B1/6) parent. The dosing regimen used for most studies incorporated three i.n. exposures (Days 1, 3, and 10) and bleeding of the animals on Day 15. The animals were anesthetized and then immunized by allowing them to inhale 5-microliters aliquots of dosing solution into each nostril at each immunization. Positioning of the animals with their heads down (vs up) may have allowed more of the dosing solution to remain in the nasal region for a slightly longer period of time, but did not change the eventual GI tract migration and excretion of each dose. The presence of a detergent matrix in the enzyme dosing solution enhanced the IgG1 response. Immunizing with enzyme plus detergent gave highly consistent dose-response curves for Alcalase when evaluated over many studies. An enzyme-specific allergic antibody (IgE) response was weak and inconsistent under the dosing regimen used to generate the IgG1 response, but was stronger with longer-term dosing, consistent with the delay in IgE vs IgG1 responses seen in some other studies. Using IgG1 as a surrogate for allergic sensitization, we have preliminary data showing similar differential potencies between Alcalase and other test enzymes as detected in previous GPIT tests. On the basis of these data, we believe the i.n. immunization/IgG1 response model is a robust technique that may be useful in determining the relative immunogenicities of detergent enzymes and other proteins.

The primary objective of this study was to examine the feasibility of using a mouse model to evaluate the immunogenicity of proteins as a potential method to determine occupational exposure guidelines. Mice were intratracheally administered a benchmark protein allergen, subtilisin Carlsberg (Alcalase) in detergent matrix once a week for 4 to 6 weeks and specific IgE and IgG1 levels were determined. In all experiments, specific IgE levels were determined by using a rat basophilic leukemia cell (RBL) release assay, while specific IgG1 was measured by an ELISA. A good correlation was observed between IgE titers determined by the RBL assay and rat passive cutaneous anaphylaxis assay. Intratracheal administration of protease with detergent matrix was found to result in significant IgE and IgG1 responses that were dose related. Detergent matrix was found to enhance the Alcalase-specific IgE and IgG1 response when administered by the intratracheal route. The IgG1 response was much more robust, easier to measure, and found to follow the IgE response. These results suggest that a mouse intratracheal model is a feasible approach to examining the immunogenic potency of enzymes using specific IgE or IgG1 as the end points. Additional development and validation of the mouse model with other types of proteins will be pursued.

Specific guinea-pig IgG1 has traditionally been measured by using an in vivo guinea-pig passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA) assay. This paper describes the development and validation of a quantitative enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for specific IgG1 against two protein antigens (Alcalase and Enzyme B) as an alternative to the PCA assay. The ELISA format involved a rabbit antibody bound to microtitre plates to capture the antigen. The test sera is added to this, followed sequentially by goat anti-guinea-pig IgG1 and rabbit anti-goat-IgG-alkaline phosphatase conjugate. Aliquots of each serum sample from immunised guinea-pigs were analysed with the ELISA for specific IgG1 titres in three laboratories and were compared to titres determined by using the PCA assay. The findings demonstrate that there is a good correlation between the ELISA and the PCA assay and that the ELISA shows good interlaboratory reproducibility. Thus, the antibody capture ELISA described in this report is a valid and robust replacement for the guinea-pig PCA assay.

application/pdf, High beta plasmas in the anchor cell of the GAMMA 10 tandem mirror are formed by using a fundamental ion cyclotron resonance heating. Because the closed resonance surface exists near the midplane of the anchor cell, strongly peaked profile of the plasma pressure will be formed. To measure the axial profiles of the ion temperature and density, a time-of-flight type neutral-particle analyzer (TOF–NPA) has been developed. TOF–NPA can detect neutral particles and photons separately at the same time. The ion temperature and density have been evaluated from the particle and photon signals, respectively. The peaked profile of the ion temperature within the closed resonance surface has been confirmed.

Optimization and Validation of an ELISA to Measure Specific Guinea Pig IgG1 Antibody as an Alternative to the in Vivo Passive Cutaneous Anaphylaxis Assay. Kawabata, T. T., Babcock, L. S., Gauggel, D. L., Asquith, T. N., Fletcher, E. R., Horn, P. A., Ratajczak, H. V., and Graziano, F. M. (1995). Fundam. Appl. Toxicol. 24, 238-246. Assessment of the allergenic potency of enzymes involves the use of a guinea pig model in which specific IgG1 antibody titers are used as the endpoint. The in vivo passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA) assay is used to measure specific IgG1 antibody. This report describes the development and validation of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to measure guinea pig specific IgG1 antibody as an in vitro alternative to the PCA assay. Cross reactivity of various rabbit and mouse (monoclonal) anti-guinea pig IgG1 preparations were evaluated using purified IgG1 and IgG2 from serum of guinea pigs immunized with ovalbumin. The two subclasses of guinea pig IgG were purified by first using Protein A affinity chromatography, followed by anion exchange chromatography and fluid phase isoelectric focusing. Affinity-purified rabbit anti-guinea pig IgG1 was shown to have minimal cross reactivity toward IgG2, while providing a strong signal with IgG1. The ELISA was designed as an antigen capture system in which the following are added in sequence: (1) enzyme antigen (passively adsorbed to the plate), (2) diluted serum samples from guinea pigs immunized with enzyme, (3) affinity-purified rabbit anti-guinea pig IgG1, (4) alkaline phosphatase-conjugated donkey anti-rabbit IgG, and (5) p -nitrophenyl phosphate substrate. Three replicate ELISA and PCA analyses were conducted on sera samples of varying titers from guinea pigs immunized with either Alcalase (protease), BPN' (protease), and Termamyl (amylase) enzyme. The correlation coefficients ( r 2 ) between the ELISA and PCA assay for Alcalase, BPN', and Termamyl were 0.826, 0.945, and 0.755, respectively. These findings demonstrate that the specific antibody ELISA developed in this study is a valid in vitro alternative to the PCA assay to measure anti-enzyme guinea pig IgG1.

Immunotoxicology of Regional Lymphoid Tissue: The Respiratory and Gastrointestinal Tracts and Skin. Kawabata, T. T., Burleson, G. R., Ernst, P. B., and Ullrich, S. E. (1995). Fundam. Appl. Toxicol. 26, 8-19. The area of immunotoxicology has grown significantly over the past decade. Most of the research on methods development and validation and mechanisms of action have focused on the systemic immune system (i.e., spleen, thymus). However, since the regional/mucosal immune system plays an important role in host resistance and is also potentially exposed to significant levels of chemicals, it should also be considered a potential target. The objective of this symposium was to increase the awareness and importance of examining the effects of xenobiotics on the regional/mucosal immune response. The speakers presented an overview of the rapidly growing field of regional immunology with emphasis on the respiratory tract, gut, and skin. The complex intercellular distribution and limited number of immune cells within the various regional lymphoid tissue have resulted in the use of a variety of methods to study the immune response of these tissues. These methods and results of studies which examined the effects and mechanisms of action of chemicals and uv light on the regional immune response were discussed.

Photometric and spectroscopic data of the energetic Type Ic supernova (SN) 2002ap are presented, and the properties of the SN are investigated through models of its spectral evolution and its light curve. The SN is spectroscopically similar to the "hypernova" SN 1997ef. However, its kinetic energy [$\sim (4-10) \times 10^{51}$ erg] and the mass ejected (2.5-5 $M_{\odot}$) are smaller, resulting in a faster-evolving light curve. The SN synthesized $\sim 0.07 M_{\odot}$ of $^{56}$Ni, and its peak luminosity was similar to that of normal SNe. Brightness alone should not be used to define a hypernova, whose defining character, namely very broad spectral features, is the result of a high kinetic energy. The likely main-sequence mass of the progenitor star was 20-25 $M_{\odot}$, which is also lower than that of both hypernovae SNe 1997ef and 1998bw. SN 2002ap appears to lie at the low-energy and low-mass end of the hypernova sequence as it is known so far. Observations of the nebular spectrum, which is expected to dominate by summer 2002, are necessary to confirm these values., 10 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in ApJL, 30 April 2002 (minor changes to match the accepted version, with figures being colored)

Urachal remnants are relatively rare but may potentially cause various symptoms and an increased risk for developing adenocarcinoma. Open or laparoscopic surgery is usually used for their resection. Laparoendoscopic single-site surgery has been recently applied in several surgical procedures. This report describes two cases of vesicourachal diverticulum treated by resection using laparoendoscopic single-site surgery.In each case, laparoendoscopic single-site surgery was performed transperitoneally via one port at a subumbilical semicircular incision. Except for a flexible camera and SILS Port, traditional, non-flexible laparoscopic instruments were used. After the induction of general anesthesia, the patient was placed in a supine position (or lithotomy position). A 2.0-cm incision was made semicircumferentially following the natural subumbilical folds. After the umbilical ligament was cut under direct vision, a SILS Port was placed at the incision. The urachus was liberated distally down to the roof of the urinary bladder using 0° 5-mm flexible camera. Vesicourachal diverticulum with a bladder cuff was completely excised under the supporting view of cystoscopy. Both patients' perioperative days were uneventful.Our findings suggest that the laparoendoscopic single-site surgery procedure is safe, minimally invasive and cosmetically acceptable. Therefore, this procedure is an excellent option for the radical resection of urachal remnants.

A high-resolution measurement of inelastic proton scattering off (90)Zr near 0° was performed at 295 MeV with a focus on a pronounced strength previously reported in the low-energy tail of giant dipole resonance. A forest of fine structure was observed in the excitation energy region 7-12 MeV. A multipole decomposition analysis of the angular distribution for the forest was carried out using the ECIS95 distorted-wave Born approximation code with the Hartree-Fock plus random-phase approximation model of E1 and M1 transition densities and inclusion of E1 Coulomb excitation. The analysis separated pygmy dipole and M1 resonances in the forest at E(PDR)=9.15±0.18 MeV with Γ(PDR)=2.91±0.64 MeV and at E(M1)=9.53±0.06 MeV with Γ(M1)=2.70±0.17 MeV in the Lorentzian function, respectively. The B(E1)↑ value for pygmy dipole resonance over 7-11 MeV is 0.75±0.08 e(2)fm(2), which corresponds to 2.1±0.2% of the Thomas-Reiche-Kuhn sum rule.

The double-differential cross sections for the (208)Pb and (90)Zr(t,(3)He) reactions at 300 MeV/u have been measured at the RI Beam Factory at RIKEN. This was the first physics experiment with the SHARAQ magnetic spectrometer. The combined analysis of the present (t,(3)He) data and previous (n,p) data provides the clearest identification for the β(+) isovector spin monopole resonance both in the (208)Tl and (90)Y nuclei, and puts the observations of this giant resonance on a firm foundation. The measured distributions of the (t,(3)He) monopole cross sections were well reproduced by the distorted-wave Born approximation calculation, where the target transition density was calculated with the self-consistent Hartree-Fock plus random-phase approximation using the T43 Skyrme interaction. A major part of the expected β(+) isovector spin monopole strength was found in the measured cross section spectra.

The development and regulatory approval of immunomodulatory pharmaceuticals to treat many human diseases has increased significantly over the last two decades. As discussed by FDA and ICH guidelines, all human pharmaceuticals in development should be evaluated for potential adverse effects on the immune system. Developmental immunotoxicology (DIT) focuses on the concern that early-life (during pre-/post-natal development) exposure to agents which target the immune system may result in enhanced susceptibility to immune-related disease (e.g., infection, autoimmunity, and cancer, particularly leukemia) compared to adults, unique effects not observed in adults, or more persistent effects in comparison to those following adult exposure. This article provides a substantive review of the literature and presents detailed considerations for DIT testing strategies with a specific focus on pharmaceuticals and biopharmaceuticals. In this regard, differences between small molecule and large molecule therapeutics will be considered, along with recommendations for best practices in the assessment of DIT during drug development. In addition, gaps in the DIT knowledge base and current testing strategies are identified. Finally, a summary of an ILSI-HESI-ITC sponsored Workshop conducted in 2010, entitled 'Developmental Immunotoxicity Testing of Pharmaceuticals' will be presented. This Workshop consisted of participants from the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, academic, and regulatory sectors, where many of the issues relating to DIT outlined in this review were discussed, key points of consensus reached, and current gaps in the science identified.

The reduced transition probability B(E2;0(gs)(+)→2(1)(+)) for (28)S was obtained experimentally using Coulomb excitation at 53 MeV/nucleon. The resultant B(E2) value 181(31) e(2)fm(4) is smaller than the expectation based on empirical B(E2) systematics. The double ratio |M(n)/M(p)|/(N/Z) of the 0(gs)(+)→2(1)(+) transition in (28)S was determined to be 1.9(2) by evaluating the M(n) value from the known B(E2) value of the mirror nucleus (28)Mg, showing the hindrance of proton collectivity relative to that of neutrons. These results indicate the emergence of the magic number Z=16 in the |T(z)|=2 nucleus (28)S.

In this work, several transition metals (Au, Ag Cu and Cr) were selected and added to Al-1.0mass%Mg2Ge alloy. Tensile test and TEM observation were performed to investigate the age-hardening behavior of these alloys. We found that alloy including Ag showed a quick age-hardening rate at the initial aging stage, while Al-Mg-Ge alloy including Cu had the highest peak was improved than that of Al-Mg-Ge alloy without Cu.

Acylative desymmetrization of meso diols has attracted significant attention since it is useful for preparing optically active functionalized molecules in a single manipulation. Herein, recent aspects of organocatalytic asymmetric acylation of meso diols are described. Chiral organocatalysts, including chiral phosphines, 4-dimethylaminopyradine (DMAP) derivatives, imidazole derivatives, N -heterocyclic carbene derivatives, tertiary amines, and amidine derivatives for acylative asymmetric desymmetrization of meso diols, are described. Typical examples of enzymatic asymmetric desymmetrization are also included.

The isoscalar giant monopole resonance (ISGMR) in even-A Cd isotopes has been studied by inelastic ${\alpha}$-scattering at 100 MeV/u and at extremely forward angles, including 0deg. The asymmetry term in the nuclear incompressibility extracted from the ISGMR in Cd isotopes is found to be $K_{\tau} = -555 \pm 75$ MeV, confirming the value previously obtained from the Sn isotopes. ISGMR strength has been computed in relativistic RPA using NL3 and FSUGold effective interactions. Both models significantly overestimate the centroids of the ISGMR strength in the Cd isotopes. Combined with other recent theoretical effort, the question of the "softness" of the open-shell nuclei in the tin region remains open still., Comment: Minor changes in text. Scaling energies added to Table I. 5 pages (2-column format), 4 figures

Asymmetric desymmetrization of meso anhydride has attracted significant attention since it is useful for preparing chiral functionalized molecules in a single manipulation. Recent aspects of asymmetric desymmetrization of meso anhydrides are described. The main foci are on diastereo- and enantioselective ring opening of meso anhydride with a variety of nucleophiles and desymmetrization without ring opening via metal-mediated reactions.

* Authoritative, broad overview of the field, compiled by 36 experts * Critical presentation of the best organocatalytic and related methodologies available today for practical asymmetric synthesis * Provides alternative, greener syntheses with simple and easily used catalysts helping avoid the use of expensive and/or toxic metals Asymmetric Organocatalysis 1 comprehensively covers all the catalysts and reactions within the activation modes Lewis base catalysis and Lewis acid catalysis. Typical or general experimental procedures as well as mechanistic, technical and theoretical aspects are included, allowing the reader to clearly see how simple, clean and efficient this chemistry is. This volume is part of a 2-volume set: Science of Synthesis Asymmetric Organocatalysis Workbench Edition Further information about Asymmetric Organocatalysis (including sample pages and the table of contents) General information about Science of Synthesis

Dislocation structures of a TiAl single crystal with the [110] orientation deformed at 1073 K were observed by transmission electron microscopy. The Burgers vectors of most dislocations were the ½〈112] type which has the highest Schmid factor in the orientation. Most longer segments of 12〈112] type superdislocation lines with straight morphology lay along the 〈110], 〈110] and 〈211] directions which are not the screw orientation. A small number of the screw type segments of the 12〈112] and 〈011] superdislocations are present. The mechanism of the strength anomaly in TiAl was discussed.

In the context of this paper, immunotoxicity is taken to encompass immunosuppression/immunopotentiation and allergy. Over the last 10 to 15 years, well characterized methods for the assessment of altered immune competence have been reported. This has led to proposals for tiered testing schemes. This review examines the suitability of immunotoxicity parameters for inclusion in routine 28-day studies and comments on methods that have been proposed for incorporation within the guidelines issued by the US FDA and US EPA and OECD. It is recommended that the existing OECD Guideline 407 is modified to incorporate total and differential blood cell counts, spleen and thymus weight and histopathology, and draining and distal lymph node histopathology for Tier I level testing. Data so generated will provide a reliable and accurate means of identifying at an early stage potential immunotoxic effects. Tier II testing should be carried out on a case by case basis and only assuming positive results are obtained at Tier I. An increasingly sophisticated understanding of the nature of immune responses to chemical allergens has facilitated the design of novel predictive methods for the identification of sensitizing activity. Opportunities which arise from these new developments in allergy testing such as the local lymph node assay, mouse ear swelling test, and the mouse IgE test should be monitored closely.

The administration of a pyrophosphate analogue, hydroxyethylidene biphosphonate (HEBP), strikingly decreased plasma free hydroxyproline concentration, which suggests that HEBP suppresses bone resorption in sheep. Plasma Mg concentration was not affected by HEBP administration in sheep fed an adequate amount of Mg. HEBP administration stimulated hypomagnesemic and hypomagnesuric effects of Mg restriction. Bone Mg plays an important role in maintaining plasma Mg concentration in sheep fed an inadequate amount of Mg.

The field of immunotoxicology has been growing rapidly and a wide variety of immunotoxicity testing methods is now available. This chapter first discusses approaches to developing immunotoxicity testing strategies and provides a general overview of the types of assays currently available and how they are used. These assays are classified either according to the type of immune response being measured, the experimental design, or the number of immune cell types involved. The chapter then focuses on in vitro and ex vivo assays used during drug development that have been developed more recently, rather than on the more established immunotoxicity assays (e.g., in vivo T-dependent antibody response). These assays address concerns regarding hypersensitivity reactions, immunoenhancement and immunosuppression. Assays for hypersensitivity include measuring human mast-cell function and activation of the complement cascade, while those for immunoenhancement include the cytokine release assay. Immunosuppression can be measured using assays that use co-cultures of different types of immune cells, such as the human lymphocyte activation assay, three-dimensional culture systems, and by assays that measure T-cell function. Several of the assays presented are in vitro assays that use human immune cells to enhance the translatability to human risk. In addition, assays that can be added to standard toxicology studies are discussed.

The compression-mode isoscalar giant monopole resonance (ISGMR) has been studied in the Sn, Cd and Pb isotopes using inelastic scattering of 400 MeV {alpha}-particles at extreme forward angles, including 0 deg. We have obtained completely 'background-free' inelastic-scattering spectra for the Sn, Cd, and Pb isotopes for a wide angular and excitation-energy range. The various giant resonances excited with different transferred angular momenta were extracted by a multipole-decomposition analysis (MDA). It was found that the centroid energies of the ISGMR in Sn isotopes are significantly lower than the theoretical predictions. The K{sub {tau}} in the empirical expression for the nuclear incompressibility has been determined to be K{sub {tau}} = -550{+-}100 MeV for the Sn isotopes. The extracted value for the Cd isotopes is K{sub {tau}} = -480{+-}100 MeV. These numbers are consistent with values of K{sub {tau}} = -370{+-}120 MeV obtained from an analysis of the isotopic transport ratios in medium-energy heavy-ion reactions, K{sub {tau}} -500{sub -100}{sup +120} MeV obtained from constraints placed by neutron-skin data from anti-protonic atoms across the mass table, and K{sub {tau}} = -500{+-}50 MeV obtained from theoretical calculations using different Skyrme interactions and relativistic mean field (RMF) Lagrangians. Stringent constraints on interactions employed in nuclear structuremore » calculations are obtained on the basis of the experimentally determined values for K{sub {infinity}} and K{sub {tau}}. These parameters constrain as well the equation of state (EOS) of nuclear matter. However, a significant discrepancy still remains. The ISGMR positions in Sn and Cd isotopes are systematically lower than the predictions obtained on basis of determined from the ISGMR in {sup 208}Pb. This raises the question ''Why are Sn and Cd nuclei so soft?''. For a clue to solve the problem, we discuss the preliminary results on the exact positions of the ISGMR in {sup 204,206,208}Pb.« less

The humoral immune response against sheep red blood cells (SRBC) is one of the most sensitive and frequently used end-points in evaluating the immunotoxicity of drugs and chemicals in experimental animals. Currently, most immunotoxicology studies measure the SRBC IgM antibody response by quantitating the number of SRBC-specific IgM antibody-forming cells using the hemolytic plaque assay. On the other hand, measurement of serum SRBC-specific IgM could be an easier, more cost effective endpoint in evaluating the SRBC antibody response in rodents. A validated method to measure SRBC-specific IgM, however, has not been developed. Thus, the objectives of the studies presented were to develop and validate an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for SRBC-specific IgM. Hemoglobin-free, detergent-solubilized membrane preparations were chosen as antigen for the ELISA. Various sources of SRBC were found to be equally useful, and as little as 0.1 micrograms of protein per well was optimal. Kinetic studies of the IgM response showed the peak day to be on Day 5 (mice) and Day 6 (rats). To validate the usefulness of the method for immunotoxicologic studies, serum SRBC-specific IgM levels and number of SRBC-specific plaque-forming cells were compared in rats and mice treated with two well-characterized immunosuppressive agents: benzo[a]pyrene and cyclophosphamide. Administration of these chemicals was found to produce very similar dose-dependent decreases in serum SRBC IgM and IgM-specific plaque-forming cells. These two endpoints were equally sensitive to the effects of the immunosuppressive drugs.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

A modified in vitro method to measure murine ovalbumin-specific IgE antibody as an alternative to the in vivo rat passive cutaneous anaphylaxis assay is presented in this report. This assay uses rat basophil leukemia (RBL) 2H3 cells that have been loaded with [3H]serotonin. Exposure of RBL-2H3 cells to mouse antisera and subsequent antigen challenge results in the release of [3H]serotonin. Using a monoclonal mouse anti-DNP IgE antibody and DNP-human serum albumin as the antigen, various steps of this assay were optimized to decrease the amount of time and reagents needed for the assay. The percent [3H]serotonin released was used to calculate antibody titer of sera from ovalbumin-immunized mice. Mouse anti-ovalbumin IgE titers determined by the RBL release method and passive cutaneous anaphylaxis assay were found to correlate very well over a wide range of antibody titers (correlation coefficient, r2 = 0.94).

A model for erosion caused by solid particles was studied and an equation based upon the relationship between dynamic indentation and the hardness of the material was proposed. This equation was established by the relationship between the surface hardness and the erosion damage to the materials. Erosion tests using a gas gun unit were conducted on five materials over a wide range of hardness values (Hv number 9–1100) up to an impact velocity of 150 m s −1 . An increase in the hardness was seen on the fully eroded surfaces obtained in the cases of iron and aluminium, but a decrease was seen in the case of quenched carbon tool steel. No change in the hardness was seen in the cases of the acrylic resin and nylon. The hardness of the eroded surfaces, as opposed to that of the non-eroded surfaces, slightly improved the correlation with erosion damage, but it was not necessarily sound. The softening observed on the eroded surface of the quenched carbon tool steel specimen suggested that heat was generated during the impact of the particles and also that the surface hardness during the course of erosion was different from that both before and after erosion. The temperature increase of an iron leaf sample owing to the impact of a 3.18 mm steel ball or silica sand particles pointed to a transiently high temperature on the impacted surface and the possibility of softening during the course of the erosion process. As a result, the surface hardness of each material estimated with respect to work hardening and softening reasonably correlated with the erosion damage. Also, numerical formulation and the soundness of this equation were discussed through many erosion tests under various conditions.

A new analysis shows that, when we apply the Lempel-Ziv incremented parsing algorithm to i.i.d. source with probabilities:pi, i = 1,..., m, the expected length E|W/sub t/| of the t-th parsed segment W/sub t/ is given by a simple formula. Following this approach we can show a VF(Variable to Fixed length) version of Ziv-Lempel universal coding theorem.

A new mathematical method in coding theory that is applicable to various practical problems in communication systems is introduced. The uniform switching system based on k-sets is defined, and its cardinalities, an index system, and error correctabilities are studied. The cardinalities of a uniform switching system based on general families of switching sets are discussed. The asymptotic cardinality is obtained for the Reed-Muller codes of general order. >

The effect of the Ti/Al ratio and Cr, Nb, and Hf additions on material factors, such as the grain size, second phase, la tice parameters and the axial ratio, and on mechanical properties in TiAl-base alloys has been studied. The grain size was decreased by the deviation from the stoichiometric composition o the Ti-rich side and the addition of the third elements. The Cr element was contained a little more in Ti3Al phase than in TiAl phase in two-phase Ti-rich alloys. The lattice parameters,a andc, and the axial ratio,c/a, of the binary alloys varied linearly with decreasing Al content even in the dual-phase region. The Cr addition decreased thea and c and alsoc/a. The Nb addition increased weakly thea andc andc/a. On the contrary, the Hf addition increased thea andc but decreased thec/a ratio. In the Cr added alloys, the decrease of volume of a unit cell, due to the substitution of Cr atoms for Ti and Al atoms, was larger than that expected from the difference of atom sizes. The Nb addition should decrease the volume of a unit cell, but it increased the volume. The Hf addition caused a larger increase of volume of a unit cell than that expected from the difference of atom sizes. We suggested that the Cr addition increases and the Nb and Hf additions decrease the bond strength in TiAl. The deviation from stoichiometry and the addition of third elements caused an increase of work-hardening rate. The alloys with Ti-rich composition have superior mechanical properties compared to those of alloys vith Al-rich composition. The Cr addition resulted in high solution hardening, and the Ti-47A1 3Cr (in atomic percent) alloys had the highest fracture strain of 2.7 pct in all alloys tested. The Nb addition resulted in poor ductility in both Ti- and Al-rich alloys. The Hf additions to the Ti-rich composition caused better mechanical properties than those of Al-rich alloys. Thi; trend was also similar to the Nb-added alloys. In the Hf-added alloys, the Ti-49Al-2Hf alloy has rather high ductility of about 2.15 pct. The effect of structural parameters on mechanical properties was discussed. The smaller grain size and the smaller axial ratio tended to result in larger ductility. The increase of the bond strength might improve ductility.

The cluster structures of the excited states in 11B and 13C were discussed by measuring the isoscalar monopole strengths in the inelastic α scattering at Eα = 388 MeV. It was found that the 1/22−, 1/23−, and 1/24− states in 13C are candidates for the α cluster states with a 3α+n molecular configuration.

We have measured two‐proton momentum and angular correlations for the 23Al excited states from the 23Al radioactive beam on a 12C target at an energy of 60∼70 A MeV at the projectile fragment separator beamline (RIPS) in the RIKEN Ring Cyclotron Facility. The decay products, namely 21Na+p+p from 23Al are clean identified. The relative momentum and opening angle between two protons in the rest frame of three body decay channels demonstrate that there are some diproton emission components from 2He cluster for the excited 23Al.

We performed a 37Cl(3He, t)37Ar experiment at E = 140 MeV/nucleon and 0° with a resolution of 30 keV. The Gamow‐Teller (GT) strength distribution was obtained up to the excitation energy (Ex) of 14.2 MeV in 37Ar. Under the assumption of isospin symmetry, the GT strengths in the 37Cl→37Ar and 37Ca→37K transitions are analogous. The obtained strength distribution was compared with the mirror 37Ca β decay up to Ex = 8.6 MeV. The overall shapes of the distributions were similar, but the details were not necessary the same. In order to understand those differences, the experimental distribution was compared with the shell model (SM) calculation using the USD interaction. The SM calculation suggests that differences at lower energies can be caused by a large tensor contribution in the charge‐exchange reaction. On the other hand, the differences seen at higher energies are due to the breaking of the mirror symmetry. The neutrino cross section for the 8B solar neutrino source was calculated using the obtained data.

The high‐resolution SHARAQ spectrometer and the dedicated high‐resolution beam‐line have been constructed at the RI beam factory and commissioned in 2009. Multi‐wire drift chambers placed in the beam‐line and cathode read‐out drift chambers placed at the SHARAQ focal plane worked well for heavy ion beams with Z=1–7 at 200–300 MeV/nucleon. By introducing a dispersion matched operation of the beam‐line, we have achieved a momentum resolution of δp/p = 1/8100 for a primary beam of 14N beam with a momentum spread of ±0.1%. Experiments by use of novel RI‐beam induced charge exchange reactions are planned.