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Subcortical meningioma, which has been reported as meningioma without dural attachment, a cerebral subcortical lesion, is extremely rare. Very few findings of radiological examination of subcortical meningioma have been described. Pre-operative differentiation of this lesion is generally difficult. We characterize the peritum oural oedema adjacent to the meningioma in this region, and we suggest that radiological findings of peritum oural oedema contribute to differential diagnosis of subcortical meningiomas.

Several aromatic polyisoimides were prepared, and their third-order nonlinear susceptibilities, χ (3) (−3 ω , ω , ω , ω ), were measured by optical third-harmonic generation. Obtained χ (3) values are in the order of 10 −12 e.s.u. at a fundamental wavelength of 1907 nm. The largest value, χ (3) =3.4×10 −12 e.s.u., was obtained for the polyisoimide prepared from pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA) and p -phenylenediamine(PDA). Thermal stability of the polyisoimide prepared from PMDA and PDA was tested. The contents of isoimide structure decreases due to thermal imidization above 200°C.

Josephson plasma resonance in under-doped Bi 2 Sr 2 CaCu 2 O 8+δ single crystals has been observed when magnetic field is applied parallel to the ab plane and its vicinity. The resonance mode splits into two branches at higher and lower temperature regions, and a definite gap appears in the temperature region between them. As the magnetic field is tilted from the ab plane, these branches come closer and finally merge to a single mode. This leads to a general interpretation that the resonance mode observed in a parallel field may be due to continuous extension of the c axis plasma mode. However, splitting of the mode as well as the peculiar temperature dependence of the resonance field, the line shape, and its intensity strongly imply that these behaviors may originate from the inherent resonance modes in parallel field. In particular, the high temperature mode fields goes even higher in temperature beyond the zero field resonance as the field increases, suggesting that a new explanation may be required for the case of parallel magnetic field.

One of the components key to increased mobile computer performance is level-2 (L2) cache memory, which is usually a high-frequency synchronous SRAM and typically consumes >2 W. This SRAM has to be housed in low-thermal-resistance package such as the plastic ball grid array (PBGA). Power dissipation must be reduced, since battery life is prolonged and a lower-cost TQFP package can be used. In addition, cosmic-ray-induced single soft errors are becoming a problem, since memory cell node capacitance is reduced with reduction of memory cell size. At high altitude (air flight level of 30000 ft), cosmic-ray-induced SER is increased by 2 orders of magnitude. This type of soft error is significant for mobile applications. The 64k x 36 synchronous pipelined burst SRAM (PBSRAM) described has lower power and improved SER immunity.

Rainfall and its infiltration into a slope is one of the most important factors affecting slope stability in a monsoon region. To understand the infiltration process, changes in the apparent resistivity within a slope in southern Kyushu, Japan, have been measured using automated electric prospecting. The slope studied is underlain by Quaternary weak and permeable pyroclastic flow deposits. Resistivity data obtained over a six month period indicate that the conditions within the slope vary and a distinct time lag is recognised between the rainfall event and the change in resistivity. At near surface depths the response is rapid and large. At lower depths it is slower and smaller, but the effects may be cumulative.

We have developed a process which is applicable for the fabrication of single electron devices by utilizing a SiO2/c-Si bilayer electron beam resist. The process parameters were optimized especially for the fabrication of metal-insulator-metal tunnel junctions of sub-10 nm sizes. A suspended mask suitable for double angle evaporation was successfully fabricated. Employing the highly corrosion resistance material Ti as an electrode metal and two-step removal process against excess Ti over inorganic resist, we fabricated a structure with sub-10 nm Ti/TiOx/Ti double tunnel junctions and an island, which exhibited tunneling property.

Summary One-pass submerged-arc welding (SAW) with high heat input is extensively used for the corner welds of box columns, though internal cracking of lamellar tearing type in some cases occurs along the centreline of the flange plate thickness. This paper describes an investigation of weld microstructures, hydrogen concentrations, and residual stresses at the cracking position to clarify the cracking mechanism. Appropriate measures to prevent cracking in terms of material- and fabrication-related factors are also studied on the basis of laboratory-scale one-pass SAW experiments and numerical analysis of hydrogen diffusion. The generation and propagation of cracking are closely related to the transition of the hydrogen concentration at the cracking position, whereas the effect of the residual stress on cracking is small. The material-related factors controlling this cracking include elongated manganese sulphide (MnS) in the centre segregation band and martensite-austenite constituent (M-A) around the MnS ...

Low-voltage SRAMs operating at

Recently, it has been revealed from a variety of experiments that mechanical properties of metallic materials are strongly dependent on the surface conditions of specimens and on the test environments as well. All these experimental results clearly indicate that in order to get any intrinsic mechanical properties of them it is necessary to control the specimen surface state and the testing atmosphere in an ideal manner as much as possible. For this purpose the authors have constructed a new apparatus suitable for measuring mechanical properties of metals and alloys. It is concluded that yield stresses of bulk metals are sensitive to the existence of thin oxide or oxide-like films on the surface. The intrinsic yield stresses of most metals are probably higher than the reported values which have been obtained by a conventional mechanical test in air using the specimens coated with some oxide films.

OBJECTIVES To study the radiographic sequence in the recurrence of unicystic ameloblastoma following marsupialization. MATERIALS AND METHODS Retrospective analysis of three cases of uncystic ameloblastoma. RESULTS Six distinct stages were identified in all three cases: bone regeneration starting at the periphery of the cavity; appearance of a diffusely sclerotic band; appearance of scalloping; expansion of scalloping; formation of a multilocular pattern; and enlargement of the cystic lesion. CONCLUSION The first radiographic sign of recurrence is scalloping of the sclerotic margin of the regenerated bone.

We report two cases of gastrointestinal amyloidosis, complicated with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) in one and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in the other. A 21-year-old woman, who had been suffering from JRA for the past 12 years, was transferred to our hospital due to intense pain in the epigastrium and back, diarrhea, high fever, and paralytic ileus. Treatment by corticosteroid, antibiotics protease inhibitor and total parenteral nutrition was not effective. Laparoscopic surgery was performed because of repeated melena followed by an episode of hypovolemic shock. The resected specimen of the ileum showed histologically marked amyloid deposition in the arteriolar walls. A 83-year-old man with RA for 14 years was admitted to our hospital with complaints of abdominal pain, nausea and diarrhea. He underwent an emergency operation for perforation of the ileum. The resected specimen revealed amyloid deposition and non-caseating granulomas. The fragility and impaired blood supply caused by amyloid deposition in the vascular walls may have terminated in the severe intestinal lesion. Further clinicopathological studies along this line are keenly desired in order to establish therapeutic modalities for gastrointestinal amyloidosis.

This paper presents a strategy to represent and classify process data for detection of abnormal operating conditions. It uses fuzzy triangular episodes for qualitative data representation and a set of hidden Markov models (HMMs) for classification. The method is tested on an industrial vacuum column for detection of column weeping.

OBJECTIVES To analyse the possible correlation between the trabecular bone pattern of the edentulous mandible visualized by panoramic radiography and the bone mineral density (BMD) measured by computed tomography (CT). METHODS Panoramic radiography and CT were performed on 28 patients with edentulous mandibles. The trabecular bone pattern of 47 regions on the panoramic radiographs was classified into one of five grades. BMD was measured within circular regions of interest on the axial CT images in the corresponding trabecular area. The gradings were correlated with the CT values using one-way analysis of variance. RESULTS There was a significant correlation between the grade of the trabecular bone pattern and the BMD (P < 0.0001). CONCLUSION The proposed classification for the trabecular bone pattern on panoramic radiographs might be a useful aid for the evaluation of the edentulous mandible prior to implant placement.

We report dispersion property for femtosecond optical Kerr effect in the solutions of no-aggregation 16 (trifluoro ethoxyl) vanadyl phthalocyanine in the wavelength range of 850-770 nm. The optical Kerr effect spectrum shows a broad near-resonant enhancement on the third-order non-linear optical response of the molecule.

レチノイン酸 (RA) は, 内耳性難聴の治療によく用いられるステロイドと生化学的構造上類似しており, 核内受容体を介してある種の遺伝子発現の制御に関与しており, 近年注目を集めている物質である。 今回我々は白色モルモットを用いて強大音負荷後毎日RAを腹腔内投与し, 1週間後に蝸牛神経複合活動電位閾値を測定し閾値上昇を比較し, RAの音響外傷に対する治療効果を検討した。 強大音として2kHz純音, 110dB及び115dB SPLを10分間負荷した。 RA投与量として200mg/kgとし, 対照群ではメタノールを投与した。 115dBの場合にはRAの効果はなかったが, 110dB負荷の場合には明らかにRA投与群の方が対照群に比べて閾値上昇は軽度であった。 これらの結果より, RAは比較的軽度の強大音負荷の場合に, 効果的な薬剤であると考えられた。

10匹20耳のモルモットにCisplatin 1.5mg/kg/dayを腹腔内に連日投与し, DPOAE及びCAP閾値を測定, 比較検討を行った。 CAP閾値に変化が生じていない時点で10dB以上のDPOAE振幅の低下が確認された。 Cisplatin耳中毒に対し, DPOAEはCAPよりも鋭敏な指標となりうることが示唆された。

Boron nitride films were deposited from BF3 and NH3 gases using the multi-source plasma CVD technique. This new technique controls to activate each source gas. Each kind of source gas was introduced separately through the plasma generator. After excitation of each gas, these gases were introduced to the front of the substrate. On the other hand, widely spread sheet-like plasma generated above the substrate by dc arc-plasma gun under magnetic field also excited the gas in front of the substrate, and boron nitride film was deposited on it. Also rf power was applied between the grounded chamber and the substrate electrode during the deposition. We have investigated the effect of substrate self-bias, to accelerate ions toward the growing surface, on the structure of the boron nitride films. Deposited boron nitride films were characterized by infrared (IR) absorption spectroscopy. The results of IR absorption spectroscopy indicated the structure of the deposited boron nitride films became hexagonal at lower substrate bias. As the self-bias increased, the shape of the spectra was changed and the broad absorption band near the position of cubic boron nitride formation appeared.

Europium nitride (EuN), which is potentially used as an activator for nitride luminescent materials, was prepared by direct nitridation at 600 °C in a NH3 atmosphere. X-ray powder diffraction and composition analysis of the nitrided sample were carefully conducted under an oxygen-free environment. The nitrided sample was found to be mononitride with NaCl structure. An appreciable amount of oxygen (∼0.06 a.u.) was detected, but no secondary oxide phase was found. The results suggest oxygen dissolution into the lattice of EuN.

Cyclopterids were hatched from egg batches that were laid in two empty buccinid snail shells collected from a depth of 340 m in the Sea of Japan. Larvae were reared to identify species and to describe the morphological changes associated with metamorphosis. The fin rays of all fins were mostly complete and the pelvic fins were modified to form suckers, or adhesive discs, at the time of hatching. Juveniles immediately attached themselves to the bottom and there was no planktonic stage. The body surface was smooth with no spines or bony tubercles. At 4 months after hatching, the fine spines present on the head and trunk of juveniles transformed into bony tubercles. At 7 months after hatching, fishes became sexually dimorphic including the position and development patterns of bony tubercles. Importantly, these sexually dimorphic changes in morphology corresponded closely with descriptions of different species. Specifically, females could be classified as Eumicrotremus asperrimus, and young and fully developed males as Cyclopteropsis bergi and Cyclopteropsis lindbergi, respectively. These observations resolved a previously ambiguous hypothesis regarding the taxonomy of these cyclopterid taxa. Cyclopteropsis bergi and C. lindbergi may be synonyms of E. asperrimus.

Peeling skin disease (PSD) is an autosomal recessive skin disorder caused by mutations in CDSN and is characterized by superficial peeling of the upper epidermis. Corneodesmosin (CDSN) is a major component of corneodesmosomes that plays an important role in maintaining epidermis integrity. Herein, we report a patient with PSD caused by a novel homozygous large deletion in the 6p21.3 region encompassing the CDSN gene, which abrogates CDSN expression. Several genes including C6orf15, PSORS1C1, PSORS1C2, CCHCR1, and TCF19 were also deleted, however, the patient showed only clinical features typical of PSD. The deletion size was 59.1 kb. Analysis of the sequence surrounding the breakpoint showed that both telomeric and centromeric breakpoints existed within Alu-S sequences that were oriented in opposite directions. These results suggest an Alu-mediated recombination event as the mechanism underlying the deletion in our patient.

In this study, we developed fabrication technique for accessible design pamphlet for visually impaired and sighted persons. Concretely, our pamphlet with clear and colorless Braille, tactile map and a function that reads out loud the content was highly rated by its users. This research contributed towards the improvement in the accessibility of printed materials.

The investigation of the soft leakage current induced ESD at a protection N-channel transistor of an input terminal are reported. Before the destruction by poly-silicon filament, the soft leakage current occurs by the band tunneling current through the interface traps between Si and SiO2.

Similar to films rf-sputtered in an argon and oxygen mixed gas, amorphous-like oxides (films and powders) with the ternary Bi 2 O 3 -Fe 2 O 3 -PbTiO 3 system prepared by sol-gel method develop a considerably large spontaneous magnetization after being annealed above T a = 500 °C in air. The magnetization of gel-coated films showed a sharp maximum I S exceeding 0.1 T in a narrow region with the Fe 2 O 3 -rich compositions when annealed around T a = 700 °C, where samples showed halo-patterns in X-ray diffraction, retaining the amorphous state, while further increase in Ta results in a rapid decrease in magnetization, where X-ray diffraction lines assigned to para- and/or antiferromagnetic oxide precipitates such as α-Fe 2 O 3 , BiFeO 3 , and Bi 2 Fe 4 O 9 , were apparent. It may be concluded that spontaneous magnetization arises from nano-ferrimagnetic clusters which cannot be detected by X-ray diffraction. In order to elucidate its microscopic origin, Mossbauer measurement was also carried out.

Molecules with weak ground-state absorption that form strongly absorbing excited states can be used in optical limiters, which can protect sensors or human eyes from optical damage. Phthalocyanine complexes bearing heavy atoms or paramagnetic groups or in solvents containing heavy atoms show optical limiting enhanced by excited triplet-state absorption. A nonhomogeneous distribution of indium tetra(tert-butyl)phthalocyanine chloride along the beam path substantially enhances the excited-state absorption, yielding an optical limiter with a linear transmittance of 0.70 that can attenuate 8-nanosecond, 532-nanometer laser pulses by factors of up to 540.

Optical phase conjugation can be enhanced in composite nanometer-size particles of nonlinear core and metallic shell suspended in a host medium because the optical field is concentrated in both the interior and exterior neighborhoods of the particles and magnified by the surface mediated plasmon. Greatly enhanced effective third-order nonlinear susceptibility of metal coated nanoparticles has been theoretically predicted, and the metal coated semiconductor nanoparticles have been synthesized. We report the synthesis of stable nanometer-size silver coated polydiacetylene (PDA) particles. At first, an ethanol solution of DA is dispersed into a Ag + ion containing aqueous solution. Silver ions are attracted to -COO − anions of DA, and monomer DA vesicles coated by silver ions are formed by a long-term ultra-sonication treatment. Then, the monomer DA vesicles are photopolymerized and the silver ions are photoreduced simultaneously to form nanocomposite. Absorption spectra of the excitonic π conjugation in the PDA backbone and the surface plasma resonant absorption band of a large silver metal cluster have been observed as the synthesis proceeds. The shell structure of silver coated PDA nanoparticle has been proved by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images and electron diffraction.

A chemiluminescence(CL)-based gas sensor made of γ-Al2O3 emits CL during catalytic oxidation of a combustible odor vapor. The CL intensity is proportional to the concentration of ethanol or acetone vapor in air. The algebraic sum rule is applicable to the CL intensities by the mixed gas of these two kinds of vapors, when the sensor is heated above 450°C. The CL intensities are measured in periodic temperature cycles between 650 and 450°C. The concentrations of vapor components can be detected analytically by measuring total CL intensities during the high and low temperatures for air containing mixed vapors of various concentrations of ethanol below 400 ppm and acetone below 200 ppm.

Through the investigation of several evaluation methods for charged device model (CDM) ESD, the following results have been found: (1) although the waveforms of the small capacitance method (SCM-10 pF, 0 /spl Omega/) and three commercial pieces of CDM equipment are different, the destructive voltage for dielectric failure are equivalent. SCM is an efficient and easy test method for high-speed ESD evaluation; (2) it is necessary to apply a different ESD protection strategy and circuit for CDM and SCM than for the human body model (HEM); (3) the destructive voltage for memory devices on the market ranges from 350 V to 4000 V.

ABSTRACT: In order to design an oligodeoxynucleoside phosphorothioate as an antisense molecule, it is important to establish the structure of the S-oligo with a strong affinity to the target RNA. In these molecules, internucleotide thiophosphate linkages produce diastereomers, the number of which increases in proportion to 2n (n: number of thiophosphate). To estimate the effect of this linkage on the duplex stability by UV melting curves, oligodeoxynucleotides having a single thiophosphate (referred to Soligo), dGCNsN'CG (s: thiophosphate, N, N′ = A or T), were prepared and their diastereomers isolated by HPLC. As demonstrated previously, the melting temperatures (Tm) for the Sp isomers were higher than those of the Rp when DNA was a target. On the other hand, it was found that for RNA as a target, the Rp isomers of dGCTsTCG and dGCAsTCG had higher stability than the Sp, and that the difference in the Tm values between the diastereomers was smaller than when DNA was a target. With dGCsTsACG, whic...

OBJECTIVE To analyse the relationship between mandibular and general skeletal mineral status at two different postmenopausal stages. METHODS Using dual energy quantitative computed tomography, the mandibular and 3rd lumbar (L3) vertebral bone mineral density (BMD) were evaluated in 21 women within five years after the menopause (recent postmenopause) and 23 women more than five years after (long-term postmenopause). RESULTS There were significant correlations between the mandibular cortical and L3 vertebral BMD (p < 0.01) in the recent postmenopausal women and between the mandibular BMD and the trabecular BMD of L3 vertebrae (p < 0.05) in the long-term postmenopausal women. CONCLUSION These results suggest that the general mineral status more markedly affects the mandibular cortex in the recent postmenopausal stage and both cortical and trabecular bone in the long-term postmenopausal stage.

Gametogenesis of one year-old induced triploid mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis, was examined histologically and compared to sibling diploid mussels. Histological analysis revealed that triploid mussels developed a number of primary spermatocytes that were arrested at prophase I. Late in the reproductive season, triploid mussels produced an extremely small number of spermatozoa (9/10000 μm2 gonadal section) compared to diploid mussels (1072/10000 μm2 gonadal section). All triploid mussels were identified as males, whereas the sex ratio of diploid mussels was almost equal (1.12:1.0, male:female), indicating that sex determination for this species may follow a Z:W model. Sertoli cells in triploid mussels were prominent, had an enlarged cytoplasm, and were easily seen using light microscopy. In comparison, Sertoli cells in diploids were thin and could only be seen by electron microscopy. Sertoli cell hypertrophy in triploid mussels probably reflects their role in eliminating abnormal and degenerat...

An inorganic electron beam resist process for nanofabrication is described. Si‐based bilayer inorganic electron beam resists, SixOy/Si3N4, Si3N4/SiO2, and SiO2/poly‐Si were investigated. The SiO2/poly‐Si system was found to be the most suitable for attaining deep undercut structures with fine patterns for metal–insulator–metal ultrasmall tunnel junction fabrication. Utilizing the multiple‐angle deposition–oxidation deposition method, we have fabricated Al/Al2O3/Al tunnel junctions for which a clear Coulomb staircase was observed in the I–V characteristics at 12 K.

Summary We conducted a comparative stereological analysis of diploid and induced triploid Mytilus galloprovincialis germinal and storage tissue volume fractions along an annual cycle, concomitantly to the irnmunocytochemical study of cerebral insulin-like peptide (ILP) secretion. Germinal tissue developed to the same extent in diploids and triploids, while storage tissue disappeared with the same pattern in both populations. We present irnrnunocytochemical evidence of an ILP cycle for the first time in bivalves. Moreover, this cycle is closely related to gametogenesis and storage tissue cycles and presents the same features in diploid and triploid animals.

This paper describes new developments of electron beam exposure system and fabrication process of metal/insulator/metal tunnel junctions for single electron transport using double-layered inorganic resist. The system has performances of 2.8 nm probe diameter with 127 pA at 50 kV accelerating voltage and the standard deviations of stitching and overlay errors are confirmed to be 14 and 18 nm, respectively for 320×320 μm2 chip size. The sample chamber is evacuated down to 2×10−9 Torr with keeping the stage accuracy and also we can introduce a gas from the small nozzle near the sample surface up to 10−4 Torr. A SiO2/poly-Si on SiO2Si substrate is used in order to produce a suspended mask for multiple-angle Al deposition with oxidation in 100 mTorr O2 ambient. This process enables us to produce one-dimensional array of tunnel junctions with a nominal width of 40 nm. The current-voltage characteristics of this device show a clear Coulomb staircase with a voltage period of 63 mV and a current step of 0.18 pA at temperatures of 12 and 20 K.

Summary It is generally recognised that the flux type of covered electrodes affects the profile and mechanical properties of welds and may well control the fatigue strength of fillet welded joints. Fillet welded joints, however, have seen few systematic investigations. The purpose of this investigation is to improve the fatigue strength of fillet welded joints through appropriate design of the covered electrode flux. Ten types of covered electrode were trial‐manufactured with variation in the flux system at two levels (to improve the profile of the fillet toe region) and the added alloying element contents of each system at five levels (to vary the hardness of the weld metal). These covered electrodes were used to prepare non‐load‐carrying cruciform fillet welded joints using 570 MPa class high‐strength steel base metal. Fatigue tests (S = σmax ‐ σmin, σmax = σ Y ) were run with the fillet welded joints. The results obtained may be summarised as follows: The profile of the fillet welds appears to be affec...

In polycistronic genes, uORFs (upstream open reading frames) within the 5′-transcript leader sequence of major ORFs may regulate the translation of these major ORFs. In this case, ribosome reinitiates translation at a start codon of downstream ORF after translation termination of uORF. The plant RPL24 (ribosomal protein L24) is a key factor for translation reinitiation of downstream ORFs on the polycistronic cauliflower mosaic virus 35S RNA transcription unit. In the RPL24-deficient mutant of Arabidopsis , short valve ( stv ), the basal region of the ovary is shortened, whereas the gynophore appears elongated. This phenotype is never seen in known mutants of other ribosomal protein genes, suggesting that RPL24 has a specific role in gynoecium development. Similar phenotypes were observed in the ett ( ettin ) and mp ( monopteros ) mutants. Both ETT and MP genes possess uORFs. We examined the hypothesis that these uORFs regulate their downstream major ORFs by a transient expression assay in Arabidopsis mesophyll protoplasts. Our results supported the idea, suggesting that the structural defects of the gynoecium in stv mutants were caused by decreased efficiency of translation reinitiation of ETT and/or MP . Abbreviations: ARF, auxin response factor; ett, ettin; mp, monopteros; RPL24, ribosomal protein L24; stv, short valve; TAV, transactivator; uORF, upstream open reading frame

Aim To examine the prevalence and detailed radiological findings of internal anomalies in thalidomide embryopathy (TE). Materials and methods Whole-body image screening for internal anomalies using unenhanced whole-body computed tomography (CT) and head magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed in 22 patients (13 women and nine men; mean age, 49 years; range, 47–51 years) with TE. Results Among the 22 patients with TE, internal anomalies were detected in 19 (86.4%): anomalies of the auditory organ in 10 (45.5%), anomalies of the vascular system in six (27.3%), agenesis of the gallbladder in six (27.3%), hypoplasia or aplasia of the 7th or 8th cranial nerves in five (22.7%), block vertebrae in five (22.7%), fusion of the left lobe and quadrate lobe of the liver in three (9.1%), and others in five (22.7%), respectively. Conclusion In addition to limb defects or hypoplasia, various internal anomalies can be detected at a high incidence in TE using CT and MRI. Understanding these characteristic radiological findings may help radiologists detect a wide range of radiological findings of internal anomalies associated with TE.

Expression of the Cyp 2d-9 (steroid 16 alpha-hydroxylase) gene in mouse liver is male specific in such Mus musculus domesticus strains as FVB/N, whereas the corresponding P450 genes in the wild mouse species Mus spretus are not sex specific in their expression. These parental differences in the gene expressions were independently inherited in F1 offspring from crosses of FVB/N and M. spretus. A 5' flanking sequence (-110CTC CTCCCTATTCCGGGCC-92) was defined as a regulatory element (named SDI-A1) for the domestic Cyp 2d-9 promoter. The nucleotide which corresponds to T at position -99 within SDI-A1 was found to be substituted with C in the wild mouse P450 genes. The placing of C at position -99 abolished the transcriptional activity of SDI-A1 in HepG2 cells as well as the binding of SDI-A1 to a nuclear factor. This factor (designated NF2d9) was purified from mouse nuclear extracts, and its cDNA cloned. The purified NF2d9 bound to SDI-A1 but not to the mutated SDI-A1 with C at position -99. The deduced amino acid sequence revealed that NF2d9 is 72 and 94% identical to mouse CP2 and human LBP-1a, respectively. NF2d9 thus belongs to the CP2 family and is the mouse homolog of human LBP-1a, which modulates human immunodeficiency virus type 1 transcription. Anti-NF2d9, which was raised against the bacterially expressed protein, supershifted the SDI-A1 complex with the liver nuclear extract. Both the bacterially expressed and in vitro-translated NF2d9 inhibited SDI-A1 complex formation, although they did not bind to SDI-A1 directly. The results, therefore, indicate that the domestic Cyp 2d-9 gene can be regulated through a specific association of NF2d9 with SDI-A1.

Accepted: 2016-06-16, 資料番号: SA1160104000

The pattern of gametogenesis in adult Pinctada fucata fucata from Zamami Island, Okinawa Prefecture (26 °N), Japan, was examined and compared with to data reported for pearl oysters in other Indo-Pacific regions. Gametogenesis was observed in histological preparations of gonad from 232 adults sampled approximately monthly (1992–1993). Maturation was observed throughout the year with a major peak in winter and a minor peak in summer. This is different from the restricted peak in summer reported for pearl oysters (P. fucata martensii) in the Japanese northern temperate populations (33–34 °N). A difference in the reproductive cycle between sexes was observed. After the peak of winter spawning only the females entered a resting period during spring (May). From summer to autumn there was a continuous occurrence of mature individuals in both sexes which increased into winter. Differences in reproductive periods among pearl oyster populations may prove useful for breeding programs in the pearl culture industry if environmental requirements for gonadal maturation are genetically influenced.

種々の内耳障害を来す因子についての電気生理学的報告は多いが, その多くは急性実験によるものである。一方, 蝸牛機能の障害には一過性で回復するもの (TTS) と永久に残存するもの (PTS) があり, 急性期にそのいずれであるかを予測することは困難である。従ってそれら障害の長期的な経過を慢性電極を用いて観察する意義は大きい。しかしながら, 実験対象動物として多く用いられているモルモットに関しての従来までの慢性電極法の報告は安定性・簡便さについて必ずしも満足のいくものではなかった。我々は1979年Hildesheimerらにより報告された顔面神経管経由の蝸牛電位測定法に着目し, 使用電極・固定材料を工夫することで比較的大きな電位を長期間安定してとることに成功した。この方法は, 外耳・中耳に触れずに操作が可能である点と固定が容易である点で優れており, また簡便であるため種々の電気生理学的実験に応用可能であると考えられた。