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In general, epiphytes have detrimental effects on the growth of their basiphytes due to competition for light and nutrients. Therefore, basiphyte species must expend energy suppressing epiphytes. Some studies suggest that phlorotannins, i.e. brown algal polyphenols, prevent colonization by epiphytes, whereas others question their allelopathic function because there is not necessarily a negative correlation between epiphyte abundance and the phlorotannin content of the basiphyte algae. Various phlorotannin components are found in brown algal species, thus we hypothesized that the antifouling activities of polyphenolic compounds may differ and that the analysis of phlorotannin profiles could be useful for estimating their ecological functions. We surveyed the epiphyte richness in the apical portions of 373 thalli from 15 sargassacean species, demonstrating that the variation and abundance of epiphyte species differed remarkably among the basiphyte species. However, there was a weak negative correlation betw...

With the aim to propose a reasonable and effective countermeasure for the elevated structure noise, the sound field radiated by a steel plate girder, which is the main source of the elevated structure noise, have been theoretically analysed. In the present study, steel plate girders are modelled as infinitely long elastic plate strips placed in parallel and numerical examples on the sound field radiated by the steel plate girders are shown. In the analysis of the radiated sound field, the equivalent source method is employed. Effect of the surface absorption on the sound field radiated by the girders is discussed through numerical examples. The results show that the surface absorption is effective for reduction of the radiated sound field, especially in the area that increase of sound pressure due to reflection by adjacent plate girders is observed. Furthermore, to design for reasonable countermeasure, variation of the noise reduction effect due to changing the pattern of surface absorption area on plate girders is classified.

The objective of this study is to develop an efficient turbine that can be used to extract micro hydropower potential of a water supply system. For the case of high head and critical low flow rate range of micro hydropower resources, it requires very low specific speed turbines which are lower than conventional impulse turbines’ specific speed. For this purpose, we develop a new Positive Displacement Turbine (PDT). In order to reveal the performance characteristics of the new turbine, one conventional impulse turbine, which is used for automatic water faucet system, was tested for comparison. The test results show that the PDT was much more efficient than a conventional turbine and it can sustain high efficiency under the wide range of operating conditions. In addition, the efficiency of the PDT is much improved when reducing its side clearance. The pressure pulsations at the inlet and outlet of the PDT can be considerably minimized by using simple dampers.

A large-scale mutagenesis screen was performed in Medaka to identify genes acting in diverse developmental processes. Mutations were identified in homozygous F3 progeny derived from ENU-treated founder males. In addition to the morphological inspection of live embryos, other approaches were used to detect abnormalities in organogenesis and in specific cellular processes, including germ cell migration, nerve tract formation, sensory organ differentiation and DNA repair. Among 2031 embryonic lethal mutations identified, 312 causing defects in organogenesis were selected for further analyses. From these, 126 mutations were characterized genetically and assigned to 105 genes. The similarity of the development of Medaka and zebrafish facilitated the comparison of mutant phenotypes, which indicated that many mutations in Medaka cause unique phenotypes so far unrecorded in zebrafish. Even when mutations of the two fish species cause a similar phenotype such as one-eyed-pinhead or parachute, more genes were found in Medaka than in zebrafish that produced the same phenotype when mutated. These observations suggest that many Medaka mutants represent new genes and, therefore, are important complements to the collection of zebrafish mutants that have proven so valuable for exploring genomic function in development.

Zic family proteins are expressed in the cerebellum and play important roles in vertebrate development. However, very few observations have been made regarding the function of Zic proteins in transcription. We previously showed, using P19 cells as a model system, that the lamin A/C promoter has a retinoic acid responsive element (L-RARE), and that Sp1 and Sp3 bind the CACCC box of the L-RARE. Here, Zic1 is identified as a binding protein of the L-RARE by yeast one-hybrid screening. We show that Zic1 can bind to and repress transcription through the CACCC box of the L-RARE. Moreover, reporter assays using various fusion proteins of Zic1 with the GAL4 DNA binding domain reveal that Zic1 has an intrinsic transcriptional repressive and activation domain.

Recently the energy electronics comes to attention that energy saving effects to meet global environment problems.The evolution of home appliances and mobile devices have been realized by efficient frequency converter which are low cost and small size.This paper presents recent trend of energy electronics applied to home appliances and mobile devices.

The FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein has a zinc finger domain, hydrophobic region, proline-rich region, and a HMG box-like domain. We have reported that zinc release at the zinc finger is probably facilitated by the non-canonical cysteine residue at position 56, and that EDTA causes the structural change and enhances the self-assembly of the protein (Kanaya, E., Watanabe, K., Nakajima, N., Okada, K., and Shimura, Y. (2001) J. Biol. Chem. 276, 7383-7390). To investigate this aspect further we examined the DNA binding function of the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein. Gel retardation experiments showed that the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein binds to DNA without sequence specificity. Deletion analyses suggested that the zinc finger domain and the hydrophobic region are not required but the proline-rich region and the HMG box-like domain are indispensable for the DNA binding by the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein. The DNA binding by the protein consisting of the zinc finger domain and the rest of the regions was reduced with the addition of EDTA. This result probably suggests that the zinc release, the structural change probably occurring in the zinc finger domain, the intermolecular interaction, and the self-assembly of the protein are related to the dissociation of the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein from DNA.

The lamin A/C gene encodes subtypes of nuclear lamins, which are involved in nuclear envelope formation, and was recently identified as the responsible gene for the autosomal dominant Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy. Expression of the lamin A/C gene is developmentally regulated but little is known about the regulatory mechanism. Previous studies of lamin A/C expression suggested that the chromatin structure is important for the regulation of its expression. To elucidate the regulatory mechanism of the lamin A/C gene expression, we have analysed the functional region of the mouse lamin A/C promoter and the chromatin structure of the gene in terms of nucleosome structure and DNase I hypersensitivity. Our analyses revealed disruption of the nucleosome array at the promoter region and the presence of multiple DNase I hypersensitive sites (HSs) which were specifically associated with expression of the lamin A/C gene. Inclusion of a segment which contained the HSs in a lamin A/C promoter-luciferase reporter plasmid showed no effect on the transfected promoter activity in transient expression assays. On the other hand, substantial enhancement of the promoter activity was detected when the transfected DNA was stably integrated into the genome, suggesting the importance of the HSs in the regulation of lamin A/C expression.

A-type lamins are not present in either early embryos or the embryonal carcinoma (EC) cell line. P19 cells, which are EC cell line, are able to express A-type lamins upon retinoic acid (RA) treatment. Here we report that a novel RA-responsive element, termed lamin A/C-RA-responsive element (L-RARE), is located within the lamin A/C promoter. RA activated the luciferase activity of the reporter which had four tandem repeats of the wild-type L-RARE, while a loss of function mutant, which altered CACCCCC to CACtatC within L-RARE, did not respond. Four specific binding complexes of L-RARE, Complexes-A, -B, -C, and -D, were detected in protein extracts obtained from P19 cells treated with and without RA. Specific antibodies revealed that Sp1 and Sp3 were included in Complex-A and Complexes-B and -C, respectively. Thus, L-RARE was important in the RA-mediated activation of the lamin A/C promoter and was recognized by DNA binding proteins.

A transcriptional activator, CBF1, fromArabidopsis thaliana, which has the AP2 domain for DNA binding and regulates the cold acclimation response, was overexpressed in Escherichia coli, purified, and characterized. Analyses of the interaction between CBF1 and the C-repeat/dehydration-responsive element by fluorescence measurement showed that CBF1 binds to C-repeat/dehydration-responsive element as a monomer irrespective of the temperature. CD spectra of the intact and truncated CBF1 proteins (1–213, 41–213, 41–157, and 41–146) were measured to examine the temperature-dependent changes of the secondary structure of CBF1. The results suggested that the CBF1 protein has regions exhibiting reversible cold denaturation in the range between 30 and −5 °C and also has a region exhibiting thermal denaturation between 40 and 60 °C. This cold denaturation occurred in both the N-terminal and acidic regions. The thermal denaturation occurred in the region encompassing the AP2 domain. The difference between the retention time of CBF1 at 4 °C and that at 25 °C in gel filtration, and the decrease of the sedimentation coefficient,s 20,w, caused by the temperature change from 25 to 3 °C, strongly suggested that the cold denaturation was accompanied by the extension of the molecule. The possible cold denaturation observed here might be a physiologically important structural response of CBF1 to cold stress.

Prior to X-inactivation,Xistis transcribed in unstable form. The initiation of X-inactivation is associated with the appearance of stableXisttranscripts which coat the X chromosome to be inactivated. Using strand specific RT-PCR analysis of the 5′ region ofXist,we have detected antisense transcripts (Xist AS) in undifferentiated embryonic stem (ES) cells, but not in female somatic cells. Screening of a female ES cell cDNA library allowed us to isolate one poly(A)-tailed cDNA clone corresponding to this RNA. 5′ RACE analysis showed that XistAS and the P1 sense product ofXistoverlap by at least 707 bp. Expression of XistAS was also detected in early mouse embryos before random X-inactivation in the epiblast lineage. Although XistAS is low in abundance, it may be involved in destabilizingXistmRNA in undifferentiated ES cells.

During vertebrate development, cleavage divi- sions of the fertilized totipotent egg gradually give rise to certain morphologically and functionally distinct cell populations with progressive restriction in developmental potential. Interactions between adjacent germ layers thus produced are essential for further cell differentiation and the formation of tissues and organs. Although differences be- tween cells from different germ layers may be greater than those between cells from the same germ layer, we do not know to what extent every cell of one germ layer shares common traits. Cell lineage specific characteristics, if present, would be invaluable for analyzing cellular interaction in development and disclosing distinct roles played by each cell lineage. Contrary to the notion of progressive cell dif- ferentiation depending on the divergence of cell lineages, the cartilage and bone are known to arise from the ectoderm as well as the mesoderm in the chicken (reviewed in 15). Moreover, cell lineage analysis in

We have cloned and determined the nucleotide sequence of a mouse lamin A cDNA. The clone contained the C-terminal two-thirds of the lamin A coding sequence and a 3′ untranslated sequence with a poly(A) stretch. As has been reported for human lamin A/C cDNAs, a large part of the 5′ sequence of our mouse lamin A clone was essentially identical with a previously reported mouse lamin C cDNA sequence, and the deduced C-terminal amino acid sequence shared strong homology with the human lamin A sequence. A putative deduced amino acid sequence for mouse lamin A, which was derived from our sequence and the published lamin C sequence, was 665 amino acids long. The degree of overall homology to the human sequence was more than 95%, and relatively more variation was scattered in the C-terminal lamin A-specific region.

This paper presents a novel video mosaicing method capable of generating a geometric distortion-free mosaic image using a hand-held camera. For a document composed of curved pages, mosaic images of virtually flattened pages are generated. The process of our method is composed of two stages : real-time stage and off-line stage. In the realtime stage, image features are automatically tracked on the input images, and the viewpoint of each image as well as the 3-D position of each image feature are estimated by a structure-from-motion technique. In the offline stage, the estimated viewpoint and 3-D position of each feature are refined and utilized to generate a geometric distortion-free mosaic image. We demonstrate our prototype system on curved documents to show the feasibility of our approach.

SIGGRAPH '06 : The 33rd International Conference and Exhibition on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques , Jul 30-Aug 3, 2006 , Boston, MA, USA

This paper describes a novel video mosaicing method based on extrinsic camera parameter estimation. With our method, a mosaic image without perspective distortion can be generated, even if none of the input image plane is parallel to the target document. Thus, users no longer have to take special care in holding the camera so that the image plane in the reference frame is parallel to the target. First, extrinsic camera parameters are estimated by tracking image features. Next, by utilizing re-appearing features, estimated extrinsic camera parameters are globally optimized to minimize the estimation error in the whole input sequence. Finally, all the images are projected onto the mosaic image plane, and a super-resolved mosaic image is generated by applying an iterative back projection algorithm. Experiments have successfully demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed method.

The expression of A-type lamins, subdivided into lamin A and C, is developmentally regulated. Retinoic acid (RA)-induced differentiation of P19 embryonic carcinoma cells, in which A-type lamins are absent, increases the expression of lamin A/C. We previously showed, using P19 cells as a model system, that the lamin A/C promoter has a retinoic acid-responsive element (L-RARE), and that Sp1 and Sp3 bind the CACCC box of the L-RARE. In this study, we report that Sp1, Sp3, and c-Jun increase transactivation of the L-RARE during RA treatment. Sp1 and Sp3 regulate the lamin A/C promoter in Sp1-deficient SL2 cells and contribute to RA-dependent activation in GAL4-based transcriptional assays. Overexpression of c-Jun causes transactivation of a chimeric promoter consisting of four tandem L-RARE repeats fused with the luciferase gene in P19 cells. c-Jun also transactivates a reporter construct with five tandem GAL4-binding sites, only when co-expressed with either GAL4-Sp1 or Sp3 fusion proteins. Furthermore, we detect a physiological interaction between c-Jun with Sp1/Sp3 in RA-treated cells. Our data suggest that Sp1, Sp3, and c-Jun play an important role in gene expression through the L-RARE during RA treatment.

A new method for reconstructing a document from an image sequence and recognizing contents of the document is described. In this method frame images in the image sequence are acquired as partial sub-images by a moving camera. The reconstruction includes a rather expensive registration process. To make its use practical, the proposed method registers sub-images hierarchically by sub-tree matching of the layout structure. Images of a corresponding character pair are piled using sub-pixel precision displacement and interpolated to restore image quality and resolution. The proposed method increased the character recognition rate by 6.8 points to 93.1% when resolution was 133 dpi. The computational cost was reduced to 1/23 that of registration by conventional matching.

We identified MRG-1, a Caenorhabditis elegans chromodomain-containing protein that is similar to the human mortality factor-related gene 15 product (MRG15). RNA-mediated interference (RNAi) of mrg-1 resulted in complete absence of the germline in both hermaphrodite and male adults. Examination of the expression of PGL-1, a component of P granules, revealed that two primordial germ cells (PGCs) are produced during embryogenesis in mrg-1(RNAi) animals, but these PGCs cannot undergo mitotic proliferation, and they ultimately degenerate during post-embryonic development. Zygotic RNAi experiments using RNAi-deficient hermaphrodites and wild-type males demonstrated that MRG-1 functions maternally. Moreover, immunoblot analysis using mutant animals with germline deficiencies indicated that MRG-1 is synthesized predominantly in oocytes. These results suggest that MRG-1 is required maternally to form normal PGCs with the potential to start mitotic proliferation during post-embryonic development.

The FILAMENTOUS FLOWER gene from Arabidopsis thaliana is a member of a gene family whose role is to specify abaxial cell fate in lateral organs. Analysis of the amino-terminal region of the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein suggests that seven cysteine residues at positions 14, 26, 30, 33, 54, 56, and 57, and two histidine residues at positions 18 and 24 contribute to a putative zinc finger motif, Cys-X(3)-His-X(5)-His-X-Cys-X(3)-Cys-X(2)-Cys-X(20)-Cys-X-Cys-Cys. Zinc determination experiments revealed that the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein binds two zinc ions per molecule. Chemical modification was required to release one zinc ion, whereas the other was released spontaneously or more rapidly in the presence of metallochromic indicator. The loss of a zinc ion and the subsequent structural change of the zinc finger domain were correlated with the multimerization of the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein. A cysteine residue at position 56 in the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein potentially interferes with zinc ligation within the zinc finger and causes this zinc release. In support of this, substitution of the Cys(56) by alanine suppressed both the zinc release and the multimerization of the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein. Deletion analysis showed that the region between positions 45 and 107 functions in the intermolecular contacts between FILAMENTOUS FLOWER proteins. This region corresponds to the carboxyl-terminal half of the zinc finger domain and the following hydrophobic region containing two putative alpha-helices. Our results suggest that the FILAMENTOUS FLOWER protein forms a range of different conformers. This attribute may lead to a greater degree of functional flexibility that is central to its role as an abaxial cell fate regulator.

This paper describes an Extended Split Detection Method that can hierarchically segment a machine-printed page image with a complex layout into smaller layout elements. The method performs piecewise-linear segmentation using many kinds of separator elements such as field separators, lines, edges of figures, and edges of white background areas. Furthermore, this method represents an analyzed layout of a hierarchical structure in a tree data structure, in which all nodes are traversed according to the simple rules for generating the reading sequence. We demonstrated that the new method increases the correct character line segmentation rate by 15.5%, to 95.5%, and we achieved a correct reading sequence generation of 88.1%.

Today, most of paper documents in offices are just like avatars of electronic documents because such paper documents are computer print-outs of original digital data in office computers. We propose a document management model, called TransWorld which supports integration of the paper world and the electronic world. In the model, users' actions to paper documents are automatically reflected to their original electronic documents observed by desk-mounted scanners and vice versa. An experimental system based on the TransWorld model is also described.

This paper describes a new method for analyzing Japanese mail layout. We first classify the many kinds of variations in Japanese mail layout into format variations, extraneous object variations, and arrangement variations of destination address characters. These variations are cyclically dependent on one another, but have insufficient information to fix other variations. To solve these problems, we developed an address layout analysis method using a hierarchical hypothesis verification process, which consists of a format determination process and a destination address character line detection process, hierarchically. This method increased the correct address format determination rate by 5.8% to 86.6% and the correct destination address character line detection rate by 10.2% to 92.8% for 1482 test pieces of mail. This method is practically applied to Japanese mail sorting machine.

The mouse gene (Lmnb1) that encodes nuclear lamin B1 was isolated. Structural analyses revealed that the lamin B1 gene spans about 43 kb of the genome and consists of 11 exons and 10 introns. Exon/intron structure of the B1 gene clearly showed the conserved organization shared among the intermediate filament protein family genes. The presumptive promoter re- gion has high GC content and contains a CAAT box and multiple SP1 sites but no classical TATA box, suggesting that the lamin B1 gene has a typical housekeeping gene promoter with a CpG island. These data reveal the gene structure of the only remaining unanalyzed mouse somatic lamin gene. Gene structures of all the mouse somatic lamins are compared.

This paper presents a new method for determining the address format used on mail that has been hand-written in Japanese, a task made particularly difficult by the variety of formats possible in Japanese. We classify possible formats into six types, and identify the distinguishing features of each. In the proposed method, features characterizing any of the six types are identified for a given address, and from this a list of format-candidates is generated. Character lines are then determined for any format candidate, and one candidate is subsequently selected on the basis of the statistical likelihood of any address being written in that particular way, given the location and size of the character lines. We also demonstrate the effectiveness of the new method experimentally.

The seven tRNA genes clustered in the supB-E region of the Escherichia coli chromosome were transcribed in vitro with purified RNA polymerase, using a restriction fragment from lambda psu degrees 2, a transducing phage carrying the chromosome region, as template. A single major transcript was synthesized, which was about 770 nucleotides long and contained all seven tRNA sequences. The terminal sequences of the transcript were determined and mapped on the DNA sequence of the supB-E region previously determined. The transcription start site is seven base pairs downstream from the Pribnow box sequence, as expected from the DNA sequence analysis and consistent with the findings on the trimeric tRNA precursor (pppG--tRNAMETM-tRNALeu-tRNAGln1) which was detected in an RNase P mutant and shown to be coded for by the supB-E region. Cleavage of the restriction fragment at the -35 region with another restriction endonuclease abolished the template activity of the fragment. Transcription of the supB-E tRNA operon was relatively unaffected by the presence of rho factor. Transcription termination occurs within a region of three bases between positions 770 and 772 from the transcription start site. Immediately upstream from the termination sites, there is a region of 26 nucleotides that could form a stem structure, thereby consistent with the general feature of rho-independent termination sites.

Mouse A-type lamin genes were isolated. Structural analyses revealed that all the three known mouse A-type lamins (A, C and C2) were coded in a single genomic locus in a 22 kilobase DNA segment. The three lamins were coded in 12, 10 and 10 exons for A, C and C2, respectively, and shared 8 exons among them. Primer extension analyses identified possible transcription start sites for both A/C and C2 genes suggesting that the locus is under the control of two separate promoters, that is a somatic cell-acting promoter (for A and C) and a testis-specific promoter (for C2) which resides in the first intron of the A/C gene. Sequence characteristics of the possible promoter regions are discussed. Divergence of the two somatic cell-type lamins (A and C) is formally accounted for by differential selection of poly(A) sites together with lamin A-specific splicing.

The Pax6 gene plays crucial roles in eye development and encodes a transcription factor containing both a paired domain and a homeodomain. During embryogenesis, Pax6 is expressed in restricted tissues under the direction of distinct cis-regulatory regions. The head surface ectoderm-specific enhancer of mouse Pax6 directs reporter expression in the derivatives of the ectoderm in the eye, such as lens and cornea, but the molecular mechanism of its control remains largely unknown. We identified a Pax6 protein-responsive element termed LE9 (52 bp in length) within the head surface ectoderm-specific enhancer. LE9, a sequence well conserved across vertebrates, acted as a highly effective enhancer in reporter analyses. Pax6 protein formed in vitro a complex with the distal half of LE9 in a manner dependent on the paired domain. The proximal half of the LE9 sequence contains three plausible sites of HMG domain recognition, and HMG domain-containing transcription factors Sox2 and Sox3 activated LE9 synergistically with Pax6. A scanning mutagenesis experiment indicated that the central site is most important among the three presumptive HMG domain recognition sites. Furthermore, Pax6 and Sox2 proteins formed a complex when they were expressed together. Based on these findings, we propose a model in which Pax6 protein directly and positively regulates its own gene expression, and Sox2 and Sox3 proteins interact with Pax6 protein, resulting in modification of the transcriptional activation by Pax6 protein.