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The authors have been developing a large AC current source with a single-phase Bi2223 superconducting transformer. The authors aim to develop the source of supplying current with the maximum frequency of 1 kHz and the maximum amplitude of 1 kA. However, the conventional transformer has some leakage inductance resulting in large voltage drop, and therefore it was unable to transport the current with high frequency and large amplitude. In this paper, the authors propose a configuration of the transformer with less leakage inductance than inductance of the conventional one. Improved current source has output current with the maximum frequency of 1 kHz and the maximum amplitude of 900 A. In addition, a protection system for normal transition in the transformer is proposed. The authors have proposed the active power method to detect the normal transition. For high frequency and large current, however, the normal transition may be incorrectly detected by using the method due to large AC loss. The authors show a new method to avoid the incorrect detection by an empirical formula based on measurement results of the AC loss. From the experimental results of the normal transition, the authors show that the proposed method is more correct to detect the normal transition than the conventional method.

The results of research and development related to radiochemical characteristics of tritium to be considered in a fusion reactor facility design are summarized. Reactions induced by tritium beta-decay under presence of high purity tritium, which might give an impact to tritium inventory control and safety, have been identified and investigated. Results of researches of radiolysis of tritiated water implied necessity of some measures to prevent hydrogen explosion and avoid a corrosive condition. A calorimetric method to measure tritium decay heat has been applied successfully to accountancy of the ITER fuel storage system with satisfaction of the required specification.

Aims The diagnosis of psychogenic urinary dysfunction (PUD) is one of exclusion, particularly from urologic and neurologic causes, and is usually accompanied by more obvious psychologic/ psychiatric features. We here describe patients with PUD who were diagnosed in our uro- neurological laboratory. Materials and Methods We reviewed the digitized records of 2,300 urodynamic cases treated in the past 6 years to identify patients who fulfilled the diagnostic criteria of PUD. All 2,300 patients had completed a urinary questionnaire and undergone both electromyography (EMG)-cystometry and a detailed neurological examination. In addition, pressure-flow analysis, neurophysiology tests including sphincter EMG analysis, and MRI of the brain and spinal cord were performed as applicable. Results PUD was seen in 16 cases (0.7%): 6 men, 10 women, mean age 37 years. Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) included overactive bladder (OAB) alone in 5, difficult urination alone in one, and both in 10. LUTS commonly occurred in particular situations, for example, OAB only while riding the train. Some patients showed extremely infrequent toileting. The urodynamic findings were normal except for increased bladder sensation (50%) for OAB and acontractile detrusor (31%) for difficulty. The final diagnosis was conversion reaction in six followed by anxiety in four. Conclusions PUD patients experienced the situational occurrence of OAB and/or difficult urination and, in some patients, extremely infrequent toileting. The main urodynamic abnormalities were increased bladder sensation and acontractile detrusor. However, even in cases suggestive of PUD, a non-PUD pathology behind the symptoms should be explored. Neurourol. Urodynam. 26:518–524, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

It is demonstrated that the NH"3 ashing followed by wet cleaning in carboxylic acid solution, IPA rinse and the TMCTS (1,3,5,7-tetramethylcyclotetrasiloxane) vapor anneal is an effective process for the removal of etching/ashing residues from porous silica low-k films. NH"3 ashing process was the most effective way of removing etching residues as compared to the other processes such as O"2 and He/H"2 gas chemistries. However, NH"3 ashing after to CF"4 resulted in NH"4F formation by the reaction of NH"3 with F in the etching residue in porous silica low-k films. NH"4F could be removed by a carboxylic acid solution. Although the dielectric constant increased by NH"3 ashing and the wet cleaning, IPA rinse and TMCTS treatment could recover it to the initial value.

Both constipation and fecal incontinence are prominent lower gastrointestinal tract (LGIT) dysfunctions that occur frequently in multiple system atrophy (MSA). We investigated the mechanism of constipation and fecal incontinence in MSA. Colonic transit time (CTT), sphincter electromyography (EMG), and rectoanal videomanometry were performed in 15 patients with MSA (10 men, 5 women; mean age, 63.5 years; mean duration of disease, 3 years; decreased bowel frequency [< 3 times a week] in 9; difficulty in expulsion in 11; fecal incontinence in 3) and 10 age-matched healthy control subjects (7 men and 3 women; mean age, 62 years; decreased bowel frequency in 2; mild difficulty in expulsion in 2; fecal incontinence in none). Compared to the control subjects, MSA patients had significantly prolonged CTT in the rectosigmoid segment and total colon. Sphincter EMG showed neurogenic motor unit potentials in none of control subjects but in 93% of MSA patients. At the resting state, MSA patients showed a lower anal squeeze pressure (external sphincter weakness) and a smaller increase in abdominal pressure on coughing. During rectal filling, MSA patients showed smaller amplitude in phasic rectal contraction, which was accompanied by an increase in anal pressure that normally decreased, together with leaking in 3 patients. During defecation, most MSA patients could not defecate completely and had larger postdefecation residuals. MSA patients had weak abdominal strain, smaller rectal contraction on defecation, and larger anal contraction on defecation (paradoxical sphincter contraction on defecation), although these differences were not statistically significant. These findings in MSA patients were similar to those in Parkinson's disease patients in our previous study, except for the sphincter denervation and weakness in MSA. Constipation in MSA most probably results from slow colonic transit, decreased phasic rectal contraction, and weak abdominal strain, and fecal incontinence results from weak anal sphincter due to denervation. The responsible sites for these dysfunctions seem to be both central and peripheral nervous systems that regulate the LGIT.

We propose a new formula to determine the first moment of difference between the polarized u - and d -quarks in the nucleon from the Drell-Yan processes in collisions of unpolarized hadrons with longitudinally polarized nucleons by measuring outgoing lepton helicities. Numerical calculation for this formula is done for a case of Δ u = Δ d .

To extract the polarized gluon distribution Δg, we study the large–pTlight hadron pair productions in polarized semi-inclusive reaction, which are dominantly produced via 2 mechanisms: photon–gluon fusion(PGF) and QCD Compton. The PGF gives us a direct information on Δg in the nucleon, whereas QCD Compton is background to the signal process for extracting Δg. By using symmetry relation among fragmentation functions and taking an appropriate combination of light hadron pair production processes, we can remove an effect of QCD Compton from those cross sections. Here we propose a new formula for extracting Δg from those processes.

An ion beam treatment of a high-silicon aluminum alloy (Al–30Si) is performed by the irradiation of a proton intense pulsed ion beam (IPIB) which has the ion energy of 180 keV, the ion current density of 460 A/cm 2 , and the pulse duration of 65 ns. The EPMA analysis shows the dispersion of small eutectic silicon crystals and the erosion of the boundary of large primary silicon crystals by repeated IPIB-irradiation. The solution rate of silicon in aluminum that was calculated from the variation of X-ray diffraction angle of aluminum was about 5.7% after 50 shots IPIB-irradiation, which exceeds the solid solubility limit (1.59%) of silicon in aluminum. The thickness of the treated layer was found to be 7 μm, and the hardness of treated layer was H v =120 corresponding to twice of the untreated one.

First trimester prenatal diagnosis of fetal aneuploidies is an active area of research despite years of disappointing data employing maternal peripheral blood samples. To remedy this situation we have investigated other first trimester maternal specimens attempting to find a consistent fetal cell source. Using our previously established positive enrichment procedure along with a commercially available depletion method, fetal trophoblast cells were identified employing immunocytochemistry using an antibody cocktail or by using mRNA in-situ hybridization employing a cocktail of trophoblast specific probes. Fetal origin of positively identified cells was verified using interphase fluorescent in-situ hybridization (FISH) for X and Y-chromosomes. Artificial model systems were established that indicated yields of trophoblast cells and allowed the enrichment procedure to be optimized for minimal losses from maternal specimens. We demonstrate herein that blood drawn from maternal vessels near the placental implantation site to be the most consistent source of fetal cells from any first trimester maternal specimen described to date. In addition, a high yield of multinucleated syncytiotrophoblast cells was obtained using a cell depletion strategy to enrich the target cells. The safety of the procedure or even the clinical utility of blood drawn from maternal vessels near the placental implantation site is yet to be demonstrated.

In order to improve the safe handling and control of tritium for the ITER fuel cycle, effective in situ tritium accounting methods have been developed at the Tritium Process Laboratory in the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute under one of the ITER-EDA R&D tasks. The remote and multilocation analysis of process gases by an application of laser Raman spectroscopy developed and tested could provide a measurement of hydrogen isotope gases with a detection limit of 0.3 kPa analytical periods of 120 s. An in situ tritium inventory measurement by application of a `self-assaying' storage bed with 25 g tritium capacity could provide a measurement with the required detection limit of less than 1% and a design proof of a bed with 100 g tritium capacity.

A system composed of a palladium diffuser and an electrolytic reactor has been proposed and then developed for the fuel cleanup system of ITER. The performance of the system has been studied in detail in a stand-alone test. A fuel simulation loop of ITER was constructed by connecting the fuel cleanup and hydrogen isotope separation systems developed; and the function of each system in the loop has been demonstrated. For tritium recovery from the exhaust gas during helium glow discharge cleaning of the vacuum chamber of ITER, a cryogenic molecular sieve bed system has been proposed and demonstrated.

Oligonucleotides that carry a detectable label can be used to probe for mRNA targets in in situ hybridization experiments. Oligonucleotide probes (OPs) have several advantages over cDNA probes and riboprobes. These include the easy synthesis of large quantities of probe, superior penetration of probe into cells and tissues, and the ability to design gene- or allele-specific probes. One significant disadvantage of OPs is poor sensitivity, in part due to the constraints of adding and subsequently detecting multiple labels per oligonucleotide. In this study, we compared OPs labeled with multiple detectable haptens (such as biotin, digoxigenin, or fluorescein) to those directly conjugated with horseradish peroxidase (HRP). We used branching phosphoramidites to add from two to 64 haptens per OP and show that in cells, 16-32 haptens per OP give the best detection sensitivity for mRNA targets. OPs were also made by directly conjugating the same oligonucleotide sequences to HRP. In general, the HRP-conjugated OPs were more sensitive than the multihapten versions of the same sequence. Both probe designs work well both on cells and on formaldehyde-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissues. We also show that a cocktail of OPs further increases sensitivity and that OPs can be designed to detect specific members of a gene family. This work demonstrates that multihapten-labeled and HRP-conjugated OPs are sensitive and specific and can make superior in situ hybridization probes for both research and diagnostic applications.

Differential gene expression, with its precise start and stop times, is believed to be critical for the programmed development of new cells and tissues. Within the developing fetus, one tissue of particular interest is fetal liver. This organ undergoes rapid changes in the pathway toward liver development in utero since it is also the major site of hematopoiesis, until bone marrow hematopoiesis predominates. Believing that patterns would emerge from the bi-weekly large-scale inspection of expressed genes in the fetal liver, we employed differential display reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (DDRT-PCR) as ourprimary inspection tool. Using DDRT-PCR, we isolated cDNAs differentially expressed throughout fetal liver development and in adult liver. We displayed approximately 25 000 cDNAs from 10 and 24 week fetal liver and adult liver. From this initial screen, we determined that approximately 0.1-1% of the mRNA population undergoes expression changes. We extracted, purified and sequenced 25 differentially displayed cDNA bands. Fourteen cDNAs had similarities to known genes, while 11 cDNAs were not similar to any characterized gene. The differentially expressed cDNAs from known genes present in fetal liver include alpha-fetoprotein, stem cell factor, erythroid alpha-spectrin, 2,3-bisphosphoglycerate mutase, insulin-like growth factor-2, porphobilinogen deaminase and Mac30. The differentially expressed cDNAs present in adult liver but not in 10 week fetal liver were nicotinamide deaminase, human fibrinogen-related protein and alpha-acid glycoprotein. The majority of differentially expressed genes found during this effort appear to be turned on during organogenesis, however, some genes were found that are apparently turned off completely.

To test the color-octet model of heavy quarkonium productions, we propose $\psi '$-productions at small-$p_T$ regions in polarized $pp$ collisions for the forthcoming RHIC polarized experiments, whose experimental test at $\sqrt s=50$ GeV might be very promising., Comment: 9 pages + 3 Postscript figures, Latex

It is shown that the Ψ′-productions at small- p T regions in polarized pp collisions are very effective, in particular, at s = 50 GeV for testing the color-octet model of heavy quarkonium productions.

Based on the relativistic harmonic oscillator model, the polarized structure functions of {Gamma}{sub 1}(Q{sup 2}) and {Gamma}{sub 2}(Q{sup 2}) are calculated in the resonance region. The relativistic effects on the transition amplitudes and the structure functions are addressed. {copyright} {ital 1997} {ital The American Physical Society}

Background and Aims: Donepezil hydrochloride, a central cholinergic drug, is widely used for improving cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We investigated whether donepezil might aiect the lower urinary tract (LUT) function in AD. Methods: Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale cognitive subscale (ADAS-cog) (0 ^ 70, increase as impairment), urinary questionnaire, and electromyography (EMG)-cystometry were performed in eight patients with AD before and after treatment with 5 mg/day of donepezil. Results: The ¢rst assessment (before donepezil) showed moderate cognitive decline in the patients as a mean ADAS-cog score of 27.0 (range: 17^35) (normal

Hadroproductions of charmonium and bottomonium χ J in polarized pp collisions at RHIC energies are studied. Two-spin asymmetries A LL χ J ( pp ) for these reactions allow one to determine polarized gluon distributions in a proton.

The recent high precision SMC data on polarized $\mu p$ scatterings have again confirmed that very little of the proton spin is carried by quarks. To unravel the mystery of the proton spin structure, it is quite important to know the behavior of the polarized gluon distribution. By using the positivity condition of distribution functions together with the unpolarized and polarized experimental data, we restrict the $x$ dependence of the polarized gluon distribution., Comment: LaTeX file, 14 pages + 8 figures not included available upon request

A simulation code of multistage chemical exchange columns has been developed. The sieve trays for liquid-vapor scrubbing and the catalyst beds for vapor-hydrogen exchange reactions are alternately piled within the column. The code deals with all the twelve molecular species of hydrogen gas and water; and is based on the Newton-Raphson method. The characteristics of the column were discussed from the calculated results by this code such as effects of temperature and pressure. Similar to the distillation columns, the phase flow rates within the column (hydrogen gas and water vapor), and product flow rates have large effects on the separation performance of the column. A control method of the column was also proposed from these calculated results.

We have investigated the pressure effects on the electrical resistivities of (Y 1− x Pr x ) 2 Ba 4 Cu 7 O 15-δ ( x = 0, 0.1 , 0.4 and 0.6) polycrystals. The superconducting transition temperature T c decreases from 78.8 K ( x = 0) to 40 K ( x = 0.6) with increasing Pr concentration. The pressure coefficient of T c at P = 0, (d T c /d P ) P = 0 is remarkably affected by the Pr concentration. It varies from + 5 K/GPa ( x = 0) to -15 K/GPa ( x = 0.6). The pressure dependence of the electrical resistivity in the normal state is also studied. We discuss the effect of Pr doping on the pressure dependence of T c .

Polysilane thin films which are mainly composed of (SiH2)n chains terminated with SiH3 have been synthesized from a silane plasma at a substrate temperature of — 110°C and investigated as an ultraviolet (UV) sensitive material. ArF excimer laser irradiation at room temperature causes the desorption of bonded hydrogen from the film. Simultaneously, the Si network formation and crystallization occur in the irradiated region. Since the nonirradiated part of polysilane is easily oxidized in air, the laser irradiation onto polysilane through a Cr mask and subsequent air exposure of the film result in the selective oxidation of the nonirradiated region. A fine polycrystalline Si pattern has been obtained by dilute HF etching of the oxidized region.

Detailed micturitional histories were taken from nine patients with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), and eight of them (89%) had micturitional symptoms including urinary incontinence in seven. Urodynamic studies were performed in six patients and the results were as follows. Three had residual urine of 100 ml on average. Four had detrusor hyperreflexia and one had a low compliance cystometrogram. One had detrusor-sphincter dyssynergia. Motor unit analysis of external sphincter was performed in four patients and two had neurogenic changes. The results were compared with our previous findings in Parkinson's disease and in striato-nigral degeneration (SND), and we found that a severe degree of micturitional disturbance in PSP seems to be as common as in SND, especially in the urinary storage phase, and more frequent than in Parkinson's disease. Supranuclear types of pelvic and pudendal nerve dysfunctions seemed to be mainly responsible for micturitional disturbance in PSP.

The two-spin asymmetries\(A_{LL}^{\pi ^0 } (\mathop p\limits^{( - )} p)\) and\(A_{LL}^\gamma (\mathop p\limits^{( - )} p)\) are calculated in a new model incorporating the nonrelativistic quark model and the parton model which interprets well EMCg1p(x) data. The model can reproduce the experimental data for inclusive π0 rather well.

Normal human melanocytes require 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA) for prolonged growth in vitro. In contrast, the growth of human malignant melanoma cells is often inhibited by TPA. In this study, we have confirmed and extended these observations. Since protein kinase C (PKC) is an important mediator of the effects of TPA, we have investigated the nature of this differential growth response by examining PKC expression and activity in primary cultures of human neonatal melanocytes and metastatic melanoma cell strains. PKC, when measured by immunoreactivity or a functional assay, was found to be more abundant in melanoma cells than in melanocytes. When specific isotypes were examined by Northern analysis, PKC-alpha and -epsilon were expressed in both melanocytes and melanoma. PKC-beta was expressed in melanocytes, but was undetectable by Northern analysis in 10 out of 11 melanoma cell strains. Southern analysis revealed that no gross deletions or rearrangements of the PKC-beta gene had occurred. These data suggest that down-regulation of the PKC-beta gene occurs frequently during the process of transformation of melanocytes. Furthermore, differential expression of PKC isotypes may explain the different effects of TPA on melanocyte and melanoma cell growth.

The flow cytometric analysis of leukocytes in whole blood usually requires isolation of leukocytes from other components of whole blood. Density gradient centrifugation and red blood cell lysis are the most commonly used methods to separate leukocytes but come with significant limitations. We report the results of the evaluation of a microfabricated filtration device for blood preparation that separates erythrocytes from leukocytes based on their size and mechanical properties. The microfabricated filter evaluated here requires a rapid and simple procedure and results in high leukocytes recovery without introducing bias among the leukocyte subpopulations. The filter removes erythrocytes, platelets, plasma proteins, and unbound staining reagent. This gentle filtration process produces very clean stained leukocytes for cytometric analysis without any apparent damage to leukocytes.

It is usually difficult to distinguish between idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) and parkinsonian-type multiple system atrophy (MSA-P) in the early stage. However, it is important to make a careful early-stage diagnosis. Therefore, we determined whether an examination of pelvic organ dysfunction would be helpful to distinguish between PD and MSA-P.We recruited 61 patients with PD and 54 patients with MSA-P who were examined at our neurology clinic. The mean ages of the patients with PD and MSA-P were 67 and 64 years, respectively. The mean disease duration of both groups was 3.2 years. We administered a questionnaire on pelvic organ dysfunction to the PD and MSA-P groups. The questionnaire had sections focusing on bladder, bowel, and sexual function. Dysfunction, as described in the responses, was evaluated as normal, mild (once a month), moderate (once a week), or severe (once a day). The Mann-Whitney U-test was used for statistical analysis.Compared with the PD group, the prevalence and severity of pelvic dysfunction in the MSA-P group was significantly higher for urinary urgency (MSA-P 76%, PD 58%, P0.05), retardation in initiating urination (79%, 48%, P0.05), prolongation in urination (79%, 72%, P0.05), and constipation (58%, 31%, P0.05). The quality-of-life index among pelvic organ dysfunctions indicated that urinary and bowel function was significantly more impaired in the MSA-P group than in the PD group.Urinary urgency, retardation in initiating urination, prolongation in urination, and constipation are more prevalent and severe in MSA-P compared to PD.

The spin-dependent distribution functions of quarks and gluons in a proton are studied so as to explain the European Muon Collaboration {ital g}{sub 1}{sup {ital p}}({ital x}) data by introducing a new model, in which characteristics of both the static quark and the quark-parton model are taken into account. The {ital x} dependence of {ital g}{sub 1}{sup {ital p}}({ital x}) is reproduced well. It is shown that polarized gluons through the anomaly play a significant role and the resultant sum of quark spin is 0.375. Furthermore, {ital g}{sub 1}{sup {ital n}}({ital x}) as well as {ital g}{sub 1}{sup {ital p}}({ital x}) is predicted for future experiments.

Expression of protein kinase C (PKC) genes (alpha, beta, gamma and epsilon) was measured in cultured normal human neonatal melanocytes and metastatic melanoma cell strains. Three of the PKC isotypes (alpha, beta and epsilon) were constitutively expressed in neonatal melanocytes. Protein kinase C beta RNA transcripts were induced in neonatal melanocytes cultivated in medium with serum and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA). In contrast, PKC alpha and epsilon RNA transcripts were detected in melanocytes cultivated in medium without serum and TPA, but were repressed in melanocytes cultivated in medium with serum and TPA. Only PKC alpha and epsilon RNA transcripts were detected in the melanoma cell strains and the PKC RNA transcript expression levels varied among the five metastatic melanomas. In four metastatic melanoma cell strains, PKC alpha and epsilon RNA transcript expression levels were repressed by serum, but in one melanoma cell strain, PKC alpha and epsilon RNA transcript expression levels were induced by serum. Protein kinase C gamma RNA transcripts were not detected in either the melanocytes or melanoma cell strains. These data suggest an alteration of PKC isotype gene expression in the progression of primary melanocytes to metastatic melanoma. The absence of the PKC beta RNA transcripts and altered expression of PKC alpha and epsilon isotypes in particular may be a feature in the transformation of human primary melanocytes.

We propose a new model for describing baryon semileptonic decays for estimating $F$ and $D$ values with explicit breaking effects of both SU(3) and SU(2) flavor symmetry, where all possible SU(3) and SU(2) breaking effects are induced from an effective interaction. An overall fit including the weak magnetism form factor yields $F=0.477\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.001$, $D=0.835\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.001$, ${V}_{ud}=0.975\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.002$, and ${V}_{us}=0.221\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.002$ with ${\ensuremath{\chi}}^{2}=4.43/5\text{ }\text{ }\mathrm{d}.\mathrm{o}.\mathrm{f}.$. The spin content of strange quarks $\ensuremath{\Delta}s$ is estimated from the obtained values $F$ and $D$, and the nucleon spin problem is reexamined. Furthermore, the unmeasured values of $({g}_{1}/{f}_{1})$ and $({g}_{1})$ for other hyperon semileptonic decays are predicted from this new formula.

We propose a formula of F and D with both SU(3) and SU(2) flavor symmetry breakings. The approach includes all possible SU(3) and SU(2) breaking structure, and the breakings are induced from an effective interaction with any matrix. An overall fit including the weak magnetism form factor yields F = 0.477 ± 0.001 and D = 0.835 ± 0.001 with χ2/d.o.f= 0.89. The amount of strange quark carring the nucleon spin is discussed by using the result of F and D.

An advanced scalable Cu damascene process was developed using self-assembled porous silica with tetramethylcyclo-tetrasiloxane (TMCTS) treatment and selective electroless plating of Cu barrier. It is found that the TMCTS vapor treatment could recover process-induced damages after plasma ashing and chemical mechanical polishing, resulting in no line-width dependence of the effective dielectric constant of the porous silica films. Furthermore, the selective electroplating of CoWP on Cu interconnects could suppress Cu drift and improve time-dependent dielectric breakdown of the porous silica film

We describe the findings of urodynamic studies, together with blood pressure and heart rate monitoring, in five patients with micturition syncope. All patients had almost normal storage and evacuation function and no evidence of prostate hypertrophy. Conventional head-up tilt testing with an empty urinary bladder caused no change in arterial blood pressure, but a moderate increase in heart rate. Urinary bladder filling caused minimal increases of the arterial pressure and heart rate. The sitting posture with a distended bladder caused mild orthostatic hypotension. Urinary bladder evacuation caused a fall in arterial pressure with a decrease in heart rate. These responses were similar to those described in vasovagal syncope. The central mechanism for the initiation of urinary evacuation, or sensory input from the lower urinary tract, may trigger micturition syncope.

The cortical representation of micturition is speculated to reside in the medial frontal lobes.1,2 Lesion pathology, however, varies from acute stroke to a neoplasm, and there is not necessarily a small, distinct lesion.2 We report a case of urinary retention in which the main presenting symptom is thought to have been caused by a small cortical infarction. One morning, a 66 year old, right handed man had difficulty urinating. He had no history of voiding difficulty, diabetes mellitus, injury to the lower urinary tract, or neurological disease. Digital rectal examination and ultrasonography of the prostate detected no enlargement. Urinalysis showed no haematuria or pyuria. He was not taking any medications that cause voiding dysfunction. There was no urinary incontinence, but he had difficulty in voiding even though he felt the bladder was full. At that time, he also had difficulty in lifting his left arm and leg and so was brought to our hospital. Neurological examination in the emergency room found no weakness, and he was sent home. Later, he experienced urinary retention and visited the emergency …

This paper describes the extraction of process-induced damage in low-k/Cu damascene by comparing measured data of interline capacitances of Cu interconnects and parasitic capacitances between the line and the substrate with simulation results. The effective dielectric constants were extracted by fitting the simulated results to the measured capacitances. The extracted dielectric constant of the low-k film increased from 2.1 to 4.5 with decreasing the spacing from 800 nm to 140 nm, indicating that the interfacial damage was induced between low-k and cap layer. It is shown that the interfacial damaged layer with a thickness of 10 nm and a k-value of 34.5 could be formed due to wet chemicals during CMP or Cu electrochemical plating or wet cleaning. The simulated interlines capacitance fitted well to measured data, assuming the void-like damage in the low-k film. Lateral sidewall damage could be caused by dry etching and ashing.

To define the nature of micturition disturbance in patients with acute idiopathic autonomic neuropathy (AIAN).Micturitional symptoms were observed during hospital admissions and the in outpatient clinics in six patients with clinically definite AIAN (typical form in four, cholinergic variant in one, autonomic-sensory variant in one). Urodynamic studies included medium-fill water cystometry, external sphincter electromyography, and a bethanechol test.Four patients had urinary retention and two had voiding difficulty as the initial presentation. Patients with retention became able to urinate within a week (two to seven days). The major symptoms at the time of urodynamic studies (three weeks to four months after disease onset in most cases) were voiding difficulty and nocturnal frequency. None had urinary incontinence. Complete recovery from the micturition disturbance took from three months to18 years. The recovery period was shorter in a patient with cholinergic variant, and it was longer in two patients who had a longer duration of initial urinary retention. Micturition disturbance tended to improve earlier than orthostatic hypotension. The major urodynamic abnormalities were detrusor areflexia on voiding (5), denervation supersensitivity to bethanechol (3); low compliance detrusor (1); and impaired bladder sensation (2). None had neurogenic motor unit potentials of the external sphincter muscles.In patients with AIAN, urinary retention and voiding difficulty are common initial presentations. The underlying mechanisms seem to be pre- and postganglionic cholinergic dysfunction with preservation of somatic sphincter function. The bladder problems tend to improve earlier than orthostatic hypotension.

We propose a formula to determine the first moment of difference between the polarized $\bar u$- and $\bar d$-quarks in the nucleon, {\it i.e.} $\Delta\bar u-\Delta \bar d$ from the Drell-Yan processes in collisions of unpolarized hadrons with longitudinally polarized nucleons by measuring outgoing lepton helicities. As coefficients in the differential cross section depend on the $u$- and $d$-quark numbers in the unpolarized hadron beam, the difference $\Delta\bar u-\Delta\bar d$ can be independently tested by changing the hadron beam. Moreover, a formula for estimating the $K$-factor in Drell-Yan processes is also suggested.

The authors have devised a non-invasive, painless treatment system composed of a Functional Continuous Magnetic Stimulator (FCMS) and a large saddle type coil for urinary incontinence, especially stress incontinence and urge incontinence. First, the authors assumed the current density to apply to the objective stimulation region by general electrical stimulation. As a result, the absolute current density |Je| assumed by calculation was 12.7 /spl mu/A/mm/sup 2/. Second, they have developed a saddle type coil for the FCMS which can be used practically in most hospital and stimulate continuously for 15 minutes. The coil has a cooling function to maintain the coil temperature to use the coil efficiently safely between 20/spl deg/C-25/spl deg/C. The size of the saddle type coil is 21 cm long, 12 cm wide and 3 cm thick. The most suitable region for urinary incontinence is from the anus to perineum and the saddle type coil can fit on this region. In experiments with dogs, we confirmed that the urethral pressure increased when the circumference of the perineum received Continuous Magnetic Stimulation (CMS) with 720 /spl mu/s pulse width (180 /spl mu/s risetime), 10 Hz frequency and about 500 V capacitor charge voltage. This result suggest that magnetic stimulation is effective as a stress urinary incontinence and urge urinary incontinence therapy. The specifications of the FCMS are 2 kW maximum electrical power consumption, 800 V maximum stimulation intensity, 720 /spl mu/s pulse width (180 /spl mu/s risetime), 5-30 Hz frequency. The frequency is selected to treat urge incontinence between 5 and 10 Hz and to treat stress incontinence between 25 and 30 Hz.

To clarify the role of one of the downstream effectors of Rho (Rho-kinase) in testicular germ cell tumour (GCT) by quantifying mRNA expression for Rho-kinase in patients with this disease.The mRNA levels of the RhoA and Rho-kinase genes were analysed in surgical specimens of testicular GCT tissues from 57 consecutive Japanese patients, and in the corresponding non-tumour tissue originating from the same patient, using the polymerase chain reaction after reverse transcription. The expression levels of these genes were compared between the tissues and the relationship between their expression levels evaluated within tumours and with tumour stage. The difference in the expression levels of the mRNAs of RhoA and Rho-kinase genes were also assessed between tumours that were seminoma only and mixed tumours of seminoma and nonseminoma.RhoA and Rho-kinase mRNAs were more abundant in tumour tissue than in non-tumour tissue (P0.01 and0.05, respectively). High RhoA and Rho-kinase mRNA expressions were related to tumour stage (P0.05 and0.01, respectively). The mRNA levels of RhoA and Rho-kinase in mixed tumours were higher than in tumours with seminoma only (P0.01 and0.05, respectively). There was a positive relationship between expression levels of mRNAs of RhoA and Rho-kinase in tumour tissues (P0.001).These findings suggest that the RhoA/Rho-kinase pathway is involved in the progression of testicular GCT. This pathway might be a molecular target for new treatment strategies for this disease.

Lower urinary tract function was studied in 10 patients with the anterior spinal artery syndrome. In the acute stage all patients had complete urinary retention. Cystometry in 3 patients showed detrusor areflexia. At a neurologically stable stage 9 patients could void and 1 had urinary retention during the preceding 7 years. Cystometric bladder capacities at first and maximum desire to void were decreased in 8 patients and normal in 2. Detrusor hyperreflexia was noted in 8 patients, a normal bladder in 1 and detrusor areflexia in 1. External urethral sphincter electromyography revealed detrusor-sphincter dyssynergia in 4 patients and normal findings in 6. We conclude that the vesicomotor dysfunction in this syndrome is similar to that of traumatic spinal cord injury except that bladder sensation is preserved. The latter finding indicates that at least some of the bladder sensation travels via the posterior columns of the spinal cord.

Brown-Séquard syndrome (BS) is a rare but well documented condition of the spinal cord hemisection, comprising hemiparesis with crossed superficial sensory disturbance. However, little is known of micturitional function in BS, although some patients with BS are troubled with severe voiding difficulty and urinary incontinence. We performed urinary questionnaire and urodynamic studies in eight patients with BS, including seven men and one woman, mean age of 41 years. Detailed questionnaire showed that five of the eight patients (63%) had micturitional symptoms, including voiding difficulty in three, urinary retention in two, urinary frequency in two and urge urinary incontinence in one. Urodynamic abnormalities were noted in all five patients with micturitional symptoms, including post-micturition residuals in four (average 149 mL), high urethral closure pressure in two, increased bladder volume at first sensation in one, detrusor hyperreflexia in four, detrusor areflexia on voiding in three and unrelaxing sphincter on voiding in four. Three asymptomatic patients showed normal urodynamic finding. Micturitional symptoms were more common in patients with severe motor paresis (100%) than in those with mild motor paresis (40%), and there was no relation between micturitional disturbance with superficial or deep sensory disturbance. A combination of treatments for the underlying disorders with alpha-adrenergic blocking agent and clean, intermittent self-catheterization ameliorated the urinary dysfunction in all patients together with neurological dysfunction. In conclusion, micturitional disturbance was not uncommon in our patients with BS, particularly in those with severe motor paresis, which could ameliorate by appropriate therapies.

We propose a new formula for extracting the polarized gluon distribution from the large-$p_T$ light hadron pair production for semi-inclusive processes in polarized deep inelastic scattering. In general, a large-$p_T$ hadron pair is produced via photon-gluon fusion(PGF) and QCD Compton at the lowest order of QCD. The PGF gives us a direct information on $\Delta g$ in the nucleon, while QCD Compton becomes background to the signal process for extracting $\Delta g$. We show that the contribution from this background, i.e. the QCD Compton process, can be removed by using symmetry relation among fragmentation functions and taking an appropriate combination of various light hadron pair production processes, and thus the double spin asymmetry can be described in terms of $\Delta g/g$ alone., Comment: 14 pages 3 EPS figures Latex

Apples placed on a vibrating table were subjected to sine–wave vibrations at specific frequencies, and the response was observed by electronic speckle pattern interferometry (ESPI). The speckle pattern was analyzed to determine the vibration modes. The lowest resonant frequency was a longitudinal vibration and the second lowest a 0S2 mode. Third and fourth lowest resonant frequencies were estimated as a 0S3 and a 0S4 mode, respectively. The fact that the response to the second lowest resonant frequency is the 0S2 mode confirms that the elastic modulus of an apple can be calculated by the equation proposed by Yamamoto and Haginuma (1984). The influence of the surface contact between the vibrating table and the apple was examined. When the apple was bonded to the table with glue, the lowest resonant frequency greatly increased by 80%, but the second, third and fourth were little influenced. The second lowest resonant frequency of an apple can be accurately determined by placing the apple directly on the table without bonding and it affords a practical measurement of fruit firmness.