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Monitoring the temperature in liquid hydrogen (LH2) storage tanks on ships is important for the safety of maritime navigation. In addition, accurate temperature measurement is also required for commercial transactions. Temperature and pressure define the density of liquid hydrogen, which is directly linked to trading interests. In this study, we developed and tested a liquid hydrogen temperature monitoring system that uses platinum resistance sensors with a nominal electrical resistance of approximately 1000 Ω at room temperature, PT-1000, for marine applications. The temperature measurements were carried out using a newly developed temperature monitoring system under different pressure conditions. The measured values are compared with a calibrated reference PT-1000 resistance thermometer. We confirm a measurement accuracy of ±50 mK in a pressure range of 0.1 MPa–0.5 MPa.

The prototype temperature sensors for an ocean-going liquid hydrogen (LH2) carrier were manufactured by way of trial. All of the sensors adopted Platinum 1000 (PT-1000) resistance thermometer elements. Various configurations of preproduction temperature sensors were tested in AIST’s LH2 test facility. In the experiments, a PT-1000 resistance thermometer, calibrated at the National Metrology Institute of Japan at AIST, was used as the standard thermometer. The temperatures measured by the preproduction sensors were compared with the temperatures measured by the standard thermometer, and the measurement accuracy of the temperature sensors in LH2 was investigated and discussed. It was confirmed that the measurement accuracies of the preproduction temperature sensors were within ±50 mK, which is the required measurement accuracy for a technical demonstration ocean-going LH2 carrier.

The prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) has been reported to be lower in Japan than in many other countries. However, extensive surveillance for CRE carriage has not been performed in Japan.To investigate the prevalence of CRE carriage in Japan among convalescent patients considered to be at high risk of being CRE carriers using an improved selective culture medium.A cross-sectional survey was conducted in 22 acute care hospitals (ACHs) and 21 long-term care hospitals (LTCHs) in northern Osaka from December 2015 to January 2016. Patients who used incontinence aids, an enteral feeding tube or a urinary catheter were enrolled. Faecal specimens were examined using the newly developed M-ECC for imipenemase (IMP)-producing CRE, which is the most prevalent form of CRE in Japan. The positive isolates were analysed by polymerase chain reaction and sequencing. Risk factors associated with carriage were analysed by logistic regression.Among 1507 patients, 184 (12.2%) carried CRE. The percentage of positive patients was significantly higher in LTCHs (14.9%) than in ACHs (3.6%) (P0.001). Risk factors for CRE carriage were longer hospital stay [odds ratio (OR) 2.59; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.87-3.60], enteral feeding (OR 3.03, 95% CI 2.08-4.42) and antibiotic exposure (OR 2.00, 95% CI 1.40-2.87). Among the 233 CRE isolates identified, 223 were IMP producers; the remaining isolates did not produce carbapenemase.This is the first Japanese report to demonstrate the significant spread of CRE in both ACHs and LTCHs using an improved selective medium. A coordinated regional approach may help to prevent further spread.

This prospective cohort study investigated the relationship between patient neuroticism and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) before and after prosthetic treatment as well as changes in OHRQoL-namely, treatment efficacy. Sixty-three patients (23 men and 40 women; mean age 67.2 ± 8.6 years), who were scheduled to receive new removable partial dentures (RPDs), were recruited. OHRQoL was assessed using the Japanese version of the Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-J). The Japanese version of the NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) was used to assess neuroticism. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was calculated to determine the association between neuroticism and OHIP-J scores before and after treatment. After stratifying patients according to neuroticism score, the Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for intragroup comparison of OHIP-J scores before and after treatment. Moreover, logistic regression analysis was used to determine the impact of covariates on treatment efficacy such as age, sex, Eichner classification, neuroticism, changes in maximal occlusal force, and OHIP-J scores before treatment. Statistical analyses showed that higher neuroticism scores were associated with higher total OHIP-J scores before treatment ( r = 0.41, P = 0.001) but were not associated with OHIP-J scores after treatment ( r = 0.07, P = 0.566). When the effect of all independent variables was analyzed in multivariate analysis, neuroticism and OHIP-J scores before treatment affected treatment efficacy. These results suggest that OHRQoL of patients with higher levels of neuroticism was low before prosthetic treatment but significantly improved by oral rehabilitation with RPDs to the same level as patients with lower levels of neuroticism. Knowledge Transfer Statement: The results of this study may change the clinical perception of the effect of prosthetic rehabilitation with removable partial dentures in patients with higher levels of neuroticism. The study concluded that prosthetic rehabilitation could contribute toward satisfaction even in neurotic patients, who are presumed to show less satisfaction with their oral status.

Primary sensory neurons detect potentially dangerous environmental situations via many "sensor" proteins located on the plasma membrane. Although receptor-type cation channels are thought to be the major sensors in sensory neurons, anion channels are also important players in the peripheral nervous system. Recently, we showed that transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) interacts with anoctamin 1 (ANO1, also called TMEM16A) in primary sensory neurons and that this interaction enhanced TRPV1-mediated pain sensation. In that study, we induced ANO1 currents by application of capsaicin to small DRG neurons and showed that ANO1-dependent depolarization following TRPV1 activation could evoke more action potentials. Furthermore, capsaicin-evoked pain-related behaviors in mice were strongly inhibited by a selective ANO1 blocker. Together these findings indicate that selective ANO1 inhibition can reduce pain sensation. We also investigated non-specific inhibitory effects on ion channel activities to control ion dynamics via the TRPV1-ANO1 complex. We found that 4-isopropylcyclohexanol (4-iPr-CyH-OH) had an analgesic effect on burning pain sensations through its inhibition of TRPV1 and ANO1 together. Additionally, 4-iPr-CyH-OH did not have clear agonistic effects on TRPV1, TRPA1, and ANO1 activity individually. These results indicate that 4-iPr-CyH-OH could function globally to mediate TRP-ANO1 complex functions to reduce skin hypersensitivity and could form the basis for novel analgesic agents.

Introduction It is often reported that spouses accompanying husband posted overseas suffer from depression and husbands end up returning to Japan with spouses. Although previous studies have confirmed that spousal stress response and self-esteem depend on the length of stay, the presence/absence of children, language barriers, no studies have reported on the associations with these factors based on length of stay. Objective The purpose of this study is to elucidate the relationship between spousal stress response and presence/absence of children and language barriers, based on length of stay by comparing their status before and after moving overseas. Method An internet survey was conducted with spouses in December 2016 (n=123). A multiple regression analysis and multi-population analysis were performed with stress response and self-esteem scores as dependent variables, and length of stay and presence/absence of children (Model 1), language barrier (Model 2) as independent variables. Results In Model 1, for spouses who had moved overseas less than 1.5 years, presence/absence of children was related to ‘impatient feeling,’ ‘feelings of fatigue,’ ‘feelings of anxiety,’ ‘depressed mode,’ ‘physical complaints,’ and ‘self-esteem.’ In Model 2, ‘physical complaints,’ ‘feelings of fatigue,’ and ‘feelings of irritation’ were found to be related to presence/absence of children in spouses who had moved overseas less than 1.5 years. Moreover, ‘depressed mode’ and ‘feelings of anxiety’ were found to be related to presence/absence of children and language barriers. No factors were related to stress response and self-esteem in spouses prior to moving overseas or between 1.5–3.0 years after moving overseas. Conclusion Stress response after moving overseas was found to be stronger in spouses with a stay of less than 1.5 years, who had children and faced a language barrier. The results suggest the necessity for early support after moving overseas

The aim of this study was to assess whether the application of a lightweight mesh for mesh plug repair (MPR) for primary inguinal hernia could reduce chronic pain or other symptoms associated with the insertion of the prosthesis. Patients over 20 years of age with a unilateral primary inguinal hernia were eligible to participate in the study. The patients were randomly assigned to a lightweight mesh (LWM) or a heavyweight mesh (HWM) group. All the operations were performed under local anesthesia. The operative details, including the hernia type and the nerves that were identified, and the postoperative complications were recorded. All follow-up and outcome measures were obtained based on a physical examination and a questionnaire regarding pain and other symptoms at 1 week, 1, 3, 6, and 12 months after the surgery in a double-blinded manner. The use of LWM significantly reduced foreign body sensation after 12 months to one-third of the incidence reported for the use of HWM (5.8 vs. 17.9 %; P = 0.013), while no significant differences were found in pain parameters, including the use of pain relief medications, between the groups throughout the study period. This study indicated that the use of LWM in the MPR decreases the incidence of foreign body sensation at 1 year after surgery for primary inguinal hernia. LWM may be preferable to MPR, similar to results described previously for Lichtenstein repair.

This study investigated short- and long-term postoperative skeletal changes following intraoral vertical ramus osteotomy (IVRO) for mandibular prognathism, as determined from lateral cephalograms. The subjects were 20 patients with mandibular prognathism who had undergone surgical orthodontic treatment combined with IVRO. Lateral cephalograms were taken at six time points: 1 month before surgery, and 1 day, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, and approximately 2 years after surgery. Intermaxillary fixation (IMF) with four monocortical screws was maintained for 1 week in all patients. Mean posterior movement of the menton (Me) was 5.9 mm at surgery. 3 months after surgery, the FMA and FH-CorMe angles had increased 6.3 and 6.2 degrees, respectively, indicating clockwise rotation of the distal segment of the mandible. This rotation was observed in all 20 patients, suggesting that postoperative rotation of the mandible in the postoperative short term is likely to occur after IVRO and could be considered an adaptation of the mastication system newly established by surgery. In the long term after IVRO, Me had moved anteriorly by only 0.9 mm and the relapse ratio was 15.3%. These findings suggest the excellent long-term stability of surgical orthodontic treatment combined with IVRO in patients with mandibular prognathism.

We created an information and communication technology system to monitor the feeding of grazing cattle, comprising the following elements: (1) actuators, including an audio player, feeder, and stanchion (an equipment for locking cattle neck during feeding); (2) wireless nodes with Wi-Fi connectivity to control the actuators; (3) Internet protocol (IP)-addressed cameras with Wi-Fi connectivity; (4) a wireless access point enabling the wireless nodes and IP cameras to connect to a wired network using Wi-Fi; and (5) a Web server that communicates with the wireless nodes and delivers a control graphical user interface for use by farmers. Farmers can call cattle towards an IP camera and feed them by using a smartphone without being physically present on the farm. Next, we constructed a received signal strength-based location system for grazing cattle. This included monitoring the location of cattle on pastures in mountainous areas, where issues to be considered included low energy consumption for battery operation and radio propagation degradation due to the undulating topography of the pastures. To evaluate the proposed algorithm, an experimental study was conducted in a pasture with an area of 2 km2. We also provided a means to view the locality on a smartphone by creating an application that connects to this system. In this study, we created two systems controllable via a smartphone, one system to call cattle and the other to monitor their locations. These systems could be very useful to farmers in controlling and monitoring cattle grazing.

Fetal fibroblast cell culture from cotyledons of bovine placenta and animal experiments close to term were used to elucidate afterbirth release and factors missing in the signal transduction mechanism for retained fetal membranes (RFM) after delivery. In cell culture the addition of arachidonic acid (Ara) to the medium caused rapid release to free floating cell in the culture dish, accompanied by matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activation, being consistent with previous in vivo observations, where a relation between MMP and fetal membrane release had been shown. Ara-induced cell floating was not inhibited by the addition of cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitor, and not induced by the addition of PGF2α or PGE2 to replace Ara, while 12-lipoxygenase (12-LOX) metabolite of Ara, 12-oxo-eicosatetraenoic acid (12-oxoETE), strongly induced cell floating. In the animal experiments, 12-oxoETE injection to delivery-induced cows (n = 6) using prostaglandin (PG) and dexamethazone resulted in rapid release of fetal membranes. In cows with natural calf delivery, a 12-oxoETE peak (11.7-16.8 ng/ml) was observed in maternal blood plasma prior to release of fetal membranes. This investigation thus gives new indications for that the mediator for fetal membrane release is 12-oxoETE and not PG.

The concept of the transportation of a microwave environment-a technology that can transport microwaves over an IP network- is discussed. The several possible applications facilitated by this concept are also discussed. A pair of UHF-band microwave/Internet protocol (IP) conversion network interfaces are prototyped, and a unidirectional transport of an integrated service of digital broadcasting-terrestrial (ISDB-T) signal is demonstrated. It is shown that the ISDB-T signal can be transported over an IP network maintaining the bit error rate quality of 10-5 even when the microwave is sampled by the 6-bit ADC device with an operation rate lower than twice the transported frequency. However, the demonstration shows the IP transportation requires additional carrier-to-noise power ratio margin for the microwave before the IP transportation because of the flat-top sampling process with limited analog input/output bandwidth of ADC/DAC devices. This paper also suggests that transporting truncated microwaves intermittently over an IP network and analyzing them centrally are effective for collecting and monitoring microwave conditions at remote multiple places, such as power levels and spectrums, with reduced throughput.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Cerebral hemodynamics abnormality in Alzheimer disease (AD) is not fully understood. Our aim was to determine whether regional hypoperfusion due to AD is associated with abnormalities in regional arterial blood volume (rABV) and regional arterial transit time (rATT) as measured by quantitative arterial spin-labeling (ASL) with multiple-delay time sampling. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Nineteen patients with AD (9 men and 10 women; mean age, 74.5 ± 8.6 years) and 22 cognitively healthy control subjects (11 men and 11 women; mean age, 72.8 ± 6.8 years) were studied by using a quantitative ASL method with multiple-delay time sampling. From the ASL data, maps of regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF), rABV, and rATT were generated. A region of hypoperfusion due to AD was determined by statistical parametric mapping (SPM) analysis. Mean rCBF, rABV, and rATT values within the hypoperfused region were compared between the AD and control groups. RESULTS: Despite the significantly lower rCBF ( P = .0004) in patients with AD (27.8 ± 7.1 mL/100 g/min) in comparison with control subjects (36.7 ± 6.3 mL/100 g/min), no significant difference in rATT was observed between the control (0.48 ± 0.09 seconds) and AD (0.47 ± 0.10 seconds) groups. Mean rABV was lower in the AD group (0.22 ± 0.10%) than in the control group (0.27 ± 0.12%), though the difference did not reach the level of statistical significance. CONCLUSIONS: Our results revealed that regional hypoperfusion in AD is not associated with rATT prolongation, suggesting that the mechanism of hypoperfusion is distinct from that in cerebrovascular diseases.

Improvement of localization technique for wireless sensor nodes is an important challenge to realize free applications of wireless sensor networks. Effective utilization of range data is necessary because constraints on their hardware resources are very hard and specific on their situations. Utilization of wireless connection strengths (WCS) is efficient strategy; however, localization performances of conventional methods using a WCS are not stable because the amount of range data varies depending on network topology and the methods can use only ldquosinglerdquo WCS. In this paper, two types of range data fusions are proposed to advance the effective utilization of range data. In the first, ldquomultiplerdquo WCS are utilized by the range-inequality-based localization method to allow a localization on free network topology. In the second, both known ranges and range inequalities are utilized to allow free node design suited for each situation.

Objective: To evaluate the difference in the age-related cartilage changes of the humeral head with T1ρ relaxation time mapping and assess the normal distribution of the proteoglycan content of the humeral head in healthy volunteers without any symptoms or structural disorders. Materials and Methods: Twenty male volunteers (10 young subjects, 10 elderly subjects) for each generation group (mean age, young subjects: 30.2 ± 2.3 years; elderly subjects: 62.6 ± 6.2 years) participated in this study. Spectral attenuated inversion recovery T2-weighted imaging and T1ρ relaxation time mapping were performed using 3.0-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. Regions of interest were located on the humeral cartilage on oblique coronal images from the bone–tendon junction to the inferior articular surface and divided the surface of the humeral cartilage into 6 areas. The T1ρ values of each area of the humeral head were measured and compared between groups. Results: The total mean T1ρ values were 40.9 ± 5.3 and 40.5 ± 3.5 ms for young and elderly volunteers, respectively. Comparison between ages showed no significant differences in the T1ρ values between each corresponding area. The T1ρ values of the inferior area of the humeral head in both young and elderly volunteers were significantly higher than those of the superior area. Conclusion: No marked age-related differences in the T1ρ values of the humeral head were observed between young and elderly volunteers without any symptoms or structural disorders. However, the T1ρ values in the inferior area of the humeral head were increased compared with those in the superior area.

The boson-fermion atomic bound states (composite fermion) and their roles for the phase structures are studied in a bose-fermi mixed condensate of atomic gas in finite temperature and density. The two-body scattering equation is formulated for a boson-fermion pair in the mixed condensate with the Yamaguchi-type potential. By solving the equation, we evaluate the binding energy of a composite fermion, and show that it has small T-dependence in the physical region, because of the cancellation of the boson- and fermion- statistical factors in the equation. We also calculate the phase structure of the BF mixed condensate under the equilibrium B+F -> BF, and discuss the role of the composite fermions: the competitions between the degenerate state of the composite fermions and the Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) of isolated bosons. The criterion for the BEC realization is obtained from the algebraically-derived phase diagrams at T=0., 5 pages, 3 figures

The aim of this article is to clarify diagnostic pitfalls of pancreatic serous cystic neoplasm (SCN) that may result in erroneous characterization. Usual and unusual imaging findings of SCN as well as potential SCN mimickers are presented. The diagnostic key of SCN is to look for a cluster of microcysts (honeycomb pattern), which may not be always found in the center. Fibrosis in SCN may be mistaken for a mural nodule of intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN). The absence of cyst wall enhancement may be helpful to distinguish SCN from mucinous cystic neoplasm. However, oligocystic SCN and branch duct type IPMN may morphologically overlap. In addition, solid serous adenoma, an extremely rare variant of SCN, is difficult to distinguish from neuroendocrine tumor.

We report on the selective-area metalorganic vapor phase epitxial growth of GaSb on (111)-oriented GaAs sub- strates partially covered with a SiO2 mask layer. The mask pattern consisted of periodic circular openings with diameter ranging from 200 to 500 nm and pitch ranging from 500 nm to 3 µm. Selective-area growth of GaSb was achieved on the (111)A substrates, while GaSb was grown in few parts of the mask openings on the (111)B substrate. In addition, exposure to an Sb-precursor prior to the growth significantly affected the coverage of GaSb of the mask opening region, and it increases (decreases) on the (111)A ((111)B) substrate as compared to AsH3 exposure. The results are explained based on a model of exchange of Sb-As at the initial stage of growth. (© 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

This paper presents the broadest band monolithic-microwave integrated-circuit traveling-wave switch ever reported for millimeter-wave applications. The developed switch with the novel structure of a 400-/spl mu/m-gate finger field-effect transistor (FET) indicated an insertion loss of less than 2.55 dB and an isolation of better than 22.2 dB from dc to 110 GHz. Also, the switch indicated no degradation of insertion loss and an ON/OFF ratio of more than 22.7 dB up to an input power of 26.5 dBm at 40 GHz. Circuit analytical results based on a lossy transmission-line model for small-signal performance and circuit simulation results using the two-terminal nonlinear FET model for large-signal operation successfully showed good agreement with the experimental results.

Because of the inertness of their inner wall surface and their excellent bending strength and flexibility, fused silica (FS) columns have made a great contribution to the progress of gas chromatographic (GC) analysis. While maintaining such satisfactory basic properties, it is important that GC capillary columns have durability to withstand elevated temperature, an inner wall surface structure resistant to buildup, and a large sample loading capacity. Highly inert metal capillary columns that fulfill all of these requirements have been developed. This article discusses the features of these columns, which appear to be useful GC separation columns in the future. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Micro Sep 12: 345–350, 2000

In this paper we discuss how the first-order spatial coherence of bending magnet radiation is determined. We present an analytical representation of the coherence and compare it with the numerical calculations based on the first principles. It is shown that if the electron-beam size is so large that some conditions are satisfied, the van Cittert-Zernike theorem can be used without any modification in the vertical and horizontal directions. The formalism presented will be useful in judging whether or not the electron-beam size in the storage ring can be estimated directly from the van Cittert-Zernike theorem using the synchrotron radiation interferometer.

Cytological analysis on 112 Brazilian accessions of Paspalum showed that 52 were affected by failure of first or second cytokinesis during microsporogenesis. When the failure of cytokinesis occurred only in the first division and in the second division the cytokinesis was normal, a dyad of microspores was formed. In most of them the two cells remained binucleate, but in some a restitutional nucleus was observed. When the first division was normal and the failure of cytokinesis occurred only in the second division, dyads and triads were observed. A restitutional nucleus in one or both cells of the dyad, or in the binucleate cell of the triad was also observed. The percentage of dyads and triads varied among accessions, reaching 15.75 of the sporads in some. The absence of cytokinesis indicates the possibility that the widespread occurrence of polyploidy in the genus Paspalum originates from 2n pollen grains.

Cytogenetic studies carried out over a period of 2 consecutive years on a native Brazilian accession of Paspalum regnellii (2n=40) revealed a meiotic mutation that has not been previously reported for any other species. Among 13 inflorescences investigated during the first collection year, three presented anomalous meiotic behavior starting from metaphase I. At the beginning of this phase, the chromosomes occupied the entire equatorial plate in a membrane-to-membrane arrangement, and the spindle fibers, which were clearly visible, did not converge towards the poles. Degeneration of spindle fibers occurred at the end of metaphase I. Chromosome segregation did not occur and the bivalents were left scattered at random in the cytoplasm. Remnants of chromosome fibers could be seen close to the centromere during this stage. The bivalents gave origin to micronuclei in telophase I, with extremely wide variations in number and size among cells. With the absence of spindle formation during meiosis II, metaphase and anaphase II were not observed. Second cytokinesis occurred in prophase II cells after the occurrence of first cytokinesis. The final product of meiosis was completely abnormal, with a predominance of polyads with microspores of different sizes that resulted in abortive pollen grains. In the affected inflorescences, all microsporocytes presented this anomaly, which caused total sterility.

Compact DC-60-GHz heterojunction field-effect transistor (HJFET) monolithic-microwave integrated-circuit (MMIC) switches have been demonstrated for millimeter-wave communications and radar systems. To reduce the MMIC chip size, a novel ohmic electrode-sharing technology (OEST) has been developed for MMIC switches with series-shunt FET configuration. Four FET's of the series-shunt single-pole double-throw (SPDT) MMIC switch were integrated into an area of approximately 0.018 mm/sup 2/. The developed MMIC switches have a high power-handling capability with low insertion loss (IL) and high isolation (Iso) at millimeter-wave frequencies. From DC to 60 GHz, the single-pole single-throw (SPST) MMIC switch achieved the IL and Iso of better than 1.64 and 20.6 dB, respectively. At 40 GHz, the IL increases by 1 dB at the input power of 21 dBm. A novel large-signal FET model for the switch circuit is presented. The simulated power-transfer performance shows the excellent agreement with the measured one. The developed MMIC switches will contribute to the low-cost and high-performance millimeter-wave communications and radar systems.

We determined the chromosome number of 52 accessions of Paspalum from the germplasm collection of the Centro de Pesquisa de Pecuaria do Sudeste (CPPSE/EMBRAPA) originating from different regions in Brazil. All accessions belonged to the Plicatula group, 13 of them being P. plicatulum, three P. guenoarum, two P. yaguaronense, two P. compressifolium, one P. atratum, and 31 still unidentified Paspalum sp. Except for a P. yaguaronense accession that presented 2n=60, all the remaining ones presented 2n=40 chromosomes. This is the first report of the chromosome number of P. atratum. Considering that the basic number for most species in the genus Paspalum is ×=10, the accessions analyzed are tetraploids (2n=4×=40) and hexaploids (2n=6×=60).

This paper describes 950 MHz power performance of 1.2 V drain bias operation n-AlGaAs/InGaAs/n-AlGaAs heterojunction FET's (HJFET) for personal digital cellular (PDC) applications. The fabricated HJFET with a 0.8-/spl mu/m long WSi gate exhibited an on-resistance (/spl tau//sub 0n/) of 2.1/spl Omega//spl middot/mm and a maximum drain current of 640 mA/mm. Operated at 1.2 V drain bias voltage, the HJFET with gate width of 28.0 mm demonstrated an output power of 30.0 dBm (1.0 W) and a power-added efficiency of 51.5% with an adjacent channel leakage power at 50 kHz off-center frequency of -50.8 dBc. Class A operation analysis, which shows a good coincidence with the measured PDC power performance, revealed that the excellent power performance with the relatively small gate width was due to the low /spl tau//sub 0n/ of the fabricated HJFET.

Critical design issues involved in optimizing millimeter-wave power HBTs are described. Gain analysis of common-emitter (CE) and common-base (CB) HBTs is performed using analytical formulas derived based on a practical HBT model. While CB HBT's have superior maximum-gain at very high frequencies, their frequency limit is found to be determined by the carrier transit time delay. Thus, to fully exploit the potential gain in a CB HBT, it is essential to maintain a high f/sub T/ even at high collector voltages. The advantage of using CB HBT's in a multifingered device geometry is also discussed. Unlike CE HBTs, CB HBTs are capable of maintaining a high gain even if the device size is scaled up by increasing the number of emitter-fingers. Moreover, it is found that reducing the wire parasitic capacitance allows emitter ballasting resistance to be used without affecting the gain. Fabrication of HBTs based on these design considerations led to excellent power performance in a CB unit-cell HBT at 25-26 GHz, featuring output power of 740 mW and power-added efficiency of 42%.

Background Clinical and experimental studies of mitral valve replacement have shown a depression of ventricular function after chordal transsection; most recent studies have proposed that this is secondary to a depression of local function near the papillary muscle insertion site. However, there is no direct experimental evidence for changes in local fiber shortening in the wall of the left ventricle overlying the papillary muscle. Accordingly, we investigated the effect of chordal transsection on left ventricular shape and on three-dimensional regional deformation of the myocardium near the insertion of the anterior papillary muscle. Methods and Results In six open-chest dogs, two sets of three transmural columns of radiopaque markers were implanted in the anterior wall, one set at the tip of the papillary muscle (basal) and one at the site of papillary muscle fiber insertion (apical). A Björk-Shiley mitral valve was placed in the left atrium adjacent to the native valve. Markers were then tracked with biplane cineradiography, and deformation was quantified with the use of finite strain analysis. Chordal transsection resulted in reduced left ventricular end-systolic pressure and slowed relaxation. After chordal transsection, outward displacement of the ventricular wall and transverse shearing deformation were observed in the area of the papillary muscle during isovolumic contraction. Circumferential and radial strains during ejection were maintained at our basal site and enhanced on our apical site. Conclusions Chordal transsection led to enhanced local shortening and wall thickening and regional strain nonuniformity. These results indicate that chordal transsection induces an unloading of myocardium at the papillary muscle insertion site and that the resulting heterogeneity of regional function is the mechanism for the reduced global function and slowed ventricular relaxation.

To analyze myelomonocytic differentiation we have used the approach of differential cDNA analysis to isolate novel genes that are preferentially expressed in mature macrophages. Differential screening of a macrophage cDNA library led to the identification of a novel cDNA that showed macrophage lineage- and differentiation stage-specific expression. Transcripts from the gene, which we have termed Mpg-1, are found at a high level in mature human and murine macrophages and at a moderate level in certain myelomonocytic cell lines. The expression of Mpg-1 was found to increase when murine fetal liver hematopoietic progenitor cells were induced to differentiate into macrophages. An Mpg- 1-specific transcript was not detected in a wide variety of other tissues and cell lines. The DNA sequence of Mpg-1 (4,214 bp) was obtained from a series of overlapping cDNA, 33′ rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE), and genomic clones. Primer extension analysis predicted the existence of multiple transcription start sites, ranging from 26 to 117 bp upstream of the 53′ proximal ATG of the open reading frame. The predicted 669-amino acid, Mpg-1-encoded protein has potential glycosylation and phosphorylation sites in addition to a signal sequence. The core protein is predicted to have a molecular weight of 71 to 74 kD. Computer-assisted local similarity searches indicate that Mpg-1 is a novel gene that may share a distant ancestry to perforin, a lytic protein found in cytotoxic T lymphocytes and natural killer cells.

The phase structures of the boson-fermion (B and F) mixed condensates of atomic gas are discussed under the existence of boson-fermion composite fermions (quasi-bound states) BF from the equilibrium in B+F -> BF. Especially we discuss the competitions between the BF degenerate states and the Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) in low-T. The criterion for the BEC realization is obtained from the algebraically-derived phase diagrams at T=0., 2 pages, 3 figures

Ra-reactive factor (RaRF), a C-dependent bactericidal factor in mice, is composed of one polysaccharide-binding component and one C4/C2-activating component. The former is an oligomer of 28-kDa protein corresponding to the mannose-binding protein of mice. The 100-kDa protein, P100, has been shown to be present in the C4/C2-activating component. This protein generates 29- and 70-kDa polypeptide chains when reduced. In this study, we determined the nucleotide sequence of cDNA coding for P100. cDNAs were prepared by reverse transcription PCR and cassette-ligation-mediated PCR on mRNA from BALB/c mouse liver, using primers synthesized by reference to the sequence determined in a previous study. The results of cDNA sequencing indicate that the precursor protein of P100 containing a 24-residue signal peptide consists of 704 amino acid residues. Taking the results of the previous electrophoretic study into consideration, it is thought that the cleavage of mature P100 protein generates a 29-kDa chain of 251 residues and a 70-kDa chain of 429 residues. Although homology in the amino acid sequence of P100 with that of human C1r and C1s subcomponents of C was less than 40%, a striking similarity in domain organization was found among these proteins, indicating that P100 is a new C4-activating serine protease structurally similar to C1r and C1s. Northern hybridization showed that the liver was the primary site of the expression of the P100 gene.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: MSDE preparation is a technique for black-blood imaging. Our purpose was to evaluate the usefulness of a 3D TSE sequence with MSDE preparation in detecting brain metastases by comparing it with conventional sequences. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Postcontrast images of 227 patients who were suspected of having brain metastasis were prospectively obtained by using 3 T1-weighted 3D sequences: a gradient-echo sequence (MPRAGE), TSE-noMSDE, and TSE-MSDE. The number of visualized blood vessels and the lesion-to-normal CNR were compared among the 3 sequences. An observer test involving 9 radiologists was performed, and their diagnostic performance by using TSE-MSDE, MPRAGE, and combined TSE-MSDE and MPRAGE was compared by means of an FOM as an index of diagnostic performance derived by the JAFROC analysis, sensitivity, FP/case, and reading time. RESULTS: TSE-MSDE resulted in significantly better vessel suppression than the other 2 methods. TSE with and without MSDE resulted in significantly higher CNRs than MPRAGE. In the observer test, significantly higher sensitivity and FOM as well as significantly shorter reading time were achieved by TSE-MSDE compared with MPRAGE, but FP/case was significantly higher with TSE-MSDE. Combined TSE-MSDE/MPRAGE resulted in significantly higher sensitivity and FOM and similar FP/case and reading time compared with MPRAGE alone. CONCLUSIONS: With blood vessel suppression and increased CNR, TSE-MSDE improves radiologists9 performances in detecting brain metastases compared with MPRAGE, but it may increase FP results. Combined with MPRAGE, TSE-MSDE achieves high diagnostic performance while maintaining a low FP rate.

During the course of our screening program for natural product drugs effective against multidrug resistant cells by using adriamycin resistant HL-60 cells, we have discovered a new 12 membered macrolide FD-895 in the fermentation broth of Streptomyces hygroscopicus A-9561 isolated from a soil sample collected at Iriomote Island, Okinawa prefecture, Japan. FD-895 showed stronger cytocidal activities against in vitro tumor cell lines than adriamycin. FD-895 had the same IC50 values against parent and adriamycin resistant HL-60 cells.