Water electrolysis and energy harvesting with zero-dimensional ion-sensitive field-effect transistors

The relationship of the gas bubble size to the size distribution critically influences the effectiveness of electrochemical processes. Several optical and acoustical techniques have been used to characterize the size and emission frequency of bubbles. Here, we used zero-dimensional (0D) ion-sensitive field-effect transistors (ISFETs) buried under a microbath to detect the emission of individual bubbles electrically and to generate statistics on the bubble emission time. The bubble size was evaluated via a simple model of the electrolytic current. We suggest that energy lost during water electrolysis could be used to generate electric pulses at an optimal efficiency with an array of 0D ISFETs.

Efficacy of hypofractionated radiotherapy for nasal tumours in 38 dogs (2005-2008)

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the efficacy of hypofractionated radiotherapy for canine nasal tumours, including the improvement in clinical signs, rate of complications and assessment of prognostic factors.

METHODS

Medical records of 38 dogs with malignant nasal tumours were reviewed, and those treated with a weekly schedule of hypofractionated radiotherapy were included in the study. Acute and late side effects were defined as complications noted either within 1 month or after 6 months of irradiation, respectively. Progression-free interval and overall survival were calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Log-rank test and Cox proportional hazard model were also performed.

RESULTS

Clinical signs improved in 30 of 36 dogs. Acute complications were seen in 28 of 36 dogs and were considered manageable. Late complications were observed in 17 of 30 dogs that survived 6 months or longer, but severe side effects were not observed. The median progression-free interval and overall survival was 245 days (95% CI: 127-512 days) and 512 days (95% CI: 203-820 days), respectively. Age, breed and presence of dyspnoea were negatively correlated with overall survival.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE

These results suggest that hypofractionated radiotherapy could be a viable option for the treatment of nasal tumours in dogs that are not candidates for conventional multi-fractionated radiotherapy.

Phonon lasing in an electromechanical resonator

An electromechanical resonator harboring an atomlike spectrum of discrete mechanical vibrations, namely, phonon modes, has been developed. A purely mechanical three-mode system becomes available in the electromechanical atom in which the energy difference of the two higher modes is resonant with a long-lived lower mode. Our measurements reveal that even an incoherent input into the higher mode results in coherent emission in the lower mode that exhibits all the hallmarks of phonon lasing in a process that is reminiscent of Brillouin lasing.

Anomalous pressure effect in heteroacene organic field-effect transistors

Anomalous pressure dependent conductivity is revealed for heteroacene organic field-effect transistors of dinaphtho[2, 3-b:2', 3'-f]thieno[3, 2-b]thiophene single crystals in the direction of a and b crystallographic axes. In contrast to the normal characteristics of a monotonic increase in mobility μ with the application of external hydrostatic pressure P in conductors, we found that the present organic semiconductor devices exhibit nonmonotonic and gigantic pressure dependence including an even negative pressure coefficient dμ/dP. In combination with a structural analysis based on x-ray diffraction experiments under pressure, it is suggested that on-site molecular orientation and displacement peculiar in heteroacene molecules are responsible for the anomalous pressure effect.

Clinical characteristics classified by the serum KL-6 level in patients with organizing pneumonia

BACKGROUND

The serum Krebs von der Lungen-6 (KL-6) level is a useful marker correlated with the severity of various interstitial lung diseases. There have been few reports about the clinical characteristics of organizing pneumonia (OP) associated with the serum KL-6 levels.

OBJECTIVE

This study was performed to determine whether the serum KL-6 levels can help determine the optimal treatment for OP.

DESIGNS

Patients diagnosed with OP by clinical, radiological and histopathological findings were retrospectively reviewed. The OP patients were classified into two groups based on their serum KL-6 levels: normal KL-6 and high KL-6 groups. The two groups were compared with regard to their clinical and radiological data and therapeutic response one month after the start of treatment.

RESULTS

The clinical records of twenty-two patients diagnosed with OP were reviewed. The serum KL-6 level was elevated in 11 of the 22 patients. There were no obvious differences in the clinical data between the two groups, although patients in the normal KL-6 group tended to have a fever. There were no significant differences in the chest X-ray (CXR) score or computed tomography (CT) score between the two groups. The CXR scores were correlated with the serum KL-6 levels. At 1 month after the diagnosis, 11 patients who needed treatment with prednisolone were included in the high KL-6 group.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with normal KL-6 levels showed lower CXR and CT scores. The serum KL-6 level on admission is a useful marker to judge the need for corticosteroid treatment in OP patients.

Metallic behaviour in SOI quantum wells with strong intervalley scattering

The fundamental properties of valleys are recently attracting growing attention due to electrons in new and topical materials possessing this degree-of-freedom and recent proposals for valleytronics devices. In silicon MOSFETs, the interest has a longer history since the valley degree of freedom had been identified as a key parameter in the observation of the controversial "metallic behaviour" in two dimensions. However, while it has been recently demonstrated that lifting valley degeneracy can destroy the metallic behaviour, little is known about the role of intervalley scattering. Here, we show that the metallic behaviour can be observed in the presence of strong intervalley scattering in silicon on insulator (SOI) quantum wells. Analysis of the conductivity in terms of quantum corrections reveals that interactions are much stronger in SOI than in conventional MOSFETs, leading to the metallic behaviour despite the strong intervalley scattering.

Donor-based single electron pumps with tunable donor binding energy

We report on single electron pumping via a tunable number of individual donors. We use a device that essentially consists of a silicon nanowire with local arsenic implantation between a set of fine gates. A temperature-dependent characterization of the pumped current allows us to extract the ionization energy of a single arsenic donor. We observe the ionization energy to be tunable by the gate electric field over a large range of energies.

Bound exciton photoluminescence from ion‑implanted phosphorus in thin silicon layers

We report the observation of clear bound exciton (BE) emission from ion-implanted phosphorus. Shallow implantation and high-temperature annealing successfully introduce active donors into thin silicon layers. The BE emission at a wavelength of 1079 nm shows that a part of the implanted donors are definitely activated and isolated from each other. However, photoluminescence and electron spin resonance studies find a cluster state of the activated donors. The BE emission is suppressed by this cluster state rather than the nonradiative processes caused by ion implantation. Our results provide important information about ion implantation for doping quantum devices with phosphorus quantum bits.

Large array of sub-10-nm single-grain Au nanodots for use in nanotechnology

A uniform array of single-grain Au nanodots, as small as 5-8 nm, can be formed on silicon using e-beam lithography. The as-fabricated nanodots are amorphous, and thermal annealing converts them to pure Au single crystals covered with a thin SiO(2) layer. These findings are based on physical measurements, such as atomic force microscopy (AFM), atomic-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy, and chemical techniques using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. A self-assembled organic monolayer is grafted on the nanodots and characterized chemically with nanometric lateral resolution. The extended uniform array of nanodots is used as a new test-bed for molecular electronic devices.

Long-term efficacy and safety of the small-sized β2-microglobulin adsorption column for dialysis-related amyloidosis

Dialysis-related amyloidosis (DRA) is one of the major complications often seen in long-term dialysis patients, and is one of the factors that decreases quality of life. β2-microglobulin (β2-m) is considered to be a major pathogenic factor in dialysis-related amyloidosis. The Lixelle adsorbent column, with various capacities, has been developed to adsorb β2-m from the circulating blood of patients with dialysis-related amyloidosis. Using a minimum type of β2-m-adsorbing column (Lixelle S-15), we evaluated its therapeutic efficacy and safety in dialysis patients. Seventeen hemodialysis patients with DRA were treated with the S-15 column for one year. Treatment was performed three times a week in this study. During the study period, pinch strength, visual analog scale for joint pain, and activities of daily living were evaluated every three months, and blood sampling was performed every six months. After one year's treatment with the S-15 column, the β2-m level decreased from 29.3±9.6mg/L to 24.7±5.1mg/L (P<0.05), and the high sensitive C-reactive protein level decreased from 2996±4380ng/mL to 1292±1774ng/mL. After one year of S-15 column use, pinch strength increased from 5.9±3.0pounds to 7.2±3.2pounds (P<0.05), and the visual analog scale for joint pain and activities of daily living score also improved. Long-term use of the Lixelle S-15 column is safe and effective for improvement of quality of life in chronic dialysis patients. Improvement of chronic inflammation may be one of the mechanisms through which the beneficial effects of the column is effected.

Impact of valley polarization on the resistivity in two dimensions

We examine the temperature dependence of resistivity in a two-dimensional electron system formed in a silicon-on-insulator quantum well. The device allows us to tune the valley splitting continuously in addition to the electron density. Our data provide a global picture of how the resistivity and its temperature dependence change with valley polarization. At the boundary between valley-polarized and partially polarized regions, we demonstrate that there is an insulating contribution from spin-degenerate electrons occupying the upper valley-subband edge.

39 IN VITRO DEVELOPMENT OF CANINE EMBRYOS PRODUCED BY INTERSPECIES SOMATIC CELL NUCLEAR TRANSFER USING ENUCLEATED BOVINE OOCYTES

Interspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer (iSCNT) is an invaluable tool for studying nucleous-cytoplasm interactions, and may provide an alternative for cloning endangered animals, whose oocytes are difficult to obtain. Using readily available oocytes from domestic/farm animals as recipients for iSCNT would greatly benefit ongoing research on somatic cell reprogramming. However, little information is available concerning the development of canine iSCNT embryos reconstructed with bovine oocyte cytoplasm. In the first experiment, we investigated the influence of donor cell type on the development of canine iSCNT embryos reconstructed with enucleated bovine oocytes. Canine mammary gland tumour (MGT) cells and cumulus cells were used as donor cell. The bovine oocytes matured for 22 h were enucleated by the micromanipulator, and the donor cells were transferred into the perivitelline space adjacent to the plasma membrane of the oocyte. The couples were fused and activated simultaneously with a single DC pulse of 2.3 kV cm–1 for 30 μs, using an electro cell fusion generator. The reconstructed embryos were cultured for 72 h in the mSOF medium supplemented with 0.4% BSA. After 72 h of culture, only cleaved embryos were further co-cultured with bovine cumulus cells in mSOF supplemented with 5% fetal bovine serum (FBS) for an additional 5 days. In the second experiment, we examined the effects of serum type on the development of canine iSCNT embryos. The embryos reconstructed with canine cumulus cells were co-cultured with canine cumulus cells in mSOF supplemented with 5% FBS, and canine oestrous and diestrous serum for 5 days after 72 h of culture with 0.4% BSA. Data were analysed by chi-square analysis with a Yates’ correction. More than 75% of the canine somatic cells successfully were fused with bovine enucleated oocytes following electrofusion, irrespective of the types of the donor cells. There were no significant differences in the cleavage rates of iSCNT embryos between the cumulus cell and MGT cell (66.2% v. 62.6%). Although none of the embryos reconstructed with MGT cells (n = 123) developed to the 16-cell stage, 6% of embryos with cumulus cells (n = 133) reached at least the 16-cell stage. There were no significant differences in the cleavage rates of iSCNT embryos among the types of serum. The iSCNT embryos could not develop to the blastocyst stage, irrespective of the type of donor cell and serum. In conclusion, our results indicate that the bovine oocytes partly supported the remodelling and reprogramming of the canine somatic cell nuclei, but they were unable to support the development to the blastocyst stage of canine iSCNT embryos. Moreover, the development to the late embryonic stage of iSCNT embryos may be influenced by the type of donor cell but not serum.

Molecular characterization reveals genetic uniformity in experimental chicken resources

The objective of the present study was to conduct the genetic characterization of nine experimental chicken lines based on multilocus microsatellite analysis. Commercial chicken lines were also analyzed in order to compare their levels of genetic uniformity with those of the experimental lines. In six experimental lines, more than 80% of genotyped loci showed fixed allele for all individuals in each line, whereas only 17.5% of genotyped loci were fixed in commercial lines, at the maximum. One of experimental lines (GSN/1) was categorized as a highly inbred line on the basis of all individuals having the same, single allele at every microsatellite locus. Genetic information obtained from the present study should be helpful for the utilization and management of experimental chicken resources.

Accumulation of caveolin-3 protein is limited in damaged muscle in chicken muscular dystrophy

Members of the caveolin family are the main component of caveolae, and caveolin-3 is a muscle-specific protein. Caveolin-3 deficiency induces a muscular dystrophic phenotype, while its overexpression is also harmful to muscle cells. Increased caveolae were observed in chicken muscular dystrophy; however, the underlying mechanism causing the onset remains unclear. Therefore, the current study analyzes the expression of caveolin-3 and other caveola-related proteins in dystrophic chickens. Western blotting and semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed that (1) caveolin-3 is highly expressed in the damaged muscle of dystrophic chickens (7.12-fold); (2) the amount of caveolin-3 protein is regulated in posttranslational modification, since no significant increase is observed at the mRNA level (1.09-fold); and (3) the expression pattern of other caveola-related proteins is similar to that of caveolin-3. These results suggest that the accumulation of caveolin-3 protein may be associated with the causative process of chicken muscular dystrophy.

[Complete resection of Pancoast tumor following induction chemoradiotherapy improves survival]

OBJECTIVE

Pancoast tumors are some of the most challenging thoracic malignant diseases to treat because of their proximity to vital structures at the thoracic inlet. We retrospectively analyzed 23 patients with pT3-4, N0-3 Pancoast tumors who underwent combined chest wall resection including the 1st rib, and discuss the anatomical considerations, assessment of induction therapy, and surgical approaches for these cancers.

METHODS

Between 1983 and 2006, 23 patients with Pancoast tumors underwent combined resection of the 1st rib at our institute. Of those, 21 were male and 2 were female, with an average age of 58 years. There were 10 each of squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma, 2 large cell carcinoma, and 1 adenosquamous carcinoma. Over the past decade, induction chemoradiotherapy (>40Gy) was employed before surgery.

RESULTS

A posterior approach was employed in 14 patients, an anterior approach in 7, and a combined anterior and posterior approach in 2. Sixteen patients underwent complete resection. One of 7 patients undergoing incomplete resection (4.3%) died on the 45th postoperative day. The 3- and 5-year survival rates were 50 and 22%, respectively, for patients with complete resection. No case survived for more than 8 months out of the 7 patients with incomplete resection. Fourteen patients with pN0 showed significantly better survival than those with pN1-3 (p = 0.0053).

CONCLUSION

Recent literature and our results suggest that patients with pN0 and/or a pathological complete response (pCR) after induction chemoradiotherapy could achieve long-term survival after complete resection.

Direct effects of protein S in ameliorating acute lung injury

OBJECTIVE

Protein S may exert an anticoagulant activity by enhancing the anticoagulant activity of activated protein C and/or by directly inhibiting the prothrombinase complex. Protein S itself may also directly regulate inflammatory responses and apoptosis. The role of protein S in acute lung injury (ALI) was unknown. This study evaluated the effect of protein S on ALI in the mouse.

METHODS

Animal ALI was induced in C57/BL6 mice by intratracheal instillation of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Mice were treated with protein S or saline by intraperitoneal injection 1 h before LPS instillation.

RESULTS

Activated protein or protein S alone and combined activated protein C + protein S therapy decreased inflammatory markers and cytokines in mice with acute lung injury. In LPS-treated mice compared with controls ALI was induced as shown by significantly increased levels of total protein, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-6 and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Mice with ALI treated with protein S had significantly decreased concentrations of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-6 in the lung compared with untreated animals. Thrombin-antithrombin III, a marker of the activity of the coagulation cascade, was unchanged. Protein S inhibited the expression of cytokines in vitro and increased activation of the Axl tyrosine kinase pathway in A549 epithelial cells.

CONCLUSION

Protein S protects against LPS-induced ALI, possibly by directly inhibiting the local expression of inflammatory cytokines without affecting coagulation.

Complex formation and solubility of Pu(IV) with malonic and succinic acids

The complex formation constants of tetravalent plutonium ion with malonic and succinic acids in aqueous solution were determined by the solvent-extraction method. Also, by taking the known values of the solubility products, the hydrolysis constants and the formation constants, the experimental solubility data of plutonium in the presence of carboxylates were analyzed.

Single-electron counting statistics and its circuit application in nanoscale field-effect transistors at room temperature

A circuit utilizing single electrons is demonstrated at room temperature. Individual electrons randomly passing through the nanoscale silicon-on-insulator metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) are monitored by an electrometer in real time. Such a random behavior of single electrons is used for high-quality random-number generation suitable for data processing which stochastically extracts the most preferable pattern among various ones. MOSFET-based random-number generation allows fast operation as well as high controllability, which leads to flexible extraction of the preferable pattern.