Emerging methods for conceptual modelling in neuroimaging

Some open theoretical questions are addressed on how the mind and brain represent and process concepts, particularly as they are instantiated in particular human languages. Recordings of neuroimaging data should provide a suitable empirical basis for investigating this topic, but the complexity and variety of language demands appropriate data-driven approaches. In this review we argue for a particular suite of methodologies, based on multivariate classification techniques which have proven to be powerful tools for distinguishing neural and cognitive states in fMRI. A combination of larger scale neuroimaging studies are introduced with different monolingual and bilingual populations, and hybrid computational analyses that use encoded implementations of existing theories of conceptual organisation to probe those data. We develop a suite of methodologies that holds the promise of being able to holistically elicit, record and model neural processing during language comprehension and production

Neural basis of language switching in the brain: fMRI evidence from Korean–Chinese early bilinguals

AbstractUsing fMRI, we conducted two types of property generation task that involved language switching, with early bilingual speakers of Korean and Chinese. The first is a more conventional task in which a single language (L1 or L2) was used within each trial, but switched randomly from trial to trial. The other consists of a novel experimental design where language switching happens within each trial, alternating in the direction of the L1/L2 translation required. Our findings support a recently introduced cognitive model, the ‘hodological’ view of language switching proposed by Moritz-Gasser and Duffau. The nodes of a distributed neural network that this model proposes are consistent with the informative regions that we extracted in this study, using both GLM methods and Multivariate Pattern Analyses: the supplementary motor area, caudate, supramarginal gyrus and fusiform gyrus and other cortical areas

Crystal structure of the membrane fusion protein, MexA, of the multidrug transporter in Pseudomonas aeruginosa

This research was originally published in Journal of Biological Chemistry. Hiroyuki Akama, Takanori Matsuura, Sachiko Kashiwagi, Hiroshi Yoneyama, Shin-ichiro Narita, Tomitake Tsukihara, Atsushi Nakagawa and Taiji Nakae. Crystal structure of the membrane fusion protein, MexA, of the multidrug transporter in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2004; 279, 25939-25942. © the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Crystal structure of the drug discharge outer membrane protein, OprM, of Pseudomonas aeruginosa : Dual modes of membrane anchoring and occluded cavity end

This research was originally published in Journal of Biological Chemistry. Hiroyuki Akama, Misa Kanemaki, Masato Yoshimura, Tomitake Tsukihara, Tomoe Kashiwagi, Hiroshi Yoneyama, Shin-ichiro Narita, Atsushi Nakagawa and Taiji Nakae. Crystal structure of the drug discharge outer membrane protein, OprM, of Pseudomonas aeruginosa : Dual modes of membrane anchoring and occluded cavity end. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2004; 279, 52816-52819. © the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

A Microliter-Scale High-throughput Screening System with Quantum-Dot Nanoprobes for Amyloid-β Aggregation Inhibitors

The aggregation of amyloid β protein (Aβ) is a key step in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and therefore inhibitory substances for Aβ aggregation may have preventive and/or therapeutic potential for AD. Here we report a novel microliter-scale high-throughput screening system for Aβ aggregation inhibitors based on fluorescence microscopy-imaging technology with quantum-dot Nanoprobes. This screening system could be analyzed with a 5-µl sample volume when a 1536-well plate was used, and the inhibitory activity could be estimated as half-maximal effective concentrations (EC50). We attempted to comprehensively screen Aβ aggregation inhibitors from 52 spices using this system to assess whether this novel screening system is actually useful for screening inhibitors. Screening results indicate that approximately 90% of the ethanolic extracts from the spices showed inhibitory activity for Aβ aggregation. Interestingly, spices belonging to the Lamiaceae, the mint family, showed significantly higher activity than the average of tested spices. Furthermore, we tried to isolate the main inhibitory compound from Satureja hortensis, summer savory, a member of the Lamiaceae, using this system, and revealed that the main active compound was rosmarinic acid. These results demonstrate that this novel microliter-scale high-throughput screening system could be applied to the actual screening of Aβ aggregation inhibitors. Since this system can analyze at a microscopic scale, it is likely that further minimization of the system would easily be possible such as protein microarray technology

Complications and Management of Hepatic Arterial Infusion Chemotherapy for Liver Metastasis

Complications and management of hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy for 79 patients with liver metastasis were studied. Complications were observed in 20 cases (25.3%), who included 8 cases (88.9%) of lapalotomy group and 12 cases (17.6%) of left subclavian group. In lapalotomy group, they were 5 cases of system occlusion, 2 cases of catheter tip dislocation and catheter reinsertion through the left subclavian artery was performed in 4 cases. In left subclavian group, they were 4 cases of system occlusion, 3 cases of catheter tip dislocation, 2 cases of hepatic arterial occlusion and hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy was continued with catheter reinsertion in 8 of the 9 cases. It was considered that positive anti-complication measures including catheter reinsertion would contribute to the improvement of therapeutic results

Graph analysis about the rhymes in the classical French alexandrine verses

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