Stress Wave Propagation through Cohesive Soil

Generally, there exist an inelastic deformation and an energy dissipation during the stress wave propagation through cohesive soil. In order to describe these characteristics, the authors proposed the constitutive equation of normally consolidated clay. The phenomenological nature of the parameters involved in the stress-strain relation was investigated in detail by using the triaxial test results and the stress wave propagation test results. In these test the pore water pressure was measured and its value was compared with the calculated result by using the constitutive equation of clay. As a result, the proposed stress-strain relation was very effective for interpreting the behavior of cohesive soil

Magnetic-Field Dependences of Thermodynamic Quantities in the Vortex State of Type-II Superconductors

We develop an alternative method to solve the Eilenberger equations numerically for the vortex-lattice states of type-II superconductors. Using it, we clarify the magnetic-field and impurity-concentration dependences of the magnetization, the entropy, the Pauli paramagnetism, and the mixing of higher Landau levels in the pair potential for two-dimensional $s$- and $d_{x^2-y^2}$-wave superconductors with the cylindrical Fermi surface.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure

Fabrication of GaAs MISFET with nm-thin oxidized layer formed by UV and ozone process

金沢大学工学部A gate insulating layer with single nm-order thickness for suppressing gate leakage current is one of the key factors in extending downsizing limits, based upon the scaling rule, of field-effect-type transistors. We describe the fabrication and characterization of GaAs MISFETs with a nm-thin oxidized layer as the gate insulating layer, which is formed by an ultraviolet (UV) and ozone process. The UV and ozone process forms oxidized GaAs layers near the surface, which effectively suppress the reverse leakage current by several orders of magnitude. The fabricated GaAs MISFET can operate not only in the depletion mode, but also in the accumulation mode up to 3 V gate voltage for 8-nm-thick oxidized layers due to the current blocking effect of the oxidized layer. A current cutoff frequency of 6 GHz and a maximum oscillation frequency of 8 GHz are obtained for a GaAs MISFET with 1-/spl mu/m gate length and 8-nm-thick oxidized layers

Stepwise fate conversion of supporting cells to sensory hair cells in the chick auditory epithelium

In contrast to mammals, the avian cochlea, specifically the basilar papilla, can regenerate sensory hair cells, which involves fate conversion of supporting cells to hair cells. To determine the mechanisms for converting supporting cells to hair cells, we used single-cell RNA sequencing during hair cell regeneration in explant cultures of chick basilar papillae. We identified dynamic changes in the gene expression of supporting cells, and the pseudotime trajectory analysis demonstrated the stepwise fate conversion from supporting cells to hair cells. Initially, supporting cell identity was erased and transition to the precursor state occurred. A subsequent gain in hair cell identity progressed together with downregulation of precursor-state genes. Transforming growth factor β receptor 1-mediated signaling was involved in induction of the initial step, and its inhibition resulted in suppression of hair cell regeneration. Our data provide new insights for understanding fate conversion from supporting cells to hair cells in avian basilar papillae

Interleukin-17 Promotes Autoimmunity by Triggering a Positive-Feedback Loop via Interleukin-6 Induction

Tensile deformation and failure behavior at room temperature of the open cell nickel and copper foams with high porosity (96%) fabricated with the slurry foaming process at Mitsubishi Materials Corporation, Japan, was studied. In-situ observation of the deformation and failure behavior was conducted with a digital microscope. Stress-strain curves were measured, in which a non-contact extensometer was employed to detect the strain of the samples accurately. Electric resistance was measured to monitor the damage evolution. Finite element stress analysis was conducted to calculate the morphological change of cells with applied strain and the stress distribution in cells. It was revealed that the deformation and failure progressed through the following four stages; stage I characterized by the elastic deformation, stage II by plastic deformation, stage III by the co-occurrence of plastic deformation and cumulative failure of struts and stage IV by the chain reaction of strut failure nearly in a limited cross-section, respectively. Also it was found that the distribution of failure strain of struts in stage III, measured from the serrations in the stress-strain curve, could be described by the Weibull distribution, with which the transition from stage II to III was identified. Also, the result of the statistical analysis suggested that the average failure strain of the struts in the foam is much higher than the strain at ultimate stress of the foam

Identification of a Predictive Biomarker for the Beneficial Effect of Keishibukuryogan, a Kampo (Japanese Traditional) Medicine, on Patients with Climacteric Syndrome

Keishibukuryogan (KBG; Guizhi-Fuling-Wan in Chinese) is one of the Kampo (Japanese traditional) medicines used to treat patients with climacteric syndrome. KBG can be used by patients who cannot undergo hormone replacement therapy due to a history of breast cancer. We evaluated whether cytosine-adenine (CA) repeat polymorphism of the estrogen receptor β gene can be a predictor of the beneficial effect of KBG on climacteric syndrome. We also investigated the relationship between CA repeat polymorphism, the patients’ profiles, and the therapeutic effect. We found that CA was an SS, SL, or LL genotype according to the number of repeats. We studied 39 consecutive patients with climacteric disorders who took KBG for 12 weeks. The diagnosis of climacteric disorders was made on the basis of the Kupperman index. KBG significantly improved the patients’ climacteric symptoms (i.e., vasomotor symptoms in the patients with the LL genotype and melancholia in the patients with the SL genotype). No relationship between the patients’ profiles and CA repeat polymorphism was recognized. CA repeat polymorphism could thus be a potential biomarker to predict the efficacy of KBG in climacteric syndrome, and its use will help to reduce the cost of treating this syndrome by focusing the administration of KBG on those most likely to benefit from it

Involvement of peripheral ionotropic glutamate receptors in orofacial thermal hyperalgesia in rats

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The purpose of the present study was to elucidate the mechanisms that may underlie the sensitization of trigeminal spinal subnucleus caudalis (Vc) and upper cervical spinal cord (C1-C2) neurons to heat or cold stimulation of the orofacial region following glutamate (Glu) injection.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Glu application to the tongue or whisker pad skin caused an enhancement of head-withdrawal reflex and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) phosphorylation in Vc-C2 neurons. Head-withdrawal reflex and ERK phosphorylation were also enhanced following cold stimulation of the tongue but not whisker pad skin in Glu-injected rats, and the head-withdrawal reflex and ERK phosphorylation were enhanced following heat stimulation of the tongue or whisker pad skin. The enhanced head-withdrawal reflex and ERK phosphorylation after heat stimulation of the tongue or whisker pad skin, and those following cold stimulation of the tongue but not whisker pad skin were suppressed following ionotropic glutamate receptor antagonists administration into the tongue or whisker pad skin. Furthermore, intrathecal administration of MEK1/2 inhibitor PD98059 caused significant suppression of enhanced head-withdrawal reflex in Glu-injected rats, heat head-withdrawal reflex in the rats with Glu injection into the tongue or whisker pad skin and cold head-withdrawal reflex in the rats with Glu injection into the tongue.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The present findings suggest that peripheral Glu receptor mechanisms may contribute to cold hyperalgesia in the tongue but not in the facial skin, and also contribute to heat hyperalgesia in the tongue and facial skin, and that the mitogen-activated protein kinase cascade in Vc-C2 neurons may be involved in these Glu-evoked hyperalgesic effects.</p