Hepatic Branch Vagotomy Can Suppress Liver Regeneration in Partially Hepatectomized Rats

The role of the vagus nerve in liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy was studied by comparing the effects of hepatic branch vagotomy with those of hepatic branch sympathectomy in rats. The liver weight as a percentage of body weight decreased significantly 7 days after vagotomy compared with the controls and this was associated with a reduction in food intake. There was no difference in the liver weights between the control rats and the pair-fed vagotomized rats. Hepatic sympathectomy had no significant effect on the liver weight. The serum scores indicating hepatic function showed no difference between the control and the vagotomized rats except alkaline phosphatase. The concentration of insulin was unchanged. The number of mitotic hepatocytes remained high at 7 days after vagotomy: These observations led us to conclude that the vagus nerve stimulates liver regeneration, and its effect depends on vagal factors directly and specifically

Relationship between numbers of birch pollen and different particle sizes of the pollen antigens (Bet v) in the air in Stockholm, Sweden

ABSTRACTMicronic antigens penetrate to the lower respiratory tract and cause serious lung problems. The existence of micronic antigens in pollinosis-caused pollen has been reported. We examined the appearance and the relationship of micronic particles of birch pollen antigens and birch pollen grains. Airborne particles were collected with a tandem filter system sampler composed of a 5μm pore filter and a 0.3μm pore Millipore filter in springtime at the Stockholm University campus in Stockholm. A fairly good correlation was observed between numbers of birch pollen and the amount of birch pollen antigens above 5μm in diameter. In contrast, a good correlation was not observed between the amount of birch pollen antigens collected in 5μm pore filters and the amount of the antigens passing through 5μm pore filters and collected on Millipore filters. The appearance of a maximum value of birch pollen antigens collected on Millipore filters seemed to be delayed a few days after a maximum values had been obtained for birch pollen on a Burkard sampler or birch pollen antigens on 5μm pore filters. Almost all birch pollen antigens were found during the birch pollen season and recognizable amounts of birch pollen antigens were not detectable after the birch pollen season. Most of the birch pollen antigens collected on 5μm pore filters originated from birch pollen grains. In contrast, the antigens passing through 5μm pore filters and collected on Millipore filters did not originate from pollen grains themselves, but were micronic particles, and appeared a few days after maximum values of birch pollen had been obtained

Measurement of temperature and velocity fluctuations in a turbulent diffusion flame by an optical fiber thermometer and a laser 2-focus velocimeter

Both fluctuations of local velocity and local temperature were measured in a steady turbulent diffusion flame of propane by using the semiconductor laser 2-focus velocimeter (L2F) and the optical fiber thermometer (OFT) respectively. The flame temperature and the soot particle density were calculated by applying the infrared two-color method to the measured radiant energy from the soot particles in the flame. In the analysis of the frequency power spectra of temperature and velocity fluctuations, the correlation-based slotting technique was adopted for those data with the nonuniform time interval. It is shown that the time mean value and the fluctuation of the flame temperature decrease gradually toward downstream in the luminous flame region, and those of the soot density increase due to decay of turbulence along the flame axis. On the other hand, both time mean and fluctuation of the flame temperature increase in the radial direction from the center to the periphery due to the effect of air entrainment marked in the peripheral region of the flame. Furthermore, the power spectrum of the velocity fluctuation is not always the same as that of the temperature fluctuation in the flame center.Optical Technology in Fluid, Thermal, and Combustion Flow III : San Diego, CA, USA, Monday 28 July 199

Applicability of ionic liquid electrolytes to LaSi2/Si composite thick-film anodes in Li-ion battery

Anode performances of LaSi2/Si composite thick-films were investigated in ionic liquids as Li-ion battery electrolytes containing cations of N-methyl-N-propylpiperidinium (PP13) or 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium and anions of bis(fluorosulfonyl)amide (FSA) or bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl) amide. The LaSi2/Si electrode exhibited much better performance in PP13-FSA compared with the other electrolytes including a conventional organic solvent one: the reversible capacity at the 250th cycle and its retention were 800 mA h g−1 and 80%. The excellent performance is attributed to a higher stability of PP13 cations against a cathodic decomposition and an easier desolvation of Li ions and FSA anions at the electrode/electrolyte interface. This result offers a promising applicability of ionic liquid electrolyte to various Si-based anodes with high performances by architecture of cation and anion structures

Electrochemical Na-insertion/extraction properties of SnO thick-film electrodes prepared by gas-deposition

SnO thick-film electrodes for Na-ion battery anodes were prepared for the first time by a gasdeposition method, and we investigated the influence of fluoroethylene carbonate as an electrolyte additive on their anode performances. The SnO electrode showed high reversible capacities of 580 mA h g－1 and 260 mA h g－1 at the first cycle and at the 20th cycle, respectively, in an additive-free electrolyte. The cycle performance obtained was much higher than that of an Sn electrode. These results indicate that Na2O formed in the first Na-insertion process played a role as a matrix to alleviate a stress generated by drastic volumetric changes during alloying/dealloying reactions of Sn with Na. When we used fluorothylene carbonate as an additive, the SnO electrode achieved 250 mA h g－1 at the 50th cycle with a good capacity retention. The excellent cycle performance originates from a facile Na-ion transfer through a surface layer formed between the electrode and the electrolyte because the surface layer derived from additive prevents from making itself thicker by suppressing decompositionof the electrolyte

Determination of Abundances of Fifty-Two Elements in Natural Waters by ICP-MS with Freeze-Drying Pre-concentration

To precisely determine the abundances of fifty-two elements found within natural water samples, with mass fractions down to fg g(-1) level, we have developed a method which combines freeze-drying pre-concentration (FDC) and isotope dilution internal standardisation (ID-IS). By sublimation of H2O, the sample solution was reduced to 0.3 mol l(-1) to avoid hydrolysis. Matrix-affected signal suppression was not significant for the solutions with NaCl concentrations lower than 0.2 and 0.1 cg g(-1) for quadrupole ICP-MS and sector field ICP-MS, respectively. The recovery yields of elements after FDC were 97-105%. The detection limits for the sample solutions prepared by FDC were <= 10 pg g(-1), except for Na, K and Ca. Blanks prepared using FDC were at pg-levels, except for eleven elements (Na, Mg, Al, P, Ca, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn). The abundances of fifty-two elements in bottled drinking water were determined from five different geological sources with mass fractions ranging from the fg g(-1) to mu g g(-1) level with high accuracy

S100C/A11 is a key mediator of Ca2+-induced growth inhibition of human epidermal keratinocytes

An increase in extracellular Ca2+ induces growth arrest and differentiation of human keratinocytes in culture. We examined possible involvement of S100C/A11 in this growth regulation. On exposure of the cells to high Ca2+, S100C/A11 was specifically phosphorylated at 10Thr and 94Ser. Phosphorylation facilitated the binding of S100C/A11 to nucleolin, resulting in nuclear translocation of S100C/A11. In nuclei, S100C/A11 liberated Sp1/3 from nucleolin. The resulting free Sp1/3 transcriptionally activated p21CIP1/WAF1, a representative negative regulator of cell growth. Introduction of anti-S100C/A11 antibody into the cells largely abolished the growth inhibition induced by Ca2+ and the induction of p21CIP1/WAF1. In the human epidermis, S100C/A11 was detected in nuclei of differentiating cells in the suprabasal layers, but not in nuclei of proliferating cells in the basal layer. These results indicate that S100C/A11 is a key mediator of the Ca2+-induced growth inhibition of human keratinocytes in culture, and that it may be possibly involved in the growth regulation in vivo as well

TiO2/Si composites synthesized by sol-gel method and their improved electrode performance as Li-ion battery anodes

Composites of rutile-type TiO2 and Si were synthesized by a facile sol-gel method for a high-performance anode of Li-ion battery. We have investigated anode performance of binder-free thick-film electrodes prepared by a gas-deposition method using the TiO2/Si composites obtained. The composite electrode exhibited a remarkably improved cyclability and a good high-rate performance: a discharge capacity at the 900th cycle was 710 mA h g–1, and a specific capacity per Si weight was as large as 1870 mA h g(Si)–1 even at a high current rate of 4.8C. It is suggested that a fast Li-ion diffusion in TiO2 provides smooth insertion/extraction of Li-ion into/from the composite electrodes. The results offer a utility of rutile TiO2 as a Li-ion conductor in Si-based electrodes for the next-generation Li-ion battery