Absolute elastic differential cross sections for electron scattering by C6H5CH3 and C6H5CF3 at 1.5–200 eV: a comparative experimental and theoretical study with C6H6

We present absolute differential cross sections DCS for elastic scattering from two benzene derivatives C6H5CH3 and C6H5CF3. The crossed-beam method was used in conjunction with the relative flow technique using helium as the reference gas to obtain absolute values. Measurements were carried out for scattering angles 15° –130° and impact energies 1.5–200 eV. DCS results for these two molecules were compared to those of C6H6 from our previous study. We found that 1 these three molecules have DCS with very similar magnitudes and shapes over the energy range 1.5–200 eV, although DCS for C6H5CF3 increase steeply toward lower scattering angles due to the dipole moment induced long-range interaction at 1.5 and 4.5 eV, and 2 that the molecular structure of the benzene ring significantly determines the collision dynamics. From the measured DCS, elastic integral cross sections have been calculated. Furthermore, by employing a corrected form of the independent-atom method known as the screen corrected additive rule, DCS calculations have been carried out without any empirical parameter fittings, i.e., in an ab initio nature. Results show that the calculated DCS are in excellent agreement with the experimental values at 50, 100, and 200 eV

Effect of αB-Crystallin on Protein Aggregation in Drosophila

Disorganisation and aggregation of proteins containing expanded polyglutamine (polyQ) repeats, or ectopic expression of α-synuclein, underlie neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's, Parkinson, Huntington, Creutzfeldt diseases. Small heat-shock proteins, such as αB-crystallin, act as chaperones to prevent protein aggregation and play a key role in the prevention of such protein disorganisation diseases. In this study, we have explored the potential for chaperone activity of αB-crystallin to suppress the formation of protein aggregates. We tested the ability of αB-crystallin to suppress the aggregation of a polyQ protein and α-synuclein in Drosophila. We found that αB-crystallin suppresses both the compound eye degeneration induced by polyQ and the α-synuclein-induced rough eye phenotype. Furthermore, by using histochemical staining we have determined that αB-crystallin inhibits the aggregation of polyQ in vivo. These data provide a clue for the development of therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases

Antioxidant Activity and Oxidation Products of 1,2,3,4- Tetrahydroquinoxalines in Peroxyl Radical Scavenging Reactions, Part I

This paper studies the antioxidant activity of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinolines, 3,4-dihydro-2H-benzo[1,4]thiazines and 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxalines in the inhibition of the peroxidation of tetralin induced by an azo initiator. Neither 1,2,3,4- tetrahydroquinoline nor 3,4-dihydro-2H-benzo[1,4]thiazine alone acted as an antioxidant, but when they have an electron-donating group at the para position to the NH group, they act as potent antioxidants. On the other hand, 1,2,3,4- tetrahydroquinoxaline on its own showed good antioxidant activity. However, 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxalines with methyl and methoxy groups in the phenyl ring have reactivities similar to or less than that of unsubstituted 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxaline. The induction periods of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxalines with an alkyl group or phenyl group at the 2-position were all longer than the value for the unsubstituted 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxaline, except for a compound with a t-butyl group. The oxidation of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxalines by peroxyl radicals generated from an azo initiator in tetralin or benzene yields quinoxalines and a dimer product of quinoxalines, 6-(1,2,3,4-tetrahydroquinoxalin-1-yl)-quinoxaline

SFQ counter-based precomputation for large-scale cryogenic VQE machines

The variational quantum eigensolver (VQE) is a promising candidate that brings practical benefits from quantum computing. However, the required bandwidth in/out of a cryostat is a limiting factor to scale cryogenic quantum computers. We propose a tailored counter-based module with single flux quantum circuits in 4-K stage which precomputes a part of VQE calculation and reduces the amount of inter-temperature communication. The evaluation shows that our system reduces the required bandwidth by 97%, and with this drastic reduction, total power consumption is reduced by 93% in the case where 277 VQE programs are executed in parallel on a 10000-qubit machine.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, 3 tables. Accepted by DAC'24 WIP poster sessio

Identification of anti-cancer chemical compounds using Xenopus embryos

Cancer tissues have biological characteristics similar to those observed in embryos during development. Many types of cancer cells acquire pro-invasive ability through epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Similar processes (gastrulation and migration of cranial neural crest cells [CNCC]) are observed in the early stages of embryonic development in Xenopus during which cells that originate from epithelial sheets through EMT migrate to their final destinations. The present study examined Xenopus embryonic tissues to identify anti-cancer compounds that prevent cancer invasion. From the initial test of known anti-cancer drugs, AMD3100 (an inhibitor of CXCR4) and paclitaxel (a cytoskeletal drug targeting microtubules) effectively prevented migration during gastrulation or CNCC development. Blind-screening of 100 synthesized chemical compounds was performed, and nine candidates that inhibited migration of these embryonic tissues without embryonic lethality were selected. Of these, C-157 (an analog of podophyllotoxin) and D-572 (which is an indole alkaroid) prevented cancer cell invasion through disruption of interphase microtubules. In addition, these compounds affected progression of mitotic phase and induced apoptosis of SAS oral cancer cells. SAS tumors were reduced in size after intratumoral injection of C-157, and peritoneal dissemination of melanoma cells and intracranial invasion of glioma cells were inhibited by C-157 and D-572. When the other analogues of these chemicals were compared, those with subtle effect on embryos were not tumor suppressive. These results suggest that a novel chemical-screening approach based on Xenopus embryos is an effective method for isolating anti-cancer drugs and, in particular, targeting cancer cell invasion and proliferation

Functional tooth restoration by next-generation bio-hybrid implant as a bio-hybrid artificial organ replacement therapy

Bio-hybrid artificial organs are an attractive concept to restore organ function through precise biological cooperation with surrounding tissues in vivo. However, in bio-hybrid artificial organs, an artificial organ with fibrous connective tissues, including muscles, tendons and ligaments, has not been developed. Here, we have enveloped with embryonic dental follicle tissue around a HA-coated dental implant, and transplanted into the lower first molar region of a murine tooth-loss model. We successfully developed a novel fibrous connected tooth implant using a HA-coated dental implant and dental follicle stem cells as a bio-hybrid organ. This bio-hybrid implant restored physiological functions, including bone remodelling, regeneration of severe bone-defect and responsiveness to noxious stimuli, through regeneration with periodontal tissues, such as periodontal ligament and cementum. Thus, this study represents the potential for a next-generation bio-hybrid implant for tooth loss as a future bio-hybrid artificial organ replacement therapy