Fabrication of ultrathin and highly uniform silicon on insulator by numerically controlled plasma chemical vaporization machining

Metal-oxide semiconductor field-effect transistors fabricated on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer operate faster and at a lower power than those fabricated on a bulk silicon wafer. Scaling down, which improves their performances, demands thinner SOI wafers. In this article, improvement on the thinning of SOI wafers by numerically controlled plasma chemical vaporization machining (PCVM) is described. PCVM is a gas-phase chemical etching method in which reactive species generated in atmospheric-pressure plasma are used. Some factors affecting uniformity are investigated and methods for improvements are presented. As a result of thinning a commercial 8 in. SOI wafer, the initial SOI layer thickness of 97.5±4.7 nm was successfully thinned and made uniform at 7.5±1.5 nm. © 2007 American Institute of Physics.Yasuhisa Sano, Kazuya Yamamura, Hidekazu Mimura, Kazuto Yamauchi, and Yuzo Mori, "Fabrication of ultrathin and highly uniform silicon on insulator by numerically controlled plasma chemical vaporization machining", Review of Scientific Instruments 78(8), 086102 (2007) https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2766836

Establishment of in Vitro Binding Assay of High Mobility Group Box-1 and S100A12 to Receptor for Advanced Glycation Endproducts: Heparin's Effect on Binding

Interaction between the receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE) and its ligands has been implicated in the pathogenesis of various inflammatory disorders. In this study, we establish an in vitro binding assay in which recombinant human high-mobility group box 1 (rhHMGB1) or recombinant human S100A12 (rhS100A12) immobilized on the microplate binds to recombinant soluble RAGE (rsRAGE). The rsRAGE binding to both rhHMGB1 and rhS100A12 was saturable and dependent on the immobilized ligands. The binding of rsRAGE to rhS100A12 depended on Ca2 and Zn2, whereas that to rhHMGB1 was not. Scatchard plot analysis showed that rsRAGE had higher affinity for rhHMGB1 than for rhS100A12. rsRAGE was demonstrated to bind to heparin, and rhS100A12, in the presence of Ca2, was also found to bind to heparin. We examined the effects of heparin preparations with different molecular sizesunfractionated native heparin (UFH), low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) 5000Da, and LMWH 3000Da on the binding of rsRAGE to rhHMGB1 and rhS100A12. All 3 preparations concentration-dependently inhibited the binding of rsRAGE to rhHMGB1 to a greater extent than did rhS100A12. These results suggested that heparin's anti-inflammatory effects can be partly explained by its blocking of the interaction between HMGB1 or S100A12 and RAGE. On the other hand, heparin would be a promising effective remedy against RAGE-related inflammatory disorders.</p

Differential expression of nuclear lamin subtypes in the neural cells of the adult rat cerebral cortex

Lamins are type V intermediate filament proteins that are located beneath the inner nuclear membrane. In mammalian somatic cells, LMNB1 and LMNB2 encode somatic lamins B1 and B2, respectively, and the LMNA gene is alternatively spliced to generate somatic lamins A and C. Mutations in lamin genes have been linked to many human hereditary diseases, including neurodegenerative disorders. Knowledge about lamins in the nervous system has been accumulated recently, but a precise analysis of lamin subtypes in glial cells has not yet been reported. In this study we investigated the composition of lamin subtypes in neurons, astrocytes, oligodendrocyte-lineage cells, and microglia in the adult rat cerebral cortex using an immunohistochemical staining method. Lamin A was not observed in neurons and glial cells. Lamin C was observed in astrocytes, mature oligodendrocytes and neurons, but not observed in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells. Microglia also did not stain positive for lamin C which differed from macrophages, with lamin C positive. Lamin B1 and B2 were observed in all glial cells and neurons. Lamin B1 was intensely positive in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells compared with other glial cells and neurons. Lamin B2 was weakly positive in all glial cells compared to neurons. Our current study might provide useful information to reveal how the onset mechanisms of human neurodegenerative diseases are associated with mutations in genes for nuclear lamin proteins

Efficient focusing of hard x rays to 25 nm by a total reflection mirror

Nanofocused x rays are indispensable because they can provide high spatial resolution and high sensitivity for x-ray nanoscopy/spectroscopy. A focusing system using total reflection mirrors is one of the most promising methods for producing nanofocused x rays due to its high efficiency and energy-tunable focusing. The authors have developed a fabrication system for hard x-ray mirrors by developing elastic emission machining, microstitching interferometry, and relative angle determinable stitching interferometry. By using an ultraprecisely figured mirror, they realized hard x-ray line focusing with a beam width of 25 nm at 15 keV. The focusing test was performed at the 1-km -long beamline of SPring-8. © 2007 American Institute of Physics.Hidekazu Mimura, Hirokatsu Yumoto, et al. "Efficient focusing of hard x rays to 25nm by a total reflection mirror", Appl. Phys. Lett. 90(5), 051903 (2007) https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2436469

Relative angle determinable stitching interferometry for hard x-ray reflective optics

Metrology plays an important role in surface figuring with subnanometer accuracy. We have developed relative angle determinable stitching interferometry for the surface figuring of elliptical mirrors, in order to realize hard x-ray nanofocusing. In a stitching system, stitching angles are determined not by the general method using a common area between neighboring shots, but by the new method using the mirror's tilt angles measured at times when profile data are acquired. The high measurement accuracy of approximately 4 nm (peak-to-valley) was achieved in the measurement of a cylindrical surface having the same curvature as the elliptically designed shape to enable hard x-ray nanofocusing. © 2005 American Institute of Physics.Hidekazu Mimura, Hirokatsu Yumoto, Satoshi Matsuyama, Kazuya Yamamura, Yasuhisa Sano, Kazumasa Ueno, Katsuyoshi Endo, Yuzo Mori, Makina Yabashi, Kenji Tamasaku, Yoshinori Nishino, Tetsuya Ishikawa and Kazuto Yamauchi, "Relative angle determinable stitching interferometry for hard x-ray reflective optics", Review of Scientific Instruments 76(4), 045102 (2005) https://doi.org/10.1063/1.186847

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ABSTRACT Context Intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMNs) of the pancreas have been detected with increasing frequency as a result of the progression of diagnostic modalities. Recently, invasive ductal carcinoma of the pancreas concomitant with IPMNs has been the focus of attention. Case report We report the case of a 57-year-old man with multifocal ductal carcinomas of the pancreas concomitant with IPMNs detected by intraoperative cytology. During a follow-up for branch duct IPMNs, a stenotic lesion of the main duct in the pancreatic body was found by ERCP, and brush cytology of the stenosis revealed an adenocarcinoma. A distal pancreatectomy was proposed; however, intraoperative pancreatic juice cytology from the pancreatic head also revealed adenocarcinoma, and a total pancreatectomy was finally carried out. Pathological examination of the resected specimen showed multifocal ductal carcinomas and IPMNs in the distal pancreas, and invasive ductal carcinoma in the pancreatic head which had not been detected by preoperative imaging studies. Conclusions Surgeons should be aware of the possibility of multifocal carcinomas in patients with concomitant IPMNs. Intraoperative pancreatic juice cytology should always be performed in order to confirm the absence of carcinoma in the pancreas to be left in place after planned resection

Fabrication of elliptically figured mirror for focusing hard x rays to size less than 50 nm

In this study, we designed, fabricated, and evaluated a hard x-ray focusing mirror having an ideally focused beam with a full width at half maximum in the intensity profile of 36 nm at an x-ray energy of 15 keV. The designed elliptically curved shape was fabricated by a computer-controlled fabrication system using plasma chemical vaporization machining and elastic emission machining, on the basis of surface profiles accurately measured by combining microstitching interferometry with relative angle determinable stitching interferometry. A platinum-coated surface was employed for hard x-ray focusing with a large numerical aperture. Line-focusing tests on the fabricated elliptical mirror are carried out at the 1-km -long beamline of SPring-8. A full width at half maximum of 40 nm was achieved in the focused beam intensity profile under the best focus conditions. © 2005 American Institute of Physics.Hirokatsu Yumoto, Hidekazu Mimura, Satoshi Matsuyama, Hideyuki Hara, Kazuya Yamamura, Yasuhisa Sano Kazumasa Ueno, Katsuyoshi Endo Yuzo Mori, Makina Yabashi, Yoshinori Nishino, Kenji Tamasaku, Tetsuya Ishikawa and Kazuto Yamauchi, "Fabrication of elliptically figured mirror for focusing hard x rays to size less than 50nm", Review of Scientific Instruments 76(6), 063708 (2005) https://doi.org/10.1063/1.1922827

Multiplexed Molecular Profiling of Lung Cancer Using Pleural Effusion

Introduction:Pleural effusion is frequently observed in patients with advanced lung cancer. Although effusion can be obtained less invasively and repeatedly, its use in multiplexed molecular profiling has not been fully investigated.Methods:Between July 2011 and April 2013, pleural effusion samples were obtained from patients with lung cancer at Shizuoka Cancer Center. They were analyzed for EGFR, KRAS, BRAF, PIK3CA, NRAS, MEK1, AKT1, PTEN, and HER2 mutations, EGFR, MET, FGFR1, FGFR2, and PIK3CA amplifications, and ALK, ROS1, and RET fusion genes using pyrosequensing and/or capillary electrophoresis, quantitative reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, and reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, respectively.Results:One hundred and two samples from 84 patients were analyzed. Adenocarcinoma was the most common histological subtype (82%). Genetic abnormalities were detected in 42% of patients. The most common abnormality was EGFR mutation (29%), followed by EML4-ALK rearrangement (5%), KRAS mutation, and EGFR amplification (4%, each). Concordance rates between pleural effusion and matched formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples were 88%. Among 11 patients who provided samples at multiple time points, changes in molecular profile over the course of treatment were observed in five patients.Conclusions:The use of pleural effusion for multiplexed molecular testing and real-time monitoring in lung cancer was demonstrated

Tokyo Guidelines 2018 management bundles for acute cholangitis and cholecystitis

Management bundles that define items or procedures strongly recommended in clinical practice have been used in many guidelines in recent years. Application of these bundles facilitates the adaptation of guidelines and helps improve the prognosis of target diseases. In Tokyo Guidelines 2013 (TG13), we proposed management bundles for acute cholangitis and cholecystitis. Here, in Tokyo Guidelines 2018 (TG18), we redefine the management bundles for acute cholangitis and cholecystitis. Critical parts of the bundles in TG18 include the diagnostic process, severity assessment, transfer of patients if necessary, and therapeutic approach at each time point. Observance of these items and procedures should improve the prognosis of acute cholangitis and cholecystitis. Studies are now needed to evaluate the dissemination of these TG18 bundles and their effectiveness. Free full articles and mobile app of TG18 are available at: . Related clinical questions and references are also include