Adiabatic SRAM with a large margin of VT variation by controlling the cell-power-line and word-line voltage

金沢大学理工研究域電子情報学系An adiabatic 1-kb SRAM circuit was designed, which enables gradual charging during writing and reading while maintaining a large VDD so that the problems of VT variation and electromigration in the nanocircuit can be resolved. In the writing mode, the voltage of the memory cell power line is reduced to ground gradually using a high-resistivity nMOSFET, and we turn off the nMOSFET so that the memory cell power line is set in a high-impedance state. Then, we can write data easily by inputting adiabatic signal from one bit line, while the other bit line is set to ground. For reading, a verifying operation is proposed for resolving the electromigration problem. The word line voltage is changed stepwise while the voltages of the bit lines are verified. The reading method enables a gradual current flow in the memory cell. We designed the cell layout and found that there is no area penalty. In addition, a new charge recycle circuit with tank capacitors is proposed. ©2009 IEEE

The FTO genotype as a useful predictor of body weight maintenance: Initial data from a 5-year follow-up study

ObjectiveWe examined associations between the fat-mass and obesity-associated (FTO) gene (rs9939609) and any weight change over a 5-year period following a 14-week lifestyle intervention among middle-aged Japanese women.Materials/MethodsOne hundred twenty-eight Japanese women (BMI > 25 kg/m2) participated in a 14-week weight loss intervention between 2004 and 2006. Of the participants, 62 consented to the 5-year follow-up measurement session. Of these women, 47 women who achieved a weight loss of at least 10% from their baseline values during the 14-week intervention were included in the analysis. Body weight, body fat, abdominal fat assessed by CT scans, and metabolic risk factors (i.e., blood pressure, lipids, and glucose) were measured at baseline, post-intervention, and at the 5-year follow-up.ResultsDuring the 5-year non-intervention period, increases in body weight, fat mass, total abdominal fat, and subcutaneous abdominal fat were significantly greater in subjects with the homozygous minor allele (AA genotype, n = 4; 8.5%) than in those with the homozygous major allele (TT genotype, n = 31; 66.0%) or heterozygous allele (TA genotype, n = 12; 25.5%). In multiple regression analyses, the variation in rs9939609 was a significant and independent predictor (P < 0.001) for regaining weight during the 5-year follow-up.ConclusionsOur data suggest that Japanese women with the risk allele (AA) of rs9939609 may have more difficulty preventing fat gain from reoccurring after weight loss intervention than women with the other genotypes

Low serum albumin concentration is associated with increased risk of osteoporosis in postmenopausal patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Background: The risk of osteoporosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is frequently overlooked, and investigating a simple indicator in routine care may be beneficial to motivate osteoporosis examination. The aim of this retrospective, case-controlled study was to identify the correlation between serum albumin concentrations and the prevalence of osteoporosis in postmenopausal patients with RA. Methods: This study enrolled 197 patients who underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry of lumbar spine (LS) and proximal femur without osteoporosis treatment [mean age, 67.5 years; disease duration, 12.8 years; Disease Activity Score assessing 28 joints with C-reactive protein, 2.0; prednisolone dose, 4.9 mg/day (usage, 42.6%); and LS T-score, −1.9]. Patients were classified into 2 groups: osteoporosis, defined as ≥ 1 part bone mineral density T-score ≤ −2.5 or history of fragility fracture of the vertebra or proximal femur (121 patients), and non-osteoporosis (76 patients). Groups were then matched by propensity score using clinical backgrounds affecting bone metabolism. Results: In non-matched model, serum albumin concentration was significantly associated with osteoporosis-related factors such as aging, inflammation, physical disability, and glucocorticoid dose. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that serum albumin concentration was independently and significantly associated with osteoporosis risk (odds ratio = 0.22, 95% confidence interval = 0.08, 0.61, p = 0.0033). After propensity score matching, 57 patients for each group showed that in addition to the LS and femoral neck T-scores (p < 0.001), serum albumin concentrations (p = 0.01) remained lower in the osteoporosis group compared to non-osteoporosis group. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis in non-matched model revealed that when cut-off value of serum albumin concentration for indicating osteoporosis was set at 4.2 g/dl, the area under the curve was 0.69, sensitivity 0.74, and specificity 0.58. Conclusions: Low serum albumin concentration was significantly and independently associated with the prevalence of osteoporosis, which may be considered as one of the osteoporosis-related factors in postmenopausal patients with RA.Nagayama Y., Ebina K., Tsuboi H., et al. Low serum albumin concentration is associated with increased risk of osteoporosis in postmenopausal patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Journal of Orthopaedic Science 27, 1283 (2022); https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jos.2021.08.018

Energy dissipation decrease during adiabatic charging of a capacitor by changing the duty ratio

Adiabatic charging of a capacitor with a step down converter by changing the duty ratio is considered. First, for a profound understanding of the circuit, the general analytical solution of step down converter is considered. It is confirmed that the system can be resolved analytically and that the equilibrium state of current and voltage are consistent with SPICE simulation. Next, adiabatic charging by changing the duty ratio is investigated. From SPICE simulation, it is confirmed that energy dissipation is reduced to one-fourth when four-step charging is used. By increasing the step number, energy dissipation decreases to zero and dissipationless operation is achieved. Adiabatic charging of a capacitor with a step down converter by changing the duty ratio is considered. First, for a profound understanding of the circuit, the general analytical solution of step down converter is considered. It is confirmed that the system can be resolved analytically and that the equilibrium state of current and voltage are consistent with SPICE simulation. Next, adiabatic charging by changing the duty ratio is investigated. From SPICE simulation, it is confirmed that energy dissipation is reduced to one-fourth when four-step charging is used. By increasing the step number, energy dissipation decreases to zero and dissipationless operation is achieved. © 2011 IEEE

Preparation and performance of noble metal phosphides supported on silica as new hydrodesulfurization catalysts

Preparation of noble metal (NM) (Rh, Pd, Ru, Pt) phosphide species and their catalytic activities for hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of thiophene were investigated. Noble metal phosphides (NMXPY) catalysts were prepared by reduction of P-added NM (NM-P) supported on silica (SiO_2) with hydrogen. Hydrogen consumption peaks at around 350–700 °C, which were attributed to the formation of NMXPY, were observed in temperature-programmed reduction (TPR) spectra of all NM-P/SiO_2. Furthermore, X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns of NM-P/SiO_2 indicate that NMXPY (Rh_2P, Pd_P, Ru_2P, PtP_2) were formed by hydrogen reduction at high temperature. The reduction temperature strongly affected HDS activities of NM-P/SiO_2 catalysts. The NM-P/SiO_2 catalysts, other than Pt, showed higher HDS activities than NM/SiO_2 catalysts. The HDS activity of the Rh-P/SiO_2 catalyst was the highest among those of NM-P/SiO2 catalysts. This activity was higher than that of the Ni-P catalyst and was the same as that of pre-sulfided CoMoP/Al_2O_3 catalyst. Furthermore, the Rh-P/SiO_2 catalyst showed stable activity even after reaction for 30 h. The XRD, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) results revealed that the formation of small Rh_2P particles and suitable P addition to form Rh_2P caused the high HDS activity of the Rh-P catalyst

Simultaneous Validation of Seven Physical Activity Questionnaires Used in Japanese Cohorts for Estimating Energy Expenditure: A Doubly Labeled Water Study

Background: Physical activity questionnaires (PAQs) used in large-scale Japanese cohorts have rarely been simultaneously validated against the gold standard doubly labeled water (DLW) method. This study examined the validity of seven PAQs used in Japan for estimating energy expenditure against the DLW method.Methods: Twenty healthy Japanese adults (9 men; mean age, 32.4 [standard deviation {SD}, 9.4] years, mainly researchers and students) participated in this study. Fifteen-day daily total energy expenditure (TEE) and basal metabolic rate (BMR) were measured using the DLW method and a metabolic chamber, respectively. Activity energy expenditure (AEE) was calculated as TEE − BMR − 0.1 × TEE. Seven PAQs were self-administered to estimate TEE and AEE.Results: The mean measured values of TEE and AEE were 2,294 (SD, 318) kcal/day and 721 (SD, 161) kcal/day, respectively. All of the PAQs indicated moderate-to-strong correlations with the DLW method in TEE (rho = 0.57–0.84). Two PAQs (Japan Public Health Center Study [JPHC]-PAQ Short and JPHC-PAQ Long) showed significant equivalence in TEE and moderate intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC). None of the PAQs showed significantly equivalent AEE estimates, with differences ranging from −547 to 77 kcal/day. Correlations and ICCs in AEE were mostly weak or fair (rho = 0.02–0.54, and ICC = 0.00–0.44). Only JPHC-PAQ Short provided significant and fair agreement with the DLW method.Conclusions: TEE estimated by the PAQs showed moderate or strong correlations with the results of DLW. Two PAQs showed equivalent TEE and moderate agreement. None of the PAQs showed equivalent AEE estimation to the gold standard, with weak-to-fair correlations and agreements. Further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm these findings

Insulin binding to erythrocytes in diabetes mellitus.

Insulin binding to erythrocytes was studied in diabetic patients. Insulin binding was lower in untreated diabetics and diabetic patients treated with diet or insulin than in normal subjects. Binding variation was mainly due to decreased binding site concentration in untreated and insulin-treated patients, and to lowered insulin binding site affinity in diet-treated patients. Several patients treated with hypoglycemic agents showed higher insulin binding due to increased binding site concentration. Insulin binding to erythrocytes may not always reflect the insulin binding status of insulin sensitive tissues.</p

Increasing static noise margin of single-bit-line SRAM by lowering bit-line voltage during reading

A 64-kb SRAM circuit with a single bit line (BL) for reading and with two BLs for writing was designed. Single-BL reading is achieved by using a left access transistor and a left shared reading port. We designed the cell layout and confirmed that there is no area penalty for producing two word lines in a memory cell. An analysis of butterfly plots clearly confirms that the single-BL SRAM has the larger static noise margin than the two-BL one. It is confirmed that the static noise margin in the single-BL SRAM is further increased when the BL is precharged to not VDD but to the lower value in the range of VDD/2 to 3VDD/4. In addition, a new sense amplifier circuit without reference voltage is proposed for single-BL reading. We also propose a divided word line architecture for writing to maintain the static noise margin for unwritten blocks. © 2011 IEEE