Probing of Transient Electric Field Distribution in ITO/PI/P3HT/Au By Time-Resolved Optical Second Harmonic Generation Measurement

AbstractBy using time-resolved optical second harmonic generation (TR-SHG) measurements, we studied carrier behaviors in poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) metal-insulator-semiconductor (MIS) diodes. TR-SHG measurements probed transients of electric fielddistribution in the P3HT active layer. Results showed that hole injection and removal processes were non-reversal, where the response times were different from each other and the relaxation time of the transient electric field strongly depended on the hole injection process

GPI Glycan Remodeling by PGAP5 Regulates Transport of GPI-Anchored Proteins from the ER to the Golgi

SummaryMany eukaryotic proteins are attached to the cell surface via glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchors. How GPI-anchored proteins (GPI-APs) are trafficked from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) to the cell surface is poorly understood, but the GPI moiety has been postulated to function as a signal for sorting and transport. Here, we established mutant cells that were selectively defective in transport of GPI-APs from the ER to the Golgi. We identified a responsible gene, designated PGAP5 (post-GPI-attachment to proteins 5). PGAP5 belongs to a dimetal-containing phosphoesterase family and catalyzed the remodeling of the glycan moiety on GPI-APs. PGAP5 catalytic activity is a prerequisite for the efficient exit of GPI-APs from the ER. Our data demonstrate that GPI glycan acts as an ER-exit signal and suggest that glycan remodeling mediated by PGAP5 regulates GPI-AP transport in the early secretory pathway

12(S)-hydroxyheptadeca-5Z, 8E, 10E–trienoic acid is a natural ligand for leukotriene B4 receptor 2

Activated blood platelets and macrophages metabolize prostaglandin H2 into thromboxane A2 and 12(S)-hydroxyheptadeca-5Z, 8E, 10E–trienoic acid (12-HHT) in an equimolar ratio through the action of thromboxane synthase. Although it has been shown that 12-HHT is abundant in tissues and bodily fluids, this compound has long been viewed as a by-product lacking any specific function. We show that 12-HHT is a natural ligand for leukotriene B4 (LTB4) receptor-2 (BLT2), a G protein–coupled receptor that was originally identified as a low-affinity receptor for LTB4. BLT2 agonistic activity in lipid fractions from rat small intestine was identified as 12-HHT using high-performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. Exogenously expressed BLT2 in mammalian cells was activated by synthetic 12-HHT, as assessed by guanosine 5′-O-(3-thio) triphosphate binding, the activation of intracellular signaling pathways, and chemotaxis assay. Displacement analysis using [3H]LTB4 showed that 12-HHT binds to BLT2 with a higher affinity than LTB4. Lipid extracts from cyclooxygenase 1–deficient mice failed to activate BLT2. Bone marrow–derived mast cells (BMMCs) isolated from wild-type mice migrated toward a low concentration of 12-HHT, whereas BMMCs from BLT2-deficient mice did not. We conclude that 12-HHT is a natural lipid agonist of BLT2 in vivo and induces chemotaxis of mast cells

Dusty ERO Search behind Two Massive Clusters

We performed deep K'-band imaging observations of 2 massive clusters, MS 0451.6-0305 at z = 0.55 and MS 0440.5+0204 at z = 0.19, for searching counterparts of the faint sub-mm sources behind these clusters, which would provide one of the deepest extremely red object(ERO) samples. Comparing our near-infrared images with optical images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope and by the Subaru Telescope, we identified 13 EROs in these fields. The sky distributions of EROs are consistent with the previous results, that there is a sign of strong clustering among detected EROs. Also, the surface density with corrected lensing amplification factors in both clusters are in good agreement with that derived from previous surveys. We found 7 EROs and 3 additional very red objects in a small area (\sim 0.6 arcmin^2) of the MS 0451.6-0305 field around an extended SCUBA source. Many of their optical and near-infrared colors are consistent with dusty star-forming galaxies at high redshifts(z \sim 1.0-4.0), and they may be constituting a cluster of dusty starburst galaxies and/or lensed star-forming galaxies at high redshift. Their red J-K' colors and faint optical magnitudes suggest they are relatively old massive stellar systems with ages(>300 Mega years) suffering from dust obscuration. We also found a surface-density enhancement of EROs around the SCUBA source in the MS 0440.5+0204 field.Comment: 19 pages, 11 figures, Latex(using pasj00.cls). To be published in PASJ vol 55, No. 4(Aug 2003

Treadmill Exercise as a Preventive Measure Against Age-Related Anxiety and Social Behavioral Disorders in Rats: When Is It Worth Starting?

Objective To determine the appropriate time points to start regular exercise which could reduce age-related anxiety and impaired social behavior. Methods For this study, 8-week-old male Wistar rats were divided into three groups: no exercise (NoEX), short-term exercise (S-Ex), and long-term exercise (L-Ex) groups. S-Ex-group rats started treadmill exercise at 12 months of age, while L-Ex rats started from at 2 months of age. Exercise rats were forced to walk on the treadmill three times per week, with 1- to 2-day intervals for 10 minutes during the first 2 weeks, at 10 m/min until 17 months of age, and at 8 m/min thereafter. At 19 months of age, behavioral tests were performed to assess the effects of exercise on age-induced behavioral change as well as quantitative polymerase chain reaction were done to uncover the mechanism behind the behavioral changes. Results Anxiety-like behavior was improved by long-term exercise. Additionally, rats belonging to the S-Ex and L-Ex groups showed improved social behavior and increased curiosity about interesting objects. The qPCR data showed that treadmill exercise suppressed the expression of immediate-early genes in the prefrontal cortex of the aged rats. Conclusion This study suggests that long-term exercise represses early response genes, and in this way, it increases resistance to stress, diminishes anxiety-related behavior, and improves social behavior. These findings underscore the need to consider appropriate time to start exercise to prevent stress induced anxiety related behavior

Phosphoinositide 3-kinase δ regulates membrane fission of Golgi carriers for selective cytokine secretion

The PI3K isoform p110δ is required for TNF trafficking and secretion

Robot-directed speech detection using multimodal semantic confidence based on speech, image, and motion

ABSTRACT In this paper, we propose a novel method to detect robotdirected (RD) speech that adopts the Multimodal Semantic Confidence (MSC) measure. The MSC measure is used to decide whether the speech can be interpreted as a feasible action under the current physical situation in an object manipulation task. This measure is calculated by integrating speech, image, and motion confidence measures with weightings that are optimized by logistic regression. Experimental results show that, compared with a baseline method that uses speech confidence only, MSC achieved an absolute increase of 5% for clean speech and 12% for noisy speech in terms of average maximum F-measure

Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Suppress the Cystic Lesion Formation of Peritoneal Endometriosis in Transgenic Mouse Models

Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (omega-3 PUFAs) play a role in controlling pathological inflammatory reactions. Endometriosis is characterized by the presence of endometrial tissue on the peritoneum and an exaggerated inflammatory environment around ectopic tissues. Here peritoneal endometriosis was reproduced using a mouse model in which murine endometrial fragments were inoculated into the peritoneal cavity of mice. Fat-1 mice, in which omega-6 can be converted to omega-3 PUFAs, or wild type mice, in which it cannot, were used for the endometriosis model to address the actions of omega-3 PUFAs on the development of endometriotic lesions. The number and weight of cystic endometriotic lesions in fat-1 mice two weeks after inoculation were significantly less than half to those of controls. Mediator lipidomics revealed that cystic endometriotic lesions and peritoneal fluids were abundant in 12/15-hydroxyeicosapentaenoic acid (12/15-HEPE), derived from eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), and their amount in fat-1 mice was significantly larger than that in controls. 12/15-Lipoxygenase (12/15-LOX)-knockout (KO) and control mice with or without EPA administration were assessed for the endometriosis model. EPA administration decreased the number of lesions in controls but not in 12/15-LOX-KO mice. The peritoneal fluids in EPA-fed 12/15-LOX-KO mice contained reduced levels of EPA metabolites such as 12/15-HEPE and EPA-derived resolvin E3 even after EPA administration. cDNA microarrays of endometriotic lesions revealed that Interleukin-6 (IL-6) expression in fat-1 mice was significantly lower than that in controls. These results suggest that both endogenous and exogenous EPA-derived PUFAs protect against the development of endometriosis through their anti-inflammatory effects and, in particular, the 12/15-LOX-pathway products of EPA may be key mediators to suppress endometriosis