Near-Infrared Spectroscopy of the Cool Brown Dwarf, SDSS 1624+00

Using the Subaru Telescope, we have obtained multiple near-infrared spectra of the cool brown dwarf, SDSS 1624+00, in search of spectral variability in an 80 minute time span. We have found the suspected variability of water vapor absorption throughout the observations, which requires confirmation by a longer time baseline. After coadding the spectra, we have obtained a high-quality spectrum covering 1.05 to 1.8 um. Three kinds of spectral indicators, the water vapor bands, methane band, and KI lines in J band, suggest that SDSS 1624+00 is warmer and dustier than Gl 229B.Comment: 6 figures, to appear in PAS

Kinetics of circulating Th17 cytokines and adipokines in psoriasis patients

Psoriasis is associated with an increase of Th17 cytokines, such as IL-17, IL-22, IL-21, and TNF-α, which are produced by Th17 cells. Adipokines are peptide hormones or cytokines secreted from adipose tissues and involved in the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome (MS). Psoriasis patients have a high prevalence of the MS. In this study, we investigated the statistics of circulating Th17-related cytokines and adipokines in psoriasis patients. Our study identified the significant elevation of serum IL-6, IL-21, IL-22, and resistin levels in psoriasis patients. Increased serum levels of IL-22 and adiponectin were positively correlated with Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI). In contrast, serum high molecular weight adiponectin levels were decreased in psoriasis and negatively correlated with PASI

Double-Network Hydrogels Strongly Bondable to Bones by Spontaneous Osteogenesis Penetration

Implanting hydroxyapatite-mineralized tough hydrogel into osteochondral defects of rabbits, osteogenesis spontaneously penetrates into the gel matrix owing to the semi-permeablility of the hydrogel. The gradient layer (around 40 μm thick) contributes quite strong bonding of the gel to bone. This is the first success in realizing the robust osteointegration of tough hydrogels, and the method is simple and feasible for practical use

Safety and Efficacy of FIT039 for Verruca Vulgaris: A Placebo-Controlled, Phase I/II Randomized Controlled Trial

TRIAL DESIGN: Human papillomavirus infection causes verruca vulgaris. CDK9 inhibitor FIT039 inhibits DNA virus proliferation in animal models. We conducted a multicenter, single-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized phase I/II clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of FIT039 against verruca vulgaris. METHODS: Target lesions were treated with liquid nitrogen once, and a FIT039 patch or placebo patch was applied for 14 days. The primary endpoint was lesion disappearance. The secondary endpoints were safety and changes in dimension, cross-sectional area, and the number of petechial lesions. RESULTS: A total of 24 participants were randomly allocated to the FIT039 (n = 13, median age, 54 years) and placebo (n = 11, median age, 62 years) groups. Verruca vulgaris did not disappear. FIT039 decreased the dimension to 76% of the initial value on day 29, followed by an increase to 98% on day 57. Placebo showed a monotonic increase to 107% on day 57. Changes in the cross-sectional area and petechiae number were comparable between the groups. CONCLUSIONS: No drug-related adverse reactions occurred. FIT039 efficacy was not determined in this study

Substitution of Glu122 by Glutamine Revealed the Function of the Second Water Molecule as a Proton Donor in the Binuclear Metal Enzyme Creatininase.

Creatininase is a binuclear zinc enzyme and catalyzes the reversible conversion of creatinine to creatine. It exhibits an open-closed conformational change upon substrate binding, and the differences in the conformations of Tyr121, Trp154, and the loop region containing Trp174 were evident in the enzyme-creatine complex when compared to those in the ligand-free enzyme. We have determined the crystal structure of the enzyme complexed with a 1-methylguanidine. All subunits in the complex existed as the closed form, and the binding mode of creatinine was estimated. Site-directed mutagenesis revealed that the hydrophobic residues that show conformational change upon substrate binding are important for the enzyme activity. We propose a catalytic mechanism of creatininase in which two water molecules have significant roles. The first molecule is a hydroxide ion (Wat1) that is bound as a bridge between the two metal ions and attacks the carbonyl carbon of the substrate. The second molecule is a water molecule (Wat2) that is bound to the carboxyl group of Glu122 and functions as a proton donor in catalysis. The activity of the E122Q mutant was very low and it was only partially restored by the addition of ZnCl(2) or MnCl(2). In the E122Q mutant, k(cat) is drastically decreased, indicating that Glu122 is important for catalysis. X-ray crystallographic study and the atomic absorption spectrometry analysis of the E122Q mutant-substrate complex revealed that the drastic decrease of the activity of the E122Q was caused by not only the loss of one Zn ion at the Metal1 site but also a critical function of Glu122, which most likely exists for a proton transfer step through Wat2

Scan-less confocal phase imaging based on dual-comb microscopy

Confocal laser microscopy (CLM) is a powerful tool in life science research and industrial inspection because it offers two-dimensional optical sectioning or three-dimensional imaging capability with micrometer depth selectivity. Furthermore, scan-less imaging modality enables rapid image acquisition and high robustness against surrounding external disturbances in CLM. However, the objects to be measured must be reflective, absorptive, scattering, or fluorescent because the image contrast is given by the optical intensity. If a new image contrast can be provided by the optical phase, scan-less CLMcan be further applied for transparent non-fluorescent objects or reflective objects with nanometer unevenness by providing information on refractive index, optical thickness, or geometrical shape. Here, we report scan-less confocal dual-comb microscopy offering a phase image in addition to an amplitude image with depth selectivity by using an optical frequency comb as an optical carrier of amplitude and phase with discrete ultra-multichannels. Our technique encodes confocal amplitude and phase images of a sample onto a series of discrete modes in the optical frequency comb with well-defined amplitude and phase to establish a one-to-one correspondence between image pixels and comb modes. The technique then decodes these images from comb modes with amplitude and phase. We demonstrate confocal phase imaging with milliradian phase resolution under micrometer depth selectivity on the millisecond timescale. As a proof of concept, we demonstrate the quantitative phase imaging of standing culture fixed cells and the surface topography of nanometer-scale step structures. Our technique for confocal phase imaging will find applications in three-dimensional visualization of stacked living cells in culture and nanometer surface topography of semiconductor objects

Solar System Exploration Sciences by EQUULEUS on SLS EM-1 and Science Instruments Development Status

EQUULEUS is a spacecraft to explore the cislunar region including the Earth-Moon Lagrange point L2 (EML2) and will be launched by NASA’s SLS EM-1 rocket. Although the size of EQUULEUS is only 6U, the spacecraft carries three different science instruments. By using these instruments, the spacecraft will demonstrate three missions for solar system exploration science during and after the flight to EML2; imaging of the plasmasphere around the earth, observation of space dust flux in the cislunar region, and observation of lunar impact flashes at the far side of the moon. The developments and verifications of the flight models of these science instruments were completed by the end of 2018, and we started flight model integration and testing. This paper introduces the details of the scientific objectives, design results and development statuses of the instruments. In addition, results of the integration and pre-flight tests are also described