MIXING CHARACTERISTICS OF A CONTINUOUS RIBBON MIXER

ArticleJournal of the Faculty of Textile Science and Technology, Shinshu University. Ser. B, Engineering 11: 1-10(1974)departmental bulletin pape

CONVEYING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SCREW CONVEYOR

ArticleJournal of the Faculty of Textile Science and Technology, Shinshu University. Ser. B, Engineering 10: 1-10(1968)departmental bulletin pape

AN ESTIMATING METHOD OF TEMPERATURE AND MOISTURE CONTENT DISTRIBUTIONS IN A CONTINUOUS COUNTER-CURRENT DRIER

ArticleJournal of the Faculty of Textile Science and Technology, Shinshu University. Ser. B, Engineering 11: 11-28(1974)departmental bulletin pape

Essays on Infrastructure Development and Public Finance

This dissertation focuses on the economics of infrastructure development and public finance. The dissertation is composed of three papers: The first paper analyzes the optimal solutions for supplying electricity to national economies from both domestic as well as distant energy resources using transmission systems that can connect the huge renewable energy resources of Africa. The results point to options for achieving substantial increases in the sustainable energy supply and for improving access to energy across the continent. The second paper models a comparative local and national electricity distribution planning in Senegal by examining the trade-off between access and costs. The third paper uses exogenous variations in rainfall across municipalities in Mali to estimate the causal effect of household income shocks on municipal-level tax revenues. It also exploits a national tax collection incentive policy to measure the impacts of rainfall variation on intergovernmental transfers

Mild MPP+ exposure-induced glucose starvation enhances autophagosome synthesis and impairs its degradation

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, mainly characterised by the progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons. MPP+ has been widely used as a PD-related neurotoxin, and their reports suggested the several hypotheses for neuronal cell death. However, most of these hypotheses come from the studies about the acute MPP+ exposure. We previously revealed that mild MPP+ exposure (10 and 200 μM), which induces gradual cell death, impairs autophagosome degradation at 48 h. In the present study, we further investigated the specific events of mild MPP+ exposure and revealed that mild MPP+ exposure causes the cell death through glucose starvation, but not acute toxic model (2.5 and 5 mM). At 36 h after mild MPP+ exposure, autophagosome synthesis was enhanced owing to glucose starvation and continued to enhance until 48 h, despite impaired autophagosome degradation. Inhibition of autophagosome synthesis reduced mild MPP+-induced cell death. In conclusion, we clarified that glucose starvation-enhanced autophagosome synthesis occurs at an earlier stage than impaired autophagosome degradation and is important in mild MPP+ toxicity.This work was supported by Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) Grant Number 24406004 (to Y.K.), The Pharmacological Research Foundation, Tokyo, Japan (to Y.K.), and Suzuken Memorial Foundation (to Y.K.)

Damage of the Mouse Testis by Tritiated Water and <137>^Cs-γ-Rays

Tritiated water at 23.2, 46.3 or 92.5 MBq/animal and ^Cs-γ-rays at 9.5 Gy (equivalent 370 MBq) or lower doses were administered to 6-week old male C3H/HeNCrj and C57BL/6NCrj mice, as well as FI Crj: B6C3F1 (C3H × C57BL) progeny. Each set of six to ten animals were autopsied 30 days after the first irradiation. Testis weights were decreased dose dependently, relative values being highest in the C3H and lowest in the C57BL case, with B6C3F1 intermediate. Vacuolization in seminiferous tubules appeared in the 23.2 MBq group and increased with the dose. Focal pyknosis and karyomegaly were found at 46.3 MBq, while primary and secondary spermatocytes and spermatids disappeared with 92.5 MBq. Only a few spermatogonia and Sertoli cells remained after exposure to 9.5 Gy ^Cs-γ-rays. Sizes of seminiferous tubules were decreased dose dependently, with no strain differences. When male B6C3F1 mice were irradiated with Cs-γ-rays at 0.119 (equivalent 4.63 MBq tritiated water) or 2.38 Gy (equivalent 92.5 MBq tritiated water), body weights and size of the seminiferous tubules were decreased at both doses, and the larger dose also caused reduction of testis weight and abnormal sperm. However, all changes except for the alteration in weights had disappeared 1 month after the final irradiation. It is considered that the size of seminiferous tubules may be a good parameter for radiation damage in the testis

Metabolism of the α,β-Unsaturated Ketones, Chalcone and trans-4-Phenyl-3-buten-2-one, by Rat Liver Microsomes and Estrogenic Activity of the Metabolites

PBO was oxidized by cytochrome P450 1A1, 1A2, 2C6 and 2E1. Chalcone and PBO were negative in an estrogen reporter assay using estrogen-responsive human breast cancer cell line MCF-7. However, 4-hydroxychalcone, 2-hydroxychalcone, 4&apos;-hydroxychalcone and 4-OH-PBO exhibited estrogenic activity. DMD #2634

High-throughput phenotyping (HTP) identifies seedling root traits linked to variation in seed yield and nutrient capture in field-grown oilseed rape (Brassica napusL.)

Background and Aims Root traits can be selected for crop improvement. Techniques such as soil excavations can be used to screen root traits in the field, but are limited to genotypes that are well-adapted to field conditions. The aim of this study was to compare a low-cost, high-throughput root phenotyping (HTP) technique in a controlled environment with field performance, using oilseed rape (OSR; Brassica napus) varieties. Methods Primary root length (PRL), lateral root length and lateral root density (LRD) were measured on 14-d-old seedlings of elite OSR varieties (n = 32) using a ‘pouch and wick’ HTP system (∼40 replicates). Six field experiments were conducted using the same varieties at two UK sites each year for 3 years. Plants were excavated at the 6- to 8-leaf stage for general vigour assessments of roots and shoots in all six experiments, and final seed yield was determined. Leaves were sampled for mineral composition from one of the field experiments. Key Results Seedling PRL in the HTP system correlated with seed yield in four out of six (r = 0·50, 0·50, 0·33, 0·49; P < 0·05) and with emergence in three out of five (r = 0·59, 0·22, 0·49; P < 0·05) field experiments. Seedling LRD correlated positively with leaf concentrations of some minerals, e.g. calcium (r = 0·46; P < 0·01) and zinc (r = 0·58; P < 0·001), but did not correlate with emergence, general early vigour or yield in the field. Conclusions Associations between PRL and field performance are generally related to early vigour. These root traits might therefore be of limited additional selection value, given that vigour can be measured easily on shoots/canopies. In contrast, LRD cannot be assessed easily in the field and, if LRD can improve nutrient uptake, then it may be possible to use HTP systems to screen this trait in both elite and more genetically diverse, non-field-adapted OSR