Electrospinning and Post-Spun Chain Conformations of Synthetic, Hydrophobic Poly(α-amino acid)s.

Electrospinning and post-spun conformations of hydrophobic poly(α-amino acid)s are described in this study. The poly(α-amino acid)s, poly(Gly), poly(L-Ala), poly(L-Val), and poly(L-Leu) were synthesized via corresponding N-carboxy-a-amino acid anhydrides. The average molecular weight and degree of polymerization of these polymers were determined by N-terminus labeling using 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene and by viscometry in the case of poly(Gly). These poly(α-amino acid)s were electrospun from trifluoroacetic acid or trifluoroacetic acid/dichloromethane solutions. The FT-IR spectroscopy and wide-angle X-ray diffraction indicated that the electrospun poly(L-Ala) and poly(L-Leu) fibers predominantly adopts α-helical structure, whereas poly(L-Val) and poly(Gly) fibers exhibited mainly β-strand and random coil structures, respectively

Needlestick-Stimulation-Induced Conversion of Short-Wave Infrared-Light Transparency Using a Liquescent Radical Anion

Shu R., Naota T., Suzuki S.. Needlestick-Stimulation-Induced Conversion of Short-Wave Infrared-Light Transparency Using a Liquescent Radical Anion. Small , (2024); https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.202311557.A liquescent salt consisting of a 7,7,8,8-tetracyanquinodimethane (TCNQ) radical anion and a tetra-n-decylammonium ion, 1+•TCNQ•−, exhibits rapid changes in the short-wave infrared (SWIR) light transparency at 1000–1400 nm upon the application of a one-shot needlestick-stimulus. Radical anion salt 1+•TCNQ•− transforms from a blue solid to a green liquid at 90 °C without decomposition under aerated conditions, and remains in the liquid state upon cooling to 70 °C. After applying pressure with a needlestick on a cover glass at 70 °C, the liquid transforms rapidly into the solid state over a timescale of seconds across a centimeter scale of area. Along with the liquid–solid transition, the SWIR-light transparency at 1200 nm completely switches from the “on” to the “off” states. Experimental results, such as electronic spectra and crystal structure analysis, indicates that the SWIR-light absorption in the solid state is due to the existence of a slipped-stacking π-dimer structure for TCNQ•−. The rapid rearrangement is induced by the formation of the π-dimer structures from the monomers of TCNQ•− and the subsequent generations of the solid-state seed

Embedding Distance Information in Binaural Renderings of Far Field Recordings

Traditional representations of sound fields based on spherical harmonics expansions do not include the sound source distance information. As multipole expansions can accurately encode the distance of a sound source, they can be used for accurate sound field reproduction. The binaural reproduction of multipole encodings, though, requires head-related transfer functions (HRTFs) with distance information. However, the inclusion of distance information on available data sets of HRTFs, using acoustic propagators, requires demanding regularization techniques. We alternatively propose a method to embed distance information in the spherical harmonics encodings of compact microphone array recordings. We call this method the Distance Editing Binaural Ambisonics (DEBA). DEBA is applied to the synthesis of binaural signals of arbitrary distances using only far-field HRTFs. We evaluated DEBA by synthesizing HRTFs for nearby sources from various samplings of far-field ones. Comparisons with numerically calculated HRTFs yielded mean spectral distortion values below 6 dB, and mean normalized spherical correlation values above 0.97

Effects of Probiotics on the Immune System and Allergic Diseases

ABSTRACTIntestinal microbiota play a crucial role in the development of mucosal tolerance and adaptation. Perturbations in microbiota composition are strongly associated with allergies and asthma in westernized countries. There has been accumulating evidence that the administration of probiotics, “live microbial supplements that exert a beneficial effect on human health,” may be effective in the treatment and/or prevention of allergic diseases. Although it has been shown that part of the effect of probiotics arises from its interaction with the host immune system, the precise mechanisms remain to be determined. In addition, future studies are necessary to define appropriate species and strains, optimum dose, frequency, and duration for the treatment of allergic diseases

Systematic review and assessment of systematic reviews examining the effect of periodontal treatment on glycemic control in patients with diabetes

There have been several systematic reviews(SRs) on whether periodontal treatment for an individual with both periodontal disease and diabetes can improve diabetes outcomes. The purpose of this investigation was to conduct a systematic review (SR) of previous meta-analyses, and to assess the methodological quality of the SRs examining the effects of periodontal treatment and diabetes. (PROSPERO Registration # CRD 42015023470). We searched five electronic databases and identified previous meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials published through July 2015. In cases where the meta-analysis did not meet our criteria, the meta-analyses were recalculated. General characteristics of each included trial were abstracted, analyzed, and compared. The mean difference, 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and the I2 statistic were abstracted or recalculated. The Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews Instrument (AMSTAR) was used to assess methodological quality. Of the 475 citations screened, nine systematic reviews were included. In total, 13 meta-analyses included in nine SRs were examined. In comparability analyses, meta-analyses in four SRs did not meet our criteria, and were recalcuated. Of these 13 meta-analyses, 10 suggested significant effects of periodontal treatment on HbA1c improvement. Mean differences found in the 13 meta-analyses ranged from -0.93 to 0.13. AMSTAR assessment revealed six SRs with moderate and three with high overall quality. We can conclude that there is a significant effect of periodontal treatment on improvement of HbA1c in diabetes patients, although the effect size is extremely small. In addition to the small effect size, not all SRs could be considered of high quality