Photochemical Reactions of Ge-Related Centers in Germanosilicate Glass Preparted by Sol-Gel Process (SOLID STATE CHEMISTRY-Amorphous Materials)

Germanosilicate glasses are prepared by a sol-gel method and the UV-photosensitivity of glasses is investigated by optical absorption, ESR, and photoluminescence measurements. Large changes in optical absorption are observed for the sol-gel-derived glass by the ultraviolet laser irradiation; a decrease in 5-eV band and increases in absorption around 4.5 and > 5.7 eV. Photoluminescence intensity under 248- nm excitation decreases with an increase in laser fluence and also with decrease in the 5-eV band. This result strongly implies the novel photochemical reaction from Ge2+ to Ge E' induced by excimer laser irradiation

Acute exercise in a hot environment increases heat shock protein 70 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α mRNA in Thoroughbred horse skeletal muscle

Heat acclimatization or acclimation training in horses is practiced to reduce physiological strain and improve exercise performance in the heat, which can involve metabolic improvement in skeletal muscle. However, there is limited information concerning the acute signaling responses of equine skeletal muscle after exercise in a hot environment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the hypothesis that exercise in hot conditions induces greater changes in heat shock proteins and mitochondrial-related signaling in equine skeletal muscle compared with exercise in cool conditions. Fifteen trained Thoroughbred horses [4.6 ± 0.4 (mean ± SE) years old; 503 ± 14 kg] were assigned to perform a treadmill exercise test in cool conditions [COOL; Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT), 12.5°C; n = 8] or hot conditions (HOT; WBGT, 29.5°C; n = 7) consisting of walking at 1.7 m/s for 1 min, trotting at 4 m/s for 5 min, and cantering at 7 m/s for 2 min and at 90% of VO2max for 2 min, followed by walking at 1.7 m/s for 20 min. Heart rate during exercise and plasma lactate concentration immediately after exercise were measured. Biopsy samples were obtained from the middle gluteal muscle before and at 4 h after exercise, and relative quantitative analysis of mRNA expression using real-time RT-PCR was performed. Data were analyzed with using mixed models. There were no significant differences between the two groups in peak heart rate (COOL, 213 ± 3 bpm; HOT, 214 ± 4 bpm; p = 0.782) and plasma lactate concentration (COOL, 13.1 ± 1.4 mmoL/L; HOT, 17.5 ± 1.7 mmoL/L; p = 0.060), while HSP-70 (COOL, 1.9-fold, p = 0.207; HOT, 2.4-fold, p = 0.045), PGC-1α (COOL, 3.8-fold, p = 0.424; HOT, 8.4-fold, p = 0.010), HIF-1α (COOL, 1.6-fold, p = 0.315; HOT, 2.2-fold, p = 0.018) and PDK4 (COOL, 7.6-fold, p = 0.412; HOT, 14.1-fold, p = 0.047) mRNA increased significantly only in HOT at 4 h after exercise. These data indicate that acute exercise in a hot environment facilitates protective response to heat stress (HSP-70), mitochondrial biogenesis (PGC-1α and HIF-1α) and fatty acid oxidation (PDK4)

The Far-Infrared Surveyor (FIS) for AKARI

The Far-Infrared Surveyor (FIS) is one of two focal plane instruments on the AKARI satellite. FIS has four photometric bands at 65, 90, 140, and 160 um, and uses two kinds of array detectors. The FIS arrays and optics are designed to sweep the sky with high spatial resolution and redundancy. The actual scan width is more than eight arcmin, and the pixel pitch is matches the diffraction limit of the telescope. Derived point spread functions (PSFs) from observations of asteroids are similar to the optical model. Significant excesses, however, are clearly seen around tails of the PSFs, whose contributions are about 30% of the total power. All FIS functions are operating well in orbit, and its performance meets the laboratory characterizations, except for the two longer wavelength bands, which are not performing as well as characterized. Furthermore, the FIS has a spectroscopic capability using a Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS). Because the FTS takes advantage of the optics and detectors of the photometer, it can simultaneously make a spectral map. This paper summarizes the in-flight technical and operational performance of the FIS.Comment: 23 pages, 10 figures, and 2 tables. Accepted for publication in the AKARI special issue of the Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japa

A safeguard system for induced pluripotent stem cell-derived rejuvenated T cell therapy

The discovery of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) has created promising new avenues for therapies in regenerative medicine. However, the tumorigenic potential of undifferentiated iPSCs is a major safety concern for clinical translation. To address this issue, we demonstrated the efficacy of suicide gene therapy by introducing inducible caspase-9 (iC9) into iPSCs. Activation of iC9 with a specific chemical inducer of dimerization (CID) initiates a caspase cascade that eliminates iPSCs and tumors originated from iPSCs. We introduced this iC9/CID safeguard system into a previously reported iPSC-derived, rejuvenated cytotoxic T lymphocyte (rejCTL) therapy model and confirmed that we can generate rejCTLs from iPSCs expressing high levels of iC9 without disturbing antigen-specific killing activity. iC9-expressing rejCTLs exert antitumor effects in vivo. The system efficiently and safely induces apoptosis in these rejCTLs. These results unite to suggest that the iC9/CID safeguard system is a promising tool for future iPSC-mediated approaches to clinical therapy

ARE-binding protein ZFP36L1 interacts with CNOT1 to directly repress translation via a deadenylation-independent mechanism

Eukaryotic gene expression can be spatiotemporally tuned at the post-transcriptional level by cis-regulatory elements in mRNA sequences. An important example is the AU-rich element (ARE), which induces mRNA destabilization in a variety of biological contexts in mammals and can also mediate translational control. Regulation is mediated by trans-acting factors that recognize the ARE, such as Tristetraprolin (TTP) and BRF1/ZFP36L1. Although both proteins can destabilize their target mRNAs through the recruitment of the CCR4-NOT deadenylation complex, TTP also directly regulates translation. Whether ZFP36L1 can directly repress translation remains unknown. Here, we used an in vitro translation system derived from mammalian cell lines to address this key mechanistic issue in ARE regulation by ZFP36L1. Functional assays with mutant proteins reveal that ZFP36L1 can repress translation via AU-Rich elements independent of deadenylation. ZFP36L1-mediated translation repression requires interaction between ZFP36L1 and CNOT1, suggesting that it might use a repression mechanism similar to either TPP or miRISC. However, several lines of evidence suggest that the similarity ends there. Unlike, TTP, it does not efficiently interact with either 4E-HP or GIGYF2, suggesting it does not repress translation by recruiting these proteins to the mRNA cap. Moreover, ZFP36L1 could not repress ECMV-IRES driven translation and was resistant to pharmacological eIF4A inhibitor silvestrol, suggesting fundamental differences with miRISC repression via eIF4A. Collectively, our results reveal that ZFP36L1 represses translation directly and suggest that it does so via a novel mechanism distinct from other translational regulators that interact with the CCR4-NOT deadenylase complex

フクマク ハシュ オ トモナッタ コウド シンコウ イガン ニ タイスル TS 1 ニヨル ジュツゼン カガク リョウホウ ノ ユウヨウセイ

TS -１ is an oral anticancer agent developed by utilizing biochemical modulation. We used TS -１in neoadjuvant chemotherapy for a patient with highly advanced gastric cancer that was accompanied by peritoneal dissemination. This enabled us to resect tumor. This patient was a６０-year-old woman. Fluoroscopic upper gastrointestinal series revealed a circumferential, type４lesion extending from the middle of the corpus to the antrum. This was diagnosed by endoscopy as poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma. CT showed ascites, thickening of the gastric wall, and direct infiltration into the head of the pancreas. In endoscopy of the large bowel, a strawberry jelly-like elevation was detected at the ileum. This was diagnosed as poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma, and considered a metastatic lesion produced by dissemination. Chest CT showed a single metastasis in the upper lobe of the right lung. We gave her３cycles of combined TS-１and low-dose CDDP for neoadjuvant chemotherapy. On laparotomy, we found that there was no ascites, and miliary scars were present at several sites near the ascending colon. The antrum of the stomach firmly adhered to the head of the pancreas, and scarred. We judged that the tumor was resectable, and performed distal gastrectomy（D２）plus ileocecal resection（D２）． In histopathological examination, poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma was detected only on a part of the muscular layer in the lesser curvature and posterior wall of the corpus, and marked fibrosis was observed in the submucosal layer. The effect of chemotherapy was histologically evaluated as grade２. The tumor was diagnosed as poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma（por）, with muscularis propria（mp）, lymph invasion２（ly２），vein invasion ０（v０）and degree of lymph node metastasis２（+）［n２（+）］. Tubular adenocarcinoma was detected in a part of the submucosal layer of the ileum. The patient was alive with cancer as of２７months after operation

チョメイナ ノウホウ ケイセイ オ トモナッタ カンサイボウ ガン ノ 1ジケンレイ

It is said that in hepatocellular carcinoma, necrosis is liable to occur in the center and the percentage of cystic formation is comparatively low, but as we have experienced one case of hepatocellular carcinoma associated with marked cystic formation, we reported it. The patient was a female aged７０years. Because general fatigue and anorexia occurred, Abdominal CT test was conducted and hepatic mass was pointed out. Contrast-CT test showed a tumor of６cm in diameter in the medial segment of the left lobe of the liver. As the border was stained with arterial phase, the center was not imaged and the tumor was diagnosed as vascular proliferating type hepatic tumor associated with marked cystic change. MRI test showed that the border of the tumor was lobular and part thereof was of septal structure. The tumor was diagnosed as hepatocellular carcinoma associated with bleeding in tumor, hepatic cystadenocarcinoma or hepatic sarcoma. Abdominal angiography showed not only marked vascular proliferation and tumor stain in the area of the middle hepatic artery but also early venous return, and the middle hepatic vein was clearly imaged. The tumor size was ５×５×４cm in size and was in contact with the middle hepatic vein but it did not invade the vein. Left hepatic lobectomy was performed. Histopathologically the center of the tumor was cystic with colliquative necrosis. The tumor had the trabecular structure and the tumor cell was consisted of clear cell. The tumor was thus diagnosed as poorly differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma. Postoperative course was good and the patient was discharged from our hospital on the１９th day after operation. At the moment when１９ months have passed since the operation, the patient is alive without any recurrence of carcinoma