The micromethod for determination of cholesterol, cholesteryl esters and phospholipids

We examined the method for determining microquantities of lipids, including cholesterol, cholesteryl esters and phospholipids. A standard colorimetric procedure of cholesteryl esters was modified to accommodate a quantitative thin-layer chromatography. This method involved the following steps. (1) Separation of lipids by a thin-layer chromatography: Lipids were applied to Silica gel G plates. Plates were developed with petroleum ether-diethyl etheracetic acid (82: 18: 2, vIvIv). (2) Elution of cholesterol and its esters from scraped silica gel: After scraping the silica gel with adhered cholesterol and its esters, they were eluted with chloroform-methanol (4: 1, v,tv). In the case of phspholipids, the silica gel was calcified. (3) Colorimetric determination of the lipids: Cholesterol and its esters eluted from the silica gel were determined by the method of ZAK with ROSENTHAL'S color reagent directly and after saponification, respectively. Phospholipids were calculated from the phosphorous content determined by the method of KATES. On the basis of examination of recovery and analyses of lipids extracted from tissue, it was concluded that this method permitted a reliable estimation of microquantities of cholesterol, its esters and phospholipids from small amounts of biological materials.</p

Poly[bis­(μ3-dodecyl sulfato)­calcium]

In the title compound [Ca(C12H25O4S)2]n, the unique CaII ion lies on an inversion center and is coordinated in a slightly distorted octa­hedral environment by six O atoms from dodecyl sulfate anions. The crystal structure is based on hydro­carbon (dodecyl sulfate) layers which sandwich the CaII ions. Within the layers, the hydro­carbon zigzag chains are parallel to one another and inter­act via van der Waals forces

Ultrastructural alteration of the cell surface of Staphylococcus aureus cultured in a different salt condition

Staphylococcus aureus growing in a normal NaGI medium has a specific NaGI tolerance property to grow in the medium contain. ing NaGl in as high a concentration as over 10%. In our comparative study of the cells proliferating in the normal NaGI medium and 10% NaGl medium, we have observed the following differences aside from the changes of lipid composition in the cytoplasmic membrane previously reported. 1. S. aureus grown in high NaGl medium undergoes changes as to increase its size and reduce its surface area. 2. The thickness and weight of cell wall are increased to about 1. 7 times and 1. 32 times, respectively. 3. The protoplast prepared from S. aureus growing in the high NaGI medium shows a weaker resistance to hypotonic condition than that from normal cell.</p

Study on the rudder characteristics of ultimate rudder by numerical calculation

The authors invented Ultimate Rudder3) as the rudder with bulb. The authors calculated the rudder characteristics of the normal rudder and Ultimate Rudder by CFD at several steering angles and compared these values. The result showed that regardless of the presence or absence of the bulb, signs of separation appear on the control surface with a steering angle of 20 deg. to 30 deg. and regarding the steering torque coefficient, it was found that the steering torque coefficient of Ultimate Rudder is larger than the normal Rudder when the steering angle is less than 20 deg. and also the steering torque coefficient can be decreased by changing the shape of the rudder bulb

Crystalline maricite NaFePO₄ as a positive electrode material for sodium secondary batteries operating at intermediate temperature

Maricite NaFePO₄ (m-NaFePO₄) was investigated as a positive electrode material for intermediate-temperature operation of sodium secondary batteries using ionic liquid electrolytes. Powdered m-NaFePO₄ was prepared by a conventional solid-state method at 873 K and subsequently fabricated in two different conditions; one is ball-milled in acetone and the other is re-calcined at 873 K after the ball-milling. Electrochemical properties of the electrodes prepared with the as-synthesized m-NaFePO₄, the ball-milled m-NaFePO₄, and the re-calcined m-NaFePO₄ were investigated in Na[FSA]-[C₂C₁im][FSA] (C₂C₁im⁺ = 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium, FSA⁻ = bis(fluorosulfonyl)amide) ionic liquid electrolytes at 298 K and 363 K to assess the effects of temperature and particle size on their electrochemical properties. A reversible charge-discharge capacity of 107 mAh g⁻¹ was achieved with a coulombic efficiency >98% from the 2nd cycle using the ball-milled m-NaFePO₄ electrode at a C–rate of 0.1 C and 363 K. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy using m-NaFePO₄/m-NaFePO₄ symmetric cells indicated that inactive m-NaFePO₄ becomes an active material through ball-milling treatment and elevation of operating temperature. X-ray diffraction analysis of crystalline m-NaFePO₄ confirmed the lattice contraction and expansion upon charging and discharging, respectively. These results indicate that the desodiation-sodiation process in m-NaFePO₄ is reversible in the intermediate-temperature range

Clinical utility of silk-elastin sponge in patients with chronic and acute skin ulcers: study protocol of a multi-center clinical trial

INTRODUCTION: Not only chronic but also some acute wounds have a risk of infection and become unhealed wounds. Silk-elastin sponge has been developed to treat chronic wounds that are susceptible to infection. Preclinical and clinical studies suggested that silk-elastin sponge is safe for humans and can promote granulation tissue formation by reducing bacterial growth in chronic wounds. The central aim of this trial is to evaluate the clinical utility and safety of silk-elastin sponge for the treatment of chronic and acute skin ulcers. METHODS: This study is a prospective, multicenter, single-arm, uncontrolled clinical trial. In this study, 20 patients with chronic ulcers and five with an acute one will be included; patients with wound infection will be excluded. Silk-elastin sponges are applied and covered with a dressing for 14 days. PLANNED OUTCOMES: The primary endpoint is the frequency of patients with chronic wounds in whom the investigator confirms the formation of a healthy wound bed at 14 days after the initial application of the study device. In addition, safety for acute wounds and handiness of the study device will be assessed. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: jRCT2052210072

Cultured epithelial autografts for the treatment of large-to-giant congenital melanocytic nevus in 31 patients

Introduction: Giant congenital melanocytic nevus (GCMN) is a large melanocytic nevus, and its full-thickness removal is usually difficult due to the lack of skin available for reconstruction. Curettage is an alternative approach in cases of GCMN to remove the superficial dermis above the cleavage plane with a curette in the neonatal period, and its major complications include repigmentation, retarded epithelization, and hypertrophic scar formation. In Japan, the JACE® cultured epidermal autograft (CEA) was approved and covered by public healthcare insurance for the treatment of congenital melanocytic nevus (CMN) that is difficult to treat with conventional methods in 2016. We have used CEA for wounds after curettage in the neonatal period or following ablation after the neonatal period in combination with laser therapies to reduce the above-mentioned complications. Methods: In this study, we summarized all consecutive CMN patients treated using CEA from December 2016 to April 2019 and evaluated the duration required for epithelialization, incidence of hypertrophic scar, and color change in the target nevus by comparing the L∗ values one year later between the Curettage group, the non-Curettage group with initial treatment or the subsequent group. Results: No significant differences were seen in the epithelization period or incidence of hypertrophic scars among the groups, but the color of the target nevus was improved significantly in the Curettage group (p < 0.01) and non-Curettage group with initial treatment (p < 0.01). Conclusions: In conclusion, CEA seems to accelerate epithelization after curettage or ablation of CMN, and this treatment could improve the color of CMN when applied initially

A Novel Reagent for the Synthesis of Branched-chain Functionalized Sugars. Dichloromethyllithium

A few novel branched-chain functionalized sugars, which have important functions such as hydroxyl, hydro, chloro, or azido at quaternary carbon were prepared in good yield via the same intermediary spiro chloroepoxide derivative by use of dichloromethyllithium

A highly-flexible cyclic-decavanadate ligand for interconversion of dinuclear- and trinuclear-cobalt(II) and manganese(II) cores

金沢大学理工研究域物質化学系The structure transformation of multinuclear-metal-cores can change catalytic, optical, and magnetic properties. Cyclic decavanadate ligands exhibit versatility in the number and the direction of the coordination sites by changing the conformation to stabilize various multinuclear-metal-cores, while organic multinucleating ligands require specific design for each of the multimetal complexes due to their structure directing ability. The flexibility of cyclic decavanadate ligands is demonstrated here to achieve accommodation of dinuclear or trinuclear units by using the same ligand. The reaction of a dinuclear-cobalt-core-containing decavanadate [Co2(H2O)2V10O30]6- (Co2) with 1 equiv. of Co(OAc)2 (OAc = acetate) gave a trinuclear-cobalt-core-containing decavanadate [Co3(H2O)(OAc)V10O30]5- (Co3) in high yield. The central cobalt core exhibited an incomplete-cubane-type structure. The decavanadate ring contracts to accommodate a smaller dinuclear unit by taking a wavy conformation and expands to accommodate the larger trinuclear unit. The reverse reaction quantitatively proceeded by the addition of 5 equiv. of [VO3]- with respect to Co3. Although a trinuclear-manganese-core-containing decavanadate [Mn3(H2O)(OAc)V10O30]5- (Mn3) possesses the same structure as that of Co3, the addition of 5 equiv. of [VO3]- yielded a different structure of a dinuclear-manganese-core-containing decavanadate [Mn2V10O30]6- (Mn2) with two cyclic pentavanadate ligands sandwiching the manganese core. Thus, the conformations of the cyclic decavanadates are rearranged to respond to the central metal core structures. EXAFS study suggests both manganese complexes maintain the molecular structure in solution. The simultaneous analyses of the magnetic susceptibility data and the magnetization data revealed the switch of magnetic interaction modes from ferromagnetic in dinuclear complexes to mixed ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions in trinuclear complexes: the ferromagnetic interaction in dinuclear units of Co2 (J = 8.05 cm-1) and Mn2 (J = 0.76 cm-1) (Hex = -JS1S2), and the ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions in Co3 (J = -1.59 cm-1 and J′ = 13.6 cm-1) and Mn3 (J = -2.20 cm-1 and J′ = 0.07 cm-1) (Hex = -JSA1SA2 - J′[SA1SB + SA2SB]) were studied. © 2017 The Royal Society of Chemistry

Synthesis of [11C]uric acid, using [11C]phosgene, as a possible biomarker in PET imaging for diagnosis of gout

The synthesis and in vivo evaluation of 11C -labeled uric acid ([11C]1), a potential imaging agent for the diagnosis of urate-related life-style diseases, was performed using positron emission tomography (PET) image analysis. First, the synthesis of [11C]1 was achieved by reacting 5,6-diaminouracil (2) with 11C-labeled phosgene ([11C]COCl2). The radiochemical yield of [11C]1 was 37 ± 7% (decay-corrected based on [11C]COCl2) with specific radioactivities of 96-152 GBq/μmol at the end of synthesis (n = 6). The average time of radiosynthesis from the end of bombardment, including formulation, was about 30 min with >98% radiochemical purity. Second, the synthetic approach to [11C]1 was optimized using 5,6-diaminouracil sulfate (3) with [11C]COCl2 in the presence of 1,8-bis(dimethylamino)naphthalene. [11C]1 was synthesized in 36 ± 6% radiochemical yield, 89-142 GBq/μmol of specific radioactivities, and 98% radiochemical purity by this method (n = 5). This allowed the synthesis of [11C]1 to be carried out repeatedly and the radiochemical yield, specific radioactivities, average time of synthesis, and radiochemical purity of [11C]1 were similar to those obtained using 2. PET studies in rats showed large differences in the accumulation of radioligand in the limbs under normal and hyperuricemic conditions. Thus, an efficient and convenient automated synthesis of [11C]1 has been developed, and preliminary PET evaluation of [11C]1 confirmed the increased accumulation of radioactivity in the limbs of a rat model of hyperuricemia. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved