A study on Growing of Ice Crystal after Breaking of Super Cooling Condition by Numerical Simulations and MRI Measurements

Numerical simulations and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements have been carried out for a better understanding of the behavior in ice crystal growing after breaking of super cooling condition in aqueous solutions. The numerical simulations showed that a fast cooling from outside caused ice nucleation from the outer edge and the expansion of bulky ice crystal, on the other hand, a slow cooling showed ice nucleation from inside and expansion of fibrous ice crystal.Temperature measurements and MRI measurements for a phantom test sample with cylindrical double layer structure showed that frisky ice crystals were outbreak throughout the outer layer inducing the temperature increase up to 0 degree after the breaking of super cooling condition and the inner layer stayed as a liquid at the lower temperature, and after that, bulk ice crystals were expanded from the surface of the inner part in outer layer causing the increase of temperature of inner part.Original: Trans. JSRAE, Vol.33, No.3, pp.261-266,(2016), "数値シミュレーションとMRI測定による過冷却解消後の氷結晶の成長に関する考察", https://doi.org/10.11322/tjsrae.16-21NR_O

Novel non-alcoholic steatohepatitis model with histopathological and insulin-resistant features

Although several non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) models have been reported to date, few of these models fully reflect the histopathology and pathophysiology of human NASH. The aim of this study was to establish a novel NASH model by feeding a high-fat (HF) diet and administering both carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) and the Liver X receptor agonist T0901317. Male C57BL/6J mice were divided into four groups (each n = 5): HF, HF + CCl4, HF + T0901317, and the novel NASH model (HF + CCl4 + T0901317). CCl4 (0.1 mL/kg) and T0901317 (2.5 mg/kg) were intraperitoneally administered four times and five times, respectively. The livers of the novel NASH model group presented a whitish colour. The serum levels of TNF-α and IL-6 were significantly increased in the novel NASH model group, and mice in this group exhibited histopathological features and insulin resistance reflective of NASH, i.e., macrovesicular hepatic steatosis, ballooning hepatocytes, Mallory-Denk bodies, lobular inflammation and fibrosis. The novel NASH model group presented significantly upregulated expression levels of mRNAs related to lipogenesis, oxidative stress, fibrosis and steatosis and significantly downregulated expression levels of mRNAs related to triglyceride export. We successfully established a novel experimental NASH model that exhibits similar histopathology and pathophysiology to human NASH

Effect of moisture uptake on the texture of dried laver Porphyra. (Nori) studied by mechanical characterization and NMR measurement

Mechanical property measurements, 1H T2 measurement by low-field (LF) NMR and 13C T1 measurement by high-resolution cross polarization/magic angle spinning (CP/MAS) solid-state NMR were carried out to evaluate the structural changes of Nori upon moisture uptake.The texture of dry Nori changed to be tough and then soft upon moisture uptake. The increase of 1H T2 and decrease of 13C T1 were observed with an increase of moisture content indicating the increase of the molecular mobility of Nori components.The results of the LF-NMR suggested that the increase of mobility of the inert protons in rigid components is more dominated than that of the labile protons in soft components when Nori becomes the soggy state, whereas the mobility of the soft part increases more by moisture uptake when Nori becomes the wet state. The changes of molecular mobility of each main component (proteins and porphyran) were well depicted by the 13C T1 measurement, which represented the hydration of porphyran and proteins in the pulps and binder part.The change of mechanical properties of Nori was successfully elucidated with the NMR relaxation measurements.公開日: 2022-10-0