Intravascular Large B-Cell Lymphoma in Acute Hypoxic Respiratory Failure.

Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma, an extranodal large B-cell lymphoma, is a rare hematological malignancy with only a few reports of lung involvement. We report a case of intravascular large B-cell lymphoma with acute hypoxic respiratory failure and interstitial lung disease diagnosed via random skin biopsies. A 54-year-old woman presented with fever, cough, and dyspnea. Computed tomography imaging revealed findings concerning interstitial lung disease. The patient's respiratory status worsened despite the treatment with antibiotics and steroids. Generalized edema and thrombocytopenia also developed. Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma was clinically suspected and ultimately diagnosed by skin biopsy, although she had no apparent skin lesions. The patient's condition considerably improved after chemotherapy. Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma should be considered in patients with acute respiratory failure and interstitial lung lesions.

Synthesis of Three-Layer Perovskite Oxynitride K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O and Photocatalytic Activity for H2 Evolution under Visible Light.

Substitution of oxide anions (O2-) in a metal oxide for nitrogen (N3-) results in reduction of the band gap, which is attractive in heterogeneous photocatalysis; however, only a handful of two-dimensional layered perovskite oxynitrides have been reported, and thus, the structural effects of layered oxynitrides on photocatalytic activity have not been sufficiently examined. This study reports the synthesis of a Ruddlesden-Popper phase three-layer oxynitride perovskite of K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O, and the photocatalytic activity is compared with an analogous two-layer perovskite, K2LaTa2O6N·1.6H2O. Topochemical ammonolysis reaction of a Dion-Jacobson phase oxide KCa2Ta3O10 at 1173 K in the presence of K2CO3 resulted in a single-phase layered perovskite, K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O, which belongs to the tetragonal P4/mmm space group, as demonstrated by synchrotron X-ray diffraction, scanning transmission electron microscopy measurements, and elemental analysis. The synthesized K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O has an absorption edge at around 460 nm, with an estimated band gap of ca. 2.7 eV. K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O modified with a Pt cocatalyst generated H2 from an aqueous solution containing a dissolved NaI as a reversible electron donor under visible light (λ > 400 nm) with no noticeable change in the crystal structure and light absorption properties. However, the H2 evolution activity of K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O was an order of magnitude lower than that of K2LaTa2O6N·1.6H2O. Femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed that the lifetime of photogenerated mobile electrons in K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O was shorter than that in K2LaTa2O6N·1.6H2O, which could explain the low photocatalytic activity of K2Ca2Ta3O9N·2H2O.

An Artificial Z-Scheme Constructed from Dye-Sensitized Metal Oxide Nanosheets for Visible Light-Driven Overall Water Splitting.

Sensitization of a wide-gap oxide semiconductor with a visible-light-absorbing dye has been studied for decades as a means of producing H2 from water. However, efficient overall water splitting using a dye-sensitized oxide photocatalyst has remained an unmet challenge. Here we demonstrate visible-light-driven overall water splitting into H2 and O2 using HCa2Nb3O10 nanosheets sensitized by a Ru(II) tris-diimine type photosensitizer, in combination with a WO3-based water oxidation photocatalyst and a triiodide/iodide redox couple. With the use of Pt-intercalated HCa2Nb3O10 nanosheets further modified with amorphous Al2O3 clusters as the H2 evolution component, the dye-based turnover number and frequency for H2 evolution reached 4580 and 1960 h-1, respectively. The apparent quantum yield for overall water splitting using 420 nm light was 2.4%, by far the highest among dye-sensitized overall water splitting systems reported to date. The present work clearly shows that a carefully designed dye/oxide hybrid has great potential for photocatalytic H2 production, and represents a significant leap forward in the development of solar-driven water splitting systems.

Red Luminescent Eu(III) Coordination Bricks Excited on Blue LED Chip.

Three types of red luminescent Eu(III) complexes with Schiff base and hfa ligands (hfa: hexafluoroacetylacetonate), mononuclear [Eu(hfa)2(OAc)(salen)2] (OAc: acetate anion, salen: N,N'-bis(salicylidene)ethylenediamine), brick-type [Eu2(hfa)4(OAc)2(salbn)2] (salbn: N,N'-bis(salicylidene)-1,4-butanediamine), and polynuclear [Eu(hfa)2(OAc)(salhen)] n (salhen: N,N'-bis(salicylidene)-1,6-hexanediamine) are reported for white light-emitting diode (LED) devices. Among these complexes, brick-type [Eu2(hfa)4(OAc)2(salbn)2] excited by blue light (460 nm) exhibits the photosensitized quantum yield (Φπ-π* = 47%) and remarkably high efficiency of sensitization (ηsens = 96%). The efficiency of sensitization is caused by the excited state based on ligand-ligand interaction between the Schiff base and hfa ligands in Eu(III) complexes. To fabricate LED devices, the red luminescent [Eu2(hfa)4(OAc)2(salbn)2] was mounted on an InGaN blue LED chip.

A Luminescent Dinuclear EuIII /TbIII Complex with LMCT Band as a Single-Molecular Thermosensor.

Temperature-dependent luminescence of a dinuclear EuIII /TbIII complex with a seven-coordinate structure is demonstrated. The dinuclear complex is composed of two lanthanide ions, six tetramethylheptanedionate ligands, and a bidentate phosphine oxide linker ligand. The dinuclear structure of the complex was characterized by single-crystal XRD. Intrinsic 4f-4f emission quantum yields of the dinuclear EuIII and TbIII complexes were 66 and 61 %, respectively. The luminescence color of the dinuclear EuIII /TbIII complex changed from red to green with increasing temperature. The thermosensing range based on the ratio of luminescence intensity (AEu /ATb ) was 100-450 K. The temperature-dependent luminescence is due to the presence of a ligand-to-metal charge-transfer state.

Molecular Design Guidelines for Large Magnetic Circular Dichroism Intensities in Lanthanide Complexes.

Magneto optical devices based on the Faraday effects of lanthanide ion have attracted much attention. Recently, large Faraday effects were found in nano-sized multinuclear lanthanide complexes. In this study, the Faraday rotation intensities were estimated for lanthanide nitrates [Ln(III) (NO3 )3 ⋅n H2 O: Ln=Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm) and Eu(III) complexes with ß-diketone ligands, using magnetic circular dichroism. Eu ions exhibit the largest Faraday rotation intensity for (7) F0 →(5) D1 transitions, and high-symmetry fields around the Eu ions induce larger Faraday effects. The molecular design for the enhancement of Faraday effects in lanthanide complexes is discussed.

Environmental protection: researches in National Institute of Radiological Sciences.

Some studies for radiological protection of the environment have been made at the National Institute of Radiological Sciences (NIRS). Transfer of radionuclides and related elements has been investigated for dose estimation of non-human biota. A parameter database and radionuclide transfer models have been also developed for the Japanese environments. Dose (rate)-effect relationships for survival, growth and reproduction have been investigated in conifers, Arabidopsis, fungi, earthworms, springtails, algae, duckweeds, daphnia and medaka. Also genome-wide gene expression analysis has been carried out by high coverage expression profiling (HiCEP). Effects on aquatic microbial communities have been studied in experimental ecosystem models, i.e., microcosms. Some effects were detected at a dose rate of 1 Gy day(-1) and were likely to arise from interspecies interactions. The results obtained at NIRS have been used in development of frameworks for environmental protection by some international bodies, and will contribute to environmental protection in Japan and other Asian countries.

Comparative biokinetics of radiocarbon ingested as compounds or foods in rats.

The biokinetics of radiocarbon (¹4C) in rats continuously ingested in the forms of amino acids (glycine and leucine) or as foods (wheat and rapeseed) were examined and compared with each other. The differences in the biokinetics between ¹4C-amino acids and ¹4C-foods were observed in the excretion of ¹4C in feces and in the incorporation and retention of ¹4C in the rat tissues. At the 10 week of continuous ingestion of ¹4C-amino acids, the integrated activities of ¹4C in all the tissues were within 5% of the ingested activity. The integrated activities in each tissue coming from ¹4C-food ingestion were higher by a factor of more than 2 compared to those coming from ¹4C-amino acid ingestion. Radiation dose rates estimated at the 10 week showed that the dose rates to the individual tissues coming from ¹4C-food ingestion were 2-5 times higher than those coming from ¹4C-amino acid ingestion. The difference in the dose rate between ¹4C-amino acid and ¹4C-food was more significant in adipose tissue by a factor of 7-30.

Effects of acute gamma-irradiation on the aquatic microbial microcosm in comparison with chemicals.

Effects of acute gamma-irradiation were investigated in the aquatic microcosm consisting of green algae (Chlorella sp. and Scenedesmus sp.) and a blue-green alga (Tolypothrix sp.) as producers; an oligochaete (Aeolosoma hemprichi), rotifers (Lecane sp. and Philodina sp.) and a ciliate protozoan (Cyclidium glaucoma) as consumers; and more than four species of bacteria as decomposers. At 100 Gy, populations were not affected in any taxa. At 500-5000 Gy, one or three taxa died out and populations of two or three taxa decreased over time, while that of Tolypothrix sp. increased. This Tolypothrix sp. increase was likely an indirect effect due to interspecies interactions. The principal response curve analysis revealed that the main trend of the effects was a dose-dependent population decrease. For a better understanding of radiation risks in aquatic microbial communities, effect doses of gamma-rays compared with copper, herbicides and detergents were evaluated using the radiochemoecological conceptual model and the effect index for microcosm.

Biokinetics of radiocarbon ingested as a food in rats.

Biokinetics of radiocarbon (C) in rats during 14 wk of continuous ingestion of C-wheat was investigated to obtain the dosimetric data on organic C ingested as a food. After the start of continuous ingestion of C-wheat, the concentrations of C in both wet and dry tissues gradually increased and showed a tendency towards a steady-state condition for most of the tissues, except adipose tissue. The steady-state condition was observed at 10 wk in the majority of tissues, but was obtained at 3 wk in liver. The steady-state concentrations in wet tissues ranged from about 10% to 40%, and those in dry tissues ranged from about 80% to 100% of the concentration of C in the ingested food. The highest steady-state concentrations in both wet and dry tissues were observed in liver. When compared the concentrations among tissues at the end of 14 wk of continuous ingestion, adipose tissue was the highest in wet tissue and the lowest in dry tissue. From the concentrations of C in wet tissues at the 14th week, the radiation dose rates to individual tissues were estimated. The dose rates were different among the tissues. The highest dose rate was observed in adipose tissue. The next highest dose rates were found in liver and small intestine, while lower doses were measured in testis and lung. The differences in the dose rate among the tissues seemed to be mainly dependent on the variation in the organic content of each tissue.