Reversible superconductor-insulator transition in LiTi2O4 induced by Li-ion electrochemical reaction.

Transition metal oxides display various electronic and magnetic phases such as high-temperature superconductivity. Controlling such exotic properties by applying an external field is one of the biggest continuous challenges in condensed matter physics. Here, we demonstrate clear superconductor-insulator transition of LiTi2O4 films induced by Li-ion electrochemical reaction. A compact electrochemical cell of pseudo-Li-ion battery structure is formed with a superconducting LiTi2O4 film as an anode. Li content in the film is controlled by applying a constant redox voltage. An insulating state is achieved by Li-ion intercalation to the superconducting film by applying reduction potential. In contrast, the superconducting state is reproduced by applying oxidation potential to the Li-ion intercalated film. Moreover, superconducting transition temperature is also recovered after a number of cycles of Li-ion electrochemical reactions. This complete reversible transition originates in difference in potentials required for deintercalation of initially contained and electrochemically intercalated Li(+) ions.

Ion-energy dependence of asymmetric dissociation of D2 by a two-color laser field.

Two-color (800 and 400 nm) short (45 fs) linearly polarized pulses are used to ionize and dissociate D2 into a neutral deuterium atom and a deuteron. The yields and energies of the ions are measured left and right along the polarization vector. As the relative phase of the two colors is varied, strong yield asymmetries are found in the ion-energy regions traditionally identified as bond softening, above-threshold dissociation and rescattering. The asymmetries in these regions are quite different. A model based on the dynamic coupling by the laser field of the gerade and ungerade states in the molecular ion accounts for many of the observed features.

Enhancing high-order above-threshold dissociation of H2+ beams with few-cycle laser pulses.

High-order (three-photon or more) above-threshold dissociation (ATD) of H(2)(+) has generally not been observed using 800 nm light. We demonstrate a strong enhancement of its probability using intense 7 fs laser pulses interacting with beams of H(2)(+), HD(+), and D(2)(+) ions. The mechanism invokes a dynamic control of the dissociation pathway. These measurements are supported by theory that additionally reveals, for the first time, an unexpectedly large contribution to ATD from highly excited electronic states.

Superior performance in WAIS-R block design among top-level rugby players.

OBJECTIVE AND DESIGN: Following a report that a well-known soccer player achieved a perfect score on the Block Design subtest of WAIS-R, WAIS-R was conducted on 31 skilled rugby players. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-seven of the 31 players were recruited for further analyses. RESULTS: In 14 of 27 players, Block Design scores were the highest of the 11 subtests. In addition to Block Design scores that exceeded the scores for the other subtests, the players' Block Design scores were also better than scores for the standard sample. CONCLUSIONS: The Block Design is related to spatial cognitive ability. These results showed that highly skilled players of field and ball games possess high spatial cognitive abilities.

Symptomatic recovery and social functioning in major depression.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether social functional recovery precedes, runs in parallel with, or lags behind symptomatic recovery from major depressive episodes. METHOD: Psychiatric out-patients or in-patients aged 18 years or over, diagnosed with unipolar major depressive disorder according to DSM-IV, and who had received no antidepressant medication in the preceding 3 months were identified at 23 collaborating centres from all over Japan (n=95). They were rated with the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) and the Global Assessment Scale (GAS) monthly, and with the Social Adjustment Scale-Self Report (SAS-SR) 6-monthly. Remission was defined as 7 or less on the HRSD and recovery as 2 or more consecutive months of remission. RESULTS: The GAS ratings showed continuous amelioration from baseline to remission, remission to recovery, and after sustained recovery. The same trends were observed for SAS-SR scores. CONCLUSION: We can expect further amelioration in social adjustment after symptomatic remission and recovery of major depressive episodes.

Discrimination of histamine H1 and muscarinic receptor-mediated signalling pathways by phorbol ester in human astrocytoma cells.

1. Histamine H1 receptor-mediated signalling was compared with muscarinic receptor-mediated signalling in 1321N1 human astrocytoma cells. 2. Short-term (2 min) treatment of cells with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) resulted in a reduction of increases in intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) induced by carbachol or histamine. 3. Carbachol-induced increases in [Ca2+]i were 10-fold more sensitive to PMA than the histamine-induced increases. 4. When cells were treated with PMA for 48 or 72 h (long-term treatment), protein kinase C (PKC) was down-regulated and PMA did not inhibit carbachol-induced increases in [Ca2+]i. 5. Histamine-induced increases in [Ca2+]i were significantly reduced by long-term treatment with PMA. 6. These findings suggest that the signalling pathways mediated by histamine H1 and muscarinic receptors can be distinguished by using PKC in 1321N1 human astrocytoma cells.

Cleavage of porcine high molecular weight kininogen by the action of porcine pancreatic kallikrein.

Pancreatic kallikrein (KK), converts the single chain high molecular weight kininogen (HK) into a two-chain molecule accompanied by kinin release. Further degradation was not observed. Molecular weights of the heavy (H)-chain and light (L)-chain were estimated to be 61 kDa and 56 kDa, respectively, by SDS-PAGE. The amino (N)-terminal sequences of intact HK, reduced and carboxymethylated (RCM)-H-chain, and RCM-L-chain were determined. These results indicate that porcine pancreatic KK initially cleaved the Arg-Ser bond of HK, to form a two chain molecule. Then pancreatic KK cleaved the Met-Lys bond yielding kallidin and a kinin-free protein, which was apparently equal in size to the nicked kininogen.

Effect of trazodone in a single dose before bedtime for sleep disorders accompanied by a depressive state: dose-finding study with no concomitant use of hypnotic agent.

This was the first dose-finding study of trazodone that was designed to be free of the concomitant use of hypnotics, in which the drug was administered in a single dose for sleep disorders combined with a depressive state. As a result, trazodone at the dosage of 50-100 mg/day improved sleep disorders, particularly at the 100 mg/day dosage. It was confirmed that trazodone improved sleep disorders combined with a depressive state when it was administered in a single dose before bedtime with no concomitant hypnotics.

Studies on porcine high molecular weight kininogen. An improved method for the purification of porcine high molecular weight kininogen and cleavage of the kininogen by the action of porcine plasma kallikrein.

By introduction of stepwise DEAE Sephadex A-50 and copper-Chelating Sepharose 6B column chromatographies, about 18.5 mg of high molecular weight kininogen (HK) composed of a single polypeptide chain was obtained from 500 ml of porcine plasma. Molecular weights of reduced or non-reduced preparation were estimated to be 110 kDa and 116 kDa, respectively, by SDS-PAGE. Using the preparation, cleavage of HK by porcine plasma kallikrein (KK) was investigated. A single polypeptide HK was cleaved into two chains cross-linked by disulfide bond(s), accompanying the release of kinin. Further degradation was not observed. Molecular weights of heavy-chain (H-chain) and light-chain (L-chain) were estimated to be 61 kDa and 56 kDa, respectively, by SDS-PAGE. The amino- (N-) terminal sequences of intact HK, reduced and carboxymethylated- (RCM-) H-chain, RCM-L-chain and the peptide around the kinin moiety obtained by BrCN digestion were determined. Their sequences were highly homologous with those of bovine or human HK. These results indicate that plasma KK first cleaved the Arg-Ser bond of HK, and formed nicked HK. The second cleavage yielded bradykinin (BK) and kinin-free protein, which was apparently of equal size to the nicked HK. The structure of HK was from the N-terminus to the carboxy- (C-) terminus, H-chain-BK-L-chain.

[Experiences with home enteral nutrition using PEG in patients with adult Crohn's disease].

In adult cases with Crohn's disease, treatment of both the disease and patients' social lives is required for therapeutic regimens. Therefore, we assessed the safety and effectiveness of home enteral nutrition using PEG in patients with adult Crohn's disease. Five patients who were diagnosed with Crohn's disease undergoing a domiciliary treatment with enteral nutrition using PEG in The Jikei University School of Medicine and related institutions from May, 1994, to July, 1998, were the subjects of this study. All patients were relieved of symptoms and returned to work, one of whom relapsed two years later to undergo reoperation. Improvements of nutritional status and almost complete disappearance of inflammatory response were found in all patients. As for PEG-related complications, there was one case complicated with wound infection at an early time, and late complications, included two cases with abnormal granulation and one case with pain in ambient PEG. However, neither major complications nor complications that hindered everyday living were observed. Results of a questionnaire relating to this regimen showed almost complete well-being, though there were complaints about limited of oral intake and the cumbersome procedure of enteral nutrition. In conclusion, home enteral nutrition using PEG is effective in maintaining relief of symptoms, both the time required for feeding and patient pain are less, patients can be readily socially rehabilitated, and complications related to PEG have been few. These suggest that it may become a beneficial measure for patients with adult Crohn's disease.

Canine plasma kininogen: evidence for the presence of two kininogens and purification of high molecular weight kininogen and characterization as multi-functional molecule.

The ratio of kininogen that is substrate of plasma kallikrein to kininogen, which is not substrate of plasma kallikrein in canine plasma, was about 1:3.6 by differential assay of kininogens. When the plasma was gel-filtered through a column of Sephacryl S-300 superfine, two fractions, which released kinin by trypsin, were obtained. These results indicate that two kininogens with different molecular weights are present in the plasma and they show different susceptibility to plasma kallikrein. One kininogen was purified by ion-exchange and zinc-chelating affinity chromatographies. Purified kininogen showed a single band in sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under reducing condition and its molecular weight was 125 kDa. Released kinin from the kininogen by trypsin was bradykinin. The kininogen inhibited papain and ficin but did not inhibit bromelain at the concentration used. The kininogen bound to carboxymethylated-papain and this binding was dissociated by 3M NaSCN. Canine plasma shortened the abnormal clotting time of human high molecular weight kininogen-deficint plasma. The kininogen also shortened the abnormal clotting time of the plasma. From these results, the purified kininogen was high molecular weight kininogen and it was multi-functional protein.

Binding of antibodies against GM1 and GD1b in human peripheral nerve.

Human dorsal root ganglia (DRG), and ventral and dorsal roots were immunostained with rabbit antibodies recognizing GM1, GD1b, or both. Sera from rabbits immunized with GM1 or GD1b were separated in affinity columns into three fractions: Rab1, Rab2, and Rab3. Rab1 recognized only GM1, and Rab2 only GD1b; whereas Rab3 recognized both GM1 and GD1b, presumably by binding to the terminal galactosyl beta 1-3N-acetylgalactosaminyl residue. Rab2 and Rab3 immunostained most of the nerve cell bodies in the DRG and paranodal myelin of the ventral and dorsal roots, whereas Rab1 produced no significant immunostaining. These results show that GD1b is localized on the DRG neurons and the paranodal myelin of human peripheral nerve. These places may be the binding sites for anti-GD1b antibodies, including those cross-reactive with GM1, in the sera from patients with autoimmune neuropathies. GM1 may be dispersed in human DRG and dorsal and ventral roots.

Studies on factor XII in porcine plasma: purification and its conversion to activated form by porcine plasma kallikrein.

When porcine plasma was subjected to four steps of ion-exchange column chromatographies, factor XII (F. XII) was separated into two fractions, F. XII-1 and F.XII-2, and about 8.5 mg of F. XII-1 and 2.3 mg of F. XII-2 were obtained from 675 ml of the plasma. The purified proteins were found to give a single band on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The molecular masses of F. XII-1 and XII-2 were estimated to be about 84 kDa by SDS-PAGE, and consisted of a single polypeptide chain. However, F. XII-1 converted to active form after removing Polybrene, but F. XII-2 was not activated. Activation of F. XII-2 took place on incubation with porcine plasma kallikrein, and the activation rate was increased only in the presence of negatively charged surfaces, such as sulfatide. When the preparation was incubated with sulfatide, spontaneous activation was not observed on the condition that we used. Activation of porcine F. XII-2 by porcine plasma kallikrein was found to involve the cleavage of the peptide bond on the disulfide-bridged polypeptide chain, and further fragmentation of activated form was observed during prolonged incubation time.

Trazodone for aggression in an adolescent with hydrocephalus.

A case of 19 year old male with hydrocephalus is reported whose aggressive self-injurious behaviors were resistant to conventional pharmacotherapy but successfully treated by trazodone. In addition to the self-injurious behaviors, this patient displayed withdrawal and eating refusal, which initially resulted in his admission to a psychiatric ward. Various conventional treatments with pharmacotherapy (e.g., tricyclic antidepressants, antipsychotics, anxiolytics and anticonvulsants) in combination with psychotherapy and family therapy proved not to be effective for 15 months. Neither was electroconvulsive therapy successful. Administration of trazodone for 5 months after tapering of the above agents improved his aggressive behaviors. A survey of previous cases with organic brain syndromes who had aggressive behaviors and responded well to trazodone revealed that most of the cases were aged individuals and that cases in adolescence are rare.

Bullfrog plasma cysteine proteinase inhibitor (CPI).

Papain is inhibited by bullfrog plasma. CPI was isolated from bullfrog plasma by two step column chromatography; Cm-papain agarose column chromatography followed by FPLC Mono Q column chromatography with addition of benzamidine. Isolated CPI gave a single band on SDS-PAGE under reducing condition, and the molecular weight of reduced CPI was estimated to be over 200 kDa. When the isolated CPI was stored at 4 degrees C in the absence of benzamidine, the CPI was cleaved and yielded a protein consisting of heavy chain (60 kDa) and light chain (54 kDa). Both chains were linked with disulfide bond(s). The cleaved form of CPI was also isolated from the plasma in the absence of benzamidine. Intact and cleaved form of CPI inhibited papain and ficin, but not trypsin.

Effects of Antidepressants and antipsychotics on the 5HT2 receptor-mediated signal transducing system in human platelets.

The IC50 values of the antidepressants amoxapine, mianserin, desipramine, clomipramine and imipramine, and the antipsychotics spiroperidol, chlorpromazine, levomepromazine and haloperidol for 3H-ketanserin binding, 5HT-induced intracellular Ca2+ increase, 5HT-induced shape change and 3H-paroxetine binding in human platelets were measured and the correlations of each parameter were examined. Results were as follows. Both the antidepressants and the antipsychotics had inhibitory effects on 3H-ketanserin binding, 5HT-induced intracellular Ca2+ increase and 5HT-induced shape change and there were significant positive correlations between the IC50 values of these three parameters. On the other hand, there were no significant correlations between the IC50 values in 3H-paroxetine binding and those in the other three parameters. These results suggest that 3H-ketanserin binding, 5HT-induced intracellular Ca2+ increase and 5HT-induced shape change are useful and reliable tools for the assessment of the effects of the antidepressants and the antipsychotics on the 5HT2 receptor-mediated signal transducing system in human platelets.

Factor XI: purification from porcine plasma by affinity chromatography and some properties of factor XI and activated factor XI.

Porcine factor XI and activated factor XI were purified by the introduction of affinity chromatography on high molecular mass kininogen. On the affinity chromatography, it was observed that high affinity exists between porcine factor XI and high molecular mass kininogen. In the preparation, however, factor XII, plasma prekallikrein and high molecular mass kininogen were not detected. The factor XI forms a dimer, and is a heterogeneous molecule, judging from sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Substrate specificity of activated factor XI and inhibition profile of activated factor XI against proteinase inhibitors were investigated by comparison with those of bovine and human activated factor XI. From these results, the properties of porcine activated factor XI show great similarities with those of bovine and human activated factor XI.

[The efficacy of intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy in patients with non-resectable liver metastasis from colorectal cancer--a randomized study comparing FAM versus FEM].

The efficacy of FAM (5-FU, ADM, MMC) chemotherapy was compared with that of FEM (5-FU, EPIR, MMC) chemotherapy, in which the EPIR dose was about 1.3 times the ADM dose, by hepatic arterial infusion. Twenty-one patients with unresectable hepatic metastasis from colorectal cancer were the subjects of this multi-institutional randomized study. The response rate in evaluable 15 patients was 0% (0/6) in FAM group and 22% (2/9) in FEM group, with a 50% survival time of 15.3 months in FAM group and 15.1 months in FEM group. The major toxicities were gastrointestinal, together with hepatic dysfunction, both of which were not serious. Total incidence of > or = grade 2 toxicities was 50% (3/6) in FAM group and 80% (8/10) in FEM group. There was no statistical difference between the two groups in response rate, 50% survival time and toxicities. The clinical results of FAM and FEM were therefore considered equal, and an expected improvement in efficacy by increasing the EPIR dose was not confirmed. However, two patients in FEM group showed an objective response not observed in FAM group; one of them showed CR and survived about 3 years. These findings seem to suggest the efficacy of FEM hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy for treatment of unresectable hepatic metastasis from colorectal cancer.

[A randomized trial of intrahepatic infusion chemotherapy for unresectable colorectal liver metastases. Sendai Study Group].

A prospective, controlled randomized trial of hepatic arterial infusion of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), adriamycin (ADM) and mitomycin C (MMC) [FAM group] versus 5-FU, epirubicin (EPIR) and MMC [FEM group] in patients with unresectable liver metastasis from colorectal cancer is reported. No objective response was observed in FAM group (n = 6), while two objective responses, 1 complete and 1 partial (22.2%), were achieved in FEM group (n = 9). There was no significant difference in the 50% survival period between the two groups (468 days in FAM group (n = 8) versus 462 days in FEM group (n = 10). Long survival over 2 years was observed in FEM group, but not in FAM group. Toxicities were recorded in 50% (3/6) of FAM group, and 80% (8/10) of FEM group, but they were mild and well tolerated. In conclusion, although there was no significant difference in clinical effects between the two groups, the use of EPIR instead of ADR in combination with 5-FU and MMC might be favorable for intrahepatic infusion chemotherapy because responders and long-term survival were exclusively observed in FEM group.

[A case of advanced gastric cancer with liver metastasis completely responding to a combined immunochemotherapy with UFT, mitomycin C and lentinan].

A 74-year-old man with advanced gastric cancer of Borrmann type III and liver metastasis was treated by combined administration of UFT (400 mg/day, p. o.), Mitomycin C (14 mg/body/4w., i.v.) and Lentinan (2 mg/w., i.v.). Five and half months after the therapy, endoscopic examination and ultrasonography showed the primary and liver-metastatic lesions had completely disappeared. Ten months after the therapy, total gastrectomy and intraoperative liver wedge biopsy were performed and complete disappearance of cancer cells was histologically confirmed. The total dose of UFT, MMC and LNT administered until the operation was 76.4 g, 42 mg and 74 mg, respectively. However, the patient eventually died of the recurrence of liver metastases three years after the initial immunochemotherapy.