Ultraflexible Wireless Imager Integrated with Organic Circuits for Broadband Infrared Thermal Analysis.

Flexible imagers are currently under intensive development as versatile optical sensor arrays, designed to capture images of surfaces and internals, irrespective of their shape. A significant challenge in developing flexible imagers is extending their detection capabilities to encompass a broad spectrum of infrared light, particularly terahertz (THz) light at room temperature. This advancement is crucial for thermal and biochemical applications. In this study, a flexible infrared imager is designed using uncooled carbon nanotube (CNT) sensors and organic circuits. The CNT sensors, fabricated on ultrathin 2.4 µm substrates, demonstrate enhanced sensitivity across a wide infrared range, spanning from near-infrared to THz wavelengths. Moreover, they retain their characteristics under bending and crumpling. The design incorporates light-shielded organic transistors and circuits, functioning reliably under light irradiation, and amplifies THz detection signals by a factor of 10. The integration of both CNT sensors and shielded organic transistors into an 8 × 8 active-sensor matrix within the imager enables sequential infrared imaging and nondestructive assessment for heat sources and in-liquid chemicals through wireless communication systems. The proposed imager, offering unique functionality, shows promise for applications in biochemical analysis and soft robotics.

Introduction of H2C2-type zinc-binding residues into HIV-2 Vpr increases its expression level.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 2 has two structurally similar proteins, Vpx and Vpr. Vpx degrades the host anti-viral protein SAMHD1 and is expressed at high levels, while Vpr is responsible for cell cycle arrest and is expressed at much lower levels. We constructed a Vpr mutant with a high level of expression by replacing the amino acids HHCR/HHCH with a putative H2C2-type zinc-binding site that is carried by Vpx. Our finding suggests that during the evolution of Vpr and Vpx, zinc-binding likely became a mechanism for regulating their expression levels.

Zinc-binding site of human immunodeficiency virus 2 Vpx prevents instability and dysfunction of the protein.

Human immunodeficiency virus 2 Vpx coordinates zinc through residues H39, H82, C87 and C89. We reported previously that H39, H82 and C87 mutants maintain Vpx activity to facilitate the degradation of SAMHD1. Herein, the expression of Vpx mutants in cells was examined in detail. We demonstrated that the zinc-binding site stabilizes the protein to keep its function in virus growth when low levels of Vpx are expressed. At higher levels of expression, Vpx aggregation could occur, and zinc binding would suppress such aggregation. Among the amino acids involved in zinc coordination, H39 plays the most critical role. In summary, zinc binding appears to mitigate flexibility of the three-helix fold of Vpx, thereby preventing dysfunction.

Mutational analysis of HIV-2 Vpx shows that proline residue 109 in the poly-proline motif regulates degradation of SAMHD1.

In this study, we performed a mutational analysis to determine whether the mechanism by which HIV-2 Vpx confers the capacity for infectivity and viral replication in macrophages is solely dependent on its ability to degrade the host antiviral factor SAMHD1. Contrary to expectations, we demonstrated that P(109) in the C-terminal poly-proline motif of HIV-2 Vpx has two unique roles: to facilitate the specific degradation of SAMHD1 in macrophages, and to facilitate multimerization of Vpx, therefore preventing SAMHD1 degradation in the presence of high levels of Vpx.

Intradevice and Interdevice Agreement Between a Rebound Tonometer, Icare PRO, and the Tonopen XL and Kowa Hand-held Applanation Tonometer When Used in the Sitting and Supine Position.

PURPOSE: The aim of the study was to investigate the agreement between a new portable tonometer, Icare PRO, and the Tonopen XL and Kowa hand-held applanation tonometers (HAT). METHODS: The right eyes of 127 healthy subjects were enrolled. Intraocular pressure (IOP) was measured in both sitting and supine positions using the Icare PRO, Tonopen XL, and Kowa HAT tonometers. The repeatability of the IOP measurements was evaluated by calculating intraclass correlation coefficients. Between-method agreements of tonometer measurements were evaluated using Bland-Altman analysis. RESULTS: Intradevice agreement: The intraclass correlation coefficients (sitting, supine) of Icare PRO, Tonopen XL, and Kowa HAT were (0.863, 0.656), (0.845, 0.819), and (0.957, 0.956), respectively.Interdevice agreement: The Bland-Altman analysis revealed that, in the sitting position, the mean differences between Icare PRO and Tonopen XL, and between Icare PRO and Kowa HAT were -0.43 and 0.43 mm Hg, respectively (95% limits of agreement: -6.24 to 5.34 mm Hg, -4.04 to 4.90 mm Hg). In the supine position, the corresponding mean differences were -0.88 and 0.14 mm Hg (95% limits of agreement: -5.66 to 3.91 mm Hg, -4.06 to 4.33 mm Hg). IOP differences between Icare PRO and the other tonometers were unaffected by central corneal thickness. CONCLUSIONS: The repeatability of Icare PRO was slightly lower in the supine position than in the sitting position. Although Icare PRO underestimated IOP values in eyes with higher IOP when compared with Tonopen XL and Kowa HAT in both positions, we observed good interdevice agreement between Icare PRO and both Tonopen XL and Kowa HAT.

The whole macular choroidal thickness in subjects with primary open angle glaucoma.

PURPOSE: We investigated the whole macular choroidal thickness in subjects with glaucoma in order to evaluate the effects of glaucoma and glaucoma visual field damage on the choroidal thickness. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: We examined 40 primary open angle glaucoma patients with only superior visual field defects and 48 normal controls. The macular choroidal thickness was measured using swept-source optical coherence tomography according to the three-dimensional raster scan protocol (6×6 mm). We used the choroidal thickness within a 1.0-mm circle measured on ETDRS grids as the central sector and then used a 6×6 rectangular grid to divide the area into six sectors. RESULTS: No significant differences were found in the choroidal thickness values between the glaucoma and normal subjects in any of the sectors after adjusting for the age and axial length (all P>0.4, ANCOVA). According to a stepwise analysis of the glaucoma subjects performed using the parameters of age, axial length, central corneal thickness and mean deviation (MD value) obtained by static perimetry, age was the most predictive and significant factor in all sectors (coefficient = -3.091 to -4.091 and F value= 15.629 to 22.245), followed by axial length (coefficient= -10.428 to -23.458 and F value= 2.454 to 6.369). The central corneal thickness and MD values were not significant predictive factors in any of the sectors. No significant predictive factors were found for the differences in the choroidal thickness values observed between the superior and inferior field sectors. CONCLUSIONS: Neither the glaucoma-related visual field damage nor glaucoma itself have any apparent associations with the whole macular choroidal thickness. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Japan Clinical Trials Register (http://www.umin.ac.jp/ctr/ number, UMIN 000012527).

Identification of essential cis element in 5'UTR of Nef mRNA for Nef translation.

Nef is one of the accessory proteins of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Nef is translated from multiple-spliced mRNAs transcribed from the viral genome, whose mRNAs have a relatively long 5' untranslated region (5'UTR). Here, we identified a cis element in the 5'UTR of Nef mRNA essential for efficient Nef translation, which was named the Nef-translation essential region (NER). Mutants with a deleted NER in the 5'UTR of the HIV-1 NL4-3 strain showed an almost undetectable Nef expression owing to a low Nef translation efficiency. The NER of the NL4-3 strain was predicted to form putative stem loops. Although the 5'UTR showed significant but relatively low internal ribosome entry site (IRES) activity, the mechanism of 5'cap-dependent translation mainly contributed to the Nef translation from its Nef mRNA. Altogether, it was clarified that not only the 5' cap but also the NER in the 5'UTR is an essential cis element for efficient Nef translation, which is not a typical 5'-cap-dependent mechanism, and that there must be an as yet unknown mechanism using the NER for efficient Nef translation.

Intraocular pressure of supine patients using four portable tonometers.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the congruity of intraocular pressure (IOP) measurements from supine patients, which were obtained using four portable tonometers. METHODS: Intraocular pressure measurements were obtained from the right eye of 72 supine patients. We used the iCare (Tiolat Oy, Helsinki, Finland) rebound tonometer, the Diaton (BICOM Inc., Long Beach, NY) transpalpebral tonometer, the Tonopen XL (Reichert inc., Depew, NY), and a Kowa hand-held applanation tonometer (HAT; Kowa Company, Ltd., Nagoya, Japan). Relationships between mean IOPs were evaluated using Pearson correlation coefficients, and the mean differences between tonometers, using one-way analysis of variance followed by Tukey-Kramer post-hoc analysis. Levels of agreement were evaluated using Bland-Altman analysis. RESULTS: The mean IOPs (mean ± SD) were 18.2 ± 3.5 mm Hg for iCare, 14.8 ± 3.4 mm Hg for Diaton, 16.7 ± 3.7 mm Hg for Tonopen XL, and 16.8 ± 2.8 mm Hg for Kowa HAT. Pearson correlation coefficients between iCare, Tonopen XL, and Kowa HAT ranged from 0.382 to 0.577, whereas those between Diaton and other tonometers ranged from 0.041 to 0.286. Post-hoc analysis indicated significant differences between all pairs except Tonopen XL and Kowa HAT. The mean difference between measurements from iCare and Diaton was 3.39 ± 3.39 mm Hg; iCare and Tonopen XL, 1.47 ± 3.52 mm Hg; iCare and Kowa HAT, 1.49 ± 2.90 mm Hg; Diaton and Tonopen XL, -1.93 ± 4.90 mm Hg; Diaton and Kowa HAT, -1.90 ± 4.15 mm Hg; and Tonopen XL and Kowa HAT, 0.02 ± 3.61 mm Hg. Computation of the width of the 95% limits of agreement resulted in a wide bias range when comparing Diaton with all tonometers. Relatively good agreements were observed between iCare, Tonopen XL, and HAT. CONCLUSIONS: Intraocular pressure measurements obtained in a supine position by four portable tonometers were not interchangeable. Although iCare and Tonopen XL significantly overestimated IOP values in eyes with a higher IOP when compared with Kowa HAT, the agreements between iCare, Tonopen XL, and Kowa HAT were at clinically acceptable levels.

Induction of extremely low protein expression level by fusion of C-terminal region of Nef.

Nef is one of the accessory proteins of human immunodeficiency viruses. Here, we noted that the relative expression level of Nef(NL4-3) is much lower than that of NefJR-CSF in HEK293 cells. By evaluating the expression level using a Nef mutant, it was indicated that amino acids 129-206 of Nef(NL4-3), that is, the C-terminal region named NLAA129-206, could contain the region responsible for the induction of the low protein expression level. In addition, the expression levels of the enhanced green fluorescent protein and Renilla luciferase became extremely low with the fusion of NLAA129-206. Interestingly, the NLAA129-206-corresponding sequences of other Nef variants with relatively high expression levels also induced the extremely low protein expression level by fusion. These results suggest that the C-terminal region of Nef can generally induce an extremely low protein expression level. Here, we propose that the C-terminal region of Nef could become an excellent tool for the induction of an extremely low expression level of arbitrary proteins by attachment as fusion proteins.