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Purpose In the CLEOPATRA study of patients with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive recurrent or metastatic breast cancer, the Japanese patient subgroup did not demonstrate the improved progression-free survival (PFS) of pertuzumab plus trastuzumab and docetaxel vs. placebo that was seen in the overall population. Therefore, COMACHI was conducted to confirm the efficacy and safety of this treatment regimen in this patient subgroup. Methods This was a phase IV study of pertuzumab plus trastuzumab and docetaxel in Japanese patients with histologically/cytologically confirmed inoperable or recurrent HER2-positive breast cancer. All patients received pertuzumab, trastuzumab, and docetaxel intravenously every 3 weeks until disease progression/unacceptable toxicity. The primary endpoint was investigator-assessed PFS. Secondary endpoints were overall survival (OS), investigator-assessed objective response rate, and duration of response (DoR). Safety was also assessed. Results At final analysis, median investigator-assessed PFS was 22.8 months (95% CI 16.9–37.5). From first dose, OS rate at 1 year was 97.7%; and at 2 and 3 years were 88.5% and 79.1%, respectively. Of the 118 patients with measurable disease at baseline, response rate was 83.9% (95% CI 77.3–90.5) and median investigator-assessed DoR was 26.3 months (95% CI 17.1–not evaluable). Treatment was well tolerated, with no new safety signals detected. Conclusions Our results suggest similar efficacy and safety for pertuzumab plus trastuzumab and docetaxel in Japanese patients compared with the overall population of CLEOPATRA, providing further support for this combination therapy as standard of care for Japanese patients with inoperable or recurrent HER2-positive breast cancer.

Purpose The standard of care in the neoadjuvant setting for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer is dual HER2-targeted therapy. However, a need to minimize treatment-related toxicity and improve pathological complete response (pCR) rates, particularly in luminal HER2-positive disease, exists. Methods Neopeaks, a randomized, phase 2 study, compared docetaxel + carboplatin + trastuzumab + pertuzumab (TCbHP; 6 cycles; group A), TCbHP (4 cycles) followed by trastuzumab emtansine + pertuzumab (T-DM1+P; 4 cycles; group B), and T-DM1+P (4 cycles; group C) regimens in HER2‐positive primary breast cancer patients; concurrent hormone therapy with T-DM1+P was administered in case of estrogen receptor positivity (ER+). Based on tumor shrinkage, nonresponders in group C were switched to 5-fluorouracil + epirubicin + cyclophosphamide (FEC; 4 cycles). Primary endpoint was pCR (comprehensive pCR ypN0 [ypT0-TisypN0]). Results Of 236 patients enrolled, 204 were randomized to groups A (n = 51), B (n = 52), and C (n = 101). In group C, 80 (79%) patients continued T-DM1+P following favorable response, whereas 21 (21%) nonresponders switched to FEC. pCR rate was numerically higher with the TCbHP → T-DM1+P regimen (71%) versus the standard TCbHP (57%) and T-DM1+P (57%) regimens. The rate in group C was higher among responders continuing T-DM1+P (63%) versus nonresponders who switched to FEC (38%). pCR rates after initial 4 cycles of T-DM1+P (group C; 57%) and standard TCbHP regimen (57%) were equivalent. pCR rate in patients with ER+ was significantly higher in group B (69%) than groups A (43%) and C (51%), but was comparable in patients with ER− (67–76%). Compared with the T-DM1-based arm, the incidence of adverse events was higher in the taxane-based arms. Conclusion In the neoadjuvant setting, the pCR rate with the standard TCbHP → T-DM1+P regimen was numerically better than the TCbHP regimen alone and significantly better in patients with ER+. Personalization of the T-DM1+P regimen could serve as a reasonable approach to minimize toxicity while maintaining efficacy. Trial registration ID: UMIN-CTR: UMIN000014649.

Temperature fluctuations in saturated superfluid He II (at 1.9 K) were measured using small thermistors operated by a lock-in amplifier. The experiments were performed in a rectangular channel ( $$13\times 13\times 200~\hbox {mm}$$ ) with a heater set at the bottom. The temperature oscillated periodically, and a pulsive boiling sound appeared. The two become synchronized, and the oscillating frequencies strongly depend on the helium pressure and the heat flux. When the He pressure decreases, the oscillation frequency decreases. A simple model to predict the cyclic period is presented.

Mucosal alterations after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass for morbid obesity have not been clearly evaluated. This study aims to analyze the mucosal alterations (proliferative status (Ki-67); apoptosis (caspase-3 and BCL-2); hormonal function (gastrin)) in the excluded stomach. Double-balloon enteroscopy was performed in 35 patients who underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass longer than 36 months. Multiple biopsies of the proximal pouch and the excluded gastric mucosa were collected. Gastric biopsies from 32 non-operated obese patients were utilized as controls. Endoscopic biopsies were cut from tissue blocks fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin. Sections 4 μm thick were examined for immunoexpression using the streptavidin–biotin–peroxidase method. The two groups were comparable for age, gender, gastritis, intestinal metaplasia, and Helicobacter pylori. The mean number of positive gastrin cells was 55.5 (standard deviation (SD) = 11.7) in the control group and 29.6 (SD = 7.9) in the cases, p = 0.0003. Ki-67 proliferative index in cases (body = 24.7 %, antrum = 24.9 %) was significantly higher compared to controls (body = 15.0 % and antrum = 17.7 %), p = 0.002 and 0.01, respectively. Caspase-3 immunoexpression was higher in the controls compared to the excluded stomach (46 vs. 31 %), p = 0.02. There was no statistical difference between CD3, CD8, and Bcl-2 immunoexpressions in the control and cases. Cell proliferation is increased and apoptosis is downregulated in the excluded gastric mucosa compared to the non-operated obese controls. Alterations in cell turnover and in hormonal secretions in these conditions may be of relevance in long-term follow-up.

Interdiffusion in the face-centered cubic (fcc) Co-W binary alloys was investigated by the diffusion-couple technique between 1273 K and 1573 K (1000 °C and 1300 °C), on which interdiffusion coefficients of the binary alloys up to 12 at. pct W were evaluated by using the Sauer–Freise method. The interdiffusion data were assessed to develop the atomic mobility for the fcc Co-W alloys and its validity was tested by simulating the diffusion-couple experiments.

In applying Pressure-Sensitive Paint (PSP) to low-speed flow wind tunnel testing, it is important to minimize any measurement uncertainties. There are various error sources such as camera noise, misalignment of images due to model displacement and temperature distribution over the model. Among these factors, the effects of temperature distribution change during tests on pressure measurement accuracies were studied in the present paper. Pressure and temperature distributions over a simplified car model (1/10 scale Ahmed model) were measured using PSP and Temperature-Sensitive Paint (TSP). Sequential images were acquired at the same intervals over the entire test period, including for the conditions before and after the tunnel run. As a result, it was found that the measurement error caused by temperature distribution over the model could be reduced using a single-point temperature measurement. In addition, by measuring surface temperature distributions on the model using TSP, it was proved that the most accurate pressure measurement could be made by rationing the wind-off image acquired immediately after shutting down the tunnel to the wind-on image acquired immediately before shutting down the tunnel. Using the present measurement technique, complicated pressure fields over the Ahmed model were successfully visualized.

The aim of this study was to analyze the contribution of the double-balloon enteroscopy (DBE) for diagnosis of the small bowel disorders. Forty-four patients (20 women, 24 men; mean age 53.5 years-old, range 21–89 years) with chronic gastrointestinal bleeding, diarrhea, polyposis, weight-loss, Roux-en-Y surgery, and other indications underwent DBE. Twenty patients had occult or obscure gastrointestinal bleeding. The source of bleeding was identified in 15/20 (75%): multiple angiodysplasias in four, arterial-venous malformation beyond the ligament of Treitz in two that could be treated with injection successfully. Other diagnoses included: duodenal adenocarcinoma, jejunal tuberculosis, erosions and ulcer of the jejunum. Of 24 patients with other indications, the diagnosis could be achieved in 18 of them (75%), including: two lymphomas, plasmocytoma, Gardner’s syndrome, Peutz-Jeghers’ syndrome, familial adenomatous polyposis, Behcet’s disease, jejunal submucosal lesion, lymphangiectasia due to blastomycosis and unspecific chronic jejunitis. Of three cases with Roux-en-Y reconstruction, two underwent DBE in order to perform biopsies of the excluded duodenum. Additionally, two patients underwent DBE to exclude Crohn’s disease and lymphoma of the small bowel. The mean length of small bowel examination was 240 ± 50 cm during a single approach. The diagnostic yield was 75% (33/44 cases) and therapeutic yield was 63.6%. No major complications were observed, only minor complication such as sore throat in 4/44 (9.1%). 1. DBE is a safe and and accurate method to diagnose small bowel disorders; 2. this method permits chromoscopy, biopsies and treatment of the lesions.

Many sequences of genes now are contained in databases available to the public. These databases will be the foundation and starting points of research in the future. Extracting information from these databases is useful to all forms of genetic, biochemical, and molecular biological research. We are interested in improving the nutrition of the tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) through an understanding of the fundamentals of the molecular biological and biochemical processes that occur during tomato fruit development. The TIGR Tomato Gene Index has been of much use to our laboratory in determining new areas of molecular analysis for this research. We have examined this database for genes involved in ripening by using the nucleic acid and protein sequence searching software, BLAST, and by comparing gene expression information contained within the database. In this article, we report a number of previously unobserved genes that possibly are involved in tomato fruit development. Transcripts for MADS Box genes, zinc-finger genes, homeobox genes, and polycomb genes are among the transcripts that reveal upregulation during tomato fruit ripening. We believe that the information contained in this article will be valuable in considering approaches to analyzing the developmental processes involved in tomato fruit ripening.

Objectives: We aim to validate the effects of glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) on fat distribution and glucose metabolism in Han Chinese populations. Methods: We genotyped six tag single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of GIP and four tag SNPs of glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide receptor (GIPR) among 2884 community-based individuals from Han Chinese populations. Linear analysis was applied to test the associations of these variants with visceral fat area (VFA) and subcutaneous fat area (SFA) quantified by magnetic resonance imaging as well as glucose-related traits. Results: We found that the C allele of rs4794008 of GIP tended to increase the VFA and the VFA/SFA ratio in all subjects (P=0.050 and P=0.054, respectively), and rs4794008 was associated with the VFA/SFA ratio in males (P=0.041) after adjusting for the BMI. The VFA-increasing allele of rs4794008 was not related to any glucose metabolism traits. However, rs9904288 of GIP was associated with the SFA in males as well as glucose-related traits in all subjects (P range, 0.004–0.049), and the GIPR variants displayed associations with both fat- and glucose-related traits. Conclusions: The results could provide the evidence that GIP might modulate visceral fat accumulation via incretin function or independent of incretin.

We report Cu-NQR results on Ge-doped heavy-fermion superconductor CeCu2(Si1−x Ge x )2 (0

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether or not the ventilatory and circulatory responses at the onset of voluntary exercise and passive movement, especially at the initial stage (phase I), in children are the same as in adults. Ten pre-teenage male children and ten adult men participated in this study. Voluntary exercise and passive movement were performed in a sitting position for about 20 s. Both the exercise and the movement consisted of flexion-extensions of the lower leg from a vertical to horizontal position, either voluntarily or passively, with a frequency of about 60 x min(-1). Inspiratory minute ventilation (V1), tidal volume (VT), respiratory frequency, partial pressure of end-tidal CO2 and O2, heart rate (fc) and mean blood pressure (BP) before, during and after exercise or movement were measured using breath-by-breath and beat-to-beat techniques. Cardiorespiratory responses at the onset of voluntary exercise and passive movement were compared with the relative change (delta), which was estimated from the value at rest (100%). In the present study, it was found that: (1) the V1 during voluntary exercise were significantly lower in the children, mainly due to lower deltaVT; (2) the delta(f)c during voluntary exercise was almost the same in both groups, while deltaf(c) was significantly lower in the children during the last part of passive movement; (3) in the voluntary exercise and passive movement, the BP in the children was increased a little or remained close to the value at rest, while it was significantly decreased in the adults. As a result, there were significant differences in deltaBP between the two groups during voluntary exercise. These results suggest that the cardiorespiratory responses at the onset of voluntary exercise and passive movement may be modified during the growth process.

In order to investigate magnetic properties in the vicinity of the magnetic to superconducting (SC) phase boundary, we have performed Cu-NQR measurements under hydrostatic pressure (P) on two off-stoichiometric Ce1+xCu2+ySi2 polycrystals: Ce0.99Cu2.02Si2 (denoted as Ce 0.99) exhibits the anomalous ground state so-called A phase dominated by critical magnetic correlations and Ce0.975Cu2Si2 (Ce 0.975) shows a static magnetic ordering at ambient P. With increasing P which enhances the Kondo temperature, the fraction of the A phase becomes markedly suppressed, and the SC fraction increases correspondingly, although Tc stays nearly constant in the measured pressure range, P≤14.4 kbar. This shows that the P-induced transition from the A to the SC phases is of a first-order type, without passing through a quantum (T→0) phase transition. However, no superconductivity has been attained in Ce 0.975 up to 19.4 kbar. It is considered that the P-induced superconductivity is sensitive to the sample quality.

The carrier distribution among the inequivalent CuO 2 planes in multilayer cuprates is investigated by 63 Cu Knight shift measurement with varying the carrier concentration, δ and the number of CuO 2 plane in a unit cell, n. We found that 70 (60)% of total carriers are doped selectively into two outer CuO 2 planes in n = 3 (4). This indicates resultantly that the inhomogeneity of carrier distribution increases with increasing δ and n in multilayer cuprates.

We produced half-egg-volume ascidian embryos by dividing the unfertilized egg of Halocynthia roretzi at the equatorial plane, and investigated the timing of the initiation of the expression of three tissue-specific genes, a muscle-specific actin gene HrMA4, a notochord-specific gene As-T and an epidermis-specific gene HrEpiC in the half-egg-volume embryos of the animal side and those of the vegetal side. The timing of the onset of HrMA4 and As-T expression in both the animal- and vegetal-half embryos and that of HrEpiC expression in the animal-half embryos were essentially the same as that of normal embryos. In contrast, the timing of HrEpiC expression in the vegetal-half embryos was delayed by one division cycle compared with the normal embryos. This delay was partially recovered by increasing the amount of unfertilized egg cytoplasm of the animal hemisphere, suggesting that the timing of HrEpiC expression is regulated by the amount of a maternal factor which is distributed abundantly in the animal hemisphere of the unfertilized egg.

In vitro culture of VFNT Cherry tomato sepals (calyx) at 16-21 degrees C results in developmental changes that are similar to those that occur in fruit tissue [10]. Sepals become swollen, red, and succulent, produce ethylene, and have increased levels of polygalacturonase RNA. They also produce many flavor volatiles characteristic of ripe tomato fruit and undergo similar changes in sugar content [11]. We examined the expression of the tomato AGAMOUS gene, TAG1, in ripening, in vitro sepal cultures and other tissues from the plant and found that TAG1 RNA accumulates to higher levels than expected from data from other plants. Contrary to reports on the absence of AGAMOUS in sepals, TAG1 RNA levels in green sepals from greenhouse-grown plants is detectable, its concentration increasing with in vitro ripening to levels that were even higher than in red, ripe fruit. Sepals of fruit on transgenic tomato plants that expressed TAG1 ectopically were induced by low temperature to ripen in vivo, producing lycopene and undergoing cell wall softening as is characteristic of pericarpic tissue. We therefore propose that the induction of elevated TAG1 gene expression plays a key role in developmental changes that result in sepal ripening.

We have measured the heat capacity of 3 He thin films adsorbed on graphite at an areal density of 15.0 nm −2 down to as low as 100 μK. The second-layer 3 He behaves as a degenerate 2D Fermi fluid in the whole temperature range we studied. We observed no anomalous behavior in the heat capacity near 3 mK in contradiction to the recent report by other workers. This indicates that possible superfluid transitions would be below 100 μK. Instead, a small and temperature-independent contribution to the heat capacity was observed, which we attribute to nuclear-spin degrees of freedom in glassy solid 3 He trapped in substrate heterogeneities.

We report studies of spin dynamics in the conducting polymers polyaniline and polypyrrole using both μ+SR and μ-SR techniques. These measurements reveal characteristic field dependences and cutoff frequencies for the muon spin relaxation which can be related to the spin diffusion process. Clear evidence is seen for increased spin localisation at low temperatures where a crossover occurs from two or three dimensional spin diffusion to a one dimensional diffusion regime.

Adjacent plots (1 m2) with and without communities of dwarf bamboo (Sasa), i.e. Sasa- and ref-plots, were selected in mountainous areas, which were relatively low in soil buffer capacity. The following parameters were studied: chemical properties of surface (0-30 cm) soil (at 6 sites), elemental abundances in the soil-Sasa ecosystem (at 6 sites), effect of artificial acid rain on the above two parameters (at 1 site), and chemical properties of throughfall and stemflow of Sasa (at 2 sites including one on a plain). Average values of pH(H2O), base saturation and the ratio of exchangeable (K+Mg+Ca)/exchangeable Al in surface soil were 4.35±0. 53, 25.2±14.3% and 0.41±0.28, respectively, in Sasa-plots and 4.26±0.63, 20.0±9.6%, and 0.28±0.13, respectively, in ref-plots. Though not significant, all soil parameters had higher values in Sasa-plots, i.e. Δx = ca. 0.1 unit, 5% and 0.13, respectively. When the abundance of elements (exchangeable cations in soil of 30 cm depth plus elements in litter and Sasa biomass) in the ecosystem was compared between the two plots, K (and often other basic cations) was higher in Sasa-plots than in ref-plots, whereas Al was lower. Artificial acid rain (1.5 L of 0.05 M H2SO4 applied monthly for 10 months) induced a reduction of Na, K, Mg and Ca in a ref-plot, but in a Sasa-plot only Na and K were reduced whereas Mg and Ca were completely retained. The composite samples of throughfall and stemflow of Sasa were ca. 0.5 higher in pH and richer in K, Mg and Ca than the ambient precipitation. The amounts (equivalents) of elements released by Sasa were in the order K > Ca > Mg. It was determined that about 87% and 98% of K, 76% and 87% of Ca, and 39% and 93% of Mg were of Sasa origin in the composite samples at a mountainous site (cambisol soil type) and a plain site (andosol soil type), respectively. Sasa communities may have a significant role in retention of basic cations in surface soil and prevention of soil acidification because of recycling elements in the soil-Sasa ecosystem.

Results of our NMR measurements of highT c superconductors are reviewed. From systematic measurements of NQR frequency, Knight shift, nuclear spin lattice relaxation rate and nuclear transverse relaxation rate over a wide hole concentration range from light to heavy doped compounds together with the impurity and pressure effect, following results are concluded. The numbers of the holes at the respective sites of Cu and O site in the CuO2 plane govern the several physical properties of the system. There are optimum values of these hole numbers to produce highestT c . The superconducting properties are well explained consistently by thed-wave pairing model.T c is found to be correlated intimately with the antiferromagnetic spin fluctuation parameters that governs the nuclear relaxation. The mechanism for the superconductivity is magnetic in origin.

An experimental study has been made to establish an optical method to investigate the adsorption behavior of alcohols on their aqueous solutions without adding any tracer or fluorescent material to the solutions. An expanded laser beam with controlled polarization is incident upon each solution surface of interest at the Brewster angle of air/water interface. This optical setting permits us to detect the p-polarized light reflected from an adsorbed film as two-dimensional real-time videograms with high sensitivities. The technique has been applied to visualizing adsorbed films of various alcohol homologues.

Two hundred and thirty eight persons were examined to evaluate the interrelations among seven key factors for arteriosclerosis: body mass index (BMI), systolic blood pressure (BPs), plasma glucose (PG), serum cholesterol (CHO), serum triglyceride (TG), serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (SGPT), and serum insulin (IRI). BPs showed the significant positive correlation with PG (r = 0.346), BMI (r = 0.318), and IRI (r = 0.200). However, there were no significant correlations between BPs and CHO, between BPs and TG, between BPs and SGPT. SGPT showed the significant positive correlation with IRI (r = 0.367), BMI (r = 0.268), and TG (r = 0.343); but no significant correlations were observed in relations between SGPT and PG, between SGPT and BPs, between SGPT and CHO. IRI showed the significant positive correlations with TG (r = 0.234), and PG (r = 0.427). These data suggest that IRI has an effect on BPs and SGPT. The effect of IRI on BPs relates with PG but does not relate with serum lipid. The effect of IRI on SGPT relates with TG but not with PG.

Results of our systematic NMR study in highTc cuprates are reviewed. The antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations (AFSF) decrease in the order of La1.85Sr0.15CuO4. YBa2Cu3O7 and Tl2Ba2CuO6+y. 1/T1 of63Cu in the CuO2 plane in the normal state follows essentially a Curie-Weiss law at high temperature andT1T = const. law at low temperature. The temperature dependence of 1/T1 and the Knight shift together with their impurity effect in the superconducting state strongly suggest d-wave pairing implying the AFSF to be responsible for the occurrence of superconductivity. From the NQR frequency measurement the density of Cu 3d and O 2p holes decreases and increases, respectively, in the order of La, Y and Tl compounds, which is consistent with the change of AFSF. The relation betweenTc andvQ, and their pressure dependence suggest that there exists and optimum value of the ratio of Cu 3d and O 2p hole density to give a maximum inTc.

The magnetic and superconducting properties in the high-T c cuprates have been investigated over a wide hole doping range by63Cu,17O and205Tl NMR and NQR in the lightly-doped La2−xSrxCuO4 (LSCO), the heavily-doped Tl2Ba2CuO6+y (TBCO) and the Zn-doped YBa2Cu3O7 (YBCO7). In low doping region, the large antiferromagnetic (AF) spin correlation around the zone boundary (q=Q) causes the Curie-Weiss behavior of63(1/T 1 T) associated with that of the staggered susceptibility χO(T) in LSCO. In the vicinity of the hole content whereT c has a peak, the AF spin correlation still survives, although the magnetic coherence length ξM is considerably short being presumably (ξM/a) ∼ 1. The further doping destroys progressively the AF spin correlation, which is no longer present is non-superconducting TBCO compounds. These NMR evidences signify that there is an intimate relation between the presence of the AF spin correlation and the onset of the superconductivity. The local collapse of AF spin correlation is a primary cause for the unexpected strong reduction ofT c in case of the substitution of Zn impurities into the CuO2 plane. The superconducting properties clarified by NMR experiments cannot be accounted for by the conventional BCS model or other isotropic s-wave models. A d-wave model is applicable in interpreting consistently most of the NMR results, if the finite density of states at the Fermi level is taken into consideration and is associated with the pair breaking effect. There are increasing evidences that the magnetic mechanism for the superconductivity is promising in high-T c cuprates.

A statistical study of 228 flares on the three UV Ceti-type stars, i.e., YZ CMi, AD Leo, and EV Lac, is presented. Observations were gathered by Ichimura and Shimizu over a total monitoring time of 907 hours distributed over 18 years (1971 to 1988). Period analysis of flare activity was performed, and no periodicity was detected on the three stars for either the flare number rate or the energy rate in time-scales ranging from a year up to 14 years. Average colour of flares at peak was (U-B)=−0.98±0.17 and (B-V)=0.05±0.13. Cumulative number distributions of flare event time-integrated energies were solved by a least-squares method on a log-log plot for a power-law function to get both the constant of and the gradient β, which were found to be similar among the three stars. The gradient showed that rare large flare events radiate most of the energy released by all the flare events in the monitoring time. The flare number rate and energy rate are similar if the power-law distributions are extended up to a specific maximum energy. In reality, the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test showed that the observed cumulative number distributions of flare event energy were not necessarily a power-law function. The monte-Carlo simulation, however, indicates that the monitoring time and/or the patrol observation time interval may not be long enough to get the average flare number rate and energy rate, especially at the upper energy limits which are statistically unreliable.

High quality cubic GaN films were successfully grown on an AlN/GaN ordered alloy by RF-MBE. AlN/GaN ordered alloy is here employed instead of a AlGaN nucleation layer formed by nitridation of an AlGaAs buffer layer. Dominant cubic GaN epilayer (1.0 μm) growth was confirmed by insitu RHEED observations, AFM, TEM, PL and X-ray diffraction measurements.

A new high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HREM) technique is proposed for observing interfacial structures in semiconductor superlattices in the cross-section, and is used to characterize AlAs-GaAs interfacial step structures. Analysis of diffracted beam amplitudes shows that the {1 1 1| beam amplitudes of GaAs are minimized at an extinction distance of 14.4 nm, whereas those of AlAs show significantly higher values. This remarkable difference in the {1 1 1| beam amplitudes leads to a marked contrast between HREM images of GaAs and AlAs around this specimen thickness, allowing edge-on observation of the interfacial atomic steps running along the direction. Artifacts produced by ion milling prevent atomic-scale observations of the interfaces so an artifact-free TEM specimen preparation technique is also presented. The HREM method provides information on the step intervals and straightness of step edges at AlAs-GaAs interfaces fabricated on just-cut and vicinal GaAs (0 0 1) substrates. The effect of the growth interruption method during molecular beam epitaxy on interface smoothing is also demonstrated.

In order to unravel the nature of spin correlation in the vicinity of the antiferromagnetic (AF) phase boundary, the63Cu nuclear spin lattice relaxation rate,63(1/T 1), has been measured for the 8%-Sr doped superconducting (SC) La2−x Sr x CuO4 (LSCO) by Cu NMR and NQR techniques. The temperature dependence of63(1/T 1 T) has revealed a continuous increase down toT c without the spin pseudogap behavior observed in underdoped YBa2Cu3O6+x and YBa2Cu4O8.

Red ripe tomatoes are the result of numerous physiological changes controlled by hormonal and developmental signals, causing maturation or differentiation of various fruit tissues simultaneously. These physiological changes affect visual, textural, flavor, and aroma characteristics, making the fruit more appealing to potential consumers for seed dispersal. Developmental regulation of tomato fruit ripening has, until recently, been lacking in rigorous investigation. We previously indicated the presence of up-regulated transcription factors in ripening tomato fruit by data mining in TIGR Tomato Gene Index. In our in-vitro system, green tomato sepals cultured at 16 to 22°C turn red and swell like ripening tomato fruit while those at 28°C remain green. Here, we have further examined regulation of putative developmental genes possibly involved in tomato fruit ripening and development. Using molecular biological methods, we have determined the relative abundance of various transcripts of genes during in vitro sepal ripening and in tomato fruit pericarp at three stages of development. A number of transcripts show similar expression in fruits to RIN and PSY1, ripening-associated genes, and others show quite different expression. Our investigation has resulted in confirmation of some of our previous database mining results and has revealed differences in gene expression that may be important for tomato cultivar variation. We present new and intriguing information on genes that should now be studied in a more focused fashion.

Exoenzymes produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa are known for their important virulence factors. Some studies have suggested pathogenic roles for P. aeruginosa exoenzymes in animal infection models. The effects of sub inhibitory concentrations of antibiotics on P. aeruginosa exoenzyme expression have been examined. Tetracycline inhibits protease production at subinhibitory concentrations (Shibl & AI-Sowaygh 1980). When present at sub-MICs, ciprofloxacin, tobramycin and ceftazidime are all able to suppress production of exoenzymes in vitro (Grimwood et al. 1989). Growth of P. aeruginosa in broth is not significantly atTected during 24-hour culture with subMICs of erythromycin, although the production of elastase, protease and leucocidin is inhibited by subMICs of this agent (Kita et al. 1991). In this study, the etTect of ofloxacin on the production of exoenzymes by P. aeruginosa was evaluated and compared with the etTect of minocycline, gentamicin and piperacillin. The P. aeruginosa strain used in this study was the B16 strain isolated from human blood, and the MICs of ofloxacin, minocycline, gentamicin and piperacillin against this strain were 1, 16, 4 and 4 mg/L, respectively. After 24-hour culture of P. aeruginosa with each concentration (1 MIC, 1/5 MIC, 1/10 MIC, 1/20 MIC) of antibiotics, the activities of exoenzymes were assayed and the growth of variable cells was examined in each culture broth. For assay of total protease activity, P. aeruginosa was grown in brain heart infusion broth containing antibiotics at 37°C for 24 hours. The culture supernatant was added to hide powder azure substrate and the mixture was incubated at 37"C for I hour. Undissolved substrate was removed by centrifugation. Total protease activity was determined by comparing the A595 values of the supernatants with those of a standard curve prepared by using purified P. aeruginosa protease. The method for determining elastase activity was the same as that for total protease, except that elastin Congo red substrate was used, incubation time was 2 hours, and the absorbance value was A495. Values were compared with those of a standard curve prepared by using purified P. aeruginosa elastase (Grimwood et al. 1989). For assay of phospholipase C activity, P. aeruginosa was grown in tryptose minimal medium containing antibiotics at 32°C for 24 hours. Decolourising carbon was added to the culture supernatant. After centrifugation, the supernatant was added to a solution containing Tris butTer, glycerol, ZnCl2 and p-nitrophenylphosphorylcholine in individual wells ofa 96-well microdilution tray. These were incubated at 37"C for I hour and phospho

We have succeeded in growing homogeneous semi-insulating GaAs crystals reproducibly by a new and advanced high pressure LEC growth technique using As injection to control the melt composition during crystal growth. More uniform properties than those of conventional LEC GaAs were obtained reproducibly in not only longitudinal but also radial directions, including resistivity, C-V profile, infrared transmission image and FET performance. It is suggested that such homogeneity is due to the effect of controlling the melt composition at the near stoichiometric (or congruent) point.

In a series of μ+ experiments either at UT-MSL BOOM or at TRIUMF, we have found that the positive muon can create an interesting and systematic “after-effect” in the well-known organic semiconductor polymer polyacetylene, (CH)x or (CD)x: the localized unpaired electron at nearby carbon sites is produced in cis-polyacetylene, to form a muon radical; in trans-polyacetylene, the electron becomes mobile and takes “soliton”-like one dimensional rapid motion along the chain. Recently experiments were extended towards the following three directions: a) diffusion properties of the muon produced solition in trans-polyacetylene; b) the details of radical structure in cis-polyacetylene, and c) μSR experiments on I-doped polyacetylene. These works are reviewed along with the possible future perspectives.

This report is the results of the studies on NAA of groundwater samples with comparison between direct and evaporation methods, and of the applications for the samples of alluvium plain composed with granitiform soils and of Neogene strata composed with clay minerals.

We have usedin vitro-grown microtuber discs in the transformation of Russet Burbank and Lemhi Russet potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) cultivars byAgrobacterium-mediated gene transfer. Transformed plants were selected by their resistance to kanamycin and identified by β-glucuronidase activity. Northern blot analysis confirmed the presence of the corresponding messenger RNA. The ability to transform these two cultivars promises significant improvements to agronomically important varieties.