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Bismuth carbide cluster ions, BinC2n+ (n = 3–11), were produced using a gas aggregation source. Reactions of neutral Bi clusters with hydrocarbon gases having unsaturated C–C bonds (C2H2, C2H4, and C2H2F2) followed by laser ionization can produce BinC2n+ in a gas phase. Bismuth carbide clusters smaller than Bi3C6+ were not found. Even-odd alternation in the stabilities of the cluster ions was observed, and the abundance of cluster ions with odd number of n in BinC2n+ was enhanced in the TOF-mass spectra. Density functional calculations of the BinC2n+ were performed in order to estimate the geometries of the cluster ions and the stability dependence on the cluster size.

Irradiation experiments of solid breeder materials including Li 2 TiO 3 have been being carried out in preparation for a test blanket module (TBM) of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). The present paper deals with design and trial-fabrication works for developing a dismantling apparatus for the irradiation capsules. The dismantling process leads to release of tritium which is left in free volumes of the capsule or in the breeder specimens. In the design of the dismantling apparatus, the released tritium is recovered safely by a purge-gas system during the cutting of the irradiation capsule by a band saw, and then the tritium is consolidated into a radioactive waste. Furthermore, an inner-box enclosing the dismantling apparatus works as a countermeasure of possible release of tritium in accidental events. Good performance of a trial fabrication model of the dismantling apparatus has been demonstrated by preliminary cutting runs using some mockups simulating the irradiation capsules. Thus, the present design of the apparatus, together with the trial mock-up runs, will contribute to the design of the TBM structure and to the planning of the dismantling process of the TBM.

The characteristics of a cluster beam interaction with a solid target are reviewed from the viewpoint of computer simulation. The similarity and dissimilarity of irradiation effects between single and cluster ion beams are the main emphasis of the review. The speed-range of a projectile studied is below the Bethe range (v1≤v0 Z1) but not so low, where electronic energy loss is significant. Because of the multiple collisions (in time and space) a classical molecular dynamic simulation is useful, whereas the multiplicity in energy is more significant for a molecular projectile. Here the collision stage of energy transfer from a projectile to target during the collision stage is separated from the succeeding relaxation stage. The multiplicity in the collision stage can cause molecular effects, however they are not always so significant. In the relaxation stage a somewhat enhanced effect can occur when the locally deposited energy exceeds a certain level.

A genome-wide scan for QTL affecting economically important traits in beef production was performed using an F(2) resource family from a Japanese Black x Limousin cross, where 186 F(2) animals were measured for growth, carcass, and meat-quality traits. All family members were genotyped for 313 informative microsatellite markers that spanned 2,382 cM of bovine autosomes. The centromeric region of BTA2 contained significant QTL (i.e., exceeding the genome-wide 5% threshold) for 5 carcass grading traits [LM area, beef marbling standards (BMS) number, luster, quality grade, and firmness), 8 computer image analysis (CIA) traits [LM lean area, ratio of fat area (RFA) to LM area, LM area, RFA to musculus (M.) trapezius area, M. trapezius lean area, M. semispinalis lean area, RFA to M. semispinalis area, and RFA to M. semispinalis capitis area], and 5 meat quality traits (contents of CP, crude fat, moisture, C16:1, and C18:2 of LM). A significant QTL for withers height was detected at 80.3 cM on BTA5. We detected significant QTL for the C14:0 content in backfat and C14:0 and C14:1 content in intermuscular fat around the 62.3 to 71.0 cM region on BTA19 and for C14:0, C14:1, C18:1, and C16:0 content and ratio of total unsaturated fatty acid content to total SFA content in intramuscular fat at 2 different regions on BTA19 (41.1 cM for C14:1 and 62.3 cM for the other 4 traits). Overall, we identified 9 significant QTL regions controlling 27 traits with genome-wide significance of 5%; of these, 22 traits exceeded the 1% genome-wide threshold. Some of the QTL affecting meat quality traits detected in this study might be the same QTL as previously reported. The QTL we identified need to be validated in commercial Japanese Black cattle populations.

We proposed previously a superconductor frame compression circuit utilized in superconductor high-speed routers, which were expected to be used in the next generation network. The maximum operating frequency of the circuit was 23 GHz in the simulation. It was limited by the arrival timing-error between clock and data signal in one of the shift register. In this paper we analyzed this timing-error. And we designed a modified clock supply circuit. The behavior of the whole frame compression circuit was simulated by computers, and it was confirmed that it operated properly up to 40 GHz.

We have studied the ion-induced defects in a semiconductor (3C-SiC) using an empirical molecular dynamics calculation at temperature below 2000 K. The structures of produced defects were analysed by the Pixel Mapping method, focusing on the antisite related defects. In addition to the D I center that had been ascribed to be due to single antisite pair (C Si –Si C ) aligning in directions, we observed antisite clusters composed of 3–5 antisites. As a model cluster, Si C (C Si ) 4 had been predicted by quasistatic calculation, which was consistent with the lower formation energy of C Si than Si C . This implied inversely Si C and C Si (Si C ) 4 can be more stable if once they were formed under energetic ion impacts. In fact, we observed a clear trend of growth of C Si (Si C ) n approaching to C Si (Si C ) 4 under 5 keV boron impacts above annealing temperature.

Tracking of a cord plug of household appliance connected to an outlet is considered one of causes of fire accident, which is observed when dust is accumulated in the space between the plug and the outlet and then wetted by dew condensation. It is strongly requested to detect the tracking in order to interrupt power supply before ignition. In the present study, a novel method was developed to detect current flowing on a cord plug surface between electrodes, whose magnitude is much smaller than that of a load current. Results of fundamental studies on surface current characteristics under artificially contaminated and wetted conditions and their relation with tracking progression are reported.

The piezoelectric photo-thermal (PPT) and the surface photo-voltage (SPV) spectra of GaAs/AlAs short-period superlattices (SPS)-confined GaAs single-quantum well (SQW) were measured. The electron nonradiative transitions within GaAs-SQW and subband of SPS were observed in the room-temperature PPT spectrum. At low temperature (81 K), the PPT and SPV peaks originated from the exciton transition of e1-hh1 and e1-lh1 within GaAs-SQW were observed. These peak intensities showed the opposite behavior followed by a photo-quenching (PQ) of EL2 existing in GaAs substrate. It was found that EL2 in the substrate exerted an influence on the carrier transition mechanisms within GaAs-SQW and the electron nonradiative paths through EL2 were clearly discussed by the PPT and SPV measurements.

We have developed two CMOS devices to demonstrate the use of CMOS technology for neural imaging and interfacing with the aim of studying the functions of the brain at the molecular level. In this work, we discuss the design, packaging, and implementation of a compact, single device imaging system for imaging inside the mouse brain. We show that the device is capable of imaging and measuring fluorophore concentrations down to 1 mum . The packaged device was tested for in vivo fluorescence imaging by imaging the activity of serine protease in the mouse hippocampus. The result shows imaging of neural activity with spatial resolution close to the pixel size of 7.5 mum and less than 300 ms temporal resolution. A second device was developed to image neuronal network activity and to provide a means for electrical interfacing with neurons. Characterization tests show that the device has comparable performance to current tools used in electrophysiological experiments of the brain. This work paves the way for simultaneous imaging and electrophysiological experiments using a single compact and minimally invasive device in the future.

We newly miniaturized single-flux-quantum (SFQ) switch circuits for realizing a large-scale switch. A problem in our conventional design is a large size of circuits, because they consist of combine primitive-function logic cells , such as AND, NOT, and so on. To solve this problem, we investigated an approach that uses high-functionality logic cells . As the first step in such a design approach, we designed a new 2:1 multiplexer (MUX) cell, which is a key component in switches. The main features of the MUX cell include nondestructive operation, timing-free inputs, and compatibility with our standard cell library “CONNECT”. We significantly miniaturized the MUX by 67% in comparison to our conventional MUX circuit, which was implemented by combining primitive-function cells. We also designed a 2 × 2 switch using the MUX cell. In comparison to our conventional 2 × 2 switch, the circuit size, the number of Josephson junctions, and the power consumption were reduced by 27%, 30%, and 38%, respectively. The 2 × 2 switch operated at 40 GHz with a bias margin of ±6%.

A proximity focusing RICH with aerogel radiator has been studied to extend the pion-kaon separation power in the forward region of the Belle spectrometer. Such a proximity focusing RICH counter is also a very fast detector, in particular if a micro-channel plate (MCP) PMT is used as the photon detector. With its excellent timing properties, the same device could also serve as a time-of-flight counter and thus supplement other identification methods, in particular for low momentum tracks. Cherenkov photons emitted in the radiator medium (aerogel) as well as in the entrance window of the PMT could be used for the time-of-flight measurement. A prototype of this novel device using BURLE 85011 64-anode, microchannel plate PMT, was tested on the bench and in the test beam at KEK. Excellent performance of this counter could be demonstrated. In particular, a good separation of pions and protons was observed in the test beam data with a time-of-flight resolution of about 35 ps (rms) for Cherenkov photons produced in the PMT window.

A proximity focusing RICH based on a silica aerogel Cherenkov radiator has been developed for a new particle identification device in the upgraded Belle detector. To further improve the detector performance, a new concept for Cherenkov ring imaging has been introduced, where multiple aerogel layers with different indices are accumulated to increase the number of detected photons without making the Cherenkov photon angle resolution worse. By constructing a prototype counter, this idea was validated in a test beam experiment, and a 5.5σπ/K separation at 4GeV/c with more than nine photoelectrons was achieved. We will present new results from a beam test as well as recent improvements on aerogel radiators.

We have analyzed the evolution of defects caused by self-irradiation of crystalline silicon. A classical molecular dynamics simulation was followed by defect analysis using the Pixel Mapping (PM) method. The PM identified {311} planar defects and long-chain structures of the so-called interstitial chains following low energy (1 keV) ion impact. The areal density obtained from simulation of self-interstitial atoms was about two thirds of that of experiments reported in the literature [Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 30 (1991) L639], while the atomic configuration on respective planes agreed exactly.

A feasibility study was performed to generate new sufficient mirror cusp magnetic field (CMF) by using the coils of the existing room temperature traditional 18 GHz electron cyclotron resonance ion source (ECRIS) at RIKEN. The CMF configuration was chosen because it contains plasma superbly and no multipole magnet is needed to make the contained plasma quiescent with no magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) instability and to make the system cost-effective. The least magnetic field, 13 kG is achieved at the interior wall of the plasma chamber including the point cusps (PC) on the central axis and the ring cusp (RC) on the mid-plane. The mirror ratio calculation and electron simulation were done in the computed CMF. It was found to contain the electrons for longer time than in traditional field. It is proposed that a powerful CMF ECRIS can be constructed, which is capable of producing intense highly charged ion (HCI) beam for light and heavy elements.

In this preliminary study, the spatial extent of the defects introduced in Si by a normally incident 1 MeV H + nanobeam was investigated using a hybrid approach. First, the standard SRIM code was employed to calculate the angular and energy distributions of Primary Knock-on Atoms (PKA) using the Binary Collision Approximation (BCA). The long mean free path and the kinematics of scattering in a screened Coulomb potential resulted in an anisotropic PKA distribution that was mainly directed perpendicular to the primary ion trajectories. The PKA energy E dependence was close to 1/ E n with 1.5 n The results revealed that the low energy PKA’s resulted in localised damaged regions with Si Self-Interstitial Atoms (SIA) and associated vacancies concentrated within a few nm of the ion track. Although some clustering occurred, the majority of SIA were present as monomers. This is in agreement with previous work on low energy B + implanted Si. The contribution from the spatial distribution of displacements from high energy (>40 eV) PKAs was investigated using SRIM. It was found that within the maximum region of the SIA concentration (1–2 nm radius of the ion track) the contribution from high energy PKA’s is relatively unimportant (∼5%).

Background. Gestational gigantomastia is a rare disorder without clear etiology or well-established risk factors. Several pathogenic mechanisms contributing to the disease process have been proposed, all of which can lead to a similar phenotype of breast hypertrophy.Case. A 28-year-old Guinean woman presented at 37 weeks of gestation with bilateral gigantomastia, mastalgia, peau d’orange, and back pain. Prolactin levels were 103.3 μg/L (with a normal reference value for prolactin in pregnancy being 36–372 μg/L). The patient was treated with bromocriptine (2.5 mg twice daily), scheduled for a repeat cesarean, and referred to surgery for bilateral mammoplasty.Conclusion. Gestational gigantomastia is a rare disorder, characterized by enlargement and hypertrophy of breast tissue. Our patient presented with no endocrine or hematological abnormalities, adding to a review of the literature for differential diagnoses, workup, and management of cases of gestational gigantomastia with normal hormone levels.

Background Granulocyte and monocyte adsorptive apheresis (GMA) has shown efficacy in patients with active Crohn’s disease (CD). However, with routine weekly therapy, it may take several weeks to achieve remission. This study was performed to assess clinical efficacy and safety of intensive GMA in patients with active CD. Methods In an open-label, prospective, randomized multicentre setting, 104 patients with CD activity index (CDAI) of 200 to 450 received intensive GMA, at two sessions per week (n = 55) or one session per week (n = 49). Clinical remission was defined as a CDAI score

Background The number of reported cases of allergic reactions to sesame seeds (Sesamum indicum) has increased significantly. The specific IgE tests and skin prick tests presently available for diagnosis of sesame allergy are all based on crude sesame extract and are limited by their low clinical specificity. Thus, oral food challenge (OFC) is still the gold standard in the diagnosis. Objective The aim was to identify the allergen components useful to diagnose sesame-allergic children with the goal to reduce the number of OFCs needed. Methods Ninety-two sesame-sensitized children were consecutively enrolled and diagnosed based on OFC or convincing history. Specific IgE to purified native 11S globulin (nSes i 11S), 7S globulin (nSes i 7S), 2S albumin (nSes i 2S), and two recombinant 2S albumins (rSes i 1 and rSes i 2) was measured by ELISA and/or ImmunoCAP (rSes i 1/streptavidin application). Results Based on area under curve (AUC) values from receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, rSes i 1 was shown to have the best diagnostic performance of the allergen components in ELISA. The experimental rSes i 1 ImmunoCAP test had larger AUC (0.891; 95% CI, 0.826-0.955) compared to the commercially available sesame ImmunoCAP (0.697; 95% CI, 0.589-0.805). The clinical sensitivity and specificity for the rSes i 1 ImmunoCAP test at optimal cut-off (3.96 kUA /L) were 86.1% and 85.7%, respectively. Conclusion and clinical relevance Sensitization to Ses i 1 is strongly associated with clinical sesame allergy. Measurement of specific IgE to rSes i 1 could reduce the numbers of OFCs needed.

Selenization growth of phase-separation-free polycrystalline CuIn1–xGaxSe2 ( 0 ⩽ x ⩽ 0.29 ) films was demonstrated using a less-hazardous organometallic Se source, diethylselenide [(C2H5)2Se: DESe], and stacked structure of Se-premixed Cu–In–Ga metals called ‘precursors’. Distinct from the case of using Se vapor or H2Se gas, single-phase CuInGaSe2 films were obtained without thermal annealing using a combination of DESe and Se-premixed precursors. Photoluminescence spectra of the films at 77 K were dominated by the defect-related donor–acceptor pair and free electron to acceptor recombination emissions, which are particular to the CuInGaSe2 films exhibiting high-conversion efficiency.

The optical absorption spectrum of InGaAs quantum well (QW) heterostructure samples were measured by using the piezoelectric photothermal (PPT) spectroscopy. From the room-temperature-PPT measurements and curve fitting analysis, the exciton contribution was clearly distinguished from the two-dimensional step-like band-to-band transition. Two samples of different QW structures, a molecular beam epitaxy grown single-QW (MBE-SQW) and an atomic layer epitaxy grown multiple-QW (ALE-MQW), were prepared in order to examine the availability of the PPT technique to the QW structure samples. The binding energies and FWHMs of the PPT exciton peaks were found to be 8 and 20 meV for MBE-SQW, and to be 13 and 43 meV for ALE-MQW samples, respectively. The present results show that the PPT methodology is a powerful tool for investigating the optical properties of QW structures only at room-temperature measurements.

We have constructed several high performance ECRISs in RIKEN and produced intense beams of heavy ions. (e.g. 2 mA of Ar8+, 0.6 mA of Kr13+, 0.3 mA of Xe20+) During the improvement of their performance, we found that the two key parameters play essential roles in increasing the beam intensity: plasma electrode position and magnetic field configuration. Based on these experimental results, we have a plan to construct a new superconducting ECRIS for producing an intense beam of U35+.

In order to get some insight into the origin of the anomalous angular dependence of H c2 in a layered intermetallic compound CaAlSi, electronic, superconducting, and structural properties are compared between CaAlSi and CaGaSi. The angular dependence of H c2 in CaGaSi is well described by the anisotropic GL model. Parallel to this finding, the pronounced lattice modulation accompanying the superstructure along the c -axis in CaAlSi is absent in CaGaSi. A relatively large specific heat jump at the superconducting transition in CaAlSi compared with CaGaSi indicates the presence of strong electron–phonon coupling in CaAlSi, which may cause the superstructure and the anomalous angular dependence of H c2 .

A method for analyzing three-dimensional (3-D) magnetic field in a model including moving parts, such as linear actuator, was developed by using a nonconforming mesh with edge elements. In this method, the meshes for moving and nonmoving parts are generated individually, and they are overlapped together at an arbitrary position. Then, the magnetic field analysis is carried out by using the nonconforming technique with interpolation. It is shown that the proposed method is useful for a dynamic analysis of a 3-D actuator model.

To investigate irradiation-induced Si amorphization during its initial stages, we have performed a classical molecular-dynamics (MD) calculation for the case of self-irradiation by 5 keV ions at a low temperature of 100 K. We examined the geometry of self-interstitial atom (SIA) clusters using the pixel mapping (PM) method, on the output data of MD calculations. Perfect crystalline silicon (c-Si) is amorphized by self-irradiation, and we observe that many SIA are produced. During sequential self-irradiation, the most frequently observed species were isolated SIA, i.e. I1 (monomer). The fractions of SIA clusters decreased as I2 (dimer), I3 (trimer), and I4 (tetramer) clusters, respectively. For I2 clusters, the 〈1 1 0〉 oriented I2’s were the dominant I2 species, which agree with previous predictions based on static calculations. Nevertheless, other I2’s with different orientations were also significant. Some of them have been proposed as intermediate I2’s in forming dislocations. The present results imply that irradiation-induced SIA’s play an important role in the triggering of amorphization, and MD combined with PM can reveal the intermediate processes underlying extended-defect formation.

We have analysed by computer simulation the evolution of defects caused by self-irradiation of crystalline silicon (c-Si) at high temperatures. A classical molecular dynamics simulation (MD) was followed by defect analysis using the pixel mapping (PM) method. The incident Si ion energy was 5 keV and the target temperature was set to 1000 K. In the present simulation, we aimed to reproduce experimentally observed {3 1 1} planer defects. So far we did not observe long chain structures towards the 〈1 1 0〉 direction, nor remarkable platelet {3 1 1} planar defects. Nevertheless we observed a significant increase of 〈1 1 0〉-oriented self-interstitial dimers and a small fraction of linear trimers, which will be the initial stages of 〈1 1 0〉-rod formation.

BACKGROUND UFT, an oral 5-fluorouracil derivative, is the only drug that is effective as a postoperative adjuvant therapy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) [ ], but the mechanism of the action remains unclear. We examined whether UFT and/or its metabolite, gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) inhibits lung metastases in a mouse model. METHODS Lewis lung carcinoma cells were implanted into the foot pads of C57 BL/6 mice, and mice were treated with UFT or GHB. RESULTS Both the mean number of metastatic nodules and the mean lung weight for UFT-treated mice (11.4 and 192.1 mg, respectively) were significantly lower than those for saline-treated mice (41.5 and 415.0 mg, respectively) (p < 0.001 for both). UFT did not inhibit tumor growth at the primary sites (foot pads). No significant body weight loss was documented in UFT-treated mice. GHB did not inhibit development of lung metastases even when a higher dose was used. CONCLUSIONS UFT inhibits development of lung metastases without any toxicity in mouse model, which may explain the efficacy of postoperative administration of UFT for resected NSCLC.

A free-prefabricated auricular composite graft was applied in two patients who underwent extended hemilaryngectomy. Good phonatory and respiratory functions were obtained without any significant aspiration. Although this reconstructive method is a two-staged procedure involving microsurgical techniques, we believe that it provides a good physiologic reconstruction of the larynx and trachea.

The springback of high-strength steel after hot and warm sheet formings is investigated. Environmentally friendly vehicles will promote the increasing usage of high-strength steel sheets, however, a large amount of springback after sheet forming is one of the major drawbacks. A series of hot and warm sheet forming experiments on high-strength steel sheets are conducted using a hot compression testing machine, and the effect of forming temperature on the amount of springback is evaluated. The springback is markedly reduced when the forming temperature is higher than 750K, which is approximately the critical temperature for the recrystallization of ferrite grains.

The epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a crucial event that occurs during cancer metastasis and can be induced by transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) in various tumor cells in vitro. However, little is known about the effects of TGF-β in canine mammary gland tumors (CMGTs). Here, we investigated the role of TGF-β in CMGT. We observed that treatment of the CMGT cell line CHMp13a with TGF-β1 leads to transient induction of the mesenchymal marker vimentin. Real-time measurements of cellular electrical impedance also showed that CMGT invasiveness is transiently increased by TGF-β1 treatment, but is reversed after prolonged stimulation. This phenomenon is similar to the mesenchymal-epithelial transition (MET, the reverse phenomenon of EMT), and a process that is implicated in the establishment of secondary metastatic lesions.

Recently, much importance has been attached to the problem of environmental pollution by industrial waste products. Recently, biodegradable polymers have attracted interest in that they open the way to an unexplored processing method for the disposal of industrial wastes Polylactic acid (PLA) is the polymer material on which biodegradability research has been the most advanced. Making the most of this advantage, in the future, we plan to apply PLA as an insulating material, for example, in electric wires and cables. For this reason, we measured the basic electrical insulation characteristic of PLA, and the following results were obtained. The measurement results of volume resistivity, dielectric constant and dielectric loss tangent, at room temperature, were almost the same as those of crosslinked polyethylene (XLPE) currently used as the insulating material for cables and electric wire, respectively. The mean value of the impulse breakdown strength of PLA was about 1.3 times that of XLPE. Thus, the possibility of the insulation thickness reduction of electric wire and cable is demonstrated. Also, the space charge accumulation of the PLA and XLPE was measured. The value of the space charge accumulation of the PLL A is half of that of XLPE, when the DC voltage was applied for a short time.

Medium energy ion scattering (MEIS) combining a toroidal electrostatic analyzer with an energy resolution (dE/E) of 4 × 10−3 has been used for ultra-shallow depth profiling of As implanted into Si at 1, 2 and 5 keV to a dose of 1.2 × 1015 ions/cm2 before and after spike annealing at 1075 °C. Depth profiling results extracted from MEIS spectra were compared with those of simulation and SIMS measurement. The arsenic re-distribution close to the surface after spike annealing was found by MEIS and SIMS measurements.

The impact of clinical, pathologic, and surgical variables on the postoperative morbidity, mortality, and survival of patients undergoing extended resections of colon carcinoma were evaluated. METHODS: The medical records of 95 patients who underwent extended resections for colon carcinoma between 1953 and 1996 were reviewed. In all cases, in addition to colectomy, 1 or more organs and/or structures were resected en bloc due to a macroscopically based suspicion of tumor invasion. The clinical, pathologic, and surgical parameters were analyzed. Overall survival rates were analyzed according to the method of Kaplan and Meier. Multivariate analysis was performed using the Cox proportional hazards model. RESULTS: Eighty-six patients were treated by curative surgeries and the remaining by palliative resections. Invasion of the organs and/or adjacent structures and regional lymph nodes was found microscopically in 48 and 31 patients, respectively. The median follow-up without postoperative mortality was 47.7 months. The 5-year overall survival rates was 52.6%. The 5-year overall survival rates for patients undergoing curative and palliative surgeries was 58.3% and 0%, respectively. The mean survival time in the palliative surgery group was 3.1 months. Multivariate analysis showed that Karnofsky performance status was strongly related to the risk of postoperative complications (P = .01), and postoperative deaths were associated with the type of surgery and Karnofsky performance status at the time of admission (P = .001). CONCLUSIONS: Some patients with locally advanced colon adenocarcinomas undergoing extended resections have a 5-year overall survival rates of 58.3%. Patients could benefit from palliative-intent procedures, but these measures should cautiously be indicated and avoided in patients with low Karnofsky performance status due to high rates of postoperative mortality and poor survival.Foi avaliado o impacto de variáveis clínicas, patológicas e cirúrgicas na morbidade e mortalidade pós operatórias de pacientes submetidos à ressecção extendida de carcinoma do cólon. MÉTODOS: Prontuários médicos de 95 pacientes submetidos á ressecção extendida de carcinoma de cólon entre os anos de 1953 e 1996 foram revisados. Em todos os casos, além de colectomia, um ou mais órgãos e/ou estruturas foram ressecados em bloco devido á suspeição de invasão tumoral macroscópica. As variáveis clínicas, patológicas e cirúrgicas foram analizadas. As taxas de sobrevida global foram analizadas de acordo com o método de Kaplan and Meier. A análise multivariada foi realizada empregando-se o modelo de risco proporcional de Cox. RESULTADOS: Oitenta e seis pacientes foram tratados com cirurgia curativa e o restante com ressecção paliativa. Invasão microscópica de órgãos e/ou estruturas adjacentes e linfonodos regionais foi encontrada em 48 e 31 pacientes respectivamente. O tempo de seguimento mediano, sem mortalidade pós operatória, foi de 47.7 meses. A taxa de sobrevida global em 5 anos foi de 52.6%. A taxa de sobrevida global para pacientes submetidos à cirurgia curativa e paliativa foi de 58.3% e zero, respectivamente. A sobrevida mediana no grupo de pacientes com cirurgia paliativa foi de 3.1 meses. A análise multivariada mostrou que a performance status de Karnofsky fortemente correlacionou com risco de complicações pós operatórias (p=0.01), e que o risco de morte pós operatória estava associada com o tipo de cirurgia e a performance status de Karnofsky na admissão (p=0.001) CONCLUSÕES: Pacientes com adenocarcinoma de cólon localmente avançados submetidos à ressecção extendida têm taxa de sobrevida global em 5 anos de 58.3% Este tipo de cirurgia pode ser empregada com intuito paliativo, mas deve ter indicação criteriosa e ser evitada em pacientes com baixa performance status de Karnofsky devido às altas taxas de mortalidade pós operatória e baixa sobrevida.

The fundamental recovery technique for some medium failures in a database system is regularly carried out by executing a full backup that takes all copies of updated files. However, the overhead of such full backup becomes sometimes very large in a massive database system. To lessen the overhead of backups, an incremental backup with small overhead, which takes only copies of newly updated files, is usually adopted in most database systems. However, the overhead of an incremental backup increases in proportion to the total amount of updated files. It would be necessary to determine when to make full backups. This paper proposes a stochastic model with incremental and full backups: the expected costs incurred for two backups are obtained, and an optimal full backup interval which minimizes them is discussed. It is shown that an optimal interval is given by a finite and unique solution of an equation under suitable conditions. Finally, a numerical example is given and some useful discussions are made.

Aims The F1S and A genetic variants of α1-acid glycoprotein (AAG) change under various physiological and pathological conditions. They also vary in their drug binding abilities. We have studied the stereoselective binding ability of each of the AAG variants using enantiomers of disopyramide (DP) and warfarin (WR). Methods The AAG variants were separated by hydroxyapatite chromatography. Binding of drug enantiomers to the AAG variants was studied by the Hummel–Dreyer method. The characteristics of the binding activities were examined by Scatchard plot analysis. The first five amino-terminal amino acids (residues 112–116) of the cyanogen bromide (CNBr) fragment (residues 112–181) of each of the separated AAG fractions were elucidated by Edman degradation. Results Commercial AAG was separated into two main fractions. Residues 112–116 of fraction 2 were identical to the amino acid sequences predicted from the AAG A gene, LAFDV, and encode the F1S variant. In fraction 3, the deduced amino acid sequence of the AAG B gene, FGSYL, was established, and encodes the A variant. The binding affinities of both DP enantiomers in fraction 3 were significantly higher than those in fraction 2. The differences between dissociation constants (Kd) in fractions 2 and 3 were 5.2-fold for (S)-DP (P

The sensitivity change of the blue-light stimulated luminescence (BSL), red thermoluminescence (RTL) and blue TL (BTL) signal with annealing treatment was investigated on several RTL-quartz samples. The BSL-signal from volcanic quartz was recognized to offer extremely weak emission in comparison with the one from archaeological burnt quartz. It was found that the BSL-sensitivity of the volcanic quartz was remarkably enhanced by up to a factor of 40 after annealing treatment, in comparison with the slight enhancement of 2.4 for archaeological burnt quartz, accompanied with a slight decrease of RTL-sensitivity. As a result, the archaeological burnt quartz has been verified to be datable using both BSL and RTL measurements, while RTL dating was recommendable from old age samples of volcanic origins.

Stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1) acts as a chemoattractant for leukocytes and can induce neovascularisation. To examine the role of SDF-1 in the development of angiogenesis, immunohistochemical studies were performed on bronchial biopsy specimens from asthmatic and control subjects. Bronchial biopsy specimens were obtained from 13 asthmatic and eight control subjects. The number of vessels and the percentage area they occupied were estimated after staining for type-IV collagen. In addition the number of SDF-1-positive cells was determined. There was a significant increase in the number of vessels and the percentage vascularity in the submucosa of asthmatic subjects compared with control subjects. Asthmatic subjects exhibited a greater number of SDF-1-positive cells in the airway mucosa than control subjects. The degree of vascularity was associated with the number of SDF-1-positive cells. Furthermore, the number of SDF-1-positive cells was inversely correlated with airway calibre and airway hyperresponsiveness. Colocalisation studies revealed that endothelial cells, macrophages and T-lymphocytes were the major sources of SDF-1. These findings suggest that increased vascularity of bronchial mucosa in asthmatic subjects is closely related to the expression of stromal cell-derived factor-1 positive cells, which may play a role in remodelling of airways via angiogenesis.

We have examined a mechanism of Si amorphization, by a classical molecular-dynamics, paying attention to whether or not the self-interstitial atom (SIA) clusters were a precursor to amorphization, when a crystalline Si was self-irradiated by several keV ions at a low temperature of 100 K. The pixel mapping (PM) analyzed crystallographically a crystalline to amorphous (CA) transition caused by ion irradiation by means of a set of long-range-order parameters. The spatial distribution of SIAs were also counted by PM. Throughout the sequential self-irradiation, the fraction of isolated SIAs was dominant. Although the fractions were small, we found the significant increase of small SIA clusters, e.g. I2–I4, as the crystalline state was being collapsed. We conclude that those small SIA clusters can be the trigger to enhance the production of more SIAs, and results in CA transition.

Ion irradiation often causes amorphization in a crystal. We have presented a new crystallographic analysis that defines a new type of order parameter, which we call pixel mapping (PM). PM can describe algebraically to what extent and how the crystallinity has changed under ion bombardment. In other words, PM describes the long-range-order (LRO) interactions, based on the crystallography. PM can be effectively used, when it is incorporated in a classical molecular dynamics (MD) calculation. In the case of B ions implanted into a Si crystal, we observed crystal to amorphous (CA) transitions under energetic ion bombardment at low temperature. The PM profiling was more effective to reveal the CA transition than other atomistic methods of analyses as radial distribution function g(r) or vacancy mapping Nv. PM could distinguish between perfect crystalline states, transition states, and random states. Moreover, PM revealed that the lattice reaction was cooperative even in a mesoscopic volume, e.g. in a cube of 60 A × 60 A × 60 A, indicating the importance of LRO interactions.

As die and mold have become more and more complicated in recent years, the demand for lowering the cost and reducing the production time becomes strong and rapid prototyping and tooling technology have been used to achieve the same. Rapid prototyping has been widely known as being able to fabricate 3D object with complex geometric shapes. RP, however, cannot be applied to real products because the required strength cannot be given by soft materials. So the RP have been copied to semi-metallic soft tools using the mixture of metal fillers and epoxy. In this paper, in order to evaluate the effect of the filler on the characteristics of semi-metallic soft tools, common aluminum powder, cast iron powder recycled by machining chips, and aluminum short fiber made by self-excited vibration technique are used. Besides, in the case of aluminum powder, the change of characteristics of semi-metallic soft tools with the volume fraction of the powder is also tested.

When a flow obstruction such as a spacer is set in a boiling two-phase flow within an annular channel, the inner tube of which is used as a heater, the temperature on the surface of the heater tube is severely affected by the existence of the spacer. In some cases the spacer has a cooling effect, and in other cases it causes the dryout of the cooling water film on the heating surface resulting in the burnout of the tube. In the present paper we will discuss temperature fluctuations in relation to the change in the flow configuration near the cylindrical spacer in transient boiling two-phase flow caused by the stepwise change of the operation parameters such as the heat flux, the mass flow rate, and the inlet quality of the test section. As a result it is concluded that: Even if the flow pattern changes rapidly by a stepwise change of an operation parameter, the transition of flow proceeds safely provided that the change causes the increase of vapor velocity, i.e. the increase of the shear force which is acting on liquid film flow. On the other hand if the change causes the decrease of the vapor velocity, it must be noticed that the transient burnout possibly occurs even when the operating condition after the change is less than the steady burnout condition.

Two kinds of swimming microrobots, which imitate the propulsive mechanisms of water beetles, have been developed for amusement use. Each of them includes one or two magnets and a propulsive mechanism composed of two legs with paddles. When alternating magnetic fields are applied, the magnet oscillates angularly due to magnetic torque and drives the propulsive mechanism. The relation between thrust and angle of the power stroke was first examined using a simple model swimming in the direction of the magnetic field. As a result, we found that the movable area of the legs should be confined to the hind half of the body. Based on this result, we fabricated a second model that swims in the direction perpendicular to the magnetic field. When alternating magnetic fields of 2. 4 kA/m at 3-10 Hz were applied using the coil wound around the water tank, the second model successfully swam at a speed of several cm/s and showed lifelike behavior.

A new automated OSL/TL measuring system, equipped with a small X-ray irradiator applicable to a single-aliquot method, has been developed. To ensure cross check between OSL and RTL, the naturally accumulated doses evaluated with OSL and RTL measurements were compared. The results nearly agreed with each other, although the ages estimated from the experimental data were different from the real ages of Shin-Yakushiji temple because of the uncertainty of the annual dose. Nevertheless, it was concluded that the application of this system to the dating could be performed owing to uses of the luminescence measurements.

When titanium (Ti) metal absorbs a lot of hydrogen, the XPS spectrum shows a remarkable change in the valence band. Making use of molecular orbital (MO) calculations, we ascribed the peak shift to the formation of a hydrogen-induced state of Ti. The trapped site of hydrogen in Ti may be at the lattice point in titanium hydride (TiH2), which forms a polycrystal with the small Ti crystals. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Dual mode devices based on high temperature superconducting films represent an interesting class for telecommunication applications since they combine a miniaturized size with a good power handling. Here we report on a novel compact antenna obtained by crossing a square patch with two or more slots. The proposed design has an antenna size reduction of about 40% as compared to the conventional square patch microstrip antennas. Single patch antenna both with linear (LP) and circular (CP) polarization operating in the X-band have been designed and tested at prototype level. They are realized by using double sided (YBa2Cu3O7−x) YBCO and Tl2Ba2Ca1Cu2O8 (Tl-2212) superconducting films grown on MgO substrates and tested with a portable cryocooler. They showed at T=77 K a return loss