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Due to the structure of the NuSTAR telescope, photons at large off-axis (> 1deg) can reach the detectors directly (stray light), without passing through the instrument optics. At these off-axis angles NuSTAR essentially turns into a collimated instrument and the spectrum can extend to energies above the Pt k-edge (79 keV) of the multi-layers, which limits the effective area bandpass of the optics. We present the first scientific spectral analysis beyond 79 keV using a Cygnus X-1 observation in StrayCats, the catalog of stray light observations. This serendipitous stray light observation occurred simultaneously with an INTEGRAL observation. When the spectra are modeled together in the 30-120 keV energy band, we find that the NuSTAR stray light flux is well calibrated and constrained to be consistent with the INTEGRAL flux at the 90% confidence level. Furthermore, we explain how to treat the background of the stray light spectral analysis, which is especially important at high energies., Accepted for publication in ApJ

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe (PSP) spacecraft (formerly Solar Probe Plus) is scheduled for launch in July 2018 with a planned heliocentric orbit that will carry it on a series of close passes by the Sun with perihelion distances that eventually will get below 10 solar radii. Among other in-situ and imaging sensors, the PSP payload includes the two-instrument “Integrated Science Investigation of the Sun” suite, which will make coordinated measurements of energetic ions and electrons. The high-energy instrument (EPI-Hi), operating in the MeV energy range, consists of three detector-telescopes using silicon solid-state sensors for measuring composition, energy spectra, angular distributions, and time structure in solar energetic particle events. The expected performance of this instrument has been studied using accelerator calibrations, radioactive-source tests, and simulations. We present the EPI-Hi measurement capabilities drawing on these calibration data and simulation results for illustrations.

A magnetic-fields dependence of heat capacity of [Mn5(hmp)4(OH)2{N(CN)2}6]2MeCN·2THF (hmp=hydroxymethylpyridinate) is investigated by the thermal relaxation calorimetry technique. This compound is a three-dimensional system consisting of Mn4 single-molecule magnet (SMM) units and Mn2+ ions, which are linked by the dicyanamide ligands to form a coordination network structure. A sharp peak of Cp being associated with the formation of three-dimensional long-range order is observed around 1.96 K. The thermodynamic discussion based on the magnetic entropy suggests that both SMMs and Mn2+ ions are involved in the formation of the anitiferromagnetic spin ordering. However, this long-range ordering is very sensitive to the external magnetic fields which work to change the magnitude of the Zeeman splitting of the SMM levels. The behavior under magnetic fields is similar to that of the two-dimensional Mn4-network system studied previously.

The Low-Energy Telescope (LET) is one of four sensors that make up the Solar Energetic Particle (SEP) instrument of the IMPACT investigation for NASA’s STEREO mission. The LET is designed to measure the elemental composition, energy spectra, angular distributions, and arrival times of H to Ni ions over the energy range from ∼3 to ∼30 MeV/nucleon. It will also identify the rare isotope ^(3)He and trans-iron nuclei with 30≤Z≤83. The SEP measurements from the two STEREO spacecraft will be combined with data from ACE and other 1-AU spacecraft to provide multipoint investigations of the energetic particles that result from interplanetary shocks driven by coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and from solar flare events. The multipoint in situ observations of SEPs and solar-wind plasma will complement STEREO images of CMEs in order to investigate their role in space weather. Each LET instrument includes a sensor system made up of an array of 14 solid-state detectors composed of 54 segments that are individually analyzed by custom Pulse Height Analysis System Integrated Circuits (PHASICs). The signals from four PHASIC chips in each LET are used by a Minimal Instruction Set Computer (MISC) to provide onboard particle identification of a dozen species in ∼12 energy intervals at event rates of ∼1,000 events/sec. An additional control unit, called SEP Central, gathers data from the four SEP sensors, controls the SEP bias supply, and manages the interfaces to the sensors and the SEP interface to the Instrument Data Processing Unit (IDPU). This article outlines the scientific objectives that LET will address, describes the design and operation of LET and the SEP Central electronics, and discusses the data products that will result.

In core-collapse supernovae, titanium-44 ((44)Ti) is produced in the innermost ejecta, in the layer of material directly on top of the newly formed compact object. As such, it provides a direct probe of the supernova engine. Observations of supernova 1987A (SN1987A) have resolved the 67.87- and 78.32-kilo-electron volt emission lines from decay of (44)Ti produced in the supernova explosion. These lines are narrow and redshifted with a Doppler velocity of ~700 kilometers per second, direct evidence of large-scale asymmetry in the explosion.

We emphasize the potential of soft-modeling multivariate curve resolution method to extract pure difference spectra and kinetic profiles from data sets obtained by femtosecond transient absorption experiments. The example of the photo-switching of photochromic salicylidene aniline after 266 nm excitation will be detailed.

Heat capacity measurements of the two-dimensional metal-assembled complex, (NEt4)[{MnIII(salen)}2FeIII(CN)6] [Et=ethyl, salen= N,N’-ethylenebis(salicylideneaminato) dianion], were performed in the temperature range between 0.2 and 300 K by adiabatic calorimetry. A ferrimagnetic phase transition was observed at Tc1=7.51 K. Furthermore, another small magnetic phase transition appeared at Tc2=0.78 K. Above Tc1, a heat capacity tail arising from the short-range ordering of the spins characteristic of two-dimensional magnets was found. The magnetic enthalpy and entropy were evaluated to be ΔH=291 J mol-1 and ΔS=27.4 J K-1 mol-1, respectively. The experimental magnetic entropy agrees roughly with ΔS=Rln(5·5·2) (=32.5 J K-1 mol-1; R being the gas constant), which is expected for the metal complex with two Mn(III) ions in high-spin state (spin quantum number S=2) and one Fe(III) ion in low-spin state (S=1/2). The heat capacity tail above Tc1 became small by grinding and pressing the crystal. This mechanochemical effect would be attributed to the increase of lattice defects and imperfections in the crystal lattice, leading not only to formation of the crystal with a different magnetic phase transition temperature but also to decrease of the magnetic heat capacity and thus the magnetic enthalpy and entropy.

Variable-temperature 57Fe Mössbauer measurements on cyanide-bridged 2-D bimetallic assemblies NEt4[Mn(salen)]2[Fe(CN)6] (1), K[Mn(3-MeOsalen)]2[Fe(CN)6] (2) and K[Mn(3- MeOsalen)]2[Fe(CN)6]2 DMF (3), where salen2- = N,N'-ethylenebis(salicylidene iminato) dianion, revealed that these compounds exhibit a long range magnetic ordering below ca. 10 K under zero applied field. The quadrupole splittings of 1 - 3 showed intermediate values between those of typical cyano-bridged 1-D and 3-D complexes. The paramagnetic state of K[Mn(5-Clsalen)]2- [Fe(CN)6] 4 H2O (4) turned to a bulk magnetic one with desolvation

The Heavy Ion Telescope (HIT) on board the Japanese earth observation satellite MIDORI (ADEOS) has observed energetic heavy ions at the circular sun-synchronous orbit with an altitude of 800 km and an inclination of 98°. Geomagnetically trapped oxygen and nitrogen at L =2 are clearly observed which is similar to the results of SAMPEX. Their geographical distribution at a long belt from the southern tip of South America to that of Africa is also very close to the SAMPEX observation. The adiabaticity parameter ϵ max can be deduced as ≤0.1.

At the “MIDORI” satellite, trapped anomalous cosmic rays (ACRs) were observed that were consistent with prediction, and unexpected trapped He was also detected. We analyzed the pitch angle of these particles and found the pitch angle distribution of trapped He is different from that of trapped O, although these show a similar geographic distribution. The pitch angle distribution of He has its peak angle at ∼90 deg. but the peak angle of O is ∼100 deg.

We examine the long-term change in the unidirectional latitude gradient ( G θ ) of galactic cosmic-rays in the heliosphere, by analyzing the “Toward-Away” solar diurnal variation (SDV) of cosmic-ray intensity recorded by a network of Japanese multi-directional muon telescopes during 18 years from 1978 to 1995. In our analysis, we take into account not only the north-south (NS) symmetric SDV ( S sym ) but also the NS anti-symmetric SDV ( S anti - sym ), which was first observed by the Nagoya surface muon telescope in 1971–1979 and well confirmed by the two hemisphere observations at Nagoya and Hobart in 1992–1995. The phase of the yearly mean S sym in space is found at ∼0500 or ∼1700 hours local solar time depending on the year, while the phase of S anti - sym is always found at ∼1700 hours in the northern hemisphere. G θ derived from the component of S sym perpendicular to the interplanetary magnetic field shows no clear variation related to the 11-year solar activity- or 22-year solar magnetic-cycles, but it remains positive after the late 80′s implying a higher density of cosmic-rays in the southern hemisphere below the heliospheric current sheet.

In the present solar minimum, corotating interaction regions (CIRs) produce frequent particle enhancements at 1 AU as observed at STEREO and ACE. As the two STEREO spacecraft move apart, differences in CIR time profiles observed at each spacecraft are becoming large. The timing differences are often roughly similar to the corotation time lag between the two spacecraft, however many of the features seen at Ahead and Behind require more than just a time shift. Perhaps transient disturbances in the solar wind affect connection to or transport from the shock, or temporal changes occur in the CIR shock itself. Additional timing differences of >1 day result from the different heliographic latitudes of the two STEREO spacecraft

In this paper, an iterative detection scheme of pre-coded OFDM is proposed. The proposed scheme recovers the pre-coded data symbols correspond to the carriers whose reception powers are degraded by frequency selective fading by using the data symbols after decision and the data symbols are detected again using the recovered pre-coded data symbols. As the result of numerical analysis, it is confirmed that better performance under severe frequency selective fading channels can be achieved by iteratively repeating the proposed scheme combined with convolutional error correcting code.

COG (chip on glass) technology has been developed for large-capacity and high-resolution liquid-crystal displays (LCDs). Recent advances in lap-top computers have increased demand for LCD displays with full color capacity, increased resolution, and more pixels. Additionally, LCD packaging requires a fine-pitch packaging method. COG technology has been developed to meet these requirements. In the COG structure, the IC is bonded directly to the glass substrate by interconnections between Al pads on the IC and corresponding electrodes on the panel. Conductive particles are placed between the pads and the electrodes. The IC has the following specifications: size 8.80-mm*5.82 mm; pad size 102- mu m*100- mu m; minimum pad pitch 134 mu m; 185 I/O pins. The IC was bonded directly to the panel in a face-down position. The IC and the panel were fixed using an adhesive, allowing easy replacement of faulty ICs. The wiring pattern of the indium-tin oxide (ITO) electrodes at the contact area was plated with Ni, and the input lines were plated with Au. The effect of these steps was to lower the resistivity of the input lines. A full-color LCD module with approximately a 12-in diagonal and 640*3(R,G,B)*480 dots with a pattern pitch of 130 mu m was developed using this technology. >

A class of neuron-like components based on the switched-capacitor technique is proposed. Furthermore, based on the concepts of the neural network, an algorithm and network topology are proposed, with the aim of achieving real-time monosyllabic speech recognition. By using the proposed networks, a high rate of isolated-word recognition has been achieved by computer simulation. >

Recent magnetic disk drives require high transfer rates and recording densities. PRML signaling is now prevalent in digital read/write channels. This PRML chip operates at a maximum data rate of 150 Mb/s with 1550 mW and includes all basic functions such as servo demodulation and write pre-compensation for magnetic disk drives with optimized circuit size. The chip is fabricated in 0.7 /spl mu/m double-poly double-metal BICMOS suitable for low-power devices and is packed in a 100-pin quad flat package with a die approximately 7 mm/sup 2/. This chip has a single 5 V power supply.

A VLSI chip fully compatible with ISO/IEC 13818 2 (MPEG-2 video) has been developed. The chip is conforming to main profile @ main level of the standard, which realizes real-time decoding of ITU-R Rec.601 format moving pictures. In addition, it is also designed to operate as a part of MPEG-2 encoder. The chip size and power dissipation are minimized by optimizing its architecture and by using hardware macro cells for bulky circuits such as multipliers. As a result, the chip has been implemented with approximately 620K transistors on 11.35/spl times/11.35 mm using a triple metal 0.5 /spl mu/m CMOS technology. The chip has performed well in evaluations on a PC-based testbed.

Recently, we have cloned and analyzed two polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) synthase genes (phaC1 and phaC2 in the pha cluster) from Pseudomonas aureofaciens. In this report, the deduced amino acid (AA) sequences of PHA synthase 1 and PHA synthase 2 from P. aureofaciens are compared with those from three other bacterial strains (Pseudomonas sp. 61-3, P. oleovorans and P. aeruginosa) containing the homologous pha cluster. The level of homology of either PHA synthase 1 or PHA synthase 2 was high with each enzyme from these three bacterial strains. Furthermore, multialignment of PHA synthase AA sequences implied that both enzymes of PHA synthase 1 and PHA synthase 2 were highly conserved in the four strains including P. aureofaciens.

Metal-metal bonded Ru(3+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3+) and Ru(3.5+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3.5+) (R = CH(3) and CH(3)CH(2)) compounds with tetrachlorocatecholate (Cl(4)Cat) have been synthesized in the corresponding alcohol, MeOH and EtOH, from a nonbridged Ru(2+)-Ru(3+) compound, Na(3)[Ru(2)(Cl(4)Cat)(4)(THF)].3H(2)O.7THF (1). In alcohol solvents, compound 1 is continuously oxidized by oxygen to form Ru(3+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3+) and Ru(3.5+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3.5+) species. The presence of a characteristic countercation leads to selective isolation of either Ru(3+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3+) or Ru(3.5+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3.5+) as a stable adduct species. In methanol, Ph(4)PCl and dibenzo-18-crown-6-ether afford Ru(3+)(mu-OMe)(2)Ru(3+) species, [A](2)[Ru(2)(Cl(4)Cat)(4)(mu-OMe)(2)Na(2)(MeOH)(6)] ([A](+) = Ph(4)P(+) (2), [Na(dibenzo-18-crown-6)(H(2)O)(MeOH)](+) (3)), while benzo-15-crown-5-ether provides a Ru(3.5+)(mu-OMe)(2)Ru(3.5+) species, [Na(benzo-15-crown-5)(2)][Ru(2)(Cl(4)Cat)(4)(mu-OMe)(2)Na(2)(MeOH)(6)] (4). The air oxidation of 1 in a MeOH/EtOH mixed solvent (1:1 v/v) containing benzo-15-crown-5-ether provides a Ru(3.5+)(mu-OMe)(2)Ru(3.5+) species, [Na(benzo-15-crown-5)(H(2)O)][Ru(2)(Cl(4)Cat)(2)(mu-OMe)(2)Na(2)(EtOH)(2)(H(2)O)(2)(MeOH)(2)].(benzo-15-crown-5) (5). Similarly, the oxidation of 1 in ethanol with Ph(4)PCl provides a Ru(3.5+)(mu-OEt)(2)Ru(3.5+) species, (Ph(4)P)[Ru(2)(Cl(4)Cat)(4)(mu-OEt)(2)Na(2)(EtOH)(6)] (7). A selective formation of a Ru(3+)(mu-OEt)(2)Ru(3+) species, (Ph(4)P)(2)[Ru(2)(Cl(4)Cat)(4)(mu-OEt)(2)Na(2)(EtOH)(2)(H(2)O)(2)] (6), is found in the presence of pyrazine or 2,5-dimethylpyrazine. The crystal structures of these compounds, except 2 and 7, have been determined by X-ray crystallography, and all compounds have been characterized by several spectroscopic and magnetic investigations. The longer Ru-Ru bonds are found in the Ru(3+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3+) species (2.606(1) and 2.628(2) A for 3 and 6, respectively) compared with those of Ru(3.5+)(mu-OMe)(2)Ru(3.5+) species (2.5260(6) A and 2.514(2) A for 4 and 5, respectively). These structural features and magnetic and ESR data revealed the electronic configurations of sigma(2)pi(2)delta(2)delta(2)pi(2) and sigma(2)pi(2)delta(2)delta(2)pi(1) for Ru(3+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3+) and Ru(3.5+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3.5+), respectively, in which the former is diamagnetic and the latter is paramagnetic with S = (1)/(2) ground state. Compound 5 forms a one-dimensional chain with alternating arrangement of a Ru(3.5+)(mu-OMe)(2)Ru(3.5+) unit and a free benzo-15-crown-5-ether molecule by intermolecular hydrogen bonds (O(H(2)O).O(crown-ether) = 2.91-3.04 A). The cyclic voltammetry in DMF affords characteristic metal-origin voltammograms; two reversible and two quasi-reversible redox waves were observed. The feature of cyclic voltammograms for the Ru(3+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3+) species (2, 3, and 6) and the Ru(3.5+)(mu-OR)(2)Ru(3.5+) species (4 and 7) are similar to each other, indicating that both species are electrochemically stable. The isolation of the pyrazine-trans-coordinated species, [Ph(4)P][Ru(Cl(4)Cat)(2)(L)(2)] (L = pyrazine (8), 2,5-dimethylpyrazine (9)), revealed the selective isolation of 6 from pyrazine-containing solution. UV-vis spectral variation by ethanolysis for 9 demonstrated the selective conversion from the pyrazine-trans-coordinated species to the Ru(3+)(mu-OEt)(2)Ru(3+) species without an oxidation to the Ru(3.5+)(mu-OEt)(2)Ru(3.5+) species. This result suggests the presence of equilibrium between [Ru(Cl(4)Cat)(2)(L)(2)](-) and Ru(3+)(mu-OEt)(2)Ru(3+) species in the synthetic condition for 6.

The new metal-metal bonded diruthenium(II,III) compounds [Ru2(O2CCH3)4(mu-L)]infinity (L = N(CN)2-, 1; C(CN)3-, 2) and [[Ru2(O2CCH3)2(mhp)2]2(mu-DM-Dicyd)] (3) (mhp = 2-oxy-6-methylpyridinate, DM-Dicyd = 1,4-dicyanamido-2,5-dimethylbenzene dianion) have been synthesized and fully characterized. Compounds 1 and 2 were synthesized by the reaction of [Ru2(O2CCH3)4(NCCH3)2](BF4) with NaN(CN)2 and KC(CN)3, respectively. The "dimer-of-dimers", 3, was synthesized by a 2:1 reaction of [Ru2(O2CCH3)2(mhp)2(MeOH)](BF4) with [As(Ph)4]2[DM-Dicyd]. Compound 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group C2/m with a = 10.174(2) A, b = 13.016(3) A, c = 7.0750(14) A, beta = 101.83(3) degrees, and Z = 2. Compound 2 crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group Fdd2 with a = 29.679(6) A, b = 31.409(6) A, c = 7.3660(15) A, V = 6866(2) A3, and Z = 16. In compound 1, dicyanamide anions (N(CN)2-) bridge the [Ru2(O2CCH3)4]+ units in an end-to-end bridging mode, thereby forming an alternating one-dimensional chain. In compound 2, two cyano groups of tricyanomethanide anion (C(CN)3-) are coordinated to independent [Ru2(O2CCH3)4]+ units to give a chain similar to that found in 1. The Ru-Ru bond distances in 1 and 2 are 2.2788(14) and 2.2756(5) A, respectively, which are typical values for Ru2(O2CR)4Cl and [Ru2(O2CR)4]+ compounds. The Ru-N distances are 2.257(8) A in 1 and 2.259(4) and 2.283(4) A in 2. The temperature dependence of the magnetic susceptibilities of compounds 1-3 reveals a weak antiferromagnetic interaction between Ru2 units (S = 3/2) through each polycyano anionic linker: g = 2.16, zJ = -0.33 cm(-1), D = 63.3 cm(-1) for 1; g = 2.15, zJ = -0.22 cm(-1), D = 58.0 cm(-1) for 2; and g = 2.10, zJ = -0.90 cm(-1), D = 75.0 cm(-1) for 3.

A series of redox isomers of [CrIII(X4SQ)(X4Cat)2]2-, [CrIII(X4SQ)2(X4Cat)]-, and [CrIII(X4SQ)3]0 (X = Cl and Br, SQ = semiquinonate, and Cat = catecholate) have been synthesized and characterized as charge-transfer (CT) compounds with metallocenium cations: (CoIIICp2)2[CrIII(Cl4SQ)(Cl4Cat)2] (1), (CoIIICp2)2[CrIII(Br4SQ)(Br4Cat)2] (2), (FeIIICp2)[CrIII(Cl4SQ)2(Cl4Cat)].C6H6 (4), (FeIIICp2)[CrIII(Br4SQ)2(Br4Cat)].CS2 (5), and (FeIIICp2)[CrIII(Cl4SQ)2(Cl4Cat)][CrIII(Cl4SQ)3] (6). First, the oxidation states of the chromium complexes are strongly dependent on the redox potentials of the metallocenes used. The CoIICp2, exhibiting stronger reduction power than FeIICp2, is useful for two-electron reduction of the [CrIII(X4SQ)3]0, affording [CrIII(X4SQ)(X4Cat)2]2- (1 and 2), which are first isolated and crystallographically characterized in the solid state. In contrast the reaction with FeIICp2 affords only [CrIII(X4SQ)2(X4Cat)]- (4 and 5). Second, solvents influence crystal structures of these compounds. The solvent set of C6H6/CS2 gives 1:1:C6H6 compound 4 with unique charged anions, [CrIII(Cl4SQ)2(Cl4Cat)]-, while the other set, n-C6H12/CS2, affords 1:2 compound 6 including the two redox isomers, [CrIII(Cl4SQ)2(Cl4Cat)]- and [CrIII(Cl4SQ)3]0. The [CrIII(X4SQ)(X4Cat)2]2- anions in 1 and 2 show no significant interconnection between them (discrete type), while the [CrIII(X4SQ)2(X4Cat)]- anions in 4-6 show one-dimensional column-type structures with the aid of intermolecular stacking interactions of the ligand moieties. The anions in 4 show additional stacking interaction with the [FeIIICp2]+ to form one-dimensional ...[D][A][S][D][A]... (D = [FeIIICp2]+, A = [CrIII(Cl4SQ)2(Cl4Cat)]-, and S = C6H6) type mixed-stack arrangements similar to that of previously reported (CoIIICp2)[CrIII(Cl4SQ)2(Cl4Cat)].C6H6 (3). Compound 6 forms a two-dimensional sheet structure where the two redox isomers, [CrIII(Cl4SQ)2(Cl4Cat)]- and [CrIII(Cl4SQ)3]0, are included. The sheet is regarded as a mixed-valence molecular assembly. Two types of the anions, [CrIII(X4SQ)(X4Cat)2]2- (1 and 2) and [CrIII(X4SQ)2(X4Cat)]- (4-6), exhibiting an intramolecular mixed-valence state, show intramolecular intervalence CT transition (IVCT) from the Cat to the SQ at near 5800 and 4300 cm-1, respectively, both in the solution and in the solid states. The intermolecular mixed-valence state of 6 was characterized by absorption spectroscopy, electric conductivity, and SQUID magnetometry. Interestingly, this mixed-valence state of the chromium module is dependent on the redox active nature of the coordinated ligands.

The focal plane of EUSO is designed to be comprised of multianode photomultipliers. A study of characteristics of the photomultipliers has been started to evaluate, in detail, the total performance of EUSO and its small-scale prototype (cEUSO). A result of one unit of multianode photomultiplier is reported.

The relationship between the codon usage bias and the sequence context surrounding the AUG translation initiation codon was examined in 211 Saccharomyces cerevisiae mRNA sequences. The codon usage bias and the number of matches to optimal AUG context, (A/U)A(A/C)AA(A/C)AUGUC(U/C), for translation initiation showed a positive relationship, indicating that these two factors are evolutionally under the similar natural selection constraint at the translation level. A new index (AUGCAI = AUG Context Adaptation Index) for the measure of optimal AUG context was devised, and the importance of each position of AUG context was also examined.

Two patients after bone marrow transplantation (BMT) developed chronic progressive radiation myelopathy (CPRM). The factors contributing to development of CPRM at the low dose, which radiation doses given for enlarged regional lymph nodes prior to BMT ordinarily would be too low to induce CPRM, were discussed, and clinicoradiologic correlations in CPRM from onset through the stabilized state examined. The clinicoradiologic findings of two patients, who are a 26-year-old man with malignant lymphoma (autologous BMT) performed radiotherapy totaling 20 Gy for enlarged regional lymph nodes before BMT, and a 40-year old woman with chronic myeloid leukemia (allogenic BMT) done 18.9 Gy, were examined. The involved spinal cord segments were irradiated for lymph node enlargement prior to BMT, and all the clinicoradiologic findings were consistent with CPRM. We considered possible synergistic toxicity with high-dose busulfan accompanying BMT. Unlike the second case, the first patient had continued severe progression of CPRM, possibly because a higher dose of additional radiotherapy (30 Gy) was given for presumed spinal cord tumor involvement in that case than in the other (20 Gy). These cases demonstrate that BMT protocols carry a risk of potentiating the spinal cord toxicity of low-dose radiotherapy.

To develop a basic system for the biological conversion of CO 2 into useful industrial materials, the vector-promoter system for the expression of foreign genes in the marine cyanobacterium was established. Using this system, the production of a biodegradable plastic, PHA (poly hydroxyalkanoate), by the genetically engineered cyanobacterial cells was examined. The transformant cyanobacterial cells carrying the poly hydroxybutyrate (PHB)-synthesizing genes of hydrogen bacterium ( Alcaligenes eutrophus ) produced up to 17 % of the cell dry weight of PHA.

A 58-year-old woman developed slowly progressive hearing loss, anosmia, and unsteady gait. She had neither repeated episode of headache nor a past history of neurosurgical operation or head injury. Neurological examination revealed anosmia, moderate degree of sensorineural hearing loss. She showed loss of caloric response bilaterally. No nystagmus was found. Romberg sign was present. No cerebellar ataxia was noted in the finger-to-nose or the heel-to-knee test. No adiadochokinesis was noted. Deep tendon reflexes were increased in both upper and lower extremities. Sensation was intact. She showed disturbance of the righting reflex in the tilt-table examination. CSF were under normal pressure, xanthochromic with siderophages. CSF total protein and ferritin level were elevated. T2-weighted image (TE4000/TR100) of high field strength magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed marginal hypointensity of the brain stem, the Sylvian fissures, the tips of temporal lobes, anterior cerebellar surfaces and the entire spinal cord. Angiography of the cerebral vessels and spinal arteries failed to identify the source of bleeding. It seemed likely that she had lost bilateral vestibular and auditory functions caused by hemosidelin deposition to her eighth nerves which are often affected by this disorder. Her disturbance of gait and station was apparently similar to cerebellar ataxic gait, however, she did not have limb ataxia. The electronystagmogram revealed marked degree of vestibular dysfunction (VOR) and relative sparing of cerebellar function (OKN). Her disturbance of the righting reflex in the tilt-table examination and the characteristic feature of her Romberg sign with directional preponderance also indicate that the bilateral loss of vestibular functions, i.e., vestibular ataxia caused her dysequilibrium syndrome. It is our impression that vestibular ataxia might precede cerebellar ataxia commonly reported so far.

We report 2 cases of multifocal choroiditis associated with subretinal fibrosis on whom the fluorescein fundus angiography (FAG) and the indocyanine green infrared angiography (IA) were performed. Case 1 was a moderately myopic 14-year-old girl who had no ocular symptoms. She had numerous small, round, discrete, partially conflued lesions with subretinal fibrosis scattered in the periphery and one discrete relatively large lesion along the superotemporal arcade in her left fundus. Subretinal fibrosis had progressed in the superior lesion. Some lesions had coalesced into a sword-like pattern over a period of 2 years. Case 2 was a high myopic 18-year-old man who had distorted vision in his right eye. He had some small whitish round lesions with one small choroidal neovascular tissue and subretinal fibrosis in the posterior pole and a sword-like lesion in the inferior periphery. Another choroidal neovascular tissue developed near the macula during the 6-month follow-up period. In FAG, the centers of the lesions hypofluoresced corresponding to the pigmentation and the edges hyperfluoresced. Some of the lesions showed window-defects and others tissue-staining. In IA, all the whole lesions hypofluoresced from an early stage of the angiography and some major choroidal vessels were visible through them. The hypofluorescent areas persisted into the late phase. The hypofluorescent areas of the IA were larger than those seen in FAG and in funduscopy. These findings indicate that the choriocapillaris was initially damaged and consequently the structures of the lesions partly disappeared at the level of the retinal pigment epithelium-choriocapillaris complex.

Therapeutic lamellar keratoplasty was performed using corneas obtained from keratoconus patients undergoing penetrating keratoplasty. The corneas used in this series were stored in preservation solution for 7 to 59 days (average, 27.8 days) and submitted to surgery. The recipients were three patients with recurrent pterygium, one with primary pterygium, one with corneal perforation and iris prolapse due to fungal corneal ulcer, and one with limbal dermoid. Graft rejection developed in two cases postoperatively, but they were successfully treated with steroid therapy. During the entire period of clinical observation, there was no sign of recurrence of pterygium. In the case of the fungal corneal ulcer, the site of perforation healed quickly and the donor cornea maintained its transparency. A marked cosmetic improvement was achieved in the case of the limbal dermoid. Obtaining corneas from keratoconus patients and storing them for a short period is a potentially useful application for therapeutic lamellar keratoplasty.

We report a right-handed 78-year-old man with early onset parkinsonism. The patient had an onset of micrographia at 23 years of the age in 1939. Seven years later he started to drag his right foot, and at 38 years of age, he walked with small steps with festination. Tremor was also present in his right hand. His daily life was independent as a otorhinolaryngologist. He visited our clinic on March 24, 1977 when he was mentally sound and showed mild parkinsonism consisting of masked face, stooped posture, small step gait, bradykinesia, and right side dominant rigidity and tremor. He showed good response to trihexyphenidyl and amantadine HCl. Two month later, he developed dyskinesia and some worsening of parkinsonism, and was admitted to our hospital for the first time. He was treated with 400 to 600 mg/day of levodopa/ carbidopa. He showed marked improvement, however, dyskinesia remained in his mouth. He was doing well until 77 years of age (June of 1993) when he developed hallucination and motor fluctuations. He was admitted again to our hospital on June 22, 1993. On admission, he was alert and appeared mentally sound. However, Hasegawa dementia scale was 18/30. Upward gaze was slightly restricted (3/5). Voice was somewhat small but no masking was noted. His posture was stooped and the gait was of small step. Dyskinesia was noted during walk. No rigidity nor tremor was noted. Deep tendon reflexes were lost but no sensory loss or motor weakness was noted. Routine laboratory studies were unremarkable. A cranial CT scan revealed only mild to moderate cortical atrophy. Motor and sensory conduction velocities were within normal limits, however, motor action potentials could not be obtained with stimulation to the right common peroneal nerve. He was treated with 600 mg/day of levodopa with carbidopa, 100 mg of amantadine HCl, 300 mg of Dops, and 25 mg of tiapride. He continued to show motor fluctuations, and was discharged on July 23, 1993. Since then his motor functions had become progressively worse with frequent falls, but he was still able to walk without support. On October 3 of 1994, he went to bed as usual. On the next morning, he was found dead in his bed at 9: 30. The patient was discussed in neurological CPC, and the chief discussant arrived at the conclusion that the patient had young-onset Parkinson's disease with Lewy bodies in the substantia nigra. Opinions were divided between Parkinson's disease and Lewy body negative young onset parkinsonism. Postmortem examination revealed obstruction of the trachea by aspirated foods, and the cause of death appeared to have been suffocation by the foods. Macroscopically, the external appearance of the brain was unremarkable except for slight frontal atrophy. The substantia nigra showed depigmentation in the lateral part, but the pigmentation of the medial part was well preserved. Upon histologic examination, the number of pigmented neurons in the dorsomedial part was well preserved. In the lateral part, pigmented neurons were well preserved in the dorsal area, however, in the ventral area, only non-pigmented neurons were seen; they appeared to be neurons in the pars reticulata. No gliosis was seen in any of the nigral areas. No Lewy bodies were seen in the remaining neurons. So-called immature neurons with rounded shape without neuromelanin could not be detected. The locus coeruleus neurons were well preserved. The putamen and the other basal ganglia structures were also intact. Slight myelin pallor was noted in the subcortical white matter, however, otherwise cerebral cortices were normal. The histology of this patient is unique in that only the ventrolateral part of the substantia nigra showed abnormal finding consisting of lack of pigmented neurons without gliosis. It is not clear whether the nigral change represents degeneration or a congenital "hypoplasia'. To our knowledge, such a unique pathology of the substantia nigra has not been reported in the literature. Our patient ma

We report 2 unusual cases of congenital occipital hemianopsia associated with abnormal retinal correspondence (ARC)-exotropia. Two Japanese males, 25 and 28 years of age, visited our hospital for surgical correction of manifest exotropia with dissociated vertical deviation and overaction of the superior oblique muscle. Visual field examination demonstrated homonymous hemianopsia with approximately 5 to 10 degrees of macular sparing. Visually evoked potential examination showed small amplitude similar to dissociated vertical deviation patients in all half-field stimulation. Electrooculogram examination demonstrated defective pursuit to the ipsilateral side. Some investigators have speculated that progressive exotropia compensates for homonymous hemianopsia and is a rare contraindication for strabismus surgery. To confirm the deterioration of motor and visual functions before surgery in these patients, we tried injections of botulinum A type toxin into the lateral rectus muscle ipsilateral to the hemianopsia. Contrary to the hypothesis, our patients had no change in their binocular visual fields and visual function. Finally, we performed recession of the lateral rectus muscle, so that both patients were satisfied with their ocular alignment, with no marked change of visual behavior.

We treated sclero-corneomalacia in an 84-year-old woman, which occurred 7 months after cataract surgery on her left eye. Since medical therapy could not prevent progress of the sclero-corneal lesion and perforation of the eyeball was likely, we performed implantation of preservable sclera and keratoepithelioplasty. The patient has an uneventful postoperative course without recurrence and good visual acuity was preserved. To minimize the post-operative inflammation and early reform of the ocular surface, implantation of preservable sclera and keratoepithelioplasty is an effective procedure.

Oligodeoxynucleotides involving a stable nitroxide radical, 5-(2,2,5,5-tetramethyl-3-ethynylpyrroline-1-oxyl)-2-deoxyuridine residue (TMP), and a fluorescence dye, quinacrine (Qu), on each complementary strand and those on the same strand in the duplexes were prepared. Three base-pair units locate between TMP and Qu. The interaction between TMP and the excited singlet Qu has been studied by picosecond transient absorption spectroscopy and fluorometry. From the biphasic fluorescence decay profile, it was suggested that there exist two sites of the dye in the oligodeoxynucleotide with the modifiers in the different complementary strands. In addition, no effective fluorescence quenching was observed for this oigodeoxynucleotide. On the other hand, the triphasic fluorescence decay profile was observed for the oligodeoxynucleotide having Qu and TMP in the same strand and the fluorescence was slightly quenched. Picosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed that the enhanced intersystem-crossing by TMP was responsible for the quenching of the fluorescent state of the dye. From these results, it has been concluded that the role of the DNA duplex in the quenching process of the dye by TMP was rather small.

We report a 65-year-old woman with progressive multiple cranial neuropathy. She had been suffered from bronchial asthma since 1979 for which prednisolone had been prescribed. She noted an onset of pain around her nose in October, 1989, which extended into the periorbital regions bilaterally. In February, 1990, she was treated with stellate ganglion block and trigeminal nerve block; these treatments partially alleviated her pain. In May of 1991, she noted a difficulty in swallowing solid foods. In November of the same year, she developed right facial paresis; two weeks later, she noted numbness in her left face, and was hospitalized to our service on December 16, 1991. On admission, she was afebrile and general physical examination was unremarkable except for piping rales in her both lung fields. On neurologic examination, she was alert and oriented to all spheres; higher cerebral functions were intact. In the cranial nerves, her olfactory sense was lost bilaterally; her vision was markedly diminished bilaterally only to recognize hand movements; the optic fundi appeared normal; the pupils were isocoric and reacted to light promptly. The extraocular muscles were moderately weak to most of the directions more on the left; no nystagmus was present. Facial sensation was diminished bilaterally; the jaw deviated to right; right facial paresis of peripheral type was present; her hearing was diminished bilaterally more on the right. The movement of the soft palate was diminished on the right side; dysphagia was present; her voice was horse; the gag reflex was diminished. The sternocleidomastoid muscle was weak bilaterally; the tongue appeared normal. Examination of gait was differed because of headache, however, no apparent motor weakness was present. No ataxia or involuntary movement was noted. Deep reflexes were normally elicited and symmetric. Plantar response was flexor. Sensation in the extremities was intact. Kernig's sign was positive at 70 degree leg extension; eyeball tenderness was also present bilaterally, however, no nuchal stiffness was noted. Following abnormalities were present in the laboratory examination: WBC 11,400/microliters, ESR 50 mm/hr, CRP 6.1 mg/dl. The lumbar CSF was under a normal pressure containing 29 WBC/microliters (neutrophils 7, lymphocytes 20, others 2), 67 mg/dl of protein, and 53 mg/dl of sugar; cultures for acid-fast bacilli as well as for other bacteria were negative; no malignant cells were found. A cranial CT scan revealed an isodensity mass in the orbit and ill-defined low density areas in the white matters of the frontal lobes.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Two isoforms of protein serine/threonine phosphatase were isolated and sequenced from mouse testis. A deletion of 48 nucleotides of PP2C beta 4 cDNA in comparison with PP2C beta 3 cDNA resulted in different COOH-terminal sequences of 12 and 15 amino acids, respectively. These COOH-terminal sequences of PP2C beta 3 and PP2C beta 4 were further found to be different from those of isoforms MPP beta 1 and MPP beta 2 of mouse PP2C beta reported (Terasawa, et al. Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 307: 342-349, 1993). The common sequence of 378 amino acids from these four isoforms of mouse PP2C beta exhibited 95% identity with the corresponding sequence of rat PP2C beta. The mRNAs of approximately 2.0 Kb for PP2C beta 3 and PP2C beta 4 were expressed only in testis, while the mRNAs of 3.3 Kb and 8.5 Kb for MPP beta 1 and MPP beta 2, respectively, were found in somatic tissues.

It is well-known that benzil (diphenylethanedione) has near-skewed form in the ground state, while the structure in the excited singlet state has been attributed to trans-planar geometry. (The terms "skewed" and "planar" used here refer to the dihedral angle between the planes containing the benzoil groups.) This structural change of benzil in solution has been considered to be very fast at room temperature. In this study, we have directly measured the structural change process by means of transient absorption spectroscopy with femtosecond laser. On the basis of the experimental result, we will discuss the factors controlling the change of molecular structure.

A position-sensitive single-wire proportional counter for the INS π√2 air-core spectrometer has been improved to take conversion electron Mossbauer spectrum as a function of electron energy with a multichannel mode. The position resolution at 13.6 keV was found to become 1.6 mm with the counter gas pressure of 320 Torr. The position resolution was obtained as a function of energy between 7 and 60 keV for gas pressure of 40 Torr, 160 Torr and 320 Torr. The L, M and N conversion electron spectrum of the 14.4 keV transition in57Fe was taken with the present system. Overall momentum resolution was found to be 0.23% for the L1-line and 0.19% for the M1 line.

A system has been developed for heavy-ion irradiation using a 4.75 MV single-ended horizontal Van de Graaff. The present paper describes the development of two PIG ion sources, a beam energy analyzing and a transport system. The facility has been utilized for H( 15 N, αγ) 12 C hydrogen depth profiling and Ne surface bombardment studies. Examples of experimental results are discussed.

Bubble garnet films before and after 50 keV H+ implantation have been studied by means of DCEMS. The spintilt angle of the films as grown after etching off 1000 a was measured to be 30±2‡ relative to the surface normal at the top of the surface. The doses of implanted H+ ions were 2, 4 and 8×1016 ions/cm2. Mossbauer spectra were measured after successive etching of the implanted layer. The magnetic hyperfine field was obtained as a function of depth. The implanted hydrogen distribution was also measured by the1H(15N, αγ)12C reaction.

The quantities of fisheries resources, chiefly fishes and their foodbeings such as larva of insects, were investigated which flow from Tikuma-River into the passage of the Ueda Branch of the Central Fisheries Station of Japan, and these were collected by an equipp-ment at the entrance of the experimental ponds. And it was concluded that the all resources which flowed down through Tikuma River in conformity with' the volume of water measured by water-meter. The volume of water flowed into ponds are 30 thousands m3 per day during the time from the last ten days of June to the first ten days of September, 16 thousands m3 from the middle of Sept ?? ber to the last ten days of Octorber, 7 thousands m3 in November, and in which the numbers of fishes 15 thousands, weight of food-beings 21kg. through these period in 1948, and the numbers of fishes 7 thousands, weight of food-beings were 15kg. in 1949. These fishes which flow down into pond were many at the day, and the food-beings were many at the next day of the largest volume of water in river. And there are many fluctuate at the number of fishes or weight of food-beings which flow down into pond, althogh the volume of water were similar from June to September, this is the reason the volume of water are much flactuate in the main stream. The fishes and food-beings were less since the middle of September, it will be these individuals are decreased for the flood, and also is not the season of insects propergation. Then the number of these fishes were presumed as 4380 thousands in 1948, 4100 thousands in 1949, and food-beings are 6000kg. in 1948, 1698kg. in 1949 which flowed down Tikuma River during above season. So, it should be considered to prevent these fishes and food-beings from flowing into the water passage such as the conducts for irrigation or hydroelectricity.

Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge (Labiatae), growing wild in China, is a perennial herb (Fig. 1), 30 to 80 cm high, and the root of this plant, called Tan-shen in Chinese and Tan-jin in Japanese, is an ancient Chinese drug, ranked as a super-grade medicine in “Shen-nung-pen-tsao-ching”, the oldest classical Chinese herbal. It has been widely used in China for the treatment of coronary diseases and for relieving angina pectoris and chest congestion. Various quinoid diterpenes (tan-shinones) [tanshinone II (Okamura et al. 1961), cryptotanshinone (Takiura 1941) and related orange-red pigments (Onitsuka et al. 1983 and refs. therein)] were isolated from the root of this plant and Chinese pharmacologists suggested that tanshinones were the active principles (Chen 1981).