Changes in Repetitive Firing Rate Related to Phase Response Curves for Andronov-Hopf Bifurcations

We study specific changes in repetitive firing in the two-dimensional Hindmarsh-Rose （2dHR） oscillatory sys- tem that undergoes a bifurcation transition from the supercritical Andronov-Hopf （All） type to the subcritical Andronov-Hopf （SAH） type. We identify dynamical mechanisms which are responsible for changes of the repeti- tive firing rate during the AH to SAH bifurcation transitions. These include frequency-shift functions in response to small perturbations of a timescale parameter, its multiplicative parameter, and an external input current in the 2dHR oscillatory system. The frequency-shift functions are explicitly represented as functions relating to the phase response curves （PRCs）. Then, we demonstrate that when the timescale is normal and relatively fast, the repetitive firing rate slightly increases and decreases respectively during the AH to SAH bifurcation transition with a change of the intrinsic parameter, whereas it decreases during the SAH to AH bifurcation transition with an increase in the timescale. By analyzing the three different frequency-shift functions, we show that such changes of the repetitive firing rate depend largely on changes of the PRC size. The PRC size for the SAH bifurcation shrinks to the PRC size for the AH bifurcation.     

In vivo assessment of the permeability of the blood--brain barrier and blood-retinal barrier to fluorescent indoline derivatives in zebrafish

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Successful delivery of compounds to the brain and retina is a challenge in the development of therapeutic drugs and imaging agents. This challenge arises because internalization of compounds into the brain and retina is restricted by the blood--brain barrier (BBB) and blood-retinal barrier (BRB), respectively. Simple and reliable in vivo assays are necessary to identify compounds that can easily cross the BBB and BRB. METHODS: We developed six fluorescent indoline derivatives (IDs) and examined their ability to cross the BBB and BRB in zebrafish by in vivo fluorescence imaging. These fluorescent IDs were administered to live zebrafish by immersing the zebrafish larvae at 7--8 days post fertilization in medium containing the ID, or by intracardiac injection. We also examined the effect of multidrug resistance proteins (MRPs) on the permeability of the BBB and BRB to the ID using MK571, a selective inhibitor of MRPs. RESULTS: The permeability of these barriers to fluorescent IDs administered by simple immersion was comparable to when administered by intracardiac injection. Thus, this finding supports the validity of drug administration by simple immersion for the assessment of BBB and BRB permeability to fluorescent IDs. Using this zebrafish model, we demonstrated that the length of the methylene chain in these fluorescent IDs significantly affected their ability to cross the BBB and BRB via MRPs. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that in vivo assessment of the permeability of the BBB and BRB to fluorescent IDs could be simply and reliably performed using zebrafish. The structure of fluorescent IDs can be flexibly modified and, thus, the permeability of the BBB and BRB to a large number of IDs can be assessed using this zebrafish-based assay. The large amount of data acquired might be useful for in silico analysis to elucidate the precise mechanisms underlying the interactions between chemical structure and the efflux transporters at the BBB and BRB. In turn, understanding these mechanisms may lead to the efficient design of compounds targeting the brain and retina.     

An active resonator system for CW-ESR measurement operating at 700 MHz

An active resonator system operating at 700 MHz, which can attain a high Q for CW-ESR measurements of a high loss sample, was developed. This system consisted of a loop-gap resonator (LGR), a receiver coil, an excitation coil, and a phase tunable amplifier. A part of the RF power at the LGR was picked up by the receiver coil, amplified, and irradiated to the LGR again by the excitation coil, which made up a feedback circuit. Because the feedback circuit provided the energy that canceled the loss in the resonator, the Q of the active resonator system increased. When a sample tube (inner diameter, 20 mm; axial length, 31 mm) containing a nitroxide radical and physiological saline solution was placed in the resonator, the Q could be varied from 55 to 4000. It was possible to obtain a Q of the active resonator system with sample that was higher than that of the value of the LGR without a sample in a no-feedback condition. The ESR signal intensity increased up to 7 times with the increase in Q. The sensitivity increased up to 50%, which was a much smaller advance than that of the Q, because the noise level also increased with the increase in signal intensity.     

The RATIO method for time‐resolved Laue crystallography

A RATIO method for analysis of intensity changes in time‐resolved pump–probe Laue diffraction experiments is described. The method eliminates the need for scaling the data with a wavelength curve representing the spectral distribution of the source and removes the effect of possible anisotropic absorption. It does not require relative scaling of series of frames and removes errors due to all but very short term fluctuations in the synchrotron beam.     

Visible nonlinear band-edge luminescence in ZnSe and CdS excited by a mid-infrared free-electron laser

Visible nonlinear band-edge luminescence in ZnSe and CdS bulk crystals was observed upon excitation by a mid-infrared free-electron laser (mid-IR FEL) at approximately 9 mm. The emission intensity is proportional to the 74th and 45th powers of the excitation intensity for ZnSe and CdS, respectively. For ZnSe, the temporal profile of the emission intensity does not follow the profile of the excitation macropulse of the FEL, but sharply rises and decays only at the maximum of the macropulse profile. These features are in marked contrast to those of a previous report, where the emission profile follows that of the macropulse, and the emission intensity scales with the 4th power of the excitation intensity. The experimental observations were reproduced by a numerical simulation based on impact ionization and avalanche ionization by electrons accelerated by the optical electric field of the FEL. The large nonlinearity in the bandedge emission comes from the macropulse temporal structure, which consists of micropulses densely spaced to allow excited carriers to survive when the next micropulse arrives. They work as seed carriers in the next carrier multiplication step.     

Precise Quadrupole Moment of the Doubly Closed Shell Plus One Proton Nucleus 41Sc

In order to precisely determine the |eqQ(⁴¹Sc)/h| of ⁴¹Sc(I ^π=7/2⁻, T _1/2=0.596 s) implanted in a TiO₂ single crystal the electric field gradient tensor and anisotropic chemical shift were determined by detecting the Fourier Transformed Pulse-NMR of ⁴⁵Sc(I ^π=7/2⁻, stable) in the crystal at a high field of 7.0 T and 9.4 T. Combining the new |eqQ(⁴¹Sc)/h| value with the Q(⁴⁵Sc)=−(23.6±0.2) fm², also renewed by using the known atomic hyperfine interaction constants and Sternheimer polarization effect, the |Q(⁴¹Sc;I ^π=7/2⁻,T _1/2=0.596 s)|=(15.6±0.3) fm² has been precisely determined. The value is compared with the theoretical Q(⁴¹Sc) given by a shell model code. This revised version was published online in September 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Study of the positive muon Knight shift in : Evidence for a tetravalent -state and crystalline electric field splitting

We report on transverse field (TF) Muon Spin Rotation (μSR) measurements on a single crystal of the hexagonal heavy fermion superconductor UNi₂Al₃ between 5 K and 300 K. From the measured muon Knight shift (KS) in the easy ( a , b )-plane and along the c-axis we extracted the local magnetic susceptibility tensor [0pt] , which arises from the nearest U-neighbors. By comparison with the bulk susceptibility [0pt] it is found that [0pt] and [0pt] agree well above 150 K but deviate considerably in the basal plane below 150 K, due to the disturbance introduced by the . We succeed in reproducing both [0pt] and [0pt] on the basis of a crystalline electric field (CEF)-approach assuming U to be in the tetravalent state. The disturbance introduced by the affects the CEF-Hamiltonian in an expected manner, suggesting strongly that a CEF-picture implying a rather local 5 f-electron wave function is indeed valid. Reanalyzing older data on UPd₂Al₃ we arrive at the same conclusion. A necessary condition for extracting the local susceptibility was the knowledge of the -site, this information was derived from the analysis of the TF-relaxation rates. At low temperatures we found about 30% of the implanted at the d-site and none at this site above 200 K. The majority fraction was found to be in a tunneling state over six m (or k)-sites around the b-site. No long range diffusion was seen up to room temperature. Received 20 April 1999     

Optical Phase Conjugation in Polyesters with Cyanoazobenzene Units in the Side Chain

Efficient optical phase-conjugate (PC) signals in four kinds of novel polyester films containing cyanoazobenzene units in the side chain are reported. One of them can efficiently generate only the photoinduced anisotropy (PA) component of PC signal, while the other three films can simultaneously generate two types of PC signals, PA and holographic components. These polymers have good potential not only as a phase conjugator but also as a polarization-sensitive hologram-recording material.Presented at the International Commission for Optics Topical Meeting, Kyoto, 1994     

Tissue gadolinium deposition in renally impaired rats exposed to different gadolinium-based MRI contrast agents: Evaluation with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)

ObjectivesTo quantify tissue gadolinium (Gd) deposition in renally impaired rats exposed to Gd-EOB-DTPA and other Gd-based MRI contrast agents by means of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), and to compare the differences in distribution among major organs as possible triggers for nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF).MethodsA total of 15 renally impaired rats were injected with Gd-EOB-DTPA, Gd-DTPA-BMA and Gd-HP-DO3A. Gd contents of skin, liver, kidney, lung, heart, spleen, diaphragm and femoral muscle were measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Histological assessment was also conducted.ResultsTissue Gd deposition in all organs was significantly higher (P = 0.005 ~ 0.009) in the Gd-DTPA-BMA group than in the Gd-HP-DO3A and Gd-EOB-DTPA groups. In the Gd-DTPA-BMA group, Gd was predominantly deposited in kidney (1306 ± 605.7 μg/g), followed by skin, liver, lung, spleen, femoral muscle, diaphragm and heart. Comparing Gd-HP-DO3A and Gd-EOB-DTPA groups, Gd depositions in the kidney, liver and lung were significantly lower (P = 0.009 ~ 0.011) in the Gd-EOB-DTPA group than in the Gd-HP-DO3A group although no significant differences were seen for any other organs.ConclusionsGd-EOB-DTPA is a stable and safe Gd-based contrast agent (GBCA) showing lower Gd deposition in major organs in renally impaired rats, compared with other GBCAs. This fact suggests that the risk of NSF onset would be low in the use of Gd-EOB-DTPA.