A variant of Shelah's characterization of Strong Chang's Conjecture

Shelah considered a certain version of Strong Chang's Conjecture which we denote , and proved that it is equivalent to several statements, including the assertion that Namba forcing is semiproper. We introduce an apparently weaker version, denoted , and prove an analogous characterization of it. In particular, is equivalent to the assertion that the the Friedman‐Krueger poset is semiproper. This strengthens and sharpens results by Cox and sheds some light on problems posed by Usuba, Torres‐Perez and Wu.     

Oligosaccharide-Carrying Styrene-Type Macromers. Polymerization and Specific Interactions Between the Polymers and Liver Cells

Polystyrene derivatives with lactose, glucose, maltose, maltotriose, maltopentaose, and maltoheptaose on each benzene ring were prepared by the radical polymerization of a new class of macromers synthesized by coupling the corresponding oligosaccharide lactones with p-vinylbenzylamine. These polymers consisting of amphiphilic structural units were water-soluble, and organic solutes were bound to hydrophobic microenvironments of the polymers in water. α-D-Glucopyranose-carrying polymers were recognized and precipitated by concanavalin A. Cultivation of liver cells (hepatocytes) was attempted using culture dishes whose surface was coated with lactose-, glucose-, maltose-, and maltotriose-carrying polystyrenes. It has been found that a lactose-carrying polystyrene (PVLA) is a useful surface material for hepatocyte culture. 1) Highly specific adhesion of hepatocytes was attained for PVLA-coated dishes with or without serum supplement. 2) The cell adhesion was a threshold phenomenon with respect to the PVLA concentration on the dish. 3) The cell adhesion was effectively inhibited when hepatocytes were treated with PVLA molecules in the medium prior to culture. 4) The adhesion was not inhibited by albumin, an adhesion-inhibitory protein in serum. These findings suggest that pendent galactose residues of a PLVA molecule functioned as a strong recognition determinant for hepatocytes. We assume that multi-antennary, high-density galactose residues of PVLA are attributed to the specific adhesion of hepatocytes.     

Enantioresolution of 2-methoxy-2-(1-naphtyl)propionic acid using diastereomeric salt formation with chiral phenylethylamine

An enantioresolution of 2-methoxy-2-(1-naphtyl)propionic acid (MαNP acid) using the diastereomeric salt with chiral (R)-phenylethylamine was achieved to give enantiopure (R)-MαNP acid in 29% yield with >99% ee based on rac-MαNP acid. X-ray crystallographic analysis of diastereomeric salt revealed that (R)-MαNP acid was tightly arranged by four independent hydrogen bonds and one CH–π interaction with (R)-phenylethylamine.     

Morphological Investigation of Midblock‐Sulfonated Block Ionomers Prepared from Solvents Differing in Polarity

Recent developments regarding charged multiblock copolymers that can form physical networks and exhibit robust mechanical properties herald new and exciting opportunities for contemporary technologies requiring amphiphilic attributes. Due to the presence of strong interactions, however, control over the phase behavior of such materials remains challenging, especially since their morphologies can be solvent‐templated. In this study, transmission electron microscopy and microtomography are employed to examine the morphological characteristics of midblock‐sulfonated pentablock ionomers prepared from solvents differing in polarity. Resultant images confirm that discrete, spherical ion‐rich microdomains form in films cast from a relatively nonpolar solvent, whereas an apparently mixed morphology with a continuous ion‐rich pathway is generated when the casting solvent is more highly polar. Detailed 3D analysis of the morphological characteristics confirms the coexistence of hexagonally‐packed nonpolar cylinders and lamellae, which facilitates the diffusion of ions and/or other polar species through the nanostructured medium.

     

Use of multi-coil parallel-gap resonators for co-registration EPR/NMR imaging

This article reports experimental investigations on the use of RF resonators for continuous-wave electron paramagnetic resonance (cw-EPR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging. We developed a composite resonator system with multi-coil parallel-gap resonators for co-registration EPR/NMR imaging. The resonance frequencies of each resonator were 21.8MHz for NMR and 670MHz for EPR. A smaller resonator (22mm in diameter) for use in EPR was placed coaxially in a larger resonator (40mm in diameter) for use in NMR. RF magnetic fields in the composite resonator system were visualized by measuring a homogeneous 4-hydroxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperidinooxy (4-hydroxy-TEMPO) solution in a test tube. A phantom of five tubes containing distilled water and 4-hydroxy-TEMPO solution was also measured to demonstrate the potential usefulness of this composite resonator system in biomedical science. An image of unpaired electrons was obtained for 4-hydroxy-TEMPO in three tubes, and was successfully mapped on the proton image for five tubes. Technical problems in the implementation of a composite resonator system are discussed with regard to co-registration EPR/NMR imaging for animal experiments.