Protective Effect of Ferulic Acid against Hydrogen Peroxide Induced Apoptosis in PC12 Cells

Ferulic Acid (FA) is a highly abundant phenolic phytochemical which is present in plant tissues. FA has biological effects on physiological and pathological processes due to its anti-apoptotic and anti-oxidative properties, however, the detailed mechanism(s) of function is poorly understood. We have identified FA as a molecule that inhibits apoptosis induced by hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) or actinomycin D (ActD) in rat pheochromocytoma, PC12 cell. We also found that FA reduces H₂O₂-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in PC12 cell, thereby acting as an anti-oxidant. Then, we analyzed FA-mediated signaling responses in rat pheochromocytoma, PC12 cells using antibody arrays for phosphokinase and apoptosis related proteins. This FA signaling pathway in PC12 cells includes inactivation of pro-apoptotic proteins, SMAC/Diablo and Bad. In addition, FA attenuates the cell injury by H₂O₂ through the inhibition of phosphorylation of the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK). Importantly, we find that FA restores expression levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), a key neuroprotective effector, in H₂O₂-treated PC12 cells. As a possible mechanism, FA increases BDNF by regulating microRNA-10b expression following H₂O₂ stimulation. Taken together, FA has broad biological effects as a neuroprotective modulator to regulate the expression of phosphokinases, apoptosis-related proteins and microRNAs against oxidative stress in PC12 cells.     

Investigation of chlorophylls as a scavenger of manganese(II) and zinc(II) using a radiotracer technique

Uptake of manganese(II) and zinc(II) by chlorophylla (Chl) was investigated using a radiotracer technique in order to elucidate its ability of scavenging metals released into the soil environment. Two possibilities were considered for the metal uptake: (1) substitutional complexation with Chl and (2) inclusion of the metals into Chl aggregates. It was found that manganese(II) was not trapped appreciably by both Chl itself and its aggregates. Magnesium of Chl was exchanged with zinc(II) in aqueous phase giving Zn−Chl at pH values higher than 7. Zinc(II) was found to be trapped by Chl aggregates depending on the pH of the aqueous phase.     

Depth-adaptive regularized reconstruction for reflection diffuse optical tomography

We study reflection diffuse optical tomography using two-dimensional (2D) continuous-wave source-detector arrays on the surface of semi-infinite medium, aiming at imaging the perfusion and the hemoglobin oxygen saturation variation of human cerebral cortex with brain activation. We had previously formulated the inverse problem with Moore-Penrose inversion. When we use simple regularization in this inverse problem, the reconstruction sensitivity decreases markedly with the depth so that the signal in the deep range may be masked by an unwanted signal in the shallow range. In this paper, we propose a depth-adaptive regularized reconstruction, in which we assign a smaller regularization parameter with the depth. We demonstrate improvement of the three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction uniformity using the proposed scheme.     

Detection of multiple anions by thin-layer chromatography

A novel detection method for 21 different anions by thin-layer chromatography is presented. Anions on the target plate form salts with amine in a developing solvent and are visualized after staining with citric acid-acetic anhydride reagent as white spots contrasting against a pale red-pink background. This method has particularly high sensitivity for anions of chlorate, sulfate, phosphate, chromate and dichromate (0.02-0.05 microg). The method is demonstrated to efficiently detect toxic arsenite in curry sauce as an example application. The proposed method offers highly efficient indirect detection for a wide range of anions, and serves as a purification procedure for the preparation of anionic sample solutions for other analytical methods.     

Molecular imprinting of bisphenol A and alkylphenols using amylose as a host matrix

A novel molecularly imprinted polymer has been created by a radical polymerisation of acryloylamylose in the presence of a template.     

Theory of ferromagnetism in Ca(1-x)La(x)B(6)

Novel ferromagnetism in Ca(1-x)La(x)B(6) is studied in terms of the Ginzburg-Landau theory for excitonic-order parameters, taking into account symmetry of the wave functions. We found that the minima of the free energy break both inversion and time-reversal symmetries, while the product of these two remains preserved. This explains various novelties of the ferromagnetism and predicts a number of magnetic properties, including the magnetoelectric effect, which can be tested experimentally.     

Surface modification without desorption: recycling of Cl on Si(100)-(2 x 1)

We demonstrate chlorine-induced modification of Si(100)-(2 x 1) under conditions where Cl is recycled rather than desorbed as SiCl2. A dimer with 2 Cl atoms, 2SiCl, converts to SiCl2+Si, allowing the bare Si atom to escape onto the terrace. At temperatures below the desorption threshold, the SiCl2 unit decays through Cl diffusion, allowing the second Si atom to escape. The result is a dimer vacancy, terrace regrowth structures, and Cl that is able to participate in another pitting event. Access to this unexpected roughening pathway is controlled by the Cl concentration and temperature. This previously overlooked process represents an important component of Si(100) surface processing.     

The design secret of Kyokusui-no-En’s meandering channel

The purpose of this study is to investigate the characteristics of the flow through the Jonangu channel which is used for ceremonial game called as ‘Kyokusui-no-En’ in Japanese. The geometry of the channel is measured, a visualization technique is used to measure the actual flow characteristics, and then a numerical flow model is used to represent the flow including unsteady flow characteristics. Numerical model of drifting cup is introduced to investigate an interaction between flow and motion of the cup. Finally, the intention of the channel design is interpreted from the viewpoint of fluid mechanics using observed and calculated results.     

Crying and Behavioral Characteristics in Premature Infants

The aims of this study were to analyze 1) whether there was the relationship between the neonatal behavioral characteristics and amount of crying in premature infants at term age, and 2) what kind of difference between infants with high levels of crying and cry less on neonatal behavioral characteristics using the Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS). The study participants consisted of 69 healthy low birth-weight infants who were admitted to the NICU at the Nagasaki University Hospital, Nagasaki, Japan. This study analyzed the relationship between NBAS scores measured neonatal behavioral performance and crying at term age. This study results indicate that there was significant statistical negative correlation between the amount of total daily crying and Habituation, Range of state, Regulation of state, and Autonomic stability cluster scores and some individual items scores (Response decrement to light, Response decrement to tactile of foot, Alert responsiveness, Examiner persistence, Motor maturity, Irritability, General irritability, Cuddliness, Consolability, Self-quieting activity, and State regulation). The high levels crying group also showed higher responsivity than less crying group in the items of Peak of excitement, Rapidity of build-up, Irritability and General irritability. In conclusion, neonatal behavioral characteristics such as poor inhibit discrete stimuli while asleep, hyper-responsivity and poor state regulation abilities were risk factors of high levels of crying.