Measurement of an arbitrary parallel displacement of a rigid body by using polychromatic speckle patterns

A novel speckle method for measuring the parallel displacement of a rigid body in an arbitrary direction is presented. The amount of displacement as well as its angle made with the optical axis is to be measured from the Fourier transform patterns of a doubly exposed photographic plate.     

Synthesis of metabolites of S-1452, an orally active thromboxane A2 receptor antagonist.

The synthesis of 16 metabolites of S-1452, an orally active thromboxane A2 (TXA2) receptor antagonist, is described. Regioselective hydroxylation at C-5 or C-6 of the bicyclo[2.2.1]heptane skeleton of the optically active intermediate 16 was attempted by using 9-borabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane followed by H2O2 or m-chloroperbenzoic acid (m-CPBA) and then LiA1H4, to obtain the hydroxylated product 17a or 17b, respectively. Modification of the C-2 substituent of 17a and 17b afforded eight metabolites of S-1452. Eight non-hydroxylated metabolites were synthesized by using a similar reaction sequence.     

Effect of aging, castration, and testosterone administration on ribonuclease and ribonuclease-inhibitor activities in the prostate of rats

Free ribonuclease (RNase)-inhibitor activities in both ventral and dorsal prostates had their highest peaks in 4-week-old rats and smallest peaks in around 7-week-old animals. Total RNase activity in the ventral prostate decreased overall with age, while that in the dorsal prostate increased. No significant amount of free RNase activity was found in either prostate. Weight, protein content, and free RNase-inhibitor activity in both prostates decreased after castration and increased after administration of testosterone to castrated rats. Total RNase activity in the ventral prostate was increased by castration and decreased by testosterone administration. In the dorsal prostate, total RNase activity had two peaks, 7 d after castration and 2 d after testosterone administration. A large amount of free RNase activity was found in the ventral prostate 7 d after castration and this activity was decreased by testosterone administration. In the dorsal prostate, free RNase activity was not detected after castration and testosterone administration. These results suggest that changes in the level of RNase-inhibitor in both prostates are involved in the regulation of their RNA content through the control of free RNase activity.     

AtTrxh3, a Thioredoxin,Is Identified as an Abscisic AcidBinding Protein in Arabidopsis thaliana

Abscisic acid (ABA, 1) is a plant hormone that regulates various plant physiological processes such as seed developing and stress responses. The ABA signaling system has been elucidated; binding of ABA with PYL proteins triggers ABA signaling. We have previously reported a new method to isolate a protein targeted with a bioactive small molecule using a biotin linker with alkyne and amino groups, a protein cross-linker, and a bioactive small molecule with an azido group (azido probe). This method was used to identify the unknown ABA binding protein of Arabidopsis thaliana. As a result, AtTrxh3, a thioredoxin, was isolated as an ABA binding protein. Our developed method can be applied to the identification of binding proteins of bioactive compounds.     

Polyolefin: changing supply-demand framework and new technology

Polyolefin industry is now under a remarkable change of international supply-demand framework and its market is splitting into commodity and high performance products. It is getting more important for a material being harmless and comfortable, while the “life cycle cost”, which includes the cost during use and the recycle cost after use, is regarded as more important to evaluate a material. Those changes are accelerating the inter-material penetration. Several examples of the material design and production technologies, which responded to the changing market needs and developed new applications of polyolefin, are discussed.