Predictive Performance of Radiomic Features Extracted from Breast MR Imaging in Postoperative Upgrading of Ductal Carcinoma in Situ to Invasive Carcinoma.

Purpose: To investigate the predictive performance of radiomic features extracted from breast MRI for upgrade of ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) to invasive carcinoma.

Methods: This retrospective study included 71 women with DCIS lesions diagnosed preoperatively by biopsy. All women underwent breast dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) MRI of the breast, which included pre-contrast and five post-contrast phases continuously with a time resolution of 60s.

Molecular-based race classification of causing tan spot of wheat in Japan.

Tan spot, a foliar disease of spp. such as bread wheat ( L.) and durum wheat ( ssp.

Improvement of preharvest sprouting resistance with + mutated in white-seeded durum wheat.

Improvement of preharvest sprouting (PHS) resistance is an important objective in the breeding of durum wheat ( ssp. (Desf.) Husn.

Ice slurry ingestion improves physical performance during high-intensity intermittent exercise in a hot environment.

Ice slurry ingestion enhances exercise performance by lowering the core body temperature. However, an operational issue related to this ingestion is the requirement for a high intake of 7.5 g·kg-1 to produce the desired effects.

Novel quantitative trait loci for low grain cadmium concentration in common wheat ( L.).

Cadmium (Cd) is as an extremely toxic metal that can contaminate agricultural soils. To reduce the risk of Cd intake in food cereals, the development of cultivars with low grain Cd concentration (GCC) is an effective countermeasure. We analyzed quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for GCC in a doubled haploid (DH) common wheat ( L.

Scalable Parallel Manipulation of Single Cells Using Micronozzle Array Integrated with Bidirectional Electrokinetic Pumps.

High throughput reconstruction of in vivo cellular environments allows for efficient investigation of cellular functions. If one-side-open multi-channel microdevices are integrated with micropumps, the devices will achieve higher throughput in the manipulation of single cells while maintaining flexibility and open accessibility. This paper reports on the integration of a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) micronozzle array and bidirectional electrokinetic pumps driven by DC-biased AC voltages.

Photovoltaic Performance of Inorganic-Organic Heterojunction Solar Cells Using Boron-Doped Silicon Nanoparticles with Controlled Conductance.

We fabricated -type boron (B)-doped silicon nanoparticles (SiNPs) with a mean diameter of 3.4 nm by a complex chemical reaction of inexpensive pure Si and pure B powders using a combination of ultra-high-speed mixing and thermal annealing techniques. The hole concentration in the -type SiNPs increased with increasing Si:B blend ratio because of the incorporation of electrically active B atoms into the SiNP core; thus, the conductance of the -type SiNPs was also enhanced by increasing the mobile carrier concentration.

Pick-and-Place Operation of Single Cell Using Optical and Electrical Measurements for Robust Manipulation.

A robust pick and placement operation of a single cell is necessary for efficient sample collection. Detection and manipulation of single cells requires minimum invasiveness. We report a less-invasive method for picking up and placing single cells using optical and electrical observations for robust cell manipulation.

Improving preharvest sprouting resistance in durum wheat with bread wheat genes.

Preharvest sprouting (PHS) of durum wheat ( ssp. (Desf.) Husn.

Success in the acquisition of Bombyx mori sperm motility is influenced by the extracellular production of nitric oxide (NO) in the presence of seminal fluid nitric oxide synthase (NOS).

A trypsin-like protease called initiatorin is known to initiate sperm motility in the silkworm, Bombyx mori, but little is known about the signaling events leading to sperm flagellar beating. The aim of this study was to investigate whether this mechanism of sperm motility activation involves the signaling transmitter nitric oxide (NO). NO is produced from the amino acid L-arginine by the enzyme action of nitric oxide synthase (NOS; EC 1.

Development and characterization of hollow microprobe array as a potential tool for versatile and massively parallel manipulation of single cells.

Parallel manipulation of single cells is important for reconstructing in vivo cellular microenvironments and studying cell functions. To manipulate single cells and reconstruct their environments, development of a versatile manipulation tool is necessary. In this study, we developed an array of hollow probes using microelectromechanical systems fabrication technology and demonstrated the manipulation of single cells.

Tobacco nicotine uptake permease regulates the expression of a key transcription factor gene in the nicotine biosynthesis pathway.

The down-regulation of a tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) plasma membrane-localized nicotine uptake permease, NUP1, was previously reported to reduce total alkaloid levels in tobacco plants. However, it was unclear how this nicotine transporter affected the biosynthesis of the alkaloid nicotine. When NUP1 expression was suppressed in cultured tobacco cells treated with jasmonate, which induces nicotine biosynthesis, the NICOTINE2-locus transcription factor gene ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR189 (ERF189) and its target structural genes, which function in nicotine biosynthesis and transport, were strongly suppressed, resulting in decreased total alkaloid levels.

Tobacco NUP1 transports both tobacco alkaloids and vitamin B6.

The purine permeases (PUPs) constitute a large plasma membrane-localized transporter family in plants that mediates the proton-coupled uptake of nucleotide bases and their derivatives, such as adenine, cytokinins, and caffeine. A Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco) PUP-family transporter, nicotine uptake permease 1 (NtNUP1), was previously shown to transport tobacco alkaloids and to affect both nicotine biosynthesis and root growth in tobacco plants. Since Arabidopsis PUP1, which belongs to the same subclade as NtNUP1, was recently reported to transport pyridoxine and its derivatives (vitamin B6), it was of interest to examine whether NtNUP1 could also transport these substrates.

Draft Genome Sequence of Lactobacillus namurensis Chizuka 01, Isolated from Nukadoko, a Pickling Bed of Fermented Rice Bran.

Lactobacillus namurensis Chizuka 01 was isolated from nukadoko, which is a fermented rice bran bed traditionally used in Japan for pickling vegetables. Here, we report the first draft of an annotated genome sequence of this organism. This paper is the first published report of the genomic sequence of L.

Molecular evolution of N-methylputrescine oxidase in tobacco.

Biosynthesis of nicotine in tobacco requires N-methylputrescine oxidase (MPO), which belongs to the copper-containing amine oxidase superfamily. Previous studies identified tobacco MPO1 and its close homolog NtDAO1 (formerly called MPO2), of which MPO1 has been shown preferentially to oxidize N-methylated amines. We show here that NtDAO1, as well as a homologous Arabidopsis diamine oxidase (DAO), accept non-N-methylated amines more efficiently than their corresponding N-methylated amines.

Synthesis of novel polymer type sulfoxide solid phase combined with the porogen imprinting for enabling selective separation of polychlorinated biphenyls.

We developed a novel polymer type sulfoxide-modified solid phase enabling to achieve selective separation of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from insulation oil. In this study, firstly we prepared base-polymer based on the concept of the molecular imprinting to capture PCBs in selectively, then, the sulfoxide groups were modified on the pore surface of base-polymers by changing preparation methods. As results of liquid chromatographic analyses for the polymers as columns, the base-polymer prepared by xylene as a porogenic solvent showed selective retention ability for chlorinated aromatic compounds by the porogen imprinting effect.

Retention properties of macroporous spongy monolith and its application for concentration of polyaromatic hydrocarbons.

We report the fundamental chromatographic retention properties of spongy monolith that was previously reported as a novel separation medium for the effective pretreatment of environmental pollutants. According to the detailed examination on liquid chromatographic evaluations using hydrophobic, hydrophilic, and polyaromatic compounds as solutes, the spongy monolith consisted of poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) and having macroporous co-continuous structures showed the selective retention ability for polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), especially coplanar compounds, whereas lower selectivity was observed for typical hydrophobic and hydrophilic compounds compared with the commonly used C18 medium. Moreover, we demonstrate the effective preconcentration of benzo[a]pyrene using a spongy monolith as a pretreatment column of an online column switching HPLC system.

Electronic structure of delocalized singlet biradical Ph2-IDPL solid film.

The film structure and electronic structure of a biradical hydrocarbon, diphenyl derivative of s-indacenodiphenalene (Ph(2)-IDPL) solid film has been investigated. A small energy gap between the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) compared with that of typical π-conjugated small molecules was observed even for the amorphous film of Ph(2)-IDPL. This result indicates that the small HOMO-LUMO gap is an important characteristic of the singlet biradical electronic structure and well explains the previously reported ambipolar field effects of amorphous Ph(2)-IDPL film by Chikamatsu et al.

Processed aconite root prevents cold-stress-induced hypothermia and immuno-suppression in mice.

Processed aconite root (PA) is a crude drug used in traditional Chinese or Japanese medicine to generate heat in interior body and dispel cold. We evaluated the effects of PA on hypothermia and reduction in the activity of natural killer (NK) cells in mice exposed to chronic cold stress. Male mice were reared at 4 degrees C, and powdered PA was administered for 10 d as a food additive.