Thermoelectrochemical Seebeck coefficient and viscosity of Co-complex electrolytes rationalized by the Einstein relation, Jones-Dole coefficient, and quantum-chemical calculations.

The Seebeck coefficient (Se) and the viscosity of a redox electrolyte are the key characteristics of thermoelectrochemical cells that generate electric power from waste thermal energy. However, the recent upsurge of research in this field is seriously disconnected from the knowledge of solution chemistry explored in the previous century. Herein, we systematically investigate five redox couples of cobalt complexes containing different aromatic ligands and anions in γ-butyrolactone solvent to demonstrate how the Einstein relation of hydrodynamic theory and the Jones-Dole coefficient obtained from viscosity measurements can be used to account for such electrolyte properties.

Vector-Field dynamic X-ray (VF-DXR) using Optical Flow Method.

Objectives: To explore the feasibility of Vector-Field DXR (VF-DXR) using optical flow method (OFM).

Methods: Five healthy volunteers and five COPD patients were studied. DXR was performed in the standing position using a prototype X-ray system (Konica Minolta Inc.

Generation of Novel Chimeric Mice with Humanized Livers by Using Hemizygous cDNA-uPA/SCID Mice.

We have used homozygous albumin enhancer/promoter-driven urokinase-type plasminogen activator/severe combined immunodeficient (uPA/SCID) mice as hosts for chimeric mice with humanized livers. However, uPA/SCID mice show four disadvantages: the human hepatocytes (h-heps) replacement index in mouse liver is decreased due to deletion of uPA transgene by homologous recombination, kidney disorders are likely to develop, body size is small, and hemizygotes cannot be used as hosts as more frequent homologous recombination than homozygotes. To solve these disadvantages, we have established a novel host strain that has a transgene containing albumin promoter/enhancer and urokinase-type plasminogen activator cDNA and has a SCID background (cDNA-uPA/SCID).

Formation of the accumulative human metabolite and human-specific glutathione conjugate of diclofenac in TK-NOG chimeric mice with humanized livers.

3'-Hydroxy-4'-methoxydiclofenac (VI) is a human-specific metabolite known to accumulate in the plasma of patients after repeated administration of diclofenac sodium. Diclofenac also produces glutathione-conjugated metabolites, some of which are human-specific. In the present study, we investigated whether these metabolites could be generated in humanized chimeric mice produced from TK-NOG mice.

X-ray phase imaging: from synchrotron to hospital.

With the aim of clinical applications of X-ray phase imaging based on Talbot-Lau-type grating interferometry to joint diseases and breast cancer, machines employing a conventional X-ray generator have been developed and installed in hospitals. The machine operation especially for diagnosing rheumatoid arthritis is described, which relies on the fact that cartilage in finger joints can be depicted with a dose of several milligray. The palm of a volunteer observed with 19 s exposure (total scan time: 32 s) is reported with a depicted cartilage feature in joints.

Cadaveric and in vivo human joint imaging based on differential phase contrast by X-ray Talbot-Lau interferometry.

We developed an X-ray phase imaging system based on Talbot-Lau interferometry and studied its feasibility for clinical diagnoses of joint diseases. The system consists of three X-ray gratings, a conventional X-ray tube, an object holder, an X-ray image sensor, and a computer for image processing. The joints of human cadavers and healthy volunteers were imaged, and the results indicated sufficient sensitivity to cartilage, suggesting medical significance.

Prodigiosin biosynthesis gene cluster in the roseophilin producer Streptomyces griseoviridis.

Streptomyces griseoviridis 2464-S5 produces prodigiosin R1, a tripyrrole antibiotic, and roseophilin, a structurally related compound containing two pyrrole and one furan rings. A gene cluster for the biosynthesis of a prodigiosin was identified in S. griseoviridis.

Storage and retrieval of a squeezed vacuum.

Storage and retrieval of a squeezed vacuum was successfully demonstrated using electromagnetically induced transparency. The squeezed vacuum pulse having a temporal width of 930 ns was incident on the laser cooled 87Rb atoms with an intense control light in a coherent state. When the squeezed vacuum pulse was slowed and spatially compressed in the cold atoms, the control light was switched off.

Ultraslow propagation of squeezed vacuum pulses with electromagnetically induced transparency.

We have succeeded in observing ultraslow propagation of squeezed vacuum pulses with electromagnetically induced transparency. Squeezed vacuum pulses (probe lights) were incident on a laser-cooled 87Rb gas together with an intense coherent light (control light). A homodyne method sensitive to the vacuum state was employed for detecting the probe pulse passing through the gas.

Observation of electromagnetically induced transparency for a squeezed vacuum with the time domain method.

A probe light in a squeezed vacuum state was injected into cold 87Rb atoms with an intense control light in a coherent state. A sub-MHz window was created due to electromagnetically induced transparency, and the incident squeezed vacuum could pass through the cold atoms without optical loss, as was successfully monitored using a time-domain homodyne method.

Estimation of plasma IC50 of donepezil hydrochloride for brain acetylcholinesterase inhibition in monkey using N-[11C]methylpiperidin-4-yl acetate ([11C]MP4A) and PET.

Donepezil hydrochloride is a potent and selective inhibitor for brain acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and is currently used worldwide for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Until now, there is no in vivo study on the relation between the plasma concentration and the brain AChE inhibition. The purpose of this study was to estimate in vivo plasma IC(50) of donepezil in living monkeys by measuring plasma donepezil concentration (LC/MS/MS) and brain AChE activity with positron emission tomography (PET) and N-[(11)C]methylpiperidin-4-yl acetate, which is an acetylcholine analog recently developed by us for quantifying in vivo brain AChE activity.

Disposition of low doses of 14C-bisphenol A in male, female, pregnant, fetal, and neonatal rats.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a weak xenestrogen (ADI = 50 microg kg(-1), US EPA) which is mass-produced, with potential for human exposure. To study absorption, distribution, excretion, and metabolism of BPA, BPA labeled with carbon-14 was administered p.o.

A simple method for the detection of abnormal brain regions in Alzheimer's disease patients using [11C]MP4A: comparison with [123I]IMP SPECT.

We have developed a radiolabeled lipophilic acetylcholine analogue, N-[11C]methylpiperidin-4-yl acetate ([11C]MP4A) to measure brain acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity by positron emission tomography (PET) in vivo. Aiming to develop a new SPECT tracer similar to MP4A, we first proposed a simple method for diagnosing Alzheimer's disease (AD) using [11C]MP4A PET. We performed [11C]MP4A PET and N-isopropyl [123I]iodoamphetamine ([123I]IMP) SPECT in 13 patients with AD and in 17 normal controls (NC).

Evaluation of simplified kinetic analyses for measurement of brain acetylcholinesterase activity using N-[11C]Methylpiperidin-4-yl propionate and positron emission tomography.

The applicability of two reference tissue-based analyses without arterial blood sampling for the measurement of brain regional acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity using N-[11C]methylpiperidin-4-yl propionate ([11C]MP4P) was evaluated in 12 healthy subjects. One was a linear least squares analysis derived from Blomqvist's equation, and the other was the analysis of the ratio of target-tissue radioactivity relative to reference-tissue radioactivity proposed by Herholz and coworkers. The standard compartment analysis using arterial input function provided reliable quantification of k3 (an index of AChE activity) estimates in regions with low (neocortex and hippocampus), moderate (thalamus), and high (cerebellum) AChE activity with a coefficient of variation (COV) of 12% to 19%.

Acetylcholinesterase imaging: its use in therapy evaluation and drug design.

Several cholinesterase (ChE) inhibitors have been labeled with carbon-11 for visualizing binding sites on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) by positron emission tomography (PET). Following intravenous injection of 1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-9-[(11)C]methylaminoacridine or [(11)C]donepezil, however, the radioactivity distribution does not reflect the regional distribution of AChE in the brain of animals, probably because these compounds have high non-specific binding and/or other specific binding sites in vivo in the brain. PET studies with [(11)C]physostigmine and [(11)C]CP-126,998 in the brain of healthy subjects have shown a radioactivity distribution corresponding to the regional distribution of AChE activity measured in postmortem human brains.

The amygdala and Alzheimer's disease: positron emission tomographic study of the cholinergic system.

The primary transmitter deficit is cholinergic in Alzheimer's disease (AD), and the amygdala receives a major cholinergic projection from the nucleus basalis of Meynert (Ch4), which may play an important role in the retention of affective conditioning and/or memory consolidation. We measured brain acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in 54 patients with AD and in 22 normal controls by positron emission tomography and N-[(11)C]methylpiperidin-4-yl acetate to characterize the cholinergic pathology in AD. The k(3) values were calculated as an index of AChE activity in a three-compartment model analysis using the metabolite-corrected arterial input function.

Pharmacokinetics and metabolism of radiolabelled SNI-2011, a novel muscarinic receptor agonist, in healthy volunteers. Comprehensive understanding of absorption, metabolism and excretion using radiolabelled SNI-2011.

The pharmacokinetics and metabolism of SNI-2011 ((+/-)-cis-2-methylspiro[1,3-oxathiolane-5,3'-quinuclidine]monohydrochloride hemihydrate, cevimeline, CAS 153504-70-2), a novel muscarinic acetylcholine receptor agonist developed for the treatment of Sjögen's syndrome, were investigated in six healthy volunteers after a single oral administration of 14C-SNI-2011. After administration, plasma concentrations of the radioactivity and SNI-2011 reached to Cmax at approximately 2 h, and then decreased with t 1/2 of 9 and 4 h, respectively. Cmax and AUC0-infinity of the radioactivity in plasma were 2.

Positron emission tomography: quantitative measurement of brain acetylcholinesterase activity using radiolabeled substrates.

A new method for quantitative measurement of brain acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in living human brain using positron emission tomography (PET) is described. We tested several radiolabeled lipophilic acetylcholine analogs, e.g.