Neuronavigation-Guided Transcranial Histotripsy (NaviTH) System.

Objective: The goal of the work described here was to develop the first neuronavigation-guided transcranial histotripsy (NaviTH) system and associated workflow for transcranial ablation.

Methods: The NaviTH system consists of a 360-element, 700 kHz transmitter-receiver-capable transcranial histotripsy array, a clinical neuronavigation system and associated equipment for patient-to-array co-registration and therapy planning and targeting software systems. A workflow for NaviTH treatments, including pre-treatment aberration correction, was developed.

Characterization of Blood-Brain Barrier Opening Induced by Transcranial Histotripsy in Murine Brains.

Objective: Transcranial histotripsy has shown promise as a non-invasive neurosurgical tool, as it has the ability to treat a wide range of locations in the brain without overheating the skull. One important effect of histotripsy in the brain is the blood-brain barrier (BBB) opening (BBBO) at the ablation site, but there is a knowledge gap concerning the extent of histotripsy-induced BBBO. Here we describe induction of BBBO by transcranial histotripsy and use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and histology to quantify changes in BBBO at the periphery of the histotripsy ablation zone over time in the healthy mouse brain.

Histotripsy Treatment of Murine Brain and Glioma: Temporal Profile of Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Histological Characteristics Post-treatment.

Objective: Currently, there is a knowledge gap in our understanding of the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) characteristics of brain tumors treated with histotripsy to evaluate treatment response as well as treatment-related injuries. Our aim was to bridge this gap by investigating and correlating MRI with histological analysis after histotripsy treatment of mouse brain with and without brain tumors and evaluating the evolution of the histotripsy ablation zone on MRI over time.

Methods: An eight-element, 1 MHz histotripsy transducer with a focal distance of 32.

Quantitative Changes of Phenolic Compounds in Pine Twigs by Variety, Harvest Season, and Growing Region.

Three new phenolic compounds including pinosylvin 3-methoxy-5--β-D-glucoside (PMG), taxiresinol 4'--α-L-rhamnoside (TRR), and lariciresinol 4'--α-L-rhamnoside (LRR) were first isolated and identified from red pine ( Sieb. et Zucc.) twigs, together with four known compounds, such as (+)-catechin (CC), dihydromyricetin (DHM), dihydroquercetin 3--β-D-glucoside (DHQG), and dihydroquercetin (DHQ).

Two-step aberration correction: application to transcranial histotripsy.

: Phase aberration correction is essential in transcranial histotripsy to compensate for focal distortion caused by the heterogeneity of the intact skull bone. This paper improves the 2-step aberration correction (AC) method that has been previously presented and develops an AC workflow that fits in the clinical environment, in which the computed tomography (CT)-based analytical approach was first implemented, followed by a cavitation-based approach using the shockwaves from the acoustic cavitation emission (ACE).A 700 kHz, 360-element hemispherical transducer array capable of transmit-and-receive on all channels was used to transcranially generate histotripsy-induced cavitation and acquire ACE shockwaves.

Synthesis of Bridged Oxabicycles via Cascade Reactions involving -Acyloxocarbenium Ion Intermediates.

Compared to related electrophilic species, -acyloxocarbenium ions (AOIs) have been much less utilized in organic synthesis due to the lack of an efficient formation method. Here, we present a facile and simple approach for the generation of AOI from ester and acetal groups. Based on our AOI system with a pendant nucleophile, we obtained a unique bridged bicyclic system via an epoxonium-like transition state.

Discovery of Novel Small-Molecule Antiangiogenesis Agents to Treat Diabetic Retinopathy.

Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of blindness which is associated with excessive angiogenesis. Using the structure of wondonin marine natural products, we previously created a scaffold to develop a novel type of antiangiogenesis agent that possesses minimized cytotoxicity. To overcome its poor pharmaceutical properties, we further modified the structure.

Index Coded Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ).

In this paper, an index-coded Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ) is studied in the perspectives of transmission efficiency and memory overhead. Motivated by reducing significant computational complexity from huge matrix inverse computation of random linear network coding, a near-to-optimal broadcasting scheme, called index-coded Automatic Repeat Request (ARQ) is proposed. The main idea is to consider the principal packet error pattern across all receivers.

Stereotactic Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Targeting System for Murine Brain Models.

An inexpensive, accurate focused ultrasound stereotactic targeting method guided by pretreatment magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images for murine brain models is presented. An uncertainty of each sub-component of the stereotactic system was analyzed. The entire system was calibrated using clot phantoms.

Isolation, Identification, and Quantification of Tyrosinase and α-Glucosidase Inhibitors from UVC-Irradiated Mulberry ( L.) Leaves.

Methanol extracts from ultraviolet (UV) C-irradiated mulberry leaves (UVC-IML) exhibit stronger tyrosinase and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities than those from unirradiated mulberry leaves. Through a bioassay-guided fractionation and purification process, two oxyresveratrol derivatives, oxyresveratrol (ORT) and 4'-prenyloxyresveratrol (PORT), and six 2-arylbenzofuran derivatives [moracin B (MCB), moracin C (MCC), moracin M (MCM), moracin N (MCN), 6,5'-dimethoxymoracin M (DMMCM), and chalcomoracin (CMC)] were isolated from the methanol extract from UVC-IML. Their chemical structures were determined by UV, mass, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry.

Soft-Tissue Aberration Correction for Histotripsy.

Acoustic aberrations caused by natural heterogeneities of biological soft tissue are a substantial problem for histotripsy, a therapeutic ultrasound technique that uses acoustic cavitation to mechanically fractionate and destroy unwanted target tissue without damaging surrounding tissue. These aberrations, primarily caused by sound speed variations, result in severe defocusing of histotripsy pulses, thereby decreasing treatment efficacy. The gold standard for aberration correction (AC) is to place a hydrophone at the desired focal location to directly measure phase aberrations, which is a method that is infeasible in vivo.

Anti-diabetic effects of mulberry ( L.) branches and oxyresveratrol in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice.

Despite with accumulating evidences on the anti-diabetic effects of mulberry branch (MB), the major active component for the activity has not been known. Oral administration of MB ethanol (EtOH) extracts [0.5 or 1 g/kg body weight (BW)] once a day for 22 days to streptozotocin-induced diabetic ICR mouse significantly reduced fasting blood and plasma glucose level in a dose dependent manner compared to those of the diabetic control.

Linear Algebraic Beamforming Design for Multiuser MISO Interference Channels: A Reduction in Search Space Dimension.

Near-optimal transmit beamformers are designed for multiuser multiple-input single-output interference channels with slowly time-varying block fading. The main contribution of this article is to provide a method for deriving closed-form solutions to effective beamforming in both low and high signal-to-noise ratio regimes. The proposed method basically leverages side information obtained from the channel correlation between adjacent coding blocks.

Nanoemulsion-Based Hydrogel for Topical Delivery of Highly Skin-Permeable Growth Factor Combinations: Preparation and In Vitro Evaluation.

Topical administration of growth factors has been suggested as a promising strategy for promoting the healing process and skin regeneration in wound management. However, several restrictions hinder their successful clinical use; specifically, limited percutaneous absorption causes inconsistent efficacy, and various growth factors with specific functionalities are required at different stages of healing. To overcome these shortcomings, previously we have constructed highly skin-permeable analogues of epidermal growth factor (EGF), insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), and platelet-derived growth factor-A (PDGF-A) (LMWP-EGF, LMWP-IGF-I and LMWP-PDGF-A) by genetically conjugating the low-molecular-weight protamine (LMWP) to their N-terminus.

Revisiting Degrees of Freedom of Full-Duplex Systems with Opportunistic Transmission: An Improved User Scaling Law.

It was recently studied how to achieve the optimal degrees of freedom (DoF) in a multi-antenna full-duplex system with partial channel state information (CSI). In this paper, we revisit the DoF of a multiple-antenna full-duplex system using opportunistic transmission under the partial CSI, in which a full-duplex base station having transmit antennas and receive antennas supports a set of half-duplex mobile stations (MSs) having a single antenna each. Assuming no self-interference, we present a new hybrid opportunistic scheduling method that achieves the optimal sum DoF under an improved user scaling law.

Preparation and Evaluation of Elastic Nanoliposomes for Topical Delivery of Highly Skin-Permeable Growth Factors.

Percutaneous delivery of growth factors is often used to treat wounds, and for cosmetic purposes, as a way of accelerating healing and skin regeneration, respectively. However, the therapeutic effects of growth factors are diminished by their poor absorption when delivered percutaneously, in addition to their rapid degradation by proteinases. To overcome these obstacles, we constructed two skin-permeable compounds.

Construction and Characterization of Cell-Penetrating Peptide-Fused Fibroblast Growth Factor and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor for an Enhanced Percutaneous Delivery System.

The exogenous administration of growth factors has been examined for treating wounds and such factors serve as cosmetic agents for skin regeneration. However, the topical application of growth factors is hampered by their limited percutaneous absorption. In this study, we genetically modified basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) using a cell-penetrating peptide to facilitate their permeation into skin and to avoid multiple steps in the chemical or physical modification of biomaterials.

Multispectral photoacoustic microscopy of lipids using a pulsed supercontinuum laser.

We demonstrate optical resolution photoacoustic microscopy (OR-PAM) of lipid-rich tissue between 1050-1714 nm using a pulsed supercontinuum laser based on a large-mode-area photonic crystal fiber. OR-PAM experiments of lipid-rich samples show the expected optical absorption peaks near 1210 and 1720 nm. These results show that pulsed supercontinuum lasers are promising for OR-PAM applications such as label-free histology of lipid-rich tissue and imaging small animal models of disease.

Simulation and Damage Analysis of an Accidental Jet Fire in a High-Pressure Compressed Pump Shelter.

Background: As one of the most frequently occurring accidents in a chemical plant, a fire accident may occur at any place where transfer or handling of combustible materials is routinely performed.

Methods: In particular, a jet fire incident in a chemical plant operated under high pressure may bring severe damage. To review this event numerically, Computational Fluid Dynamics methodology was used to simulate a jet fire at a pipe of a compressor under high pressure.

Multiple nanoemulsion system for an oral combinational delivery of oxaliplatin and 5-fluorouracil: preparation and in vivo evaluation.

Oxaliplatin (OXA) is a third-generation cisplatin analog that has been approved as first-line chemotherapy in combination with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) for the treatment of resectable and advanced colorectal cancer. However, the therapeutic efficacy of oral OXA and 5-FU is limited by their low bioavailability due to poor membrane permeability. The aim of the present study was to develop an oral delivery system for OXA and 5-FU.

Enhancing Effect of Trachelogenin from Trachelospermi caulis Extract on Intestinal Barrier Function.

Trachelospermi caulis is used widely as an herbal medicine in oriental countries to attenuate fever and pain. We wished to reveal the novel function of this herb and its active component on barrier function in intestinal epithelial cells. Monolayers of intestinal epithelial cells (Caco-2) were used to evaluate the transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) and quantity of permeated ovalbumin (OVA) as indices of barrier function.

Bioavailability of ginsenosides from white and red ginsengs in the simulated digestion model.

This study aims to investigate the bioavailability of ginsenosides during simulated digestion of white (WG) and red (RG) ginseng powders. Stability, bioaccessibility, and permeability of ginsenosides present in WG and RG were studied in a Caco-2 cell culture model coupled with oral, gastric, and small intestinal simulated digestion. Most ginsenosides in WG and RG were stable (>90%) during the simulated digestion.