Investigating the Mechanism of Triboluminescence: Insights from Structural and Electrostatic Characterization of Copper Thiocyanate Complexes.

Triboluminescence is a phenomenon in which light is generated through mechanical stress; it has emerging applications in stress-sensing devices. Although the prevailing mechanistic model indicates that light emits from charge separation and recombination in fracture planes arising from polar structures, its application in designing triboluminescent materials remains limited owing to numerous exceptions. This study provides insights into the essential requirements for triboluminescence by investigating the structural and electrostatic properties of fractured crystals of copper thiocyanate complexes.

The early response of renal cell carcinoma to tyrosine kinase inhibitors evaluated by FDG PET/CT was not influenced by metastatic organ.

Background: Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) have become the mainstay of treatment for advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC), but it has been unclear whether the antitumor effect of TKIs depends on the organ where the RCC metastasis is located. We previously reported that the FDG accumulation assessed by FDG PET/CT, was a powerful index for evaluating the biological response to TKI. In this study we investigated the differences in FDG accumulation and the response to TKI as assessed by FDG PET/CT among various organs where RCC were located.

Anti-inflammatory effects of green soybean extract irradiated with visible light.

We conducted a preliminary investigation of the effects of visible light irradiation on plant extracts, and we observed a strong suppressive effect on interleukin (IL) 2 expression with the inhibition of c-Jun amino-terminal kinase (JNK) phosphorylation in Jurkat cells by visible light irradiation to ethanol extract from green soybeans (LIEGS). This effect was produced only by extracts from green soybeans (Glycine max) and not other-color soybeans. LIEGS suppressed the lipopolysaccharide-induced IL-6, IL-12 and TNF-α expression levels in human monocyte THP-1 cells in a concentration-dependent manner.

Early assessment by FDG-PET/CT of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma treated with tyrosine kinase inhibitors is predictive of disease course.

Background: We reported previously that (18)F-2-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomography/ computed tomography (FDG PET/CT) had potential for evaluating early response to treatment by tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC). This time we investigated the relation of the early assessment by FDG PET/CT to long-term prognosis with an expanded number of patients and period of observation.

Methods: Patients for whom TKI treatment for advanced RCC was planned were enrolled.

Unusual electronic structure of bis-isocyanide complexes of iron(III) porphyrinoids.

A series of isocyanide complexes, [Fe(Porphyrinoid)((t)BuNC)(2)](+), were synthesized and examined for their physicochemical properties. The molecular structure of the bis((t)BuNC) adduct of the iron(III) porphycene (1) and corrphycene (2) adopting the (d(xy))(2)(d(xz), d(yz))(3) ground state were determined for the first time. Furthermore, 1 and 2 showed unusual crossover phenomena between different electron configurations, (d(xy))(2)(d(xz), d(yz))(3) ground state and (d(xz), d(yz))(4)(d(xy))(1) ground state, by the addition of the external stimuli.