Curcumin induces apoptosis in lung cancer cells by 14-3-3 protein-mediated activation of Bad.

The anticancer effects of curcumin are based on the induction of apoptosis, but the specific mechanisms have not yet been fully elucidated. To address this issue, we investigated the effects of curcumin on the intrinsic apoptosis pathway using mitochondria from A549 cells. Curcumin decreased the levels of 14-3-3 proteins, key molecules that inhibit the activation of proapoptotic factors known as BH3-only proteins (e.

Pressure-induced variation of persistent luminescence characteristics in YAlGaO:Ce-M (M = Yb, and Cr) phosphors: opposite trend of trap depth for 4f and 3d metal ions.

Changing the electronic structure of materials by pressure and the accompanying changes in optical properties have attracted scientific interest. We have reported that the energy position of the conduction band (CB) bottom and the crystal field splitting of the Ce3+:5d excited level in Y3Al5-xGaxO12:Ce3+ are changed by applying pressure, which results in the red shifting of the Ce3+:5d → 4f luminescence and the increase of the quenching temperature. We also reported dramatic improvement of the persistent luminescence performance by either Cr3+ or Yb3+ codoping into the Y3Al5-xGaxO12:Ce3+ phosphors.

The Association between Combined Lifestyle Factors and All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality in Shiga Prefecture, Japan.

Background: To decrease mortality, the benefit of combined healthy lifestyles has been suggested but is still unclear, especially for cause-specific mortality. We examined the relationship between combined lifestyle factors and all-cause and cause-specific mortality in Shiga prefecture, Japan.

Methods: This was an ecological study of 19 municipalities, using the data from the 2008-2012 standard mortality ratio (SMR) reported by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the 2015 Health and Nutrition Survey in Shiga prefecture.

Ancient drainage networks mediated a large-scale genetic introgression in the East Asian freshwater snails.

Biogeography and genetic variation of freshwater organisms are influenced not only by current freshwater connections but also by past drainage networks. The Seto Inland Sea is a shallow enclosed sea in Japan, but geological evidence showed that a large freshwater drainage had intermittently appeared in this area between the late Pliocene and Pleistocene. Here, we demonstrated that this paleodrainage greatly affected the genetic variation of the East Asian freshwater snails, spp.

Morphological and molecular studies of Eudiplozoon nipponicum (Goto, 1891) and Eudiplozoon kamegaii sp. n. (Monogenea; Diplozoidae).

Eudiplozoon nipponicum (Goto, 1891) Khotenovsky, 1985 (Monogenea: Diplozoidae), is known to parasitise Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus and species of Carassius. In this study, we conducted a taxonomic re-examination of E. nipponicum using genetic analysis and morphological comparisons from different host species from a single water system.

Structural control of magnetite nanoparticles for hyperthermia by modification with organic polymers: effect of molecular weight.

Hyperthermia treatment using appropriate magnetic materials in an alternating magnetic field to generate heat has been recently proposed as a low-invasive cancer treatment method. Magnetite (FeO) nanoparticles are expected to be an appropriate type of magnetic thermal seed for this purpose, and the addition of organic substances during the synthesis process has been studied for controlling particle size and improving biological functions. However, the role of the properties of the organic polymer chosen as the modifier in the physical properties of the thermal seed has not yet been comprehensively revealed.

Analysis and observation of the breakdown of Babinet's principle in complementary spoof surface plasmon polariton structures.

A metal plate array (MPA) which is a structure complimentary to a metal hole array (MHA), supports spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPP) as well as an MHA does. Babinet's principle attributes the phenomenon of duality to transmission characteristics of the complimentary impedance surfaces because of the symmetry of the behaviors of electric and magnetic fields. However, it is also a fact that the complimentary structures do not follow this principle if they have wavelength-size thickness, because electromagnetic waves do not treat such thick structures as a boundary surface but as propagation spaces with the specific boundaries such as a waveguide which shows SSPP modes.

Hexabromocyclododecane in riverine and estuarine sediments from Osaka, Japan: spatial distribution and concentration variability within identical samples.

In this study, hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) in riverine and estuarine sediments was investigated in Osaka, Japan. The mean total HBCD concentration detected in sediments ranged from < 0.50 to 130 ng g dry weight.

Estimation of Magnetic Anisotropy of Individual Magnetite Nanoparticles for Magnetic Hyperthermia.

Ideal interaction-free magnetite nanoparticles were prepared, and their magnetic properties were measured to clarify the true nature of magnetic anisotropy of individual magnetite nanoparticles at the nanoscale and to analyze the shape, surface, and crystalline anisotropy contributions. Spherical (17.7 nm), cubic (10.

The Stereocontrolled Biosynthesis of Mirror-Symmetric 2,4-Diaminobutyric Acid Homopolymers Is Critically Governed by Adenylation Activations.

Among the four bioactive cationic homo-poly(amino acids) discovered in nature, two are mirror-image isomers of poly(2,4-diaminobutyric acid) (poly-Dab) whose biosynthesis has long been unexplained. Their structural analogy plausibly suggested that they could share a common biosynthetic pathway utilizing ε-poly(l-lysine) synthetase-like enzymology but with an unprecedented process for enantiomeric inversion of polymer building blocks. To investigate this possibility, we comparatively explored the biosynthesis of poly-l-Dab and its mirror-image isomer poly-d-Dab in USE31 and NBRC15115, respectively, through genome mining, genetic inactivation, and heterologous expression combined with biochemical assays.

Possibility of Amino Acid Treatment to Prevent the Psychiatric Disorders via Modulation of the Production of Tryptophan Metabolite Kynurenic Acid.

Kynurenic acid, a metabolite of the kynurenine pathway of tryptophan catabolism, acts as an antagonist for both the α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and glycine coagonist sites of the -methyl-d-aspartic acid receptor at endogenous brain concentrations. Elevation of brain kynurenic acid levels reduces the release of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and glutamate, and kynurenic acid is considered to be involved in psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and depression. Thus, the control of kynurenine pathway, especially kynurenic acid production, in the brain is an important target for the improvement of brain function or the effective treatment of brain disorders.

Novel wet-solid states serial anaerobic digestion process for enhancing methane recovery of aquatic plant biomass.

Aquatic plant biomass is characterised by high moisture content and a lignocellulose structure. To apply the anaerobic digestion (AD) treatment to aquatic plants, the simultaneous achievement of high methane (CH) recovery per biomass volume and high biodegradability have been a challenge owing to these characteristics. Herein, we propose a novel two-stage serial wet- and solid-state AD (SS-AD) system that quickly digests the labile cytoplasm fraction in the first wet AD reactor in a short retention time while slowly digesting the lignocellulosic fraction in the later SS-AD with long retention time.

Dysregulation at multiple points of the kynurenine pathway is a ubiquitous feature of renal cancer: implications for tumour immune evasion.

Background: Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), the first step in the kynurenine pathway (KP), is upregulated in some cancers and represents an attractive therapeutic target given its role in tumour immune evasion. However, the recent failure of an IDO inhibitor in a late phase trial raises questions about this strategy.

Methods: Matched renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and normal kidney tissues were subject to proteomic profiling.

Open-shell singlet diradicaloid difluoreno[4,3-b:3',4'-d]furan and its radical cation and dianion.

Difluoreno[4,3-b:3',4'-d]furan (DFFu) was prepared via a short, scalable, multi-step synthesis, and characterized by crystallography, spectroscopic measurements, and theoretical calculations. Even though the results revealed an open-shell singlet diradical character, DFFu is stable under ambient conditions. The radical cationic and dianionic species of DFFu were also synthesized and characterized.

How waves and turbulence maintain the super-rotation of Venus' atmosphere.

Venus has a thick atmosphere that rotates 60 times as fast as the surface, a phenomenon known as super-rotation. We use data obtained from the orbiting Akatsuki spacecraft to investigate how the super-rotation is maintained in the cloud layer, where the rotation speed is highest. A thermally induced latitudinal-vertical circulation acts to homogenize the distribution of the angular momentum around the rotational axis.

Classifying Dysphagic Swallowing Sounds with Support Vector Machines.

Swallowing sounds from cervical auscultation include information related to the swallowing function. Several studies have been conducted on the screening tests of dysphagia. The literature shows a significant difference between the characteristics of swallowing sounds obtained from different subjects (e.

Stress-induced impairment in fear discrimination is causally related to increased kynurenic acid formation in the prefrontal cortex.

Rationale: Stress is related to cognitive impairments which are observed in most major brain diseases. Prior studies showed that the brain concentration of the tryptophan metabolite kynurenic acid (KYNA) is modulated by stress, and that changes in cerebral KYNA levels impact cognition. However, the link between these phenomena has not been tested directly so far.

Chemical transformations of push-pull fluorenones: push-pull dibenzodicyanofulvenes as well as fluorenone- and dibenzodicyanofulvene-tetracyanobutadiene conjugates.

Push-pull fluorenones (FOs) were synthesized by treating a benzopentalenequinone (BPO) derivative with alkynes that bear an electron-rich aniline moiety via a regioselective [4 + 2] cycloaddition (CA) followed by a [4 + 1] retrocycloaddition (RCA). The resulting FOs were readily converted into dibenzodicyanofulvenes (DBDCFs) by treatment with malononitrile in the presence of TiCl4 and pyridine. The FOs and DBDCFs exhibit intramolecular charge-transfer (ICT) that manifests in absorptions at 350-650 nm and amphoteric electrochemical behavior.

Visualization of Lipid Droplets in Living Cells and Fatty Livers of Mice Based on the Fluorescence of π-Extended Coumarin Using Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging Microscopy.

Lipid droplets (LDs) are closely related to lipid metabolism in living cells and are highly associated with diverse diseases such as fatty liver, diabetes, and cancer. Herein we describe a π-extended fluorescent coumarin (PC6S) for visualizing LDs in living cells and in the tissues of living mice using confocal fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM). PC6S showed a large positive solvatochromic shift and high fluorescence quantum yield (>0.

Induction of Autophagy and Changes in Cellular Metabolism in Glucose Starved C2C12 Myotubes.

Mouse myoblast C2C12 cells are commonly used as a model system for investigating the metabolic regulation of skeletal muscle. As it is therefore important to understand the metabolic features of C2C12 cells, we examined the effect of glucose starvation on autophagy in C2C12 myotubes. After culture of C2C12 myotubes with high (HG, 25.

The Association with Dietary Patterns and Risk of Anemia in Japanese Elderly.

Anemia is a risk factor for frailty. Although various factors can reduce the risk of anemia, information on dietary contributions is limited. This study aimed to evaluate the association between anemia and eating patterns in Japanese elderly.

Description and molecular characteristics of Morishitium polonicum malayense Urabe, Nor Hashim & Uni, n. subsp. (Trematoda: Cyclocoelidae) from the Asian glossy starling, Aplonis panayensis strigata (Passeriformes: Sturnidae) in Peninsular Malaysia.

We describe Morishitium polonicum malayense n. subsp. from Asian glossy starlings (Aplonis panayensis strigata) (Horsfield, 1821) (Passeriformis: Sturnidae) caught in Malaysia.

Retinopathy Analysis Based on Deep Convolution Neural Network.

At medical checkups or mass screenings, the fundus examination is effective for early detection of systemic hypertension, arteriosclerosis, diabetic retinopathy, etc. In most cases, ophthalmologists and physicians grade retinal images by the condition of the blood vessels, lesions. However, human observation does not provide quantitative results, thus blood vessel analysis is an important process in determining hypertension and arteriosclerosis, quantitatively.