The removal of nitrogen from coal tar pitch (CTP) through the hydrodenitrogenation (HDN) of CTP and its molecular behavior were evaluated in the presence of NiMo/γ-alumina and CoMo/γ-alumina ...catalysts. Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry with atmospheric pressure photoionization was used to analyze the complicated chemical classes and species of CTP and the treated products at the molecular level. Nitrogen species were qualitatively analyzed before and after hydrotreatment. A single-stage hydrotreatment with an HDN catalyst resulted in a high sulfur removal performance (85.6-94.7%) but a low nitrogen removal performance (26.8-29.2%). Based on relative abundance analyses of nitrogen and binary nitrogen species, C
H
-N
S
was the most challenging species to remove during HDN treatment. Furthermore, prior hydrodesulfurization was combined with HDN treatment, and the dual hydrotreatments yielded a significantly improved nitrogen removal performance (46.4-48.7%).
For the demonstration of remote‐controllable actuators, a dendronized polymer (denpol) is newly designed and successfully synthesized by ring‐opening metathesis polymerization of azobenzene‐based ...macromonomers. The incorporation of azobenzene mesogens into the denpols helps to construct finely tuned hierarchical superstructures with anisotropic physical properties and reversible photoisomerization. The polynorbornene backbones and azobenzene side chains in the uniaxially oriented films are aligned perpendicularly and parallel to the layer normal, respectively. Based on photoreversible actuation experiments combined with diffraction results, direct relationships between the chemical structures, hierarchical superstructures, and their corresponding photomechanical behaviors are proposed. Smart denpols possess great potential for practical applications in photoresponsive switches.
To demonstrate remote‐controllable actuators, a polynorbornene with dendronized azobenzene chromophores is synthesized by ring‐opening metathesis polymerization.
We fabricated nitrate-selective composite carbon electrodes (NSCCEs) for use in capacitive deionization to remove nitrate ions selectively from a solution containing a mixture of anions. The NSCCE ...was fabricated by coating the surface of a carbon electrode with the anion exchange resin, BHP55, after grinding the resin into fine powder. BHP55 is known to be selective for nitrate ions. We performed desalination experiments on a solution containing 5.0 mM NaCl and 2.0 mM NaNO3 using the NSCCE system constructed with the fabricated electrode. The selective removal of nitrate in the NSCCE system was compared to a membrane capacitive deionization (MCDI) system constructed with ion exchange membranes and carbon electrodes. The total quantity of chloride and nitrate ions adsorbed onto the unit area of the electrode in the MCDI system was 25 mmol/m2 at a cell potential of 1.0 V. The adsorption of nitrate ions was 8.3 mmol/m2, accounting for 33% of the total. In contrast, the total anion adsorption in the NSCCE system was 34 mmol/m2, 36% greater than the total anion adsorption of the MCDI system. The adsorption of nitrate ions was 19 mmol/m2, 2.3-times greater than the adsorption in the MCDI system. These results showed that the ions were initially adsorbed by an electrostatic force, and the ion exchange reactions then occurred between the resin powder in the coated layer and the solution containing mixed anions.
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► A novel nitrate-selective composite carbon electrode (NSCCE) was fabricated. ► Nitrate-selective anion-exchange resin powders was coated in the NSCCE. ► The total adsorption in the NSCCE was 35% greater than that of MCDI system. ► The amount of adsorbed nitrate ions was 2.3-times greater than that of MCDI system. ► Mole fraction of nitrate was 57% of the total in NSCCE-system, while being 33% in MCDI system.
ARPC2 is a subunit of the Arp2/3 complex, which is essential for lamellipodia, invadopodia and filopodia, and ARPC2 has been identified as a migrastatic target molecule. To identify ARPC2 inhibitors, ...we generated an ARPC2 knockout DLD‐1 human colon cancer cell line using the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats/CRISPR‐associated protein 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) system and explored gene signature‐based strategies, such as a connectivity map (CMap) using the gene expression profiling data of ARPC2 knockout and knockdown cells. From the CMap‐based drug discovery strategy, we identified pimozide (a clinically used antipsychotic drug) as a migrastatic drug and ARPC2 inhibitor. Pimozide inhibited the migration and invasion of various cancer cells. Through drug affinity responsive target stability (DARTS) analysis and cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA), it was confirmed that pimozide directly binds to ARPC2. Pimozide increased the lag phase of Arp2/3 complex‐dependent actin polymerization and inhibited the vinculin‐mediated recruitment of ARPC2 to focal adhesions in cancer cells. To validate the likely binding of pimozide to ARPC2, mutant cells, including ARPC2F225A, ARPC2F247A and ARPC2Y250F cells, were prepared using ARPC2 knockout cells prepared by gene‐editing technology. Pimozide strongly inhibited the migration of mutant cells because the mutated ARPC2 likely has a larger binding pocket than the wild‐type ARPC2. Therefore, pimozide is a potential ARPC2 inhibitor, and ARPC2 is a new molecular target. Taken together, the results of the present study provide new insights into the molecular mechanism and target that are responsible for the antitumor and antimetastatic activity of pimozide.
Pimozide is identified as a migrastatic drug and ARPC2 inhibitor from connectivity map‐based drug discovery strategy. Pimozide inhibits migration and invasion in various cancer cell lines, and suppresses metastasis in an in vivo antimetastatic assay. Through drug affinity responsive target stability (DARTS) analysis and cellular thermal shift assay (CETSA), it was confirmed that pimozide directly binds to ARPC2.
Abstract Objectives The aim of the present study was to measure the polymerization shrinkage, modulus, and shrinkage stress of bulk-fill and conventional composites during polymerization and to ...investigate the relationship between tooth-composite interfacial debonding and shrinkage stress of the composites. Methods Polymerization shrinkage, dynamic modulus, and shrinkage stress of two high-viscosity bulk-fill (SonicFill (SF)/Tetric N-Ceram Bulk-Fill (TNB)) and two low-viscosity bulk-fill composites (Filtek Bulk-Fill (FB)/SureFil SDR Flow (SDR)) as well as one high-viscosity conventional (Filtek Z250 (Z250)) and one low-viscosity conventional composite (Filtek Z350 XT Flowable (Z350F)) were measured using custom-made instruments. Acoustic emission (AE) analysis was performed to evaluate the tooth-composite interfacial debonding during polymerization of the composites in Class 1 cavities on extracted third molars. Results The low-viscosity composites exhibited higher shrinkage and lower modulus than the high-viscosity composites. Polymerization shrinkage at 10 min ranged between 2.05% (SF) and 3.53% (Z350F). Polymerization shrinkage stress values at 10 min ranged between 1.68 MPa (SDR) and 3.51 MPa (Z350F). The number of AE events was highest in Z350F and lowest in SDR. Conclusions Composites that exhibited greater polymerization shrinkage stress generated more tooth-composite interfacial debonding. In contrast to similar outcomes among the high-viscosity composites (conventional: Z250, bulk-fill: TNB and SF), the low-viscosity bulk-fill composites (FB and SDR) demonstrated better results in terms of polymerization shrinkage stress and tooth-composite interfacial debonding than did the low-viscosity conventional composite (Z350F). Clinical significance Despite the better performance by some of the bulk-fill composites, clinicians should be aware that the bulk-fill composites are not perfect substitutes for conventional composites.
This paper comprehensively reviews sensors and sensing devices developed or/and proposed so far utilizing two smart materials: electrorheological fluids (ERFs) and magnetorheological materials (MRMs) ...whose rheological characteristics such as stiffness and damping can be controlled by external stimuli; an electrical voltage for ERFs and a magnetic field for MRMs, respectively. In this review article, the MRMs are classified into magnetorheological fluids (MRF), magnetorheological elastomers (MRE) and magnetorheological plastomers (MRP). To easily understand the history of sensing research using these two smart materials, the order of this review article is organized in a chronological manner of ERF sensors, MRF sensors, MRE sensors and MRP sensors. Among many sensors fabricated from each smart material, one or two sensors or sensing devices are adopted to discuss the sensing configuration, working principle and specifications such as accuracy and sensitivity. Some sensors adopted in this article include force sensors, tactile devices, strain sensors, wearable bending sensors, magnetometers, display devices and flux measurement sensors. After briefly describing what has been reviewed in a conclusion, several challenging future works, which should be undertaken for the practical applications of sensors or/and sensing devices, are discussed in terms of response time and new technologies integrating with artificial intelligence neural networks in which several parameters affecting the sensor signals can be precisely and optimally tuned. It is sure that this review article is very helpful to potential readers who are interested in creative sensors using not only the proposed smart materials but also different types of smart materials such as shape memory alloys and active polymers.
The development of smart inks that change color and transparency in response to external stimuli is very important for various fields, from modern art to safety and anticounterfeiting technology. A ...uniaxially oriented diacetylene thin film on a macroscopic area is obtained by coating, self‐assembling and topochemical photopolymerizing of imidazolium‐functionalized diacetylenes (M‐DA and T‐DA) and 4,6‐decadiyne ink (70 wt%:20 wt%:10 wt%) exhibiting a lyotropic smectic A liquid‐crystalline phase at room temperature. The color and transparency of letters and symbols written with the DA‐based secret inks change reversibly from blue to red as well as from colorless transparent to black opaque depending on the temperature and polarization axis. A secret code written with thermoresponsive and polarization‐dependent secret inks consisting of imidazolium‐functionalized diacetylenes is successfully deciphered by wearing polaroid glasses and holding a burning torch.
Information is encrypted into a secret code with imidazolium‐functionalized diacetylene secret inks that respond to heat as well as polarization. The secret code can be deciphered by wearing polaroid glasses and holding a burning torch.
To elucidate the effects of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC), we conduct whole transcriptome profiling coupled with histopathology analyses of a longitudinal breast cancer cohort of 146 patients ...including 110 pairs of serial tumor biopsies collected before treatment, after the first cycle of treatment and at the time of surgery. Here, we show that cytotoxic chemotherapies induce dynamic changes in the tumor immune microenvironment that vary by subtype and pathologic response. Just one cycle of treatment induces an immune stimulatory microenvironment harboring more tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and up-regulation of inflammatory signatures predictive of response to anti-PD1 therapies while residual tumors are immune suppressed at end-of-treatment compared to the baseline. Increases in TILs and CD8+ T cell proportions in response to NAC are independently associated with pathologic complete response. Further, on-treatment immune response is more predictive of treatment outcome than immune features in paired baseline samples although these are strongly correlated.
This paper proposes a new type of tactile transfer cell which can be effectively applied to robot-assisted minimally invasive surgery (RMIS). The proposed tactile device is manufactured from two ...smart materials, a magnetorheological fluid (MRF) and a magnetorheological elastomer (MRE), whose viscoelastic properties are controllable by an external magnetic field. Thus, it can produce field-dependent repulsive forces which are equivalent to several human organs (or tissues) such as a heart. As a first step, an appropriate tactile sample is made using both MRF and MRE associated with porous foam. Then, the microstructures of these materials taken from Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) images are presented, showing the particle distribution with and without the magnetic field. Subsequently, the field-dependent repulsive force of the sample, which is equivalent to the stress relaxation property of viscoelastic materials, are measured at several compressive deformation depths. Then, the measured values are compared with the calculated values obtained from Young's modulus of human tissue data via the finite element method. It is identified from this comparison that the proposed tactile transfer cell can mimic the repulsive force (or hardness) of several human organs. This directly indicates that the proposed MR materials-based tactile transfer cell (MRTTC in short) can be effectively applied to RMIS in which the surgeon can feel the strength or softness of the human organ by just changing the magnetic field intensity. In this work, to reflect a more practical feasibility, a psychophysical test is also carried out using 20 volunteers, and the results are analyzed, presenting the standard deviation.
Despite the integral role of cephalometric analysis in orthodontics, there have been limitations regarding the reliability, accuracy, etc. of cephalometric landmarks tracing. Attempts on developing ...automatic plotting systems have continuously been made but they are insufficient for clinical applications due to low reliability of specific landmarks. In this study, we aimed to develop a novel framework for locating cephalometric landmarks with confidence regions using Bayesian Convolutional Neural Networks (BCNN).
We have trained our model with the dataset from the ISBI 2015 grand challenge in dental X-ray image analysis. The overall algorithm consisted of a region of interest (ROI) extraction of landmarks and landmarks estimation considering uncertainty. Prediction data produced from the Bayesian model has been dealt with post-processing methods with respect to pixel probabilities and uncertainties.
Our framework showed a mean landmark error (LE) of 1.53 ± 1.74 mm and achieved a successful detection rate (SDR) of 82.11, 92.28 and 95.95%, respectively, in the 2, 3, and 4 mm range. Especially, the most erroneous point in preceding studies, Gonion, reduced nearly halves of its error compared to the others. Additionally, our results demonstrated significantly higher performance in identifying anatomical abnormalities. By providing confidence regions (95%) that consider uncertainty, our framework can provide clinical convenience and contribute to making better decisions.
Our framework provides cephalometric landmarks and their confidence regions, which could be used as a computer-aided diagnosis tool and education.
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