Library

Notes: The spectral and the time dependent piezoelectric photoacoustic (PPA) measurements under the continuous light illumination were carried out at 85 K to investigate nonradiative recombination processes involving EL2 defect levels in carbon concentration controlled and not intentionally doped semi-insulating (SI) GaAs. The decrease of the PPA signal due to the photoquenching effect of EL2 is observed for a short period of illumination in the photon energy region from 1.0 to 1.3 eV. Since almost all of the carbon acceptors are compensated by deep donor EL2 in SI GaAs, electron occupancy of EL2 level can be controlled by changing the carbon acceptor concentration. It is found that the photoquenching becomes drastic with increasing the carbon concentration. After fully photoquenching, the PPA signal increases again through a local minimum by the continuous light illumination and finally exceeds the initial value before illumination until the saturation level is reached. The deep donor level EL6 and its metastable state are proposed. EL6 level donates electrons to compensate a part of carbon acceptors after EL20 to EL2* transition is accomplished. The nonradiative recombination through this level generates the PPA signal. Since the PPA measurement can detect lower concentration of EL6 than that of EL2, the higher sensitivity of the PPA measurements than the optical absorption measurements is pointed out. The usefulness of the PPA technique for studying the nonradiative transition through deep levels in semiconductors is also suggested. © 1997 American Institute of Physics.

Notes: We have studied the formation of a high-quality SrTiO3 (STO) film on a Si surface which is an appropriate buffer film for fabricating high-Tc superconductor devices on Si by molecular beam epitaxy. The STO films with thicknesses of 1300–6700 Å are grown on a SrO buffer layer with a thickness of 100 Å on Si(001)-2×1 in ∼10−8 Torr. The growth temperatures for the STO films and SrO layer are 500 and 400 °C, respectively. The as-grown STO films are insufficiently oxidized regarding the Ti–O bond which is confirmed by the observation of x-ray photoemission spectroscopy, although in situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction spectroscopy and ex situ x-ray diffraction (XRD) reveal a high-quality crystalline structure. The in situ postannealing for the as-grown STO films is performed at 500–900 °C for 60 min in an oxygen atmosphere of 1×10−6 Torr. The heat treatment promotes the oxidation of STO films and results in a high resistivity of 109–1011 Ω cm and a dielectric constant of 130 at 100 kHz at room temperature. The films consist of large grains with 150–200 nm diameter on the surface in the image of atomic force microscopy. The heat treatment does not prominently affect the crystallinity of STO films in the XRD patterns. © 1999 American Institute of Physics.

Notes: Polymerization of C60 clusters epitaxially grown on Si(111)-(7×7) substrates was found to be induced by electron injection from the probe tips of scanning tunneling microscopes (STM) as the sample bias was increased from +4.0 to +5.5 V, exhibiting an evolution behavior characterized by an incubation, a linear growth, and a saturation. The incubation time and the growth rate are dependent greatly on the sample site, which is explained by a model taking into account the pre-existing stress as the driving force of the polymerization and the internal stress built up as a consequence of polymerization producing a stress for backward reactions. © 2000 American Institute of Physics.

Notes: Temporal decay characteristics of dislocation-related luminescence bands (D1–D4) were explored in strain-relieved epitaxial SiGe/Si(100). Close similarity of the decay profiles was observed not only between D1 and D2 bands but also between D3 and D4 bands. The decay transients of the D1 and D2 bands at low temperatures are characterized by long decay times, τ(approximately-greater-than)200 ns, whereas the D3 and D4 bands exhibit even sharper transients with τ〈60 ns. Temperature dependence of "radiative'' lifetimes implies a free-to-bound nature of the D1 and D2 bands, while a bound-to-bound character of the luminescence origins for the D3, D4 bands. © 1996 American Institute of Physics.

Notes: : There have been no reports concerning the efficacy and safety of a 1-week quadruple therapy regimen of omeprazole, amoxycillin, roxithromycin and metronidazole for Helicobacter pylori infections and the impact of primary resistance on the eradication rate.〈section xml:id="abs1-2"〉〈title type="main"〉Methods: One hundred and sixty-nine consecutive patients with peptic ulcer disease as well as gastritis with biopsy-proven H. pylori infection were entered into an open study of omeprazole 20 mg o.m., amoxycillin 500 mg t.d.s., roxithromycin 150 mg b.d., and metronidazole 250 mg t.d.s. Helicobacter pylori status was determined by urease test, histology and culture. Susceptibility to amoxycillin, metronidazole and roxithromycin was determined by the E-test.〈section xml:id="abs1-3"〉〈title type="main"〉Results: H. pylori was eradicated in 155 out of 169 (92%; 95% CI 88–96%) by intention-to-treat analysis, and in 155 out of 163 (95%; 95% CI 92–98%) by per protocol analysis. The prevalence of primary resistance against amoxycillin, roxithromycin and metronidazole was 2 out of 166 (1%), 16 out of 166 (10%) and 27 out of 166 (16%), respectively. H. pylori was eradicated in 25 out of 27 (93%) patients with metronidazole-resistant strains compared with 130 out of 136 (96%) in patients with metronidazole-sensitive strains of H. pylori. It was eradicated in 15 out of 16 (94%) patients with roxithromycin-resistant strains while in 140 out of 147 (95%) patients with roxithromycin-sensitive strains of H. pylori, and in two out of two (100%) patients with amoxycillin-resistant stains compared with 153 out of 161 (95%) in patients with amoxycillin-sensitive strains. H. pylori was eradicated in three out of four (75%) patients with double resistance against metronidazole and roxithromycin compared with 152 out of 159 (96%) patients with sensitive strains to metronidazole and or roxithromycin. None of these differences were statistically significant. Severe side-effects were found in only one out of 169 patients—anaphylaxis due to penicillin.〈section xml:id="abs1-4"〉〈title type="main"〉Conclusions: The 1-week quadruple therapy with omeprazole, amoxycillin, metronidazole and roxithromycin was found to eradicate H. pylori in over 90% of all patients. This regimen was also found to be beneficial for patients with pre-treatment resistant strains to metronidazole, roxithromycin or amoxycillin, and was observed to be safe and well-tolerated.

Notes: Background:  Using the sera from buckwheat (BW)-allergic patients, several putative causative molecules were reported. However, few molecules were determined on the molecular structure. We demonstrated in 2000 that the major allergen with 24 kDa (BW24KD) is a legumin-like storage protein.Objective:  The aim of this study was to isolate and characterize further a major allergen with 10 kDa by molecular cloning.Methods and results:  Buckwheat allergens were identified by immunoblotting analysis using sera from 14 allergic and two nonallergic individuals. We identified a protein with 10 kDa (BW10KD) that reacted with immunoglobulin E (IgE) more strongly than with IgG and IgA in 57% of the allergic patients but not with IgE in nonallergic individuals. Analyses were performed by N-terminal amino acid sequencing and molecular cloning. Physiological significance was assessed by an immunoblotting experiment showing that the reactivity of an allergic patient's serum IgE to BW10KD was competitively inhibited by natural BW extracts.Conclusion:  Molecular cloning experiments indicated that BW10KD as a BW allergen was a member of the 2S-albumin multigene family.

Notes: We have examined alterations in the hypothalamo-pituitary GH-somatic growth axis and the hypothalamo-pituitary LH-ovarian axis in a line of transgenic ICR mice expressing human GH (hGH) under the influence of the whey acid protein promoter. Transgenic female mice weighed twice as much as control females and were infertile. The size of the anterior pituitary (AP) was that of the controls. In transgenic mice, acinar cells in the mammary and mandibular glands displayed hGH-immunoreactivity, and plasma hGH was detected by radioimmunoassay. In the medial basal hypothalamus (MBH) of transgenic females, the immunoreactive-GHRH level was decreased (P〈0.01). There was a corresponding reduction in the number of GHRH-immunoreactive neurons in the arcuate nucleus (ARC) and in the immunostaining of GHRH nerve terminals in the median eminence. The level of somatostatin (SRIH) in the MBH was increased (P〈0.05), and SRIH-immunoreactive neurons in the periventricular nucleus (PeV) were increased in size and number in transgenic mice. The MBH level of LHRH in transgenic animals was greater (P〈0.01) than in controls, although there was no apparent difference in the number of LHRH-immunoreactive neurons or in LHRH level in the preoptic area. There are fewer SRIH- and LHRH-immunoreactive neurons in the ARC in transgenic mice. Cells in the AP for GH, PRL, and LH were fewer in transgenic mice. The ovary suffered disturbance of follicular development and of corpora lutea formation.

Notes: Melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH) has been reported to be involved in the regulation of feeding behaviour in rats and mice. Because many neuropeptides that influence ingestive behaviour also regulate reproductive function, the present study was designed to determine if central administration of MCH changes pulsatile secretion of luteinizing hormone (LH) in the rats. Wistar-Imamichi strain female rats were ovariectomized and implanted with oestradiol to produce a moderate inhibitory feedback effect on LH release. The effects of i.c.v. injections of MCH on LH release were examined in freely moving animals. Blood samples were collected every 6 min for 3 h through an indwelling cannula. After 1 h of sampling, MCH (0.1, 1 or 10 μg/animal) or vehicle (saline) was injected into the third cerebroventricle. Because MCH is also reported to affect the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which in turn, can influence reproductive function, plasma corticosterone concentrations were determined in the same animals at 30-min intervals during the first and last hours and every 12 min during the second hour of the 3-h sampling period. When expressed as per cent changes, mean plasma LH concentrations after MCH administration were significantly lower in the animals injected with all doses of the peptide compared with vehicle-treated animals; LH pulse frequency was significantly lowered by 1 μg of MCH. Per cent changes in mean plasma corticosterone levels were not significantly affected by MCH administration. These results in oestradiol-treated ovariectomized rats indicate that central MCH is capable of inhibiting pulsatile LH secretion. We have previously shown that 48-h fasting suppresses pulsatile LH release in the presence of oestrogen. Take together, these results raise the possibility that MCH could play a role in mediating the suppression of LH secretion during periods of reduced nutrition.