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Analysis of the suprahyoid muscles during tongue elevation: High-density surface electromyography as a novel tool for swallowing-related muscle assessment
No full textBackground
High-density surface electromyography (HD-sEMG) has enabled non-invasive analysis of motor unit (MU) activity and recruitment, but its application to swallowing-related muscles is limited.
Objective
We aimed to investigate the utility of HD-sEMG for quantitatively evaluating the MU recruitment characteristics of the suprahyoid muscles during tongue elevation.
Methods
We measured the sEMG activity of the suprahyoid muscles of healthy participants during tongue elevation using HD-sEMG. Maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) was measured, followed by data collection during sustained and ramp-up tasks to capture suprahyoid muscle activity. Changes in the temporal/spatial MU recruitment patterns within individual suprahyoid muscles were analysed.
Results
This study enrolled 16 healthy young adults (mean age: 27.8 ± 5.3 years; eight males and eight females). Increasing muscle force corresponded to a decrease in modified entropy and correlation coefficient and an increase in the coefficient of variation. No significant differences were observed between male and female participants.
Conclusion
The results of this study, consistent with those observed in other muscles, such as the vastus lateralis muscle, suggest that HD-sEMG is a valuable and reliable tool for quantitatively evaluating MU recruitment in the suprahyoid muscles. This measurement technique holds promise for novel assessments of swallowing function.This research was funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (21K17512), Tsuchiya Memorial Medical Foundation, Japanese Society of Dysphagia Rehabilitation, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Welfare Foundation, Casio Science Promotion Foundation, and Daiwa Securities Foundation
Structural complexity of the white flower locus in Chrysanthemum
No full textThe white flower trait in Chrysanthemum is attributed to the carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase 4a gene (CCD4a), a key domestication gene that contributed to generation of various flower colours in modern chrysanthemum cultivars. This trait is believed to be controlled by a single dominant locus. We studied the structure of this CCD4a locus utilising the whole genome sequence information of Chrysanthemum makinoi, a diploid white flower species, and found six homologous sequences of CCD4a, two of which being functional, and arranged in tandem in a 586-kb region on Chromosome 7. A qPCR analysis disclosed that white flower Chrysanthemum species possess at least two and as many as eight copies of CCD4a homologous sequences per monoploid genome, indicating high polymorphism of the CCD4a region. A detailed analysis of the structural diversity of the CCD4a region in Chrysanthemum could provide significant insights into the domestication trajectory of the cultivated chrysanthemum.This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI under Grants [26292014] to M.S and [24H00513] to M.K, and TKI-T&U project [LWV22014] to P.A
Toxic heavy metals in a landfill environment (Vientiane, Laos): Fish species and associated health risk assessment
No full textLeachates from municipal landfills introduce toxic heavy metals into water, causing bioaccumulation. This study assesses metal levels and potential human health risks associated with consuming Anabas testudineus and Channa striata. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry detected Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, and Zn in both fish species. Leachate metal concentrations meet international discharge standards, Cd, Cr, and Pb in the fish exceed the international accepted values. Gastrointestinal tract+liver samples show significant variation between species, particularly in Cd and Pb. EDI, THQ/HI, and TR for the both species fall below TDIs, lower than the limit of 1, and within the acceptable range of the US-EPA permissible limit, respectively. Fish consumption appears safe regarding carcinogenic risk, but exceeding metal limits could impact heavy metals accumulation in the local food chain. Raising public awareness is crucial, and governmental agencies and environmental organizations should enhance waste treatment technologies and enact relevant health legislation
宮内庁書陵部蔵御所本『とはずがたり』における漢語の表記一覧
No full text本データは、鎌倉時代後期成立したとされる『とはずがたり』中の漢語及び混種語の一覧である。江戸時代初期に書写された現存する唯一の写本である、宮内庁書陵部蔵本『とはずがたり』における漢語の表記を、字数別にできるだけ忠実に再現した。漢字音を一部含む混種語についても、その表記を掲出し、すべての語の所在を一覧にした。なお、初版からの変更点を凡例(15)に記載する。This list is "Kango" in 'Towazugatari,' the only existing manuscript, has been reproduced as accurately as possible based on the number of letters. The expressions of the mixed language of Kango and Wago, which partially include Kanji sounds, have been posted. Additionally, the whereabouts of each word is provided.Changes from the first edition are listed in Legend 15
Effects of autonomous driving on residential location choice behavior: A travel-based multitasking perspective
No full textFully autonomous vehicles (AVs) allow users to engage in multitasking behavior while traveling, potentially inducing longer travel because multitasking in AVs would generate a positive utility. Eventually, this may further induce residential relocation, as positive utility virtually reduces the value of time. Such influence may vary depending on whether the AV is used individually or with others (i.e., ride-sharing), as well as the type and amount of multitasking activities carried out in the vehicle. This study examines the influence of the type of AV (ride-sharing or individually used) and the type and amount of in-vehicle multitasking activities on residential location choice behavior through a pivoted stated preference survey. Residential location choice behavior is represented by a panel binary mixed logit model. The model estimation results indicate that the willingness to pay for monthly rent to shorten commuting time is significantly lower when individually used AVs are introduced, compared to non-AVs (i.e., existing automobiles) and ride-shared AVs. Hence, further urban sprawl could occur if individually used AVs become prevalent. Such negative impacts on urban form, however, would be substantially small when AV is introduced under the ride-sharing scheme. It was also found that individuals who can engage in more multitasking behavior in an AV will accept longer travel regardless of the type of AV (ride-sharing or individually used), while individuals who can hardly perform in-car activities tend to resist additional commuting travel time. Moreover, the impact of automated driving at the city scale was examined by running simulations of residential choice in Hiroshima City as a case study. The results suggest that multitasking behaviors in AVs would have modest impacts on urban structure.The authors would like to acknowledge that part of this research was conducted under the research project “Measuring Value of Mobility in the Age of Quality Transport” supported by the Committee on Advanced Road Technology, under the authority of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism in Japan
Gas-Permeable Carbon Molecular Sieve Membranes Fabricated from a Norbornene-Functionalized Polyimide–Polyhedral Oligomeric Silsesquioxane Composite
No full textPolyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes (POSSs) are a promising family of regularly structured silsesquioxanes with resilient cage-like configurations and exterior edges that can be functionalized with various organic groups. In this study, POSS was functionalized with a polyimide–phenylene (PI–Ph) unit, which yielded POSS–PI–Ph to fabricate carbonized-POSS membranes (denoted as carbon-POSS) via inert pyrolysis. Replacing some PI–Ph units with norbornene (NB) increased the amount of residual carbon formed in the carbon-POSS structure. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and 29Si nuclear magnetic resonance analysis revealed that residual sp2-hybridized carbon atoms were connected to the POSS cage after pyrolysis at 700 °C. Analysis of single-gas permeation at 200 °C with the carbon-POSS membranes pyrolyzed at different temperatures (200–800 °C) indicated that the permeance of all investigated gases (He, H2, CO2, N2, CH4, CF4, and SF6) increased with increasing membrane pyrolysis temperature. Notably, the early onset of the decline in permeance of large-molecule gases such as CF4 and SF6 at 600 °C ensured a high N2 permeance and ideal N2/SF6 selectivity of 10–6 mol m–2 s–1 Pa–1 and 100, respectively. Overall, this study demonstrates the feasibility of preparing high-performance carbon-POSS-derived membranes by optimizing the NB functionality and the POSS content of the hybrid copolymer precursor
Rational design of defect-free carbon-silica-zirconia ceramic membrane derived from crosslinked organic structure for highly efficient gas separation
No full textCarbon-SiO2-ZrO2 ceramic membranes, fabricated via in-situ carbon deposition through the calcination of organic chelating ligands (OCLs), hold great promise for use in energy-efficient gas separation process. However, fabricating a defect-free membrane poses a significant challenge. In this study, we propose a facile one-pot sol-gel combining aldimine condensation strategy to design homogeneous carbon-SiO2-ZrO2 ceramic membranes using 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilyl (APTES), zirconium (IV) tert-butoxide (ZrTB), and glyoxylic acid (GA) as precursors. The aldehyde-amine condensation between APTES and GA resulted in a crosslinked organic structure, enhancing the porosity of the membrane. The increased rigidity and orderliness reduced the migration of crosslinked organic components at elevated temperatures, leading to a uniform distribution of free carbon derived from pyrolysis. This method effectively suppresses the defect formation, thereby significantly improving the stability and separation performance of the obtained membranes. Owing to the high pore volume and uniform pore size distribution, APTES-ZrTB-GA calcined at 550 °C demonstrated a remarkable H2 permeance of 4.1 × 10−7 mol m−2 s−1 Pa−1, together with outstanding H2/CO2, H2/N2 and H2/CH4 selectivities of 13, 100 and 120, respectively. This study is expected to provide guidance for the design of defect-free carbon-SiO2-ZrO2 ceramic membranes toward more challenging separation processes.Xinpu Niu sincerely acknowledges the financial support from the China Scholarship Council (CSC, No. 202307040023)
MmNi5-based hydrogen storage alloy as an electrocatalyst
No full textAlkaline water electrolysis was performed using Ni(OH)2/NiOOH as an anode and MmNi5-based hydrogen storage alloy as a cathode removed from NiMH batteries at 303 K and 10 mA/cm2 for 2 h. The water decomposition voltage changed from 1.36 V to 1.48 V (thermoneutral voltage: 1.48 V). The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) overpotentials of the practically used MmNi5-based alloy with low H2 dissociation pressure 0.012 MPa were small (33–75 mV) at 10 mA/cm2. The HER overpotentials were similar to those of Pt-based electrocatalysts. The low dissociation pressure of the hydride was suggested to play a key role to decrease the HER overpotentials of the alloy. The alkaline water electrolysis voltage was 1.46–1.48V and stable at 50 mA/cm2 and 353K for 24h. Then, the MmNi5-based hydrogen storage alloy was found to be a new type of HER electrocatalyst for alkaline water electrolysis
Estimation of States and Cornering Stiffness of a Vehicle by LPV-MHE
No full textIn this paper, we consider an estimation problem of sideslip angle and cornering stiffness of a vehicle from measurements of yaw rate, lateral acceleration and steering angle. Firstly, a vehicle dynamical model is expressed as a linear parameter-varying system with cornering stiffness as uncertain parameters. Then, we show a method to estimate the parameters and the state based on moving horizon estimation. We provide a simple algorithm to solve the estimation problem. The effectiveness of the estimation method is evaluated through numerical simulations