Evidence that far-infrared radiation promotes growth of Xenopus laevis.

In most ectotherms, environmental temperature has differential effects on growth and differentiation. For example, amphibian size at maturity decreases with increasing temperature. To address how radiant heat in the form of far-infrared radiation (FIR) may affect development of the aquatic ectotherm Xenopus laevis, we continuously irradiated swimming larvae as they developed into young adults. Here we report evidence that FIR promotes growth of these organisms in an aqueous environment.     

Cellular and molecular alterations in human epithelial cells transformed by high LET radiation.

An understanding of the radiobiological effects of high LET radiation is essential for human risk estimation and radiation protection. In the present study, we show that a single, 30 cGy dose of 150 keV/micrometer 4He ions can malignantly transform human papillomavirus immortalized human bronchial epithelial [BEP2D] cells. Transformed cells produce progressively growing tumors in nude mice. The transformation frequency by the single dose of alpha particles is estimated to be approximately 4 X 10(-7). Based on the average cross-sectional area of BEP2D cells, it can be calculated that a mean traversal of 1.4 particles per cell is sufficient to induce tumorigenic conversion of these cells 3 to 4 months post-irradiation. Tumorigenic BEP2D cells overexpress mutated p53 tumor suppressor oncoproteins in addition to the cell cycle control gene cyclin D1 and D2. This model provides an opportunity to study the cellular and molecular changes at the various stages in radiation carcinogenesis involving human cells.     

Propagation results of aeronautical satellite communicationexperiments using INMARSAT satellite

Aeronautical satellite communication experiments were conducted using a top-mounted high-gain antenna of the phased-array type. Slow fading of 3 to 4 dB in the L-band channel was observed when the wing direction coincides with the satellite direction, in contrast with the small fading observed in the cases where the aircraft wing is out of the beam pointing to the satellite     

Correlation between cell death and induction of non-rejoining PCC breaks by carbon-ion beams.

We have shown a correlation between cell death and induction of non-rejoining chromatin breaks in two normal human cells and three human tumor cell lines irradiated by carbon-ion beams and X rays. Non-rejoining chromatin breaks were measured by counting the number of remaining chromatin fragments detected by the premature chromosome condensation (PCC) technique. Carbon-ion beams were accelerated by the Heavy Ion Medical Accelerator in Chiba (HIMAC). The cells were irradiated by two different mono-LET beams (LET = 13 keV/micrometer and 77 keV/micrometer ) and 200 kV X rays. The RBE values of cell death for carbon-ion beams relative to X rays were 1.1 to 1.4 for 13 keV/micrometer beams and 2.5 to 2.9 for 77 keV/micrometer beams. The induction rate of non-rejoining PCC breaks per cell per Gy was found to be highest for the 77 keV/micrometer beams for all of the cell lines.The results found in this study show that there is a good correlation between cell death and induction of non-rejoining PCC breaks for these human cell lines.     

Improvements in and actual performance of the Plant Experiment Unit onboard Kibo,the Japanese experiment module on the international space station

In 2004, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency developed the engineered model of the Plant Experiment Unit and the Cell Biology Experiment Facility. The Plant Experiment Unit was designed to be installed in the Cell Biology Experiment Facility and to support the seed-to-seed life cycle experiment of Arabidopsis plants in space in the project named Space Seed. Ground-based experiments to test the Plant Experiment Unit showed that the unit needed further improvement of a system to control the water content of a seedbed using an infrared moisture analyzer and that it was difficult to keep the relative humidity inside the Plant Experiment Unit between 70 and 80% because the Cell Biology Experiment Facility had neither a ventilation system nor a dehumidifying system. Therefore, excess moisture inside the Cell Biology Experiment Facility was removed with desiccant bags containing calcium chloride. Eight flight models of the Plant Experiment Unit in which dry Arabidopsis seeds were fixed to the seedbed with gum arabic were launched to the International Space Station in the space shuttle STS-128 (17A) on August 28, 2009. Plant Experiment Unit were installed in the Cell Biology Experiment Facility with desiccant boxes, and then the Space Seed experiment was started in the Japanese Experiment Module, named Kibo, which was part of the International Space Station, on September 10, 2009 by watering the seedbed and terminated 2 months later on November 11, 2009. On April 19, 2010, the Arabidopsis plants harvested in Kibo were retrieved and brought back to Earth by the space shuttle mission STS-131 (19A). The present paper describes the Space Seed experiment with particular reference to the development of the Plant Experiment Unit and its actual performance in Kibo onboard the International Space Station. Downlinked images from Kibo showed that the seeds had started germinating 3 days after the initial watering. The plants continued growing, producing rosette leaves, inflorescence stems, flowers, and fruits in the Plant Experiment Unit. In addition, the senescence of rosette leaves was found to be delayed in microgravity.     

Evaluation on novel architecture for harmonizing manual and automatic flight controls under atmospheric turbulence

Pilot uncertainty in aircraft response under automatic flight control has triggered aircraft accidents/incidents in the past. This uncertainty compels a pilot to disengage autopilot and switch to manual control. However, the decision to disengage autopilot and when to do it can be difficult: especially if there is not enough time to monitor the cockpit displays, for instance while countering atmospheric turbulence. Against this background, we proposed the “human as a control module” architecture for harmonizing pilot and autopilot controls. The architecture blends pilot maneuver with autopilot control instead of switching between them when simultaneous inputs are given to the aircraft. By automatically adjusting pilot and autopilot control inputs, the architecture avoids overlaps of both control authorities and helps to circumvent the effect of conflicting actions. This paper applies the architecture to the situations of past aircraft incidents which had been caused by the transfer from autopilot control to pilot maneuver after encountering atmospheric turbulence. The effectiveness of the architecture is evaluated via simulation study for the specific incident examples. Furthermore, this paper extends the architecture with an Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) based observer and evaluates its robustness under errors in wind estimation.     

Changes of endolymphatic pressure in the semicircular canal of pigeon by caloric stimulation.

It gets into difficult to explain the mechanism of caloric nystagmus only by convection theory from results of microgravity experiments. One of the other theories is an occurrence of a relative volume change due to a temperature change. Since the volume change must lead to a pressure change after caloric stimulation, we tried to measure the ampulla pressure of the horizontal semicircular canal in pigeons (Columba livia) using an improved servo micropipette system. The main result was that the ampulla pressure increased by cooling and decreased by heating. The changes of the ampulla pressure depended on the temperature change but were not influenced by the pigeon's head position.     

Changes in mood status and neurotic levels during a 20-day bed rest

This study evaluated changes of mood status and depressive and neurotic levels in nine young male subjects during a 20-day 6 degrees head-down tilting bed rest and examined whether exercise training modified these changes. Participants were asked to complete psychometrical inventories on before, during, and after the bed rest experiment. Depressive and neurotic levels were enhanced during bed rest period according to the Japanese version of Zung's Self-rating Depression Scale and the Japanese version of the General Health Questionnaire. Mood state "vigor" was impaired and "confusion" was increased during bed rest and recumbent control periods compared to pre-bed rest and ambulatory control periods according to the Japanese version of Profiles of Mood State, whereas the mood "tension-anxiety", "depression-dejection", "anger-hostility" and "fatigue" were relatively stable during experiment. Isometric exercise training did not modify these results. Microgravity, along with confinement to bed and isolation from familiar environments, induced impairment of mental status.