Effect of respiratory exercise on pulmonary function, balance, and gait in patients with chronic stroke.

[Purpose] This study investigated the effect of respiratory exercise on pulmonary function, balance, and gait in chronic stroke patients. [Participants and Methods] Twenty patients with chronic stroke were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups (n=10 each). The patients in both groups underwent neurodevelopmental treatment. Moreover, the experimental group performed respiratory exercise. Pulmonary function was measured using a pneumatometer. Balance was measured using a Berg Balance Scale and Functional Reach Test. Gait was measured with a 10-m walk test and Timed Up-and-Go Test. [Results] Intragroup comparison showed significant differences in forced vital capacity, forced expiratory volume in one second, Berg Balance Scale, Functional Reach Test, 10-meter walk test, and Timed Up-and-Go Test. Intergroup comparison showed that the differences in forced vital capacity, forced expiratory volume in one second, Berg Balance Scale, Functional Reach Test, 10-meter walk test, and Timed Up-and-Go Test for the experimental group were significantly related to those for the control group. [Conclusion] Based on these results it was concluded that respiratory exercise effectively improves the pulmonary function, balance, and gait in patients with chronic stroke.

Organic-inorganic hybrid photocatalyst for carbon dioxide reduction.

Efficient hybrid photocatalysts for carbon dioxide reduction were developed from dye-sensitized TiO2 nanoparticles and their catalytic performance was optimized by ternary organic/inorganic components. Thus, the hybrid system consists of (E)-2-cyano-3-(5'-(5''-(p-(diphenylamino)phenyl)thiophen-2''-yl)thiophen-2'-yl)-acrylic acid as a sensitizer and fac-[Re(4,4'-bis(diethoxyphosphorylmethyl)-2,2'-bipyridine)(CO)3Cl] as a reduction catalyst (ReP), both of which have been fixed onto TiO2 semiconductors (s-TiO2, h-TiO2, d-TiO2). Mott-Schottky analysis on flat-band potential (Efb) of TiO2 mesoporous films has verified that Efb can be finely modulated by volume variation of water (0 to 20 vol%). The increase of added water resulted in substantial positive shifts of Efb from -1.93 V at 0 vol% H2O, to -1.74 V (3 vol% H2O), to -1.56 V (10 vol% H2O), and to -1.47 V (20 vol% H2O). As a result, with addition of 3-10 vol% water in the photocatalytic reaction, conversion efficiency of CO2 to CO increased significantly reaching a TON value of ∼350 for 30 h. Catalytic activity enhancement is mainly attributed to (1) the optimum alignment of Efb by 3-10 vol% water with respect to the of the dye and Ered of ReP for smooth electron transfer from photo-excited dye to RePvia the TiO2 semiconductor and (2) the water-induced acceleration of chemical processes on the fixed ReP. In addition, the energy level was further tuned by variation of the dye and ReP amounts. We also found that the intrinsic properties of TiO2 sources (morphology, size, agglomeration) exert a great influence on the overall photocatalytic activity of this hybrid system. Implications of the present observations and reaction mechanisms are discussed in detail.

Covalent Functionalization of Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes Surface via Chemical Treatment.

Due to the strong hydrophobic and van der Waals interactions between individual carbon nanotubes (CNTs), these particles easily aggregate with themselves. When CNTs were introduced into a polymer matrix as a filler, aggregations formed that can adversely affect the mechanical and thermal properties of polymer/CNTs composites. To prevent aggregation, covalent functionalizations via chemical treatments using H2SO4/HNO3, H2O2/H2O and a silane coupling agent(STX)-glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane, GPTMS) on the CNTs were chosen in this study. Moreover, the effect of the functional groups on the solubility of CNTs in tetrahydrofuran (THF) was investigated. The surface-modified multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were also characterized and compared with pristine MWCNTs using several techniques. Morphology changes in surfacemodified MWCNTs were observed by Raman spectroscopy and Field-Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM) images. Qualitative analyses of the functional groups on the surface-modified MWCNTs were performed by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR). Additionally, quantitative analyses were performed by X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), a titration method and Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).

Widely Controllable Syngas Production by a Dye-Sensitized TiO2 Hybrid System with ReI and CoIII Catalysts under Visible-Light Irradiation.

Visible-light irradiation of a ternary hybrid catalyst prepared by grafting a dye, an H2 evolving CoIII catalyst and a CO-producing ReI catalyst on TiO2 have been found to produce both H2 and CO (syngas) in CO2 -saturated N,N-dimethyl formamide (DMF)/water solution containing a 0.1 m sacrificial electron donor. The H2 /CO ratios are effectively controlled by changing either the water content of the solvent or the molar ratio of the ReI and CoIII catalysts ranging from 1:2 to 15:1. The controlled syngas formation is discussed in terms of competitive electron flow from TiO2 to each of the CO2 -reduction and hydrogen-evolving sites depending on the efficiencies of the two catalytic reaction cycles under given reaction conditions.

Reproductive ability of a cloned male detector dog and behavioral traits of its offspring.

In 2007, seven detector dogs were produced by somatic cell nuclear transfer using one nuclear donor dog, then trained and certified as excellent detector dogs, similar to their donor. In 2011, we crossed a cloned male and normal female by natural breeding and produced ten offspring. In this study, we investigated the puppies' temperaments, which we later compared with those of the cloned parent male. The results show that the cloned male had normal reproductive abilities and produced healthy offspring. All puppies completed narcotic detector dog training with a success rate for selection of 60%. Although the litter of cloned males was small in this study, a cloned male dog bred by natural mating produced puppies that later successfully completed the training course for drug detection. In conclusion, cloning an elite dog with superior genetic factors and breeding of the cloned dog was found to be a useful method to efficiently procure detector dogs.

Highly Robust Hybrid Photocatalyst for Carbon Dioxide Reduction: Tuning and Optimization of Catalytic Activities of Dye/TiO2/Re(I) Organic-Inorganic Ternary Systems.

Herein we report a detailed investigation of a highly robust hybrid system (sensitizer/TiO2/catalyst) for the visible-light reduction of CO2 to CO; the system comprises 5'-(4-[bis(4-methoxymethylphenyl)amino]phenyl-2,2'-dithiophen-5-yl)cyanoacrylic acid as the sensitizer and (4,4'-bis(methylphosphonic acid)-2,2'-bipyridine)Re(I)(CO)3Cl as the catalyst, both of which have been anchored on three different types of TiO2 particles (s-TiO2, h-TiO2, d-TiO2). It was found that remarkable enhancements in the CO2 conversion activity of the hybrid photocatalytic system can be achieved by addition of water or such other additives as Li(+), Na(+), and TEOA. The photocatalytic CO2 reduction efficiency was enhanced by approximately 300% upon addition of 3% (v/v) H2O, giving a turnover number of ≥570 for 30 h. A series of Mott-Schottky (MS) analyses on nanoparticle TiO2 films demonstrated that the flat-band potential (V(fb)) of TiO2 in dry DMF is substantially negative but positively shifts to considerable degrees in the presence of water or Li(+), indicating that the enhancement effects of the additives on the catalytic activity should mainly arise from optimal alignment of the TiO2 V(fb) with respect to the excited-state oxidation potential of the sensitizer and the reduction potential of the catalyst in our ternary system. The present results confirm that the TiO2 semiconductor in our heterogeneous hybrid system is an essential component that can effectively work as an electron reservoir and as an electron transporting mediator to play essential roles in the persistent photocatalysis activity of the hybrid system in the selective reduction of CO2 to CO.

Distribution and Size Relationships of Plastic Marine Debris on Beaches in South Korea.

The characteristics of the distribution of plastic marine debris were determined on 12 beaches in South Korea in 2013 and 2014. The abundances of large micro- (1-5 mm), meso- (5-25 mm), and macroplastics (>25 mm) were 880.4, 37.7, and 1.0 particles/m(2), respectively. Styrofoam was the most abundant debris type for large microplastics and mesoplastics (99.1 and 90.9 %, respectively). Fiber (including fabric) was the most abundant of the macroplastics (54.7 %). There were no statistical differences in the mean numbers and weights of plastic debris among three beach groups from west, south, and east coasts. No significant differences were detected between the abundances of beached plastics in high strandline and backshore for all three size groups. Spearman's rank correlation was used to determine the relationships between the three debris size classes. The abundance of large microplastics was strongly correlated with that of mesoplastics for most material types, which suggests that the contamination level of large microplastics can be estimated from that of mesoplastics. As surveying of smaller particles is more labor intensive, the surveying of mesoplastics with a 5-mm sieve is an efficient and useful way to determine "hot-spots" on beaches contaminated with large microplastics.

Intravitreal pharmacokinetics after posterior subtenon triamcinolone acetonide injection in vitrectomized rabbit eyes.

PURPOSE: To investigate the intraocular pharmacokinetics of triamcinolone acetonide (TA) injected into the posterior subtenon of vitrectomized rabbit eyes. METHODS: Vitrectomy was performed on the right eyes of 35 rabbits. Triamcinolone acetonide (40 mg/mL) was injected into the posterior subtenon space of both eyes. Five rabbits each were killed at days 1, 3, 7, 14, 28, 56, and 84. Both eyes were enucleated. The vitreous was isolated, and TA concentration was measured. RESULTS: In vitrectomized eyes, the intravitreal concentrations of TA were 1763, 822.9, 321.5, 113.3, 35.5, 14.4, and 6.7 ng/mL, respectively, at the time points indicated above; the concentrations in nonvitrectomized eyes were 397.8, 360.4, 154.4, 48.5, 30.7, 15.2, and 8.0 ng/mL, respectively. Triamcinolone acetonide concentrations were significantly higher in the vitrectomized eyes at days 1, 3, 7, and 14. The terminal half-life of intravitreal TA was 23.3 days in the vitrectomized eyes and 28.9 days in the nonvitrectomized eyes. CONCLUSION: Intravitreal absorption and excretion of TA in the posterior subtenon space are increased after vitrectomy. Although the terminal half-life of TA was shorter, higher early concentration and similar effective duration were achieved in the vitrectomized eyes.