Contraction model of skeletal muscle driven by external electrical stimulation-Proposal and Identification.

Biohybrid actuators consisting of skeletal muscle and artificial lattice have unique characteristics such as self-growth and self-repair functions. As a first step for developing model-based design and model-based control methods for the biohybrid actuators, we have developed a muscle contraction model. When the stimulation voltage is applied to the muscle, the electrical charges are stored in the dihydropyridine receptor, and the calcium ions are released. According to the concentration of the ions, the contractile elements generate contraction force. We have modeled this phenomenon with three characteristics in the proposed model-electrical dynamic, physiological, and mechanical dynamic characteristics. Unlike the previous models, the proposed model was verified under the condition of tetanus and incomplete tetanus with the muscle length changed. The simulated contraction force showed good agreement with the experimentally measured contraction force generated by the gastrocnemius muscle of a toad.Clinical Relevance- Biohybrid actuators are expected as a new material for medical and assistive devices having a soft and flexible characteristic. This study provides a basic contraction model for such biohybrid actuators.

Adsorption of gold(III), platinum(IV) and palladium(II) onto glycine modified crosslinked chitosan resin.

The adsorption of Au(III), Pt(IV) and Pd(II) onto glycine modified crosslinked chitosan resin (GMCCR) has been investigated. The parameters studied include the effects of pH, contact time, ionic strength and the initial metal ion concentrations by batch method. The optimal pH for the adsorption of Au(III), Pt(IV) and Pd(II) was found to range from 1.0 to 4.0 and the maximum uptake was obtained at pH 2.0 for Au(III), Pt(IV) and Pd(II). The results obtained from equilibrium adsorption studies are fitted in various adsorption models such as Langmuir and Freundlich and the model parameters have been evaluated. The maximum adsorption capacity of GMCCR for Au(III), Pt(IV) and Pd(II) was found to be 169.98, 122.47 and 120.39mg/g, respectively. The kinetic data was tested using pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models and an intraparticle diffusion model. The correlation results suggested that the pseudo-second-order model was the best choice among all the kinetic models to describe the adsorption behavior of Au(III), Pt(IV) and Pd(II) onto GMCCR. Various concentrations of HCl, thiourea and thiourea-HCl solutions were used to desorb the adsorbed precious metal ions from GMCCR. It was found that 0.7M thiourea-2M HCl solution provided effectiveness of the desorption of Au(III), Pt(IV) and Pd(II) from GMCCR. The modification of glycine on crosslinked chitosan resin (CCR) was studied by Fourier transform infrared spectrometry (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Antigen selectivity characteristic of polyclonal antibodies against omega-conotoxin GVIA and N-type voltage-dependent calcium channels.

The antibodies against omega-conotoxin GVIA (omega-CTX GVIA; N-type voltage-dependent calcium channel [VDCC] blocker) and B1Nt (N-terminal segment [residues 1-13] of BI alpha1 subunits of VDCCs) were prepared, and the selectivity for each antigen omega-CTX GVIA and B1Nt was investigated. For the antigen selectivity of anti-omega-CTX GVIA antibody against omega-CTX GVIA, ELISA, and immunoprecipitation were used. The reactions for ELISA and immunoprecipitation were observed except when antibody IgG purified by Protein A-Sepharose CL-4B from nonimmunized serum (purified NI-Ab) was used. The specific reactions were inhibited by 10 nM omega-CTX GVIA, but not by omega-CTX SVIB (N-type VDCC blocker), omega-CTX MVIIC (N- and P-type VDCC blocker), or omega-Aga IVA (P-type VDCC blocker). For the antigen selectivity of the anti-B1Nt antibody, analyses by ELISA, immunoprecipitation, and Western blotting were conducted. The reactions were observed except when NI-Ab was used. The ELISA and immunoprecipitation reactions were inhibited by the antigen peptide B1Nt, and the IC50 values were about 1.2 x 10(-8) and 1.3 x 10(-8) M, respectively. The bands of 210 and 190 kD by Western blotting of crude membranes from chick brain were also inhibited by 1 microM B1Nt. These results suggest that the antibodies prepared against omega-CTX GVIA and B1Nt in this work have high selectivity for their antigen. Therefore we assume that the antibodies against omega-CTX GVIA and B1Nt are useful tools for the analyses of the function and distribution of N-type VDCCs. The anti omega-CTX GVIA antibody must also be useful for the radioimmunoassay of omega-CTX GVIA.

Preparation and HREM characterization of a protonated form of a layered perovskite tantalate from an Aurivillius phase Bi(2)SrTa(2)O(9) via acid treatment.

An Aurivillius phase, Bi(2)SrTa(2)O(9), which consists of perovskite-like slabs and bismuth oxide sheets, was treated with 3 M hydrochloric acid for 72 h, and the resultant product was characterized. Scanning electron microscopy investigation indicated that no morphological change occurred during the acid treatment. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis revealed that the product exhibited tetragonal symmetry with a = 0.391 +/- 0.004 nm and c = 0.98 +/- 0.01 nm, and the a parameter is consistent with a typical value for cubic perovskite oxides. High-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) observations along both [001] and [010] showed that the structure of the perovskite-like slabs in Bi(2)SrTa(2)O(9) was retained after the acid treatment. The compositional analyses revealed the loss of a large portion of bismuth and a part of strontium (present in the bismuth oxide sheets due to B <--> Sr disorder) and the introduction of protons. These observations indicate that the bismuth oxide sheets in Bi(2)SrTa(2)O(9) were selectively leached and that protons were introduced into the interlayer space to form a protonated layered perovskite, H(1.8)[Sr(0.8)Bi(0.2)Ta(2)O(7)]. Though diffraction techniques (XRD and electron diffraction) demonstrated that an average structure of H(1.8)[Sr(0.8)Bi(0.2)Ta(2)O(7)] consisted of perovskite-like slabs stacked without displacement, HREM observation along [010] demonstrated that both a simple stacking sequence without displacement (P-type) and a stacking sequence with a relative displacement by (a + b)/2 (I-type) were present in H(1.8)[Sr(0.8)Bi(0.2)Ta(2)O(7)].