Congenital malformations caused by Akabane virus in porcine fetuses in southern Japan.

Akabane virus (AKAV) is known as a major teratogenic agent of ruminant fetuses. In this study, we investigated the relationship between porcine abnormal deliveries and AKAV by serology, pathology, and virology investigations using specimens from 16 stillborn fetuses delivered in southern Japan between 2013 and 2015. The major clinical manifestations in stillborn fetuses were hydranencephaly, arthrogryposis, spinal curvature, and both skeletal muscle and subcutaneous edema. Histologic examination of the specimens identified atrophy of skeletal muscle fibers accompanied by adipose replacement. Nonsuppurative encephalomyelitis and decreased neuronal density in the ventral horn of the spinal cord were shown in two separate fetuses, respectively. Neutralizing antibody titers to AKAV were detected in most of the tested fetuses (13/16). The AKAV sequences detected in the affected fetuses in 2013 and 2015 were highly identical and closely related to Japanese AKAV isolates which were isolated in 2013 and sorted into genogroup I of AKAV. Immunohistochemistry visualized AKAV antigens in the neuronal cells of the central nervous system of the fetuses. These findings indicate that AKAV was involved in the birth of abnormal piglets at the affected farm. The clinical manifestations and histopathological features in the stillborn fetuses were very similar to those in ruminant neonates affected by AKAV. To avoid misdiagnosis and to evaluate the precise impact of AKAV on pig reproduction, AKAV should be considered in differential diagnoses of reproductive failures in pigs.

Directionally compensated mechanical work provided by the shoulder leads to similar racket velocities during open and square stance forehand groundstrokes in tennis.

The differences between the racket-arm acceleration mechanisms during open and square stance forehand groundstrokes in tennis were examined by quantifying the mechanical work done on the racket arm. We studied 13 advanced tennis players as they performed these strokes at maximum effort and calculated the work using inverse dynamics. The racket head speed was similar between the open and square stances. In the open stance, the lack of weight shifting towards the hitting direction resulted in a lower velocity for the shoulder joint centre in the hitting direction than in the square stance, and less work was done by the shoulder joint force in the hitting direction in the open stance than in the square stance (0.30 ± 0.11 J·kg-1 vs. 0.38 ± 0.16 J·kg-1; p = 0.005). However, in the open stance, the torso rotated more towards the hitting direction and had more upward acceleration, which resulted in more work done by the sideways and upward shoulder joint forces than in the square stance (sideways: 0.07 ± 0.09 J·kg-1 vs. 0.05 ± 0.09 J·kg-1, p = 0.046; upward: 0.08 ± 0.09 J·kg-1 vs. 0.04 ± 0.07 J·kg-1, p = 0.002). Thus, the greater work done by the sideways and upward shoulder joint forces compensated for the lesser work done by the shoulder joint force in the hitting direction in the open stance. In both stances, mainly the horizontal flexion torque and internal rotation torque at the shoulder increased the energy of the racket arm.

A comparative study of LiCoO2 polymorphs: structural and electrochemical characterization of O2-, O3-, and O4-type phases.

O4-type LiCoO2 as a third polymorph of LiCoO2 is prepared by an ion-exchange method in aqueous media from OP4-[Li, Na]CoO2, which has an intergrowth structure of O3-LiCoO2 and P2-Na0.7CoO2. O4-type LiCoO2 is characterized by synchrotron X-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. Structural characterization reveals that O4-type LiCoO2 has an intergrowth structure of O3- and O2-LiCoO2 with stacking faulted domains. Three LiCoO2 polymorphs are formed from the close-packed CoO2 layers, which consist of edge-shared CoO6 octahedra, whereas the oxide-ion stacking is different: cubic in the O3-phase, cubic/hexagonal in the O2-phase, and alternate O3 and O2 in the O4-phase. Structural analysis using the DIFFaX program suggests that the O4-phase consists of approximately 30% of O12-domains, while stacking faults are not evidenced for O2-phase. The results suggest that a nucleation process for Na/Li ion-exchange kinetically dominates a growth process of ideal O4-domains because the presence of CoO2-Li-CoO2 blocks as O3-domains could be expected to prevent through-plane interaction of Na layers. Electrochemical behavior and structural transition processes for three LiCoO2 polymorphs are compared in Li cells. A new phase, OT(#)4-type Li0.5CoO2, is first isolated as an intergrowth phase of O3- and T(#)2-Li0.5CoO2. However, some deviations from ideal behavior as the O2/O3-intergrowth phase are also noted, presumably because of the existence of stacking faults.

Generation of ultrashort optical pulses in the 10 fs regime using multicolor Raman sidebands in KTaO3.

We demonstrated Fourier synthesis of a new type of multiple coherent anti-Stokes Raman scatterings in KTaO(3) crystal. The signals with a wavelength range of 500-750 nm were generated by two femtosecond pulses whose frequency difference was set to be a two-phonon Raman frequency. Angle dispersion of the signals was compensated into one white-continuum beam by spherical mirrors and a prism. The spectral phase, measured by spectral phase interferometry for direct electric-field reconstruction, was compensated for by carefully aligning the angle and the position of the optical components so that 13 fs isolated pulses were generated. This result shows the robustness of our scheme to produce ultrashort optical pulses.