Alignment-free twisted-split-ring metasurface on single substrate with 2π phase range for linearly polarized sub-terahertz wave.

To achieve high-speed, large-capacity communication, next-generation mobile communication systems will require manipulation of the propagation of sub-terahertz waves in the propagation channel. In this paper, we propose the use of a novel split-ring resonator (SRR) structure as a metasurface unit cell for manipulating the linearly polarized incident and transmission waves used in mobile communication systems. In this SRR structure, the gap is twisted by 90° to efficiently use cross-polarized scattered waves. By changing the twist direction and gap size of the unit cell, 2π phase designability can be achieved, which enables linear polarization conversion efficiencies of -2 dB with a backside polarizer and -0.2 dB with two polarizers. In addition, a complementary pattern of the unit cell was fabricated, and a measured conversion efficiency of more than -1 dB at the peak with only the backside polarizer on a single substrate was verified. In the proposed structure, the 2π phase designability and efficiency gain are obtained independently by the unit cell and polarizer, respectively, thus enabling alignment-free characteristics, which are highly advantageous from an industrial viewpoint. Metasurface lenses with binary phase profiles of 0 and π were fabricated using the proposed structure with a backside polarizer on a single substrate. The lenses' focusing, deflection, and collimation operations were experimentally verified with a lens gain of 20.8 dB, which agreed well with our calculated results. Our metasurface lens has the great advantages of easy fabrication and implementation, and it has the potential to enable dynamic control by combining it with active devices because of the simple design methodology, which entails only changing the twist direction and the gap's capacitance component.

Analysis of Asymmetry in Active Split-Ring Resonators to Design Circulating-Current Eigenmode: Demonstration of Beamsteering and Focal-Length Control toward Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface.

In this work, toward an intelligent radio environment for 5G/6G, design methodologies of active split-ring resonators (SRRs) for more efficient dynamic control of metasurfaces are investigated. The relationship between the excitation of circulating-current eigenmode and the asymmetric structure of SRRs is numerically analyzed, and it is clarified that the excitation of the circulating-current mode is difficult when the level of asymmetry of the current path is decreased by the addition of large capacitance such as from semiconductor-based devices. To avoid change in the asymmetry, we incorporated an additional gap (slit) in the SRRs, which enabled us to excite the circulating-current mode even when a large capacitance was implemented. Prototype devices were fabricated according to this design methodology, and by the control of the intensity/phase distribution, the variable focal-length and beamsteering capabilities of the transmitted waves were demonstrated, indicating the high effectiveness of the design. The presented design methodology can be applied not only to the demonstrated case of discrete varactors, but also to various other active metamaterials, such as semiconductor-integrated types for operating in the millimeter and submillimeter frequency bands as potential candidates for future 6G systems.

Transparent dynamic metasurface for a visually unaffected reconfigurable intelligent surface: controlling transmission/reflection and making a window into an RF lens.

Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs) that dynamically manipulate scattered waves have attracted much attention regarding accommodating coverage holes in wireless communication systems using radio wave frequencies higher than millimeter waves. RISs generally actualized through metasurface technologies must be visually unaffected so that they can be installed in various locations such as existing walls and glass windows in environments where propagation should be controlled. We propose a novel method that dynamically controls scattering characteristics of metasurfaces while achieving a large area and high optical transparency. For transparency in the visible light range, we use transparent glass as a substrate and meshed metal patterns. Furthermore, by stacking a metasurface substrate onto another transparent substrate and controlling the interlayer distance, we achieve dynamic control of the scattered waves over a large area in the 28-GHz band. Fabricated prototypes successfully operate when switching transmission and reflection modes, exhibiting extremely low loss of less than -1 dB. In metasurface lenses that can be attached to glass windows in outdoor-to-indoor scenarios, the lens gain of 25.4 dB is achieved for a static lens, and dynamic switching operation between single focus and dual focus is also successfully verified for a dynamic lens.

Laminated metamaterial flat lens at millimeter-wave frequencies.

A flat and thin shape is obviously advantageous not only in terms of reducing the volume of a device, but also in handling and using it. Particularly, laminating or stacking flat devices is an intuitive and straightforward way of tailoring performance and functions. Here, we experimentally demonstrated a laminated flat lens for millimeter-wave frequencies that is based on split-ring resonators (SRRs) composed of multiple layers with different and/or identical index profiles and that exhibits characteristics that are linear combinations of those of the individual lenses. Since the characteristics of the lenses of each layer are preserved regardless of the neighbouring layers, the desired functionalities can be easily implemented simply by laminating elementary lenses designed already. When we laminated two lenses designed for bending or focusing incoming waves at 120 GHz, we clearly observed that the outgoing waves collimated and bended as desired.

CXCR4 expression on activated B cells is downregulated by CD63 and IL-21.

CXCR4 expression is critical for localization of centroblasts in the dark zone of germinal centers (GCs), and centrocytes downregulate CXCR4 and thus leave the dark zone to reside in the light zone. However, mechanisms governing CXCR4 downregulation on centrocytes are not known. In this study, we show that the amount of intracellular CXCR4 in centroblasts was similar to that in centrocytes, suggesting differential control of CXCR4 protein expression in these GC B cells. Restimulation of activated B cells with IL-21, which is a major cytokine produced by T follicular helper cells, accelerated CXCR4 internalization by inducing endocytosis-related GRK6 expression. Although CXCR4 expression was downregulated on GC B cells by IL-21 stimulation, CXCR4(low) centrocytes developed in the spleens of IL-21R-deficient mice, suggesting other mechanisms for downregulation. The level of CD63 (which recruits CXCR4 to late endosome in CD4 T cells) in centrocytes was more than that in centroblasts and was strikingly elevated in activated Bcl6-deficient B cells. Bcl6, a transcriptional repressor, was detected on the chromatin of the CD63 gene in resting B cells, therefore CD63 is a molecular target of Bcl6. Downregulation of CD63 mRNA in activated Bcl6-deficient B cells by small interfering RNA upregulated CXCR4 expression on the B cells. Furthermore, addition of Bcl6 inhibitor to activated B cell cultures increased CD63 mRNA expression in (and downregulated CXCR4 expression on) those activated B cells. Thus, CXCR4 can be downregulated on activated B cells by IL-21-induced endocytosis and CD63-mediated endosomal recruitment, and these mechanisms may contribute to downregulation of CXCR4 on centrocytes.

Effective collaboration between IL-4 and IL-21 on B cell activation.

Although IL-4 and IL-21 synergistically promote proliferation and differentiation of activated B cells, the mutual role in their collaboration is not known. When splenic B cells were sequentially stimulated with anti-IgM Ab and anti-CD40 Ab plus IL-4 and then with IL-21 at a 2-day interval, proliferation, frequency of class switching to IgG1 and plasma cell differentiation were continuously enhanced until day 5 of culture. Amounts of AID and Blimp1 mRNA in sequentially activated B cells with IL-4 and IL-21 increased more than those in activated B cells without IL-21. However, sequential stimulation of B cells with anti-IgM Ab and anti-CD40 Ab plus IL-21 and then with IL-4 at more than 1-day interval did not display the synergistic effect. Furthermore, sequential stimulation of activated B cells with a low dose of IL-4, which did not induce Ig class switching, at the beginning of culture and with IL-21 or IL-4 on day 2 of culture induced proliferation and differentiation of CXCR4(-) or CXCR4(+) B cells, respectively. Thus, IL-21 effectively promotes proliferation and differentiation of CXCR4(-) B cells pre-activated with anti-IgM Ab and anti-CD40 Ab plus IL-4.

A role for Bcl6 in sequential class switch recombination to IgE in B cells stimulated with IL-4 and IL-21.

IgE plays an important role in the pathogenesis of allergic diseases and high-affinity IgE memory B cells are differentiated from IgG1 B cells developed in germinal centers. Bcl6, a sequence specific transcriptional repressor, is highly expressed in germinal center B cells and suppresses expression of Cvarepsilon germline transcript. However, a role for Bcl6 in inhibition of the sequential class switching from IgG1 to IgE in germinal center B cells is not known. When splenic B cells from Bcl6-deficient (Bcl6-KO) and Bcl6-transgenic (Bcl6-TG) mice were stimulated with anti-IgM Ab and anti-CD40 Ab plus IL-4, IgG1(+)IgE(+) B cells were detected in Bcl6-KO B cell culture but not in Bcl6-TG B cell culture. Cgamma1 and Cvarepsilon germline transcript in Bcl6-KO B cells were induced earlier than those in wild-type (Bcl6-WT) B cells after stimulation. When activated B cells were simultaneously stimulated with IL-21, expression of Cgamma1 germline transcript in Bcl6-WT and Bcl6-KO B cells was enhanced by IL-21 stimulation, indicating that IL-21 is an enhancer of Cgamma1 expression induced by IL-4. The amount of Cgamma1 germline transcript in the Bcl6-KO B cells was more than that in the Bcl6-WT B cells. Conversely, IL-21 stimulation suppressed Cvarepsilon expression in the Bcl6-WT B cells. However, the suppression was not observed in the Bcl6-KO B cells, suggesting that the IL-21-mediated suppression of Cvarepsilon expression is due to Bcl6. Thus, Bcl6 controls the Cgamma1 and Cvarepsilon expression and stabilizes class switching to IgG1 in activated B cells simultaneously stimulated with IL-4 and IL-21.

Bcl6 is required for the IL-4-mediated rescue of the B cells from apoptosis induced by IL-21.

IL-21 has a pro-apoptotic effect on freshly isolated B cells stimulated with LPS, and also induces Bcl6 expression in the activated B cells. However, a role for Bcl6 in the activated B cells is not known. When naive B cells from Bcl6-deficient mice were stimulated with LPS plus IL-21, those B cells died by apoptosis as wild-type B cells. Co-stimulation of those B cells with IL-4 partially rescued the wild-type B cells but not the Bcl6-deficient B cells from the IL-21-induced apoptosis. Bcl-2 was not up-regulated in both B cells stimulated with LPS plus IL-21 and IL-4. Bcl-X(L) and Bax were up-regulated in both B cells stimulated with LPS plus IL-4, and the co-stimulation with IL-21 did not modulate these up-regulations in wild-type B cells. However, the co-stimulation clearly suppressed the Bcl-X(L) up-regulation but not the Bax up-regulation in Bcl6-deficient B cells. Thus, Bcl6 is required for maintaining the Bcl-X(L) up-regulation in B cells stimulated with LPS plus IL-21 and IL-4, and the up-regulation may partially rescue the B cells from apoptosis induced by IL-21.

Aggressive surgical resection for hepatocellular carcinoma with tumor thrombus extending to inferior vena cava and synchronous pulmonary metastasis.

We describe a 66-year-old man having hepatocellular carcinoma with tumor thrombus extending into the inferior vena cava and synchronous pulmonary metastasis. He was referred to Chiba University Hospital on May, 2000, complaining of emaciation. Radiological findings showed a huge hepatocellular carcinoma in the entire right lobe and tumor thrombus extended into the intrapericardial inferior vena cava. He also had a solitary pulmonary metastasis in the left pulmonary lobe (stage IVB). Right hemihepatomy was performed under total hepatic vascular exclusion without cardiopulmonary bypass, and tumor thrombus was completely removed. Thoracoscopic wedge resection of pulmonary metastasis was also performed. The patient had an uneventful postoperative course. Histopathological examination revealed that the tumor was moderately differentiated hepatocellular carcinoma The patient is still alive after 26 months with pulmonary recurrence, but without hepatic recurrence. To our knowledge, there has been no reported case of resection for both hepatocellular carcinoma invading the inferior vena cava and synchronous pulmonary metastasis. In conclusion, aggressive surgical resection for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma concomitant with pulmonary resection may bring about better prognosis in highly selected patients.