Application of Mini-LEDs with Microlens Arrays and Quantum Dot Film as Extra-Thin, Large-Area, and High-Luminance Backlight.

The demand for extra-thin, large-area, and high-luminance flat-panel displays continues to grow, especially for portable displays such as gaming laptops and automotive displays. In this paper, we propose a design that includes a light guide layer with a microstructure above the mini-light-emitting diode light board. The light control microstructure of concave parabel-surface microlens arrays on a light-emitting surface increases the likelihood of total internal reflection occurring and improved the uniformity merit function. We used a 17 in prototype with quantum-dot and optical films to conduct our experiments, which revealed that the thickness of the module was only 1.98 mm. When the input power was 28.34 watts, the uniformity, average luminance, and CIE 1931 color space NTSC of the prototype reached 85%, 17,574 cd/m2, and 105.37%, respectively. This module provided a flat light source that was extra thin and had high luminance and uniformity.

Exceedingly Concise and Elegant Synthesis of (+)-Paniculatine, (-)-Magellanine, and (+)-Magellaninone.

Starting from inexpensive (+)-pulegone as the chiral building block, a highly convergent synthesis of the unusual diquinane-based structures of (+)-paniculatine (1), (-)-magellanine (2), and (+)-magellaninone (3), has been achieved. This approach is based upon a tandem acylation-alkylation of ketoester 8 and palladium-catalyzed olefin insertion, oxidation, and hydrogenation for construction of the tetracyclic framework. This exceedingly concise strategy, requiring only 12-14 steps, is the shortest to date.

Influence of bacterial cellulose (nata) on the physicochemical and sensory properties of frankfurter.

UNLABELLED: The physicochemical and sensory characteristics of pork frankfurters containing different levels (10% to 30%) of bacterial cellulose (nata) were evaluated. Emulsion stability of the raw meat batter decreased with the addition of nata. For nata-added treatments, increasing levels of nata in frankfurters resulted in decreased textural hardness and shear values. Sensory results indicated that N10 and N20 had significantly higher firmness scores than N30 and control. However, juiciness score did not differ for all treatments. Incorporation of nata at lower levels (10% to 20%) did not have detrimental effects on the physicochemical, textural, sensory, and microbiological properties of regular-fat frankfurters. Addition of a higher level (30%) of nata essentially produced comparable sensory properties to the control, but lower levels of nata in frankfurters yielded higher sensory firmness and instrumental hardness values. Based on the composite results, manufacture of regular-fat frankfurter containing 10% to 20% high-fiber nata resulted in product quality comparable to the control. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: We demonstrated the manufacture of quality-improved frankfurters with the inclusion of a high-fiber functional ingredient, nata.

Suppression of allergic reactions in ovalbumin-sensitized mice by yam storage proteins dioscorins.

To study the biomedical functions of dioscorins isolated from various species of Dioscorea , we investigated their antiallergic potential using an OVA-induced allergy mouse model. All the dioscorins suppressed allergic reactions by decreasing the serum IgE and histamine levels. The serum IFN-γ and IgG2a levels increased in all the dioscorin-treated mice. The spleen cells from the dioscorin-treated mice also exhibited an up-regulation of IFN-γ secretion in response to ConA stimulation. Although dioscorins did not affect the IgG1 levels, the IL-5 levels decreased to basal levels in mice treated with dioscorins of D. alata or D. japonica and in most of the lymphoid cells of the dioscorin-treated mice in response to ConA stimulation. The decrease of IgE and histamine levels was concomitant with an increase in IFN-γ and IgG2a levels and with a decrease in IL-5 levels, suggesting that dioscorins suppressed the OVA-induced allergic reactions, possibly through modulating an imbalanced Th1/Th2 immune response.

Molecular cloning, structural analysis and mass spectrometric identification of native dioscorins of various yam species.

BACKGROUND: Dioscorins are the major storage proteins of yam tubers. However, the molecular nature of their heterogeneity in tubers has not been fully elucidated. In this study the authors isolated the dioscorin gene families of Dioscorea japonica and Dioscorea pseudojaponica, performed matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS) and elucidated which dioscorin isoforms are the major constituents in tubers. RESULTS: The dioscorin gene families of D. japonica (Dj-dioA1-Dj-dioA4, Dj-dioB1 and Dj-dioB2) and D. pseudojaponica (Dp-dioA1-Dp-dioA5 and Dp-dioB1) were cloned from cDNA libraries of yam tubers. The dioscorins isolated from Dioscorea alata (Da-dioscorins), D. japonica (Dj-dioscorins) and D. pseudojaponica (Dp-dioscorins) were mainly monomers, with a few dimers. The monomers contained one intramolecular disulfide bond (Cys(28)-Cys(187)) and belonged to Class A dioscorins with two cysteine residues. The dimers consisted of Class B dioscorins with one intermolecular disulfide bond (Cys(40)-Cys(40)). Results of MALDI-TOF-MS revealed that the Da-dioscorins were mainly encoded by Da-dioA2, Da-dioA3 and Da-dioA4. The majority of the Dj-dioscorins were encoded by Dj-dioA1, Dj-dioA2, Dj-dioA3 and Dj-dioB2. The Dp-dioscorins mainly comprised proteins encoded by Dp-dioA1, Dp-dioA3, Dp-dioA4, Dp-dioB1 and Dp-dioB2. CONCLUSION: Determination of the constituents of dioscorin isoforms in yam tubers provides a basis for future studies of their physiological and biomedical functions.

Recombinant dioscorins of the yam storage protein expressed in Escherichia coli exhibit antioxidant and immunomodulatory activities.

Dioscorins, the major storage proteins in yam tubers, exhibit biochemical and immunomodulatroy activities. To investigate the potential application of dioscorins in biomedical research, we expressed the dioscorin genes Dj-dioA3 and Dp-dioA2 from Dioscorea japonica and Dioscorea pseudojaponica, respectively, in E. coli and routinely obtained approximately 15 mg proteins per liter Escherichia coli culture (mg/L) to 30 mg/L of rDj-dioscorinA3 and 4 to 8 mg/L of rDp-dioscorinA2. Western blot analyses revealed that both recombinant dioscorins contained epitopes with similar antigenicities to those of the native dioscorins. Results from dithiothreitol (DTT) treatment followed by monobromobimane (mBBr) staining showed that both recombinant dioscorins, like the native dioscorins, contain an intramolecular disulfide bond between Cys(28) and Cys(187) residues. Circular dichroism spectroscopy findings indicated that the secondary structural contents of the recombinant dioscorins showed high similarity to those of their corresponding native dioscorins. Both recombinant dioscorins, like the native dioscorins, exhibited 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging and Toll-like receptor 4 signaling activities, and stimulated the phagocytosis of E. coli by macrophage. Overall, our results indicated that substantial amounts of recombinant dioscorins can be purified easily from E. coli and that these recombinant dioscorins are appropriate for application in future investigations of the biomedical functions of dioscorins.

Influences of xylooligosaccharides on the quality of Chinese-style meatball (kung-wan).

Physicochemical properties, sensory traits, and protein surface hydrophobicity of Chinese-style meatball (20% fat) processed from various combinations of xylooligosaccharides (XOS) and sucrose were investigated. No significant differences in pH and water-holding capacity were noted for treatments following cooking and frozen storage. Sensory springiness, hardness, chewiness, and overall acceptability of all treatments were found not significantly different. Water-soluble protein and total extractable protein concentrations of XOS4 (4% xylooligosaccharides) containing treatments were higher than other treatments at any frozen storage period (0, 4, 8, and 12 weeks). Addition of xylooligosaccharides or sucrose singly or in combination at levels investigated in this experiment resulted in Chinese meatballs with comparable quality. Substitution of sucrose with varying amounts (1, 2, and 4%) of xylooligosaccharides functioned equally on the quality of Chinese-style meatball.

Wheelchair detection using cascaded decision tree.

One of the major goals of healthcare systems is to automatically monitor patients of special needs and alarm the caregivers for providing assistant. In this paper, an efficient single-camera multidirectional wheelchair detector based on a cascaded decision tree (CDT) is proposed to detect a wheelchair and its moving direction simultaneously from video frames for a healthcare system. Our approach combines a decision tree structure and boosted-cascade classifiers to construct a new CDT that can perform early confidence decisions in a hierarchical manner to rapidly reject nonwheelchairs and decide the moving directions. We also impose the tracking history to guide detection routes in the CDT to further reduce detection time and increase detection accuracy. The experiments show over 92% detection rate under cluttered scenes.

Yam storage protein dioscorins from Dioscorea alata and Dioscorea japonica exhibit distinct immunomodulatory activities in mice.

The aim of this study was to elucidate the effect of the major storage protein dioscorin isolated from two different yam species, Tainong No. 1 (TN1-dioscorins) and Japanese yam (Dj-dioscorins), on the immune activities of mice. Dj-dioscorins, like TN1-dioscorins, could induce expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines and stimulate phagocytosis of RAW 264.7. Intraperitoneal injection of the TN1-dioscorins into mice stimulated phagocytosis of bone marrow, spleen, and thymic cells. In contrast, the T and B cells in bone marrow, spleen, and thymus isolated from mice injected with Dj-dioscorins had higher proliferative responses to mitogens. Furthermore, Dj-dioscorins enhanced proliferation of CD4(+), CD8(+), and Tim3(+) (Th1) cells in spleen and CD19(+) cells in both spleen and thymus. Supplement of Dj-dioscorins in the lymphoid cells isolated from Dj-dioscorins primed mice induced cell proliferation of both spleen and thymic cells. These findings indicated that TN1-dioscorins have a higher ability to stimulate the phagocytic activity of the lymphoid cells than Dj-dioscorins, whereas Dj-dioscorins possess more abilities than TN1-dioscorins to enhance the proliferation of the lymphoid cells.

Dioscorin protects tight junction protein expression in A549 human airway epithelium cells from dust mite damage.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: In addition to being an allergen, the trypsin activity of dust mite extract also destroys the tight junctions of bronchial epithelium. Such damage can lead to airway leakage, which increases airway exposure to allergens, irritants, and other pathogens. Dioscorin, the storage protein of yam, demonstrates anti-trypsin activity, as well as other potential anti-inflammatory effects. This study investigated the protective role of dioscorin for tight junctions. METHODS: The immunofluorescence stains of zonula occludens (ZO-1), E-cadherin (EC) and desmoplakin (DP) proteins were compared. A cultured A549 cell line was used as a control and A549 cells were incubated with mite extract 100 mg/mL for 16 h, with or without dioscorin 100 mg/mL pretreatment for 8 h and with dioscorin 100 mg/mL alone for 16 h. Western blot was performed to detect changes in ZO-1, EC, and DP in the treated A549 cell lines. RESULTS: Loss of tight junction protein expression (ZO-1, EC, DP) was demonstrated after 16-h mite extract incubation. The defect could be restored if cells were pretreated with dioscorin for 8 h. In addition, dioscorin did not cause damage to the A549 cell lines in terms of cell survival or morphology. Western blot showed no change in the amount of tight junction protein under various conditions. CONCLUSION: Dioscorin is a potential protector of airway damage caused by mite extract.

A new entry to 1,5-keto esters and their 4,4-dideuterio derivatives via methylene chloride as "methylene dianion" equivalents.

This TiCl 4-Mg promoted multicomponent coupling of various amides with CH(2)Cl(2) and methyl acrylate represents an extremely simple and practical synthesis of 1,5-keto esters. The efficiency of this chemistry is illustrated by the very simple preparation of unusual 4,4-dideuterio-1,5-keto esters.

New, general, and practical preparation of methyl ketones via the direct coupling of amides with CH2Cl2 promoted by TiCl4/Mg.

The direct coupling of a variety of amides with CH2 Cl2 or CD2 Cl2 promoted by TiCl 4/Mg/THF provides an extremely simple, practical, selective, and efficient approach for the construction of methyl ketones. The efficiency and practicability of this chemistry is illustrated by the very simple synthesis of deuterated methyl ketones.

Physicochemical and textural properties of ultrasound-degraded konjac flour and their influences on the quality of low-fat Chinese-style sausage.

Physical and textural properties of varying molecular-weight konjac gels made by ultrasonic degradation were compared and gels were processed into low-fat Chinese-style sausages for the evaluation of textural and sensory characteristics. Results showed that as molecular weights decreased, storage modulus and loss modulus of konjac gels of varying molecular weights declined, indicating more elastic and viscous konjac gels. Shear values and textural springiness and cohesiveness of Chinese sausage were similar among all treatments. All treatments were found to have similar juiciness and overall acceptability scores. Results indicated that konjac gels with varying molecular weights could be used to partially replace pork fat to achieve similar textural properties. Incorporation of konjac gels with varying molecular weights at the current levels showed similar textural and sensory quality characteristics to the high-fat control, and contained less fat than traditional Chinese sausage.

New, general, and practical enamine cyclopropanation using dichloromethane.

[reaction: see text] Dichloromethane serves as a novel electrophilic carbene equivalent which adds to an enamine double bond. The presence of other alkene moieties in the enamine partner is well tolerated. Even enamines derived from sterically hindered ketones react readily with dichloromethane promoted by TiCl(4)-Mg.

Unusual ambiphilic carbenoid equivalent in amide cyclopropanation.

[reaction: see text] The titanium-methylene complexes derived from the TiCl(4)-Mg-CH(2)Cl(2) system serve as a novel class of ambiphilic carbenoid equivalents, which not only efficiently effect cyclopropanations of a variety amides but also exhibit high chemoselectivity.

Dichloromethane as an unusual methylene equivalent. A new entry of highly nucleophilic and selective titanium-methylene complexes for ester methylenation.

[reaction: see text] The successful application of CH2Cl2-Mg-TiCl4-system mediated methylenation of various esters such as tert-butyl ester and 2,5-cyclohexadiene-1-carboxylate highlights the extraordinary reactivity, selectivity, and the nonbasic nature of this new methylene-carbenoid, which serves as a practical reagent applicable to large-scale synthesis.

Konjac/gellan gum mixed gels improve the quality of reduced-fat frankfurters.

Mixed gels of konjac (1%, 2%) and gellan gum (0.25%, 0.5%) were incorporated into reduced-fat (18%) frankfurters and compared with reduced-fat and high-fat (28%) controls for physicochemical, textural, sensory properties and storage stability. C28 (control at 28% fat) had the highest (P<0.05) lightness (L*) and yellowness (b*) values but the lowest redness (a*). C28 had the lowest textural hardness, shear force value and sensory firmness but highest juiciness scores. Treatments containing konjac/gellan gum mixed gels were not different from C28 in sensory overall acceptability, among them K1G5 (1% konjac/0.5% gellan gum) was numerically higher. C18 had the highest TPC (∼7.8 log CFU/g) after 12 weeks of storage, followed by gum-containing treatments. In conclusion, it appears feasible to incorporate konjac/gellan gum mixed gel at current levels to reduced-fat frankfurter for acceptable sensory merits with reasonable shelf life.

Effects of sodium lactate and trisodium phosphate on the physicochemical properties and shelf life of low-fat Chinese-style sausage.

The efficacy of using additives to improve the shelf life of low-fat (approximately 18%) Chinese-style sausages was demonstrated. Sausages containing 3% sodium lactate (SL), 0.2% trisodium phosphate (TSP) or 0.2% potassium sorbate (KS) compared with the control (CONT) were manufactured and stored at 4°C for 12 weeks. Treatment TSP was the highest in pH during any storage intervals. Generally speaking, all microbial counts were lower for SL but higher for TSP; nonetheless, all treatments had bacterial counts less than 10(7) CFU/g. Low-fat Chinese-style sausage containing 3% sodium lactate resulted in better quality regarding physicochemical and microbiological characteristics. Results also suggested a potential utilization of sodium lactate as an antimicrobial agent.