Amorphous calcium silicate as a chemisorbent for phosphate

T. W. Lewis,D. C. Southam,A. J. McFarlane,J. H. Johnston 한국물리학회 2004 Current Applied Physics Vol.4 No.2-4

Amorphous calcium silicate (ACS), a novel silicate material developed as ller for use in paper manufacture, has shown ananity for the chemisorption of orthophosphate from an aqueous solution obeying a Freundlich isotherm. Removal eciencies ofup to 100% were achieved at environmental- and waste-scale concentrations of phosphate of between 0.01 and 100 mg P l. 1.Chemisorption studies indicated loadings up to 1.9 mmol HxPOð3. xÞ.4 g. 1 ACS were achievable. Kinetics studies comparing the rateof consumption of phosphate have shown that H2PO.4 is kinetically favoured and chemisorbed with higher loadings, and hencegreater eciency. This is a signicant improvement on other adsorbent-based methods for the removal of phosphate.

Expression of HBX, an oncoprotein of hepatitis B virus, blocks reoviral oncolysis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells

Park, E-H,Koh, S S,Srisuttee, R,Cho, I-R,Min, H-J,Jhun, B H,Lee, Y-S,Jang, K L,Kim, C-H,Johnston, R N,Chung, Y-H Nature Publishing Group 2009 Cancer gene therapy Vol.16 No.5

Although reovirus has been used in tests as a potential cancer therapeutic agent against a variety of cancer cells, its application to hepatocellular carcinoma cells, in which the hepatitis B virus (HBV) X (HBX) protein of HBV plays a primary role, has not yet been explored. Here, we describe experiments in which we use reovirus to treat Chang liver carcinoma cells expressing either a vector only (Chang-vec) or a vector encoding HBX protein (Chang-HBX). Although Chang-vec cells readily support reoviral proliferation and undergo apoptosis, Chang-HBX cells are highly resistant to reoviral infection and virus-induced apoptosis, even though HBX protein induces activation of Ras and inactivation of PKR, which are normally thought to enhance reoviral oncolysis. The resistance of Chang-HBX cells to reovirus may instead be explained by HBX-induced downregulation of death receptor 5 and activation of Stat1. Phosphorylated Stat1 activates interferon (IFN)-stimulated regulatory element (ISRE)- and IFN-γ-activated sequence (GAS)-mediated transcription, leading to the production of IFN-β, whereas the reduced expression of Stat1 with its siRNA results in a decrease in IFN-β production, by which Chang-HBX cells eventually succumb to reovirus infection. This result further indicates that HBX induces the establishment of an antiviral state through Stat1 activation. Thus, it appears that active Ras does not override the antiviral effect mediated by the activation of Stat1. Accordingly, we report that HBX, an oncoprotein of HBV, can prevent reoviral oncolysis of hepatocellular carcinoma. This suggests there may be limits to the practical application of reovirus in the treatment of human cancers already expressing other oncoviral proteins.Cancer Gene Therapy (2009) 16, 453–461; doi:10.1038/cgt.2008.95; published online 19 December 2008

CUG2, a novel oncogene confers reoviral replication through Ras and p38 signaling pathway

Park, E-H,Park, E H,Cho, I-R,Srisuttee, R,Min, H-J,Oh, M-J,Jeong, Y-J,Jhun, B H,Johnston, R N,Lee, S,Koh, S S,Chung, Y-H Nature Publishing Group 2010 Cancer gene therapy Vol.17 No.5

As we have recently found a novel oncogene, the cancer-upregulated gene 2 (CUG2), which was elevated in a variety of tumor tissues such as the ovary, liver, lung and pancreas, we examined whether reovirus could efficiently induce cytolysis in cancer cells expressing CUG2 and thus be used as a potential cancer therapeutic agent. In this study, we describe experiments in which we use reovirus to treat NIH3T3 cells stably expressing either CUG2 (NIH-CUG2) or vector only (NIH-Vec). NIH-CUG2 cells readily support reoviral proliferation and undergo apoptosis, whereas NIH-Vec cells are highly resistant to reoviral infection and virus-induced apoptosis. This notable result may be explained by the observation that CUG2 expression inhibits PKR activation, leading to reoviral proliferation in nonpermissive NIH3T3 cells. Furthermore, reovirus infection results in almost complete regression of tumorgenic NIH-CUG2 cells in transplanted nude mice. As we found that CUG2 enhances activation of MAPK (ERK, JNK and p38), Src kinase and Ras, we examined whether CUG2 confers reoviral replication independent of the Ras or p38 MAPK signaling pathway. From these experiments we found that either inhibition of p38 MAPK or Ras blocks reoviral proliferation even in the presence of CUG2 but inhibition of ERK, JNK and Src kinase does not, indicating that activation of p38 MAPK and Ras has critical roles in reoviral replication in CUG2-expressing tumor cells. Accordingly, we propose that reovirus can be useful in the treatment of transformed cells expressing CUG2, which is commonly detected in various tumor tissues.

SCOPE: SCUBA-2 Continuum Observations of Pre-protostellar Evolution - survey description and compact source catalogue

Eden, D J,Liu, Tie,Kim, Kee-Tae,Juvela, M,Liu, S-Y,Tatematsu, K,Francesco, J. Di,Wang, K,Wu, Y,Thompson, M A,Fuller, G A,Li, Di,Ristorcelli, I,Kang, Sung-ju,Hirano, N,Johnstone, D,Lin, Y,He, J H,Koch, Oxford University Press 2019 MONTHLY NOTICES- ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY Vol.485 No.2

Down-regulation of HIF-1α by oncolytic reovirus infection independently of VHL and p53

Cho, I-R,Koh, S S,Min, H-J,Park, E-H,Ratakorn, S,Jhun, B H,Jeong, S H,Yoo, Y H,Youn, H D,Johnston, R N,Chung, Y-H Nature Publishing Group 2010 Cancer gene therapy Vol.17 No.5

<P>Many oncolytic viruses are currently being tested as potential cancer therapeutic agents. To be effective, these viruses must replicate and propagate efficiently through the tumor mass. However, it is possible that the hypoxia that characterizes many tumors may be an obstacle to viral therapy because of its inhibition of viral replication and propagation. We, therefore, decided to test how oncolytic reovirus and its target cells respond to hypoxia. We found that reovirus infection suppresses hypoxia inducible factor (HIF)-1 alpha protein levels (but not transcript abundance) in colon cancer HCT116 cells under CoCl(2) or hypoxia. Reovirus infection was able to reduce HIF-1 alpha levels in both von Hippel Lindau (VHL)-/- renal carcinoma A498 and p53-/- HCT116 cells, indicating that the decrease of HIF-1 alpha mediated by reovirus requires neither VHL nor p53 proteins. However, treatment with the inhibitor MG132 restored HIF-1 alpha levels, suggesting that reovirus-induced HIF-1 alpha decrease needs proteosomal activity. A498 VHL-/- cells with constitutive expression of HIF-1 alpha were relatively resistant to reovirus-induced apoptosis when compared with A498 VHL+/+ cells. However, we found that the use of YC-1 to target HIF-1 alpha promoted reovirus-induced apoptosis in A498 VHL-/- cells. Accordingly, we propose that reovirus may be used together with YC-1 as a potential therapeutic agent against chemoresistant or radioresistant tumors that are hypoxic and show increased levels of HIF-1 alpha. Cancer Gene Therapy (2010) 17, 365-372; doi:10.1038/cgt.2009.84; published online 15 January 2010</P>

Effects of Expander Conditioning of Corn- and Sorghum-Based Diets on Pellet Quality and Performance in Finishing Pigs and Lactating Sows

Johnston, S.L.,Hancock, J.D.,Hines, R.H.,Kennedy, G.A.,Traylor, S.L.,Chae, B.J.,Han, In K. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 1999 Animal Bioscience Vol.12 No.4

Two experiments were conducted to determine the effects of conditioning (conventional vs expander) corn- and sorghum-based diets on production traits for lactating sows and finishing pigs. In Exp. 1, one hundred sixty-eight sows (parity 1-4, PIC line C15) were fed the corn or sorghum grain diets as a meal, standard (steam) conditioned pellets, or expanded pellets to give a $2{\times}3$ factorial arrangement of treatments. Pellet durability index (PDD was similar for the sorghum- vs corn-based diets, but increased when diets were expanded pellets for both corn- and sorghum-based diets. The corn-based meal diet supported 3.3% greater litter weight gain than the sorghum-based meal diet (44.0 kg vs 42.8 kg). However, the advantage for the corn-based diet disappeared with expander processing (ie., sows fed the sorghum-based diet responded more to diets processed with the alternative processing technology). Sow weight change during lactation was similar (p>0.15) among treatments, although average daily feed intake tended to be greater (p<0.09) for the sows fed sorghum. For Exp. 2, a total of 71 barrows (average initial weight of 58.0 kg) were used in a growth assay to determine the effects of feeding com- and sorghum-based diets, as meal or pellets, after processing with a conventional steam conditioner or an expander (high-shear) conditioner. PDI was not different for the sorghum- vs corn-based diets, but increased from 84 to 95% with expander conditioning compared to conventional steam conditioning. Rate and efficiency of gain, and carcass leanness were similar for pigs fed sorghum and corn (p>0.15). Efficiency of gain was greater (p<0.04) for pigs fed the pelleted (356 g/kg) diets compared to those given the meal (348 g/kg) diets. However, efficiencies of gain were similar (p>0.11) for pigs fed the conventional- and expander-conditioned diets. Pelleting increased (p<0.01) the incidence and severity of stomach lesions regardless of grain type. In conclusion, corn-based meal diet resulted in a greater litter weight gain than the sorghum-based meal diet. However, that advantage disappeared when the diets were expanded and pelleted. Finishing pigs fed pelleted diets were more efficient than those fed meal diets.

Effects of Conditioners (Standard, Long-Term and Expander) on Pellet Quality and Growth Performance in Nursery and Finishing Pigs

Johnston, S.L.,Hines, R.H.,Hancock, J.D.,Behnke, K.C.,Traylor, S.L.,Chae, B.J.,Han, In K. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 1999 Animal Bioscience Vol.12 No.4

A series of experiments were conducted to determine the effects of standard (ST), long-term (LT), and expander (EX) conditioners on nutritional value of phase-three nursery and finishing swine diets. In Exp. 1, 180 pigs (average initial BW of 11.7 kg) were fed com-soybean meal based diets (1.3% lysine) during a 28 d growth assay. Gain/feed was improved (p<0.004) with pelleting and pellet durability index (PDI) increased with degree of conditioning (LT>ST). However, there was no advantage for LT vs ST conditioning in rate or efficiency of gain (p>0.5). In Exp. 2, 180 pigs (average initial BW of 10.4 kg) were fed con-soybean meal based diets (0.9% lysine) during a 28 d growth assay, Pelleted diets tended to support greater ADG (p<0.08) and gain/feed (p<0.002) with no marked advantage from EX vs ST conditioning. In Exp 3, a total of 70 barrows (average initial BW of 54 kg) was used in a growth assay to determine the effects of feeding a com-soybean meal based diet processed with a standard (ST) steam conditioner, a long-term (LT) steam conditioner, and an expander (EX) conditioner. The conditioned diets were fed as mash (M) or pellets (P) to give a $2{\times}3$ factorial plus a meal control. PDI increased with degree of conditioning (EX>LT>ST). There was a trend (p<0.07) for greater ADG in pigs fed diets that had been thermally conditioned. Also, there was a general advantage in gain/feed with pelleting (p<0.04), but this advantage was pronounced only with standard conditioning. Indeed, the greatest gain/feed was observed for pigs fed the expander treatments (p<0.03) and the expander mash was used as efficiently as the expander pellets. There was no difference in backfat thickness among pigs fed the treatments (p>0.3). but the more extreme the processing technique. the greater the incidence and severity of stomach lesions (p<0.04). These results suggest maximum rate and efficiency of growth with pelleting after standard steam conditioning or simply feeding an expanded mash.

Effects of Expander Conditioning of Complex Nursery Diets on Growth Performance of Weanling Pigs

Johnston, S.L.,Hines, R.H.,Hancock, J.D.,Behnke, K.C.,Traylor, S.L.,Chae, B.J.,Han, In K. Asian Australasian Association of Animal Productio 1999 Animal Bioscience Vol.12 No.3

Three experiments were conducted to determine the effects of conditioning a complex (20% whey, 10% lactose, 4% plasma protein, 4% wheat gluten and 2% blood meal) diet on growth performance of weanling pigs. In Exp. 1,180 pigs (average initial BW of 6.4 kg) were fed the experimental diet (1.7% lysine) during a 7-d growth assay. Treatments were a meal control (M), standard (ST), and expander (EX) conditioned mash or pellets. Rate and efficiency of gain were decreased by 39% and 21% (p<0.005) respectively, for pigs fed EX diets compared to those fed the ST diet. In Exp. 2,196 pigs (average initial BW of 6.5 kg) were used to determine the effects of EX operating conditions on nutritional value of a pelleted complex diet. When steam conditioning temperature (prior to expanding) was $54^{\circ}C$, increasing cone pressure of the EX from 0 to 7 to 14 kg/cm2 resulted in linear decreases in rate of gain of weaned pigs (p<0.006), suggesting heat damage of the diet. Increasing conditioning temperature (i.e., adding steam) of the diets from 46 to 54 to $63^{\circ}C$ (cone pressure at $12kg/cm^2$) resulted in improved rate of gain (p<0.04) of the pigs. However, none of the pigs fed expanded diets compared favorably to the pigs fed the conditioned $(54^{\circ}C)$ pellets processed with no cone pressure. In Exp. 3,168 pigs (average initial BW of 6.6 kg) were used to determine the effects of expanding the various components of the diet. Treatments were M and ST pellets as controls, EX-corn, EX-corn soybean-meal, EX corn-soybean meal-oil, and EX-complete diet. Efficiency of gain was increased by 13% with EX portions of the diet compared to the mash control, but there was a marked decrease in performance when the complete diet was expanded (p<0.001). Expanded corn-soybean meal-oil supported the greatest ADG with a 19% increase compared to the average of the EX corn and EX corn-soybean meal treatments (p<0.005). In conclusion, our results suggest no benefit from expanding complete phase-I diets.

Electronic properties of intrinsically conducting polymer-cellulose based composites

M.J. Richardson,J.H. Johnston,T. Borrmann 한국물리학회 2006 Current Applied Physics Vol.6 No.3

In situ polymerisation of pyrrole, aniline and derivatives with cellulosic substrates provides composites with potentially useful properties. Conductivity relative to the untreated substrate is increased, and an inverse relationship of conductivity to dielectric, and hence capacitance is observed. A metallic layer such as copper may be deposited electrochemically onto the surface of the composite, and the metal surface may then be oxidised to form either the green carbonate patina commonly seen on bronze statues, or a deep red oxide layer. When the polymer used is polypyrrole, silver may be reduced onto the surface following reduction of the polymer via hydrazine or sodium borohydride. The composites have been characterised via scanning electron microscopy, impedance analysis, cyclic voltammetry and conductivity measurements.

Calcium silicate-carbon nanotube composites

T. Borrmann,K. Edgar,J. L. Spencer,A. J. McFarlane,J. H. Johnston 한국물리학회 2004 Current Applied Physics Vol.4 No.2-4

Composites of calcium silicate and carbon nanotubes have been generated. The nanotubes are multi-walled and grow on catalytichematite particles, which have been deposited on the calcium silicate carrier previously. Randomly curled as well as straightnanotubes have been observed.The nano-structured calcium silicate crystallizes at the elevated temperature and reaction conditions used in the formation of thecarbon nanotubes. The silicate forms wollastonite, therefore reducing the high surface area of the amorphous material. Variouscarbon sources have been explored, which allow catalysis at lower temperatures.