Hokkaido University

Asymmetrical liquid crystal dimers with 1,2,3-triazole bent-mesogenic core: synthesis, characterization and theoretical studies

This work reports new liquid crystal dimers containing an alkoxy spacer that connects 1,4-disubstituted triazole-bent core with a rod-like esterified biphenyl mesogenic core and a Schiff base with terminal cyanobiphenyl group. The structures of these dimers were elucidated using...

Photo-guided azopolymer hydrogel actuators

Amorphous azopolymers are fascinating materials that can be deformed in arbitrary directions by light. However, they are so far used mostly for microfabrication, to anisotropically reshape dry polymer structures - essentially as a post-processing fabrication step. This is because...

Lateralization of retinal structure correlated with behavioral lateralization in the oval squid Sepioteuthis lessoniana

Abstract Background Cephalopods, including Sepioteuthis lessoniana , preferentially orient either the left or right eye toward visual targets during various visually guided behaviors, as most of their visual field is monocular. Such visual lateralization is widely observed in the...

Identification of Small-Molecule Inhibitors of Babesia bovis by High-Throughput SYBR Green I Screening

Background: Bovine babesiosis, caused by Babesia bovis, remains a major constraint to cattle production in endemic regions, while the current control relies on only a few drugs with concerns over resistance and residues. Methods: This study screened 9600 chemically diverse compou...

Extratropical teleconnections in a multi-model ensemble nudged towards the observed QBO

The Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO), the dominant mode of interannual variability of monthly-mean zonal winds and temperatures in the equatorial stratosphere, has a significant influence on the circulation in other regions of the stratosphere and troposphere in boreal winter. To...

Projecting the evolution of the Northern Patagonian Icefield until the year 2200

The Northern Patagonian Icefield (NPI), Chile, is the second-largest ice mass in the Southern Hemisphere outside Antarctica and a major remnant of the Patagonian ice sheet from the Last Glacial Period. It is located in the Southern Andes, which is among the world’s glacierized re...

Proposal of a champagne bottle neck sign grading system reflecting advanced Suzuki stage and hemodynamic compromise in patients with Moyamoya disease

The champagne bottle neck sign (CBNS) is regarded as a characteristic finding of the cervical internal carotid artery in patients with moyamoya disease (MMD). However, there is no universal definition, and its clinical significance remains unclear. Here, we aimed to propose a nov...

Rapid fluvial response to meter-scale coseismic coastal uplift during the 2024 Noto Peninsula earthquake

Abstract The response of river profiles to relative base-level change is a key topic in earth surface processes, but observations capturing these changes on unconsolidated deposits at a 1–10 years timescales are scarce. We monitored geomorphic changes at the Hakka River mouth aft...

Intramolecular Hydride Transfer Racemization Coupled with Enzymatic Kinetic Resolution Enables Asymmetric Syntheses of Caged Compounds

Abstract Caged molecules featuring the pentacycloundecane framework and related substructures represent an exciting class with numerous potential applications, yet reports of their asymmetric syntheses are scarce. In this work, we report a method for the asymmetric synthesis of t...

Comparison of Nationwide Volumes for Five Major Gastrointestinal Surgical Procedures in Japan: Implications From Publicly Available NCD and NDB Open Data

ABSTRACT Aim In Japan, the National Clinical Database (NCD), a clinician‐reported registry, and the National Database of Health Insurance Claims and Specific Health Checkups of Japan Open Data (NDB Open Data), an administrative claims database, are both widely used as nationwide...

Influence of mesoporous Wakkanai siliceous shale and microporous zeolite 13X on the thermal energy storage performance of MgCl2/2CaCl2 composites

Thermochemical energy storage (TCES) using composite salt hydrates is a promising technology for low-grade heat utilization. However, a systematic comparison linking the mass transfer behavior and structural stability of representative mesoporous and microporous matrices to packe...

Divergent proviral load trajectories and clonal dynamics of HTLV-1-infected cells during antirheumatic therapy in rheumatoid arthritis

The optimal management of human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) carriers requiring long-term immunomodulatory therapy remains unclear. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) living with HTLV-1 frequently receive antirheumatic therapy, raising concerns regarding the potenti...

Exploratory analysis of the associations of short-chain fatty acids and their related factors with growth performance in growing pigs using a Bayesian network

We suggested the causal relationships between daily weight gains (DG) and feed conversion ratios (FCR) of growing pigs, and short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) concentrations in digesta and blood, and SCFA-related factors such as intestinal morphology, SCFA transporters and tight junc...

The parent bodies of Ryugu and Ivuna formed before those of other carbonaceous chondrites

Most carbonaceous chondrite (CC) meteorites contain abundant chondrules, millimeter-scale spherical inclusions of previously molten material. Ivuna-type carbonaceous chondrites (CIs) do not contain chondrules, nor do samples of the carbonaceous asteroid Ryugu. CIs and Ryugu share...

Thiophenol-Based Designer Enzymes for Asymmetric Hydrogen/Deuterium Atom Transfer

Abstract The enantioselective control of short-lived radical species in aqueous media represents a major challenge in modern catalysis. Herein, we report on the design and evolution of a designer enzyme with a genetically encoded thiophenol moiety that enables enantioselective hy...

High tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase expression promotes lenvatinib resistance in hepatocellular carcinoma

Background Lenvatinib (LEN) is a key first-line therapy for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), but intrinsic and acquired resistance limits its long-term efficacy. We aimed to identify novel mechanisms underlying LEN resistance and to explore clinically relevant biomarkers...

Visualizing electron flow at transition states by natural reaction orbitals

Transition-state analysis in quantum chemistry provides structural and energetic information but does not directly reveal how electron density is redistributed at the onset of bond reorganization. Although frontier-orbital theory is highly effective for predicting reactivity from...

Spatiotemporal Distribution of Coseismic Slip During the 2025 Kamchatka Earthquake Inferred from Tsunami Waveform Data

ABSTRACT On 29 July 2025 (UTC), an earthquake with a moment magnitude of approximately 8.8 occurred along the plate interface of the Kamchatka subduction zone and generated a trans-Pacific tsunami. Using tsunami waveform data recorded at offshore stations, we conducted tsunami wa...

Effect modification by baseline lactate in the association between time to assigned mean arterial pressure target and outcomes in older patients with septic shock: a post hoc analysis of the OPTPRESS trial

Time to target mean arterial pressure (TTT-MAP) may capture the temporal dimension of circulatory recovery in septic shock; however, its prognostic relevance needs clarification. This study aimed to investigate the impact of baseline lactate on the TTT-MAP-clinical outcome associ...

Catalyst-Free Dichlorination of Alkenes by Direct Photoexcitation of N-Chloro(fluorenone imine)

A catalyst-free visible-light-induced dichlorination of alkenes has been developed using an N-chloro(fluorenone imine) reagent. The reaction proceeds through direct photoexcitation of the reagent under blue-light irradiation and enables vicinal dichlorination of aliphatic alkenes...