Background: The influences of demographics, culture, language, and environmental changes on Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores are considerable.

Methods: Using a sample of 7452 healthy, community-dwelling elderly Koreans, aged 55 to 94 years, who participated in the four ongoing geriatric cohorts in Korea, we investigated demographic influences on MMSE scores and derived normative data for this population. Geropsychiatrists strictly excluded subjects with cognitive disorders according to the protocol of the Korean version of the Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Packet (CERAD-K) Clinical Assessment Battery (CERAD-K-C).

Results: Education (standardized β = 0.463), age (standardized β = −0.303), and gender (standardized β = −0.057) had significant effects on MMSE scores (p < 0.001). The score of MMSE increase 0.379 point per 1-year education, decrease 0.188 per 1-year older, and decrease 0.491 in women compared to men. Education explained 30.4% of the scores’ total variance, which was much larger than the variances explained by age (8.4%) or gender (0.3%). Accordingly, we present normative data for the MMSE stratified by education (0, 1–3, 4–6, 7–9, 10–12, and ≥ 13 years), age (60–69, 70–79, and 80–89 years), and gender.

Conclusions: We provide contemporary education-, age-, and gender-stratified norms for the MMSE, derived from a large, community-dwelling elderly Korean population sample, which could be useful in evaluating individual MMSE scores.

We evaluated the effects of the two main kiwifruit cultivars (gold kiwifruit (GOK) and green kiwifruit (GRK)) and their active phenolic compound, quercetin, on H2O2-induced inhibition of gap-junction intercellular communication (GJIC) in WB-F344 rat liver epithelial cells. We found that both GOK and GRK protect WB-F344 cells from H2O2-induced inhibition of GJIC. The extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2)–connexin 43 (Cx43) signalling pathway is crucial for the regulation of GJIC, and both GOK and GRK blocked the H2O2-induced phosphorylation of Cx43 and ERK1/2 in WB-F344 cells. Quercetin alone attenuated the H2O2-mediated ERK1/2–Cx43 signalling pathway and consequently reversed H2O2-mediated inhibition of GJIC in WB-F344 cells. A free radical-scavenging assay using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl showed that the scavenging activity of quercetin was higher than that of a synthetic antioxidant, butylated hydroxytoluene, per mol, suggesting that the chemopreventive effect of quercetin on H2O2-mediated inhibition of ERK1/2–Cx43 signalling and GJIC may be mediated through its free radical-scavenging activity. Since the carcinogenicity of reactive oxygen species such as H2O2 is attributable to the inhibition of GJIC, GOK, GRK and quercetin may have chemopreventive potential by preventing the inhibition of GJIC.

We have fabricated the nano-floating gate memory with the TiSi2 and WSi2 nanocrystals embedded in the dielectrics. The TiSi2 and WSi2 nanocrystals were created by using sputtering and rapidly thermal annealing system, and then their morphologies were investigated by transmission electron microscopy. These nanocrystals have a spherical shape with an average diameter of 2-5 nm. The electrical properties of the nano-floating gate memory with TiSi2 and WSi2 nanocrystals were characterized by capacitance-voltage (C-V) hysteresis curve, memory speed and retention. The flat-band voltage shifts of the TiSi2 and WSi2 nanocrystals capacitors obtained appeared up to 4.23 V and 4.37 V, respectively. Their flat-band voltage shifts were maintained up to 1.6 V and 1 V after 1 hr.

The features of dynamic transformation for grain refinement of lowcarbon steels are presented and representative results of trial hotstrip productions are reported. Laboratory experiments have establishedthat dynamic transformation occurs in under-cooled austeniteunder suitable deformation conditions. Trial production resultsshowed that utilizing the dynamic transformation concept, grain refinementof ferrite is feasible in commercial hot strip mills: a ferritegrain size of 2~3 μm can be obtained, along with various controlledsecond phases.

Ge2Sb2Te5 is under intense investigation for phase-change memory devices, including rewriteable DVDs where optical illumination is used to switch between the glassy and crystalline states. We investigate the influence of optical irradiation on amorphous phase. Many chalcogenides display photo-oxidation, photodarkening or photo-bleaching, but little has been reported on the Ge-Sb-Te system. Using spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) and secondary ion mass spectrometry, we determine that the samples have a strong tendency to photo-oxidize; if this is not accounted for, then the analysis of SE data appears to show photodarkening. Other authors recently reported photodarkening in nonstoichiometric GexSb20-xTe80 [Pamukchieva et al., Proc. SPIE 5581, 608 (2004); Pamukchieva et al., J. Optoelectron. Adv. Mater 7, 1277 (2005)], but our analysis suggests that the changes were also the result of photo-oxidation. The oxide has lower value of (n, k) than Ge2Sb2Te5, and can be etched by hydrofluoric acid or water. The photo-oxidation is presumably the result of free carrier generation in the Ge2Sb2Te5. Our observation of negligible photodarkening is consistent with previous works that found less photodarkening in tellurides compared with selenides or sulfides, and that an increase in the mean coordination number, here by Ge addition, further reduces the photodarkening effect.

The onset of pronucleus formation and DNA synthesis in porcine oocytes following the injection of porcine or murine sperm was determined in order to obtain insights into species-specific paternal factors that contribute to fertilisation. Similar frequencies of oocytes with female pronuclei were observed after injection with porcine sperm or with murine sperm. In contrast, male pronuclei formed 8-9 h following the injection of porcine sperm, and 6-8 h following the injection of murine sperm. After pronucleus formation maternally derived microtubules were assembled and appeared to move both male and female pronuclei to the oocyte centre. A few porcine oocytes entered metaphase 22 h after the injection of murine sperm, but normal cell division was not observed. The mean time of onset of S-phase in male pronuclei was 9.7 h following porcine sperm injection and 7.4 h following mouse sperm injection. Ultrastructural observation revealed that male pronuclei derived from murine sperm in porcine oocytes are morphologically similar to normal male pronuclei in porcine zygotes. These results suggest that species-specific paternal factors influence the onset of pronucleus formation and DNA synthesis. However, normal nuclear cytoplasmic interactions were observed in porcine S-phase oocytes following murine sperm injection.

In the present study we determined the chromatin organization and fate of introduced mitochondria in porcine embryos following intracytoplasmic injection of pig or mouse sperm cells. At 3, 6, 9 and 12 h following injection of pig or mouse spermatozoa or isolated sperm heads, the oocytes were fixed and stained with propidium iodide. Between 3 and 6 h following injection, both porcine and murine sperm chromatin developed into pronuclei. The male and female pronuclei were apposed within 12 h in porcine oocytes following sperm injection from either source. We also introduced foreign mitochondria from either mouse or pig sperm midpiece into porcine oocytes following sperm injection. While porcine sperm mitochondria rapidly disappeared from the actively developing porcine oocytes, mouse sperm mitochondria remained in the embryos until the 8-cell stage. These results suggest that pronuclear formation and movement occur between 6 and 12 h following sperm incorporation into the cytoplasm, and that foreign mitochondria are selectively removed in a species-specific manner.

Chromatin and microtubule organisation was determined in maturing and activated porcine oocytes following intracytoplasmic sperm injection in order to obtain insights into the nature of sperm chromatin decondensation and microtubule nucleation activity. Sperm chromatin was slightly decondensed at 8 h following injection into germinal vesicle stage oocytes. Sperm-derived microtubules were not seen in these oocytes. Following injection into metaphase I (MI)-stage oocytes, sperm chromatin went to metaphase in most cases. A meiotic-like spindle was seen in the sperm metaphase chromatin. In a few MI-stage oocytes, sperm chromatin decondensed at 8 h after injection, and a small sperm aster was seen. Sperm injection into oocytes at 5 h following activation failed to yield pronuclear formation. Maternally derived microtubules were organised near the female chromatin in these oocytes, and seemed to move condensed male chromatin closer to the female pronucleus. At 18 h after sperm injection into pre-activated oocytes, a condensed sperm nucleus was located in close proximity to the female pronucleus. These results suggest that the sperm nuclear decondensing activity and microtubule nucleation abilities of the male centrosome are cell cycle dependent. In the absence of a functional male centrosome, microtubules of female origin take over the role of microtubule nucleation for nuclear movement.

We introduce a method to build up organic/organic and organic/inorganic multilayer films composed of cationic poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) and negatively charged poly(sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) (PSS) or inorganic cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanoparticles using a spinning process. Since the deposition of each layer is made at a high spinning speed, the adsorption time for the formation of a homogeneous thin layer takes only 8 to 15 seconds. The adsorbed film thickness per bilayer can be easily controlled from about 5Å to 40Å by varying the spinning speed (Ω) and the mole concentration of polyelectrolytes. We also demonstrated with X-ray reflectivity that the alternating organic/inorganic ultrathin films fabricated by the spin SA process retain highly ordered internal structure in comparison with those prepared by the conventional SA process.