Electrically conductive CNT reinforced polycarbonate matrix nanocomposites with high strain-to-failure were fabricated by inserting polyvinylalcohol as a surface modifier through a melt blending process. The addition of PVA by coating the CNT through a simple ball milling process before melt blending with a polycarbonate matrix resulted in an increased percolation limit as compared to that prep...

Water soluble homo-base polynucleotide analogues were synthesized in which polyvinyl alcohol and partially phosphonated polyvinyl alcohol constituted the backbones,onto which were grafted uracil or adenine via 1,3-dioxane spacers formed by acetal formation with the 1,3-diol moieties in PVA. The resulting adenine-PVA polynucleotide analogs exhibited hyperchromic effects, which was not the case f...

Both petnphigus vulgaris antigen (PVA; Dsg3) and petnphigus foliaceus antigen (PFA; Dsgl) are tnembers of the destnoglein subfamily of the cadherin supergene fatnily. Another destnosotnal cadherin, destnocollin, is occasionally recognized by certain petnphigus sera. We present a 38-year-old Japanese tnale who showed clinically and histopathologically typical features of petnphigus vulgaris, who...

Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM) is characterized by fibro-fatty replacement of the myocardium, heart failure and life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias. Causal mutations were identified in genes encoding for proteins desmosomes, predominantly plakophilin-2 (PKP2) desmoglein-2 (DSG2). We generated gene-edited knock-out iPSC lines PKP2 (JMUi001-A-2) DSG2 (JMUi001-A-3) using CRISPR/Cas9 syst...

Background: Pemphigus vulgaris, the most common form of pemphigus, is due to the production of auto-antibodies directed against adhesion molecules (desmoglein 1 and 3) that belong to the cadherin family. B cell-activating factor of the TNF family (BAFF) and a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) may play a significant role in autoimmune diseases such as pemphigus vulgaris. Only a few studies h...