Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a girdle which can improve posture by acting on the muscles around the pelvis, is easy to handle and can be worn with no uncomfortable feeling. An example of the present invention is a girdle (short girdle and long girdle) containing, in an area fitting over a wearer's body, a tightening portion for which the magnitude of a tightening force varies with areas. When the garment is being worn, the tightening fabric portion extends from the vicinity of an upper part of the buttocks cleft, passing the vicinities of upper parts of the right and left buttocks, to the vicinities of the right and left greater trochanters, and the tightening fabric portion may be made of material having a tightening force. Moreover, a body front tightening fabric portion is provided at the front of the garment.

Abstract: This invention relates generally to the treatment of cathepsin or dynamin mediated diseases, such as proteinuria, cancer, and cognitive disease and related products. Diagnostic and other assays are also provided, as well as methods for podocyte cell gene transfer.

Abstract: A buck DC to DC converter is arranged to more accurately regulate an output voltage by substantially eliminating a ground voltage error caused at least in part by parasitic resistance during low side conversion/regulation. During high side conduction of the high side switch, the converter employs the output voltage for error correction. And during low side conduction of the low side switch, the converter employs a sampled and held version of the output voltage for error correction which enables the converter to eliminate the ground voltage error caused by parasitic resistance.

Abstract: The systems and methods described herein allow measurement of the velocity of a pulse wave propagating within a body lumen using an intravascular elongate medical device. The elongate medical device can include a data collection device configured to collect pulse wave data at a location within the lumen. The data collection device is communicatively coupled with a velocity measurement system and configured to output the collected data to the velocity measurement system. The velocity measurement system is configured to calculate the velocity of the pulse wave based on the collected data. The velocity of a pulse wave over a region of the lumen can be used for tissue characterization, diagnosis and the like.

Abstract: The invention describes compounds, compositions, and methods of using the same comprising a chemical moiety covalently attached to amphetamine. These compounds and compositions are useful for reducing or preventing abuse and overdose of amphetamine. These compounds and compositions find particular use in providing an abuse-resistant alternative treatment for certain disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), ADD, narcolepsy, and obesity. Oral bioavailability of amphetamine is maintained at therapeutically useful doses. At higher doses bioavailability is substantially reduced, thereby providing a method of reducing oral abuse liability. Further, compounds and compositions of the invention decrease the bioavailability of amphetamine by parenteral routes, such as intravenous or intranasal administration, further limiting their abuse liability.

Abstract: A transversally electrically excited gas discharge laser for generating light pulses with a high pulse repetition rate. The gas discharge laser has components include a gas-tight discharge tube with opposed wall passages and front ends. The discharge tube includes ceramic material with laser gas sealed therein. The components also include partial metal layers disposed on the discharge tube. Decoupling and holding elements including support trays are disposed in the wall passages, with the support trays being adhered with solder to the discharge tube via the partial metal layers. The components also include a pair of electrodes extending axially and disposed in the decoupling and holding elements so as to form a gas discharge path. The components also include a pair of rod-shaped electrodes disposed in the discharge tube that are substantially parallel to the main electrodes and operable to control the starting conditions of gas discharge.

Abstract: A method for producing a branched-polyether resin composition of the present invention includes a first step of obtaining a reaction mixture including: (1-A) a branched-polyether resin (X) containing a hydroxyl group, an acryloyl group, and an epoxy group and (1-B) at least one resin component selected from the group consisting of (1-B-1) a diacrylate (A2) of an aromatic difunctional epoxy resin, (1-B-2) a monoacrylate (A1) of an aromatic difunctional epoxy resin, and (1-B-3) an aromatic difunctional epoxy resin (B) other than (A1) and (A2); and a second step of mixing the reaction mixture and an unsaturated monocarboxylic acid, and reacting the epoxy group in the reaction mixture and a carboxyl group in the unsaturated monocarboxylic acid.

Abstract: A method of power down control (PDC) for a display device is to be implemented by a processor in a power down controller of the display device. The power down controller includes a main system, a main system power source, and a PDC power source. The method includes the steps of: (A) receiving power from the PDC power source, determining if the main system is to be activated, and proceeding to step (B) if affirmative; (B) turning on the main system power source, and activating the main system; (C) determining if operation in a power down mode is intended, and proceeding to step (D) if affirmative; and (D) turning off the main system power source to operate in the power down mode. Further, a state parameter is stored that allows the main system to be restored to the operating state prior to a power interruption.

Abstract: The present invention provides a composition comprising an effective amount of benfotiamine and an effective amount of pyridoxamine in a suitable vehicle for topical application. The present compositions are useful in improving the appearance of aged skin characterized by wrinkles, loss of elasticity, and hyperpigmentation caused by chronoaging and/or photoaging of skin, by inhibiting particularly skin damage resulting from reactive carbonyl species (RCS), glycation of skin proteins, formation of advanced glycation endproducts (AGEs) and formation of advanced lipoxidation endproducts (ALEs).

Abstract: Cytokines and their receptors have proven usefulness in both basic research and as therapeutics. The present invention provides a new human cytokine receptor designated as “Zcytor16.

Abstract: A slide fastener with a slider locking mechanism comprising a slider body, a tab attached to the slider body rotatably, and a slider having a locking pawl formed integrally with the tab, wherein the locking pawl has a pawl portion fitted into between the elements, and the pawl portion comprises: a first contact surface which, when the tab is rotated after sliding operation of the slider is ended, contacts with a first element of an element row attached to a fastener stringer to stop the tab's rotation temporarily; and a second contact surface which, when the slider starts a forced movement in an element separating direction with the tab's rotation stopped, contacts with a second element to stop the slider's forced movement in a state where the tab restarts to rotate and the pawl portion is fitted into between the elements.

Abstract: The present invention relates to compositions containing unacylated ghrelin and derivatives thereof and their uses in the control of glycemia in ageing patients, GH deficient patients, diabetic patients and obese patients.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a printed circuit board using an imprinting process, in which a pattern having a large area can be uniformly formed using a plurality of molds, and the plurality of molds is sequentially removed, thereby solving problems occurring in release of the molds from an insulating layer.

Abstract: A metallic double-sided element comprising a coupling head includes: thin flat plate portions; coupling convex portions projecting at a central portion in the right-left direction of the thin flat plate portion; right and left raised portions which are raised in the front surface-rear surface direction from the thin flat plate portion disposed on the right and left sides of each of the coupling convex portions and integrated with the body portion; and a coupling concave portion which is formed surrounded by the coupling convex portion, the right and left raised portions and the body portion, wherein each of the right and left raised portions has a slope portion which is inclined from a front edge toward the body portion such that the slope portion rises thereof, part of each side face of the right and left slope portions is integrated with part of right and left side faces of the coupling convex portion in a face bonding manner.

Abstract: A driving form switching apparatus enabling even a user of wheelchair who cannot freely use limb to easily change over a driving form by single hand self-operation. By using a differential gear mechanism or a combination mechanism comprising pinions and racks, the rotating, tilting and shifting motions of a steering lever are transmitted to two rotating shafts. Drums are directly coupled to the two rotating shafts, and the rotations of the two rotating shafts are transmitted to steering shafts through flexible wires as first connecting means. Also, the steering shafts for wheels are parallel- or cross-connected by second connecting means. Thus, the driving forms of a four-wheel drive vehicle such as back and forth traveling, counter-clockwise turning, clockwise turning, turning on the spot, parallel traveling, stopping and braking, etc, can be switched by a single-hand simple operation.

Abstract: A paint container, comprising a body (10) with a polygonal cross section, presenting upper edge portions (13) and a lid (20) having lateral edge portions (21) which are removably seated and tightly retained in a seat (15) defined along the upper edge portions (13) of the body (10). The lid (20) presents a lower face (20a) incorporating a downwardly projecting support means (22) which is engaged with an adjacent upper edge portion (13) of the body (10) after the opening of the lid (20), in order to maintain the latter with its adjacent lateral edge portion (21) externally seated against the lateral wall (11) of the body (10) and in an inclined position with its lower face (20a) forming a paint drip tray, said support means (22) defining a deflecting chute (25) for directing, to the interior of the body (10), the paint that is gravitationally dripping down the internal face (20a) of the lid (20).

Abstract: A template or wrapper tree for a document such as a web page is generalized from the bottom up (from leaf toward root of a logical tree structure of the template). At a given level in the tree, sub-trees are clustered and the clustered sub-trees are generalized, and the process is repeated at a next higher level in the tree, resulting in a generalized template or wrapper tree. This can be done by generating a nested pattern regular expression based on the sub-tree clusters, merging sub-trees based on the nested pattern regular expression, and then replacing sub-trees in a tree-based regular expression of the template or wrapper at the given level with the merged sub-trees. This process is repeated at a next higher level of the tree (progressing from leaf towards root) until the wrapper or tree-based regular expression that represents the template is fully generalized.

Abstract: A novel fluorescent substance for a light-emitting diode, emitting light of any one of three primary colors by excitation of an ultraviolet light-emitting diode. Alternatively, a novel fluorescent substance for a light-emitting diode, emitting light in a red region of a spectrum by excitation of a blue light-emitting diode. Na2SrSi2O6 is doped with Eu3+. Preferably, Eu3+ is added so as to account for 1 to 80 mol % in concentration in a host crystal, while sites of Si4+ in Na2SrSi2O6. are replaced by Al3+ and/or Ga3+. Alternatively, Ca3Si2O7 is doped with Ce3+ and Tb3+. Preferably, Ce3+ and Tb3+ are added so as to account for 0.1 to 80 mol % and 0.1 to 20 mol % in concentration in a host crystal, respectively. Still alternatively, Ca3Si2O7 is doped with Eu2+. Preferably, Eu2+ is added so as to account for 0.5 to 10 mol % in concentration in the host crystal.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for producing metal oxide from metal compounds, in particular metal hydroxide or metal carbonate, in which the metal compound is conveyed into a reactor (25) with fluidized bed, heated there to a temperature of 650 15 to 1150° C. by combustion of fuel, and metal oxide is generated, as well as to a corresponding plant. To improve the utilization of energy, it is proposed to introduce a first gas or gas mixture from below through a gas supply tube (26) into a mixing chamber (20) of the reactor (25), the gas supply tube (26) being at least partly surrounded by a stationary annular fluidized bed (27) which is fluidized by supplying fluidizing gas, and 20 to adjust the gas velocities of the first gas or gas mixture and of the fluidizing gas for the annular fluidized bed (27) such that the Particle-Froude numbers in the gas supply tube (26) lie between 1 and 100, in the annular fluidized bed (27) between 0.02 and 2, and in the mixing chamber (20) between 0.3 and 30.