Hokkaido University

About: Hokkaido University is a education organization based out in Sapporo, Hokkaidô, Japan. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Catalysis & Population. The organization has 53925 authors who have published 115403 publications receiving 2651647 citations. The organization is also known as: Hokudai & Hokkaidō daigaku.

Superhydrophobic and lipophobic properties of self-organized honeycomb and pincushion structures.

Abstract: This report describes the simple preparation of superhydrophobic and lipophobic surfaces by self-organization. Microporous polymer films of a fluorinated polymer with hexagonally arranged pores were prepared by casting from solution under humid conditions. Hexagonally packed water microdroplets were formed by evaporative cooling on the surface of the casting solution. After solvent evaporation, a honeycomb-patterned polymer film was formed with the water droplet array acting as a template; the water droplets themselves evaporated soon after the solvent. Two porous polymer layers were stacked vertically, separated by pillars at the hexagon vertexes. After peeling off the top layer using adhesive tape, a pincushion-like structure was obtained. Here, we show that superhydrophobic behavior was achieved, with the maximum contact angle, 170°, observed using these pincushion structures. Theoretical calculations fit the experimental results well. The lipophobic properties of the films are also discussed.

Microbiota as Predictor of Mortality in Allogeneic Hematopoietic-Cell Transplantation

Abstract: Background Relationships between microbiota composition and clinical outcomes after allogeneic hematopoietic-cell transplantation have been described in single-center studies. Geographic v...

Living Donor Liver Transplantation for Adult Patients With Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Experience in Japan

Abstract: Liver transplantation (LTx) is theoretically an ultimate cure for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), achieving total removal of cancerous lesions and underlying liver cirrhosis.1 Through most of the 1980s, however, results of LTx for HCC were discouraging, with high recurrence rates and patient survival of only 30% at 3 years.2 In the early 1990s, Iwatsuki et al3 and Bisumuth et al4 determined clinicopathologic risk factors responsible for recurrence, which led to the development of the Milan criteria by Mazzafero et al.5 According to these criteria, LTx for HCC was limited to patients with solitary tumors up to 5 cm in diameter or with no more than 3 nodules, each 3 cm or less in diameter. Patients with extrahepatic spread and/or macrovascular invasion were ineligible. When the Milan criteria were instituted, the recurrence rate fell to 8%, and tumor-free patient survival at 4 years was 83%. With worldwide adoption of these criteria, 5-year survival rates rose to between 60% and 80%.6–8 The severe disparity between the demand for transplants and the supply of organs from deceased donors (DD), however, has meant that many HCC patients who might benefit from transplantation either die before an organ becomes available or must drop off the waiting list as the result of tumor progression.9–11 The number of annual deaths by HCC is estimated at >20,000 in the United States and at >30,000 in Japan.12,13 Living donor liver transplantation (LDLTx), initially invented for pediatric recipients,14,15 has been used recently in many adults with satisfactory results.16–21 In Japan, where use of DD organs is rare (only 24 deceased donor liver transplantations [DDLTx] have been performed in the last 6 years), LDLTx has become a common practice in the treatment of HCC. Reported herein are the results of this approach in 316 adult cases nationwide.