Biomedical subjects

Yasuhiro Utsumi

Publications and source records attributed to Yasuhiro Utsumi.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Full counting statistics for a single-electron transistor: nonequilibrium effects at intermediate conductance.

We evaluate the current distribution for a single-electron transistor with intermediate strength tunnel conductance. Using the Schwinger-Keldysh approach and the drone (Majorana) fermion representation, we account for the renormalization of system parameters. Nonequilibrium effects induce a lifetime broadening of the charge-state levels, which suppress large current fluctuations.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2005

Stem water transport of Lithocarpus edulis, an evergreen oak with radial-porous wood.

The stem water conducting system of an evergreen broad-leaved oak, Lithocarpus edulis (Mak.) Nakai, was investigated. Evergreen broad-leaved oaks (Lithocarpus, Castanopsis, Cyclobalanopsis, Quercus) belonging to the Quercoideae are a major component of Asian monsoon forests, and are characterized by the possession of radial-porous wood. A characteristic of radial-porous wood is the development of aggregate rays between radially oriented files of vessels. We measured the distribution of vessel lumen diameters in a stem cross section and calculated the theoretical water conductivity of the wood. The radial profile of the heat pulse velocity (HPV) was measured for an intact whole tree under field conditions and compared with the theoretical distribution of water conductivity. Soft X-ray photographs of frozen stem sections indicated that most of the vessel lumina were filled with water, including those of vessels more than 20 years old. Even when vessels were relatively wide (lumen diameters > 100 microm), cavitation was negligible. The rate of water uptake from the cut stem base correlated closely with HPV (r = 0.96), and HPV closely reflected the mean volume flow per stem sectional area (SFVS) around the sensor probes. However, the ray tissue sharply inhibited heat transfer, and the positioning of the probes strongly affected the absolute value of HPV. It was also found that HPV more closely reflected the mean sap flow velocity in the vessels than did SFVS.

Plant Leaves↗

PubMed2005

Visualizing water-conduction pathways of living trees: selection of dyes and tissue preparation methods.

To visualize water-conduction pathways in living trees, we introduced aqueous solutions of safranin and acid fuchsin into stems of Populus sieboldii Miquel. To examine the spread of each dye in the trees, we compared several techniques for preparing tissue for light microscopy. Acid fuchsin was distributed more rapidly and more widely than safranin, reflecting differences between the dye molecules in state of ionization. We prepared some sections without allowing the dye to redissolve after it had been stabilized by freeze-drying. In these sections, the dye was observed in vessels and in some of the adjacent ray parenchyma cells. Other sections were prepared without stabilizing the dye. In these sections, acid fuchsin in the sap stream left cell walls unstained, whereas safranin stained wood fibers in the vicinity of vessels, as well as the vessels themselves, provided that the sections were mounted in glycerin, which dissolves safranin. Although stained with safranin, the wood fibers contained no water. The results indicate that stabilization of the introduced dye and subsequent preparation of tissues under conditions that avoid dye resolublilization allow accurate visualization of water-conduction pathways at the cellular level.

Phenazines↗

PubMed2003

Temporal water deficit and wood formation in Cryptomeria japonica.

Cell behavior in the cambium and developing xylem of 3-year-old Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica D. Don.) trees, during and after an 11-day suspension of irrigation, was analyzed. Leaf xylem pressure potential and tangential strain of the stem surface were monitored throughout the experiment. Anatomical features and numbers of developing tracheids and cambial cells were observed in four trees, sampled on Days 0, 4, 8 and 11 after irrigation was suspended. Daytime xylem pressure potential decreased to -1.9 MPa on Day 7 and remained the same until irrigation was resumed on Day 11. The transverse dimensions of the tracheids, which began to form secondary walls, began to decrease on Day 4. The number of cells in the cambial zone and cell expansion zone decreased abruptly on Day 8. Tangentially aligned developing tracheids with collapsed cell walls were observed in samples harvested on Days 8 and 11. Secondary wall formation was recognized in these tracheids. After the resumption of irrigation, xylem pressure potential recovered rapidly to the same value as before the suspension of irrigation. Tangential strain increased within 30 min after the resumption of irrigation, and continued to increase until the onset of light the next day. Eighteen days after the resumption of irrigation, anatomical features of cells in the cambium and cell-expansion zone were similar to those observed before suspension of irrigation.

Cryptomeria↗

PubMed2003

Seasonal and perennial changes in the distribution of water in the sapwood of conifers in a sub-frigid zone.

An analysis was made of progressive changes in patterns of cavitation in the sapwood of three species of conifer (Larix kaempferi, Abies sachalinensis, and Picea jezoensis) that were growing in a sub-frigid zone. In all three conifers, all tracheids of the newly forming outermost annual ring were filled with water or cytoplasm during the period from May to August. However, many tracheids in the transition zone from earlywood to latewood lost water in September, presumably through drought-induced cavitation. Cavitated tracheids tended to be continuously distributed in a tangential direction. Subsequently, some earlywood tracheids of the outermost annual ring lost water during the period from January to March. This was associated with freeze-thaw cycles. In the second and third annual rings from the cambium of all three conifers, the lumina of most tracheids in the transition zone from earlywood to latewood contained no water. In contrast, some latewood tracheids near the annual ring boundary and many earlywood tracheids retained water in their lumina. The third annual ring had more cavitated tracheids than the second annual ring. Our observations indicated that cavitation progressed gradually in the tracheids of the conifers and that they were never refilled once cavitation had occurred. The region involved in water transport in conifers did not include the entire sapwood and differed among annual rings.

Abies↗