The effect of the dielectric properties of electrorheological fluids on electrorheology was investigated in DC electric fields by using both hydrous and anhydrous electrorheological fluids. The relaxation frequency, which is defined by a local maximum of the dielectric loss factor of an electrorheological fluid, was in the range from 100- whenever the electrorheological fluid had a large electrorheological effect. This effect increased with increasing difference between the dielectric constants below and above the relaxation frequency both for hydrous and anhydrous electrorheological fluids, when the relaxation frequency was in the range 100-. For the electrorheological fluid containing microcrystalline cellulose, the change of the rheology curve, namely the shear rate versus shear stress ( versus ) curve, with increasing adsorbed water content could be interpreted in terms of the relation between the shear rate and the polarization rate. The mechanism of electrorheology could also explain the effect of the current density on the ER effect.

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The coexistence of two cutaneous non-Hodgkin's lymphomas of different lineage is rare. We report a patient with an indolent erythrodermic cutaneous T-cell lymphoma followed by an aggressive B-cell lymphoma. To our best knowledge, this is the first report describing Epstein-Barr virus-associated B-cell lymphoma in a patient with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. We suggest that the long-standing cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, as well as the long-term chemotherapy, suppressed host immunity and caused reactivation of latent Epstein-Barr virus.

Electrorheological gel (ERG) is a novel functional elastomer, which has frictional and adhesive surface properties that vary according to the intensity of an applied electric field. This peculiar phenomenon is referred to as the electro-adhesive (EA) effect. The shear stress of ERG generated under an applied electric field is approximately 30-40 times higher than that of electrorheological fluids (ERF), due to its high adhesive strength. However, the generated EA effect of ERGs varies widely due to surface conditions, especially the density and distribution of ER particles at the surface. In order to stabilize and improve the performance of ERG, the electrical field-assisted molding process is proposed as a production method. In this process, the mixture solution including ERFs and gel agent is gelling under electric field. The principle of the EA effect is theoretically investigated and a high-performance ERG produced by the proposed process, in which ER particles are aligned densely at the surface, is developed and the performance is experimentally evaluated by surface observation and shear test, revealing a highly dense arrangement of ER particle at its surface and a higher shear stress twice that of conventional ERG.

We report a 73-year-old Japanese female who developed IgG autoantibodies against BP180 as well as desmoglein 3 (Dsg3). She showed tense blisters on the extremities without apparent mucosal involvement and a skin biopsy indicated subepidermal blisters with eosinophilic spongiosis. Her clinical and histologic features indicated the diagnosis of bullous pemphigoid while anti-Dsg3 IgG might not show an apparent pathogenic effect. Interestingly, titres of anti-Dsg3 IgG fluctuated in parallel with those of anti-BP180 IgG throughout the course with two flares. Although the exact mechanism for autoantibody production is still unknown, the close link in the production of IgG autoantibodies against two independent skin antigens suggests a shared immunoregulatory mechanism against cutaneous autoantigens.

Electro-rheological gel (ERG) is a new functional material whose surface friction and adhesive properties vary according to the intensity of the applied electric field. In a recent study, one-sided patterned electrodes were applied to the ERG and the change in surface frictional and adhesive property under the electric field, which is called the ERG effect, was experimentally confirmed. The ERG with one-sided patterned electrodes is considered to be suitable for application to a fixture device for micro milling. In this study, a prototype of the ERG fixture device was developed and its performance was experimentally investigated. The proposed ERG fixture devices can be useful for fixturing both metallic and nonmetallic workpieces, such as glass. Micro shrinkage of the ERG occurs in proportion to the voltage applied to the ERG material. Using this characteristic, the alignment of the workpiece can be also adjusted. The developed ERG fixture device was applied to the micro grooving process of a thin glass workpiece, and successful results were obtained.

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