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Chlorophyll a was adsorbed to mesoporous silica (FSM, folded-sheet mesoporous material) to form a chlorophyll-FSM conjugate, in which a nanometer-scale interaction between chlorophyll a molecules resembles a living plant leaf. The mesopores of FSM acted as nanoscale spaces not only for an interaction between chlorophyll molecules and the silica support but also for a nanoscale interaction between the absorbed chlorophyll molecules. These interactions contribute to photostability. An increase in the amount of chlorophyll adsorbed to the pores of FSM leads to an enhancement of the photostability accompanied by a shift in the absorbance maximum to a longer wavelength. The physiological function of the chlorophyll-FSM conjugate was explored as chlorophyll-FSM exhibited the photoinduced ability to catalyze the reduction of methyl viologen (an electron carrier). The evolution of hydrogen gas was observed for 14 h without deterioration when an aqueous suspension containing chlorophyll-FSM, methyl viologen, 2-mercaptoethanol (an electron donor), and platinum was illuminated with visible light.

These data suggest that the use of TNF blockers is a likely cause of SSI and DVT development in RA patients following major orthopaedic surgery.

Aim: To evaluate the prevalence rate and factors associated with sarcopenia in Japanese patients with rheumatoid arthritis.Methods: We enrolled 240 consecutive patients with rheumatoid arthritis aged ≥65 years in this study. We examined clinical data: age, sex, body mass index, disease duration, rheumatoid factor positivity, anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody positivity, biological or target synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drug use, methotrexate use, glucocorticoid use, Creactive protein level, disease activity score in 28 joints-erythrocyte sedimentation rate, Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index, bone mineral density of the lumbar spine and total hip, grip strength, gait speed, and relative skeletal muscle mass index by bioelectrical impedance analysis. Sarcopenia was defined according to a consensus report by the Asian Working Group for Sarcopenia. Results:The prevalence rate of sarcopenia was found to be 29.6%. Multivariate analysis identified the following factors to be associated with sarcopenia: age (P = 0.008; odds ratio 1.08), body mass index (P < 0.001; odds ratio 0.73), C-reactive protein (P = 0.017; odds ratio 1.76) and hip bone mineral density (P = 0.037; odds ratio 0.61). Conclusions:The sarcopenia-associated factors were age, body mass index, C-reactive protein and hip bone mineral density in Japanese patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Because the Health Assessment Questionnaire Disability Index, a standard measurement of function, cannot predict sarcopenia, the muscle mass needs to be measured while assessing changes in grip strength, body mass index, C-reactive protein and hip bone mineral density. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2019; 19: 907-912.

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A formation mechanism for monodispersed mesoporous silica spheres was investigated from the viewpoint of both particle growth and the progress of the condensation of the silica precursor. The particle growth of monodispersed mesoporous silica spheres was studied by TEM observation. The development of the mesopores was examined by in situ X-ray diffraction measurements. The condensation reaction of the silica precursor was analyzed by silicic acid titration and pH-conductivity measurements during the synthesis. It was found that small particles emerged suddenly after the commencement of the synthesis, and then the residual silica precursors reacted preferentially with the surface silanols on these existing particles. This led to the formation of monodispersed mesoporous silica spheres. Conversely, new small particles emerge throughout the synthesis in the case of a heterogeneous system. To confirm the preferential reaction of the silica precursors with the surface silanols, expansion of the existing particles was carried out by adding more silica precursor after the completion of the synthesis. It was found that the sizes of the particles were enlarged by the successive addition of more of the silica precursor. Surprisingly, the radial alignment of the hexagonal mesopores was still retained in the expanded particles. In addition, by the addition of a different silica precursor to the initial one, highly monodispersed core/shell mesoporous silica spheres possessing a hydrophilic core and a hydrophobic shell were successfully obtained for the first time.

Highly monodispersed thiol-functionalized nanoporous silica spheres with diameters in the submicron range were successfully synthesized via a surfactant-directed co-condensation of tetramethylorthosilicate (TMOS) and 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPTMS) in a very dilute alkaline methanol-water mixture. The incorporation of the thiol groups induced no drastic change in particle morphology in our reaction system, and the uniform spherical shape and the ordered hexagonal porous structure were simultaneously achieved when the molar ratio of MPTMS in the silica source was below 0.5. The inclusion of thiol groups into ordered nanoporous spheres was confirmed with EDX analysis, Raman spectroscopy, 29 Si MAS NMR, and sorption measurements. By using the thiol groups as the adsorption sites of a gold precursor, the thiolfunctionalized spheres were converted into monodispersed gold-nanoparticle-embedded nanoporous spheres. The resultant spheres were readily self-assembled into a close-packed colloidal crystalline array, which exhibited an optical stop band corresponding to Bragg diffraction as well as a surface-plasmon-derived adsorption peak. The current work provides a versatile route to multi-functional colloidal crystals with hierarchical porosity from modified porous spheres.