A group of new N,N-bis(5-acetylpyridin-2-yl)phenylamine derivatives was synthesized in good yield applying an optimized Buchwald-Hartwig amination protocol. The synthesized compounds showed UV absorption maxima in the range of 320-360 nm, and showed good luminescence at dilute concentrations in the blue region of the spectra (in the range of 480-497 nm). They showed also a bathochromic shift associating the increase in solvent polarity. The synthesized compounds could be investigated for use in OLEDs or as potential monomers for PLEDs.

이름은 사회를 공동체로 만드는 기능이 있다. 지명을 붙이는 방법에는 ‘문화적 유산’, ‘언어적 이름 붙이기’, ‘자연적 ․ 지각적으로 이름 붙이기’, ‘어원적 이름 붙이기’ 등4가지가 있다.이 이름들은 자연적 위험, 정치적 ․사회적 움직임이 나타나면 변할 수 있는데,이름은 이러한 지역의 정보를 담고 있다. 즉, 지명의 변화는 통시적, 공시적으로 변화한다는 것이다. 이것들을 바탕으로 상호적으로 이해 가능한 새 유형을 만들기 위한 행정, 정치와 상관된 문화 ․역사적 결과를 연결시켜 바라볼 수 있다.

α-Acaridial [2(E)-(4-methyl-3-pentenyl)butenedial] is a novel monoterpene secreted from the house dust mites. Because of its molecular nature of a highly reactive, small lipidic compound, we addressed whether α-acaridial might function as a haptenic allergen that induced allergic contact dermatitis. Mice sensitized with α-acaridial were challenged by the same antigen on the ear skin. After 2 days, significant ear swelling with a prominent infiltration of CD4+ T lymphocytes was observed. In vitro, α-acaridial exhibited an outstanding ability to quickly interact with and chemically modify a reference protein. Virtually all cysteine residues and a sizable fraction of lysine residues were found to be selectively modified, suggesting that α-acaridial could potentially interact with any proteins. Previously, numerous mite-derived proteinaceous allergens have been associated with contact dermatitis. Our study now emphasizes that small lipidic compounds released from mites comprise a new class of mite allergens, and therefore, is of significant medical implications.

To establish a rapid diagnosis method for the monitoring of acaricide resistance in the two-spotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae, we evaluated the performance of residual contact vial (RCV) method as a routine bioassay for T. urticae by using two widely used acaricides, abamectin and tebupenpyrad. Appropriate concentrations of test acaricides were dissolved in acetone and evenly coated (100 μl) onto the inside wall of a 4-ml glass vial using a rolling machine. The average survival times in untreated control vial was longer than 12 hrs in the absence of food or water regardless of cap being closed or open. Webbing behavior of mites inside the vial, which may interfere with maximum chemical contact, began to be observed from 8 hrs post treatment. The minimum concentrations causing 100% mortality within 8 hrs posttreatment in a susceptible strain of T. urticae were determined to be 30 and 60 ppm in abamectin and tebupenpyrad, respectively. Dose-response curve was significantly affected by temperature in both acaricides, in which the knockdown rate increased greatly as temperature increased. The endpoint mortality at 6-8 hrs posttreatment, however, was not significantly affected by temperature. Nymphal stage of mites showed more rapid intoxication response than adults but endpoint mortality at 6-8 hrs posttreatment was not substantially different between developmental stages. When compared with the results from conventional spray method, RCV method showed moderate to high correlation coefficients (r=0.51~0.98), suggesting that it is a reliable in determining susceptibility of T. urticae. The vial-coated pesticides were stable at least one year when stored at -20°C as determined by LC-MS/MS analysis. Moreover, there was no significant difference in the bioassay results in repeated experiments with three different persons, indicative of high reproducibility of RCV. The RCV diagnostic kit, when used by farmers on site, should provide crucial and essential information for the selection of most suitable acaricides for different field populations of T. urticae.

Female ticks require a blood meal for vitellogenesis to occur. Vitellogenin (Vg), a precursor of yolk protein, is essential for egg development and Vg synthesis appears to be regulated by ecdysteroids in ticks. To better understand the regulation of Vg synthesis in ticks, the Vg gene was identified from Orinthodoros moubata. OmVg is composed of 5,502 bp encoding a 1,834 aa protein with Vg specific characteristics. OmVg gene showed the highest homology with the hard tick Dermacentor variabilis and was included in the same clade of a phylogenetic tree as the hard tick and crustacean Vg genes. OmVg gene expression was observed in females but not in nymphal stages and during molting. Both mated and virgin females showed OmVg expression approximately 3 days after engorgement. However, as time passed, mated females showed significant increases in OmVg expression whereas virgin females didn’t. OmVg expression is thought to be regulated by ecdysteroids functioning through a complex with an ecdysteroid receptor (EcR) and retinoid X receptor (RXR). EcR and RXR expression increased in both mated and virgin females soon after engorgement. However, ecdysteroid titer only increased in mated females indicating a high titer of ecdysteroids in mated females up-regulates OmVg expression. The OmVg gene was expressed in the fat body and midgut of O. moubata. Further studies are underway to determine other factors that may explain differences between mated and virgin O. moubata females. Understanding the regulation of reproduction in ticks may lead to the development of better mechanisms for controlling ticks and preventing the spread of tick vectored diseases.

Eczema due to contact allergy is usually produced by simple chemicals with the molecules less than 500 KD. A total of 100 cultivated house dust mites (HDM) were extracted with their lipid components in hexane, and they were analyzed by mass measuring gas chromatography. The same components were mixed in petrolatum at 5% or less, and patch tested using Finn Chambers, and the results were read by ICDRG standards. α-Acaridial, contained in Tyrophagus putrescentiae, turned out to have been a primary sensitizer, and could make prurigo reactions. Geranial, a main lipid component in dermatophagoides, showed positive rates at 58.8% at 5% concentration in atopic dermatitis and was expected to cross react to geraniol in cosmetics and soaps. It means that when one is sensitized by HDM, eczema can be provoked and maintained by the usage of ordinary soaps, shampoos and cosmetics, containing geraniol.

The life cycle of ticks is characterized by alternate off-host and on-host conditions. The life span is estimated at several years and most ixodid ticks spend more than 95% of their life off the host. They seem to have a unique strategy to endure the off-host state for a long period. By electron microscopy, isolation membrane-, autophagosome- and autolysosome-like structures were found in the midgut epithelial cells of unfed ticks. Therefore, we focused on autophagy which is well-conserved from yeast to higher eukaryotes and induced by starvation. We have identified homologues of autophagy-related (ATG) genes (ATG3, ATG4 and ATG8) from cDNA libraries of the 3-host tick Haemaphysalis longicornis. Each expression profile of H. longicornis ATG (HlATG) genes and HlAtg proteins at the stages of nymph and adult were examined by real-time PCR and immunoblotting. Moreover, autophagy is known to be induced by inactivation of target of rapamycin (TOR), a phosphatidylinositol kinase. To examine the effect of TOR function on the expression of HlAtg protein(s), rapamycin, a specific inhibitor of the signal transduction mediated by TOR, was injected to unfed adults. It was revealed that the expression of HlAtg protein(s) was enhanced in response to the rapamycin. This result indicates that tick have the nutrient-sensitive TOR signaling pathway which regulate autophagy.