Combined optical and acoustical method for determination of thickness and porosity of transparent organic layers below the ultra-thin film limit

Analysis techniques are needed to determine the quantity and structure of materials composing an organic layer that is below an ultra-thin film limit and in a liquid environment. Neither optical nor acoustical techniques can independently distinguish between thickness and porosity of ultra-thin films due to parameter correlation. A combined optical and acoustical approach yields sufficient information to determine both thickness and porosity. We describe application of the combinatorial approach to measure single or multiple organic layers when the total layer thickness is small compared to the wavelength of the probing light. The instrumental setup allows for simultaneous in situ spectroscopic ellipsometry and quartz crystal microbalance dynamic measurements, and it is combined with a multiple-inlet fluid control system for different liquid solutions to be introduced during experiments. A virtual separation approach is implemented into our analysis scheme, differentiated by whether or not the organic adsorbate and liquid ambient densities are equal. The analysis scheme requires that the film be assumed transparent and rigid (non-viscoelastic). We present and discuss applications of our approach to studies of organic surfactant adsorption, self-assembled monolayer chemisorption, and multiple-layer target DNA sensor preparation and performance testing.

Conservative surgery in the management of a benign ovarian cystic teratoma presenting as a rectal mass: a case report

Ovarian cystic teratomas constitute 10-15% of all ovarian tumours and are the most common ovarian neoplasms found in adolescence and during pregnancy. Nevertheless, ovarian cystic teratomas have also been described in patients aged 1-91 years. We report an unusual case of a benign ovarian cystic teratoma presenting as a rectal mass that was managed surgically using radical resection by a multidisciplinary team. This case report highlights the importance of preoperative investigations including colonoscopy and radiological investigations. A dedicated pelvic radiologist/pathologist and the involvement of a multidisciplinary team at the time of initial diagnosis and a gynaecologist and colorectal surgeon at the time of surgery will lead to an accurate diagnosis and the most appropriate treatment. Although rare, erosion of an ovarian dermoid into the rectum should be considered in young women who have an atypical presentation and are found to have a lesion in the rectum with biopsies indicating benign pathology.

Rice dehydrin K-segments have in vitro antibacterial activity

Dehydrins are groups of plant proteins that have been shown to response to various environmental stimuli such as dehydration, elevated salinity, and low temperature. However, their roles in plant defense against microbes have not been demonstrated. In an attempt to discover plant antimicrobial proteins, we have screened a rice cDNA library and isolated several cDNAs coding for dehydrins. Protein extracts from Escherichia coli expressing these cDNAs were tested for their activity against Gram-positive bacteria (Bacillus pumilus, B. subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Sarcina lutea) and Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli and Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae). The results indicate that the crude protein extracts exhibited antibacterial activities against the Gram-positive bacteria. However, dehydrins purified by immunoaffinity chromatography were not active against the bacteria. To pinpoint the dehydrin peptides that were responsible for the bactericidal activity, we expressed DNA sequences coding for truncated dehydrins containing either K- or S-segment and found that K-segment peptides, and not S-segment, were responsible for the antibacterial activities against Gram-positive bacteria. Antibacterial assay with synthetic K-segments indicated that the peptides inhibited growth of B. pumilus with minimum inhibition concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration of 130 and 400 μg/ml, respectively.

Hic-5 controls BMP4 responses in prostate cancer cells through interacting with Smads 1, 5 and 8

Hydrogen peroxide-inducible clone-5 (Hic-5, or androgen receptor-associated protein 55) is a transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β)-inducible LIM protein whose deregulation is implicated in the progression of prostate cancer. Here we report that Hic-5 binds to Smads 1, 5 and 8, and represses bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling responses. Myc-Hic-5 but not Myc-paxillin was specifically immunoprecipitated with anti-FLAG IgG1 from lysates of HEK293 co-transfected with either Myc-Hic-5 or Myc-paxillin and FLAG-tagged Smads 1, 5 or 8. We showed that such interactions require the LIM3 domain of Hic-5 and the MH2 domain of those Smads. Anti-Hic-5 antibody specifically pulled down endogenous Smad1 in both the PC3 human prostate cell line and primary cultures of rat prostate fibroblasts, supporting that Hic-5 binds to Smad1 at the endogenous level. Bacterially expressed GST-Smads 1, 5 or 8, but not GST alone, pulled down in vitro transcribed and translated Hic-5, implicating that Hic-5 binds directly to Smads 1, 5 and 8. Significantly, using Hic-5 shRNA silencing and overexpression systems, we show that Hic-5 (at both the endogenous and exogenous levels) represses the ability of BMP4 to induce expression of the inhibitor of differentiation-1 (Id1) (a downstream target gene of BMP), activate the Id1 gene promoter and induce apoptosis in human and rat prostate epithelial cells. Moreover, silencing of Hic-5 in PC3 cells as well as in the WPMY-1 human prostate stroma cell line greatly enhances the levels of endogenous phospho-Smad1/5/8. Finally, we provide fluorescent microscopic imaging to support that Smad1 and Hic-5 mutually interact also at the level of their nuclear export mechanisms. Collectively, these results provide the first evidence for a physical and mutual functional interaction between Hic-5 and the BMP signaling pathway.

Dark matter results from 100 live days of XENON100 data

We present results from the direct search for dark matter with the XENON100 detector, installed underground at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso of INFN, Italy. XENON100 is a two-phase time-projection chamber with a 62 kg liquid xenon target. Interaction vertex reconstruction in three dimensions with millimeter precision allows the selection of only the innermost 48 kg as the ultralow background fiducial target. In 100.9 live days of data, acquired between January and June 2010, no evidence for dark matter is found. Three candidate events were observed in the signal region with an expected background of (1.8 ± 0.6) events. This leads to the most stringent limit on dark matter interactions today, excluding spin-independent elastic weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP) nucleon scattering cross sections above 7.0 × 10(-45) cm(2) for a WIMP mass of 50 GeV/c(2) at 90% confidence level.

A novel SNP of the C/EBPα gene associated with superior meat quality in indigenous Chinese cattle

CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein alpha (C/EBPα) is an essential transcriptional factor regulating the differentiation of adipocytes. We report a novel single nucleotide polymorphism (C271A) of the C/EBPα gene in six indigenous Chinese cattle breeds using PCR-SSCP and DNA sequencing methods. Allele frequencies were investigated and evaluated by the χ(2) test in 817 individuals; all populations were found to be in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Gene heterozygosity, effective allele numbers and polymorphism information content of the C/EBPα locus varied from 0.50 to 0.54, 1.84 to 1.99 and 0.35 to 0.37, respectively. We also evaluated a potential association of the C/EBPα SNP with ultrasound traits in 555 individuals; individuals of the AA genotype had greater ultrasound backfat thickness than did genotype CC (0.36 versus 0.34 cm, P < 0.01); genotypes AA and CA had higher ultrasound marbling scores than did genotype CC (3.53, 3.52 versus 3.37, P < 0.05). Analysis based on meat quality data in another 204 Qinchuan cattle showed that animals with genotype AA had bigger loin eye areas than did genotype CA (87.10 versus 79.08 cm(2), P < 0.05). These results indicate that the C271A SNP of the C/EBPα gene could be used as a molecular marker for selecting beef cattle with superior carcass traits.

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite markers for the Korean rockfish, Sebastes schlegeli

The Korean rockfish (Sebastes schlegeli) is an important commercial fish that is widely used in aquaculture. We isolated and characterized 18 polymorphic microsatellite loci from the Korean rockfish using a (GT)(13)-enriched genomic library. Polymorphism was assessed in 48 individuals from a single population collected from the northern coastal waters of the Yellow Sea. The observed and expected heterozygosities ranged from 0.0244 to 0.7660 (mean 0.4194) and 0.0244 to 0.8758 (mean 0.5002), respectively. Polymorphism at these loci indicated from two to 15 alleles (mean 5.7); 14 of 18 loci conformed to Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. These markers should be useful for management and conservation studies of this species.

The status of carrier and prenatal diagnosis of haemophilia in China

Haemophilia A (HA) and haemophilia B (HB) are the most common X-linked inherited bleeding disorders. It is important to detect the carrier women in families with HA/HB and subsequent antenatal diagnosis of confirmed carriers. This study consists of 102 HA families which include 68 mothers for prenatal diagnosis and 107 female relatives for carrier diagnosis, and 29 HB families which include 16 mothers and 31 female relatives respectively. The rapid fluorescent PCR with two groups of different combined polymorphism markers was applied for linkage analysis in HA and HB families respectively. The Amelogenin gene was added to help the detection of gender diagnosis. Gene sequencing was also used to detect the mutations directly. There were 37 causative F8C mutations (23 novel) and 24 causative F9C mutations (eight novel) found in this cohort of patients. Few of the women could not be diagnosed due to homologous recombination and/or inability to locate the mutation. Complicated cases have been found in some families. With regard to carrier and prenatal diagnosis, it was considered that genetic diagnosis by linkage analysis and direct sequencing was successful. Some special families might require combination of the linkage analysis and gene sequence for a successful diagnosis. New intragenic SNP and STR sites special to Chinese population need to be discovered.

Microarray analysis of gene expression changes in the brains of NR2B-induced memory-enhanced mice

Glutamate N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors play a pivotal role in different forms of memory. The dysfunction of NMDA receptors contributes to the pathology of central nervous system (CNS) disorders. To further investigate the role of the NMDA receptors in brain processes, we analyzed and compared the gene expression profiles in the hippocampus of NR2B overexpression-induced memory-enhanced mice (Tg mice) with those of their wild-type littermates. Results reveal that 249 genes, which are mainly involved in neurotransmission, signal transduction, cytoskeletal structure, hormone activity, and transcription, were significantly affected in Tg mice. Interestingly, the intracellular calcium channel proteins ryanodine receptor (RyR) 1 and 3, as well as functionally related proteins such as the histidine-rich calcium-binding protein and triadin 2, were upregulated. The Homer-1c protein was also increased in Tg mice and formed a complex with the RyR protein in the mouse brain, suggesting that Homer-1c is an important modulator in both intracellular calcium signaling and overall neuronal signaling by simultaneously interacting with the NMDA receptors and RyR. Western blot and real-time PCR results show that the expression of phospho-CREB, c-fos, and the immediate-early genes Egr2 and Egr4 were also upregulated in Tg mice. The current study demonstrates that a chronic increase in the activation of NMDA receptors affected the expression of a large number of genes and may provide important clues for a better understanding of the molecular mechanism of NMDA receptor-modulated learning and memory, as well as of CNS disorders.

A prospective study of early versus late craniectomy after traumatic brain injury

BACKGROUND

Decompressive craniectomy is an important method for managing traumatic brain injury (TBI). At present, controversies about this procedure exist, especially about the optimum operative time for patients with TBI.

METHODS

A prospective study was performed at the First Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University. From January 2008 to December 2009, 25 patients who underwent early decompressive craniectomy were included in the study group, and 19 patients who underwent "late" decompressive craniectomy as a second-tier therapy for intracranial hypertension were included as a comparison group.

RESULTS

The 30-day mortality after the operation was 16% in the study group. The overall mortality rate was 20% at the 6-month follow-up. A total of 52% of the patients (13 patients) had good outcomes, and 7 patients remained in a severely disabled or vegetative state. In the comparison group, 4 patients died, and 12 had good outcomes at the 6-month follow-up. The remaining 3 patients had poor outcomes. The study group was well matched with the comparison group. However, the outcomes in the study group were not better than those in the comparison group, as evaluated by the 6-month GOS score.

CONCLUSION

Early decompressive craniectomy as a first-tier therapy for intracranial hypertension did not improve patient outcome when compared with "late" decompressive craniectomy for managing TBI.