Hydroxyapatite promotes superior adhesion and proliferation of telomerase transformed keratocytes in comparison with inert plastic skirt materials used in leading contemporary keratoprostheses

Aim: Published clinical series suggest the osteoodontokeratoprosthesis (OOKP) may have a lower extrusion rate than current synthetic keratoprostheses. The OOKP is anchored in the eye wall by autologous tooth. The authors’ aim was to compare adhesion, proliferation, and morphology for telomerase transformed keratocytes seeded on calcium hydroxyapatite (the principal mineral constituent of tooth) and materials used in the anchoring elements of commercially available synthetic keratoprostheses. Methods: Test materials were hydroxyapatite, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyhydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), and glass (control). Cell adhesion and viability were quantified at 4 hours, 24 hours, and 1 week using a calcein-AM/EthD-1 viability/cytotoxicity assay. Focal contact expression and cytoskeletal organisation were studied at 24 hours by confocal microscopy with immunoflourescent labelling. Further studies of cell morphology were performed using light and scanning electron microscopy. Results: Live cell counts were significantly greater on hydroxyapatite surfaces at each time point (p<0.04). Dead cell counts were significantly higher for PTFE at 7 days (p<0.002). Β1 integrin expression was highest on hydroxyapatite. Adhesion structures were well expressed in flat, spread out keratocytes on both HA and glass. Keratocytes tended to be thinner and spindle shaped on PTFE. The relatively few keratocytes visible on HEMA test surfaces were rounded and poorly adherent. Conclusions: Keratocyte adhesion, spreading, and viability on hydroxyapatite test surfaces is superior to that seen on PTFE and HEMA. Improving the initial cell adhesion environment in the skirt element of keratoprostheses may enhance tissue integration and reduce device failure rates

piggyBac transformation of the New World screwworm, \u3ci\u3eCochliomyia hominivorax\u3c/i\u3e, produces multiple distinct mutant strains

Sterile insect technique (SIT) programs are designed to eradicate pest species by releasing mass-reared, sterile insects into an infested area. The first major implementation of SIT was the New World Screwworm Eradication Program, which successfully eliminated the New World screwworm (NWS), Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), from the Continental US, Mexico and much of Central America. Ionizing radiation is currently used for sterilization, but transgenic insect techniques could replace this method, providing a safer, more cost-effective alternative. Genetic transformation methods have been demonstrated in NWS, and verified by Southern blot hybridization, PCR and sequencing of element insertion junctions. A lethal insertional mutation and enhancer detection-like phenotypic expression variations are presented and discussed. In addition to supporting the eradication efforts, transformation methods offer potential means to identify genes and examine gene function in NWS

Immunocytochemical analysis of the stage-specific distribution of collagen in the cuticle of Meloidogyne incognita

Il a été porduit un antisérum polyclonal dirigé contre la protéine majeure du collagène (76 kDa) extraite de la cuticule de femelles adultes de #Meloidogyne incognita. La composition en acides aminés de cette protéine est semblable à celle du collagène d'autres nématodes. Parmi les protéines extraites de la cuticule de femelles adultes de #Meloidogyne et solubles dans le bêta-mercaptoéthanol, deux protéines du collagène (Mr 76 et 140 kDa) ainsi que plusieurs protéines du collagène de junéviles de deuxième stade (J2), réagissent au cours d'analyse Western blot avec des anticorps polyclonaux. L'antisérum polyclonal a été utilisé en microscopie électronique pour localiser le collagène dans la cuticule de différents stades et dans la paroi de l'oeuf. Chez les J2 libres et les adultes mâles, où la cuticule est formée de trois couches distinctes, un marquage, intense, par l'or ne concerne que la couche corticale, et non l'épicuticule, la couche médiane ou la couche basale striée. Chez les J2 sédentaires enflés, dont la cuticule est de structure homogène, les particules d'or sont réparties dans toute la profondeur de la cuticule. Les particules d'or sont également uniformément réparties dans toute l'épaisseur de la cuticule des femelles adultes, y compris après purification au SDS. Dans la paroi de l'oeuf, le marquage à l'or est visible à la surface de la couche chitineuse. (Résumé d'auteur

A numerical method for detecting incommensurate correlations in the Heisenberg zigzag ladder

We study two Heisenberg spin-1/2 chains coupled by a frustrating ``zigzag'' interaction. We are particularly interested in the regime of weak interchain coupling, which is difficult to analyse by either numerical or analytical methods. Previous density matrix renormalisation group (DMRG) studies of the isotropic model with open boundary conditions and sizeable interchain coupling have established the presence of incommensurate correlations and of a spectral gap. By using twisted boundary conditions with arbitrary twist angle, we are able to determine the incommensurabilities both in the isotropic case and in the presence of an exchange anisotropy by means of exact diagonalisation of relatively short finite chains of up to 24 sites. Using twisted boundary conditions results in a very smooth dependence of the incommensurabilities on system size, which makes the extrapolation to infinite systems significantly easier than for open or periodic chains.Comment: 6 pages, including 7 figure

Antiferromagnetically coupled alternating spin chains

The effect of antiferromagnetic interchain coupling in alternating spin (1,1/2) chains is studied by mean of a spin wave theory and density matrix renormalization group (DMRG). In particular, two limiting cases are investigated, the two-leg ladder and its two dimensional (2D) generalization. Results of the ground state properties like energy, spin gap, magnetizations, and correlation functions are reported for the whole range of the interchain coupling $J_{\perp}$. For the 2D case the spin wave results predict a smooth dimensional crossover from 1D to 2D keeping the ground state always ordered. For the ladder system, the DMRG results show that any $J_{\perp}>0$ drives the system to a gapped ground state. Furthermore the behaviour of the correlation functions closely resemble the uniform spin-1/2 ladder. For $J_{\perp}$ lower than 0.3, however, the gap behaves quadratically as $\Delta\sim0.6 J^2_{\perp}$. Finally, it is argued that the behaviour of the spin gap for an arbitrary number of mixed coupled spin chains is analogous to that of the uniform spin-1/2 chains.Comment: 5 pages, 7 ps-figure

Fractional S^z excitation and its bound state around the 1/3 plateau of the S=1/2 Ising-like zigzag XXZ chain

We present the microscopic view for the excitations around the 1/3 plateau state of the Ising-like zigzag XXZ chain. We analyze the low-energy excitations around the plateau with the degenerating perturbation theory from the Ising limit, combined with the Bethe-form wave function. We then find that the domain-wall particles carrying $S^z=\pm 1/3$ and its bound state of $S^z=\pm 2/3$ describe well the low-energy excitations around the 1/3 plateau state. The formation of the bound state of the domain-walls clearly provides the microscopic mechanism of the cusp singularities and the even-odd behavior in the magnetization curve.Comment: 13 pages, 15 figure

An initial assessment of the environmental impact of grocery products

This report presents a series of analyses with the common purpose of establishing which grocery products are likely to contribute most to the environmental impacts (carbon footprint or embodied carbon, embodied energy, water, materials use and waste) associated with UK household consumption. Understanding and prioritising these has enabled reduction actions, interventions and further research to be directed more effectively at those products with the greatest potential to influence overall consumption impacts.The report includes a systematic review of 1,900 grocery carbon footprint data points for 191 products; believed to be the largest assessment of its kind at the time of publication

Variational and DMRG studies of the Frustrated Antiferromagnetic Heisenberg S=1 Quantum Spin Chain

We study a frustrated antiferromagnetic isotropic Heisenberg $S=1$ chain using a variational ansatz and the DMRG. At $\alpha_D=0.284(1)$, there is a disorder point of the second kind, marking the onset of incommensurate correlations in the chain. At $\alpha_L=0.3725(25)$ there is a Lifshitz point, at which the excitation spectrum develops a doubly degenerate structure. These points are the quantum remnants of the transition from antiferromagnetic to spiral order in the classical frustrated chain. At $\alpha_T=0.7444(6)$ there is a first order phase transition from an AKLT phase to a next-nearest neighbor generalization of the AKLT model. At the transition, the string order parameter shows a discontinuous jump of 0.085 to 0; the correlation length and the gap are both finite at the transition. The problem of edge states in open frustrated chains is discussed at length.Comment: 37 pages, 14 figures, submitted to Phys.Rev.