851 research outputs found
Length control of microtubules by depolymerizing motor proteins
In many intracellular processes, the length distribution of microtubules is
controlled by depolymerizing motor proteins. Experiments have shown that,
following non-specific binding to the surface of a microtubule, depolymerizers
are transported to the microtubule tip(s) by diffusion or directed walk and,
then, depolymerize the microtubule from the tip(s) after accumulating there. We
develop a quantitative model to study the depolymerizing action of such a
generic motor protein, and its possible effects on the length distribution of
microtubules. We show that, when the motor protein concentration in solution
exceeds a critical value, a steady state is reached where the length
distribution is, in general, non-monotonic with a single peak. However, for
highly processive motors and large motor densities, this distribution
effectively becomes an exponential decay. Our findings suggest that such motor
proteins may be selectively used by the cell to ensure precise control of MT
lengths. The model is also used to analyze experimental observations of
motor-induced depolymerization.Comment: Added section with figures and significantly expanded text, current
version to appear in Europhys. Let
End wall flows in rotors and stators of a single stage compressor
A computer code for solving the parabolized Navier-Stokes equations for internal flows was developed. Oscillations that develop in the calculation procedure are discussed. The measurements made in the hub and annulus wall boundary layers are summarized. The flow in the hub wall boundary layer, starting ahead of the inlet guide vanes to the inlet of the rotor is traced
On the evidence of deterministic chaos in ECG: surrogate and predictability analysis
The question whether the human cardiac system is chaotic or not has been an open one. Recent results in chaos theory have shown that the usual methods, such as saturation of correlation dimension D2 or the existence of positive Lyapunov exponent, alone do not provide sufficient evidence to confirm the presence of deterministic chaos in an experimental system. The results of surrogate data analysis together with the short-term prediction analysis can be used to check whether a given time series is consistent with the hypothesis of deterministic chaos. In this work nonlinear dynamical tools such as surrogate data analysis, short-term prediction, saturation of D2 and positive Lyapunov exponent have been applied to measured ECG data for several normal and pathological cases. The pathology presently studied are PVC (Premature Ventricular Contraction), VTA (Ventricular Tachy Arrhythmia), AV (Atrio-Ventricular) block and VF (Ventricular Fibrillation). While these results do not prove that ECG time series is definitely chaotic, they are found to be consistent with the hypothesis of chaotic dynamics
Two Dimensional Quantum Mechanical Modeling of Nanotransistors
Quantization in the inversion layer and phase coherent transport are
anticipated to have significant impact on device performance in 'ballistic'
nanoscale transistors. While the role of some quantum effects have been
analyzed qualitatively using simple one dimensional ballistic models, two
dimensional (2D) quantum mechanical simulation is important for quantitative
results. In this paper, we present a framework for 2D quantum mechanical
simulation of a nanotransistor / Metal Oxide Field Effect Transistor (MOSFET).
This framework consists of the non equilibrium Green's function equations
solved self-consistently with Poisson's equation. Solution of this set of
equations is computationally intensive. An efficient algorithm to calculate the
quantum mechanical 2D electron density has been developed. The method presented
is comprehensive in that treatment includes the three open boundary conditions,
where the narrow channel region opens into physically broad source, drain and
gate regions. Results are presented for (i) drain current versus drain and gate
voltages, (ii) comparison to results from Medici, and (iii) gate tunneling
current, using 2D potential profiles. Methods to reduce the gate leakage
current are also discussed based on simulation results.Comment: 12 figures. Journal of Applied Physics (to appear
Transmission Through Carbon Nanotubes With Polyhedral Caps
We study electron transport between capped carbon nanotubes and a substrate,
and relate the transmission probability to the local density of states in the
cap. Our results show that the transmission probability mimics the behavior of
the density of states at all energies except those that correspond to localized
states in the cap. Close proximity of a substrate causes hybridization of the
localized state. As a result, new transmission paths open from the substrate to
nanotube continuum states via the localized states in the cap. Interference
between various transmission paths gives rise to antiresonances in the
transmission probability, with the minimum transmission equal to zero at
energies of the localized states. Defects in the nanotube that are placed close
to the cap cause resonances in the transmission probability, instead of
antiresonances, near the localized energy levels. Depending on the spatial
position of defects, these resonant states are capable of carrying a large
current. These results are relevant to carbon nanotube based studies of
molecular electronics and probe tip applications
Understanding edge-connectivity in the Internet through core-decomposition
Internet is a complex network composed by several networks: the Autonomous
Systems, each one designed to transport information efficiently. Routing
protocols aim to find paths between nodes whenever it is possible (i.e., the
network is not partitioned), or to find paths verifying specific constraints
(e.g., a certain QoS is required). As connectivity is a measure related to both
of them (partitions and selected paths) this work provides a formal lower bound
to it based on core-decomposition, under certain conditions, and low complexity
algorithms to find it. We apply them to analyze maps obtained from the
prominent Internet mapping projects, using the LaNet-vi open-source software
for its visualization
- …