Gain in a quantum wire laser of high uniformity

A multi-quantum wire laser operating in the 1-D ground state has been achieved in a very high uniformity structure that shows free exciton emission with unprecedented narrow width and low lasing threshold. Under optical pumping the spontaneous emission evolves from a sharp free exciton peak to a red-shifted broad band. The lasing photon energy occurs about 5 meV below the free exciton. The observed shift excludes free excitons in lasing and our results show that Coulomb interactions in the 1-D electron-hole system shift the spontaneous emission and play significant roles in laser gain.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, prepared by RevTe

Prognostic factors in transformed mycosis fungoides: a retrospective analysis of 100 cases

Large cell transformation (LCT) in mycosis fungoides (MF) is generally associated with an aggressive clinical course and poor survival, requiring aggressive therapeutic approach. However, a proportion of cases may follow an indolent clinical course. To identify prognostic factors we analyzed the prognostic relevance of clinical, histological and immunophenotypical features in a large cohort of transformed MF patients, including 75 patients with only skin lesions, 19 patients with LCT in skin and lymph nodes and 6 patients with LCT in lymph nodes only. Multivariate analysis of the total group showed that CD30 negativity, folliculotropic MF, extent of skin lesions and extracutaneous transformation were associated with reduced DSS and, except for CD30 negativity and folliculotropic MF, also OS. In a multivariate analysis of 75 patients with only skin lesions at the time of LCT, CD30 negativity, folliculotropic MF and extent of skin lesions were independent parameters for both DSS and OS. Using the most discriminating parameters as a prognostic index, in both study groups differences in DSS between patients with 0-1 unfavorable prognostic factor(s) and ≥2 unfavorable prognostic factors were statistically significant (p<0.001). This prognostic index may be helpful in predicting prognosis and selecting the most appropriate treatment in patients with transformed MF.Molecular tumour pathology - and tumour genetic

miRNA expression profiling of mycosis fungoides

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small RNA species that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally and are aberrantly expressed in many malignancies including lymphoma. However, the role of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of T-cell lymphoid malignancies is poorly understood. Previously we examined the miRNA profile of Sézary syndrome (Sz), a leukemia of skin-homing memory T cells. In this study we determined the complete miRNome of mycosis fungoides (MF), the most common type of cutaneous T cell lymphoma. The miRNA profile of skin biopsies from 19 patients with tumor stage MF and 12 patients with benign inflammatory dermatoses (eczema and lichen planus) were compared by microarray analysis. We identified 49 miRNAs that are differentially expressed in tumor stage MF compared to benign inflammatory dermatoses using ANOVA analysis (P < 0.05, Benjamini-Hochberg corrected). The majority of the differentially expressed miRNAs (30/49) were up-regulated in tumor stage MF. The most significant differentially expressed were miR-155 and miR-92a (both up-regulated in tumor stage MF), while miR-93 showed the highest up-regulation in tumor stage MF with a fold difference of 5.8. Differential expression of a selection of these miRNAs was validated by miRNA-Q-PCR on additional test groups (tumors and controls). None of the miRNAs up-regulated in tumor stage MF was previously shown to be up-regulated in Sz, and only 2 of the 19 miRNAs down-regulated in tumor stage MF were also down-regulated in Sz. Taken together this report is the first describing the miRNA signature of tumor stage MF.Dermatology-oncolog

Interrogation of human hematopoiesis at single-cell and single-variant resolution

Widespread linkage disequilibrium and incomplete annotation of cell-to-cell state variation represent substantial challenges to elucidating mechanisms of trait-associated genetic variation. Here we perform genetic fine-mapping for blood cell traits in the UK Biobank to identify putative causal variants. These variants are enriched in genes encoding proteins in trait-relevant biological pathways and in accessible chromatin of hematopoietic progenitors. For regulatory variants, we explore patterns of developmental enhancer activity, predict molecular mechanisms, and identify likely target genes. In several instances, we localize multiple independent variants to the same regulatory element or gene. We further observe that variants with pleiotropic effects preferentially act in common progenitor populations to direct the production of distinct lineages. Finally, we leverage fine-mapped variants in conjunction with continuous epigenomic annotations to identify trait-cell type enrichments within closely related populations and in single cells. Our study provides a comprehensive framework for single-variant and single-cell analyses of genetic associations