First Principles Studies of KNbO3_3, KTaO3_3 and LiTaO3_3 Solid Solutions

KTaO_3-based solid solutions exhibit a variety of interesting physical phenomena. To better understand these phenomena, we performed first-principles calculations on [K_{1-x}, Li_x]TaO_3 (KLT) and K[Ta_{1-x}, Nb_x]O_3 (KTN) supercells. Our results show Li displacements and potential barrier heights in KLT that are in excellent agreement with values obtained from experimental fits. Dramatic changes in B-site dynamical charges occur in KTN in response to changes in near neighbor (nn) coordination. These effects can be explained by heterogeneity in the local electronic dielectric permittivity.Comment: 4 figure

Senior Recital - Eric Burton

This recital is in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Music in Music Performance.https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/music_programs/1152/thumbnail.jp

What is the placenta?

Discarded at birth, the placenta is a highly complex and fascinating organ. During the course of a pregnancy, it acts as the lungs, gut, kidneys, and liver of the fetus. The placenta also has major endocrine actions that modulate maternal physiology and metabolism and provides a safe and protective milieu in which the fetus can develop. The human placenta undergoes dramatic transformations in form and function between the first trimester, when organogenesis occurs, and the remainder of pregnancy that reflect evolutionary responses to changing oxygen concentrations in the earth's atmosphere. Recent research indicates a more interactive dialogue between the placenta and the maternal tissues than previously recognized. The endometrial glands provide histotrophic support during the first weeks of pregnancy, and the placenta appears able to stimulate its own development by up-regulating gland activity in response to endocrine signals. Extravillous trophoblast cells migrate from the placenta into the uterine wall, in which they interact with cells of the maternal innate immune system. These interactions have a physiological, rather than a classical immunological, outcome and most probably mediate remodeling of the uterine spiral arteries that supply the placenta. Furthermore, deportation of aggregates of transcriptionally active trophoblast nuclei, and the release of exosomes carrying microribonucleic acids challenge our perceptions of fetal-maternal signaling and where the placental interface actually lies. Here we reconsider definitions of the placenta in the light of these recent advances.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2015.07.05

Development of the Human Placenta and Fetal Heart: Synergic or Independent?

The placenta is the largest fetal organ, and toward the end of pregnancy the umbilical circulation receives at least 40% of the biventricular cardiac output. It is not surprising, therefore, that there are likely to be close haemodynamic links between the development of the placenta and the fetal heart. Development of the placenta is precocious, and in advance of that of the fetus. The placenta undergoes considerable remodeling at the end of the first trimester of pregnancy, and its vasculature is capable of adapting to environmental conditions and to variations in the blood supply received from the mother. There are two components to the placental membranes to consider, the secondary yolk sac and the chorioallantoic placenta. The yolk sac is the first of the extraembryonic membranes to be vascularized, and condensations in the mesenchyme at ~17 days post-conception (p.c.) give rise to endothelial and erythroid precursors. A network of blood vessels is established ~24 days p.c., with the vitelline vein draining through the region of the developing liver into the sinus venosus. Gestational sacs of early pregnancy failures often display aberrant development of the yolk sac, which is likely to be secondary to abnormal fetal development. Vasculogenesis occurs in the villous mesenchyme of the chorioallantoic placenta at a similarly early stage. Nucleated erythrocytes occupy the lumens of the placental capillaries and end-diastolic flow is absent in the umbilical arterial circulation throughout most of the first trimester, indicating a high resistance to blood flow. Resistance begins to fall in the umbilico-placental circulation around 12-14 weeks. During normal early pregnancy the placental capillary network is plastic, and considerable remodeling occurs in response to the local oxygen concentration, and in particular to oxidative stress. In pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia and/or fetal growth restriction, utero-placental malperfusion induces smooth muscle cells surrounding the placental arteries to dedifferentiate and adopt a proliferative phenotype. This change is associated with increased umbilical resistance measured by Doppler ultrasound, and is likely to exert a major effect on the developing heart through the afterload. Thus, both the umbilical and maternal placental circulations may impact on development of the heart

Pathophysiology of Placenta Accreta Spectrum Disorders: A Review of Current Findings.

Current findings continue to support the concept of a biologically defective decidua rather than a primarily abnormally invasive trophoblast. Prior cesarean sections increase the risk of placenta previa and both adherent and invasive placenta accreta, suggesting that the endometrial/decidual defect following the iatrogenic creation of a uterine myometrium scar has an adverse effect on early implantation. Preferential attachment of the blastocyst to scar tissue facilitates abnormally deep invasion of trophoblastic cells and interactions with the radial and arcuate arteries. Subsequent high velocity maternal arterial inflow into the placenta creates large lacunae, destroying the normal cotyledonary arrangement of the villi

The human placenta: new perspectives on its formation and function during early pregnancy

The placenta has evolved to support the development of the embryo and fetus during the different intrauterine periods of life. By necessity, its development must precede that of the embryo. There is now evidence that during embryogenesis and organogenesis, the development of the human placenta is supported by histotrophic nutrition secreted from endometrial glands rather than maternal blood. These secretions provide a plentiful supply of glucose, lipids, glycoproteins and growth factors that stimulate rapid proliferation and differentiation of the villous trophoblast. Furthermore, evidence from endometrial gland organoids indicates that expression and secretion of these products are upregulated following sequential exposure to oestrogen, progesterone and trophoblastic and decidual hormones, in particular prolactin. Hence, a feed-forward signalling dialogue is proposed among the trophoblast, decidua and glands that enables the placenta to stimulate its own development, independent of that of the embryo. Many common complications of pregnancy represent a spectrum of disorders associated with deficient trophoblast proliferation. Increasing evidence suggests that this spectrum is mirrored by one of impaired decidualization, potentially compromising histotroph secretion through diminished prolactin secretion and reduced gland function. Optimizing endometrial wellbeing prior to conception may therefore help to prevent common pregnancy complications, such as miscarriage, growth restriction and pre-eclampsia

Effects of Vacancies on Properties of Relaxor Ferroelectrics: a First-Principles Study

A first-principles-based model is developed to investigate the influence of lead vacancies on the properties of relaxor ferroelectric Pb(Sc1/2Nb1/2)O3 (PSN). Lead vacancies generate large, inhomogeneous, electric fields that reduce barriers between energy minima for different polarization directions. This naturally explains why relaxors with significant lead vacancy concentrations have broadened dielectric peaks at lower temperatures, and why lead vacancies smear properties in the neighborhood of the ferroelectric transition in PSN. We also reconsider the conventional wisdom that lead vacancies reduce the magnitude of dielectric response.Comment: 11 pages, 1 figur