945 research outputs found
Quantum Anomalous Hall Effect in HgMnTe Quantum Wells
The quantum Hall effect is usually observed when the two-dimensional electron
gas is subjected to an external magnetic field, so that their quantum states
form Landau levels. In this work we predict that a new phenomenon, the quantum
anomalous Hall effect, can be realized in HgMnTe quantum wells,
without the external magnetic field and the associated Landau levels. This
effect arises purely from the spin polarization of the atoms, and the
quantized Hall conductance is predicted for a range of quantum well thickness
and the concentration of the atoms. This effect enables dissipationless
charge current in spintronics devices.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures. For high resolution figures see final published
version when availabl
InterPack2003-35095 THERMAL CHARACTERS OF MESH STRUCTURES IN A FLAT HEAT PIPE
ABSTRACT In this study plate type heat pipes having mesh capillaries were investigated experimentally and theoretically. A test apparatus was designed to test thermal performance of plate type copper-water heat pipe having one or two layers of #50 or #80 mesh capillary structures with 5-to-50 W heat input. The working fluid, water is charged with 25% or 33% volume of the heat pipe internal space. In addition to horizontal orientation, the heat pipes were tested with the evaporator section elevated up to 40 degree inclination angle. Temperature distribution of the heat pipe was measured, and the evaporator, adiabatic and condensation resistances of the heat pipe were calculated separated. The effects of mesh size, charge volume, and inclination angle on each thermal resistance were discussed. In general, the #80 mesh yields lower thermal resistances than the #50 mesh; inclination angle has more significant effect on condenser than evaporator. Theoretical models of evaporation and condensation in flat heat pipes were proposed to interpolate the experimental results. The present evaporation model predicts the experimental data of evaporation resistance between -20% and +30%, and the condensation model predicts most condensation resistance data within ±30%
Simultaneous Penile Gangrene and Testicular Infarction Secondary to Calciphylaxis in a Uremic Patient
We report here a 46-year-old man with end stage renal disease (ESRD) secondary to type 2 diabetes, who had been on hemodialysis for 5 years. He had a painful glans lesion for 1 week. Five days later, he also complained of right testicular pain. Computed tomography of the pelvis demonstrated calcification of both penile arteries. Scrotal sonography revealed right testicular infarction. He received partial penectomy and right orchiectomy because of progressive lesions and intractable pain. Pathologic examination revealed testicular and penile tissue with necrotizing inflammation accompanied by multifocal calcification in the tunica media, compatible with calciphylaxis. This is the first report to document simultaneous penile gangrene and testicular infarction secondary to calciphylaxis
Nontoxic membrane translocation peptide from protamine, low molecular weight protamine (LMWP), for enhanced intracellular protein delivery: in vitro and in vivo study
Naturally derived, nontoxic peptides from protamine by the authors, termed low molecular weight protamines (LMWPs), possess high arginine content and carry significant sequence similarity to that of TAT, by far the most potent protein transduction domain peptide. Therefore, it was hypothesized that these LMWPs would also inherit the similar translocation activity across the cell membrane, which enables any impermeable species to be transduced into the cells. LMWPs were prepared by enzymatic digestion of protamine, examined their capability of transducing an impermeable protein toxin into the tumor cells by chemical conjugation, and determined cytotoxicity of transduced protein toxin (e.g., gelonin) against cancer cell lines and a tumorâ bearing mouse. In vitro results showed that LMWPs could indeed translocate themselves into several mammalian cell lines as efficiently as TAT, thereby transducing impermeable gelonin into the cells by chemical conjugation. In vivo studies further confirmed that LMWP could carry an impermeable gelonin across the tumor mass and subsequently inhibit the tumor growth. In conclusion, the presence of equivalent cell translocation potency, absence of toxicity of peptide itself, and the suitability for lowâ cost production by simple enzymatic digestion could expand the range of clinical applications of LMWPs, including medical imaging and gene/protein therapies.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154356/1/fsb2fj042322fje-sup-0125.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154356/2/fsb2fj042322fje.pd
Organic cation transporter 1 (OCT1) modulates multiple cardiometabolic traits through effects on hepatic thiamine content.
A constellation of metabolic disorders, including obesity, dysregulated lipids, and elevations in blood glucose levels, has been associated with cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Analysis of data from recently published genome-wide association studies (GWAS) demonstrated that reduced-function polymorphisms in the organic cation transporter, OCT1 (SLC22A1), are significantly associated with higher total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and triglyceride (TG) levels and an increased risk for type 2 diabetes mellitus, yet the mechanism linking OCT1 to these metabolic traits remains puzzling. Here, we show that OCT1, widely characterized as a drug transporter, plays a key role in modulating hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism, potentially by mediating thiamine (vitamin B1) uptake and hence its levels in the liver. Deletion of Oct1 in mice resulted in reduced activity of thiamine-dependent enzymes, including pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH), which disrupted the hepatic glucose-fatty acid cycle and shifted the source of energy production from glucose to fatty acids, leading to a reduction in glucose utilization, increased gluconeogenesis, and altered lipid metabolism. In turn, these effects resulted in increased total body adiposity and systemic levels of glucose and lipids. Importantly, wild-type mice on thiamine deficient diets (TDs) exhibited impaired glucose metabolism that phenocopied Oct1 deficient mice. Collectively, our study reveals a critical role of hepatic thiamine deficiency through OCT1 deficiency in promoting the metabolic inflexibility that leads to the pathogenesis of cardiometabolic disease
A Less Toxic Heparin Antagonist—Low Molecular Weight Protamine
A new thirteen amino acid peptide, named low molecular weight protamine (LMWP), was obtained through the enzymatic digestion of native protamine. Both in vitro and in vivo results showed that LMWP fully maintained the heparin neutralization function of protamine but had much lower immunogenicity and antigenicity. Unlike protamine, neither LMWP nor LMWP/heparin complexes caused significant blood platelet aggregation in rats. These results suggest that LMWP can be used as a substitute for protamine for developing a new generation of nontoxic heparin antagonists.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/45793/1/10541_2004_Article_462566.pd
Implications evinced by the phase diagram, anisotropy, magnetic penetration depths, isotope effects and conductivities of cuprate superconductors
Anisotropy, thermal and quantum fluctuations and their dependence on dopant
concentration appear to be present in all cuprate superconductors, interwoven
with the microscopic mechanisms responsible for superconductivity. Here we
review anisotropy, in-plane and c-axis penetration depths, isotope effect and
conductivity measurements to reassess the universal behavior of cuprates as
revealed by the doping dependence of these phenomena and of the transition
temperature.Comment: 14 pages, 13 figure
An International Partnership of 12 Anatomy Departments - Improving Global Health through Internationalization of Medical Education
Background: At a time of global interconnectedness, the internationalization of medical education has become important. Anatomy as an academic discipline, with its close connections to the basic sciences and to medical education, can easily be connected with global health and internationalization of medical education. Here the authors present an international program based on a partnership between twelve anatomy departments in ten countries, on four continents. Details of a proposed plan for the future direction of the program are also discussed. Objective: The aim is to improve global healthcare by preparing future global healthcare leaders via early international networking, international collaboration and exchange, intercultural experience, and connecting two seemingly distant academic disciplines - anatomy and global health - via internationalization of medical education. Methods: Based in the anatomy course, the program involved early international collaboration between preclinical medical and dental students. The program provided a stepwise progression for learning about healthcare and intercultural topics beyond pure anatomy education - starting with virtual small groups of international students, who subsequently presented their work to a larger international audience during group videoconferences. The above progressed to in-person visits for research internships in the basic sciences within industrialized countries. Findings: Students appreciated the international and intercultural interaction, learned about areas outside the scope of anatomy (e.g., differences in healthcare education and delivery systems, Public and Global Health challenges, health ethics, and cultural enrichment), and valued the exchange travel for basic sciences research internships and cultural experience. Conclusions: This unique collaboration of international anatomy departments can represent a new role for the medical anatomy course beyond pure anatomy teaching - involving areas of global health and internationalization of medical education - and could mark a new era of international collaboration among anatomists.Peer reviewe
Large magneto-optical Kerr effect and imaging of magnetic octupole domains in an antiferromagnetic metal
When a polarized light beam is incident upon the surface of a magnetic
material, the reflected light undergoes a polarization rotation. This
magneto-optical Kerr effect (MOKE) has been intensively studied in a variety of
ferro- and ferrimagnetic materials because it provides a powerful probe for
electronic and magnetic properties as well as for various applications
including magneto-optical recording. Recently, there has been a surge of
interest in antiferromagnets (AFMs) as prospective spintronic materials for
high-density and ultrafast memory devices, owing to their vanishingly small
stray field and orders of magnitude faster spin dynamics compared to their
ferromagnetic counterparts. In fact, the MOKE has proven useful for the study
and application of the antiferromagnetic (AF) state. Although limited to
insulators, certain types of AFMs are known to exhibit a large MOKE, as they
are weak ferromagnets due to canting of the otherwise collinear spin structure.
Here we report the first observation of a large MOKE signal in an AF metal at
room temperature. In particular, we find that despite a vanishingly small
magnetization of 0.002 /Mn, the non-collinear AF metal
MnSn exhibits a large zero-field MOKE with a polar Kerr rotation angle of
20 milli-degrees, comparable to ferromagnetic metals. Our first-principles
calculations have clarified that ferroic ordering of magnetic octupoles in the
non-collinear Neel state may cause a large MOKE even in its fully compensated
AF state without spin magnetization. This large MOKE further allows imaging of
the magnetic octupole domains and their reversal induced by magnetic field. The
observation of a large MOKE in an AF metal should open new avenues for the
study of domain dynamics as well as spintronics using AFMs.Comment: 30 pages, 4 figure
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