Long-range order and low-energy spectrum of diluted 2D quantum AF

The problem of diluted two-dimensional (2D) quantum antiferromagnet (AF) on a square lattice is studied using spin-wave theory. The influence of impurities on static and dynamic properties is investigated and a good agreement with experiments and Monte Carlo (MC) data is found. The hydrodynamic description of spin-waves breaks down at characteristic wavelengths \Lambda\agt\exp(\frac{const}{x}), $x$ being an impurity concentration, while the order parameter is free from anomalies. We argue that this dichotomy originates from strong scattering of the low-energy excitations in 2D.Comment: PRL Award received, 4 pages, 3 figure

Potential metabolism of pharmaceuticals in radish : Comparison of in vivo and in vitro exposure

Metabolism of pharmaceuticals in plants is important to evaluate their fate and accumulation in vegetables, and subsequently the risks to human health. However, limited knowledge is available to evaluate metabolism of pharmaceuticals in plants due to the lack of appropriate research approaches. In this study, radish was selected as a model plant to investigate metabolism of pharmaceuticals in intact plants (in vivo) growing in hydroponic solution and in plant tissue enzyme extracts (in vitro). For caffeine, six phase-I demethylation metabolites identified in the intact radish plant were also found in the plant enzyme extracts. After 7 days of in vivo exposure, the amount of the identified metabolites was about 5.4 times greater than the parent compound caffeine in radish roots. Furthermore, the metabolism potential of fifteen pharmaceuticals in radish was evaluated on the basis of mass balance. After 7 days of hydroponic exposure, oxytetracycline, trimethoprim, carbamazepine, lincomycin, monensin and tylosin manifested relatively less extent of metabolism with the mass recoveries ranging from 52.3 to 78.2%. In contrast, 17 β-estradiol, sulfamethoxazole, sulfadiazine, estrone, triclosan, acetaminophen, caffeine, carbadox and lamotrigine underwent extensive metabolism with only 3.0 to 32.1% of the parent compound recovered. In the in vitro system, 17 β-estradiol, estrone, triclosan, oxytetracycline, acetaminophen, sulfadiazine and sulfamethoxazole were readily metabolized in radish root enzyme extracts with 1.8 to 34.0% remaining after 96-h exposure. While in the leaf enzyme extracts, only triclosan was rapidly metabolized with 49.2% remaining, and others pharmaceuticals were ≥60%, indicating that the varying extents of metabolism occurred in different plant parts. This study highlights the importance of pharmaceutical metabolism in plants, and suggests that plant tissue enzyme extracts could serve as an alternative tool to assess pharmaceutical metabolism in plants. Similar metabolism patterns were observed for rapidly metabolized pharmaceuticals in both in vivo (radish tissue enzyme extracts) and in vivo (the intact plant) exposure