3-(5-Nitrofuran-2-yl)prop-2-en-1-one Derivatives, with Potent Antituberculosis Activity, Inhibit A Novel Therapeutic Target, Arylamine N-acetyltransferase, in Mycobacteria.

In this study, the inhibitory potential of 3-(5-nitrofuran-2-yl)prop-2-en-1-one derivatives was evaluated against a panel of bacteria, as well as mammalian cell lines to determine their therapeutic index. In addition, we investigated the mechanism of antibiotic action of the derivatives to identify their therapeutic target. We discovered compound 2 to be an extremely potent inhibitor of Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv growth (MIC: 0.031 mg/L) in vitro, performing better than the currently used first-line antituberculosis drugs such as isoniazid, rifampicin, ethambutol, and pretomanid in vitro. Furthermore, compound 3 was equipotent to pretomanid against a multidrug-resistant M. tuberculosis clinical isolate. The derivatives were selective and bactericidal towards slow-growing mycobacteria. They showed low cytotoxicity towards murine RAW 264.7 and human THP-1 cell lines, with high selectivity indices. Compound 1 effectively eliminated the intracellular mycobacteria in a mycobacteria-infected macrophage model. The derivatives were assessed for their potential to inhibit mycobacterial arylamine N-acetyltransferase (NAT) and were identified as good inhibitors of recombinant mycobacterial NAT, a novel target essential for the intracellular survival of M. tuberculosis. This study provided hits for designing new potent and selective antituberculosis leads, having mycobacterial NAT inhibition as their possible endogenous mechanisms of action

Infrared photocurrent with one- and two-photon absorptions in a double-barrier quantum well system

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)We present a theoretical investigation of a double-barrier quantum-well infrared photodetector (QWIP) having two-color selectivity. The quantum well is placed between a pair of potential barriers in order to increase selectivity through modulation of the continuum states. This also leads to a potential decrease in the dark current. Calculations are carried in the effective-mass approximation using a single-electron hamiltonian. The approach used to obtain the photocurrent yields the observation of single as well as many-photon transitions in a unified manner, by naturally accounting for real and virtual processes through intermediate states that take part in the generation of photocurrent. The two-color selectivity of the calculated photocurrent spectra comes from both one-and two-photon transitions. The performance of the system studied is compared to the results for the isolated quantum well and the advantages of the double barrier are pointed out. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3662867]11010DISSE-Instituto Nacional de Ciencia e Tecnologia de Nanodispositivos SemicondutoresConselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP

Polaron effects in electron channels on a helium film

Using the Feynman path-integral formalism we study the polaron effects in quantum wires above a liquid helium film. The electron interacts with two-dimensional (2D) surface phonons, i.e. ripplons, and is confined in one dimension (1D) by an harmonic potential. The obtained results are valid for arbitrary temperature ($T$), electron-phonon coupling strength ($\alpha$), and lateral confinement ($\omega_{0}$). Analytical and numerical results are obtained for limiting cases of $T$, $\alpha$, and $\omega_{0}$. We found the surprising result that reducing the electron motion from 2D to quasi-1D makes the self-trapping transition more continuous.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Multiple-photon Peak Generation Near The 10 M Range In Quantum Dot Infrared Photodetectors

We present results from simulations of the photocurrent observed in recently fabricated InAs quantum dot infrared photodetectors that respond with strong resonance peaks in the ∼ 10 m wavelength range. The results are in good agreement with experimental data generated earlier. Multiphoton scattering of electrons localized in the quantum dots are not only in accordance with the observed patterns, but are also necessary to explain the photocurrent spectrum obtained in the calculations. © 2011 American Institute of Physics.1096Martyniuk, P., Rogalski, A., (2008) Prog. Quantum Electron., 32, p. 89. , For a recent review, see, 10.1016/j.pquantelec.2008.07.001Chakrabarti, S., Stiff-Roberts, A.D., Su, X.H., Bhattacharya, P., Ariyawansa, G., Perera, A.G.U., High-performance mid-infrared quantum dot infrared photodetectors (2005) Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 38 (13), pp. 2135-2141. , DOI 10.1088/0022-3727/38/13/009, PII S002237270592069XLim, H., Zhang, W., Tsao, S., Sills, T., Szafraniec, J., Mi, K., Movaghar, B., Razeghi, M., Quantum dot infrared photodetectors: Comparison of experiment and theory (2005) Physical Review B - Condensed Matter and Materials Physics, 72 (8), p. 085332. , http://oai.aps.org/oai/?verb=ListRecords&metadataPrefix= oai_apsmeta_2&set=journal:PRB:72, DOI 10.1103/PhysRevB.72.085332Razeghi, M., Lim, H., Tsao, S., Szafraniec, J., Zhang, W., Mi, K., Movaghar, B., Transport and photodetection in self-assembled semiconductor quantum dots (2005) Nanotechnology, 16 (2), pp. 219-229. , DOI 10.1088/0957-4484/16/2/007Pal, D., Towe, E., (2006) Appl. Phys. Lett., 88, p. 153109. , 10.1063/1.2193466Bhattacharya, P., Su, X.H., Chakrabarti, S., Ariyawansa, G., Perera, A.G.U., Characteristics of a tunneling quantum-dot infrared photodetector operating at room temperature (2005) Applied Physics Letters, 86 (19), pp. 1-3. , DOI 10.1063/1.1923766, 191106Dupont, E., Corkum, P., Liu, H.C., Wilson, P.H., Buchanan, M., Wasilewski, Z.R., (1994) Appl. Phys. Lett., 65, p. 1560. , 10.1063/1.113004Maier, T., Schneider, H., Walther, M., Koidl, P., Liu, H.C., (2004) Appl. Phys. Lett., 84, p. 5162. , 10.1063/1.1763978Jiang, J., Fu, Y., Li, N., Chen, X.S., Zhen, H.L., Lu, W., Wang, M.K., Li, Y.G., (2004) Appl. Phys. Lett., 85, p. 3614. , 10.1063/1.1781732Aivaliotis, P., Zibik, E.A., Wilson, L.R., Cockburn, J.W., Hopkinson, M., Vinh, N.Q., (2008) Appl. Phys. Lett., 92, p. 023501. , 10.1063/1.2833691Sirtori, C., Capasso, F., Sivco, D.L., Cho, A.Y., (1992) Appl. Phys. Lett., 60, p. 2678. , 10.1063/1.106893Souza, P.L., Lopes, A.J., Gebhard, T., Unterrainer, K., Pires, M.P., Villas-Boas, J.M., Vieira, G.S., Studart, N., Quantum dot structures grown on Al containing quaternary material for infrared photodetection beyond 10 μm (2007) Applied Physics Letters, 90 (17), p. 173510. , DOI 10.1063/1.2733603Gebhard, T., Alvarenga, D., Souza, P.L., Guimares, P.S.S., Unterrainer, K., Pires, M.P., Vieira, G.S., Villas-Boas, J.M., (2008) Applied Phys. Lett., 93, p. 052103. , 10.1063/1.2965804Pryor, C.E., Pistol, M.-E., Band-edge diagrams for strained III-V semiconductor quantum wells, wires, and dots (2005) Physical Review B - Condensed Matter and Materials Physics, 72 (20), pp. 1-11. , http://oai.aps.org/oai/?verb=ListRecords&metadataPrefix= oai_apsmeta_2&set=journal:PRB:72, DOI 10.1103/PhysRevB.72.205311, 205311Degani, M.H., Maialle, M.Z., (2010) J. Comput. Theor. Nanosci., 7, p. 454. , 10.1166/jctn.2010.1380Feit, M.D., Fleck Jr., J.A., Steiger, A., (1982) J. Comput. Phys., 47, p. 412. , 10.1016/0021-9991(82)90091-2Degani, M.H., (1991) Appl. Phys. Lett., 59, p. 57(2002) Phys. Rev. B, 66, p. 23306. , 10.1063/1.105521Maialle, M.Z., Degani, M.H., Madureira, J.R., Farinas, P.F., (2009) J. Appl. Phys., 106, p. 123703. , 10.1063/1.3270263Fano, U., Cooper, J.W., (1968) Rev. Mod. Phys., 40, p. 441. , 10.1103/RevModPhys.40.441Tsolakidis, A., Snchez-Portal, D., Martin, R.M., (2002) Phys. Rev. B, 66, p. 235416. , 10.1103/PhysRevB.66.23541

Mean parameter model for the Pekar-Fr\"{o}hlich polaron in a multilayered heterostructure

The polaron energy and the effective mass are calculated for an electron confined in a finite quantum well constructed of $GaAs/Al_x Ga_{1-x} As$ layers. To simplify the study we suggest a model in which parameters of a medium are averaged over the ground-state wave function. The rectangular and the Rosen-Morse potential are used as examples. To describe the confined electron properties explicitly to the second order of perturbations in powers of the electron-phonon coupling constant we use the exact energy-dependent Green function for the Rosen-Morse confining potential. In the case of the rectangular potential, the sum over all intermediate virtual states is calculated. The comparison is made with the often used leading term approximation when only the ground-state is taken into account as a virtual state. It is shown that the results are quite different, so the incorporation of all virtual states and especially those of the continuous spectrum is essential. Our model reproduces the correct three-dimensional asymptotics at both small and large widths. We obtained a rather monotonous behavior of the polaron energy as a function of the confining potential width and found a peak of the effective mass. The comparison is made with theoretical results by other authors. We found that our model gives practically the same (or very close) results as the explicit calculations for potential widths $L \geq 10 \AA$.Comment: 12 pages, LaTeX, including 5 PS-figures, subm. to Phys. Rev. B, new data are discusse

Triple-negative breast cancer: Present challenges and new perspectives

Contains fulltext : 83751.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)21 p

Seroprevalence of five neglected parasitic diseases among immigrants accessing five infectious and tropical diseases units in Italy: a cross-sectional study.

: This multicentre cross-sectional study aims to estimate the prevalence of five neglected tropical diseases (Chagas disease, filariasis, schistosomiasis, strongyloidiasis, toxocariasis) among immigrants accessing health care facilities in five Italian cities (Bologna, Brescia, Florence, Rome, Verona). : Individuals underwent a different set of serological tests, according to country of origin and presence of eosinophilia. Seropositive patients were treated and further followed up. : A total of 930 adult immigrants were enrolled: 477 men (51.3%), 445 women (47.9%), 8 transgender (0.8%); median age was 37.81 years (range 18-80). Most of them were coming from the African continent (405/930, 43.5%), the rest from East Europe, South America and Asia. A portion of 9.6% (89/930) were diagnosed with at least one of the infections under study. Seroprevalence of each specific infection varied from 3.9% (7/180) for Chagas diseases to 9.7% (11/113) for toxocariasis. Seropositive people were more likely to be 35 to 40 years-old male and to come from South East Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa or South America. : The results of our study confirm that neglected tropical diseases represent a substantial health problem among immigrants and highlight the need for addressing this emerging public health issue.<br/

Reducing number entry errors: solving a widespread, serious problem

Number entry is ubiquitous: it is required in many fields including science, healthcare, education, government, mathematics and finance. People entering numbers are to be expected to make errors, but shockingly few systems make any effort to detect, block or otherwise manage errors. Worse, errors may be ignored but processed in arbitrary ways, with unintended results. A standard class of error (defined in the paper) is an ‘out by 10 error’, which is easily made by miskeying a decimal point or a zero. In safety-critical domains, such as drug delivery, out by 10 errors generally have adverse consequences. Here, we expose the extent of the problem of numeric errors in a very wide range of systems. An analysis of better error management is presented: under reasonable assumptions, we show that the probability of out by 10 errors can be halved by better user interface design. We provide a demonstration user interface to show that the approach is practical. To kill an error is as good a service as, and sometimes even better than, the establishing of a new truth or fact.(Charles Darwin 1879 [2008], p. 229