Synthesis and Optimization of Carbon Nanoparticles (C-dots) as Absorber Materials for Solar Distillation Applications

Carbon nanoparticles (C-Dots) were synthesized using citric acid and urea as carbon and fuel source, and combustion reaction methods. The absorption spectral and morphology particles of C-Dots were investigated. The morphology describes the synthesis of small (<1 μm) and monodispersedC-Dots. Thus, the C-Dots solutions has absorption spectral range of about 86% at visible light spectral. This study suggests that the as-prepared carbon nanoparticles (C-Dots) with particle size and absorption spectral tunability might be utilized as solar energy absorber material.Karbon nanopartikel (C-Dots) disintesis menggunakan asam sitrat dan urea sebagai sumber karbon dan bahan bakar, melalui reaksi pembakaran sederhana. Spektrum absorpsi dan morfologi partikel C-Dots diinvestigasi menggunakan UV-Vis Spectrometry dan analisis SEM. Hasil SEM menunjukan bahwa morfologi partikel C-Dots sangat kecil (<1 μm) dan seragam. Selain itu, larutan C-Dots memiliki spektrum absopsi pada rentang sekitar 86% pada daerah cahaya tampak. Hasil studi ini menunjukan bahwa karbon nanopartikel (C-Dots) dengan ukuran partikel dan spektrum absorpsi yang dapat diatur, sehingga dapat digunakan sebagai material penyerap sinar matahari

mRNA Secondary Structures Fold Sequentially But Exchange Rapidly In Vivo

Self-cleavage assays of RNA folding reveal that mRNA structures fold sequentially in vitro and in vivo, but exchange between adjacent structures is much faster in vivo than it is in vitro

GC content around splice sites affects splicing through pre-mRNA secondary structures

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Alternative splicing increases protein diversity by generating multiple transcript isoforms from a single gene through different combinations of exons or through different selections of splice sites. It has been reported that RNA secondary structures are involved in alternative splicing. Here we perform a genomic study of RNA secondary structures around splice sites in humans (<it>Homo sapiens</it>), mice (<it>Mus musculus</it>), fruit flies (<it>Drosophila melanogaster</it>), and nematodes (<it>Caenorhabditis elegans</it>) to further investigate this phenomenon.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We observe that GC content around splice sites is closely associated with the splice site usage in multiple species. RNA secondary structure is the possible explanation, because the structural stability difference among alternative splice sites, constitutive splice sites, and skipped splice sites can be explained by the GC content difference. Alternative splice sites tend to be GC-enriched and exhibit more stable RNA secondary structures in all of the considered species. In humans and mice, splice sites of first exons and long exons tend to be GC-enriched and hence form more stable structures, indicating the special role of RNA secondary structures in promoter proximal splicing events and the splicing of long exons. In addition, GC-enriched exon-intron junctions tend to be overrepresented in tissue-specific alternative splice sites, indicating the functional consequence of the GC effect. Compared with regions far from splice sites and decoy splice sites, real splice sites are GC-enriched. We also found that the GC-content effect is much stronger than the nucleotide-order effect to form stable secondary structures.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>All of these results indicate that GC content is related to splice site usage and it may mediate the splicing process through RNA secondary structures.</p

p53 Regulates Cell Cycle and MicroRNAs to Promote Differentiation of Human Embryonic Stem Cells

Multiple studies show that tumor suppressor p53 is a barrier to dedifferentiation; whether this is strictly due to repression of proliferation remains a subject of debate. Here, we show that p53 plays an active role in promoting differentiation of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and opposing self-renewal by regulation of specific target genes and microRNAs. In contrast to mouse embryonic stem cells, p53 in hESCs is maintained at low levels in the nucleus, albeit in a deacetylated, inactive state. In response to retinoic acid, CBP/p300 acetylates p53 at lysine 373, which leads to dissociation from E3-ubiquitin ligases HDM2 and TRIM24. Stabilized p53 binds CDKN1A to establish a G1 phase of cell cycle without activation of cell death pathways. In parallel, p53 activates expression of miR-34a and miR-145, which in turn repress stem cell factors OCT4, KLF4, LIN28A, and SOX2 and prevent backsliding to pluripotency. Induction of p53 levels is a key step: RNA-interference-mediated knockdown of p53 delays differentiation, whereas depletion of negative regulators of p53 or ectopic expression of p53 yields spontaneous differentiation of hESCs, independently of retinoic acid. Ectopic expression of p53R175H, a mutated form of p53 that does not bind DNA or regulate transcription, failed to induce differentiation. These studies underscore the importance of a p53-regulated network in determining the human stem cell state

SYNTHESIS AND OPTIMIZATION OF CARBON NANOPARTICLES (C-DOTS) AS ABSORBER MATERIALS FOR SOLAR DISTILLATION APPLICATIONS

Carbon nanoparticles (C-Dots) were synthesized using citric acid and urea as carbon and fuel source, and combustion reaction methods. The absorption spectral and morphology particles of C-Dots were investigated. The morphology describes the synthesis of small (&lt;1 μm) and monodispersedC-Dots. Thus, the C-Dots solutions has absorption spectral range of about 86% at visible light spectral. This study suggests that the as-prepared carbon nanoparticles (C-Dots) with particle size and absorption spectral tunability might be utilized as solar energy absorber material.Karbon nanopartikel (C-Dots) disintesis menggunakan asam sitrat dan urea sebagai sumber karbon dan bahan bakar, melalui reaksi pembakaran sederhana. Spektrum absorpsi dan morfologi partikel C-Dots diinvestigasi menggunakan UV-Vis Spectrometry dan analisis SEM. Hasil SEM menunjukan bahwa morfologi partikel C-Dots sangat kecil (&lt;1 μm) dan seragam. Selain itu, larutan C-Dots memiliki spektrum absopsi pada rentang sekitar 86% pada daerah cahaya tampak. Hasil studi ini menunjukan bahwa karbon nanopartikel (C-Dots) dengan ukuran partikel dan spektrum absorpsi yang dapat diatur, sehingga dapat digunakan sebagai material penyerap sinar matahari.</p