22 research outputs found
Quaternionic Root Systems and Subgroups of the
Cayley-Dickson doubling procedure is used to construct the root systems of
some celebrated Lie algebras in terms of the integer elements of the division
algebras of real numbers, complex numbers, quaternions and octonions. Starting
with the roots and weights of SU(2) expressed as the real numbers one can
construct the root systems of the Lie algebras of SO(4),SP(2)=
SO(5),SO(8),SO(9),F_{4} and E_{8} in terms of the discrete elements of the
division algebras. The roots themselves display the group structures besides
the octonionic roots of E_{8} which form a closed octonion algebra. The
automorphism group Aut(F_{4}) of the Dynkin diagram of F_{4} of order 2304, the
largest crystallographic group in 4-dimensional Euclidean space, is realized as
the direct product of two binary octahedral group of quaternions preserving the
quaternionic root system of F_{4}.The Weyl groups of many Lie algebras, such
as, G_{2},SO(7),SO(8),SO(9),SU(3)XSU(3) and SP(3)X SU(2) have been constructed
as the subgroups of Aut(F_{4}). We have also classified the other non-parabolic
subgroups of Aut(F_{4}) which are not Weyl groups. Two subgroups of orders192
with different conjugacy classes occur as maximal subgroups in the finite
subgroups of the Lie group of orders 12096 and 1344 and proves to be
useful in their constructions. The triality of SO(8) manifesting itself as the
cyclic symmetry of the quaternionic imaginary units e_{1},e_{2},e_{3} is used
to show that SO(7) and SO(9) can be embedded triply symmetric way in SO(8) and
F_{4} respectively
Non-Isothermal Model for Nematic Spherulite Growth
A computational study of the growth of two-dimensional nematic spherulites in
an isotropic phase was performed using a Landau-de Gennes type quadrupolar
ensor order parameter model for the first-order isotropic/nematic transition of
5CB (pentyl-cyanobiphenyl). An energy balance, taking anisotropy into account,
was derived and incorporated into the time-dependent model. Growth laws were
determined for two different spherulite morphologies of the form tn, with and
without the inclusion of thermal effects. Results show that incorporation of
the thermal energy balance correctly predicts the transition of the growth law
exponent from the volume driven regime (n=1) to the thermally limited regime
(approaching n=0.5), agreeing well with experimental observations. An
interfacial nemato-dynamic model is used to gain insight into the interactions
that result in the progression of different spherulite growth regimes
Route of antigen delivery impacts the immunostimulatory activity of dendritic cell-based vaccines for hepatocellular carcinoma
Dry Formulation of Virus-Like Particles in Electrospun Nanofibers
Biologics can be combined with liquid polymer materials and electrospun to produce a dry nanofibrous scaffold. Unlike spray-drying and freeze-drying, electrospinning minimizes the physiological stress on sensitive materials, and nanofiber mat properties such as hydrophobicity, solubility, and melting temperature can be tuned based on the polymer composition. In this study, we explored the dry formulation of a virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine by electrospinning VLP derived from rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus modified to carry the MHC-I gp100 tumor-associated antigen epitope. VLP were added to a polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) solution (15% w/v) followed by electrospinning at 24 kV. Formation of a nanofibrous mat was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy, and the presence of VLP was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy and Western blot. VLP from the nanofibers induced T-cell activation and interferon- (IFN-) Îł production in vitro. To confirm in vivo cytotoxicity, Pmel mice treated by injection with gp100 VLP from nanofibers induced a gp100 specific immune response, lysing approximately 65% of gp100-pulsed target cells, comparable to mice vaccinated with gp100 VLP in PBS. VLP from nanofibers also induced an antibody response. This work shows that electrospinning can be used to dry-formulate VLP, preserving both humoral and cell-mediated immunity