Growth and Perfection of Nickel and Cobalt Single Crystals Using the Floating-Zone Method(Physics)

Using the floating-zone method, Ni and Co single crystals were grown under various experimental conditions. Detailed observations of low angle boundaries or striations and of the dislocation arrangements in the grown crystals were carried out using an optical microscope. Ni single crystals grew preferentially along the direction and were striation-free. As the growth direction deviated from the , sharp striations were formed. The dislocation density in the crystals was about 10^6 cm^, which were distributed at random. Co single crystals grew along the direction and were also striation-free. As the growth direction deviated from the , many striations were formed with more complex shapes. These experimental results are discussed on the basis of the growth mechanism of crystals and of dislocation behaviour during the solidification process

Expression of inhibitor of apoptosis protein Livin in renal cell carcinoma and non-tumorous adult kidney

The antiapoptotic Livin/ML-IAP gene has recently gained much attention as a potential new target for cancer therapy. Reports indicating that livin is expressed almost exclusively in tumours, but not in the corresponding normal tissue, suggested that the targeted inhibition of livin may present a novel tumour-specific therapeutic strategy. Here, we compared the expression of livin in renal cell carcinoma and in non-tumorous adult kidney tissue by quantitative real-time reverse transcription-PCR, immunoblotting, and immunohistochemistry. We found that livin expression was significantly increased in tumours (P=0.0077), but was also clearly detectable in non-tumorous adult kidney. Transcripts encoding Livin isoforms α and β were found in both renal cell carcinoma and normal tissue, without obvious qualitative differences. Livin protein in renal cell carcinoma samples exhibited cytoplasmic and/or nuclear staining. In non-tumorous kidney tissue, Livin protein expression was only detectable in specific cell types and restricted to the cytoplasm. Thus, whereas the relative overexpression of livin in renal cell carcinoma indicates that it may still represent a therapeutic target to increase the apoptotic sensitivity of kidney cancer cells, this strategy is likely to be not tumour-specific

Beam Test of a BSO Calorimeter(I. Nuclear Physics)

The response of an electromagnetic calorimeter of large bismuth silicate (BSO) crystals has been measured for the first time for electrons, positrons, and charged pions at the incident momentum ranging from 0.5 to 3.0 GeV/c. The calorimeter consists of 9 BSO crystals arranged in a 3×3 matrix. The size of each crystal is 22mm×22mm×180mm (15.6 radiation lengths). The energy resolution of (σ_E/E)^2=(0.024±0.003√+(0.018±0.002)^2 has been obtained for incident electrons. The position information for the electrons injected onto the center crystal is given with energy deposit signals from 9 BSO crystals. The obtained position resolution is better than 5 mm in this energy range. The misidentification probability of pions to electrons is found to be ～10^ in the energy range from 1.0 to 3.0 GeV