214 research outputs found
Caspase-10 Is the Key Initiator Caspase Involved in Tributyltin-Mediated Apoptosis in Human Immune Cells
Tributyltin (TBT) is one of the most toxic compounds produced by man and distributed in the environment. A multitude of toxic activities have been described, for example, immunotoxic, neurotoxic, and endocrine disruptive effects. Moreover, it has been shown for many cell types that they undergo apoptosis after treatment with TBT and the cell death of immune cells could be the molecular background of its immunotoxic effect. As low as 200 nM up to 1 μM of TBT induces all signs of apoptosis in Jurkat T cells within 1 to 24 hrs of treatment. When compared to Fas-ligand control stimulation, the same sequence of events occurs: membrane blebbing, phosphatidylserine externalisation, the activation of the “death-inducing signalling complex,” and the following sequence of cleavage processes. In genetically modified caspase-8-deficient Jurkat cells, the apoptotic effects are only slightly reduced, whereas, in FADD-negative Jurkat cells, the TBT effect is significantly diminished. We could show that caspase-10 is recruited by the TRAIL-R2 receptor and apoptosis is totally prevented when caspase-10 is specifically inhibited in all three cell lines
Highly-efficient state-selective sub-microsecond photoionization detection of single atoms
We experimentally demonstrate a detection scheme suitable for state analysis
of single optically trapped atoms in less than 1 {\mu}s with an overall
detection efficiency {\eta} exceeding 98%. The method is based on
hyperfine-state-selective photoionization and subsequent registration of the
correlated photoion-electron pairs by coincidence counting via two opposing
channel electron multipliers. The scheme enables the calibration of absolute
detection efficiencies and might be a key ingredient for future quantum
information applications or precision spectroscopy of ultracold atoms.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Towards a loophole-free test of Bell's inequality with entangled pairs of neutral atoms
Experimental tests of Bell's inequality allow to distinguish quantum
mechanics from local hidden variable theories. Such tests are performed by
measuring correlations of two entangled particles (e.g. polarization of photons
or spins of atoms). In order to constitute conclusive evidence, two conditions
have to be satisfied. First, strict separation of the measurement events in the
sense of special relativity is required ("locality loophole"). Second, almost
all entangled pairs have to be detected (for particles in a maximally entangled
state the required detector efficiency is 82.8%), which is hard to achieve
experimentally ("detection loophole"). By using the recently demonstrated
entanglement between single trapped atoms and single photons it becomes
possible to entangle two atoms at a large distance via entanglement swapping.
Combining the high detection efficiency achieved with atoms with the space-like
separation of the atomic state detection events, both loopholes can be closed
within the same experiment. In this paper we present estimations based on
current experimental achievements which show that such an experiment is
feasible in future.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, to be published in Advanced Science Letter
The DaNa2.0 Knowledge Base Nanomaterials - An Important Measure Accompanying Nanomaterials Development
Nanotechnology is closely related to the tailored manufacturing of nanomaterials for a huge variety of applications. However, such applications with newly developed materials are also a reason for concern. The DaNa2.0 project provides information and support for these issues on the web in condensed and easy-to-understand wording. Thus, a key challenge in the field of advanced materials safety research is access to correct and reliable studies and validated results. For nanomaterials, there is currently a continuously increasing amount of publications on toxicological issues, but criteria to evaluate the quality of these studies are necessary to use them e.g., for regulatory purposes. DaNa2.0 discusses scientific results regarding 26 nanomaterials based on actual literature that has been selected after careful evaluation following a literature criteria checklist. This checklist is publicly available, along with a selection of standardized operating protocols (SOPs) established by different projects. The spectrum of information is rounded off by further articles concerning basics or crosscutting topics in nanosafety research. This article is intended to give an overview on DaNa2.0 activities to support reliable toxicity testing and science communication alik
Evidence for electronically-driven ferroelectricity in the family of strongly correlated dimerized BEDT-TTF molecular conductors
By applying measurements of the dielectric constants and relative length
changes to the dimerized molecular conductor
-(BEDT-TTF)Hg(SCN)Cl, we provide evidence for order-disorder
type electronic ferroelectricity which is driven by charge order within the
(BEDT-TTF) dimers and stabilized by a coupling to the anions. According to
our density functional theory calculations, this material is characterized by a
moderate strength of dimerization. This system thus bridges the gap between
strongly dimerized materials, often approximated as dimer-Mott systems at 1/2
filling, and non- or weakly dimerized systems at 1/4 filling exhibiting charge
order. Our results indicate that intra-dimer charge degrees of freedom are of
particular importance in correlated -(BEDT-TTF)X salts and can
create novel states, such as electronically-driven multiferroicity or
charge-order-induced quasi-1D spin liquids.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures + Supplementary Information (8 pages, 8 figures
Conserved Growth on Vicinal Surfaces
A crystal surface which is miscut with respect to a high symmetry plane
exhibits steps with a characteristic distance. It is argued that the continuum
description of growth on such a surface, when desorption can be neglected, is
given by the anisotropic version of the conserved KPZ equation (T. Sun, H. Guo,
and M. Grant, Phys. Rev. A 40, 6763 (1989)) with non-conserved noise. A
one--loop dynamical renormalization group calculation yields the values of the
dynamical exponent and the roughness exponent which are shown to be the same as
in the isotropic case. The results presented here should apply in particular to
growth under conditions which are typical for molecular beam epitaxy.Comment: 10 pages, uses revte
The adsorption of biomolecules to multi-walled carbon nanotubes is influenced by both pulmonary surfactant lipids and surface chemistry
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>During production and processing of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), they may be inhaled and may enter the pulmonary circulation. It is essential that interactions with involved body fluids like the pulmonary surfactant, the blood and others are investigated, particularly as these interactions could lead to coating of the tubes and may affect their chemical and physical characteristics. The aim of this study was to characterize the possible coatings of different functionalized MWCNTs in a cell free environment.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>To simulate the first contact in the lung, the tubes were coated with pulmonary surfactant and subsequently bound lipids were characterized. The further coating in the blood circulation was simulated by incubating the tubes in blood plasma. MWCNTs were amino (NH<sub>2</sub>)- and carboxyl (-COOH)-modified, in order to investigate the influence on the bound lipid and protein patterns. It was shown that surfactant lipids bind unspecifically to different functionalized MWCNTs, in contrast to the blood plasma proteins which showed characteristic binding patterns. Patterns of bound surfactant lipids were altered after a subsequent incubation in blood plasma. In addition, it was found that bound plasma protein patterns were altered when MWCNTs were previously coated with pulmonary surfactant.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>A pulmonary surfactant coating and the functionalization of MWCNTs have both the potential to alter the MWCNTs blood plasma protein coating and to determine their properties and behaviour in biological systems.</p
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