Realistic adsorption geometries and binding affinities of metal nanoparticles onto the surface of carbon nanotubes

Adsorption geometries and binding affinities of metal nanoparticles onto carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are investigated through density-functional-theory calculations. Clusters of 13 metal atoms are used as models for metal nanoparticles. Palladium, platinum, and titanium particles strongly chemisorb to the CNT surface. Unlike the cases of atomic adsorptions the aluminum particle has the weakest binding affinity with the CNT. Aluminum or gold nanoparticles accumulated on the CNT develop the triangular bonding network of the metal surfaces in which the metal-carbon bond is not favored. This suggests that the CNT-Al interface is likely to have many voids and thus susceptible to oxidation damages.open10

Financial burden among US households affected by cancer at the end of life: Financial burden

Economic burden on families coping with end-stage cancer remains poorly understood. Advanced malignancy threatens financial stability of families and interventions are needed to buffer them from impoverishment. This study examined the relationship between subjective and objective assessments of financial burden on families (financial strain and stress, respectively); and identified potentially modifiable factors to inform intervention efforts

Validation of the Quality of Dying-Hospice Scale

Measuring the quality of the dying experience is important for hospice providers. However, few instruments exist that assess the quality of one’s dying; and those that do, have not been well validated in hospice

Complex Organic Molecules in a Very Young Hot Corino, HOPS 373SW

We present the spectra of Complex Organic Molecules (COMs) detected in HOPS 373SW with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). HOPS 373SW, which is a component of a protostellar binary with a separation of 1500 au, has been discovered as a variable protostar by the JCMT Transient monitoring survey with a modest ~30% brightness increase at submillimeter wavelengths. Our ALMA Target of Opportunity (ToO) observation at ~345 GHz for HOPS 373SW revealed extremely young chemical characteristics with strong deuteration of methanol. The dust continuum opacity is very high toward the source center, obscuring line emission from within 0.03 arcsec. The other binary component, HOPS 373NE, was detected only in C17O in our observation, implying a cold and quiescent environment. We compare the COMs abundances relative to CH3OH in HOPS 373SW with those of V883 Ori, which is an eruptive disk object, as well as other hot corinos, to demonstrate the chemical evolution from envelope to disk. High abundances of singly, doubly, and triply deuterated methanol (CH2DOH, CHD2OH, and CD3OH) and a low CH3CN abundance in HOPS 373SW compared to other hot corinos suggest a very early evolutionary stage of HOPS 373SW in the hot corino phase. Since the COMs detected in HOPS 373SW would have been sublimated very recently from grain surfaces, HOPS 373SW is a promising place to study the surface chemistry of COMs in the cold prestellar phase, before sublimation.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap

A rare case of dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor combined with encephalocraniocutaneous lipomatosis and intractable seizures

Encephalocraniocutaneous lipomatosis (ECCL) is a rare neurocutaneous syndrome that affects ectomesodermal tissues (skin, eyes, adipose tissue, and brain). The neurologic manifestations associated with ECCL are various including seizures. However, ECCL patients very rarely develop brain tumors that originate from the neuroepithelium. This is the first described case of ECCL in combination with dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor (DNET) that presented with intractable seizures. A 7-year-old girl was admitted to our center because of ECCL and associated uncontrolled seizures. She was born with right anophthalmia and lipomatosis in the right temporal area and endured right temporal lipoma excision at 3 years of age. Seizures began when she was 3 years old, but did not respond to multiple antiepileptic drugs. Brain magnetic resonance (MR) imaging performed at 8 and 10 years of age revealed an interval increase of multifocal hyperintense lesions in the basal ganglia, thalamus, cerebellum, periventricular white matter, and, especially, the right temporal area. A nodular mass near the right hippocampus demonstrated the absence of N-acetylaspartate decrease on brain MR spectroscopy and mildly increased methionine uptake on brain positron emission tomography, suggesting low-grade tumor. Twenty-four-hour video electroencephalographic monitoring also indicated seizures originating from the right temporal area. Right temporal lobectomy was performed without complications, and the nodular lesion was pathologically identified as DNET. The patient has been seizure-free for 14 months since surgery. Although ECCL-associated brain tumors are very rare, careful follow-up imaging and surgical resection is recommended for patients with intractable seizures

Crystal structure of the nuclease and capping domain of SbcD from Staphylococcus aureus

The SbcCD complex is an essential component of the DNA double-strand break (DSB) repair system in bacteria. The bacterial SbcCD complex recognizes and cleaves the DNA ends in DSBs by ATP-dependent endo- and exonuclease activities as an early step of the DNA repair process. SbcD consists of nuclease, capping, and helix-loop-helix domains. Here, we present the crystal structure of a SbcD fragment from Staphylococcus aureus, which contained nuclease and capping domains, at a resolution of 2.9 A. This structure shows a dimeric assembly similar to that of the corresponding domains of SbcD from Escherichia coli. The S. aureus SbcD fragment exhibited endonuclease activities on supercoiled DNA and exonuclease activity on linear and nicked DNA. This study contributes to the understanding of the molecular basis for how bacteria can resist sterilizing treatment, causing DNA damage.N