Ionization Yield from Nuclear Recoils in Liquid-Xenon Dark Matter Detection

The ionization yield in the two-phase liquid xenon dark-matter detector has been studied in keV nuclear-recoil energy region. The newly-obtained nuclear quenching as well as the recently-measured average energy required to produce an electron-ion pair are used to calculate the total electric charges produced. To estimate the fraction of the electron charges collected, the Thomas-Imel model is generalized to describing the field dependence for nuclear recoils in liquid xenon. With free parameters fitted to experiment measured 56.5 keV nuclear recoils, the energy dependence of ionization yield for nuclear recoils is predicted, which increases with the decreasing of the recoiling energy and reaches the maximum value at 2~3 keV. This prediction agrees well with existing data and may help to lower the energy detection threshold for nuclear recoils to ~1 keV.Comment: 13 pages, 5 figure

Down-regulation of F-actin and paxillin by N-(3-(1Htetrazol- 1-yl)phenyl) isonicotinamide derivative inhibits proliferation of prostate cancer cells

Purpose: To investigate the effect of N-(3-(1H-tetrazol-1-yl)phenyl) isonicotinamide derivative (TPIN) on prostate cancer cells, and the mechanism involved.Methods: The cytotoxicity of TPIN in DU145 and PC3 cells was determined using Cell Counting Kit-8, while apoptosis induction was assayed by flow cytometry using Annexin V-fluorescein isothiocyanate dye. Changes in expressions of F-actin, RAC-α and paxillin were determined by western blot assay.Results: Cell proliferation was effectively inhibited by TPIN in the concentration range of 0.75-15 μM. The values of half-minimum inhibitory concentration (IC50) of TPIN for DU145 and PC3 cells at 48 h were 5.6 and 10.2 μM, respectively (p < 0.05). Treatment with 5.6 μM TPIN increased apoptosis to 59.64 % in DU145 cells, and 54.21% in PC3 cells. Cleaved caspase-3 and caspase-9 levels were increased by TPIN treatment in both cell lines (p < 0.05). Moreover, the levels of F-actin and paxillin were significantly downregulated by TPIN treatment in DU145 and PC3 cells (p < 0.05). In TPIN-treated DU145 and PC3 cells, cofilin-1expression was up-regulated, relative to control cells.Conclusion: TPIN exhibits cytotoxic effect on prostate cancer cells via activation of apoptosis. It elevates cofilin-1 and the expressions of targets F-actin and paxillin in prostate cancer cells. Thus, TPIN is a potential chemotherapeutic agent for prostate cancer. However, further investigations, including clinical trials are required to authenticate these findings. Keywords: Prostate cancer, F-actin, Paxillin, Apoptosis, Caspase

Dimethyl 3,3′-diphenyl-2,2′-[(S)-thio­phene-2,5-diylbis(carbonyl­aza­nedi­yl)]dipropano­ate

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, C26H26N2O6S, contains two independent mol­ecules; each has twofold symmetry with the S atom and the mid-point of the C—C bond of the thio­phene ring located on a twofold rotation axis. In the two mol­ecules, the terminal benzene rings are oriented at dihedral angles of 65.8 (3) and 63.5 (3)° with respect to the central thio­phene rings. The meth­oxy­carbonyl group of one mol­ecule is disordered over two positions with site-occupancy factors of 0.277 (12) and 0.723 (12). Inter­molecular N—H⋯O hydrogen bonding is present in the crystal structure

The Biological Function of Kupffer Cells in Liver Disease

Kupffer cells, which have a characteristic morphology and a kind of phenotype, are the resident macrophages in liver, serve as the largest population mononuclear phagocytes in the body, and are localized in the periportal zone. They have phagocytosis capacity and release all kinds of cytokines, chemokines, and soluble biological mediators. Owing to the different functions of Kupffer cells, they play an important role in liver diseases. In this chapter, we review the role of Kupffer cells in infectious disease, fatty liver disease, liver fibrosis, liver ischemia-reperfusion injury, liver transplantation immunology, as well as liver cancer and metastases

5-(Methoxy­carbon­yl)thio­phene-2-carboxylic acid

In the title compound, C7H6O4S, a monoester derivative of 2,5-thio­phene­dicarboxylic acid, the carboxylic acid and the carboxylic acid ester groups are approximately coplanar with thio­phene ring, making a dihedral angle of 3.1 (4) and 3.6 (4)°, respectively. In the crystal structure, mol­ecules are connected by classical inter­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming centrosymmetric dimers