Depairing critical current achieved in superconducting thin films with through-thickness arrays of artificial pinning centers

Large area arrays of through-thickness nanoscale pores have been milled into superconducting Nb thin films via a process utilizing anodized aluminum oxide thin film templates. These pores act as artificial flux pinning centers, increasing the superconducting critical current, Jc, of the Nb films. By optimizing the process conditions including anodization time, pore size and milling time, Jc values approaching and in some cases matching the Ginzburg-Landau depairing current of 30 MA/cm^2 at 5 K have been achieved - a Jc enhancement over as-deposited films of more than 50 times. In the field dependence of Jc, a matching field corresponding to the areal pore density has also been clearly observed. The effect of back-filling the pores with magnetic material has then been investigated. While back-filling with Co has been successfully achieved, the effect of the magnetic material on Jc has been found to be largely detrimental compared to voids, although a distinct influence of the magnetic material in producing a hysteretic Jc versus applied field behavior has been observed. This behavior has been tested for compatibility with currently proposed models of magnetic pinning and found to be most closely explained by a model describing the magnetic attraction between the flux vortices and the magnetic inclusions.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figure

Mobile/Modular BSL-4 Containment Facilities Integrated into a Curation Receiving Laboratory for Restricted Earth Return Missions

NASA robotic sample return missions designated Category V Restricted Earth Return by the NASA Planetary Protection (PP) Office require sample containment and biohazard testing upon return to Earth. Since the 1960s, sample containment from an unknown extraterrestrial biohazard have been related to the highest containment standards and protocols known to modern science. Today, this is Biosafety Level (BSL) 4 containment. In the U.S., the Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories publication authored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health houses the primary recommendations, standards, and design requirements for all BSL labs. Past mission concept studies for constructing a NASA Curation Receiving Laboratory with an integrated BSL-4 quarantine and biohazard testing facility have been estimated in the hundreds of millions of dollars (USD). As an alternative option, we have conducted a trade study for constructing a mobile and/or modular sample containment laboratory that would meet all BSL-4 and planetary protection standards and protocols at a fraction of the cost. Mobile and modular BSL-2 and 3 facilities have been successfully constructed and deployed world-wide for government testing of pathogens and pharmaceutical production. Our study showed that a modular BSL-4 construction could result in ~ 90% cost reduction when compared to traditional BSL-4 construction methods without compromising the preservation of the samples or Earth. For the design/construction requirements of a mobile/modular BSL-4 containment, we used the established HHS document standards and protocols for manipulation of agents in Class III Biosafety Cabinets (BSC; i.e., negative pressure gloveboxes) that are currently followed in operational BSL-4 facilities in the U.S

Dna2 is a structure-specific nuclease, with affinity for 5'-flap intermediates

Dna2 is a nuclease/helicase with proposed roles in DNA replication, double-strand break repair and telomere maintenance. For each role Dna2 is proposed to process DNA substrates with a 5'-flap. To date, however, Dna2 has not revealed a preference for binding or cleavage of flaps over single-stranded DNA. Using DNA binding competition assays we found that Dna2 has substrate structure specificity. The nuclease displayed a strong preference for binding substrates with a 5'-flap or some variations of flap structure. Further analysis revealed that Dna2 recognized and bound both the single-stranded flap and portions of the duplex region immediately downstream of the flap. A model is proposed in which Dna2 first binds to a flap base, and then the flap threads through the protein with periodic cleavage, to a terminal flap length of ~5 nt. This resembles the mechanism of flap endonuclease 1, consistent with cooperation of these two proteins in flap processing

Superconductor-ferromagnet nanocomposites created by co-deposition of niobium and dysprosium

We have created superconductor-ferromagnet composite films in order to test the enhancement of critical current density, Jc, due to magnetic pinning. We co-sputter the type-II superconductor niobium (Nb) and the low-temperature ferromagnet dysprosium (Dy) onto a heated substrate; the immiscibility of the two materials leads to a phase-separated composite of magnetic regions within a superconducting matrix. Over a range of compositions and substrate temperatures, we achieve phase separation on scales from 5 nm to 1 micron. The composite films exhibit simultaneous superconductivity and ferromagnetism. Transport measurements show that while the self-field Jc is reduced in the composites, the in-field Jc is greatly enhanced up to the 3 T saturation field of Dy. In one instance, the phase separation orders into stripes, leading to in-plane anisotropy in Jc.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures. Matches the version published in SUST: Added one reference and some discussion in Section

PenQuest Volume 1, Number 2

Table of Contents for this Volume: Untitled by Julie Ambrose Night by Judith Gallo Untitled by Judy Gozdur the shamans by Charles Riddles Untitled by Jerry Connell Untitled by Laura Woods Untitled by LEMA Wicked Bird by Laura Jo Last Untitled by Rick Dentos Untitled by Jeni Moody Untitled by Bettie W. Kwibs Untitled by Joann Stagg The Protector Stood by Laura Jo Last Visions of Salome by Charles Riddles Untitled by Thomas Tutten Kennesaw Line by Don Ova-Dunaway Stone Blood by Mary Ellen C. Wofford Untitled by Roger Whitt Jr. Untitled by C. Wingate Untitled by Doug Dorey Untitled by Karen Blumberg Untitled by Beverly Oviatt Untitled by Virginia Shrader The Crapulous Credo of Charles C. by Charles Riddles the brave and the true by David Reed Untitled by Charles Gutierrez Canoe Creek by Patricia Kraft Untitled by Linda Bobinger The Man in the Iron Lung by Patricia Kraft Untitled by Roger Whitt, Jr. Childish Things by Kathleen Gay Untitled by Joseph Avanzini The Lover by Mary S. Aken Untitled by Ann Harrington And He Taketh Away by David Reed Untitled by Mary Graham Untitled by Melody A. Cummons Untitled by Karen Blumberg To The Poets by Judith Gallo Untitled by Ann Harringto

Randomized trials fit for the 21st century. A joint opinion from the European Society of Cardiology, American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology, and the World Heart Federation

© The Author(s) 2022. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The articles are identical except for minor stylistic and spelling differences in keeping with each journal's style. When citing this article, a citation from any of the journals listed is appropriate. For commercial re-use, please contact [email protected] controlled trials are the cornerstone for reliably evaluating therapeutic strategies. However, during the past 25 years, the rules and regulations governing randomized trials and their interpretation have become increasingly burdensome, and the cost and complexity of trials has become prohibitive. The present model is unsustainable, and the development of potentially effective treatments is often stopped prematurely on financial grounds, while existing drug treatments or non-drug interventions (such as screening strategies or management tools) may not be assessed reliably. The current ‘best regulatory practice’ environment, and a lack of consensus on what that requires, too often makes it unduly difficult to undertake efficient randomized trials able to provide reliable evidence about the safety and efficacy of potentially valuable interventions. Inclusion of underrepresented population groups and lack of diversity also remain among the challenges.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Phenomenology of bipolar disorder not otherwise specified in youth: a comparison of clinical characteristics across the spectrum of manic symptoms

Controversy surrounds the diagnostic categorization of children with episodic moods that cause impairment, but do not meet DSM-IV criteria for bipolar I (BD-I) or bipolar II (BD-II) disorder. This study aims to characterize the degree to which these children, who meet criteria for bipolar disorder not otherwise specified (BD-NOS), are similar to those with full syndromal BD, versus those with no bipolar spectrum diagnosis (no BSD)

Examining the Proposed Disruptive Mood Dysregulation Disorder Diagnosis in Children in the Longitudinal Assessment of Manic Symptoms Study

To examine the proposed disruptive mood dysregulation disorder (DMDD) diagnosis in a child psychiatric outpatient population. Evaluation of DMDD included 4 domains: clinical phenomenology, delimitation from other diagnoses, longitudinal stability, and association with parental psychiatric disorders

The nuclear receptor PPARγ selectively inhibits Th17 differentiation in a T cell–intrinsic fashion and suppresses CNS autoimmunity

T helper cells secreting interleukin (IL)-17 (Th17 cells) play a crucial role in autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). Th17 differentiation, which is induced by a combination of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β/IL-6 or IL-21, requires expression of the transcription factor retinoic acid receptor–related orphan receptor γt (RORγt). We identify the nuclear receptor peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor γ (PPARγ) as a key negative regulator of human and mouse Th17 differentiation. PPARγ activation in CD4+ T cells selectively suppressed Th17 differentiation, but not differentiation into Th1, Th2, or regulatory T cells. Control of Th17 differentiation by PPARγ involved inhibition of TGF-β/IL-6–induced expression of RORγt in T cells. Pharmacologic activation of PPARγ prevented removal of the silencing mediator for retinoid and thyroid hormone receptors corepressor from the RORγt promoter in T cells, thus interfering with RORγt transcription. Both T cell–specific PPARγ knockout and endogenous ligand activation revealed the physiological role of PPARγ for continuous T cell–intrinsic control of Th17 differentiation and development of autoimmunity. Importantly, human CD4+ T cells from healthy controls and MS patients were strongly susceptible to PPARγ-mediated suppression of Th17 differentiation. In summary, we report a PPARγ-mediated T cell–intrinsic molecular mechanism that selectively controls Th17 differentiation in mice and in humans and that is amenable to pharmacologic modulation. We therefore propose that PPARγ represents a promising molecular target for specific immunointervention in Th17-mediated autoimmune diseases such as MS