NMR investigation of contextuality in a quantum harmonic oscillator via pseudospin mapping

Physical potentials are routinely approximated to harmonic potentials so as to analytically solve the system dynamics. Often it is important to know when a quantum harmonic oscillator (QHO) behaves quantum mechanically and when classically. Recently Su et. al. [Phys. Rev. A {\bf 85}, 052126 (2012)] have theoretically shown that QHO exhibits quantum contextuality (QC) for a certain set of pseudospin observables. In this work, we encode the four eigenstates of a QHO onto four Zeeman product states of a pair of spin-1/2 nuclei. Using the techniques of NMR quantum information processing, we then demonstrate the violation of a state-dependent inequality arising from the noncontextual hidden variable model, under specific experimental arrangements. We also experimentally demonstrate the violation of a state-independent inequality by thermal equilibrium states of nuclear spins, thereby assessing their quantumness.Comment: 5 Pages, 3 Figures, context dependency illustrated, error below eq. 5 correcte

Alternate cyclin D1 mRNA splicing modulates P27\u3csup\u3eKlP1\u3c/sup\u3e binding and cell migration

Cyclin D1 is an important cell cycle regulator but in cancer its overexpression also increases cellular migration mediated by p27KlP1 stabilization and RhoA inhibition. Recently, a common polymorphism at the exon 4-intron 4 boundary of the human cyclin D1 gene within a splice donor region was associated with an altered risk of developing cancer. Altered RNA splicing caused by this polymorphism gives rise to a variant cyclin D1 isoform termed cyclin D1b, which has the same N-terminus as the canonical cyclin D1a isoform but a distinct C-terminus. In this study we show that these different isoforms have unique properties with regard to the cellular migration function of cyclin D1. Whereas they displayed little difference in transcriptional co-repression assays on idealized reporter genes, microarray cDNA expression analysis revealed differential regulation of genes including those that influence cellular migration. Additionally, while cyclin D1a stabilized p27KIP1 and inhibited RhoA-induced ROCK kinase activity, promoting cellular migration, cyclin D1b failed to stabilize p27KIP1 or inhibit ROCK kinase activity and had no effect on migration. Our findings argue that alternate splicing is an important determinant of the function of cyclin D1 in cellular migration

The present status and the projected programme of Zirconium development in India

THE nuclear power industry continues to be the major consumer of zirconium metal production in the world today. On the basis of neutron economy, corrosion resistance and mechanical strength, zirconium alloys have been the ideal choice for the fuel-cladding and other core components in watercooled nuclear power systems. In the United States alone, the current annual requirement of zircaloy tubing for nuclear fuel cladding has been placed at 250 tons, which will grow to 600 tons by 1970 and 900 tons by 1973. In India, for the 1200 MW(e) nuclear power programme envisaged for the IV Plan period, zircaloy tube requir-ements have been estimated at 50 tons per year and will increase to 75 tons and more during the V Plan period

Cancer of the uterine cervix and human papillomavirus infection

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) have emerged as the principal sexually transmitted causal agents in the development of cancer of the uterine cervix in women. They also cause a variety of benign lesions, warts, intraepithelial neoplasia and anogenital, oral and pharyngeal papillomas. Presently, more than 100 HPV genotypes have been identified in humans, and about one-third of them have been sequenced. Of these, while HPV types 16 and 18 are considered to be the high-risk types, HPV 6 and 11 are the low-risk types in the development of cervical cancer. Evidence for causal role of HPV in the development of cervical neoplasia comes from the etiological and epidemiological observations together with the experimental findings of the molecular pathways elicited by HPV-transforming genes. Further evidence in favour of papillomavirus as the carcinoma virus comes from the findings of presence of HPV infections in cancers of oral, esophageal, larynx and nonmelanoma skin cancers. The oncogenic potentials of the virus have been attributed to its E6 and E7 genes. The products of these two genes stimulate cell proliferation by activating the cell-cycle-specific proteins and interfere with the functions of cellular growth-regulatory proteins, p53 and Rb. Identification and characterization of several human pathogenic HPV types warrant prevention of viral infection through vaccination or therapeutic intervention which could eventually control infection and expression of human pathogenic papillomaviruses

A simple 'paper smear' method for dry collection, transport and storage of cervical cytological specimens for rapid screening of HPV infection by PCR

Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) are major pathogens associated with the development of cancer of the uterine cervix, the most common malignant tumour of women world-wide. Reliable diagnosis of HPV infection, particularly the 'high-risk' types (16/18), may facilitate early identification of 'high-risk' populations for developing cervical cancer and may augment the sensitivity and specificity of primary cervical cancer screening programmes by complementing the conventional Pap test. A simple paper smear method has been developed for dry collection, transport and storage of cervical smears/scrapes at room temperature for subsequent detection of HPV DNA by PCR assay. Imprint biopsies, blood and fine-needle aspirates were also collected by this method. The cervical scrapes or other body fluids were smeared (within 0.5-1 cm diameter) and dried on to sterile small slides made of Whatman 3MM filter paper, and stored individually at room temperature or at 4°C. A small piece (2-3 mm) of the paper smear was punched or cut out with a sterile surgical blade, boiled in an eppendorf tube containing 50 µl of distilled water for 5 min and used directly for PCR amplification. The quality and quantity of DNA derived from paper smears and the results of PCR amplifications for HPV type 16, BRCA1 and p53 genes were identical to those obtained from the same samples following collection in PBS, storage (-70°C) and phenol-chloroform-based DNA extraction. DNA was stable in the paper smears for up to a year, whether stored at room temperature or at 4°C. This method is simple, rapid and cost-effective, and can be effectively employed for large-scale population screening, especially for regions where the specimens are to be transported from distant places to the laboratory

P53 tumor suppressor gene mutations in hepatocellular carcinoma patients in India

Background: Specific mutations of the p53 tumor suppressor gene in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) have been reported from several parts of the world, but to the authors' knowledge to date the status of this gene has not been studied in HCC patients in India, where HCC is one of the major cancers and the frequency of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) as well as hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and exposure to dietary aflatoxin B1 is very high. The most frequent mutation of the p53 gene in HCC is an AGGArg to AGTSer missense mutation at codon 249 of exon 7. Methods: Liver biopsy specimens from 21 HCC patients and 10 healthy controls were obtained through surgery or by needle biopsy technique. Phenol-chloroform-extracted DNA specimens were employed for the detection of HBV infection and p53 gene mutations. Nucleotide mutations of exons 4-9 of the p53 gene were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), single strand confirmation polymorphism, and direct sequencing. Third-generation sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used for the serologic detection of HBV and HCV infection. Results: Analysis of exons 4-9 of the p53 gene revealed only 3 mutations (3 of 21 specimens, 14.28%; 95% confidence interval, -0.7-29.3), 2 mutations at codon 249 showing G→T transversions, and 1 mutation (4.7%) at codon 250 with a C→T transition. The base substitutions at the third base of codon 249 resulted in a missense mutation leading to a change in amino acid from arginine to serine whereas at codon 250 it caused a change from proline to serine. Dot blot hybridization and PCR for HBV DNA from HCCs revealed 58.8% (10 of 17 specimens) and 90.47% (19 of 21 specimens), positivity, respectively. ELISA for hepatitis B virus surface antigen in serum showed a positivity of 71.42% (15 of 21 specimens), but there was only 40% positivity (8 of 20 specimens) for hepatitis B virus envelope antigen whereas 6 of 17 patients (35.29%) showed the presence of antibodies against hepatitis B virus envelope protein. No patient was found to be positive for the HCV antibody. Conclusions: The very low frequency of p53 mutations and the extremely high frequency of HBV infection (> 90%) in HCC indicate that the mutations in the p53 gene frequently found in HCC reported from different endemic areas of the world may not play a direct role in the development of HCC in India. HBV infection and, possibly, exposure to the dietary aflatoxin B1 appear to play major roles in the molecular pathogenesis of HCC in India