58 research outputs found
Manipulating ionization path in a Stark map: Stringent schemes for the selective field ionization in highly excited Rb Rydberg atoms
We have developed a quite stringent method in selectivity to ionize the low
angular- momentum () states which lie below and above the adjacent
manifold in highly excited Rb Rydberg atoms. The method fully exploits the
pulsed field-ionization characteristics of the manifold states in high
slew-rate regime: Specifically the low state below (above) the adjacent
manifold is firstly transferred to the lowest (highest) state in the manifold
via the adiabatic transition at the first avoided crossing in low slew-rate
regime, and then the atoms are driven to a high electric field for ionization
in high slew-rate regime. These extreme states of the manifold are ionized at
quite different fields due to the tunneling process, resulting in thus the
stringent selectivity. Two manipulation schemes to realize this method actually
are demonstrated here experimentally.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure
Systematic observation of tunneling field-ionization in highly excited Rb Rydberg atoms
Pulsed field ionization of high- (90 150) manifold states in
Rb Rydberg atoms has been investigated in high slew-rate regime. Two peaks in
the field ionization spectra were systematically observed for the investigated
region, where the field values at the lower peak do not almost depend on
the excitation energy in the manifold, while those at the higher peak increase
with increasing excitation energy. The fraction of the higher peak component to
the total ionization signals increases with increasing , exceeding 80% at
= 147. Characteristic behavior of the peak component and the comparison
with theoretical predictions indicate that the higher peak component is due to
the tunneling process. The obtained results show for the first time that the
tunneling process plays increasingly the dominant role at such highly excited
nonhydrogenic Rydberg atoms.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
Blood ties: ABO is a trans-species polymorphism in primates
The ABO histo-blood group, the critical determinant of transfusion
incompatibility, was the first genetic polymorphism discovered in humans.
Remarkably, ABO antigens are also polymorphic in many other primates, with the
same two amino acid changes responsible for A and B specificity in all species
sequenced to date. Whether this recurrence of A and B antigens is the result of
an ancient polymorphism maintained across species or due to numerous, more
recent instances of convergent evolution has been debated for decades, with a
current consensus in support of convergent evolution. We show instead that
genetic variation data in humans and gibbons as well as in Old World Monkeys
are inconsistent with a model of convergent evolution and support the
hypothesis of an ancient, multi-allelic polymorphism of which some alleles are
shared by descent among species. These results demonstrate that the ABO
polymorphism is a trans-species polymorphism among distantly related species
and has remained under balancing selection for tens of millions of years, to
date, the only such example in Hominoids and Old World Monkeys outside of the
Major Histocompatibility Complex.Comment: 45 pages, 4 Figures, 4 Supplementary Figures, 5 Supplementary Table
Boundedness of Spacecraft Hovering Under Dead-Band Control in Time-Invariant Systems
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/76297/1/AIAA-20179-984.pd
Genetic and Mechanistic Evaluation for the Mixed-Field Agglutination in B3 Blood Type with IVS3+5G>A ABO Gene Mutation
Background: The ABO blood type B3 is the most common B subtype in the Chinese population with a frequency of 1/900. Although IVS3+5G.A (rs55852701) mutation of B gene has been shown to associate with the development of B3 blood type, genetic and mechanistic evaluation for the unique mixed-field agglutination phenotype has not yet been completely addressed. Methodology/Principal Findings: In this study, we analyzed 16 cases of confirmed B3 individuals and found that IVS3+5G.A attributes to all cases of B3. RT-PCR analyses revealed the presence of at least 7 types of aberrant B3 splicing transcripts with most of the transcripts causing early termination and producing non-functional protein during translation. The splicing transcript without exon 3 that was predicted to generate functional B3 glycosyltransferase lacking 19 amino acids at the N-terminal segment constituted only 0.9 % of the splicing transcripts. Expression of the B3 cDNA with exon 3 deletion in the K562 erythroleukemia cells revealed that the B3 glycosyltransferase had only 40 % of B1 activity in converting H antigen to B antigen. Notably, the typical mixed-field agglutination of B3-RBCs can be mimicked by adding anti-B antibody to the K562-B3 cells. Conclusions/Significance: This study thereby demonstrates that both aberrant splicing of B transcripts and the reduced B3 glycosyltransferase activity contribute to weak B expression and the mixed-field agglutination of B3, adding to th
DNA Methylation of the ABO Promoter Underlies Loss of ABO Allelic Expression in a Significant Proportion of Leukemic Patients
Background: Loss of A, B and H antigens from the red blood cells of patients with myeloid malignancies is a frequent occurrence. Previously, we have reported alterations in ABH antigens on the red blood cells of 55% of patients with myeloid malignancies. Methodology/Principal Findings: To determine the underlying molecular mechanisms of this loss, we assessed ABO allelic expression in 21 patients with ABH antigen loss previously identified by flow cytometric analysis as well as an additional 7 patients detected with ABH antigen changes by serology. When assessing ABO mRNA allelic expression, 6/12 (50%) patients with ABH antigen loss detected by flow cytometry and 5/7 (71%) of the patients with ABH antigen loss detected by serology had a corresponding ABO mRNA allelic loss of expression. We examined the ABO locus for copy number and DNA methylation alterations in 21 patients, 11 with loss of expression of one or both ABO alleles, and 10 patients with no detectable allelic loss of ABO mRNA expression. No loss of heterozygosity (LOH) at the ABO locus was observed in these patients. However in 8/11 (73%) patients with loss of ABO allelic expression, the ABO promoter was methylated compared with 2/10 (20%) of patients with no ABO allelic expression loss (P = 0.03). Conclusions/Significance: We have found that loss of ABH antigens in patients with hematological malignancies is associated with a corresponding loss of ABO allelic expression in a significant proportion of patients. Loss of ABO allelic expression was strongly associated with DNA methylation of the ABO promoter.Tina Bianco-Miotto, Damian J. Hussey, Tanya K. Day, Denise S. O'Keefe and Alexander Dobrovi
Distinct Mechanisms for Induction and Tolerance Regulate the Immediate Early Genes Encoding Interleukin 1β and Tumor Necrosis Factor α
Interleukin-1β and Tumor Necrosis Factor α play related, but distinct, roles in immunity and disease. Our study revealed major mechanistic distinctions in the Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling-dependent induction for the rapidly expressed genes (IL1B and TNF) coding for these two cytokines. Prior to induction, TNF exhibited pre-bound TATA Binding Protein (TBP) and paused RNA Polymerase II (Pol II), hallmarks of poised immediate-early (IE) genes. In contrast, unstimulated IL1B displayed very low levels of both TBP and paused Pol II, requiring the lineage-specific Spi-1/PU.1 (Spi1) transcription factor as an anchor for induction-dependent interaction with two TLR-activated transcription factors, C/EBPβ and NF-κB. Activation and DNA binding of these two pre-expressed factors resulted in de novo recruitment of TBP and Pol II to IL1B in concert with a permissive state for elongation mediated by the recruitment of elongation factor P-TEFb. This Spi1-dependent mechanism for IL1B transcription, which is unique for a rapidly-induced/poised IE gene, was more dependent upon P-TEFb than was the case for the TNF gene. Furthermore, the dependence on phosphoinositide 3-kinase for P-TEFb recruitment to IL1B paralleled a greater sensitivity to the metabolic state of the cell and a lower sensitivity to the phenomenon of endotoxin tolerance than was evident for TNF. Such differences in induction mechanisms argue against the prevailing paradigm that all IE genes possess paused Pol II and may further delineate the specific roles played by each of these rapidly expressed immune modulators. © 2013 Adamik et al
Loss of heterozygosity at 9q33 and hypermethylation of the DBCCR1 gene in oral squamous cell carcinoma
Coherent Time Evolution of Highly Excited Rydberg States in Pulsed Electric Field: Opening a New Scheme for Stringently Selective Field Ionization (NUCLEAR SCIENCE RESEARCH FACILITY-Beams and Fundamental Reaction)
Coherent time evolution of highly excited Rydberg states in Rb (98 n 150) under pulsed electric field in high slew rate regime was investigated with the field ionization detection. We observed for the first time a discrete transition of the threshold ionization field with slew rate, the behavior of which depends also on the position of the low l states relative to the adjacent manifold. The experimental results strongly suggest that the coherent interference effect plays decisive role for such transitional behavior, and bring us a new, quite effective scheme for the stringently selective field ionization
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