3,331 research outputs found
Dielectric properties and lattice dynamics of alpha-PbO2-type TiO2: The role of soft phonon modes in pressure-induced phase transition to baddeleyite-type TiO2
Dielectric tensor and lattice dynamics of alpha-PbO2-type TiO2 have been
investigated using the density functional perturbation theory, with a focus on
responses of the vibrational frequencies to pressure. The calculated Raman
spectra under different pressures are in good agreement with available
experimental results and the symmetry assignments of the Raman peaks of
alpha-PbO2-type TiO2 are given for the first time. In addition, we identified
two anomalously IR-active soft phonon modes, B1u and B3u, respectively, around
200 cm-1 which have not been observed in high pressure experiments. Comparison
of the phonon dispersions at 0 and 10 GPa reveals that softening of phonon
modes also occurs for the zone-boundary modes. The B1u and B3u modes play an
important role in transformation from the alpha-PbO2-type phase to baddeleyite
phase. The significant relaxations of the oxygen atoms from the Ti4 plane in
the Ti2O2Ti2 complex of the baddeleyite phase are directly correlated to the
oxygen displacements along the directions given by the eigenvectors of the soft
B1u and B3u modes in the alpha-PbO2-type phase.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figure
IsaB Inhibits Autophagic Flux to Promote Host Transmission of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has emerged as a major nosocomial pathogen that is widespread in both health-care facilities and in the community at large, as a result of direct host-to-host transmission. Several virulence factors are associated with pathogen transmission to naive hosts. Immunodominant surface antigen B (IsaB) is a virulence factor that helps Staphylococcus aureus to evade the host defense system. However, the mechanism of IsaB on host transmissibility remains unclear. We found that IsaB expression was elevated in transmissible MRSA. Wild-type isaB strains inhibited autophagic flux to promote bacterial survival and elicit inflammation in THP-1 cells and mouse skin. MRSA isolates with increased IsaB expression showed decreased autophagic flux, and the MRSA isolate with the lowest IsaB expression showed increased autophagic flux. In addition, recombinant IsaB rescued the virulence of the isaB deletion strain and increased the group A streptococcus (GAS) virulence in vivo. Together, these results reveal that IsaB diminishes autophagic flux, thereby allowing MRSA to evade host degradation. These findings suggest that IsaB is a suitable target for preventing or treating MRSA infection
Signatures of Axinos and Gravitinos at Colliders
The axino and the gravitino are well-motivated candidates for the lightest
supersymmetric particle (LSP) and also for cold dark matter in the Universe.
Assuming that a charged slepton is the next-to-lightest supersymmetric particle
(NLSP), we show how the NLSP decays can be used to probe the axino LSP scenario
in hadronic axion models as well as the gravitino LSP scenario at the Large
Hadron Collider and the International Linear Collider. We show how one can
identify experimentally the scenario realized in nature. In the case of the
axino LSP, the NLSP decays will allow one to estimate the value of the axino
mass and the Peccei-Quinn scale.Comment: 20 pages, 5 figures, revised version as published in Phys.Lett.B
(comments on the experimental feasibility added
Leaf-Encapsulated Vaccines: Agroinfiltration and Transient Expression of the Antigen Staphylococcal Endotoxin B in Radish Leaves.
Transgene introgression is a major concern associated with transgenic plant-based vaccines. Agroinfiltration can be used to selectively transform nonreproductive organs and avoid introgression. Here, we introduce a new vaccine modality in which Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) genes are agroinfiltrated into radishes (Raphanw sativus L.), resulting in transient expression and accumulation of SEB in planta. This approach can simultaneously express multiple antigens in a single leaf. Furthermore, the potential of high-throughput vaccine production was demonstrated by simultaneously agroinfiltrating multiple radish leaves using a multichannel pipette. The expression of SEB was detectable in two leaf cell types (epidermal and guard cells) in agroinfiltrated leaves. ICR mice intranasally immunized with homogenized leaves agroinfiltrated with SEB elicited detectable antibody to SEB and displayed protection against SEB-induced interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) production. The concept of encapsulating antigens in leaves rather than purifying them for immunization may facilitate rapid vaccine production during an epidemic disease
A convenient tandem one-pot synthesis of donor-acceptor-type triphenylene 2,3-dicarboxylic esters from diarylacetylene
A tandem one-pot method for the direct synthesis of polysubstituted triphenylene 2,3-dicarboxylic esters with different substitution patterns was developed by enyne metathesis of diarylacetylene, followed by Diels–Alder, aromatization and a cyclization cascade
Steffensen type methods for solving nonlinear equations
[EN] In the present paper, by approximating the derivatives in the well known fourth-order Ostrowski's method and in a sixth-order improved Ostrowski's method by central-difference quotients, we obtain new modifications of these methods free from derivatives. We prove the important fact that the methods obtained preserve their convergence orders 4 and 6, respectively, without calculating any derivatives. Finally, numerical tests confirm the theoretical results and allow us to compare these variants with the corresponding methods that make use of derivatives and with the classical Newton's method. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.This research was supported by Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología MTM2010-18539Cordero Barbero, A.; Hueso Pagoaga, JL.; Martínez Molada, E.; Torregrosa Sánchez, JR. (2012). Steffensen type methods for solving nonlinear equations. Journal of Computational and Applied Mathematics. 236(12):3058-3064. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cam.2010.08.043S305830642361
A random quantum key distribution by using Bell states
We proposed a new scheme for quantum key distribution based on entanglement
swapping. By this protocol \QTR{em}{Alice} can securely share a random quantum
key with \QTR{em}{Bob}, without transporting any particle.Comment: Accepted by J. Opt. B: Quantum Semiclass. Op
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