Neogene evolution of the Aegean arc: paleomagnetic and geodetic evidence for a rapid and young rotation phase

New paleomagnetic data of the entire Aegean outer-arc are presented. The results indicate a young Pleistocene and rapid clockwise rotation phase in the western Aegean arc, covering at least Zakynthos and the Peloponessos. The eastern Aegean arc, incorporating Kassos, Karpathos and Rhodos, also experienced Pleistocene anticlockwise rotations. The anisotropies of the magnetic susceptibility (AMS) data are in agreement with arc-parallel extension in the south and south-eastern Aegean arc and arc-normal compression in the north-west, in agreement with structural and geodetic observations. We compare the paleomagnetic results with the present-day pattern of rotation as computed from geodetic data, and we find good agreement. The onset of the Pleistocene rotations coincides with the beginning of uplift and a change in the stress pattern of extension. We compare our findings with existing models for the Aegean area

New ultrahigh vacuum setup and advanced diagnostic techniques for studying a-Si:H film growth by radical beams

A new ultrahigh vacuum setup is presented which is designed for studying the surface science aspects of a-Si:H film growth using various advanced optical diagnostic techniques. The setup is equipped with plasma and radical sources which produce well-defined radicals beams such that the a-Si:H deposition process can be mimicked. In this paper the initial experiments with respect to deposition of a-Si:H using a hot wire source and etching of a-Si:H by atomic hydrogen are presented. These processes are monitored by real time spectroscopic ellipsometry and the etch yield of Si by atomic hydrogen is quantified to be 0.005±0.002 Si atoms per incoming H atom

Актуальні проблеми розвитку виноградства та виноробства

В статті розглянуто сучасні тенденції та проблеми розвитку виноградарства та виноробства України. Надано рекомендації щодо пріоритетних напрямків розвитку виноробних підприємств.The modern tendencies and development problems of Ukraine viticulture and winemaking industry are considered in the article. The regards priority areas recommendations of winemaking enterprises development are given

OLED Encapsulation by Room Temperature Plasma-Assisted ALD Al2O3 Films

Organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs, both small molecule and polymer LEDs) require excellent gas and moisture permeation barrier layers to increase their lifetime. The quality of the barrier layer is ultimately controlled by the presence of defects in the layer. Although a barrier layer may be intrinsically excellent (water vapor transmission rate, WVTR = 10-6 g·m-2·day-1) the protected device may fail in the presence of defects that lead to preferential diffusion pathways for H2O (e.g., defects caused by particles from the environment and/or production process). The state-of-the-art barrier coatings are micrometer-thick multi-layer structure, in which organic interlayers are alternated with inorganic barrier layers with the purpose of decoupling the above-mentioned defects. Recently, atomic layer deposition (ALD) has been successfully tested for the deposition of very thin (<50 nm) single layer permeation barriers on pristine polymer substrates [1,2], showing the potential of this highly uniform and conformal deposition technique in the field of moisture permeation barriers. In this contribution the encapsulation of OLEDs by plasma-assisted ALD of thin (20-40 nm) Al2O3 layers is addressed. The layers are synthesized at room temperature by sequentially exposing the substrate to Al(CH3)3 vapor and a remote inductively coupled O2 plasma in Oxford Instruments FlexALTM and OpALTM reactors. The intrinsic quality of the deposited ALD layers was determined by monitoring the oxidation of a Ca film encapsulated by the Al2O3 film: WVTR values as low as 2·10-6 g·m-2·day-1 have been measured. The potential of ALD layers in encapsulating OLEDs, and therefore in successfully covering the defects present on the device, has been investigated by means of electroluminescence measurements of polymer-LEDs (effective emitting area of 5.8 cm2). The black spot density and area growth were followed as a function of the time under standard conditions of 20°C and 50% relative humidity. Within a 500 h test ALD-encapsulated OLEDs show approximately half the black spot density compared to devices encapsulated by plasma deposited a-SiNx:H (300 nm thick). The black spot density is further reduced by combining the a-SiNx:H and ALD Al2O3 layers. These results point towards a very promising application of ALD Al2O3 layers in the field of OLED encapsulation and will be interpreted in terms of possible mechanisms related to film growth in multi-layer structures

Analysis of paleomagnetic data: a tribute to Hans Zijderveld. Introduction

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/43920/1/11288_2004_Article_147505.pd

Post-Eocene coupled oroclines in the Talesh (NW Iran): paleomagnetic constraints

The Talesh Mountains (NW Iran) witnessed a long deformation history from the Triassic Cimmerian orogeny to the ongoing Arabia-Eurasia collision. This protracted multi-stage deformation has generated a remarkably curved orogen with a puzzling kinematic and deformational history. In this study, we investigate the origin of the Talesh curvature through paleomagnetic analyses on rocks of Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic age. Our results indicate that at least two major, large-scale, vertical-axis-rotations took place since the Late Cretaceous: 1) a pre-Eocene 73° ± 17° clockwise rotation and 2) post-Eocene differential rotations that formed the Z-shaped mountain belt within a crustal-scale shear zone. The latter involved an increasing amount of clockwise (CW) rotation from south (16°) to north (48°). The orocline formation likely started during the Oligocene where an approximately east-west oriented mountain belt was buckled by the Arabia-Eurasia collision, with Arabia acting as a rigid indenter and the South Caspian basin as a rigid backstop. We hypothesise that the NE-SW oriented Aras and Lahijan fault zones, inherited from transform faults related to the Mesozoic opening of the Caspian-Black Sea back-arc, accommodated the coupled orocline formation

IgM Augments Complement Bactericidal Activity with Serum from a Patient with a Novel CD79a Mutation

Antibody replacement therapy for patients with antibody deficiencies contains only IgG. As a result, concurrent IgM and IgA deficiency present in a large proportion of antibody deficient patients persists. Especially patients with IgM deficiency remain at risk for recurrent infections of the gastrointestinal and respiratory tract. The lack of IgM in the current IgG replacement therapy is likely to contribute to the persistence of these mucosal infections because this antibody class is especially important for complement activation on the mucosal surface. We evaluated whether supplementation with IgM increased serum bactericidal capacity in vitro. Serum was collected from a patient with agammaglobulinemia and supplemented with purified serum IgM to normal levels. Antibody and complement deposition on the bacterial surface was determined by multi-color flow cytometry. Bacterial survival in serum was determined by colony-forming unit counts. We present a patient previously diagnosed with agammaglobulinemia due to CD79A (Igα) deficiency revealing a novel pathogenic insertion variant in the CD79a gene (NM_001783.3:c.353_354insT). Despite IgG replacement therapy and antibiotic prophylaxis, this patient developed a Campylobacter jejuni spondylodiscitis of lumbar vertebrae L4–L5. We found that serum IgM significantly contributes to complement activation on the bacterial surface of C. jejuni. Furthermore, supplementation of serum IgM augmented serum bactericidal activity significantly. In conclusion, supplementation of intravenous IgG replacement therapy with IgM may potentially offer greater protection against bacterial infections, also in the context of increasing antibiotic resistance

Тематика XV Мiжнародного з'їзду славiстiв (Мiнськ, Бiлорусь, 2013 р.)

The family Picornaviridae comprises of small, non-enveloped, positive-strand RNA viruses and contains many human and animal pathogens including enteroviruses (e.g. poliovirus, coxsackievirus, enterovirus 71 and rhinovirus), cardioviruses (e.g. encephalomyocarditis virus), hepatitis A virus and foot-and-mouth disease virus. Picornavirus infections activate a cytosolic RNA sensor, MDA5, which in turn, induces a type I interferon response, a crucial component of antiviral immunity. Moreover, picornaviruses activate the formation of stress granules (SGs), large aggregates of preassembled mRNPs (messenger ribonucleoprotein particles) to temporarily store these molecules upon cellular stress. Meanwhile, picornaviruses actively suppress these antiviral responses to ensure efficient replication. In this review we provide an overview of the induction and suppression of the MDA5-mediated IFN-α/β response and the cellular stress pathway by picornaviruses